Vertical Handoff: Overview and Innovations

Abstract

In zones where wireless access networks of various type, coverage, technology and capacity are available, mobility has to deal with the user equipment’s ability to seamlessly switch between different links, even in the middle of an active session. The network has to continuously cope with the selection of a possible new channel for the mobile terminal, and the soundness of this decision has a tremendous impact on the overall performance of the network and quality of service. This survey presents vertical handover related background; research challenges a state-of-the-art proposal in this field.