Managing IP services over a PACS Packet Network

We have developed a system and network architecture to provide IP services in the Personal Access Communications System (PACS). IP datagrams are delivered to PACS users through the PACS packet-mode data service, achieving more efficient usage of wireless resources and supporting multimedia applications such as MBone audio and video. The architecture presented in this article augments the PACS voice network with IP routers and backbone links, called the PACS Packet Network (PPN), and is connected to the global Internet via gateways. Compared to the cellular digital packet data (CDPD) network, which employs its own network-layer mobility protocol and thus supports roaming within the CDPD network only, we have incorporated Mobile IP into the PACS handoff mechanism to further achieve global IP mobility. We have also developed native PACS multicast and a group management scheme to efficiently handle dynamic IP multicast and MBone connectivity. These features seamlessly integrate PACS into the global Internet and provide standard-conforming IP services with global mobility