Techniques and apparatuses for communication between multi-link devices

Abstract

Various embodiments provide a method for multi-link communication. A device supporting multi-link communication receives a first notification message from a first AP device supporting multi-link communication, the first notification message including AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable, and makes an association decision with the first AP device based on the AP unavailability information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The teachings of exemplary embodiments of this disclosure generally relate to wireless communication, such as WLAN communication. Background Technology

[0002] This section is intended to provide background or context for exemplary embodiments of this disclosure. The description herein may include concepts that may be employed, but are not necessarily concepts previously conceived or employed. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated herein, what is described in this section is not prior art as described and claimed in this application, and is not admitted to be prior art by virtue of its inclusion in this section.

[0003] Some abbreviations found in this specification and / or accompanying drawings are defined as follows:

[0004] AP access point

[0005] CAC channel availability check

[0006] DFS Dynamic Frequency Selection

[0007] ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute)

[0008] FCC (Federal Communications Commission)

[0009] MLD Multi-Link Device

[0010] NR Neighbor Report

[0011] RNR Simplified Neighbor Reporting

[0012] TBTT Target Beacon Transmission Time

[0013] UL / DL Uplink / Downlink

[0014] WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network)

[0015] According to FCC and ETSI regulations, DFS channels can be further divided into weather channels and non-weather channels. The access point (AP) needs to mute itself and perform CAC for 1 minute on a non-weather channel, or mute itself and perform CAC for 10 minutes on a weather channel, to detect radar signals before operation, ensuring that Wi-Fi signals do not interfere with radar signals on the DFS channel. Otherwise, if a radar signal is detected on the current DFS channel, the AP needs to switch to another channel (DFS or non-DFS channel). According to the rules defined in the ETSI specifications, if no radar signal was detected in the previous operation, the AP is allowed to switch back to the original DFS channel without performing CAC; this behavior is also known as DFS channel reentry.

[0016] 802.11be defines a multi-link device architecture where two MLDs establish connections across multiple links, and one MLD can simultaneously transmit services to another MLD on multiple established links. For example, an AP MLD and a non-AP MLD establish three links on 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz, allowing simultaneous data transmission. Compared to Wi-Fi STAs with pre-802.11be architectures, the new multi-link architecture significantly improves throughput and reduces latency. Furthermore, according to IEEE 802.11be, each AP MLD will contain a certain number of APs operating on one or more available links. Similarly, each non-AP MLD may contain a certain number of STAs operating on one or more available links. Summary of the Invention

[0017] The scope of protection sought by the embodiments of this disclosure is determined by the independent claims. Embodiments and features (if any) described in this specification that are not within the scope of the independent claims should be interpreted as examples that help to understand the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0018] According to a first aspect, various embodiments provide a method performed by a device supporting multi-link communication. The device supporting multi-link communication receives a first notification message from a first access point (AP) device supporting multi-link communication. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable, and makes an association decision with the first AP device based on the AP unavailability information.

[0019] According to some embodiments, the AP unavailability information includes Channel Available Check (CAC) status-related information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are in the CAC state. According to some embodiments, the CAC status-related information includes: an indication that at least one AP within the first AP device is in the CAC state, and status information for each AP within the first AP device that is in the CAC state. According to some embodiments, the status information includes: the CAC duration and remaining CAC time for each AP within the first AP device that is in the CAC state.

[0020] According to some embodiments, the device supporting multi-link communication further receives a second notification message from a second AP device that also supports multi-link communication. This second notification message does not contain AP unavailability information. The device supporting multi-link communication further makes an association decision between the first AP device and the second AP device based on the AP unavailability information.

[0021] According to some embodiments, the first AP device has a stronger signal strength than the second AP device, the device supporting multi-link communication is associated with the second AP device for multi-link communication, and in response to one or more unavailable APs in the first AP device becoming available again, it is reassociated with the first AP device for multi-link communication.

[0022] According to some embodiments, a device supporting multi-link communication may further reschedule services on the links of an unavailable first AP to one or more other links of an AP within the same first AP device, and reschedule services back to the links of the first AP in response to the first AP becoming available again.

[0023] According to a second aspect, various embodiments provide a method performed by an AP device that supports multi-link communication. The AP device supporting multi-link communication sends a first notification message to other devices that support multi-link communication, the first notification message including AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs within the AP device are unavailable.

[0024] According to some embodiments, the AP device that supports multi-link communication is further associated with other devices that support multi-link communication to perform multi-link communication.

[0025] According to some embodiments, an AP device that supports multi-link communication may further close the links of unavailable APs within the AP device and reopen the AP links in response to the AP returning to normal.

[0026] According to a third aspect, various embodiments provide an apparatus supporting multi-link communication. The apparatus includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: receive a first notification message from a first AP device supporting multi-link communication, the first notification message including AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable; and make an association decision with the first AP device based on the AP unavailability information.

[0027] According to some embodiments, the device is further configured to: receive a second notification message from a second AP device supporting multi-link communication, the second notification message not containing AP unavailability information. The device is further configured to: make an association decision between the first AP device and the second AP device based on the AP unavailability information.

[0028] According to a fourth aspect, various embodiments provide an AP device that supports multi-link communication. The AP device supporting multi-link communication includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the AP device to at least: send a notification message to a device supporting multi-link communication, the notification message including AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs within the AP device are unavailable.

[0029] According to a fifth aspect, various embodiments provide a system supporting multi-link communication. The system includes a device and an access point (AP) device supporting multi-link communication. The device includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the device to at least: receive a first notification message from a first AP device supporting multi-link communication, the first notification message including AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable; and make an association decision with the first AP device based on the AP unavailability information. The first AP device supporting multi-link communication includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first AP device to at least: send a notification message to the device supporting multi-link communication, the notification message including AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable. Attached Figure Description

[0030] The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of the various embodiments of this disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein similar reference numerals are used to designate similar or equivalent elements. The drawings are provided to facilitate a better understanding of the embodiments of this disclosure and are not necessarily drawn to scale, wherein:

[0031] Figure 1 The format of a multi-link (ML) probe request frame is shown when performing some example embodiments of this disclosure;

[0032] Figure 2(a) shows the format of the RNR unit; and Figure 2(b) shows the format of the TBTT information header in the RNR unit;

[0033] Figure 3 The format of the CAC unit is shown when performing some example embodiments of this disclosure;

[0034] Figure 4(a) shows the format of an ML cell when performing some example embodiments of the present disclosure; and Figure 4(b) shows an example format of an ML cell with a CAC cell inserted when performing some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0035] Figure 5Examples of multi-link connection methods that can be performed by a device supporting multi-link communication according to some exemplary embodiments of this disclosure are shown;

[0036] Figure 6 The present disclosure provides an exemplary description of a multilink setup process between two multilink devices according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0037] Figure 7 An example of a multi-link connection process based on CAC status-related information transmitted according to embodiments of this disclosure is shown.

[0038] Figure 8(a) illustrates, exemplarily, the service rescheduling process between two multi-link connected devices before the AP MLD enters the CAC state according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and Figure 8(b) illustrates, exemplarily, the service rescheduling process between two multi-link connected devices after the AP MLD leaves the CAC state according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0039] The principles of this disclosure will now be described with reference to some exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that these exemplary embodiments are described merely for illustration and to help those skilled in the art understand and implement this disclosure, and do not imply any limitation on the scope of this disclosure. The embodiments described herein can be implemented in various ways, and are not limited to those described below.

[0040] In the following description and claims, unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains.

[0041] Communication systems and associated devices (such as AP MLDs and non-AP MLDs) typically operate according to given standards or specifications that define what the various entities associated with the system are allowed to do and how they should be implemented. Communication protocols and / or parameters applied to the connection are also usually defined. A WLAN communication system is an example of a communication system.

[0042] To the inventor's knowledge, devices available prior to IEEE 802.11be (also known as legacy devices) could not detect or associate APs in CAC state.

[0043] According to IEEE 802.11be, the RNR unit can be used to report the status and information of APs in the same AP MLD.

[0044] According to the IEEE 802.11be draft, if the RNR unit of a management frame sent by another AP within the same AP MLD carries information about a particular AP, then that AP is considered "discoverable".

[0045] However, according to the current IEEE 802.11be draft specification, if an AP in the AP MLD is in CAC state, its information is not included in the RNR unit. This could result in missed detection of links associated with APs in CAC state during the discovery and association phase performed by non-AP MLDs.

[0046] Non-AP MLDs intending to establish multi-link connections with AP MLDs need to know how many links the AP MLD has and the status of each link operating on the DFS channel, including links that are temporarily undetectable and in CAC state.

[0047] During the association phase, the number of links established and thus available for subsequent transmission may not include links currently in CAC state, even if CAC state is only temporary. In fact, when an AP in an AP MLD leaves CAC state, both the non-AP MLD and AP MLD need to undergo a completely new association process in order to be discovered and join Multi-Link Operation (MLO).

[0048] A non-AP MLD requiring a large number of links to support applications such as high throughput and / or low latency may decide not to connect to an AP MLD that may have a subset of APs operating in CAC state. However, this is only a temporary situation, and the non-AP MLD should be aware of this situation in order to trigger informed decision-making during the association process.

[0049] The exemplary embodiments of this disclosure introduce a novel signaling method that carries CAC status information of other APs within the same AP MLD as the reporting AP, to notify non-AP MLDs that some APs are operating on the DFS channel.

[0050] Certain notification messages (such as beacon frames, probe response frames, or other management frames) can be used to carry information about other APs within the same AP MLD in the NR unit, RNR unit, or basic variant ML unit. In an AP MLD, the AP sending such a specific notification message is referred to as the reporting AP, while other APs within the same AP MLD whose status and information are reported by the reporting AP are referred to as the reported APs. According to the rules defined in the 802.11be draft, reported AP information, such as operation category, channel number, MLD ID (the identifier of each AP MLD when multiple AP MLD devices are co-managed), and link ID (the identifier of each AP within the AP MLD), will be carried in the RNR unit of a management frame, such as a beacon frame, sent by the reporting AP within the same AP MLD.

[0051] To meet the requirement that non-AP MLDs can request information from reported APs belonging to the same AP MLD as the reporting AP without performing active / passive scanning on the operating channel of each reported AP, a new type of probe request / response frame called the ML probe request / response frame is defined in 802.11be draft 1.1. The ML probe request / response frame facilitates non-AP MLDs in collecting the necessary information (ML scan operation) from other APs belonging to the same AP MLD on only one AP's operating channel. Figure 1 The format of the ML probe request frame is described, in which the non-AP MLD intends to retrieve partial information of AP-x, specific information of AP-y, and all information of AP-z, as indicated in per-STA profile x, per-STA profile y, and per-STA profile z.

[0052] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the AP MLD can periodically send beacon frames or other management frames. Non-AP MLDs within the coverage area of ​​the AP MLD can receive such frames carrying CAC status information of other APs within the AP MLD on the AP's operating channel. Alternatively, non-AP MLDs can send ML probe request frames to the AP MLD to request information about certain APs, and the AP MLD can return ML probe response frames carrying CAC status information of other APs within the AP MLD that are currently in CAC status.

[0053] To transmit CAC status-related information of other APs currently in CAC state in the AP's MLD on the AP's operating channel, embodiments of this disclosure suggest redefining the RNR unit and ML unit carried in beacon frames, ML probe response frames, or other management frames. The CAC status-related information includes: an indication that at least one other AP in the same AP device as the reporting AP is in CAC state, and status information for each other AP in the same AP device that is in CAC state. The status information includes: the CAC duration and remaining CAC time for each other AP in the same AP device as the reporting AP that is in CAC state.

[0054] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the RNR unit is redefined to indicate whether at least one other AP in the same AP device as the reporting AP is currently in CAC state, and a new CAC unit is set in the ML unit to carry the CAC duration and remaining CAC time of each other AP in the same AP device as the reporting AP that is in CAC state.

[0055] Non-AP STAs can learn basic information about other APs within the AP MLD, such as the operating channel and SSID (Service Set Identifier), through the RNR unit. This information is contained in beacon frames, probe response frames, or other management frames sent by an AP in the AP MLD. As shown in Figure 2(a), in the RNR unit, the information fields for each neighboring AP include: TBTT information header, operation category, channel number, and TBTT information set subfield. According to the baseline rules, referring to Figure 2(b), the TBTT information field type subfield in the TBTT information header subfield, together with the TBTT information length subfield, identifies the format of the TBTT information field. This subfield is set to 0, while values ​​1, 2, and 3 are reserved.

[0056] When a non-AP STA receives a neighbor AP information field with an unidentified TBTT information field type subfield (i.e., a value different from 0), the rest of the RNR cell should be ignored.

[0057] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the TBTT information field type can be set to a reserved value other than 0, such as one of 1, 2, and 3, to notify the received non-AP MLD that one or more APs within the AP MLD are in CAC state. In one embodiment, when the non-AP MLD receives a beacon frame carrying an RNR unit with a TBTT information field type of "1", the non-AP MLD will decode the RNR information to know that an AP in the AP MLD is currently in CAC state.

[0058] It is important to note that the information associated with the AP in the CAC state is appended to the end of the RNR unit to prevent any decoding problems for conventional operations.

[0059] According to embodiments of this disclosure, referring to Figure 3 A CAC cell consists of the cell ID, length, CAC duration, and remaining CAC time subfields. The descriptions of each subfield are as follows:

[0060] The cell ID subfield is set to a unique cell ID to identify the CAC cell;

[0061] The length subfield is set to the length of the entire CAC cell;

[0062] The CAC duration subfield is set to the total duration of CAC on the current DFS channel, in minutes, such as 1 minute or 10 minutes;

[0063] The CAC Remaining Time subfield is set to the remaining time (in seconds) of the CAC state on the current DFS channel. The initial value is equal to the value in the CAC Duration subfield, and the initial value is decremented by 1 every second. This means that no radar signal is detected until the value in the CAC Remaining Time subfield becomes 0.

[0064] According to an embodiment of this disclosure, referring to FIG4, once the corresponding AP in the AP MLD is in the CAC state, the CAC unit can be used as one of the units available in the per STA profile of the ML unit.

[0065] Figure 4(a) shows an example of the ML cell format. Cells available in the STA configuration file, such as cell (ID=B), cell (ID=D), and cell (ID=Y), can be used to carry... Figure 3 The CAC cell, and Figure 4(b) shows an example of the ML cell format with inserted CAC cells.

[0066] According to embodiments of this disclosure, a first AP MLD sends a first notification message including AP unavailability information, indicating that one or more APs within the first AP MLD are unavailable to non-AP MLDs. Then, based on the AP unavailability information, the non-AP MLD makes an association decision with the first AP MLD.

[0067] AP unavailability information includes CAC status-related information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP MLD are in a CAC state. The CAC status-related information includes: an indication that at least one AP within the first AP MLD is in a CAC state, and status information for each AP within the first AP MLD that is in a CAC state. According to an embodiment of this disclosure, as shown in FIG2(b), the indication that an AP within the first AP MLD is in a CAC state can be included in a TBTT information field with a value of "1" in the RNR unit. The status information includes: the CAC duration and remaining CAC time for each AP within the first AP MLD that is in a CAC state. According to an embodiment of this disclosure, as... Figure 3 As shown in Figure 4, the status information of each AP in the CAC state within the first AP MLD can be included in the CAC unit of the ML unit.

[0068] According to an embodiment of this disclosure, when only one first AP MLD sends a first notification message including AP unavailability information, wherein the AP unavailability information indicates that one or more APs within the first AP MLD are unavailable to non-AP MLDs, and the non-AP MLDs make a decision to associate with the first AP MLD based on the AP unavailability information.

[0069] According to embodiments of this disclosure, when one or more first AP MLDs send a first notification message including AP unavailability information, wherein the AP unavailability information indicates that one or more APs within the first AP MLD are unavailable to non-AP MLDs, the non-AP MLD can select a first AP MLD from these sent first AP MLDs based on the AP unavailability information, such as the number of unavailable links, and then associate with the selected first AP MLD.

[0070] According to embodiments of this disclosure, there exists a first AP MLD that sends a first notification message to a non-AP MLD, and a second AP MLD that sends a second notification message to a non-AP MLD. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information, indicating that one or more APs in the first AP MLD are unavailable. Since all APs in the second AP MLD are available, the second notification message does not contain such AP unavailability information. Therefore, a non-AP MLD can select the second AP MLD for multi-link connection based on the AP unavailability information.

[0071] Alternatively, in an embodiment, although the signal strength of the second AP MLD may be lower than that of the first AP MLD, since the first AP MLD currently has one or more unavailable APs, the non-AP MLD may first select the second AP MLD for multi-link connection. When the unavailable APs in the first AP MLD return to normal based on AP unavailability information, the non-AP MLD may disconnect from the second AP MLD and re-associate with the first AP MLD.

[0072] According to embodiments of this disclosure, during the discovery phase, a non-AP MLD can know the CAC status of APs within the same AP MLD, including the CAC duration and remaining CAC time for each AP under the CAC status. Then, during the association phase, the non-AP MLD can make an association decision on whether to establish a multi-link connection with that AP MLD.

[0073] Figure 5 An example of a multilink connection process between two communication devices that support multilink communication is shown. Typically, these two devices can be a non-AP MLD and an AP MLD. For ease of reading and explanation, the non-AP MLD and AP MLD are used below to exemplarily describe how to establish a multilink connection.

[0074] like Figure 5 As shown, in step 510, AP MLD 501 periodically sends beacon frames, which carry information about the APs within AP MLD 501. Non-AP MLD 502 receives the beacon frames and extracts the number of links of AP MLD 501 from the beacon frames.

[0075] To gain a better understanding of the APs in CAC state, in step 520, non-AP MLD 502 sends an ML probe request frame to AP MLD 501 to obtain certain information about other APs within AP MLD 501.

[0076] It should be noted that, according to the embodiments of this disclosure, the AP in the CAC state is merely an example of an unavailable AP. The CAC state can be transmitted in the CAC unit, and other examples of unavailable APs can be known in other specific or non-specific units. This disclosure does not exclude or limit such instances.

[0077] In step 530, AP MLD 501 returns an ML probe response frame to inform non-AP MLD 502 of the CAC status information of one or more APs within AP MLD 501. The CAC status information includes: an indication that at least one AP in AP MLD 501 is in the CAC state, and the status information of each AP in AP MLD 501 that is in the CAC state.

[0078] In step 540, the non-AP MLD determines whether to associate with AP MLD 501 based on the number of available links in AP MLD 501, the bandwidth of each available link, and the duration and remaining time of the link being in CAC state.

[0079] In step 550, if non-AP MLD 502 decides to connect with AP MLD 501, then non-AP MLD 502 sends an association request frame to AP MLD 501.

[0080] In step 560, AP MLD 501 returns an associated response frame to non-AP MLD 502. The multi-link connection between non-AP MLD 502 and AP MLD 501 is then complete.

[0081] After collecting all expected information about the APs within the same AP MLD 501 via ML probe request / response frame exchange, a non-AP MLD 502 can establish a multi-link connection with AP MLD 501.

[0082] As an example, such as Figure 6 As shown in Section 35.3.5 of the 802.11be specification, after MLD (re)configuration, three links can be established on 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz for simultaneous communication between AP MLDs and non-AP MLDs. Compared to the traditional 802.11 architecture, the novel multi-link architecture proposed in the embodiments of this disclosure will significantly improve data throughput and reduce transmission latency.

[0083] Because notification messages from the AP MLD can inform non-AP MLDs about the CAC status information of the APs within that AP MLD, non-AP MLDs can make informed decisions, such as remaining associated with the current AP MLD or switching to another AP MLD.

[0084] Figure 7 An example of a multi-link connection process based on CAC state-related information transmitted according to embodiments of this disclosure is illustrated. A non-AP MLD 702 requiring a large number of links to support, for example, high-throughput and / or low-latency applications, may decide not to associate with AP MLD 701, which has a subset of APs busy with CAC operations on the DFS channel. Since the non-AP MLD 702 can also receive beacon frames from another AP MLD 703, AP MLD 703 can be an alternative AP MLD that the non-AP MLD 702 can turn to.

[0085] In step 710, the non-AP MLD 702 knows the number of temporarily unavailable links on the AP MLD 701 that provides the highest signal strength, and it can decide to find an alternative AP MLD, even if it is farther away and has the worst received signal strength.

[0086] In step 720, non-AP MLD 702 finds an alternative AP MLD 703. Compared to deciding to associate with AP MLD 701, which has a stronger signal but has a set of links that are temporarily unavailable due to busy CAC operation, non-AP MLD 702 needs to evaluate whether its expected throughput / latency can be improved by triggering a new association.

[0087] In step 730, if the assessment is positive, the non-AP MLD 702 is associated with the alternative AP MLD 703. This assessment can be performed by comparing the number of available links and their corresponding bandwidths, as this provides an indication of the expected theoretical throughput and latency.

[0088] In step 740, knowing the remaining time before the link becomes available again in the stronger AP MLD 701, the non-AP MLD 702 can immediately trigger reassociation with AP MLD 701 after the CAC process (fully or partially) on its link is completed. A second evaluation can be triggered to determine whether the expected throughput / latency can be improved by performing reassociation with AP MLD 701. In this way, the non-AP MLD 702 can maximize its benefits in terms of the number of available links and target performance by selecting the suboptimal AP MLD 703 only when the operation provides an advantage. This amount of time is the time when the link linked to AP MLD 701 is in CAC state.

[0089] Figure 8(a) and 8(b) An exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure illustrates a service rescheduling process between two multi-link connected devices before and outside of the CAC state.

[0090] Assuming that non-AP MLD 802 remains associated with AP MLD 801 operating in the DFS channel, AP MLD 801 can shut down the link before its AP enters the CAC state, thereby rescheduling the corresponding UL / DL services to other links to reduce potential latency. According to embodiments of this disclosure, utilizing information about the remaining time in the CAC state obtainable through the CAC state-related information notification process, UL / DL services are immediately rescheduled back to the affected link after it is assumed to reopen.

[0091] As shown in Figures 8(a) and 8(b), before an AP (e.g., AP2) enters the CAC state and becomes unavailable, AP MLD801 reschedules DL / UL services with non-AP MLD802.

[0092] Once the affected link (e.g., link 2) becomes available again, the non-AP MLD 802 begins preparing to transmit rescheduled DL / UL services to the affected link. This operation is based on newly introduced information about the remaining time in the CAC state.

[0093] After switching to the DFS channel, the AP MLD 801 shuts down the link (e.g., link 2) and operates the AP in CAC state.

[0094] Once the link (link 2) becomes available and is reopened by both parties based on the remaining CAC time, AP MLD 801 and non-AP MLD 802 schedule and send DL / UL services.

[0095] Generally, the various embodiments can be implemented by hardware or dedicated circuitry, software, logic, or any combination thereof. For example, some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while others may be implemented in firmware or software, which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device, but this disclosure is not limited thereto. Although various aspects of this disclosure may be illustrated and described as block diagrams, flowcharts, or using some other graphical representation, it is well known that the blocks, apparatuses, systems, techniques, or methods described herein can be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuitry or logic, general-purpose hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof (as non-limiting examples).

[0096] For example, embodiments of this disclosure can be implemented in various components such as integrated circuit modules. The design of integrated circuits is essentially a highly automated process. Complex and powerful software tools can be used to translate logic-level designs into semiconductor circuit designs for etching onto a semiconductor substrate.

[0097] As used in this disclosure, the term "circuit" may refer to one or more of the following:

[0098] (a) Hardware circuit implementation only (e.g., analog and / or digital circuit implementation only) and

[0099] (b) A combination of hardware circuitry and software, such as (if applicable):

[0100] (i) A combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuitry with software / firmware, and

[0101] (ii) Any part of the hardware processor and software (including digital signal processors), software and memory, which work together to enable a device such as a mobile phone or server to perform various functions, and

[0102] (c) Hardware circuitry and / or processors, such as microprocessors or a portion thereof, require software (e.g., firmware) to function, but the software may not exist if it is not required to function.

[0103] This definition of "circuit" applies to all uses of the term in this disclosure, including in any claim. As a further example, the term "circuit" as used in this disclosure also covers implementations of hardware circuitry or processors (or processors) or a portion thereof and their accompanying software and / or firmware. For example, if applicable to a particular claim element, the term "circuit" also covers baseband integrated circuits or processor integrated circuits in mobile devices, or similar integrated circuits in servers, cellular network devices, or other computing or network devices.

[0104] The device may include one or more processors, one or more memories, and one or more network interfaces. The one or more memories may store computer program instructions. The one or more memories and computer program instructions may be configured, together with the one or more processors, to cause the device to perform one or more operations, which may be necessary to support operations according to some example embodiments of this disclosure.

[0105] As used herein, the term "example" means "as an example, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment described herein as an "example" is not necessarily to be construed as superior to or advantageous to other embodiments. All embodiments described in this detailed description are exemplary embodiments provided to enable those skilled in the art to make or use this disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure as defined in the claims.

[0106] In view of the foregoing description, various modifications and adjustments to the exemplary embodiments provided herein will become apparent to those skilled in the art when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and claims. However, all such and similar modifications to the teachings of this disclosure will still fall within the scope of this disclosure.

[0107] It should be noted that the terms “connection,” “coupling,” or any variation thereof refer to any direct or indirect connection or coupling between two or more elements, and may include the presence of one or more intermediate elements between the two elements that are “connected” or “coupled” together. The coupling or connection between elements can be physical, logical, or a combination thereof. As used herein, two elements can be considered as being “connected” or “coupled” together by means of one or more wires, cables, and / or printed circuits, and by means of electromagnetic energy, such as electromagnetic energy with wavelengths in the radio frequency region, microwave region, and optical (both visible and invisible) region, as a non-limiting and non-exhaustive example.

[0108] Furthermore, some features of some exemplary embodiments of this disclosure can be used to gain advantages without correspondingly using other features. Therefore, the above description should be regarded as merely illustrating the principles of this disclosure and not as limiting it.

Claims

1. A communication method, comprising: A device supporting multi-link communication receives a first notification message from a first access point (AP) device supporting multi-link communication. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable. The device that supports multi-link communication makes an association decision with the first AP device based on the AP unavailability information; as well as A second notification message is received from a second AP device that supports multi-link communication, and the second notification message does not contain information that the AP is unavailable. The association decision further includes: the device supporting multi-link communication making an association decision between the first AP device and the second AP device based on the AP unavailability information.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the AP unavailability information includes channel availability check-CAC-state related information, the CAC-state related information indicating that one or more APs in the first AP device are in CAC state.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the CAC state related information comprises: An indication that at least one AP in the first AP device is in CAC state, and status information of each AP in the first AP device that is in CAC state.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the state information comprises: The duration of CAC and the remaining time of CAC for each AP in the first AP device that is in CAC state.

5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the indication that at least one AP in the first AP device is in CAC state is included in a TBTT information field with a predefined value in a Simplified Neighbor Report-RNR- unit, and the status information of each AP in the first AP device that is in CAC state is included in the CAC unit of the ML unit.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein information associated with each AP in the CAC state within the first AP device is appended to the end of the RNR unit.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first AP device has a stronger signal strength than the second AP device; The decision to make related decisions further includes: The device supporting multi-link communication is associated with the second AP device for multi-link communication; as well as In response to one or more unavailable APs within the first AP device becoming available again, the device supporting multilink communication is reassociated with the first AP device for multilink communication.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises: The device that supports multi-link communication reschedules the services on the links of the first AP, and the first AP will not be available on one or more other links of the AP within the same first AP device; as well as In response to the first AP becoming available again, the device supporting multi-link communication schedules the service back to the link of the first AP.

9. A communication method, comprising: The access point (AP) device that supports multi-link communication sends a first notification message to the device that supports multi-link communication. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information, which indicates that one or more APs in the AP device are unavailable to the device that supports multi-link communication. as well as Disabling the association with the device that supports multi-link communication, wherein the disabling of the association with the device that supports multi-link communication is triggered by the number of links of the AP device that will become unavailable.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises: The AP device that supports multi-link communication is associated with the device that supports multi-link communication for multi-link communication.

11. The method of claim 9 or 10, wherein the AP unavailability information includes channel availability check-CAC-state related information, the CAC-state related information indicating that one or more APs within the AP device are in a CAC state.

12. The method according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the method further comprises: The AP device that supports multi-link communication shuts down the links within the AP device that will render the AP unusable. as well as In response to the AP becoming available, the link of the AP is reopened by the AP device that supports multi-link communication.

13. A communication device, comprising: At least one processor; as well as At least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the device to at least: A first notification message is received from a first access point (AP) device that supports multi-link communication. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable. Based on the AP unavailability information, a decision is made to associate the AP with the first AP device; as well as A second notification message is received from a second AP device that supports multi-link communication, and the second notification message does not contain the AP unavailable information; The aforementioned decision to make an association further includes: making an association decision between the first AP device and the second AP device based on the AP unavailability information.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the device is further configured to: A second notification message is received from a second AP device that supports multi-link communication, and the second notification message does not contain the AP unavailable information; The decision to make related decisions further includes: Based on the AP unavailability information, an association decision is made between the first AP device and the second AP device.

15. An access point (AP) device, comprising: At least one processor; as well as At least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the AP device to at least: Send a notification message to a device that supports multi-link communication, the notification message including AP unavailability information, the AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs in the AP device are unavailable; as well as The association between the AP device that supports multi-link communication and the AP device that supports multi-link communication is closed, wherein the closure of the association with the AP device is triggered by the number of links within the AP device that will become unavailable.

16. A communication system, comprising: Equipment, including: At least one processor; and At least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the device to at least: A first notification message is received from a first access point (AP) device that supports multi-link communication. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable. Make an association decision with the first AP device based on the AP unavailability information; and A second notification message is received from a second AP device that supports multi-link communication, and the second notification message does not contain information that the AP is unavailable. The association decision further includes: the device supporting multi-link communication making an association decision between the first AP device and the second AP device based on the AP unavailability information. The first AP device includes: At least one processor; and At least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first AP device to at least: Send a first notification message to the device, the first notification message including AP unavailability information, the AP unavailability information indicating that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable; and Disconnecting from the device, wherein the disconnection is triggered by the number of links within the AP device that will become unavailable.

17. A method for communication, comprising: A device supporting multi-link communication receives a first notification message from a first access point (AP) device supporting multi-link communication. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable. as well as The device supporting multi-link communication makes an association decision with the first AP device based on the AP unavailability information. The AP unavailability information includes Channel Availability Check (CAC) status-related information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are in a CAC state. The CAC status-related information includes: an indication that at least one AP in the first AP device is in CAC status, and status information for each AP in the first AP device that is in CAC status. The status information includes: the CAC duration and remaining CAC time for each AP in the first AP device that is in CAC state.

18. An apparatus for communication, comprising: At least one processor; as well as At least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the device to at least: A first notification message is received from a first access point (AP) device that supports multi-link communication. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable. as well as Based on the AP unavailability information, a decision is made to associate the device with the first AP. The AP unavailability information includes Channel Availability Check (CAC) status-related information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are in a CAC state. The CAC status-related information includes: an indication that at least one AP in the first AP device is in CAC status, and status information for each AP in the first AP device that is in CAC status. The status information includes: the CAC duration and remaining CAC time for each AP in the first AP device that is in CAC state.

19. A method for communication, comprising: A device supporting multi-link communication receives a first notification message from a first access point (AP) device supporting multi-link communication. The first notification message includes AP unavailability information, which indicates that one or more APs within the first AP device are unavailable. The device that supports multi-link communication makes an association decision with the first AP device based on the AP unavailability information; A first evaluation is performed by the device that supports multi-link communication to determine whether its expected throughput, latency, or both are improved by establishing a new association with a second AP device that supports multi-link communication, compared to a first AP device with one or more unavailable APs, wherein the first AP device provides a stronger signal than the second AP device; In response to the determination based on the first assessment that its expected throughput, latency, or both have been improved, association with the second AP device is performed; Perform a second evaluation to determine whether the expected throughput, latency, or both are improved by re-associating with the first AP device; In response to the determination based on the second assessment that its expected throughput, latency, or both have been improved, it is reassociated with the first AP device that supports multi-link communication.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein, The reassociation is performed based on the device's knowledge of the remaining time until the link with the first AP device becomes available again.

21. The method of claim 19 or 20, wherein the first assessment is performed by comparing the number of available links and their respective bandwidths.

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