On the evolution of handoff management and network architecture in WiMAX

Mobility management is an essential element of wireless communications. It is the key to enabling always-on wireless connectivity to mobile users. With the advance of the next generation broadband wireless technologies and different network architecture evolution options, the capability to achieve fast and seamless handoff is a critical factor in evaluating the success of a new technology and the efficiency of the network architecture. This paper addresses the possible handoff solutions to new broadband wireless technologies such as WiMAX under different network architectures. The key handoff issues, challenges and architectural options faced in designing the WiMAX networks are discussed