Method and terminal for transmitting and receiving data in a wireless communication system

Abstract

A method for transmitting a TB PPDU in a wireless communication system is disclosed. A non-AP STA can receive a frame from an AP to trigger the transmission of a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU), and can transmit a PPDU including a Packet Extension (PE) field that provides processing time for the PPDU in response to the frame. In this case, the frame can indicate the format of the PPDU transmitted in response to the frame, and the maximum value of the duration of the PE field can vary depending on the format of the PPDU indicated by the frame.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to wireless communication systems, and more specifically, to a wireless communication method and a wireless communication terminal for determining the processing time of a wireless frame. Background Technology

[0002] In recent years, with the expansion of mobile device supply, Wireless LAN technology, which can provide fast wireless internet services to mobile devices, has gained attention. Wireless LAN technology allows mobile devices, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, portable multimedia players, embedded devices, and more, to wirelessly access the internet in their homes, offices, or other service areas based on short-range wireless communication technology.

[0003] Since using the 2.4 GHz frequency to support initial wireless LAN technology, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 has commercialized or developed various technical standards. First, IEEE 802.11b, using the 2.4 GHz band, supported a maximum communication speed of 11 Mbps. Compared to the significantly congested 2.4 GHz band, IEEE 802.11a, commercialized after IEEE 802.11b, used the 5 GHz band instead of 2.4 GHz to reduce interference and increased the communication speed to a maximum of 54 Mbps through the use of OFDM technology. However, a drawback of IEEE 802.11a is its shorter communication range compared to IEEE 802.11b. Furthermore, similar to IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g uses the 2.4 GHz frequency band to achieve a maximum communication speed of 54 Mbps and meets backward compatibility, which is of significant interest. Moreover, it is superior to IEEE 802.11a in terms of communication range.

[0004] Furthermore, IEEE 802.11n has been developed as a technical standard to overcome the limitations of communication speed, a weakness identified in wireless LANs. IEEE 802.11n aims to improve network speed and reliability and extend the operating range of wireless networks. More specifically, IEEE 802.11n supports High Throughput (HT), with data processing speeds of up to 540 Mbps or higher, and further, it is based on Multiple Inputs Multiple Outputs (MIMO) technology, where multiple antennas are used on both sides of the transmitting and receiving units to minimize transmission errors and optimize data speed. Additionally, the standard can use a compilation scheme that superimposes multiple copies of the transmission to increase data reliability.

[0005] As the supply of wireless LANs becomes more active, and further, as applications using wireless LANs diversify, the need for new wireless LAN systems supporting much higher throughput (Very High Throughput, VHT) than those supported by IEEE 802.11n has gained attention. Among these, IEEE 802.11ac supports bandwidth (80 to 160 MHz) in the 5 GHz frequency band. The IEEE 802.11ac standard is defined only in the 5 GHz band, but initial 11ac chipsets even support operation in the 2.4 GHz band for backward compatibility with existing 2.4 GHz band products. Theoretically, according to this standard, wireless LAN speeds of at least 1 Gbps can be enabled for multiple stations, and maximum single-link speeds of at least 500 Mbps can be achieved. This is achieved through concepts that extend the wireless interface received by 802.11n, such as wider wireless frequency bandwidth (maximum 160 MHz), more MIMO spatial streams (maximum 8), multi-user MIMO, and high-density modulation (maximum 256 QAM). Furthermore, IEEE 802.11ad has been offered as a solution for transmitting data using the 60GHz band instead of the existing 2.4GHz / 5GHz band. IEEE 802.11ad is a transmission standard that provides speeds up to 7Gbps using beamforming technology and is suitable for high bit-rate motion streaming, such as large-scale data or uncompressed HD video. However, its drawback is that the 60GHz band is difficult to penetrate obstacles, limiting its use to devices operating in close proximity.

[0006] As a wireless LAN standard following 802.11ac and 802.11ad, the IEEE 802.11ax (High-Efficiency Wireless LAN (HEW)) standard, designed to provide efficient and high-performance wireless LAN communication in high-density environments with concentrated access points (APs) and terminals, is nearing completion. In 802.11ax-based wireless LAN environments, where high-density stations and access points (APs) are present, high-frequency efficiency communication should be provided indoors / outdoors, and various technologies have been developed to achieve this.

[0007] To support new multimedia applications, such as high-definition video and real-time gaming, new wireless LAN standards are being developed to increase maximum transmission rates. The IEEE 802.11be Extremely High Throughput (EHT), a 7th generation wireless LAN standard, is under development with the aim of supporting transmission rates up to 30Gbps in the 2.4 / 5 / 6 GHz band through increased bandwidth, increased spatial streaming, and multi-AP collaboration. IEEE 802.11be introduces technologies such as 320MHz bandwidth, multi-link operation, multi-access point (multi-AP) operation, and Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ).

[0008] Multilink operations can be performed in various types depending on their operation and implementation methods. In this case, since problems that have not occurred in existing IEEE 802.11-based wireless LAN communication operations may arise, it is necessary to define detailed operation methods for multilink operations.

[0009] On the other hand, the background art of the present invention is written to improve the understanding of the background, and therefore may include content that is known to those skilled in the art to which the art pertains but is not part of the prior art. Summary of the Invention

[0010] Technical issues

[0011] The purpose of this invention is to provide an ultra-high-speed wireless LAN service for new multimedia applications.

[0012] Furthermore, the object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for including a field in a wireless frame to ensure the processing time of a receiving device when transmitting and receiving wireless frames.

[0013] Furthermore, the object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for determining the duration of a field used to ensure the processing time of a receiving device.

[0014] Furthermore, the object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for determining the duration of a field used to ensure the processing time of a receiving device, depending on specific conditions.

[0015] Furthermore, the object of the present invention is to provide a method for determining the duration of a field used to ensure the processing time of a receiving device based on the modulation scheme of the frame, the size of the resource unit, the format of the frame, and / or the number of streams.

[0016] The technical problems to be solved in this specification are not limited to those mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art based on the following description.

[0017] Technical methods

[0018] A terminal in a wireless communication system includes: a communication module; and a processor that controls the communication module, wherein the processor: receives a frame from an access point (AP) triggering the transmission of a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU); and, in response to the frame, transmits a PPDU including a Packet Extension (PE) field for providing a processing time for the PPDU, wherein the frame indicates the format of the PPDU transmitted in response to the frame, and the maximum value of the duration of the PE field varies depending on the format of the PPDU indicated by the frame.

[0019] Furthermore, in this invention, when the format of the PPDU indicated by the frame is a High Efficiency (HE) PPDU, the maximum value of the duration of the PE field is a first value, and when the format of the PPDU indicated by the frame is an Extremely High Throughput (EHT) PPDU, the maximum value of the duration of the PE field is a second value.

[0020] Furthermore, in this invention, the first value is "16us" and the second value is "20us".

[0021] Furthermore, in this invention, the processor: receives an operation element from the AP, wherein the operation element includes a default PE duration subfield indicating the duration of the PE field, and when the value of the control identifier (ID) subfield included in the frame indicates a trigger response schedule (TRS) for triggering the transmission of the PPDU, if the format of the PPDU is indicated as an EHT PPDU by the frame and the maximum value of the duration indicated by the default PE duration subfield is different from the maximum value of the duration when the format of the PPDU is indicated as the EHT PPDU by the frame, the maximum value of the duration of the PE field is determined by the default PE duration subfield.

[0022] Furthermore, in this invention, when the value of the control identifier subfield included in the frame indicates a trigger response schedule (TRS) for triggering the transmission of a PPDU to another STA, the value of each of the plurality of subfields included in the frame for calculating the duration of the PE field is set such that the duration of the PE field calculated by the plurality of subfields is equal to the duration of the PE field for the PPDU to the other STA.

[0023] Furthermore, in this invention, the processor receives an operation element from the AP, wherein the operation element includes an EHT default PE duration subfield, the EHT default PE duration subfield indicating whether the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the EHT PPDU is equal to the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the HE PPDU.

[0024] Furthermore, in this invention, when the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the EHT PPDU indicated by the EHT default PE duration subfield is different from the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the HE PPDU, the duration of the PE field indicated by the EHT default PE duration subfield is "20us".

[0025] Furthermore, in this invention, when the PPDU is modulated to 4096-QAM, or the number of spatial streams is equal to or greater than 8, or the channel bandwidth is 320MHz and the size of the resource unit (RU) allocated for the transmission of the PPDU is equal to or greater than 2x996, the maximum value of the duration of the PE field is "20us".

[0026] Furthermore, the present invention provides a method comprising the steps of: receiving from an access point (AP) a frame triggering the transmission of a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU); and in response to the frame, transmitting a PPDU including a Packet Extension (PE) field for providing a processing time for the PPDU, wherein the frame indicates the format of the PPDU transmitted in response to the frame, and the maximum value of the duration of the PE field varies depending on the format of the PPDU indicated by the frame.

[0027] Beneficial effects

[0028] According to one embodiment of the present invention, wireless frames can be transmitted effectively using signals.

[0029] Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, in a contention-based channel access system, the overall resource utilization can be increased, and the performance of the wireless LAN system can be improved.

[0030] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, by including a field for processing time in the frame, the effect of ensuring the time available for the receiving device to process the frame and send a response is achieved.

[0031] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the duration of the field used for frame processing time is determined based on the frame modulation scheme, resource unit size, frame format and / or number of streams, thereby achieving the effect of effectively ensuring frame processing time.

[0032] The effects that can be obtained in this invention are not limited to those described above, and other effects not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description. Attached Figure Description

[0033] Figure 1 The illustration shows a wireless LAN system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] Figure 2 The illustration shows a wireless LAN system according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0035] Figure 3 The illustration shows the configuration of a station according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] Figure 4 The diagram illustrates the configuration of an access point according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0037] Figure 5 This diagram illustrates the process of setting up a link between a station and an access point.

[0038] Figure 6 The diagram illustrates the Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA) / Collision Avoidance (CA) method used in wireless LAN communication.

[0039] Figure 7 The illustration shows an example of the format of the PLCP Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) used in each of the various standard generations.

[0040] Figure 8 The illustrations depict various Extremely High Throughput (EHT) Physical Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) formats according to an embodiment of the present invention, as well as examples of methods for indicating such formats.

[0041] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating a multi-link device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0042] Figure 10 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a TID-to-link mapping method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0043] Figure 11 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a multi-link NAV setup operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0044] Figure 12 This is a diagram illustrating another example of a multi-link NAV setup operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0045] Figure 13 This is a diagram illustrating an example of BSS classification and BSS-based operations according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0046] Figure 14 The illustration shows a wireless LAN function according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0047] Figure 15 The illustration shows an uplink (UL) multi-user (MU) operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0048] Figure 16 The illustration shows a trigger frame format according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0049] Figure 17 The illustration shows a method for indicating a trigger-based PPDU format according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0050] Figure 18 The illustration shows an example of UL MU operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0051] Figure 19 The illustration shows an example of a Packet Extension (PE) field for providing processing time according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0052] Figure 20 The illustration shows an example of a High Efficiency (HE) operation element and a default PE duration subfield according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0053] Figure 21 The illustration shows an example of a method for setting the duration of a PE field according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0054] Figure 22 The illustration shows another example of a method for setting the duration of UL MU operation and PE field according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0055] Figure 23 The illustration shows another example of a method for setting the duration of UL MU operation and PE field according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0056] Figure 24 The illustration shows another example of a method for setting the duration of UL MU operation and PE field according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0057] Figure 25 The illustration shows an example of a method for setting a CS Requiredsubfield according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0058] Figure 26 The illustration shows an example of setting a CS subfield and operating a UL MU according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0059] Figure 27 The illustration shows another example of setting the CS subfield and operating the UL MU according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0060] Figure 28 The illustration shows an example of a method for setting a PE field when using an aggregated (A)-PPDU according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0061] Figure 29The illustration shows an example of a method for indicating the format of a TB PPDU according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0062] Figure 30 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0063] In consideration of the functionality of this invention, the terminology used in this specification employs currently widely used and common terms; however, the terminology may change according to the intent, habits, and emergence of new technologies of those skilled in the art. Furthermore, in special cases, there are terms arbitrarily chosen by the applicant, and in such cases, their meaning will be explained in the corresponding descriptive section of the invention. Therefore, it should be understood that the terminology used in this specification should be analyzed not only based on the name of the term, but also on its substantive meaning and the content of the entire specification.

[0064] Throughout this specification, when it is stated that an element is "coupled" to another element, that element can be "directly coupled" to the other element or "electrically coupled" to the other element via a third element. Furthermore, unless explicitly stated otherwise, the word "comprising" will be understood to implicitly include the stated element, but does not exclude any other element. Additionally, limitations based on specific thresholds, such as "or above" or "or below," can be appropriately replaced by "greater than" or "less than," respectively. Hereinafter, in this invention, fields and subfields are used interchangeably.

[0065] Figure 1 The illustration shows a wireless LAN system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0066] A wireless LAN system comprises one or more Basic Service Sets (BSSs), and a BSS represents a collection of devices that have successfully synchronized with each other to communicate. Typically, BSSs can be divided into infrastructure BSSs and independent BSSs (IBSSs). Figure 1 The diagram shows the basic structure BSS between them.

[0067] like Figure 1 As shown, the infrastructure BSS (BSS1 and BSS2) includes one or more stations (STA 1, STA 2, STA 3, STA 4 and STA5), access points (AP-1 and AP-2) that serve as stations providing distributed services, and a distributed system (DS) that connects multiple access points (AP-1 and AP-2).

[0068] A station (STA) is a predetermined device comprising Medium Access Control (MAC) conforming to the IEEE 802.11 standard and a Physical Layer interface for wireless media, and broadly includes both non-access point (non-AP) stations and access points (APs). Furthermore, in this specification, the term "terminal" may be used to refer to a non-AP STA or an AP, or both. A station for wireless communication includes a processor and a communication unit, and according to embodiments, may further include a user interface unit and a display unit. The processor can generate frames to be transmitted via a wireless network, or process frames received via a wireless network, and further performs various processes for controlling the station. Additionally, the communication unit is functionally connected to the processor and transmits and receives frames via the wireless network for the station. According to the invention, "terminal" can be used as a term including user equipment (UE).

[0069] An Access Point (AP) is an entity that provides access to a Distributed System (DS) via wireless media used by associated stations. In an infrastructure BSS, communication between non-AP stations is generally performed via the AP; however, direct communication between non-AP stations is even permitted when a direct link is configured. In this invention, AP is used as a concept including Personal BSS Coordination Point (PCP), and broadly can include concepts such as a central controller, base station (BS), node B, base transceiver system (BTS), or station controller. In this invention, AP can also be referred to as a base station wireless communication terminal. The term base station wireless communication terminal can be used broadly to include AP, base station, eNodeB (eNB), and transport point (TP). Furthermore, a base station wireless communication terminal can include various types of wireless communication terminals that allocate communication medium resources and perform scheduling in communication with multiple wireless communication terminals.

[0070] Multiple infrastructure BSSs can be interconnected via a distributed system (DS). In this case, multiple BSSs connected via a distributed system are called an Extended Service Set (ESS).

[0071] Figure 2The illustration shows a standalone BSS according to another embodiment of the present invention, which is a wireless LAN system. Figure 2 In the embodiments, with Figure 1 Same or corresponding Figure 1 Repeated descriptions of certain embodiments will be omitted.

[0072] Because in Figure 2 The BSS3 shown in the diagram is an independent BSS and does not include the AP. All stations STA6 and STA7 are not connected to the AP. Independent BSSs are not allowed to access the distributed system and form a self-contained network. Within an independent BSS, the corresponding stations STA6 and STA7 can be directly interconnected.

[0073] Figure 3 The illustration shows a block diagram of the configuration of a station 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. (As shown in...) Figure 3 As shown in the figure, a station 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a processor 110, a communication unit 120, a user interface unit 140, a display unit 150, and a memory 160.

[0074] First, the communication unit 120 transmits and receives wireless signals, such as wireless LAN packets, and can be embedded in the station 100 or provided as a peripheral. According to embodiments, the communication unit 120 may include at least one communication module using different frequency bands. For example, the communication unit 120 may include communication modules with different frequency bands (such as 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz, and 60 GHz). According to embodiments, the station 100 may include communication modules using frequency bands of 7.125 GHz or higher, and communication modules using frequency bands of 7.125 GHz or lower. Each communication module can perform wireless communication with an AP or external station according to the wireless LAN standard of the frequency band supported by the respective communication module. The communication unit 120 may operate only one communication module at a time, or multiple communication modules simultaneously, depending on the performance and requirements of the station 100. When the station 100 includes multiple communication modules, each communication module can be implemented by an independent component, or multiple modules can be integrated into a single chip. In embodiments of the invention, the communication unit 120 may represent an RF communication module for processing radio frequency (RF) signals.

[0075] Secondly, the user interface unit 140 includes various types of input / output devices provided in the station 100. That is, the user interface unit 140 can receive user input using various input devices, and the processor 110 can control the station 100 based on the received user input. Furthermore, the user interface unit 140 can execute outputs based on commands from the processor 110 using various output devices.

[0076] Next, the display unit 150 outputs an image on the display screen. The display unit 150 can output various display objects based on control commands from the processor 110, such as content executed by the processor 110 or a user interface. Furthermore, the memory 160 stores the control program and various data used in the station 100. The control program may include the access program required for the station 100 to connect to the AP or an external station.

[0077] The processor 110 of the present invention can execute various commands or programs and process data in station 100. Furthermore, the processor 110 can control various units of station 100 and control data transmission / reception within those units. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the processor 110 can execute a program for accessing an AP stored in memory 160 and receive communication configuration messages transmitted by the AP. Furthermore, the processor 110 can read information about the priority conditions of station 100 included in the communication configuration messages and request access to the AP based on the information about the priority conditions of station 100. The processor 110 of the present invention can represent the main control unit of station 100, and according to an embodiment, the processor 110 can represent a control unit for individually controlling certain components of station 100 (e.g., communication unit 120, etc.). That is, the processor 110 can be a modem or modulator / demodulator for modulating wireless signals transmitted to communication unit 120 and demodulating wireless signals received from communication unit 120. The processor 110 controls various operations of wireless signal transmission / reception of station 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed embodiments will be described below.

[0078] exist Figure 3 The station 100 illustrated in the diagram is a block diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention, where the separate blocks are illustrated as logically distinct device elements. Therefore, the device elements can be installed in a single chip or multiple chips depending on the device design. For example, the processor 110 and the communication unit 120 can be implemented as a single chip or as separate chips. Furthermore, in embodiments of the present invention, certain components of the station 100, such as the user interface unit 140 and the display unit 150, can be selectively provided in the station 100.

[0079] Figure 4 The illustration shows a block diagram of the configuration of AP 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention. (As shown in...) Figure 4 As illustrated in the figure, an AP 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a processor 210, a communication unit 220, and a memory 260. Figure 4 In the AP200 components, and... Figure 2 The components of station 100 are the same or correspond to Figure 2 Repeated descriptions of parts of station 100 will be omitted.

[0080] Reference Figure 4 The AP 200 according to the invention includes a communication unit 220 that operates a BSS in at least one frequency band. (As in...) Figure 3 As illustrated in the embodiments, the communication unit 220 of AP 200 may also include multiple communication modules using different frequency bands. That is, an AP 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention may together include two or more communication modules in different frequency bands (e.g., 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz, and 60 GHz). Preferably, AP 200 may include communication modules using frequency bands of 7.125 GHz or higher, and communication modules using frequency bands of 7.125 GHz or lower. Each communication module can perform wireless communication with the station according to the wireless LAN standard of the frequency band supported by the respective communication module. Communication unit 220 may operate only one communication module at a time, or operate multiple communication modules simultaneously, depending on the performance and requirements of AP 200. In embodiments of the present invention, communication unit 220 may represent a radio frequency (RF) communication module for processing RF signals.

[0081] Next, memory 260 stores control programs and various result data used in AP 200. The control program may include an access program for managing station access. Furthermore, processor 210 can control the various units of AP 200 and control data transmission / reception within the units. According to one embodiment of the invention, processor 210 can execute programs stored in memory 260 for access stations and transmit communication configuration messages for one or more stations. In this case, the communication configuration message may include information about access priority conditions for each station. Furthermore, processor 210 performs access configuration based on the access request of a station. According to one embodiment, processor 210 may be a modem or modulator / demodulator for modulating wireless signals transmitted to communication unit 220 and demodulating wireless signals received from communication unit 220. Processor 210 controls various operations, such as wireless signal transmission / reception of AP 200, according to an embodiment of the invention. Detailed embodiments thereof will be described below.

[0082] Figure 5 This is a diagram illustrating the process of setting up a link between a STA and an AP.

[0083] Reference Figure 5 In a broad sense, the link between STA 100 and AP 200 is set up through three steps: scanning, authentication, and association. First, the scanning step is where STA 100 obtains access information from the BSS operated by AP 200. Methods for performing the scan include passive scanning, where AP 200 obtains information by using periodically transmitted beacon messages (S101), and active scanning, where STA 100 transmits a probe request to AP (S103) and obtains access information by receiving a probe response from AP (S105).

[0084] STA 100, having successfully received wireless access information during the scanning step, performs an authentication step by transmitting an authentication request (S107a) and receiving an authentication response from AP 200 (S107b). After performing the authentication step, STA 100 performs an association step by transmitting an association request (S109a) and receiving an association response from AP 200 (S109b). In this specification, association primarily refers to wireless association; however, the invention is not limited thereto, and association can broadly include both wireless and wired associations.

[0085] Simultaneously, the 802.1X-based authentication step (S111) and the IP address acquisition step via DHCP (S113) can be performed additionally. Figure 5 In this context, authentication server 300 is the server that handles 802.1X-based authentication for STA 100, and can exist in a physical association with AP 200 or as a standalone server.

[0086] Figure 6 This is a diagram illustrating the Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA) / Collision Avoidance (CA) method used in wireless LAN communication.

[0087] Terminals performing wireless LAN communication determine whether a channel is busy by performing carrier sensing before transmitting data. When a wireless signal with a preset strength or greater is sensed, the corresponding channel is determined to be busy, and the terminal delays access to that channel. This process is called Clear Channel Assessment (CCA), and the level at which a signal is sensed is called the CCA threshold. When a terminal receives a wireless signal with a CCA threshold or higher that indicates it is a receiver, the terminal processes the received wireless signal. Conversely, when no wireless signal is detected in the corresponding channel or a wireless signal with a strength less than the CCA threshold is detected, the channel is determined to be idle.

[0088] When the channel is determined to be idle, each terminal with data to transmit performs a backoff procedure after an inter-frame space (IFS) period, the duration of which depends on the specific terminal, such as an Arbitration IFS (AIFS), PCF IFS (PIFS), etc. According to this embodiment, AIFS can be used as a component to replace the existing DCF IFS (DIFS). During the idle period of the channel, each terminal waits while reducing the time slot duration by a random number determined by the respective terminal, and terminals that have completely exhausted their time slot duration attempt to access the corresponding channel. Thus, the interval during which each terminal performs the backoff procedure is called the contention window interval.

[0089] When a specific terminal successfully accesses the channel, it can transmit data through the channel. However, when a terminal attempting to access the channel conflicts with another terminal, the conflicting terminals are each assigned a new random number to re-execute the backoff process. According to an embodiment, this can be done within the range (2...). Within the range (CW), a new random number is determined for each terminal, within which (2... The contention window (CW) is twice the range of random numbers previously allocated to the respective terminals. Simultaneously, each terminal attempts access by performing a backoff procedure again in the next contention window interval, and in this case, each terminal begins the backoff procedure from the remaining time slot of the previous contention window interval. In this way, the individual terminals performing wireless LAN communication can avoid mutual collisions on specific channels.

[0090] In this invention, the terminal may be referred to as a non-AP STA, AP STA, STA, receiving device, or transmitting device, and the invention is not limited thereto. Furthermore, in this invention, an AP STA may be referred to as an AP.

[0091] <Examples of various PPDU formats>

[0092] Figure 7 The illustration shows an example of the format of the PLCP Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) used in each of the various standard generations. More specifically, Figure 7 The illustration in (a) is based on an embodiment of the conventional PPDU format of 802.11a / g. Figure 7 The illustration in (b) is based on an embodiment of the HE PPDU format of 802.11ax, and Figure 7 (c) illustrates an embodiment based on a non-traditional PPDU (i.e., EHT PPDU) format of 802.11be. Figure 7 (d) shows the detailed field configuration of RL-SIG and L-SIG, which are commonly used in the PPDU format.

[0093] Reference Figure 7 (a) The preamble of a conventional PPDU includes a conventional short training field (L-STF), a conventional long training field (L-LTF), and a conventional signal field (L-SIG). In embodiments of the present invention, L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG may be referred to as conventional preambles.

[0094] Reference Figure 7 (b) The HE PPDU preamble also includes, in a conventional preamble, a Repeated Legacy Short Training field (RL-SIG), a High Efficiency Signal A field (HE-SIG-A), a High Efficiency Signal B field (HE-SIG-B), a High Efficiency Short Training field (HE-STF), and a High Efficiency Long Training field (HE-LTF). In embodiments of the present invention, RL-SIG, HE-SIG-A, HE-SIG-B, HE-STF, and HE-LTF can be referred to as HE preambles. The detailed configuration of the HE preamble can be modified according to the HE PPDU format. For example, HE-SIG-B can be used only in the HE MU PPDU format.

[0095] Reference Figure 7(c) The EHT PPDU also includes, in its conventional preamble, a Repeated Legacy Short Training field (RL-SIG), a Universal Signal field (U-SIG), an Extremely High Throughput Signal A field (EHT-SIG-A), an Extremely High Throughput Signal B field (EHT-SIG-B), an Extremely High Throughput Short Training field (EHT-STF), and an Extremely High Throughput Long Training field (EHT-LTF). In embodiments of the invention, RL-SIG, EHT-SIG-A, EHT-SIG-B, EHT-STF, and EHT-LTF may be referred to as EHT preambles. The specific configuration of non-conventional preambles can be modified according to the EHT PPDU format. For example, EHT-SIG-A and EHT-SIG-B may be used only in a portion of the EHT PPDU format.

[0096] 64-FFT OFDM is applied to the L-SIG field included in the preamble of the PPDU, and the L-SIG field comprises a total of 64 subcarriers. Of these 64 subcarriers, 48 ​​subcarriers other than the guard subcarrier, DC subcarrier, and pilot subcarrier are used for L-SIG data transmission. BPSK and a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) with a code rate of 1 / 2 are applied to the L-SIG, so the L-SIG can include a total of 24 bits of information. Figure 7 (d) shows the configuration of the 24-bit information of L-SIG.

[0097] Reference Figure 7(d) L-SIG includes the L_RATE and L_LENGTH fields. The L_RATE field consists of 4 bits and indicates the MCS used for data transmission. Specifically, the L_RATE field indicates a value of 6 / 9 / 12 / 18 / 24 / 36 / 48 / 54 Mbps obtained by combining modulation schemes such as BPSK / QPSK / 16-QAM / 64-QAM with inefficient values ​​such as 1 / 2, 2 / 3, 3 / 4, etc. The total length of the corresponding PPDU can be indicated by combining the information from the L_RATE and L_LENGTH fields. In non-traditional PPDU formats, the L_RATE field is configured with a minimum rate of 6 Mbps.

[0098] The L_LENGTH field can be allocated a total of 12 bits per byte, can be transmitted via signaling up to 4095, and can indicate the length of the corresponding PPDU by combining it with the L_RATE field. In this case, traditional and non-traditional terminals can use different methods to interpret the L_LENGTH field.

[0099] First, the method for analyzing the length of the corresponding PPDU using the L_LENGTH field in traditional or non-traditional terminals is as follows. When the value of the L_RATE field is set to indicate 6 Mbps, 3 bytes (i.e., 24 bits) can be transmitted during the 4 µs duration of one symbol in a 64FFT. Therefore, the 3 bytes corresponding to the SVC field and the tail field are added to the value of the L_LENGTH field, and the sum is divided by the 3 bytes of transmission as one symbol to obtain the number of symbols based on 64FFT after L-SIG. Multiplying the obtained number of symbols by 4 µs (i.e., the length of one symbol), and then adding the 20 µs required for the transmission of L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG, the length of the corresponding PPDU, i.e., the reception time RXTIME, is obtained. This can be represented by Equation 1 below.

[0100] [Equation 1]

[0101]

[0102] in this case, This represents the smallest natural number greater than or equal to x. Since the maximum value of the L_LENGTH field is 4095, the length of the PPDU can be set to up to 5.464 ms. Non-traditional terminals transmitting PPDUs should set the L_LENGTH field as shown in Equation 2 below.

[0103] [Equation 2]

[0104]

[0105] Here, TXTIME is the total transmission time that makes up the corresponding PPDU, and is represented by Equation 3 below. In this case, TX represents the transmission time of X.

[0106] [Equation 3]

[0107]

[0108] Referring to the equation above, the length of the PPDU is calculated based on the rounded-up value of L_LENGTH / 3. Therefore, for random values ​​of k, three different values ​​of L_LENGTH={3k+1, 3k+2, 3(k+1)} indicate the same PPDU length.

[0109] Reference Figure 7 (e) The Universal SIG (U-SIG) field continues to exist in subsequent generations of EHTPPDU and Wireless LAN PPDU, and is used to classify generations of PPDUs including 11be. U-SIG is based on 64 FFT OFDM 2 symbols and can transmit a total of 52 bits of information. Of these 52 bits, excluding the 9 bits for CRC / tail, the remaining 43 bits are primarily divided into Version Independent (VI) and Version Dependent (VD) fields.

[0110] The VI bit enables the current bit configuration to be maintained subsequently, so that even if a next-generation PPDU is defined, the current 11be terminal can obtain information about the PPDU through the VI field of the PPDU. For this purpose, the VI field includes PHY version, UL / DL, BSS color, TXOP, and a reserved field. The PHY version field is 3 bits and is used to sequentially classify 11be and subsequent generations of wireless LAN standards into versions. The value for 11be is 000b. The UL / DL field identifies whether the PPDU is an uplink / downlink PPDU. The BSS color indicates the identifier of each BSS defined in 11ax and has a value of 6 bits or more. TXOP indicates the Transmit Opportunity Duration transmitted in the MAC header. By adding TXOP to the PHY header, the PPDU can infer the length of the TXOP included therein without having to decode the MPDU, and TXOP has a value of 7 bits or more.

[0111] The VD field contains signaling information useful only for the 11be version of the PPDU and can include fields common to any PPDU format, such as the PPDU format and BW, as well as fields defined differently for each PPDU format. The PPDU format is a classifier that categorizes EHT Single User (SU), EHT Multiple User (MU), EHT Trigger-based (TB), and EHT Extended Range (ER) PPDUs. The BW field signals five basic PPDU BW options (BW, which can be set to 20 MHz) at 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz (80+80 MHz), and 320 MHz (160+160 MHz). The type expression of powers of 2 can be referred to as the basic BW), and various residual PPDU BWs configured via preamble puncturing. After signaling at 320MHz, signaling can be executed in some 80MHz punctured types. The punctured and modified channel type can be signaled directly in the BW field, or the punctured and modified channel type can be signaled using the BW field and fields appearing after the BW field (e.g., fields within the EHT-SIG field). If the BW field is configured with 3 bits, a total of 8 BW signalings can be executed, and therefore up to 3 signalings can be executed in punctured mode. If the BW field is configured with 4 bits, a total of 16 BW signalings can be executed, and therefore up to 11 signalings can be executed in punctured mode.

[0112] The fields following the BW field vary depending on the type and format of the PPDU. MU PPDUs and SU PPDUs can be signaled in the same PPDU format. Fields used for classification between MU and SU PPDUs can precede the EHT-SIG field, and additional signaling can be applied to this field. Both SU and MU PPDUs include the EHT-SIG field, but some fields not needed in the SU PPDU can be compressed. Information about fields that have been compressed can be omitted or can have a smaller size than the original fields included in the MU PPDU. For example, in the case of SU PPDUs, common fields of EHT-SIG can be omitted or replaced, or the SU PPDU can have a different configuration, where user-specific fields are replaced, reduced to one, etc.

[0113] Alternatively, the SU PPDU may also include a compression field indicating whether compression is performed, and a portion of a field (e.g., the RA field, etc.) may be omitted depending on the value of the compression field.

[0114] If a portion of the EHT-SIG field of the SU PPDU is compressed, the information to be included in the compressed field can also be signaled in the uncompressed field (e.g., the common field, etc.). The MU PPDU corresponds to a PPDU format for simultaneous reception by multiple users, and therefore requires the EHT-SIG field to be transmitted after the U-SIG field, and the amount of information transmitted can vary. That is, multiple MU PPDUs are transmitted to multiple STAs, such that each STA must identify the location of the RU to which the MU PPDU was transmitted, the STA to which the RU was assigned, and whether the transmitted MU PPDU has been transmitted to the STA itself. Therefore, the AP must transmit this information by including the above information in the EHT-SIG field. For this purpose, information for valid transmission of the EHT-SIG field is signaled in the U-SIG field, and this can correspond to the MCS as a modulation method and / or the number of symbols in the EHT-SIG field. The EHT-SIG field can include information about the size and location of the RU assigned to each user.

[0115] In the case of SU PPDU, multiple RUs can be assigned to a STA, and these RUs can be consecutive or discontinuous. If the RUs assigned to the STA are discontinuous, the STA should identify the intermediate punctured RUs in order to effectively receive the SUPPDU. Therefore, the AP can transmit a SU PPDU that includes information about the punctured RUs among those assigned to the STA (e.g., the puncturing pattern of the RUs). That is, in the case of SU PPDU, a puncturing pattern field can be included in the EHT-SIG field. This puncturing pattern field includes information indicating the puncturing pattern in a bitmap format and whether a puncturing pattern has been applied. The puncturing pattern field can also signal the type of discontinuous channel occurring within the bandwidth.

[0116] The types of discontinuous channels notified by signals are limited, and the BW and discontinuous channel information of the SU PPDU are indicated by the combination of the BW field value and the SU PPDU. For example, the SU PPDU is a PPDU transmitted only to a single terminal, so that the STA can identify the bandwidth allocated to itself via the BW field contained in the PPDU, and the SU PPDU can identify the punctured resources in the allocated bandwidth via the puncturing pattern field of the EHT-SIG field or U-SIG field contained in the PPDU. In this case, the terminal can receive the PPDU in the remaining resource units after excluding the special channels of the punctured resource units. Multiple RUs allocated to the STA can be configured by different frequency bands or tones.

[0117] To reduce the signaling overhead of the SU PPDU, only a limited number of discontinuous channel types are signaled. Punching could be performed on each 20MHz sub-channel. Therefore, if puncturing is performed on a BW (such as 80, 160, and 320MHz) with a large number of 20MHz sub-channels, then in the case of 320MHz, the discontinuous channel type (if puncturing only the edge 20MHz is also considered discontinuous) should be signaled by indicating whether each of the remaining 15 20MHz sub-channels after excluding the primary channel is used. Thus, considering the low transmission rate of the signaling section, allocating 15 bits to signal the discontinuous channel type transmitted by a single user could constitute excessive signaling overhead.

[0118] This invention proposes a technique for signaling the discontinuous channel type of a SU PPDU, and illustrates the discontinuous channel type determined according to the proposed technique. This invention also proposes a technique for signaling each of the primary 160MHz and secondary 160MHz puncture types in a 320MHz BW configuration of a SU PPDU.

[0119] Furthermore, embodiments of the present invention propose a technique for configuring the PPDU indicated by the preamble puncture BW value differently based on the PPDU format notified by signaling in the PPDU format field. Assuming the BW field is 4 bits, and in the case of EHTSU PPDU or TB PPDU, EHT-SIG-A (symbol 1) can be notified by signaling after U-SIG, or EHT-SIG-A can be notified at all. Therefore, considering this, it is necessary to fully signal up to 11 puncture patterns via the BW field of U-SIG alone. However, in the case of EHT MU PPDU, EHT-SIG-B is notified by signaling after U-SIG, thus allowing up to 11 puncture patterns to be signaled in a different way than the SU PPDU method. In the case of EHT ER PPDU, the BW field can be configured to 1 bit to signal whether the EHT ER PPDU uses a 20MHz or 10MHz band PPDU.

[0120] Figure 7 Figure (f) illustrates the configuration of the format-specific fields of the VD field when an EHT MU PPDU is indicated in the PPDU format field of the U-SIG. In the case of a MU PPDU, SIG-B is necessary; it is a signaling field used for simultaneous reception by multiple users and can be transmitted after U-SIG without a separate SIG-A. Therefore, information for decoding SIG-B should be signaled in the U-SIG. These fields include SIG-B MCS, SIG-BDCM, the number of SIG-B symbols, SIG-B compression, and the number of EHT-LTF symbols, etc.

[0121] Figure 8 The illustration shows examples of various Extremely High Throughput (EHT) Physical Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) formats according to an embodiment of the present invention, as well as methods for indicating such formats.

[0122] Reference Figure 8 A PPDU can include a preamble and a data portion, and can be classified as an EHT PPDU format based on the U-SIG field included in the preamble. Specifically, the PPDU format field included in the U-SIG field can indicate whether the PPDU is an EHT PPDU.

[0123] Figure 8(a) shows an example of the EHT SU PPDU format for a single STA. The EHT SU PPDU is a PPDU used for single-user (SU) transmissions between an AP and a single STA, and the EHT-SIG-A field for additional signaling can be located after the U-SIG field.

[0124] Figure 8 (b) illustrates an example of the EHT trigger-based PPDU format corresponding to the EHT PPDU transmitted based on a trigger frame. The EHT trigger-based PPDU is an EHT PPDU transmitted based on a trigger frame and is an uplink PPDU used in response to a trigger frame. Unlike the EHT SU PPDU, the EHT-SIG-A field is not located after the U-SIG field in the EHT PPDU.

[0125] Figure 8 (c) illustrates an example of an EHT MU PPDU format corresponding to an EHT PPDU for multiple users. An EHT MU PPDU is a PPDU used to transmit PPDUs to one or more STAs. In the EHT MU PPDU format, the HE-SIG-B field may follow the U-SIG field.

[0126] Figure 8 The diagram (d) illustrates an example of the EHT ER SU PPDU format, used for transmission with a single user across an extended range of STAs. Figure 8 Compared to the EHT SU PPDU described in (a), the EHT ER SU PPDU can be used for single-user transmission with a wider range of STAs, and the U-SIG field can be repeatedly positioned on the timeline.

[0127] Figure 8 The EHT MU PPDU described in (c) can be used by the AP to perform downlink transmissions to multiple STAs. Here, the EHT MU PPDU may include scheduling information that allows multiple STAs to simultaneously receive PPDUs transmitted from the AP. The EHT MU PPDU may transmit the sender's and / or receiver's AID information of the PPDU transmitted via the user-specific field of the EHT-SIG-B to the STA. Therefore, multiple terminals that have received the EHT MU PPDU can perform spatial reuse operations based on the AID information included in the user-specific field of the received PPDU preamble.

[0128] Specifically, the resource unit allocation (RA) field in the HE-SIG-B field of the HE MU PPDU can include information about the configuration of resource units (e.g., the type of resource unit partitioning) within a specific bandwidth (e.g., 20MHz) of the frequency axis. In other words, the RA field can indicate the configuration of resource units partitioned within the bandwidth used for the transmission of the HE MU PPDU so that the STA can receive the PPDU. Information about the STA allocated (or specified) to each partitioned resource unit can be included in the user-specific fields of the EHT-SIG-B field for transmission to the STA. That is, the user-specific fields can include one or more user fields corresponding to the respective partitioned resource unit.

[0129] For example, the user field corresponding to at least one resource unit among multiple segmented resource units used for data transmission may include the AID of the receiver or transmitter, and the user field corresponding to the remaining resource units not used for data transmission may include a pre-configured null STA ID.

[0130] Figure 8 Two or more PPDUs shown can be indicated by values ​​representing the same PPDU format. That is, two or more PPDUs can be indicated by the same value in the same PPDU format. For example, EHT SU PPDU and EHT MU PPDU can be indicated by the same value in the U-SIG PPDU format subfield. In this case, EHT SU PPDU and EHT MU PPDU can be distinguished by the number of STAs receiving the PPDU. For example, a PPDU that receives only one STA can be identified as an EHT SU PPDU, and when the number of STAs is set to receive two or more STAs, the PPDU can be identified as an EHT MU PPDU. In other words, two or more PPDUs can be indicated by the same subfield value. Figure 8 The two or more PPDU formats shown.

[0131] In addition, it can be omitted Figure 8 The fields shown in the diagram are partial fields or partial information of the fields, and the cases in which partial fields or partial information of the fields are omitted can be defined as compression mode or compressed mode.

[0132] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating a multi-link device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0133] Reference Figure 9The concept of a device to which one or more STAs are affiliated can be defined. As another embodiment, according to an embodiment of the invention, more than one (i.e., two or more) devices to which STAs are affiliated can be defined. In this case, the device can be a logical concept. Therefore, a device to which one or more STAs are affiliated, having such a concept, can be referred to as a multi-link device (MLD), a multi-band device, or a multi-link logical entity (MLLE).

[0134] Alternatively, the device described above can be referred to as a multi-link entity (MLE). Furthermore, the MLD may have a MAC SAP (medium access control service access point) connected to the LLC (logical link control), and the MLD may have a MAC data service.

[0135] A STA included in an MLD can operate on one or more links or channels. That is, a STA included in an MLD can operate on multiple different channels. For example, a STA included in an MLD can operate using channels in different frequency bands such as 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz. Thus, MLD can benefit from improved channel access and can enhance overall network performance. Existing wireless LANs operate on a single link, but MLD operation can gain more channel access opportunities by using multiple links, or, considering channel conditions, the STA can effectively operate on multiple links.

[0136] Furthermore, when the STA belonging to an MLD is an AP, the MLD to which the AP belongs can be an AP MLD. However, when the STA belonging to an MLD is a non-AP STA, the MLD to which the non-AP belongs can be a non-AP MLD.

[0137] Furthermore, an AP multi-link device (MLD) can be a device that includes one or more wireless access points (APs), or it can be a device connected to an upper layer via an interface. That is, an AP MLD can connect to the Logical Link Control (LLC) layer via an interface. Multiple APs included in an AP MLD can share some functions in the MAC layer. Each AP in an AP MLD can operate on a different link. A STA MLD can be a device that includes one or more non-AP STAs, or it can be a device connected to an upper layer via an interface.

[0138] That is, the STA MLD can connect to the LLC layer through a single interface. Multiple STAs included in the STA MLD can share some functions in the MAC layer. Furthermore, the STA MLD can be referred to as a non-AP MLD. In this case, the AP MLD and STA MLD can perform multi-link operation using multiple separate links for communication. Specifically, when the AP MLD includes multiple APs, each AP can be configured with a separate link and use multiple links to perform frame transmission and reception operations with each terminal included in the STA MLD. In this case, each link can operate in the 2.4GHz, 5GHz, or 6GHz frequency band, and bandwidth extension operations can be performed on each link. For example, when the AP MLD establishes one link in the 2.4GHz frequency band and two links in the 5GHz frequency band, the AP MLD can perform frame transmission with a bandwidth of 40MHz in the 2.4GHz frequency band using a bandwidth extension scheme, and in each link using the 5GHz frequency band, the AP MLD can perform frame transmission with a maximum bandwidth of 320MHz by using discontinuous bandwidth.

[0139] Additionally, due to internal interference, an AP MLD or STA MLD may prevent one terminal from receiving while another is transmitting within the MLD. As mentioned above, when one AP or terminal within the MLD is transmitting, another AP or terminal within the MLD is receiving; this is called Simultaneous Transimit and Receive (STR). An AP MLD can perform STR operations on all links. Alternatively, STR operations may be impossible on some links of the AP MLD. Terminals that can perform STR operations can access the AP MLD, and MLDs that cannot perform STR operations on some or all links can also access the AP MLD. Furthermore, terminals not belonging to the MLD (e.g., IEEE 802.11a / b / g / n / ac / ax terminals) can additionally access the APs included in the AP MLD.

[0140] AP MLD and STA MLD can be used Figure 5 The scanning and access process shown executes a negotiation process for multi-link usage. For example, in Figure 5 During the scanning process shown, the AP included in the AP MLD can send a beacon frame containing an indicator indicating that multi-link operation is available, the number of available links, and information about the multiple available links. Furthermore, a terminal belonging to the STA MLD can send a probe request frame containing an indicator indicating that multi-link operation is available, and an AP belonging to the AP MLD can send a probe response frame containing an indicator indicating that multi-link operation is available. In this case, the AP can append information such as the number of links available during multi-link operation and link information before sending the frame.

[0141] During the scanning process, the multi-link operation of the AP MLD and the STA MLD using the link information have been checked, and the STA MLD can perform the access procedure with the AP MLD. In this case, the AP MLD and STA MLD can begin the negotiation procedure for multi-link operation. The negotiation procedure for multi-link operation can be performed during the access process between the AP belonging to the AP MLD and the STA belonging to the STA MLD. That is, any terminal belonging to the STA MLD (e.g., STA 1) can send an access request frame to any AP belonging to the AP MLD (e.g., AP1) to send an indicator indicating that multi-link operation is available for the terminal and a request indicator to perform multi-link operation. The AP that receives the access request frame from the STA can check the indicator for requesting multi-link operation, and if the AP can perform multi-link operation, the AP can send an access response frame to the corresponding terminal to allow multi-link operation. The access response frame includes the link information to be used for multi-link operation and parameters for each link. The parameters for multi-link operation may include the frequency band of each link used, the direction of bandwidth extension, the Target Beacon Transmission Time (TBTT), and whether to perform one or more of the following: STR operation. By exchanging access request frames and response frames, it is confirmed that AP MLDs and STA MLDs using multi-link operation can perform frame transmission operations using multiple links after responding to the access procedure, using multiple APs included in the AP MLD and multiple terminals included in the STA MLD.

[0142] Reference Figure 9 An MLD can exist that includes multiple STAs, and these multiple STAs within the MLD can operate on multiple links. Figure 9 In this context, an MLD that includes APs (i.e., AP1, AP2, and AP3) can be called an AP MLD, and an MLD that includes non-AP STAs (i.e., non-AP STA 1, non-AP STA 2, and non-AP STA 3) can be called a non-AP MLD. STAs included in an MLD can operate on Link 1, Link 2, Link 3, or some of the links from Link 1 to Link 3.

[0143] According to embodiments of the present invention, multi-link operation may include a multi-link setup operation. The multi-link setup operation may correspond to an association performed in a single link operation. To exchange frames across multiple links, multiple links may be set up first. A multi-link setup element can be used to perform the multi-link establishment operation. In this case, the multi-link setup element may include capability information related to the multiple links, and the capability information may include information related to whether another STA included in the MLD can transmit frames through another link while the STA receives frames through one link. That is, the capability information may include information related to whether an STA (non-AP STA) and / or an AP (or AP STA) can simultaneously transmit / receive frames in different transmission directions through links included in the MLD. Furthermore, the capability information may also include information related to available links or operating channels. Multi-link setup can be set up through negotiation between peer STAs, and multi-link operation can be set up through a single link.

[0144] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a mapping relationship may exist between TIDs and MLDs. For example, when a TID and a link are mapped, the TID can be transmitted through the mapped link. The mapping between TIDs and links can be implemented based on the transmission direction. For example, mapping can be implemented separately for the two directions between MLD1 and MLD2. Furthermore, the mapping between TIDs and links can have a default setting. For example, the mapping between TIDs and links can essentially map all TIDs to a certain link.

[0145] Figure 10 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a TID-to-link mapping method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0146] Reference Figure 10 , as reference Figure 9 As described above, a mapping relationship can exist between TIDs and links. Furthermore, in this invention, the mapping relationship between TIDs and links can be referred to as TID-to-link mapping, TID-to-link mapping, TID mapping, link mapping, etc. A TID can be a traffic identifier. Additionally, a TID can be an identifier (ID) used to classify services, data, etc., to support Quality of Service (QoS).

[0147] Furthermore, a TID can be an ID used or assigned in a layer higher than the MAC layer. A TID can represent a Traffic Category (TC) and a Traffic Flow (TS). Furthermore, a TID can have 16 values, for example, it can be represented by values ​​from 0 to 15. Additionally, different TID values ​​can be used depending on the access policy, channel access, and medium access method. For example, when using EDCA (Hybrid Coordination Function (HCF) contention-based channel access, enhanced distributed channel access), possible TID values ​​can be 0 to 7. Furthermore, in the case of using EDCA, the TID value can indicate user priority (UP), and this UP can be a value related to the TC or TS. Furthermore, the UP can be a value assigned in a layer higher than the MAC layer. Furthermore, when using HCCA (HCF Controlled Channel Access) or SPCA, possible TID values ​​can be 8 to 15. Furthermore, when using HCCA or SPCA, the TID can indicate the TSID. Furthermore, when using HEMM or SEMM, the TID value can be 8 to 15. Furthermore, when using HEMM or SEMM, the TID can represent the TSID.

[0148] Furthermore, a mapping relationship can exist between UP and Access Class (AC). AC can be a label indicating the provision of QoS in EDCA, or a label indicating a set of EDCA parameters. EDCA parameters or sets of EDCA parameters can be used for channel access. AC can be used by QoS STAs.

[0149] The AC value can be set to one of AC_BK, AC_BE, AC_VI, and AC_VO. AC_BK, AC_BE, AC_VI, and AC_VO can represent background, best effort, video, and audio, respectively. Furthermore, AC_BK, AC_BE, AC_VI, and AC_VO can be subdivided. For example, AC_VI can be subdivided into primary AC_VI and secondary AC_VI. Similarly, AC_VO can be subdivided into primary AC_VO and secondary AC_VO. Additionally, UP values ​​or TID values ​​can be mapped to AC values. For example, UP values ​​or TID values ​​1, 2, 0, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 can be mapped to AC_BK, AC_BK, AC_BE, AC_BE, AC_VI, AC_VI, AC_VO, and AC_VO, respectively. Alternatively, the UP values ​​or TID values ​​1, 2, 0, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 can be mapped to AC_BK, AC_BK, AC_BE, AC_BE, standby AC_VI, primary AC_VI, primary AC_VO, and standby AC_VO, respectively. Furthermore, the UP values ​​or TID values ​​1, 2, 0, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 can have increasing priorities in sequence. That is, "1" can be a low priority, while "7" can be a high priority. Therefore, the priorities can increase in the order of AC_BK, AC_BE, AC_VI, and AC_VO. Additionally, AC_BK, AC_BE, AC_VI, and AC_VO can correspond to AC indices (ACI) 0, 1, 2, and 3, respectively.

[0150] Therefore, a relationship between TID and AC can exist. Thus, the TID-to-link mapping of this invention can also be a mapping relationship between AC and link. Furthermore, in this invention, "TID being mapped" can mean that AC is mapped, and vice versa.

[0151] According to one embodiment of the invention, a TID can exist that is mapped to each link in a multi-link network. For example, a mapping can exist regarding which links a particular TID or AC is allowed to transmit and receive on. Furthermore, this mapping can be defined separately for each of the two directions of the link. Additionally, as mentioned above, the mapping between TIDs and links can have a default configuration. For example, the mapping between TIDs and links can essentially map all TIDs to a certain link. Furthermore, according to one embodiment, at a specific point in time, a particular TID or AC can be mapped to at least one link. Furthermore, management frames or control frames can be transmitted on all links.

[0152] In this invention, data frames corresponding to a TID or AC mapped for a specific direction of the link can be sent. However, data frames corresponding to a TID or AC not mapped for a specific direction of the link cannot be sent.

[0153] According to one embodiment, TID-to-link mapping can also be applied to acknowledgment. For example, a block ack agreement can be based on TID-to-link mapping. Alternatively, TID-to-link mapping can be based on a block ack agreement. For example, a block ack agreement for TIDs used in TID-to-link mapping can exist.

[0154] QoS services can be provided through TID-to-link mapping. For example, data for a given AC or TID can be transmitted quickly by mapping it to a link with good channel conditions or fewer STAs. Alternatively, TID-to-link mapping can enable STAs on a specific link to save power (or enter a doze state).

[0155] Reference Figure 10 An AP MLD can exist that includes AP1 and AP2. Additionally, a non-AP MLD can exist that includes STA1 and STA2. Furthermore, Link 1 and Link 2, as multiple links, can exist within an AP MLD. AP1 and STA1 can be associated in Link 1, and AP2 and STA2 can be associated in Link 2.

[0156] Therefore, Link 1 may include links from AP1 to STA 1 and / or from STA 1 to AP1, and Link 2 may include links from AP2 to STA 2 and / or from STA 2 to AP2. In this case, TID and / or AC can be mapped to each link.

[0157] For example, all TIDs and all ACs can be mapped to the links in Link 1 from AP1 to STA 1, and the links in Link 1 from STA 1 to AP1. Furthermore, only AC_VO or the TID corresponding to AC_VO can be mapped to the links in Link 2 from STA 2 to AP2. Additionally, only data for mapped TIDs and / or ACs can be sent through the corresponding links. Furthermore, data for TIDs or ACs not mapped to a link cannot be sent on the corresponding links.

[0158] Figure 11 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a multi-link NAV setup operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0159] Simultaneous transmit and receive (STR) operations by MLD can be restricted and can be associated with frequency spacing between multiple links operating through a multi-link system.

[0160] Therefore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, simultaneous transmission or reception is limited when the interval between links is m MHz, and simultaneous transmission or reception is unrestricted when the interval between links is n MHz (n is greater than m). This embodiment can solve the limitation problem of simultaneous transmission or reception, and redundant descriptions can be omitted. Furthermore, this embodiment can be applied to MLDs that cannot be STR-enabled.

[0161] According to one embodiment of the present invention, duration information can be shared between links operating via multiple links. The duration information can be TXOP duration information sent in a preamble signaling field. The signaling field can be the U-SIG field described above. Alternatively, the signaling field can be the HE-SIG-A field described above. In another embodiment, the duration information can be duration information indicated by the Duration / ID field included in the MAC header. In another embodiment, the duration information can be duration information indicated by the length field (L Length field) included in the L-SIG field. According to one embodiment, the duration information indicated by the U-SIG field, HE-SIG-A field, or Duration / ID field can be a value indicating the TXOP duration. According to one embodiment, the duration information indicated by the L-SIG field can be a value indicating the length of a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) including the L-SIG field or indicating the end of a PPDU including the L-SIG field.

[0162] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the invention, transmission or channel access can be restricted to a duration based on duration information shared between links. Methods for restricting transmission or channel access may include setting a NAV. Alternatively, the NAV can be reset to restore transmission or channel access. In this case, the NAV may be an intra-BSS NAV. An intra-BSS NAV may be an NAV set by an intra-BSS frame (or PPDU). That is, a STA belonging to an MLD can set an NAV based on a frame (or PPDU) pointing to another STA belonging to the MLD.

[0163] According to one embodiment of the present invention, an inter-link NAV may exist. In the case of multi-link operation, the inter-link NAV can be an NAV used by STAs on multiple links belonging to a specific MLD. For example, based on an inter-link NAV set according to duration information received in link 1, data may not be transmitted on link 2. Furthermore, an inter-link NAV may exist or be used for MLDs that cannot perform STR (Transmission Streaming). For example, when an inter-link NAV is set, the MLD with the inter-link NAV set may not perform transmission or channel access on multiple links (or all links used by the MLD).

[0164] In addition to intra-BSS NAVs, NAV types can also include basic NAVs. Basic NAVs can be NAVs set by inter-BSS frames (or PPDUs), or NAVs set by frames (or PPDUs) whose origin is uncertain (whether they are intra-BSS or inter-BSS).

[0165] Compared to not using inter-link NAVs, using inter-link NAVs can offer advantages in updating NAV settings. For example, there might be situations where resetting an NAV set via another link wouldn't cause problems. For instance, even if an inter-link NAV is set based on a specific frame (or PPDU), the set inter-link NAV can be reset if it's determined that the frame (or PPDU) doesn't point to the same MLD. If an MLD operates in both Link 1 and Link 2, the NAV for Link 1 can be set based on frames received in Link 1. Subsequently, the NAV for Link 1 can be updated based on frames from Link 2. Furthermore, if the NAV for Link 1 is reset when it's no longer necessary to maintain the NAV for Link 2, the NAV information set based on frames received in Link 1 might be lost. This problem can be solved by using inter-link NAVs along with the NAVs for each link, ensuring that the NAVs for each link are maintained even when the inter-link NAV is reset.

[0166] In embodiments of the present invention, setting NAV is used as an example for explanation; however, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to this, and can be applied to situations where the physical layer is instructed to interrupt channel access or where the channel state is busy. Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to situations where NAV is reset, but can also be applied to situations where the physical layer is instructed to continue channel access or where the channel state is idle. In this case, primitives exchanged between the physical layer and the MAC layer can be used. Alternatively, primitives exchanged between one STA and another STA in the MLD can be used. Alternatively, primitives exchanged between one MAC layer and another MAC layer in the MLD can be used.

[0167] According to one embodiment of the present invention, when a STA belonging to an MLD begins receiving a PPDU, another STA belonging to the MLD may stop channel access. As described above, channel access can be stopped based on the received duration information; however, due to the time required for the location of the field including the duration information or for decoding, there may be a time gap between the start of PPDU reception and the acquisition of the duration information. Therefore, if the channel is accessed and transmission begins during this time, the aforementioned problem may occur. Therefore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, a STA in an MLD may stop channel access from the time when another STA in the MLD begins receiving. Furthermore, when it is determined that a frame received after another STA in the MLD begins receiving is not directed to that other STA, channel access can be restarted.

[0168] Figure 12 This is a diagram illustrating another example of a multi-link NAV setup operation according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0169] Figure 12 Illustration Figure 11 A detailed description of the specific methods of the embodiments shown is provided, therefore repeated descriptions will be omitted.

[0170] As described above, based on a frame or PPDU received by one STA belonging to an MLD, another STA belonging to the same MLD can stop or resume channel access or transmission. In this invention, stopping channel access or transmission may include setting (updating) the NAV, determining the channel to be busy, or stopping CCA. Furthermore, resuming channel access or transmission may include resetting the NAV, canceling the NAV setting, determining the channel to be idle, or performing CCA, etc. In the following text, such operations may be indicated as stopping and resuming channel access. Furthermore, in the following text, STA 1 and STA 2 belong to an MLD, and STA 1 and STA 2 operate on Link 1 and Link 2, respectively. Furthermore, frames and PPDUs can be used interchangeably. Furthermore, the NAV at this time can be as follows: Figure 11 The NAV within the BSS or the NAV between links as described in the document.

[0171] According to an embodiment of the present invention, when STA 1 begins receiving frames, STA 2 may interrupt channel access. Furthermore, when STA 1 obtains duration information from L-SIG, STA 2 may continue the interrupted channel access state. In this case, the interrupted channel access state of STA 2 can be determined to last until the end of the frames received by STA 1. Additionally, when STA 1 fails to correctly decode L-SIG (i.e., invalid L-SIG), STA 2 may resume channel access.

[0172] Furthermore, STA 1 can receive the TXOP duration and BSS color from the U-SIG of the received frame. If the received BSS color is within the BSS, or if the BSS color corresponds to the BSS color of STA 1, channel access can be interrupted. In one embodiment, the time period for interrupting channel access can be until the end of the received frame. In this case, channel access can be resumed more quickly after the end of the received frame. In another embodiment, the duration of interrupting channel access can be the TXOP duration. In this case, the duration of interrupted channel access can be updated based on L-SIG. In this case, subsequent sequences after the received frame can be better protected.

[0173] Alternatively, there exists a situation where STA 1 can receive the TXOP duration and BSS color from the U-SIG of the received frame, and the received BSS color may indicate that it is not within a BSS, or that the BSS color is not the BSS color corresponding to STA 1. Alternatively, there may be a situation where STA 1 fails to successfully decode the U-SIG. In this case, STA 2 can restore channel access.

[0174] Alternatively, if the information obtained from the U-SIG of a frame received by STA 1 indicates that the corresponding frame is a frame that STA 1 does not receive, then STA 2 can restore channel access. For example, if the PHY identifier obtained from the U-SIG is an ID corresponding to a future standard or an unrecognizable ID, then STA 2 can restore channel access.

[0175] Furthermore, although the case of receiving U-SIG has been described, the same embodiment can also be applied to the case of receiving HE-SIG-A in the context of receiving HE PPDU. For example, HE-SIG-A may include TXOP duration and BSS color, thus allowing the operation described above to be performed.

[0176] In addition, the STA-ID can be received from the EHT-SIG of the frame received by STA 1. If the received STA-ID is an indicator that should be received by STA 1, for example, if the STA-ID indicates STA 1, the group to which STA 1 belongs, or a broadcast, then STA 2 can maintain the state of interrupted channel access.

[0177] Alternatively, the STA-ID can be received from the EHT-SIG of the frame received by STA 1. If the received STA-ID is not an indicator corresponding to STA 1—for example, if the STA-ID does not represent an indicator corresponding to STA 1, does not represent the group to which STA 1 belongs, and does not represent a broadcast—STA 2 can restore channel access. Alternatively, STA 2 can restore channel access even if STA 1 has not successfully decoded the EHT-SIG.

[0178] Furthermore, although the case of receiving EHT-SIG has been described, the same embodiment can also be applied to the case of receiving HE-SIG-B when receiving HEPPDU. For example, HE-SIG-B may include STA-ID, and therefore the operation described above can be performed.

[0179] In addition, STA 1 can receive the MAC header of the frame to be received. If the receive address (RA) or destination address (DA) included in the received MAC header indicates a value that STA 1 should receive—for example, if RA or DA indicates the group to which STA 1 belongs or STA-ID indicates broadcast—STA 2 can maintain the interrupted channel access state. In this case, the channel duration can be determined based on the duration information included in the received MAC header. More specifically, the duration of the interrupted channel access can be based on the duration information indicated by the Duration / ID field included in the received MAC header.

[0180] In addition, STA 1 can receive the MAC header of the frame to be received. If the RA or DA included in the received MAC header is an indicator that does not correspond to STA 1—for example, if the RA or DA does not indicate an indicator corresponding to STA 1, does not indicate the group to which STA 1 belongs, and does not indicate a broadcast—STA 2 can restore channel access. Alternatively, STA 1 may not have received all MAC headers. For example, STA 1 may not have successfully received all MPDUs included in the A-MPDU. In this case, STA 2 can restore channel access.

[0181] exist Figure 12The channel access interruption and recovery described herein can be performed sequentially according to the decoding order as frames (or PPDUs) are received and decoded in STA 1. The decoding order can be based on the PPDU format, frame format, etc. For example, decoding can be performed in the order of L-SIG, U-SIG, EHT-SIG, and the MAC header (in the case of EHT PPDU). Alternatively, decoding can be performed in the order of L-SIG, HE-SIG-A, and the MAC header (in the case of HE SU PPDU and HE TB PPDU). Alternatively, decoding can be performed in the order of L-SIG, HE-SIG-A, HE-SIG-B, and the MAC header (in the case of HE MUPPDU). Alternatively, decoding can be performed in the order of L-SIG and the MAC header (in the case of 11a / g PPDU).

[0182] According to embodiments of the present invention, the aforementioned STA-ID may be a value indicating the intended recipient of a PPDU or Resource Unit (RU). Furthermore, the STA-ID may be included in an EHT-SIG field or a HE-SIG-B field. Additionally, the STA-ID may indicate a value corresponding to a single STA. For example, when multiple STAs are included in an MLD, the STA-ID may indicate a value corresponding to one of the multiple STAs. Furthermore, the STA-ID may be a value based on the STA's AID or MAC address.

[0183] Figure 13 This is a diagram illustrating an example of BSS classification and BSS-based operations according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0184] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a STA can classify (or determine) a BSS based on received frames or received PPDUs. Classification of a BSS may include classification based on whether the received frame or received PPDU corresponds to the BSS to which the STA being classified belongs. Alternatively, classification of a BSS may refer to an operation based on whether the received frame or received PPDU was sent from the BSS to which the STA being classified belongs. Furthermore, classification of a BSS may include an operation based on whether the received frame or received PPDU was sent from a BSS not to which the classified STA belongs. Furthermore, classification of a BSS may include an operation based on which BSS the received frame or received PPDU belongs to. Alternatively, classification of a BSS may represent an operation based on which BSS the received frame or received PPDU was sent from. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the BSS to which the classified STA belongs may be referred to as within a BSS. Alternatively, a BSS including the BSS to which the classified STA belongs may be referred to as within a BSS. Furthermore, BSSs that are not within a BSS may be referred to as between BSSs. Alternatively, a BSS that is not within a BSS can be a BSS between BSSs or an unclassified BSS. Alternatively, a BSS between BSSs can include an unclassified BSS. Furthermore, a BSS to which a classified STA does not belong can be referred to as a BSS between BSSs.

[0185] According to one embodiment of the present invention, when it is determined that a received frame or a received PPDU corresponds to transmission within or from a BSS, the received frame or the received PPDU can be referred to as an intra-BSS frame or an intra-BSS PPDU, respectively. Furthermore, when it is determined that a received frame or a received PPDU corresponds to transmission between or from BSSs, the received frame or the received PPDU can be referred to as an inter-BSS frame or an inter-BSS PPDU, respectively. Additionally, a PPDU including an intra-BSS frame can be an intra-BSS PPDU. Furthermore, a PPDU including an inter-BSS frame can be an inter-BSS PPDU.

[0186] According to one embodiment of the present invention, BSSs can be classified based on one or more BSS classification criteria. For example, BSSs can be classified based on whether at least one of the one or more BSS classification criteria is met.

[0187] BSS classification criteria may include conditions based on BSS color. The BSS color can be an identifier for the BSS. Furthermore, the BSS color can be included in the preamble of the PPDU, more specifically, in a signaling field (e.g., the HE-SIG-A field, U-SIG field, or VHT-SIG-A field). Additionally, the BSS color can be included in the TXVECTOR transmitted from the sender's MAC layer to the PHY layer. Furthermore, the BSS color can be included in the RXVECTOR transmitted from the receiver's PHY layer to the MAC layer. The parameters included in the TXVECTOR and RXVECTOR can be referred to as the TXVECTOR parameter and RXVECTOR parameter, respectively. Furthermore, the BSS color can be included in either the TXVECTOR parameter or the RXVECTOR parameter. Additionally, the AP can notify the STA of the BSS color set by the AP. According to one embodiment, BSSs can be classified based on the BSS color included in the received PPDU. If the BSS color included in the PPDU received by the STA is different from the BSS color of the BSS corresponding to the STA, the received PPDU can be classified as an inter-BSS PPDU. Alternatively, if the BSS color included in a PPDU received by the STA is different from the BSS color of the BSS corresponding to the STA and its value is not zero, the received PPDU can be classified as an inter-BSS PPDU. Furthermore, if the BSS color included in a PPDU received by the STA is the same as the BSS color of the BSS corresponding to the STA, the received PPDU can be classified as an intra-BSS PPDU.

[0188] BSS classification criteria may include MAC address-based criteria. The MAC address may be included in the MAC header of the frame. Furthermore, the MAC address may include the receiver address (RA), transmitter address (TA), BSSID, source address (SA), destination address (DA), etc. According to one embodiment, BSSs can be classified based on the MAC addresses included in a received frame. If the MAC addresses included in a received frame are different from the BSSID of the BSS corresponding to the STA, the received frame can be classified as an inter-BSS PPDU. More specifically, if all MAC addresses included in a received frame are different from the BSSID of the BSS corresponding to the STA, the received frame can be classified as an inter-BSS PPDU. Furthermore, if the MAC addresses included in a received frame are the same as the BSSID of the BSS corresponding to the STA, the received frame can be classified as an intra-BSS frame. More specifically, if at least one of the MAC addresses included in a received frame is the same as the BSSID of the BSS corresponding to the STA, the received frame can be classified as an intra-BSS frame.

[0189] The corresponding BSS mentioned above can include the BSS associated with the STA. Furthermore, the corresponding BSS can include BSSs contained in the same set of multiple BSSIDs as the BSS associated with the STA. Additionally, the corresponding BSS can include BSSs contained in the same set of co-hosted BSSIDs as the BSS associated with the STA. Moreover, information about one or more BSSs included in the same set of multiple BSSIDs or the same set of co-hosted BSSIDs can be transmitted in a single frame.

[0190] BSS classification criteria may include conditions based on the value of a partial AID field included in the VHT PPDU. The partial AID field may be included in the leading edge of the VHT PPDU. Furthermore, the partial AID field may be included in the VHT-SIG-A field included in the VHT PPDU. According to one embodiment of the invention, the partial AID field may represent a portion of the BSS color. For example, when using a partial BSS color function, the partial AID field may indicate a portion of the BSS color. Alternatively, when using an AID allocation rule, the partial AID field may indicate a portion of the BSS color. The AID allocation rule may be a method of assigning AIDs based on BSS colors. Furthermore, if the group ID field included in the VHT-SIG-A field of the VHT PPDU has a preset value (e.g., the group ID field is set to 63), then the partial AID field may indicate a portion of the BSS color. According to one embodiment, when the partial AID field of a received PPDU indicates a portion of the BSS color, if the value of the received partial AID field is different from the portion of the BSS color corresponding to the received STA, then the received PPDU may be classified as an inter-BSS PPDU.

[0191] Furthermore, when a portion of the AID field of a received PPDU indicates a part of the BSS color, if the received portion of the AID field value is equal to a part of the BSS color corresponding to the received STA, the received PPDU can be classified as an intra-BSS PPDU. In this case, a part of the BSS color can be four LSBs of the BSS color. According to another embodiment, the portion of the AID field can indicate a part of the BSSID. For example, if the group ID field included in the VHT-SIG-A field of a VHT PPDU has a preset value (e.g., the group ID field is set to 0), the portion of the AID field can indicate a part of the BSSID. According to one embodiment, when a portion of the AID field of a received PPDU indicates a part of the BSSID, if the received portion of the AID field value is different from a part of the BSSID corresponding to the received STA, the received PPDU can be classified as an inter-BSS PPDU. Furthermore, when a portion of the AID field of a received PPDU indicates a part of the BSSID, if the received portion of the AID field value is equal to a part of the BSSID corresponding to the received STA, the received PPDU can be classified as an intra-BSS PPDU. Furthermore, in this case, a portion of the BSSID can be the nine MSBs of the BSSID. Additionally, a portion of the AID field value can be included in the TXVECTOR parameter PARTIAL_AID or the RXVECTOR parameter PARTIAL_AID. Furthermore, the Group ID field value can be included in the TXVECTOR parameter GROUP_ID or the RXVECTOR parameter GROUP_ID.

[0192] BSS classification conditions may include conditions for the AP to receive PPDUs that meet predetermined conditions. For example, the PPDUs with predetermined conditions may include downlink PPDUs. According to one embodiment, the downlink PPDU may include a VHT MU PPDU. Furthermore, the downlink PPDU may include a PPDU in which signaling indicating whether it is an uplink or downlink is set to a preset value. The signaling indicating whether it is an uplink or downlink may be included in the signaling field of the HE PPDU. Alternatively, the signaling indicating whether it is an uplink or downlink may be included in the U-SIG. The U-SIG may be included in the preamble of an EHT PPDU or a PPDU following the EHT standard.

[0193] In addition, there may be cases where a PPDU cannot be classified as an intra-BSS PPDU or an inter-BSS PPDU. For example, if both the conditions for classification as an intra-BSS PPDU and the conditions for classification as an inter-BSS PPDU are not met, it may not be classified as an intra-BSS PPDU or an inter-BSS PPDU.

[0194] Furthermore, when classifying BSSs, if the classification results based on multiple criteria are inconsistent, the final result can be determined based on predetermined criteria. For example, if the result based on the BSS color criteria is inconsistent with the result based on the MAC address criteria, the result based on the MAC address criteria can be given priority, or the final result can be determined based on the MAC address criteria. Alternatively, if both the criteria for classifying a PPDU as an intra-BSS PPDU and the criteria for classifying a PPDU as an inter-BSS PPDU are met, it can be classified as an intra-BSS PPDU.

[0195] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the STA can perform a classification-based BSS operation. The classification-based BSS operation can include a power-saving operation within a PPDU. The power-saving operation within a PPDU can be a power-saving operation based on a received PPDU. A power-saving operation within a PPDU can be performed when predetermined conditions are met. The predetermined conditions can include conditions for classifying a received PPDU as a PPDU within the BSS. Furthermore, the predetermined conditions can include conditions where the mandatory receiver of the received PPDU is not the STA that received the PPDU. For example, if the ID or address included in the PPDU does not correspond to the STA that received the PPDU, then the mandatory receiver of the PPDU may not correspond to the STA that received the PPDU. The ID can be included in the preamble of the PPDU. For example, the ID can be STA_ID included in the preamble of the PPDU. Furthermore, STA_ID can be included in an HE MU PPDU or an EHT PPDU. Furthermore, the address can be the aforementioned MAC address. Furthermore, when the signaling included in the received PPDU indicates an uplink or downlink, the mandatory receiver of the PPDU may not be the STA that received the PPDU. Furthermore, when the STA receiving the PPDU is configured not to support the configuration of the received PPDU, the mandatory receiver of the PPDU may not be the STA that received the PPDU. The configuration of the received PPDU may include the PPDU's MCS, number of spatial streams, channel width, etc. Additionally, if the STA receiving the PPDU does not support the configuration of the received PPDU, it may receive the PHY-RXEND.indication (UnsupportedRate) primitive. Furthermore, if the received PPDU has a preset format, the mandatory receiver of the PPDU may not be the STA that received the PPDU. Preset formats may include TB PPDUs. TB PPDUs may include HE TB PPDUs and EHT TB PPDUs. Furthermore, TB PPDUs may be PPDUs sent in response to a triggered frame. The triggered frame may include a trigger frame. The triggered frame may include a frame containing trigger information. The trigger information may be included in the MAC header (e.g., A-control field). Furthermore, the trigger information or information included in the trigger frame may include the length of the response PPDU, the RU to be used in response, the PHY configuration to be used in response, the MAC configuration, etc. Power-saving operation within a PPDU can be an operation that enters a doze state until the end of the received PPDU. In another embodiment, when the STA determines that the mandatory receiver of the received PPDU or frame is not the STA, the reception or decoding of the PPDU or frame can be interrupted.

[0196] Operations based on a classification-based BSS may include setting (or updating) an NAV. According to one embodiment, a STA may operate one or more NAVs. Furthermore, when the STA receives a PPDU or frame, the STA may set an NAV corresponding to the classification-based BSS based on the received PPDU or frame. For example, an intra-BSS NAV may be an NAV corresponding to an intra-BSS PPDU. Additionally, a base NAV may be an NAV corresponding to a PPDU other than an intra-BSS PPDU. Alternatively, the base NAV may be an NAV corresponding to an inter-BSS PPDU. Furthermore, when setting an NAV based on a received PPDU or frame, duration information included in the received PPDU or frame may be used. Duration information may include a TXOP. For example, a TXOP may indicate a value included in the TXOP field. The TXOP field may be included in the PPDU preamble. For example, the TXOP field may be included in the HE-SIG-A field of an HE PPDU. Alternatively, the TXOP field may be included in the U-SIG field of an EHT PPDU or a standard PPDU following EHT. Furthermore, duration information may be included in the MAC header. For example, duration information can be included in the duration / ID field in the MAC header.

[0197] Classification-based BSS operations can include spatial reuse operations. Furthermore, classification-based BSS operations can include channel access operations. Spatial reuse operations can be channel access operations. When a STA receives a PPDU or frame, it can perform a spatial reuse operation if preset conditions are met. Preset conditions can include conditions between the BSS corresponding to the received PPDU or frame. Furthermore, preset conditions can include a condition that the signal strength of the received PPDU or frame is less than a threshold. For example, the threshold can be variable. Furthermore, the threshold can be a threshold used for OBSS-based PD spatial reuse operations. Furthermore, the threshold can be a value greater than or equal to the CCA threshold. Furthermore, the threshold can be a value based on the power to be transmitted. Spatial reuse operations can include the operation of transmitting a PPDU. Furthermore, spatial reuse operations can include the operation of resetting the PHY. For example, resetting the PHY can be the operation of publishing the PHY-CCARESET.request primitive. Furthermore, spatial reuse operations can include the operation of not setting the NAV based on the received PPDU or frame. If the STA performs a spatial reuse operation, the STA can transmit the PPDU during the transmission or reception of the received PPDU or frame.

[0198] Reference Figure 13There can be BSS A and BSS B, and BSS A and BSS B can be different BSSs. Furthermore, BSS A and BSS B can correspond to each other as inter-BSS. That is, PPDUs or frames transmitted in BSS B by a STA associated with BSS A can be classified as inter-BSS PPDUs or inter-BSS frames. Additionally, there can be STA 1 and STA 2 belonging to BSS A (or associated with an AP operating BSS A). There can be STA 3 and STA 4 belonging to BSS B (or associated with an AP operating BSS B). See reference. Figure 13 STA 1 can send PPDUs. Furthermore, the PPDUs sent by STA 1 can include information about the BSS. For example, the information about the BSS could be information used to classify the aforementioned BSS. Additionally, the PPDUs sent by STA 1 can include duration information.

[0199] STA 2 can receive PPDUs sent by STA 1 and classify the PPDU's BSS. Furthermore, since STA 2 and STA 1 belong to BSS A, the PPDU received by STA 2 can be classified as an in-BSS PPDU. Additionally, the PPDU received by STA 2 can be a UL PPDU, or a PPDU whose mandatory receiver is not STA. Therefore, according to the above embodiment, STA 2 can perform in-PPDU power saving. (Refer to...) Figure 13 STA 2 can enter a dormant state until the end time of the received PPDU. STA 2 can set the NAV based on the duration information included in the received PPDU. Since STA 2 classifies the received PPDU as an in-BSS PPDU, STA 2 can set the in-BSS NAV.

[0200] STA 3 can receive PPDUs sent from STA 1 and classify the BSS of those PPDUs. Furthermore, since STA 3 and STA 1 belong to BSS B and BSS A respectively, the PPDUs received by STA 3 can be classified as inter-BSS PPDUs. Additionally, STA 3 can set the NAV based on the duration information included in the received PPDUs. Because STA 3 classifies the received PPDUs as inter-BSS PPDUs, STA 3 can set a basic NAV.

[0201] STA 4 can receive PPDUs transmitted from STA 1 and classify the BSS of those PPDUs. Furthermore, since STA 4 and STA 1 belong to BSS B and BSS A respectively, the PPDUs received by STA 4 can be classified as inter-BSS PPDUs. Additionally, the signal strength of the PPDUs received by STA 4 can be less than a threshold. Therefore, because the PPDUs received by STA 4 are classified as inter-BSS PPDUs and the signal strength of the PPDUs received by STA 4 is less than the threshold, STA 4 can perform spatial reuse operations. Thus, STA 4 can perform channel access and backoff procedures and can begin transmission. For example, STA 4 can begin transmission before the PPDU transmitted by STA 1 has finished.

[0202] Figure 14 The illustration shows a wireless LAN function according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0203] Reference Figure 14 Certain standard wireless LANs may include the functionality of other standard wireless LANs. Alternatively, in the case of certain standard wireless LANs, they may also be other standard wireless LANs. Here, wireless LAN can refer to a STA. Furthermore, wireless LAN in this document can refer to an MLD that includes a STA. For example, a wireless LAN standard may include the standard functionality and additional functionality of previous generations. For example, an HT STA may be an OFDM PHY STA. Furthermore, an HT STA may perform the functionality of an OFDM PHY STA as well as additional functionality. For example, a VHT STA may also be an HT STA. Furthermore, a VHT STA may perform the functionality of an HT STA as well as additional functionality. For example, an HE STA may also be a VHT STA. Furthermore, an HE STA may perform the functionality of a VHT STA as well as additional functionality. Furthermore, an EHT STA may also be an HE STA. Furthermore, an EHT STA may perform the functionality of an HE STA as well as additional functionality. Additionally, standards following the EHT standard may exist. In this invention, standards following the EHT standard may be referred to as NEXT standards, and STAs conforming to NEXT standards may be referred to as NEXT STAs. NEXT STAs may also be EHT STAs. In addition, NEXT STA can perform the functions of EHT STA as well as additional functions.

[0204] Figure 14 This is a diagram illustrating the relationships between the STAs of each standard. (Refer to...) Figure 14The EHT STA can be a HE STA, a VHT STA, an HT STA, or an OFDM PHY STA. Furthermore, the NEXT STA can be an EHT STA, a HE STA, a VHT STA, an HT STA, or an OFDM PHY STA.

[0205] Figure 15 The illustration depicts uplink (UL) multi-user (MU) operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0206] Reference Figure 15 The AP can instruct at least one STA to send a PPDU via a specific frame (e.g., a triggering frame), and at least one STA can simultaneously send PPDUs of the same or different formats based on the specific frame sent from the AP.

[0207] Specifically, such as Figure 15 As shown, frames that solicit or trigger multi-user (MU) transmissions can be sent, and one or more STAs can send or respond to such frames. In this case, when one or more STAs send a response to a frame, one or more STAs can respond simultaneously and immediately based on that frame, and begin sending their response to the frame after the SIFS at the end of the PPDU that includes the frame. For example, when a frame solicits an immediate response, one or more STAs can immediately send their response to that frame. Frames that solicit or trigger transmissions by one or more STAs can be trigger frames or frames that include information in the MAC header for soliciting or triggering uplink transmissions by one or more STAs. In this case, the frame can include information in the MAC header that triggers or solicits uplink transmissions by only one STA (e.g., a TRS control subfield).

[0208] For example, information included in the MAC header that indicates or triggers uplink transmission may be the HT control field, the control subfield, or the Trigger Response Schedule (TRS) or TRS control subfield included in the A control subfield.

[0209] Frames used to indicate or trigger uplink transmissions can be sent by the AP, and when the frame used to indicate or trigger uplink transmissions is a trigger frame, a response can be sent using the trigger-based PPDU (TB PPDU) format. In this case, the TB PPDU can include not only the HE TB PPDU and EHT TB PPDU mentioned above, but also the NEXT TB PPDU defined in the next-generation standard.

[0210] HE TB PPDU may include a preamble, data, and packet extension (PE). The preamble may include L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, HE-SIG-A, HE-STF, and HE-LTF in that order.

[0211] EHT TB PPDU and NEXT TB PPDU can also include a preamble, data, and PE. The preamble of EHT TB PPDU and NEXTTB PPDU can include L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, U-SIG, (EHT- / NEXT-)STF, and (EHT- / NEXT-)LTF in sequence.

[0212] A frame that instructs or triggers one or more STAs to send a PPDU may include information required by one or more STAs to send a TB PPDU. For example, when the type subfield included in the frame is “01” (B3 B2) and the subtype subfield is “0010” (B7B6 B5 B4), the frame including the type subfield and the subtype subfield may be a trigger frame that serves as a control frame.

[0213] When multiple STAs are instructed or triggered to respond to a TB PPDU, if the formats of the PPDUs from the multiple STAs are different from each other, the AP instructing or triggering the response may have difficulty receiving the PPDUs sent as responses from multiple STAs. Alternatively, if the information included in the preamble of the PPDUs from the multiple STAs differs according to their formats, the AP instructing or triggering the response may have difficulty receiving the PPDUs sent as responses from multiple STAs.

[0214] Therefore, to address this issue, when multiple STAs respond to an AP frame, the format of the responding PPDU and / or the type of information included in the PPDU preamble can be set to be the same. For example, when multiple STAs send HETB PPDUs in response to an AP frame, the AP can send information such that the information included in L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, and HE-SIG-A is identical, or the information included in the HE TB PPDU can be agreed upon, allowing the AP to successfully receive the preamble sent by multiple STAs. However, if HE TB PPDUs, EHT TB PPDUs, and NEXT TB PPDUs are transmitted simultaneously via overlapping subbands, the AP may have difficulty receiving them due to the different TB PPDU formats.

[0215] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the HE STA can transmit an HE TB PPDU. Furthermore, the EHT STA can transmit an EHTTB PPDU or an HE TB PPDU. Additionally, the NEXT STA can transmit a NEXT TB PPDU, an EHT TB PPDU, or an HE TB PPDU. This is because, as referred to... Figure 10 It is noted that certain standard STAs may include the functionality of previous standards.

[0216] like Figure 15 As shown, when the AP sends a frame to HE STAs and EHT STAs to schedule the transmission of TB PPDUs, and instructs or triggers the transmission of TB PPDUs through this frame, there may not be an accurate indication or protocol for the TB PPDU format. In this case, HE STAs may respond to the frame by sending HE TB PPDUs, and EHT STAs may respond with either EHT TB PPDUs or HE TBPPDUs. In this situation, the AP may have difficulty receiving TB PPDUs sent by the STAs, and the following problem may also occur: successful transmission fails because the AP fails to successfully receive TB PPDUs from multiple STAs, but the medium is occupied, thus reducing the transmission opportunities for other STAs.

[0217] In this invention, “instruction STA” can mean “instruction STA to respond”, and triggering and instructing can have the same meaning.

[0218] Furthermore, the HE trigger frame, EHT trigger frame, and NEXT trigger frame can be trigger frames defined in the HE, EHT, and NEXT standards. Additionally, in this invention, the HE TRS, EHT TRS, and NEXT TRS can be TRS defined in the HE, EHT, and NEXT standards.

[0219] Figure 16 The illustration shows a trigger frame format according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0220] Figure 16 (a) shows the trigger frame format. Figure 16 (b) and Figure 16 (c) illustrates the public information field and the user information field included in the trigger frame, respectively.

[0221] Reference Figure 16 (a) As the triggering MAC header, the frame includes a frame control field, a duration field, and an address field, and may include a public information field and a user information list field. The address field may include a resource allocation (RA) field and a transport address (TA) field.

[0222] The public information field can include information that is public to all STAs as indicated by the trigger frame. Figure 16 (b) shows an example of a public information field.

[0223] The user information list field may include zero or more user information fields, and the user information list field of a trigger frame, except for a specific type of trigger frame, may include one or more user information fields. Figure 16 (c) shows an example of a user information field.

[0224] Trigger frames may also include padding fields and Frame Check Sequence (FCS) fields. Padding fields can be used to increase the length of the frame to ensure that the STA receiving the trigger frame has the time required to prepare a response to the trigger frame, and can be selectively included in the trigger frame.

[0225] Reference Figure 16 (b) The public information field may include a trigger type subfield. The trigger type subfield can be used to identify a trigger frame variant. Alternatively, the type of trigger frame can be indicated based on the value of the trigger frame subfield. Furthermore, based on the trigger type subfield, it is possible to determine which trigger frames are included in the trigger frame variant. Figure 12 The information and length of the Trigger Dependent Common Info subfield and the Trigger Dependent User Info subfield are shown. For example, the trigger type subfield can be represented by bits B0 to B3 of the common information field.

[0226] The public information field may include an uplink (UL) length subfield. The UL length subfield may include information about the length of the TB PPDU as a response to the trigger frame, and may also include information about the length of the frame responding to the trigger frame. Furthermore, the UL length subfield may indicate the value included in the length subfield of the L-SIG of the TB PPDU responding to the trigger frame. Therefore, an STA that receives the trigger frame and responds with a TB PPDU can set the value of the length subfield included in the L-SIG of the TB PPDU based on the value of the UL length subfield included in the received trigger frame. Specifically, an STA responding with a TB PPDU can set the length subfield included in the L-SIG of the TB PPDU to the value of the UL length subfield included in the received trigger frame. For example, an STA can set the length subfield included in the L-SIG of the TB PPDU based on values ​​B4 to B15 of the public information field indicating the UL length subfield, and then send the TB PPDU.

[0227] In addition, the public information field may also include a UL bandwidth (BW) subfield. The UL BW subfield can indicate the BW value included in the signaling field of the TB PPDU in response to the trigger frame (e.g., HE-SIG-A or U-SIG, etc.), and can indicate the maximum BW of the TB PPDU sent in response to the trigger frame. Therefore, the STA can set the BW value included in the signaling field of the TB PPDU based on the value of the UL BW subfield included in the trigger frame.

[0228] Furthermore, the public information field may also include information contained in the signaling field of the TB PPDU as a response to the trigger frame. Therefore, after receiving the trigger frame, the STA can set the information included in the TB PPDU based on the information included in the trigger frame.

[0229] Reference Figure 16 (c) The user information field may include an AID12 subfield. The AID12 subfield can be used to indicate the intended recipient of the user information field that includes the AID12 subfield, or the function of the user information field. Therefore, the AID12 subfield can also serve to indicate the intended recipient of a trigger frame that includes the AID12 subfield, or the function of the trigger frame. For example, if the value of the AID12 subfield is a preset value, the user information field can indicate a Random Access Resource Unit (RA-RU). That is, the preset value of the AID12 subfield can indicate that the user information field indicates an RA-RU. Specifically, if the value of the AID12 subfield is "0", the user information field can indicate the RA-RU for an associated STA. For example, when the value of the AID12 subfield is "0", the user information field can indicate the RA-RU for an associated STA, and when the value of the AID12 subfield is "2045", the user information field can indicate the RA-RU for an unassociated STA. The STA corresponding to the STA ID indicated by the value of the AID12 subfield (e.g., AID (Associated ID)) can indicate a response via a user information field that includes the AID12 subfield or a trigger frame that includes the AID subfield. For example, the AID12 subfield can represent the AID or 12 LSBs of the AID. The STA corresponding to the value indicated by the AID12 subfield can send a TB PPDU in response to a received trigger frame. In this case, the value of the AID12 subfield can be in the range of "1" to "2007" (inclusive), and when the value of the AID12 subfield is a preset value (e.g., "2046"), the RU corresponding to the preset value of the AID12 subfield may not be assigned to any STA. Additionally, when the AID subfield is a preset value (e.g., "4095", etc.), the preset value can indicate the start of padding for the trigger frame.

[0230] The information in the user information field, which includes the AID12 subfield, can be information corresponding to the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield. For example, the Resource Unit (RU) allocation subfield can indicate the size and location of the RU. In this case, the value of the RU allocation subfield in the user information field, which includes the AID12 subfield, can be information corresponding to the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield. That is, the RU indicated by the RU allocation subfield in the AID12 subfield can be the RU assigned to the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield.

[0231] In addition, the user information field can indicate the encoding method (UL FEC encoding type), modulation method (UL HE-MCS, UL DCM), power (UL target RSSI), etc., used to generate the TB PPDU sent in response to the trigger frame.

[0232] Figure 17 The illustration shows a method for indicating a trigger-based (TB) PPDU format according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0233] Reference Figure 17 A STA can selectively send PPDUs of different formats based on the indication of the trigger frame that indicates the transmission of the PPDU.

[0234] Specifically, EHT STAs can selectively transmit traditional PPDUs (e.g., HE TB PPDUs) and EHT TB PPDUs, and NEXT STAs can selectively transmit HE TB PPDUs, EHT TB PPDUs, and / or NEXT TB PPDUs. In this case, a single frame or a single PPDU can be used to individually schedule STAs applying various standards. This approach can be advantageous in wireless LANs where STAs applying multiple standards share common resources. For example, HE STAs (other than EHT STAs) and EHT STAs can respond with a single frame using an HE TB PPDU. That is, a non-AP STA can instruct not only HE STAs but also EHT STAs to send HE TB PPDUs by sending a trigger frame.

[0235] Furthermore, the information used to select the TB PPDU format can be included in the trigger frame, TRS, PPDU including the trigger frame, or PPDU including the TRS control subfield. That is, the AP STA can include the information for selecting the TB PPDU format in the trigger frame and send the trigger frame to at least one non-AP STA, which can select the format of the responding PPDU based on the information included in the sent trigger frame. Then, at least one non-AP STA can send the PPDU to the AP based on the selected format.

[0236] Information regarding the format of the PPDU (TB PPDU format) in response to a trigger frame can exist at the MAC layer. Trigger frames, which are among the triggering frames, can be classified as HE trigger frames, EHT trigger frames, and NEXT trigger frames, and the response to each trigger frame can be classified as HE TB PPDU, EHT TB PPDU, and NEXT TB PPDU.

[0237] Furthermore, dividing the trigger frame into HE trigger frame, EHT trigger frame, and NEXT trigger frame can mean dividing the TB PPDU format, which is the response to the trigger frame, into HE TB PPDU, EHT TB PPDU, and NEXT TB PPDU.

[0238] The format of the trigger frame used to distinguish the format of a TB PPDU can be identified as an HE trigger frame, an EHT trigger frame, or a NEXT trigger frame based on the frame control fields included in the MAC header. Specifically, the format of the trigger frame can be distinguished based on the type subfield, the subtype subfield, and / or the control frame extension subfield. Furthermore, when the values ​​of the type subfield, the subtype subfield, and / or the control frame extension subfield are preset values, the trigger frame can be identified as an HE trigger frame; when the values ​​of the type subfield, the subtype subfield, and / or the control frame extension subfield are another preset value, the trigger frame can be identified as an EHT trigger frame. Additionally, when the values ​​of the type subfield, the subtype subfield, and / or the control frame extension subfield are another preset value, the trigger frame can be identified as a NEXT trigger frame.

[0239] For example, when the type subfield is 01 (B3 B2) and the subtype subfield is 0010 (B7 B6 B5 B4), the format of a frame including the type subfield and the subtype subfield can be an HE-triggered frame. In this case, entries for the type subfield, subtype subfield, and / or control frame extension subfield with a limited number of bits can be appended to the EHT and NEXT standards.

[0240] Alternatively, the format of the trigger frame (HE trigger frame or EHT trigger frame) can be identified based on the common information field included in the trigger frame. That is, the format of the PPDU to be sent as a response to the trigger frame can be determined based on the value of a specific subfield (first subfield) included in the common information field. For example, a non-AP STA can select either an HE TB PPDU or an EHT TB PPDU based on the value of the common information field and send the selected HE TB PPDU or EHT TB PPDU through the assigned RU. In this case, in addition to the common information field, a specific subfield (second subfield) of the user information field can also be used to identify the PPDU format.

[0241] That is, the variant of the PPDU format used to determine the response to the trigger frame can be determined based on the common information field of the trigger frame, and the PPDU format can be determined based on the determined variant. For example, if the variant used to determine the PPDU format is determined to be the HE variant by the common information field, a non-AP STA can respond with an HE TB PPDU. If the variant used to determine the PPDU format is determined to be the EHT variant by the common information field, a non-AP STA can respond with an EHT TB PPDU.

[0242] In this case, in addition to the public information field, a variant of the format used to determine the PPDU can be attached using the user information field.

[0243] For example, a trigger frame can be categorized into an HE trigger frame, an EHT trigger frame, or a NEXT trigger frame based on the trigger type subfield. For instance, when the trigger type subfield value is a preset value, the trigger frame can be an HE trigger frame. Furthermore, when the trigger type subfield value is a preset value, the trigger frame can be an EHT trigger frame. And when the trigger type subfield value is a preset value, the trigger frame can be a NEXT trigger frame.

[0244] For example, when the trigger type subfield value is 0 to 7, it can be an HE trigger frame, while when the trigger type subfield value is not 0 to 7, it can be an EHT trigger frame or a NEXT trigger frame. The trigger type subfield indicates the various types of trigger frames; however, in this case, there may be a drawback of needing to use a limited space for the trigger type subfield.

[0245] According to another embodiment, a trigger frame can be distinguished as an HE trigger frame, an EHT trigger frame, or a NEXT trigger frame based on the UL length subfield of the trigger frame. For example, the frame can be determined as an HE trigger frame, an EHT trigger frame, or a NEXT trigger frame based on the value obtained by performing a modulo operation on the UL length subfield value. That is, the value of the UL length subfield can be used to determine whether the PPDU format sent as a response to the trigger frame is an HE PPDU or an EHT PPDU.

[0246] More specifically, the type of frame (HE-triggered, EHT-triggered, or NEXT-triggered) can be determined based on the value obtained by performing a modulo 3 operation on the UL length subfield value (the remainder when the UL length subfield is divided by 3). For example, if the result of performing a modulo 3 operation on the UL length subfield value is not 0, the trigger frame can be an HE-triggered frame. Alternatively, if the result of performing a modulo 3 operation on the UL length subfield value is 1, the trigger frame can be an HE-triggered frame. Alternatively, if the result of performing a modulo 3 operation on the UL length subfield value is 0, the trigger frame may not be an HE-triggered frame. Alternatively, if the result of performing a modulo 3 operation on the UL length subfield value is 0, the trigger frame can be an EHT-triggered frame or a NEXT-triggered frame.

[0247] That is, when the value obtained by performing mod3 on the value of the UL length subfield of the trigger frame is not 0, the response to the trigger frame can be sent as an HETB PPDU, and when the value obtained by performing mod3 on the value of the UL length subfield is 1, the response to the trigger frame can be sent as an HETB PPDU.

[0248] Furthermore, when the value obtained by performing mod3 on the value of the UL length subfield of the trigger frame is 0, the format of the PPDU sent as a response to the trigger frame can be EHT TB PPDU.

[0249] Furthermore, in this method, HE trigger frames, EHT trigger frames, and NEXT trigger frames can be distinguished by using an additional trigger frame differentiation method together. For example, they can be used together. Figure 16 The division method shown divides the HE trigger frame, EHT trigger frame, and NEXT trigger frame.

[0250] According to one embodiment, the format of a trigger frame can be distinguished as an HE trigger frame, an EHT trigger frame, or a NEXT trigger frame based on the user information field of the trigger frame.

[0251] That is, similar to the public information field mentioned above, the format of the trigger frame (HE trigger frame or EHT trigger frame) can be identified based on the user information field included in the trigger frame. Specifically, the format of the PPDU sent in response to the trigger frame can be determined based on the value of a specific subfield (second subfield) included in the user information field. For example, a non-AP STA can select either an HE TB PPDU or an EHT TB PPDU based on the value of the user information field, and send the selected HE TB PPDU or EHT TB PPDU through the assigned RU. In this case, in addition to the user information field, the specific subfield (first subfield) of the public information field can be additionally used to identify the PPDU format.

[0252] That is, the variant of the PPDU format used to determine the response to the trigger frame can be determined based on the user information field of the trigger frame, and the PPDU format can be determined based on the determined variant. For example, when the variant used to determine the PPDU format is determined to be the HE variant by the user information field, a non-AP STA can respond with an HE TB PPDU, and when the variant used to determine the PPDU format is determined to be the EHT variant by the user information field, a non-AP STA can respond with an EHT TB PPDU.

[0253] In this case, in addition to the user information field, the variant used to determine the PPDU format can be supplemented with a public information field.

[0254] For example, HE trigger frames, EHT trigger frames, or NEXT trigger frames can be distinguished based on AID12 subfields. According to one embodiment, HE trigger frames, EHT trigger frames, or NEXT trigger frames can be distinguished based on whether or not an AID12 subfield includes a preset value. Furthermore, in this case, there is a problem that the STA indicated by a certain user information field may need to continuously check the AID12 subfields existing after that user information field to determine the trigger frame format. To solve this problem, a user information field including an AID12 subfield indicating which type of trigger frame it is can be present at the beginning of the user information list. Furthermore, to prevent erroneous operation by HE STAs that cannot understand this signaling method, a user information field including an AID12 subfield indicating which type of trigger frame it is can exist after the user information field corresponding to the HE STA.

[0255] Furthermore, since information from subfields other than the AID12 subfield included in the User Information field may not be necessary for the TB PPDU response, the subfield of the User Information field that includes the AID12 subfield indicating which triggering frame can be omitted. That is, the length of the User Information field can vary depending on the AID12 subfield. (See reference) Figure 15 The AID12 subfield can serve as an indicator of the TB PPDU format of the response. For example, when the AID12 subfield has a preset value, the response of a trigger frame including the AID12 subfield set to that preset value can be an EHT TB PPDU. For example, when the AID12 subfield value is 2047, the response of a trigger frame including the AID12 subfield can be an EHT TB PPDU. Furthermore, when the AID12 subfield has a preset value, the response of a trigger frame including the AID12 subfield set to that preset value can be a NEXT TB PPDU. For example, when the AID12 subfield value is 2048, the response of a trigger frame including the AID12 subfield can be a NEXT TB PPDU.

[0256] According to another embodiment, when responding based on a user information field existing at a predetermined position relative to an AID12 subfield having a preset value, the response can be in a TB PPDU format corresponding to the preset value. For example, when responding based on a user information field existing after an AID12 subfield having a preset value, the response can be in a TB PPDU format corresponding to the preset value. If there are multiple values ​​indicating TB PPDU formats, when responding based on a user information field existing after both preset value 1 and preset value 2, the response can be in a TB PPDU format according to a preset priority order, between the TB PPDU format corresponding to preset value 1 and the TB PPDU format corresponding to preset value 2. (See also...) Figure 15 When responding based on a user information field that exists after the AID12 subfield set to 2047, an EHT TB PPDU can be used. Similarly, when responding based on a user information field that exists after both the AID12 subfield set to 2047 and the AID12 subfield set to 2048, a NEXT TB PPDU can be used. Finally, when responding based on a user information field that exists before both the AID12 subfield set to 2047 and the AID12 subfield set to 2048, an HE TBPPDU can be used.

[0257] In this embodiment, the AID12 subfield indicating the type of the trigger frame is used as an example for illustration. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the type of the trigger frame can be indicated by another subfield of the user information field.

[0258] According to one embodiment, a HE trigger frame, an EHT trigger frame, or a NEXT trigger frame can be distinguished based on the padding field of the trigger frame. For example, whether it is an HE trigger frame, an EHT trigger frame, or a NEXT trigger frame can be determined based on whether the padding field includes a preset value indicating whether it is an HE trigger frame, an EHT trigger frame, or a NEXT trigger frame.

[0259] According to embodiments of the present invention, HE trigger frames, EHT trigger frames, and NEXT trigger frames can be distinguished by combining multiple trigger frame differentiation methods described herein. Furthermore, the description of trigger frames in this invention is not limited to this, but can also be applied to TRS.

[0260] According to another embodiment of the invention, the AP may not be able to simultaneously indicate the transmission of both EHT PPDU and HE PPDU via a trigger frame. That is, the EHT AP may not send a trigger frame that simultaneously indicates both HE TB PPDU and EHT TB PPDU, but may instead indicate only one PPDU format.

[0261] Figure 18 The illustration shows the operation of a UL MU according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0262] As described above, the transmission of a TB PPDU can be indicated not only by a trigger frame but also by a TRS. Furthermore, as mentioned above, the TRS can be included in the HT control field. For example, when the HT control field includes an A-control field, it can include a TRS. The TRS can be transmitted through the TRS control subfield. The A-control field can have a form in which control list fields can be contiguously connected. Additionally, the control list field can include a TRS.

[0263] Furthermore, the intended receiver of a frame including a TRS can respond to the TRS. For example, the STA corresponding to the RA included in the frame including the TRS can respond to the TRS. The TRS may include information about the length of the PPDU or frame responding to the TRS (UL Data Symbols), the location and size of the RU to be used when responding to the TRS (RU Allocation), information about the power when responding to the TRS (AP Tx Power, ULTarget RSSI), and information about the modulation scheme when responding to the TRS (UL HE-MCS), etc.

[0264] Figure 18The embodiments may be used to solve the reference Figures 14 to 15 The method described addresses the problem. Furthermore, as mentioned above, the aforementioned embodiments regarding trigger frames can also be applied to TRS. Additionally, the above description may be omitted.

[0265] According to one embodiment of the present invention, in addition to the TRS (HE TRS) defined in the HE standard, there may also be TRS (EHT TRS, NEXT TRS) defined in the EHT standard or the NEXT standard. Therefore, depending on whether the indicated TRS is HE TRS, EHT TRS, or NEXT TRS, the TB PPDU responding to the TRS can be an HE TB PPDU, an EHT TB PPDU, or a NEXT TBPPDU, respectively. For example, the standard in which the TRS is defined can be determined by the control ID subfield of the A-control subfield. In an additional embodiment, TRS can be divided into two types: HE TRS and TRS other than HE TRS.

[0266] Alternatively, the standard in which the TRS is defined can be determined based on whether the HT control field is an HE variant, EHT variant, or NEXT variant. Furthermore, the predetermined bits of the HT control field can be determined based on their values ​​(HE variant, EHT variant, or NEXT variant). For example, when B0 and B1 of the HT control field are 1 and 1 respectively, it can be an HE variant. Additionally, whether it is an HE variant, EHT variant, or NEXT variant can be determined by using B0 and B1 of the HT control field along with additional bits (e.g., B31).

[0267] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the format of the TBPPDU responding to the TRS can be determined based on the PPDU format including the TRS. That is, when the PPDU indicating the transmission of the PPDU includes the TRS control subfield, the format of the PPDU can be determined based on the format of the PPDU including the TRS control subfield. For example, if the format of the PPDU including the TRS control subfield is HEPPDU, then the format of the indicated PPDU can be HE PPDU. However, if the format of the PPDU including the TRS control subfield is EHT PPDU, then the format of the indicated PPDU can be EHT PPDU.

[0268] Reference Figure 18When a TRS is transmitted via an HE PPDU, the TB PPDU responding to the TRS can be an HE TB PPDU. Furthermore, when a TRS is transmitted via an EHT PPDU, the TB PPDU responding to the TRS can be an EHT TB PPDU. Additionally, when a TRS is transmitted via a NEXT PPDU, the TB PPDU responding to the TRS can be a NEXT TB PPDU.

[0269] According to one embodiment of the present invention, subfields included in a TRS can be interpreted differently based on the PPDU format including the TRS. For example, if the TRS is included in an HE PPDU, the UL HE-MCS subfield (or MCS-related subfield) included in the TRS can indicate a value corresponding to the HE MCS table. If the TRS is included in an EHT PPDU, the UL HE-MCS subfield (or MCS-related subfield) included in the TRS can indicate a value corresponding to the EHT MCS table. If the TRS is included in a NEXT PPDU, the UL HE-MCS subfield (or MCS-related subfield) included in the TRS can indicate a value corresponding to the NEXT MCS table. Furthermore, the interpretation of RU allocation subfields can also differ based on the PPDU format including the TRS.

[0270] Figure 19 The illustration shows an example of a Packet Extension (PE) field for providing processing time according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0271] Reference Figure 19 When sending a PPDU, specific fields that do not need to be decoded can be included in the last part of the PPDU to provide additional processing time for processing the received PPDU.

[0272] Specifically, a receiving device that receives a PPDU can interpret the PPDU by decoding it and send a response to the PPDU to the transmitting device. However, when the time required to process the PPDU increases due to a decrease in the performance of the receiving device, the receiving device may be unable to send a response within the time required to send the response to the PPDU. Therefore, to ensure processing time, the PPDU may include fields that do not require decoding and may be referred to as PE fields.

[0273] Because the PE field does not require separate decoding, the receiving device can ensure time for decoding and processing the PPDU during the duration of the PE field, and can send the response to the PPDU to the transmitting device within a preset time. That is, the PE field is located at the end of the PPDU and can provide additional processing time to the terminal acting as the receiving device.

[0274] Therefore, the PE field can be located at the end of the PPDU or after the data field to provide additional processing time. For example, it can be included in the PPDU in the order of preamble, data field, and PE field. The preamble and data field can be the same as those in the embodiments described above. For HE PPDU, the preamble can include L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, HE-SIG-A, HE-SIG-B, HE-STF, and HE-LTF. For EHT PPDU, the preamble can include L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, U-SIG, EHT-SIG, EHT-STF, and EHT-LTF. A PPDU including the PE field can be an HE PPDU or an EHT PPDU, or it can be a PPDU in a standard defined after the EHT standard.

[0275] If the PE field is not included in the PPDU, when the performance of the receiving device (e.g., STA) is low, it may be difficult to respond at the predetermined time at the end of the received PPDU due to the time spent processing the PPDU. The predetermined time can be the time after IFS or SIFS at the end of the received PPDU. Therefore, time for processing the received PPDU can be ensured by placing the PE field, which does not need to be decoded, at the end of the received PPDU. That is, by placing the field that does not need to be decoded at the end of the PPDU, the PPDU can be processed sufficiently quickly. Thus, PPDUs including the PE field can be processed, and an immediate response to the PPDU can be sent in a timely manner. In this case, an immediate response can be sent after SIFS at the end of the PPDU including the PE field.

[0276] Furthermore, the power used to transmit the PE field can be based on the power used to transmit the data field. For example, the power used to transmit the PE field can be the same as the average power used to transmit the data field.

[0277] The PE field can include arbitrary content and can be transmitted. Furthermore, the location and size of the transmitted PE field in the frequency domain can be the same as the location and size of the transmitted data field or the resource unit (RU) in which the transmitted data field is transmitted.

[0278] According to one embodiment of the invention, the duration of the PE field can be a multiple of 0 or 4 µs. For example, the duration of the PE field can be one of 0, 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 µs. In this case, the maximum value of the PE field duration can vary depending on the format of the PPDU that includes the PE field. For example, in the case of an HE PPDU, the duration of the PE field can be one of 0, 4, 8, 12, and 16 µs, and in the case of an EHT PPDU, the duration of the PE field can be one of 0, 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 µs. A PE field of 0 µs can be equivalent to not having a PE field.

[0279] According to one embodiment, the PE field for the preset duration can be used only for a preset configuration. For example, the preset duration can be 20µs or longer. The preset duration can be based on a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) or a modulation scheme. That is, the PE field for the preset duration can be set according to a preset MCS index, MCS, or modulation scheme and included in the PPDU.

[0280] Alternatively, for a preset MCS index, preset modulation, or an MCS index, modulation, or MCS higher than the preset MCS, the PE field for the preset duration can be included in the PPDU. For example, the preset MCS index, preset modulation, or preset MCS can be based on 4096-QAM.

[0281] The preset value for the duration of the PE field can be based not only on the MCS or modulation scheme, but also on the number of spatial streams. For example, when the number of streams used is greater than eight spatial streams, a preset value for the duration of the PE field can be used.

[0282] Furthermore, preset values ​​can be based on the channel width, bandwidth, or RU size. For example, if the channel width, bandwidth, or RU size is set to a preset value, the duration of the PE field can be determined to be a preset value.

[0283] According to one embodiment, the channel width or bandwidth can be a value corresponding to the transmitted PPDU. Alternatively, the channel width or bandwidth can be a value corresponding to PPDUs transmitted simultaneously by multiple STAs or all PPDUs. For example, when the channel width or bandwidth is 320MHz, a preset specific value can be allowed as the duration value of the PE field of the PPDU. For example, a duration of 20µs can be allowed only when the channel width or bandwidth is 320MHz.

[0284] According to another embodiment, the channel width or bandwidth allowed to use a specific value can be a value greater than 160MHz, and the size of the RU can be greater than 2x996. Furthermore, the RU size can be the size of all RUs used for transmission. That is, when multiple RUs are used, it can be the sum of the sizes of the multiple RUs.

[0285] That is, a specific preset value for the duration of the PE field can be used or set only under specific conditions. For example, as mentioned above, the duration of the PE field can be set to one of 0us, 4us, 8us, 12us, 16us, or 20us, and the specific value can be used or set in the PPDU under the following conditions.

[0286] -PPDU modulated using the 4096-QAM modulation scheme

[0287] - PPDUs sent using 8 or more spatial streams (in at least one RU / MRU)

[0288] - When the size of at least one allocated RU or MRU is equal to or greater than 2x996, the 320MHz PPDU

[0289] - EHT TB PPDU based on trigger frame (i.e., the format of the PPDU indicated by the trigger frame);

[0290] For example, the duration of the PE field can be set differently depending on the format of the PPDU indicated by the frame that triggered the transmission of the PPDU. More specifically, when the PPDU indicated by the frame is an HE TB PPDU, the duration of the PE field of the HE TB PPDU can be set to a value of 0us, 4us, 8us, 12us, and 16us. However, if the PPDU indicated by the frame is an EHT TB PPDU, the duration of the PE field of the HE TB PPDU can be set to one of 0us, 4us, 8us, 12us, 16us, or 20us. That is, the value that the duration of the PE field can be set to (e.g., the maximum value) can vary depending on the format of the PPDU indicated by the frame.

[0291] For example, as mentioned above, 20us can be allowed only under specific conditions.

[0292] For example, in the above description, the preset specific value could be 20us. That is, a PE field with a duration of 20us can be allowed only under the specific conditions or circumstances described above.

[0293] Figure 20 The illustration shows an example of a high-efficiency (HE) operation element and a default PE duration subfield according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0294] Reference Figure 20 The AP STA (or AP) can indicate the duration value of the PE field through the operation element.

[0295] Specifically, information related to the duration of the PE field in the PPDU can be included in the operation element and sent. This information can be the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU. For example, to trigger the transmission of a PPDU, the AP can set the value of the control ID to indicate the value of the TRS, and a non-AP STA can send a PPDU in response to the TRS. In this case, the PPDU can include the aforementioned PE field used to provide additional processing time, and information related to the duration of the PE field can be sent to the non-AP STA through a specific field of the operation element (e.g., the default PE duration field).

[0296] In this case, the duration of the PE field or the preset information related to the duration of the PE field can be referred to as the default PE duration, and the default PE duration can be indicated by the default PE duration subfield.

[0297] The default PE duration subfield and / or the PE field value can be set via the TXVECTOR parameter DEFAULT_PE_DURATION, which is used as a transmission parameter. In this invention, TRS can be used in conjunction with TRS control.

[0298] Operational elements may include information related to BSS operations and, depending on the format, may be HE or EHT operational elements. These operational elements may be included in and transmitted in Beacon frames, Probe Request frames, Probe Response frames, Association Request frames, Association Response frames, Reassociation Request frames, and Reassociation Response frames.

[0299] The default PE duration subfield included in the operation element can indicate the duration of the PE field in a fixed unit (or a predetermined unit). In this case, the fixed unit or predetermined unit could be 4µs, and when the value of the default PE duration subfield is N, the duration of the PE field indicated by the default PE duration subfield can be N. 4us. For example, if the value of the default PE duration subfield is "4", then the duration of the PE field indicated by the default PE duration subfield can be 16us.

[0300] Figure 20 (a) is a diagram illustrating an example of an HE operation element. (See also...) Figure 20 (a) The HE operation element may include the HE operation parameter field. Figure 20 (b) is a diagram illustrating an example of the HE operation parameter fields. (See also...) Figure 20 (b) The HE operation parameter field may include a default PE duration subfield. In this case, the default PE duration subfield may be 3 bits, and values ​​5 through 7 may be reserved. That is, values ​​5 through 7 of the default PE duration subfield are reserved, so only values ​​0 through 4 can be valid. Therefore, the duration that can be indicated by the default PE duration subfield can be 0, 4, 8, 12, and 16 µs. If the reserved value 5 is used, the default PE duration can be indicated as 20 µs.

[0301] Figure 21 The illustration shows an example of a method for setting the duration of a PE field according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0302] Reference Figure 21 When a non-AP STA sends a PPDU in response to the AP's TRS, the non-AP STA can set the duration of the PE field of the PPDU to the default PE duration obtained from the AP.

[0303] Specifically, a terminal that has received a frame that triggers the transmission of a PPDU (e.g., a frame including a control ID subfield indicating the value of the TRS or a trigger frame indicating the transmission of a PPDU) can include a PE field in the PPDU to provide additional processing time. As described above, the PE field can be set to a certain time unit or a predetermined time unit (e.g., 0us, 4us, 8us, 12us, 16us, or 20us). In this case, as mentioned above, 20us can be allowed only under specific circumstances.

[0304] The duration of the PE field can be set to the value indicated by the default PE duration field sent from the AP. In this case, the default PE duration can be the same as described above. Figure 20 The same as described in [the text], and will omit [the meaning] and [the meaning] Figure 20 The same description as described in [the document]. See also [reference]. Figure 20 As described, the default PE duration field can be indicated by including it in the operation element and sending it.

[0305] That is, if a non-AP STA responds to the AP's TRS, the duration of the PE field in the PPDU is determined based on the default PE duration sent and indicated by the AP. In this case, the PPDU can be an HE TB PPDU, EHT TB PPDU, or a later version of the TB PPDU based on the trigger frame PPDU, and the AP can be an AP associated with a non-AP STA.

[0306] like Figure 21 As shown, the STA can receive a trigger frame that includes a trigger or indication frame for sending a PPDU, or a frame that includes a TRS control field, and can send a TB PPDU in response to this.

[0307] As referenced above Figure 19 and Figure 20 The TB PPDU may include a PE field for providing additional processing time, and the duration of the PE field may be set to a certain time unit. If the STA receives an indication of a default PE duration subfield from the AP, the STA may set the duration of the PE field to the indicated default PE duration. For example, the default PE duration may be a value included in an operation element (e.g., an HE operation element or an EHT operation element) sent from the AP. The STA (AP or AP STA) sending the default PE duration and the STA (AP or AP STA) sending the TRS control field may be the same STA.

[0308] If the STA receives a trigger frame from the AP and sends a TB PPDU in response to the trigger frame, the TB PPDU may include a PE field, and the T value of the PE field can be calculated using the following Equation 4. PE :

[0309] [Equation 4]

[0310]

[0311] That is, in equation (4), It is the floor operator and represents the floor operation. floor(x) represents the largest integer less than or equal to x. LENGTH represents a value based on the length field (e.g., the UL length subfield) included in the trigger frame. For example, LENGTH could be a value indicated by the UL length subfield included in the public information field of the trigger frame.

[0312] m is a value that varies depending on the format of the PPDU. For example, the value of m for a TB PPDU can be 2.

[0313] T PREAMBLEThis indicates the length of the preamble to the transmitted TB PPDU. When transmitting a HE TB PPDU, T... PREAMBLE It can be the sum of the lengths of L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, HE-SIG-A, HE-STF, and HE-LTF. When sending an EHT PPDU, T... PREAMBLE It can be the length of the EHT preamble. That is, when sending an EHT TB PPDU, T... PREAMBLE It can be the sum of the lengths of L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, U-SIG, EHT-STF, and EHT-LTF.

[0314] N SYM This can represent the number of data OFDM symbols included in the transmitted PPDU. For example, N SYM It can be determined by the following equation 5.

[0315] [Equation 5]

[0316]

[0317] In equation 5, b PE_Disambiguity It can be the value of the TXVECTOR parameter TB_PE_DISAMBIGUITY. Or, b PE_disambiguity The PE disambiguation field included in the trigger frame can be a value. Furthermore, when sending an HE PPDU, the TXVECTOR parameter TB_PE_DISAMBIGUITY can be the TXVECTOR parameter HE_TB_PE_DISAMBIGUITY. When sending an EHT PPDU, the TXVECTOR parameter TB_PE_DISAMBIGUITY can be the TXVECTOR parameter EHT_TB_PE_DISAMBIGUITY. Additionally, the PE disambiguation field included in the trigger frame can be set based on whether a predetermined equation is satisfied.

[0318] T SYM It can be the length of the OFDM symbol. Additionally, T SYM It can include the value of the guard interval (GI).

[0319] N MA This can be the number of midambles or the number of midamble time periods. If the Doppler field is 0, then N... MA It can be 0. Furthermore, the Doppler field of the EHT PPDU can be 0 or N. MAIt can be 0. An intermediate code can be inserted in the middle of the data field of the PPDU. Moreover, the intermediate code can include multiple LTFs. The intermediate code can be present to help the receiver with channel estimation.

[0320] N LTF This can be the amount of LTF included in the preamble. In this case, when sending an HE PPDU, the LTF can be HE-LTF. Alternatively, when sending an EHT PPDU, the LTF can be EHT-LTF.

[0321] T LTFSYM This can be the length of the OFDM symbol for the LTF. In this case, when sending an HE PPDU, the LTF can be HE-LTF. Alternatively, when sending an EHT PPDU, the LTF can be EHT-LTF. Furthermore, T... LTFSYM It can include the value of GI.

[0322] According to the above embodiments, if no intermediate code exists, then T PE It can be determined using the following equation 6.

[0323] [Equation 6]

[0324]

[0325] like Figure 21 As shown, when a trigger frame indicates the transmission of a TB PPDU, the STA can respond to the trigger frame by transmitting a PPDU including a T... PE The duration of the PE field in the PPDU.

[0326] If a frame including a TRS and a trigger frame indicating the transmission of a PPDU are included together in a single PPDU and transmitted, the values ​​of the individual fields in the trigger frame can be set such that the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU transmitted in response to it is the same as the default PE duration. For example, by adjusting (or setting) the values ​​of the UL length subfield and the PE disambiguation subfield of the trigger frame, T... PE The value can be changed to be the same as the default PE value.

[0327] That is, when the trigger frame and TRS trigger the transmission of the PPDU, the duration of the PE field in the PPDU transmitted in response to the trigger frame and TRS can be set to the value indicated by the default PE duration subfield. In this case, the T included in the trigger frame is used to calculate the duration of the PPDU. PE The value of the field can be set to the same value indicated by the default PE duration subfield.

[0328] For example, if a PPDU includes a trigger frame and a TRS indicating the transmission of the TB PPDU to different STAs respectively, then the maximum duration value of the PE field included in the TB PPDU indicated only by the trigger frame can be 20µs (i.e., a PE field duration of 20µs is allowed), and the maximum duration value of the PE field included in the TB PPDU triggered by the TRS can be 16µs. In this case, the TRS included in the trigger frame is used to calculate T... PE The values ​​of subfields (e.g., the LENGTH field and / or the PE disambiguation subfield) can be set such that the value of the duration of the default PE subfield is related to T. PE The values ​​are the same.

[0329] In other words, if the trigger frame indicates the transmission of an EHT TB PPDU, the duration of the PE field of the EHT TB PPDU can be determined to be a value of 0us, 4us, 8us, 12us, 16us, or 20us. However, the PPDU including the trigger frame may also include a TRS indicating the transmission of the EHT TB PPDU, and the default PE duration of the EHT TB PPDU indicated by the TRS can be set to a value of 0us, 4us, 8us, 12us, and 16us. In this case, the terminal that triggers the transmission of the TB PPDU via the trigger frame can be STA 1, and the terminal that triggers the transmission of the TB PPDU via the TRS can be STA 2.

[0330] In this scenario, the terminal sending the TB PPDU triggered by the TRS can set the duration of the PE field to the value indicated by the default PE duration included in the operation element. However, the terminal transmitting the TB PPDU triggered by the trigger frame can use the T calculated by using subfields included in the trigger frame (e.g., the LENGTH field and / or the PE disambiguation subfield). PE The value is set to the duration of the PE field included in the TB PPDU. In this case, it is used to calculate the T included in the trigger frame. PE The value of a subfield can be set such that the value indicated by the default PE duration is the same as T. PE The values ​​are the same.

[0331] That is, when the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the TB PPDU caused by the transmission of the trigger frame, which is included in a PPDU and triggers the TB PPDU to different STAs respectively, is different from the maximum value of the PE field indicated by the default PE duration subfield according to the TRS, the value of the subfield included in the trigger frame and used to calculate the duration of the PE field included in the TB PPDU can be set (or adjusted) so that the calculated value is the same as the value indicated by the default PE duration subfield.

[0332] In this scenario, when the default PE duration subfield is set to a value of 0us, 4us, 8us, 12us, or 16us (or 0us, 4us, 8us, 12us, 16us, or 20us), the T calculated by the trigger frame... PE The value indicated by the default PE duration subfield can be the same.

[0333] Therefore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, when the TRS and trigger frame that trigger the transmission of TB PPDU to different STAs are included in a single PPDU, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU transmitted in response to the TRS can be the same as the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU transmitted in response to the trigger frame. That is, in Figure 21 In the middle, T PE The default PE duration can be the same value.

[0334] According to the above embodiments, when responding to a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a TRS, the response is made by including a PE field with a preset duration. In this case, the preset duration can be the default PE duration. Therefore, the AP can set the default PE duration to a sufficiently large value to successfully receive the PPDU or successfully respond to the received PPDU. However, as mentioned above, some values ​​of the duration in the PE field can only be used in the preset configuration. For example, a PE field duration of 20µs can only be used in the preset configuration. Therefore, when responding to a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a TRS, it may be necessary to set a default PE duration with a larger value in order to use the preset configuration. For example, it may be necessary to set the default PE duration to 20µs in order to use the preset configuration. In this case, since a long default PE duration is required even if the preset configuration is not used, it is unnecessary. That is, even for PPDUs that may be received even without using the long PE field, a long PE field is still required. This may lead to a waste of communication time.

[0335] Additionally, the maximum value that the default PE duration subfield included in the HE operation element can represent is 16µs. Therefore, it may be difficult to trigger configurations requiring a longer PE field using a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a TRS. If a reserved value is used for the default PE duration subfield included in the HE operation element, the HE STA receiving that reserved value may not be able to interpret it and may not function correctly.

[0336] The methods used to solve the above problems will be described below.

[0337] Figure 22 The illustration shows another example of a method for setting the duration of UL MU operation and PE field according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0338] Reference Figure 22 In order to solve the reference Figure 21 The aforementioned problem can be addressed by limiting the value of the PE field of the PPDU triggered by a trigger frame or TRS.

[0339] Specifically, when a STA is triggered to respond, it can be instructed to respond with a limited configuration. For example, when triggered using a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a TRS, a limited configuration can be indicated. Furthermore, this indication method can include indication via a subfield included in the TRS or the trigger frame. Additionally, when responding to a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU such as a TRS, the indication method can include implicit indication. The limited configuration can be a configuration that does not require a PE field of a predetermined length. In one embodiment, the predetermined length can be 20 µs or greater. More specifically, the predetermined length can be 20 µs. In another embodiment, the predetermined length can be greater than 16 µs. Therefore, an STA responding to a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a TRS can respond with a limited configuration.

[0340] In this case, the duration of the PE field included in the response PPDU can be less than the predetermined length. For example, the duration of the PE field included in the response PPDU can be equal to or less than 16µs.

[0341] Furthermore, limited configuration can be based on Figure 19 The preset configuration is shown. For example, a limited configuration could be, in addition to... Figure 19 Configurations other than the preset configuration shown. Alternatively, limited configurations may include, in addition to... Figure 19 The configuration shown is in addition to the configuration that allows the use of the PE field for a preset duration. Alternatively, the limited configuration may not require... Figure 19The configuration of the PE field for the preset duration shown. For example, the finite configuration can be based on at least one of the following.

[0342] 1) MCS or modulation

[0343] 2) Number of spatial flows

[0344] 3) Channel width, bandwidth, or RU size

[0345] Therefore, according to one embodiment, when transmitting a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a TRS, it may be indicated to respond using an MCS index or modulation that is equal to or less than a preset MCS index or preset modulation. Alternatively, when transmitting a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a TRS, it may not be indicated to respond with 4096-QAM. Alternatively, when transmitting a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a TRS, it may be indicated to respond using an MCS that does not correspond to 4096-QAM.

[0346] Alternatively, when sending a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU containing a TRS, it can be indicated to respond with a predetermined number of space streams. For example, the predetermined number could be eight.

[0347] Alternatively, when transmitting a TRS or a trigger frame included in a PPDU containing a TRS, it can be indicated to respond with a channel width, bandwidth, or RU size equal to or smaller than a preset size. For example, the preset size could be 160MHz or 320MHz. Alternatively, the preset size could be 2x996 (tone count).

[0348] When sending a PPDU that does not include TRS, the limited configuration described above may not be used.

[0349] Reference Figure 22 The AP can send frames that include TRS control. Furthermore, trigger frames can be included in the PPDU that includes such frames. In this case, the TRS control and trigger frames can indicate limited configurations. For example, a configuration requiring high capability upon reception can be indicated. Therefore, the PE field included in the EHTTB PPDU in response to TRS control and the EHTTB PPDU in response to trigger frames can be equal to or less than 16µs. Thus, unnecessary resource waste due to a long PE field may not occur.

[0350] Figure 23 This is another example illustrating a method for setting the duration of UL MU operation and PE field according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0351] Reference Figure 23When the duration of the PE field of the PPDU indicated by the trigger frame is different from the duration of the PE field of the PPDU indicated by the TRS, the duration of the PE field can be set by the PE duration indicated by the TRS.

[0352] Specifically, the TRS control, which includes the TRS indicating the transmission of the PPDU, can indicate the duration of the PE field in the PPDU through the PE duration subfield. For example, the STA responding to the TRS control field can determine the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU in the response based on the PE duration included in the TRS control field.

[0353] According to one embodiment, the PE duration subfield can indicate a value of 0, 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 µs. In this case, the PE duration subfield can be 3 bits. In this case, the PE field can be individually indicated for the desired duration each time the PPDU is triggered by TRS. For example, the minimum desired duration can be indicated.

[0354] According to another embodiment, the PE duration subfield can indicate whether a 20µs PE field is allowed. In this case, the PE duration subfield can be 1 bit. The advantage of this method is that the number of bits in the PE duration subfield included in the TRS is small. According to one embodiment, when the PE duration subfield included in the TRS control indicates 20µs, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU can be 20µs. Furthermore, when the PE duration subfield included in the TRS control does not allow the use of a 20µs PE field, the duration is determined by the subfield included in the TRS control. Figures 20 to 21 The duration indicated by the default PE duration subfield in the operation element described herein can be set to the duration of the PE field and can be sent via PPDU.

[0355] The 20µs duration of the PE field can be restricted to use only in EHT TB PPDUs. If the response is an HE TBPPDU, the duration of the PE field cannot be set to 20µs. In this case, the terminal can base its response on... Figure 17 and Figure 18 The TB PPDU format signaling described in [reference] is used to identify whether a transmitted TB PPDU triggered by a TRS or trigger frame is an EHT TB PPDU or an HE TB PPDU. For example, the STA can identify whether the triggered PPDU is in EHT TB PPDU or HE TB PPDU based on the value of a specific field included in the trigger frame.

[0356] TRS control may include signaling indicating whether a TRS control or trigger frame configured to request a 20µs PE field is included in a PPDU that includes TRS control. If the indication includes a TRS control or trigger frame configured to request a 20µs PE field, a PPDU including the 20µs PE field can be used to respond. If the indication does not include a TRS control or trigger frame configured to request a 20µs PE field, the duration of the PE field can be set using a default PE duration.

[0357] According to another embodiment, in the case of responding to a TRS, a PPDU including a PE field with a preset duration can always be used to respond. For example, the preset duration can be 20µs. Furthermore, this embodiment can be limited to the case of responding with an EHT TB PPDU. If responding with an HE TB PPDU, the 20µs PE field can be omitted. That is, when responding with an EHT TB PPDU, the 20µs PE field can be included in the EHT TB PPDU and sent; when responding with an HE TB PPDU, the PE field set according to the default PE duration can be included in the HE TB PPDU and sent.

[0358] In the above embodiments, the trigger frame included in the PPDU including the TRS can be configured to represent the duration of the PE field indicated in the above embodiments. For example, the UL length subfield and PE disambiguation subfield of the trigger frame included in the PPDU including the TRS can indicate a value that causes the duration of the PE field to become the duration of the PE field indicated in the described embodiments. In this case, the duration of the PE field can be determined by... Figure 21 T described in PE To determine.

[0359] Furthermore, according to one embodiment, multiple TRSs included in a single PPDU can indicate the duration of the same PE field. For example, multiple TRSs included in a single PPDU can include PE duration subfields set to the same value. Multiple TRSs can be included in multiple A-MPDUs of the PPDU.

[0360] Figure 23 (a) is a diagram illustrating the TRS control fields. (Reference) Figure 23 (a) The TRS control field may include the UL data symbol, RU assignment, AP transmit power, UL target RSSI, UL MCS, and PE duration subfield. Descriptions of each subfield can be found in [the relevant documentation / reference]. Figures 18 to 23 The content described herein is the same. Furthermore, the PE duration subfield can indicate whether to respond with a 20µs PE field. In this case, the PE duration can be 1 bit.

[0361] Reference Figure 23 (b) The AP may send a PPDU that includes a frame with a trigger frame or a TRS control field. The PE duration subfield included in the TRS control field is set to 0. A PE duration set to 0 may indicate that 20µs is not used, or it may indicate that the default PE duration is used. Furthermore, other PE durations included in a PPDU that includes a PE duration set to 0 may also be set to 0. Additionally, a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a PE duration subfield set to 0 may be configured such that the duration of the PE field in the PPDU responding to the trigger frame is equal to the duration indicated by the PE duration subfield set to 0. See reference. Figure 23 (b) 1) The duration of the PE field included in the PPDU that responds to a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes the PE duration subfield set to 0 can be the default PE duration. Alternatively, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU that responds to a trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes the PE duration subfield set to 0 can be equal to or less than 16µs. In this case, the responding PPDU can be an EHT TBPPDU. Alternatively, when responding to a TRS or trigger frame with an HE TB PPDU, the PE field with the default PE duration can be used.

[0362] Reference Figure 23 (b) The AP can send a PPDU that includes a frame with a trigger frame or a TRS control field. The PE duration subfield included in the TRS control field is set to 1. A PE duration subfield set to 1 can indicate the use of 20µs, or it can indicate that the default PE duration is not used. Furthermore, other PE duration subfields included in a PPDU that includes a PE duration set to 1 can also be set to 1. Additionally, the trigger frame included in a PPDU that includes a PE duration set to 1 can be configured such that the duration of the PE frame in response to the trigger frame in the PPDU is equal to the duration indicated by the PE duration subfield set to 1. See reference. Figure 23In (b), 1) the duration of the PE duration subfield set to 1 or 2) the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU responding to a trigger frame included in the PPDU that includes the PE duration subfield set to 1 can be 20µs. Alternatively, 1) the duration of the PE duration subfield set to 1 or 2) the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU responding to a trigger frame included in the PPDU that includes the PE duration subfield set to 1 can be not the default PE duration. In this case, the responding PPDU can be an EHTPPDU. Alternatively, the responding PPDU can be an EHT TB PPDU. That is, it can be limited to the case of responding with an EHT TB PPDU.

[0363] Figure 24 The illustration shows another example of a method for setting the duration of UL MU operation and PE field according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0364] Reference Figure 24 The duration of the PE field included in the TB PPDU can be set to the value indicated by the PE duration field indicated by the TRS control field, or it can be set to the value indicated by the default PE duration field included in the operation element. Alternatively, when the TB PPDU is triggered only by a trigger frame, the duration of the PE field of the TB PPDU can be set according to specific conditions (e.g., MCS method, RU size, number of space streams used, and / or the format of the indicated PPDU (e.g., whether an EHT TB PPDU or an HE TB PPDU is indicated).

[0365] For example, the 20µs duration of the PE field is allowed only when the TB PPDU meets the aforementioned specific conditions (e.g., when an EHT TB PPDU is instructed to be sent, when 8 or more spatial streams are used, or when the bandwidth of the EHT PPDU (or EHT MU PPDU, etc.) is 320MHz when at least one RU is larger than 2x996, or when the PPDU is modulated to 4096-QAM).

[0366] If the transmission of the PPDU is indicated by the TRS, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU can be set to the value indicated by the default PE duration subfield included in the operation element (e.g., the HE operation element or the EHT operation element), or it can be set to the value indicated by the PE duration subfield included in the TRS control field.

[0367] If the TRS and trigger frame are included in a PPDU and are sent, and both indicate the transmission of the PPDU, then the duration of the PE field in the case indicated by the trigger frame for the PPDU is the same as the maximum value of the duration of the PE field in the case indicated by the TRS, can be set to the value indicated by the default PE duration subfield or the value indicated by the PE duration subfield included in the TRS.

[0368] However, when a TRS and a trigger frame are included in a single PPDU and both indicate the transmission of the PPDU, the maximum duration of the PE field in the case where the trigger frame indicates the PPDU may differ from the maximum duration of the PE field in the case where the TRS indicates it. For example, the TB PPDU indicated by the trigger frame and / or TRS may meet certain conditions, and the maximum duration of the PE field may be a first maximum (e.g., when 20µs is allowed), while the maximum duration of the PE field indicated by the default PE subfield included in the operation element may be a second maximum (e.g., 16µs). In this case, the duration of the PE field can be set to either the value indicated by the default PE subfield or the value indicated by the PE subfield included in the TRS.

[0369] In this case, the PE duration subfield can indicate the maximum allowed value of 20us for the duration of the PE field, or it can indicate that the duration of the PE field is set using the value of the default PE duration subfield included in the operation element.

[0370] In other words, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the duration of the PE field can be determined based on the PPDU format of the response TRS. According to one embodiment, when responding to a TRS with an HE PPDU, the duration of the PE field can be the HE default PE duration. Furthermore, when responding to a TRS with an EHT PPDU, the duration of the PE field can be a value indicated by the EHT default PE duration. For example, the HE PPDU can be an HE TB PPDU. Or, the HE PPDU can be an HE SU PPDU. The EHT PPDU can be an EHT TB PPDU. Or, the EHT PPDU can be an EHT MU PPDU. Furthermore, the HE default PE duration can be... Figures 20 to 21 The default PE duration described in [the document]. For example, the HE default PE duration can be a value indicated by the HE operation element. More specifically, the HE default PE duration can be a value indicated by the default PE duration subfield included in the HE operation element.

[0371] Furthermore, the EHT default PE duration can be a value indicated by the EHT operation element. More specifically, the EHT default PE duration can be a value indicated by the EHT default PE duration included in the EHT operation element.

[0372] According to one embodiment, the EHT default PE duration can indicate whether the duration of the PE field is 20µs. In this case, the EHT default PE duration can be 1 bit.

[0373] According to another embodiment, the EHT default PE duration can indicate whether the duration of the PE field is the same as the HE default PE duration. In this case, the EHT default PE duration can be 1 bit. For example, when the EHT default PE duration indicates that the duration of the PE field is equal to the HE default PE duration, the EHT default PE duration can be the default PE duration indicated by the HE operation element. Furthermore, when the EHT default PE duration indicates that the duration of the PE field is different from the HE default PE duration, the EHT default PE duration can be 20 µs.

[0374] According to another embodiment, the EHT default PE duration subfield can indicate which value among 0, 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 µs the duration of the PE field is. In this case, the EHT default PE duration can be 3 bits.

[0375] According to another embodiment, the default PE duration of EHT can be 20µs.

[0376] Reference Figure 24 (a) The HE operation element may include a default PE duration subfield. Additionally, the default PE duration subfield may be included in the HE operation parameter field included within the HE operation element. Figure 24 (a) can be with Figure 20 (b) is the same.

[0377] Reference Figure 24 (b) The EHT operation element may include an EHT default PE duration subfield. Furthermore, the EHT default PE duration subfield may be included within the EHT operation parameter field included in the EHT operation element. For example, the EHT default PE duration may be 1 bit.

[0378] Reference Figure 24 (c) There can be cases where an HE PPDU is sent in response to TRS control and cases where an EHT PPDU is sent. If an HE PPDU is sent in response, the duration of the PE field included in the HE PPDU can be the default PE duration. The default PE duration can be... Figure 24 The value indicated in (a). Furthermore, the default PE duration can be equal to or less than 16 µs. If an EHT PPDU is sent in response to an EHT PPDU, the duration of the PE field included in the EHT PPDU can be the EHT default PE duration. The EHT default PE duration can be set based on either the EHT operation element or the HE operation element. For example, the EHT default PE duration can be set to either 1) a preset value or 2) a value based on the default PE duration included in the EHT operation element. The preset value can be 20 µs. See reference... Figure 24 (c) If an EHT PPDU is used to respond to a TRS control, the PPDU may include a 20µs PE field and be sent.

[0379] According to one embodiment of the present invention, multiple PPDUs can be multiplexed in the frequency domain. These multiple PPDUs can be referred to as aggregated PPDUs (A-PPDUs). When transmitting an A-PPDU, multiple PPDUs can be transmitted simultaneously. For example, an HE PPDU and an EHT PPDU can constitute an A-PPDU. More specifically, an HE TB PPDU and an EHT TB PPDU can constitute an A-PPDU. For example, multiple STAs can be triggered to transmit an A-PPDU including both HE TB PPDUs and EHT TB PPDUs.

[0380] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU constituting the A-PPDU can be the same. For example, the duration of the PE field included in the HE TB PPDU can be the same as the duration of the PE field included in the EHT TB PPDU. In this case, the method for setting the duration can follow... Figures 20 to 24 The method described herein simplifies the operation of the STA receiving the A-PPDU.

[0381] In another example, when a STA sends an A-PPDU that includes both HE PPDU and EHT PPDU, the duration of the included PE field can be the same. Therefore, the implementation of the A-PPDU can be simplified.

[0382] According to one embodiment of the invention, PPDUs other than TB PPDUs can be transmitted in response to a trigger frame or TRS. For example, SU PPDUs or MU PPDUs can be transmitted. For example, a MU PPDU can be an EHT MU PPDU or an HE MU PPDU. A SU PPDU can be an HE SU PPDU or a non-HE PPDU. According to one embodiment, the duration setting method of the PE field can vary depending on whether a TB PPDU is transmitted in response to a trigger frame or TRS or whether PPDUs other than TB PPDUs are transmitted. For example, when transmitting a TB PPDU, the duration setting method can be used... Figures 20 to 24 The duration setting method is described in [the document]. Additionally, when sending PPDUs other than TB PPDUs, the duration can be set via the nominal PE duration.

[0383] Figure 25 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a method for setting a CS subfield according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0384] Reference Figure 25 When responding to a trigger frame, carrier sensing (CS) can be performed. For example, upon receiving a trigger frame, the STA can determine whether to respond to the trigger frame based on the CS result. Here, CS can include physical CS and virtual CS. Physical CS can include Clear Channel Assessment (CCA). For example, the physical CS performed when determining whether to respond to a trigger frame can be Energy Detection (ED). Furthermore, virtual CS can represent considering NAV. The CS performed when determining whether to respond to a trigger frame can be performed during the SIFS time period following the PPDU including the trigger frame (or within the SIFS time).

[0385] According to embodiments of the present invention, when responding to a trigger frame, there may be signaling indicating whether to determine whether to respond to the trigger frame based on the CS result. For example, Figure 16 The CS Required subfield included in the trigger frame shown can be signaling indicating whether to base a response on the CS result when responding to the trigger frame. For example, when the CS Required subfield is set to 1, the response to a trigger frame that includes the CS Required subfield can be based on the CS result.

[0386] For example, when the CS subfield is set to 1, if the CS result when responding to a trigger frame that includes the CS subfield is busy, then the trigger frame may not be responded to. When the CS subfield is set to 1, if the CS result when responding to a trigger frame that includes the CS subfield is idle, then the trigger frame may be responded to. For example, when the CS subfield is set to 0, it can be determined that a response to a trigger frame that includes the CS subfield may not be based on the CS result. A busy CS result can be a case where at least one of the physical CS and virtual CS is busy. An idle CS result can be a case where both the physical CS and virtual CS are idle.

[0387] Furthermore, when responding to the TRS control field, it can be determined whether the response is based on the CS result.

[0388] Furthermore, a trigger frame included in the same PPDU as the TRS control field can have the required CS subfield set to 0 or 1. Alternatively, a trigger frame included in the same PPDU as the frame that includes the TRS control field can have the required CS subfield set to 0 or 1.

[0389] like Figure 25 As shown, trigger frames and frames including TRS control can be sent using the same PPDU. In this case, the required CS subfield included in the trigger frame can be set to 0. Therefore, when responding to a trigger frame, the response can be made without relying on the CS result. Similarly, when responding to TRS control, the response can also be made without relying on the CS result.

[0390] According to one embodiment of the present invention, when a trigger frame is sent, the required CS subfield can be set. For example, the required CS subfield can be set based on the length of the response indicated by the trigger frame. Figure 16 The UL length subfield shown indicates the length of the response indicated by the trigger frame. The length of the TB PPDU in response to the trigger frame can be based on the value of the UL length subfield included in the trigger frame. Furthermore, setting the required CS subfield based on the UL length subfield is limited to cases where the trigger frame is of a preset type. The type of the trigger frame can be determined by... Figure 16 The trigger type subfield is shown. For example, when the trigger frame is a base frame, BSRP frame, MU-BAR frame, BQRP frame, GCR MU-BAR frame, or BFRP trigger frame, the required CS subfield can be set based on the UL length subfield.

[0391] According to one embodiment, when the UL length subfield value is below a preset value (i.e., equal to or less than the preset value), the CS subfield needs to be set to 0 or 1. As a more specific embodiment, if the UL length subfield value is equal to or less than the preset value, the CS subfield needs to be set to 0. Furthermore, when the UL length subfield value is above the preset value (greater than the preset value), the CS subfield needs to be set to 1. When the UL length subfield value is above the preset value (i.e., greater than the preset value), the CS subfield needs to not be set to 0.

[0392] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the preset value may be 418. For example, the preset value may be 418 when the condition based on the UL length subfield is used in conjunction with the following condition 1 or 2.

[0393] (Condition 1) The receive address (RA) of the trigger frame is the MAC address of the STA that is addressed separately, and the trigger frame is aggregated with either 1) a QoS data frame that is set to apply a TB PPDU in response to an acknowledgment (HETP Ack) or 2) a management frame that requests (solicit) an acknowledgment into an A-MPDU.

[0394] (Condition 2) The trigger frame is a MU-BAR or GCR MU-BAR trigger frame.

[0395] Condition 1 can be used with base, BSRP, MU-BAR, BQRP, or GCR MU-BAR.

[0396] The preset value 418 can be a value corresponding to a PPDU length of 584us. Furthermore, 584us can be the maximum TB PPDU duration that can be indicated by TRS control. 584us can be the maximum HE TB PPDU duration that can be indicated by TRS control. 584us can be the sum of the lengths of the L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, HE-SIG-A, HE-STF, HE-LTF, data field, and PE field of the TB PPDU. L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, and RL-SIG can be 8, 8, 4, and 4us respectively. HE-SIG-A can be 8us. For a TB PPDU, HE-STF can be 8us. HE-LTF can be 16us in a TB PPDU in response to TRS control. 4xHE-LTF with a protection interval (GI) of 3.2us can be 16us. The maximum value of the data field that can be indicated by TRS control can be the value indicated by the maximum number of symbols with a GI of 3.2us. If the maximum number of symbols that can be indicated is 32, then the maximum value of the data field that the TRS control can indicate can be 32. 16us, or 512us. Furthermore, the maximum value of the PE field can be 16us. Therefore, the maximum TB PPDU duration that can be indicated by the TRS control can be (8+8+4+4+8+8+16+512+16)us, or 584us.

[0397] Therefore, the required CS subfield of a trigger frame included in the same PPDU as a frame containing TRS control can be set to 0 based on whether the UL length subfield value is less than 418. This is because the trigger frame included in the same PPDU and the frame containing TRS control must indicate the same response TB PPDU duration. Therefore, the trigger frame included in the same PPDU as a frame containing TRS control indicates a length below the maximum length that TRS control can indicate, and the UL length subfield value is equal to or less than the preset value of 418, so the required CS subfield can be set to 0. Figure 25 The embodiment shown can also be configured to set the required CS subfield to 0 according to the method described above.

[0398] If the required CS subfield of the trigger frame included in the same PPDU as the frame that includes TRS control is set to 1, then the STA responding to the TRS control does not respond to the trigger frame based on the CS result, and the STA responding to the trigger frame responds based on the CS result. Therefore, if the trigger frame is not responded to, the resources allocated by the trigger frame may be wasted.

[0399] According to another embodiment, the preset value can be 76. For example, the preset value can be 76 when the condition based on the UL length subfield is used in conjunction with condition 1 or 2 below.

[0400] (Condition 1) The trigger frame is a base, BSRP, MU-BAR, BQRP, or GCR MU-BAR trigger frame.

[0401] (Condition 2) The trigger frame is a BFRP trigger frame.

[0402] The default value 76 can be the value corresponding to 128us. 128us can be the duration of an HE TBPPDU with 4xHE-LTF and PE fields.

[0403] In embodiments of the present invention, the preset value of the length corresponding to Time us can be calculated using the following equation 7 or equation 8.

[0404] [Equation 7]

[0405]

[0406] [Equation 8]

[0407]

[0408] In embodiments of the present invention, Ceil(x) can be the smallest integer greater than or equal to x. SignalExtension can be the length of the signal extension. In the 5GHz or 6GHz band, the signal extension length can be 0µs. In the 2.4GHz band, the signal extension length can be 6µs.

[0409] Figure 26 This illustration shows an example of setting a CS subfield and operating a UL MU according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 26 In the middle, omission and Figures 1 to 25 The content described in the text is the same.

[0410] According to the foregoing embodiments, there may be cases where the trigger frame indicates a response using an HE TB PPDU and cases where the trigger frame indicates a response using an EHT TB PPDU. Furthermore, TRS control may include cases indicating a response using an HE TB PPDU and cases indicating a response using an EHT TB PPDU.

[0411] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the maximum TB PPDU duration that can be indicated by the TRS control field indicating the EHT TB PPDU response may be different from the maximum TB PPDU duration that can be indicated by the TRS control field indicating the HE TB PPDU response. For example, the maximum TB PPDU duration that can be indicated by the TRS control indicating the EHT TB PPDU response may be longer than the maximum TB PPDU duration that can be indicated by the TRS control indicating the HE TB PPDU response. This is because, as mentioned above, the EHT PPDU may include a PE field of 20µs. Alternatively, the method of indicating the length of the TRS control indicating the EHT TB PPDU response may be different from the method of indicating the length of the TRS control indicating the HE TB PPDU response.

[0412] Therefore, when a CS subfield is required based on the UL length subfield setting, in the case of indicating an EHT TB PPDU, if using... Figure 25 Using the same preset value as shown may also waste resources.

[0413] For example, when responding to a TRS control indicating an EHT TB PPDU response, the UE may respond without relying on the CS result. The trigger frame may be included in the same PPDU as the frame that includes the TRS control for soliciting the EHT TB PPDU response. In this case, the trigger frame and the TRS control indicating the EHT TB PPDU response may indicate the same response length.

[0414] At this time, as referenced Figure 25 The trigger frame can set the required CS subfield based on a value that depends on the maximum HE TBPPDU length that the TRS control can indicate. In this case, the trigger frame can set the required CS subfield based on a value smaller than the maximum HE TBPPDU length that the TRS control can indicate. Therefore, since the UL length subfield value included in the trigger frame is greater than the preset value used when setting the required CS subfield, the required CS subfield can be set to 1.

[0415] like Figure 26 As shown, the trigger frame can set the required CS subfield to 1. Furthermore, a TRS control can be included in the same PPDU as the trigger frame. In this case, both the TRS control and the trigger frame can indicate an EHT TB PPDU. In this scenario, the STA responding to the TRS control may respond with an EHT TB PPDU without relying on the CS result, while the STA responding to the trigger frame may determine whether to respond with an EHT TB PPDU based on the CS result. Therefore, the STA responding to the trigger frame may be unable to respond to the trigger frame due to the CS result. In this case, the resources allocated by the trigger frame may be wasted. Because a portion of the resources is used to respond to the TRS control, other STAs may have difficulty using the resources.

[0416] Figure 27 This is another example illustrating the setting of the CS subfield and the operation of the UL MU according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0417] Figure 27 The embodiments may be used to solve Figures 25 to 26 The method described in the text. Additionally, in Figure 27 In the embodiments described above, the above description may be omitted.

[0418] According to one embodiment of the present invention, based on which TB PPDU is indicated by the trigger frame, based on Figures 25 to 26 The preset value used to set the required CS subfield based on the UL length subfield described in the document may be different. Alternatively, the preset value used to set the required CS subfield based on the UL length subfield may vary depending on which TB PPDU is indicated by the TRS control included in the same PPDU as the trigger frame. According to one embodiment, the preset value may be threshold 1 when the trigger frame or TRS control requests (solicit) the HE TB PPDU, and the preset value may be threshold 2 when the trigger frame or TRS control requests the EHT TB PPDU.

[0419] Alternatively, according to one embodiment of the invention, when the HE TB PPDU is indicated, the preset value can be a threshold value of 1. Furthermore, it can be used together... Figures 22 to 24 The method described herein is used to determine the preset value. For example, if an EHT TB PPDU is requested and the PE duration is equal to or less than 16us, the preset value could be threshold 1. If an EHT TB PPDU is requested and the PE duration is 20us, the preset value could be threshold 2.

[0420] According to one embodiment, threshold 1 can be a reference. Figure 25 The preset value described. That is, threshold 1 can be 418 or 76, and according to... Figure 25 The conditions described herein can have a default value of 418 or 76.

[0421] According to one embodiment, threshold 2 can be a value greater than threshold 1. This may be because the maximum duration of the TB PPDU that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the EHT TB PPDU is greater than the maximum duration of the TB PPDU that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the HE TB PPDU. For example, threshold 2 can be equal to the length value calculated by substituting the Time value calculated according to Equation 9 into Equation 7 or Equation 8.

[0422] [Equation 9]

[0423]

[0424] In Equation 9, the length of L-STF can be 8µs. The length of L-LTF can be 8µs. The length of L-SIG can be 4µs. The length of RL-SIG can be 4µs. The length of U-SIG can be 8µs. The length of EHT-STF can be 8µs.

[0425] The length of EHT-LTF can be 4x the length of EHT-LTF using a 3.2µs GI. Therefore, the length of EHT-LTF can be 16µs.

[0426] The data field length can be based on the maximum length that the TRS control of the requested EHT TB PPDU can indicate. For example, the data field length can be based on the maximum number of OFDM symbols that the TRS control of the requested EHT TB PPDU can indicate. The data field length can be based on a value obtained by multiplying the maximum number of OFDM symbols that the TRS control of the requested EHT TB PPDU can indicate by the OFDM symbol length. The data field length can be based on a value obtained by multiplying the maximum number of OFDM symbols that the TRS control of the requested EHT TB PPDU can indicate by the maximum OFDM symbol length. The maximum number of OFDM symbols can be 32. The maximum OFDM symbol length can be the symbol length using a GI of 3.2 µs. The maximum OFDM symbol length can be 16 µs. Therefore, the data field length can be 32. 16us (512us).

[0427] According to one embodiment, the maximum length that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the EHT TB PPDU can be equal to the maximum length that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the HE TB PPDU. The maximum length that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the EHT TB PPDU can also be equal to the maximum number of OFDM symbols that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the HE TB PPDU. Therefore, the EHT STA can perform the same operation based on the HE STA and TRS control, thereby easily implementing the EHT STA.

[0428] According to another embodiment, the maximum length that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the EHT TB PPDU may be different from the maximum length that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the HE TB PPDU. The maximum length that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the EHT TB PPDU may also be different from the maximum number of OFDM symbols that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the HE TB PPDU. This may be because the signaling space that can be included in the TRS control is limited. For example, in the case of TRS control requesting the EHT TB PPDU, signaling that does not include TRS control requesting the HE TB PPDU may be included. Therefore, the TRS control requesting the EHT TB PPDU can be defined as having a different maximum length that it can indicate, or a resolution of the length that it can indicate, compared to the TRS control requesting the HETB PPDU.

[0429] According to one embodiment, the PE field length can be the maximum length of the PE field. The PE field length can be 20µs. According to another embodiment, the PE field length can be based on... Figures 22 to 24 The length of the PE field in the method described in [the document]. For example, when based on [the method described in the document]... Figures 22 to 24When using a PE field less than or equal to 16µs in the method described, the PE field length can be 16µs. Furthermore, when based on... Figures 22 to 24 When using a 20µs PE field in the method described, the PE field length can be 20µs.

[0430] Therefore, according to the above embodiments, the Time value can be represented by the following equation 10.

[0431] [Equation 10]

[0432]

[0433] Furthermore, in Equation 10, when the Time value is substituted into Equation 8, the threshold 2 can be 421.

[0434] and Figure 25 The embodiments shown are described below together. When the UL length subfield is greater than threshold 2, the trigger frame requesting the EHT TBPPDU can set the required CS subfield to 1. Furthermore, when the UL length subfield is equal to or less than threshold 2, the trigger frame requesting the EHT TBPPDU can set the required CS subfield to 0 or 1. Threshold 2 can be a value greater than 418. Threshold 2 can be 421. Furthermore, threshold 2 can be... Figure 25 Use them together with the conditions described in [the document]. For example, when using a condition based on the UL length subfield with the following condition 1 or 2, threshold 2 (e.g., a value of 421) can be used.

[0435] (Condition 1) The receive address (RA) of the trigger frame is the MAC address of the STA that is addressed separately, and the trigger frame is aggregated with either 1) a QoS data frame that is set to apply TB PPDU in response to an acknowledgment (HETP Ack) or 2) a management frame that requests (solicit) an acknowledgment into an A-MPDU.

[0436] (Condition 2) The trigger frame is a MU-BAR or GCR MU-BAR trigger frame.

[0437] Condition 1 can be used with base, BSRP, MU-BAR, BQRP, or GCR MU-BAR.

[0438] That is, when instructing an EHT TB PPDU under the condition that the default value of 418 is used when requesting an HE TB PPDU, the default value of 421 can be used instead of 418.

[0439] According to another embodiment, threshold 2 can be 79. The value 79 of threshold 2 can be a value corresponding to 132us. The value 79 of threshold 2 can be a length value obtained by substituting 132us into the Time value in Equation 7 or Equation 8. Furthermore, 132us can be the duration of an EHT TB PPDU with 4xEHT-LTF and PE fields.

[0440] and Figure 25 The embodiments shown are described below together. When the UL length subfield is greater than threshold 2, the trigger frame requesting the EHT TBPPDU can set the required CS subfield to 1. Furthermore, when the UL length subfield is equal to or less than threshold 2, the trigger frame requesting the EHT TBPPDU can set the required CS subfield to 0 or 1. Threshold 2 can be a value greater than 76. Threshold 2 can be 79. Furthermore, threshold 2 can be... Figure 25 The conditions described in the document are used together. For example, when a condition based on the UL length subfield is used with condition 1 or condition 2, threshold 2 (e.g., value 79) can be used.

[0441] (Condition 1) The trigger frame is a base, BSRP, MU-BAR, BQRP, or GCR MU-BAR trigger frame.

[0442] (Condition 2) The trigger frame is a BFRP trigger frame.

[0443] That is, when requesting an EHT TB PPDU under the condition that the default value 76 is used when requesting an HE TB PPDU, the default value 79 can be used instead of 76.

[0444] like Figure 27 As shown, the trigger frame can be included in the same PPDU as the frame that includes TRS control and sent.

[0445] The trigger frame and TRS control included in the sequence represented as Sequence 1 can request an HE TB PPDU. Therefore, in this case, the PE field in the requested HE TB PPDU can be equal to or less than 16µs. Furthermore, the trigger frame included in Sequence 1 can set the required CS subfield based on a threshold of 1. For example, the trigger frame included in Sequence 1 can set the required CS subfield based on whether the value of the UL length subfield is less than or equal to threshold 1. Threshold 1 can be 418 or 76. If the UL length subfield value of the trigger frame included in Sequence 1 is less than or equal to threshold 1, the required CS subfield can be set to 0 or 1. Therefore, the required CS subfield can be set to 0. If the UL length subfield value of the trigger frame included in Sequence 1 is greater than threshold 1, the required CS subfield can be set to 1. Therefore, the required CS subfield cannot be set to 0. Therefore, in the embodiment shown in the figure, both the STA responding to the TRS control and the STA responding to the trigger frame can send TB PPDU responses without relying on the CS result, but rather on a scheduled basis.

[0446] The trigger frame and TRS control included in the sequence represented as Sequence 2 can request an EHT TB PPDU. Therefore, in this case, the PE field included in the requested EHT TB PPDU can be equal to or less than 20µs. Furthermore, the trigger frame included in Sequence 2 can set the required CS subfield based on threshold 2. In a more specific embodiment, when the trigger frame included in Sequence 2 requests a TB PPDU response including a 20µs PE field, the required CS subfield can be set based on threshold 2. If the trigger frame included in Sequence 2 requests a TB PPDU response including a PE field less than or equal to 16µs, the required CS subfield can be set based on threshold 1. An embodiment using threshold 2 will be described below. For example, the trigger frame included in Sequence 2 can set the required CS subfield based on whether the UL length subfield value is less than or equal to threshold 2. Threshold 2 can be 421 or 79. If the UL length subfield value of the trigger frame included in Sequence 2 is less than or equal to threshold 2, the required CS subfield can be set to 0 or 1. Therefore, the required CS subfield can be set to 0. Therefore, when a frame including TRS control is included in the same PPDU as the trigger frame, the UL length subfield of the trigger frame is set to a value less than or equal to the threshold 2, allowing the required CS subfield included in the trigger frame to be set to 0. Thus, as... Figure 26As shown, the STA responding to TRS control does not send a TB PPDU based on the CS result, and the STA responding to the trigger frame does not send a TB PPDU response based on the CS result, thus solving the problem of resource waste. If the UL length subfield value of the trigger frame included in sequence 2 is greater than the threshold 2, then the CS subfield needs to be set to 1. Therefore, the CS subfield needs to be set to 0. Therefore, in the embodiment shown in the figure, both the STA responding to TRS control and the STA responding to the trigger frame can send TB PPDU responses without based on the CS result, but rather under scheduled conditions.

[0447] According to another embodiment, threshold 2 can be a value less than threshold 1. In this case, it prevents the CS subfield from being unnecessarily set to 1 for short PPDUs or short frames. For example, if the maximum response length or maximum number of OFDM symbols that can be indicated by the TRS control indicating the EHT TB PPDU is less than the maximum response length or maximum number of OFDM symbols that can be indicated by the TRS control indicating the HE TB PPDU, then threshold 2 can be less than threshold 1. For example, if the maximum number of OFDM symbols that can be indicated by the TRS control requesting the EHT TB PPDU is 16, then threshold 2 can be equal to the value obtained by substituting the following Time values ​​into Equation 7 or Equation 8.

[0448] Time = 8 + 8 + 4 + 4 + 8 + 8 + 16 + 16 16 + 16 = 328

[0449] Time = 8 + 8 + 4 + 4 + 8 + 8 + 16 + 16 16 + 20 = 332

[0450] Therefore, the threshold 2 can be 226 or 229.

[0451] Figure 28 The illustration shows an example of a method for setting the PE field when using an aggregate (A)-PPDU according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0452] For reference Figure 24 The PE field of the PPDU included in the A-PPDU can have the same duration. Therefore, the duration of the PE field included in the EHT PPDU included in the A-PPDU can be equal to or less than 16µs. More specifically, the duration of the PE field included in the EHT TB PPDU included in the A-PPDU can be equal to or less than 16µs. More specifically, the duration of the PE field included in the EHT TB PPDU included in the A-PPDU can be set to the value of the default PE duration subfield included in the HE operation element.

[0453] Therefore, when the transmit instruction is used as a TRS control for an EHT TB PPDU that constitutes an A-PPDU, the signaling indicating the PE duration can be set to less than or equal to 16 µs. Alternatively, when the transmit instruction is used as a TRS control for an EHT TB PPDU that constitutes an A-PPDU, the signaling indicating the PE duration can be set to use the default PE duration subfield value included in the HE operation element as the duration of the PE field.

[0454] Alternatively, when responding to a request to send (or constitute) an EHT TB PPDU as an A-PPDU, the PE duration of the sent PE field can be set to less than or equal to 16µs. This allows the responding STA to determine whether the TBPPDU was sent as an A-PPDU (or whether it constitutes an A-PPDU).

[0455] Alternatively, when the TRS control instructing the EHT TB PPDU is indicated as an A-PPDU, it may not be included in the PPDU. This could be because there is no way for the STA to know whether it has responded to the A-PPDU. Furthermore, this could be because the signaling indicating the PE duration is not included in the TRS control.

[0456] exist Figure 28 In the embodiments, references can be omitted. Figures 1 to 27 The content being described is the same.

[0457] According to an embodiment of the present invention, based on whether the trigger frame indicating the EHT TB PPDU requests inclusion of the EHT TB PPDU in the A-PPDU or exclusion of the EHT TB PPDU in the A-PPDU, the method is based on... Figures 25 to 27 The default values ​​used to set the CS subfield based on the UL length subfield can be different. That is, depending on whether the PPDU that includes the trigger frame indicating the EHT TB PPDU includes a frame indicating the HE TB PPDU, the default values ​​used to set the CS subfield based on the UL length subfield can be different.

[0458] According to an embodiment of the present invention, if the trigger frame indicating the EHT TB PPDU is not included in the A-PPDU, then it can be used Figure 27 The method described in [the document] . That is, if the trigger frame indicating the EHT TB PPDU is not included in the A-PPDU, then [the method] can be used. Figure 27 The threshold 2 described in [the document]. More specifically, if the trigger frame indicating the EHT TB PPDU is not included in the A-PPDU, it can be based on [the threshold 2]. Figures 25 to 27The default values ​​421 or 79 described in the text are used to set the required CS subfield.

[0459] Furthermore, when the trigger frame instructing the EHT TB PPDU is included in the A-PPDU, it can be used Figures 25 to 26 The method described in [the document]. Alternatively, if the trigger frame indicating the EHT TB PPDU is included in the A-PPDU, then [the method can be used]. Figure 27 The threshold 1 described in [the document]. More specifically, if the trigger frame indicating the EHT TB PPDU is included in the A-PPDU, it can be based on [the threshold 1]. Figures 25 to 27 The required CS subfield is set using the preset values ​​418 or 76 described herein. If the trigger frame indicating the EHT TB PPDU is included in the A-PPDU, the required CS subfield can be set based on the same preset values ​​as in the case of the trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU.

[0460] Reference Figure 28 An A-PPDU can be indicated by a single frame or multiple frames included in a single PPDU. For example, both an HE TB PPDU and an EHT TB PPDU can be indicated simultaneously. For instance, referring to sequence number 1, a TRS control indicating an HE TB PPDU and a TRS control indicating an EHT TB PPDU can be included in the PPDU. In this case, the PE fields of the PPDU responding to the TRS control of the HE TB PPDU and the PPDU responding to the TRS control of the EHT TB PPDU can have the same duration. The same duration can be equal to or less than 16 µs. Alternatively, the same duration can be a value indicated by the default PE duration subfield included in the HE operation element.

[0461] Referring to sequence 2, the trigger frame can request the EHT TB PPDU that constitutes the A-PPDU. In this case, when setting the required CS subfield included in the trigger frame, it can be based on... Figure 27The threshold 1 described herein. Threshold 1 can be a preset value used when setting the required CS subfield included in the trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU based on the UL length subfield value. Threshold 1 can be 418 or 76. The trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU can indicate a response with the same length as the TRS control indicating the HE TB PPDU or the trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU. Furthermore, the trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU can set the required CS subfield based on the same preset value as the trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU. Therefore, the trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU and the trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU can be set to have the same required CS subfield. Furthermore, when the required CS subfield is set based on threshold 1 in the case where the trigger frame indicating the HE TB PPDU is sent together with the TRS control indicating the HE TB PPDU, the required CS subfield can be set to 0 or 1. That is, the required CS subfield can be set to 0. Therefore, according to embodiments of the present invention, it is possible to prevent situations where, in a requested A-PPDU, the HE TB PPDU is sent without being based on the CS result and the EHT TB PPDU determines whether to respond based on the CS result.

[0462] Figure 29 The illustration shows an example of a method for indicating the format of a TB PPDU according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0463] As described in the above embodiments, depending on the frame that triggers the PPDU, a method may be needed to indicate the PPDU format of the response. For example, the PPDU format may represent the TB PPDU format. Figure 29 The embodiments described herein may be specific embodiments of the TB PPDU format indication method described above. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the foregoing description may be omitted.

[0464] According to embodiments of the present invention, the format of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame can be determined based on a user information field included in the trigger frame. Alternatively, the format of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame can be indicated by a user information field included in the trigger frame. In this invention, the user information field used to determine and indicate the PPDU format can be referred to as a Special User Info field.

[0465] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a special user information field may be a user information field in which the AID12 subfield included in the special user information field is set to a preset value. For example, the preset value may be 2007. The preset value may be a value that AP will not be assigned as an associated ID (AID). In addition, the format of the special user information field may be different from the format of other user information fields. That is, the subfields included in the special user information field may be different from the subfields included in other user information fields. Furthermore, the special user information field and other user information fields may commonly include the AID12 subfield in the same location. For example, the first 12 bits of the special user information field and the user information field other than the special user information field may be the AID12 subfield. For example, B0 to B11 of the special user information field and the user information field other than the special user information field may be the AID12 subfield.

[0466] In addition, the trigger frame may include a subfield indicating whether a special user information field is included. This subfield may be referred to as the Special User Info field Present subfield. For example, the Special User Info field Present subfield may exist within a common information field. For instance, bit B55 of the common information field may be a Special User Info field Present subfield. If the Special User Info field Present subfield is set to 1, the trigger frame may not include the special user information field. Furthermore, if the Special User Info field Present subfield is set to 0, the trigger frame may include the special user information field. This is because in the 802.11ax standard, bit B55 of the common information field is set to the default value 1.

[0467] Since the STA receiving the trigger frame can determine whether the special user information field is included based on the presence of the special user information field subfield, it is easier to achieve this determination compared to the case where the special user information field does not exist. Furthermore, when a STA not associated with the AP sending the trigger frame receives the trigger frame, the AP can determine whether the information field where the AID12 subfield is set to indicate the special user information field (whether it actually represents the 12 LSBs of the AID) is a special user information field based on the presence of the special user information field subfield. For example, when a STA not associated with the AP sending the trigger frame receives the trigger frame in the case of an RA-RU indicating an unassociated STA, operation can be performed based on the trigger frame. Additionally, space reuse operations can be performed based on trigger frames or TB PPDUs from BSSs not associated with the STA.

[0468] Furthermore, when the trigger frame includes a special user information field, the special user information field can be placed at the very beginning of the user information field. Alternatively, the special user information field can immediately follow the common information field. This allows the STA receiving the trigger frame to easily parse the special user information field.

[0469] According to embodiments of the present invention, the format of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame can be determined based on whether the trigger frame includes a special user information field. For example, when the trigger frame includes a special user information field, the format of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame can be an EHT TB PPDU. Furthermore, when the trigger frame does not include a special user information field, the format of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame can be an HE TB PPDU. Moreover, as described above, a special user information field presence subfield can exist as a signaling indication of whether the trigger frame includes a special user information field. Therefore, the format of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame can be determined based on the special user information field presence subfield. For example, when the special user information field presence subfield is set to 0, the format of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame can be an EHT TB PPDU. Furthermore, when the special user information field presence subfield is set to 1, the format of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame can be an HE TB PPDU.

[0470] Furthermore, when the trigger frame includes a special user information field, the user information field included in the trigger frame can be the EHT variant user information field. Conversely, when the trigger frame does not include a special user information field, the trigger frame may not include the EHT variant user information field. When the trigger frame does not include a special user information field, the trigger frame may only include the HE variant user information field.

[0471] The method of indicating the RU can differ when the user information field is an EHT variant and when it is an HE variant. For example, the user information field can be interpreted differently depending on whether the RU allocation subfield included in the user information field is an EHT variant or an HE variant. For instance, the RU allocation subfield included in the EHT variant user information field can be encoded to indicate the RU supported by the EHT standard. Furthermore, the RU allocation subfield included in the HE variant user information field can be encoded to indicate the RU supported by the HE standard.

[0472] Furthermore, when interpreting the indicated RU based on the EHT variant user information field, it can be based on two or more subfields. These two or more subfields may include an RU allocation subfield and a PS160 subfield. For example... Figure 16As shown, the RU allocation subfield can immediately follow the AID12 subfield. Furthermore, the RU allocation subfield can be 8 bits. The PS160 subfield can indicate in which subchannel the RU indicated by the RU allocation subfield exists. Alternatively, the PS160 subfield can indicate in which subchannel the RU indicated by the user information field exists. In this case, the unit for indicating which subchannel is present can be a 160MHz subchannel. The PS160 subfield can indicate whether the indicated RU exists in the primary 160MHz channel or the secondary 160MHz channel. The PS160 subfield can precede the trigger-related user information field. The PS160 subfield can be the B39 bit of the user information field. The PS160 subfield can be 1 bit.

[0473] Furthermore, when interpreting the indicated RU based on the HE variant user information field, the interpretation can be based on a subfield. This subfield can be the RU allocation subfield. That is, the location of the RU indicated by the HE variant user information field can be determined solely based on the RU allocation subfield included in the HE variant user information field.

[0474] Reference Figure 29 The trigger frame may include a special user information field. Whether a user information field is a special user information field can be determined based on the AID12 subfield included within it. For example, if the AID12 subfield included in the user information field has a preset value, then the user information field can be a special user information field. (See reference...) Figure 29 The default value can be 2007. Additionally, refer to... Figure 29 The special user information field can immediately follow the public information field and be located at the beginning of the user information field. Additionally, a subfield indicating whether the trigger frame includes a special user information field can exist. (See reference...) Figure 29 Special user information fields with subfields can be included in public information fields. If the existence of special user information fields with subfields is set to 0, the triggering frame can include the special user information fields. Figure 29 As shown, when the trigger frame includes a special user information field, the PPDU format in response can be EHTTB PPDU.

[0475] Furthermore, according to another embodiment, the PPDU format responding to the trigger frame can be determined based on whether the trigger frame includes a special user information field and a subfield indicating the TB PPDU format. In this invention, the subfield indicating the TB PPDU format can be referred to as the HE / EHT P160 subfield. According to a more specific embodiment, the HE / EHT P160 subfield can indicate the TB PPDU format of a preset channel. For example, the HE / EHT P160 subfield can indicate the TB PPDU format of the primary 160MHz channel (P160 channel). For example, when the HE / EHT P160 subfield value is 1, it can indicate a response using an HE TB PPDU. Furthermore, when the HE / EHT P160 subfield value is 0, it can indicate a response using an EHT TB PPDU. The HE / EHT P160 subfield can be 1 bit.

[0476] Reference Figure 29 The HE / EHT P160 subfield can be included in the public information field. More specifically, the HE / EHTP160 subfield can be included in bit position B55 of the public information field.

[0477] Therefore, when indicating and determining the TB PPDU format based on the special user information field and the HE / EHT P160 subfield, the following operations can be performed: When the HE / EHT P160 subfield indicates an EHT TB PPDU, the EHT TB PPDU can be used to respond to the trigger frame. That is, when the HE / EHT P160 subfield indicates an EHT TB PPDU, the EHT TB PPDU can be used to respond to the trigger frame regardless of the assigned RU location. Furthermore, when the HE / EHT P160 subfield indicates an EHT TB PPDU, the special user information field can always be included. That is, the presence of a subfield within the special user information field can also indicate the inclusion of the special user information field.

[0478] If the HE / EHT P160 subfield indicates an HE TB PPDU, the TB PPDU format can be indicated and determined based on the assigned RU location when responding to the trigger frame. When the HE / EHT P160 subfield indicates an HE TB PPDU, an HE TB PPDU can be used to respond if it includes an RU assigned to the preset channel (e.g., P160 channel) indicated by the HE / EHT P160 subfield. Furthermore, when the HE / EHT P160 subfield indicates an HE TB PPDU, an EHT TB PPDU can be used to respond if it does not include an RU assigned to the preset channel (e.g., P160 channel) indicated by the HE / EHT P160 subfield (e.g., including an RU assigned to the auxiliary 160MHz channel (channel 160)). Additionally, it can be determined whether an RU assigned to a predetermined channel is included based on the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield. More specifically, if the preset channel is the P160 channel, it can be determined whether an RU assigned to the preset channel is included based on the PS160 subfield.

[0479] Furthermore, indicating and determining the TB PPDU format based on the HE / EHT P160 subfield and the assigned RU position can be limited to the case where the trigger frame includes a special user information field. When the trigger frame includes a special user information field, the trigger frame may include both the HE / EHT P160 subfield and the PS160 subfield. If the trigger frame does not include a special user information field, the HE TB PPDU can always be used to respond to the trigger frame. Moreover, as mentioned above, whether a special user information field is included can be determined based on the presence of a special user information field subfield. Therefore, the statements "the case where the trigger frame includes a special user information field, and the case where it does not include a special user information field" can respectively represent "the case where the presence of a special user information field subfield is set to include the special user information field, and the case where it does not include the special user information field."

[0480] In this invention, when responding to a trigger frame, "indicating and determining the use of EHT TB PPDU" can be replaced by "indicating and determining the use of EHT TB PPDU or NEXT TB PPDU" as described in this invention. Furthermore, the use of EHT TB PPDU or NEXT TB PPDU can be determined based on the format identifier subfield. That is, the TBPPDU format indicated by the format identifier subfield can be used. For example, when the format identifier subfield indicates EHT, EHT TB PPDU can be used.

[0481] Special user information fields may include AID12 subfields and information required to respond to the trigger frame. The information required to respond to the trigger frame may include information included in the preamble of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame. For example, the information required to respond to the trigger frame may include information included in the U-SIG field of the PPDU responding to the trigger frame. Figure 29 An example of information included in the U-SIG field is provided. (See reference...) Figure 29 Special user information fields may include AID12, PHY version ID, UL bandwidth extension, space reuse 1, space reuse 2, U-SIG discard and verification, and retention and trigger-related user information fields. Furthermore, the mentioned fields may exist in the order mentioned. Additionally, the aforementioned fields may have 12, 3, 2, 4, 4, 12, 3, and variable bit lengths, respectively. The PHY version ID field may be the aforementioned format identifier subfield, PHY version identifier subfield, or PHY version field. The STA responding to the trigger frame may set the U-SIG field included in the response PPDU based on the special user information fields included in the trigger frame. For example, the subfield values ​​included in the special user information fields may be copied to the subfields included in the response U-SIG field. The subfields copied to the subfields included in the U-SIG field may be the PHY version ID, space reuse 1, space reuse 2, and U-SIG discard and verification subfields.

[0482] Alternatively, the subfields included in the U-SIG field of the response PPDU can be set based on the subfield values ​​included in the special user information field. The subfields of the U-SIG field set based on the subfields included in the special user information field could be UL bandwidth extension subfields. For example, they could be based on both the UL bandwidth extension subfield included in the special user information field and the UL bandwidth subfield included in the public information field (see reference). Figure 16 This is used to set the bandwidth (BW) subfield included in the U-SIG field of the response PPDU.

[0483] Furthermore, the presence and length of the trigger-related user information field included in the special user information field can be based on the type of the trigger frame. That is, the presence and length of the trigger-related user information field included in the special user information field can be based on which variant of the trigger frame it is. The type of the trigger frame can be determined by the trigger type subfield included in the public information field (see Trigger Type subfield). Figure 16 Instructions and determinations.

[0484] Figure 30 This is a flowchart illustrating the operation of a UE according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0485] First, a terminal that is not an AP STA can receive a frame that triggers the transmission of a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) from the AP (or AP STA) (S30010).

[0486] At this time, the frame that triggers the PPDU can be a trigger frame or a frame that includes a TRS.

[0487] Then, a non-AP STA can generate a PPDU to be sent in response to the frame. In this case, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU can be set.

[0488] The PE field is used to provide additional processing time for the PPDU and does not require additional decoding. In this case, the PE field is located at the end of the PPDU and can be sent at the average power of the data field.

[0489] The duration of the PE field can be referenced. Figures 19 to 29 The described method is used to set the duration of the PE field. For example, the duration of the PE field can be set according to the format of the PPDU indicated by the frame, and the maximum value of the duration of the PE field can be determined differently depending on the format of the PPDU.

[0490] Specifically, the duration of the PE field of the TB PPDU can be set to the value indicated by the PE duration field of the TRS control field, or it can be set to the value indicated by the default PE duration subfield included in the operation element. Alternatively, when the TBPPDU is triggered only by a trigger frame, the duration of the PE field of the TB PPDU can be set according to specific conditions (MCS method, RU size, number of space streams used, and / or the format of the PPDU being indicated (e.g., whether it is an EHT TB PPDU or an HE TB PPDU)).

[0491] For example, the 20µs duration of the PE field is allowed only when the TB PPDU meets the above conditions (e.g., when it is indicated as an EHT TB PPDU, uses 8 or more spatial streams, or transmits an EHT PPDU (or EHT MU PPDU, etc.) with a bandwidth of 320MHz when at least one RU is larger than 2x996, or when the PPDU is modulated to 4096-QAM).

[0492] If the transmission of the PPDU is indicated by the TRS, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU can be set to the value indicated by the default PE duration subfield included in the operation element (e.g., the HE operation element or the EHT operation element, etc.), or it can be set to the value indicated by the PE duration subfield included in the TRS control field.

[0493] If the TRS and trigger frame are included in a PPDU and both indicate the transmission of the PPDU, then the duration of the PE field when the PPDU is indicated by the trigger frame is the same as the maximum value of the duration of the PE field when the PPDU is indicated by the TRS, it can be set to the value indicated by the default PE duration subfield or the value indicated by the PE duration subfield included in the TRS.

[0494] However, if the TRS and trigger frame are included in a single PPDU and both indicate the transmission of the PPDU, the duration of the PE field when the PPDU is indicated by the trigger frame may differ from the maximum value of the default PE duration when the PE field is indicated by the TRS. For example, if the TB PPDU indicated by the trigger frame and / or TRS meets certain conditions, the maximum value of the PE field duration may be a first maximum value (e.g., when 20µs is allowed), and the maximum value of the PE field duration indicated by the default PE subfield included in the operation element may be a second maximum value (e.g., 16µs). In this case, the duration of the PE field can be set to the value indicated by the default PE subfield, or the duration of the PE field can be set to the value indicated by the PE subfield included in the TRS.

[0495] In this case, the PE duration subfield can indicate the maximum allowed value of 20us for the duration of the PE field, or it can indicate that the duration of the PE field is set using the value of the default PE duration subfield included in the operation element.

[0496] In other words, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the duration of the PE field can be determined based on the PPDU format of the response TRS. According to one embodiment, when responding to a TRS with an HE PPDU, the duration of the PE field can be the HE default PE duration. Furthermore, when responding to a TRS with an EHT PPDU, the duration of the PE field can be a value indicated by the EHT default PE duration. For example, the HE PPDU can be an HE TB PPDU. Or, the HE PPDU can be an HE SU PPDU. Furthermore, the EHT PPDU can be an EHT TB PPDU. Or, the EHT PPDU can be an EHT MU PPDU. Additionally, the HE default PE duration can be... Figures 20 to 21 The default PE duration described in [the document]. For example, the HE default PE duration can be a value indicated by the HE operation element. More specifically, the HE default PE duration can be a value indicated by the default PE duration subfield included in the HE operation element.

[0497] Furthermore, the EHT default PE duration can be a value indicated by the EHT operation element. More specifically, the EHT default PE duration can be a value indicated by the EHT default PE duration included in the EHT operation element.

[0498] According to one embodiment, the EHT default PE duration can indicate whether the duration of the PE field is 20µs. In this case, the EHT default PE duration can be 1 bit.

[0499] According to another embodiment, the EHT default PE duration can indicate whether the duration of the PE field is the same as the HE default PE duration. In this case, the EHT default PE duration can be 1 bit. For example, when the EHT default PE duration indicates that the duration of the PE field is equal to the HE default PE duration, the EHT default PE duration can be the default PE duration indicated by the HE operation element. Furthermore, when the EHT default PE duration indicates that the duration of the PE field is different from the HE default PE duration, the EHT default PE duration can be 20 µs.

[0500] According to another embodiment, the EHT default PE duration subfield can indicate which value among 0, 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 µs the duration of the PE field is. In this case, the EHT default PE duration can be 3 bits. According to another embodiment, the EHT default PE duration can be 20 µs.

[0501] Then, a non-AP STA can respond to the frame by sending a PPDU (S30020) that includes a Packet Extension (PE) field to provide the processing time for the PPDU.

[0502] When the PPDU indicated by the frame is in the format of a High Efficiency (HE) PPDU, the maximum value of the duration of the PE field can be the first value, and when the PPDU indicated by the frame is in the format of an Extremely High Throughput (EHT) PPDU, the maximum value of the duration of the PE field can be the second value.

[0503] The first value is "16us", and the second value is "20us".

[0504] Non-AP STAs can receive operation elements from APs. Operation elements include a default PE duration subfield indicating the duration of the PE field, and when the value of the control identifier (ID) subfield included in the frame indicates a trigger response schedule (TRS) for triggering the transmission of a PPDU, the maximum duration of the PE field is determined by the default PE duration subfield if the PPDU format is indicated as an EHT PPDU by the aforementioned frame and the maximum duration indicated by the default PE duration subfield differs from the maximum duration when the PPDU format is indicated as an EHT PPDU by the frame.

[0505] When the value of the control ID subfield included in the frame indicates a trigger response schedule (TRS) for triggering the transmission of a PPDU to another STA, the values ​​of multiple subfields included in the frame for calculating the duration of the PE field are respectively set such that the duration of the PE field calculated by the multiple subfields is equal to the duration of the PE field for the PPDU to the other STA.

[0506] The operation element includes an EHT default PE duration subfield, which indicates whether the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the EHT PPDU is equal to the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the HE PPDU.

[0507] If the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the EHT PPDU indicated by the EHT Default PE Duration subfield is different from the maximum value of the duration of the PE field of the HE PPDU, then the duration of the PE field indicated by the EHT Default PE Duration subfield is "20us".

[0508] If the PPDU is modulated as 4096-QAM, or the number of spatial streams is 8 or more, or the channel bandwidth is 320MHz and the size of the resource units (RUs) allocated for the transmission of the PPDU is 2x996 or more, then the maximum duration of the PE field is “20us”.

[0509] The foregoing description of the invention is for illustrative purposes, and those skilled in the art will understand that it can be readily modified into other specific embodiments without altering the technical concept or essential features of the invention. Therefore, the above embodiments should be understood as exemplary in all respects and not restrictive. For example, constituent elements described as individual forms may be implemented separately, and constituent elements described as separate may be implemented in a combined manner.

[0510] The scope of this invention is defined by the appended claims, not by the description, and all variations or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and their equivalents shall be construed as being included within the scope of this invention.

Claims

1. A terminal configured to operate in a wireless communication system, the terminal comprising: Communication module; and A processor configured to control the communication module. The processor is configured as follows: Receive management frames that include high-efficiency HE operating elements or extremely high-throughput EHT operating elements; Receive trigger frame, the trigger frame including at least one of the following: a trigger frame requesting one or more terminals to send a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) or a trigger response scheduling (TRS) control subfield; and In response to the trigger frame, a PPDU is sent, the PPDU including a Packet Extended PE field for providing processing time for the PPDU. The EHT operation element includes a first default PE duration subfield, which is related to the duration of the PE field included in the trigger-based TB PPDU of the EHT. The HE operation element includes a second default PE duration subfield, which is related to the duration of the PE field included in the HE TB PPDU. Wherein, when the format of the PPDU based on the trigger frame is the EHT TB PPDU, - When the first default PE duration subfield is set to a first value, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU sent in response to the trigger frame is set to a first duration based on the first value of the first default PE duration subfield, and - When the first default PE duration subfield is set to a second value, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU sent in response to the trigger frame is set to a second duration equal to the duration indicated by the second default PE duration subfield.

2. The terminal according to claim 1, in, When the format of the PPDU based on the trigger frame is the HE TB PPDU, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU is set based on the second default PE duration subfield.

3. The terminal according to claim 1, in, The second duration is one of a multiple of '0 us' or '4 us', and Wherein, the first duration is a multiple of '4 us' that is greater than the maximum value of the second duration.

4. The terminal according to claim 3, in, The second duration is one of '0 us', '4 us', '8 us', '12 us', or '16 us'.

5. The terminal according to claim 1, in, The first duration is '20 us'.

6. The terminal according to claim 1, in, The duration of the PE field included in the PPDU is calculated based on the length subfield included in the trigger frame, and when the trigger frame includes both the TRS control subfield and the trigger frame and the PPDU is in the format of EHT TB PPDU, it is equal to the first duration or the second duration indicated by the first default PE duration subfield.

7. The terminal according to claim 1, in, The format of the PPDU is determined according to the format of the trigger frame.

8. The terminal according to claim 7, in, When the format of the trigger frame is HE PPDU, the format of the PPDU is HE TB PPDU, and Wherein, when the format of the trigger frame is EHT PPDU, the format of the PPDU is EHT TB PPDU.

9. A method for transmitting and receiving data performed by a terminal configured to operate in a wireless communication system, the method comprising: Receive management frames that include high-efficiency HE operating elements or extremely high-throughput EHT operating elements; Receive a trigger frame, the trigger frame including at least one of the following: a trigger frame requesting one or more terminals to send a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) or a trigger response scheduling (TRS) control subfield; as well as In response to the trigger frame, a PPDU is sent, the PPDU including a Packet Extended PE field for providing processing time for the PPDU. The EHT operation element includes a first default PE duration subfield, which is related to the duration of the PE field included in the trigger-based TB PPDU of the EHT. The HE operation element includes a second default PE duration subfield, which is related to the duration of the PE field included in the HE TB PPDU. Wherein, when the format of the PPDU based on the trigger frame is the EHT TB PPDU, - When the first default PE duration subfield is set to a first value, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU sent in response to the trigger frame is set to a first duration based on the first value of the first default PE duration subfield, and - When the first default PE duration subfield is set to a second value, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU sent in response to the trigger frame is set to a second duration equal to the duration indicated by the second default PE duration subfield.

10. The method according to claim 9, in, When the format of the PPDU based on the trigger frame is the HE TB PPDU, the duration of the PE field included in the PPDU is set based on the second default PE duration subfield.

11. The method according to claim 9, in, The second duration is one of a multiple of '0 us' or '4 us', and Wherein, the first duration is a multiple of '4 us' that is greater than the maximum value of the second duration.

12. The method according to claim 11, in, The second duration is one of '0 us', '4 us', '8 us', '12 us', or '16 us'.

13. The method according to claim 9, in, The first duration is '20 us'.

14. The method according to claim 9, in, The duration of the PE field included in the PPDU is calculated based on the length subfield included in the trigger frame, and when the trigger frame includes both the TRS control subfield and the trigger frame and the PPDU is in the format of EHT TB PPDU, it is equal to the first duration or the second duration indicated by the first default PE duration subfield.

15. The method according to claim 9, in, The format of the PPDU is determined according to the format of the trigger frame.

16. The method according to claim 15, in, When the format of the trigger frame is HE PPDU, the format of the PPDU is HE TB PPDU, and Wherein, when the format of the trigger frame is EHT PPDU, the format of the PPDU is EHT TB PPDU.

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