Wireless frame sending method and device, wireless frame receiving method and device

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application provide a wireless frame sending method and device, a wireless frame receiving method and device, which are used to make the receiver of the wireless frame determine that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, so as to avoid the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame from attempting to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP. In the method, a wireless frame is generated, the wireless frame includes a first information element, and the first information element includes a first field; wherein the first information element is used to carry the information of the neighbor AP, the first field is used to indicate the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP, and when the value of the first field is a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed; thereafter, the WLAN device sends the wireless frame. The present application is applied to a wireless local area network system supporting IEEE 802.11ax next-generation WiFi protocol, such as 802.11be or EHT and other 802.11 series protocols.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of wireless local area network (WLAN) technology, and in particular to a wireless frame sending method and device, and a wireless frame receiving method and device. BACKGROUND

[0002] In a WLAN communication process, a station (STA) wants to establish a connection with an access point (AP) by association, and can discover the existence of the AP by scanning. Generally, in order to avoid the STA constantly scanning channels to reduce the scanning time of the STA, the AP can carry a reduced neighbor report element in a management frame, which is used to carry information of neighbor APs of the AP, so that the STA receiving the management frame can establish association with the neighbors based on the information of the neighbor APs of the AP.

[0003] However, in actual applications, not all neighbors necessarily support association with the STA. For example, in the scenario where a certain neighbor is a soft AP, in order to avoid affecting devices on the main link, it is possible that the neighbor cannot support association of the STA on a non-main link; for another example, in the scenario where a certain neighbor is an AP on a link of a multi-link device, in order to reduce power consumption or for other purposes, it is possible that the neighbor needs to be disabled or removed, so that the neighbor will no longer support association of the STA.

[0004] Therefore, how to avoid the STA accessing a neighbor that does not support association with the STA is a technical problem to be solved. SUMMARY

[0005] Embodiments of the present application provide a wireless frame sending method and device, and a wireless frame receiving method and device, which are used to, when a sender of a wireless frame determines that a neighbor is not used for association with a receiver of the wireless frame, set a value of a first field in the wireless frame to a first value, so that the receiver of the wireless frame determines that channel information in information of the neighbor AP is invalid or is not informed, and avoids a legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempting to probe and associate with the neighbor AP on a corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0006] The first aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a wireless frame sending method applied to WLAN communication, which is executed by a WLAN device or by some components (such as a processor, a chip, or a chip system, etc.) in the WLAN device. In the method, the WLAN device first generates a wireless frame, which includes a first information element including a first field; wherein the first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first field is used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP, and when the first field takes a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed; and then the WLAN device sends the wireless frame.

[0007] It should be noted that in the embodiments and subsequent embodiments, when the first field takes the first value, the expression that the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed can also be expressed as when the first field takes the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid; can also be expressed as when the first field takes the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is not indicated; can also be expressed as when the first field takes the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP does not support association; can also be expressed as when the first field takes the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP does not support access, etc.

[0008] Based on the above technical solutions, the wireless frame sent by the WLAN device includes a first information element used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first information element includes a first field used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; wherein when the first field takes a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed. Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, by setting the value of the first field in the wireless frame to the first value, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, avoiding that the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to detect and associate with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0009] The second aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a wireless frame receiving method applied to WLAN communication, which is executed by a WLAN device or by some components (such as a processor, a chip, or a chip system, etc.) in the WLAN device. In the method, a wireless frame is received, the wireless frame comprising a first information element, the first information element comprising a first field; wherein the first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first field is used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; and then, the WLAN device determines the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP according to the wireless frame, wherein when the first field takes a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is not informed.

[0010] Based on the above technical solution, the wireless frame received by the WLAN device comprises a first information element used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first information element comprises a first field used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; wherein when the first field takes a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is not informed. Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is not informed by setting the first field in the wireless frame to the first value, so as to avoid that the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP on a corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0011] It should be noted that when the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a non-legacy STA, the non-legacy STA determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP indicated by the wireless frame is not informed based on the way that the first field in the wireless frame takes the first value; in addition, the non-legacy STA can also obtain the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP based on other messages / information elements / fields, such as a primary channel field in a high throughput operation element (HT Operation element). When the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a legacy STA, the legacy STA obtains the first value as a reserved value based on the way that the first field in the wireless frame takes the first value; thus, the legacy STA determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP indicated by the wireless frame is invalid.

[0012] The third aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a wireless frame sending device applied to WLAN communication. The device can be executed by a WLAN device or a part of components (such as a processor, a chip or a chip system) in the WLAN device. A processing unit in the device is configured to generate a wireless frame, wherein the wireless frame comprises a first information element, and the first information element comprises a first field; the first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first field is used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; when a value of the first field is a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed; and a transceiving unit in the device is configured to send the wireless frame.

[0013] Based on the above technical solution, the wireless frame sent by the transceiving unit comprises the first information element used to carry the information of the neighbor AP, and the first information element comprises the first field used to indicate the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed. Thus, when a sender of the wireless frame determines that a neighbor is not used for association with a receiver of the wireless frame, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed by setting the value of the first field in the wireless frame to the first value, so as to avoid that a legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor on a corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0014] The fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a wireless frame receiving device applied to WLAN communication. The device can be executed by a WLAN device or a part of components (such as a processor, a chip or a chip system) in the WLAN device. A transceiving unit in the device is configured to receive a wireless frame, wherein the wireless frame comprises a first information element, and the first information element comprises a first field; the first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first field is used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; and a processing unit in the device is configured to determine the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP according to the wireless frame, wherein when a value of the first field is a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed.

[0015] Based on the above technical solution, the wireless frame received by the transceiving unit includes a first information element for carrying information of the neighbor AP, and the first information element includes a first field for indicating channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; wherein when the value of the first field is a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed. Therefore, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, by setting the value of the first field in the wireless frame to the first value, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, thereby avoiding that the Legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0016] In a possible implementation form of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first field is used to indicate a channel number corresponding to the channel information.

[0017] Based on the above technical solution, in the wireless frame, the first field for indicating the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP can specifically indicate a channel number corresponding to the channel information, so that the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, thereby avoiding that the Legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor according to the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel.

[0018] In a possible implementation form of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first field includes a channel number (Channel Number) field.

[0019] In a possible implementation form of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first field is used to indicate an operating class to which the channel information belongs.

[0020] Based on the above technical solution, in the wireless frame, the first field for indicating the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP can specifically indicate an operating class to which the channel information belongs, so that the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the operating class to which the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP belongs is invalid or not informed, thereby avoiding that the Legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor according to the operating class to which the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP belongs on the corresponding channel.

[0021] In a possible implementation form of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first field includes an operating class (Operating Class) field.

[0022] In a possible implementation of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, when the first field has the first value, the first field is further used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed; or, when the first field has the first value, the first field is further used to indicate that the neighbor AP is disabled.

[0023] Based on the above technical solution, in the scenario where the neighbor is an AP on a certain link of a multi-link device, it is possible to disable or remove the neighbor for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, resulting in that the neighbor will no longer support the association of the STA. Therefore, in the wireless frame, when the first field of the channel information in the information indicating the neighbor AP has the first value, in addition to indicating that the channel information in the information indicating the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the first field can also indicate the state information of the neighbor, for example, indicating that the neighbor is (to be) removed or indicating that the neighbor AP is (to be) disabled. So that the receiver of the wireless frame can explicitly determine that the neighbor is a non-associable neighbor.

[0024] In a possible implementation of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the wireless frame further includes a target field, when the target field has a second value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed; or, when the target field has the second value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is disabled.

[0025] Based on the above technical solution, in the scenario where the neighbor is an AP on a certain link of a multi-link device, it is possible to disable or remove the neighbor AP for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, resulting in that the neighbor will no longer support the association of the STA. Therefore, in the wireless frame, a target field is further included, and when the target field has a second value, the target field indicates the state information of the neighbor, for example, indicating that the neighbor is (to be) removed or indicating that the neighbor AP is (to be) disabled. So that the receiver of the wireless frame can explicitly determine that the neighbor is a non-associable neighbor.

[0026] Optionally, the target field includes at least one of the following: a reserved (Reserved) field in a target beacon transmission times information header (TBTT info Header) field, a target beacon transmission times information field type (TBTT info Field Type) field, and the like.

[0027] Optionally, when the target field comprises a reserved (Reserved) field in the TBTT info Header field, the first value is 0 or 1; when the target field comprises a TBTT info Field Type field, the first value is 1 or 2 or 3.

[0028] In a possible implementation of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first information element is used to indicate information of a neighbor AP corresponding to a non-primary link of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD).

[0029] In a possible implementation of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first information element further comprises a second field, and the second field comprises a first subfield and a second subfield; wherein the second field is used to indicate a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor; and the first subfield contained in the second field is used to indicate whether the basic service set expects to exchange a management type medium access control protocol data unit (MACPDU, referred to as MPDU) with the neighbor through an on-channel tunneling (OCT) mechanism, and when the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed in the first field, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange the management type MPDU with the neighbor through the OCT mechanism; and the second subfield contained in the second field is used to indicate whether the neighbor enables an active probe response, and when the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed in the first field, the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not enable the active probe response.

[0030] Based on the above technical solutions, in the scenario where the neighbor is a neighbor AP corresponding to a non-primary link of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD), in a wireless frame, the first information element used to carry information of the neighbor AP further comprises a second field used to indicate a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor, wherein the second field further comprises a first subfield and a second subfield. And when the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed in the first field, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange a management type MPDU with the neighbor through an OCT mechanism, and the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not enable an active probe response. Thus, through the setting of the first subfield and the second subfield in the second field, it can be further avoided that a receiver of the wireless frame is associated with the neighbor according to the basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor.

[0031] In a possible implementation of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the second field is a basic service set parameter (BSS Parameter) field, the first subfield is an OCT recommended field, and the second subfield is an Unsolicited Probe Response Active subfield.

[0032] In a possible implementation of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first information element further includes a third field, the third field is used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of a basic service set corresponding to the neighbor, and when channel information in the information used to indicate the neighbor AP is invalid or is not informed, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor is unknown information.

[0033] Based on the above technical solutions, in the scenario where the neighbor is a neighbor AP corresponding to a non-primary link of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD), the first information element used to carry information of the neighbor AP in the wireless frame further includes a third field used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of a basic service set corresponding to the neighbor. Moreover, when channel information in the information used to indicate the neighbor AP is invalid or is not informed, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor is unknown information. Thus, through the setting of the third field, it can be further avoided that a receiver of the wireless frame associates with the neighbor according to the offset information.

[0034] In a possible implementation of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first information element is a reduced neighbor report element (Reduced Neighbor Report element).

[0035] In a possible implementation of any of the first aspect to the fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the wireless frame is a management frame.

[0036] Optionally, the wireless frame comprises one or more of a Beacon frame, a Probe Request frame, a Probe Response frame, an Association Request frame, a Reassociation Request frame, a Disassociation frame, a Deauthentication frame, an Authentication frame, and the like.

[0037] The fifth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a wireless frame sending method applied to WLAN communication. The method is executed by a WLAN device, or the method is executed by part components (for example, a processor, a chip, or a chip system) in the WLAN device. In the method, the WLAN device first generates a wireless frame. The wireless frame comprises a first information element. The first information element comprises a target field. The first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP. When the target field takes a first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled. Then, the WLAN device sends the wireless frame.

[0038] Based on the above technical solution, the wireless frame sent by the WLAN device comprises the first information element used to carry the information of the neighbor AP. The first information element comprises the target field. When the target field takes the first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled. Therefore, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used to associate with the receiver of the wireless frame, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor AP is (about to be) removed or (about to be) disabled by setting the value of the target field in the wireless frame to the first value. The receiver of the wireless frame avoids attempting to associate with the neighbor according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0039] The sixth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a wireless frame receiving method applied to WLAN communication. The method is executed by a WLAN device, or the method is executed by part components (for example, a processor, a chip, or a chip system) in the WLAN device. In the method, the WLAN device receives a wireless frame. The wireless frame comprises a first information element. The first information element comprises a target field. The first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP. Then, the WLAN device determines channel information in the information of the neighbor AP according to the wireless frame. When the target field takes a first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled.

[0040] Based on the above technical solution, the wireless frame received by the WLAN device includes a first information element for carrying information of a neighbor AP, and the first information element includes a target field; wherein when the value of the target field is a first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled. Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor AP is (about to be) removed or (about to be) disabled by setting the value of the target field in the wireless frame to the first value, avoiding that the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to associate with the neighbor according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0041] It should be noted that when the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a non-legacy STA, the non-legacy STA determines that the neighbor AP is (about to be) removed or (about to be) disabled based on the way that the value of the target field in the wireless frame is set to the first value; when the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a legacy STA, the legacy STA obtains the first value as a reserved value based on the way that the value of the target field in the wireless frame is set to the first value; therefore, the legacy STA determines that the target field is an invalid field.

[0042] The seventh aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a wireless frame sending device applied to WLAN communication, the device is a WLAN device, or the device is part of a component (such as a processor, a chip, or a chip system, etc.) in the WLAN device. The device includes a processing unit and a transceiver unit. First, the processing unit generates a wireless frame, the wireless frame includes a first information element, and the first information element includes a target field; wherein the first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and when the value of the target field is a first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled; thereafter, the transceiver unit sends the wireless frame.

[0043] Based on the above technical solution, the wireless frame received by the WLAN device includes a first information element for carrying information of a neighbor AP, and the first information element includes a target field; wherein when the value of the target field is a first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled. Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor AP is (about to be) removed or (about to be) disabled by setting the value of the target field in the wireless frame to the first value, avoiding that the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to associate with the neighbor according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0044] The eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a wireless frame receiving device, which is applied to WLAN communication. The device is a WLAN device, or the device is part of a WLAN device (for example, a processor, a chip, or a chip system). The device comprises a processing unit and a transceiver unit. First, the transceiver unit receives a wireless frame, and the wireless frame comprises a first information element, and the first information element comprises a target field. The first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP. Then, the processing unit determines channel information in the information of the neighbor AP according to the wireless frame. When the target field has a first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled.

[0045] According to the above technical solution, the wireless frame received by the transceiver unit comprises the first information element used to carry the information of the neighbor AP, and the first information element comprises the target field. When the target field has the first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled. Therefore, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used to associate with the receiver of the wireless frame, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled by setting the value of the target field in the wireless frame to the first value, so as to avoid that the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to associate with the neighbor according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0046] In a possible implementation of any one of the fifth aspect to the eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the target field comprises at least one of the following:

[0047] a channel number field; or

[0048] an operating class field; or

[0049] a reserved field in a target beacon transmission times information header (TBTT info Header) field; or

[0050] a target beacon transmission times information field type (TBTT info Field Type) field.

[0051] Based on the above technical solution, the target field can be implemented in the above-mentioned multiple ways, wherein the first value is a reserved value of the above-mentioned any field. Thus, when the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a non-legacy STA, the non-legacy STA determines that the neighbor AP is (about to be) removed or (about to be) disabled based on the manner in which the value of the target field in the wireless frame is set to the first value; when the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a legacy STA, the legacy STA interprets the first value as a reserved value based on the manner in which the value of the target field in the wireless frame is set to the first value; therefore, the legacy STA determines that the target field is an invalid field.

[0052] Optionally, when the target field includes a channel number (Channel Number) field, the first value is 0; when the target field includes an operating class (Operating Class) field, the first value is 0 or 255; when the target field includes a reserved (Reserved) field in the TBTT info Header field, the first value is 0 or 1; when the target field includes a TBTT info Field Type field, the first value is 1 or 2 or 3.

[0053] In a possible implementation form of any of the first aspect to the eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first information element further includes a second field, and the second field includes a first subfield and a second subfield; wherein the second field is used to indicate a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor; and the first subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the basic service set expects to exchange a management type medium access control protocol data unit (MACPDU, referred to as MPDU) with the neighbor through an on-channel tunneling (OCT) mechanism, and when the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or the neighbor AP is disabled, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange the management type MACPDU with the neighbor through the OCT mechanism; and the second subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the neighbor enables an active probe response, and when the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or the neighbor AP is disabled, the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not enable the active probe response.

[0054] In the scenario where the neighbor is a non-primary link corresponding to a neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD), in the wireless frame, the first information element for carrying information of the neighbor AP further includes a second field for indicating a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor, where the second field further includes a first subfield and a second subfield. When the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or deactivated, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange a management type MPDU with the neighbor through an OCT mechanism, and the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not start an unsolicited probe response. Thus, through the setting of the first subfield and the second subfield in the second field, it can be further avoided that a receiver of the wireless frame is associated with the neighbor according to the basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor.

[0055] In a possible implementation of any of the fifth aspect to the eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the second field is a basic service set parameter (BSS Parameter) field, the first subfield is an OCT recommended field, and the second subfield is an unsolicited probe response active subfield.

[0056] In a possible implementation of any of the fifth aspect to the eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first information element further includes a third field for indicating offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor, and when the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or deactivated, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor is unknown information.

[0057] In the scenario where the neighbor is a non-primary link corresponding to a neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD), in the wireless frame, the first information element for carrying information of the neighbor AP further includes a second field for indicating a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor, where the second field further includes a first subfield and a second subfield. When the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or deactivated, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange a management type MPDU with the neighbor through an OCT mechanism, and the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not start an unsolicited probe response. Thus, through the setting of the first subfield and the second subfield in the second field, it can be further avoided that a receiver of the wireless frame is associated with the neighbor according to the basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor.

[0058] In a possible implementation of any of the fifth aspect to the eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the first information element is a reduced neighbor report element (Reduced Neighbor Report element).

[0059] In a possible implementation form of any of the first aspect to the eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present application, the wireless frame is a management frame.

[0060] Optionally, the wireless frame comprises one or more of a Beacon frame, a Probe Request frame, a Probe Response frame, an Association Request frame, a Reassociation Request frame, a Disassociation frame, a Deauthentication frame, an Authentication frame, and the like.

[0061] The ninth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a communication apparatus, comprising at least one processor coupled with a memory; the memory is configured to store programs or instructions; the at least one processor is configured to execute the programs or instructions, so that the apparatus implements the method of the first aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the first aspect, or the method of the second aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the second aspect, or the method of the fifth aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the fifth aspect, or the method of the sixth aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the sixth aspect.

[0062] The tenth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a computer readable storage medium storing one or more computer-executable instructions, when the computer-executable instructions are executed by a processor, the processor executes the method of the first aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the first aspect, or the method of the second aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the second aspect, or the method of the fifth aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the fifth aspect, or the method of the sixth aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the sixth aspect.

[0063] The eleventh aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a computer program product (or computer program) of one or more computers, when the computer program product is executed by a processor, the processor executes the method of the first aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the first aspect, or the method of the second aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the second aspect, or the method of the fifth aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the fifth aspect, or the method of the sixth aspect or any of the possible implementation forms of the sixth aspect.

[0064] The twelfth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a chip system, which comprises at least one processor configured to support the communication device to implement the functions involved in the first aspect or any possible implementation manner of the first aspect, or to support the communication device to implement the functions involved in the second aspect or any possible implementation manner of the second aspect, or to support the communication device to implement the functions involved in the fifth aspect or any possible implementation manner of the fifth aspect, or to support the communication device to implement the functions involved in the sixth aspect or any possible implementation manner of the sixth aspect.

[0065] In a possible design, the chip system further comprises a memory configured to store necessary program instructions and data of the communication device. The chip system can be composed of a chip, or can include the chip and other discrete devices. Optionally, the chip system further comprises an interface circuit configured to provide program instructions and / or data for the at least one processor.

[0066] The thirteenth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a communication system, which comprises the communication device in the third aspect and the communication device in the fourth aspect, and / or, which comprises the communication device in the seventh aspect and the communication device in the eighth aspect, and / or, which comprises the communication device in the ninth aspect.

[0067] The technical effects brought by any design manner in the ninth aspect to the thirteenth aspect can be referred to the technical effects brought by different implementation manners in the first aspect to the eighth aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0068] As can be seen from the above technical solution, the wireless frame received / transmitted by the WLAN device comprises a first information element used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first information element comprises a first field used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; when the first field takes a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed (or when the first field takes the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or deactivated). Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used to associate with the receiver of the wireless frame, the receiver of the wireless frame is determined to determine that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed (or the neighbor AP is removed or the neighbor AP is deactivated) by setting the first field in the wireless frame to the first value, so as to avoid that the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP on a corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0069] Figure 1A schematic diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0070] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a communication system according to another embodiment of the present application;

[0071] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a radio frame according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0072] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a radio frame according to another embodiment of the present application;

[0073] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a radio frame according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0074] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of a radio frame according to another embodiment of the present application;

[0075] Figure 7a A schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0076] Figure 7b A schematic diagram of a communication method according to another embodiment of the present application;

[0077] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0078] Figure 9 A schematic diagram of a communication apparatus according to another embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0079] In the present application, except for special description, the same or similar parts among various embodiments can be referred to each other. In the present application, the terms and / or descriptions among different embodiments, and among various implementation manners / implementation methods / realization methods in each embodiment have consistency and can refer to each other, if there is no special description and logical conflict. The technical features in different embodiments, and in various implementation manners / implementation methods / realization methods in each embodiment can be combined to form new embodiments, implementation manners, implementation methods or realization methods according to their inherent logical relationship. The following embodiments of the present application do not constitute limitation to the protection scope of the present application.

[0080] It can be understood that some optional features in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented independently in some scenarios, solve corresponding technical problems, and achieve corresponding effects, without relying on other features, such as the scheme currently based on. In some scenarios, it can also be combined with other features according to needs. Correspondingly, the apparatus given in the embodiments of the present application can also implement these features or functions, which will not be described here.

[0081] In the description of the present application, "multiple" means two or more than two, unless otherwise specified. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions means any combination of the items, including any combination of single or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can mean a, b, c, a-b, a-c, b-c, or a-b-c, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0082] In addition, in order to facilitate the clear description of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, in the embodiments of the present application, "first", "second" and the like are used to distinguish the same or similar items with basically the same function and role. The skilled in the art can understand that "first", "second" and the like do not limit the quantity and execution order, and "first", "second" and the like do not necessarily mean different. At the same time, in the embodiments of the present application, "exemplary" or "for example" means to take an example, example or illustration. Any embodiment or design scheme described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of the present application should not be interpreted as more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or design schemes. In fact, the use of "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concept in a specific way, for understanding.

[0083] In order to facilitate the understanding of the method provided by the embodiments of the present application, the system architecture of the method provided by the embodiments of the present application will be described below. It can be understood that the system architecture described in the embodiments of the present application is to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application.

[0084] The technical solutions provided by the present application can be applied to WLAN scenarios, for example, can be applied to IEEE 802.11 system standards, such as 802.11a / b / g standards, 802.11n standards, 802.11ac standards, 802.11ax standards, or next generation thereof, such as 802.11be standards or more next generation standards.

[0085] Although the embodiments of the present application are mainly described by taking the deployment of WLAN network, especially the network applying IEEE 802.11 system standard as an example, it is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that various aspects involved in the present application can be extended to other networks applying various standards or protocols, for example, BLUETOOTH, high performance radio LAN (HIPERLAN) (a wireless standard similar to IEEE 802.11 standard, mainly used in Europe) and wide area network (WAN), personal area network (PAN) or other now known or later developed networks. Therefore, various aspects provided by the present application can be applied to any suitable wireless network regardless of the coverage range and wireless access protocol used.

[0086] Embodiments of the present application can also be applicable to wireless local area network systems such as Internet of Things (IoT) networks or Vehicle to X (V2X). Of course, embodiments of the present application can also be applicable to other possible communication systems, for example, long term evolution (LTE) systems, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) systems, LTE time division duplex (TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication systems, 5th generation (5G) communication systems, and future 6th generation (6G) communication systems, etc.

[0087] The above communication systems to which the present application is applicable are only illustrative, and the communication systems to which the present application is applicable are not limited thereto, which will be uniformly described herein and will not be described below.

[0088] The wireless frame sending method and device and the wireless frame receiving method and device provided by the embodiments of the present application can be applied to a wireless communication system, which can be a wireless local area network (WLAN) or a cellular network. The method can be implemented by a communication device in the wireless communication system or a chip or processor in the communication device. The communication device can be a wireless communication device supporting parallel transmission of multiple links, for example, a multi-link device (MLD) or a multi-band device. Compared with a device supporting only single-link transmission, the multi-link device has higher transmission efficiency and higher throughput.

[0089] Referring to Figure 1 , a schematic diagram of a communication system is provided for the embodiments of the present application. It should be noted that, Figure 1 In the communication system shown, the communication device (wireless frame sending device or wireless frame receiving device) involved in the present application is taken as an example for illustration, which is a multi-link device. In some embodiments, the communication device (wireless frame sending device or wireless frame receiving device) involved in the present application can also be a single-link device. Figure 1 The diagram shown is only an example and should not be understood as a limitation of the present application.

[0090] As Figure 1 shown, the communication system mainly includes at least one multi-link access point device (Multi-link AP device) and at least one multi-link non-access point station device (Multi-link non-AP STA device) (referred to as multi-link station device). The multi-link access point device and the multi-link station device can be collectively referred to as multi-link devices. The multi-link devices will be introduced below.

[0091] Generally, a multi-link device includes one or more affiliated stations (denoted as affiliated STAs), which is a logical station and can work on one link. The affiliated station can be an access point (AP) or a non-access point station (non-AP STA). For the convenience of description, the multi-link device whose affiliated station is an AP can be referred to as a multi-link AP or a multi-link AP device or an AP multi-link device, and the multi-link device whose affiliated station is a non-AP STA can be referred to as a multi-link STA or a multi-link STA device or a STA multi-link device. For the convenience of description, “a multi-link device includes an affiliated STA” is briefly described as “a multi-link device includes an STA” in the embodiments of the present application.

[0092] It is worth noting that the multi-link device includes multiple logical stations, each of which works on one link, but allows multiple logical stations to work on the same link. The link identifier mentioned below represents one station working on one link, that is, if there is more than one station on one link, more than one link identifier is needed to represent them. The link mentioned below sometimes also represents the station working on the link.

[0093] The multi-link AP device and the multi-link STA can use the link identifier to identify a link or a station on a link when transmitting data. Before communication, the multi-link AP device and the multi-link STA device can first negotiate or communicate the correspondence between the link identifier and a link or a station on a link. Therefore, in data transmission, it is not necessary to transmit a large amount of signaling information to indicate a link or a station on a link, and the link identifier can be carried, which reduces the signaling overhead and improves the transmission efficiency.

[0094] In one example, a multi-link AP device, when establishing a BSS, sends a management frame, such as a beacon frame, which carries an element including multiple link identification information fields, each of which can suggest a correspondence between a link identification and a station operating on a link. Each link identification information field includes a link identification, and further includes one or more of a medium access control (MAC) address, an operating set, and a channel number, where the one or more of the MAC address, the operating set, and the channel number can indicate a link. In another example, during a multi-link association procedure, a multi-link AP device and a multi-link station device negotiate multiple link identification information fields. In subsequent communications, the multi-link AP device or the multi-link station device can use a link identification to represent a station in a multi-link device, and the link identification can also represent one or more attributes of the station, such as a MAC address, an operating set, and a channel number. The MAC address can also be replaced by an association identification of the multi-link AP device after association.

[0095] If multiple stations operate on a link, the link identification (a numerical ID) represents not only the operating set and the channel number of the link, but also the station identification, such as the MAC address or the AID, of the station operating on the link.

[0096] The multi-link device can implement wireless communication in compliance with the 802.11 series of protocols, for example, in compliance with an extremely high throughput (EHT) station, or in compliance with an 802.11be-based or 802.11be-compatible station, to communicate with other devices. The other devices can be multi-link devices or can not be multi-link devices.

[0097] The non-AP MLD involved in the present application can be a wireless communication chip, a wireless sensor or a wireless communication terminal. For example, a user terminal, a user device, an access device, a subscriber station, a subscriber unit, a mobile station, a user agent, a user equipment supporting Wi-Fi communication function, wherein the user terminal can include various handheld devices, vehicle-mounted devices, wearable devices, internet of things (IoT) devices, computing devices or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem, and various forms of user equipment (UE), mobile stations (MS), terminals, terminal equipment, portable communication devices, handsets, portable computing devices, entertainment devices, game devices or systems, global positioning system devices or any other suitable devices configured to communicate via a wireless medium. In addition, the non-AP MLD can support the 802.11be standard or the next generation WLAN standard of 802.11be. The non-AP MLD can also support various WLAN standards such as 802.11ax, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b and 802.11a.

[0098] The AP MLD involved in the embodiments of the present application can be a device deployed in a wireless communication network to provide wireless communication functions for its associated non-AP, mainly deployed in homes, buildings and parks, with a typical coverage radius of tens of meters to hundreds of meters. Of course, it can also be deployed outdoors. The AP MLD is equivalent to a bridge connecting wired and wireless networks, and its main function is to connect various wireless network clients together and then access the wireless network to the Ethernet. Specifically, the AP MLD can be a base station, a router, a gateway, a repeater, a communication server, a switch or a bridge with a Wi-Fi chip, etc. The base station can include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, etc. In addition, the AP MLD can support the 802.11be standard or the next generation WLAN standard of 802.11be. The AP MLD can also support various WLAN standards such as 802.11ax, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b and 802.11a.

[0099] The above briefly describes the system architecture of the embodiments of the present application. In order to better understand the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the following will introduce several contents related to the embodiments of the present application.

[0100] I. Multi-link cooperation technology

[0101] Currently, WLAN can work in low frequency bands including sub(sub) bands 1 gigahertz (GHz), 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz, etc. Although 802.11ax (WiFi 6) and previous multi-band WiFi configure multiple links, each multi-link generally establishes a different basic service set (BSS), and can only communicate with stations in the BSS to which the link belongs at one time. The operation of each link lacks sufficient cooperation.

[0102] In the IEEE 802.11 next generation WiFi extremely high throughput (EHT) protocol, in addition to the super large bandwidth transmission information packet on the new frequency band 6GHz, multi-link cooperation technology can also be used to aggregate discontinuous multiple links to form a super large bandwidth. In addition to aggregating a larger bandwidth, the multi-link cooperation technology can also share the MAC layer on multiple links to implement flexible transmission information packets or simultaneously send information packets of the same service to the same station. The device capable of implementing the multi-link cooperation technology will be referred to as a multi-link device. The AP multi-link device and the station multi-link device can quickly implement multi-link association establishment by associating on a link.

[0103] For a non-AP MLD, it can implement simultaneous association establishment of multiple links with an AP MLD by performing a multi-link establishment operation on one of the links. The link on which the multi-link association request / response (Multi-link Association Request / Response) frame exchange is performed is referred to as a transmitted link, and the corresponding other link is referred to as a non-transmitted link. For the Multi-link Association Request / Response frame, it carries information of multiple links to implement simultaneous association of multiple links.

[0104] In combination with the above Figure 1 , the multi-link establishment process is described as follows:

[0105] Step 1. The non-AP MLD sends an Association Request frame on Link 1 (Link 1), which carries not only the STA side information of Link 1 but also the STA side related information of Link 2. Link 1 is referred to as a transmitted link, and Link 2 is referred to as a non-transmitted link.

[0106] Step 2. The AP MLD sends back an Association Response frame to the Non-AP MLD on Link 1, which carries the AP side information of Link 2 in addition to the STA side information of Link 1.

[0107] Thus, the Non-AP STA 1 and STA 2 establish association with the AP 1 and AP 2 of the AP MLD respectively. In order to carry the non-AP MLD related information in the existing Association Request frame, the protocol defines a multi-link element (MLE) which adopts the inheritance model format to carry the related information of MLD, similar to the existing Multi-BSSID element in the protocol.

[0108] From the above process, it can be seen that the multi-link device (MLD) can also refer to a device that has multiple radio modules working on different frequency bands / channels at the same time. When the channel spacing of two radio modules in a device is large enough, they can operate independently without interfering with each other. If the simultaneous transmit / receive (STR) capability between any two links is supported, that is, one link can send while the other link can receive, we call it STR capability between the two links, otherwise, we call it Non-STR (NSTR). Generally, in 802.11be, except for the software-defined multi-link AP device (Soft AP MLD), other AP MLDs can support STR.

[0109] In addition to the medium access control address (MAC Address) of each link, the AP MLD also has a medium access control service access point address (MAC SAP Address), as shown in Figure 2 In addition, the Soft AP MLD can be understood as using software to realize the function of the AP MLD on the non-AP MLD device. The common scenario is to set a mobile phone, tablet computer or other terminal as a Soft AP MLD, allowing other devices to associate.

[0110] In addition, in addition to the above multi-link establishment process, the multi-link access point device and the multi-link station device can also communicate through various wireless frames, such as an association request frame, a re-association request frame, an association response frame, a re-association response frame, a probe response frame, etc., wherein different wireless frames can carry an MLE, which is used to carry the station information of the multi-link device through the MLE. The MLE can also be referred to as a multi-link information unit.

[0111] As shown in FIG. 1, an example of a frame structure of an MLE is shown. The MLE includes an Element ID field (for example, the value can be 255 as shown in FIG. 1), a Length field, an Element ID Extension field, a Multi-Link Control field, a Common Info field, and a Link Info field. The Common Info field carries common information of multiple stations in the multi-link device and information of the multi-link device itself; the Link Info field carries information of a station on each link in the multi-link device; and the Multi-Link Control field carries the type of the multi-link element and indication information of which fields in the Common Info field are present and which fields are not present. Figure 3 Figure 3 As shown in FIG. 1, the MLE includes an Element ID field (for example, the value can be 255 as shown in FIG. 1), a Length field, an Element ID Extension field, a Multi-Link Control field, a Common Info field, and a Link Info field. The Common Info field carries common information of multiple stations in the multi-link device and information of the multi-link device itself; the Link Info field carries information of a station on each link in the multi-link device; and the Multi-Link Control field carries the type of the multi-link element and indication information of which fields in the Common Info field are present and which fields are not present.

[0112] As shown in FIG. 1, the Link Info field can further include one or more Per-STA Profile fields, Figure 3 Figure 3 As shown in FIG. 1, the Link Info field can further include one or more Per-STA Profile fields, Figure 3 As shown in FIG. 1, the Link Info field can further include one or more Per-STA Profile fields,

[0113] As shown in FIG. 1, the Link Info field can further include one or more Per-STA Profile fields, Figure 3 As shown in FIG. 1, the Link Info field can further include one or more Per-STA Profile fields,

[0114] As shown in FIG. 1, the Link Info field can further include one or more Per-STA Profile fields, Figure 3 As shown in FIG. 1, the Link Info field can further include one or more Per-STA Profile fields, Figure 3 ​​For example, the field number is m (m is greater than 1) in the STA Profile field. Figure 3 For example, the element number is n (n is greater than 1) in the STA Profile field. In addition, the STA Profile field also includes a Non-inheritance element if present.

[0115] II. AP discovery process

[0116] In the WLAN communication process, in order to associate with an AP to establish a connection, the STA first needs to discover the existence of the AP through scanning. There are two forms of scanning: active scanning and passive scanning.

[0117] Passive scanning is a kind of scanning by receiving the management frame sent by the AP on the channel, such as the beacon frame or the broadcast probe response frame. Specifically, the STA jumps on different channels to search for the beacon frame sent by the AP. Once the STA obtains the relevant information of the AP through the beacon frame, it can further obtain other additional information from the AP through the probe request / response frame exchange.

[0118] Active scanning refers to that the STA can actively send a broadcast probe request without listening to the beacon frame. If the AP receiving the broadcast probe request meets certain conditions, it can initiate random channel access to send a probe response.

[0119] In order to assist the STA to perform fast scanning, the AP carries a reduced neighbor report element in the beacon frame and the probe response frame to avoid the STA constantly scanning the channel and reduce the scanning time of the STA.

[0120] III. Reduced neighbor report element

[0121] The AP carries the reduced neighbor report element in the management frame, such as the beacon frame and the probe response frame. When the STA scans, it receives the association frame sent by the AP to obtain the information of the surrounding AP, and then selects a suitable AP for association.

[0122] It should be noted that in the present embodiment and subsequent embodiments, the neighbor APs can be APs around an AP (hereinafter referred to as a target AP) that sends the reduced neighbor report element. For example, the neighbor APs are APs on other links in the AP MLD in which the target AP is located; for another example, the neighbor APs are neighboring APs of the target AP; for another example, the neighbor APs are other APs detected within the working area of the target AP; for another example, the neighbor APs are co-located APs of the target AP; for another example, the neighbor APs are other affiliated APs that belong to the same AP MLD as the current affiliated AP; or other definitions, which are not specifically limited here.

[0123] Specifically, the reduced neighbor report element is used to indicate information of one or more neighbor APs on a certain channel. The frame format of the reduced neighbor report element is as shown in Figure 4 The reduced neighbor report element includes an element identifier (Element ID) and a length (Length) value indicating the length of the information carried; and one or more neighbor AP information (Neighbor AP info) fields are carried in each Reduced Neighbor Report element. The neighbor AP information field can also be referred to as the information field of the neighbor AP. The information contained in each neighbor AP information field will be described below. Figure 4 The information contained in each neighbor AP information field includes the following information:

[0124] 1. For the target beacon transmission times information header (TBTT info Header) field, the following information is carried:

[0125] a. Target beacon transmission times information field type (TBTT info Field Type) field: indicates the type of target beacon transmission times information (TBTT info). Together with the TBTT info length field, it indicates the format of the TBTT info field; in this field, values 1, 2, and 3 are reserved values.

[0126] b. Filtered neighbor AP field: indicates whether the service set ID (SSID) of all BSSs carried in the Neighbor AP info field matches the SSID in the Probe Request frame.

[0127] c. Reserved field: occupies the third bit (Bit 3) and 1 bit.

[0128] d. TBTT info count field: indicates the number of TBTT info fields in the TBTT info set.

[0129] e. TBTT info Length field: indicates the length of each TBTT info field. The specific information format carried under different lengths is shown in Table 1:

[0130] Table 1

[0131]

[0132]

[0133] 2. For the Operating Class field: indicates the operating class to which the operating channel of the reported neighbor AP belongs. In this field, values 0 and 255 and other values are reserved values.

[0134] 3. For the Channel Number field: indicates the channel number corresponding to the operating channel of the reported neighbor AP. In this field, channel number 0 is a reserved value. Moreover, the STA side can determine the specific location of the channel of the AP on the frequency band through the Operating Class field and the Channel Number field.

[0135] 4. For the TBTT info set field: includes one or more TBTT info fields. Moreover, the frame format of each TBTT info field can be implemented in the manner shown in Figure 5 , and as shown in Figure 5 , each TBTT info field can include the following information:

[0136] a. Neighbor AP TBTT offset field: Indicates the offset between the BSS of the reporting neighboring AP and the beacon transmission time of the BSS that sent the report, in time units (TU), which is 1024 microseconds or 1 millisecond. A value of 254 indicates an offset of 254 TUs or higher; a value of 255 indicates that the specific offset is unknown. This field can occupy 1 bit.

[0137] b. BSS Identifier (BSSID) field: Indicates the BSS identifier corresponding to the reported BSS. This field can occupy 0 or 6 bytes. This field is optional.

[0138] c. Short SSID field: Indicates the service set identifier to which this BSS belongs. This field can occupy 0 or 4 bytes. This field is optional.

[0139] d. BSS Parameter field: Indicates the relevant parameters of this BSS. This field can occupy 0 or 1 bytes. This field is optional.

[0140] like Figure 6 As shown, the BSS parameters specifically include the following information:

[0141] Bit 0: Channel Transmission Recommended (OCT recommended) field: Indicates that the reporting BSS expects to exchange management type MPDUs with it via the OCT mechanism.

[0142] Bit 1: Same SSID field: Indicates whether the neighboring AP that reported the report and the AP that transmitted the report have the same SSID.

[0143] Bit 2: Multiple Basic Service Set Identifier (BSSID) field: Indicates whether the reporting neighbor AP belongs to a set of multiple BSSIDs.

[0144] Bit 3: Transmitted BSSID field: If the reporting neighbor AP is part of a multiple BSSID set, it further indicates whether the reporting neighbor AP is a Transmitted BSSID or a non-transmitted BSSID.

[0145] Bit 4: Member Of ESS With 2.4 / 5GHz Co-Located AP field: indicates whether the reported neighbor AP is co-located with a 2.4 / 5GHz AP (i.e., not a 6GHz only AP) and is a member of an extended service set.

[0146] Bit 5: Unsolicited Probe Response Active field: indicates whether the reported neighbor AP has unsolicited probe response enabled.

[0147] Bit 6: Co-located AP field: indicates whether the reported neighbor AP is co-located with the AP transmitting the Report.

[0148] Bit 7: Reserved value.

[0149] e. 20MHz Power Spectral Density (PSD) field: indicates the maximum transmit power spectral density. This field is optional. The number of bytes occupied by this field can be 0 or 1.

[0150] f. MLD Parameters field: indicates the relevant parameters of the MLD. The number of bytes occupied by this field can be 0 or 3. It contains the following subfields:

[0151] MLD ID subfield, occupying 8 bits, indicates the identifier of the AP MLD; Link ID subfield, occupying 4 bits, indicates the link identifier corresponding to the reported neighbor AP; BSS Parameters Change Count subfield, occupying 8 bits, indicates the BSS parameter update counter. When a critical update occurs in the reporting AP, the BSS parameter update counter will increase, otherwise, it remains unchanged. Reserved subfield, occupying 4 bits.

[0152] However, in the current frame format design of the Reduced Neighbor Report element, it does not consider whether all neighbors necessarily support association with the STA. In actual applications, not all neighbors necessarily support association with the STA. For example, in the scenario where a certain neighbor is a non-primary link corresponding to a neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD can also be referred to as a software-defined AP MLD), it is necessary to avoid that a Legacy STA attempts to perform a probe and association operation with the non-primary link AP by reading the Reduced Neighbor Report element and switching to the corresponding channel. For another example, in the scenario where a certain neighbor is an AP on a certain link of a multi-link device, it is possible to disable or remove the neighbor for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, so that the neighbor will no longer support the association of the STA. The following will introduce two implementation examples respectively.

[0153] In one implementation example, it corresponds to the scenario where a certain neighbor is a soft AP.

[0154] Currently, 802.11be is discussing the related operations of a Soft AP MLD. Since the Soft AP MLD is non-simultaneous transmit-receive (NSTR), its operation is different from the operation of a normal STR AP MLD. For a Soft AP MLD, its links can be divided into a primary link, and each soft AP MLD has only one primary link, and the remaining links are referred to as non-primary links. The Soft AP MLD only transmits a Beacon frame on the primary link, and does not transmit a Beacon frame on the non-primary link. The non-primary link does not allow the association of a legacy STA, that is, even if a legacy STA transmits a broadcast Probe Request frame on the link, the soft AP MLD will not return a Probe Response frame. For a non-AP MLD, it only allows a multi-link Probe Request frame to be transmitted on the primary link to obtain the information of an affiliated AP at the end of the non-primary link.

[0155] It should be noted that the legacy STA mentioned in the present embodiment and subsequent embodiments refers to a STA specified in a standard before 802.11be, such as a STA specified in 802.11a / b / g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax, etc. standards. Correspondingly, the non-legacy STA refers to a STA specified in 802.11be and subsequent standards.

[0156] In addition, the AP MLD needs to broadcast the information of other affiliated APs belonging to the same AP MLD as the current affiliated AP through the Reduced Neighbor Report element in the Beacon frame. However, for the softAP MLD, on the one hand, it needs to broadcast the information of other affiliated APs on the non-primary link through the Reduced Neighbor Report element in the beacon frame on the primary link, but on the other hand, it needs to avoid the legacy STA reading the Reduced Neighbor Report element and then switching to the non-primary link to send the ProbeRequest.

[0157] A current solution is to set the TBTT info Field Type field in the Reduced Neighbor Report element corresponding to the non-primary link to a reserved value, so that the legacy STA cannot read the following TBTT info field. However, this solution still has some risks, that is, although the legacy STA cannot read the TBTT info field, it can still obtain the channel information through the Operating Class field and the Channel Number field, and then jump to the non-primary link to send the ProbeRequest frame, thereby interfering with the normal operation of the softAP MLD.

[0158] Another implementation example corresponds to a scenario in which a neighbor is an AP on a link in a multi-link device.

[0159] Currently, 802.11be is still discussing that the AP MLD can disable or remove an affiliated AP without affecting the remaining links of the AP MLD. For example, the AP MLD has three links, link 1, Link2 and Link 3. When the AP MLD needs to disable or remove link 3 for some reason (for example, to reduce power consumption), it can be notified in advance in the corresponding Reduced Neighbor Report element of the Beacon frame on Link 1 and Link 2, so that the non-associated non-AP MLD will no longer probe the affiliated AP information corresponding to Link 3.

[0160] There is a solution to use the Reserved bits in the Reduced Neighbor Report element to indicate. However, the disadvantage of this solution is that the Legacy STA cannot understand the new bit indication information, and it is still possible to switch to Link 3 to send the Probe Request frame.

[0161] In summary, how to avoid the STA accessing the neighbor AP that does not support association with the STA is a technical problem to be solved.

[0162] To this end, the present application provides a wireless frame sending method and device, a wireless frame receiving method and device, which are used to determine that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed when the value of the first field in the wireless frame is the first value, or determine that the neighbor AP is removed or deactivated when the value of the first field in the wireless frame is the first value. Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, the receiver of the wireless frame is determined to determine that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed (or determine that the neighbor AP is removed or the neighbor AP is deactivated) by setting the value of the first field in the wireless frame to the first value, so as to avoid the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempting to probe and associate with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP. The various solutions provided by the present application will be described below in conjunction with the drawings.

[0163] Please refer to Figure 7a A schematic diagram of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown in the figure. It can be understood that, as Figure 7a indicated, the communication method involves the transmission of a wireless frame; therefore, the communication method can also be referred to as a wireless frame sending method, or a wireless frame receiving method.

[0164] S101. The wireless frame sending device generates a wireless frame, which includes a first field, and when the value of the first field is a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed.

[0165] In this embodiment, the wireless frame sending device generates a wireless frame, which includes a first information element, and the first information element includes a first field; wherein the first information element is used to carry the information of the neighbor AP, and the first field is used to indicate the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP, and when the value of the first field is a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed.

[0166] It should be noted that in the first field, the value of the first value is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed. This statement can also be expressed as: when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid; it can also be expressed as: when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is not indicated; it can also be expressed as: when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP does not support association; it can also be expressed as: when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP does not support access, and the like.

[0167] Optionally, in the wireless frame generated in step S101, the first information element contained in the wireless frame is a reduced neighbor report element (Reduced Neighbor Report element), and the frame format of the first information element can refer to the description of the foregoing Figures 4 to 6 , which will not be described here.

[0168] In a possible implementation, the first field is used to indicate the channel number corresponding to the channel information. Specifically, in the wireless frame generated in step S101, the first field used to indicate the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP can specifically indicate the channel number corresponding to the channel information, so that the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, thereby avoiding that the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the channel number of the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0169] Optionally, the first field includes a channel number (Channel Number) field. The implementation of the Channel Number field can refer to the foregoing Figure 4The above-mentioned related descriptions are not repeated here. In addition, in order to make the present application compatible with the definitions in the standards before 802.11be (802.11ax, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b and 802.11a) as much as possible, when the first field includes the Channel Number field, some reserved values in the Channel Number field can be selected as the first value. For example, the first value can be the reserved value 0, so that when the Channel Number field is set to 0, the Channel Number field indicates that the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the neighbor AP information is invalid or not informed, avoiding that the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the neighbor AP information.

[0170] In addition, for the legacy STA, the standard it complies with is the standard before 802.11be, and because the value of the first field is a reserved value, the legacy STA cannot obtain the accurate channel number corresponding to the channel information based on the reserved value. Therefore, if the receiver of the wireless frame generated in step S101 is a legacy STA, the legacy STA will not be able to obtain the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the neighbor AP information based on the first field, and it can be avoided that the legacy STA associates with the neighbor AP according to the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the neighbor AP information.

[0171] In a possible implementation, the first field is used to indicate the operation category to which the channel information belongs. Specifically, in the wireless frame generated in step S101, the first field used to indicate the channel information in the neighbor AP information can specifically indicate the operation category to which the channel information belongs, so that the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the operation category to which the channel information in the neighbor AP information belongs is invalid or not informed, avoiding that the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the operation category of the channel information in the neighbor AP information.

[0172] Optionally, the first field includes an Operating Class field. The implementation of the Operating Class field can refer to the above-mentioned Figure 4The above-mentioned related descriptions are not repeated here. In addition, in the embodiment, in order to make the application compatible with the definitions in the standards before 802.11be (802.11ax, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b and 802.11a) as much as possible, when the first field includes the Operating Class field, some reserved values in the Operating Class field can be selected as the first value. For example, the first value can be a reserved value 0 or 255, so that when the Operating Class field is set to 0 or 255, the Operating Class field indicates that the operating class to which the channel information in the neighbor AP information belongs is invalid or not informed, thereby avoiding that the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP according to the operating class to which the channel information in the neighbor AP information belongs.

[0173] In addition, for the legacy STA, the standard it complies with is the standard before 802.11be, and because the value of the first field is a reserved value, the legacy STA cannot obtain the accurate operating class to which the channel information belongs based on the reserved value. Therefore, if the receiver of the wireless frame generated in step S101 is a legacy STA, the legacy STA will not be able to obtain the operating class to which the channel information in the neighbor AP information belongs based on the first field, and it can be avoided that the legacy STA associates with the neighbor AP according to the operating class to which the channel information in the neighbor AP information belongs.

[0174] As can be known from the foregoing description, the first field can include the Channel Number field, and the first field can also include the Operating Class field. In actual application, the first field can also include the Channel Number field and the Operating Class field at the same time. Thus, the Channel Number field and the Operating Class field are taken as a whole to implement the first field. In addition, in the implementation mode, the first value corresponding to the Channel Number field and the first value corresponding to the Operating Class field can be the same or different, which is not limited here.

[0175] For example, when the first field includes both the Channel Number field and the Operating Class field, the first value corresponding to the Channel Number field and the first value corresponding to the Operating Class field are both 0; at this time, the first field in the wireless frame generated in step S101 is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, or the first field in the wireless frame generated in step S101 is used to indicate that the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, and the operating class to which the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP belongs is invalid or not informed.

[0176] For example, when the first field includes both the Channel Number field and the Operating Class field, the first value corresponding to the Channel Number field and the first value corresponding to the Operating Class field are both 0; at this time, the first field in the wireless frame generated in step S101 is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, or the first field in the wireless frame generated in step S101 is used to indicate that the channel number corresponding to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, and the operating class to which the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP belongs is invalid or not informed.

[0177] In addition, for the legacy STA, the standard it complies with is a standard before 802.11be, and because the value of the first field is a reserved value, the legacy STA cannot obtain the accurate operating class to which the channel information belongs and the channel number corresponding to the channel information based on the reserved value. Therefore, if the receiver of the wireless frame generated in step S101 is a legacy STA, the legacy STA will not be able to obtain the channel number corresponding to the channel information and the operating class to which the channel information belongs in the information of the neighbor AP based on the first field, and it can also be avoided that the legacy STA is associated with the neighbor AP according to the channel number and the operating class to which the channel information belongs in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0178] In a possible implementation, when the first field takes the first value, the first field is further used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed; or, when the first field takes the first value, the first field is further used to indicate that the neighbor AP is disabled. Specifically, in the wireless frame generated in step S101, in the scenario where the neighbor AP is an AP on a certain link of a multi-link device, it is possible to disable or remove the neighbor AP for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, resulting in that the neighbor AP will no longer support the association of the STA. Therefore, in the wireless frame generated in step S101, when the first field of the channel information in the information indicating the neighbor AP takes the first value, in addition to indicating that the channel information in the information indicating the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the first field can also indicate the state information of the neighbor AP, for example, indicating that the neighbor AP is (to be) removed or indicating that the neighbor AP is (to be) disabled. So that the receiver of the wireless frame knows that the neighbor AP is a non-associable neighbor AP.

[0179] In a possible implementation, the first information element is used to indicate the information of the neighbor AP on the non-primary link. Specifically, in the scenario where the neighbor AP is a neighbor AP corresponding to a non-primary link of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD), it is necessary to avoid that a Legacy STA attempts to perform a probe and association operation with the AP of the non-primary link by reading the reduced neighbor report element and switching to the corresponding channel.

[0180] In a possible implementation, the first information element further includes a second field, and the second field includes a first subfield and a second subfield; wherein the second field is used to indicate the basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor AP; and the first subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the basic service set expects to exchange a management type medium access control protocol data unit (MAC PDU, referred to as MPDU) with the neighbor AP through an on-channel tunneling (OCT) mechanism, and when the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange the management type medium access control protocol data unit MPDU with the neighbor through the OCT mechanism; and the second subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the neighbor enables an active probe response, and when the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor AP does not enable the active probe response.

[0181] Specifically, in the scenario that the neighbor AP is a non-primary link corresponding to a soft AP MLD (also referred to as a software-defined AP MLD), in the wireless frame generated in step S101, the first information element for carrying information of the neighbor AP further includes a second field for indicating a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor, wherein the second field further includes a first subfield and a second subfield. When the first field is used to indicate that channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange a management type MPDU with the neighbor through an OCT mechanism, and the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not start an unsolicited probe response. Thus, through the settings of the first subfield and the second subfield in the second field, it can be further avoided that a receiver of the wireless frame is associated with the neighbor according to the basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor.

[0182] In a possible implementation, the second field is a basic service set parameter (BSS Parameter) field, the first subfield is a channel transparent transmission recommendation (OCT recommended) field, and the second subfield is an unsolicited probe response active (Unsolicited Probe Response Active) subfield. Descriptions of the second field and the first subfield and the second subfield in the second field can be referred to the foregoing descriptions, which will not be described herein again. Figure 5 and Figure 6

[0183] ​In a possible implementation, the first information element further includes a third field used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of a basic service set corresponding to the neighbor, and when the channel information in the information used to indicate the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor AP is unknown information. Specifically, in the scenario where the neighbor AP is a non-main link corresponding neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (also referred to as a software-defined AP MLD), the first information element used to carry the information of the neighbor AP in the wireless frame generated in step S101 further includes a third field used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of a basic service set corresponding to the neighbor AP. And when the channel information in the information used to indicate the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor AP is unknown information. Therefore, through the setting of the third field, it can be further avoided that the receiver of the wireless frame associates with the neighbor AP according to the offset information. Wherein, the description of the third field can refer to the related description shown in the foregoing Figure 5 and Figure 6 , which will not be described here.

[0184] In a possible implementation, the wireless frame generated in step S101 is a management frame. Optionally, the wireless frame includes one or more of a Beacon frame, a Probe Request frame, a Probe Response frame, an Association Request frame, a Reassociation Request frame, a Disassociation frame, a Deauthentication frame, an Authentication frame, and the like.

[0185] S102. The wireless frame sending apparatus sends the wireless frame.

[0186] In this embodiment, after the wireless frame sending apparatus generates the wireless frame in step S101, the wireless frame sending apparatus sends the wireless frame in step S102; correspondingly, the wireless frame receiving apparatus receives the wireless frame in step S102.

[0187] For example, the wireless frame sending apparatus and the wireless frame receiving apparatus can perform transmission of the wireless frame based on the communication system shown in the foregoing Figure 1 or Figure 2 in step S102, that is, the wireless frame is transmitted through one or more of a plurality of links between the wireless frame sending apparatus and the wireless frame receiving apparatus.

[0188] Optionally, the wireless frame sending device can perform sending pre-processing on the wireless frame, and send the processing result of the sending pre-processing in step S102; for example, the sending pre-processing can include encryption, scrambling, etc. Correspondingly, the wireless frame receiving device can receive the processing result of the sending pre-processing on the wireless frame, and perform receiving pre-processing on the processing result in step S102 to obtain the wireless frame; for example, the receiving pre-processing can include decryption, descrambling, etc.

[0189] S103. The wireless frame receiving device determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed based on the first field in the wireless frame.

[0190] In this embodiment, the wireless frame receiving device determines the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP based on the wireless frame received in step S102.

[0191] Specifically, in step S103, the wireless frame receiving device can determine the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP according to the value of the first field in the first information element in the received wireless frame for indicating the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP. It should be noted that when the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a non-legacy STA, i.e., the wireless frame receiving device is a non-legacy STA, the non-legacy STA determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP indicated by the wireless frame is not informed based on the value of the first field in the wireless frame being set to the first value; in addition, the non-legacy STA can also obtain the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP based on other messages / information elements / fields, such as the Primary Channel field in the High Throughput Operation element (HT Operation element). When the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a legacy STA, i.e., the wireless frame receiving device is a legacy STA, the legacy STA interprets the first value as a reserved value based on the value of the first field in the wireless frame being set to the first value; therefore, the legacy STA determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP indicated by the wireless frame is invalid.

[0192] Specifically, since the present application is applied to a wireless local area network system supporting IEEE 802.11ax next generation WiFi protocol, such as 802.11be, or EHT, etc. related protocol, for the STA running in 802.11be or EHT, etc. related protocol, the standard it adheres to is 802.11be and later standards, so that the STA can read the meaning of the first field when the value of the first field is the first value. Thus, the STA as the wireless frame receiving device in step S103 can determine the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP in the first information element in the wireless frame for indicating the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; and when the value of the first field is the first value, the STA determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed.

[0193] In addition, for the legacy STA, the standard it adheres to is the standard before 802.11be, since the value of the first field is the reserved value, so that the legacy STA cannot obtain accurate channel information of the neighbor AP based on the reserved value. Thus, the legacy STA as the wireless frame receiving device in step S103 can determine the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP in the first information element in the wireless frame for indicating the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; and when the value of the first field is the first value, the legacy STA determines that the value of the first field is the reserved value, and the legacy STA cannot determine the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP because it cannot identify the meaning of the first field. Thus, the legacy STA determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid.

[0194] In an implementation manner, the neighbor AP indicated by the first information element in the wireless frame is a non-primary link corresponding neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD, also referred to as software defined AP MLD).

[0195] For non-AP MLD (i.e. wireless frame receiving device), it obtains the affiliated AP information corresponding to non-primary link by sending multi-link Probe Request frame on primary link. In the multi-link Probe Response frame returned by Soft AP MLD, it can indicate the channel number information of non-primary link through the Primary Channel field in HT Operation element. Therefore, setting the Channel Number field in Reduced Neighbor Report element to a special reserved value, such as 0, will not bring any impact on the subsequent operation of non-AP MLD. At the same time, legacy STA cannot obtain channel information through Reduced Neighbor Report element, thereby avoiding switching to non-primary link to send Probe Request frame.

[0196] In an implementation manner, in the scenario that the first information element in the wireless frame indicates the neighbor AP as the AP on a certain link in the multi-link device.

[0197] When the AP MLD wants to disable a certain affiliated AP or remove a certain affiliated AP, it can in advance inform the non-AP MLD (i.e. wireless frame receiving device) through the Reduced Neighbor Report element in the Beacon on other links, while avoiding the legacy STA switching to the link where the affiliated AP to be removed to send the Probe Request or Association Request frame. At this time, the Operating Class field or the Channel Number or both fields can be set to a reserved value, such as 0 or 255. Based on this manner, the non-AP MLD can judge that the corresponding affiliated AP will be removed. At the same time, the legacy STA cannot obtain the channel information, thereby avoiding the legacy STA switching to the corresponding channel to send the Probe Request frame or the Association Request frame.

[0198] Therefore, through the foregoing Figure 7aIn the description of the embodiments shown, in actual applications, when not all neighbor APs necessarily support association with a STA, for example, in a scenario where a certain neighbor AP is a neighbor AP corresponding to a non-primary link of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD can also be referred to as a software-defined AP MLD), it is necessary to avoid a Legacy STA attempting to perform probing and association operations with the AP of the non-primary link by reading the simplified neighbor report element and switching to the corresponding channel; for another example, in a scenario where a certain neighbor AP is an AP on a link in a multi-link device, it can be necessary to disable or remove the neighbor AP for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, resulting in the neighbor AP no longer supporting association of the STA. Based on the foregoing technical solutions, the value of the first field in the wireless frame can be set to the first value, so that the receiving party of the wireless frame determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, and the Legacy STA in the receiving party of the wireless frame is prevented from attempting to perform probing and association with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0199] Referring to Figure 7b , a schematic diagram of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown, which includes the following steps. It can be understood that, as Figure 7b indicated, the communication method involves transmission of a wireless frame; therefore, the communication method can also be referred to as a wireless frame sending method, or a wireless frame receiving method.

[0200] S201. A wireless frame sending device generates a wireless frame, the wireless frame including a target field, and when the value of the target field is a first value, the target field is used to indicate removal of the neighbor AP or disabling of the neighbor AP.

[0201] In this embodiment, the wireless frame sending device generates a wireless frame, the wireless frame including a first information element, and the first information element including a target field; wherein the first information element is used to carry information of a neighbor AP, and when the value of the target field is a first value, the target field is used to indicate removal of the neighbor AP or disabling of the neighbor AP.

[0202] In a possible implementation, the target field in the wireless frame generated in step S201 includes at least one of the following:

[0203] a channel number (Channel Number) field; or,

[0204] an operating class (Operating Class) field; or,

[0205] a reserved field in a target beacon transmission times information header (TBTT info Header) field; or

[0206] a target beacon transmission times information field type (TBTT info Field Type) field.

[0207] According to the technical solution, the target field can be implemented in the above-mentioned multiple ways, wherein the first value is a reserved value of any of the above-mentioned fields. Thus, when the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a legacy STA, the legacy STA determines that the neighbor AP is about to be removed or about to be disabled based on the value setting of the target field in the wireless frame being the first value; when the wireless frame receiving method is applied to a legacy STA, the legacy STA determines that the first value is a reserved value based on the value setting of the target field in the wireless frame being the first value; thus, the legacy STA determines that the target field is an invalid field.

[0208] Optionally, when the target field includes a channel number (Channel Number) field, the first value is 0; when the target field includes an operating class (Operating Class) field, the first value is 0 or 255; when the target field includes a reserved (Reserved) field in a target beacon transmission times information header (TBTT info Header) field, the first value is 0 or 1; when the target field includes a target beacon transmission times information field type (TBTT info Field Type) field, the first value is 1 or 2 or 3. Specifically, the implementation of the target field can also refer to the related description of the above-mentioned Figures 4 to 6 .

[0209] In a possible implementation, the first information element further includes a second field, and the second field includes a first subfield and a second subfield; the second field is used to indicate a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor AP; the first subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the basic service set expects to exchange a management type medium access control protocol data unit (MPDU) with the neighbor AP through an on-channel tunneling (OCT) mechanism, and when the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange the management type MPDU with the neighbor AP through the OCT mechanism; and the second subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the neighbor AP enables an unsolicited probe response, and when the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled, the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor AP does not enable the unsolicited probe response.

[0210] Specifically, in the scenario where the neighbor AP is a non-main link corresponding neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (also referred to as a software-defined AP MLD), in the wireless frame generated in step S201, the first information element used to carry information of the neighbor AP further includes a second field used to indicate a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor AP, and the second field further includes a first subfield and a second subfield. When the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange a management type MPDU with the neighbor AP through an OCT mechanism, and the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor AP does not enable an unsolicited probe response. Therefore, by setting the first subfield and the second subfield in the second field, it can be further avoided that a receiver of the wireless frame is associated with the neighbor AP according to the basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor AP.

[0211] Optionally, the second field is a basic service set parameter (BSSParameter) field, the first subfield is an on-channel tunneling recommended (OCT recommended) field, and the second subfield is an unsolicited probe response active (Unsolicited Probe Response Active) subfield. Descriptions of the second field, the first subfield, and the second subfield in the second field can be referred to the foregoing descriptions, which will not be described here again. Figure 5 and Figure 6 ​

[0212] In a possible implementation, the first information element further includes a third field used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of a basic service set corresponding to the neighbor AP, and when the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or deactivated, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor AP is unknown information.

[0213] Specifically, in the scenario where the neighbor AP is a non-primary link corresponding neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (also referred to as a software-defined AP MLD), in the wireless frame generated in step S201, the first information element used to carry information of the neighbor AP further includes a third field used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of a basic service set corresponding to the neighbor AP. And when the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or deactivated, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor AP is unknown information. Thus, through the setting of the third field, the receiver of the wireless frame can be further prevented from associating with the neighbor AP according to the offset information. Wherein, the description of the third field can refer to the foregoing description related to the first information element, which will not be described here. Figure 5 and Figure 6

[0214] In a possible implementation, the first information element in the wireless frame generated in step S201 is a reduced neighbor report element (Reduced Neighbor Report element).

[0215] In a possible implementation, the wireless frame generated in step S201 is a management frame. Optionally, the wireless frame includes one or more of a beacon (Beacon) frame, a probe request (Probe Request) frame, a probe response (Probe Response) frame, an association request (Association Request) frame, a re-association request (Reassociation Request) frame, a disassociation (Disassociation) frame, a deauthentication (Deauthentication) frame, an authentication (Authentication) frame, and the like.

[0216] S202. The wireless frame sending apparatus sends the wireless frame.

[0217] In this embodiment, after the wireless frame sending apparatus generates the wireless frame in step S201, the wireless frame sending apparatus sends the wireless frame in step S202; correspondingly, the wireless frame receiving apparatus receives the wireless frame in step S202. ​

[0218] Exemplarily, the wireless frame sending apparatus and the wireless frame receiving apparatus can perform the transmission of the wireless frame based on the aforementioned Figure 1 Or Figure 2 the communication system shown in FIG. 1, that is, through one or more of the plurality of links between the wireless frame sending apparatus and the wireless frame receiving apparatus.

[0219] Optionally, the wireless frame sending apparatus can perform sending pre-processing on the wireless frame, and send the processing result obtained by the sending pre-processing in step S202; for example, the sending pre-processing can include encryption, scrambling and the like. Correspondingly, the wireless frame sending apparatus can receive the processing result obtained by the sending pre-processing on the wireless frame, and perform receiving pre-processing on the processing result in step S202 to obtain the wireless frame; for example, the receiving pre-processing can include decryption, descrambling and the like.

[0220] S203. The wireless frame receiving apparatus determines that the neighbor AP is (to be) removed or the neighbor AP is (to be) disabled based on the target field in the wireless frame.

[0221] Specifically, in step S203, the wireless frame receiving apparatus can determine that the neighbor AP is (to be) removed or (to be) disabled according to the first value of the target field in the first information element in the received wireless frame.

[0222] Since the present application is applied to a wireless local area network system supporting IEEE 802.11ax next generation WiFi protocol, such as 802.11be or EHT and the like, for a STA running on 802.11be or EHT and the like, the standard it complies with is 802.11be and later standards, so that the STA can read the meaning when the value of the target field is the first value. Thus, the STA as the wireless frame receiving apparatus in step S103 can determine that the neighbor AP is (to be) removed or (to be) disabled when the first value of the target field in the first information element in the wireless frame is the first value.

[0223] For a legacy STA, the standard it complies with is the standard before 802.11be, since the value of the first field is a reserved value, the legacy STA cannot obtain the accurate information indicated by the target field based on the reserved value. Thus, the legacy STA as the wireless frame receiving apparatus in step S103, based on the way of setting the value of the target field in the wireless frame to the first value, the legacy STA interprets that the first value is a reserved value; therefore, the legacy STA determines that the target field is an invalid field.

[0224] In an implementation, in a scenario where the neighbor AP indicated by the first information element in the wireless frame is an AP on a certain link of a multi-link device.

[0225] When the AP MLD wants to disable a certain affiliated AP or remove a certain affiliated AP, the non-AP MLD (i.e., the wireless frame receiving apparatus) can be notified in advance through the Reduced Neighbor Report element in the beacon on the other link, while it is necessary to avoid the legacy STA switching to the link on which the affiliated AP to be removed sends the Probe Request or Association Request frame. At this time, the value of the target field can be set to the first value. Based on this manner, the non-AP MLD can determine that the corresponding affiliated AP is about to be removed. At the same time, the legacy STA cannot obtain the channel information, thereby avoiding the legacy STA switching to the corresponding channel to send the Probe Request frame or the Association Request frame.

[0226] Therefore, through the foregoing Figure 7a As described in the description of the embodiments shown in the foregoing Figure 7b Based on the technical solutions shown in the foregoing

[0227] The foregoing describes the present application from the perspective of a method. The present application will be further described from the perspective of an apparatus.

[0228] Please refer to Figure 8Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a communication apparatus 800 according to an embodiment of the present application, wherein the communication apparatus 800 comprises a processing unit 801 and a transceiver unit 802.

[0229] In an implementation form, the communication apparatus 800 can be a wireless frame transmitting apparatus, configured to implement the wireless frame transmitting method as described above. Figure 7a Correspondingly, the processing unit 801 and the transceiver unit 802 comprise the following processes.

[0230] The processing unit 801 is configured to generate a wireless frame, wherein the wireless frame comprises a first information element, and the first information element comprises a first field; wherein the first information element is configured to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first field is configured to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP, and when a value of the first field is a first value, the first field is configured to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed.

[0231] The transceiver unit 802 is configured to transmit the wireless frame.

[0232] Based on the above technical solution, in actual application, when not all neighbors necessarily support association with a STA, for example, in a scenario where a certain neighbor is a non-primary link corresponding to a neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD can also be referred to as software-defined AP MLD), it is necessary to avoid that a Legacy STA attempts to perform detection and association operations with the AP of the non-primary link by reading the simplified neighbor report element and switching to the corresponding channel; for another example, in a scenario where a certain neighbor is an AP on a certain link in a multi-link device, it can be necessary to disable or remove the neighbor for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, resulting in that the neighbor will no longer support association of the STA. The wireless frame transmitted by the transceiver unit 802 comprises a first information element configured to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first information element comprises a first field configured to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; wherein when a value of the first field is a first value, the first field is configured to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed. Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, by setting the value of the first field in the wireless frame to the first value, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, thereby avoiding that a Legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempts to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0233] In another implementation form, the communication apparatus 800 can also be a wireless frame receiving apparatus, configured to implement the wireless frame receiving method as described above. Figure 7aThe wireless frame receiving method in the illustrated embodiment. Correspondingly, the processing unit 801 and the transceiver unit 802 include the following processes.

[0234] The transceiver unit 802 is configured to receive a wireless frame, the wireless frame including a first information element, the first information element including a first field; wherein the first information element is configured to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first field is configured to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0235] The processing unit 801 is configured to determine the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP according to the wireless frame, wherein when the first field takes a first value, the first field is configured to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed.

[0236] Based on the above technical solutions, in actual application, when not all neighbors necessarily support association with a STA, for example, in the scenario where a certain neighbor is a non-primary link corresponding to a neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD, also known as software-defined AP MLD), it is necessary to avoid a Legacy STA attempting to perform detection and association operations with the AP of the non-primary link by reading the simplified neighbor report element and switching to the corresponding channel; for another example, in the scenario where a certain neighbor is an AP on a certain link in a multi-link device, it may be necessary to disable or remove the neighbor for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, resulting in the neighbor no longer supporting association of the STA. The transceiver unit 802 receives a wireless frame including a first information element configured to carry information of a neighbor AP, and the first information element includes a first field configured to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; wherein when the first field takes a first value, the first field is configured to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed. Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, by setting the value of the first field in the wireless frame to the first value, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, avoiding the legacy STA in the receiver of the wireless frame attempting to perform detection and association with the neighbor AP on the corresponding channel according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0237] In a possible implementation, the first field is configured to indicate a channel number corresponding to the channel information.

[0238] In a possible implementation, the first field includes a channel number (Channel Number) field.

[0239] In a possible implementation, the first field is configured to indicate an operation category to which the channel information belongs.

[0240] In a possible implementation, the first field includes an Operating Class field.

[0241] In a possible implementation, when the first field has the first value, the first field is further used to indicate removing the neighbor AP; or, when the first field has the first value, the first field is further used to indicate deactivating the neighbor.

[0242] In a possible implementation, the wireless frame further includes a target field, when the target field has a second value, the target field is used to indicate removing the neighbor AP; or, when the target field has the second value, the target field is used to indicate deactivating the neighbor AP.

[0243] Optionally, the target field includes at least one of the following: a Reserved field in a target beacon transmission times information header (TBTT info Header) field, a target beacon transmission times information field type (TBTT info Field Type) field, and the like.

[0244] Optionally, when the target field includes the Reserved field in the TBTT info Header field, the first value is 0 or 1; or, when the target field includes the TBTT info Field Type field, the first value is 1 or 2 or 3.

[0245] In a possible implementation, the first information element is used to indicate information of the neighbor AP on a non-primary link.

[0246] In a possible implementation, the first information element further includes a second field, and the second field includes a first subfield and a second subfield; the second field is used to indicate a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor; the first subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the basic service set expects to exchange a management type medium access control protocol data unit (MAC PDU, referred to as MPDU) with the neighbor through an on-channel tunneling (OCT) mechanism, and when the channel information in the information indicating the neighbor AP is invalid or is not informed, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange the management type MPDU with the neighbor through the OCT mechanism; and the second subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the neighbor enables an unsolicited probe response, and when the channel information in the information indicating the neighbor AP is invalid or is not informed, the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not enable the unsolicited probe response.

[0247] In a possible implementation, the second field is a basic service set parameter (BSS Parameter) field, the first subfield is an on-channel tunneling recommended (OCT recommended) field, and the second subfield is an unsolicited probe response active (Unsolicited Probe Response Active) subfield.

[0248] In a possible implementation, the first information element further includes a third field, the third field is used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor, and when the channel information in the information indicating the neighbor AP is invalid or is not informed, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor is unknown information.

[0249] In a possible implementation, the first information element is a reduced neighbor report element (Reduced Neighbor Report element).

[0250] In a possible implementation, the wireless frame is a management frame.

[0251] Optionally, the wireless frame includes one or more of a Beacon frame, a Probe Request frame, a Probe Response frame, an Association Request frame, a Reassociation Request frame, a Disassociation frame, a Deauthentication frame, an Authentication frame, and the like.

[0252] In an implementation, the communication apparatus 800 can be a wireless frame sending apparatus, configured to implement the wireless frame sending method in the foregoing Figure 7b embodiments. Correspondingly, the processing unit 801 and the transceiver unit 802 include the following processes.

[0253] Based on the foregoing technical solutions, in actual application, when not all neighbors necessarily support association with a STA, for example, in a scenario where a certain neighbor is a non-primary link corresponding to a neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD, also referred to as a software-defined AP MLD), it is necessary to avoid a Legacy STA from attempting to perform probing and association operations with the AP of the non-primary link by reading a simplified neighbor report element and switching to a corresponding channel; for another example, in a scenario where a certain neighbor is an AP on a certain link in a multi-link device, it can be necessary to disable or remove the neighbor for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, resulting in that the neighbor will no longer support association of the STA. The wireless frame sent by the transceiver unit 801 includes a first information element for carrying information of a neighbor AP, and the first information element includes a target field; wherein when the value of the target field is a first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled. Thus, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that a neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, by setting the value of the target field in the wireless frame to the first value, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor AP is (about to be) removed or (about to be) disabled, thereby avoiding the receiver of the wireless frame from attempting to associate with the neighbor according to channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0254] In another implementation, the communication apparatus 800 can be a wireless frame receiving apparatus, configured to implement the wireless frame receiving method in the foregoing Figure 7b embodiments. Correspondingly, the processing unit 801 and the transceiver unit 802 include the following processes.

[0255] Based on the above technical solutions, in actual application, when not all neighbors necessarily support association with the STA, for example, in the scenario where a certain neighbor is a non-primary link corresponding to a neighbor AP of a soft AP MLD (soft AP MLD, also known as software-defined AP MLD), it is necessary to avoid the Legacy STA attempting to perform probing and association operations with the AP of the non-primary link by reading the simplified neighbor report element and switching to the corresponding channel; for another example, in the scenario where a certain neighbor is an AP on a certain link in a multi-link device, it may be necessary to disable or remove the neighbor for the purpose of reducing power consumption or other purposes, resulting in the neighbor no longer supporting association of the STA. The wireless frame received by the transceiver 801 includes a first information element for carrying information of the neighbor AP, and the first information element includes a target field; wherein when the value of the target field is a first value, the target field is used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed or disabled. Therefore, when the sender of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor is not used for association with the receiver of the wireless frame, by setting the value of the target field in the wireless frame to the first value, the receiver of the wireless frame determines that the neighbor AP is (about to be) removed or (about to be) disabled, avoiding the receiver of the wireless frame attempting to associate with the neighbor according to the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP.

[0256] In a possible implementation, the target field includes at least one of the following:

[0257] a Channel Number field; or,

[0258] an Operating Class field; or,

[0259] a Reserved field in a target beacon transmission times information header (TBTT info Header) field; or,

[0260] a target beacon transmission times information field type (TBTT info Field Type) field.

[0261] Optionally, when the target field comprises a Channel Number field, the first value is 0; when the target field comprises an Operating Class field, the first value is 0 or 255; when the target field comprises a Reserved field in the TBTT info Header field, the first value is 0 or 1; when the target field comprises a TBTT info Field Type field, the first value is 1 or 2 or 3.

[0262] In a possible implementation, the first information element further comprises a second field, and the second field comprises a first subfield and a second subfield; the second field is used to indicate a basic service set parameter corresponding to the neighbor; the first subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the basic service set expects to exchange a management type medium access control protocol data unit (MAC PDU, referred to as MPDU) with the neighbor through an on-channel tunneling (OCT) mechanism, and when the target field is used to indicate removing the neighbor AP or deactivating the neighbor AP, the first subfield is used to indicate that the basic service set expects to exchange the management type MAC PDU with the neighbor through the OCT mechanism; and the second subfield included in the second field is used to indicate whether the neighbor enables an unsolicited probe response, and when the target field is used to indicate removing the neighbor AP or deactivating the neighbor AP, the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not enable the unsolicited probe response.

[0263] In a possible implementation, the second field is a basic service set parameter (BSS Parameter) field, the first subfield is an on-channel tunneling recommended (OCT recommended) field, and the second subfield is an unsolicited probe response active (Unsolicited Probe Response Active) subfield.

[0264] In a possible implementation, the first information element further comprises a third field, the third field is used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor, and when the target field is used to indicate removing the neighbor AP or deactivating the neighbor AP, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the basic service set corresponding to the neighbor is unknown information.

[0265] In a possible implementation, the first information element is a Reduced Neighbor Report element.

[0266] In a possible implementation, the wireless frame is a management frame.

[0267] Optionally, the wireless frame comprises one or more of a Beacon frame, a Probe Request frame, a Probe Response frame, an Association Request frame, a Reassociation Request frame, a Disassociation frame, a Deauthentication frame, an Authentication frame, and the like.

[0268] It should be noted that the communication apparatus 800 can also be used to execute the other embodiments described above and achieve the corresponding beneficial effects. Details can be referred to the description of the foregoing embodiments, which will not be described here.

[0269] Referring to Figure 9 , Figure 9 FIG. 9 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus 900 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The communication apparatus 900 comprises a processor 901 and a transceiver 902.

[0270] The communication apparatus 900 can be a wireless frame sending apparatus or a wireless frame receiving apparatus, or a chip thereof.

[0271] Figure 9 Only main components of the communication apparatus 900 are shown. In addition to the processor 901 and the transceiver 902, the communication apparatus can further comprise a memory 903 and an input / output device (not shown in the figure).

[0272] The processor 901 is mainly used for processing communication protocols and communication data, and controlling the whole communication apparatus, executing software programs, and processing data of the software programs. The memory 903 is mainly used for storing software programs and data. The transceiver 902 can comprise a radio frequency circuit and an antenna. The radio frequency circuit is mainly used for conversion between baseband signals and radio frequency signals, and processing of the radio frequency signals. The antenna is mainly used for receiving and sending radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. The input / output device, such as a touch screen, a display screen, a keyboard, and the like, is mainly used for receiving data input by a user and outputting data to the user.

[0273] The processor 901, the transceiver 902, and the memory 903 can be connected through a communication bus.

[0274] When the communication device is powered on, the processor 901 can read the software program in the memory 903, interpret and execute the instructions of the software program, and process the data of the software program. When data needs to be transmitted wirelessly, the processor 901 performs baseband processing on the data to be transmitted, and outputs the baseband signal to the radio frequency circuit. The radio frequency circuit performs radio frequency processing on the baseband signal, and transmits the radio frequency signal in the form of electromagnetic wave through the antenna. When data is transmitted to the communication device, the radio frequency circuit receives the radio frequency signal through the antenna, converts the radio frequency signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor 901. The processor 901 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0275] In any of the above designs, the processor 901 can include a communication interface for implementing receiving and transmitting functions. For example, the communication interface can be a transceiver circuit, or an interface, or an interface circuit. The transceiver circuit, interface or interface circuit for implementing receiving and transmitting functions can be separate or integrated together. The above-mentioned transceiver circuit, interface or interface circuit can be used for reading and writing of code / data, or the above-mentioned transceiver circuit, interface or interface circuit can be used for transmission or transfer of signals.

[0276] In any of the above designs, the processor 901 can store instructions, which can be a computer program. The computer program can run on the processor 901, and can make the communication device 900 execute the method described in any of the above embodiments. The computer program can be fixed in the processor 901, in which case the processor 901 can be implemented by hardware.

[0277] In an implementation, the communication apparatus 900 can include circuitry that can implement the functions of transmitting or receiving or communicating in any of the preceding embodiments. The processor and the communication interface described in this application can be implemented on an integrated circuit (IC), an analog IC, a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), a mixed-signal IC, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a printed circuit board (PCB), an electronic device, etc. The processor and the communication interface can also be manufactured using various IC process technologies, such as complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), N-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS), positive channel metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS), bipolar junction transistor (BJT), bipolar CMOS (BiCMOS), silicon germanium (SiGe), gallium arsenide (GaAs), etc.

[0278] In another implementation, the radio frequency circuitry and the antenna can be arranged independently of the processor that performs baseband processing, such as in a distributed scenario where the radio frequency circuitry and the antenna can be arranged in a remote manner from the communication apparatus.

[0279] The communication apparatus can be a standalone device or can be a part of a larger device. For example, the communication apparatus can be:

[0280] (1) a standalone integrated circuit (IC), or chip, or chip system or subsystem;

[0281] (2) a set of one or more ICs that can optionally also include storage for storing data, instructions, etc.

[0282] (3) an ASIC, such as a modem;

[0283] (4) a module that can be embedded within other devices;

[0284] (5) a receiver, a smart terminal, a wireless device, a handset, a mobile unit, a

[0285] (6) other, etc. (6) other, etc.

[0286] In addition, the processor 901 can be configured to perform, for example but not limited to, baseband related processing, and the transceiver 902 can be configured to perform, for example but not limited to, radio frequency receiving and transmitting. The above-mentioned devices can be respectively arranged on independent chips, or at least part or all of them can be arranged on the same chip. For example, the processor can be further divided into an analog baseband processor and a digital baseband processor. The analog baseband processor can be integrated on the same chip as the transceiver, and the digital baseband processor can be arranged on an independent chip. With the continuous development of integrated circuit technology, more and more devices can be integrated on the same chip. For example, the digital baseband processor can be integrated on the same chip as various application processors (such as, but not limited to, graphic processors, multimedia processors, etc.). Such a chip can be referred to as a system on chip. Whether to arrange the devices on independent chips or to integrate them on one or more chips often depends on the specific needs of product design. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific implementation forms of the above-mentioned devices.

[0287] The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer readable storage medium, which stores computer program codes. When the processor executes the computer program codes, the electronic device executes the method in any of the preceding embodiments.

[0288] The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product, which makes the computer execute the method in any of the preceding embodiments when the computer program product runs on the computer.

[0289] The embodiments of the present application further provide a communication device, which can exist in the form of a chip product. The structure of the device includes a processor and an interface circuit. The processor is configured to communicate with other devices through the receiving circuit, so that the device executes the method in any of the preceding embodiments.

[0290] The embodiments of the present application further provide a WLAN communication system, which includes a wireless frame sending device and a wireless frame receiving device. The wireless frame sending device and the wireless frame receiving device can execute the method in any of the preceding embodiments.

[0291] The steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with the present disclosure can be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module can reside in RAM, flash memory, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, registers, hard disk, a removable media, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium can be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium can reside in an ASIC. Alternatively, the processor and the storage medium can reside as discrete components in a core network interface device. In yet another alternative, the processor and the storage medium can reside in a core network interface device that is external to the core network interface device.

[0292] Those skilled in the art can appreciate that the functions described herein can be implemented in one or more examples described above with hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, the functions can be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include both computer-readable storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer.

[0293] Although the present disclosure has been described in connection with certain embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand and appreciate the alterations, modifications, and variations that can be made to such embodiments without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In the claims, the term "including" does not exclude other components or steps. The terms "a" or "an" do not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit can fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The terms "first," "second," "third," "fourth," etc. do not require a particular chronological order. The terms "comprising," "having," "containing," and "including" are to be construed open- ended, i.e., to mean "including, but not limited to." The singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. The terms "coupled" and "connected" do not exclude the presence of intermediate elements between two coupled or connected elements.

[0294] The above detailed description of the application is merely intended to illustrate the purpose, technical solutions and beneficial effects of the application. It should be understood that the above description is merely a specific embodiment of the application and is not intended to limit the protection scope of the application. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made on the basis of the technical solutions of the application shall be included in the protection scope of the application.

Claims

1. A method of transmitting a radio frame, characterized by, The method comprises: generating a wireless frame, the wireless frame comprising a first information element, the first information element being used to indicate information of a neighbor AP of a soft multi-link access point device (AP MLD) on a non-primary link, the first information element comprising a first field; wherein the first information element is used to carry the information of the neighbor AP, the first field is used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP, and when a value of the first field is a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed; sending the wireless frame.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first field is used to indicate a channel number corresponding to the channel information.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, The first field comprises a channel number (ChannelNumber) field.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The first field is used to indicate an operating class to which the channel information belongs.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein, The first field comprises an operating class (OperatingClass) field.

6. The method of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein, when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is further used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed; or when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is further used to indicate that the neighbor AP is disabled.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The first information element further comprises a second field, and the second field comprises a first subfield and a second subfield; The second field is used to indicate a basic service set (BSS) parameter corresponding to the neighbor; The first subfield is used to indicate whether the BSS expects to exchange a management type of media access control (MAC) protocol data unit (MPDU) with the neighbor through an over-the-channel transmission (OCT) mechanism, and when the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the first subfield is used to indicate that the BSS expects to exchange the management type of MPDU with the neighbor through the OCT mechanism; The second subfield is used to indicate whether the neighbor enables an unsolicited probe response, and when the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not enable the unsolicited probe response.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, The second field is a BSS parameter (BSSParameter) field, the first subfield is an OCT recommended field, and the second subfield is an unsolicited probe response active (Unsolicited Probe Response Active) subfield.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that, The first information element further comprises a third field, the third field being used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of a BSS corresponding to the neighbor, and when the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the BSS corresponding to the neighbor is unknown information.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, The first information element is a reduced neighbor report element (Reduced Neighbor Report element).

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that, The wireless frame is a management frame.

12. A method of receiving a radio frame, characterized by Comprise: Receiving a wireless frame, the wireless frame comprising a first information element, the first information element being used to indicate information of a neighbor AP of a soft multi-link access point device (AP MLD) on a non-primary link, the first information element comprising a first field; wherein the first information element is used to carry the information of the neighbor AP, and the first field is used to indicate channel information in the information of the neighbor AP; Determining the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP according to the wireless frame, wherein when a value of the first field is a first value, the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is not informed.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein, The first field is used to indicate a channel number corresponding to the channel information.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, The first field comprises a channel number (ChannelNumber) field.

15. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, characterized in that, The first field is used to indicate an operating class to which the channel information belongs.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein, The first field comprises an operating class (OperatingClass) field.

17. The method of any one of claims 12-16, wherein, when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is further used to indicate that the neighbor AP is removed; or when the value of the first field is the first value, the first field is further used to indicate that the neighbor AP is deactivated.

18. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 17, characterized in that, The first information element further comprises a second field, and the second field comprises a first subfield and a second subfield; The second field is used to indicate a basic service set (BSS) parameter corresponding to the neighbor; The first subfield is used to indicate whether the BSS expects to exchange a management type of media access control (MAC) protocol data unit (MPDU) with the neighbor through an over-the-channel (OCT) mechanism, and when the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the first subfield is used to indicate that the BSS expects to exchange the management type of MAC protocol data unit (MPDU) with the neighbor through the OCT mechanism; The second subfield is used to indicate whether the neighbor enables an unsolicited probe response, and when the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the second subfield is used to indicate that the neighbor does not enable the unsolicited probe response.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein, The second field is a BSS parameter (BSSParameter) field, the first subfield is an OCT recommended field, and the second subfield is an unsolicited probe response active (Unsolicited Probe Response Active) subfield.

20. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 19, characterized in that, The first information element further comprises a third field, the third field being used to indicate offset information of a beacon frame transmission time of a BSS corresponding to the neighbor, and when the first field is used to indicate that the channel information in the information of the neighbor AP is invalid or not informed, the third field is used to indicate that the offset information of the beacon frame transmission time of the BSS corresponding to the neighbor is unknown information.

21. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 20, characterized in that, The first information element is a Reduced Neighbor Report element.

22. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 21, characterized in that, The wireless frame is a management frame.

23. A wireless frame transmitting apparatus, characterized by comprising: The apparatus comprises a processing unit and a transceiving unit, wherein the apparatus is configured to perform the method of any one of claims 1-11.

24. A wireless frame receiving apparatus, characterized by comprising: The apparatus comprises a processing unit and a transceiving unit, wherein the apparatus is configured to perform the method of any one of claims 12-22.

25. A communications device, characterized by comprising at least one processor coupled with a memory; the memory is configured to store a program or instructions; the at least one processor is configured to execute the program or instructions to cause the apparatus to implement the method of any one of claims 1-11.

26. A communications device, characterized by comprising at least one processor coupled with a memory; the memory is configured to store a program or instructions; the at least one processor is configured to execute the program or instructions to cause the apparatus to implement the method of any one of claims 12-22.

27. A computer program product comprising program instructions, characterized in that, The program instructions, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1-22.

28. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer readable storage medium stores program instructions, which, when run, cause the method of any one of claims 1-22 to be performed.

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