Information processing method and device

Abstract

An information processing method and device are applied to a wireless local area network system supporting an IEEE 802.11 ax next generation Wi-Fi protocol, such as 802.11 be, Wi-Fi 7 or EHT, such as 802.11 be next generation, Wi-Fi 8, UHR, Wi-Fi AI and other 802.11 series protocols, and can also be applied to a wireless personal local area network system and a sensing system based on an ultra wide band. A control person sends control information, a controlled person receives the control information, the control information comprises a control information element, the control information element comprises an empty time slot information field, and the empty time slot information field is used for indicating an empty time slot in a block corresponding to the control information. The controlled person determines information of the empty time slot based on the empty time slot information field. And the UWB in-band and association mechanism is perfected and optimized.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application. The application number of the original application is 202211638720.1, and the original application date is December 19, 2022. The entire contents of the original application are incorporated into this application by reference. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to an information processing method and device. Background Art

[0003] Ultra wideband (UWB) is a wireless carrier communication technology that can transmit data using nanosecond non-sinusoidal narrow pulses, so it occupies a wide spectrum range. Due to its narrow pulses and low radiation spectrum density, UWB has the advantages of strong multipath resolution, low power consumption, and strong confidentiality. The application scope of UWB is constantly expanding and is used in a variety of devices including high-capacity consumer platforms. The unique capabilities of UWB can provide very accurate ranging, positioning, perception, and data communication.

[0004] A UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism is currently proposed, however, this mechanism can be further improved. Summary of the invention

[0005] The embodiments of the present application provide an information processing method and device, which can further improve and optimize the UWB in-band and association mechanism.

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an information processing method, the method comprising:

[0007] Receive control information, the control information including a control information element (control IE), the control information element including an empty slot information field (empty slot information field), the empty slot information field is used to indicate an empty slot in a block corresponding to the control information; determine information of the empty slot based on the empty slot information field in the control information element.

[0008] In an embodiment of the present application, after receiving the control information, the controlled party that is not associated with the controller and has not sent an association request frame to the controller can obtain information about the empty time slot by parsing the control information element (IE) in the control information, and skip parsing the scheduling IE of the same control information, thereby effectively saving the power consumption of the controlled party and improving the energy efficiency of the controlled party. Exemplarily, after determining that the value carried by the association available field in the control IE is the first value, the controlled party can parse the control IE to obtain the information about the empty time slot.

[0009] In a possible implementation manner, the control information further includes a scheduling information element (scheduling IE), and the method further includes: ignoring the scheduling information element in the control information.

[0010] Generally speaking, since the controlled party has not yet associated with the controller, there is no time slot scheduled for the controlled party in the control information. Therefore, even if the controlled party has learned that there is no time slot scheduled for the controlled party in the scheduling IE in the control information, it still needs to parse the scheduling IE in the control information in order to obtain the information of the empty time slot. However, through the embodiment of the present application, after obtaining the empty time slot information field in the control information, the controlled party can obtain the information of the empty time slot based on the empty time slot information field, making the controlled party obtain the empty time slot in a faster and more convenient way.

[0011] In a possible implementation manner, the control information element further includes an indication field, and the numerical value carried by the indication field includes a first value, and the first value is used to indicate that the empty time slot information field exists in the control information element.

[0012] In one possible implementation, the empty time slot information field is used to carry a first bit map, each bit of the first bit map is used to indicate whether the corresponding time slot is an empty time slot, and the length of the first bit map is greater than or equal to the number of time slots included in the block, or the length of the first bit map is greater than or equal to the number of remaining time slots in the block, and the remaining time slots are the time slots after the time slot used to send the control information in the block.

[0013] In one possible implementation, the empty time slot information field is used to carry the starting time slot information corresponding to the second bit map and the second bit map, the starting time slot information is used to indicate the time slot corresponding to the first bit in the second bit map, and each bit in the second bit map is used to indicate whether the corresponding time slot is an empty time slot.

[0014] In a possible implementation manner, the control information further includes a capability information field, and the capability information field is used to carry capability information of the controller.

[0015] In a possible implementation, after determining the information of the empty time slot based on the empty time slot information field in the control information element, the method further includes: sending an association request frame in the empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field; and receiving an association response frame of the association request frame.

[0016] In a possible implementation, the association request frame includes a medium access control (MAC) layer management entity (MLME) element, the MLME element includes an extended capability information element, the extended capability information element is used to carry capability information of the controlled party, and the identifier of the extended capability information element includes 0x1.

[0017] In a possible implementation manner, the identifier of the association request frame includes 0x0c.

[0018] In a possible implementation, the association response frame includes at least one of an ultra-wideband session full capacity field and an association rejection field, the identifier of the UWB session full capacity field includes 0x04, and the identifier of the association rejection field includes 0x05.

[0019] In a possible implementation manner, the identifier of the association response frame includes 0x0d.

[0020] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an information processing method, the method comprising:

[0021] Generate control information, the control information including a control information element, the control information element including an empty time slot information field, the empty time slot information field is used to indicate an empty time slot in a block corresponding to the control information; send the control information.

[0022] In a possible implementation manner, the control information element further includes an indication field, and the numerical value carried by the indication field includes a first value, and the first value is used to indicate that the empty time slot information field exists in the control information element.

[0023] In one possible implementation, the empty time slot information field is used to carry a first bit map, each bit in the first bit map is used to indicate whether the corresponding time slot is an empty time slot, and the length of the first bit map is greater than or equal to the number of time slots included in the block, or the length of the first bit map is greater than or equal to the number of remaining time slots in the block, and the remaining time slots are the time slots after the time slot used to send the control information in the block.

[0024] In one possible implementation, the empty time slot information field is used to carry the starting time slot information corresponding to the second bit map and the second bit map, the starting time slot information is used to indicate the time slot corresponding to the first bit in the second bit map, and each bit in the second bit map is used to indicate whether the corresponding time slot is an empty time slot.

[0025] In a possible implementation manner, the control information further includes a capability information field, and the capability information field is used to carry capability information of the controller.

[0026] In a possible implementation manner, the method further includes: receiving an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field; and sending an association response frame of the association request frame.

[0027] In a possible implementation, the association request frame includes a medium access control MAC layer management entity MLME element, the MLME element includes an extended capability information element, the extended capability information element is used to carry capability information of the controlled party, and the identifier of the extended capability information element includes 0x1.

[0028] In a possible implementation manner, the identifier of the association request frame includes 0x0c.

[0029] In a possible implementation, the association response frame includes at least one of an ultra-wideband session full capacity field and an association rejection field, the identifier of the UWB session full capacity field includes 0x04, and the identifier of the association rejection field includes 0x05.

[0030] In a possible implementation manner, the identifier of the association response frame includes 0x0d.

[0031] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device for executing the method in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect. The communication device includes a unit having a function of executing the method in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect. Exemplarily, the communication device may include a processing unit and a transceiver unit.

[0032] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device for executing the method in the second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect. The communication device includes a unit having a function of executing the method in the second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect. Exemplarily, the communication device may include a processing unit and a transceiver unit.

[0033] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, the communication device comprising a processor, configured to execute the method described in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect. Alternatively, the processor is configured to execute a program stored in a memory, and when the program is executed, the method described in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect is executed.

[0034] In a possible implementation manner, the memory is located outside the communication device.

[0035] In a possible implementation manner, the memory is located within the communication device.

[0036] In the embodiment of the present application, the processor and the memory may also be integrated into one device, that is, the processor and the memory may also be integrated together.

[0037] In a possible implementation manner, the communication device further includes a transceiver, and the transceiver is used to receive a signal and / or send a signal.

[0038] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, the communication device comprising a processor, configured to execute the method described in the second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect. Alternatively, the processor is configured to execute a program stored in a memory, and when the program is executed, the method described in the second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect is executed.

[0039] In a possible implementation manner, the memory is located outside the communication device.

[0040] In a possible implementation manner, the memory is located within the communication device.

[0041] In the embodiment of the present application, the processor and the memory may also be integrated into one device, that is, the processor and the memory may also be integrated together.

[0042] In a possible implementation manner, the communication device further includes a transceiver, and the transceiver is used to receive a signal and / or send a signal.

[0043] In the seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which includes a logic circuit and an interface, wherein the logic circuit and the interface are coupled; the interface is used to input control information; and the logic circuit is used to determine the information of the empty time slot based on the empty time slot information field in the control information.

[0044] In a possible implementation, the logic circuit is further configured to output an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field; and parse an association response frame input through the interface.

[0045] In a possible implementation, the interface is further used to input a beacon frame, and the logic circuit is used to parse the beacon frame.

[0046] It is understandable that the description of the logic circuit and the interface can refer to the first aspect and will not be described in detail here.

[0047] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which includes a logic circuit and an interface, wherein the logic circuit and the interface are coupled; the logic circuit is used to generate control information; and the interface is used to output the control information.

[0048] In a possible implementation manner, the logic circuit is further configured to input an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field, and output an association response frame of the association request frame.

[0049] Exemplarily, the logic circuit may input an association request frame through an interface and parse the association request frame. Exemplarily, the logic circuit may be used to determine an association response frame and output the association response frame through an interface.

[0050] In a possible implementation, the interface is used to output a beacon frame.

[0051] Exemplarily, the logic circuit may also be used to determine a beacon frame.

[0052] It is understandable that the description of the logic circuit and the interface can refer to the second aspect and will not be described in detail here.

[0053] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which is used to store a computer program. When the computer-readable storage medium is run on a computer, the method shown in the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect is executed.

[0054] In the tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which is used to store a computer program. When the computer-readable storage medium is run on a computer, the method shown in the above-mentioned second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect is executed.

[0055] In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program, and when the computer program product is run on a computer, the method shown in the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect is executed.

[0056] In a twelfth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program. When the computer program product is run on a computer, the method shown in the above-mentioned second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect is executed.

[0057] In a thirteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, the method shown in the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect is executed.

[0058] In a fourteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, the method shown in the above-mentioned second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect is executed.

[0059] In the fifteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes a controlee and a controller, wherein the controlee is used to execute the method shown in the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect, and the controller is used to execute the method shown in the above-mentioned second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0060] Figure 1a It is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] Figure 1b It is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] Figure 2a This is a schematic diagram of the time structure of a beacon interval provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] Figure 2b It is a schematic diagram of the time structure of an application cycle provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] Figure 2c This is a schematic diagram of the relationship between blocks, rounds and time slots provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] Figure 2d It is a schematic diagram of a UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] Figure 3 It is a flowchart of an information processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0067] Figure 4 It is a flowchart of an information processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0068] Figure 5a It is a timing diagram of an association request frame and an association response frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0069] Figure 5b It is a timing diagram of an association request frame and an association response frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0070] Figure 5c It is a timing diagram of an association request frame and an association response frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0071] Figure 6It is a flowchart of an information processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0072] Figure 7a It is a flowchart of an information processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0073] Figure 7b It is a flowchart of an information processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0074] Figure 8 is a structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0075] Fig. 9 is a structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0076] Fig.10 It is a structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0077] To facilitate understanding of the technical solution of the present application, the present application will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0078] The terms "first" and "second" in the specification, claims and drawings of this application are only used to distinguish different objects, rather than to describe a specific order. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, product or device that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include steps or units that are not listed, or may optionally include other steps or units that are inherent to these processes, methods, products or devices.

[0079] The "embodiment" mentioned in this article means that the specific features, structures or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the present application. The appearance of this phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is it an independent or alternative embodiment that is mutually exclusive with other embodiments. It can be explicitly and implicitly understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein can be combined with other embodiments.

[0080] In the present application, "at least one (item)" means one or more, "more than one" means two or more, "at least two (items)" means two or three and more than three, and "and / or" is used to describe the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, "A and / or B" can mean: only A exists, only B exists, and A and B exist at the same time, where A and B can be singular or plural. "Or" means that two relationships may exist, such as only A exists, only B exists; when A and B are not mutually exclusive, it can also mean that there are three relationships, such as only A exists, only B exists, and A and B exist at the same time. The character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items. For example, at least one of a, b or c can mean: a, b, c, "a and b", "a and c", "b and c", or "a and b and c".

[0081] The technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to a wireless personal area network (WPAN) based on UWB technology. For example, the method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.15 series protocols, such as 802.15.4a protocol, 802.15.4z protocol or 802.15.4ab protocol, or a future generation of UWB WPAN standards, etc., which are not listed one by one. Exemplarily, the method provided in the embodiment of the present application can also be applied to the IEEE802.11 series protocols, such as 802.11a / b / g protocol, 802.11n protocol, 802.11ac protocol, 802.11ax protocol, 802.11be protocol or the next generation of protocols, etc., which are not listed one by one. The method provided in the embodiment of the present application can also be applied to various communication systems, for example, it can be an Internet of Things (IoT) system, a Vehicle to X (V2X), a narrow band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) system, devices applied to the Internet of Vehicles, IoT nodes and sensors in the Internet of Things (IoT), smart cameras in smart homes, smart remote controls, smart water meters and electric meters, and sensors in smart cities, etc. It can also be applied to LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, long term evolution (LTE) system, fifth generation (5G) communication system, sixth generation (6G) communication system, etc.

[0082] UWB technology is a new type of wireless communication technology. It uses nanosecond non-sinusoidal narrow pulses to transmit data. By modulating impulse pulses with very steep rise and fall times, the spectrum range it occupies is very wide, making the signal have a bandwidth of the order of GHz. The bandwidth used by UWB is usually above 1GHz (or 500MHz, etc.). Because the UWB system does not need to generate a sinusoidal carrier signal and can directly transmit an impulse sequence, the UWB system has a very wide spectrum and very low average power. The UWB wireless communication system has the advantages of strong multipath resolution, low power consumption, and strong confidentiality, which is conducive to coexistence with other systems, thereby improving spectrum utilization and system capacity. In addition, in short-distance communication applications, the transmission power of the UWB transmitter can usually be less than 1mW (milliwatt). Theoretically, the interference generated by the UWB signal is only equivalent to a wideband white noise. This helps the good coexistence between ultra-wideband and existing narrowband communications. Therefore, the UWB system can work simultaneously with the narrowband (NB) communication system without interfering with each other.

[0083] Exemplarily, the IEEE 802.15 Wireless Specialty Networks (WSN) Working Group has established Working Group 4ab to develop revisions to 802.15.4-2020 and 802.15.4z-2020, with the goal of further enhancing the UWB PHY and MAC layers (or MAC sublayers) and related ranging technologies. Exemplarily, the scope of enhancements includes: additional coding, preamble, and modulation schemes to improve link budget and / or reduce air time relative to IEEE Standard 802.15.4UWB; improvements in accuracy, precision, reliability, and interoperability to achieve high integrity ranging; schemes to reduce complexity and power consumption; definition of tightly coupled hybrid operation and narrowband signaling to assist UWB; enhanced local discovery and connection establishment mechanisms; sensing capabilities to support presence detection and environmental mapping; mechanisms to support low-power, low-latency streams and high data rate streams to achieve a throughput of at least 50Mb / s. It is understandable that the UWB technology introduced in the embodiments of the present application is only an example. As the technology develops, the characteristics or application fields of UWB may change, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this.

[0084] Although the embodiments of the present application are mainly described by taking WPAN as an example, especially the network applied to the IEEE 802.15 series standard as an example. However, it is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the various aspects involved in the embodiments of the present application can be extended to other networks using various standards or protocols. For example, wireless local area networks (WLAN), Bluetooth (BLUETOOTH), high performance wireless LAN (HIPERLAN) (a wireless standard similar to the IEEE 802.11 standard, mainly used in Europe) and wide area networks (WAN) or other networks now known or developed later. Therefore, regardless of the coverage range and wireless access protocol used, the various aspects provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applied to any suitable wireless network.

[0085] The method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be implemented by a communication device in a communication system. The communication device may be a device involved in a UWB system. For example, the communication device may include but is not limited to a communication server, a router, a switch, a bridge, a computer, a mobile phone, etc. For another example, the communication device may include a central control point, such as a personal area network (PAN) or a PAN coordinator, etc. For another example, the communication device may include a user equipment (UE), and the user equipment may include various handheld devices with wireless communication functions, vehicle-mounted devices, wearable devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, computing devices, or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem, etc., which are not listed one by one. For another example, the communication device may include a chip, which may be set in a communication server, a router, a switch, or a user terminal, etc., which are not listed one by one.

[0086] As an example, Figure 1a and Figure 1b It is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 1a It is a star topology structure provided in the embodiment of the present application. Figure 1b This is a point-to-point topology structure provided by the embodiment of the present application. Figure 1a As shown in Figure 1, in a star topology, a central control node can communicate data with one or more other devices. Figure 1b As shown, in a point-to-point topology, data communication can be performed between different devices. Figure 1a and Figure 1bIn the present invention, both full function devices (FFD) and reduced function devices (RFD) can be understood as the communication devices shown in this application. Full function devices and reduced function devices are relative, such as a reduced function device cannot be a PAN coordinator. For example, compared with a full function device, a reduced function device may not have coordination capabilities or have a lower communication rate than a full function device. It can be understood that Figure 1b The PAN coordinator shown is an example only. Figure 1b The other three full-function devices shown can also serve as PAN coordinators, which are not shown one by one here.

[0087] It can be understood that the full-function device and low-function device shown in the embodiments of the present application are merely examples of communication devices. Any communication device that can implement the method provided in the embodiments of the present application belongs to the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0088] Figure 2a Schematic diagram of a time structure of a beacon interval provided in an embodiment of the present application. The time structure of the beacon interval can also be understood as the time structure for beacon-enabled applications or the time structure applicable to beacon-enabled applications. Figure 2a As shown, the time structure may include an application management period and an application period. It is understandable that since ultra-wideband and narrowband and / or Wi-Fi communications can coexist well, Figure 2a The blank space after the application cycle shown can be understood as the time when UWB communication is not used. For example, the time corresponding to this blank space can be used for narrowband and / or Wi-Fi communication.

[0089] Exemplarily, the application management period may include one or more contention access periods (CAPs) and one or more contention free periods (CFPs). Each CAP may include one or more beacon slots (BSs), and each CFP may include one or more beacon slots. The channel access of the slots in the CFP may be understood as a scheduling-based channel access, and the channel access of the slots in the CAP may be understood as a contention-based channel access. It is understandable that the beacon interval may include an application management period (e.g., Figure 2a As shown), or, the application management cycle may not be included. Figure 2a The order of CAP and CFP in the application management cycle shown is only an example and should not be understood as a limitation on the embodiments of the present application. It is understandable that the configuration of the beacon slot in the application management cycle and the time slot in the application cycle can be different, such as the length (or size) of the beacon slot in the application management cycle and the time slot in the application cycle can be different.

[0090] The application cycle may include one or more time slots. For example, the controller may periodically send a beacon frame, which may include at least one of the following: the value of the beacon interval, the duration of the beacon time slot, the usage of the application management cycle, and the starting position of the application cycle. For example, Figure 2b As shown, the application cycle is based on blocks. For example, an application cycle may include one or more blocks. A block may include one or more rounds, and a round may include one or more time slots. Exemplarily, a time slot can be understood as a duration sufficient to send at least one application specific frame (ASF), and the ASF may include a ranging frame, a perception frame, or a data frame, etc. A round can be understood as a duration sufficient to complete the entire application measurement cycle, such as the duration to complete a ranging process, or the duration to complete a perception process, or the duration to complete a data communication process, etc. A block can be understood as a time period that can complete one or more applications such as ranging, sensing, and data communication. It can be understood that Figure 2b The number of time slots included in the blocks shown is only an example. Figure 2b The relationship of blocks to rounds, or the relationship of rounds to time slots, is not shown.

[0091] Figure 2c Schematic diagram of the relationship between blocks, rounds and time slots provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 2c As shown, each block can be divided into several rounds, each round can be used to complete an independent perception measurement (or ranging, data communication, etc.) and result reporting (which can include result reporting if necessary). Each round can be divided into several time slots, each time slot can be used to transmit at least one ASF. Exemplarily, at the beginning of each round, the controller can configure the configuration information corresponding to the block in which the round is located by sending control information in one or more time slots (such as Figure 2c Then, the controller and the controlled can perform sensing measurements (or ranging, data communication, etc.) in subsequent time slots (such as Figure 2c Optionally, the last time slot or slots of each round can be used for result reporting (e.g. Figure 2c reporting phases as shown). Figure 2cWhere P is a positive integer less than Q, and Q is a positive integer less than M. N, M, P, and Q can all be positive integers. It can be understood that Figure 2c The control phase, application phase, and report phase shown are only examples. In a specific implementation, the time slots included in each round may not be divided into different phases, or, in a specific implementation, there may be more than one phase. Figure 2c The embodiments of the present application do not limit the number of divisions or more. Figure 2c In the relationship diagram shown, the time slot index in round 1 is not shown. For example, the index of the first time slot in round 1 may be time slot M. For example, the indexes of the time slots included in a block may be in ascending order.

[0092] Understandable, Figure 2c In the relationship diagram shown, the controller may not send control information in the first P+1 time slots of each round. The sending of control information needs to be determined based on the process of the measurement application. For example, a measurement process may last for multiple rounds. In this case, the controller may only send control information during the control phase of the measurement process. If the perception measurement lasts for two rounds, such as round 0 and round 1, the controller may not send control information in round 1 after sending control information in round 0.

[0093] The UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism currently proposed can be understood as the process in which the controller sends control information, the controlled device sends association request frames and receives association response frames. For an explanation of this mechanism, please refer to Figure 2a to Figure 2d .

[0094] For example, the controller may transmit the configuration information of the block in which the round is located by sending a control message (CM) at the start time of the round. Figure 2dAs shown, the controller can send a CM including a control information element (IE) (or called an application control IE) and a scheduling IE. Exemplarily, the control IE can be used to configure information such as the duration (or size) of a time slot, the duration (or size) of a round, and the duration (or size) of a block. The control IE may include an association availability field (or called an association availability field). When the value carried by the association availability field is 1, the controller can be in an awake state in the remaining time slots in the block where the round is located to receive one or more association request frames from the controlled party. After receiving the CM, the controlled party can parse the scheduling IE in the CM to find out which devices the time slots in the block corresponding to the CM are configured to, so that the unconfigured time slots can be used as empty time slots. That is, the controlled party can obtain an empty time slot by parsing the scheduling IE, and then randomly select a time slot in the empty time slot to send an association request frame (such as Figure 2b As shown, the controlled party may send an association request frame in the second empty time slot of the five empty time slots. After receiving the association request frame, the controller may send an association response frame in a time slot of the next block (e.g. Figure 2b The controller may send an association response frame in block N+1. For example, after receiving the association response frame, the controlled party may perform subsequent communication based on the short address in the association response frame. Communicating through the short address may effectively save signaling overhead.

[0095] However, based on Figure 2d There are some problems with the approach shown, as follows:

[0096] First, there is still room for further optimization and efficiency improvement of the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism. For example, the controller schedules time slots for other devices (devices other than the controlled device) through the scheduling IE in the CM. The controlled device needs to parse the scheduling IE to obtain the time slots scheduled for other devices, and then treat the time slots not scheduled for other devices as empty time slots to obtain the information of empty time slots. In other words, for a controlled device that is not associated with the controller, there is generally no time slot scheduled for the controlled device in the CM. Therefore, even if the controlled device has learned that there is no time slot scheduled for the controlled device in the scheduling IE in the CM, it still needs to parse the scheduling IE in the CM to obtain the information of the empty time slot.

[0097] Second, there are some defects in the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism, such as the association request frame format and the association response frame format are not backward compatible. For example, in the IEEE 802.15.4-2020 standard, when the value of the association status field of the association response frame is 0x01, it means that the PAN is full (PAN at capacity), and when the value of the association status field is 0x02, it means that the PAN denies access (PAN access denied). However, in the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism, 0x01 also indicates that the UWB session is full (UWB session at capacity), and 0x02 indicates association denied (association denied). As a result, the association response frame in the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism is not backward compatible.

[0098] Third, the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism is incomplete. For example, before the controlled party sends an association request frame to the controller, it does not know the controller's capability information. If the controlled party does not know the controller's capability information, then the controlled party cannot know whether the controller can provide services for it, and cannot decide whether to associate with the controller.

[0099] In view of this, the embodiments of the present application provide an information processing method and device, which can further optimize the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism, improve the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism, and make the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism more complete and efficient. The method can be applied to a controller and a controlled person, and the controller and the controlled person can be understood as relative communication devices, such as the controller can be understood as a communication device for controlling one or more controlled persons, and the controlled person can be understood as a communication device controlled by the controlled person.

[0100] For example, the controller may include a full-function device and the controlled device may include a low-function device; for example, the controller may include a low-function device and the controlled device may include a low-function device; for example, the controller may include a low-function device and the controlled device may include a full-function device; for example, both the controller and the controlled device may include a full-function device. Figure 1a and Figure 1b The full-function devices and low-function devices involved are only examples. Any device that can implement the method provided in the embodiments of the present application belongs to the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application. Therefore, the controllers and controlled persons listed above should not be understood as limitations on the embodiments of the present application.

[0101] It is understandable that the embodiments of the present application describe the method provided by the embodiments of the present application based on the controller and the controlled party, but the controller and the controlled party may also have other devices in the process of transmitting information, such as forwarding information between the controller and the controlled party through a forwarding device, etc. Therefore, the mutual transmission of information in the embodiments of the present application can be achieved by technical means that can be accomplished by those skilled in the art, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit other devices other than the controller and the controlled party.

[0102] For example, the following Figure 3 The embodiment shown can effectively solve the first problem mentioned above, or, as follows Figure 3 The combination of the embodiment shown in the figure with other embodiments can effectively solve the first problem mentioned above. Figure 3 The method shown may be a single embodiment, or, Figure 3 The method shown can also be combined with other embodiments.

[0103] For example, the following Figure 4 The embodiment shown can effectively solve the second problem mentioned above, or, as follows Figure 4 The combination of the embodiment shown in the figure with other embodiments can effectively solve the second problem mentioned above. Figure 4 The method shown may be a single embodiment, or, Figure 4 The method shown can also be combined with other embodiments.

[0104] For example, the following Figure 6 The embodiment shown can effectively solve the third problem mentioned above, or, as follows Figure 6 The combination of the embodiment shown in the figure with other embodiments can effectively solve the third problem mentioned above. Figure 6 The method shown may be a single embodiment, or, Figure 6 The method shown can also be combined with other embodiments.

[0105] For example, Figure 3 The method shown and Figure 4 The combination of the methods shown can effectively solve the first and second problems mentioned above. Figure 3 The method shown and Figure 6 The combination of the methods shown can effectively solve the first and third problems mentioned above. Figure 4 The method shown and Figure 6 The combination of the methods shown can effectively solve the second and third problems mentioned above, etc. For the combination of each method shown below, the embodiments of the present application will not be described in detail one by one.

[0106] Figure 3 is a flowchart of an information processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 3 As shown, the method includes:

[0107] 301. A controller sends control information, and correspondingly, a controlled party receives the control information. The control information may include a control IE, and the control IE includes an empty time slot information field, and the empty time slot information field is used to indicate an empty time slot in a block corresponding to the control information.

[0108] Exemplarily, the controller may generate (or determine) the control information before sending the control information. The above control IE may also be referred to as an application control IE. The block corresponding to the above control information may be understood as the block where the control information is located, or the block where the time slot scheduled by the control information is located, etc.

[0109] Exemplarily, the control information may include at least one of the following fields: content control, session ID, block duration (or block duration, block size, etc.), round duration (or round duration, round size, etc.), slot duration (or slot duration, slot size, etc.), contention phase structure, ranging control, data communication control, sensing control, TDOA control, empty slot information. For the length of each of the above fields, please refer to Table 1. For the description of the content control field, please refer to Table 2. It can be understood that the order of each field and the length of each field shown in Tables 1 and 2 are only examples. In a specific implementation, the order of each field may change, or the length of each field may also change. For this, the embodiments of the present application will not list them one by one.

[0110] Table 1

[0111]

[0112] Exemplarily, the session ID is used to indicate the ID of the session corresponding to this CM. The block duration field is used to indicate the duration (or size) of the block, the round duration field is used to indicate the duration (or size) of the round, the slot duration field is used to indicate the duration (or size) of the slot, and the contention phase structure field is used to indicate information related to the contention phase. The ranging control field is used to carry control information related to ranging, the data communication control field is used to carry control information related to data communication, the perception control field is used to carry control information related to perception, and the empty slot information field is used to indicate the empty slot in the block corresponding to the control information. It can be understood that when at least one of the following information in the control information is the same as at least one of the following information in the previous control information, the control information may not include at least one of the following information: session ID, block duration, round duration, slot duration, contention phase structure, ranging control, data communication control, perception control, TDOA control, empty slot information. Exemplarily, when the session ID in the control information is the same as the session ID in the previous control information, the control information may not include the session ID, that is, the length of the session ID field is 0. The other information will not be listed one by one.

[0113] Exemplarily, the control IE may further include an indication field, which may be used to indicate whether there is an empty time slot information field in the control IE. For example, when the value carried by the indication field includes a first value, it may indicate that there is an empty time slot information field in the control IE, and when the value carried by the indication field includes a second value, it may indicate that there is no empty time slot information field in the control IE.

[0114] Exemplarily, the content control field may be as shown in Table 2. Exemplarily, the content control field may include at least one of the following: session ID present (SIP), ranging block duration present (RBDP), ranging round duration present (RRDP), ranging slot duration present (RSDP), scheduling mode, association availability (or association availability), ranging control present (RCP), data communication control present (DCP), sensing control present (SCP), time difference of arrival (TDOA) control present (TCP). For the description of each field shown in Table 2, reference may be made to relevant standards or protocols, etc., and the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto.

[0115] Table 2

[0116] Bit: 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10-15 SIP RBDP RRDP RSDP Scheduling Mode Association available RCP DCP SCP TCP Reserve

[0117] Generally speaking, when the value carried by the association availability (or association availability) field is 1, the controller can be in an awake state in the remaining time slots in the block where the round is located to receive one or more association request frames from the controlled. However, in an embodiment of the present application, the association availability field can be multiplexed as an indication field. The association availability field can be used to indicate whether the empty time slots in the block (or current block) corresponding to the control information are available for association purposes. If the value carried by the association availability field includes a first value, it means that the empty time slots in the current block can be used for association purposes, and if the value carried by the association availability field includes a second value, it means that the empty time slots in the current block are not available for association purposes. For example, if the value carried by the association availability field includes a first value, it can also indicate that the controller is in an awake state in the remaining time slots in the current block to receive one or more association request frames from the controlled. For example, if the value carried by the association availability field includes a first value, it means that there is an empty time slot information field in the control IE, and if the value carried by the association availability field includes a second value, it means that there is no empty time slot information field in the control IE. For example, the first value may be 1, and the second value may be 0; or, the first value may be 0, and the second value may be 1.

[0118] Exemplarily, since the empty time slots in a block are the same, the value carried by the associated availability field of the content control field in each CM in the same block can be the same. For example, the associated availability field in the content control field in each CM can carry the first value. For example, the empty time slot information field in each CM in a block can also be the same. Therefore, the controlled party can obtain the information of the empty time slot by obtaining a control information in the block.

[0119] The empty time slot information field involved in the embodiments of the present application is described in detail below.

[0120] In a possible implementation of the present application, the empty slot information field is used to carry the first bitmap. Optionally, the empty slot information field can also be used to carry the length information of the first bitmap. For example, the empty slot information field includes a bitmap size field (or bitmap size field, etc.) and an empty slot bitmap field (or empty slot bitmap field or bitmap field, etc.). The bitmap size field is used to indicate the size of the first bitmap contained in the empty slot bitmap field, such as in bytes. Each bit in the empty slot bitmap field can be used to indicate whether the corresponding time slot is an empty time slot. Indicating the size of the first bitmap in bytes can effectively save the signaling overhead of the bitmap size field. Of course, the unit of the size of the first bitmap indicated by the bitmap size field can also be bits, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application. The empty slot information field includes a bitmap size field so that the controlled person can know the length of the bitmap based on the empty slot information field, thereby quickly parsing the first bitmap. Optionally, the empty time slot information field may not include a bitmap size field, in which case the controlled party may determine the number of time slots included in the block based on the block duration and time slot duration in the control information, or determine the number of time slots remaining in the block based on the block duration, time slot duration and duration for sending the control information in the control information.

[0121] As an example, the length of the empty slot bitmap field may be greater than or equal to the number of time slots included in the block. For example, the first bit in the first bitmap carried by the empty slot bitmap field may correspond to the first time slot in the block, or the least significant bit (LSB) of the first bitmap corresponds to the first time slot in the block. For example, if a block includes 60 time slots, the size of the first bitmap may be 8 bytes (64 bits), and the length indicated by the bitmap size field may be 8 bytes. If the value carried by a certain bit in the first bitmap is the third value, it means that the time slot corresponding to the certain bit is an empty time slot. If the value carried by a certain bit in the first bitmap is the fourth group, it means that the time slot corresponding to the certain bit is not an empty time slot. For example, the third value mentioned above can be 1, and the fourth group can be 0; or, the third value can be 0, and the fourth group can be 1.

[0122] As another example, the length of the empty slot bitmap field may be greater than or equal to the number of remaining slots in the block. The remaining slots may be understood as the slots after the slots used to send control information in the block; or may be understood as the slots after the sending slots in the block, and the sending slots may be understood as the slots used to send control information; or may be understood as the slots in the block other than the sending slots and the slots before the sending slots. For example, the first bit in the first bitmap carried by the empty slot bitmap field may correspond to the sending slot, or may correspond to the first slot after the sending slot, etc. In short, the slot corresponding to the least significant bit in the first bitmap carried by the empty slot bitmap field may be determined based on the sending slot (such as may also correspond to the slot before the sending slot). The first bit in the first bitmap corresponds to the sending slot, which may be understood as the LSB of the first bitmap corresponding to the slot where the CM carrying the control IE is sent. For example, a block includes 60 slots; the sending slot is the 17th slot in the block, that is, the number of remaining slots in the block is 43. For example, the first bit of the first bitmap may correspond to the 17th time slot, or the 18th time slot, etc., which are not listed one by one. For example, the size of the first bitmap may be 6 bytes (48 bits). If the value carried by a certain bit in the first bitmap is the third value, it means that the time slot corresponding to the certain bit is an empty time slot. If the value carried by a certain bit in the first bitmap is the fourth group, it means that the time slot corresponding to the certain bit is not an empty time slot.

[0123] In another possible implementation of the present application, the empty slot information field includes at least one of the following information: the starting slot information corresponding to the second bit map, and the second bit map. Optionally, the empty slot information field may also include the length information of the second bit map. For example, the empty slot information field may include a starting slot index field, a bit map size field, and an empty slot bit map field. The starting slot index field may be used to indicate the slot index corresponding to the LSB of the second bit map included in the empty slot bit map field, or to indicate the index of the slot corresponding to the first bit in the second bit map. The bit map size field may be used to indicate the size of the second bit map included in the empty slot bit map field, such as in bytes. The bit map size field may be determined based on the number of slots included in the block and the slot index indicated by the starting slot index field. Each bit in the second bit map may be used to indicate whether the corresponding slot is an empty slot. For example, if the time slot index indicated by the start time slot index field is 18, it means that the time slot corresponding to the first bit in the second bit map is time slot 18. A block includes 60 time slots, and the size of the second bit map may be 6 bytes. For the relevant description of the second bit map, please refer to the above description of the first bit map, which will not be described in detail here.

[0124] The size of the bitmap carried by the empty time slot information field shown above is shown by taking the number of time slots included in the block as an example. In this case, the empty time slot information field in each control information in the block can carry the same bitmap, and the controlled party can obtain the information of the empty time slot by receiving any control information in the block. If the empty time slot information field can be used to indicate the empty time slot in the round corresponding to the control information, in this case, the bitmap carried by the empty time slot information field in each control information can be different. In the case where the empty time slot information field is used to indicate the empty time slot in the round corresponding to the control information, the specific description of the empty time slot information field can be adaptively referred to the above description.

[0125] It is understandable that the first bitmap and the second bitmap shown above are used to distinguish different objects. In a specific implementation, the first and second bitmaps may not be distinguished. Therefore, the description of the first bitmap and the second bitmap in the embodiment of the present application should not be understood as a limitation on the embodiment of the present application.

[0126] 302. The controlled party determines information of empty time slots based on the empty time slot information field in the control IE.

[0127] Exemplarily, the control information may also include a scheduling IE, such as the controlled party may ignore the scheduling IE in the control information, or the controlled party may skip parsing the scheduling IE in the control information, or may not obtain the information of the empty time slot by parsing the scheduling IE, etc. Exemplarily, the information of the empty time slot shown in the embodiment of the present application may include an index of the empty time slot, or a position of the empty time slot, etc.

[0128] In an embodiment of the present application, after receiving the control information, a controlled party that is not associated with the controller and has not sent an association request frame to the controller can obtain information about the empty time slot by parsing the control IE in the control information, and skip parsing the scheduling IE of the same control information, thereby effectively saving the power consumption of the controlled party and improving the energy efficiency of the controlled party. Exemplarily, after determining that the value carried by the association available field in the control IE is the first value, the controlled party can parse the control IE to obtain information about the empty time slot.

[0129] Figure 4 is a flowchart of an information processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 4 As shown, the method includes:

[0130] 401. The controlled party sends an association request frame, and correspondingly, the controller receives the association request frame.

[0131] Exemplarily, before sending the association request frame, the controlled party may generate (or determine) the association request frame.

[0132] 402. The controller sends an association response frame, and correspondingly, the controlled party receives the association response frame.

[0133] Exemplarily, the controller may generate (or determine) the association response frame before sending the association response frame.

[0134] For example, after receiving the association response frame, the controlled party parses the association response frame to obtain a short address, and then subsequently communicates with the controller based on the short address. For another example, after receiving the association request frame, the controller can confirm the identity and capability of the controlled party.

[0135] The following is a detailed introduction to the association request frame and the association response frame involved in the embodiments of the present application.

[0136] In a possible implementation of the present application, the embodiment of the present application enhances the association request frame and the association response frame to support UWB in-band association and maintain backward compatibility.

[0137] Exemplarily, the association request frame may include at least one of the following: a MAC header (MHR) field, a MAC sublayer management entity (MLME) IE, a payload termination IE, a command ID field, a capability information field, and a frame check sequence (FCS) field. Exemplarily, the format of the association request frame may be as described in Table 3. It is understandable that the order of the fields and the length of the fields shown in Table 3 are only examples. In a specific implementation, the order of the fields may change, or the length of the fields may also change. For this, the embodiments of the present application will not list them one by one. The description of the field order and field length of Table 3 here also applies to the subsequent tables and will not be described in detail later.

[0138] Table 3

[0139] Bytes: Variable 6 2 1 1 2 / 4 MHR MLME IE Payload Termination IE Command ID = 0x1 Capability Information FCS

[0140] If the value carried by the IE existence field in the frame control field of the MHR field is 1, it means that one or more IEs (such as the existence of MLME ID and payload termination IE, etc.) exist in the association request frame. The value carried by the command ID field can be 0x1, and the command ID 0x1 can correspond to the association request frame. The capability information field can be used to carry the capability information of the controlee, and the capability information of the controlee can include at least one of the following: whether the controlee is FFD or RFD, whether the controlee is powered by AC power, whether the controlee turns off the receiver during idle time to save energy, whether the controlee can send and receive encrypted frames, whether the controlee requests fast association, and whether the controlee hopes to be assigned a short address as a result of the association process.

[0141] Table 4 exemplarily shows the format of MLME IE, such as MLME IE including extended capability information IE, ie, nested IE. The value carried by the group ID field may be 0x1, and the group ID 0x1 may correspond to the MLME IE.

[0142] Table 4

[0143] Bit: 0-10 11-14 15 Bytes: 4 length Group ID = 0x1 Type = 1 Extended Capability Information IE

[0144] Table 5 exemplarily shows the format of the extended capability information IE, such as the extended capability information IE includes a sub-ID field and an extended capability information field. Exemplarily, the value carried by the sub-ID field can be 0x10. It can be understood that the sub-ID 0x10 shown here is only an example, such as the value carried by the sub-ID field can be set to any one of 0x10-0x19, 0x2a, 0x3a–0x3f, 0x41–0x45, 0x47–0x7f.

[0145] Table 5

[0146] Bit: 0-7 8-14 15 Bytes: 2 length Sub ID (such as 0x10) Type = 0 Expanded capability information

[0147] Tables 6 and 7 exemplarily show the format of the extended capability information field. Exemplarily, the extended capability information field may include at least one of the following information:

[0148] A. Whether low-density parity code (LDPC) is supported. For example, the LDPC field can be used to indicate whether LDPC is supported. If the value carried by the LDPC field is 1 (or the LDPC field is set to 1), it means that LDPC is supported; if the value carried by the LDPC field is 0, it means that LDPC is not supported.

[0149] B. Data rate (or whether a certain rate is supported). As shown in Table 6, taking support for 124.8 Mbps as an example, the 124.8 Mbps field can be used to indicate whether the data rate of 124.8 Mbps is supported. If the value carried by the 124.8 Mbps field is 1, it means that the data rate of 124.8 Mbps is supported; if the value carried by the 124.8 Mbps field is 0, it means that the data rate of 124.8 Mbps is not supported.

[0150] C. Whether the multi-millisecond (MMS) message format with only ranging sequence fragment (RSF) is supported (or whether the multi-millisecond message with only ranging sequence fragment is supported). The RSF-only MMS message field is used to indicate whether the RSF-only MMS message format is supported. If the value carried by the RSF-only MMS message field is 1, it indicates that the RSF-only MMS message format is supported; if the value carried by the RSF-only MMS message field is 0, it indicates that the RSF-only MMS message format is not supported.

[0151] D. Whether the mixed MMS message format is supported (or whether the mixed MMS message is supported). The mixed MMS packet field is used to indicate whether the mixed MMS message format is supported. If the mixed MMS message field is set to 1, it means that the mixed MMS message format is supported; if the mixed MMS message field is set to 0, it means that the mixed MMS message format is not supported. When the mixed MMS message field is set to 1, the RSF-only MMS message field should be set to 1.

[0152] E. Recommendation on the number of MMS fragments. The MMS fragment number recommendation field is used to indicate whether the ranging initiator in the ranging response direction is supported to recommend the number of RSFs and ranging integrity fragments (RIFs) in the next round of ranging. If the MMS fragment number recommendation field is set to 1, it indicates that the ranging responder (such as the controlled party, etc.) is supported to recommend the number of RSFs and RIFs in the next round of ranging to the ranging initiator (such as the controller, etc.); the MMS fragment number recommendation field is set to 0, indicating that the ranging initiator in the ranging response direction is not supported to recommend the number of RSFs and RIFs in the next round of ranging. When both the RSF-only MMS message field and the mixed MMS message field are set to 1, the MMS fragment number recommendation field should be set to 1.

[0153] F. Whether UWB sensing (or UWB-based sensing measurement) is supported. For example, the sensing field is used to indicate whether UWB sensing is supported. If the sensing field is set to 1, it means that UWB sensing is supported; if the sensing field is set to 0, it means that UWB sensing is not supported.

[0154] G. Whether message format 1 is supported. For example, the SENS1 field is used to indicate whether the perception message format 1 (SENS1) is supported. If the SENS1 field is set to 1, it means that the perception message format 1 (SENS1) is supported; if the SENS1 field is set to 0, it means that the perception message format 1 (SENS1) is not supported.

[0155] H. Whether message format 2 is supported. For example, the SENS2 field is used to indicate whether the perception message format 2 (SENS2) is supported. If the SENS2 field is set to 1, it means that the perception message format 2 (SENS2) is supported; if the SENS2 field is set to 0, it means that the perception message format 2 (SENS2) is not supported.

[0156] I. Whether reporting of processed CIR is supported. The processed CIR report field is used to indicate whether reporting of processed CIR (e.g., the range and speed of an object) is supported. If the processed CIR report field is set to 1, reporting of processed CIR is supported; if the processed CIR report field is set to 0, reporting of processed CIR is not supported.

[0157] J. Bit-width of CIR report. For example, the bit-width field of the CIR report can be used to indicate the bit-width supported by the quadrature component and the in-phase component of the CIR, or the bit-width supported by the amplitude and phase. The bit-width field of the CIR report can occupy 2 bits. If the first bit is set to 1, it means that a bit-width of 10 bits is supported; if the first bit is set to 0, it means that a bit-width of 10 bits is not supported. If the second bit in the bit-width field of the CIR report is set to 1, it means that a bit-width of 12 bits is supported; if the second bit is set to 0, it means that a bit-width of 12 bits is not supported.

[0158] K. Whether to use the strongest arrival path (or the strongest detection path, etc.) as a reference. For example, the strongest detected tap as reference field is used to indicate whether the detected strongest arrival path is supported as a reference for window-based CIR reports. The Strongest Path as Reference field is set to 1, indicating that the detected strongest arrival path is supported as a reference for window-based CIR reports; the Strongest Path as Reference field is set to 0, indicating that the detected strongest tap is not supported as a reference for window-based CIR reports.

[0159] L. Whether DL TDOA is supported. The DL TDOA field is used to indicate whether DL TDOA is supported. If the DL TDOA field is set to 1, it indicates that DL TDOA is supported; if the DL TDOA field is set to 0, it indicates that DL TDOA is not supported.

[0160] M. Whether UL TDOA is supported. The UL TDOA field is used to indicate whether UL TDOA is supported. If the UL TDOA field is set to 1, it indicates that DL TDOA is supported; if the UL TDOA field is set to 0, it indicates that DL TDOA is not supported.

[0161] Table 6

[0162]

[0163] Table 7

[0164] Bits: 8 9-10 11 12 13 14-15 Processed CIR report CIR report bit width The strongest reach path is used as a reference DL TDOA UL TDOA Reserve

[0165] It can be understood that the capability information shown in Table 6 and Table 7 is only an example. In a specific implementation, the association request frame may also have more or less capability information than that shown in Table 6 and Table 7.

[0166] Table 8 exemplarily shows the format of the association response frame. For example, the association response frame may include at least one of the following: an MHR field, a command ID field, a short address field, an association status field, and an FCS field. The command ID field may be set to 0x02, and the command ID 0x02 may correspond to the association response frame. For descriptions of the short address field, the FCS field, and the MHR field, reference may be made to relevant standards (such as the IEEE 802.15.4-2020 standard), which will not be described in detail here.

[0167] Table 9 exemplarily shows the valid values ​​of the association status field. As shown in Table 9, the full capacity of the UWB session can be set to 0x04, and the association rejection can be set to 0x05. This effectively avoids the problem that 0x01 represents both PAN full capacity and UWB session full capacity, and 0x02 represents both PAN access rejection and association rejection, resulting in the controlled person being unable to know the association status. The association response frame provided in the embodiment of the present application achieves backward compatibility. It can be understood that the 0x04 and 0x05 shown above are only examples, such as the values ​​of UWB session full capacity and association rejection can also be set to any two values ​​from 0x03 to 0xff.

[0168] Table 8

[0169] Bytes: Variable 1 2 1 2 / 4 MHR Command ID = 0x02 Short URL Association Status FCS

[0170] Table 9

[0171] Association Status describe 0x00 association successful 0x01 PAN at capacity 0x02 PAN access denied 0x03 Hopping sequence offset duplication 0x04 UWB session at capacity 0x05 association denied 0x06-0x7f reserved 0x80 Fast association successful 0x81-0xff reserved

[0172] The association request frame and association response frame provided in the embodiment of the present application can reuse the frame format in the IEEE 802.15.4-2020 standard, which can effectively reduce the complexity of standard formulation.

[0173] In another possible implementation of the present application, the association request frame may be a newly defined MAC command frame to support UWB in-band association. Table 10 exemplarily shows the format of the newly defined association request frame. For example, the association request frame may include at least one of the following: MHR field, command ID field, capability information field, extended capability information field, and FCS field. The command ID field is set to a reserved value in any revision before the IEEE 802.15.4-2020 standard and the IEEE 802.15.4ab revision (for example, any one of 0x0c-0x12, 0x1d–0x1f, 0x29–0xff) to indicate a newly defined association request frame. For the description of the capability information field, please refer to Table 3, and for the description of the extended capability information field, please refer to Table 6 and Table 7, which will not be described in detail here.

[0174] Table 10

[0175] Bytes: Variable 1 1 2 2 / 4 MHR Command ID = 0x0c Capability Information Expanded capability information FCS

[0176] Exemplarily, the association response frame can be a newly defined MAC command frame to support UWB in-band association. Table 11 exemplarily shows the format of the newly defined association response frame. For example, the association response frame includes at least one of the following: MHR field, command ID field, short address field, association status field and FCS field. The command ID field is set to a reserved value (e.g., any one of 0x0c-0x12, 0x1d–0x1f, 0x29–0xff) in any revision before the IEEE 802.15.4-2020 standard and the IEEE 802.15.4ab revision to indicate the newly defined association response frame. The command ID field of the association request frame should take a different value from the command ID field of the association response frame. Table 12 exemplarily shows the valid values ​​of the association status field. Three association status field values ​​(e.g., 0x01, 0x02, and 0x03) can be used to indicate "association success", "UWB session capacity", and "association rejection", respectively. It is understandable that the relevant description of the value of the association status field can also refer to Table 9, which will not be described in detail here.

[0177] Table 11

[0178] Bytes: Variable 1 2 1 2 / 4 MHR Command ID = 0x0d Short URL Association Status FCS

[0179] Table 12

[0180] Association Status describe 0x00 association successful 0x01 UWB session at capacity 0x02 association denied 0x03-0xff reserved

[0181] In the embodiment of the present application, an association request frame and an association response frame are newly defined, which is simple to implement.

[0182] As an example, after receiving the control information sent by the controller, the controlled party may send an association request frame in an empty time slot. Correspondingly, the controller receives the association request frame and sends an association response frame in the next block. Figure 5a As shown, Figure 5a The control IE of the control information in the control IE may include Figure 3 For details about the control information and empty time slot information fields, refer to Figure 3 The relevant description will not be elaborated here. It is understandable that Figure 5a The number of empty time slots shown is only an example. Figure 5a For related instructions, please refer to Figure 2b , Figure 3 and Figure 4 , which will not be elaborated here. Figure 5a The dashed lines shown indicate that the control information may include an empty slot information field or may not include an empty slot information field.

[0183] As another example, the controlled party may send an association request frame in a CAP within an application management cycle. For example, when the application management cycle exists in a beacon interval, the controlled party may send an association request frame to the controller in any CAP, and the controller may send an association response frame to the controlled party in the same CAP, the next CAP, or a time slot scheduled in a CM within the same beacon interval. Sending an association request frame in a CAP within an application management cycle may provide association opportunities for more unassociated controlled parties.

[0184] For example, Figure 5b As shown, when the controller receives the association request frame sent by the controlled party in the CAP, if the remaining CAP duration is sufficient to send the association response frame, the controller can try to send the association response frame to the controlled party in the same CAP (that is, the association request frame and the association response frame are both in the same CAP). If the remaining CAP duration is insufficient to send the association response frame, the controller can try to send the association response frame to the controlled party in the next CAP. In other words, if the controller has no chance to send the association response frame in the same CAP, or fails to successfully send the association response frame in the same CAP, the controller can try to send the association response frame to the controlled party in the next CAP.

[0185] For example, Figure 5cAs shown, when the controller receives the association request frame sent by the controlled party in the last CAP of the application management cycle, if the remaining CAP duration is insufficient to send the association response frame, the controller may send the association response frame to the controlled party through a time slot in the application cycle scheduled by the CM. If the remaining CAP duration is sufficient to send the association response frame, the controller may try to send the association response frame to the controlled party in the same CAP. In this case, if the controller has no chance to send the association response frame in the same CAP, or fails to send the association response frame in the same CAP, the controller may send the association response frame to the controlled party through a time slot in the application cycle scheduled by the CM.

[0186] For example, Figure 5b and Figure 5c The control information in the application period shown may include an empty time slot information field, or may not include an empty time slot information field.

[0187] Figure 6 is a flowchart of an information processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 6 As shown, the method includes:

[0188] 601. The controller sends capability information, and the controlled device receives the capability information. The capability information is used to carry the capability information of the controller.

[0189] In an embodiment of the present application, the capability information may include the capability information shown in Table 3, and the extended capability information shown in Table 6 and Table 7. Therefore, the specific content of the capability information can be referred to above, and will not be described in detail here. It can be understood that the capability information shown in Table 3, Table 6 and Table 7 above can all be understood as the capability information of the controlled person, while the capability information shown in the embodiment of the present application refers to the capability information of the controller. Although the objects of the capability information are different, the types of capability information can be adaptively referred to the relevant descriptions such as Table 3, Table 6 and Table 7.

[0190] As an example, the capability information may be carried in a beacon frame. Table 13 exemplarily shows the format of a beacon frame. For example, the capability information may be included in a beacon payload field in a beacon frame. Alternatively, the capability information shown in Table 3 is included in a beacon payload field of a beacon frame, and the extended capability information shown in Tables 6 and 7 is included in a payload IE of a beacon frame, etc., which are not listed one by one. For example, when the controller's capability information is carried in a beacon frame, Figure 7aAs shown, the controller sends a beacon frame, the controlled party receives the beacon frame, and determines the controller's capability information based on the beacon frame. Then the controller sends control information in the application cycle, the controlled party receives the control information, and determines the empty time slot. The controlled party sends an association request frame in the empty time slot, and the controller receives the association request frame accordingly. The controller sends an association request frame, and the controlled party receives the association responsiveness accordingly. If the association status field value of the association response frame indicates "association successful", the controlled party is successfully associated with the controller. If the association status field value of the association response frame does not indicate "association successful" (for other status descriptions that do not belong to association success, please refer to Table 9 or Table 12), the controlled party fails to associate with the controller. Figure 7a The control IE in the control information shown may include an empty slot information field, or may not include an empty slot information field. Figure 7a The frame formats of the association request frame and the association response frame shown in the figure can be as shown above. Figure 4 Of course, you can also use Figure 2b The frame format shown in the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this.

[0191] Table 13

[0192] Bytes: Variable variable variable 2 / 4 MHR Payload IE Beacon Payload FCS

[0193] As another example, the capability information may be carried in the CM. For example, when the capability information is carried in the control information, such as Figure 7b As shown, the controller can send control information, and the control IE in the control information can include an empty time slot information field. After receiving the control information, the controlled party can determine the controller's capability information based on the control information, and quickly obtain the empty time slot information based on the control IE. Figure 7a The frame formats of the association request frame and the association response frame shown in the figure can be as shown above. Figure 4 Of course, you can also use Figure 2b The frame format shown. This embodiment of the present application is not limited to this. Exemplarily, the controller's capability information can be carried in an IE of the control information, or in a control element or a scheduling element of the control information, or in other fields in the control information, etc. This embodiment of the present application is not limited to this.

[0194] Of course, capability information can also be carried in beacon frames and CMs.

[0195] 602. The controlled party determines the capability information of the controller based on the capability information.

[0196] Exemplarily, after the controlled party determines the capability information of the controller, it may decide whether to send an association request frame to the controller based on the capability information.

[0197] Understandable, Figure 6 The method shown can be used with Figure 4 The method shown is combined, and the specific combination method will not be described in detail here.

[0198] In the embodiment of the present application, the controlled party obtains the capability information of the controller before sending the association request frame, which can effectively avoid the situation where the controller cannot be associated due to the insufficient capability of providing services to the controlled party. Thus, the controlled party can have a more comprehensive understanding of the capability of the controller, which ensures the success of the association between the controlled party and the controller, and improves the integrity of the UWB in-band discovery and association mechanism.

[0199] The embodiments shown in this application are all shown with "field" as an example, without specifically distinguishing between "field" and "subfield" and the like. Although the embodiments shown in this application do not specifically distinguish between "field" and "subfield", those skilled in the art can adaptively distinguish the relationship between the various fields (or various elements and fields) shown in this application. Optionally, in practical applications, the fields, elements, etc. shown in the embodiments of this application can also be represented in the form of information. Therefore, the embodiments of this application do not limit the representation form of the contents of fields, subfields, elements, indication information, etc. In the various embodiments shown above, the content that is not described in detail in one embodiment can refer to another embodiment, and the above embodiments can also be combined with each other. For the specific combination method, it is no longer described in detail one by one.

[0200] The following is an introduction to the communication device provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0201] The present application divides the functional modules of the communication device according to the above method embodiment. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. Figures 8 to 10 The communication device according to the embodiment of the present application is described in detail.

[0202] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 8 As shown, the communication device includes a processing unit 801 and a transceiver unit 802. The transceiver unit 802 can implement corresponding communication functions, and the processing unit 801 is used for data processing. For example, the transceiver unit 802 can also be called a communication interface or a communication unit.

[0203] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication device can be used to execute the actions performed by the controlled person in the above method embodiments. In this case, the communication device can be the controlled person or a component (such as a chip or system, etc.) that can be configured in the controlled person. The transceiver unit 802 is used to execute the operations related to the transceiver of the controlled person in the above method embodiments, and the processing unit 801 is used to execute the operations related to the processing of the controlled person in the above method embodiments. The communication device can be used to execute the steps or functions performed by the controlled person in the above method embodiments.

[0204] The transceiver unit 802 is used to input control information;

[0205] The processing unit 801 is configured to determine information about empty time slots based on an empty time slot information field in a control information element in the control information.

[0206] It can be understood that the transceiver unit 802 is used to input control information, which can be understood as: the processing unit 801 inputs control information through the transceiver unit 802; or, the transceiver unit 802 receives control information sent by the controller.

[0207] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 801 is further configured to ignore the scheduling information element in the control information (or it can be understood as not parsing the scheduling information element).

[0208] In a possible implementation manner, the transceiver unit 802 is further configured to send an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field; and receive an association response frame of the association request frame.

[0209] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 802 can be used to send an association request frame to the controller and receive an association response frame from the controller; or, the transceiver unit 802 can be used to output an association request frame from the processing unit 801 and input an association response frame to the processing unit 801, etc. The specific implementation methods of the transceiver unit are not listed one by one in the embodiments of the present application.

[0210] In a possible implementation, the transceiver unit 802 is further configured to receive a beacon frame.

[0211] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 802 may be configured to receive a beacon frame sent by a controller; or, input the beacon frame to the processing unit 801, etc.

[0212] Optionally, the communication device may further include a storage unit, which may be used to store instructions and / or data, and the processing unit 801 may read the instructions and / or data in the storage unit so that the communication device implements the aforementioned method embodiment. Exemplarily, the storage unit may be used to store at least one of the following: a first bitmap (or a second bitmap), capability information of the controller, capability information of the controlled person, etc.

[0213] It is understandable that the specific description of the transceiver unit and the processing unit shown in the embodiment of the present application is only an example. For the specific functions or execution steps of the transceiver unit and the processing unit, reference can be made to the above method embodiment, which will not be described in detail here. The description of the processing unit and the transceiver unit shown above is only an example. For the description of each term involved above, reference can be made to the method embodiment. For example, the description of control information, control IE, scheduling IE, association request frame, association response frame, beacon frame, etc., reference can be made to the above method embodiment, which will not be described in detail here.

[0214] Reuse Figure 8 In some other embodiments of the present application, the communication device can be used to execute the actions executed by the controller in the above method embodiment. In this case, the communication device can be the controller or a component that can be configured in the controller. The transceiver unit 802 is used to execute the operations related to the transceiver of the controller in the above method embodiment, and the processing unit 801 is used to execute the operations related to the processing of the controller in the above method embodiment. That is, the communication device can be used to execute the steps or functions executed by the controller in the above method embodiment.

[0215] The processing unit 801 is used to generate control information;

[0216] The transceiver unit 802 is used to output the control information.

[0217] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 802 may send the control information to the controlled person; or, the control information may be output from the processing unit 801 .

[0218] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 802 may be configured to receive an association request frame and send an association response frame.

[0219] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 802 may be used to receive an association request frame sent by the controlled party, or input the association request frame to the processing unit 801. The transceiver unit 802 may be used to send an association response frame to the controlled party, or output the association response frame from the processing unit 801.

[0220] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 802 is further configured to send a beacon frame. For example, the transceiver unit 802 may output the beacon frame from the processing unit 801 or send the beacon frame to a controlled entity.

[0221] Optionally, the communication device may further include a storage unit, which may be used to store instructions and / or data, and the processing unit 801 may read the instructions and / or data in the storage unit so that the communication device implements the aforementioned method embodiment. Exemplarily, the storage unit may be used to store at least one of the following: a first bitmap (or a second bitmap), capability information of the controller, capability information of the controlled person, etc.

[0222] It is understandable that the specific description of the transceiver unit and the processing unit shown in the embodiment of the present application is only an example. For the specific functions or execution steps of the transceiver unit and the processing unit, reference can be made to the above method embodiment, which will not be described in detail here. It is understandable that the description of the processing unit and the transceiver unit shown above is only an example. For the description of each term involved above, reference can be made to the method embodiment. For example, the description of control information, control IE, scheduling IE, association request frame, association response frame, beacon frame, etc., reference can be made to the above method embodiment, which will not be described in detail here.

[0223] The above describes the communication device of the embodiment of the present application, and the following describes possible product forms of the communication device. Figure 8 Any form of product that has the functions of the communication device falls within the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0224] In one possible implementation, Figure 8 In the communication device shown, the processing unit 801 may be one or more processors, the transceiver unit 802 may be a transceiver, or the transceiver unit 802 may also be a sending unit and a receiving unit, the sending unit may be a transmitter, the receiving unit may be a receiver, and the sending unit and the receiving unit are integrated into one device, such as a transceiver. In the embodiment of the present application, the processor and the transceiver may be coupled, etc., and the embodiment of the present application does not limit the connection mode of the processor and the transceiver. In the process of executing the above method, the process of sending information in the above method can be understood as the process of outputting the above information by the processor. When outputting the above information, the processor outputs the above information to the transceiver so that it is transmitted by the transceiver. After the above information is output by the processor, it may also need to be processed in other ways before it reaches the transceiver. Similarly, the process of receiving information in the above method can be understood as the process of the processor receiving the input information. When the processor receives the input information, the transceiver receives the above information and inputs it into the processor. Furthermore, after the transceiver receives the above information, the above information may need to be processed in other ways before it is input into the processor.

[0225] like Fig. 9 As shown, the communication device 90 includes one or more processors 920 and a transceiver 910 .

[0226] Exemplarily, when the communication device is used to execute the steps, methods or functions executed by the above-mentioned controlled person,

[0227] A transceiver 910, configured to receive control information;

[0228] The processor 920 is configured to determine information about an empty time slot based on an empty time slot information field in a control information element in the control information.

[0229] In a possible implementation manner, the processor 920 is further configured to ignore the scheduling information element in the control information (or it can be understood as not parsing the scheduling information element).

[0230] In a possible implementation, the transceiver 910 is further configured to send an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field; and receive an association response frame of the association request frame.

[0231] In a possible implementation, the transceiver 910 is further configured to receive a beacon frame.

[0232] Exemplarily, when the communication device is used to execute the steps, methods or functions performed by the controller,

[0233] Processor 920, configured to generate control information;

[0234] The transceiver 910 is used to output the control information.

[0235] Exemplarily, the transceiver 910 may be configured to receive an association request frame and send an association response frame.

[0236] Exemplarily, the transceiver 910 is also used to send a beacon frame.

[0237] It is understood that for the specific description of the processor and transceiver, please refer to Figure 8 The description of the processing unit and the transceiver unit shown in the figure will not be repeated here. For the description of each term involved in the above text, reference can be made to the method embodiment. For example, the description of control information, control IE, scheduling IE, association request frame, association response frame, beacon frame, etc. can be referred to the method embodiment above, which will not be described in detail here.

[0238] exist Fig. 9 In various implementations of the communication device shown, the transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter, wherein the receiver is used to perform a receiving function (or operation) and the transmitter is used to perform a transmitting function (or operation). The transceiver is used to communicate with other devices / devices through a transmission medium.

[0239] Optionally, the communication device 90 may also include one or more memories 930 for storing program instructions and / or data, etc. The memory 930 is coupled to the processor 920. The coupling in the embodiment of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units or modules, which may be electrical, mechanical or other forms, and is used for information exchange between devices, units or modules. The processor 920 may operate in conjunction with the memory 930. The processor 920 may execute program instructions stored in the memory 930. Optionally, at least one of the one or more memories may be included in the processor. Optionally, one or more memories may be used to store the first bitmap (or second bitmap), the controller's capability information, the controlled person's capability information, etc. in the embodiment of the present application.

[0240] The specific connection medium between the transceiver 910, the processor 920 and the memory 930 is not limited in the embodiment of the present application. Fig. 9 In the embodiment, the memory 930, the processor 920 and the transceiver 910 are connected via a bus 940. Fig. 9 The connections between the other components are shown in bold lines, which are only for illustration and are not intended to be limiting. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, Fig. 9 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.

[0241] In the embodiments of the present application, the processor may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, etc., and may implement or execute the methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware processor, or may be executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor, etc.

[0242] In the embodiment of the present application, the memory may include, but is not limited to, non-volatile memory such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD), a random access memory (RAM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), a read-only memory (ROM) or a portable read-only memory (CD-ROM), etc. The memory is any storage medium that can be used to carry or store program codes in the form of instructions or data structures and can be read and / or written by a computer (such as a communication device shown in the present application), but is not limited thereto. The memory in the embodiment of the present application can also be a circuit or any other device that can realize a storage function, for storing program instructions and / or data.

[0243] Exemplarily, the processor 920 is mainly used to process the communication protocol and communication data, and to control the entire communication device, execute the software program, and process the data of the software program. The memory 930 is mainly used to store the software program and data. The transceiver 910 may include a control circuit and an antenna. The control circuit is mainly used for converting the baseband signal and the radio frequency signal and processing the radio frequency signal. The antenna is mainly used to transmit and receive radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. The input and output devices, such as a touch screen, a display screen, a keyboard, etc., are mainly used to receive data input by the user and output data to the user.

[0244] When the communication device is turned on, the processor 920 can read the software program in the memory 930, interpret and execute the instructions of the software program, and process the data of the software program. When data needs to be sent wirelessly, the processor 920 performs baseband processing on the data to be sent, and outputs the baseband signal to the RF circuit. The RF circuit performs RF processing on the baseband signal and then sends the RF signal outward in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the communication device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna, converts the RF signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor 920. The processor 920 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0245] In another implementation, the RF circuit and antenna may be arranged independently of the processor performing baseband processing. For example, in a distributed scenario, the RF circuit and antenna may be arranged remotely from the communication device.

[0246] It is understandable that the communication device shown in the embodiment of the present application may also have Fig. 9The embodiments of the present application do not limit the number of components and the like. The methods executed by the processor and the transceiver shown above are only examples, and the specific steps executed by the processor and the transceiver can refer to the methods described above.

[0247] In another possible implementation, Figure 8 In the communication device shown, the processing unit 801 may be one or more logic circuits, and the transceiver unit 802 may be an input / output interface, or a communication interface, or an interface circuit, or an interface, etc. Alternatively, the transceiver unit 802 may be a sending unit and a receiving unit, the sending unit may be an output interface, the receiving unit may be an input interface, and the sending unit and the receiving unit may be integrated into one unit, such as an input / output interface. Fig.10 As shown, Fig.10 The communication device shown includes a logic circuit 1001 and an interface 1002. That is, the processing unit 801 can be implemented by the logic circuit 1001, and the transceiver unit 802 can be implemented by the interface 1002. The logic circuit 1001 can be a chip, a processing circuit, an integrated circuit or a system on chip (SoC) chip, etc., and the interface 1002 can be a communication interface, an input / output interface, a pin, etc. For example, Fig.10 The above communication device is taken as an example as a chip, and the chip includes a logic circuit 1001 and an interface 1002 .

[0248] In the embodiment of the present application, the logic circuit and the interface may also be coupled to each other. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific connection method between the logic circuit and the interface.

[0249] Exemplarily, when the communication device is used to execute the method, function or step performed by the above-mentioned controlled person, the interface 1002 is used to input control information; the logic circuit 1001 is used to determine the information of the empty time slot based on the empty time slot information field in the control information.

[0250] In a possible implementation, the logic circuit 1001 is further configured to output an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field; and parse an association response frame input through an interface.

[0251] In a possible implementation, the interface 1002 is further used to input a beacon frame, and the logic circuit 1001 is used to parse the beacon frame.

[0252] Exemplarily, when the communication device is used to execute the method, function or step performed by the controller, the logic circuit 1001 is used to generate control information; and the interface 1002 is used to output the control information.

[0253] In a possible implementation, the logic circuit 1001 is further configured to input an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field, and output an association response frame of the association request frame.

[0254] Exemplarily, the logic circuit may input an association request frame through an interface and parse the association request frame. Exemplarily, the logic circuit may be used to determine an association response frame and output the association response frame through an interface.

[0255] In a possible implementation, the interface 1002 is used to output a beacon frame.

[0256] Exemplarily, the logic circuit may also be used to determine a beacon frame.

[0257] Optionally, the above-mentioned communication device may further include a memory, which may be used to store the first bit map (or the second bit map), the capability information of the controller, the capability information of the controlled person, etc.

[0258] For the description of each term involved in the above, please refer to the method embodiment. For example, for the description of control information, control IE, scheduling IE, association request frame, association response frame, beacon frame, etc., please refer to the method embodiment above, which will not be described in detail here.

[0259] It can be understood that the communication device shown in the embodiment of the present application can implement the method provided in the embodiment of the present application in the form of hardware, or can implement the method provided in the embodiment of the present application in the form of software, etc., and the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this.

[0260] for Fig.10 The specific implementation methods of the various embodiments shown can also refer to the above embodiments, which will not be described in detail here.

[0261] The present application also provides a wireless communication system, which includes a controlled person and a controller, and the controlled person and the controller can be used to perform the method in any of the above embodiments. Alternatively, the controlled person and the controller can refer to Figures 8 to 10 The communication device shown.

[0262] In addition, the present application also provides a computer program, which is used to implement the operations and / or processing performed by the controlled person in the method provided by the present application.

[0263] The present application also provides a computer program, which is used to implement the operations and / or processing performed by the controller in the method provided by the present application.

[0264] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer codes are stored. When the computer codes are executed on a computer, the computer executes the operations and / or processes performed by the controlled person in the method provided in the present application.

[0265] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer codes are stored. When the computer codes are executed on a computer, the computer executes the operations and / or processes performed by the controller in the method provided in the present application.

[0266] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer code or a computer program. When the computer code or the computer program runs on a computer, the operations and / or processes performed by the controlled person in the method provided by the present application are executed.

[0267] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer code or a computer program. When the computer code or the computer program runs on a computer, the operations and / or processes performed by the controller in the method provided by the present application are executed.

[0268] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic. For example, the division of the units is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, or it can be an electrical, mechanical or other form of connection.

[0269] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components displayed as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the technical effects of the solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0270] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated unit may be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional units.

[0271] If the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application is essentially or partly contributed to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product, and the computer software product is stored in a readable storage medium, including a number of instructions for a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned readable storage medium includes: U disk, mobile hard disk, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), disk or optical disk and other media that can store program code.

[0272] The above is only a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art who is familiar with the present technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An information processing method, characterized in that: The method comprises: receiving control information, the control information comprising a control information element, the control information element comprising an empty time slot information field, the empty time slot information field being used to indicate an empty time slot in a block corresponding to the control information; The information of the empty time slot is determined based on an empty time slot information field in the control information element.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The control information element further includes an indication field, and the indication field is used to indicate whether the empty time slot information field exists in the control information element.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The numerical value carried by the indication field includes a first value, and the first value is used to indicate that the empty time slot information field exists in the control information element.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The numerical value carried by the indication field includes a second value, and the second value is used to indicate that the empty time slot information field does not exist in the control information element.

5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The first value is 1, and the second value is 0.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The empty time slot information field includes starting time slot information, and the starting time slot information is used to indicate a starting empty time slot index.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The empty time slot information field also includes the time slot number of the empty time slot.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: After determining the information of the empty time slot based on the empty time slot information field in the control information element, the method further includes: Sending an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field; An association response frame is received in response to the association request frame.

9. An information processing method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Generate control information, the control information comprising a control information element, the control information element comprising an empty time slot information field, the empty time slot information field being used to indicate an empty time slot in a block corresponding to the control information; The control information is sent.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The control information element further includes an indication field, and the indication field is used to indicate whether the empty time slot information field exists in the control information element.

11. The method according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that: The numerical value carried by the indication field includes a first value, and the first value is used to indicate that the empty time slot information field exists in the control information element.

12. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 11, characterized in that: The numerical value carried by the indication field includes a second value, and the second value is used to indicate that the empty time slot information field does not exist in the control information element.

13. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that: The first value is 1, and the second value is 0.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, characterized in that: The empty time slot information field includes starting time slot information, and the starting time slot information is used to indicate a starting empty time slot index.

15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that The empty time slot information field also includes the time slot number of the empty time slot.

16. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 15, characterized in that: The method further comprises: receiving an association request frame in an empty time slot indicated by the empty time slot information field; An association response frame is sent to the association request frame.

17. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16.

18. A communication device, characterized in that: including a processor and a memory; The memory is used to store instructions; The processor is configured to execute the instructions so that the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16 is executed.

19. A communication device, characterized in that: comprising a logic circuit and an interface, wherein the logic circuit and the interface are coupled; The interface is used to input and / or output code instructions, and the logic circuit is used to execute the code instructions so that the method described in any one of claims 1 to 16 is executed.

20. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program. When the computer program is executed, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16 is executed.

21. A computer program, characterized in that When the computer program is executed, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16 is performed.

22. A communication system, characterized in that: The communication system comprises a controlled party and a controller, wherein the controlled party is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, and the controller is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 9 to 16.

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