Mobile relay communication system
A mobile relay system for supporting communications between a fixed station and mobile terminals comprising a plurality of mobile relay stations that are associated with each other and provided on a moving platform, wherein each of the plurality of mobile relay stations is capable of facilitating communications with mobile terminals within communication range and at least one of the plurality of mobile relay stations is further capable of facilitating communications with a fixed station within communication range of the at least one of the plurality of mobile relay stations.
1. A mobile relay system for supporting communications between a fixed station and mobile terminals comprising a plurality of mobile relay stations that are associated with each other and provided on a moving platform, wherein each of the plurality of mobile relay stations is capable of facilitating communications with mobile terminals within communication range of the plurality of mobile relay stations and at least one of the plurality of mobile relay stations is further capable of facilitating communications with a fixed station within communication range of the at least one of the plurality of mobile relay stations, and wherein at least one of the plurality of mobile relay stations is configured to identify a neighboring mobile relay station based on a neighborhood profile of a mobile terminal.
2. The mobile relay system of claim 1 wherein the fixed station is a fixed relay station.
3. The mobile relay system of claim 1 wherein the fixed station is a fixed base station.
4. The mobile relay system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of mobile relay stations are affixed to the moving platform and have a fixed relationship with respect to one another.
5. The mobile relay system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of mobile relay stations define a cluster, wherein each of the plurality of mobile relay stations has a wireless connection to the other mobile relay stations.
6. The mobile relay system of claim 5 wherein the cluster appears as a single relay station to the mobile terminals regardless of which of the plurality of mobile relay stations are serving the mobile terminals.
7. The mobile relay system of claim 5 wherein the cluster appears as a single relay station to the fixed station regardless of which of the plurality of mobile relay stations are communicating with the fixed station.
8. The mobile relay system of claim 5 wherein the cluster is handed off from the fixed station to a second fixed station as the moving platform moves from a first area supported by the fixed station to a second area supported by the second fixed station.
9. The mobile relay system of claim 8 wherein service for the mobile terminals is maintained by the cluster throughout the handoff.
10. The mobile relay system of claim 1 wherein certain of the plurality of mobile relay stations are adapted to communicate with each other to facilitate relaying communications between the fixed station and a mobile terminal via at least two of the plurality of mobile relay stations.
11. The mobile relay system of claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of mobile relay stations is adapted to communicate with the fixed station.
12. The mobile relay system of claim 1 wherein only certain of the plurality of mobile relay stations are adapted to communicate with the fixed station, and other ones of the plurality of mobile relay stations are adapted to communicate with at least one of the certain of the plurality of mobile relay stations to facilitate communications with the fixed station.
13. The mobile relay system of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of mobile relay stations is configured to not transmit a synchronization preamble.
14. The mobile relay system of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the mobile relay stations is further configured to transmit uplink alignment information to a mobile terminal.
15. The mobile relay system of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of mobile relay stations is configured to transmit a common synchronization preamble.
16. A method performed at a mobile relay station for supporting communications between a fixed station and mobile terminals comprising:
facilitating communications with mobile terminals within communication range of the mobile relay station;
facilitating communications with a fixed station within communication range of the mobile relay station; and
identifying a neighboring mobile relay station based on a neighborhood profile of a mobile terminal.
17. The method of claim 16 wherein the fixed station is a fixed relay station.
18. The method of claim 16 wherein the fixed station is a fixed base station.
19. The method of claim 16 wherein a plurality of mobile relay stations are affixed to a moving platform and have a fixed relationship with respect to one another.
20. The method of claim 16 wherein the mobile relay station is one of a plurality of mobile relay stations, the plurality of mobile relay stations defining a cluster, wherein each of the plurality of mobile relay stations of the cluster has a wireless connection to the other mobile relay stations in the cluster.
21. The method of claim 20 wherein the cluster appears as a single relay station to the mobile terminals regardless of which of the plurality of mobile relay stations are serving the mobile terminals.
22. The method of claim 20 wherein the cluster appears as a single relay station to the fixed station regardless of which of the plurality of mobile relay stations are communicating with the fixed station.
23. The method of claim 20 wherein the cluster is handed off from the fixed station to a second fixed station as a moving platform moves from a first area supported by the fixed station to a second area supported by the second fixed station.
24. The method of claim 23 wherein service for the mobile terminals is maintained by the cluster throughout the handoff.
25. The method of claim 16 further comprising communicating with another mobile relay station, and relaying communications between the fixed station and a mobile terminal via the mobile relay station and at least one other mobile relay station.
26. The method of claim 16 wherein the mobile relay station is adapted to communicate with the fixed station.
27. The method of claim 16 further comprising communicating with the fixed station, and communicating with at least one other mobile relay stations to facilitate communications with the fixed station.
28. The mobile relay system of claim 1 wherein identifying a neighboring mobile relay station comprises identifying a neighboring mobile relay station based on a frame preamble from one or more of a neighboring fixed station or a neighboring mobile relay station.
29. The method of claim 16 wherein identifying a neighboring mobile relay station comprises identifying a neighboring mobile relay station based on a frame preamble from the one or more of the neighboring fixed station or the neighboring mobile relay station.
30. A mobile relay system for supporting communications between a fixed station and mobile terminals comprising a plurality of mobile relay stations that are associated with each other and provided on a moving platform, wherein each of the plurality of mobile relay stations is capable of facilitating communications with mobile terminals within communication range of the plurality of mobile relay stations and at least one of the plurality of mobile relay stations is further capable of facilitating communications with a fixed station within communication range of the at least one of the plurality of mobile relay stations, and wherein at least one of the plurality of mobile relay stations is configured for identifying a neighboring mobile relay station based on a neighborhood profile of a mobile terminal.
31. The mobile relay system of claim 30 wherein the identifying a neighboring mobile relay station comprises monitoring a frame preamble of one or more of a neighboring fixed station or a neighboring mobile relay station.