Access point device and station device

Abstract

To maintain favorable communication quality of a wireless link in wireless communication.SOLUTION: A integrated station device 7001 includes a root selection unit 7002, gateway units 7003-1 to 3, sub access point units 7004-1 to 3, and is connected to an integrated station device equipped with a plurality of sub station units 7006-1 to 3 with multiple bands, to control a band used by a traffic for an integrated station, using information on a layer 3 corresponding to each of the bands. The integrated station device includes a MAC layer section for allocation control. In the allocation control, an index indicating an STA that satisfies application requirements for transmission set from a host layer is stored in a list, and wireless resources are allocated by using at least one of multiple frequencies to the STAs included in the list.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an access point device and a station device.

Background Art

[0002] IEEE (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.) has been continuously working on updating the specifications of IEEE 802.11, a wireless LAN standard, in order to achieve higher speed and more efficient frequency utilization in wireless LAN communication. In wireless LAN, wireless communication can be performed using a frequency band (unlicensed band) that can be used without permission (license) from a country or region. For personal use such as in homes, a wireless LAN access point function is included in a line termination device for connecting to a WAN (Wide Area Network) line such as the Internet, or a wireless LAN access point device is connected to the line termination device, etc., so that Internet access from within a residence has been wirelessized. As a result, wireless LAN station devices such as smartphones and personal computers can connect to a wireless LAN access point device and access the Internet.

[0003] In 2021, the standardization of IEEE 802.11ax was completed, and wireless LAN devices compliant with this standard, as well as communication devices such as smartphones and personal computers equipped with the wireless LAN devices, have entered the market as Wi-Fi 6 (a trademark, the name for IEEE 802.11ax compliant products certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance) compatible products. Currently, as a successor standard to IEEE 802.11ax, the standardization activities of IEEE 802.11be are underway, and discussions are also progressing towards its successor standard, IEEE 802.11bn. With the rapid spread of wireless LAN devices, in recent IEEE 802.11 standardization, consideration has been given to further improving the throughput per user in the overcrowded environment of wireless LAN devices.

[0004] In the standardization of IEEE 802.11be, discussions are being held on Multi-Link Operation (MLO), which enables a wireless communication device to maintain connections with multiple links and communicate simultaneously using multiple frequency bands, channels, etc. (Non-Patent Document 1). As an example of MLO, there is one that simultaneously operates three link connections in different frequency bands, such as a connection in the 2.4 GHz band, a connection in the 5 GHz band (5.2 GHz band, 5.3 GHz band, 5.6 GHz band, etc.), and a connection in the 6 GHz band. Of course, the combinations of frequency bands, channels, etc. are not limited to this, and various combinations are possible. From the perspective of frequency bands, in the future, high-frequency bands such as millimeter waves (28 GHz band, 45 GHz band, 60 GHz band, etc.) and (sub)terahertz waves (100 GHz to 300 GHz band) can also be used as one link constituting a multi-link. According to MLO, a wireless communication device can simultaneously maintain multiple link connections with different wireless resources and communication settings. The wireless communication device can not only transmit and receive frames using multiple links simultaneously but also switch the link connection for transmitting and receiving frames, that is, change the frequency band, without performing a reconnection operation. Here, each individual link constituting the multi-link is also called a physical layer link. Also, a wireless communication device compatible with MLO is called a Multi-Link Device (MLD).

Prior Art Documents

Non-Patent Documents

[0005]

Non-Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] In a wireless LAN using multi-link, in order to achieve high speed and efficient frequency utilization, it is an issue to maintain the communication quality of the wireless link by selecting the multi-link.

[0007] Moreover, these days, with the emergence / spread of various applications such as autonomous driving, telemedicine, and video transmission, the diversification of the required conditions imposed on the applications has been progressing. In particular, with the spread of applications that require large capacity and low latency, such as video transmission applications like AR / VR, cloud gaming, and the metaverse, it is conceivable that the applications will be used in an environment where a large number of users are concentrated. For example, when assuming video transmission in an environment where multiple terminals are concentrated, it is important to realize the application by appropriately selecting the frequency band according to the required conditions so that the traffic does not concentrate in one frequency band, or by bundling multiple frequency bands to meet the required conditions. In particular, in telemedicine and XR, etc., when real-time performance is required, an option of not assuming a transmission / reception buffer may be considered in order to suppress the delay. In order to realize various applications, it is necessary to appropriately perform scheduling based on the required conditions of the application (for example, allowable time, or allowable delay time, etc.) and complete the data transmission while satisfying the required conditions.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0008] The access point device and the station device according to the present invention for solving the above-described problems are as follows.

[0009] (1) That is, the access point device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of sub-access point units that use different frequencies, a route selection unit that selects a frequency, and a gateway unit that controls traffic based on layer 3 information. Each of the plurality of sub-access point units performs carrier sense prior to transmitting radio waves. Each of the sub-access point units is connected to each of the sub-station units included in the station device. The gateway unit sets different subnets for each of the sub-access point units. The route selection unit selects one of the different subnets for the traffic to the station device, and sets the traffic to the station device for the gateway unit to be transmitted to the sub-station unit through one of the plurality of sub-access point units where the selected subnet is set.

[0010] (2) Further, in the access point device according to one aspect of the present invention, the route selection unit selects one of the different subnets for the traffic to the station device based on at least one of the information of layer 3 and the network controller.

[0011] (3) Further, in the access point device according to one aspect of the present invention, the route selection unit is set to transmit to the sub-station unit using at least one of the plurality of frequencies based on the traffic information of the application.

[0012] (4) Further, in the access point device according to one aspect of the present invention, based on a list of indexes indicating STAs that can be transmitted satisfying the application request conditions set from the upper layer, the route selection unit is set to transmit to the sub-station unit using at least one of the plurality of frequencies.

[0013] (5) Further, the access point device according to one aspect of the present invention compares the minimum transmission rate based on the target video rate and the allowable time, and the MCS rate based on the MCS (Moderation and Coding Scheme) in order to determine that the requirements of the application are satisfied.

[0014] (6) Further, the station device according to one aspect of the present invention is connected to the access point device described in (1) to (5) above, and transmits information indicating the requirements of the application to the access point device.

Advantages of the Invention

[0015] According to the wireless access point device and the station device of the present invention, it is possible to maintain good communication quality of the wireless link in wireless communication.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016]

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Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0017] The wireless communication system in this embodiment includes an access point device (also referred to as an AP or a base station device) and a plurality of station devices (also referred to as STAs or terminal devices). Further, a communication system and a network composed of an access point device and a station device are called a basic service set (BSS: Basic Service Set, management range). In addition, the station device according to this embodiment can have the function of an access point device. Similarly, the access point device according to this embodiment can have the function of a station device. Therefore, hereinafter, when simply referred to as a communication device or a wireless communication device, the communication device or the wireless communication device can represent both an access point device and a station device.

[0018] The access point device and the station device within the BSS shall each perform communication based on CSMA / CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance). In this embodiment, the infrastructure mode in which the access point device communicates with a plurality of station devices is targeted. However, the method of this embodiment can also be implemented in the ad hoc mode in which station devices directly communicate with each other. In the ad hoc mode, one station device serves as a substitute for the access point device to form a BSS. The BSS in the ad hoc mode is also referred to as an IBSS (Independent Basic Service Set). Hereinafter, a station device that forms an IBSS in the ad hoc mode can also be regarded as an access point device. The method of this embodiment can also be implemented in Wi-Fi Direct (registered trademark) in which station devices directly communicate with each other. In Wi-Fi Direct, one station device serves as a substitute for the access point device to form a group. The said station device is called a group owner and can also be regarded as an access point device.

[0019] In the IEEE 802.11 system, each device can transmit a plurality of types of frames (communication frames) having a common frame format. The frames are respectively defined in the physical (PHY: Physical) layer, the medium access control (MAC: Medium Access Control) layer, and the logical link control (LLC: Logical Link Control) layer.

[0020] PHY layer frames are called Physical Protocol Data Units (PPDUs). A PPDU consists of a Physical Layer Header (PHY header) that contains information for signal processing at the physical layer, etc., and a Physical Service Data Unit (PSDU), which is a data unit processed at the physical layer. The PSDU can be composed of multiple MAC Protocol Data Units (MPDUs, MAC layer frames), which are retransmission units in the wireless section, aggregated into an Aggregated MPDU (A-MPDU).

[0021] The PHY header contains reference signals such as a Short Training Field (STF) used for signal detection and synchronization, etc., and a Long Training Field (LTF) used for obtaining channel information for data demodulation, etc., as well as control signals such as a Signal (SIG) that contains control information for data demodulation. Also, the STF is classified into Legacy-STF (L-STF), High Throughput-STF (HT-STF), Very High Throughput-STF (VHT-STF), High Eficiency-STF (HE-STF), Extremely High Throughput-STF (EHT-STF), etc. according to the corresponding standard, and the LTF and SIG are similarly classified into L-LTF, HT-LTF, VHT-LTF, HE-LTF, L-SIG, HT-SIG, VHT-SIG, HE-SIG, EHT-SIG. The VHT-SIG is further classified into VHT-SIG-A1, VHT-SIG-A2, and VHT-SIG-B. Similarly, the HE-SIG is classified into HE-SIG-A1~4 and HE-SIG-B. Also, assuming technological updates in the same standard, a Universal SIGNAL (U-SIG) field containing additional control information can be included.

[0022] Furthermore, the PHY header can include information for identifying the BSS of the frame source (hereinafter also referred to as BSS identification information). The information for identifying the BSS can be, for example, the SSID (Service Set IDentifier) of the BSS or the MAC address of the access point device of the BSS. Also, the information for identifying the BSS can be a value unique to the BSS other than the SSID and MAC address (for example, BSS Color, etc.). The information indicating the BSS Color can be included in HE-SIG-A or U-SIG.

[0023] The PPDU is modulated according to the corresponding standard. For example, in the case of the IEEE 802.11n standard, it is modulated into an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signal.

[0024] The MPDU is composed of a MAC header (MAC header) that includes information for signal processing at the MAC layer, etc., a MAC service data unit (MSDU: MAC Service Data Unit) or a frame body that is a data unit processed at the MAC layer, and a frame check sequence (FCS: Frame Check Sequence) that checks whether there is an error in the frame (Figure 1). Also, a plurality of MSDUs can be aggregated as an aggregated MSDU (A-MSDU).

[0025] Frame types in the MAC layer are broadly classified into three types: management frames that manage connection states between devices, control frames that manage communication states between devices, and data frames that contain actual transmitted data. Each of these is further classified into multiple types of sub-frame types. Control frames include acknowledgment (Ack or ACK: Acknowledgement) frames, block acknowledgment (BA or BlockAck: Block Acknowledgement) frames, request to send (RTS: Request To Send) frames, clear to send (CTS: Clear To Send) frames, etc. BlockAck can perform acknowledgment (notification of reception completion) for multiple MPDUs. Management frames include beacon frames, probe request frames, probe response frames, authentication frames, association request frames, association response frames, etc. Data frames include data frames, CF-poll frames, etc. Each device can recognize the frame type and sub-frame type of the received frame by reading the content of the frame control field included in the MAC header.

[0026] The beacon frame contains fields indicating the period (Beacon interval) at which the beacon is transmitted and the SSID. The access point device can periodically announce the beacon frame within the BSS, and the station device can recognize the surrounding access point devices by receiving the beacon frame. The recognition of access point devices by the station device based on the beacon frames announced by the access point device is called passive scanning. On the other hand, the exploration of access point devices by the station device by announcing probe request frames within the BSS is called active scanning. The access point device can transmit a probe response frame as a response to the probe request frame, and the content of the probe response frame is the same as the content of the beacon frame.

[0027] After recognizing the access point device, the station device performs connection processing on the access point device. The connection processing is classified into an authentication procedure and an association procedure. The station device transmits an authentication request frame to the access point device that it wishes to connect to. When the access point device receives the authentication request frame, it transmits an authentication response frame containing a status code indicating the approval or disapproval of authentication for the station device to the station device. The station device can determine whether its authentication request to the access point device has been approved by reading the status code contained in the authentication response frame. Note that the access point device and the station device can exchange authentication request frames and authentication response frames (collectively referred to as authentication frames) multiple times.

[0028] After the authentication procedure, the station device sends a connection request frame to perform a connection procedure with the access point device. When the access point device receives the connection request frame, it determines whether to permit the connection of the station device and sends a connection response frame to notify the result. The connection response frame includes, in addition to a status code indicating the success or failure of the connection process, an association identifier (AID) for identifying the station device. The access point device can manage multiple station devices by setting different AIDs for each station device that has been permitted to connect.

[0029] After the connection process is performed, the access point device and the station device perform actual data transmission. In the IEEE 802.11 system, as media access methods, Distributed Coordination Function (DCF), Point Coordination Function (PCF), and Hybrid Coordination Function (HCF) which is an extension of these are defined. For HCF, as specific implementation means, Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) and HCF Controlled Channel Access (HCCA) are defined.

[0030] First, based on DCF, an example of the operation when an access point device transmits a signal to a station device will be described. In DCF, before communication, the access point device and the station device perform carrier sense (CS) to check the usage status of the wireless channel around their own devices. For example, when the access point device and the station device attempting to transmit a frame receive a signal with a received power higher than a predetermined clear channel assessment level (CCA level) in the wireless channel during the carrier sense period performed before transmission, they postpone the transmission of the frame in the wireless channel. Hereinafter, in the wireless channel, a state in which a signal with a received power equal to or higher than the CCA level is detected is called a busy state, and a state in which a signal with a received power equal to or higher than the CCA level is not detected is called an idle state. Thus, the CS performed based on the power level of the signal actually received by each device is called physical carrier sense (physical CS). Note that the CCA level is also referred to as the carrier sense level (CS level) or the CCA threshold (CCAT). In addition, when the access point device and the station device detect a signal with a received power equal to or higher than the CCA level, they enter an operation of demodulating at least the signal in the PHY layer.

[0031] The access point device performs carrier sensing during the period of the inter-frame space (IFS: Inter Frame Space) set according to the type of frame to be transmitted, and determines whether the wireless channel is in a busy state or an idle state. The period during which the access point device performs carrier sensing varies depending on the frame type and sub-frame type of the frame that the access point device will transmit next. In the IEEE 802.11 system, a plurality of IFSs with different periods are defined, such as the Short IFS (SIFS) used for the frame with the highest priority, the Polling IFS (PIFS: PCF IFS) used for frames with relatively high priority, and the Distributed Coordination Function IFS (DIFS: DCF IFS) used for frames with low priority. When transmitting a data frame using DCF, the access point device uses DIFS.

[0032] After waiting for the DIFS period, the access point device further waits for a random backoff time to prevent frame collisions. In the IEEE 802.11 system, a random backoff time based on the contention window (CW) is used. In CSMA / CA, it is assumed that a frame transmitted by a transmitting station is received by the receiving station without interference from other transmitting stations. Therefore, if multiple transmitting stations transmit frames at the same timing, the frames may collide, and the receiving station may not be able to receive them correctly. Thus, each transmitting station waits for a time randomly set before the start of transmission to avoid frame collisions. When the access point device determines that the wireless channel is idle by carrier sense, it starts counting down the backoff counter set based on the CW. Only when the backoff counter reaches 0 can it acquire the right to transmit and send a frame to the station device. If the access point device determines that the wireless channel is busy by carrier sense during the countdown of the backoff counter, the countdown of the backoff counter is stopped. Then, when the wireless channel becomes idle again, the access point device continues to wait for the same period as the previous IFS and resumes the remaining countdown of the previous backoff counter.

[0033] The station device, which is the receiving station, receives the frame, reads the PHY header of the frame, and demodulates the received frame. Then, the station device can recognize whether the frame is addressed to itself by reading the MAC header of the demodulated signal. Note that the station device can also determine the destination of the frame based on the information contained in the PHY header (e.g., the group identifier (GID) contained in VHT-SIG-A).

[0034] When the station device determines that the received frame is addressed to itself and can demodulate the frame without error, it must send an Ack frame indicating that the frame has been correctly received to the access point device, which is the transmitting station. The Ack frame is one of the highest-priority frames transmitted after only waiting for the SIFS period (without taking a random backoff time). The access point device ends a series of communications upon receiving the Ack frame transmitted from the station device. Note that when the station device cannot correctly receive the frame, the station device does not send an Ack frame. Therefore, if the access point device does not receive an Ack frame from the receiving station (station device) within a certain period (SIFS + Ack frame length) after frame transmission, it determines that the communication has failed and ends the communication. In this way, the end of a single communication (also called a burst) in the IEEE 802.11 system is determined by the presence or absence of an Ack frame, except in special cases such as the transmission of notification signals such as beacon frames or when fragmentation used to divide transmitted data is employed.

[0035] When the station device determines that the received frame is not addressed to itself, it sets the Network Allocation Vector (NAV) based on the length of the frame (Length) included in the PHY header, etc. The station device does not attempt transmission during the period set in the NAV. That is, since the station device performs the same operation as when it determines that the wireless channel is busy by physical CS for the period set in the NAV, the communication control by the NAV is also called virtual carrier sense (virtual CS). The NAV is set not only based on the information included in the PHY header but also by RTS frames and CTS frames introduced to solve the hidden terminal problem.

[0036] Next, based on the PCF, an example of the operation when the access point device transmits a signal to the station device will be described. Different from the DCF where each device performs carrier sensing and autonomously acquires the right to transmit, in the PCF, a control station called a point coordinator (PC) controls the transmission rights of each device within the BSS. Generally, the access point device becomes the PC and acquires the transmission rights of the station devices within the BSS.

[0037] The communication period by the PCF includes a contention-free period (CFP) and a contention period (CP). During the CP, communication is performed based on the DCF described above, and the PC controls the transmission rights during the CFP. The access point device that is the PC notifies the BSS of a beacon frame containing information such as the CFP period (CFP Max duration) prior to the PCF communication. Note that PIFS is used for the transmission of the beacon frame notified at the start of the PCF transmission, and it is transmitted without waiting for the CW. The station device that receives the beacon frame sets the CFP Max duration included in the beacon frame in the NAV. Thereafter, until the period set in the NAV elapses or a signal notifying the end of the CFP within the BSS (for example, a data frame containing CF-end) is received, the station device can acquire the transmission right only when it receives a signal (for example, a data frame containing CF-poll) signaling the acquisition of the transmission right for its own device from the PC. Note that within the CFP period, packet collisions do not occur within the same BSS, so each station device does not take the random backoff time used in the DCF.

[0038] The wireless communication device has either or both of the functions of transmitting and receiving a PPDU. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the PPDU configuration transmitted by the wireless communication device. A PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11a / g standard has a configuration including L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, and a Data frame (MAC frame, payload, data section, data, information bits, etc.). A PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11n standard has a configuration including L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, HT-SIG, HT-STF, HT-LTF, and a Data frame. A PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11ac standard has a configuration including some or all of L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, VHT-SIG-A, VHT-STF, VHT-LTF, VHT-SIG-B, and a Data frame. A PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11ax standard has a configuration including some or all of L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG in which L-SIG is repeated temporally, HE-SIG-A, HE-STF, HE-LTF, HE-SIG-B, and a Data frame. A PPDU under consideration for standardization in IEEE 802.11be has a configuration including some or all of L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, RL-SIG, U-SIG, EHT-SIG, EHT-STF, HET-LTF, and a Data frame.

[0039] L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG surrounded by a dotted line in FIG. 2 are configurations commonly used in the IEEE 802.11 standard (hereinafter, L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG are also collectively referred to as the L-header). For example, a wireless communication device compliant with the IEEE 802.11a / g standard can appropriately receive the L-header in a PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11n / ac / ax / be standard. A wireless communication device compliant with the IEEE 802.11a / g standard can receive a PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11n / ac / ax / be standard as if it were a PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11a / g standard.

[0040] However, since a wireless communication device compliant with the IEEE 802.11a / g standard cannot demodulate a PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11n / ac / ax / be standard following the L-header, it cannot demodulate information regarding the transmitter address (TA: Transmitter Address), receiver address (RA: Receiver Address), Duration / ID field, etc.

[0041] As a method for a wireless communication device compliant with the IEEE 802.11a / g standard to appropriately set the NAV (or perform a reception operation for a predetermined period), IEEE 802.11 stipulates a method of inserting Duration information into the L-SIG. Information regarding the transmission rate within the L-SIG (RATE field, L-RATE field, L-RATE, L_DATARATE, L_DATARATE field), information regarding the transmission period (LENGTH field, L-LENGTH field, L-LENGTH) is used for a wireless communication device compliant with the IEEE 802.11a / g standard to appropriately set the NAV.

[0042] The wireless communication device can transmit the L-SIG multiple times (L-SIG Repetition). In this case, the receiving wireless communication device can improve the demodulation accuracy of the L-SIG by receiving, for example, the L-SIG transmitted multiple times using maximal ratio combining (MRC). Furthermore, when the wireless communication device correctly receives and completes the L-SIG by MRC, it can be interpreted that the PPDU including the L-SIG is a PPDU compliant with the IEEE 802.11ax or IEEE 802.11be standard.

[0043] The wireless communication device can perform the reception operation of a part of PPDUs other than the target PPDU (for example, the preamble, L-STF, L-LTF, PHY header, etc. defined by IEEE 802.11) even during the reception operation of the PPDU (also referred to as the dual reception operation). When the wireless communication device detects a part of a PPDU other than the target PPDU during the reception operation of the PPDU, it can update part or all of the destination address, source address, PPDU, or information related to the Data period.

[0044] Ack and BA can also be referred to as responses (response frames). Also, probe responses, authentication responses, and connection responses can be referred to as responses.

[0045] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a sounding procedure for channel estimation of a wireless communication path in IEEE 802.11ax. In an example of FIG. 3, first, an access point device (AP) transmits a Null Data PPDU (NDP) Announcement frame 3001 that specifies information such as the station device (STA) to be the target of the sounding to be performed (the recipient of the sounding frame) and the type of feedback information. Further, after the SIFS period from the NDP Announcement frame, the access point device transmits an NDP frame 3002 including a training field for channel estimation. The station device performs channel estimation based on the received NDP frame 3002 and transmits a frame for feedback of the channel estimation result to the access point device, for example, a Compressed Beamforming / CQI frame 3003, after the SIFS period from the NDP frame 3002. [1. First Embodiment]

[0046] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a wireless communication system according to the present embodiment. The wireless communication system 4003-1 includes a wireless communication device 4001-1 and wireless communication devices 4002-1 to 4002-3. The wireless communication device 4001-1 is also referred to as an access point device 4001-1, and the wireless communication devices 4002-1 to 4002-3 are also referred to as station devices 4002-1 to 3. Further, the wireless communication devices 4002-1 to 4002-3 (station devices 4002-1 to 4002-3) are also referred to as a wireless communication device 4002A (station device 4002A) as a device connected to the wireless communication device 4001-1. The wireless communication device 4001-1 and the wireless communication device 4002A are wirelessly connected and are in a state where they can transmit and receive PPDUs to and from each other. In addition, the wireless communication system according to the present embodiment may include a wireless communication system 4003-2 in addition to the wireless communication system 4003-1. The wireless communication system 4003-2 includes a wireless communication device 4001-2 and wireless communication devices 4002-4 to 4002-6. The wireless communication device 4001-2 is also referred to as an access point device 4001-2, and the wireless communication devices 4002-4 to 4002-6 are also referred to as station devices 4002-4 to 4002-6. Further, the wireless communication devices 4002-4 to 4002-6 (station devices 4002-4 to 4002-6) are also referred to as a wireless communication device 4002B (station device 4002B) as a device connected to the wireless communication device 4001-2. Furthermore, when the wireless communication device 4001-1 and the wireless communication device 4001-2 (access point devices 4001-1, 4001-6) are described without being individually specified, they are also referred to as a wireless communication device 4001 (access point device 4001), and when the wireless communication devices 4002-1 to 4002-6 (station devices 4002-1 to 4002-6) are described without being individually specified, they are also referred to as a wireless communication device 4002 (station device 4002). The wireless communication system 4003-1 and the wireless communication system 4003-2 form different BSSs, but this does not necessarily mean that the ESSs (Extended Service Sets) representing the service sets forming the LAN (Local Area Network) are different.That is, wireless communication devices belonging to the same ESS can be regarded as belonging to the same network from the upper layer. Also, BSSs are connected via a DS (Distribution System) to form an ESS. Note that each of the wireless communication systems 4003-1 and 4003-2 can further include a plurality of wireless communication devices.

[0047] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the station device 4002. The station device 4002 includes a wireless control unit (wireless control step) 5001, a wireless communication unit (wireless communication step) 5003, and an antenna unit 5004. Further, the wireless communication unit 5003 includes a physical layer frame generation unit (physical layer frame generation step) 5003a, a wireless transmission unit (wireless transmission step) 5003b, a wireless reception unit (wireless reception step) 5003c, a received power measurement unit (received power measurement step) 5003d, a channel estimation unit (channel estimation step) 5003e, and a signal demodulation unit (signal demodulation step) 5003f.

[0048] The wireless control unit 5001 performs information processing of layers higher than the physical layer, such as the MAC layer and the LLC layer, on information handled within its own wireless communication device (information related to frames to be transmitted, MIB (Management Information Base), etc.) and frames received from other wireless communication devices, and controls the wireless communication unit 5003.

[0049] The physical layer frame generation unit 5003a has a function of generating a physical layer frame (PPDU). The physical layer frame generation unit 5003a performs error correction coding, modulation, beamforming processing (precoding processing), etc. on the MAC layer frame sent from the wireless control unit 5001. The beamforming processing may be realized by multiplying the modulated signal by a beamforming matrix (beamforming filter) notified from the wireless control unit 5001. The physical layer frame generation unit 5003a outputs the generated physical layer frame to the wireless transmission unit 5003b.

[0050] The wireless transmission unit 5003b converts the physical layer frame input from the physical frame generation unit 5003a into a signal in the radio frequency (RF) band to generate a wireless signal. The processes performed by the wireless transmission unit 5003b include digital-to-analog conversion, filtering, frequency conversion from baseband frequency to radio frequency, etc. The wireless transmission unit 5003b transmits the generated wireless signal through the antenna unit 5004.

[0051] The wireless reception unit 5003c has a function of converting the wireless signal received through the antenna unit 5004 into a baseband signal to generate a physical layer signal (e.g., a physical layer frame). The processes performed by the wireless reception unit 5003c include frequency conversion processing from radio frequency to baseband frequency, filtering, analog-to-digital conversion, etc. The physical layer signal, which is the received signal converted into a digital signal by the wireless reception unit 5003c, is input to the received power measurement unit 5003b, the channel estimation unit 5003e, and the signal demodulation unit 5003f.

[0052] The received power measurement unit 5003d measures the received power of the received signal input from the wireless reception unit 5003c. The received power measurement unit 5003d can measure the received power related to the radio wave received in the frequency channel to be measured, the received power of the LTF of the received physical layer frame, etc. The received power measurement unit 5003d can notify the wireless control unit 5001 of the measurement result of the received power.

[0053] The channel estimation unit 5003e estimates the channel state through which the physical layer frame has propagated based on the received signal of the LTF (L-LTF, HT-LTF, VHT-LTF, HE-LTF, etc.) included in the physical layer frame received by the wireless reception unit 5003c. The channel estimation unit 5003e can notify the signal demodulation unit 5003f and the wireless control unit 5001 of the channel estimation result.

[0054] The signal demodulation unit 5003f performs channel equalization, demodulation, error correction decoding, etc. on the physical layer frame received by the wireless reception unit 5003c, and acquires information such as the PHY header and the MAC layer frame. For the channel equalization process, the channel estimation result in the channel estimation unit 5003e etc. can be used. The signal demodulation unit 5003f outputs the acquired PHY header and MAC layer frame to the wireless control unit 5001.

[0055] Based on the received power measurement result in the received power measurement unit 5003d and the information acquired by the signal demodulation unit 5003f, the wireless control unit 5001 can perform physical carrier sense and virtual carrier sense, and perform a determination of the state of the wireless channel (including a determination of whether it is an idle state or a busy state). The wireless control unit 5001 can notify the wireless communication unit 5003 of the state determination information of this wireless channel.

[0056] When there is control information, data, etc. that the wireless control unit 5001 wants to transmit, it can start a backoff procedure using the above-mentioned state determination information of the wireless channel. The wireless control unit 5001 generates a backoff counter based on the CW, and has a countdown function of the backoff counter. For example, when the state determination information of the wireless channel indicates an idle state, the wireless control unit 5001 can execute the countdown of the backoff counter, and when the state determination information of the wireless channel indicates a busy state, it can stop the countdown of the backoff counter. Furthermore, the wireless control unit 5001 performs a transmission determination using either one or both of the state determination information of the wireless channel or the value of the backoff counter. For example, when the state determination information of the wireless channel indicates an idle state and the value of the backoff counter is 0, the wireless control unit 5001 can notify the wireless communication unit 5003 of the transmission determination information. Also, when the state determination information of the wireless resource indicates an idle state, the wireless control unit 5001 can notify the wireless communication unit 5003 of the transmission determination information.

[0057] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the access point device 4001. The access point device 4001 includes a radio control unit (radio control step) 6001, a radio communication unit (radio communication step) 5003, and an antenna unit 5004. Further, the radio communication unit 5003 includes a physical layer frame generation unit (physical layer frame generation step) 5003a, a radio transmission unit (radio transmission step) 5003b, a radio reception unit (radio reception step) 5003c, a received power measurement unit (received power measurement step) 5003d, a channel estimation unit (channel estimation step) 5003e, and a signal demodulation unit (signal demodulation step) 5003f. The access point device 4001 in FIG. 6 also basically has the same configuration as the station device 4002 in FIG. 5. Therefore, in the following, the description will focus on the differences between the two, and the description of the same parts will be omitted. Also, the parts corresponding to the station device in FIG. 5 will be described with the same reference numerals.

[0058] The radio control unit 6001 performs information processing of layers higher than the physical layer, such as the MAC layer and the LLC layer, on the information handled in the own radio communication device (information related to the frame to be transmitted, MIB (Management Information Base), etc.) and the frames received from other radio communication devices, and controls the radio communication unit 5003.

[0059] The physical layer frame generation unit 5003a has a function of generating a physical layer frame (PPDU). The physical layer frame generation unit 5003a performs error correction coding, modulation, beamforming processing (precoding processing), etc. on the MAC layer frame sent from the radio control unit 6001. The beamforming processing may be realized by multiplying the modulated signal by the beamforming matrix (beamforming filter) notified from the radio control unit 6001. The physical layer frame generation unit 5003a outputs the generated physical layer frame to the radio transmission unit 5003b.

[0060] The received power measurement unit 5003d measures the received power of the received signal input from the wireless reception unit 5003c. The received power measurement unit 5003d can measure the received power related to the radio wave received on the frequency channel to be measured, the received power of the LTF (L-LTF, HT-LTF, VHT-LTF, HE-LTF, etc.) of the received physical layer frame, and the like. The received power measurement unit 5003d can notify the wireless control unit 6001 of the measurement result of the received power.

[0061] The channel estimation unit 5003e estimates the channel state through which the physical layer frame has propagated based on the received signal of the LTF included in the physical layer frame received by the wireless reception unit 5003c. The channel estimation unit 5003e can notify the signal demodulation unit 5003f and the wireless control unit 6001 of the channel estimation result.

[0062] The signal demodulation unit 5003f performs channel equalization, demodulation, error correction decoding, etc. on the physical layer frame received by the wireless reception unit 5003c, and acquires information such as the PHY header and the MAC layer frame. The channel estimation result in the channel estimation unit 5003e and the like can be used for the channel equalization process. The signal demodulation unit 5003f outputs the acquired PHY header and MAC layer frame to the wireless control unit 6001.

[0063] When there is control information, data, a beacon, etc. that needs to be transmitted, the wireless control unit 6001 can start the backoff procedure using the above-described wireless channel state determination information. The wireless control unit 6001 generates a backoff counter based on the CW and has a countdown function for the backoff counter. For example, when the wireless channel state determination information indicates an idle state, the wireless control unit 6001 can execute the countdown of the backoff counter, and when the wireless channel state determination information indicates a busy state, the wireless control unit 6001 can stop the countdown of the backoff counter. Further, the wireless control unit 6001 makes a transmission determination using either one or both of the wireless channel state determination information and the value of the backoff counter. For example, when the wireless channel state determination information indicates an idle state and the value of the backoff counter is 0, the wireless control unit 6001 can notify the wireless communication unit 5003 of the transmission determination information. Also, when the wireless resource state determination information indicates an idle state, the wireless control unit 6001 can notify the wireless communication unit 5003 of the transmission determination information.

[0064] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing one aspect of the configuration of the wireless communication system according to the present embodiment. A sub-access point unit having the same function as the access point device described above and a sub-station unit having the same function as the station device are provided. 7001 is an integrated access point apparatus, and 7005 is an integrated station apparatus.

[0065] The integrated access point device 7001 includes a route selection unit 7002, gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3, and sub-access point units 7004-1 to 7004-4. Each sub-access point unit uses a different frequency band. In this embodiment, the sub-access point unit 7004-1 corresponds to frequency band 1 (band 1), the sub-access point unit 7004-2 corresponds to frequency band 2 (band 2), and the sub-access point unit 7004-3 corresponds to frequency band 3 (band 3). As an example, frequency band 1 may be the 2.4 GHz band, frequency band 2 may be the 5 GHz band, and frequency band 3 may be the 6 GHz band. The combination of frequency bands is not limited to this, and other frequency bands such as millimeter wave bands such as 60 GHz, wireless LANs that use other frequency bands such as the sub-gigahertz band (Sub 1G), personal area networks (Personal Area Network) capable of IP communication, and cellular communication systems may be used. The number of bands used is not limited to three, and a plurality of bands may be used.

[0066] The gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3 are respectively connected to the sub-access point units 7004-1 to 7004-3. The gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3 are respectively responsible for the IP addresses / subnets used by the sub-access point units 7004-1 to 7004-3. The IP addresses / subnets used by each of the gateway units 7004-1 to 7004-3 are set to be different. As an example, the IP address / subnet used by the gateway unit 7003-1 may be 192.168.1.1 / 24, the IP address / subnet used by the gateway unit 7003-2 may be 192.168.2.1 / 24, and the IP address / subnet used by the gateway unit 7003-3 may be 192.168.3.1 / 24. The subnet masks used are not uniform, and different subnet masks may be used. Also, the IP addresses / subnets used are not limited to IPv4, and IPv6 may be used, or it may be a dual stack of IPv4 and IPv6. Further, the gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3 may have a function of allocating IP addresses / subnets used by the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3, for example, a DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) server function for IPv4, a function of handling RS (Router Solicitation) and RA (Router Advertisement) messages for IPv6, and a DHCPv6 (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol for IP Version 6) server function. When allocating the IP addresses / subnets used by the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3, the gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3 may refer to specific information, such as the MAC address, held by the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3 in order to allocate the same IP address / subnet to the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3 if possible.

[0067] The gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3 are set to transfer or not transfer the identification information included in the traffic used by the integrated station device 7005 by the route selection unit 7002, for example, an IP packet addressed to the representative IP address. In other words, the gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3 perform transfer control using layer 3 information. When the route selection unit 7002 determines to use band 1 for the traffic directed to the integrated station device 7005, the gateway unit 7003-1 is set to transfer the representative IP address used by the integrated station device 7005, and the gateway units 7003-2 and 7003-3 are set not to transfer the representative IP address used by the integrated station device 7005. When the route selection unit 7002 determines to use band 2 for the traffic directed to the integrated station device 7005, the gateway unit 7003-2 is set to transfer the representative IP address used by the integrated station device 7005, and the gateway units 7003-1 and 7003-3 are set not to transfer the representative IP address used by the integrated station device 7005. When the route selection unit 7002 determines to use band 3 for the traffic directed to the integrated station device 7005, the gateway unit 7003-3 is set to transfer the representative IP address used by the integrated station device 7005, and the gateway units 7003-1 and 7003-2 are set not to transfer the representative IP address used by the integrated station device 7005. Further, the gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3 transfer the information received from the sub-access point devices 7004-1 to 7004-3 toward the external network. With such a configuration, the integrated access point device 7001 can set the traffic directed to a specific integrated station device to use the band selected by the route selection unit 7002.

[0068] In FIG. 7, the integrated access point device 7001 is configured to include one gateway unit for each sub-access point unit, and each gateway unit is connected to an external network. However, these multiple gateway units may be implemented as one gateway unit having multiple network I / Fs. The integrated access point device 7001 includes the same number of network I / Fs as the sub-access point units. By connecting a certain one network I / F only to a specific sub-access point unit, it becomes possible to associate that network I / F with a specific band. By designating any of the network I / Fs as the transfer destination of the representative IP address used by the integrated station device 7005 in the gateway unit, the band used by the traffic directed to a specific integrated station device may be selected. The network I / F may be a virtual network I / F used by the OS (Operating System) used by the integrated access point device 7001 instead of a physical I / F.

[0069] The route selection unit 7002 selects a band used by traffic heading to a specific integrated station device by setting the gateway units 7003-1 to 3 using one or more pieces of information. The information to be used is not particularly limited, and information at layer 1 obtained from the sub-access point units 7004-1 to 3, for example, the value of RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) for each band, the temporal change of RSSI, the MCS (Modulation and Coding Scheme) being used, the error rate, etc. may be used. Also, the route selection unit 7002 may obtain information on the application operating in the integrated station device 7005 via the sub-station units 7006-1 to 3 within the integrated station device 7005 and select a band. Further, the route selection unit 7002 may obtain information from a device external to the integrated access point device 7001 and select a band. As an example, outside the integrated access point device 7001, information at layer 1, for example, the route selection unit 7002 may obtain information from a layer 1 monitor 7009 that measures information such as the value of RSSI for each band, the temporal change of RSSI, the MCS being used, etc., or obtain information regarding the traffic of the application from a network control device such as an SDN (Software Designed Network) 7010 controller connected to an external network and select a band. Also, the external device is not limited to these, and various devices such as a device that learns past traffic using the traffic of the application, information at layer 1, etc. to select a better route (band) may be applied. Further, if it is determined based on the information of the application that the quality of the currently set band does not satisfy the quality required by the application, the route selection unit 7002 may set the gateway units 7003-1 to 3 to select another band. The information of the application may be information obtained from the application executed in the integrated station device 7005, or may also be information of the application executed in a device connected to the integrated access point device 7001.

[0070] The integrated station device 7005 includes sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3, an operating system (OS) execution unit 7007, and an application execution unit 7008. The OS execution unit 7007 and the application execution unit 7008 are conceptual blocks and may be implemented as an OS operating on a certain hardware and an application operating on that OS. Three sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3 are connected to the hardware that executes the OS. The sub-station unit 7006-1 uses band 1, the sub-station unit 7006-2 uses band 2, and the sub-station unit 7006-3 uses band 3. Each of the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3 is configured to automatically connect to the sub-access point units 7004-1 to 7004-3 or to connect according to an instruction from the OS execution unit 7007. The OS execution unit 7007 assigns the IP address / subnet used by each of the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3. As an example, the IP address / subnet used by the sub-station unit 7006-1 may be 192.168.1.11 / 24, the IP address / subnet used by the sub-station unit 7006-2 may be 192.168.2.11 / 24, and the IP address / subnet used by the sub-station unit 7006-3 may be 192.168.3.11 / 24. This setting of the IP address / subnet may use DHCP. In this case, the IP address / subnet used by each of the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3 may be set according to the information of the IP address offered from each of the gateway units 7003-1 to 7003-3.

[0071] The OS execution unit 7007 treats one of the IP addresses used by each of the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3 as a representative IP address, and sets the IP address used by the application operating in the application execution unit 7008 to be the representative IP address. The OS execution unit 7007 is configured to transfer the traffic addressed to the representative IP address that reaches a sub-station unit other than the representative IP address to the I / F of the sub-station unit with the representative IP address set by IP forwarding. Also, the traffic to the external network may be transmitted via the sub-station unit with the representative IP address set.

[0072] By setting the integrated access point device 7001 and the integrated station device 7005 as described above, communication using a plurality of bands becomes possible in a state where the representative IP address set in the integrated station device 7005 is used. Also, it becomes possible to dynamically change the band to be used. Further, since the sub-access point units 7004-1 to 7004-3 and the sub-station units 7006-1 to 7006-3 operate in the same manner as conventional access point devices and station devices, access control using carrier sense is performed in each band, and it becomes possible to coexist with a conventional wireless LAN.

[0073] Next, as a modification example, an example of implementing the band selection function on the integrated station device side will be described with reference to FIG. 8. The integrated access point device 8001 has the same configuration as the integrated access point device 7001 described with reference to FIG. 7, and the description thereof is omitted because it performs the same operations except that the external network connected to the integrated access point device is distinguished as the external network 1. The integrated station device 8005 includes sub-station units 8006-1 to 8006-3, gateway units 8011-1 to 8011-3, an operating system (OS) execution unit 8007, and an application execution unit 8008. The OS execution unit 8007 and the application execution unit 8008 are conceptual blocks and may be implemented as an OS operating on certain hardware and an application operating on that OS. Each of the sub-station units 8006-1 to 8006-3 is connected to each of the gateway units 8011-1 to 8011-3. The sub-station unit 8006-1 and the gateway unit 8011-1 use band 1, the sub-station unit 8006-2 and the gateway unit 8011-2 use band 2, and the sub-station unit 8006-3 and the gateway unit 8011-3 use band 3. Each of the gateway units 8011-1 to 8011-3 controls whether to transfer the traffic input from the OS execution unit 8007 or the external network 2 to each of the sub-station units 8006-1 to 8006-3 by setting from the OS execution unit 8007. For the traffic destined for the external network 1 generated by the application execution unit 8008 or the traffic destined for the external network 1 input from the external network 2, it is possible to control the band used by the traffic by setting any one of the gateway units 8011-1 to 8011-3 to transfer the traffic. The gateway units 8011-1 to 8011-3 may be configured such that one gateway unit has a plurality of I / Fs, and each I / F may be configured to correspond to each of the sub-station units 8006-1 to 8006-3, and the band used may be controlled by controlling the traffic transfer destination I / F.

[0074] Also, the OS execution unit 8007 may control the band to be used based on the traffic situation generated by the application execution unit 8008, information input from an external device, for example, the RSSI value for each band input from the layer 1 monitor 2·8012, temporal changes, information such as the MCS (Modulation and Codec Schemes) being used, etc. By configuring as described above, it becomes possible to control the band used on the integrated station 8005 side.

[0075] Next, as a modified example, an example of a wireless communication system that realizes a scheduling method based on application requirements is shown. In the embodiment of the present invention, the AP can perform scheduling based on the application requirements transmitted from the upper layer to the lower layer (for example, from the application layer to the MAC layer). As the application, it is assumed to be video transmission from the AP to the STA, and includes real-time video transmission applications such as streaming. Note that applications other than video transmission can also be considered. Also, as the application requirements, video resolution, video frame rate, required image quality, required transmission rate (hereinafter also referred to as the target video rate), allowable jitter, allowable delay time, etc. can be set. Hereinafter, the case where the target video rate and the allowable delay time are set as the application requirements will be described, but this is not limiting. According to these, the scheduling method based on the application requirements is hereinafter the scheduling method based on the video transmission requirements, and represents a method for performing data transmission while satisfying the video transmission requirements. The scheduling method based on the application requirements can aim to improve the number of operating applications (hereinafter also referred to as the application accommodation number or the app accommodation number). In this embodiment, when the application requirements are included, it can be applied not only to data frames but also to management frames and control frames.

[0076] To improve the accommodation capacity of an application, it is important to improve not only the throughput (bit throughput) calculated from the number of bits that can be transmitted per unit time but also the throughput (video throughput) calculated from the number of bits that can be transmitted per unit time while satisfying the required conditions. At this time, the difference between the bit throughput and the video throughput means the occupation of unnecessary radio resources that occurs by transmitting video packets even in a situation where the required conditions cannot be satisfied. The occupation of unnecessary radio resources may cause interference to other wireless communication devices. To improve the accommodation capacity of an application, it is important to improve the video throughput while suppressing the difference between the bit throughput and the video throughput.

[0077] As a scheduling method based on the required conditions of an application, a scheduling method based on the required conditions of video transmission will be described. Video information (hereinafter referred to as video packets) addressed to the STA generated on the AP side is divided into a plurality of transmission packets (PPDU or PPDU frames) and transmitted. Video packets are generated at time intervals based on the video segment length, and the amount of information in the video packets is set based on the target video rate and the video segment length. To improve the video throughput, it is necessary that all the transmission packets constituting the video packet are transmitted while satisfying the required conditions of video transmission. Transmitting a transmission packet that does not satisfy the required conditions of video transmission means a transmission failure of the video packet, is not counted as the video throughput, and may cause a decrease in video quality or the like.

[0078] The scheduling method based on the requirements for video transmission is a method that does not allocate video packets addressed to users who do not meet the requirements for video transmission, but instead allocates video packets addressed to users who meet the requirements for video transmission (hereinafter, also referred to as the allocation control method based on the requirements of the application). Also, when video packets are transmitted in a plurality of transmission packets, a method may be adopted in which the transmission of video packets addressed to other users is not started until the transmission of the video packets addressed to the previously allocated user is completed (hereinafter, also referred to as the transmission order control method). Each method will be described later. Note that the above two methods can also be used in combination as one scheduling method.

[0079] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a wireless communication system according to the present embodiment, but is not limited thereto. Wireless communication systems 3-1, 3-2, and 3-3 are each a BSS. Hereinafter, wireless communication devices 1-1, 1-2, and 1-3 can be an access point device, a base station device, an AP-MLD, etc. For wireless communication devices 2-1, 2-2, and 2-3, they can be a station device, a terminal device, a Non AP-MLD, etc. For example, each of the wireless communication devices 1-1 to 3-3 constituting the wireless communication systems 3-1 to 3 can include the wireless communication devices 2-1 to 2-3. The wireless communication systems 3-1 to 3 form different BSSs, but this does not necessarily mean that the ESSs (Extended Service Sets) are different. An ESS indicates a service set that forms a LAN (Local Area Network). That is, wireless communication devices belonging to the same ESS can be regarded as belonging to the same network from the upper layer. Also, BSSs are connected via a DS (Distribution System) to form an ESS. Note that each of the wireless communication systems 3-1, 3-2, and 3-3 can be combined with each other to bundle a plurality of wireless communication systems into one wireless communication system.

[0080] An example of the wireless communication device according to this embodiment is shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. FIG. 10 shows the wireless communication device 10000-1, and FIG. 11 shows an example of the autonomous decentralized control unit 10002-1. The wireless communication device 10000-1 includes an upper layer unit 10001-1, a MAC layer unit 10001a-1, an autonomous decentralized control unit 10002-1, a transmission unit 10003-1, a physical layer frame generation unit 10003a-1, a wireless transmission unit 10003b-1, a reception unit 10004-1, a wireless reception unit 10004a-1, a signal demodulation unit 10004b-1, and an antenna unit 10005-1. The autonomous decentralized control unit 10002-1 includes a CCA unit 10002a-1, a backoff unit 10002b-1, and a transmission determination unit 10002c-1 shown in FIG. 11.

[0081] The reception unit 10004-1 of the wireless communication device 10000-1 receives a signal in the radio frequency band with the antenna unit 10005-1, and generates a physical layer signal from the radio frequency band signal with the wireless reception unit 10004a-1. The wireless reception unit 10004a-1 notifies the CCA unit 10002a-1 of the autonomous decentralized control unit 10002-1 of the demodulation result of the preamble, and notifies the transmission determination unit 10002c-1 that the physical layer signal has been received. The signal demodulation unit 10004b-1 performs error correction decoding and the like, demodulates the PPDU frame from the physical layer signal, extracts any one or all of the physical layer header, the MAC header, and the data part, and transmits it to the upper layer unit 10001-1.

[0082] FIG. 12 shows a wireless communication device 10000-2 in which FIGS. 10 and 11 are made to correspond to multi-links. Hereinafter, the description of the same parts as those in the block diagrams described in FIGS. 10 and 11 will be omitted. The wireless communication device (10000-1 or 10000-2) is not limited to either one unless otherwise specified. In the following embodiments, the wireless communication device 10000-1 will be described as being applied, but it is also effective in the wireless communication device 10000-2. On the other hand, the wireless communication device 10000-2 includes two or more radio frequency bands (radio frequency bands A to radio frequency bands Z), each of which is composed of an independent transmission unit and a reception unit. For example, the MAC layer unit 10001a-1 of the upper layer unit 10001-1 in FIG. 12 can perform allocation processing or transmission order control for each link based on the required conditions of the application described later. The MAC layer unit 10001a-1 of the upper layer unit 10001-1 in FIGS. 10 and 12 that performs allocation processing or transmission order control based on the required conditions of the application is also referred to as an allocation control unit, a transmission order control unit, or a control unit that means both of these two.

[0083] The upper layer unit 10001-1 of the wireless communication device 10000-1 transmits the generated packet to the MAC layer unit 10000a-1 and generates an MPDU or an A-MPDU (Aggregated MAC Protocol Data Unit) obtained by aggregating MPDUs. Specifically, the upper layer unit 10001-1 transmits the generated video packet and the required conditions of the application to the MAC layer unit 10001a-1. Then, the MAC layer unit 10001a-1 divides the generated video packet into a plurality of transmission packets, creates an MPDU, creates an A-MPDU, creates a PDSU, and performs allocation processing or transmission order control based on the required conditions of the application described later. The MAC layer unit 10001a-1 transmits the generated PSDU to the physical layer frame generation unit 10003a-1 of the transmission unit 10003-1. Note that the wireless communication device 10000-2 may notify the AP side by notifying the required conditions of the application from the STA to the AP in an arbitrary frame.

[0084] The CCA unit 10002a-1 of the autonomous decentralized control unit 10002-1 performs carrier sensing, determines the state of the channel (idle / busy), and notifies the result to the back-off unit 10002b-1. When receiving a physical layer signal, the transmission determination unit 10002c-1 waits for only the inter-frame space (IFS). The transmission determination unit 10002c-1 can use DIFS as the inter-frame space. When notified to start transmitting the PPDU frame, after the DIFS elapses, the transmission determination unit 10002c-1 requests the back-off unit 10002b-1 to start counting down the back-off counter. Note that the back-off unit 10002b-1 can start counting down the back-off counter when the channel state is idle and the transmission determination unit 10002c-1 requests to start counting down the back-off counter. On the other hand, when the channel state is busy, the counting down of the back-off counter can be interrupted. The back-off unit 10002b-1 notifies the value of the back-off counter to the transmission determination unit 10002c-1. When the value of the back-off counter is 0, the transmission determination unit 10002c-1 generates a PPDU frame from the physical layer signal in the physical layer frame generation unit 10003a-1 of the transmission unit 10003-1. Modulation and coding are performed on the PPDU frame and transmitted to the wireless transmission unit 10003b-1. The wireless transmission unit 10003b-1 converts the PPDU frame into a signal in the radio frequency band, then generates a physical layer signal and transmits the physical layer signal via the antenna unit.

[0085] An allocation control method based on the requirements of the application will be described. The allocation control is performed by the MAC layer unit 10001a-1. The allocation control method based on the requirements of the application is a control method implemented on the AP side and can be performed after the back-off ends. The AP calculates the minimum transmission rate (hereinafter also referred to as the minimum transmission rate) required to transmit the remaining video packet information volume of the video packet generated at the end of the back-off within the allowable delay time (or within the allowable time). The minimum transmission rate R tx_min can be obtained from the following formula.

[0086]

Number

[0087] B in the above formula (1) video_packet is the amount of information of the generated video packet, and indicates the amount of information (bit) of the remaining video packets. T next_video_packet is the generation time (t) of the next video packet, T backoff_end indicates the backoff end time (t). In this modified example, since the backoff end time is the start time of scheduling by the AP, that is, the timing to start the allocation control based on the request conditions of the application, T next_video_packet -T backoff_end indicates the remaining allowable delay time. T overhead indicates the overhead time (t) generated in transmitting the video packet. This overhead is the sum of the frame lengths (t) of the PHY header and the MAC header, DIFS length (t) × (number of transmissions of the transmission packet - 1), maximum backoff time × (number of transmissions of the transmission packet - 1), SIFS length (t) × (number of transmissions of the transmission packet), and ACK frame length (t) × (number of transmissions of the transmission packet). Note that t represents time. The number of transmissions of the transmission packet is represented by N tx_packet and can be obtained from the following formula.

[0088]

Number

[0089] N in the above formula (2) maximum_aggregation_size indicates the maximum aggregation number of MPDUs. However, when the frame length (t) of the transmission packet calculated based on the above formula (2) exceeds the predetermined transmission burst length (t) in relation to the MCS etc. set for the transmission packet, after adopting the aggregation number that is less than the predetermined transmission burst length (t), the transmission packet can be configured.

[0090] The MCS rate (R) calculated from the MCS set for the transmission packet in the above formula (1)mcs ) is the lowest transmission rate R tx_min When it is equal to or higher than this, the AP can determine that the video packet addressed to the user (which may be the STA or an application running on a device connected to the STA) can be assigned to the radio resources. When the video packet is composed of a plurality of transmission packets, the AP uses the MCS rate R mcs is the lowest transmission rate R tx_min When it is equal to or higher than this, it can be determined that the transmission packet addressed to the user can be assigned to the radio resources. The AP saves the user index indicating the video packet addressed to the user that can be transmitted satisfying the requirements for video transmission to a list (hereinafter also referred to as the transmission possible list). On the other hand, the MCS rate R mcs calculated from the MCS set for the transmission packet in the above formula (1) is the lowest transmission rate R tx_min If it is less than this, since the video packet addressed to the user cannot satisfy the requirements for video transmission, the user index (the index representing the STA) is not saved to the transmission possible list. Each time the backoff ends, the AP can update the MCS rate R mcs , the lowest transmission rate R tx_min , and the transmission possible list. The MAC layer unit 10001a-1 of the AP starts transmitting the transmission packets in the transmission order determined by the scheduler, but does not assign the transmission packets addressed to the users not included in the transmission possible list to the radio resources. Instead, it can assign the video packets addressed to the users included in the transmission possible list to the radio resources.

[0091] Fig. 13 shows an overview diagram of allocation control based on the requirements of the application. Fig. 13(a) shows the scheduling without allocation control based on the requirements of the application, and Fig. 13(b) shows the scheduling with allocation control based on the requirements of the application. In Fig. 13, the AP performs scheduling every time the DIFS (20000-1, 30000-1) and the backoff (20000-2, 30000-2) are completed. The scheduler is not limited to something specific such as Max CIR, PF, APF, etc. On the AP side, video packets for STA#1 (20001-1, 30001-1), video packets for STA#2 (20002-1, 30002-1), and video packets for STA#3 (20003-1, 30003-1) are generated, and the target video rate and the allowable delay time (20000-4, 30000-4) are set as requirements for each video packet addressed to an STA. The video packets addressed to an STA are represented by vertical arrows, and the height indicates the amount of information of the generated video packet. The unit of the control interval of the video packet is the video segment length. The allowable delay time may be the generation interval of the video packet based on the video segment length and is indicated by a horizontal line. In the figure, DIFS is indicated by 20000-1, 30000-1, and the backoff is indicated by 20000-2, 30000-2. In the figure, SIFS is indicated by 20000-5, 30000-5, and ACK is indicated by 20000-6, 30000-6. The video packet addressed to an STA is composed of one transmission packet (20000-3, 30000-3), and the number described in the transmission packet indicates the destination STA. In Fig. 13, it shows the situation where the AP transmits a video packet to the STA (downlink communication (hereinafter referred to as DL)), and the STA transmits an ACK frame to the AP (uplink communication (hereinafter referred to as UL)). However, in the embodiment of the present invention, the STA may transmit a video packet to the AP in UL, and the AP may transmit an ACK frame to the STA in DL. Hereinafter, the reference signs for overlapping figures in the figure are omitted. DL is indicated by 20000-7, and UL is indicated by 20000-8.

[0092] In Fig. 13(a), as a result of scheduling by the AP, transmission starts in the order of the transmission packet (20002-3) addressed to STA#2, the transmission packet addressed to STA#1, and the transmission packet addressed to STA#3 (omitted in the figure). The numbers shown in the transmission packets in the figure represent the destination STAs. In this figure, the transmission packet addressed to STA#2 is successfully transmitted within the allowable delay time, and the transmission packet addressed to STA#1 is transmitted exceeding the allowable delay time and times out. The timeout causes a difference between the bit throughput and the video throughput. The media occupancy time required for the transmission of the transmission packet addressed to STA#1 that cannot meet the requirement conditions means the occupancy of unnecessary radio resources and may cause interference to other systems. Although omitted in the figure, the transmission packet addressed to STA#3 also times out.

[0093] In Fig. 13(b), every time the backoff ends, the AP performs assignment control based on the requirement conditions of the application. The AP calculates the minimum transmission rate R based on the requirement conditions (target video rate and allowable delay time) of video transmission set for the video packets addressed to STA#1, STA#2, and STA#3 min , and the MCS rate R based on the MCS set for the video packets addressed to STA#1, STA#2, and STA#3 mcs . The AP calculates the MCS rate R based on the MCS set for the transmission packet addressed to the STA mcs , and the minimum transmission rate R tx_minCompare it with. In Fig. 13(b), the MCS rates set for the video packets addressed to STA#2 and STA#3 are equal to or higher than the lowest transmission rate, while the MCS rate set for the video packet addressed to STA#1 is lower than the lowest transmission rate. That is, the transmitable list contains the user indexes of STA#2 and STA#3. The AP performs scheduling and transmits in the order of the transmission packet addressed to STA#2, the transmission packet of STA#1, and the transmission packet of STA#3, similar to Fig. 13(a). Since the transmission packet addressed to STA#2 is a transmission packet included in the transmitable list indicating that it is a video packet of a STA that can be transmitted satisfying the requirements for video transmission, the transmission of the transmission packet can be started according to the scheduler. On the other hand, since the transmission packet addressed to STA#1 is not included in the transmitable list, the transmission cannot be started. However, the AP can allocate the transmission packet addressed to STA#3 included in the transmitable list instead of the transmission packet addressed to STA#1 and complete the transmission without timing out. In the embodiments of the present invention, a timeout occurs when the time from when the AP transmits a transmission packet until it receives an ACK frame from the STA exceeds the allowable delay time.

[0094] In an embodiment of the present invention, the allocation control based on the application requirements can be applied, for example, as a typical scheduling method focusing on bit throughput, such as Maximum Carrier-to-Interference power Ratio (Max CIR) using the Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) set for the transmission packet addressed to the user as a metric, Proportional Fairness (PF) for improving the bit throughput while ensuring fairness among users, and Application Proportional Fairness (APF) considering the application requirements. For example, in the scheduling method using Max CIR, a lower MCS is set for the transmission packet addressed to the STA allocated last compared to the first one. By setting a lower MCS, there is a possibility that the video packet is transmitted exceeding the allowable delay time and times out. The timeout of the video packet is caused by starting the transmission of the transmission packet addressed to the user without considering the requirements for video transmission, and is a problem that occurs regardless of the scheduling.

[0095] When transmitting a video packet that has exceeded the allowable delay time, in a state where video packets addressed to other users have already occurred, or in a state where the transmission packets constituting the video packets addressed to other users are queued in the transmission queue / Pending, there is a problem of reducing the allowable delay time of the video packets addressed to other users by the amount exceeding the allowable delay time. This causes the timeout of the video packet. The allocation control based on the application requirements is a method of not allocating wireless resources to video packets addressed to users who cannot meet the requirements for video transmission, but instead allocating wireless resources to video packets addressed to users who meet the requirements for video transmission, and can solve the above problem. As a result, wireless resources can be efficiently utilized from the perspective of video throughput, and the video throughput and the number of accommodated applications can be improved.

[0096] A flowchart of the assignment process based on the requirements of the application is shown in FIG. 14. This flowchart represents the processing on the AP side. First, the processing from S1-1 to S1-10 will be described. The start of the processing in FIG. 14 (S1-1) is carried out after the backoff ends. In the initialization of the transmitable list (S1-2), a transmitable list for storing user indexes capable of transmitting video packets while satisfying the requirements for video transmission is initialized. S1-3 to S1-10 are loop processes that loop the user index i for all users (also referred to as STAs and terminals). The loop process from S1-3 to S1-10 is a process for storing user indexes capable of transmitting video packets while satisfying the requirements for video transmission in the transmitable list. In this loop process, when the remaining amount of information of the video packet is 0 or less at S1-4, the process proceeds to the end of the loop (S1-10). For example, when no video packet addressed to the STA has occurred at the start of the processing (S1-1), or when the transmission of the video packet addressed to the STA is completed (i.e., the transmission of all transmission packets constituting the video packet is completed), the process proceeds to the end of the loop (S1-10). When the remaining amount of information of the video packet is greater than 0 at S1-4, the processes of updating the MCS (S1-5), calculating the MCS rate (S1-6), and calculating the minimum transmission rate (S1-7) are carried out. In S1-6, the MCS rate R mcs , and in S1-7, the minimum transmission rate R tx_min is calculated. In S1-8, it is determined whether the MCS rate is equal to or higher than the minimum transmission rate (also referred to as the determination process). In S1-9, the user index for which the MCS rate is equal to or higher than the minimum transmission rate is stored in the transmitable list. When the MCS rate is less than the minimum transmission rate, the process proceeds to the end of the loop (S1-10), but if the user index i has not been incremented up to N, i is incremented and the process returns to S1-3. Hereinafter, the names of the variables and processing steps described in the flowchart are not limited to those described in the flowchart as long as they are used for the same purpose. Also, hereinafter, Y in the flowchart indicates a True determination result, and N indicates a False determination result.

[0097] Next, the processes of S1-11 to S1-18 will be described. In S1-11, the AP determines the transmission order of the transmission packets addressed to the STA according to the metric of the scheduler. The result of S1-11 is saved to the transmission order list (tx_order in FIG. 14). S1-12 to S1-18 are loop processes that determine the user index which is the destination of the transmission packet. In the end process of this loop (S1-18), it ends when a Break occurs (S1-17) or when the user index i has looped through all users (all STAs). In S1-13, a process (transmission order determination process) for implementing a loop process in the order of tx_order determined by the scheduling process of S1-11 is shown. Note that the user index of the destination returned by tx_order is distinguished as j. When the remaining amount of information of the video packet is 0 or less in S1-14, the loop ends (S1-18), but if the user index i has not been incremented up to N, i is incremented and the process returns to S1-3. For example, at the time of starting the process (S1-1), if no video packet addressed to the STA has occurred, or if the transmission of the video packet addressed to the STA is completed (i.e., the transmission of all transmission packets constituting the video packet is completed), the loop ends (S1-18). When the remaining amount of information of the video packet is greater than 0 in S1-14, the user index j of the destination is determined as the transmission destination tx_target of the transmission packet in S1-15 (destination determination). After a Break (S1-17) occurs, the loop ends (S1-18) and the processes after S1-19 are executed.

[0098] Then, in S1-19, it is determined whether the tx_target indicating the transmission destination of the transmission packet is included in the transmission-enabled list stored in S1-9 (determination process). If the tx_target is included in the transmission-enabled list stored in S1-9, allocation processing (S1-20), PPDU creation processing (S1-21), and PPDU transmission processing (S1-22) are performed, and the process proceeds to process end (S1-23). S1-20 is a process for determining the transmission of the transmission packet addressed to tx_target. S1-22 means a process of allocating and transmitting the PPDU frame to the radio resources. If the tx_target in S1-19 is not included in the transmission-enabled list stored in S1-9, the process proceeds to process end (S1-23).

[0099] In the wireless communication device 10000-1 and the wireless communication device 10000-2, the allocation process based on the application's requirement conditions is described. The autonomous distributed control unit 10002-1 can transmit the fact that the backoff has ended from the backoff unit 10002b-1 to the transmission determination unit 10002c-1. At this time, S1-1 in the flowchart of FIG. 14 is started. The steps from the initialization of the transmission-enabled list (S1-2) to the allocation process (S1-20) can be performed by the MAC layer unit 10001a-1 of the upper layer unit 10001-1. On the other hand, the transmission unit 10003-1 can perform the PPDU creation process (S1-21) in the physical layer frame generation unit 10003a-1 and the PPDU transmission process (S1-22) in the wireless transmission unit 10003b-1. After the PPDU is transmitted, the wireless communication device ends the process (S1-23) and starts the backoff again.

[0100] A transmission order control method according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Transmission order control is control applied when a video packet is divided into two or more transmission packets and transmitted. Until the transmission of the video packet addressed to the previously assigned user is completed, the transmission of the video packet addressed to other users is not started, thereby preventing the transmission order of the transmission packets addressed to the users from being switched. An overview diagram of transmission order control is shown in FIG. 15. FIG. 15(a) represents scheduling without transmission order control, and FIG. 15(b) represents scheduling with transmission order control. The scheduler in FIG. 15 is not limited to something specific such as Max CIR, PF, APF, etc. The AP performs transmission order control every time the backoff ends. In FIG. 15, on the AP side, video packets (40001-1, 50001-1) addressed to STA#1 and video packets (40002-1, 50002-1) addressed to STA#2 have occurred, and a target video rate and an allowable delay time (40000-4, 50000-4) are set as required conditions for each video packet addressed to an STA. The video packets addressed to the STA are represented by vertical arrows, and the height indicates the amount of information of the generated video packets. The allowable delay time is the generation interval of the video packets and is indicated by a horizontal line. In FIG. 15, an example in which the video packet addressed to the STA is composed of two transmission packets is shown, and the first transmission packet and the second transmission packet are distinguished and shown in the figure. When the second transmission packet is transmitted and completed within the allowable delay time, the video packet is counted. In the figure, DIFS is indicated by 40000-1, 50000-1, and the backoff is indicated by 40000-2, 50000-2. In the figure, SIFS is indicated by 40000-5, 50000-5, and ACK is indicated by 40000-6, 50000-6. DL communication is indicated by 40000-7, 50000-7, and UL communication is indicated by 40000-8, 50000-8.

[0101] In Fig. 15(a), as a result of the scheduling performed every time the backoff ends, the transmission starts in the order of the first transmission packet (40000-3) addressed to STA#2, the first transmission packet addressed to STA#1, the second transmission packet addressed to STA#2, and the second transmission packet addressed to STA#1. The numbers shown in the transmission packets in the figure indicate which transmission packet of the destination STA they are. For example, 2-1 described in the transmission packet in the figure means the first transmission packet addressed to STA#2. Fig. 15(a) shows a situation where the transmission of the video packet addressed to STA#1 starts during the transmission of the video packet addressed to STA#2, and the video packets addressed to STA#2 and STA#1 cannot be transmitted within the allowable delay time and have timed out. The timeout not only causes a difference between the bit throughput and the video throughput, but also the medium occupancy time required for the transmission of the transmission packets that cannot meet the required conditions causes interference to other systems.

[0102] In Fig. 15(b), the AP performs transmission order control along with scheduling every time the backoff ends. After starting the transmission of the first transmission packet (50000 - 3) addressed to STA#2, even if the transmission of the first transmission packet addressed to STA#1 is set by the scheduler, the AP starts the transmission of the second transmission packet addressed to STA#2. That is, in the scheduling with transmission order control, the transmission of the video packet addressed to STA#1 is not started until the transmission of the video packet addressed to STA#2 is completed. In Fig. 15(b), the AP transmits the first and second transmission packets addressed to STA#2 within the allowable delay time and completes the transmission of the video packet. That is, by the scheduling with transmission order control, the difference between the bit throughput and the video throughput can be suppressed, and the video throughput can be improved. In Fig. 15(b), if the transmission of the second transmission packet addressed to STA#2 exceeds the allowable delay time, both will time out as in the case without transmission order control. In this case, by combining the allocation control with and the transmission order control based on the requirement conditions of the application, only the users who can perform the transmission of the video packet satisfying the allowable delay time can be allocated, and the video throughput can also be improved.

[0103] A flowchart of transmission order control according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 16. This flowchart describes the transmission process on the AP side and is a process that does not start transmitting video packets addressed to other users until the transmission of the video packet addressed to the previously assigned user is completed. Hereinafter, steps that mean the same processing as the assignment control method based on the request conditions of the application shown in FIG. 14 will be omitted. In addition, parts that are not directly related to the transmission order control itself, such as the MCS update process, will be omitted. The transmission order control starts the process (S2-1) after the backoff ends. In S2-2, the AP determines the transmission order of the transmission packets addressed to the STA according to the metric of the scheduler. The result of S2-2 is saved in the transmission order list (tx_order). Note that the user indexes for all users are saved in tx_order. S2-3 to S2-10 are loop processes that determine the user index of the transmission packet to be transmitted. S2-6 and S2-7 are the main processes of the transmission order control, which will be described later. In the end process (S2-10) of this loop, it ends when Break occurs (S2-9) or when the user index i has looped through all users (all STAs). S2-4 shows the process for performing the loop process in the order of tx_order determined by the scheduling process of S2-2. In S2-5, when the remaining amount of information of the video packet is 0 or less, it moves to the loop end (S2-10). If the user index i has not been incremented up to N, i is incremented and it returns to S2-3. For example, at the time of starting the process (S2-1), if no video packet addressed to the STA has occurred, or if the transmission of the video packet addressed to the STA is completed (that is, the transmission of all transmission packets constituting the video packet is completed), it moves to the loop end (S2-10).

[0104] Describe S2-6 and S2-7, which are the main steps of transmission order control. S2-6 determines whether the user index (In_progress_sta_index) of the user whose video packet is in the process of being transmitted among users is 0 (determination process). If In_progress_sta_index is not 0, it indicates that there is a video packet (or transmission packet) addressed to the previously assigned user (STA), and it is in the process of being transmitted. In this case, in S2-7, until the transmission of the video packet addressed to the previously assigned user is completed, store In_progress_sta_index in tx_target, which is the user index of the transmission destination, so as not to start the transmission of video packets addressed to other users. That is, through the process of S2-7, it can be ensured that the transmission of video packets addressed to other users is not started until the transmission of all transmission packets constituting the video packet addressed to the previously assigned user is completed. If In_progress_sta_index is 0, store the user index j set by scheduling in tx_target, which is the transmission destination of the transmission packet (also referred to as the update of the user index in S2-8).

[0105] A flowchart of transmission order control according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 17. This flowchart describes the reception processing on the AP side and explains the operations related to the setting and initialization of the user index (In_progress_sta_index) of the video packet that is in the middle of being transmitted. The processes of S3-1 to S3-9 start after receiving a PPDU frame (after receiving an ACK frame). In S3-2, the reception processing of the PPDU frame received from the transmission destination tx_target determined in FIG. 16 is performed. In S3-3, if the number of correctly received MPDUs is greater than 0, the remaining amount of information of the video packet is updated in S3-4. On the other hand, if the number of correctly received MPDUs in S3-3 is 0 or less, that is, if all are incorrect, the In_progress_sta_index is initialized in S3-5 and the process ends (S3-9). S3-6 is a process (determination process) for determining whether all video packets have been transmitted. If the remaining amount of information of the video packet updated in S3-4 is 0 or less, the In_progress_sta_index is initialized in S3-7 and the process ends (S3-9). Note that S3-4 may be performed in the transmission process instead of the reception process. If the remaining amount of information of the video packet updated in S3-4 is greater than 0, that is, if the video packet is in the middle of being transmitted, in S3-8, until the transmission of the video packet addressed to the previously assigned user is completed, the transmission destination user index tx_target is stored in the In_progress_sta_index so as not to start the transmission of the video packet addressed to other users, and the process ends (S3-9). Note that the number of correctly received MPDUs in S3-3 may be set to a natural number other than 0.

[0106] The transmission order control in the wireless communication devices 10000-1 and 10000-2 will be described. The autonomous distributed control unit 10002-1 can transmit the fact of the end of backoff from the backoff unit 10002b-1 to the transmission determination unit 10002c-1. At this time, S2-1 in the flowchart of FIG. 16 is started. From scheduling (S2-2) to loop end (S2-10), it can be implemented by the MAC layer unit 10001a-1 of the upper layer unit 10001-1. On the other hand, the transmission unit 10003-1 can perform the creation process of the PPDU (S2-11) by the physical layer frame generation unit 10003a-1 and the transmission process of the PPDU (S2-12) by the wireless transmission unit 10003b-1. After the PPDU is transmitted, the wireless communication device ends the process (S2-13) and starts backoff again.

[0107] The receiving unit 10004-1 of the wireless communication device receives a signal in the radio frequency band with the antenna unit 10005-1. At this time, S3-1 in the flowchart of FIG. 17 is started. In S3-2, the wireless receiving unit 10004a-1 generates a physical layer signal from the signal in the radio frequency band, and can notify the CCA unit 10002a-1 of the autonomous distributed control unit 10002-1 of the demodulation result of the preamble and notify the transmission determination unit 10002c-1 that the physical layer signal has been received. Also, the signal demodulation unit 10004b-1 can perform error correction decoding, etc., and demodulate the PPDU frame (ACK frame) from the physical layer signal to extract any one or all of the physical layer header, MAC header, and data part and transmit them to the upper layer unit 10001-1. The steps after S3-3 can be implemented by the MAC layer unit 10001a-1 of the upper layer unit 10001-1. [2. Common to all embodiments]

[0108] The communication device according to the present invention can communicate in a frequency band (frequency spectrum) called an unlicensed band that does not require permission from a country or region, but the available frequency bands are not limited to this. The communication device according to the present invention can also be used, for example, in a frequency band called a white band that is not actually used for the purpose of preventing interference between frequencies, even though permission to use a specific service has been granted by a country or region (for example, a frequency band allocated for television broadcasting but not used in some regions), or in a shared spectrum (shared frequency band) that is expected to be shared by multiple operators, and can exhibit its effects.

[0109] The program operating in the wireless communication device according to the present invention is a program (a program that causes a computer to function) that controls a CPU or the like so as to realize the functions of the above-described embodiments related to the present invention. The information processed by these devices is temporarily stored in RAM during processing, and then stored in various ROMs or HDDs, and is read by the CPU as needed for modification and writing. As the recording medium for storing the program, any of a semiconductor medium (for example, ROM, non-volatile memory card, etc.), an optical recording medium (for example, DVD, MO, MD, CD, BD, etc.), a magnetic recording medium (for example, magnetic tape, flexible disk, etc.) may be used. Further, by executing the loaded program, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but in some cases, the functions of the present invention are also realized by jointly processing with an operating system or other application programs based on the instructions of the program.

[0110] When distributing it on the market, the program can be stored in a portable recording medium for distribution, or transferred to a server computer connected via a network such as the Internet. In this case, the storage device of the server computer is also included in the present invention. Further, part or all of the communication device in the above-described embodiment may typically be realized as an LSI which is an integrated circuit. Each functional block of the communication device may be individually chipized, or part or all of them may be integrated and chipized. When each functional block is integrated into an integrated circuit, an integrated circuit control unit for controlling them is added. Needless to say, the present invention also includes the case where a program and setting information are downloaded from a server computer in order to implement at least part of the functions of the above-described embodiment.

[0111] Further, the method of integrating into an integrated circuit is not limited to LSI, and may be realized by a dedicated circuit or a general-purpose processor. Also, when a technology for integrating into an integrated circuit that replaces LSI appears due to the progress of semiconductor technology, it is also possible to use an integrated circuit based on such technology.

[0112] Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. The wireless communication device of the present invention is not limited to application to a mobile station device, and can be applied to stationary or non-mobile electronic devices installed indoors or outdoors, such as AV devices, kitchen devices, cleaning and washing devices, air conditioning devices, office devices, vending machines, and other household devices.

[0113] As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and designs within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention are also included in the claims.

Industrial Applicability

[0114] The present invention is suitable for use in a wireless communication device and a wireless communication method.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0115] 3001 NDP Announcement Frame 3002 NDP Frame 3003 Compressed Beamforming / CQI Frame 4001-1, 4001-2 Wireless Communication Device (Access Point Device) 4002-1~6 Wireless Communication Device (Station Device) 4003-1, 4003-2 Wireless Communication System 5001 Wireless Control Unit 5003 Wireless Communication Unit 5003a Physical Layer Frame Generation Unit 5003b Wireless Transmission Unit 5003c Wireless Reception Unit 5003d Received Power Measurement Unit 5003e Channel Estimation Unit 5003f Signal Demodulation Unit 5004 Antenna Unit 6001 Wireless Control Unit 7001, 8001 Integrated Access Point Device 7002, 8002 Route Selection Unit 7003-1~3, 8003-1~3 Gateway Unit 7004-1~3, 8005-1~3 Sub-Access Point Unit 7005, 8005 Integrated Station Device 7006-1~3, 8006-1~3 Sub-Station Unit 7007, 8007 Operating System (OS) Execution Unit 7008, 8008 Application Execution Unit 7009, 8009, 8012 Layer 1 Monitor 7010, 8010 SDN Controller 10000-1, 10000-2 Wireless Communication Device 10001-1 Upper Layer Unit 10001a-1 MAC Layer Unit 10002-1 Autonomous Decentralized Control Unit 10002a-1 CCA Unit 10002b-1 Backoff Unit 10002c-1 Transmission determination unit 10003-1 Transmission unit 10003a-1, 10003c-1 Physical layer frame generation unit 10003b-1, 10003d-1 Wireless transmission unit 10004-1 Reception unit 10004a-1, 10004c-1 Wireless reception unit 10004b-1, 10004d-1 Signal demodulation unit 10005-1 Antenna unit 20001-1, 20002-1, 20003-1, 30001-1, 30002-1, 30003-1, 40001-1, 40002-1, 50001-1, 50002-1 Video packet 20000-1, 30000-1, 40000-1, 50000-1 DIFS 20000-2, 30000-2, 40000-2, 50000-2 Backoff 20000-3, 30000-3, 40000-3, 50000-3 Transmission packet 20000-4, 30000-4, 40000-4, 50000-4 Tolerable delay time 20000-5, 30000-5, 40000-5, 50000-5 SIFS 20000-6, 30000-6, 40000-6, 50000-6 ACK 20000-7, 30000-7, 40000-7, 50000-7 DL communication 20000-8, 30000-8, 40000-8, 50000-8 UL communication S1–1, S2-1, S3-1 Processing start S1-2 Initialization of transmission possible list S1-3, S1-12, S2-3 Loop processing S1-4, S1-8, S1-14, S1-16, S1-19, S2-5, S2-6, S3-3, S3-6 Judgment processing S1-5 MCS update processing S1-6 MCS rate calculation processing S1-7 Calculation processing of lowest transmission rate Save to the Sendable List S1-10, S1-18, S2-10 Loop End S1-11, S2-2 Scheduling S1-13, S2-4 Determine Transmission Order S1-15, S2-7, S2-8 Determine Destination S1-17, S2-9 Break S1-20 Allocation Process S1-21, S2-11 Create PPDU Process S1-22, S2-12 Transmit PPDU Process S1-23, S2-13, S3-9 Process End S3-2 Receive Process S3-4 Update Remaining Information Volume of Video Packet S3-5, S3-7 Initialization S3-8 Update User Index

Claims

1. An access point device that performs wireless communication with a station device, comprising: a plurality of sub-access point units that use different frequencies; a route selection unit that selects a frequency; a gateway unit that controls traffic based on identification information included in the traffic, wherein each of the plurality of sub-access point units performs carrier sense prior to transmitting radio waves, each of the sub-access point units is connected to each of the sub-station units included in the station device, the gateway unit sets different subnets for each of the sub-access point units, the route selection unit selects one of the different subnets for traffic to the station device, and sets the traffic to the station device to be transmitted to the sub-station unit through one of the plurality of sub-access point units in which the selected subnet is set for the gateway unit An access point device characterized by the above.

2. The access point device according to claim 1, wherein the route selection unit selects one of the different subnets for traffic to the station device based on at least one of layer 3 and network controller information. An access point device characterized by the above.

3. The access point device according to claim 1, wherein the route selection unit is set to transmit to the sub-station unit using at least one of the plurality of frequencies based on traffic information of an application.

4. The access point device according to claim 1, wherein the route selection unit is set to transmit to the sub-station unit using at least one of the plurality of frequencies based on an index indicating a STA that can transmit while satisfying application request conditions set from an upper layer based on a list.

5. The access point device according to claim 4, An access point device characterized by comparing a minimum transmission rate based on a target video rate and an allowable time to determine that the requirements of an application are met, and comparing an MCS rate based on an MCS (Moderation and Coding Scheme).

6. A station device connected to the access point device according to any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the station device is characterized by transmitting information indicating the requirements of an application to the access point device.

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