Group data transmission for multi-link wireless communication devices

Abstract

The present disclosure provides systems, methods, and apparatus for wireless communications. An example wireless communication device broadcasts a first beacon frame on a first communication link of an access point (AP) multi-link device (MLD) (AP MLD) and broadcasts a second beacon frame on a second communication link of the AP MLD. The first beacon frame indicates the transmission of group data on the first communication link, and the second beacon frame indicates the transmission of group data on the second communication link. The wireless communication device concurrently transmits group data to one or more wireless stations (STAs) on the first and second communication links. Another example wireless communication device obtains one or more beacon frames indicating buffered group data for at least the wireless communication device in the AP MLD; selects one or more group communication links; and obtains group data on the one or more selected group communication links.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless networks and, more particularly, to group data transmission for multi-link wireless communication devices.

[0002] Related technical description

[0003] A wireless local area network (WLAN) can be formed by one or more access points (APs) that provide a shared wireless communication medium for use by multiple client devices, also known as stations (STAs). The fundamental building block of a WLAN that complies with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 family of standards is the Basic Service Set (BSS) managed by the AP. Each BSS is identified by a Basic Service Set Identifier (BSSID) announced by the AP. The AP periodically broadcasts beacon frames to enable any STA within the AP's wireless range to establish or maintain a communication link with the WLAN.

[0004] To improve data throughput, an AP may communicate with one or more STAs over multiple concurrent communication links. Each of these communication links may have various bandwidths, for example, by bonding several 20 MHz-wide channels together to form a 40 MHz-wide channel, an 80 MHz-wide channel, or a 160 MHz-wide channel. The AP may establish a BSS over any of these different communication links, and thus, it is desirable to improve communication between the AP and the one or more STAs over each of these communication links.

[0005] Overview

[0006] The systems, methods, and devices of the present disclosure each have several innovative aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible for the desirable attributes disclosed herein.

[0007] One innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented in a wireless communication device, such as an access point (AP) multi-link device (MLD) (AP MLD). In some implementations, the AP MLD may include a processing system and an interface. The interface may be configured to broadcast a first beacon frame on a first communication link at the beginning of a first beacon period. The first beacon frame may indicate the transmission of group data on the first communication link during the first beacon period, the broadcast of a second beacon frame on the second communication link at the beginning of the first beacon period, or both. In some instances, the second beacon frame may indicate the transmission of group data on the second communication link during the first beacon period. The AP MLD may transmit group data to one or more first wireless stations (STAs) and one or more second STAs concurrently on the first and second communication links.

[0008] In some implementations, the AP MLD includes at least a first AP and a second AP. The first AP may include a first interface configured to transmit group data over a first communication link. The second AP may include a second interface configured to transmit group data over a second communication link. In some instances, the first interface of the first AP may be further configured to transmit the group data using a first modulation and coding scheme (MCS), and the second interface of the second AP may be further configured to transmit the group data using a second MCS different from the first MCS.

[0009] In some other implementations, at least one of the first STAs is a legacy device configured to obtain group data via the first communication link, and at least one of the second STAs is an extremely high throughput (EHT) device configured to obtain group data via the first communication link, the second communication link, or both. In some instances, the at least one second STA is a single-radio EHT device configured to obtain group data exclusively via one of the first communication link or the second communication link. In some other instances, the at least one second STA is a multi-radio EHT device configured to concurrently obtain group data via the first and second communication links.

[0010] In some implementations, the processing system of the AP MLD is configured to select a single communication link from the first or second communication link for transmission of group data. The interface of the AP MLD may also be configured to transmit an instruction that causes at least some of the first or second STAs to obtain group data only on the selected communication link. In some examples, the selection is based on obtaining an indication of a preferred communication link from at least one of the first or second STAs. The indication may be included in a frame or in an information element of the frame.

[0011] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by an apparatus of an AP MLD and may include broadcasting a first beacon frame on a first communication link at the beginning of a first beacon period. The first beacon frame may indicate the transmission of group data on the first communication link during the first beacon period, broadcasting a second beacon frame on the second communication link at the beginning of the first beacon period, or both. In some aspects, the second beacon frame may indicate the transmission of group data on the second communication link during the first beacon period. The method may also include concurrently transmitting group data to one or more first STAs and one or more second STAs.

[0012] In some implementations, the method may further include selecting a single communication link from the first or second communication link for transmission of the group data. The method may further include transmitting an instruction to cause at least some of the first or second STAs to obtain the group data on the selected single link. In some examples, the AP MLD may select the communication link for transmitting the group data. In some other examples, one or more of the STAs may select the communication link (or at least indicate a preference for the communication link). This indication may be included in the frame or in an information element of the frame.

[0013] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure may be implemented in a wireless communication device. In some implementations, the wireless communication device may include a processing system and an interface. The interface may be configured to obtain one or more beacon frames from an AP MLD on at least one of a first communication link or a second communication link. The one or more beacon frames may include a DTIM indicating buffered group data. The processing system may be configured to select one or more group communication links for receiving group data. The group communication link may include at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link. The interface may be further configured to obtain group data from the AP MLD on the one or more selected group communication links.

[0014] In some implementations, the beacon frame may be received as a single beacon frame on a selected one of the first communication link or the second communication link. In some instances, the wireless communication device is a multi-radio extremely high throughput (EHT) device. In some other instances, the wireless communication device is a single-radio extremely high throughput (EHT) device. In some instances, the interface is further configured to remain on the selected communication link for the duration of the beacon interval.

[0015] In some other implementations, the one or more beacon frames may be received separately from each other on each of the first communication link and the second communication link. In some instances, the interface is further configured to obtain group data on a selected communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link. In some implementations, the interface is further configured to discard group data received on a non-selected communication link. In some other implementations, the interface is further configured to obtain unicast downlink data on the non-selected communication link.

[0016] In some implementations, the one or more group communication links include each of the first and second communication links. In some instances, the processing system is further configured to selectively combine portions of group data received on each of the first and second communication links. In some other implementations, the processing system is further configured to identify duplicate group data within the group data received on each of the first and second communication links. The interface is further configured to discard the identified duplicate group data. In some instances, the duplicate group data is identified in response to at least one of a transmitter address, a receiver address, or a sequence number of the group data.

[0017] In some implementations, the processing system is further configured to select a preferred communication link between the first communication link and the second communication link. The interface may be further configured to transmit an indication of the preferred communication link to the AP MLD in at least one of a frame or an information element. In some other implementations, the interface may be further configured to obtain an instruction to receive group data only on the selected communication link. The interface may also be further configured to obtain group data only on the selected communication link based on the instruction.

[0018] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method can be performed by an apparatus of a wireless communication device and can include obtaining one or more beacon frames from an AP MLD on at least one of a first communication link or a second communication link. The one or more beacon frames can include a DTIM indicating buffered group data for at least a STA. The method can include selecting one or more group communication links for receiving group data, the group communication links including at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link. The method can include obtaining group data from the AP MLD on the one or more selected group communication links.

[0019] In some implementations, the beacon frame may be received as a single beacon frame on a selected one of the first communication link or the second communication link. In some instances, the wireless communication device is a multi-radio EHT device. In some other instances, the wireless communication device is a single-radio EHT device. In some instances, the method further includes remaining on the selected communication link for the duration of the beacon interval.

[0020] In some other implementations, the one or more beacon frames may be received separately from each other on each of the first communication link and the second communication link. In some instances, the method further includes obtaining group data on a selected communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link. In some implementations, the method further includes discarding group data received on a non-selected communication link. In some other implementations, the method further includes obtaining unicast downlink data on the non-selected communication link.

[0021] In some implementations, the one or more group communication links include each of the first and second communication links. In some instances, the method may further include selectively combining portions of the group data received on each of the first and second communication links. In some other implementations, the method may further include identifying duplicate group data among the group data received on each of the first and second communication links. The method may further include discarding the identified duplicate group data. In some instances, the duplicate group data is identified in response to at least one of a transmitter address, a receiver address, or a sequence number of the group data.

[0022] In some implementations, the method may further include selecting a preferred communication link between the first communication link and the second communication link. The method may include transmitting an indication of the preferred communication link to the AP MLD in a frame or an information element of the frame. In some examples, the selection is based on obtaining an indication of the preferred communication link from at least one of the first or second STAs. The indication may be included in the frame or in an information element of the frame.

[0023] In some other implementations, the method may further include obtaining an instruction to receive the group data only on the selected communication link. The method may further include obtaining the group data only on the selected communication link based on the instruction.

[0024] Details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the following description. Other features, aspects, and advantages will become apparent from the description, drawings, and claims. It should be noted that the relative dimensions of the following drawings may not be drawn to scale. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an example wireless communication network is shown.

[0027] Figure 2 Example protocol data units (PDUs) that may be used for communications between an access point (AP) and several stations (STAs) are shown.

[0028] Figure 3 Shown Figure 2 Example fields in the PDU.

[0029] Figure 4 A block diagram of an example wireless communication device is shown.

[0030] Figure 5A A block diagram of an example AP is shown.

[0031] Figure 5B A block diagram of an example STA is shown.

[0032] Figure 6 A timing diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown.

[0033] Figure 7 A timing diagram depicting another example operation for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown.

[0034] Figure 8 A flow diagram illustrating example operations for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown.

[0035] Figure 9 A flow diagram illustrating another example operation for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown.

[0036] Figure 10 A flow diagram illustrating another example operation for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown.

[0037] Figure 11 A flow diagram illustrating another example operation for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown.

[0038] Figure 12 A flow diagram illustrating another example operation for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown.

[0039] Like reference numbers and designations in the various drawings indicate like elements.

[0040] Detailed description

[0041] The following description is directed to some specific implementations for the purpose of describing the innovative aspects of the present disclosure. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that the teachings herein can be applied in many different ways. The described implementations can be implemented in a manner that is capable of being implemented in accordance with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard, the IEEE 802.15 standard, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), or any other standard defined by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG). The described implementations may be implemented in any device, system, or network capable of transmitting and receiving radio frequency (RF) signals in accordance with one or more of the Long Term Evolution (LTE), 3G, 4G, or 5G (New Radio (NR)) standards promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). The described implementations may be implemented in any device, system, or network capable of transmitting and receiving RF signals in accordance with one or more of the following technologies or techniques: code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), single-user (SU) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), and multi-user (MU) MIMO. The described implementations may also be implemented using other wireless communication protocols or RF signals suitable for use in one or more of a wireless personal area network (WPAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless wide area network (WWAN), or an Internet of Things (IoT) network.

[0042] The AP periodically broadcasts beacon frames to enable any STA within the AP's wireless range to establish or maintain a communication link with the WLAN. STAs can wake up from sleep or low-power modes at periodic intervals, such as the Target Beacon Transmission Time (TBTT), to receive beacon frames. Beacon frames may include basic network information, discovery information, capabilities, and more. Some beacon frames include a Traffic Indication Map (TIM) element, which indicates the presence of queued downlink (DL) data for one or more of the STAs. Other beacon frames may include a Delivery Traffic Indication Map (DTIM), which indicates whether the AP has queued DL data scheduled for transmission to one or more of the STAs. In some instances, the DTIM may also indicate the group address of a STA group.

[0043] Various implementations generally relate to multi-link (ML) communication, and more particularly to a multi-link device (MLD) capable of concurrently communicating with multiple client devices using several different communication links. More specifically, aspects of the present disclosure may be used to increase throughput and reduce latency in wireless networks configured to operate according to the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication standards. Emerging versions of the IEEE 802.11 standard, including the 802.11be EHT amendment, may support ML communication. In some implementations, a multi-link association (MLA) context may be shared between different MLDs for multiple communication links (or "links"). In some implementations, an MLA context may be shared between MAC service access point (MAC-SAP) endpoints of MLDs, allowing MLDs to dynamically communicate on any link shared between the MLDs without having to disassociate or reassociate with each other. In this way, the MLA context may allow wireless communication devices associated with each other on one communication link to use the same association information, negotiation information, link information, security information, encryption keys, capabilities, ML communication parameters, and other parameters or configurations on other communication links of the MLD.

[0044] Each MLD may have a unique Media Access Control (MAC) address, also referred to as the MAC-SAP endpoint of the MLD. An example of an MLD is an AP MLD, which includes multiple APs, each capable of communicating over multiple communication links and establishing a BSS over the multiple communication links. Another example of an MLD is a STA MLD, which includes multiple STAs capable of communicating with other devices (such as AP MLDs) over multiple communication links. A STA MLD may have a Media Access Control Physical Layer (MAC-PHY) instance for each of the multiple communication links, and the MAC address of each MAC-PHY instance may be the same as or different from one another.

[0045] The AP MLD may include any suitable number of APs capable of operating on multiple communication links (such as one or more wireless channels in the 2.4 GHz spectrum, one or more wireless channels in the 5 GHz spectrum, or an unlicensed band in the 6 GHz spectrum). For example, the AP MLD may include a first AP associated with a first communication link and may include one or more second APs associated with one or more corresponding second communication links. In some instances, the first communication link may be referred to as a primary communication link, while the second communication link may be referred to as a secondary communication link. The AP MLD may increase throughput and reduce congestion on a shared wireless medium by concurrently communicating with multiple STAs using different communication links.

[0046] A STA can reduce power consumption and miss fewer beacon frames on a given communication link of an AP MLD by camping on the given communication link (e.g., instead of performing an off-channel scan operation to discover other communication links associated with the AP MLD). When a STA camps on a specific communication link of an AP MLD, the STA may not receive beacon frames transmitted on other communication links associated with the AP MLD. Therefore, when multiple STAs operate on different communication links of an AP MLD and are organized into the same group (e.g., for transmission of queued DL data), it may be difficult to indicate the group address and other grouping information to each STA belonging to the group.

[0047] In some implementations, a single communication link of an AP MLD may be selected for transmitting group data to a STA. In some instances, the AP MLD may select the communication link for group data transmission. In some other instances, one of the STAs may select the communication link for group data transmission. The AP MLD may indicate the selection of the communication link for group data transmission to the STA, for example, by transmitting a frame containing an indication of the selected communication link. In some aspects, the frame may also indicate that, for a specific time period after selecting the single communication link for group data transmission, a single radio (SR) STA will refrain from switching between the AP MLD's communication links. The time period may be any suitable duration, including, but not limited to, a beacon interval, a portion of a beacon interval, or the remainder of any beacon interval during which group data was received. In some other implementations, the AP MLD may concurrently transmit group data to different STAs over multiple communication links. In some aspects, a multi-radio (MR) STA may obtain group data over one of the communication links while discarding any group data received over the other communication links. In some other aspects, a MR STA may concurrently obtain group data over multiple communication links.

[0048] Specific implementations of the subject matter described in this disclosure may be implemented to achieve one or more of the following potential advantages. When transmitting group data over multiple communication links, the AP MLD may allow respective STAs in a STA group to concurrently obtain group data over the multiple communication links associated with the AP MLD, regardless of the respective STAs' operating channels or ML capabilities. In some implementations, an SR STA may determine the best available communication link associated with the AP MLD and may obtain group data over each of the multiple communication links while discarding duplicate group data. Conversely, when transmitting group data over a single communication link of the AP MLD, the AP MLD may free up one or more other communication links of the AP MLD for other users, other traffic types, or other traffic priorities. In some instances, the selection of a communication link for transmitting group data may be based at least in part on channel conditions. In some other instances, a user may select the communication link for group data transmission.

[0049] Figure 1 A block diagram of an example wireless communication network 100 is shown. According to some aspects, the example wireless communication network 100 may be an example of a wireless local area network (WLAN), such as a Wi-Fi network (and will be referred to as WLAN 100 hereinafter). For example, the WLAN 100 may be a network that implements at least one of the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication protocol standards, such as those defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its revisions, including but not limited to 802.11ah, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, and 802.11be. The WLAN 100 may include numerous wireless communication devices, such as an access point (AP) 102 and a plurality of stations (STAs) 104. Although only one AP 102 is shown, the example wireless communication network 100 may also include multiple APs 102.

[0050] Each STA 104 may also be referred to as a mobile station (MS), a mobile device, a mobile handset, a wireless handset, an access terminal (AT), a user equipment (UE), a subscriber station (SS), or a subscriber unit, among other possibilities. STA 104 may represent a variety of devices, such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), other handheld devices, netbooks, notebook computers, tablet computers, laptops, display devices (e.g., TVs, computer monitors, navigation systems, etc.), music or other audio or stereo equipment, remote control devices ("remote controls"), printers, kitchen or other home appliances, key fobs (e.g., for passive keyless entry and start (PKES) systems), and the like.

[0051] A single AP 102 and the associated set of STAs 104 may be referred to as a basic service set (BSS), which is managed by the respective AP 102 . Figure 1 Additionally shown is an example coverage area 108 of the AP 102, which may represent a basic service area (BSA) of the WLAN 100. A BSS may be identified to users by a service set identifier (SSID) and may also be identified to other devices by a basic service set identifier (BSSID), which may be the media access control (MAC) address of the AP 102. The AP 102 periodically broadcasts a beacon frame ("beacon") including the BSSID to enable any STA 104 within wireless range of the AP 102 to "associate" or reassociate with the AP 102 to establish or maintain a corresponding communication link 106 (hereinafter also referred to as a "Wi-Fi link") with the AP 102. For example, the beacon may include an identification of a primary channel used by the corresponding AP 102 and a timing synchronization function for establishing or maintaining timing synchronization with the AP 102. The AP 102 may provide various STAs 104 in the WLAN with access to external networks via corresponding communication links 106 .

[0052] To establish a communication link 106 with the AP 102, each STA 104 is configured to perform passive or active scanning operations ("scans") on frequency channels in one or more frequency bands (eg, 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz, or 60 GHz bands). To perform a passive scan, a STA 104 listens for beacons transmitted by a corresponding AP 102 at periodic time intervals, referred to as target beacon transmission times (TBTTs), measured in time units (TUs), where one TU may be equal to 1024 microseconds (μs). To perform an active scan, a STA 104 generates probe requests and sequentially transmits these probe requests on each channel to be scanned, and listens for probe responses from the AP 102. Each STA 104 may be configured to identify or select an AP 102 with which to associate based on the scan information obtained through passive or active scanning, and to perform authentication and association operations to establish a communication link 106 with the selected AP 102. The AP 102 assigns an association identifier (AID) to the STA 104 at the end of the association operation, and the AP 102 uses the AID to track the STA 104.

[0053] As wireless networks become increasingly common, a STA 104 may have the opportunity to select one of many BSSs within its range or multiple APs 102 that together form an extended service set (ESS) (including multiple connected BSSs). Extended network stations associated with a WLAN 100 may be connected to a wired or wireless distribution system that allows multiple APs 102 to connect in such an ESS. In this way, a STA 104 may be covered by more than one AP 102 and may associate with different APs 102 at different times for different transmissions. Additionally, after associating with an AP 102, the STA 104 may be configured to periodically scan its surroundings to find a more suitable AP 102 with which to associate. For example, a STA 104 that is moving relative to its associated AP 102 may perform a "roaming" scan to find another AP 102 with more desirable network characteristics, such as a greater received signal strength indicator (RSSI) or reduced traffic load.

[0054] In some cases, STAs 104 may form a network without an AP 102 or other equipment other than the STAs 104 themselves. An example of such a network is an ad hoc network (or wireless ad hoc network). An ad hoc network may alternatively be referred to as a mesh network or a peer-to-peer (P2P) network. In some cases, an ad hoc network may be implemented within a larger wireless network, such as WLAN 100. In such an implementation, while STAs 104 may be able to communicate with each other via AP 102 using communication link 106, STAs 104 may also communicate directly with each other via direct wireless link 110. In addition, two STAs 104 may communicate via a direct communication link, regardless of whether they are associated with and served by the same AP 102. In such an ad hoc system, one or more STAs 104 may assume the role played by AP 102 in a BSS. Such STAs 104 may be referred to as group owners (GOs) and may coordinate transmissions within the ad hoc network. Examples of direct wireless link 110 include a Wi-Fi Direct connection, a connection established by using a Wi-Fi Tunneled Direct Link Setup (TDLS) link, and other P2P group connections.

[0055] The AP 102 and the STA 104 may function and communicate (via corresponding communication links 106) in accordance with the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication protocol standards, such as those defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its amendments, including but not limited to 802.11ah, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, and 802.11be. These standards define WLAN radio and baseband protocols for the PHY and media access control (MAC) layers. The AP 102 and the STA 104 transmit and receive wireless communications (hereinafter also referred to as "Wi-Fi communications") to and from each other in the form of physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data units (PPDUs). The AP 102 and STA 104 in the WLAN 100 can transmit PPDUs on an unlicensed spectrum, which can be a portion of the spectrum that includes frequency bands traditionally used by Wi-Fi technology, such as the 2.4 GHz band, the 5 GHz band, the 60 GHz band, the 3.6 GHz band, and the 900 MHz band. Some implementations of the AP 102 and STA 104 described herein can also communicate in other frequency bands, such as the 6 GHz band, that can support both licensed and unlicensed communications. The AP 102 and STA 104 can also be configured to communicate in other frequency bands, such as shared licensed bands, where multiple operators may have licenses to operate in one or more of the same or overlapping frequency bands.

[0056] Each frequency band can include multiple sub-bands or frequency channels. For example, PPDUs compliant with the IEEE 802.11n, 802.11ac, and 802.11ax standard amendments can be transmitted in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency bands, where each frequency band is divided into multiple 20 MHz channels. Thus, these PPDUs are transmitted on physical channels with a minimum bandwidth of 20 MHz, but larger channels can be formed through channel bonding. For example, a PPDU can be transmitted on a physical channel with a bandwidth of 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz, or 320 MHz by bonding multiple 20 MHz channels together.

[0057] Each PPDU is a composite structure that includes a PHY preamble and a payload in the form of a PLCP service data unit (PSDU). The information provided in the preamble can be used by the receiving device to decode subsequent data in the PSDU. In instances where the PPDU is transmitted over a bonded channel, the preamble field can be replicated and transmitted in each of the multiple component channels. The PHY preamble may include both a legacy portion (or "legacy preamble") and a non-legacy portion (or "non-legacy preamble"). The legacy preamble can be used for packet detection, automatic gain control, and channel estimation, among other purposes. The legacy preamble can also generally be used to maintain compatibility with legacy devices. The format, decoding, and information provided therein of the non-legacy portion of the preamble are based on the specific IEEE 802.11 protocol to be used to transmit the payload.

[0058] Figure 2 An example protocol data unit (PDU) 200 is shown that can be used for wireless communication between an AP and a number of STAs. For example, the PDU 200 can be configured as a PPDU. As shown, the example PDU 200 includes a PHY preamble 202 and a PHY payload 204. For example, the preamble 202 can include a legacy portion, which itself includes a legacy short training field (L-STF) 206, which can be composed of two binary phase shift keying (BPSK) symbols, a legacy long training field (L-LTF) 208, which can be composed of two BPSK symbols, and a legacy signal field (L-SIG) 210, which can be composed of two BPSK symbols. The legacy portion of the preamble 202 can be configured according to the IEEE 802.11a wireless communication protocol standard. The preamble 202 may also include a non-legacy portion including, for example, one or more non-legacy fields 212 that comply with an IEEE wireless communication protocol, such as IEEE 802.11ac, 802.11ax, 802.11be, or a later wireless communication protocol standard.

[0059] The L-STF 206 generally enables the receiving device to perform automatic gain control (AGC) and coarse timing and frequency estimation. The L-LTF 208 generally enables the receiving device to perform fine timing and frequency estimation, and can also estimate the wireless channel. The L-SIG 210 generally enables the receiving device to determine the duration of the PDU and use the determined duration to avoid transmitting over the PDU. For example, the L-STF 206, L-LTF 208, and L-SIG 210 can be modulated according to a BPSK modulation scheme. The payload 204 can be modulated according to a BPSK modulation scheme, a quadrature BPSK (Q-BPSK) modulation scheme, a quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) scheme, or another appropriate modulation scheme. The payload 204 generally can carry higher layer data (e.g., in the form of a media access control (MAC) protocol data unit (MPDU) or an aggregated MPDU (A-MPDU)).

[0060] Figure 3 Shown Figure 2 2. Example L-SIG 310 in PDU 200. L-SIG 310 includes a data rate field 322, reserved bits 324, a length field 326, parity bits 328, and a tail field 330. Data rate field 322 indicates the data rate (note that the data rate indicated in data rate field 322 may not be the actual data rate of the data carried in payload 304). Length field 326 indicates the packet length, for example, in symbols or bytes. Parity bits 328 can be used to detect bit errors. Tail field 330 includes tail bits, which can be used by a receiving device to terminate the operation of a decoder (e.g., a Viterbi decoder). The receiving device can use the data rate and length indicated in data rate field 322 and length field 326 to determine the packet duration, for example, in microseconds (μs) or other time units.

[0061] Access to the shared wireless medium is typically governed by a distributed coordination function (DCF). With DCF, there is generally no centralized master device that allocates the time and frequency resources of the shared wireless medium. Instead, a wireless communication device (such as AP 102 or STA 104) must wait for a specific time and contend for access to the wireless medium before being allowed to transmit data. In some implementations, the wireless communication device may be configured to implement DCF using carrier sense multiple access (CSMA) with collision avoidance (CA) (CSMA / CA) technology and timed intervals. Before transmitting data, the wireless communication device may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) and determine if an appropriate wireless channel is idle. CCA includes physical (PHY-level) carrier sensing and virtual (MAC-level) carrier sensing. Physical carrier sensing (or packet detection (PD)) is accomplished by measuring the received signal strength of a valid frame, which is compared to a value to determine whether the channel is busy. For example, if the received signal strength of the detected preamble is above the value, the medium is considered busy. Physical carrier sensing also includes energy detection (ED). Energy detection involves measuring the total energy received by the wireless communication device, regardless of whether the received signal represents a valid frame. If the detected total energy is above a certain value, the medium is considered busy. Virtual carrier sensing is accomplished through the use of a network allocation vector (NAV), which is an indicator of when the medium may next become idle. The NAV is reset each time a valid frame not addressed to the wireless communication device is received. The NAV effectively serves as a time duration that must elapse before the wireless communication device can contend for access, even if no symbols are detected or even if the detected energy is below this value.

[0062] As described above, DCF is implemented by using time intervals. These time intervals include slot time (or "slot interval") and interframe space (IFS). Slot time is the basic timing unit and can be determined based on one or more of transmit-receive turnaround time, channel sense time, propagation delay, and MAC processing time. Measurements of channel sense are performed for each slot. All transmissions can start at slot boundaries. Example variants of IFS include short IFS (SIFS), distributed IFS (DIFS), extended IFS (EIFS), or arbitration IFS (AIFS). For example, DIFS can be defined as the sum of SIFS and twice the slot time. The values of the slot time and IFS may be provided by a suitable standard specification, such as one of the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication protocol standards (such as the standards defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its amendments, including but not limited to 802.11ah, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, and 802.11be).

[0063] When the NAV reaches 0, the wireless communication device performs physical carrier sensing. If the channel remains idle for an appropriate IFS (e.g., DIFS), the wireless communication device initiates a backoff timer, which indicates the duration of time the device must sense the medium as idle before the device is allowed to transmit. The backoff timer decrements by one slot each time the medium is sensed as idle during the corresponding slot interval. If the channel remains idle until the backoff timer expires, the wireless communication device becomes the owner (or "owner") of the transmission opportunity (TXOP) and can begin transmitting. A TXOP is the duration of time the wireless communication device can transmit frames on the channel after it has won contention for the wireless medium. On the other hand, if one or more carrier sensing mechanisms indicate that the channel is busy, the MAC controller within the wireless communication device will not permit transmission.

[0064] Each time a wireless communication device generates a new PPDU for transmission in a new TXOP, it randomly selects a new backoff timer duration. The available distribution of numbers that can be randomly selected for the backoff timer is called the contention window (CW). When the backoff timer expires, if the wireless communication device transmits a PPDU but the medium is still busy, a collision may exist. Additionally, if there is too much energy on the wireless channel, resulting in a poor signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), the communication may be corrupted or otherwise not be successfully received. In such instances, the wireless communication device may not receive a communication acknowledging the transmitted PDU within the timeout interval. The MAC may exponentially increase the CW (e.g., double it) and randomly select a new backoff timer duration from the CW before each attempted retransmission of the PPDU. Before each attempted retransmission, the wireless communication device may wait for a duration of DIFS and, if the medium remains idle, proceed to initiating a new backoff timer. There are different CW and TXOP durations for each of the four access categories (AC): Voice (AC_VO), Video (AC_VI), Background (AC_BK), and Best Effort (AC_BE). This enables prioritization of specific types of traffic in the network.

[0065] As described above, the AP 102 and the STAs 104 may support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (e.g., multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from the AP 102 to the corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (e.g., multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from the corresponding STAs 104 to the AP 102). To support MU transmissions, the AP 102 and the STAs 104 may utilize multi-user multiple-input multiple-output (MU-MIMO) and multi-user orthogonal frequency division multiple access (MU-OFDMA) techniques.

[0066] In the MU-OFDMA scheme, the available spectrum of a wireless channel can be divided into multiple resource units (RUs), each of which includes a number of different frequency subcarriers ("tones"). Different RUs can be allocated or assigned to different STAs 104 by the AP 102 at a specific time. The size and distribution of the RUs can be referred to as RU allocation. In some implementations, RUs can be allocated in 2 MHz intervals, and thus, the smallest RU can include 26 tones including 24 data tones and 2 pilot tones. Thus, in a 20 MHz channel, up to 9 RUs (such as 2 MHz, 26-tone RUs) can be allocated (because some tones are reserved for other purposes). Similarly, in a 160 MHz channel, up to 74 RUs can be allocated. Larger 52-tone, 106-tone, 242-tone, 484-tone, and 996-tone RUs can also be allocated. Adjacent RUs may be separated by a null subcarrier, such as a DC subcarrier, for example, to reduce interference between adjacent RUs, reduce receiver DC offset, and avoid transmit center frequency leakage.

[0067] For UL MU transmissions, the AP 102 may transmit a trigger frame to initiate and synchronize UL MU-OFDMA or UL MU-MIMO transmissions from multiple STAs 104 to the AP 102. Such a trigger frame may thereby enable multiple STAs 104 to send UL traffic concurrently in time to the AP 102. The trigger frame may address one or more STAs 104 by corresponding association identifiers (AIDs) and may assign one or more RUs to each AID (and thus each STA 104) that may be used to transmit UL traffic to the AP 102. The AP may also specify one or more random access (RA) RUs that unscheduled STAs 104 may contend for.

[0068] Figure 4 4 shows a block diagram of an example wireless communication device 400. In some implementations, the wireless communication device 400 may be a STA (such as the one described above with reference to FIG. Figure 1In some implementations, the wireless communication device 400 may be an example of a device in an AP (such as one of the STAs 104 described above). Figure 1 The wireless communication device 400 is an example of a device in the described AP 102. The wireless communication device 400 is capable of transmitting (or outputting for transmission) and receiving wireless communications (e.g., in the form of wireless packets). For example, the wireless communication device can be configured to transmit and receive packets in the form of physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data units (PPDUs) and media access control (MAC) protocol data units (MPDUs) that comply with the IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standards (such as those defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its amendments, including but not limited to 802.11ah, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, and 802.11be).

[0069] The wireless communication device 400 may be or may include a chip, system-on-chip (SoC), chipset, package, or device that includes one or more modems 402 (e.g., Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11 compliant) modems). In some implementations, the one or more modems 402 (collectively, “modems 402”) additionally include a WWAN modem (e.g., a 3GPP 4G LTE or 5G compatible modem). In some implementations, the wireless communication device 400 also includes one or more radios 404 (collectively, “radios 404”). In some implementations, the wireless communication device 406 further includes one or more processors, processing blocks, or processing elements 406 (collectively, “processors 406”) and one or more memory blocks or elements 408 (collectively, “memory 408”).

[0070] The modem 402 may include an intelligent hardware block or device (e.g., such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)). The modem 402 is generally configured to implement the PHY layer. For example, the modem 402 is configured to modulate packets and output the modulated packets to the radio 404 for transmission on the wireless medium. Similarly, the modem 402 is configured to obtain modulated packets received by the radio 404 and demodulate the packets to provide demodulated packets. In addition to the modulator and demodulator, the modem 402 may further include digital signal processing (DSP) circuitry, automatic gain control (AGC), an encoder, a decoder, a multiplexer, and a demultiplexer. For example, when in transmit mode, data obtained from the processor 406 is provided to a decoder, which encodes the data to provide coded bits. The coded bits are mapped to points in the modulation constellation (using the selected MCS) to provide modulated symbols. The modulated symbols may be mapped to a number (N SS ) spatial streams or several (N STS ) space-time streams. The modulated symbols in the corresponding spatial streams or space-time streams can be multiplexed, transformed via an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) block, and then provided to the DSP circuitry for Tx windowing and filtering. The digital signal can be provided to a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). The resulting analog signal can be provided to an upconverter and ultimately provided to the radio 404. In implementations involving beamforming, the modulated symbols in the corresponding spatial streams are precoded via a steering matrix before being provided to the IFFT block.

[0071] When in receive mode, a digital signal received from radio 404 is provided to a DSP circuit system configured to acquire the received signal, for example, by detecting the presence of a signal and estimating initial timing and frequency offset. The DSP circuit system is further configured to digitally condition the digital signal, for example, using channel (narrowband) filtering, analog impairment conditioning (such as correcting I / Q imbalance), and applying digital gain to ultimately obtain a narrowband signal. The output of the DSP circuit system can be fed to an AGC, which is configured to use information extracted from the digital signal (e.g., in one or more received training fields) to determine an appropriate gain. The output of the DSP circuit system is also coupled to a demodulator, which is configured to extract modulated symbols from the signal and, for example, calculate a log-likelihood ratio (LLR) for each bit position of each subcarrier in each spatial stream. The demodulator is coupled to a decoder, which can be configured to process the LLRs to provide decoded bits. The decoded bits from all spatial streams are fed to a demultiplexer for demultiplexing. The demultiplexed bits may be descrambled and provided to the MAC layer (processor 406) for processing, evaluation, or interpretation.

[0072] The radio 404 generally includes at least one radio frequency (RF) transmitter (or "transmitter chain") and at least one RF receiver (or "receiver chain"), which can be combined into one or more transceivers. For example, the RF transmitter and receiver may include various DSP circuitry, including at least one power amplifier (PA) and at least one low noise amplifier (LNA), respectively. The RF transmitter and receiver may, in turn, be coupled to one or more antennas. For example, in some implementations, the wireless communication device 400 may include or be coupled to multiple transmit antennas (each with a corresponding transmit chain) and multiple receive antennas (each with a corresponding receive chain). The symbols output from the modem 402 are provided to the radio 404, which transmits the symbols via the coupled antennas. Similarly, the symbols received via the antennas are obtained by the radio 404, which provides the symbols to the modem 402.

[0073] The processor 406 may comprise an intelligent hardware block or device designed to perform the functions described herein, such as, for example, a processing core, a processing block, a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD) (such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. The processor 406 processes information received via the radio 404 and the modem 402, and processes information to be output by the modem 402 and the radio 404 for transmission over the wireless medium. For example, the processor 406 may implement the control plane and MAC layer, which are configured to perform various operations related to the generation and transmission of MPDUs, frames, or packets. The MAC layer is configured to perform or facilitate frame coding and decoding, spatial multiplexing, space-time block coding (STBC), beamforming, and OFDMA resource allocation, among other operations or techniques. In some implementations, the processor 406 may generally control the modem 402 to cause the modem to perform the various operations described above.

[0074] The memory 408 may include tangible storage media such as random access memory (RAM) or read-only memory (ROM), or a combination thereof. The memory 408 may also store non-transitory processor or computer-executable software (SW) code containing instructions that, when executed by the processor 406, cause the processor to perform various operations for wireless communication described herein, including the generation, transmission, reception, and interpretation of MPDUs, frames, or packets. For example, the various functions of the various components disclosed herein or the various blocks or steps of the methods, operations, processes, or algorithms disclosed herein may be implemented as one or more modules of one or more computer programs.

[0075] Figure 5A1 shows a block diagram of an example AP 502. For example, the AP 502 may be a reference Figure 1 An example implementation of the AP 102 is described. The AP 502 includes a wireless communication device (WCD) 510. For example, the wireless communication device 510 may be a reference Figure 4 1 . An example implementation of the wireless communication device 400 is described. The AP 502 also includes multiple antennas 520 coupled to the wireless communication device 510 for transmitting and receiving wireless communications. In some implementations, the AP 502 additionally includes an application processor 530 coupled to the wireless communication device 510, and a memory 540 coupled to the application processor 530. The AP 502 further includes at least one external network interface 550 that enables the AP 502 to communicate with a core network or backhaul network to gain access to an external network, including the Internet. For example, the external network interface 550 may include one or both of a wired (e.g., Ethernet) network interface and a wireless network interface (such as a WWAN interface). Any of the aforementioned components may communicate directly or indirectly with the other components over at least one bus. The AP 502 further includes a housing that encloses the wireless communication device 510, the application processor 530, the memory 540, and at least a portion of the antennas 520 and the external network interface 550.

[0076] Figure 5B 5 shows a block diagram of an example STA 504. For example, STA 504 may be a reference Figure 1 STA 504 includes a wireless communication device 515. For example, the wireless communication device 515 may be a reference Figure 41. Example implementation of the wireless communication device 400 described herein. STA 504 also includes one or more antennas 525 coupled to the wireless communication device 515 for transmitting and receiving wireless communications. STA 504 additionally includes an application processor 535 coupled to the wireless communication device 515, and a memory 545 coupled to the application processor 535. In some implementations, STA 504 further includes a user interface (UI) 555 (such as a touch screen or keyboard) and a display 565, which can be integrated with the UI 555 to form a touch screen display. In some implementations, STA 504 can further include one or more sensors 575 (such as one or more inertial sensors, accelerometers, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, or altitude sensors, for example). Components of the aforementioned components can communicate directly or indirectly with other components of these components over at least one bus. STA 504 further includes a housing that encloses the wireless communication device 515, the application processor 535, the memory 545, and at least portions of the antenna 525, the UI 555, and the display 565. In some other implementations, the STA 504 may include a processing system and interfaces configured to perform the described functions.

[0077] Various aspects of the present disclosure provide improved communications for wireless devices configured to operate according to the IEEE 802.11 family of standards. Emerging versions of the IEEE 802.11 standard, including the 802.11be EHT amendment, may support multi-link (ML) communications. In some implementations, a multi-link association (MLA) context may be shared between different multi-link devices (MLDs) for multiple communication links (or "links"). In some implementations, an MLA context may be shared between MAC-SAP endpoints of an MLD, such that the MLDs may dynamically communicate on any link shared between the MLDs without having to disassociate or reassociate with each other. In this manner, the MLA context may allow wireless communication devices associated with each other on one communication link to use the same association information, negotiation information, link information, security information, encryption keys, capabilities, ML communication parameters, and other parameters or configurations on other communication links of the MLD.

[0078] For purposes of discussion herein, an MLD may also be referred to as a simultaneous transmit and receive (STR) device or ML device.In some implementations, the AP MLD and STA MLD described herein may operate in accordance with EHT communications defined in the IEEE 802.11be amendment.

[0079] An MLD with multiple antennas may be referred to as a multi-radio (MR) device. In some implementations, an MR device with n antennas may be capable of operating concurrently on n communication links. For the purposes of this discussion, an MLD may be "active" on a communication link if it is actively transmitting uplink (UL) data or actively receiving downlink (DL) data on that communication link. In some aspects, an MLD may be associated with any number of communication links at a given time, regardless of n. For example, an MR STA with three antennas may be able to concurrently communicate with an AP using the 2.4 GHz spectrum, the 5 GHz spectrum, and the 6 GHz spectrum. In some aspects, a 3-antenna MR STA may actively exchange signals with an AP MLD using the 2.4 GHz spectrum, the 5 GHz spectrum, and the 6 GHz spectrum. As another example, an MR STA with two antennas may be able to concurrently communicate with an AP using the 2.4 GHz spectrum, the 5 GHz spectrum, and the 6 GHz spectrum. In some aspects, a 2-antenna MR STA may actively exchange signals with an AP MLD using two of the 2.4 GHz spectrum, the 5 GHz spectrum, or the 6 GHz spectrum. An MLD with one antenna, which may be referred to as a single radio (SR) device, may not be able to communicate concurrently with an AP using multiple communication links.

[0080] For the purposes of this discussion, non-MLDs may be referred to as non-EHT devices or "legacy" devices. In some implementations, legacy devices may operate in accordance with high-throughput (HT), very high-throughput (VHT), or high-efficiency (HE) communications as defined in IEEE 802.11n, 802.11ac, and 802.11ax amendments. That is, legacy devices may not be able to operate on one communication link while concurrently operating on another communication link. In some implementations, legacy devices may not be able to associate with one or more communication links (such as 6 GHz channels).

[0081] Figure 6 A sequence diagram depicting example operations 600 for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown. In some implementations, the example operations 600 may be performed between an AP and one or more STAs, including but not limited to legacy STAs, single radio (SR) STAs, and multi-radio (MR) STAs. The AP may be any suitable AP, including, for example, Figure 1 AP102, Figure 4 5. In some implementations, the AP may be a multi-link device (MLD), such as an AP MLD. Each of the STAs may be any suitable STA, including, for example, Figure 1 STA 104 or Figure 4STA 400. In some instances, one or more of the STAs may be a STA MLD (or at least a portion of a STA MLD). The STA may receive group data on one or more communication links, as indicated by the dashed rectangle. In some implementations not shown, the AP MLD may include a first AP configured to transmit group data on Link 1 and a second AP configured to transmit group data on Link 2.

[0082] The AP MLD may operate on a first communication link ("Link 1") and a second communication link ("Link 2"). The AP MLD may broadcast beacon frames on Link 1 and Link 2 at the beginning of each beacon period (coinciding with the TBTT). Figure 6 Four example beacon periods are shown, bounded by TBTT1, TBTT2, TBTT3, and TBTT4, respectively. Figure 6 In the example of , the AP MLD broadcasts a first beacon frame ("Beacon 1") on Link 1 and a second beacon frame ("Beacon 2") on Link 2 during each beacon period. In some implementations, each beacon frame may include a Delivery Traffic Indication Map (DTIM) that indicates group data scheduled for transmission on the corresponding communication link. Figure 6 In the example shown in FIG, the AP MLD concurrently transmits group data on Link 1 and Link 2 during each beacon period. In some instances, the AP MLD may not have group data to transmit during each beacon period. In some aspects, the AP MLD may transmit group data on Link 1 using a first modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and may transmit group data on Link 2 using a second MCS. The first MCS may be different from the second MCS.

[0083] In some implementations, a legacy STA may be configured to communicate with the AP MLD via link 1, an SR STA may be configured to communicate with the AP MLD via link 1 or link 2 at any given time, and an MR STA may be configured to communicate with the AP MLD concurrently via link 1 and link 2. Figure 6 In the example shown in FIG, the legacy STA remains active on link 1 during each of the four beacon periods, as indicated by the logic "high" line extending horizontally from the legacy STA. In some implementations, the legacy STA may operate only on link 1, the MR STA may operate concurrently on link 1 and link 2, and the SR STA may dynamically switch between link 1 and link 2, as indicated by the logic "high" line and the logic "low" line, respectively.

[0084] At time t0, the AP MLD broadcasts Beacon 1 and Beacon 2 on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively. In some implementations, each of Beacon 1 and Beacon 2 may indicate buffered group data to be transmitted on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively, at time t1. In some implementations, the availability of group data may be indicated in the DTIM in each beacon frame. Because the MR STA can operate concurrently on Link 1 and Link 2, the MR STA may concurrently receive Beacon 1 and Beacon 2 on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively, at time t0. In some implementations, the SR STA may refrain from switching between communication links during any beacon interval in which group data is received. As shown, the first beacon period, or DTIM interval, begins at time t0 and ends at time t2.

[0085] At time t1, AP MLD concurrently transmits group data on Link 1 and Link 2. In some implementations, the group data may include one or more DL BUs. Also at time t1, legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs receive the group data transmitted on Link 1, and the MR STA receives the group data transmitted on Link 2. In some instances, the MR STA may receive duplicate group data. Thus, in some implementations, the MR STA may discard any duplicate group data received on Link 1 or Link 2.

[0086] The MR STA may identify duplicate group data based on matching at least one parameter of the group data received on link 1 with at least one parameter of the group data received on link 2. The at least one parameter may include one or more of the following: a transmitter address (TA), a receiver address (RA), or a sequence number (SN). For example, the MR STA may determine that one or more packets of group data received on link 1 are duplicates of one or more packets of group data received on link 2 based on receiving multiple packets with the same SN. In such an instance, the MR STA may discard the duplicate packets. In some implementations, identifying the duplicate group data may include determining the duplicate group data based on matching at least one parameter of the group data received on link 1 with at least one parameter of the group data received on link 2.

[0087] In some other implementations, an MR STA can identify lost group data from group data transmitted on one communication link and recover the lost group data based on group data transmitted on another communication link. For example, an MR STA can identify one or more missing SNs from group data received on link 1 and recover the lost group data based on portions of group data received on link 2 that match the one or more missing SNs. In this manner, an MR STA can selectively combine portions of group data received on each link. In some implementations, identifying lost group data can include determining the lost group data from the group data.

[0088] At time t2, the AP MLD broadcasts Beacon 1 and Beacon 2 on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively. In some implementations, each beacon frame may indicate buffered group data to be transmitted on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively, at time t4. The SR STA may switch to operating on Link 2 at time t2 to receive Beacon 2. For example, the SR STA may determine that at time t2, Link 2 provides better quality communication than Link 1. That is, the SR STA may determine the best available link between Link 1 and Link 2 for receiving group data and dynamically switch between Link 1 and Link 2 between beacon periods. In some aspects, the SR STA may determine that Link 1 or Link 2 has a higher received signal strength indicator (RSSI) or packet error rate (PER) than the other of Link 1 and Link 2, and therefore the link with the higher RSSI or PER is the best available link for receiving group data.

[0089] At time t3, AP MLD concurrently transmits group data on Link 1 and Link 2. Also at time t3, legacy STAs and MR STAs receive the group data transmitted on Link 1, and SR STAs and MR STAs receive the group data transmitted on Link 2. In some implementations, the MR STA may discard the duplicate group data. In other implementations, the MR STA may selectively combine the portions of group data received on each link.

[0090] At time t4, AP MLD broadcasts Beacon 1 and Beacon 2 on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively. In some implementations, the beacon frames transmitted at time t4 indicate buffered group data to be transmitted at time t5 on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively. Legacy STAs and MR STAs can remain on Link 1 at time t4 to receive Beacon 1.

[0091] At time t5, AP MLD concurrently transmits group data on link 1 and link 2. Also at time t5, legacy STAs and MR STAs receive group data transmitted on link 1, and SR STAs and MR STAs receive group data transmitted on link 2.

[0092] At time t6, AP MLD broadcasts Beacon 1 and Beacon 2 on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively. In some implementations, the beacon frames transmitted at time t6 may indicate the transmission of buffered group data on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively, at time t7. Legacy STAs and MR STAs may remain on Link 1 at time t6 to receive Beacon 1. SR STAs may switch back to operating on Link 1 at time t6. For example, the SR STA may determine that Link 1 provides better quality communication than Link 2 at time t6.

[0093] At time t7, AP MLD concurrently transmits group data on link 1 and link 2. Also at time t7, the legacy STA, SR STA, and MR STA receive the group data transmitted on link 1, and the MR STA receives the group data transmitted on link 2.

[0094] Figure 7 A sequence diagram depicting example operations 700 for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown. In some implementations, the example operations 700 may be performed between an AP and one or more STAs, including but not limited to legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs. Figure 7 APs, legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs can communicate with Figure 6 The AP, legacy STA, SR STA, and MR STA may be the same or similar. In some implementations, the AP may be an AP MLD. In some instances, one or more of the STAs may be a STA MLD (or at least a portion of a STA MLD).

[0095] In some implementations, a STA may receive group data on one communication link, as indicated by the dashed rectangle. The AP MLD may operate on a first communication link ("Link 1") and a second communication link ("Link 2"). The AP MLD may broadcast a beacon frame at the beginning of each beacon period (coinciding with the TBTT). Figure 7 Four example beacon periods are shown, bounded by TBTT1, TBTT2, TBTT3, and TBTT4, respectively. Figure 7 In the example of , AP MLD broadcasts a beacon frame ("beacon") exclusively on link 2 during each beacon period. In some implementations, each beacon frame may include a DTIM indicating group data scheduled for transmission on link 2. Figure 7In the example shown, AP MLD transmits group data exclusively on link 2 during the first, third, and fourth beacon periods. AP MLD refrains from transmitting group data on link 2 during the second beacon period. In some implementations not shown, AP MLD may broadcast beacons and / or schedule group data on a subset of links.

[0096] In some implementations, a legacy STA may be configured to communicate with the AP MLD via link 2, an SR STA may be configured to communicate with the AP MLD via link 1 or link 2 at any given time, and an MR STA may be configured to communicate with the AP MLD concurrently via link 1 and link 2. In some implementations not shown, when the SR STA is not operating on link 2, the SR STA may switch to operating on link 1, and the MR STA may switch to operating on link 1 even when operating on link 2.

[0097] At time t0, AP MLD broadcasts a beacon frame on link 2. The beacon frame may indicate buffered group data to be transmitted at time t1 on link 2. Also at time t0, legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs may receive the beacon frame on link 2.

[0098] At time t1, AP MLD transmits group data exclusively on link 2. Also at time t1, the legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs receive the group data transmitted on link 2.

[0099] At time t2, AP MLD broadcasts a beacon frame on link 2. Legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs can remain on link 2 at time t2 to receive beacon 2. Figure 7 In the example of , the beacon frame transmitted at time t2 may not indicate buffered group data to be transmitted on link 2 during the second beacon period, such as by not including a DTIM. Thus, one or more of the STAs may enter a sleep state for the remainder of the beacon period after receiving the beacon frame, e.g., to save power. Figure 7 In the example of , the SR STA and the MR STA enter the sleep state at time t3. In some other implementations not shown, the beacon frame transmitted at time t2 may indicate buffered group data to be transmitted on link 2 at time t3.

[0100] At time t4, AP MLD broadcasts a beacon frame on link 2. The beacon frame may include a group address and may indicate buffered group data to be transmitted at time t5 on link 2. Also at time t4, legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs may receive the beacon frame on link 2.

[0101] At time t5, AP MLD transmits group data exclusively on link 2. Also at time t5, the legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs receive the group data transmitted on link 2.

[0102] At time t6, AP MLD broadcasts a beacon frame on Link 2. In some implementations, the beacon frame transmitted at time t6 may include a group address and may indicate buffered group data to be transmitted at time t7 on Link 2. Legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs may remain on Link 2 at time t6 to receive Beacon 2.

[0103] At time t7, AP MLD transmits group data exclusively on link 2. Also at time t7, the legacy STAs, SR STAs, and MR STAs receive the group data transmitted on link 2.

[0104] Figure 8 A flow diagram illustrating example operations 800 for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown. In some implementations, the operations 800 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as or within an AP, such as Figure 1 AP 102 Figure 4 Wireless communication device 400 or Figure 5A In some embodiments, the operations 800 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as or within a network node.

[0105] For example, at block 810, the AP MLD broadcasts a first beacon frame on a first communication link at the beginning of a first beacon period, the first beacon frame indicating transmission of group data on the first communication link during the first beacon period. At block 820, the AP MLD broadcasts a second beacon frame on a second communication link at the beginning of the first beacon period, the second beacon frame indicating transmission of group data on the second communication link during the first beacon period. At block 830, the AP MLD concurrently transmits group data to one or more first wireless stations (STAs) and one or more second STAs on the first and second communication links.

[0106] In some implementations, the AP MLD may include a first access point including a first interface configured to transmit group data over a first communication link, and a second AP including a second interface configured to transmit group data over a second communication link. In some instances, the first interface of the first AP transmits the group data using a first modulation and coding scheme (MCS), and the second interface of the second AP transmits the group data using a second MCS different from the first MCS.

[0107] In some other implementations, at least one of the first STAs is a legacy device configured to obtain group data via the first communication link, and at least one of the second STAs is an extremely high throughput (EHT) device configured to obtain group data via the first communication link, the second communication link, or both. In some instances, the at least one second STA is a single-radio EHT device configured to obtain group data exclusively via one of the first communication link or the second communication link. In some other instances, the at least one second STA is a multi-radio EHT device configured to concurrently obtain group data via the first and second communication links.

[0108] In some implementations, the AP MLD selects a single communication link from the first or second communication link for receiving group data. The AP MLD transmits an instruction to at least some of the first or second STAs to obtain group data only on the selected communication link. In some examples, the selection of the communication link for transmitting group data can be based on a communication link preference indicated by at least one of the first or second STAs. This indication can be included in the frame or in an information element of the frame.

[0109] Figure 9 A flow diagram illustrating example operations 900 for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown. In some implementations, the operations 900 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as or within an AP, such as Figure 1 AP 102 Figure 4 Wireless communication device 400 or Figure 5A In some instances, the AP may be an AP MLD. In some other implementations, operations 900 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as a network node or within a network node. In some implementations, operations 900 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as a network node or within a network node. Figure 8 The block 830 begins before transmitting the group data.

[0110] For example, at block 910, the AP MLD selects a single communication link from the first or second communication link for receiving group data. At block 920, the AP MLD transmits an instruction for at least some of the first or second STAs to obtain group data only on the selected communication link. In some implementations, the selection of the communication link for transmitting group data may be based on a communication link preference indicated by one or more of the STAs. In some instances, the indication may be included in a frame or in an information element of the frame. In some implementations, selecting the single communication link may include determining a single communication link from the first or second communication link for receiving group data.

[0111] Figure 10A flow diagram illustrating example operations 1000 for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown. In some implementations, the operations 1000 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as or within a STA, such as a Figure 1 One of the STA104, Figure 4 Wireless communication device 400 or Figure 5B STA 504). In some instances, the AP may be an AP MLD. Additionally or alternatively, the STA may be part of a STA MLD. In some other implementations, operation 1000 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as a network node or operating within a network node. For example, in block 1010, the STA obtains one or more beacon frames from the AP MLD on at least one of a first communication link or a second communication link. The one or more beacon frames may include a delivery traffic indication map (DTIM) indicating whether the AP MLD has queued DL data for the STA group. In block 1020, the STA selects one or more group communication links for receiving group data, wherein the group communication link may include at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link. In block 1030, the STA obtains group data from the AP MLD on the one or more selected group communication links. In some implementations, selecting one or more group communication links may include determining one or more group communication links for receiving group data.

[0112] In some implementations, the one or more beacon frames may be obtained or received as a single beacon frame on a selected one of the first communication link or the second communication link. In some instances, the STA is a multi-radio extremely high throughput (EHT) device. In some other instances, the STA is a single-radio extremely high throughput (EHT) device. In some implementations, the STA remains on the selected communication link for the duration of a beacon interval associated with the single beacon frame.

[0113] In some other implementations, the one or more beacon frames may be transmitted separately from each other on each of the first communication link and the second communication link. In some implementations, the STA obtains group data on a selected communication link between the first communication link and the second communication link. In some instances, the STA discards group data received on a non-selected communication link. In some other instances, the STA obtains unicast downlink data on the non-selected communication link.

[0114] In some implementations, the one or more group communication links include each of the first and second communication links. In some instances, the STA selectively combines portions of group data received on each of the first and second communication links. In some other instances, the STA identifies duplicate group data among the group data received on each of the first and second communication links. In some aspects, the STA discards the identified duplicate group data. In some implementations, the duplicate group data may be identified based on at least one of a transmitter address, a receiver address, or a sequence number of the group data.

[0115] In some other implementations, the STA selects a preferred communication link between the first communication link and the second communication link. The STA transmits an indication of the preferred communication link to the AP MLD in at least one of a frame or an information element. In some implementations, the STA receives an instruction to receive group data only on the selected communication link and, based on the instruction, receives the group data on the selected communication link.

[0116] Figure 11 A flow diagram illustrating example operations 1100 for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown. In some implementations, the operations 1100 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as or within a STA, such as a Figure 1 One of the STA104, Figure 4 Wireless communication device 400 or Figure 5B In some other implementations, the operations 1100 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as a network node or within a network node. In some implementations, the process 1100 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as a network node or within a network node. Figure 10 The STA may select a preferred communication link from among the first communication link and the second communication link at block 1110. The STA may transmit an indication of the preferred communication link to the AP MLD in at least one of a frame or an information element at block 1120. In some implementations, selecting the preferred communication link may include determining the preferred communication link.

[0117] Figure 12 A flow diagram illustrating example operations 1200 for wireless communications supporting multi-link communications is shown. In some implementations, the operations 1200 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as or within a STA, such as a Figure 1 One of the STA104, Figure 4 Wireless communication device 400 or Figure 5B In some other implementations, the operations 1200 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as a network node or within a network node. In some implementations, the operations 1200 may be performed by a wireless communication device operating as a network node or within a network node. Figure 10The process begins before selecting one or more group communication links at block 1020. For example, at block 1210, the STA obtains an instruction to receive group data only on the selected communication links. At block 1220, the STA obtains group data only on the selected communication links based on the instruction.

[0118] Implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses.

[0119] 1. A wireless communication device, comprising:

[0120] processing systems; and

[0121] interface, which is configured as:

[0122] broadcasting a first beacon frame on the first communication link at a start of a first beacon period, the first beacon frame indicating transmission of group data on the first communication link during the first beacon period;

[0123] broadcasting a second beacon frame on the second communication link at the beginning of the first beacon period, the second beacon frame indicating transmission of group data on the second communication link during the first beacon period; and

[0124] Group data is transmitted concurrently over first and second communication links to one or more first wireless stations (STAs) and one or more second STAs.

[0125] 2. The wireless communication device of clause 1, wherein the wireless communication device is a multi-link device (MLD) comprising:

[0126] a first access point (AP) comprising a first interface configured to communicate group data over a first communication link; and

[0127] A second AP includes a second interface configured to communicate group data over a second communication link.

[0128] 3. A wireless communication device according to clause 2, wherein:

[0129] The first interface of the first AP is further configured to transmit the group data using a first modulation and coding scheme (MCS); and

[0130] The second interface of the second AP is further configured to transmit the group data using a second MCS different from the first MCS.

[0131] 4. A wireless communication device as in any one or more of clauses 1-3, wherein at least one of the first STAs is a legacy device configured to obtain group data via the first communication link, and at least one of the second STAs is an extremely high throughput (EHT) device configured to obtain group data via the first communication link, the second communication link, or both.

[0132] 5. The wireless communication device of clause 4, wherein the at least one second STA is a single radio EHT device configured to obtain group data exclusively via one of the first communication link or the second communication link.

[0133] 6. The wireless communication device of clause 4, wherein the at least one second STA is a multi-radio EHT device configured to concurrently obtain group data via the first and second communication links.

[0134] 7. A wireless communication device as recited in any one or more of clauses 1-6, wherein:

[0135] The processing system is configured to:

[0136] selecting a single communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link for receiving group data; and

[0137] The interface is further configured as follows:

[0138] An instruction is transmitted to at least some of the first or second STAs to receive group data only on the single communication link.

[0139] 8. The wireless communication device of clause 7, wherein the selecting is based on obtaining an indication of a preferred communication link from at least one of the first or second STA, wherein the indication is included in at least one of a frame or an information element.

[0140] 9. A method for wireless communication performed by an apparatus of a wireless communication device, the method comprising:

[0141] broadcasting a first beacon frame on the first communication link at a start of a first beacon period, the first beacon frame indicating transmission of group data on the first communication link during the first beacon period;

[0142] broadcasting a second beacon frame on the second communication link at the beginning of the first beacon period, the second beacon frame indicating transmission of group data on the second communication link during the first beacon period; and

[0143] Group data is transmitted concurrently over first and second communication links to one or more first wireless stations (STAs) and one or more second STAs.

[0144] 10. The method of clause 9, further comprising:

[0145] selecting a single communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link for receiving group data; and

[0146] An instruction is transmitted to at least some of the first or second STAs to receive group data only on the single communication link.

[0147] 11. The method of clause 10, wherein the selecting is based on obtaining an indication of a preferred communication link from at least one of the first or second STA, wherein the indication is included in at least one of a frame or an information element.

[0148] 12. A wireless communication device comprising:

[0149] interface, which is configured as:

[0150] obtaining one or more beacon frames from an access point (AP) on at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link, the one or more beacon frames including a delivery traffic indication map (DTIM) indicating buffered group data; and

[0151] A processing system configured to:

[0152] selecting one or more group communication links for receiving group data, wherein the group communication links include at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link; and

[0153] The interface is further configured as follows:

[0154] Group data is obtained from the AP over one or more selected group communication links.

[0155] 13. The wireless communication device of clause 12, wherein the one or more beacon frames are received as a single beacon frame on a selected one of the first communication link or the second communication link.

[0156] 14. The wireless communication device of any one or more of clauses 12-13, wherein the wireless communication device is a multi-radio Extreme High Throughput (EHT) device.

[0157] 15. The wireless communication device of clause 13, wherein the wireless communication device is a single radio extremely high throughput (EHT) device.

[0158] 16. The wireless communication device of clause 13, wherein the interface is further configured to:

[0159] Remaining on the selected communication link for the duration of a beacon interval associated with the single beacon frame.

[0160] 17. The wireless communication device of any one or more of clauses 12-16, wherein the one or more beacon frames are received independently on each of the first communication link and the second communication link.

[0161] 18. The wireless communication device of clause 17, wherein the interface is further configured to:

[0162] Group data is obtained on a selected communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link.

[0163] 19. The wireless communication device of clause 18, wherein the interface is further configured to:

[0164] Group data received on non-selected communication links is discarded.

[0165] 20. The wireless communication device of any one or more of clauses 18-19, wherein the interface is further configured to:

[0166] Unicast downlink data is obtained on the non-selected communication link.

[0167] 21. The wireless communication device of any one or more of clauses 17-20, wherein the one or more group communication links include each of the first and second communication links.

[0168] 22. The wireless communication device of clause 21, wherein the processing system is further configured to:

[0169] Portions of group data received on each of the first communication link and the second communication link are selectively combined.

[0170] 23. The wireless communication device of clause 21, wherein:

[0171] The processing system is further configured to:

[0172] identifying duplicate group data among the group data received on each of the first communication link and the second communication link; and

[0173] The interface is further configured as follows:

[0174] Discard the identified replication group data.

[0175] 24. The wireless communication device of clause 23, wherein the duplicate group data is identified responsive to at least one of a transmitter address, a recipient address, or a sequence number of the group data.

[0176] 25. The wireless communication device of any one or more of clauses 17-24, wherein the wireless communication device is a multi-radio Extremely High Throughput (EHT) device.

[0177] 26. A wireless communication device as defined in any one or more of clauses 12-25, wherein:

[0178] The processing system is further configured to:

[0179] selecting a preferred communication link among the first communication link or the second communication link; and

[0180] The interface is further configured as follows:

[0181] An indication of the preferred communication link is transmitted to the AP in at least one of a frame or an information element.

[0182] 27. The wireless communication device of any one or more of clauses 12-26, wherein the interface is further configured to:

[0183] obtaining an instruction to receive group data only on selected communication links; and

[0184] Based on the instruction, group data is obtained only on the selected communication links.

[0185] 28. A method for wireless communication performed by an apparatus of a wireless station (STA), the method comprising:

[0186] obtaining one or more beacon frames from an access point (AP) on at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link, the one or more beacon frames including a delivery traffic indication map (DTIM) indicating buffered group data for at least the STA;

[0187] selecting one or more group communication links for receiving group data, wherein the group communication links include at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link; and

[0188] Group data is obtained from the AP over one or more selected group communication links.

[0189] 29. The method of clause 28, further comprising:

[0190] selecting a preferred communication link among the first communication link or the second communication link; and

[0191] An indication of the preferred communication link is transmitted to the AP in at least one of a frame or an information element.

[0192] 30. The method of any one or more of clauses 28-29, further comprising:

[0193] obtaining an instruction to receive group data only on selected communication links; and

[0194] Based on the instruction, group data is obtained only on the selected communication links.

[0195] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one of" a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including individual members. As an example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to encompass: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, and abc. The term "determine" encompasses a wide variety of actions, and thus, "determine" may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, searching (such as via searching in a table, database, or other data structure), ascertaining, and similar actions. Additionally, "determine" may include receiving (such as receiving information), accessing (such as accessing data in a memory), and similar actions. Additionally, "determine" may include parsing, selecting, choosing, establishing, and other such similar actions.

[0196] The various illustrative logics, logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithmic processes described in conjunction with the implementations disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. This interchangeability of hardware and software has been generally described in terms of their functionality and illustrated in the various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and processes described above. Whether such functionality is implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0197] The hardware and data processing apparatus for implementing the various illustrative logics, logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or executed using a general-purpose single-chip or multi-chip processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device designed to perform the functions described herein, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. In some implementations, specific processes and methods may be performed by circuitry dedicated to a given function.

[0198] In one or more aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, digital electronic circuitry, computer software, firmware (including the structures disclosed in this specification and their structural equivalents), or any combination thereof. Implementations of the subject matter described in this specification may also be implemented as one or more computer programs, i.e., one or more modules of computer program instructions encoded on computer storage media for execution by, or for controlling the operation of, data processing apparatus.

[0199] If implemented in software, each function can be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium or transmitted therethrough. The process of the method or algorithm disclosed herein can be implemented in a processor-executable software module that can reside on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media, including any medium that can be implemented to transfer a computer program from one place to another. The storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. As an example and not limitation, such computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store the desired program code in the form of an instruction or data structure and can be accessed by a computer. Any connection can also be appropriately referred to as a computer-readable medium. As used herein, disks and discs include compact discs (CDs), laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs (DVDs), floppy disks and blue-ray discs, wherein disks often reproduce data magnetically and discs reproduce data optically with lasers. The above combination should also be included in the scope of computer-readable media. Additionally, the operations of a method or algorithm may reside as one or any combination or set of codes and instructions on a machine-readable medium or computer-readable medium, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

[0200] Various modifications to the implementations described in this disclosure may be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other implementations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the implementations shown herein, but should be accorded the widest scope consistent with this disclosure, the principles, and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. An access point (AP) multi-link device (MLD) comprising: processing systems; as well as interface, the interface being configured to: broadcasting a first beacon frame on a first communication link at the beginning of a first beacon period, the first beacon frame indicating transmission of group data for a group of wireless stations (STA) on the first communication link during the first beacon period; broadcasting a second beacon frame on a second communication link during the first beacon period, the second beacon frame indicating transmission of the group data on the second communication link; as well as The group data is transmitted over one or both of the first communication link and the second communication link to a first STA in the STA group and an MLD associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group.

2. The AP MLD according to claim 1, further comprising: a first access point AP, the first access point comprising a first interface configured to transmit the group data over the first communication link; as well as A second AP includes a second interface configured to transmit the group data over the second communication link.

3. The AP MLD according to claim 2, wherein: The first interface of the first AP is further configured to transmit the group data using a first modulation and coding scheme (MCS); as well as The second interface of the second AP is further configured to transmit the group data using a second MCS different from the first MCS.

4. The AP MLD according to claim 1, wherein: At least one of the first STAs is a legacy device configured to obtain the group data via the first communication link, and the MLD associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group is an extremely high throughput (EHT) device configured to obtain the group data via the first communication link, the second communication link, or both.

5. The AP MLD according to claim 4, wherein: The MLD associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group is a single-radio EHT device configured to obtain the group data exclusively via one of the first communication link or the second communication link.

6. The AP MLD according to claim 4, wherein: The MLD associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group is a multi-radio EHT device configured to concurrently obtain the group data via the first communication link and the second communication link.

7. The AP MLD according to claim 1, wherein: The processing system is configured to: selecting a single communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link for receiving the group data; and The interface is further configured to: An instruction to obtain the group data only over the single communication link is transmitted to the first STA or at least some of the MLDs associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group.

8. The AP MLD according to claim 7, wherein: The selection is based on obtaining an indication of a preferred communication link from at least one of the first STA or the MLD associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group, wherein the indication is contained in at least one of a frame or an information element.

9. A method for wireless communication performed by an apparatus of a wireless communication device, the method comprising: broadcasting a first beacon frame on a first communication link at the beginning of a first beacon period, the first beacon frame indicating transmission of group data for a group of wireless stations (STA) on the first communication link during the first beacon period; broadcasting a second beacon frame on a second communication link during the first beacon period, the second beacon frame indicating transmission of the group data on the second communication link; as well as The group data is transmitted over one or both of the first communication link and the second communication link to a first STA in the STA group and an MLD associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising: selecting a single communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link for transmitting the group data to the first STA and the MLD associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group; as well as An instruction is transmitted to at least some of the first STAs or the second STAs to receive the group data only on the single communication link.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein: The selection is based on obtaining an indication of a preferred communication link from at least one of the first STA or the MLD associated with one or more second STAs in the STA group, wherein the indication is contained in at least one of a frame or an information element.

12. A wireless communication device comprising: interface, the interface being configured to: Obtaining one or more beacon frames from an access point (AP) multi-link device (MLD) (AP MLD) on at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link, the one or more beacon frames including a delivery traffic indication map (DTIM) indicating buffered group data for a group of wireless stations (STA), the group of STAs including the wireless communication device and one or more other STAs; and A processing system configured to: selecting one or more group communication links for receiving the group data, the group communication links comprising at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link; as well as The interface is further configured to: The group data is obtained from the AP MLD over one or more selected group communication links.

13. The wireless communication device according to claim 12, wherein: The one or more beacon frames are received as a single beacon frame on a selected one of the first communication link or the second communication link.

14. The wireless communication device according to claim 12, wherein: The wireless communication device is a multi-radio Extremely High Throughput (EHT) device.

15. The wireless communication device according to claim 12, wherein: The wireless communication device is a single-radio Extremely High Throughput (EHT) device.

16. The wireless communication device of claim 12, wherein: The interface is further configured to: Remaining on the selected communication link for a duration of a beacon interval associated with the single beacon frame.

17. The wireless communication device of claim 12, wherein: The one or more beacon frames are independently received on each of the first communication link and the second communication link.

18. The wireless communication device of claim 17, wherein: The interface is further configured to: The group data is obtained over a selected communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link.

19. The wireless communication device of claim 18, wherein: The interface is further configured to: Group data received on non-selected communication links is discarded.

20. The wireless communication device of claim 18, wherein: The interface is further configured to: Unicast downlink data is obtained on the non-selected communication link.

21. The wireless communication device of claim 12, wherein: The one or more group communication links include each of the first communication link and the second communication link.

22. The wireless communication device of claim 21, wherein: The processing system is further configured to: Portions of group data received on each of the first communication link and the second communication link are selectively combined.

23. The wireless communication device of claim 21, wherein: The processing system is further configured to: identifying duplicate group data among group data received on each of the first communication link and the second communication link; and The interface is further configured to: Discard the identified replication group data.

24. The wireless communication device of claim 23, wherein: The replicated group data is identified in response to at least one of a transmitter address, a receiver address, or a sequence number of the group data.

25. The wireless communication device of claim 12, wherein: The wireless communication device is a multi-radio Extremely High Throughput (EHT) device.

26. The wireless communication device of claim 12, wherein: The processing system is further configured to: selecting a preferred communication link of the first communication link or the second communication link; and the interface is further configured to: An indication of the preferred communication link is transmitted to the AP in at least one of a frame or an information element.

27. The wireless communication device of claim 26, wherein: The interface is further configured to: obtaining an instruction to receive the group data only on a selected communication link; and Based on the instructions, the group data is obtained only on the selected communication links.

28. A method for wireless communication performed by an apparatus of a wireless station (STA), the method comprising: obtaining one or more beacon frames from an access point multi-link device (AP) (MLD) (AP MLD) on at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link, the one or more beacon frames including a delivery traffic indication map (DTIM) indicating buffered group data for an STA group for at least the STA, the STA group including the STA and one or more other STAs; selecting one or more group communication links for receiving the group data, the group communication links comprising at least one of the first communication link or the second communication link; as well as The group data is obtained from the AP MLD over one or more selected group communication links.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising: selecting a preferred communication link among the first communication link or the second communication link; as well as An indication of the preferred communication link is transmitted to the AP MLD in at least one of a frame or an information element.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising: obtaining an instruction to receive the group data only on a selected communication link; as well as Based on the instructions, the group data is obtained only on the selected communication links.

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