Efficient uplink resource requests in wlan systems

Abstract

Techniques, devices, and systems are disclosed for generating a resource request poll, the resource request poll including at least one response criterion; transmitting the resource request polling; a resource request report is received from the STAs that meet the at least one response criterion. A trigger frame may be transmitted to the at least one STA based on the resource request report from the at least one STA. The response criteria may include at least one of the following: NFRP, UL access type, delay limit, NDP feedback report AC, indicated number of AID bits, AID range, requested information, number of bits to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, the number of LTFs to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble and the number of bits per LTF symbol or per N LTF symbols to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble.

Description

[0001] The present invention is a divisional application of a patent application with application number 202080040774.0, application date May 1, 2020, and invention name “Effective uplink resource request in WLAN system”.

[0002] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0003] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 846,031, filed May 10, 2019, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Background Art

[0004] Delay is generally referred to as the delay before data transmission starts after a data transmission instruction or request. Lower latency uplink transmission can be supported by a fast exchange of resource requests and / or responses between an access point (AP) and one or more stations (STAs). During the null data packet (NDP) feedback reporting process, the AP may transmit an NDP feedback report polling (NFRP) trigger, where the AP may indicate that the feedback type is a resource request. The starting association ID (AID) field may be included in the trigger frame sent by the AP. Next, the STA may receive and / or detect the NFRP trigger to determine whether the NFRP trigger is scheduled and how to transmit the NFRP-triggered NDP feedback report. The STA may obtain NDP feedback report parameters from the management frame. Upon receiving data from the STA, the AP may not send an acknowledgment message to the STA.

[0005] However, the NDP feedback reporting process may not be sufficient for some low-latency applications. For example, an AP may trigger a group of STAs with consecutive AIDs within an AID range to transmit resource requests. However, STAs that are not within the AID range cannot be used to transmit resource requests or NDP feedback reports. In addition, the feedback status carried in the NDP feedback report may only roughly signal the buffer size in bytes. Delay or other quality of service (QoS) requirements may not be included. Summary of the invention

[0006] The present invention discloses a technique, device and system for the following operations: generating a resource request poll, the resource request poll including at least one response criterion; transmitting the resource request poll; receiving a resource request report from each of at least one station (STA) in a plurality of associated STAs that meet at least one response criterion. In addition, the present invention discloses transmitting a trigger frame to the at least one STA based on the resource request report from the at least one STA.

[0007] As disclosed, transmitting the resource request poll may include one of broadcasting the resource request poll and multicasting the resource request poll. The response criteria include at least one of: a null data packet (NDP) feedback report poll (NFRP) type, an uplink (UL) access type, a delay bound, an NDP feedback report access category (AC), an indicated number of AID bits, an AID range, requested information, a number of bits to be included in an NDP feedback report or preamble, a number of long training fields (LTFs) to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, and a number of bits per LTF symbol or per N LTF symbols to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble. The delay bound may include an amount of time, and the AC may be selected from at least one of: low delay, best effort (BK), background (BC), video (VI), and voice (VO). At least one of the resource request poll and the trigger frame may be transmitted during a target wake-up time (TWT). The resource request poll may include a non-sequential STA AID. The resource request poll may include one of an element, an NDP feedback report parameter set element, and a short resource request poll. In addition, an indication that a resource request report generated based on the resource request poll is transmitted as one of a random transmission and a deterministic transmission may be provided. In addition, a conflict may be detected based on two or more resource request reports from two or more STAs of the plurality of associated STAs.

[0008] The present invention discloses a technology, device and system for performing the following operations: receiving a resource request poll, which includes at least one response criterion; determining that a data stream satisfies the at least one response criterion; generating a resource request report based on the at least one response criterion; transmitting the resource request report to an AP; and receiving a trigger frame from the AP based on the resource request report.

[0009] In addition, generating the resource request report includes generating a preamble and N bits based on the response criteria. The response criteria may include at least one of the following: a null data packet (NDP) feedback report poll (NFRP) type, an uplink (UL) access type, a delay bound, an NDP feedback report access category (AC), an indicated number of AID bits, an AID range, requested information, a number of bits to be included in an NDP feedback report or preamble, a number of long training fields (LTFs) to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, and a number of bits per LTF symbol or per N LTF symbols to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble. The resource request poll may include a non-sequential STA AID, and the resource request report may include one of a NFRP, an NDP feedback report parameter set element, and a short resource request poll. In addition, generating the resource request report may include inserting a STA association ID (AID) into the resource request report.

[0010] The present invention discloses a wireless transmit receive unit (WTRU), which is configured to: receive a resource request poll, the resource request poll including at least one response criterion; determine that a data stream meets the at least one response criterion; generate a resource request report based on the at least one response criterion; transmit the resource request report to an AP; and receive a trigger frame from the AP based on the resource request report. The WTRU may be configured to transmit an UL data transmission based on the trigger frame. The UL data transmission may include low-latency data. The response criterion may include at least one of the following: a null data packet (NDP) feedback report poll (NFRP) type, an uplink (UL) access type, a delay bound, an NDP feedback report access category (AC), an indicated number of AID bits, an AID range, requested information, a number of bits to be included in an NDP feedback report or preamble, a number of long training fields (LTFs) to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, and a number of bits per LTF symbol or per N LTF symbols to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] A more detailed understanding may be obtained from the following description given by way of example in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate like elements, and in which:

[0012] Figure 1A is a system diagram illustrating an exemplary communication system in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented;

[0013] Figure 1B It is shown that according to one embodiment, Figure 1A A system diagram of an exemplary wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) for use within the communication system shown;

[0014] Figure 1C It is shown that according to one embodiment, Figure 1A A system diagram of an exemplary radio access network (RAN) and an exemplary core network (CN) used within the illustrated communication system;

[0015] Figure 1D It is shown that according to one embodiment, Figure 1A A system diagram of another exemplary RAN and another exemplary CN used in the communication system shown;

[0016] Figure 2 An exemplary Null Data Packet (NDP) reporting process is shown;

[0017] Figure 3 is a method for low-latency resource request indication and trigger-based uplink transmission;

[0018] Figure 4 A flow chart for implementing a transmission process based on AP and STA is shown; and

[0019] Figure 5 A schematic diagram showing resource request polling and resource request reporting. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] Figure 1A 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary communication system 100 in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communication system 100 may be a multiple access system that provides content such as voice, data, video, messaging, broadcast, etc. to multiple wireless users. The communication system 100 may enable multiple wireless users to access such content through sharing of system resources (including wireless bandwidth). For example, the communication system 100 may employ one or more channel access methods such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), single carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), zero tail unique word discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (ZT-UW-DFT-S-OFDM), unique word OFDM (UW-OFDM), resource block filtered OFDM, filter bank multi-carrier (FBMC), etc.

[0021] like Figure 1AAs shown, the communication system 100 may include wireless transmit / receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, a radio access network (RAN) 104, a core network (CN) 106, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110 and other networks 112, but it should be understood that the disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and / or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be any type of device configured to operate and / or communicate in a wireless environment. By way of example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d (any of which may be referred to as a station (STA)) may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals and may include user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a subscription-based unit, a pager, a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smart phone, a laptop, a netbook, a personal computer, a wireless sensor, a hotspot or Mi-Fi device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a watch or other wearable device, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, medical devices and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial devices and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and / or automated process chain environment), a consumer electronic device, a device operating on a commercial and / or industrial wireless network, etc. Any of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d may be interchangeably referred to as a UE.

[0022] The communication system 100 may also include a base station 114a and / or a base station 114b. Each of the base stations 114a, 114b may be any type of device that is configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the CN 106, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. By way of example, the base stations 114a, 114b may be a base transceiver station (BTS), a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNB), a Home NodeB, a Home evolved NodeB, a next generation NodeB such as a gNodeB (gNB), a new radio (NR) NodeB, a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, and the like. Although the base stations 114a, 114b are each depicted as a single element, it should be appreciated that the base stations 114a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and / or network elements.

[0023] The base station 114a may be part of the RAN 104, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), a relay node, etc. The base station 114a and / or the base station 114b may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals on one or more carrier frequencies, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). These frequencies may be in a licensed spectrum, an unlicensed spectrum, or a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrums. A cell may provide coverage of wireless services to a specific geographic area, which may be relatively fixed or may change over time. The cell may be further divided into cell sectors. For example, a cell associated with the base station 114a may be divided into three sectors. Therefore, in one embodiment, the base station 114a may include three transceivers, i.e., one transceiver for each sector of the cell. In one embodiment, the base station 114a may employ multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology and may utilize multiple transceivers for each sector of the cell. For example, beamforming may be used to transmit and / or receive signals in a desired spatial direction.

[0024] The base stations 114a, 114b may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d over an air interface 116, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, centimeter wave, micrometer wave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). The air interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0025] More specifically, as noted above, the communication system 100 may be a multiple access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, etc. For example, the base station 114a in the RAN 104 and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may use Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) to establish the air interface 116. WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA) and / or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High Speed ​​Downlink (DL) Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High Speed ​​Uplink (UL) Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0026] In one embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and / or Advanced LTE (LTE-A) and / or Advanced LTE Pro (LTE-A Pro).

[0027] In one embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as NR radio access, which may establish the air interface 116 using NR.

[0028] In one embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement multiple radio access technologies. For example, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement LTE radio access and NR radio access together, for example using dual connectivity (DC) principles. Thus, the air interface utilized by the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be characterized by multiple types of radio access technologies and / or transmissions sent to / from multiple types of base stations (e.g., eNBs and gNBs).

[0029] In other embodiments, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement radio technologies such as IEEE 802.11 (i.e., Wireless Fidelity (WiFi)), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), GSM Enhanced Data Rates for Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), etc.

[0030] Figure 1AThe base station 114b in the may be, for example, a wireless router, a Home NodeB, a Home eNodeB, or an access point, and may utilize any suitable RAT to facilitate wireless connectivity in a local area, such as a business location, a home, a vehicle, a campus, an industrial facility, an air corridor (e.g., for use by drones), a road, and the like. In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yet another embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR, etc.) to establish a picocell or a femtocell. As Figure 1A As shown, the base station 114 b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Therefore, the base station 114 b may not need to access the Internet 110 via the CN 106.

[0031] The RAN 104 may be in communication with the CN 106, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and / or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. The data may have different quality of service (QoS) requirements, such as different throughput requirements, delay requirements, error tolerance requirements, reliability requirements, data throughput requirements, mobility requirements, etc. The CN 106 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, pre-paid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and / or perform high-level security functions, such as user authentication. Although not described in detail in the specification, the CN 106 may be configured to provide voice, data, applications, and / or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. Figure 1A 1, but it will be appreciated that the RN 104 and / or the CN 106 may communicate directly or indirectly with other RANs that employ the same RT or a different RT as the RN 104. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 104 that may utilize NR radio technology, the CN 106 may also communicate with another RAN (not shown) that employs GSM, UMTS, CDMA 2000, WiMAX, E-UTR, or WiFi radio technology.

[0032] The CN 106 may also act as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include a circuit-switched telephone network that provides plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), the User Datagram Protocol (UDP), and / or the Internet Protocol (IP) in the TCP / IP Internet protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wired and / or wireless communication networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 may include another CN connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 or a different RAT.

[0033] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communication system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities (e.g., the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks via different wireless links). Figure 1A The illustrated WTRU 102c may be configured to communicate with the base station 114a, which may employ a cellular-based radio technology, and with the base station 114b, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

[0034] Figure 1B is a system diagram illustrating an exemplary WTRU 102. Figure 1B As shown, the WTRU 102 may include, among other things, a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit / receive element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, a display / touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and / or other peripherals 138. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may include any subcombination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0035] The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors associated with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, etc. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functions that enable the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit / receive element 122. Although Figure 1B The processor 118 and the transceiver 120 are depicted as separate components, but it is understood that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0036] The transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signals to or receive signals from a base station (e.g., base station 114a) via an air interface 116. For example, in one embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and / or receive RF signals. In one embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be a transmitter / detector configured to transmit and / or receive, for example, IR, UV, or visible light signals. In yet another embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive RF and light signals. It should be appreciated that the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0037] Although the transmit / receive element 122 is Figure 1B 1 as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit / receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 may employ MIMO technology. Thus, in one embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit / receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 116.

[0038] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate signals to be transmitted by the transmit / receive element 122 and to demodulate signals received by the transmit / receive element 122. As noted above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers to enable the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as NR and IEEE 802.11.

[0039] The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, and / or a display / touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display unit) and may receive user input data therefrom. The processor 118 may also output user data to the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128. In addition, the processor 118 may access information from and store data in any type of suitable memory, such as a non-removable memory 130 and / or a removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 may include a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In other embodiments, the processor 118 may access information from and store data in a memory that is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or a home computer (not shown).

[0040] The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134, and may be configured to distribute and / or control power to other components in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitable device for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 may include one or more dry cell batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel-metal hydride (NiMH), lithium-ion (Li-ion), etc.), solar cells, fuel cells, etc.

[0041] The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to or in lieu of the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may receive location information from a base station (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) over the air interface 116 and / or determine its location based on the timing of signals received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may acquire location information by any suitable location-determination method while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0042] The processor 118 may also be coupled to other peripherals 138, which may include one or more software modules and / or hardware modules that provide additional features, functionality, and / or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include an accelerometer, an electronic compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (for photos and / or video), a universal serial bus (USB) port, a vibration device, a television transceiver, a hands-free headset, Module, FM radio unit, digital music player, media player, video game player module, Internet browser, virtual reality and / or augmented reality (VR / AR) device, activity tracker, etc. Peripheral device 138 may include one or more sensors. The sensor may be one or more of the following: gyroscope, accelerometer, Hall effect sensor, magnetometer, orientation sensor, proximity sensor, temperature sensor, time sensor; geographic location sensor, altimeter, light sensor, touch sensor, magnetometer, barometer, gesture sensor, biometric sensor, humidity sensor, etc.

[0043] The WTRU 102 may include a full-duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all signals (e.g., associated with specific subframes for UL (e.g., for transmission) and DL (e.g., for reception)) may be concurrent and / or simultaneous. The full-duplex radio may include an interference management unit for reducing and / or substantially eliminating self-interference via hardware (e.g., choke) or via signal processing performed by a processor (e.g., a separate processor (not shown) or via the processor 118). In one embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include a half-duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all signals (e.g., associated with specific subframes for UL (e.g., for transmission) or DL ​​(e.g., for reception)) may be concurrent and / or simultaneous.

[0044] Figure 1C 1 is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106 according to one embodiment. As described above, the RAN 104 may employ an E-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the CN 106.

[0045] The RAN 104 may include evolved Node-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of evolved Node-Bs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The evolved Node-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the evolved Node-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, the evolved Node-B 160a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to and / or receive wireless signals from the WTRU 102a.

[0046] Each of the evolved Node Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, etc. Figure 1C As shown, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may communicate with one another via an X2 interface.

[0047] Figure 1C The illustrated CN 106 may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, a serving gateway (SGW) 164, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway (PGW) 166. Although the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 106, it should be understood that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0048] The MME 162 may be connected to each of the evolved Node-Bs 162a, 162b, 162c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, bearer activation / deactivation, selecting a particular serving gateway during an initial attach of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, etc. The MME 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM and / or WCDMA.

[0049] The SGW 164 may be connected to each of the evolved Node-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface. The SGW 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to / from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The SGW 164 may perform other functions, such as anchoring the user plane during inter-evolved Node-B handovers, triggering paging when DL data is available for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, managing and storing the context of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like.

[0050] The SGW 164 may be connected to the PGW 166, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0051] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional land-line communications devices. For example, the CN 106 may include, or may be in communication with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0052] Although the WTRU Figures 1A to 1D Although described as a wireless terminal, it is contemplated that in certain representative embodiments, such a terminal may (eg, temporarily or permanently) use a wired communications interface with a communications network.

[0053] In a representative embodiment, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0054] A WLAN in infrastructure basic service set (BSS) mode may have an access point (AP) for a BSS and one or more stations (STAs) associated with the AP. The AP may have access or an interface to a distribution system (DS) or another type of wired / wireless network that carries traffic to and / or carries traffic away from the BSS. Traffic originating from outside the BSS and leading to the STA may be reached by the AP and may be delivered to the STA. Traffic originating from the STA and leading to a destination outside the BSS may be sent to the AP to be delivered to the corresponding destination. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be sent by the AP, for example, wherein the source STA may send traffic to the AP, and the AP may deliver traffic to the destination STA. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be considered and / or referred to as point-to-point traffic. Point-to-point traffic may be sent between the source and destination STAs (e.g., directly between them) using a direct link setup (DLS). In certain representative embodiments, the DLS may use 802.11e DLS or 802.11z tunnel DLS (TDLS). A WLAN using an independent BSS (IBSS) mode may not have an AP, and STAs (eg, all STAs) within or using the IBSS may communicate directly with each other. The IBSS communication mode may sometimes be referred to herein as an "ad-hoc" communication mode.

[0055] When using the 802.11ac infrastructure operating mode or a similar operating mode, the AP may transmit a beacon on a fixed channel (such as a primary channel). The primary channel may be a fixed width (e.g., a 20 MHz wide bandwidth) or a dynamically set width. The primary channel may be an operating channel of the BSS and may be used by the STA to establish a connection with the AP. In certain representative embodiments, carrier sense multiple access / collision avoidance (CSMA / CA) may be implemented, for example, in an 802.11 system. For CSMA / CA, a STA (e.g., each STA) (including the AP) may sense the primary channel. If the primary channel is sensed / detected and / or determined to be busy by a particular STA, the particular STA may back off. One STA (e.g., only one station) may transmit at any given time in a given BSS.

[0056] High throughput (HT) STAs may communicate using a 40 MHz wide channel, for example, via a combination of a primary 20 MHz channel and adjacent or non-adjacent 20 MHz channels to form a 40 MHz wide channel.

[0057] Very high throughput (VHT) STA can support 20MHz, 40MHz, 80MHz and / or 160MHz wide channels. 40MHz and / or 80MHz channels can be formed by combining continuous 20MHz channels. A 160MHz channel can be formed by combining 8 continuous 20MHz channels, or by combining two non-continuous 80MHz channels (this can be called 80+80 configuration). For the 80+80 configuration, after channel coding, the data can pass through a segment parser that can divide the data into two streams. Each stream can be processed by inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) and time domain processing separately. These streams can be mapped to two 80MHz channels, and data can be transmitted by transmitting STA. At the receiver of the receiving STA, the above-mentioned operation for the 80+80 configuration can be reversed, and the combined data can be sent to the medium access control (MAC).

[0058] 802.11af and 802.11ah support operating modes below 1GHz. Channel operating bandwidths and carriers are reduced in 802.11af and 802.11ah relative to those used in 802.11n and 802.11ac. 802.11af supports 5MHz, 10MHz, and 20MHz bandwidths in the TV White Space (TVWS) spectrum, and 802.11ah supports 1MHz, 2MHz, 4MHz, 8MHz, and 16MHz bandwidths using non-TVWS spectrum. According to a representative embodiment, 802.11ah may support meter type control / machine type communication (MTC), such as MTC devices in macro coverage areas. MTC devices may have certain capabilities, such as limited capabilities, including support for (e.g., only support for) certain bandwidths and / or limited bandwidths. MTC devices may include batteries with battery life above a threshold (e.g., to maintain very long battery life).

[0059] WLAN systems that can support multiple channels and channel bandwidths such as 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11af, and 802.11ah include channels that can be designated as primary channels. The primary channel may have a bandwidth equal to the maximum common operating bandwidth supported by all STAs in the BSS. The bandwidth of the primary channel may be set and / or limited by a STA (which supports the minimum bandwidth operating mode) from all STAs operating in the BSS. In the example of 802.11ah, for STAs (e.g., MTC-type devices) that support (e.g., only support) 1MHz mode, the primary channel may be 1MHz wide, even if the AP and other STAs in the BSS support 2MHz, 4MHz, 8MHz, 16MHz, and / or other channel bandwidth operating modes. Carrier sensing and / or network allocation vector (NAV) settings may depend on the state of the primary channel. If the primary channel is busy, for example, because a STA (supporting only the 1MHz operating mode) is transmitting to the AP, all available frequency bands may be considered busy even if most of the available frequency bands remain idle.

[0060] In the United States, the available frequency band for 802.11ah is 902MHz to 928MHz. In South Korea, the available frequency band is 917.5MHz to 923.5MHz. In Japan, the available frequency band is 916.5MHz to 927.5MHz. The total bandwidth available for 802.11ah is 6MHz to 26MHz, depending on the country code.

[0061] Figure 1D 1 is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106 according to one embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ NR radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the CN 106.

[0062] The RAN 104 may include gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of gNBs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may each include one or more transceivers to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement MIMO technology. For example, the gNBs 180a, 180b may utilize beamforming to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c. Thus, the gNB 180a may, for example, use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to and / or receive wireless signals from the WTRU 102a. In one embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement carrier aggregation techniques. For example, the gNB 180a may transmit multiple component carriers to the WTRU 102a (not shown). A subset of these component carriers may be on unlicensed spectrum, while the remaining component carriers may be on licensed spectrum. In one embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement coordinated multi-point (CoMP) techniques. For example, the WTRU 102a may receive coordinated transmissions from gNB 180a and gNB 180b (and / or gNB 180c).

[0063] The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using transmissions associated with scalable parameter sets. For example, OFDM symbol spacing and / or OFDM subcarrier spacing may vary for different transmissions, different cells, and / or different portions of the wireless transmission spectrum. The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using subframes or transmission time intervals (TTIs) of varying or scalable lengths (e.g., containing different numbers of OFDM symbols and / or continuously varying absolute time lengths).

[0064] The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be configured to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c in a standalone configuration and / or a non-standalone configuration. In a standalone configuration, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c while also not accessing other RANs (e.g., such as the eNodeBs 160a, 160b, 160c). In a standalone configuration, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may use one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c as mobility anchor points. In a standalone configuration, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using signals in an unlicensed band. In a non-standalone configuration, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate or connect with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c while also communicating or connecting with other RANs, such as the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c. For example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement the DC principle to communicate with one or more gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c and one or more evolved Node-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c substantially simultaneously. In a non-standalone configuration, the evolved Node-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may serve as mobility anchors for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may provide additional coverage and / or throughput for serving the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0065] Each of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be associated with a specific cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in UL and / or DL, support of network slicing, interworking between DC, NR, and E-UTRA, routing of user plane data towards a user plane function (UPF) 184a, 184b, routing of control plane information towards an access and mobility management function (AMF) 182a, 182b, etc. Figure 1D As shown, gNBs 180a, 180b, and 180c may communicate with each other via an Xn interface.

[0066] Figure 1DThe illustrated CN 106 may include at least one AMF 182a, 182b, at least one UPF 184a, 184b, at least one session management function (SMF) 183a, 183b, and possible data networks (DNs) 185a, 185b. Although the aforementioned elements are depicted as part of the CN 106, it should be understood that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0067] The AMF 182a, 182b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c via the N2 interface in the RAN 104 and may serve as a control node. For example, the AMF 182a, 182b may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRU 102a, 102b, 102c, support of network slicing (e.g., handling of different protocol data unit (PDU) sessions with different requirements), selecting a specific SMF 183a, 183b, management of registration areas, termination of non-access stratum (NAS) signaling, mobility management, etc. The AMF 182a, 182b may use network slicing to customize CN support for the WTRU 102a, 102b, 102c based on the type of services used by the WTRU 102a, 102b, 102c. For example, different network slices may be established for different use cases, such as services relying on ultra-reliable low latency (URLLC) access, services relying on enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) access, services for MTC access, etc. The AMF 182a, 182b may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and / or non-3GPP access technologies, such as WiFi.

[0068] The SMF 183a, 183b may be connected to the AMF 182a, 182b in the CN 106 via the N11 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may also be connected to the UPF 184a, 184b in the CN 106 via the N4 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may select and control the UPF 184a, 184b, and configure traffic routing through the UPF 184a, 184b. The SMF 183a, 183b may perform other functions such as managing and allocating UE IP addresses, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS, providing DL data notifications, etc. The PDU session type may be IP-based, non-IP-based, Ethernet-based, etc.

[0069] The UPF 184a, 184b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 104 via the N3 interface, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices. The UPF 184, 184b may perform other functions, such as routing and forwarding packets, enforcing user plane policies, supporting multi-homed PDU sessions, handling user plane QoS, buffering DL packets, providing mobility anchoring, etc.

[0070] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 106 may include or may communicate with an IP gateway (e.g., an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. In one embodiment, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be connected to the DNs 185a, 185b via the UPFs 184a, 184b via the N3 interfaces to the UPFs 184a, 184b and the N6 interfaces between the UPFs 184a, 184b and the local DNs 185a, 185b.

[0071] Given that Figures 1A to 1D as well as Figures 1A to 1D Corresponding to the description of the present invention, one or more or all of the functions described herein with reference to one or more of the following may be performed by one or more simulation devices (not shown): WTRU102a-d, base station 114a-b, evolved Node B 160a-c, MME 162, SGW 164, PGW 166, gNB 180a-c, AMF182a-b, UPF 184a-b, SMF 183a-b, DN 185a-b and / or any other device described herein. The simulation device may be one or more devices configured to emulate one or more or all of the functions described herein. For example, the simulation device may be used to test other devices and / or simulate network and / or WTRU functions.

[0072] The simulation device may be designed to implement one or more tests of other devices in a laboratory environment and / or in an operator network environment. For example, the one or more simulation devices may perform one or more or all functions while being fully or partially implemented and / or deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network in order to test other devices within the communication network. The one or more simulation devices may perform one or more functions or all functions while being temporarily implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. The simulation device may be directly coupled to another device for testing purposes and / or perform testing using over-the-air wireless communications.

[0073] The one or more simulation devices may perform one or more (including all) functions without being implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. For example, the simulation device may be used in a test scenario in a test lab and / or a non-deployed (e.g., testing) wired and / or wireless communication network to implement testing of one or more components. The one or more simulation devices may be test equipment. Direct RF coupling and / or wireless communication via RF circuits (e.g., which may include one or more antennas) may be used by the simulation device to transmit and / or receive data.

[0074] Disclosed herein are wireless transmissions that provide enhanced throughput, enhanced reliability, reduced latency and jitter, and improved power efficiency in many usage scenarios. Applications that may be supported by such attributes include, but are not limited to, 4K / 8K video, gaming, virtual and augmented reality, remote office environments, cloud computing, and the like. New generation WLAN devices may provide support for such applications that require very low latency, as well as applications that require high throughput and high spectral efficiency. 4K / 8K video, gaming, augmented reality, virtual reality, remote office environments, cloud computing, and the like are examples of next generation WLAN applications that require low latency communications.

[0075] Latency can be identified as a requirement as new high-throughput, low-latency applications such as virtual reality, gaming, teleworking, and cloud computing will proliferate. Traffic growth for these and similar applications continues to be driven by significant growth in video traffic and IP video traffic. With the emergence of 4K and 8K video and new high-throughput applications such as virtual reality, gaming, teleworking, and cloud computing, the throughput requirements for these and similar applications are also evolving. Because these applications have throughput and real-time requirements, WLAN users need improved throughput and performance in delivering their applications in many environments.

[0076] 5G NR networks can be designed to support three service categories: emBB, massive machine type communication (mMTC), and URLLC. The mechanisms and procedures designed for URLLC provide advanced services for delay-sensitive devices or flows. Configuration grant transmission is adopted to reduce the frame exchange of service request / response between gNB and WTRU, so that WTRUs with low-latency flows can transmit them in pre-configured resources without requesting transmission.

[0077] In WLAN, CSMA / CA channel access is used for multiple access. When a STA listens to the shared medium for a specific period and determines that the medium is idle, the STA can transmit without the approval of its associated AP. The channel sensing resolution is usually 20MHz or higher.

[0078] In IEEE 802.11aX, OFDMA is used for both DL and UL transmissions. The mechanism and process that enable one or more STAs to transmit simultaneously in different frequency units are defined. In general, concurrent UL OFDMA transmissions can be triggered and scheduled by an associated AP. Low-latency transmission can support two schemes: UL OFDMA-based random access (UORA) for associated and non-associated STAs; and Null Data Packet (NDP) feedback reporting process.

[0079] In IEEE 802.11ax, STAs can perform autonomous UL transmissions using traditional CSMA / CA procedures by sensing the entire channel or UORA. The AP can transmit a trigger frame with a set of resource units for associated STAs and / or non-associated STAs to transmit UL traffic. The AP can allocate uplink MCS, length, and other related physical parameters. The STA can use the UORA process to determine resources and transmit triggers based on the physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data unit (PPDU). The AP transmits confirmation to the STA, such as a multi-STA BA. An exemplary trigger frame format is shown in Table 1.

[0080] Frame Control Duration RA TA Public Information User Information … User Information filling FCS| 2 2 6 6 8 or more 5 or more 5 or more v 4

[0081] Table 1

[0082] Exemplary common information fields are shown in Table 2.

[0083]

[0084]

[0085] Table 2

[0086] Table 3 shows exemplary user information fields in the trigger frame except for the NFRP trigger.

[0087]

[0088] Table 3

[0089] In IEEE 802.11aX, the NDP feedback reporting process is supported. First, the AP may transmit an NDP feedback report polling (NFRP) trigger, where the AP may indicate that the feedback type is a resource request. The starting association ID (AID) field may be included in the trigger frame. Next, the STA may receive and / or detect the NFRP trigger to determine whether the NFRP trigger is scheduled and how to transmit the NFRP-triggered NDP feedback report in response to the NFRP trigger. The STA may obtain the NDP feedback report parameters from the management frame. The STA may transmit the NDP feedback report following the instructions in the NFRP trigger and the NDP feedback report parameters. The NDP feedback report may be received by the AP. Confirmation cannot be sent from the AP to the STA. The trigger frame of the NFRP may be in the frame format shown in Table 1.

[0090] The common information field of NFRP may be in the same format as shown in Table 2.

[0091] Table 4 shows an exemplary user information field of NFRP.

[0092]

[0093] Table 4

[0094] The STA triggered by the AP may respond with a triggered PPDU. An exemplary triggered PPDU format is shown in Table 5.

[0095] L-STF L-LTF L-SIG RL-SIG HE-SIG-A HE-STF HE-LTF … HE-LTF data PE

[0096] Table 5

[0097] Transmissions triggered in response to a UORA may be transmitted together in a single data stream.

[0098] The fast exchange of resource requests and / or responses between the AP and one or more STAs can support lower latency uplink transmissions. During the NDP feedback reporting process, the AP may transmit an NDP Feedback Report Poll (NFRP) trigger, where the AP may indicate that the feedback type is a resource request. The starting association ID (AID) field may be included in the trigger frame sent by the AP. Next, the STA may receive and / or detect the NFRP trigger to determine whether the NFRP trigger is scheduled and how to transmit the NFRP-triggered NDP feedback report. The STA may obtain the NDP feedback report parameters from the management frame. Confirmation cannot be sent from the AP to the STA.

[0099] However, the NDP feedback reporting process may not be sufficient for some low-latency applications. For example, an AP may trigger a group of STAs with consecutive AIDs within an AID range to transmit resource requests. However, STAs that are not within the AID range cannot be used to transmit resource requests or NDP feedback reports. In addition, the feedback status carried in the NDP feedback report may only roughly signal the buffer size in bytes. Delay or other quality of service (QoS) requirements may not be included.

[0100] Figure 2 An exemplary NDP feedback reporting process as described herein is shown. The AP may transmit an NDP report poll 210 to multiple STAs, such that the NDP report 220 triggers UL NDP feedback reports from STAs with AIDs K to K+N. As shown, an NDP report poll 210 from N+1 STA may be generated, and the NDP report poll may include: a first part 222 having a PHY header; and a second part 224 including a long training field (LTF), which may hold one information bit. As shown, the NDP report is generated by each STA sorted from 226K to 226K+N. It is worth noting that in Figure 2 In the example shown, the NDP reports from N+1 STAs may include only the first part 222, which includes the PHY header and only a single bit for LTF information. Therefore, according to the NDP feedback reporting process, the entire sequential range of STAs (e.g., K to K+N) responds to the NDP report poll, and further, each STA provides one data bit. The one data bit may indicate whether the buffered payload at the STA is greater than or less than a threshold (e.g., a predetermined threshold or a dynamically determined threshold). Therefore, the NDP feedback reporting process may return sequential STA data, and each STA may indicate whether the buffered payload is greater than or less than a given threshold.

[0101] According to an embodiment of the presently disclosed subject matter, UL resource requests may be triggered for low latency traffic. Figure 3 An exemplary method for low-latency resource request indication and trigger-based uplink transmission is shown. Figure 3 As shown, the AP may provide a random trigger at 310 to trigger a resource request, and may receive a plurality of NDP reports 320. The AP may transmit a scheduled trigger at 330 based on the NDP report of the resource request at 320. The STA may transmit data 340 based on the scheduled trigger 330.

[0102] The AP may transmit a resource request poll requesting resource requests from STAs associated with the AP. For example, the AP may indicate via a trigger frame that it is requesting a compact resource request, such as an NDP feedback report. The resource request poll may be a NFRP, a variant of the NFRP, etc. The resource request poll (e.g., NFRP) may include one or more information types, including but not limited to the NFRP type, UL access type, delay bound, NDP feedback report AC, the number of AID bits indicated, the AID range, the requested information, the number of bits to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, the number of long training fields (LTFs) to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, and the number of bits per LTF symbol or per N LTF symbols to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble. One or more information types may be included in a reserved bit in the NFRP trigger frame. One or more information types may be generally referred to as "response criteria" herein.

[0103] The NFRP type may indicate the trigger type of the NFRP. For example, the NFRP type may indicate that a given NFRP or trigger frame is triggering a resource request for low-latency traffic or for all traffic.

[0104] UL access type may indicate the access type of UL when the STA is triggered to transmit UL data or resource request. UL access type may be random or deterministic. If it is deterministic, the STA may follow the indicated AID range or order to transmit its UL data or resource request on a deterministic resource unit (RU) or subchannel. If it is random, the STA may randomly select an RU that follows the indicated AID range, or randomly select an order for transmitting its UL data or resource request.

[0105] The delay limit may include information about a given delay limit associated with a resource request poll (e.g., NRFP). The delay limit may be, for example, a certain amount of time so that the STA can respond to the resource request poll if UL transmission is required within the amount of time of the delay limit. If the STA has traffic that needs to be transmitted to the AP before the expiration of a given delay limit, it may respond to the NFRP or trigger frame with a resource request. For example, the NFRP may include a delay limit of 20ms so that the STA that needs UL transmission within 20ms responds to the NFRP, and the STA that does not need UL transmission within this time period may not respond to the NFRP. The delay limit may be specified as being related to the transmission time of the trigger frame or NFRP. Therefore, UL traffic may be transmitted within the delay limit starting from the beginning or end of the NFRP or trigger frame being transmitted or associated with the traffic specification. For example, UL transmission may be transmitted within a specified delay limit counted from the generation time or reception time or from the time it has entered the queue.

[0106] The NDP feedback report access category (AC) includes access category restrictions for the requested NDP feedback report or resource request. In an embodiment, the AC value may be low latency, best effort (BK), background (BC), video (VI), and voice (VO). The ranking of low latency AC may be higher than VI and VO. A bitmap may be used for NFRP or trigger to indicate the triggering of a resource request for one or more ACs. If the NFRP or trigger frame that triggers the resource request is for a specific AC, the STA may indicate all flows of the AC that are higher than or equal to the indicated AC in the resource request. In an embodiment, the STA may indicate the flow associated with the indicated AC in the triggered resource request. In addition, the STA may use a bitmap to indicate the presence or priority of multiple ACs, as further disclosed herein under the information request category. For example, a resource request in response to an NFRP or trigger may include four LTF bits, each LTF bit corresponding to an AC (e.g., low latency, VO, VI, BC), so that the value of each bit in the resource request may indicate whether a given STA has a payload to be transmitted for the corresponding AC or indicate a given attribute (e.g., priority) of the corresponding AC payload.

[0107] The indicated number of AID bits indicates the number of bits of the AID indicated in the current trigger frame or NFRP frame, such as the number of the most significant bits (MSB) or the least significant bits (LSB) of the AID. The number of bits of the AID (such as the MSB) can be used to indicate the range of AIDs for which resource requests are triggered. For example, if the 6 MSBs or LSBs of the AID are indicated in the trigger or NFRP frame, all STAs with AIDs (starting with 6 MSBs or ending with 6 LSBs) will respond with resource requests when they meet other requirements indicated by the trigger or NFRP frame.

[0108] The AID range indicates one or more AID ranges of STAs for which the NFRP or trigger frame is triggering the UL resource request. The AID range may be in the form of an indicated MSB or LSB number of AID bits and may be implemented by a combination of STAs starting from a given AID and / or multiple AIDs. It is noteworthy that a number or range of non-sequential STAs (i.e., having corresponding non-sequential STA AIDs) may be included via a given one or more AID ranges, allowing non-sequential STAs to transmit resource requests. Such non-sequential resource requests may allow greater flexibility than a single AID range, such as Figure 2 shown.

[0109] The requested information indicates feedback (e.g., AC, priority, size, etc.) that the polled STA may indicate in a triggered UL data transmission, resource request, or NDP feedback. The information may be indicated as a bitmap. For example, the requested information may be for one or more low-latency traffic flows. The requested information may be for one or more ACs. Alternatively or in addition, the requested information may be queue sizes for one or more traffic flows or ACs.

[0110] The number of bits to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble indicates the number of bits that should be included in the triggered NDP feedback report or the triggered preamble or the triggered UL transmission. The number of bits may be included or encoded in a legacy preamble, a HE or EHT preamble (such as a HE- or EHT-LTF and a HE- or EHT-STF or other fields, a MAC header, a frame body, or a CRC or FCS field).

[0111] The number of LTFs to be included in the triggered NDP feedback report or preamble may indicate the number of HE- or EHT-LTFs to be included in the NDP feedback report, preamble, or triggered resource request. This number may indicate the number of LTFs or LTF pairs that the STA should transmit in the UL / resource request in response to the current trigger or NFRP frame.

[0112] When transmitting a triggered NDP feedback report or resource request, the number of bits per LTF symbol, every 2 symbols, or every N LTF symbols to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble may indicate the number of bits to be included by the STA at each HE- or EHT-LTF, every 2 HE- or EHT-LTF, or every N HE- or EHT-LTF. For each bit of every 1 HE or EHT-LTF, every 2 HE or EHT-LTF, every N HE or EHT-LTF, or other fields, fewer subcarriers may be used to implement the number of bits.

[0113] According to an embodiment of the subject matter disclosed in the present invention, all or a subset of the information types described herein may be included in an NDP feedback report parameter set element or other types of elements or frames transmitted by the AP. NDP feedback report parameter set elements or other types of elements, frames and / or short resource request polls transmitted by the AP may be generally referred to as "resource request polls". In addition, UL data transmissions, resource requests, NDP feedback reports, short reports (e.g., UL low latency short reports) and / or short resource requests may be generally referred to as "resource request reports". As disclosed herein, a request poll may be transmitted by an AP and may be received by one or more STAs, such that a resource request poll may trigger one or more STAs to generate and transmit a resource request report.

[0114] Figure 4An exemplary process 400 for implementing an AP and STA based transmission process is shown. It should be understood that the steps provided in process 400 may not be performed in order, and further, one or more steps may not be performed to implement the embodiments disclosed herein. The AP may associate with one or more STAs and may provide one or more information types disclosed herein via elements such as NDP feedback report parameter set elements or other applicable elements. The association process may be initiated by one or more STAs. The AP may provide one or more information types via elements during the association process with one or more STAs or in their corresponding beacons, short beacons, probe response frames, FILS discovery frames, or association response frames.

[0115] At 404, the STA may perform an association process with the AP and may indicate during the association process with the AP that one or more of the STAs have low latency traffic. The STA may also use a traffic specification (TSPEC) or a low latency request frame to indicate to the AP that it has low latency traffic or one or more low latency data flows.

[0116] At 406, the STA may be assigned one or more target wake-up times (TWTs). For example, the STA may be assigned a broadcast TWT or service period during which the STA polls for UL low-latency data transmission or UL low-latency resource requests. It should be understood that any portion of process 400, such as 406, is optional, such that process 400 may be implemented without performing 406, or 406 may be performed in an alternative order to the order provided herein.

[0117] At 408, at any given time or at a previously agreed service period (such as a broadcast or single TWT service period), the AP may poll one or more STAs via a resource request. The resource request pool may indicate the response criteria and the IDs of one or more STAs. For example, the AP may include one or more AID ranges in a trigger frame or NFRP frame.

[0118] To indicate a specific AID range, the AP may indicate the starting AID and the number of AIDs indicating a specific range of AIDs. Alternatively, the AP may indicate the number of AID bits used to indicate the range in the trigger or NFRP frame. For example, the trigger frame or NFRP may include an indication of the number N of MSBs or LSBs of the AID range. Thus, the AID range will correspond to all STAs having AIDs that contain N MSBs or LSBs.

[0119] As noted, at 408, the AP may send a frame (e.g., a resource request poll, a trigger frame, or a NFRP frame to poll the STA for UL resource requests). The resource request poll to the polling STA may be sent at any given time period or at a previously agreed service period (such as a broadcast or a separate TWT service period). In addition, the AP may indicate the type of information required to respond to the resource request poll, such as a specific type of traffic being polled (such as low latency traffic), or one or more specific ACs (such as low latency, low latency VR, low latency AR, low latency gaming, BK, BE, VO, and VI).

[0120] In addition, at 408, the response criteria of the AP resource request poll may specify a delay bound for the traffic being polled, such as frames that need to be transmitted within an indicated delay bound. A resource request poll with a specific delay bound may be interpreted as a poll requesting all traffic that needs to be transmitted within the delay bound. For example, if the delay bound is 10ms, the traffic being polled may include a VO frame generated 44ms before the poll is received at the FTA and needs to be transmitted within a 50ms delay bound from generation. Therefore, the VO frame meets the 10ms delay bound requirement because it needs to be transmitted within 6ms from the receipt of the poll. As another example, traffic that meets the 10ms delay bound requirement may also include low-latency traffic that was generated 4ms before the poll was received and will be transmitted to the AP with a delay of 10ms from generation. According to one embodiment, a resource request poll with an indicated delay bound may be interpreted as including traffic to be delivered within a delay bound that is less than or equal to a specific indicated delay bound since the given traffic was generated. If the polling STA meets other requirements, such as if the STA has traffic or traffic flows that meet delay bound requirements by transmitting NDP feedback reports or UL resource requests or data, the STA (e.g., whose AID is indicated in the trigger frame or NFRP) may respond.

[0121] In addition, at 408, the AP may indicate that the resource request report (or specifically the UL transmission) is transmitted randomly or deterministically. If the resource request report or UL transmission is to be transmitted deterministically, resources may be allocated for each of the AID ranges provided by the AP at 412. Additional resources may be allocated for each of the AID ranges, while indicating multiplexing by using a P matrix or other method for each of the AID ranges associated with a given resource allocation. If the resource request report or UL transmission is to be transmitted randomly, resources may be allocated for each of the AID ranges. In addition or alternatively, the trigger frame or NFRP may also include a number of bits N that the responding STA may also include in the UL data transmission or resource request. The responding STA may include the number of bits as indicated in the trigger frame or NFRP, which may be N bits of the MSB or LSB of the STA's AID (i.e., to indicate its identity), such as the number of LTFs to be included or the number of LTF field pairs. For example, the AP may indicate the AID range by polling all STAs whose AIDs contain 6 MSBs in their AIDs by indicating the 6 MSBs of the AID range. The AP may also indicate that the STA should include 5 LSBs in its response data transmission or resource request frame (e.g., NDP feedback report). The responding STA may include the number of HE- or EHT-LTFs in the resource request or NDP feedback report, which may be 5 or 10 HE- or EHT-LTFs. 5 or 10 HE- or EHT-LTFs may include the 5 LSBs of their AID in the resource request of the data transmission or NDP feedback report of the UL transmission. The resource request report may be transmitted randomly on the resources allocated for the corresponding AID range.

[0122] At 410, the STA may determine whether it is polled by the AP. The STA may determine whether it is polled based on, for example, whether its AID is included in one or more of the AID ranges, as indicated by the AP in a trigger frame or NFRP.

[0123] In addition, at 412, if the polling STA (e.g., the STA with the AID indicated in the trigger frame or NFRP) meets other requirements of the received resource request poll, such as if the STA has low latency or low latency traffic of the correct type, or traffic of the indicated AC by transmitting an NDP feedback report or UL resource request or data, then the STA may respond via a resource request report. In addition or alternatively, if the polling STA meets other requirements, such as if the STA has low latency or low latency traffic of the correct type, or traffic of the indicated AC, or higher traffic (i.e., above a certain threshold that may be indicated by the NDP feedback report parameter set element), then the STA may respond.

[0124] At 414, the AP may identify which one or more STAs of the plurality of STAs have requested resources by checking the N bits included in the corresponding resource request report (e.g., UL data transmission, resource request, or NDP feedback report). The AP may identify the AID of the requesting STA, and then transmit a trigger frame to the STA to trigger UL data transmission at 416. The AP may detect a conflict if two STAs have selected the same resource or RU for uplink transmission of a resource request or NDP feedback report. When transmitting an UL resource request, the AP may allocate multiple random access RUs or resources using one or more AID ranges for the RU index where the UL resource request conflicts to trigger subsequent data transmission, thereby accommodating the conflicting STAs. Figure 4 The process 400 may enable an AP to access information corresponding to current transmission requirements of associated STAs.

[0125] According to one embodiment, the AP may indicate information requested from the STA, such as a bitmap for one or more low-latency data streams, one or more access categories, or one or more types of low-latency data or other types of data, as disclosed herein. The AP may request the STA to provide more detailed size information about the requested information, such as the size of the queue and / or low-latency data or other types of data or access categories. The AP may indicate the number of bits that the polled STA may include in a response or triggered data transmission, resource request, or NDP feedback report. Such information may be included in the number of bits to be included field, the number of LTFs, or the number of LTF pairs to be included. The polled STA may include the number of bits, the number of LTFs, or the number of LTF pairs in the NDP feedback report or in the resource request being triggered. For the requested information, each bit may correspond to each bit in the bitmap. In addition or alternatively, the polled STA may transmit a triggered resource request or NDP report, and the number of bits indicated by the AP may be used to indicate the size of the queue for the data stream or low-latency amount. As described herein, it should be understood that any portion of process 400, such as 416, is optional, such that process 400 may be implemented without performing 416, or 416 may be performed in an alternative order than that provided herein.

[0126] Figure 5 A schematic diagram illustrating a resource request process 500 is shown and includes a resource request poll 510 and a resource request report 530 as disclosed herein. Figure 5As shown, a resource request poll 510 may be generated by an AP and may be transmitted (e.g., via broadcast or multicast) to one or more STAs. The resource request poll 510 may be an NDP feedback report parameter set element or other type of element or frame. As disclosed herein, an AP may be associated with one or more STAs (e.g., during a beacon period). The resource request poll 510 may be generated at the AP and transmitted to and / or received by one or more associated STAs.

[0127] like Figure 5 As shown, the resource request poll 510 may include response criteria 512, which includes a delay bound 514 and a QoS priority 516. It should be understood that the low delay criteria 512 may include one or more other or alternative information types, including but not limited to NFRP type, UL access type, NDP feedback report AC, the number of AID bits indicated, AID range, requested information, etc. In addition, it should be understood that the response criteria 512 may correspond to low delay response criteria, so that STAs that meet the response criteria 512 may have low delay data to transmit. In addition, the resource request poll 510 may include a number of bits field 518 for the traffic indication N. The number of bits field 518 may include the number of bits to be included in the requested resource report, such as an NDP feedback report or preamble, the number of long training fields (LTFs) to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, and the number of bits per LTF symbol or every N LTF symbols to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, a bitmap of AC-based priority data, etc.

[0128] The resource request poll 510 may be transmitted by the AP and received by one or more STAs. The one or more STAs may each determine whether they meet the response criteria 512. The STAs that meet the response criteria 512 may each generate a resource request report (e.g., resource request reports 532, 534, and 536), as shown in the generated set of resource request reports 530. The generated resource request reports 530 may each include a first part PHY header 540 and a plurality of N bits 541, as provided in the corresponding resource request poll 510. The N bits 541 may each include 1 bit of data, which corresponds to, for example, a detailed indication of the size of the data to be transmitted to the AP by the corresponding STA, or provide a bitmap to request more than 1 traffic priority (e.g., VO, VI, BC, BK). As an example of information provided by the N bits 541, each of the plurality of bits in the N bits 541 may be used to indicate a different priority (e.g., VO, VI, BC, BK) of different ACs. Alternatively, for example, a plurality of N bits 541 may be used to indicate the amount of a given priority AC to be transmitted by the STA. Alternatively, for example, some of the N bits 541 may be used to provide STA identification information.

[0129] The AP may receive a resource request report 530 from each STA that meets the response criteria 512. Based on the resource request reports 530, the AP may determine a priority order that triggers UL data transmissions from the STAs that transmitted the resource request reports 530.

[0130] It is worth noting that based on the techniques disclosed herein, an AP may poll multiple STAs that may not be sequential, such as APs with different ranges. Figure 5 A resource request report 532 for STA 2 is shown, followed by a resource request report 536 for STA 6 (ie, STA 2 and STA 6 do not have sequential AIDs). Additionally, the STAs may provide detailed information based on the number of bits 518 indicated by the resource request poll 510 of the AP, as disclosed herein.

[0131] According to one embodiment, the AP may maintain a separate low-delay ID bitmap for STAs that currently have low-delay traffic. The AP may announce that it supports low-delay transmission by including a low-delay element in its beacon, short beacon, FILS discovery frame, probe response, or association response frame. The low-delay element may include an indication that it supports a low-delay bitmap. When the STA seeking to associate with the AP has low-delay traffic or a low-delay traffic flow, it may also include a low-delay element in its probe request or association request frame. The STA may include an indication of support for the low-delay ID bitmap in the low-delay element. If a STA associated with the AP starts a low-delay traffic flow, the STA may send a low-delay request frame, which may include a low-delay element to request a low-delay ID. The AP may allocate a low-delay ID to the STA in response to a low-delay request frame or an associated response frame. For example, the AP may include a low-delay allocation element in an association response frame or a low-delay response frame, which may include a low-delay ID and / or TWT information.

[0132] The low latency ID may be an ID assigned to a STA. Alternatively or in addition, the AP may assign a low latency ID to each low latency data stream indicated by the STA. Alternatively or in addition, the AP may assign a separate segment of the AID space to a low latency ID or a low latency ID for a specific type of application (such as virtual reality). Each of these separate segments may be identified by the number of common bits of the MSB or LSB of the AID space. For example, a low latency ID range may be identified as a range of AIDs that all start with the same 6 MSBs. The AP may assign a separate low latency ID to each low latency traffic stream in a low latency traffic stream.

[0133] A low latency data stream may be polled for UL transmission or resource requests during one or more TWT periods. Alternatively or in addition thereto, one or more TWT elements may be included in an association response frame or a low latency response frame. Additionally or alternatively, the AP may use a low latency broadcast TWT to trigger a low latency STA, a low latency data stream transmission, or a low latency resource request.

[0134] When a STA is assigned one or more low latency IDs and / or one or more low latency TWTs, the AP may transmit a low latency trigger to trigger a low latency STA, low latency transmission, or low latency resource request in the UL. The AP may indicate an AC or indicate low latency in such a trigger or NFRP frame. If the AP indicates low latency in such a trigger or NFRP frame, the AP may include a low latency ID bitmap in the trigger or NFRP frame. In addition or alternatively, the AP may include a range or multiple ranges of low latency IDs being polled. If a low latency ID is associated with a specific range of AIDs, transmitting a NFRP, data trigger, or resource request may imply that the trigger or NFRP is used for low latency traffic.

[0135] In addition, when a STA is assigned one or more low-latency IDs and / or one or more low-latency TWTs, the STA may monitor the medium for any UL trigger frame or NFRP frame addressed to the STA itself or addressed to a broadcast address or group address for a low-latency TWT or low-latency transmission opportunity (TXOP) assigned to the STA itself. The STA may monitor the low-latency ID contained in the NFRP or trigger frame. If the STA detects one or more low-latency IDs or AIDs assigned to the STA itself, the STA may respond if it meets other requirements, such as if the STA has low latency or the correct type of low-latency traffic by transmitting an NDP feedback report or UL resource request or data, or traffic of the indicated AC.

[0136] If one or more of the STA's low-latency traffic or traffic flows have stopped, the STA may send another low-latency request frame or other type of frame. The low-latency request frame may include a low-latency element to indicate that one or more of its low-latency traffic flows have stopped. A low-latency request frame or other type of frame may be used to request the removal of one or more low-latency traffic types of a low-latency ID or low-latency traffic flow associated with the STA. The AP may respond with a low-latency response frame or other type of frame to confirm the removal of the low-latency ID and / or confirm one or more low-latency IDs that are still assigned to the STA or associated with one or more low-latency traffic types or flows.

[0137] As disclosed herein, AID and low latency ID are used as examples. However, any ID of a STA may be used to indicate a STA, including a MAC address or other types of IDs that the AP and STA have agreed upon or otherwise confirmed.

[0138] Although the presently disclosed subject matter may be described with a given specific protocol in mind (eg, IEEE 802.11), the embodiments disclosed herein are not limited to such specific protocols and are applicable to other wireless systems.

[0139] Although features and elements are described above in specific combinations, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that each feature or element may be used alone or in any combination with other features and elements. In addition, the methods described herein may be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmware incorporated in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of computer-readable media include electronic signals (transmitted via a wired or wireless connection) and computer-readable storage media. Examples of computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), registers, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media (such as built-in hard disks and removable disks), magneto-optical media, and optical media (such as CD-ROM disks and digital versatile disks (DVDs)). A processor associated with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for a WTRU, UE, terminal, base station, RNC, or any host computer.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication, the method comprising: generating a resource request poll, the resource request poll comprising at least one response criterion; transmitting the resource request poll; as well as A resource request report is received from each of at least one station (STA) in a plurality of associated STAs that meets the at least one response criterion. 2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising transmitting a trigger frame to the at least one STA based on the resource request report from the at least one STA. 3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting the resource request poll comprises one of broadcasting the resource request poll and multicasting the resource request poll.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the response criteria comprises at least one of: a Null Data Packet (NDP) Feedback Report Poll (NFRP) type, an uplink (UL) access type, a delay bound, an NDP feedback report access category (AC), a number of AID bits indicated, an AID range, requested information, a number of bits to be included in an NDP feedback report or preamble, a number of long training fields (LTFs) to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, and a number of bits per LTF symbol or per N LTF symbols to be included in an NDP feedback report or preamble. The method of claim 4 , wherein the delay bound comprises an amount of time.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the AC is selected from at least one of: low delay, best effort (BK), background (BC), video (VI), and voice (VO).

7. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the resource request poll and the trigger frame is transmitted during a target wake time (TWT). The method of claim 1 , wherein the resource request poll includes non-sequential STAA IDs.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the resource request poll comprises one of an element, an NDP feedback report parameter set element, and a short resource request poll.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising instructing a resource request report generated based on the resource request poll to be transmitted as one of a random transmission and a deterministic transmission.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting a conflict based on two or more resource request reports from two or more STAs among the plurality of associated STAs.

12. A method for wireless communication, the method comprising: receiving a resource request poll, the resource request poll comprising at least one response criterion; determining that the data stream satisfies the at least one response criterion; generating a resource request report based on the at least one response criterion; Transmitting the resource request report to the AP; as well as A trigger frame is received from the AP based on the resource request report.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein generating the resource request report comprises generating a preamble and N bits based on the response criteria.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the response criteria comprises at least one of: a Null Data Packet (NDP) Feedback Report Poll (NFRP) type, an uplink (UL) access type, a delay bound, an NDP feedback report access category (AC), an indicated number of AID bits, an AID range, requested information, a number of bits to be included in an NDP feedback report or preamble, a number of long training fields (LTFs) to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, and a number of bits per LTF symbol or per N LTF symbols to be included in an NDP feedback report or preamble.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the resource request poll includes non-sequential STA AIDs.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the resource request report comprises one of a NFRP, an NDP feedback report parameter set element, and a short resource request poll.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein generating the resource request report comprises inserting a STA association ID (AID) into the resource request report.

18. A wireless transmit receive unit (WTRU), the WTRU being configured to: receiving a resource request poll, the resource request poll comprising at least one response criterion; determining that the data stream satisfies the at least one response criterion; generating a resource request report based on the at least one response criterion; Transmitting the resource request report to the AP; receiving a trigger frame from the AP; as well as UL data transmission is transmitted based on the trigger frame.

19. The WTRU of claim 18, wherein the UL data transmission comprises low latency data.

20. The WTRU of claim 18, wherein the response criteria comprises at least one of: a Null Data Packet (NDP) Feedback Report Poll (NFRP) type, an uplink (UL) access type, a delay bound, an NDP feedback report access category (AC), a number of AID bits indicated, an AID range, requested information, a number of bits to be included in an NDP feedback report or preamble, a number of long training fields (LTFs) to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble, and a number of bits per LTF symbol or per N LTF symbols to be included in the NDP feedback report or preamble.

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