Granted Patent B2

US 7,644,171 · App. 11/252,995 · Granted Jan 5, 2010

Abstract

Claims (28)

1. A method of communicating Internet Protocol data over networks with a mobile device comprising a roamable hardware device that executes software of the type, defining an application layer, the method comprising:

(a) communicating said Internet Protocol data of a predetermined version IPvX between said mobile device and a further device, wherein said mobile device has an IPvX stack but no IPvY stack;

(b) communicating said Internet Protocol data of a predetermined version IPvY between another device and said further device, where X does not equal Y; and

(c) using functionality provided at least in part at said further device to bridge said mobile device communications with said another device including at least one of (a) encapsulating an IPvY application layer data stream in IPvX protocol formatting for communication with said mobile device so an IPvY application layer at the mobile device can interoperate with said communicated IPvY application layer data stream even though the mobile device has no IPvY stack, and (b) encapsulating an IPvX application layer data stream in IPvY protocol formatting for communication to said another device so an IPvX application layer at the said another device can interoperate with said communicated IPvX application layer data stream from the mobile device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein X=4 and Y=6.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said step (c) comprises proxying said mobile device communications.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said mobile device includes an application level proxy.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said mobile device includes an IPvX sockets interface and an IPvY sockets interface.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said further device also comprises a mobile device.

7. A system for communicating Internet Protocol data over a network comprising:

a mobile device that communicates said Internet Protocol data of a predetermined version IPvX with a bridging device;

a further device that communicates said Internet Protocol data of a predetermined version IPvY with said bridging device, where X does not equal Y; and

a facility within the bridging device that bridges said mobile device communications with said further device communications,

wherein said mobile device has no IPvY protocol stack and said further device has no IPvX protocol stack,

and said method further includes at least one of (a) encapsulating an IPvY application layer data stream in IPvX protocol formatting for communication to said mobile device so an IPvY application layer at the mobile device can interoperate with said IPvY application layer data stream communicated to said mobile device, and (b) encapsulating an IPvX application layer data stream in IPvY protocol formatting for communication to said further device so an IPvX application layer at the further device can interoperate with said communicated IPvX application layer data stream.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein said further device also comprises a mobile device.

9. The system of claim 7 wherein said bridging device comprises a proxy.

10. A method for communicating Internet Protocol data over a network, comprising:

providing an IPv4 application layer data stream;

providing an IPv6 application layer data stream;

establishing an encrypted Internet Protocol communications tunnel through said network between a roaming mobile device comprising a roamable hardware device that executes software defining an application layer, and a further computing device;

combining said IPv4 and IPv6 application layer data streams for encapsulation within and transmission through said encrypted tunnel;

maintaining continual secure communications of said encapsulated IPv4 and IPv6 application layer data streams between said roaming mobile device and said further computing device while said roaming mobile device roams between network access points;

receiving said encapsulated and transmitted IPv4 and IPv6 application layer data streams from said tunnel;

demultiplexing said received IPv4 and IPv6 application layer data streams;

providing said received IPv4 application layer data stream to an IPv4 application; and

providing said received IPv6 application layer data stream to an IPv6 application.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein a proxy establishes said encrypted tunnel.

Assignments (16)