Wireless communication system facilitating communications through local networks

Abstract

A wireless communication system (20) includes a base station (22) that is capable of communicating with a plurality of intermediate cells (24, 60). Each intermediate cell (24, 60) directly communicates with a plurality of end users (26, 64). Communications from an end user (26, 64) may be routed through the intermediate cell to a wireless network (30) associated with the base station (22) or directly to another intermediate cell in a disclosed example. The intermediate cells communicate with the base station on behalf of the end users such that the wireless network recognizes the intermediate cell as a single user and, in one example, assigns temporary listed directory numbers to each of the end users associated with each intermediate cell so that communications from each end user may be handled individually.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.