An Efficient Handover Scheme Based on Fast Mobile IPv6

Handover of a call from wireless LAN (WLAN) to third generation cellular system and vice versa is one of the challenges faced by the integrated 3G-WLAN networks. Evolution of 3G networks into all IP networks has made mobile IPv6 an ideal choice to support this kind of handover. However if soft handover is not employed, the latency posed by mobile IPv6 makes it undesirable for providing seamless mobility. This paper presents handover between wireless LAN systems and third generation universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) networks using fast mobile IPv6 protocol with pre-authentication. The handover is optimized by link-layer triggers based on an efficient handover decision algorithm. Proposed handover scheme minimizes the power consumption of the mobile devices by reducing the duration for which the two interfaces of the device will be active.