Data transmission method and device and storage medium

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a data transmission method and device and a storage medium, relates to the technical field of communication, and can realize directional allocation of channel resources to APs in a multi-AP cooperative group. The method comprises the following steps: receiving a first frame sent by a second AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP collaboration group; the first frame comprises a group member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP collaboration group; the first frame is used for allocating target channel resources to the first AP based on the group member identifier; and performing data transmission on the target channel resource. The present disclosure may be used in fiber to the room (FTTR) scenarios. According to the FTTR technology, wireless router APs in different rooms or positions in scenes such as families or small and medium-sized enterprises are connected through optical fibers, so that high-bandwidth and high-reliability connection of networking among multiple APs is provided, and connection between a master control AP and slave APs can be achieved through a point-to-multipoint optical distribution network.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a data transmission method, device and storage medium. Background Art

[0002] The basic principle of multi-AP collaboration is that after an AP (such as a sharing AP) obtains channel access rights, it allocates the acquired sub-channel resources to itself and other APs around it that belong to the same channel (such as shared APs), and the shared APs transmit data on the allocated channel resources.

[0003] However, in the existing standards, when sharing APs allocate channel resources, different APs may compete for channel resources, resulting in conflicts. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a data transmission method, device, and storage medium, which can realize directional allocation of channel resources to APs in a multi-AP cooperation group.

[0005] In one aspect, a data transmission method is provided, which is applied to a first AP and includes:

[0006] receiving a first frame sent by a second AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame is used to allocate a target channel resource to the first AP based on the member identifier;

[0007] Data transmission is performed on the target channel resource.

[0008] In another aspect, a data transmission method is provided, which is applied to a second AP, comprising:

[0009] A first frame is sent to a first AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame is used to allocate a target channel resource to the first AP based on the member identifier.

[0010] On the other hand, a communication device is provided, including: a receiving module and a transmitting module.

[0011] The receiving module is used to receive a first frame sent by a second AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame is used to allocate a target channel resource to the first AP based on the member identifier;

[0012] The transmission is used to transmit data on the target channel resources.

[0013] On the other hand, a communication device is provided, including: a sending module.

[0014] The sending module is used to send a first frame to the first AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame is used to allocate target channel resources to the first AP based on the member identifier.

[0015] On the other hand, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, on which computer program instructions are stored. When the computer program instructions are executed by a processor, the data transmission method described in any of the above embodiments is implemented.

[0016] On the other hand, a computer program product is provided, which includes computer program instructions, and when the computer program instructions are executed by a processor, the data transmission method described in any of the above embodiments is implemented.

[0017] The disclosed embodiment provides a data transmission method, in which a first AP can receive a first frame sent by a second AP in the same multi-AP cooperation group, and perform data transmission on a target channel resource indicated by a member identifier in the first frame. That is, the first AP corresponds to a member identifier in the multi-AP cooperation group, so that when allocating channel resources, the first AP can determine its corresponding target channel resource based on the member identifier. This ensures that each AP in the multi-AP cooperation can communicate on its corresponding channel resource, avoiding channel occupancy conflicts. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the present disclosure, the drawings required for use in some embodiments of the present disclosure will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only drawings of some embodiments of the present disclosure, and a person skilled in the art can also obtain other drawings based on these drawings.

[0019] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a format of a TIM field provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0020] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of resource allocation of a C-OFDMA technology provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0021] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of allocating resources to different APs provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0022] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a network architecture provided for some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0023] Figure 5 A flowchart of a data transmission method provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0024] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of an AP belonging to multiple groups provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0025] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of interaction in a joining situation provided for some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0026] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of interaction in an exit situation provided for some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0027] Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of interaction in another exit situation provided for some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0028] Fig.10 A schematic diagram of a network discovery provided for some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0029] Fig.11 A schematic diagram of another network discovery provided for some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0030] Fig.12 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0031] Fig.13 A schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0032] Fig.14 A schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] The following will be combined with the drawings in the present disclosure to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0034] It should be noted that, in the present disclosure, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the present disclosure should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a specific way.

[0035] In the following, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features.

[0036] In the description of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, " / " means "or", for example, A / B can mean A or B. "And / or" in this article is only a description of the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships, for example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. In addition, "at least one" means one or more, and "a plurality" means two or more.

[0037] To facilitate understanding of the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, a brief introduction to the related technologies of the present disclosure is first given. The brief introduction is as follows:

[0038] IEEE 802.11 Architecture:

[0039] The IEEE 802.11 architecture may include components such as a basic service set (BSS), a distribution system (DS), and a distribution system medium (DSM). These components interact to provide a wireless local area network (WLAN), which can provide wireless access services for stations (STA) in the BSS. Among them, the DS can provide connection services for the BSS, for example, it can connect different BSSs; for example, the DS can transmit data frames in the BSS to other networks, so that the STA can access the upper network (such as the core network or the Internet) through the DS. Furthermore, the transmission medium used by the DS, that is, the DSM, can be a wired medium and / or a wireless medium. For example, the wired medium can be an optical fiber or a cable, and the wireless medium can be a radio electromagnetic wave.

[0040] Further, the specification of information transmission in the wired medium may be the specification specified by the IEEE 802.3 protocol, the specification specified by the passive optical network (PON) related protocol, or the specification specified by other protocols related to wired transmission, and the embodiments of the present disclosure do not specifically limit this. It can be understood that the information transmitted in the wired medium below, unless otherwise specified, can follow the relevant protocols described above, which are uniformly explained here and will not be repeated below.

[0041] BSS:

[0042] BSS is the basic component unit (or block) in WLAN. Among them, BSS can include multiple members, and multiple members can be connected to each other through wireless media. Members in BSS can be divided into the above-mentioned AP and STA (or non-AP STA). Specifically, AP can refer to an entity that includes STA functions and distribution system access function (DSAF) functions.

[0043] Association identifier (AID):

[0044] The 16-bit identifier assigned by the AP to the associated STA can be used as the identity of the STA in the BSS. In the BSS, the AID field contains a 16-bit value specified by the AP during the connection process, which can uniquely identify the information of a connected STA.

[0045] AID is widely used in functions such as channel status (sounding) collection, trigger frame (TF) allocation of channel resources and unicast buffer indication. Taking the trigger frame and unicast buffer indication functions as examples, they are described as follows:

[0046] (1) Trigger frame: When a STA connects to an AP, the AP uses 12-bit AID information (AID12 for short) to identify each STA. In the trigger frame, the AP uses AID12 to identify the channel resources allocated to each STA.

[0047] (2) Unicast Buffer Indication: In the beacon frame sent by the AP containing the traffic indication message (TIM) field, the AP uses the AID information to indicate the buffer status of each STA. The format of the TIM field is as follows: Figure 1As shown. Among them, Element ID is the identifier of the TIM field, and Length is the length of the field. DTIM Count indicates the count of beacon frames before the delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) appears in this field. When DTIM is 0, it indicates that the TIM is DTIM. When DTIM is other values, it indicates that the field is TIM. DTIM Period indicates the frequency of appearance of this field (an integer multiple of the beacon frame period). Bitmap Control contains the control information of AID. The length of Partial Virtual Bitmap is 0-251 bytes. Each bit indicates whether there is a corresponding STA unicast data cache information. When the bit is 1, it indicates cache information. When the bit is 0, there is no cache. The maximum cache information indicated is 2007 STAs.

[0048] In Multi-AP technologies, such as coordination orthogonalfrequency-division multiple access (C-OFDMA), coordination spatialreuse (C-SR), coordination time division multiple address (C-TDMA), etc., the basic principle is to allocate the channel resources obtained by the sharing AP to other shared APs, and the shared APs with allocated channels communicate on their corresponding channel resources. Among them, the channel resources can be frequency domain resources, time domain resources, and spatial domain resources.

[0049] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of resource allocation for a C-OFDMA technology provided by the present disclosure. Figure 2 As shown, AP1 is a sharing AP, and different channel resources are allocated to AP2 and AP3 (shared AP) through a trigger frame (TF), where the channel resources can be expressed as resource units (RU), such as AP1 corresponding to RU1, AP2 corresponding to RU2, and AP3 corresponding to RU3. After a certain time interval, AP1, AP2, and AP3 transmit presentation protocol data unit (PPDU) data packets on their corresponding RUs.

[0050] In addition, since different APs are in a peer-to-peer relationship, each AP can be used as a sharing AP and a shared AP, that is, each AP can compete for channel resources and then send a trigger frame to allocate channel resources to other APs. Figure 3 As shown in the figure, in the T1 time period, AP1 obtains channel resources and, as a sharing AP, allocates frequency domain resources to AP1, AP2, and AP3, and then the three APs use C-OFDMA technology to transmit data simultaneously. In the T2 time period, AP3 obtains channel resources and, as a sharing AP, allocates frequency domain resources to AP1 and AP2, and then AP1 and AP3 use C-SR technology to transmit data simultaneously.

[0051] Traditional OFDMA technology is applicable to single BSS scenarios, where the AP allocates different channel resources to associated STAs, and then the STAs can perform uplink and downlink data communications on the allocated corresponding channel resources. During the channel resource allocation process, the AP can identify different STAs by AID.

[0052] For the scenario of multi-AP collaboration, the existing standard lacks information similar to the AID identifier to indicate the object of resource allocation. Therefore, when the sharing AP allocates channel resources, it cannot accurately allocate resources to a shared AP. Different APs may compete for channel resources, resulting in conflicts.

[0053] Based on this, the embodiment of the present disclosure provides a data transmission method, in which the first AP can receive the first frame sent by the second AP in the same multi-AP cooperation group, and transmit data on the target channel resource indicated by the member identifier in the first frame. That is, the first AP corresponds to a member identifier in the multi-AP cooperation group, so that when allocating channel resources, the first AP can determine its corresponding target channel resource based on the member identifier. In this way, it can be ensured that each AP in the multi-AP cooperation can communicate on its corresponding channel resource to avoid channel occupancy conflicts.

[0054] See also Figure 4 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture involved in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4 As shown, the network architecture includes: a first AP, a second AP, a management AP (master AP) and a station (STA).

[0055] Among them, the AP can be a device with a WLAN chip or a WLAN system on a chip (SoC) chip. For example, the AP can be a device with a DSAF function in the above-mentioned related devices for introducing STA, such as the above-mentioned mobile phone that can access the core network, or the above-mentioned computer that can access the Internet. For another example, the AP can be a communication entity such as a communication server, a router, a switch, a bridge, or the AP can include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, etc. Of course, the AP can also be a chip and processing system in these various forms of devices, and the embodiments of the present disclosure do not specifically limit this.

[0056] STA can refer to a terminal device with wireless communication function and can access the WLAN network. The terminal device can be a device with wireless transceiver function, which can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld, wearable or vehicle-mounted; it can also be deployed on the water surface (such as ships, etc.); it can also be deployed in the air (such as airplanes, balloons and satellites, etc.). The terminal device can be a workstation, a mobile phone, a tablet computer (Pad), a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a vehicle-mounted terminal device, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical, a wireless terminal in smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in smart city, a wireless terminal in smart home, a wearable terminal device, or an Internet of Things (IoT) terminal, etc.

[0057] In some embodiments, the management AP is the central control device of the multi-AP cooperation group, and the second AP is the sharing AP in the multi-AP cooperation group. The management AP has a specific identifier and can broadcast beacon frames to inform its existence. APs within the signal coverage of the management AP can request the management AP to join the multi-AP cooperation group. When the first AP joins the multi-AP cooperation group, it can obtain the channel resources allocated by the second AP in the multi-AP cooperation group as a shared AP.

[0058] In some embodiments, the second AP and the management AP may be the same AP or different APs. The figure shows that the second AP and the management AP are different APs.

[0059] In some embodiments, the management AP, the first AP and the second AP may be non-MLD APs or AP MLDs.

[0060] It should be noted that the network architecture and application scenarios described in the embodiments of the present disclosure are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure. Ordinary technicians in this field can know that with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0061] Figure 5 The flowchart of a data transmission method provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure is shown in FIG. Figure 4 In the network architecture shown, it can be applied to Figure 4 In the first AP.

[0062] like Figure 5 As shown, the data transmission method provided by the present disclosure may specifically include the following steps:

[0063] S501. The second AP sends a first frame to the first AP. Correspondingly, the first AP receives the first frame sent by the second AP.

[0064] The second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group, the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group, and the first frame is used to allocate target channel resources to the first AP based on the member identifier.

[0065] S502: The first AP performs data transmission on the target channel resources.

[0066] For the above S501-S502, after the second AP obtains the channel resource access right, it can allocate channel resources according to the members in the multi-AP collaboration group. And it can send the allocation information of channel resources to the surrounding APs by broadcasting the first frame. Different channel resources correspond to different member identifiers. The first AP that receives the first frame can determine the target channel resource according to its own member identifier, and then transmit data with the devices in its own BSS on the target channel resource.

[0067] In some embodiments, the first frame is a trigger frame, or other control frame or management frame with scheduling management function.

[0068] In some embodiments, the group member identifier is an identifier assigned to the first AP by a management AP in the multi-AP assistance group, or is a unique identifier of the first AP.

[0069] The unique identifier may be a basic service set identifier (BSSID), a service set identifier (SSID), a multi-link device media access control address (MLD MAC address), etc. Alternatively, the unique identifier may be part of a BSSID, part of an MLD MAC address, or a combination and derivation of the above information. The embodiments of the present disclosure do not limit the specific content of the unique identifier.

[0070] It should be noted that in some scenarios, the first AP may belong to multiple multi-AP cooperation groups. Figure 6 As shown, the first AP belongs not only to group 1 but also to group 2. Therefore, the first AP can not only receive the first frame for channel resource allocation sent by the sharing AP (second AP) in group 1, but also receive the first frame for channel resource allocation sent by the sharing AP (third AP) in group 2.

[0071] In the case where the member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP, the first frame includes not only the member identifier of the first AP, but also the information of the multi-AP cooperation group. Since the member identifiers assigned to the first AP in different groups may be inconsistent, the first AP can distinguish which multi-AP cooperation group allocates the target channel resources specified in the first frame according to the information of the multi-AP cooperation group. That is, the first AP can communicate within the BSS on the target channel resources specified by group 1, and can also communicate within the BSS on the target channel resources specified by group 2.

[0072] It should be understood that, in the case where the member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP, the member identifier of the first AP in group 1 may be consistent with or inconsistent with the member identifier of the first AP in group 2. The target channel resources specified by group 1 may be the same as or different from the target channel resources specified by group 2, and the embodiments of the present disclosure do not specifically limit this.

[0073] In the case where the member identifier is a unique identifier, since the unique identifier is globally unique, the above-mentioned first frame may not include the information of the multi-AP cooperative group, and the first AP may also transmit data on the target channel resources allocated in the first frame, which can effectively reduce the overhead during information transmission. In addition, for the first AP, when the number of multi-AP cooperative groups joined by the first AP is large, the AP does not need to maintain the relevant information of multiple groups and the corresponding member identifiers, and only needs to save the globally unique member identifier, which can effectively reduce the space resource occupation of the first AP.

[0074] In some scenarios, if the first AP does not belong to the multi-AP assistance group, the first AP can request to join the multi-AP assistance group to facilitate subsequent allocation of channel resources. The following takes the second AP and the management AP as the same AP as an example, combined with the drawings and specific embodiments of the specification for description.

[0075] Figure 7 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an interaction in a joining situation provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 7 As shown:

[0076] S701: A first AP sends a second frame to a management AP (a second AP) in a multi-AP assistance group; correspondingly, the second AP (the management AP) receives the second frame sent by the first AP.

[0077] The second frame is used to request to join a multi-AP cooperation group.

[0078] S702: The second AP sends a response frame to the second frame to the first AP; correspondingly, the first AP receives the response frame sent by the second AP.

[0079] For the above S701 and S702, as mentioned above, the management AP is the central control device of the multi-AP cooperation group, and the management AP can broadcast beacon frames to the surrounding area, and the beacon frames carry information about the multi-AP cooperation group. The first AP can learn about the existence of the multi-AP cooperation group through the beacon frames broadcast by the management AP. Then, the first AP can send a second frame requesting to join to the management AP, and accordingly, the management AP can obtain a second frame for requesting to join the multi-AP cooperation group. If the management AP determines that the first AP meets the conditions for joining (for example, having the same function), a response frame to the second frame can be fed back to the first AP, and the response frame is used to indicate that the first AP agrees to join. Conversely, if the first AP does not meet the conditions for joining, a response frame for refusing to join the multi-AP cooperation group can be fed back to the first AP, and the response frame may include information such as the reason for rejection.

[0080] In some embodiments, when the group member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP to the first AP, the response frame of the second frame includes the group member identifier.

[0081] It should be understood that if the member identifier is assigned by the management AP, the management AP can assign the member identifier to the first AP according to the number of APs managed. For example, the multi-AP collaboration group managed by the management AP includes three APs, and the member identifiers are AP1, AP2 and AP3 respectively. For the first AP, the management AP can assign AP4 as the member identifier in sequence and feed back AP4 to the first AP through a response frame.

[0082] In some embodiments, when the group member identifier is the unique identifier of the first AP, S703 may be further included after S702 in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0083] S703: In response to the response frame, determine its own unique identifier as the group member identifier.

[0084] It should be understood that if the member identifier is a unique identifier, in one implementation, the management AP can inform the first AP of the member identifier by carrying indication information in the response frame. For example, the response frame includes an indication field, and the value of the indication field is 1, which can be considered to carry indication information, and the first AP can determine the unique identifier as its own member identifier in the multi-AP collaboration group. In another implementation, a pre-configured method can be used, that is, after the first AP receives a response frame agreeing to join, it autonomously determines its own unique identifier as the member identifier.

[0085] In some embodiments, after agreeing to join the first AP, that is, when the first AP belongs to a multi-AP cooperative group, the first AP can broadcast a sixth frame for network discovery. Exemplarily, the sixth frame is a beacon frame, and the beacon frame carries information about the multi-AP cooperative group and a member identifier. Conversely, when the first AP does not belong to a multi-AP cooperative group, the sixth frame broadcast by the first AP does not carry information about the multi-AP cooperative group and a member identifier.

[0086] In some embodiments, the information of the multi-AP cooperation group includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the multi-AP cooperation group, and a member identifier of each member in the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0087] In the following, in conjunction with specific embodiments and drawings of the specification, the interaction process between the first AP and the management AP when the first AP exits the multi-AP cooperation group is described in detail.

[0088] It should be noted that the first AP exits the multi-AP cooperation group, including two possible implementations. One possible implementation is that the first AP actively exits, and the other possible implementation is that the first AP passively exits, which are described in detail as follows.

[0089] In one possible implementation, Figure 8 The following is a schematic diagram of an interaction in an exit situation provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 8 As shown, including:

[0090] S801. A first AP sends a third frame to a management AP in a multi-AP assistance group; accordingly, the management AP (second AP) receives the third frame.

[0091] Among them, the third frame is used to notify the management AP that the first AP exits the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0092] S802: In response to the third frame, the second AP (management AP) deletes the correspondence between the member ID and the first AP, or recycles the member ID.

[0093] For the above S801 and S802, when it is necessary to exit the multi-AP cooperation group, the first AP can actively send a third frame to the management AP. And the first AP can delete the member identifier stored by itself. Conversely, after receiving the third frame, the management AP can respond to the third frame and delete the corresponding relationship between the member identifier of the first AP and the first AP, or in other words, recycle the member identifier, and when other APs join the multi-AP cooperation group, the reclaimed member identifier can be allocated to other APs.

[0094] For example, the member ID assigned by the management AP to the first AP is AP4. If the first AP exits the multi-AP cooperation group, the management AP reclaims the member ID of AP4. When a new AP joins, the management AP can assign AP4 to the new AP.

[0095] In another possible implementation, Fig. 9 This is another interactive diagram of an exit situation provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 9 As shown, including:

[0096] S901. The second AP (management AP) sends a fourth frame to the first AP; correspondingly, the first AP receives the fourth frame sent by the management AP.

[0097] The fourth frame is used to instruct the first AP to exit the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0098] S902: The first AP deletes the group member identifier in response to the fourth frame.

[0099] For the above S901 and S902, the management AP may send a fourth frame to the first AP to instruct the first AP to exit the multi-AP collaboration group. In addition, the management AP may delete the corresponding relationship between the member identifier and the first AP, or recycle the member identifier of the first AP. Accordingly, after receiving the fourth frame, the first AP may delete the member identifier to complete the exit process.

[0100] In other scenarios, if the second AP is not the same AP as the management AP, and the first AP is a newly joined AP, the second AP does not have the member ID of the first AP. When the second AP obtains channel access rights (i.e. becomes a sharing AP), the second AP cannot allocate channel resources to the first AP. Therefore, the second AP can obtain the relevant information of the first AP by active or passive acquisition.

[0101] Combination Fig.10 Explain the active acquisition situation. Fig.10A schematic diagram of a network discovery provided by the present disclosure, such as Fig.10 As shown, including:

[0102] S1001. The second AP sends a fifth frame to the first AP; accordingly, the first AP receives the fifth frame.

[0103] The fifth frame is used to request a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0104] S1002. The first AP sends a response frame to the fifth frame to the second AP; correspondingly, the second AP receives the response frame to the fifth frame.

[0105] For the above S1001 and S1002, when the first AP is within the signal coverage of the second AP, the second AP can discover the existence of the first AP. Then, the second AP can send a fifth frame to the first AP to request the identity of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group. Correspondingly, the first AP sends a response frame to the fifth frame to the second AP. After receiving the response frame, the second AP can save the group member information of the first AP to facilitate the subsequent allocation of channel resources to the first AP.

[0106] In some embodiments, the fifth frame is a probe request frame, and the response frame of the fifth frame is a probe response frame.

[0107] Combination Fig.11 The passive acquisition is explained. Fig.11 A schematic diagram of another network discovery provided by the present disclosure, such as Fig.11 As shown, including:

[0108] S1101. The first AP sends a sixth frame; correspondingly, the second AP receives the sixth frame.

[0109] The sixth frame includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group and group member identifiers.

[0110] S1102: The second AP saves the member identifier of the first AP.

[0111] For the above S1101 and S1102, as mentioned above, the first AP can continuously broadcast the sixth frame to the surroundings. And when the first AP belongs to a multi-AP cooperation group, the sixth frame carries the information of the multi-AP cooperation group and the member identification. If the second AP is within the signal coverage of the first AP, it can receive the sixth frame sent by the first AP, and when it is determined that the information of the multi-AP cooperation group is consistent with the multi-AP cooperation group to which it belongs, it obtains the member identification of the first AP and records it, so as to allocate channel resources to the first AP later.

[0112] In some embodiments, the sixth frame is a beacon frame.

[0113] The disclosed embodiment provides a data transmission method, in which a first AP can receive a first frame sent by a second AP in the same multi-AP cooperation group, and perform data transmission on a target channel resource indicated by a member identifier in the first frame. That is, the first AP corresponds to a member identifier in the multi-AP cooperation group, so that when allocating channel resources, the first AP can determine its corresponding target channel resource based on the member identifier. This ensures that each AP in the multi-AP cooperation can communicate on its corresponding channel resource, avoiding channel occupancy conflicts.

[0114] Furthermore, the use of a unique identifier as a member identifier can effectively reduce the data transmission overhead during the channel resource allocation process. In addition, for the AP itself, there is no need to save the member identifiers corresponding to multiple groups, which can effectively reduce the occupation of its own space resources.

[0115] It is understandable that, in order to implement the above functions, the communication device (which may be the above-mentioned management AP, the first AP or the second AP) includes hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the present disclosure can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to exceed the scope of the present disclosure.

[0116] The embodiments of the present disclosure may divide the functional modules of the communication device according to the above method embodiments. For example, each functional module may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one functional module. The above integrated modules may be implemented in the form of hardware or software. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiments of the present disclosure is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. The following is an example of dividing each functional module corresponding to each function.

[0117] Fig.12 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure, and the communication device can execute the data transmission method provided by the above method embodiment. Fig.12 As shown, the communication device includes: a receiving module 1201 and a transmission module 1202.

[0118] The receiving module 1201 is used to receive a first frame sent by a second AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame is used to allocate target channel resources to the first AP based on the member identifier.

[0119] The transmission module 1202 is used to perform data transmission on the target channel resources.

[0120] In some embodiments, the first frame is a trigger frame, or other control frame or management frame with scheduling management function.

[0121] In some embodiments, the group member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP to the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group, or is a unique identifier of the first AP.

[0122] In some embodiments, when the group member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP to the first AP, the first frame further includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0123] In some embodiments, the apparatus further includes: a sending module 1203. The sending module 1203 is used to send a second frame to the management AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the second frame is used to request to join the multi-AP cooperation group; the receiving module 1201 is also used to receive a response frame to the second frame sent by the management AP; the response frame is used to indicate that the first AP is allowed to join the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0124] In some embodiments, when the group member identifier is an identifier allocated by the management AP to the first AP, the response frame includes the group member identifier.

[0125] In some embodiments, when the group member identifier is the unique identifier of the first AP, the apparatus further includes: a determination module 1204. The determination module 1204 is configured to, in response to the response frame, determine that its own unique identifier is the group member identifier.

[0126] In some embodiments, the above device further includes: a deletion module 1205. The sending module 1203 is also used to send a third frame to the management AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the third frame is used to notify the management AP that the first AP exits the multi-AP cooperation group; the deletion module 1205 is used to delete the member identification.

[0127] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1201 is further used to receive a fourth frame sent by the management AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the fourth frame is used to instruct the first AP to exit the multi-AP cooperation group; the deleting module 1205 is also used to delete the member identification.

[0128] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1201 is also used to receive a fifth frame sent by the second AP; the fifth frame is used to request a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the sending module 1203 is also used to send a response frame to the fifth frame to the second AP; the response frame includes information about the multi-AP cooperation group and the member identifier.

[0129] In some embodiments, the fifth frame is a probe request frame, and the response frame of the fifth frame is a probe response frame.

[0130] In some embodiments, the sending module 1203 is further used to send a sixth frame when the first AP belongs to a multi-AP cooperation group; the sixth frame includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group and group member identifiers.

[0131] In some embodiments, the sixth frame is a beacon frame.

[0132] In some embodiments, the information of the multi-AP cooperation group includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the multi-AP cooperation group, and a member identifier of each member in the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0133] Fig.13 is a schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure, and the communication device can execute the data transmission method provided by the above method embodiment. Fig.13 As shown, the communication device includes: a sending module 1301.

[0134] The sending module 1301 is used to send a first frame to the first AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame is used to allocate target channel resources to the first AP based on the member identifier.

[0135] In some embodiments, the first frame is a trigger frame, or other control frame or management frame with scheduling management function.

[0136] In some embodiments, the member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP of the multi-AP cooperation group to the first AP, or is a unique identifier of the first AP.

[0137] In some embodiments, when the member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP of the multi-AP cooperation group to the first AP, the first frame further includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0138] In some embodiments, when the second AP is a management AP of a multi-AP cooperative group, the apparatus further comprises: a receiving module 1302. The receiving module 1302 is used to receive a second frame sent by the first AP; the second frame is used to request to join the multi-AP cooperative group; the sending module 1301 is also used to send a response frame to the second frame to the first AP; the response frame is used to indicate that the first AP is allowed to join the multi-AP cooperative group.

[0139] In some embodiments, when the group member identifier is an identifier allocated by the management AP to the first AP, the response frame includes the group member identifier.

[0140] In some embodiments, when the second AP is a management AP of a multi-AP cooperative group, the apparatus further comprises: a deletion module 1303. The receiving module 1302 is further configured to receive a third frame sent by the first AP; the third frame is used to notify the management AP that the first AP exits the multi-AP cooperative group; the deletion module 1303 is configured to delete the corresponding relationship between the member identifier and the first AP in response to the third frame, or to recycle the member identifier.

[0141] In some embodiments, when the second AP is a management AP of the multi-AP cooperation group, the receiving module 1301 is further used to send a fourth frame to the first AP; the fourth frame is used to instruct the first AP to exit the multi-AP cooperation group; the deleting module 1303 is also used to delete the corresponding relationship between the member identifier and the first AP, or to recycle the member identifier.

[0142] In some embodiments, the sending module 1301 is further used to send a fifth frame to the first AP; the fifth frame is used to request a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the receiving module 1302 is further used to receive a response frame of the first AP to the fifth frame; the response frame includes information about the multi-AP cooperation group and the member identifier.

[0143] In some embodiments, the fifth frame is a probe request frame, and the response frame of the fifth frame is a probe response frame.

[0144] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1302 is further configured to receive a sixth frame sent by the first AP; the sixth frame includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group and group member identifiers.

[0145] In some embodiments, the sixth frame is a beacon frame.

[0146] In some embodiments, the information of the multi-AP cooperation group includes at least one of the following: an identifier of the multi-AP cooperation group, and a member identifier of each member in the multi-AP cooperation group.

[0147] In the case of implementing the functions of the above-mentioned integrated modules in the form of hardware, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide another possible structure of the communication device involved in the above-mentioned embodiments. Fig.14 As shown, the communication device 140 includes: a processor 1402 and a bus 1404. Optionally, the communication device may further include a memory 1401; optionally, the communication device may further include a communication interface 1403.

[0148] The processor 1402 may be a processor that implements or executes various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the embodiments of the present disclosure. The processor 1402 may be a central processing unit, a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array, or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It may implement or execute various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the embodiments of the present disclosure. The processor 1402 may also be a combination that implements computing functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, and the like.

[0149] The communication interface 1403 is used to connect with other devices via a communication network, such as Ethernet, wireless access network, wireless local area network (WLAN), etc.

[0150] The memory 1401 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto.

[0151] As a possible implementation, the memory 1401 may exist independently of the processor 1402, and the memory 1401 may be connected to the processor 1402 via a bus 1404 to store instructions or program codes. When the processor 1402 calls and executes the instructions or program codes stored in the memory 1401, the data transmission method provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure can be implemented.

[0152] In another possible implementation, the memory 1401 may also be integrated with the processor 1402 .

[0153] The bus 1404 may be an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus, etc. The bus 1404 may be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, Fig.14 Only one thick line is used in the diagram, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

[0154] In some embodiments, executable instructions are stored in the memory 1401. When the processor 1402 executes the executable instructions, the communication device executes the data transmission method described in any of the above embodiments.

[0155] Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a computer-readable storage medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium), which stores computer program instructions. When the computer program instructions are executed on a computer, the computer executes the data transmission method described in any of the above embodiments.

[0156] Exemplarily, the above-mentioned computer-readable storage media may include, but are not limited to: magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disks, floppy disks or magnetic tapes, etc.), optical disks (e.g., compact disks (CD), digital versatile disks (DVD), etc.), smart cards and flash memory devices (e.g., erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), cards, sticks or key drives, etc.). The various computer-readable storage media described in the present disclosure may represent one or more devices and / or other machine-readable storage media for storing information. The term "machine-readable storage medium" may include, but is not limited to, wireless channels and various other media capable of storing, containing and / or carrying instructions and / or data.

[0157] An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer program product including instructions. When the computer program product is run on a computer, the computer is enabled to execute the data transmission method described in any one of the above embodiments.

[0158] The above is only a specific implementation of the present disclosure, but the protection scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present disclosure should be included in the protection scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the protection scope of the present disclosure should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A data transmission method, characterized in that: Applied to a first access point AP, the method includes: receiving a first frame sent by a second AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame is used to allocate a target channel resource to the first AP based on the member identifier; Data transmission is performed on the target channel resource.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The first frame is a trigger frame, or other control frame or management frame with scheduling management function.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The member identifier is an identifier assigned to the first AP by a management AP in the multi-AP cooperation group, or is a unique identifier of the first AP.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that In the case where the group member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP to the first AP, the first frame further includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The method further comprises: Sending a second frame to the management AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the second frame is used to request to join the multi-AP cooperation group; A response frame to the second frame sent by the management AP is received; the response frame is used to indicate that the first AP is allowed to join the multi-AP cooperation group.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that In the case where the group member identifier is an identifier allocated by the management AP to the first AP, the response frame includes the group member identifier.

7. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that In a case where the group member identifier is a unique identifier of the first AP, the method further includes: In response to the response frame, the unique identifier of itself is determined as the group member identifier.

8. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: Sending a third frame to the management AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the third frame is used to notify the management AP that the first AP exits the multi-AP cooperation group; Delete the member ID.

9. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The method further comprises: Receiving a fourth frame sent by a management AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the fourth frame is used to instruct the first AP to exit the multi-AP cooperation group; In response to the fourth frame, the group member identification is deleted.

10. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: receiving a fifth frame sent by the second AP; wherein the fifth frame is used to request a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; A response frame to the fifth frame is sent to the second AP; the response frame includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group and the group member identifier.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The fifth frame is a probe request frame, and the response frame of the fifth frame is a probe response frame.

12. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: In the case where the first AP belongs to the multi-AP cooperation group, a sixth frame is sent; the sixth frame includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group and the group member identifier.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The sixth frame is a beacon frame.

14. The method according to any one of claims 4, 10 or 12, characterized in that The information of the multi-AP cooperation group includes at least one of the following: the identifier of the multi-AP cooperation group, and the member identifier of each member in the multi-AP cooperation group.

15. A data transmission method, characterized in that: Applied to the second AP, the method includes: A first frame is sent to a first AP; the second AP and the first AP belong to the same multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame includes a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; the first frame is used to allocate target channel resources to the first AP based on the member identifier.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that The first frame is a trigger frame, or other control frame or management frame with scheduling management function.

17. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that The member identifier is an identifier assigned to the first AP by the management AP of the multi-AP cooperation group, or is a unique identifier of the first AP.

18. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that In the case where the member identifier is an identifier assigned by the management AP of the multi-AP cooperation group to the first AP, the first frame also includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group.

19. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that In the case where the second AP is a management AP of the multi-AP cooperation group, the method further includes: receiving a second frame sent by the first AP; wherein the second frame is used to request to join the multi-AP cooperation group; A response frame to the second frame is sent to the first AP; the response frame is used to indicate that the first AP is allowed to join the multi-AP cooperation group.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that In the case where the group member identifier is an identifier allocated by the management AP to the first AP, the response frame includes the group member identifier.

21. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that In the case where the second AP is a management AP of the multi-AP cooperation group, the method further includes: receiving a third frame sent by the first AP; the third frame is used to notify the management AP that the first AP exits the multi-AP cooperation group; In response to the third frame, the corresponding relationship between the group member identifier and the first AP is deleted, or the group member identifier is recovered.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that In the case where the second AP is a management AP of the multi-AP cooperation group, the method further includes: Sending a fourth frame to the first AP; the fourth frame is used to instruct the first AP to exit the multi-AP cooperation group; The corresponding relationship between the group member identifier and the first AP is deleted, or the group member identifier is recycled.

23. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that The method further comprises: Sending a fifth frame to the first AP; the fifth frame is used to request a member identifier of the first AP in the multi-AP cooperation group; A response frame from the first AP to the fifth frame is received; the response frame includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group and the group member identifier.

24. The method according to claim 23, characterized in that The fifth frame is a probe request frame, and the response frame of the fifth frame is a probe response frame.

25. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that The method further comprises: A sixth frame sent by the first AP is received; the sixth frame includes information of the multi-AP cooperation group and the group member identifier.

26. The method according to claim 25, characterized in that The sixth frame is a beacon frame.

27. The method according to any one of claims 18, 23 or 25, characterized in that The information of the multi-AP cooperation group includes at least one of the following: the identifier of the multi-AP cooperation group, and the member identifier of each member in the multi-AP cooperation group.

28. A communication device, characterized in that: include: a processor and a memory for storing instructions executable by the processor; The processor is configured to execute the instruction so that the communication device performs the data transmission method according to any one of claims 1 to 27.

29. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions, and when the computer instructions are executed on the communication device, the communication device executes the data transmission method according to any one of claims 1 to 27.

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