Service-based network selection proposal for complex heterogeneous environments

In most parts of the world there are multiple ways to access a given network. Users can benefit from this plethora of access networks, as they are able to select the best possible connection at all times. However, current methods used to select the best network, mostly based on link quality, do not always guarantee that users will connect to the one best suited to their needs. Devices have different interfaces for accessing different type of technologies, which also means that the selection has to be made regardless of the type of networks the user has access to. In order to support this type of custom selection, networks need to advertise their capabilities prior to the connection process. Moreover, in addition to supporting multihoming, devices must be able to assign each applications flow towards the most suitable network. Ideally, this new connection process would be completely transparent for the user. In this paper, we present a solution to ensure that devices in this multi-access environment are able to maintain the best possible connection for each service at any given time and in any given location. This proposal allows providers to send information to devices regarding the services supported by each point of attachment to their network. This additional information helps devices select the most suitable network for each service. We define a service announcement mechanism to facilitate the advertisement of available services. This mechanism, associated with other existing protocols, enables this solution to be used with different types of access networks.