Synchronization of target wake times

Abstract

Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for wireless communication at a station, generally including obtaining signaling indicating a resolution of a target wake time (TWT) field; determining a start time of a TWT service cycle (SP) based on the indicated resolution; and taking an action based on the determined start time of the TWT SP.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to U.S. patent application serial number 17 / 810,177, filed on June 30, 2022, which is hereby incorporated by reference into this application. Background Art Technical Field

[0003] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to wireless communications, and more particularly to techniques for synchronization of target wake time (TWT).

[0004] Related technologies

[0005] Wireless communication networks are widely deployed to provide various communication services such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc. These wireless networks may be multiple-access networks capable of supporting multiple users by sharing the available network resources. Examples of such multiple-access networks include code division multiple access (CDMA) networks, time division multiple access (TDMA) networks, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) networks, orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) networks, and single carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) networks.

[0006] In order to address the problem of increased bandwidth requirements required for wireless communication systems, different schemes are being developed to allow multiple user terminals to communicate with a single access point by sharing channel resources while achieving high data throughput. Multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology represents one such approach that has emerged as a popular technology for communication systems. MIMO technology has been adopted in several wireless communication standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards. IEEE 802.11 represents a set of wireless local area network (WLAN) air interface standards developed by the IEEE 802.11 committee for short-range communications, such as tens of meters to hundreds of meters. Summary of the invention

[0007] One aspect provides a method of wireless communication at a station. The method includes: obtaining signaling indicating a resolution of a target wake time (TWT) field; determining a start time of a TWT service period (SP) based on the indicated resolution; and taking an action based on the determined start time of the TWT SP.

[0008] Another aspect provides a method for wireless communication at an access point (AP). The method includes: outputting signaling indicating a resolution of a TWT field for transmission; and determining a start time of a TWT SP based on the indicated resolution.

[0009] Other aspects provide: an apparatus operable to, configured to, or otherwise adapted to perform any one or more of the foregoing methods and / or those described elsewhere herein; a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions (e.g., processor-executable instructions) that, when executed by a processor of the apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform the foregoing methods and those described elsewhere herein; a computer program product embodied on a computer-readable storage medium, the computer-readable storage medium comprising code for performing the foregoing methods and those described elsewhere herein; and / or an apparatus comprising components for performing the foregoing methods and those described elsewhere herein. By way of example, an apparatus may include a processing system, a device having a processing system, or a processing system cooperating through one or more networks.

[0010] For purposes of illustration, the following description and drawings set forth certain features. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] The accompanying drawings depict certain features of the various aspects described herein and should not be considered to limit the scope of the disclosure.

[0012] Figure 1 An example wireless communication network is depicted.

[0013] Figure 2 An example disaggregated base station architecture is depicted.

[0014] Figure 3 and Figure 4 Depicted are example communications between an access point (AP) and a wireless station (STA).

[0015] Figure 5 Depicted is an example mapping of the target wake time (TWT) field to the time synchronization function (TSF).

[0016] Figure 6 Depicted is an example of a mismatch between a TWT wake-up interval and subsequent beacon TWT announcements.

[0017] Figure 7 An example of a mismatch between the bursty arrival of delay-sensitive traffic and the TWT service period (SP) is depicted.

[0018] Figure 8 An example of a mismatch between the burst arrival time of delay-sensitive traffic and the TWT SP start time within a time period is illustrated.

[0019] Fig. 9 is a call flow diagram illustrating an example technique for determining a start time of a TWT SP based on an indicated resolution of a TWT field in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Fig.10 is a table illustrating an encoding scheme for specifying the resolution of a TWT according to certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Fig.11 Depicted are examples of how finer resolution of TWTs according to certain aspects of the present disclosure may help reduce the mismatch between burst arrival times of delay-sensitive traffic and TWT SP start times within a time period.

[0022] Fig.12

[0013] Methods for wireless communications in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure are described.

[0023] Fig.13

[0013] Methods for wireless communications in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure are described.

[0024] Fig.14 Aspects of an example communications device in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure are depicted.

[0025] Fig.15 Aspects of an example communications device in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure are depicted. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] Aspects of the present disclosure provide apparatus, methods, processing systems, and computer-readable media for synchronization of target wake times.

[0027] In wireless communication systems, target wake-up time (TWT) generally refers to a mechanism that can help reduce power consumption and improve resource efficiency by enabling wireless stations to stay in a low-power state and wake up at a specified time (TWT) to transmit or receive data. TWT can help the AP coordinate the access of different stations (STA) to the wireless medium, thereby allowing high quality of service with reduced contention or overlap and increased device sleep time to reduce power consumption and extend battery life. A mechanism called restricted TWT (r-TWT) extends TWT signaling and functionality, potentially providing predictable latency for delay-sensitive services for applications such as extended reality (XR) and cloud gaming (CG). The r-TWT rules typically limit access to the medium during the r-TWT SP by requiring the STA to end its transmit opportunity (TXOP) before the start time of the r-TWT service period (SP). This allows members of the r-TWT SP to access the medium in a timely manner and deliver delay-sensitive services.

[0028] However, one potential emulation of the r-TWT mechanism is that the finest granularity of the r-TWT SP start time it can support is one (1024 microseconds) time unit (TU). As will be shown below, this resolution may not be sufficient to fully align the r-TWT SP with delay-sensitive services (e.g., XR and CG services) because the burst arrival rate is typically defined in frames per second (fps), such as 60fps, which would require a much finer resolution (e.g., 1 microsecond). This potentially leads to a mismatch (e.g., up to several milliseconds) between the XR / CG burst arrival and the r-TWTSP, which can significantly affect the latency performance of delay-sensitive services.

[0029] However, aspects of the present disclosure provide various mechanisms for specifying a TWT SP (e.g., r-TWT SP) start time with finer granularity. In some cases, the granularity may be indicated to the station, thereby providing additional flexibility in adapting the TWT-SP start time to the expected traffic arrival time. Therefore, the techniques described herein may help reduce or eliminate the mismatch between traffic arrival and r-TWT SP, which may significantly improve latency performance.

[0030] Introduction to wireless communication networks

[0031] Various aspects of the present disclosure are described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present disclosure can be implemented in many different forms and should not be interpreted as being limited to any specific structure or function given throughout the present disclosure. Instead, these aspects are provided so that the present disclosure will be thorough and complete, and the protection scope of the present disclosure will be fully conveyed to those skilled in the art. Based on the teachings of this article, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein, whether it is implemented independently or in combination with any other aspect of the present disclosure. For example, any number of aspects set forth herein can be used to implement a device or practice method. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such a device or method implemented using other structures, functions, or structures and functions other than the various aspects of the disclosure set forth herein or different from the various aspects of the disclosure set forth herein. It should be understood that any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein can be implemented by one or more elements of the claims.

[0032] The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects.

[0033] Although specific aspects are described herein, numerous variations and arrangements of these aspects fall within the scope of the present disclosure. Although some benefits and advantages of preferred aspects are mentioned, the scope of protection of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited by specific benefits, uses or objects. More specifically, various aspects of the present disclosure are intended to be broadly applicable to different wireless technologies, system configurations, networks and transmission protocols, some of which are illustrated by way of example in the drawings and the following description of the preferred aspects. The specific embodiments and drawings are merely illustrative of the present disclosure and are not limiting. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0034] The techniques described herein can be used in various broadband wireless communication systems, including communication systems based on orthogonal multiplexing schemes. Examples of such communication systems include space division multiple access (SDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and the like. SDMA systems can make full use of different directions to simultaneously send data belonging to multiple user terminals. TDMA systems can allow multiple user terminals to share the same frequency channel by dividing the transmitted signal into different time slots, each of which is assigned to a different user terminal. OFDMA systems utilize orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), which is a modulation technique that divides the entire system bandwidth into multiple orthogonal subcarriers. These subcarriers may also be referred to as tones, bins, and the like. With OFDM, each subcarrier can be independently modulated using data. SC-FDMA systems can use interleaved FDMA (IFDMA) to transmit on subcarriers distributed across the system bandwidth, localized FDMA (LFDMA) to transmit on adjacent subcarrier blocks, or enhanced FDMA (EFDMA) to transmit on multiple adjacent subcarrier blocks. In general, modulation symbols are transmitted in the frequency domain using OFDM and in the time domain using SC-FDMA.

[0035] The teachings herein may be incorporated into (eg, implemented within or performed by) various wired or wireless devices (eg, nodes). In some aspects, a wireless node implemented in accordance with the teachings herein may comprise an access point or an access terminal.

[0036] An access point ("AP") may include, be implemented as, or be referred to as a Node B, a radio network controller ("RNC"), an evolved Node B (eNB), a base station controller ("BSC"), a base transceiver station ("BTS"), a base station ("BS"), a transceiver function ("TF"), a radio router, a radio transceiver, a basic service set ("BSS"), an extended service set ("ESS"), a radio base station ("RBS"), or some other terminology.

[0037] An access terminal ("AT") may include, be implemented as, or be referred to as a subscriber station, a subscriber unit, a mobile station (MS), a remote station, a remote terminal, a user terminal (UT), a user agent, a user device, a user equipment (UE), a user station, or some other term. In some implementations, an access terminal may include a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol ("SIP") phone, a wireless local loop ("WLL") station, a personal digital assistant ("PDA"), a handheld device with wireless connection capability, a station ("STA"), or some other suitable processing device connected to a wireless modem. Therefore, one or more aspects taught herein may be incorporated into a phone (such as a cellular phone or a smart phone), a computer (such as a laptop), a tablet device, a portable communication device, a portable computing device (such as a personal data assistant), an entertainment device (such as a music or video device, or a satellite radio), a global positioning system (GPS) device, or any other suitable device configured to communicate via a wireless medium or a wired medium. In some aspects, the node is a wireless node. For example, such a wireless node may provide connectivity for or to a network (such as a wide area network such as the Internet or a cellular network) via a wired or wireless communication link.

[0038] Example Wireless Communication System

[0039] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating an example wireless communication system 100 in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure. System 100 may be a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) / multi-link operation (MLO) system 100. Figure 1 As shown, access point (AP) 110 includes an association manager 112 that can be configured to take one or more actions described herein. Wireless station (STA) 120a includes an association manager 122 that can be configured to take one or more actions described herein. In various aspects, AP 110 and wireless station 120a can be as described herein. Figure 3 MLD is further described.

[0040] For simplicity, Figure 1Only one AP 110 is shown in the figure. An AP is typically a fixed station that communicates with wireless STAs, and may also be referred to as a base station (BS) or some other term. A wireless STA may be fixed or mobile, and may also be referred to as a mobile STA, a wireless device, or some other term. The AP 110 may communicate with one or more wireless STAs 120 on a downlink (DL) and / or uplink (UL) at any given moment. The DL (i.e., forward link) is a communication link from the AP 110 to the wireless STA 120, and the UL (i.e., reverse link) is a communication link from the wireless STA 120 to the AP 110. The wireless STA 120 may also communicate peer-to-peer with another wireless STA 120, for example, via a direct link (such as a tunneled direct link setup (TDLS)). The system controller 130 may communicate with the access point and provide coordination and control for the access point.

[0041] Although portions of the following disclosure will describe wireless STAs 120 that are capable of communicating via spatial division multiple access (SDMA), for certain aspects, the wireless STAs 120 may also include some wireless STAs 120 that do not support SDMA. Therefore, for such aspects, the AP 110 may be configured to communicate with both SDMA and non-SDMA wireless STAs 120. This approach may facilitate allowing older versions of wireless STAs 120 ("legacy" stations) to remain deployed in an enterprise, thereby extending their useful life, while allowing newer SDMA wireless STAs 120 to be introduced where deemed appropriate.

[0042] The system 100 uses multiple transmit antennas and multiple receive antennas to transmit data on DL and UL. ap The set of K selected wireless stations 120 collectively represents multiple output for DL ​​transmission and multiple input for UL transmission. For pure SDMA, if the data symbol streams of the K wireless STAs are not multiplexed in code, frequency, or time by some means, then it is expected that N ap ≥K≥1. K can be greater than N if the data symbol streams can be multiplexed using TDMA techniques, using different code channels of CDMA, using non-intersecting subband sets of OFDM, etc. ap Each selected wireless STA sends user-specific data to the access point and / or receives user-specific data from the access point. Typically, each selected wireless STA may be equipped with one or more antennas (ie, N sta ≥1). The K selected wireless STAs may have the same or different numbers of antennas.

[0043] The system 100 may be a time division duplex (TDD) system or a frequency division duplex (FDD) system. For a TDD system, DL and UL share the same frequency band. For an FDD system, DL and UL use different frequency bands. The system 100 may also transmit using a single carrier or multiple carriers. Each wireless STA may be equipped with a single antenna or multiple antennas. If the wireless STA 120 shares the same frequency channel by dividing transmission / reception into different time slots, the system 100 may also be a TDMA system, with each time slot being assigned to a different wireless STA 120.

[0044] Figure 2 A block diagram of an AP 110 and two wireless STAs 120m and 120x in a MIMO / MLO system (such as system 100) according to certain aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. In certain aspects, the AP 110 and / or the wireless STAs 120m and 120x may perform various techniques to ensure that non-AP MLDs are able to receive group-addressed frames. For example, the AP 110 and / or the wireless STAs 120m and 120x may include the following: Figure 1 The corresponding association manager described.

[0045] AP 110 is equipped with N ap The wireless STA 120m is equipped with N antennas 224a to 224t. sta,m antennas 252ma to 252mu, and the wireless STA 120x is equipped with N sta,x The AP 110 is a transmitting entity for DL ​​and a receiving entity for UL. Each wireless STA 120 is a transmitting entity for UL and a receiving entity for DL. As used herein, a "transmitting entity" is an independently operated device or equipment capable of transmitting data via a wireless channel, and a "receiving entity" is an independently operated device or equipment capable of receiving data via a wireless channel. The term communication generally refers to transmission, reception, or both. In the following description, the subscript "DL" indicates downlink, the subscript "UL" indicates uplink, and N UL Wireless STAs are selected for simultaneous transmission on the uplink, N DL Wireless STAs are selected for simultaneous transmission on the downlink, N UL May or may not be equal to N DL , and N UL and N DL It may be a static value, or can change for each scheduling interval.Beam steering or some other spatial processing technique may be used at the access points and wireless stations.

[0046] On the UL, at each wireless STA 120 selected for UL transmission, a transmit (TX) data processor 288 receives traffic data from a data source 286 and control data from a controller 280. The TX data processor 288 processes (e.g., encodes, interleaves, and modulates) the traffic data for the wireless station based on a coding and modulation scheme associated with a rate selected for the wireless STA and provides a data symbol stream. The TX spatial processor 290 performs spatial processing on the data symbol stream and transmits the data symbol stream to the N STA. sta,m The antennas provide N sta,m Each transceiver (TMTR) 254 receives and processes (eg, converts to analog, amplifies, filters, and upconverts) a corresponding transmit symbol stream to generate an uplink signal. sta,m The transceivers 254 provide N sta,m UL signal for N sta,m The antennas 252 transmit to the AP 110.

[0047] Scheduling N UL Each of these wireless STAs performs spatial processing on its data symbol stream and sends its set of transmit symbol streams to AP 110 on the UL.

[0048] At AP 110, N ap The antennas 224a to 224ap are connected to the entire N UL Each wireless STA receives the UL signal transmitted on the UL. Each antenna 224 provides a received signal to a corresponding transceiver (RCVR) 222. Each transceiver 222 performs processing complementary to that performed by transceiver 254 and provides a received symbol stream. The receive (RX) spatial processor 240 processes the N ap N of transceivers 222 ap The receiver performs spatial processing on the received symbol streams and provides N UL Receiver spatial processing is performed based on channel correlation matrix inversion (CCMI), minimum mean square error (MMSE), soft interference cancellation (SIC), or some other technique. Each recovered UL data symbol stream is an estimate of the data symbol stream sent by the corresponding wireless station. The RX data processor 242 processes (e.g., demodulates, deinterleaves, and decodes) the stream according to the rate used for each recovered uplink data symbol stream to obtain decoded data. The decoded data for each wireless STA can be provided to the data sink 244 for storage and / or to the controller 230 for further processing.

[0049] On the DL, at AP 110, TX data processor 210 receives N data packets scheduled for downlink transmission from data source 208. DL The TX data processor 210 processes (e.g., encodes, interleaves, and modulates) the traffic data of each wireless station based on the rate selected for each wireless station. The TX data processor 210 processes (e.g., encodes, interleaves, and modulates) the traffic data of each wireless station based on the rate selected for each wireless station. DL The wireless stations provide N DL TX spatial processor 220 performs N DL The DL data symbol streams are spatially processed (such as precoding or beamforming as described in the present disclosure) and are N ap The antennas provide N ap Each transceiver 222 receives and processes a corresponding transmit symbol stream to generate a DL signal. ap The transceiver 222 provides N ap DL signals for N ap The antennas 224 transmit to the wireless STAs.

[0050] At each wireless STA 120, N sta,m The antenna 252 receives N signals from the access point 110. ap Each transceiver 254 processes the received signal from an associated antenna 252 and provides a received symbol stream. The RX spatial processor 260 processes the received signal from the N sta,m N of transceivers 254 sta,m The RX data processor 270 performs receiver spatial processing on the received symbol streams and provides a recovered DL data symbol stream for the wireless station. The receiver spatial processing is performed based on CCMI, MMSE, or some other technique. The RX data processor 270 processes (e.g., demodulates, deinterleaves, and decodes) the recovered DL data symbol stream to obtain decoded data for the wireless station.

[0051] At each wireless STA 120, the channel estimator 278 estimates the DL channel response and provides a DL channel estimate, which may include a channel gain estimate, an SNR estimate, a noise variance, etc. Similarly, the channel estimator 228 estimates the UL channel response and provides a UL channel estimate. The controller 280 of each wireless STA is generally based on the wireless station's downlink channel response matrix H dn,m The controller 230 derives the spatial filter matrix for the wireless station based on the effective UL channel response matrix H up,effTo derive the spatial filter matrix for the AP. The controller 280 of each wireless STA may transmit feedback information (e.g., downlink and / or uplink eigenvectors, eigenvalues, SNR estimates, etc.) to the AP. Controllers 230 and 280 also control the operation of various processing units at AP 110 and wireless STA 120, respectively.

[0052] Aspects related to synchronization of target wake-up times

[0053] By limiting access to the medium during the r-TWT service period (SP), restricted TWT (r-TWT) potentially provides predictable latency for latency-sensitive services such as extended reality (XR) and cloud gaming (CG) services. General r-TWT SP rules require STAs to end their transmit opportunities (TXOPs) before the start time of the r-TWT SP. This allows members of the r-TWT SP to access the medium in a timely manner and deliver latency-sensitive services.

[0054] The r-TWT mechanism can be found in Figure 3 The example scenario shown is understood in which an access point (AP) communicates with several stations (STAs) S1, S2, and S3. The example assumes that the AP (e.g., 802.11be AP) supports r-TWT, S1 (e.g., low-latency 802.11be STA) supports r-TWT and is a member of the r-TWT group (meaning it may be able to access during the r-TWT SP), S2 (e.g., 802.11be STA) supports r-TWT but is not a member of the r-TWT group, and S3 (e.g., 802.11ac / ax STA) does not support r-TWT. Figure 3 As shown, the AP may send a beacon indicating the r-TWT service period (SP).

[0055] like Figure 4 As shown, S2 and S3 can be configured to end their TXOPs in advance before the start time of the r-TWT SP, so that S1 can access the channel in time and deliver delay-sensitive services. That is, these STAs (S2 and S3) can truncate the TXOP. Some other STAs (e.g., pre-11be STAs, such as STA S3) can set the network allocation vector (NAV) duration at the beginning of the r-TWT SP based on a silent element of the duration of one time unit (TU), which can be scheduled by the AP in the beacon.

[0056] As noted above, a resolution mismatch may occur between the target wake time (TWT) field and the corresponding time synchronization function (TSF). Figure 5As shown, for r-TWT, the TWT field in the TWT information element (IE) (e.g., for determining the r-TWTSP start time) may be included in the TWT setup frame or announced in the beacon. Figure 5 As shown in the mapping shown, the TWT IE is two octets, where bit 0 of the two octets corresponds to (maps to) bit 10 of the associated TSF value. Therefore, the associated TSF for the TWT is: (1010000) 10 μs=(11110110100101010000) 2 .

[0057] Since bit 0 of the TWT field maps to bit 10 of the associated TSF, the minimum resolution is 1024 microseconds (2 10 ). Therefore, if the TWT wake-up interval is not set to a multiple of 1024μs, when the AP announces the next beacon frame in the TWT element, the TWT wake-up interval will not be able to express a value less than 1024μs corresponding to the TWT start time. Figure 6 As shown, this results in a mismatch between the negotiated r-TWT SP start time and the advertised r-TWT SP start time in the later beacon interval. Figure 6 This example illustrates a mismatch between a TWT wake-up interval and subsequent beacon TWT announcements.

[0058] exist Figure 6 In the example of , the first beacon is sent at a first time (timestamp 1000000 microseconds), which indicates a TWT of 1009664 microseconds and a TWT wake-up interval of 16667 microseconds for a TWT SP with a duration of 4TU. As noted above, it is generally necessary to set the TWT wake-up interval to a multiple of 1024 microseconds to avoid the difference between the negotiated R-TWT SP start time and the announced R-TWT SP start time. Therefore, although subsequent TWTs will ideally be set to 1109666 microseconds to align with the burst of traffic, the closest multiple of 1024 microseconds to this is 11008992 microseconds, resulting in a mismatch between the TWT wake-up interval and the arrival of XR / CG traffic. The r-TWT uses a TWT wake-up interval mantissa consisting of two octets and a TWT wake-up interval index consisting of five bits to define the periodicity (TWT wake-up interval) of the r-TWT SP. The TWT wake-up interval mantissa subfield is two octets and is set to the value of the mantissa of the TWT wake-up interval value in microseconds, base two. The TWT wake-up interval exponent subfield is five bits and is set to the value of the exponent of the TWT wake-up interval value in microseconds, base two. The TWT wake-up interval of the requesting STA is equal to (TWT wake-up interval mantissa) × 2^(TWT wake-up interval exponent).

[0059] As noted above (and Figure 7 As shown in Figure 2), the XR / CG burst arrival rate is usually defined in fps (e.g., 60fps, so that bursts arrive every 16.667ms), which requires a 1μs granularity. However, as explained above, the finest granularity of periodicity that r-TWT can support is one TU (e.g., 1024μs). Figure 7 As shown, this leads to a mismatch between the XR / CG burst arrival and the r-TWT SP. In some cases, the mismatch with the subsequent TWT SP may grow up to several milliseconds, which may impair the latency performance of latency-sensitive services.

[0060] This potential adverse effect is also Figure 8 , which illustrates the mismatch between the XR / CG burst arrival time and the r-TWT SP start time (in terms of r-TWT SP counts) over a period of time. As shown, after a few r-TWT SPs, the mismatch can grow to several milliseconds.

[0061] To help address this issue, aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for synchronizing the arrival times of delay-sensitive traffic bursts with r-TWT SPs at levels below 1024 μs (e.g., up to 0 μs). In some cases, the granularity may be indicated to the station, providing additional flexibility in adapting the TWT-SP start time to the expected traffic arrival times.

[0062] For reference Fig. 9 The example call flow diagram of FIG. 1 is used to understand the techniques presented herein that provide flexibility to specific TWT granularity. Fig. 9 As shown, the STA may obtain signaling from the AP indicating the resolution of the TWT field. The STA may then determine the start time of the TWT SP based on the indicated resolution and take action based on the determined start time of the TWT SP. According to certain aspects, taking action may involve processing data during the TWT service period (e.g., if the STA is indicated and is a member of the r-TWT SP) and / or ending a transmit opportunity (TXOP) before the start time of the TWT SP.

[0063] Certain aspects of the present disclosure allow TWT SP start time to be specified with reduced granularity by redefining TWT field encoding. Certain aspects of the present disclosure also provide techniques for extending the TWT field size to support granularity below 1024 μs. The method described below can also be used for broadcast TWT (e.g., Wi-Fi 6) and coordinated r-TWT frameworks (e.g., Wi-Fi 8) that extend r-TWT from a single basic service (BSS) scenario to multiple BSS scenarios.

[0064] According to certain aspects, new encoding for the target wake time (TWT) field may be defined as follows. The r-TWT scheduling AP may set the TWT field to certain bits of a TSF timer specified by the start (S) bit and the end (E) bit [bit S:bit E], which corresponds to the next TWT scheduled for the TWT parameter set when the frame containing the TWT element is queued for transmission. According to certain aspects, the TSF timer corresponding to the next scheduled TWT may have bits 0 to S-1 set to 0 and bits E+1 to 63 set to the same value as the corresponding bits in the current TSF timer. Thus, S and E may be set to specify the granularity (resolution) with which the TWT field can be used to set a specific TWT SP start time.

[0065] In some aspects, the AP may indicate the type of encoding used with reserved bits in a TWT element or a new broadcast TWT recommended field value. In some aspects, the AP may indicate the type of encoding used with individual elements. For example, the AP may define a new extended TWT element. In some cases, the bit S and E encodings may be signaled dynamically or in a static manner (e.g., using rules based on the specification for a given application).

[0066] According to certain aspects, the TWT field may be extended in the Broadcast TWT Parameter Set field to become greater than two octets (e.g., three to eight octets, where eight octets may match the full TSF time bits 0:63). In this case, an additional octet (or octets) toward the end of the Broadcast TWT Parameter Set field may be used.

[0067] According to certain aspects, the AP and STA may use an 8-octet TWT field (e.g., a full TSF) during negotiation (e.g., in a TWT setup frame), but may use a smaller TWT field (e.g., two or three octets) in beacons to avoid beacon bloat (by using a reduced number of bits). For certain aspects, the TWT field size may be announced per Delivery Traffic Indication Map (DTIM) beacon. In one example, a three-octet TWT field may be indicated, and if the indication is not sent, a two-octet field may be used (default). Alternatively, according to certain aspects, an r-TWT SP announcement frame may be broadcast and include a TWT element, thereby avoiding including such an announcement in a DTIM beacon.

[0068] Fig.10 is a table illustrating one proposed encoding scheme, where the TWT SP start time granularity is determined by selecting bit S and bit E. As shown, setting S to 10 and E to 25 results in a TWT SP start time granularity of 1024 microseconds, which matches the existing granularity.

[0069] As shown, the choice of actual values ​​for S and E may provide a compromise between the closest TWT that can be scheduled and the maximum TWT that can be scheduled in the future.

[0070] like Fig.11 As shown, the enhanced TWT wake-up interval signaling proposed in this article allows the AP to express a granularity lower than 1024μs and thus align service arrival with the TWT SP and avoid the difference between the negotiated and announced r-TWT SP start times or the difference between the same TWT announced by neighboring APs in a coordinated r-TWT framework.

[0071] Similar to Figure 6 The example shown, Fig.11 The example shows that the first beacon is sent at a first time (timestamp 1000000 microseconds), which indicates a TWT of 1009664 microseconds for a TWT SP with a duration of 4TU and a TWT wake-up interval of 16667 microseconds. However, in this case, due to the finer resolution, the TWT wake-up interval can be set to an ideal 1109666 microseconds to align with the subsequent burst of traffic, thereby avoiding causing Figure 6 Mismatch in the example shown.

[0072] According to certain aspects, the AP may signal an accuracy lower than 1024 μs in an extended TWT (or r-TWT) element. This signaling may be done, for example, using a new (eg, newly defined) extended TWT element.

[0073] like Fig.11 As shown, such an element may be announced in a beacon along with a TWT element and may have a field for indicating a precision of less than 1024 μs for a corresponding r-TWT parameter set. The fields of the new element may include, for example, a TWT broadcast identifier (ID) field having a value set to the corresponding TWT parameter set and an extended target wake-up time field indicating a granularity of less than 1024 μs. According to certain aspects, ten bits may be used to indicate a 1 μs granularity and the new field size may be set to two octets.

[0074] The AP may use a reserved bit in a TWT element (e.g., a control field or a TWT parameter set field) to indicate that additional granularity exists in an extended TWT element so that the STA may parse the element and wake up at the expected time or terminate the TXOP before the expected start of the r-TWT SP.

[0075] In the case of coordinated r-TWT, in addition to the corresponding broadcast TWT ID, the AP may use new or existing elements to announce the granularity below 1024 μs caused by the TSF difference relative to other APs so that the STA can correctly adjust the TWT time. Aspects of the present disclosure may also be applied to broadcast TWT inherited by r-TWT and coordinated r-TWT (CR-TWT) as an extension of r-TWT.

[0076] According to certain aspects, for coordinated r-TWT, the AP and STA may signal a TSF offset with less than 1TU precision in an extended (CR-TWT) element.

[0077] Certain aspects may define a new element (e.g., an extended TWT (or r-TWT) element) that is announced in a beacon along with the TWT element and has the following fields with sub-1024 μs precision for indicating a corresponding r-TWT parameter set. For example, one such field may be a TWT Broadcast ID field having a value set to the corresponding TWT parameter set.

[0078] Another example field may include a full TSF offset relative to a neighboring AP and a corresponding Cr-TWT parameter set (using the TWT broadcast ID). For some aspects, this information may be included in an existing element. According to some aspects, a new field (e.g., an extended target wake-up time field) may be used to indicate a granularity lower than 1024 μs. The new field may use ten bits to indicate a 1 μs granularity. For some aspects, the size of the new field may be set to two octets. In some aspects, the new field may include an entire TWT field with a granularity lower than 1024 μs.

[0079] According to certain aspects, the associated AP may announce the corrected TWT of the r-TWT SP belonging to the friendly AP in the beacon so that the STAs within the BSS will end the TXOP before the r-TWT SP of the AP starts. According to certain other aspects, the associated AP may announce the same TWT of the r-TWT SP belonging to the friendly AP in the beacon so that the STAs within the BSS correct the start time by relying on additional information (e.g., a full or partial TSF offset with a granularity lower than 1024μs).

[0080] Example operation of the station

[0081] Fig.12 It is shown that at a station such as Figure 1 and Figure 2 Method 1200 for performing wireless communications at STA 120 of .

[0082] Method 1200 begins at step 1205: obtaining signaling indicating the resolution of the TWT field. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be performed by reference to Fig.14 The described circuits for obtaining and / or codes for obtaining are performed.

[0083] Then, method 1200 proceeds to step 1210: determining the start time of the TWT SP based on the indicated resolution. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be referred to as Fig.14 The described circuits for determining and / or codes for determining are performed.

[0084] Then, the method 1200 proceeds to step 1215: taking action based on the determined start time of the TWT SP. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be referred to as Fig.14 The described circuits for taking and / or codes for taking are performed.

[0085] In some aspects, taking action includes processing data during a TWT service period.

[0086] In some aspects, taking action includes ending the TXOP before the start time of the TWT SP.

[0087] In some aspects, the resolution is indicated in one or more fields in the TWT setup frame.

[0088] In some aspects, the signaling also indicates the type of encoding used for the TWT field.

[0089] In some aspects, the type of encoding used is indicated via a bit in a TWT field, a certain value of a field of a TWT element, or a separate IE.

[0090] In some aspects, the signaling further indicates a start bit and an end bit; and determining the start time of the TWT SP includes determining which bits of the TWT field map to bits of the TSF timer based on the start bit and the end bit.

[0091] In some aspects, the method 1200 includes determining the start bit and the end bit based on at least one of: dynamic signaling or a rule. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be performed by reference to Fig.14 The described circuits for determining and / or codes for determining are performed.

[0092] In some aspects, the start bit and the end bit are determined based on an application associated with the station.

[0093] In some aspects, the signaling includes an extended TWT field.

[0094] In some aspects, the resolution is indicated by an extended TWT field, and wherein the extended TWT field further indicates the resolution as less than 1024 microseconds.

[0095] In some aspects, the method 1200 also includes detecting the presence of an extended TWT field based on one or more bits in the TWT element. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be performed by reference to Fig.14 The described circuits for detection and / or codes for detection are implemented.

[0096] In some aspects, the signaling includes a broadcast TWT ID indicating the TWT parameter set to which the resolution applies.

[0097] In some aspects, the signaling includes a TSF offset relative to one or more neighboring APs, the TSF offset indicating the resolution.

[0098] In one aspect, method 1200 or any aspect related thereto may be performed by an apparatus such as Fig.14 The method 1200 is performed by a communication device 1400, which includes various components operable to, configured to, or suitable for performing the method 1200. The communication device 1400 is described in more detail below.

[0099] It should be noted that Fig.12 This is merely one example of a method, and other methods including fewer, additional, or alternative steps may also be consistent with the present disclosure.

[0100] Example Operation of Access Point

[0101] Fig.13 It shows that at the AP such as Figure 1 and Figure 2 Method 1300 for performing wireless communications at AP 110.

[0102] Method 1300 begins at step 1305: outputting signaling indicating the resolution of the TWT field for transmission. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be referred to as Fig.15 The described circuit for output and / or code for output are executed.

[0103] Then, method 1300 proceeds to step 1310: determining the start time of the TWT SP based on the indicated resolution. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be performed by reference to Fig.15 The described circuits for determining and / or codes for determining are performed.

[0104] In some aspects, the resolution is indicated in one or more fields in the TWT setup frame.

[0105] In some aspects, the signaling also indicates the type of encoding used for the TWT field.

[0106] In some aspects, the type of encoding used is indicated via a bit in a TWT field, a certain value of a field of a TWT element, or a separate IE.

[0107] In some aspects, the method 1300 further includes outputting dynamic signaling indicating the start bit and the end bit for transmission. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be performed by reference to Fig.15 The described circuit for output and / or code for output are executed.

[0108] In some aspects, the start bit and the end bit are determined based on an application associated with the station.

[0109] In some aspects, the signaling further indicates a start bit and an end bit; and determining the start time of the TWT SP includes determining which bits of the TWT field map to bits of the TSF timer based on the start bit and the end bit.

[0110] In some aspects, the signaling includes an extended TWT field.

[0111] In some aspects, the resolution is indicated by an extended TWT field, and wherein the extended TWT field further indicates the resolution as less than 1024 microseconds.

[0112] In some aspects, the method 1300 also includes indicating the presence of an extended TWT field based on one or more bits in the TWT element. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to or can be performed by reference to Fig.15 The described circuits for indicating and / or codes for indicating are executed.

[0113] In some aspects, the signaling includes a broadcast TWT ID indicating the TWT parameter set to which the resolution applies.

[0114] In some aspects, the signaling includes a TSF offset relative to one or more neighboring APs, the TSF offset indicating the resolution.

[0115] In one aspect, method 1300 or any aspect related thereto may be performed by an apparatus such as Fig.15 The method 1300 is performed by a communication device 1500, which includes various components operable to, configured to, or adapted to perform the method 1300. The communication device 1500 is described in more detail below.

[0116] It should be noted that Fig.13 This is merely one example of a method, and other methods including fewer, additional, or alternative steps may also be consistent with the present disclosure.

[0117] Example Communication Device

[0118] Fig.14 Depicted are aspects of an example communications device 1400. In some aspects, communications device 1400 is a station, such as described above with respect to Figure 1 and Figure 2 STA 120 is described.

[0119] The communication device 1400 includes a processing system 1405 coupled to a transceiver 1465 (e.g., a transmitter and / or a receiver). The transceiver 1465 is configured to transmit and receive signals for the communication device 1400, such as the various signals described herein, via an antenna 1470. The transceiver 1465 may be a reference Figure 2 Examples of aspects of the described transceiver 254. The processing system 1405 may be configured to perform processing functions for the communication device 1400, including processing signals received by the communication device 1400 and / or to be transmitted.

[0120] The processing system 1405 includes one or more processors 1410. In various aspects, the one or more processors 1410 may represent Figure 2 One or more of the RX data processor 270, TX data processor 288, TX spatial processor 290, or controller 280 of the STA 120 shown. The one or more processors 1410 are coupled to the computer-readable medium / memory 1435 via the bus 1460. In some aspects, the computer-readable medium / memory 1435 is configured to store instructions (e.g., computer-executable code) that, when executed by the one or more processors 1410, cause the one or more processors 1410 to perform operations related to the processing of the computer-readable medium / memory 1435. Fig.12 The method 1200 described herein or any aspect related thereto. Note that references to a processor performing a function of the communication device 1400 may include one or more processors 1410 performing that function of the communication device 1400 .

[0121] In the depicted example, the computer readable medium / memory 1435 stores code (e.g., executable instructions) such as code 1440 for obtaining, code 1445 for determining, code 1450 for taking, and code 1455 for detecting. Processing of the code 1440 for obtaining, the code 1445 for determining, the code 1450 for taking, and the code 1455 for detecting may cause the communication device 1400 to perform operations related to Fig.12 The described method 1200 or any aspect related thereto.

[0122] The one or more processors 1410 include circuits configured to implement (e.g., execute) code stored in the computer-readable medium / memory 1435, including circuits such as circuits for obtaining 1415, circuits for determining 1420, circuits for taking 1425, and circuits for detecting 1430. Processing using the circuits for obtaining 1415, circuits for determining 1420, circuits for taking 1425, and circuits for detecting 1430 may cause the communication device 1400 to perform operations related to Fig.12 The described method 1200 or any aspect related thereto.

[0123] The various components of the communication device 1400 may provide for performing Fig.12 The components of the method 1200 described herein or any aspect thereof. For example, the components for sending, transmitting, or outputting for sending may include Figure 2 The transmitter unit 254 or antenna 252 of the STA 120 is shown, and / or Fig.14 The transceiver 1465 and antenna 1470 of the communication device 1400 in FIG. 1465 may include Figure 2 The receiver unit 254 or antenna 252 of the STA 120 is shown, and / or Fig.14 The transceiver 1465 and antenna 1470 of the communication device 1400.

[0124] Fig.15 Depicted are aspects of an example communications device 1500. In some aspects, the communications device 1500 is an AP, such as described above with respect to Figure 1 and Figure 2 The AP 110.

[0125] The communication device 1500 includes a processing system 1505 coupled to a transceiver 1555 (e.g., a transmitter and / or a receiver). The transceiver 1555 is configured to transmit and receive signals for the communication device 1500, such as the various signals described herein, via an antenna 1560. The transceiver 1555 may be a reference Figure 2 Examples of aspects of the described transceiver 254. The processing system 1505 may be configured to perform processing functions for the communication device 1500, including processing signals received by the communication device 1500 and / or to be transmitted.

[0126] The processing system 1505 includes one or more processors 1510. In various aspects, the one or more processors 1510 may represent Figure 21500, one or more of the RX data processor 242, TX data processor 210, TX spatial processor 220, or controller 230 of the AP 110 shown. The one or more processors 1510 are coupled to the computer readable medium / memory 1530 via the bus 1550. In some aspects, the computer readable medium / memory 1530 is configured to store instructions (e.g., computer executable code) that, when executed by the one or more processors 1510, cause the one or more processors 1510 to perform operations related to the processing of the data. Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect related thereto. Note that references to a processor performing a function of the communication device 1500 may include one or more processors 1510 performing that function of the communication device 1500 .

[0127] In the depicted example, computer readable medium / memory 1530 stores code (e.g., executable instructions) such as code for outputting 1535, code for determining 1540, and code for indicating 1545. Processing of code for outputting 1535, code for determining 1540, and code for indicating 1545 may cause communication device 1500 to perform operations related to Fig.13 The described method 1300 or any aspect related thereto.

[0128] The one or more processors 1510 include circuits configured to implement (e.g., execute) code stored in the computer-readable medium / memory 1530, including circuits such as circuits for outputting 1515, circuits for determining 1520, and circuits for indicating 1525. Processing using the circuits for outputting 1515, circuits for determining 1520, and circuits for indicating 1525 may cause the communication device 1500 to perform operations related to Fig.13 The described method 1300 or any aspect related thereto.

[0129] The various components of the communication device 1500 may provide for performing Fig.13 The components of the method 1300 described herein or any aspect thereof. For example, the components for sending, transmitting, or outputting for sending may include Figure 2 The transmitter unit 222 or antenna 224 of the AP 110 is shown, and / or Fig.15 The transceiver 1555 and antenna 1560 of the communication device 1500 in FIG. 1 may include Figure 2 The receiver unit 222 or antenna 224 of the AP 110 is shown, and / or Fig.15 The transceiver 1555 and antenna 1560 of the communication device 1500 in FIG. Components for communication may include Figure 2The transmitter / receiver unit 222 or antenna 224 of the AP 110 is shown, and / or Fig.15 The transceiver 1555 and antenna 1560 of the communication device 1500 in FIG. The means for determining, the means for taking action, and the means for detecting may include Figure 2 One or more of the processors shown.

[0130] Sample Clauses

[0131] Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0132] Clause 1: A method of wireless communication at a station, comprising: obtaining signaling indicating a resolution of a TWT field; determining a start time of a TWT SP based on the indicated resolution; and taking an action based on the determined start time of the TWT SP.

[0133] Clause 2: The method of clause 1, wherein taking action comprises processing data during the TWT service period.

[0134] Clause 3: The method of any of clauses 1 and 2, wherein taking action comprises ending a TXOP before the start time of the TWT SP.

[0135] Clause 4: A method as described in any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein the resolution is indicated in one or more fields in a TWT setup frame.

[0136] Clause 5: A method according to any one of clauses 1 to 4, wherein the signalling further indicates a type of encoding used for the TWT field.

[0137] Clause 6: A method as described in clause 5, wherein the type of encoding used is indicated via a bit in the TWT field, a certain value of a field of a TWT element, or a separate IE.

[0138] Clause 7: A method according to any one of clauses 1 to 6, wherein: the signaling also indicates a start bit and an end bit; and determining the start time of the TWT SP includes determining which bits of the TWT field are mapped to bits of the TSF timer based on the start bit and the end bit.

[0139] Clause 8: The method of clause 7, further comprising: determining the start bit and the end bit based on at least one of dynamic signaling or a rule.

[0140] Clause 9: The method of clause 7, wherein the start bit and the end bit are determined based on an application associated with the station.

[0141] Clause 10: A method as described in any of clauses 1 to 9, wherein the signaling includes an extended TWT field.

[0142] Clause 11: The method of clause 10, wherein the resolution is indicated by the extended TWT field, and wherein the extended TWT field further indicates the resolution as less than 1024 microseconds.

[0143] Clause 12: The method of clause 11, further comprising: detecting the presence of the extended TWT field based on one or more bits in a TWT element.

[0144] Clause 13: A method as described in any of clauses 1 to 12, wherein the signaling includes a broadcast TWT ID indicating a TWT parameter set to which the resolution applies.

[0145] Clause 14: A method as described in any of clauses 1 to 13, wherein the signaling includes a TSF offset for one or more neighboring APs, the TSF offset indicating the resolution.

[0146] Clause 15: A method of wireless communication at an AP, comprising: outputting signaling for transmission indicating a resolution of a TWT field; and determining a start time of a TWT SP based on the indicated resolution.

[0147] Clause 16: The method of clause 15, wherein the resolution is indicated in one or more fields in a TWT setup frame.

[0148] Clause 17: A method according to any of clauses 15 and 16, wherein the signalling further indicates a type of encoding used for the TWT field.

[0149] Clause 18: A method as described in clause 17, wherein the type of encoding used is indicated via a bit in the TWT field, a certain value of a field of a TWT element, or a separate IE.

[0150] Clause 19: The method of clause 18, further comprising: outputting dynamic signaling indicating the start bit and the end bit for transmission.

[0151] Clause 20: The method of clause 18, wherein the start bit and the end bit are determined based on an application associated with the station.

[0152] Clause 21: A method according to any one of clauses 15 to 20, wherein: the signaling also indicates a start bit and an end bit; and determining the start time of the TWT SP includes determining which bits of the TWT field are mapped to bits of the TSF timer based on the start bit and the end bit.

[0153] Clause 22: A method as described in any of clauses 15 to 21, wherein the signaling includes an extended TWT field.

[0154] Clause 23: The method of clause 22, wherein the resolution is indicated by the extended TWT field, and wherein the extended TWT field further indicates the resolution as less than 1024 microseconds.

[0155] Clause 24: The method according to clause 23 further includes: indicating the presence of the extended TWT field based on one or more bits in the TWT element.

[0156] Clause 25: A method as described in any of clauses 15 to 24, wherein the signaling includes a broadcast TWT ID indicating a TWT parameter set to which the resolution applies.

[0157] Clause 26: A method as described in any of clauses 15 to 25, wherein the signaling includes a TSF offset for one or more neighboring APs, the TSF offset indicating the resolution.

[0158] Clause 27: An apparatus comprising: a memory containing executable instructions; and a processor configured to execute the executable instructions and cause the apparatus to perform the method of any one of clauses 1 to 26.

[0159] Clause 28: An apparatus comprising means for performing the method according to any one of clauses 1 to 26.

[0160] Clause 29: A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising executable instructions which, when executed by a processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform the method of any one of clauses 1 to 26.

[0161] Clause 30: A computer program product embodied on a computer readable storage medium, the computer readable storage medium comprising code for performing the method according to any one of clauses 1 to 26.

[0162] Clause 31: A station comprising: at least one transceiver; a memory containing instructions; and one or more processors, the one or more processors configured to execute the instructions and cause the station to perform a method according to any one of clauses 1 to 14, wherein the at least one transceiver is configured to receive the signaling.

[0163] Clause 32: An access point comprising: at least one transceiver; a memory containing instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the instructions and cause the access point to perform a method according to any one of clauses 15 to 26, wherein the at least one transceiver is configured to send the signaling.

[0164] Additional considerations

[0165] The foregoing description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. The examples discussed herein do not limit the scope, applicability, or aspects set forth in the claims. Various modifications to these aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the functions and arrangements of the elements discussed may be changed. Various examples may omit, replace, or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For example, the described methods may be performed in a different order than the described order, and various actions may be added, omitted, or combined. In addition, the features described for some examples may be combined in some other examples. For example, any number of aspects set forth herein may be used to implement a device or practice method. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such devices or methods practiced using other structures, functionality, or structures and functionality other than the various aspects of the present disclosure set forth herein or different from the various aspects of the present disclosure set forth herein. It should be understood that any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or more elements of the claims.

[0166] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the present disclosure may be implemented or performed using a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof, designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any commercially available processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, a system on a chip (SoC), or any other such configuration.

[0167] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one of" a list of items refers to any combination of those items (including single members). As an example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, and abc, as well as any combination with multiple identical elements (e.g., aa, aaa, aab, aac, abb, acc, bb, bbb, bbc, cc, and ccc, or any other ordering of a, b, and c).

[0168] As used herein, the term "determining" encompasses a wide variety of actions. For example, "determining" may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, searching (e.g., searching in a table, a database, or another data structure), ascertaining, and the like. Additionally, "determining" may include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), and the like. Additionally, "determining" may include resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, and the like.

[0169] As used herein, the term "communication" broadly encompasses a variety of signaling between devices. Communication may include one or both of receiving (or obtaining) or sending (outputting for sending).

[0170] The method disclosed herein includes one or more actions for implementing the method. The method actions may be interchangeable with each other without departing from the scope of the claims. In other words, unless a specific order of actions is specified, the order and / or use of specific actions may be modified without departing from the scope of the claims. In addition, the various operations of the method described above may be performed by any suitable component capable of performing the corresponding function. The component may include various hardware and / or software components and / or modules, including but not limited to circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) or processors.

[0171] The following claims are not intended to be limited to the various aspects shown herein, but should be given the full scope consistent with the language of the claims. Within the claims, unless explicitly stated, reference to an element in the singular form is not intended to mean "one and only one", but "one or more". Unless otherwise specified, the term "some" refers to one or more. Any claim element is not interpreted according to the provisions of 35 U.SC § 112 (f) unless the element is explicitly stated using the phrase "parts for...". All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described throughout the present disclosure that are known or will be known later to a person of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. In addition, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly stated in the claims.

Claims

1. A device, comprising: a memory containing processor-executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the processor-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: Obtaining signaling indicating a resolution of a target wake time (TWT) field; determining a start time of a TWT service period (SP) based on the indicated resolution; and An action is taken based on the determined start time of the TWT SP.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein taking action includes processing data during the TWT service period.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein taking action comprises ending a transmit opportunity (TXOP) before the start time of the TWT SP.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the resolution is indicated in one or more fields in a TWT setup frame.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the signaling also indicates the type of encoding used for the TWT field.

6. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the type of encoding used is indicated via a bit in the TWT field, a certain value of a field of a TWT element, or a separate information element (IE).

7. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The signaling also indicates a start bit and an end bit; and Determining the start time of the TWT SP includes determining which bits of a TWT field map to bits of a timing and synchronization function (TSF) timer based on the start bit and the end bit.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, one or more processors configured to execute the processor-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: determine the start bit and the end bit based on at least one of dynamic signaling or a rule.

9. The device of claim 7, wherein the start bit and the end bit are determined based on an application associated with the device.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein the signaling includes an extended TWT field.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signaling comprises a broadcast TWT ID indicating a TWT parameter set to which the resolution applies.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the resolution is indicated by the extended TWT field, and wherein the extended TWT field further indicates the resolution as less than 1024 microseconds.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the processor-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: detect the presence of the extended TWT field based on one or more bits in a TWT element.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signaling includes a timing and synchronization function (TSF) offset with respect to one or more neighboring APs, the TSF offset indicating the resolution.

15. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: At least one transceiver is configured to receive the signaling, wherein the apparatus is configured as a station.

16. A device, comprising: a memory containing processor-executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the processor-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: outputting signaling indicating a resolution of a target wake time (TWT) field for transmission; and determining a start time of a TWT service period (SP) based on the indicated resolution; as well as Communicate with one or more stations during the TWT SP according to the determined start time.

17. An apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the resolution is indicated in one or more fields in a TWT setup frame.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the signaling further indicates a type of encoding used for the TWT field.

19. An apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the type of encoding used is indicated via a bit in the TWT field, a certain value of a field of a TWT element, or a separate information element (IE).

20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein: The signaling also indicates a start bit and an end bit; and Determining the start time of the TWT SP includes determining which bits of a TWT field map to bits of a timing and synchronization function (TSF) timer based on the start bit and the end bit.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute the processor-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: output dynamic signaling indicating the start bit and the end bit for transmission.

22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the start bit and the end bit are determined based on an application associated with the station.

23. The device of claim 16, wherein the signaling includes an extended TWT field.

24. The device of claim 16, wherein the signaling includes a broadcast TWT ID indicating a TWT parameter set to which the resolution applies.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the resolution is indicated by the extended TWT field, and wherein the extended TWT field further indicates the resolution as less than 1024 microseconds.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the processor-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: indicate the presence of the extended TWT field based on one or more bits in a TWT element.

27. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the signaling includes a timing and synchronization function (TSF) offset with respect to one or more neighboring access points (APs), the TSF offset indicating the resolution.

28. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising: At least one transceiver is configured to transmit the signaling, wherein the apparatus is configured as an access point.

29. A method of wireless communication at a station, the method comprising: Obtaining signaling indicating a resolution of a target wake time (TWT) field; determining a start time of a TWT service period (SP) based on the indicated resolution; as well as An action is taken based on the determined start time of the TWT SP.

30. A method for wireless communication at an access point (AP), the method comprising: outputting signaling indicating a resolution of a target wake time (TWT) field for transmission; determining a start time of a TWT service period (SP) based on the indicated resolution; as well as Communicate with one or more stations during the TWT SP according to the determined start time.

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