Method and apparatus for maintaining communications connections over a distributed wireless network

A first wireless transceiver station for servicing mobile wireless devices, comprising:

• a wireless transceiver for communicating with mobile wireless devices using a wireless communications protocol, wherein according to said wireless communications protocol, a wireless communications connection is established between two devices by providing device identifiers of the two devices, wireless communications thereafter including a device identifier of a destination device;
• and
• a control function which automatically monitors each of a plurality of active connections with respective mobile wireless devices, automatically determines, with respect to each said active connection, whether a different wireless transceiver station has a better wireless signal for communicating with the respective mobile wireless device than said first wireless transceiver station has for communicating with the respective mobile wireless device, and responsive to determining that a different wireless transceiver station has a better wireless signal, automatically passes the respective active connection from said first wireless transceiver station to the different wireless transceiver station having a better wireless signal, said different wireless transceiver station thereafter impersonating the said first wireless transceiver station having the active wireless connection to provide said communications service to the respective mobile wireless device via the respective active connection.

A distributed apparatus for servicing mobile wireless devices, comprising:

• a plurality of wireless transceiver stations coupled to a network and using a common wireless communications protocol for communicating with mobile wireless devices to support access to said network for said mobile wireless devices,
• wherein according to said common wireless communications protocol, a wireless communications connection is established between two devices by providing device identifiers of the two devices, wireless communications thereafter including a device identifier of a destination device;
• wherein each said wireless transceiver station includes a connection passing function which automatically determines, with respect to each of a plurality of active connections with respective mobile wireless devices, whether a different wireless transceiver station of said plurality of wireless transceiver stations has a better wireless signal for communicating with the respective mobile wireless device than the wireless transceiver station having the active connection has for communicating with the respective mobile wireless device, and responsive to determining that a different wireless transceiver station has a better wireless signal, automatically passes the respective active connection from the wireless transceiver station having the active connection to a different wireless transceiver station having a better wireless signal, said different wireless transceiver station thereafter impersonating the wireless transceiver station having the active wireless connection to provide said communications service to the respective mobile wireless device via the respective active connection.

A computer program product for operating a first wireless transceiver station which services mobile wireless devices, comprising:

• a plurality of processor-executable instructions recorded on a computer-readable media, wherein said instructions, when executed by at least one processor of at least one digital data device, cause the device to perform the steps of:
• establishing a connection between a mobile wireless device and a first wireless transceiver station according to a wireless communications protocol, said connection for providing a communications service to said mobile wireless device;
• automatically determining that a second wireless transceiver station has a better wireless signal for communicating with said mobile wireless device than said first wireless transceiver station has for communicating with said mobile wireless device;
• responsive to said automatically determining step, automatically passing said connection from said first wireless transceiver station to said second wireless transceiver station, said second wireless transceiver station thereafter impersonating said first wireless transceiver station to provide said communications service to said mobile wireless device via said connection.