Data communication systems exchange user data to provide various services like media streaming, audio/video conferencing, data messaging, and internet access. The data communication systems use several communication networks to transfer the user data. In particular, the data communication systems use wireless networks to provide mobile and/or convenient access to their data services. Exemplary wireless communication protocols include Long Term Evolution (LTE) and Wireless Fidelity (WIFI). In wireless networks, the LTE and WIFI protocols typically carry the user data in Internet Protocol (IP) packets.
To implement wireless access, User Equipment (UE) and network base stations exchange wireless signals that transport user data and network signaling. The base stations communicate with a core network over backhaul links. The core network includes various gateways, control systems, and user databases. The core network interacts with the UEs and the wireless base stations to deliver data services at the appropriate quality.
To extend the wireless access, wireless relays are deployed between the UEs and the wireless base stations. The wireless relays exchange the user data and network signaling between the UEs and the network base stations. The wireless relays also generate and consume their own network signaling. To optimize wireless relay operations, separate network cores for wireless relays are installed. Thus, the wireless relays serve the UEs which are served from a UE network core, but the wireless relays are served from a different relay network core.
Unfortunately, current multi-core data communication systems are neither efficient nor effective when using wireless relays. In particular, the interactions between the multiple network cores, the wireless relays, and the UEs is not adequate to support complex services like voice and video.