Method and apparatus for performing idle handoff in a multiple access communication system

Abstract

In a mobile communication system having a first communication device for communicating with a plurality of second communication devices, a method for performing handoff within the mobile communication system includes transmitting from at least one of the second communication devices to the first communication device a handoff list of second communication devices to which the first communication device is permitted to handoff. A channel assignment message is transmitted from each of the second communications devices in the handoff list. The handoff list includes base stations controlled by a single controller that determines which of the second communication devices transmits the channel assignment message. The base stations on the handoff list have pilot signals and the energy levels of the pilot signals are measured by the first communication device. The measured energy levels are transmitted to the controller and compared by the controller to provide an energy level list of base stations according to the comparing. The energy level list is transmitted to the first communication device and the handoff is performed according to the energy level list.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.