Mobility Management in Beyond 3G-Environments

In this paper we consider Mobility Management (MM) in beyond 3-G environments, with a focus on wireless access networks, motivated by current trend towards integration of WiFi, GPRS, and UMTS metworks. The GPRS and UMTS networks provide countrywide network access, while the WiFi networks provide network access in local areas such as city centers and airports. As a result, mobile end-users can be always on-line and connected to the available network according to their preferences. For example, an end-user who wishes to be connected with high bandwidth could automatically select a WiFi network when available and fall back to GPRS when moving outside the hotspot area.