Method and apparatus for triggering uplink transmission in wireless local area network

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a method and a device for triggering uplink transmission in a wireless local area network (WLAN). The method for triggering uplink transmission includes an access point (AP) generating a trigger frame based on a type of physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission to be requested from a plurality of stations (STAs) in a WLAN, the trigger frame including a common information field including a first sub-field indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type of trigger frame or a second type of trigger frame, the common information field including a second sub-field indicating whether the trigger frame is a second type of trigger frame or a third type of trigger frame. When the trigger frame is a second type of trigger frame, the public information field further comprises a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission; and transmitting the generated trigger frame to the plurality of STAs. By utilizing the method and the device provided by the embodiment of the invention, the generated trigger frame can be used for requesting different types of uplink transmission in the WLAN.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the PCT international patent application PCT / CN2020 / 139147 with an application date of December 24, 2020, which entered the Chinese national phase with Chinese patent application number 202080105078.3 and the invention name being "Method and device for triggering uplink transmission in a wireless local area network". Technical Field

[0002] The present invention relates to wireless communications, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for triggering uplink transmission using an enhanced trigger frame in a wireless local area network (WLAN). Background Art

[0003] The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11be extremely high throughput (EHT) WLAN supports bandwidths up to 320 MHz. It is expected that high-efficiency (HE) stations (STAs) will coexist with Release 1 (R1) EHT STAs and / or Release 2 (R2) EHT STAs in the same EHT basic service set (BSS). To maximize the throughput of EHT BSSs with large bandwidths (e.g., 320 MHz), a frequency domain aggregated physical layer protocol data unit (FD-A-PPDU) supported by HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs has been proposed. It should be noted that R1 EHT STAs do not support the transmission and reception of FD-A-PPDUs.

[0004] In wireless communications, a trigger frame can be generated by an access point (AP) and used to request physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmissions from multiple STAs. However, since different types of PPDU transmissions may exist in an IEEE 802.11be EHT WLAN, such as HE-triggered (TB) PPDU transmissions from a HE STA, an R1 EHT STA, and / or an R2 EHT STA, an EHT TB PPDU transmission from an R1 EHT STA and / or an R2 EHT STA, and a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from both a HE STA and an R2 EHT STA, an enhanced trigger frame suitable for triggering different types of PPDU transmissions in a WLAN is needed. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Embodiments of the present invention provide a method and apparatus for triggering different types of uplink transmissions in a WLAN using a proposed enhanced trigger frame.

[0006] According to a first aspect of the present invention, various embodiments of the present invention provide a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN. The method can be implemented by an AP in the WLAN, comprising: an access point (AP) generating a trigger frame based on the type of PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple stations (STAs) in the WLAN, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission; and the AP sending the generated trigger frame to the multiple STAs.

[0007] According to a second aspect of the present invention, various embodiments of the present invention provide an AP for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN. The AP includes: a memory configured to store instructions for triggering uplink transmission in the WLAN; and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the processor configured to execute the instructions to: generate a trigger frame based on the type of PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple stations (STAs) in the WLAN, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission; and transmit the generated trigger frame to the multiple STAs.

[0008] According to a third aspect of the present invention, various embodiments of the present invention provide a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN. The method can be implemented by a STA in the WLAN, comprising: the STA receiving a trigger frame from an access point (AP), wherein the trigger frame is generated based on the type of PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple STAs, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission; and the STA determining the type of the requested PPDU transmission by decoding the common information field of the received trigger frame.

[0009] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, various embodiments of the present invention provide a STA. The STA includes: a memory storing instructions for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN; and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the processor configured to execute the instructions to: receive a trigger frame from an access point (AP), wherein the trigger frame is generated based on the type of PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple STAs, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission; and determine the type of the requested PPDU transmission by decoding the common information field of the received trigger frame.

[0010] According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, various embodiments of the present invention provide a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to any embodiment of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] The present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0012] Figure 1A is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention;

[0013] Figure 1B is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of first type PPDU transmission in a WLAN;

[0014] Figure 1C is a diagram illustrating an example of second type PPDU transmission in a WLAN;

[0015] Figure 1D is a diagram illustrating an example of transmission of a third type PPDU in a WLAN;

[0016] Figure 1E is a schematic diagram of uplink multi-user (MU) transmission according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0017] Figure 1F is a block diagram illustrating the format of an HE TB PPDU;

[0018] Figure 1G is a block diagram illustrating the format of an EHT TB PPDU;

[0019] Figure 2A is a block diagram illustrating a trigger frame format according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 2B is a block diagram illustrating an example of an EHT format user information field format according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 2C shows an example of the format of a dedicated user information field according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 3 is a flowchart of a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN implemented by an AP according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figures 4A to 4C Three options for BW allocation for TB FD-A-PPDU transmission according to one embodiment of the present invention are respectively shown;

[0024] Figure 5A is a schematic diagram of an AP for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 5B is a schematic diagram of a first apparatus for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 6 is a flowchart of a method implemented by a STA for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 7 is a flowchart of a method implemented by a STA for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 8A is a schematic diagram of a STA for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 8Bis a schematic diagram of a second apparatus for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 9 is a block diagram of the format of the common information field of the trigger frame according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 10 is a block diagram of the format of the common information field of the trigger frame according to the second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] In the following description, a large number of specific details are given in order to provide a more thorough understanding of the various embodiments of the present invention. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented without some or all of these specific details. It should be understood that the terminology used herein is only used to describe specific embodiments and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0033] Embodiments described in the context of one of the method or apparatus are analogously valid for the other method or apparatus. Similarly, embodiments described in the context of the method are analogously valid for the apparatus, and vice versa.

[0034] Features described in the context of an embodiment may be applied accordingly to the same or similar features in other embodiments. Features described in the context of an embodiment may be applied accordingly to other embodiments, even if not explicitly described in these other embodiments. In addition, additions, combinations, and / or substitutions of features described in the context of an embodiment may be applied accordingly to the same or similar features in other embodiments.

[0035] As used herein, the articles "a," "an," and "the" used with respect to a feature or element include reference to one or more features or elements. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any one of one or more associated listed items and all combinations thereof. As used herein, the terms "first," "second," and "third," etc., are used only as identifiers and do not have quantitative requirements for their objects. As used herein, the term "configured to" is interchangeable with "operable" or "suitable for."

[0036] Embodiments of the present invention provide a trigger frame that can be used to request different types of PPDU transmissions in a WLAN. Compared to existing trigger frames, the enhanced trigger frame proposed in the embodiments of the present invention further includes a first subfield in the common information field of the trigger frame to indicate whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, i.e., an 802.11ax trigger frame, or a second type trigger frame, i.e., the proposed enhanced trigger frame. If the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field of the trigger frame also includes a second subfield in the common information field to indicate the type of PPDU transmission to be requested.

[0037] Figure 1A FIG is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a WLAN 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention. Figure 1A As shown, WLAN 100 includes AP 101 and multiple STAs of different types, such as HE STA 102, R1 EHT STA 103, and R2 EHT STA 104. In WLAN 100, a trigger frame can be used to request the following three different types of PPDU transmissions.

[0038] First type PPDU transmission: The first type PPDU transmission includes multiple HE TB PPDUs transmitted from multiple HE STAs 102, R1 EHT STAs 103 and / or R2 EHT STAs 104. Figure 1B is a diagram illustrating an example of first type PPDU transmission in the WLAN 100. In this example, a trigger frame is used to request HETB PPDU transmission from a HE STA (STA1) and an R1 EHT STA (STA2).

[0039] Second type PPDU transmission: The second type PPDU transmission includes a plurality of EHT TB PPDUs transmitted from a plurality of R1 EHT STAs 103 and / or R2 EHT STAs 104 . Figure 1C is a diagram illustrating an example of second type PPDU transmission in the WLAN 100. In this example, a trigger frame is used to request EHT TB PPDU transmission from an R1 EHT STA (STA1) and an R2 EHT STA (STA2).

[0040] Third Type PPDU Transmission: The third type PPDU transmission includes TB FD-A-PPDU transmissions from at least one HE STA 102 and at least one R2 EHT STA 104, wherein the TB FD-A-PPDU transmissions include HE TB PPDU transmissions and EHTTB PPDU transmissions. The HE TB PPDU transmissions may include at least one HE TB PPDU transmitted from at least one HE STA 102 and / or at least one R2 EHT STA 104. The EHT TB PPDU transmissions may include at least one EHT TB PPDU transmitted from at least one R2 EHT STA. Figure 1D is a diagram illustrating an example of third type PPDU transmission in the WLAN 100. In this example, a trigger frame is used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from a HE STA (STA1) and an R2 EHT STA (STA2).

[0041] Figure 1E The figure is a schematic diagram of uplink multi-user (MU) transmission according to one embodiment of the present invention. In uplink transmission, the trigger frame from the AP is used for the third type of PPDU transmission, namely, TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from multiple HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs. Each of the scheduled HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs will send a TB PPDU according to the scheduling information in the received trigger frame. The TB PPDU sent by each scheduled HE STA is a HE TB PPDU, and the TB PPDU sent by each scheduled R2 EHT STA is a HE TB PPDU or an EHT TB PPDU. TB FD-A-PPDU transmission includes HE TB PPDU transmission and EHT TB PPDU transmission. HE TB PPDU transmission contains one or more HE TB PPDUs, and EHT TB PPDU broadcast transmission contains one or more EHT TB PPDUs. One or more HE TB PPDUs and one or more EHT TB PPDUs are sent by the scheduled STAs in non-overlapping frequency and / or spatial resources in the 320 MHz channel. The AP will send a multi-STA Block Acknowledgement (BA) frame in response to the received TB FD-A-PPDU.

[0042] Figure 1F and Figure 1GThe following are block diagrams illustrating the formats of HE TB PPDUs and EHT TB PPDUs, respectively. In an HE TB PPDU, the non-HT short training field (L-STF), non-HT long training field (L-LTF), non-HT signal field (L-SIG), repeated L-SIG (RL-SIG) field, and HE signal A field (HE-SIG-A) are referred to as pre-HE modulation fields, while the HE short training field (HE-STF), HE long training field (HE-LTF), data field, and packet extension (PE) field are referred to as HE modulation fields. In an EHT TB PPDU, the L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG field, RL-SIG field, and universal signal (U-SIG) field are referred to as pre-EHT modulation fields, while the EHT-STF, EHT-LTF, data field, and PE field are referred to as EHT modulation fields.

[0043] Each HE-LTF or EHT-LTF symbol has the same guard interval (GI) duration as each data symbol, which is 0.8μs, 1.6μs, or 3.2μs. The HE-LTF field includes three types: 1xHE-LTF, 2xHE-LTF, and 4xHE-LTF. Similarly, the EHT-LTF field includes three types: 1xEHT-LTF, 2xEHT-LTF, and 4xEHT-LTF. The duration of each 1xHE-LTF / EHT-LTF, 2xHE-LTF / EHT-LTF, or 4xHE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol without a GI is 3.2μs, 6.4μs, or 12.8μs, respectively. The duration of each data symbol without a GI is 12.8μs. The PE field duration of the HE TB PPDU is 0μs, 4μs, 8μs, 12μs, or 16μs; while the PE field duration of the EHT TB PPDU is 0μs, 4μs, 8μs, 12μs, 16μs, or 20μs.

[0044] In an EHT BSS with a large bandwidth (e.g., 320 MHz), a trigger frame can be used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from multiple HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs. A TB FD-A-PPDU may include at least one HE TB PPDU and at least one EHT TB PPDU, where the HE-LTF field of the HE TB PPDU has the same symbol duration and the same GI duration as the EHT-LTF field of the EHT TB PPDU. The number of HE-LTF symbols in the HE TB PPDU may be the same as or different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the EHT TB PPDU. When the number of HE-LTF symbols is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols, each HE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol may have a different duration than each data symbol or the same duration. That is, the duration of each HE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol without a GI may be 6.4 μs or 12.8 μs. When the number of HE-LTF symbols differs from the number of EHT-LTF symbols, each HE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol should have the same duration as each data symbol. That is, the duration of each HE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol without a GI should be 12.8 μs. Therefore, the pre-HE modulation field of the HE TB PPDU and the pre-EHT modulation field of the EHT TB PPDU can be maintained orthogonal in the frequency domain on a symbol-by-symbol basis.

[0045] Figure 2A FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a trigger frame format according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2A As shown, the trigger frame includes a common information field and a user information list field (user infolist field). The common information field also includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, i.e., an 802.11ax trigger frame, or a second type trigger frame, i.e., a proposed enhanced trigger frame. When the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field also includes a second subfield, the second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission to be requested, or indicating whether the trigger frame is used to request a second type PPDU transmission or a third type PPDU transmission.

[0046] The User Information List field may include three types of user information fields: an HE format user information (information / info) field, an EHT format user information field, and a dedicated user information field. The type of user information field included in the User Information List is determined based on the type of PPDU transmission being requested. This will be described in detail below in some embodiments of the present invention. The HE format user information field is defined in the IEEE 802.11ax specification.

[0047] Figure 2B This is a block diagram illustrating an example of the format of the EHT format user information field according to one embodiment of the present invention. The Resource Unit (RU) Allocation subfield, together with the PS160 subfield in the EHT format user information field, is used to indicate the RU or multiple resource unit (MRU) in which the STA will transmit the TB PPDU. The STA is indicated by the AID12 subfield of the EHT format user information field, i.e., the STA has an AID that matches the AID12 field of the EHT format user information field. Because the EHT format user information field is designed to be backward compatible with the HE format user information field, in some embodiments of the present invention, the STA can determine its allocated RU or MRU by simply decoding the user information field using the AID12 subfield that matches the STA's AID, without knowing in advance whether the user information field is an HE format user information field or an EHT format user information field.

[0048] The dedicated user information field carries the necessary U-SIG subfield of the requested EHT TB PPDU. The dedicated user information field is located immediately after the common information field in the trigger frame. Figure 2C An example of the format of the Dedicated User Information field according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown. In this example, the AID12 subfield is set to the first value, such as 2007, to indicate the Dedicated User Information field. The PPDU Bandwidth (PPDU BW) subfield is used to indicate the bandwidth allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0049] Figure 3 is a flow chart of a method 300 implemented by an AP for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment of the present invention, the method 300 is implemented by the AP, for example Figure 1A In other embodiments, the method 300 may be implemented by any other suitable network interface device.

[0050] At block 301, AP 101 generates a trigger frame based on the type of PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple STAs in the WLAN (e.g., HE STA 102, R1 EHT STA 103, and / or R2 EHT STA 104). The common information field of the generated trigger frame includes a first subfield, which indicates whether the trigger frame is a first-type trigger frame (i.e., an 802.11ax trigger frame) or a second-type trigger frame (i.e., an enhanced trigger frame proposed in an embodiment of the present invention). If the trigger frame is a second-type trigger frame, the trigger frame also includes a second subfield, which indicates the type of PPDU transmission or indicates whether the trigger frame is used to request a second-type PPDU transmission or a third-type PPDU transmission.

[0051] At block 302, the generated trigger frame is sent to a plurality of STAs.

[0052] In this embodiment, the first subfield can be set to 0 or 1 to indicate whether the generated trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame. For example, if the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, the first subfield is set to 0; if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the first subfield is set to 1.

[0053] In this embodiment, when a first type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the first subfield of the common information is set to indicate that the generated trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, and the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate the BW allocated to the first type PPDU transmission.

[0054] In this embodiment, when a second type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the first subfield of the common information field is set to indicate that the type of the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, and the second subfield of the common information field is set to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission to be requested is a second type PPDU transmission.

[0055] When the second type PPDU transmission is about to be requested, at least one subfield for resource unit (RU) allocation, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield in the EHT format user information field of the generated trigger frame, is set to indicate RU or multiple resource units (MRU), and the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield of the EHT format user information field will transmit the EHT TB PPDU in RU or MRU; and a subfield of the dedicated user information field, such as the PPDU BW subfield, is set to indicate the bandwidth (BW) allocated for the second type PPDU transmission.

[0056] In this embodiment, when the third type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the first subfield of the common information field is set to indicate that the type of trigger frame is the second type trigger frame, and the second subfield is set to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission is the third type PPDU transmission.

[0057] In this embodiment, the second subfield of the common information field can be set to 0 or 1 to indicate the type of PPDU transmission. For example, if the type of PPDU transmission to be requested is the second type PPDU transmission, the second subfield is set to 0, and if the type of PPDU transmission to be requested is the third type PPDU transmission, the second subfield is set to 1.

[0058] When the third type PPDU transmission is about to be requested, the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate the BW allocated to the HE TB PPDU transmission of the third type PPDU transmission, and at least one subfield for RU allocation in the user information field of the generated trigger frame, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield of the EHT format user information field or the RU allocation subfield of the HE format user information field, is set to indicate the RU or MRU, and the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield of the user information field will send the TB PPDU in the RU or MRU; and the subfield of the dedicated user information field, such as the PPDU BW subfield, is set to indicate the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission of the third type PPDU transmission.

[0059] In this embodiment, when the third type of PPDU transmission is about to be requested, in a 320 MHz BW TB FD-A-PPDU, the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission is the 80 MHz primary channel (P80) or the 160 MHz primary channel (P160); while the BW allocated for EHT PPDU transmission from an R2EHT STA is the 160 MHz secondary channel (S160) or one of the two 80 MHz frequency segments of S160. For 320 MHz BW FD-A-PPDU transmission, the bandwidth allocation for TB FD-A-PPDU transmission may have the following three options:

[0060] Option 1: If Figure 4A As shown, when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, an 80 MHz primary channel is allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission and a 160 MHz secondary channel is allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0061] Option 2: If Figure 4BAs shown, when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW, a 160 MHz primary channel is allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission, and an unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment in the 160 MHz secondary channel is allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0062] Option 3: If Figure 4C As shown, when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, a 160 MHz primary channel is allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission and a 160 MHz secondary channel is allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0063] In this embodiment, when the third type PPDU transmission is to be requested, if the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested, the third subfield of the common information field, for example, the subfield named "Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodically", is set to indicate the count of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested or the count of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested.

[0064] In this embodiment, when the third type PPDU transmission is to be requested, if the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested is different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested, the third subfield of the common information field, for example, the subfield named "Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodically", is set to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested; and the fourth subfield of the common information field is set to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested. It should be noted that the fourth subfield is a newly added subfield in the common information field of the trigger frame.

[0065] In this embodiment, the UL BW subfield of the common information field can be set according to a predetermined coding rule of the UL BW subfield; the subfield of the dedicated user information field, such as the PPDU BW subfield, can be set according to a predetermined coding rule of the subfield; the third subfield can be set based on the value indicated in the Doppler subfield of the common information field and the predetermined coding rule of the third subfield, and the fourth subfield can be set according to a predetermined rule of the fourth subfield.

[0066] Figure 5A FIG1 is a schematic diagram of an AP 101 for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The AP 101 includes a memory 101a and a processor 101b communicatively coupled to the memory 101a. The memory 101a is configured to store instructions for triggering uplink transmission in the WLAN. The processor 101b is configured to execute the instructions to perform a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention, such as those described above and Figure 3 The method shown in .

[0067] In this embodiment, the processor 101b is configured to execute instructions to: generate a trigger frame based on the type of PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple stations (STAs) in the WLAN, wherein the common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating that the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is the second type trigger frame, the common information field also includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission; and send the generated trigger frame to multiple STAs.

[0068] In this embodiment, when a first type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the processor 101b is further configured to execute instructions to set the first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the generated trigger frame is a first type trigger frame. In addition, the processor 101b is configured to execute instructions to set the UL BW subfield of the common information field to indicate the BW allocated for the first type PPDU transmission.

[0069] In this embodiment, when a second type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the processor 101b is further configured to execute instructions to set the first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of trigger frame is the second type trigger frame, and set the second subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission is the second type PPDU transmission. In addition, the processor 101b is configured to execute instructions to set at least one subfield for RU allocation in the EHT format user information field of the trigger frame, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield, to indicate the RU or MRU in which the STA will transmit the EHT TB PPDU, the STA being indicated by the AID12 subfield of the EHT format user information field; and set a subfield of the dedicated user information field, such as the PPDU BW subfield, to indicate the BW allocated for the second type PPDU transmission.

[0070] In this embodiment, when a third type PPDU transmission is about to be requested, the processor 101b is further configured to execute instructions to set the first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the trigger frame type is a second type trigger frame, and set the second subfield of the common information field to indicate that the PPDU transmission type is a third type PPDU transmission. Furthermore, the processor 101b is configured to execute instructions to set the UL BW subfield of the common information field to indicate the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission, set at least one subfield for RU allocation in the user information field of the trigger frame, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield of the EHT format user information field or the RU allocation subfield of the HE format user information field, to indicate an RU or MRU, in which the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield of the user information field will transmit a TB PPDU, and set a subfield of the dedicated user information field of the trigger frame, such as the PPDU BW subfield, to indicate the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0071] In order to establish a link between BW allocation and channel allocation of HE TB PPDU transmission and EHT TB PPDU transmission in TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, the processor 101b is further configured to execute instructions to, when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, allocate an 80 MHz primary channel for HE TB PPDU transmission and allocate a 160 MHz secondary channel for EHT TB PPDU transmission; when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW, allocate a 160 MHz primary channel for HE TB PPDU transmission and allocate an unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of the 160 MHz secondary channel for EHT TB PPDU transmission; or, when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, allocate a 160 MHz primary channel for HE TB PPDU transmission and allocate an unpunctured 80 MHz secondary channel for EHT TB PPDU transmission. A 160 MHz primary channel is allocated for TB PPDU transmission, and a 160 MHz secondary channel is allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0072] In this embodiment, processor 101b may also be configured to execute instructions to set the third subfield of the common information field to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested. Specifically, when a first type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the third subfield is set to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested; when a second type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the third subfield is set to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested; and when a third type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the third subfield is set to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested. In this case, the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested.

[0073] Optionally, when a third type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the processor 101b may be further configured to execute an instruction to set the third subfield of the common information field to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested, and set the fourth subfield of the common information field to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested. In this case, the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested may be different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested.

[0074] Figure 5B is a schematic diagram of a first apparatus 500 for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the apparatus 500 includes a trigger frame generating unit 500a and a sending unit 500b. The trigger frame generating unit is configured to generate a trigger frame according to a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention, such as the method described above and Figure 3 The method shown in .

[0075] Figure 6 is a flow chart of a method 600 for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention. In these embodiments, the method 600 is implemented by a STA, for example Figure 1A In other embodiments, the method 600 may be implemented by any other suitable client device.

[0076] At block 601, a STA receives a trigger frame from an AP, wherein the trigger frame is generated based on a type of PPDU transmission to be requested from a plurality of STAs, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is the second type trigger frame, the trigger frame further includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission.

[0077] At block 602, the STA determines the type of requested PPDU transmission by decoding the common information field of the received trigger frame.

[0078] Figure 7 The figure is a flowchart of a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0079] In block 701, a STA receives a trigger frame from an AP.

[0080] At block 702, a first subfield of a common information field is decoded.

[0081] In block 703 , when the first subfield is set to indicate that the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, the flow goes to block 704 ; when the first subfield is set to indicate that the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the flow goes to block 705 .

[0082] At block 704, it is determined that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a first type PPDU transmission.

[0083] If the STA is an R1 EHT STA or R2 EHT STA, and the requested PPDU transmission is determined to be a first-type PPDU transmission, the STA will use the AID12 subfield that matches the STA's AID to identify the HE Format User Information field and decode the identified HE Format User Information field. In addition, the UL BW subfield of the Common Information field will be decoded to determine the BW allocated to the first-type PPDU transmission. Based on the information in the Common Information field and the identified HE Format User Information field, the STA will prepare and transmit the HE TB PPDU.

[0084] At block 705, the second subfield of the common information field is decoded to determine the type of requested PPDU transmission.

[0085] In block 706, when the second subfield is set to indicate that the requested PPDU transmission is a second type PPDU transmission, the process goes to block 707; when the second subfield is set to indicate that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission, the process goes to block 708.

[0086] At block 707, it is determined that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a second type PPDU transmission.

[0087] When the requested PPDU transmission is determined to be the second type PPDU transmission, the STA will identify the EHT format user information field with the AID12 subfield that matches the STA's AID and decode the identified EHT format user information field. For example, the STA will decode at least one subfield for RU allocation in the identified EHT format user information field, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield, to determine the RU or MRU in which the STA will transmit the EHT TB PPDU; and decode the subfields of the dedicated user information field of the received trigger frame, such as the PPDU BW subfield, to determine the BW allocated for the second type PPDU transmission. Based on the information in the common information field, the identified EHT format user information field, and the dedicated user information field, the STA will prepare and transmit the EHT TB PPDU.

[0088] At block 708, it is determined that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission.

[0089] When the requested PPDU transmission is determined to be the third type PPDU transmission, the STA will also decode the UL BW subfield of the common information field to determine the BW allocated for the HE TB PPDU transmission of the third type PPDU transmission; identify the user information field of the received trigger frame, the user information field having the AID12 subfield that matches the AID of the STA; decode at least one subfield for RU allocation of the identified user information field to determine the RU or MRU allocated for the TB PPDU transmission from the STA; decode the subfield of the dedicated user information field of the received trigger frame, such as the PPDU BW subfield, to determine the BW allocated for the EHT TB PPDU transmission; determine that the HE TB PPDU will be transmitted when the allocated RU or MRU is within the BW allocated for the HE TB PPDU transmission; or determine that the EHT TB PPDU will be transmitted when the allocated RU or MRU is within the BW allocated for the EHT TB transmission. Optionally, in some other embodiments of the present invention, if the RU is allocated to the STA and the allocated RU is located within the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission, the STA may determine that the HE TB PPDU will be transmitted; or, if the MRU is allocated to the STA, or if the RU is allocated to the STA and the allocated RU is located within the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission, it is determined that the EHT TB PPDU will be transmitted.

[0090] In this embodiment, when the requested PPDU transmission is the third type PPDU transmission, for example, a 320 MHz BW TBFD-A-PPDU, if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field, for example, the PPDU BW subfield, is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, the STA will send the HE TB PPDU in the 80 MHz primary channel or the EHT TB PPDU in the 160 MHz secondary channel; if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW, the STA will send the HE TB PPDU in the 160 MHz primary channel or the EHT TB PPDU in the unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of the 160 MHz secondary channel; or if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, the STA will send the HE TB PPDU in the 160 MHz primary channel or the EHT TB PPDU in the unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of the 160 MHz secondary channel. BW, the STA shall send HE TB PPDU in the 160 MHz primary channel or EHT TB PPDU in the 160 MHz secondary channel.

[0091] When requesting the third type of PPDU transmission, if the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU, the STA will decode the third subfield of the common information field to determine the count of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU or the count of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0092] Optionally, if the requested number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU is different from the requested number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU, the STA shall decode the third subfield of the common information field, such as the subfield named "Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodically", to determine the count of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HETB PPDU; or decode the fourth subfield of the common information field to determine the count of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0093] In this embodiment, the UL BW subfield of the common information field can be decoded according to the predetermined coding rule of the UL BW subfield; the subfield of the dedicated user information field, such as the PPDU BW subfield, can be decoded according to the predetermined coding rule of the subfield; the third subfield of the common information field can be decoded based on the value indicated in the Doppler subfield of the common information field and the predetermined coding rule of the third subfield, and the fourth subfield of the common information field can be decoded according to the predetermined rule of the fourth subfield.

[0094] Figure 8A FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a STA 800A for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to an embodiment of the present invention. STA 800A includes a memory 801a and a processor 802a communicatively coupled to the memory. In one embodiment, the memory 801a is configured to store instructions for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention, such as those described above and described in Figure 6 and Figure 7 The method 600 or the method 700 shown in FIG. 8 ; the processor 802a is configured to execute instructions stored in the memory to perform the method for triggering uplink transmission according to some embodiments of the present invention.

[0095] In this embodiment, the processor 802a is configured to execute instructions to receive a trigger frame from the AP and determine the type of the requested PPDU transmission by decoding the common information field of the received trigger frame, wherein the trigger frame is generated based on the type of PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple STAs, wherein the common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field also includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission.

[0096] In this embodiment, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to decode the first subfield of the common information field; and when the first subfield is set to indicate that the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, determine that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a first type PPDU transmission. In addition, the processor 802a is configured to execute instructions to decode the UL BW subfield of the common information field to determine the BW allocated to the first type PPDU transmission.

[0097] In this embodiment, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to decode a first subfield of the common information field; decode a second subfield of the common information field when the first subfield is set to indicate that the trigger frame is a second-type trigger frame; and determine that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a second-type PPDU transmission when the second subfield is set to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission is a second-type PPDU transmission. Furthermore, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to identify an EHT format user information field of a received trigger frame, the EHT format user information field having an AID12 subfield that matches the AID of the STA; decode at least one subfield for RU allocation of the identified EHT format user information field, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield, to determine the RU or MRU in which the STA will transmit the EHT TB PPDU; and decode subfields of the dedicated user information field of the received trigger frame, such as the PPDU BW subfield, to determine the BW allocated for the second-type PPDU transmission.

[0098] In this embodiment, the processor 802a is also configured to execute instructions to decode the first subfield of the common information field; when the first subfield is set to indicate that the received trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, decode the second subfield of the common information field; when the second subfield is set to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission, determine that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission. In this case, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to decode the UL BW subfield of the common information field to determine the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission; identify the user information field of the received trigger frame, which has the AID12 subfield matching the AID of the STA; decode at least one subfield for RU allocation of the identified user information field to determine the RU or MRU allocated for TB PPDU transmission from the STA; decode the subfield of the dedicated user information field of the received trigger frame, such as the PPDU BW subfield, to determine the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission; determine that the HE TB PPDU will be transmitted when the allocated RU or MRU is within the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission; or determine that the EHT TB PPDU will be transmitted when the allocated RU or MRU is within the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission. Optionally, in some other embodiments, the processor 802a may be configured to execute instructions to determine that an HE TB PPDU is to be transmitted when an RU is allocated to a STA and the allocated RU is within the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission; or to determine that an EHT TB PPDU is to be transmitted when an MRU is allocated to a STA or when an RU is allocated to a STA and the allocated RU is within the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0099] In addition, in order to provide a link between BW allocation and channel allocation of HE TB PPDU transmission and EHT TB PPDU transmission in TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to transmit the HE TB PPDU in the 80 MHz primary channel or the EHT TB PPDU in the 160 MHz secondary channel when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW; transmit the HE TB PPDU in the 160 MHz primary channel or transmit the EHT TB PPDU in the unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of the 160 MHz secondary channel when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW; or transmit the HE TB PPDU in the 160 MHz primary channel or transmit the EHT TB PPDU in the unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of the 160 MHz secondary channel when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW. In the case of BW, HE TB PPDU is sent in the 160 MHz primary channel, or EHT TB PPDU is sent in the 160 MHz secondary channel.

[0100] In this embodiment, the processor 802a may further be configured to execute instructions to decode the third subfield of the common information field to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU. Specifically, when requesting the first type PPDU transmission, the STA decodes the third subfield to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU; when requesting the second type PPDU transmission, the STA decodes the third subfield to determine the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU; when requesting the third type PPDU transmission, the STA decodes the third subfield to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0101] Optionally, when requesting transmission of a third type TB PPDU, the processor 802a may be further configured to execute instructions to decode the third subfield to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU, and decode the fourth subfield of the common information field to determine the count of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU. It should be noted that the fourth subfield is a newly added subfield in the common information field.

[0102] Figure 8B8 is a schematic diagram of a second apparatus 800B for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to an embodiment of the present invention. The apparatus 800B includes a receiving unit 801b and a decoding unit 802b, which are configured to perform the method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention, such as the method described above and in Figure 6 and Figure 7 In one embodiment, the receiving unit 801b is configured to receive a trigger frame from an AP, wherein the trigger frame is generated based on the type of PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple STAs in the WLAN, wherein the common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the trigger frame further includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission; the decoding unit 802b is configured to determine the type of the requested PPDU transmission by decoding the common information of the received trigger frame.

[0103] Two embodiments of the present invention are described below to illustrate the details of the method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention. It should be noted that these embodiments are for illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0104] Example 1

[0105] Figure 9 This is a block diagram of the format of the Common Information field of a trigger frame according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the first subfield of the Common Information field is the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield, which indicates whether the trigger frame is an 802.11ax trigger frame or an enhanced trigger frame. The Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, and is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame. The second subfield of the Common Information field is the A-PPDU Flag subfield, which indicates the type of PPDU transmission or whether a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission (i.e., a third type PPDU transmission) or an EHT TB PPDU transmission (i.e., a second type PPDU transmission) is requested. The A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate a request for an EHT TB PPDU transmission, and is set to 1 to indicate a request for a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission. It should be noted that when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, the Dedicated User Information field is not present in the trigger frame, and the A-PPDU Flag subfield is retained.

[0106] When a trigger frame is used to request a first type of PPDU transmission, i.e., HE TB PPDU transmission, from a HE STA, R1 EHT STA, and / or R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, the UL BW subfield is set to indicate the BW allocated for the requested HE TB PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the HE-SIG-A field of each requested HE TB PPDU, and the Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, together with the Doppler subfield, indicates the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU. In this case, the R1 EHT STA or R2 EHT STA treats the User Information field with the AID12 subfield matching its AID as the HE format User Information field and transmits the HE TB PPDU. Table 1 shows an example of a predetermined coding rule for the UL BW subfield when a trigger frame is used to request a TB PPDU transmission. Table 2 shows an example of a predetermined coding rule for the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 0.

[0107] Table 1

[0108] UL BW subfield value BW for HE TB PPDU 0 20MHz 1 40MHz 2 80MHz 3 160 / 80+80MHz 4-7 Reserve

[0109] Table 2

[0110]

[0111] In one example, according to the predetermined coding rules shown in Tables 1 and 2, when the trigger frame is used to request 160 MHz HE TB PPDU transmission with 4 spatial streams and no midamble from HESTA, R1 EHT STA and / or R2 EHT STA, the UL BW subfield is set to 3 to indicate the 160 / 80+80 MHz BW of the requested HE TB PPDU; the Doppler subfield is set to 0 to indicate that there is no midamble in the requested HE TB PPDU; the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is set to 2 to indicate 4 HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU.

[0112] When the trigger frame is used to request the second type of PPDU transmission, that is, EHTTB PPDU transmission from the R1 EHT STA and / or R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame; the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate that EHT TB PPDU transmission is requested; the PPDU BW subfield of the Dedicated User Information field indicates the BW allocated for the requested EHT TB PPDU transmission, that is, the BW in the U-SIG of each requested EHT TB PPDU; and the Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is reused to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. In this case, the R1 EHT STA or R2 EHT STA will treat the User Information field with the AID12 subfield matching its AID as the EHT format User Information field and transmit the EHT TB PPDU. Table 3 shows an example of a predetermined coding rule for the PPDU BW subfield when the trigger frame is used to request EHT TB PPDU transmission. Table 4 shows an example of a predetermined coding rule for the Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield of the trigger frame when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 and the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0.

[0113] Table 3

[0114] PPDU BW subfield value BW for EHT TB PPDU 0 20MHz 1 40MHz 2 80MHz 3 160MHz 4 320MHz-1 5 320MHz-2 6-7 Reserve

[0115] Table 4

[0116]

[0117]

[0118] In one example, according to the predetermined coding rules shown in Tables 3 and 4, when the trigger frame is used to request 320 MHz EHT TB PPDU transmission with 12 spatial streams from the R1 EHT STA and / or the R2 EHT STA, the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to 4 or 5 to indicate the 320 MHz BW of the requested EHT TB PPDU; the Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is set to 5 to indicate 12 EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0119] When the trigger frame is used to request the third type of PPDU transmission, i.e., TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from a HE STA and an R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame; the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate that TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested; the UL BW subfield indicates the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission for the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the HE-SIG-A field of each requested HE TB PPDU; the PPDU BW subfield of the Dedicated User Information field indicates the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission for the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the U-SIG field of each requested EHT TB PPDU; the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, together with the Doppler subfield, indicates the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU and the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. The number of EHT-LTF symbols in the PPDU. In this embodiment, the number of HE-LTF symbols requested in each HE TB PPDU is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols requested in each EHT TB PPDU. Table 5 shows an example of a predetermined coding rule for the Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 and the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 1.

[0120] Table 5

[0121]

[0122] In one example, according to the predetermined coding rules shown in Tables 1, 3, and 5, when the trigger frame is used to request 320 MHz BW TB FD-A-PPDU transmission (including one 80 MHz HETB PPDU transmission with 4 spatial streams and no midamble and one 160 MHz EHT TB PPDU transmission with 4 spatial streams), the UL BW subfield is set to 2 to indicate the 80 MHz BW of the requested HE TB PPDU transmission; the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to 3 to indicate the 160 MHz BW of the requested EHT TB PPDU transmission; the Doppler subfield is set to 0 to indicate that there is no midamble in each requested HE TB PPDU; and the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is set to 2 to indicate 4 HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU and 4 EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0123] In the first embodiment, the trigger frame can only be used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, where the number of HE-LTF symbols in each HETB PPDU requested is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU requested.

[0124] Example 2

[0125] Figure 10This is a block diagram of the format of the common information field of the trigger frame according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the first subfield of the common information field is the enhanced trigger frame flag subfield of the common information field, which indicates whether the trigger frame is an 802.11ax trigger frame or an enhanced trigger frame. The enhanced trigger frame flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame and is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame. The second subfield of the common information field is the A-PPDU flag subfield, which indicates the type of PPDU transmission or indicates a request for TB FD-A-PPDU transmission (i.e., third type PPDU transmission) or EHT TB PPDU transmission (i.e., second type PPDU transmission). The A-PPDU flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate a request for EHTTB PPDU transmission and is set to 1 to indicate a request for TB FD-A-PPDU transmission. The Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield indicates the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU. When the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, the Dedicated User Information field is not present in the trigger frame, and the A-PPDU Flag subfield and the Number of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield are reserved.

[0126] When the trigger frame is used to request the first type of PPDU transmission, that is, HE TB PPDU transmission from a HE STA, R1 EHT STAs, and / or R2 EHT STAs, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, the UL BW subfield is set to indicate the BW allocated for the requested HE TB PPDU transmission, that is, the BW in the HE-SIG-A field of each requested HE TB PPDU; and the Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, together with the Doppler subfield, indicates the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU. In this case, the R1 EHT STA or R2 EHT STA shall treat the User Information field with the AID12 subfield equal to its AID as the HE format User Information field and transmit the HE TB PPDU. The UL BW subfield, the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, and the Doppler subfield may be set according to predetermined coding rules of these subfields, such as the examples of predetermined coding rules shown in Table 1 and Table 2.

[0127] When the trigger frame is used to request the second type of PPDU transmission, i.e., EHTTB PPDU transmission from an R1 EHT STA and / or an R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame; the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate a request for EHT TB PPDU transmission; the PPDU BW subfield of the Dedicated User Information field indicates the BW allocated for the requested EHT TB PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the U-SIG field of each requested EHT TB PPDU; and the Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield is set to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. Table 6 shows an example of a predetermined coding rule for the Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield of the trigger frame when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 and the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0 according to the second embodiment. In this case, the R1 EHT STA or R2 EHT STA regards the user information field having the AID12 subfield matching its AID as an EHT format user information field and transmits an EHT TB PPDU.

[0128] Table 6

[0129]

[0130] In one example, according to the predetermined coding rules shown in Tables 3 and 6, when the trigger frame is used to request 320 MHz EHT TB PPDU transmission with 12 spatial streams from the R1 EHT STA and / or the R2 EHT STA, the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to 4 or 5 to indicate the 320 MHz BW of the requested EHT TB PPDU; the Number of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield is set to 5 to indicate 12 EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0131] When the trigger frame is used to request the third type of PPDU transmission, i.e., TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from HE STA and R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame; the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate that TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested; the UL BW subfield indicates the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission for the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the HE-SIG-A field of each requested HE TB PPDU; the PPDU BW subfield of the Dedicated User Information field indicates the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission for the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the U-SIG field of each requested EHT TB PPDU; the Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, together with the Doppler subfield, indicates the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU; the Number of EHT-LTF Symbols The Symbols subfield indicates the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. The UL BW subfield, PPDU BW subfield, Number of HE-LTF Symbols and Midamble Periodicity subfield, Doppler subfield, and Number of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield may be set according to predetermined coding rules for these subfields, such as the examples of predetermined coding rules shown in Tables 1, 2, 3, and 6.

[0132] In one example, according to the predetermined coding rules shown in Tables 1, 2, 3, and 6, when the trigger frame is used to request 320MHz BW TB FD-A-PPDU transmission (including one 80MHz HE TB PPDU transmission with 4 spatial streams and no midamble and one 160MHz EHT TB PPDU transmission with 4 spatial streams), the UL BW subfield is set to 2 to indicate the 80MHz BW of the requested HE TB PPDU transmission; the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to 3 to indicate the 160MHz BW of the requested EHT TB PPDU transmission; the Doppler subfield is set to 0 to indicate that there is no midamble in each requested HE TB PPDU; the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is set to 2 to indicate 4 HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU; the Number Of EHT-LTF The Symbols subfield is set to 2 to indicate that 4 EHT-LTF symbols are requested in each EHT TBPPDU.

[0133] In the second embodiment, since two separate subfields are used to indicate the requested number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU and the requested number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU, the generated trigger frame can be used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, where the requested number of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU is different from the requested number of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU.

[0134] In some embodiments of the present invention, when a trigger frame is used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from multiple HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs, the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission is indicated in the UL BW subfield of the Common Information field, and the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission is indicated in the PPDU BW subfield of the Dedicated User Information field. Table 6 shows an example of a predetermined coding rule for the UL BW subfield of the Common Information field and the PPDU BW subfield of the Dedicated User Information field when a trigger frame is used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmission. The UL BW subfield is set to 2 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 3, corresponding to the following example: Figure 4A The UL BW subfield is set to 3 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 2, corresponding to the BW allocation option 1 shown in FIG. Figure 4BThe UL BW subfield is set to 3 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 3, corresponding to the BW allocation option 2 shown in FIG. Figure 4C BW allocation option 3 is shown. That is, when the UL BW subfield is set to 2 and the PPDUBW subfield is set to 3, the BW allocated to HE TB PPDU transmission is P80, while the BW allocated to EHT TB PPDU transmission is S160. When the UL BW subfield is set to 3 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 2, the BW allocated to HE TB PPDU transmission is P160, while the BW allocated to EHT TB PPDU transmission is the unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of S160. When the UL BW subfield is set to 3 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 3, the BW allocated to HE TB PPDU transmission is P160, while the BW allocated to EHT TB PPDU transmission is S160.

[0135] In some embodiments of the present invention, when a trigger frame is used to request the third type of PPDU transmission, i.e., TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from multiple HESTAs and R2 EHT STAs, the R1 EHT STA treats the User Information field with the AID12 subfield matching its AID as the EHT format User Information field and transmits the EHT TB PPDU. Depending on whether the allocated RU or MRU is within the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission or the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission, the R2 EHT STA treats the User Information field with the AID12 subfield matching its AID as the HE format User Information field or the EHT format User Information field. Specifically, when the allocated RU or MRU is located within the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission, the R2 EHT STA regards the user information field with the AID12 subfield matching its AID as the HE format user information field; when the allocated RU or MRU is located within the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission, the R2 EHT STA regards the user information field with the AID12 subfield matching its AID as the EHT format user information field.

[0136] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer product, which includes instructions. When the instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is enabled to perform any method for triggering uplink transmission according to any embodiment of the present invention.

[0137] At least some steps of the method for triggering uplink transmission according to any embodiment of the present invention described above can be implemented using hardware, a processor executing firmware instructions, a processor executing software instructions, or any combination thereof. When implemented using a processor executing software instructions or firmware instructions, the software instructions or firmware instructions can be stored in any computer-readable memory, such as on a disk, optical disk, or other storage medium, in RAM or ROM or flash memory, a processor, a hard disk drive, an optical disk drive, a tape drive, etc. Similarly, the software instructions or firmware instructions can be delivered to a user or system via any known or desired delivery method or via a communication medium, including, for example, delivery in a computer-readable disk or other removable computer storage mechanism.

[0138] As described above, using the methods and apparatus provided in various embodiments of the present invention, the proposed enhanced trigger frame can be used to request different types of PPDU transmissions in a WLAN. This is because a first subfield is introduced into the common information field of the trigger frame to indicate the type of trigger frame, i.e., whether the trigger frame is an existing 802.11ax trigger frame or an enhanced trigger frame. When the first subfield indicates that the trigger frame is an enhanced trigger frame, a second subfield is further introduced to indicate the type of requested PPDU transmission, i.e., requesting EHT TB PPDU transmission or TB FD-A-PPDU transmission.

[0139] Furthermore, in some embodiments of the present invention, when requesting TB A-PPDU transmission, the BW allocated for EH TB PPDU transmission in TB FD-A-PPDU transmission and the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission in TB FA-PPDU transmission are indicated by the UL BW subfield in the Common Information field and the PPDU BW subfield in the Dedicated User Information field, respectively. Furthermore, in one embodiment of the present invention, a method for linking BW allocation with corresponding channel allocations for EH TB PPDU transmission and EHT TB PPDU transmission is provided. Furthermore, in some embodiments of the present invention, two separate subfields in the Common Information field are used to indicate the requested number of HE-LTF symbols per HE TB PPDU and the requested number of EHT-LTF symbols per EHT TB PPDU, enabling a trigger frame to be used to request TB FD-A PPDU transmission in which the requested number of HE-LTF symbols per HE TB PPDU differs from the requested number of EHT-LTF symbols per EHT TB PPDU.

[0140] It should be understood that the above-described embodiments and features should be considered as illustrative rather than restrictive. Numerous other embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the specification and examples of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should be determined with reference to the appended claims and the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. In addition, specific terminology is used for clarity of description and is not intended to limit the disclosed embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for triggering uplink transmission in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the method comprising: An access point AP generates a trigger frame based on a type of physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission to be requested from a plurality of stations (STA) in the WLAN, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating the type of the PPDU transmission; The AP sends the generated trigger frame to the plurality of STAs.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein Generating the trigger frame based on the type of the PPDU transmission includes: When a first type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the AP sets the first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the generated trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, wherein the first type PPDU transmission includes multiple high-efficiency triggered HE TB-based PPDUs sent from multiple high-efficiency HE STAs, Release 1R1 very high throughput EHT STAs, and / or Release 2R2 EHT STAs.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: Generating the trigger frame based on the type of the PPDU transmission includes: The AP sets the uplink UL bandwidth BW subfield of the common information field to indicate the BW allocated for transmission of the first type of PPDU.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein Generating the trigger frame based on the type of the PPDU transmission includes: The AP sets the first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, and When a second-type PPDU transmission is to be requested, the AP sets the second subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of the PPDU transmission is a second-type PPDU transmission, wherein the second-type PPDU transmission includes multiple EHT TB PPDUs sent from multiple R1 EHT STAs and / or R2 EHT STAs.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein Generating the trigger frame based on the type of the PPDU transmission further includes: The AP sets at least one subfield for resource unit (RU) allocation in the EHT format user information field of the trigger frame to indicate a RU or a multiple resource unit (MRU) in which a STA will transmit an EHT TB PPDU, the STA being indicated by the AID12 subfield of the EHT format user information field; and The AP sets a subfield of the dedicated user information field to indicate a BW allocated for transmission of the second type PPDU.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein Generating the trigger frame based on the type of the PPDU transmission includes: The AP sets the first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, and When a third type of PPDU transmission is about to be requested, the AP sets the second subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of the PPDU transmission is a third type of PPDU transmission, wherein the third type of PPDU transmission includes TB frequency domain aggregation PPDU FD-A-PPDU transmission from at least one HE STA and at least one R2 EHT STA, wherein the TBFD-A-PPDU transmission includes HE TB PPDU transmission and EHT TB PPDU transmission.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein: Generating the trigger frame based on the type of the PPDU transmission further includes: The AP sets the UL BW subfield of the common information field to indicate the BW allocated for transmission of the HE TB PPDU, The AP sets at least one subfield for RU allocation in the user information field of the trigger frame to indicate a RU or MRU in which a STA will transmit a TB PPDU, the STA being indicated by the AID12 subfield of the user information field, and The AP sets a subfield of the dedicated user information field of the trigger frame to indicate the BW allocated for transmission of the EHT TBPPDU.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The method further comprises: When the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, an 80 MHz primary channel is allocated for the HE TB PPDU transmission and a 160 MHz secondary channel is allocated for the EHT TB PPDU transmission; When the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate a 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate an 80 MHz BW, a 160 MHz primary channel is allocated for transmission of the HE TB PPDU, and an unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of a 160 MHz secondary channel is allocated for transmission of the EHT TB PPDU; or When the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, a 160 MHz primary channel is allocated for the HE TB PPDU transmission and a 160 MHz secondary channel is allocated for the EHT TB PPDU transmission.

9. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 8, wherein Generating the trigger frame based on the type of the PPDU transmission further includes: The AP sets the third subfield of the common information field to indicate the count of HE long training field (HE-LTF) symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested or the count of EHT long training field (EHT-LTF) symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested.

10. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 8, wherein Generating the trigger frame based on the type of the PPDU transmission further includes: The AP sets the third subfield of the common information field to indicate a count of HE-LTF symbols in each HE TB PPDU to be requested; and The AP sets the fourth subfield of the common information field to indicate the count of EHT-LTF symbols in each EHT TB PPDU to be requested.

11. An access point (AP) for triggering uplink transmission in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the AP comprising: a memory configured to store an instruction for triggering uplink transmission in the WLAN; and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to execute the instructions to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

12. A method for triggering uplink transmission in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the method comprising: A station STA receives a trigger frame from an access point AP, wherein the trigger frame is generated based on a type of physical layer protocol data unit PPDU transmission to be requested from multiple STAs, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is the second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating the type of the PPDU transmission; The STA determines the type of requested PPDU transmission by decoding the common information field of the received trigger frame.

13. A station (STA) for triggering uplink transmission in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the STA comprising: a memory configured to store an instruction for triggering uplink transmission in the WLAN; and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to execute the instructions to perform the method of claim 12 .

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