Vertical Handover in Beyond Third Generation (B3G) Wireless Networks

Currently, there are several wireless networks deployed around the world. Examples include cellular networks, metropolitan area networks, wireless local area networks, and personal area networks. The combination of all these networks is usually called the Beyond 3G (B3G) wireless networks. New state-of-the-art mobile terminals will allow users to freely move and to switch connections among different access networks. This process named vertical handover imposes important technical challenges for the emerging B3G wireless networks. In this paper, first the vertical handover is classified and its difference with the traditional horizontal handover is explained. The authors' contributions to this research field with focus on the vertical handover decision process are mentioned together with a suitable survey of related work in this area.