Wireless communication device, wireless communication method, and integrated circuit

Abstract

To provide a radio communication device, a radio communication method, and an integrated circuit capable of reducing the amount of information transmitted and received between cooperative radio communication devices.SOLUTION: A wireless communication device that is a first access point includes a control unit configured to select a value of an identifier of a second access point not included in a basic service set to which the first access point belongs from values assignable to an association identifier of a non-APSTA included in the basic service set and assign the value, and a transmission unit configured to transmit a signal in which the value assigned to the identifier of the second access point is included in an association identifier field in a user information field.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 16A

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a wireless communication device, a wireless communication method, and an integrated circuit. [Background technology]

[0002] The technical specifications for 802.11be (hereinafter referred to as "11be") are currently being developed as the successor standard to 802.11ax (hereinafter referred to as "11ax"), the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.11 standard.

[0003] In 11be, application of cooperative communication in which a plurality of wireless communication devices on the data transmitting side cooperate to transmit data to a wireless communication device on the receiving side is being considered. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]

[0004] [Non-Patent Document 1] IEEE 802.11-19 / 0103r1, AP Coordination in EHT [Non-patent document 2] IEEE 802.11-19 / 1102r0, A unified transmission procedure for multi-AP coordination [Non-patent document 3] IEEE 802.11-20 / 1040r0, Coordinated Spatial Reuse: Extension to Uplink [Non-patent document 4] IEEE P802.11ax / D6.0, November 2019 [Non-Patent Document 5] IEEE Std 802.11-2016, December 2016 Summary of the Invention

[0005] However, in cooperative communication, the amount of information transmitted and received between cooperative wireless communication devices has not been fully considered.

[0006] Non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure contribute to providing a wireless communication device, a wireless communication method, and an integrated circuit that can reduce the amount of information transmitted and received between cooperating wireless communication devices.

[0007] A wireless communication device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is a wireless communication device that is a first access point, and includes: a control unit that selects and assigns a value of an identifier of a second access point that is not included in a basic service set to which the first access point belongs from values ​​that can be assigned to association identifiers of non-AP STAs that are included in the basic service set; and a transmission unit that transmits a signal that includes the value assigned to the identifier of the second access point in an association identifier field in a user information field.

[0008] These comprehensive or specific aspects may be realized as a system, an apparatus, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, or a recording medium, or may be realized as any combination of a system, an apparatus, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, and a recording medium.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the amount of information transmitted and received between cooperating wireless communication devices can be reduced.

[0010] Further advantages and benefits of an embodiment of the present disclosure will become apparent from the specification and drawings. Such advantages and / or benefits may be provided by some of the embodiments and features described in the specification and drawings, respectively, but not necessarily all of them may be provided to obtain one or more identical features. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1A] FIG. 1 shows an example of an arrangement of APs and STAs. [Figure 1B]Diagram showing application examples of the two cooperation methods [Figure 2] A diagram showing an example of DL-DL communication operation [Figure 3] Diagram showing an example of UL-UL communication operation [Figure 4] Diagram showing an example of UL-DL communication operation [Figure 5] A diagram showing an example of the format of the Common info field [Figure 6] A diagram showing an example of the format of the User info field [Figure 7] Table showing example AID12 values [Figure 8] A diagram showing examples of beacon information elements [Figure 9] A diagram showing example information elements in an association request [Figure 10] A diagram showing example information elements in an association response [Figure 11] An example of the Capability Information format [Figure 12] Diagram showing an example of RTS / CTS operation [Figure 13] Figure showing an example of the format of the frame control field of a control frame containing RTS / CTS [Figure 14] Figure showing examples of MAC frame types including RTS / CTS [Figure 15] A diagram showing an example of the MU-PPDU frame format for 11ax [Figure 16A] A block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a part of a wireless communication device. [Figure 16B] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication device according to an embodiment. [Figure 17] A diagram showing an example of UL-DL communication coordinated by the C-SR method. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example of a sequence of UL-DL communication in the cooperative set illustrated in FIG. 17. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a diagram showing a modification of the sequence shown in FIG. 18. [Figure 20]Another example of AID12 [Figure 21] A diagram showing an example of the User Info field based on Figure 20 [Figure 22] An example of the User Info field for a new AP [Figure 23] A diagram showing an example of information elements of an association request for an AP. [Figure 24] Figure 10 shows an example of information elements in an association response for an AP. [Figure 25] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a sequence for performing UL-DL communication in Example 3. [Figure 26] Figure 1 shows another example of UL-DL communication arrangement [Figure 27] Diagram showing the sequence for UL-DL communication using cooperative C-OFDMA DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0013] (One embodiment) [Cooperative method] In 11be, for example, the application of Multi-AP coordination (hereinafter referred to as "cooperative communication") is being considered, in which access points (also called "base stations", hereinafter referred to as "APs (Access Points)"), which are multiple wireless communication devices on the signal transmitting side, transmit and / or receive data with terminals (hereinafter referred to as "STAs (Stations)"), which are wireless communication devices on the receiving side.

[0014] Coordinated methods include Coordinated Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (hereinafter referred to as C-OFDMA), in which multiple APs transmit signals using different frequency bands, and Coordinated Spatial Reuse (hereinafter referred to as C-SR), in which multiple APs transmit signals using the same frequency band (Non-Patent Document 1).

[0015] The two cooperation methods, C-OFDMA and C-SR, will be explained using Figures 1A and 1B. Figure 1A is a diagram showing an example of the arrangement of APs and STAs. Figure 1B is a diagram showing an application example of the two cooperation methods.

[0016] As shown in Figure 1B, downlink (hereinafter referred to as DL) data communication from AP1 to STA1 and DL data communication from AP2 to STA4 use the same resource unit (hereinafter referred to as RU) 1 and are performed using the cooperative C-SR method. RU2 is used for DL ​​data communication from AP1 to STA2, and RU3 is used for DL ​​data communication from AP2 to STA3. Cooperative communication is performed using the cooperative C-OFDMA method.

[0017] There are two types of communication: communication from an AP to a STA (hereinafter referred to as "DL communication") and communication from a STA to an AP (hereinafter referred to as "UL communication"). As for types of cooperative communication, for example, the following types are being considered: two APs cooperate to perform DL communication together (hereinafter referred to as "DL-DL communication"), two APs cooperate to perform UL communication together (hereinafter referred to as "UL-UL communication"), and two APs cooperate to perform UL communication and DL communication (hereinafter referred to as "UL-DL communication") (see Non-Patent Document 2).

[0018] 2 is a diagram showing an example of operation of DL-DL communication. As shown in FIG. 2, AP1, which is a master AP, transmits a trigger frame (Slave TF) to AP2 and AP3, which are slave APs. Then, AP1, AP2, and AP3 cooperate with each other, and AP1, AP2, and AP3 transmit downlink data, Data 1, Data 2, and Data 3, respectively.

[0019] Figure 3 is a diagram showing an example of operation of UL-UL communication. As shown in Figure 3, AP1, which is the master AP, transmits a trigger frame (Slave TF) in the same way as in Figure 2. Then, AP1, AP2, and AP3 each transmit a trigger frame (Basic TF). Then, AP1, AP2, and AP3 cooperate with each other, and AP1, AP2, and AP3 receive uplink data, Data 1, Data 2, and Data 3, respectively.

[0020] Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of operation of UL-DL communication, in which an example of operation is shown to which C-SR is applied (see Non-Patent Document 3).

[0021] 4 shows the operations of AP1, AP2, STA1-1, STA1-2, STA2-1, and STA2-2. Note that STA1-1 and STA1-2 are components of the basic service set (BSS) of AP1, and STA2-1 and STA2-2 are components of the BSS of AP2.

[0022] In the "Preparation Phase" of FIG. 4, information indicating the capability of each device, information indicating the received power of each device (for example, Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI)), and measurement report information are collected.

[0023] In the "Announcement Phase" of FIG. 4, AP1 transmits C-SR-A.

[0024] Then, in the "Transmission Phase" of Fig. 4, data is transmitted and received. For example, in Fig. 4, STA1-1, STA1-2, and AP2 cooperate with each other. STA1-1 and STA1-2 perform UL transmission to AP1, and AP2 performs DL transmission to STA2-2.

[0025] As in the above examples, in each cooperative communication mode, a frame (trigger) that notifies transmission control information and transmission timing is transmitted and received. For example, the Slave TF and Basic TF shown in Figures 2 and 3, and the C-SR-A shown in Figure 4 are trigger frames.

[0026] The UL communication trigger in 11ax (hereinafter referred to as the UL trigger frame) consists of a field containing common information addressed to the STA to be triggered (hereinafter referred to as the Common info field) and a field containing information addressed to individual STAs (hereinafter referred to as the User info field).

[0027] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the format of the Common info field. The format shown in Fig. 5 is similar to the format shown in Figure 9-64b of Non-Patent Document 4. Fig. 5 shows multiple subfields included in the format of the Common info field.

[0028] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the format of the User info field. The format shown in Fig. 6 is similar to the format shown in Figure 9-64d of Non-Patent Document 4. Fig. 6 shows multiple subfields included in the format of the User info field.

[0029] The values ​​included in the subfield indicated as "AID12" (hereinafter simply referred to as AID12) in Fig. 6 will be described. Fig. 7 is a table showing example values ​​of AID12. The table shown in Fig. 7 is similar to, for example, Table 9-31g in Non-Patent Document 4.

[0030] AID (association identifier) ​​12 includes an identifier of the STA (a number for individually specifying the STA). In the example of FIG.

[0031] 8 is a diagram showing examples of information elements of a beacon. The information elements shown in FIG. 8 are excerpts from Table 9-27 of Non-Patent Document 5, for example.

[0032] 9 is a diagram showing examples of information elements of an association request. The information elements shown in FIG. 9 are excerpts from Table 9-29 in Non-Patent Document 5, for example.

[0033] 10 is a diagram showing examples of information elements in an association response. The information elements shown in FIG. 10 are excerpts from Table 9-30 in Non-Patent Document 5, for example.

[0034] The beacon in FIG. 8, the association request in FIG. 9, and the association response in FIG. 10 each include an information element called Capability Information.

[0035] 11 is a diagram showing an example of the format of Capability Information. The format shown in FIG. 11 is the same as, for example, Figure 9-68 in Non-Patent Document 5.

[0036] The range of AID and AID12 that can be specified as the STA identifier is 1 to 2007, as shown in Figure 7. If multi-BSSID is supported, n The number is limited to 2007, where n=log2K, and K is the maximum possible number of BSSIDs (see Non-Patent Document 5: Section 9.4.2.6).

[0037] A BSS (Basic Service Set) is a set of basic services that consists of an AP and multiple STAs. The operation of a STA connecting to an AP within a BSS is called associating.

[0038] A BSS color (6-bit value) is used to distinguish between nearby APs (see Non-Patent Document 4: Section 26.17.3).

[0039] Fig. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of RTS / CTS (Request to Send / Clear to Send). Fig. 12 shows an example of the operation similar to Fig. 10-7 of Non-Patent Document 5. A STA that receives an RTS and is designated as a destination transmits a CTS. Note that when multiple destinations are designated, MU-RTS is used instead of RTS.

[0040] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the format of the frame control field of a control frame including RTS / CTS.

[0041] Fig. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the type of MAC frame including RTS / CTS. Fig. 14 shows the changes made to the values ​​in 11ax. The contents shown in Fig. 14 are the contents shown in Table 9-1 of Non-Patent Document 4.

[0042] 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of a frame format of an MU-PPDU in 11ax, which is the format shown in Non-Patent Document 4.

[0043] 15, the destination is specified by the STA ID in the User field. For the STA ID, for example, AID12 shown in FIG.

[0044] A wireless communication device (for example, an AP) specifies an identifier of the wireless communication device (for example, an AP or a STA) in each frame as described above, thereby enabling smooth mutual transmission and reception of information.

[0045] Here is an example of the procedure by which a STA, which is a component of a BSS, associates with an AP. (1) The STA detects the AP by receiving a beacon. (2) The STA sends an association request to the AP. (3) The AP receives the association request and sends an association response to the STA. For example, if the BSS of AP1 is described as BSS_1, a STA associated with AP1 is a component of BSS_1, and a STA that is not associated with AP1 is not a component of BSS_1.

[0046] The identifier of the associated STA is the AID (information element of Order 3 in FIG. 10) included in the association response or AID12 (see FIG. 7, AIDs are assigned from 1 to 2007). On the other hand, for example, it is being considered to use a MAC address (48 bits) as the identifier of a STA that is not a component of BSS_1 of AP1, that is, a STA that is not associated with AP1. Note that a MAC address may be used as the identifier of an AP (e.g., AP2) that is not a component of BSS_1.

[0047] As described above, when an AP indicates a wireless communication device that is not a member of the AP's BSS, the size of the identifier becomes large, resulting in increased overhead.

[0048] Therefore, non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure provide a wireless communication device and a communication method that allow an AP to indicate wireless communication devices (e.g., including STAs and APs) that are not members of the AP's BSS with a small amount of information.

[0049] By reducing the amount of information required to instruct STAs (including APs) that are not part of the BSS of the AP, overhead can be reduced.

[0050] [Wireless communication system configuration] A wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes at least two APs as source devices and one STA. In the following description, for example, a "wireless communication device" corresponds to an AP.

[0051] 16A is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a portion of the radio communication device 10. The radio communication control device 10 shown in FIG.

[0052] The control unit 11 assigns an identifier to a wireless communication device that is not included in the basic service set to which the wireless communication device 10 belongs. The transmission unit 12 transmits a signal that includes the identifier.

[0053] As an example, a case where at least two APs cooperate to perform UL-DL communication with a plurality of STAs will be described below.

[0054] 16B is a block diagram showing an example of a wireless communication device according to this embodiment. Wireless communication device 100 shown in FIG. 16B corresponds to, for example, an AP or a STA. Wireless communication device 100 includes a transmission packet generation unit 101, a wireless transmission / reception unit 102, a reception packet decoding unit 103, and a control signal generation unit 104.

[0055] The transmission packet generation unit 101 generates transmission packets from transmission data received from a processing unit in an upper layer and / or data (e.g., control information) generated by the control signal generation unit 104, and outputs the generated packets to the radio transmission / reception unit 102.

[0056] The wireless transmitting / receiving unit 102 converts the transmission packet into a wireless transmission signal, and transmits the wireless transmission signal via an antenna.

[0057] The radio transmitting / receiving unit 102 receives a radio reception signal, converts the radio reception signal into a reception packet, and outputs the reception packet to the reception packet decoding unit 103 .

[0058] The received packet decoder 103 decodes the received packet and outputs the received data to a processing unit in an upper layer (not shown). Alternatively, the received packet decoder 103 decodes the received packet and outputs control information to the control signal generator 104.

[0059] The control signal generating unit 104 generates control information based on at least one of the transmission data, the control information output from the received packet decoding unit 103, and the internal state, and outputs the generated control information to the transmission packet generating unit 101. For example, the control signal generating unit 104 generates control information related to triggers, associations, and data communications.

[0060] <Example 1> As an example, the following describes an example of cooperation in UL-DL communication based on Non-Patent Document 3. Fig. 17 is a diagram showing an example of UL-DL communication in cooperation using the C-SR method.

[0061] 17 shows a set (called a cooperative set) including AP1, AP2, STA1, and STA2. STA1 is located within the coverage area of ​​AP1 and is associated with AP1. STA2 is located within the coverage area of ​​AP2 and is associated with AP2. In FIG. 17, UL communication from STA1 to AP1 and DL communication from AP2 to STA2 are coordinated using the C-SR method.

[0062] AP1 is located in the cooperative set and is an AP (hereinafter referred to as the Master AP) that controls the cooperative set. AP2 is located in the cooperative set and is an AP (hereinafter referred to as the Slave AP) that is controlled by the Master AP. AP1 is located in a position that is not affected by interference from AP2.

[0063] STA1 is located within the coverage area of ​​AP1 and can associate with AP1. STA2 is located within the coverage area of ​​AP2 and can associate with AP2. STA2 is located in a position where it is not affected by interference from STA1.

[0064] In the initial setting of the cooperative set, AP1 notifies AP2 of the identifier assigned to AP2 and the identifier of AP1. Hereinafter, the identifier of an AP is referred to as AP_ID. The maximum value of AP_ID may be the maximum number of APs (maximum number of APs) that can be installed in the cooperative set. For example, AP_ID is a value represented by several bits (e.g., 4 bits).

[0065] If a slave AP other than AP2 is installed, AP1 may notify AP2 of the AP_ID of the AP other than AP2. Furthermore, the notification from AP1 to AP2 may be made using the backhaul between AP1 and AP2, or may be made using another method.

[0066] Also, in the example shown, AP1 notifies AP_ID during the initial setup, but AP1 may also notify AP_ID after the initial setup. For example, when a Slave AP (e.g., AP3) is additionally deployed after the initial setup, AP1 may also notify AP_ID as described above. In this case, within the cooperative set, AP1 may notify AP2 of the AP_ID of AP3, or AP1 may notify AP3 of the AP_ID of AP2.

[0067] After the initial setup of the cooperative set and STA1 associating with AP1 and STA2 associating with AP2, UL-DL communication is performed in the cooperative set.

[0068] FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example of a sequence of UL-DL communication in the cooperative set illustrated in FIG.

[0069] 18, C-SR-A (C-SR Announcement) is a packet that combines a "Trigger" transmitted from AP1 to STA1 and an "Announcement" transmitted from AP1 to AP2. The "Trigger" includes information instructing STA1 to start UL communication to AP1. The "Announcement" includes information instructing AP2 to start DL communication to STA2.

[0070] For "Trigger", for example, the UL trigger frame shown in Figures 5 and 6 may be used. In this case, the identifier of the trigger transmission destination of "Trigger" may be AID12 indicating STA1.

[0071] The information notified by the "Announcement" includes information specifying AP2 as the destination (trigger destination). AP_ID may be used as the information specifying AP2.

[0072] STA1, which receives the "Trigger," performs UL communication to transmit data to AP1, and AP2, which receives the "Announcement," performs DL communication to transmit data to STA3.

[0073] In this way, by using the AP_ID to specify the trigger destination included in "Announcement," the amount of information (e.g., the number of bits) used to specify the AP can be reduced, thereby reducing overhead. For example, compared to using a MAC address, when using the AP_ID, the number of bits can be reduced from 48 bits to 4 bits.

[0074] <Supplementary information> Although the example above shows the use of AP_ID, another identifier may be used instead of AP_ID. For example, AP1 may use Short ID as the identifier of STAs (and / or APs) that are not components of AP1's BSS. This allows AP1 to specify STAs that are not components of AP1's BSS as trigger destinations.

[0075] Furthermore, the target of the short ID may be limited to STAs and / or APs in the cooperating set, or may be limited to cooperating STAs and / or APs.

[0076] Although the above example shows the use of AP_ID to specify the destination of a trigger in the cooperative method C-SR, AP_ID and / or Short ID may be used in cooperative methods other than the cooperative method C-SR. Alternatively, AP_ID and / or Short ID may be used for purposes other than specifying the destination of a trigger.

[0077] Although the above example shows that the Master AP (AP1) transmits the C-SR-A, the Slave AP (AP2) may transmit the C-SR-A instead. Furthermore, the cooperative set may be controlled by a device other than the Master AP. In this case, each AP in the cooperative set including AP1 and AP2 may be a Slave AP.

[0078] Also, a Short ID or AP_ID may be included in the AID and / or AID12. This allows, for example, AP1 to specify a STA (including an AP) that is not a component of the BSS of AP1 using the AID and / or AID12 shown in FIG. 7. Note that a Short ID or AP_ID may be assigned to 1 to m of the AID and / or AID12, or 2 to m of the AID and / or AID12. n ~2 n +m, where m may be the maximum value of the Short ID or AID. Furthermore, part of the unused area of ​​AID12 (for example, 2008 to 2044 and 2047 to 4094 (see FIG. 7)) may be allocated to the Short ID or AP_ID. Alternatively, the Short ID or AP_ID value may be allocated in correspondence with another AID12 value. For example, when AP_ID values ​​0 to n are allocated to Slave APs, AID12 values ​​2008 to 2008+n may be allocated to those Slave APs.

[0079] Alternatively, the Master AP may handle all STAs (including Slave APs) in the cooperative set in a unified manner and assign AIDs and / or AID12s to them. For example, some of the values ​​1 to 2007 that are conventionally assigned to non-AP STAs associated with an AP may be assigned to Slave APs, and these values ​​may not be assigned to non-AP STAs. A predetermined range of values ​​from 1 to 2007 (for example, 2000 to 2006) may be reserved for Slave APs, and these values ​​may not be assigned to non-AP STAs.

[0080] Furthermore, BSS color may be used to specify APs to be included in AID and / or AID12. For example, some of the unused areas of AID12, "2008-2044" and "2047-2094," may be allocated to BSS color. Alternatively, the allocated areas "2045" and "2046" in AID12 may be changed to "2073" and "2074," and the area from "2008" to "2072" may be allocated to BSS color.

[0081] Furthermore, when the AP_ID is included in AID 12, the trigger for instructing the start of UL-DL communication may be changed. Figure 19 is a diagram showing a modification of the sequence shown in Figure 18. In Figure 19, the C-SR-A in Figure 18 is replaced with a UL trigger frame.

[0082] For example, the UL trigger frame may be used as a trigger to instruct the start of UL-DL communication, and an Announcement instructing the start of DL communication may not be used (or may not be transmitted). In this case, a User Info field for specifying DL communication may be added to the UL trigger frame, and the AP that will be the source of DL communication may be specified by AID12 in the added User Info field. This eliminates the need for an Announcement instructing the start of DL communication, thereby reducing overhead.

[0083] Furthermore, if the trigger for instructing the start of UL-DL communication is changed to a UL trigger frame, the use of a part of the User Info field for specifying an AP may be changed.

[0084] FIG. 20 is a diagram showing another example of AID12. FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of the User Info field based on FIG. 20. For example, as shown in FIG. 20, one of the unused areas of AID12 (e.g., "2008") may be used as an AP designation. When AID12 designates an AP (e.g., "2008"), the User Info field shown in FIG. 21 may be used. The User Info field shown in FIG. 21 changes the use of a specific area of ​​the User Info field shown in FIG. 6 to a use for setting information for indicating an AP (e.g., AP_ID). For example, the specific area whose use is changed may be a 6-bit area consisting of the "UL FEC Coding Type," "UL HE-MCS," and "UL DCM" fields, or may be a part of these areas, or may include areas other than these. Note that the BSS color may be used instead of the AP_ID as information for indicating an AP.

[0085] Alternatively, a trigger with an AP specification added may be used instead of the UL trigger frame. For example, a format may be defined in which the number of APs is added to the Common info field of Fig. 5. The AP may then be specified by the User Info field for the new AP. Fig. 22 is a diagram showing an example of the User Info field for the new AP.

[0086] 22 shows an example in which an AP is specified by an AP_ID, but a BSS color may be used instead of the AP_ID to specify an AP. Also, instead of adding the number of APs to the Common info field, a flag indicating whether or not a User Info field follows the AP User Info field may be added.

[0087] Furthermore, the "Trigger" and "Announcement" may be integrated using a multiplexing method such as OFDMA or MU-MIMO, or A-MPDU. Alternatively, the "Trigger" and "Announcement" may be separate PPDUs or packets. Instead of the AP_ID included in the information notified by the "Announcement," an AID including the AP_ID, AID12, or BSS color may be used.

[0088] For example, when "Trigger" and "Announcement" are integrated by OFDMA or MU-MIMO and transmitted in MU-PPDU, the STA ID (see FIG. 15) in the User field indicating the resource including "Trigger" may be a specific value such as "0" (the number indicating the associated STA shown in FIG. 7), and the STA ID in the User field indicating the resource including "Announcement" may be another specific value such as "2045" (the number indicating the unassociated STA (including the AP) shown in FIG. 7). The resource including "Trigger" may be, for example, at least one of a resource on the frequency axis (which may also be referred to as a resource unit) and a spatial resource of MU-MIMO.

[0089] Also, one of the unused fields in AID12 (for example, "2047") may be specified as a number indicating an AP or an AP in a cooperative set. In this case, for example, by setting the STA ID indicating the destination of an Announcement in an MU-PPDU to "2047", reception operations of nearby unassociated STAs can be avoided, and power consumption of the STAs can be reduced.

[0090] Also, one of the unused areas of AID12 (for example, "2048") may be set to a number indicating an AP with no AP_ID assigned or not included in the cooperation set, thereby enabling access to an AP with no AP_ID assigned or not included in the cooperation set.

[0091] Furthermore, the transmission power of AP2 may be calculated from "AP TX Power" and "UL Target RSSI" included in the trigger (for example, the UL trigger frame shown in FIGS. 5 and 6). In this case, a value that makes the interference from AP2 to AP1 equal to or less than a permissible value may be specified for "UL Target RSSI."

[0092] Furthermore, in transmission from AP2, beamforming may be performed with a null directed toward AP1.

[0093] <Example 2> In the above-mentioned Example 1, an operation example in which the Master AP designates an AP_ID is shown. In the following Example 2, an operation example in which a cooperative set is autonomously constructed and an AP_ID is designated is shown.

[0094] An AP that supports cooperative communication (hereinafter referred to as "installed AP") enables a flag (hereinafter referred to as "AP_ID flag") that indicates whether or not it supports cooperative communication and is included in a beacon or a probe response. Note that the AP_ID flag may use, for example, Reserve (e.g., B6) in the Capability Information shown in FIG. 11.

[0095] A newly installed AP (hereinafter referred to as an "additional AP") receives a beacon or probe response from the installed AP at or after startup, and if the AP_ID flag is valid, it transmits an AP association request to the installed AP. Fig. 23 is a diagram showing an example of information elements of the AP association request.

[0096] The installed AP that has received the AP association request transmits an AP association response to the additional AP. Fig. 24 is a diagram illustrating an example of information elements in the AP association response.

[0097] If the AP_ID indicating the installed AP specified in the AP association request has already been assigned to another AP, the installed AP may request reallocation to the additional AP.

[0098] Alternatively, if the AP_ID indicating the installed AP specified in the AP association request has already been assigned to another AP, the installed AP may add AP_ID assignment availability information to the AP association response.

[0099] In this case, the installed AP may include assignable AP_ID candidate information in the reassignment request or the AP association response. In this case, the installed AP may include the AP_ID of another AP specified in a past association or the like (hereinafter referred to as a "registered AP_ID") in the AP association response.

[0100] In the above description, the AP association request and the AP association response have been added with an AP_ID flag to distinguish them from the association request and the association response shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the distinction may be made using a determination means other than the AP_ID flag. In this case, the Capability Information may remain as is, or the Capability Information may be removed from the components. Furthermore, the AP association request may be an information element that includes the AP_ID in the association request shown in FIG. 9.

[0101] In this way, by associating the added AP and the installed AP, it is possible to specify each other's AP_ID.

[0102] <Supplementary information> The AP_ID may be specified using a beacon. For example, AP1, which is an installed AP, may include its own AP_ID and / or a registered AP_ID in the beacon. This eliminates the need for the AP_ID for the installed AP, which is an information element of the AP association request.

[0103] In this case, AP2, which is the additional AP, may set an AP_ID of AP2 that does not overlap with the registered AP_ID included in the beacon, and add the AP_ID of AP2 to the information element of the AP association request. This makes the AP_ID of the additional AP, which is an information element of the AP association response, unnecessary.

[0104] Furthermore, in the above description, an example of operation in which the AP_ID flag is included in the beacon or probe response has been shown, but the AP_ID flag does not have to be included in the beacon or probe response. In this case, the additional AP may transmit an AP association request when receiving a beacon. Furthermore, the installed AP may reject association with the additional AP if the additional AP that transmitted the association request does not support cooperative communication. Alternatively, the installed AP may reject association with the additional AP that transmitted the association request if the installed AP does not support cooperative communication.

[0105] Although the above description shows an example of an operation in which the AP_ID is designated by the installed AP or the additional AP, the AP_ID may be designated by the Master AP. In this case, the installed AP may be the Master AP, or the installed AP may notify the instructions of the Master AP.

[0106] Furthermore, the operation of association between the installed AP and the additional AP (AP-AP) may be the same as that of association between a STA and an AP (AP-STA), with the addition of the specification of an AP_ID. For example, the authentication and / or key exchange procedures performed in association between an AP and a STA may be performed between APs. This enables data transmission between APs, enabling efficient secure communication.

[0107] Furthermore, the AP_ID notified in the association request, association response, and beacon may be an AID including the AP_ID shown in Example 1 or AID12.

[0108] Additionally, when AP-to-AP associations are performed, a BSS dedicated to AP-to-AP associations may be defined using the Multiple BSSID function. In this case, a specific AID range value is specified in the AP AID range, and each AP participating in the BSS may assign a value outside the AP AID range to the AID of its STA. This allows the IDs of cooperative APs and their STAs to be managed centrally in the same AID space.

[0109] Also, an ID for communications addressed to multiple cooperative APs may be defined. For example, if one of the nontransmitted BSSIDs in a multiple BSSID is designated as a BSSID dedicated to the cooperative AP, the AID value corresponding to all BSSIDs dedicated to the cooperative AP can be used as an ID for communications addressed to multiple cooperative APs.

[0110] Furthermore, in AP-to-AP communication, an ID indicating random access similar to 11ax UL OFDMA-based random access (UORA) may be defined. That is, a special value of the AP_ID and / or the AID for the AP may be defined for random access. For example, when defining a BSS dedicated to AP-to-AP association of cooperative APs, a buffer status request trigger frame (BSRP Trigger frame) may be transmitted with AID=0 to request information on buffered data for cooperative communication from any AP, or an existing AP may transmit a trigger frame with AID=2045 so that a pre-association AP can transmit an association request.

[0111] Furthermore, the AP-to-AP association is not limited to applications in which multiple APs perform cooperative communication, but may also be used when multiple APs perform communication other than cooperative communication. For example, the AP-to-AP association may be used when multiple APs cooperate to perform functions other than communication, such as ranging, position detection, or sensing.

[0112] <Example 3> In Example 3, similar to Example 1, an operation of determining whether DL communication is possible after a trigger is transmitted in UL-DL communication that cooperates with the C-SR method will be described. The configuration of UL-DL communication is the same as in Example 1.

[0113] FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating an example of a sequence for performing UL-DL communication in Example 3. In FIG. 25, the transmission of the UL trigger frame and the UL communication (transmission and reception of UL data) between AP1 and STA1 may be the same as in Example 1. In FIG. 25, upon receiving the UL trigger frame, AP2 transmits an RTS addressed to STA2. If STA2 successfully receives the RTS (i.e., if there is little interference caused by data transmission and reception at AP1), STA2 transmits a CTS to AP2. Here, the successful reception of the RTS by STA2 may refer to a case where interference from other nearby wireless devices to STA2 (e.g., interference caused by data transmission and reception at AP1 to STA2) has little effect on the reception of the RTS. Then, if AP2 receives the CTS, it determines that DL communication is possible and performs data transmission (DL communication) to STA2.

[0114] Although the example above shows the case where RTS is transmitted, MU-RTS may be used if there are multiple candidates for the DL transmission destination of AP2.

[0115] In this way, by using CTS to determine whether DL communication is possible, unnecessary signal transmission (for example, DL transmission in a state where there is significant interference and the destination STA cannot receive the signal) can be stopped.

[0116] <Example 4> Example 3 shows a method for determining whether DL communication is possible using RTS / CTS. Example 4 explains an example in which a frame is used instead of the RTS / CTS used in Example 3. Below, as an example, a method for measuring the amount of interference using a frame called RTS+mes and / or a frame called CTS+mes (hereinafter, collectively sometimes referred to as RTS+mes / CTS+mes frames) is shown.

[0117] In Example 4, the transmission of the UL trigger frame and the UL communication may be the same as in Example 1. Upon receiving the UL trigger frame, AP2 transmits an RTS+mes message addressed to STA2. If STA2 successfully receives the RTS+mes message, STA2 measures the received power in the same frequency band as the RTS+mes message. The received power in the same frequency band as the RTS+mes message may correspond to the interference power caused by AP1's data transmission. STA2 then transmits a CTS+mes message in which information about the received power is added to the CTS message.

[0118] In this way, by using the RTS+mes / CTS+mes frame, the STA that receives the CTS+mes notifies the sender of the amount of interference it has measured, and the sender can then select an appropriate MCS to transmit data taking the interference into account, thereby improving throughput.

[0119] <Supplementary information> The format of RTS+mes may be the same as that of RTS, or may be the RTS format plus information on the frequency band (also called tone) to be measured by CTS+mes. By adding frequency band information, the frequency band to be measured by CTS+mes can be specified.

[0120] Furthermore, the free space in the MAC frame type shown in FIG. 14 may be used to specify the type of RTS+mes and / or CTS+mes. For example, RTS+mes may be set to "010000" and CTS+mes may be set to "010001." In addition, in the frame format of RTS and / or CTS, any of the specific bits in the frame control field shown in FIG. 13 may be changed to indicate RTS+mes / CTS+mes. For example, the specific bit whose use is changed may be any of "To DS," "From DS," "More Frag," "Retry," "Protected Frame," and "+HTC / Order" shown in FIG. 13. For example, when the frame format is RTS+mes and / or CTS+mes, the change in use may be indicated by setting the corresponding bit (e.g., "To DS") to 1.

[0121] <Example 5> In Example 1, an example of UL-DL communication coordinated using the C-SR scheme is shown, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. Figure 26 is a diagram showing another example of the arrangement of UL-DL communication. For example, as shown in Figure 26, if the arrangement of the devices in the cooperative set is such that STA2 is affected by interference from STA1, UL communication (transmission of UL data) from STA1 to AP1 and DL communication (transmission of DL data) from AP2 to STA2 may be UL-DL communication coordinated using the cooperative scheme C-OFDMA.

[0122] FIG. 27 is a diagram showing a sequence for performing UL-DL communication using the cooperative C-OFDMA method. The operation shown in FIG. 27 is the same as the operation using the cooperative C-SR method shown in Example 1 (for example, FIG. 19). However, the frequency band used for UL communication from STA1 to AP1, which are specified by the UL trigger frame, and the frequency band used for DL ​​communication from AP2 to STA2 are set to different frequency bands. Note that while FIG. 27 shows an example in which an "UL trigger frame" is used, a "Trigger" and an "Announcement" may also be used, as in FIG. 18. In this case, the frequency band used for UL communication from STA1 to AP1, which are specified by the "Trigger" and "Announcement," and the frequency band used for DL ​​communication from AP2 to STA2 are set to different frequency bands.

[0123] In this way, by using the same operation as for UL-DL communication coordinated by the C-SR method, the frequency bands used for UL communication and DL communication can be set to different frequency bands, and the case of coordinated C-OFDMA can also be supported.

[0124] 27, AP2 may determine to use C-OFDMA when the frequency band allocated to DL communication does not overlap with the frequency band allocated to UL communication. Furthermore, AP2 may determine to use C-SR when the frequency band allocated to DL communication overlaps with the frequency band allocated to UL communication. If C-SR is determined, AP2 may perform the operation shown in Example 3 or Example 4.

[0125] In the above-described embodiment, an example has been shown in which multiple APs perform cooperative communication with a STA, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, some of the multiple APs may be replaced with STAs. For example, the present disclosure may be applied to a case in which one or more APs and one or more STAs perform cooperative communication with another STA. Alternatively, the present disclosure may be applied to a case in which two or more STAs perform cooperative communication with another STA.

[0126] Furthermore, the terms used to represent each signal (each packet) in the above-described embodiment are merely examples, and the present disclosure is not limited to these.

[0127] Furthermore, the "... section" in the above-described embodiments may be a "... circuitry," a "... device," a "... unit," or a "... module."

[0128] The present disclosure can be realized by software, hardware, or software in conjunction with hardware. Each functional block described in the above embodiments may be partially or entirely realized as an LSI, which is an integrated circuit. Each process described in the above embodiments may be partially or entirely controlled by a single LSI or a combination of LSIs. An LSI may be composed of individual chips, or may be composed of a single chip that includes some or all of the functional blocks. An LSI may have data inputs and outputs. Depending on the level of integration, an LSI may be referred to as an IC, system LSI, super LSI, or ultra LSI. The integration method is not limited to LSIs; it may also be realized by dedicated circuits, general-purpose processors, or dedicated processors. Furthermore, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), which can be programmed after LSI fabrication, or a reconfigurable processor, which allows the connections and settings of circuit cells within an LSI to be reconfigured, may also be used. The present disclosure may be realized as digital or analog processing. Furthermore, if an integrated circuit technology that can replace LSI emerges due to advances in semiconductor technology or other derivative technologies, it is natural that such technology can be used to integrate functional blocks. The application of biotechnology is also a possibility.

[0129] The present disclosure may be implemented in any type of apparatus, device, or system with communications capabilities (collectively referred to as communications apparatus), including, but not limited to, telephones (e.g., cell phones, smartphones), tablets, personal computers (PCs) (e.g., laptops, desktops, notebooks), cameras (e.g., digital still / video cameras), digital players (e.g., digital audio / video players), wearable devices (e.g., wearable cameras, smartwatches, tracking devices), game consoles, digital book readers, telehealth / telemedicine devices, communications-enabled vehicles or mobile transportation (e.g., cars, airplanes, ships), and combinations of the above.

[0130] Communications equipment is not limited to portable or mobile equipment, but also includes non-portable or fixed equipment, devices, and systems of any kind, such as smart home devices (such as appliances, lighting equipment, smart meters or metering devices, control panels, etc.), vending machines, and any other "things" that may exist on an IoT (Internet of Things) network.

[0131] Communications include data communications via cellular systems, wireless LAN systems, communications satellite systems, etc., as well as data communications via combinations of these.

[0132] A communications apparatus also includes devices such as controllers and sensors connected or coupled to a communications device that performs the communications functions described in this disclosure, such as controllers and sensors that generate control and data signals used by the communications device to perform the communications functions of the communications apparatus.

[0133] The communication apparatus also includes infrastructure facilities, such as base stations, access points, and any other apparatus, device, or system that communicates with or controls the various apparatuses listed above, but are not limited to these.

[0134] A wireless communication device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a first wireless communication device, a control unit that assigns an identifier to a second wireless communication device that is not included in a basic service set to which the first wireless communication device belongs, and a transmission unit that transmits a signal including the identifier.

[0135] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit includes the identifier in an association identification field in a user information field of the signal.

[0136] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit assigns the identifier to a reserved value of the association identification field.

[0137] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit assigns the identifier to the second wireless communication device that performs at least one of uplink communication and downlink communication in cooperation with the first wireless communication device.

[0138] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first wireless communication device is a master access point that controls the second wireless communication device.

[0139] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit includes the identifier in the signal that is an association request.

[0140] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit sets the identifier to a destination specified in a user information field of the signal that is a trigger frame.

[0141] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit sets information indicating that the destination is an access point in the user information field of the signal that is a trigger frame, and sets the identifier in an information field in the user information field for non-access points.

[0142] A wireless communication device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a first wireless communication device, a transmitter that transmits a first control signal to a second wireless communication device and then transmits a second control signal, and a controller that determines whether or not to transmit downlink to the second wireless communication device in a spatial reuse cooperative scheme based on a response to the second control signal.

[0143] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the response includes information regarding an amount of interference determined based on the second control signal received at the second wireless communication device.

[0144] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a wireless communication method includes a first wireless communication device assigning an identifier to a second wireless communication device that is not included in a basic service set to which the first wireless communication device belongs, and transmitting a signal including the identifier.

[0145] A wireless communication device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a receiver that receives, from a second wireless communication device, a signal including an identifier of the first wireless communication device that is not included in a basic service set to which the second wireless communication device belongs.

[0146] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a wireless communication method includes a first wireless communication device receiving a signal from a second wireless communication device, the signal including an identifier of the first wireless communication device that is not included in a basic service set to which the second wireless communication device belongs.

[0147] The disclosures of the specification, drawings and abstract contained in Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-133229, filed on August 5, 2020, are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. [Industrial Applicability]

[0148] An embodiment of the present disclosure is useful in a mobile communication system. [Explanation of symbols]

[0149] 10, 100 Wireless communication device 11 Control section 12 Transmitter 101 Transmission packet generator 102 Radio transmitter / receiver 103 Received packet decoding unit 104 control signal generation unit

Claims

1. a wireless communication device that is a first access point, a control unit that selects and assigns an identifier value of a second access point that is not included in a basic service set to which the first access point belongs from values ​​that can be assigned to association identifiers of non-AP STAs that are included in the basic service set; a transmitter that transmits a signal in which the value assigned to the identifier of the second access point is included in an association identifier field in a user information field; Equipped with Wireless communication device.

2. the control unit excludes the value assigned to the identifier of the second access point from values ​​that can be assigned to association identifiers of the non-AP STAs. The wireless communication device according to claim 1 .

3. the control unit assigns the identifier value to the second access point that performs at least one of uplink communication and downlink communication in cooperation with the first access point. The wireless communication device according to claim 1 .

4. the first access point is a master access point that controls the second access point; The wireless communication device according to claim 3 .

5. the control unit includes the value assigned to the identifier in the signal that is an association request. The wireless communication device according to claim 3 .

6. the control unit sets a destination specified in a user information field of the signal that is a trigger frame to the value assigned to the identifier. The wireless communication device according to claim 1 .

7. the control unit sets information indicating that the destination is an access point in a user information field of the signal that is a trigger frame, and sets the value assigned to the identifier in an information field for non-access points in the user information field. The wireless communication device according to claim 1 .

8. The first access point assigning a value of an identifier of a second access point not included in a basic service set to which the first access point belongs, by selecting the value from values ​​that can be assigned to association identifiers of non-AP STAs included in the basic service set; transmitting a signal in which the value assigned to the identifier of the second access point is included in an association identifier field in a user information field; Wireless communication method.

9. a process of selecting and assigning an identifier value of a second access point that is not included in a basic service set to which the first access point belongs from values ​​that can be assigned to association identifiers of non-AP STAs that are included in the basic service set; a process of transmitting a signal in which the value assigned to the identifier of the second access point is included in an association identifier field in a user information field; An integrated circuit that controls

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