Method for identifying CTS frame source, terminal device and wireless access point device

Abstract

Disclosed are a method for identifying a source of a CTS frame, a terminal device and a wireless access point device, the method for identifying the source of the CTS frame comprising: generating a CTS frame, the CTS frame being used for responding to a channel access request; determining an idle subcarrier in a frequency domain resource corresponding to the code element of the CTS frame; and carrying the equipment identification information of the terminal equipment through the idle subcarrier. According to the method, the device identification information of the terminal device is carried in the CTS frame replying to the wireless access point device, so that the wireless access point device can identify the terminal device replying to the CTS frame.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to a method, terminal device, and wireless access point device for identifying the source of CTS frames. Background Technology

[0002] The 802.11 device protocol uses a CSMA / CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance) mechanism for channel access. Most current 802.11 devices support the EDCA (Enhanced Distributed Channel Access) mechanism based on CSMA / CA for channel access and usage. To reduce packet exchange failures caused by collisions during channel contention, the 802.11 protocol also incorporates an RTS / CTS mechanism. Before actual packet exchange, a channel access attempt is made. The AP device sends an RTS frame to the STA device requesting transmission. If the STA device receives the RTS frame and the channel is idle, it replies with a CTS frame indicating successful channel contention and the ability to use the channel. Furthermore, the Duration field in the RTS / CTS frame suppresses other 802.11 devices, causing them to set up channel backoff mechanisms and not attempt to use the channel again within a specified time.

[0003] Traditional RTS / CTS interactions are limited to two devices. With the 802.11ac protocol and later, the 802.11 device protocol introduced multi-user transmission, allowing an AP device to send data to multiple STA devices simultaneously, and multiple STA devices to send data to one AP device simultaneously. To overcome the limitation of traditional RTS / CTS to two devices, the 802.11ax protocol and later introduced MU-RTS (Multi-User RTS) and CTS interactions, allowing an AP device to send an MU-RTS that specifies multiple user STA devices. Under certain conditions, the specified multiple STA devices can simultaneously reply to the AP device with CTS frames.

[0004] However, if multiple STA devices meet the conditions for replying with a CTS frame, the AP device may not be able to distinguish which STA device replied with a CTS frame. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This invention aims to at least solve one of the technical problems existing in the prior art. Therefore, one object of this invention is to provide a method for identifying the source of a CTS frame, which enables the wireless access point device to identify the terminal device replying to the CTS frame by carrying device identification information of the terminal device in the CTS frame.

[0006] The second objective of this invention is to provide a terminal device.

[0007] The third objective of this invention is to provide a method for identifying the source of CTS frames.

[0008] The fourth objective of this invention is to provide a wireless access point device.

[0009] The fifth objective of this invention is to provide a computer storage medium.

[0010] To address the aforementioned problems, a first aspect of the present invention provides a method for identifying the source of a CTS frame, for use in a terminal device. The method includes: generating a CTS frame, wherein the CTS frame is used to respond to a channel access request; determining an idle subcarrier in the frequency domain resources corresponding to the symbols of the CTS frame; and carrying device identification information of the terminal device through the idle subcarrier.

[0011] According to the present invention, the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame responds to a wireless access point device based on a non-HT format CTS frame. It uses idle subcarriers in the spectrum resources corresponding to the symbols of the CTS frame to carry device identification information of the terminal device. Therefore, compared to the prior art, without affecting the original function of the CTS frame, the wireless access point device can identify the terminal device responding to the CTS frame, thereby ensuring that the wireless access point device can exchange data packets with terminal devices that meet the data exchange conditions.

[0012] In some embodiments, carrying device identification information of the terminal device through the idle subcarrier includes: encoding the device identification information to obtain a device identification code value; and modulating the device identification code value onto the idle subcarrier.

[0013] In some embodiments, modulating the device identification code value onto the idle subcarrier includes: modulating the device identification code value onto the idle subcarrier using BPSK modulation.

[0014] In some embodiments, carrying device identification information of the terminal device through the idle subcarrier includes: encoding the usage status of each idle subcarrier according to the device identification information; and allocating the device identification information to the idle subcarrier according to the usage status of each idle subcarrier.

[0015] In some embodiments, the CTS frame includes multiple symbols located in the data domain and multiple symbols located in the L-SIG domain, and carries the device identification information of the terminal device through the idle subcarrier. The CTS frame further includes: carrying the device identification information of the terminal device through idle subcarriers in the data domain; or, carrying the device identification information of the terminal device through idle subcarriers in both the data domain and the L-SIG domain.

[0016] In some embodiments, carrying the device identification information of the terminal device via the idle subcarrier further includes: carrying the device identification information of the terminal device via the idle subcarrier in any of the symbols.

[0017] In some embodiments, carrying the device identification information of the terminal device through an idle subcarrier in any symbol includes: carrying the device identification information of the terminal device through a single idle subcarrier in any symbol; or, carrying the device identification information of the terminal device through multiple idle subcarriers in any symbol.

[0018] In some embodiments, carrying the device identification information of the terminal device via the idle subcarrier further includes: carrying the device identification information of the terminal device via an idle subcarrier among multiple symbols.

[0019] In some embodiments, the terminal device is one or more, and the device identification information of the terminal device is carried on the idle subcarrier, which further includes: carrying the device identification information of one terminal device on the idle subcarrier; or carrying the device identification information of multiple terminal devices on the idle subcarrier.

[0020] In some embodiments, the CTS frame is in non-HT format or non-HT DUP format.

[0021] A second aspect of the present invention provides a terminal device, comprising: at least one first processor; and a first memory communicatively connected to at least one first processor; wherein the first memory stores a computer program executable by at least one first processor, and the at least one first processor, when executing the computer program, implements the method for identifying the source of CTS frames described in the above embodiments.

[0022] According to the terminal device of the present invention, the method for identifying the source of CTS frames described above is implemented by executing a computer program through a first processor. The method responds to the wireless access point device based on a non-HT format CTS frame and uses an idle subcarrier in the spectrum resource corresponding to the symbol of the CTS frame to carry the device identification information of the terminal device. Thus, compared with the prior art, without affecting the original function of the CTS frame, the wireless access point device can identify the terminal device that responds to the CTS frame, thereby enabling the wireless access point device to perform data packet interaction with the terminal device that meets the data interaction conditions, avoiding unnecessary transmission.

[0023] A third aspect of the present invention provides a method for identifying the source of a CTS frame for a wireless access point device. The method includes: receiving a CTS frame and synchronously receiving device identification information carried on an idle subcarrier; and determining the source terminal device of the CTS frame based on an idle subcarrier allocation strategy and the device identification information.

[0024] According to the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to an embodiment of the present invention, when receiving a CTS frame, device identification information carried on an idle subcarrier is received synchronously, and the source device of the CTS frame is determined based on the idle subcarrier allocation strategy and the device identification information. This ensures that the wireless access point device and the terminal device that meets the data interaction conditions can interact with data packets, thus avoiding unnecessary transmission.

[0025] In some embodiments, the idle subcarrier allocation strategy is that the wireless access point device specifies the idle subcarrier used by each terminal device waiting to respond to a CTS frame when sending a channel access request; or, the idle subcarrier allocation strategy is that the idle subcarrier used by each terminal device is pre-set before the wireless access point device and the terminal device make a channel access request.

[0026] A fourth aspect of the present invention provides a wireless access point device, comprising: at least one second processor; and a second memory communicatively connected to the at least one second processor; wherein the second memory stores a computer program executable by the at least one second processor, and the at least one second processor, when executing the computer program, implements the method for identifying the source of CTS frames described in the above embodiments.

[0027] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a wireless access point device executes a computer program through a second processor to implement the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame as described above. When receiving a CTS frame, the device identification information carried on an idle subcarrier is received synchronously, and the source terminal device of the CTS frame is determined based on the idle subcarrier allocation strategy and the device identification information. This ensures that the wireless access point device interacts with terminal devices that meet the data interaction conditions, thereby avoiding unnecessary transmissions.

[0028] A fifth aspect of the present invention provides a computer storage medium storing a computer program thereon, wherein the computer program, when executed by a processor, implements the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame for a terminal device as described in the above embodiments, or implements the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame for a wireless access point device as described in the above embodiments. Attached Figure Description

[0029] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and readily understood from the description of the embodiments taken in conjunction with the following drawings, in which: Figure 1 A schematic diagram illustrating channel access between AP devices and STA1 devices using RTS / CTS interaction frames; Figure 2 A schematic diagram illustrating channel access between AP devices and STA1 devices using MU-RTS / CTS interactive frames; Figure 3 This is a flowchart of a method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4 It is the subcarrier arrangement of symbols in a non-HT format CTS frame according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 It is the subcarrier arrangement of symbols in a non-HT format CTS frame according to another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of a CTS frame according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 7 (a)-(b) are schematic diagrams of CTS frames according to another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of a CTS frame according to another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 9 This is a structural block diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 10 This is a flowchart of a method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 11 This is a structural block diagram of a wireless access point device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0030] Figure label: Terminal equipment 10; Wireless access point equipment 20; First processor 1; first memory 2; second processor 3; second memory 4. Detailed Implementation

[0031] The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below. The embodiments described with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary. The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below.

[0032] In the interaction between MU-RTS and CTS, because the CTS responses from multiple STA devices overlap in both time and frequency domain resources, and this CTS must be correctly received by all other 802.11 devices, including those that do not support 802.11ax and later protocols, the following conditions must be met in the 802.11 protocol for a CTS frame responding to MU-RTS: the CTS frame must use a fixed traditional non-HT (non-high throughput) frame format; the CTS frame must use a fixed physical modulation and coding mechanism; the MAC layer information of the CTS frame must be the same for all STA devices; and the PHY layer information of the CTS frame must be the same for all STA devices. Based on these requirements for CTS frames responding to MU-RTS, the AP device cannot distinguish between CTS frames. In other words, the AP device cannot identify which STA device responded with a CTS frame, which may lead to the AP device transmitting data packets to STA devices that do not meet the conditions, resulting in unnecessary transmissions.

[0033] like Figure 1 The diagram shows the AP device and STA1 device using RTS / CTS exchange frames for channel access, suppressing subsequent channel access by other 802.11 devices; and as shown... Figure 2 The diagram shows an AP device using MU-RTS, specifying two STA1 / STA2. If both STAs meet the conditions for responding to a CTS, they will both respond to the AP. However, the CTS responses from these two STAs overlap in time and partially or completely in the frequency band resources they use. Therefore, the 802.11 protocol requires that the CTS frame responding to MU-RTS must meet the following conditions: a) the CTS frame uses a fixed traditional non-HT (non-high throughput) frame format; b) the CTS frame uses a fixed physical modulation and coding mechanism; c) the MAC layer information of the CTS frame is the same for all STAs; d) the PHY layer information of the CTS frame is the same for all STAs. However, according to the above requirements for the CTS frame responding to MU-RTS, the AP device cannot distinguish which specific STA responded to the CTS.

[0034] To address the aforementioned problems, a first aspect of the present invention proposes a method for identifying the source of a CTS frame. This method involves carrying device identification information of a terminal device in the CTS frame that the wireless access point device is replying to, thereby enabling the wireless access point device to identify the terminal device replying to the CTS frame and avoiding unnecessary transmissions.

[0035] The following is for reference. Figure 1 A method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to embodiments of the present invention is described, such as... Figure 3 As shown, the method includes steps S1-S3.

[0036] Step S1: Generate a CTS frame, wherein the CTS frame is used to respond to a channel access request.

[0037] Specifically, before a wireless access point (WAP) interacts with multiple terminal devices, to reduce data packet exchange failures caused by channel contention, it needs to ensure the channel is idle during data packet exchange. The WAP sends channel access requests to multiple designated terminal devices, informing them of the channel usage time. Terminal devices meeting the data exchange conditions then generate a CTS frame in response to the WAP. For example, taking a MU-RTS frame as the channel access request, the WAP sends MU-RTS frames to multiple designated terminal devices, and the terminal devices meeting the data exchange conditions generate CTS frames in response. The CTS frame uses either non-HT or non-HT DUP format.

[0038] Step S2: Determine the idle subcarriers in the frequency domain resources corresponding to the symbols of the CTS frame.

[0039] Specifically, taking the non-HT format as an example, in the non-HT format, OFDM modulation is used. Taking the frequency domain resources on a bandwidth of BW20 MHz as an example, the frequency domain resources corresponding to the symbols of the CTS frame in the non-HT format are as follows: Figure 4 As shown, the subcarrier spacing is 312.5 kHz, theoretically there are 64 subcarriers. To prevent spectrum leakage, only 52 subcarriers are used. When parsing CTS frames, only these 52 designated subcarriers are used, and other subcarriers are ignored. The 52 subcarriers can be referenced... Figure 2As shown, the 52 subcarriers are labeled as -26 to 26, and the unused subcarriers are labeled as -32 to -27 and 27 to 32. Among the unused subcarriers, a corresponding number of unused subcarriers are selected as idle subcarriers according to the actual situation. For example, -28, -27, 27, and 28 are selected as idle subcarriers. Regardless of whether the CTS frame adopts the non-HT format or the non-HT DUP format, the idle subcarriers can be specified by the wireless access point device when requesting channel access or can be pre-set by the wireless access point device and the terminal device before requesting channel access. No specific restrictions are made here.

[0040] Step S3: The device identification information of the terminal device is carried via an idle subcarrier. The terminal device can be an STA device.

[0041] Specifically, idle subcarriers are selected from the unused subcarriers to carry device identification information of the terminal devices. This adds additional device identification information without affecting the original function of the CTS frame. Each terminal device has its unique device identification information. By carrying this information on idle subcarriers, the wireless access point (WAPT) can identify the source terminal device after receiving a CTS frame, distinguishing which terminal device the MU-RTS response CTS frame originated from. When facing multiple terminal devices, this ensures that the WAPT exchanges data packets with only those meeting the data exchange conditions, avoiding unnecessary transmissions. Unused subcarriers not selected as idle subcarriers remain unused and can serve as guard intervals without carrying any data.

[0042] For example, such as Figure 5 As shown, -28, -27, 27, and 28 are selected as idle subcarriers to carry the device identification information of the terminal device, while -32~29 and 29~32 are unused subcarriers. The original CTS frame information is still allocated to the 52 subcarriers from -26 to 26. Thus, the original CTS frame information and the additional device identification information are allocated to different subcarrier groups as follows: a) The original CTS frame is still allocated to the subcarriers used in the original non-HT format; b) The additional device identification information is allocated to the additionally used subcarriers; c) The remaining subcarriers are still unused subcarriers.

[0043] According to the present invention, the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame responds to a wireless access point device based on a non-HT format CTS frame. It uses an idle subcarrier in the spectrum resource corresponding to the symbol of the CTS frame to carry the device identification information of the terminal device. Therefore, compared to the prior art, without affecting the original function of the CTS frame, the wireless access point device can identify the terminal device responding to the CTS frame, thereby ensuring that the wireless access point device interacts with the terminal device that meets the data exchange conditions, and avoiding unnecessary transmissions.

[0044] In some embodiments, the device identification information of the terminal device is carried on an idle subcarrier, including encoding the device identification information to obtain a device identification code value; and modulating the device identification code value onto the idle subcarrier.

[0045] Specifically, each terminal device has its own unique device identification information. The device identification information is encoded to obtain the device identification code value, which is then modulated onto an idle subcarrier. This allows the idle subcarrier to carry the device identification information of the terminal device. Furthermore, the device identification information can be obtained by demodulating and decoding the idle subcarrier. Thus, the source terminal device of the CTS frame can be determined through the CTS frame.

[0046] In some embodiments, modulating the device identification code value onto an idle subcarrier includes using BPSK modulation to modulate the device identification code value onto an idle subcarrier.

[0047] Specifically, taking 16 device identification codes as an example, each device code corresponds to a device identification information. These 16 device identification code values ​​are modulated onto idle subcarriers using BPSK modulation, as shown in Table 1. This allows the CTS frame to carry the device identification information of the terminal device. It should be noted that not all 16 device identification code values ​​can be used. For example, if the MU-RTS frame only triggers four terminal devices, only four device identification code values ​​are used. The device identification code values ​​can be selected and modulated onto the idle subcarriers according to the actual situation; there are no specific restrictions on this.

[0048] Table 1

[0049] In some embodiments, the device identification information of the terminal device is carried on the idle subcarrier, including encoding the usage status of each idle subcarrier according to the device identification information; and allocating the device identification information to the idle subcarrier according to the usage status of each idle subcarrier.

[0050] Specifically, taking 16 device identification codes as an example, each device identification code corresponds to a device identification information, as shown in Table 2. The device identification information is combined according to the usage status of each idle subcarrier to allocate it to the idle subcarrier. In other words, by simply determining the presence or absence of energy, additional device identification information is encoded onto the additional subcarrier of a single non-HT symbol. If a subcarrier is used, then that subcarrier has energy. It should be noted that in practical applications, not all 16 device identification codes may be used. For example, if an MU-RTS frame only triggers four terminal devices, then only four identification device codes are used. The device identification codes can be selected and allocated to the idle subcarrier according to the actual situation; no specific restrictions are placed on this.

[0051] Table 2

[0052] In some embodiments, a CTS frame includes multiple symbols located in the data domain and multiple symbols located in the L-SIG domain, and carries device identification information of the terminal device via idle subcarriers. It further includes: carrying device identification information of the terminal device via idle subcarriers in the data domain; or, carrying device identification information of the terminal device via idle subcarriers in both the data domain and L-SIG domain symbols.

[0053] In other words, in a non-HT format CTS that responds to MU-RTS, there are two types of symbols that can carry device identification information: one is a symbol that only uses the data field, or the other is a symbol that uses the data field and the L-SIG field (L-SIG field, Legacysignal field) in the non-HT format PHY Header.

[0054] Specifically, taking a CTS frame with (N-1) data fields and one L-SIG field as an example, such as... Figure 6 The image shows a CTS frame with (N-1) data fields, including the L-SIG field symbols, for a total of N symbols. In this CTS frame, device identification information can be carried using only the (N-1) data fields, or all N data fields can be used.

[0055] In some embodiments, carrying device identification information of the terminal device via an idle subcarrier further includes carrying device identification information of the terminal device via an idle subcarrier in any symbol.

[0056] Specifically, a CTS frame contains multiple symbols, where any idle subcarrier in any symbol can be used to carry device identification information of the terminal device. That is, each terminal device can be allocated a single symbol to carry its device identification information. For example, such as... Figure 7 The diagram shows additional device identification information for multiple different users, encoded using multiple subcarriers on multiple symbols. In this method, the device identification information of a single terminal device occupies multiple idle subcarriers of one symbol, and each different symbol carries different device identification information. The idle subcarriers on one symbol are encoded using BPSK modulation information, and +1 -1 +1 -1 are used as the values ​​on the four idle subcarriers to indicate that the symbol carries the corresponding device identification information.

[0057] like Figure 7 As shown, both the first terminal device and the second terminal device responded with CTS frames. Figure 7 In (a), the first terminal device is assigned the first code element 0 to carry the device identification information of the first terminal device. Figure 7 In (b), the second terminal device is assigned to use the second symbol 1 to carry the device identification information of the second terminal device. When the first terminal device transmits CTS, it will additionally use the idle subcarrier in the first symbol 0 to carry the pre-specified device identification code value, and other symbols will no longer use the idle subcarrier; similarly, when the second terminal device transmits CTS, it will additionally use the idle subcarrier in the second symbol 1 to carry the pre-specified second terminal device, and other symbols will no longer use the idle subcarrier.

[0058] In some embodiments, carrying device identification information of the terminal device via an idle subcarrier in any symbol includes: carrying device identification information of the terminal device via a single idle subcarrier in any symbol; or, carrying device identification information of the terminal device via multiple idle subcarriers in any symbol.

[0059] Specifically, such as Figure 7 As shown, in the CTS frame sent by the first terminal device, the device identification information of the first terminal device can be carried through the idle subcarriers of code element 0, namely -28, -27, 27, and 28, or through the idle subcarrier of code element 0, while other code elements no longer use idle subcarriers to carry the device identification information of the terminal device; in the CTS frame sent by the second terminal device, the device identification information of the second terminal device can be carried through the idle subcarriers of code element 1, namely -28, -27, 27, and 28, or through the idle subcarrier of code element 1, namely -28, while other code elements no longer use idle subcarriers to carry the device identification information of the terminal device.

[0060] In some embodiments, carrying device identification information of the terminal device via idle subcarriers further includes carrying device identification information of the terminal device via idle subcarriers among multiple symbols.

[0061] Specifically, when a wireless access point device receives a CTS frame, it parses the CTS frame. To improve the accuracy of retrieving device identification information, the device identification information can be carried by idle subcarriers in multiple symbols. For example, taking idle subcarriers in two symbols carrying the device identification information of the first terminal device... Figure 8 As shown, the device identification information of the first terminal device is carried by the idle subcarriers of code element 0 and code element 1.

[0062] In some embodiments, there are one or more terminal devices, and the device identification information of the terminal devices is carried on idle subcarriers. The embodiments may also include carrying the device identification information of one terminal device on idle subcarriers; or, the device identification information of multiple terminal devices may be carried on idle subcarriers.

[0063] Specifically, such as Figure 7 As shown, on a single symbol, the idle subcarrier of that single symbol carries only the device identification information of one terminal device; or, a single terminal device uses only a portion of the idle subcarrier of a single symbol, while the remaining idle subcarriers can carry additional device identification information of the terminal device, for example... Figure 7 As shown, there are four idle subcarriers on a single symbol. If a single terminal device uses only one idle subcarrier of a single symbol, then theoretically the symbol can carry four device identification information. Thus, the device identification information of multiple terminal devices can be carried through the idle subcarriers. In this way, each terminal device that replies with a CTS frame can be identified by the wireless access point device, thereby avoiding unnecessary transmission.

[0064] A second aspect of the present invention provides a terminal device 10, such as... Figure 9 As shown, the terminal device 10 includes at least one first processor 1 and at least one first memory 2 that is communicatively connected to the first processor 1.

[0065] The first memory 2 stores a computer program that can be executed by at least one first processor 1. When the at least one first processor 1 executes the computer program, it implements the method for identifying the source of CTS frames described in the above embodiments.

[0066] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the terminal device 10 implements the method for identifying the source of CTS frames described above by executing a computer program through a first processor 1. It replies to the wireless access point device based on a non-HT format CTS frame and uses an idle subcarrier in the spectrum resource corresponding to the symbol of the CTS frame to carry the device identification information of the terminal device 10. Thus, compared with the prior art, without affecting the original function of the CTS frame, the wireless access point device can identify the terminal device 10 that replies with the CTS frame, so that the wireless access point device and the terminal device 10 that meet the data interaction conditions can perform data packet interaction, avoiding unnecessary transmission.

[0067] A third aspect of the present invention provides a method for identifying the source of a CTS frame, such as... Figure 10 The diagram includes steps S4-S5, which are used for wireless access point devices. The specific steps are as follows.

[0068] Step S4: Receive CTS frames and synchronously receive device identification information carried by idle subcarriers.

[0069] Specifically, while receiving CTS frames, the device identification information carried by idle subcarriers is also received simultaneously, thereby enabling the identification of the source terminal device of the CTS frame through the device identification information.

[0070] Step S5: Determine the source terminal device of the CTS frame based on the idle subcarrier allocation strategy and device identification information.

[0071] Specifically, based on the idle subcarrier allocation strategy and device identification information, the source device of the CTS frame is determined, thereby ensuring that the wireless access point device and the terminal device that meets the data interaction conditions can exchange data packets, avoiding unnecessary transmissions.

[0072] According to the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to an embodiment of the present invention, when receiving a CTS frame, the device identification information carried by an idle subcarrier is received synchronously, and the source device of the CTS frame is determined based on the idle subcarrier allocation strategy and the device identification information. This ensures that the wireless access point device and the terminal device 10 that meets the data interaction conditions can interact with data packets, thus avoiding unnecessary transmission.

[0073] In some embodiments, the idle subcarrier allocation strategy is that the wireless access point device specifies the idle subcarrier used by each terminal device waiting to reply to a CTS frame when sending a channel access request; or, the idle subcarrier allocation strategy is that the idle subcarrier used by each terminal device is pre-set before the wireless access point device and the terminal device make a channel access request.

[0074] Specifically, taking a channel access request (MU-RTS) frame as an example, when the wireless access point device sends an MU-RTS frame, it specifies the idle subcarriers to be used by each terminal device 10 that needs to reply with a CTS frame. This allows the terminal device that needs to reply with a CTS to know which symbols and which idle subcarriers it should use. Alternatively, the idle subcarriers to be used by each terminal device can be pre-set before the wireless access point device and the terminal device 10 establish channel access. For example, when the STA device connects with the AP device, the AP device tells the STA device the idle subcarrier allocation strategy. This allows the terminal device 10 to use the pre-specified symbols and idle subcarriers to carry device identification information. As a result, the wireless access point device can identify the terminal device 10 that replies with a CTS frame as a terminal device that meets the data interaction conditions, ensuring that the wireless access point device and the terminal device 10 that meets the data interaction conditions can exchange data packets, thus avoiding unnecessary transmissions.

[0075] A fourth aspect of the present invention provides a wireless access point device 20, such as... Figure 11 As shown, the wireless access point device 20 includes at least one second processor 3 and at least one second memory 4 communicatively connected to the second processor 3.

[0076] The second memory 4 stores a computer program that can be executed by at least one second processor 3. When the at least one second processor 3 executes the computer program, it implements the method for identifying the source of CTS frames described in the above embodiment.

[0077] According to the wireless access point device of the present invention, the second processor 3 executes a computer program to implement the method for identifying the source of CTS frames described above. When receiving CTS frames, the device identification information carried by the idle subcarrier is received synchronously, and the source terminal device 10 of the CTS frame is determined based on the idle subcarrier allocation strategy and the device identification information. This ensures that the wireless access point device 20 interacts with the terminal device 10 that meets the data interaction conditions, and avoids unnecessary transmission.

[0078] A fifth aspect of the present invention provides a computer storage medium storing a computer program thereon. When the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame for a terminal device as described in the above embodiments, or implements the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame for a wireless access point device as described in the above embodiments.

[0079] In the description of this specification, any process or method described in the flowcharts or otherwise herein may be understood as representing a module, segment, or portion of code comprising one or more executable instructions for implementing custom logic functions or processes, and the scope of the preferred embodiments of the invention includes additional implementations in which functions may be performed not in the order shown or discussed, including substantially simultaneously or in reverse order according to the functions involved, as will be understood by those skilled in the art to which embodiments of the invention pertain.

[0080] The logic and / or steps represented in the flowchart or otherwise described herein, for example, can be considered as a sequenced list of executable instructions for implementing logical functions, and can be embodied in any computer-readable medium for use by, or in conjunction with, an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device (such as a computer-based system, a processor-included system, or other system that can fetch and execute instructions from, an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device). For the purposes of this specification, "computer-readable medium" can be any means that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transmit programs for use by, or in conjunction with, an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of computer-readable media include: an electrical connection having one or more wires (electronic device), a portable computer disk drive (magnetic device), random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable and editable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), fiber optic devices, and portable optical disc read-only memory (CDROM). Furthermore, computer-readable media can even be paper or other suitable media on which programs can be printed, because programs can be obtained electronically, for example, by optically scanning the paper or other media, followed by editing, interpreting, or otherwise processing as necessary, and then stored in computer memory.

[0081] It should be understood that various parts of the present invention can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof. In the above embodiments, multiple steps or methods can be implemented in software or firmware stored in memory and executed by a suitable instruction execution system. For example, if implemented in hardware as in another embodiment, it can be implemented using any of the following techniques known in the art, or a combination thereof: discrete logic circuits having logic gates for implementing logical functions on data signals, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) having suitable combinational logic gates, programmable gate arrays (PGAs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), etc.

[0082] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the steps of the methods described in the above embodiments can be implemented by a program instructing related hardware, and the program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. When executed, the program includes one or a combination of the steps of the method embodiments.

[0083] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present invention can be integrated into a processing module, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into a module. The integrated module can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional module. If the integrated module is implemented as a software functional module and sold or used as an independent product, it can also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium.

[0084] The storage medium mentioned above can be a read-only memory, a disk, or an optical disk, etc. Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described above, it is to be understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. Those skilled in the art can make changes, modifications, substitutions, and variations to the above embodiments within the scope of the present invention.

[0085] In the description of this specification, references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., refer to specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in connection with that embodiment or example, which are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example.

[0086] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A method for identifying the source of a CTS frame, characterized in that, For use in a terminal device, the method includes: Generate a CTS frame, wherein the CTS frame is used to respond to a channel access request; Determine the idle subcarriers in the frequency domain resources corresponding to the symbols of the CTS frame; The device identification information of the terminal device is carried by the idle subcarrier.

2. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 1, characterized in that, The device identification information of the terminal device is carried via the idle subcarrier, including: The device identification information is encoded to obtain a device identification code value; The device identification code value is modulated onto the idle subcarrier.

3. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 2, characterized in that, Modulating the device identification code value onto the idle subcarrier includes: The device identification code value is modulated onto the idle subcarrier using BPSK modulation.

4. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 1, characterized in that, The device identification information of the terminal device is carried via the idle subcarrier, including: The usage status of each idle subcarrier is encoded according to the device identification information; The device identification information is assigned to the idle subcarriers according to the usage status of each idle subcarrier.

5. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The CTS frame includes multiple symbols located in the data field and multiple symbols located in the L-SIG field, and carries the device identification information of the terminal device through the idle subcarrier, and also includes: The device identification information of the terminal device is carried by the idle subcarrier in the code elements of the data field; Alternatively, the device identification information of the terminal device may be carried by idle subcarriers in the symbols of the data field and the symbols of the L-SIG field.

6. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 5, characterized in that, The device identification information of the terminal device carried via the idle subcarrier also includes: The device identification information of the terminal device is carried by an idle subcarrier in any of the symbols.

7. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 6, characterized in that, The device identification information of the terminal device is carried through an idle subcarrier in any of the symbols, including: The device identification information of the terminal device is carried by a single idle subcarrier in any of the symbols; Alternatively, the device identification information of the terminal device may be carried by multiple idle subcarriers in any of the symbols.

8. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 5, characterized in that, The device identification information of the terminal device carried via the idle subcarrier also includes: The device identification information of the terminal device is carried by idle subcarriers in multiple symbols.

9. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 5, characterized in that, The terminal device may be one or more, and the device identification information of the terminal device is carried through the idle subcarrier, further comprising: The idle subcarrier carries the device identification information of a terminal device. Alternatively, the device identification information of multiple terminal devices can be carried through the idle subcarrier.

10. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 1, characterized in that, The CTS frame uses either non-HT or non-HT DUP format.

11. A terminal device, characterized in that, include: At least one first processor; A first memory communicatively connected to at least one of the first processors; The first memory stores a computer program that can be executed by at least one of the first processors, and when the at least one of the first processors executes the computer program, it implements the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame as described in any one of claims 1-10.

12. A method for identifying the source of a CTS frame, characterized in that, For a wireless access point device, the method includes: Receive CTS frames and synchronously receive device identification information carried by idle subcarriers; The source terminal device of the CTS frame is determined based on the idle subcarrier allocation strategy and the device identification information.

13. The method for identifying the source of a CTS frame according to claim 12, characterized in that, The idle subcarrier allocation strategy is that the wireless access point device specifies the idle subcarrier it uses for each terminal device waiting to respond to a CTS frame when sending a channel access request. Alternatively, the idle subcarrier allocation strategy involves pre-setting the idle subcarriers used by each terminal device before the wireless access point device and the terminal device make a channel access request.

14. A wireless access point device, characterized in that, include: At least one second processor; A second memory communicatively connected to at least one of the second processors; The second memory stores a computer program that can be executed by at least one second processor, and when the at least one second processor executes the computer program, it implements the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame as described in claim 12 or 13.

15. A computer storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, characterized in that, When the computer program is executed by the processor, it implements the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame as described in any one of claims 1-10, or implements the method for identifying the source of a CTS frame as described in claim 12 or 13.

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