Methods and apparatus for setting up low-latency sessions and managing procedures during low-latency sessions.

Abstract

A wireless communication method includes: generating a first frame, wherein the first frame includes a plurality of setting parameters for a low-latency session; and transmitting the first frame to a wireless communication device. For example, the wireless communication device is a Wi-Fi access point, and the wireless communication method is employed by a non-access point site. Another example is that the wireless communication device is a Wi-Fi access point multi-link device, and the wireless communication method is employed by a non-access point multi-link device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to wireless communication, and more specifically, to a method and apparatus for setting up a low-latency (LL) session and managing procedures during an LL session. Background Technology

[0002] In Wi-Fi systems, ensuring LL traffic delivery is a key objective of technological development. An Access Point (AP) may support various features that improve LL traffic delivery. However, since non-AP stations (STAs) (clients) do not always have LL-sensitive traffic, all non-AP STAs associated with the same AP may not always need these LL traffic delivery improvements. Therefore, it is necessary to design an innovative system that allows non-AP STAs to enable these LL traffic delivery improvements as needed. Summary of the Invention

[0003] One objective of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for setting up an LL session and managing procedures during the LL session.

[0004] According to a first aspect of the present invention, an exemplary wireless communication method is disclosed. The exemplary wireless communication method includes: generating a first frame, wherein the first frame includes a plurality of setting parameters of an LL session; and transmitting the first frame to a wireless communication device.

[0005] According to a second aspect of the present invention, an exemplary wireless communication device is disclosed. The exemplary wireless communication device includes network interface circuitry and control circuitry. The control circuitry is configured to generate a first frame and instruct the network interface circuitry to transmit the first frame to another wireless communication device, wherein the first frame includes a plurality of setting parameters for an LL session between the wireless communication device and the other wireless communication device.

[0006] According to a third aspect of the present invention, an exemplary wireless communication method is disclosed. The exemplary wireless communication method includes: receiving a first frame from a wireless communication device, wherein the first frame includes a plurality of setting parameters of an LL session; and parsing the plurality of setting parameters of the LL session from the first frame.

[0007] These and other objectives of the present invention will undoubtedly become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the detailed description of the preferred embodiments depicted in the various figures and diagrams below. Attached Figure Description

[0008] Figure 1This is a schematic diagram of a first wireless communication system that supports the proposed LL session setup and management scheme according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0009] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a second wireless communication system that supports the proposed LL session setup and management scheme according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0010] Certain terms are used in the following description and claims, referring to specific components. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, electronic device manufacturers may use different names to refer to a component. This document is not intended to distinguish between components with different names but identical functions. In the following description and claims, the terms "comprising" and "including" are used in an open-ended manner and should therefore be interpreted as "including, but not limited to...". Furthermore, the term "connection" implies either an indirect or direct electrical connection. Thus, if one device is connected to another device, the connection may be a direct electrical connection or an indirect electrical connection through other devices and connections.

[0011] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a first wireless communication system supporting the proposed LL session setup and management scheme according to an embodiment of the present invention. The wireless communication system 100 includes multiple wireless communication devices 102 and 104. For example, the wireless communication system 100 is a Wi-Fi system including an access point (AP) and a non-AP STA. In one embodiment of the present invention, wireless communication device 104 may be an AP, while wireless communication device 102 may be a non-AP STA. For simplicity and conciseness, Figure 1 Only two wireless communication devices, 102 and 104, are shown in the image. In reality, the wireless communication system 100 can have more than two wireless communication devices, including one access point (AP) and multiple non-AP STAs, located in the same basic service set (BSS).

[0012] Wireless communication devices 102 and 104 may have the same or similar circuit structures. For example... Figure 1As shown, wireless communication device 102 includes a processor 112, memory 114, control circuitry 116, and network interface circuitry 117, wherein network interface circuitry 117 includes a transmit (TX) circuitry 118 and a receive (RX) circuitry 120. Memory 114 is configured to store program code. Processor 112 is configured to load and execute program code to manage wireless communication device 102. Control circuitry 116 is configured to control wireless communication with wireless communication device 104. When wireless communication device 102 is a non-AP STA and wireless communication device 104 is an AP, control circuitry 116 controls the TX circuitry 118 of network interface circuitry 117 to handle uplink (UL) traffic between the AP and the non-AP STA, and controls the RX circuitry 120 of network interface circuitry 117 to handle downlink (DL) traffic between the AP and the non-AP STA.

[0013] Wireless communication device 104 includes a processor 122, memory 124, control circuitry 126, and network interface circuitry 127, wherein network interface circuitry 127 includes a TX circuit 128 and an RX circuit 130. Memory 124 is configured to store program code. Processor 122 is configured to load and execute program code to manage wireless communication device 104. Control circuitry 126 is configured to control wireless communication with wireless communication device 102. When wireless communication device 102 is a non-AP STA and wireless communication device 104 is an AP, control circuitry 126 controls the TX circuitry 128 of network interface circuitry 127 to process DL traffic and controls the RX circuitry 130 of network interface circuitry 127 to process UL traffic.

[0014] It should be noted that, Figure 1 Only components relevant to this invention are shown. In practice, wireless communication device 102 may include additional components to achieve the specified functions, and / or wireless communication device 104 may include additional components to achieve the specified functions.

[0015] Wireless communication device 102 acts as a client STA associated with wireless communication device 104, and wireless communication device 104 acts as an access point (AP). Wireless communication devices 102 and 104 support the proposed LL session setup and management scheme.

[0016] In an LL session setup design, the control circuit 116 of a wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 may generate a request frame REQ and instruct network interface circuit 117 (in particular, the TX circuit 118 of network interface circuit 117) to send the request frame REQ to the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104. After receiving the request frame REQ through network interface circuit 127 (in particular, the RX circuit 130 of network interface circuit 127), the control circuit 126 may generate a response frame RSP and instruct network interface circuit 127 (in particular, the TX circuit 128 of network interface circuit 127) to send the response frame RSP to the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102.

[0017] The LL session setup procedure is initiated by the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102. The request frame REQ includes multiple setup parameters for the LL session requested by the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102. Upon receiving the request frame REQ, the control circuit 126 parses the multiple setup parameters of the requested LL session from the request frame REQ. For example, the multiple setup parameters may include a session identifier (ID), at least one desired feature from the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104 to assist in LL traffic delivery, and timing information for at least one desired feature. For example, LL traffic delivery improvement features supported by the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104 may include shorter physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) lengths on transmission opportunities (TXOPs), preemption of DL / UL TXOPs, enhanced distributed channel access (EDCA), etc. The timing information for the required function may include the period of the required function, or the start and end times set based on the timing synchronization function (TSF) timer. The response frame RSP may carry information indicating acceptance or rejection of the LL session request, or may provide a counter-proposal of the request parameters carried in the request frame REQ. After a response frame RSP (indicating that the LL session request is accepted) is sent from wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104 and received by wireless communication device (e.g., non-APSTA) 102, an LL session is established between wireless communication device (e.g., non-APSTA) 102 and wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104.

[0018] In some embodiments of the present invention, the request-response-based LL session setup protocol may be embedded in an existing stream classification service (SCS) setup procedure. Therefore, a request frame REQ may be an SCS request frame, and a response frame RSP may be an SCS response frame.

[0019] In another LL session setup design, the control circuit 116 of the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 may generate a notification frame NOTIF and instruct the network interface circuit 117 (in particular, the TX circuit 118 of the network interface circuit 117) to send the notification frame NOTIF to the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104. After receiving the notification frame NOTIF through the network interface circuit 127 (in particular, the RX circuit 130 of the network interface circuit 127), the control circuit 126 may generate an acknowledgment frame ACK and instruct the network interface circuit 127 (in particular, the TX circuit 128 of the network interface circuit 127) to send the acknowledgment frame ACK to the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102.

[0020] The LL session setup procedure is initiated by the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102. The notification frame NOTIF includes multiple setup parameters for the LL session requested by the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102. Upon receiving the notification frame NOTIF, the control circuit 126 parses the setup parameters of the requested LL session from the notification frame NOTIF. For example, the setup parameters may include a session ID, at least one desired function from the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104 to assist in LL traffic delivery, and timing information for at least one desired function. For example, LL traffic delivery improvement functions supported by the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104 may include a shorter PPDU length on the TXOP, priority for the DL / UL TXOP, high-priority EDCA, etc. The timing information for a desired function may include the duration of the desired function, or a start and end time based on a TSF timer setting. An ACK frame is sent from wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104 and received by wireless communication device (e.g., non-AP STA) 102, and an LL session is established between wireless communication device (e.g., non-AP STA) 102 and wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104.

[0021] After the LL session setup procedure initiated by the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 is completed (i.e., an LL session is established between the wireless communication device (e.g., an AP) 104 and the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102), one or more management procedures may be executed during the established LL session. The established LL session will automatically terminate at the end time indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF. In some embodiments of the invention, the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 is permitted to terminate the established LL session before the end time indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF. Specifically, the control circuitry 116 of the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 may generate a teardown announcement frame TD and instruct the network interface circuitry 117 (in particular, the TX circuitry 118 of the network interface circuitry 117) to send the teardown announcement frame TD to the wireless communication device (e.g., an AP) 104, wherein the teardown announcement frame TD indicates the termination of the established LL session (i.e., early termination).

[0022] In some embodiments of the invention, a wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 is permitted to extend an established LL session before the end time indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF. Specifically, the control circuitry 116 of the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 may generate an extension announcement frame EXT and instruct the network interface circuitry 117 (in particular, the TX circuitry 118 of the network interface circuitry 117) to send the extension announcement frame EXT to the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104, wherein the extension announcement frame EXT indicates an extension of the established LL session (i.e., a new end time).

[0023] In some embodiments of the invention, a wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 is permitted to modify at least one of a plurality of setting parameters of an established LL session before the end time indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF. Specifically, the control circuitry 116 of the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 may generate a parameter modification frame MOD and instruct network interface circuitry 117 (in particular, the TX circuitry 118 of network interface circuitry 117) to send the parameter modification frame MOD to the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104, wherein the parameter modification notification frame MOD indicates a modification of at least one setting parameter (e.g., a new setting parameter) of the established LL session. Upon receiving the parameter modification frame MOD, the wireless communication device (e.g., AP) 104 may send a response frame RSP with acceptance or rejection, or may send an acknowledgment frame ACK. The new setting parameter will be applied when the response frame RSP with acceptance (or the acknowledgment frame ACK) is delivered.

[0024] Furthermore, during an established LL session, wireless communication devices (e.g., non-AP STAs) 102 and / or wireless communication devices (e.g., APs) 104 may not always provide LL traffic delivery improvement features in each TXOP. For example, an AP may need to transmit a longer PPDU beyond the length limit of a DL TXOP to ensure that the traffic it carries (which is close to the delay bound) can be delivered in time. Another example is that the ongoing transmission is LL traffic that requires immediate resources, so that other LL traffic may not be interrupted. Therefore, signaling that dynamically disables certain features is necessary.

[0025] If a wireless communication device (e.g., an AP) 104 uses a control frame CF (e.g., MU-RTS) to acquire the wireless medium, control circuitry 126 may use the frame body of the control frame CF to indicate the disablement of at least one desired LL traffic enhancement feature during an established LL session, and send a control frame CF with the disable indication to the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 to disable the desired LL traffic enhancement feature for a specific period. The disablement may be a TXOP-based disablement (which can be performed in real-time and has less additional negotiation complexity) or a period-based disablement (which requires additional parameter exchange to specify the start and end of the disablement, or start / end signaling).

[0026] If a wireless communication device (e.g., an AP) 104 uses a data frame DF to acquire the wireless medium, control circuitry 126 may use the aggregated control (A-CTRL) field in the media access control (MAC) header of the data frame DF to indicate the disabling of at least one desired LL traffic enhancement feature during an established LL session, and send a data frame DF with the disabling indication to the wireless communication device (e.g., a non-AP STA) 102 to disable the desired LL traffic enhancement feature for a specific period. The disabling may be TXOP-based (which can be performed in real-time with less additional negotiation complexity) or period-based (which requires additional parameter exchange to specify the start and end of the disabling, or start / end signaling).

[0027] The proposed LL session setup and management scheme can also be adopted by wireless communication devices operating in multi-link operation (MLO) mode. Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a second wireless communication system supporting the proposed LL session setup and management scheme according to an embodiment of the present invention. The wireless communication system 200 includes multiple wireless communication devices 202 and 204. For example, the wireless communication system 200 is a Wi-Fi system including an AP multi-link device (MLD) (which has multiple links operating on different frequency bands and capable of simultaneous operation) and a non-AP MLD (which has multiple links operating on different frequency bands and capable of simultaneous operation). In one embodiment of the present invention, wireless communication device 204 may be an AP MLD with multiple affiliated APs, while wireless communication device 202 may be a non-AP MLD with multiple affiliated non-AP STAs. Wireless communication device (e.g., non-AP MLD) 202 is associated with wireless communication device (e.g., AP MLD) 204. Furthermore, multiple setup links L1-L exist between wireless communication devices 202 and 204. N ( Regarding network interface circuit 217, TX circuit 218 may include multiple transmitters, while RX circuit 220 may include multiple receivers. Regarding network interface circuit 227, TX circuit 228 may include multiple transmitters, while RX circuit 230 may include multiple receivers. Control circuits 216 and 226 may support the proposed LL session setup and management scheme. For brevity and simplicity, Figure 2 Only two wireless communication devices, 202 and 204, are shown. In practice, the wireless communication system 200 is allowed to have more than two wireless communication devices, including one AP MLD and multiple non-AP MLDs.

[0028] In some embodiments of the invention, an LL session having setting parameters indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF may be an application to all setting links L1-L between wireless communication devices 202 and 204. N MLD-level LL session.

[0029] In some embodiments of the invention, an LL session having setting parameters indicated in a request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF may be an application to multiple setting links L1-L between wireless communication devices 202 and 204. N Each set link (per-link) LL session is configured, allowing for different LL sessions on different set links. Due to the inherent characteristics of each link LL session, wireless communication devices 202 and 204 may have multiple set links (e.g., all set links L1-L). N Each link has a designated LL session applied to that link. It is also possible that wireless communication devices 202 and 204 configure links L1-L. N There is only one setting link, and each link has an LL session applied to that link.

[0030] LL sessions may not be suitable for all L1-L configurations. N Because the corresponding parameters may not apply to all settings of link L1-L N For example, different traffic identifiers (TIDs) may map to different links, while LL traffic TIDs may only be applied to link L1-L. N A subset of. In some embodiments of the invention, an LL session and the setting parameters indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF may be applied to set up link L1-L between wireless communication devices 202 and 204. N This refers to all configuration links included in the same subset. For example, configuration parameters indicated in a request frame (REQ) or notification frame (NOTIF) might include a link bitmap (BMP) to indicate which configuration links are included in the subset. If the requested session has time information, the time may need to be adjusted based on the TSF timer for each link.

[0031] In some embodiments of the invention, an LL session and the setting parameters indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF may be a per-link LL session applied to a setting link between wireless communication devices 202 and 204, thereby allowing different LL sessions on different setting links. For example, the setting parameters indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF may apply to a specific setting link indicated by a link ID or link bitmap BMP, while different setting parameters indicated in the request frame REQ / notification frame NOTIF may apply to another specific setting link indicated by a link ID or link bitmap BMP. If the requested session has time information, the time may need to be adjusted according to the TSF timer of each link.

[0032] In some embodiments of the present invention, during the setup of an LL session, a specific function supporting LL traffic transmission and reception may be applied to set up link L1-L between wireless communication devices 202 and 204. N On a subset of.

[0033] Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations can be made to the apparatus and methods while retaining the edifying power of the invention. Therefore, the above disclosure should be interpreted only within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A wireless communication method, comprising: Generate a first frame, which includes multiple setting parameters for the low-latency session; as well as The first frame is sent to the wireless communication device.

2. The wireless communication method as described in claim 1, wherein the wireless communication device is a Wi-Fi access point or an access point multi-link device.

3. The wireless communication method as described in claim 1, further comprising: The second frame is received from the wireless communication device, wherein the second frame is sent by the wireless communication device in response to the first frame.

4. The wireless communication method as described in claim 3, wherein the first frame is a request frame and the second frame is a response frame.

5. The wireless communication method as described in claim 4, wherein the request frame is a stream classification service request frame, and the response frame is a stream classification service response frame.

6. The wireless communication method as described in claim 3, wherein the first frame is a notification frame and the second frame is an acknowledgment frame.

7. The wireless communication method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of setting parameters include a session identifier, at least one desired function from the wireless communication device to assist in low-latency traffic delivery, and timing information of the at least one desired function.

8. The wireless communication method of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication method is adopted by a first Wi-Fi multi-link device, the wireless communication device is a second Wi-Fi multi-link device, and the low-latency session is a multi-link device-level low-latency session applied to all configured links between the first Wi-Fi multi-link device and the second Wi-Fi multi-link device.

9. The wireless communication method of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication method is employed by a first Wi-Fi multi-link device, the wireless communication device being a second Wi-Fi multi-link device, and the low-latency session is a link low-latency session applied to each link between the first Wi-Fi multi-link device and the second Wi-Fi multi-link device.

10. The wireless communication method as described in claim 9, wherein: The setup link is any setup link between the first Wi-Fi multi-link device and the second Wi-Fi multi-link device; or The setup link is any setup link included in a subset of the multiple links between the first Wi-Fi multi-link device and the second Wi-Fi multi-link device.

11. The wireless communication method of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication method is employed by a first Wi-Fi multi-link device, the wireless communication device being a second Wi-Fi multi-link device, and the LL session is applied to all configured links in a subset of the plurality of links between the first Wi-Fi multi-link device and the second Wi-Fi multi-link device.

12. The wireless communication method of claim 11, wherein the plurality of configuration parameters includes a link bitmap for indicating which configuration links are included in the subset.

13. The wireless communication method as described in claim 1, further comprising: After the low-latency session is established, a second frame is generated, which indicates the termination of the low-latency session; as well as The second frame is then sent to the wireless communication device.

14. The wireless communication method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: After the low-latency session is established, a second frame is generated, which represents the extension of the low-latency session; as well as The second frame is then sent to the wireless communication device.

15. The wireless communication method as described in claim 1, further comprising: After the low-latency session is established, a second frame is generated, wherein the second frame represents a modification of at least one of the plurality of setting parameters; as well as The second frame is then sent to the wireless communication device.

16. The wireless communication method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of setting parameters include desired functions from the wireless communication device to assist in low-latency traffic delivery, and the wireless communication method further comprises: After the low-latency session is established, a second frame is received from the wireless communication device, wherein the second frame indicates that the desired function is disabled during the low-latency session.

17. The wireless communication method as described in claim 16, wherein: The second frame is a control frame, and the disable is indicated in the frame body of that control frame; or The second frame is a data frame, and the disable is indicated in the Media Access Control header of that data frame.

18. The wireless communication method of claim 16, wherein the disable is a disable based on transmission opportunity or a disable based on period.

19. The wireless communication method of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication method is employed by a first Wi-Fi multi-link device, the wireless communication device being a second Wi-Fi multi-link device, and during the setting of the low-latency session, specific functions supporting low-latency traffic transmission and reception are applied to a subset of multiple set links between the first Wi-Fi multi-link device and the second Wi-Fi multi-link device.

20. A wireless communication device, comprising: Network interface circuit; and A control circuit is configured to generate a first frame and instruct the network interface circuit to send the first frame to another wireless communication device, wherein the first frame includes multiple setting parameters for a low-latency session between the wireless communication device and the other wireless communication device.

21. A wireless communication method, comprising: Receive a first frame from a wireless communication device, wherein the first frame includes multiple setting parameters for a low-latency session; as well as The multiple setting parameters of the low-latency session are parsed from the first frame.

22. The wireless communication method of claim 21, wherein the wireless communication device is a Wi-Fi non-access point site or a non-access point multi-link device.

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