Devices and methods for coordinated transmission in wireless networks

Abstract

This disclosure relates to a shared access point AP (120) configured to participate in coordinated transmission by utilizing at least a portion of at least one transmit opportunity TXOP acquired and shared by a shared AP (110) operating under a coordinate agreement within a multi-AP, M-AP set. The shared AP (120) includes a processing circuit (121) configured to modify at least one parameter of a plurality of coordinate operation-related parameters. Furthermore, the shared AP (120) includes a communication interface (123) configured to transmit a frame to the shared AP (110). The frame includes a coordinate state field containing information indicating at least one modified parameter of a plurality of coordinate operation-related parameters.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to wireless communication. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to devices and methods for cooperative transmission in a wireless communication network, specifically in an IEEE 802.11-based WLAN.

Background Art

[0002] IEEE 802.11-based WLANs (also called Wi-Fi networks) are spreading at an unprecedented pace. 802.11be introduces multi-AP (M-AP) cooperative transmission, such as cooperative beamforming transmission, in which a group of access points (APs) can start simultaneous frame exchanges within a limited period, and one AP of the group of APs shares one or more acquired transmission opportunities (TXOPs). The group of APs that have decided to perform cooperative transmission cooperatively is called an M-AP set.

Summary of the Invention

Means for Solving the Problems

[0003] It is an object to provide an improved device and method for AP cooperative transmission in a wireless communication network, specifically in an IEEE 802.11-based WLAN.

[0004] The foregoing object and other objects are achieved by the subject matter of the independent claims. Further implementations will become apparent from the dependent claims, the description, and the figures.

[0005] According to a first embodiment, a shared access point (AP) is provided. The shared AP is configured to participate in coordinated transmission to one or more non-AP stations associated with the shared AP and one or more further non-AP stations associated with the shared AP, utilizing at least a portion of at least one transmit opportunity TXOP acquired and shared by a sharing AP operating under a coordinate agreement within a multi-AP (M-AP) set. The shared AP includes processing circuitry configured to modify at least one of a plurality of coordinate operation-related parameters used by the shared AP for coordinated transmission. The shared AP further includes a communication interface configured to include a coordinate state field in the frame transmitted to the sharing AP. The coordinate state field includes information indicating the modified parameter, at least one of a plurality of coordinate operation-related parameters. Thus, coordinate state updates can be indicated in an efficient and flexible manner, and multiple changes can be indicated with the same indication.

[0006] In further possible implementations of the first embodiment, the frame further includes an indication, specifically a flag bit, that indicates the presence of a cooperative state field in the frame.

[0007] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the co-state field includes a bitmap, where each bit of the bitmap corresponds to one of several co-operation-related parameters, and the value of each bit indicates whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

[0008] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the bitmap contains multiple bits.

[0009] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the co-state field contains one encoded value from a set of encoded values, each encoded value corresponding to one parameter from a plurality of co-operation-related parameters, indicating whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

[0010] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, a set of encoded values ​​includes multiple sequences of 3-bit values.

[0011] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, one set of encoded values ​​includes a value indicating that there is no change in at least one of several cooperative operation-related parameters.

[0012] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the frame further includes a co-state parameter field containing information indicating the value of at least one modified parameter among a plurality of co-operation-related parameters, as indicated in the co-state field.

[0013] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the co-action state field includes a set of subfields, each subfield containing one value of a co-action related parameter from a set of values ​​corresponding to the co-action related parameter.

[0014] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, each set of coordinate operation-related parameters includes a value indicating that there is no change to the corresponding parameter.

[0015] In further possible implementations of the first embodiment, the multiple co-operation-related parameters include parameters indicating changes in the bandwidth of the co-transmission, parameters indicating changes in the number of transmit space streams for the co-transmission, parameters indicating changes in the number of receive space streams for the co-transmission, parameters indicating the temporary suspension of shared APs participating in the current co-transmission that occurs at any time point until the end of the co-operation agreement, and / or parameters indicating shared APs that are no longer members of the co-operation agreement within the M-AP set.

[0016] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the communication interface is configured to send a frame to the shared AP after receiving a trigger frame from the shared AP.

[0017] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the communication interface is configured to receive a cooperative state polling frame from the shared AP and to transmit a frame to the shared AP.

[0018] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the communication interface is configured to receive M-AP state update frames from the sharing AP, the M-AP state update frame including a coordinating state field containing information indicating at least one parameter of a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters, the at least one parameter being modified by the sharing AP or any further shared AP of the current coordinating agreement.

[0019] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the communication interface is configured to send an acknowledgment frame to the shared AP in response to receiving an M-AP state update frame from the shared AP.

[0020] In a further possible implementation of the first embodiment, the M-AP state update frame includes an M-AP set identifier that indicates an M-AP set.

[0021] In a further possible implementation of the first aspect, the M-AP state update frame further includes a coordinating agreement identifier within the M-AP set. The coordinating agreement identifier can identify one of several coordinating agreements within the M-AP set, and the sharing AP and the shared AP can operate under the coordinating agreement identified by the coordinating agreement identifier within the M-AP set.

[0022] According to a second aspect, a method is provided for operating a shared access point AP configured to participate in coordinated transmission to one or more non-AP stations associated with the shared AP and one or more further non-AP stations associated with the shared AP, by utilizing at least a portion of one transmit opportunity TXOP acquired and shared by a shared AP operating under a coordinate agreement within a multi-AP (M-AP) set. The method comprises the following steps: A step of modifying at least one parameter among several cooperative operation-related parameters used by the shared AP for cooperative transmission, A step of including a coordination state field in a frame transmitted to a shared AP, wherein the coordination state field includes information indicating at least one modified parameter among a plurality of coordination operation-related parameters. Includes.

[0023] The method according to the second aspect of this disclosure can be implemented by the shared AP according to the first aspect of this disclosure. Therefore, further features of the method according to the second aspect of this disclosure are directly derived from the functionality of the shared AP according to the first aspect of this disclosure, as well as from its various implementations described above and below.

[0024] According to a third aspect, a shared access point (AP) is provided. The shared AP is configured to share at least a portion of a transmit opportunity TXOP with multiple shared APs operating under a coordinating agreement within a multi-AP (M-AP) set to participate in coordinated transmission to one or more non-AP stations associated with the shared AP and multiple further non-AP stations associated with multiple shared APs. The shared AP has a communication interface configured to receive frames from one of the multiple shared APs, the frames containing a coordinating state field that includes information indicating a modified parameter of at least one of multiple coordinating operation-related parameters used by the shared AP for coordinated transmission. Thus, coordinating state updates can be indicated in an efficient and flexible manner, and multiple changes can be indicated in the same frame.

[0025] In further possible implementations of the third aspect, the frame further includes an indication, specifically a flag bit, that indicates the presence of a cooperative state field.

[0026] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the cooperation state field includes a bitmap, each bit of the bitmap corresponds to one of a plurality of cooperation operation related parameters, and the value of each bit indicates whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

[0027] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the bitmap includes a plurality of bits.

[0028] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the cooperation state field includes one of a set of encoded values, each encoded value corresponds to one of a plurality of cooperation operation related parameters, and indicates whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

[0029] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, a set of encoded values includes a plurality of sequences of 3-bit values.

[0030] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, a set of encoded values includes a value indicating that at least one of a plurality of cooperation operation related parameters has not been changed.

[0031] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the frame further includes a cooperation state parameter field including information indicating the value of at least one modified parameter indicated by the cooperation state field among a plurality of cooperation operation related parameters.

[0032] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the cooperation state field includes a set of sub-fields, each sub-field includes one of a set of values corresponding to a cooperation operation related parameter, among the cooperation operation related parameters.

[0033] <� In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, each set of values of the cooperation operation related parameters includes a value indicating that the corresponding parameter has not been changed.

[0034] In further possible implementations of the third aspect, the multiple co-operation-related parameters include parameters indicating changes in the bandwidth of the co-transmission, parameters indicating changes in the number of transmit space streams for the co-transmission, parameters indicating changes in the number of receive space streams for the co-transmission, parameters indicating the temporary suspension of shared APs currently participating in the co-transmission that occurs at any time point until the end of the co-operation agreement, and / or parameters indicating shared APs that are no longer members of the co-operation agreement within the M-AP set.

[0035] In a further possible implementation of the third embodiment, the frame further includes a co-state parameter field containing information indicating the value of at least one modified parameter among a plurality of co-operation-related parameters.

[0036] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the co-state field includes a bitmap. Each bit of the bitmap may correspond to one of several co-operation-related parameters, and the value of each bit may indicate whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

[0037] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, each bitmap contains multiple bits.

[0038] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the co-state field includes a bit sequence codeword of a set of codewords. Each codeword in the set of codewords may correspond to one of several co-operation-related parameters, indicating whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

[0039] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, a set of codewords includes multiple sequences of 3 bits.

[0040] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, a set of codewords includes a codeword indicating that there is no change in at least one of several cooperative operation-related parameters.

[0041] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the multiple co-operation-related parameters used by the shared AP for co-transmission include a parameter indicating the bandwidth of the co-transmission, a parameter indicating the number of transmit space streams for the co-transmission, a parameter indicating the number of receive space streams for the co-transmission, a parameter indicating the suspension of a shared AP participating in the co-transmission, and / or a parameter indicating a shared AP that is no longer a member of the co-operation agreement within the M-AP set.

[0042] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the communication interface is configured to send a trigger frame to the shared AP in order to notify the shared AP to send a frame to the shared AP.

[0043] In a further possible implementation of the third embodiment, the communication interface is configured to send a cooperative state polling frame to the shared AP.

[0044] In a further possible implementation of the third embodiment, the communication interface is configured to send an M-AP state update frame to at least one further shared AP among a plurality of shared APs, the M-AP state update frame includes a coordinating state field which includes information indicating at least one modified parameter among a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters.

[0045] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the M-AP state update frame includes an M-AP set identifier that indicates an M-AP set.

[0046] In a further possible implementation of the third aspect, the M-AP state update frame further includes a coordinating agreement identifier within the M-AP set, the coordinating agreement identifier identifies one of several coordinating agreements within the M-AP set, and the sharing AP and several shared APs operate under the coordinating agreement identified by the coordinating agreement identifier within the M-AP set.

[0047] A fourth aspect provides a method for operating a shared access point AP configured to share at least a portion of a transmit opportunity TXOP with multiple shared APs operating under a coordinating agreement in a multi-AP (M-AP) set in order to participate in coordinated transmission to one or more non-AP stations associated with the shared AP and multiple further non-AP stations associated with multiple shared APs. The method includes the following steps: receiving a frame from one of the multiple shared APs, wherein the frame includes a coordinating state field containing information indicating identification information for at least one modified parameter of a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters used by the shared AP for coordinated transmission.

[0048] In a further possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the method further includes the step of transmitting an M-AP state update frame to at least one further shared AP among a plurality of shared APs, wherein the M-AP state update frame includes a cooperating state field that includes information indicating identification information for at least one modified parameter among a plurality of cooperating operation-related parameters.

[0049] The method according to the fourth aspect of this disclosure may be implemented by the shared AP according to the third aspect of this disclosure. Therefore, further features of the method according to the fourth aspect of this disclosure are directly derived from the functionality of the shared AP according to the third aspect of this disclosure, as well as from its various implementations described above and below.

[0050] According to the fifth aspect, a computer program product is provided which includes a computer-readable storage medium for storing program code, wherein when the program code is executed by a computer or processor, the computer or processor is made to execute the method of the second aspect or the method of the fourth aspect.

[0051] Details of one or more embodiments are described in the accompanying drawings and the following description. Other features, purposes, and advantages will become apparent from the description, drawings, and claims.

[0052] The embodiments of this disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to the attached figures and drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0053] [Figure 1] An exemplary wireless communication network including a shared AP and a shared AP for coordinated transmission according to one embodiment is shown. [Figure 2a] The conventional M-AP cooperative transmission flow method is illustrated as an example. [Figure 2b] This example demonstrates the use of a state update polling trigger frame to receive state update reports regarding changes in coordination parameters. [Figure 3] This demonstrates the inclusion of a cooperation state field in a frame transmitted from a shared AP to a shared AP during a typical sequential procedure according to one embodiment. [Figure 3a] This describes including a coordination status field in a completion instruction frame transmitted by a shared AP to a shared AP during a sequential procedure in the form of a Cooperative Beamforming (CoBF) sounding procedure, according to one embodiment. [Figure 4a] A schematic diagram illustrating the bitmap data structure of the cooperative state field of a frame transmitted by a shared AP according to one embodiment is shown. [Figure 4b] A schematic diagram illustrating the encoded bit sequence data structure of the cooperative state field of a frame transmitted by a shared AP according to one embodiment is shown. [Figure 4c] A schematic diagram illustrating the data structure of the cooperative state parameter field of a frame transmitted by a shared AP according to one embodiment is shown. [Figure 4d] A schematic diagram illustrating the data structure of the cooperative state field of a frame transmitted by a shared AP according to one embodiment is shown. [Figure 5]A schematic diagram illustrating the indication of the presence of a cooperative state field in a frame transmitted by a shared AP according to one embodiment is shown. [Figure 6] A schematic diagram illustrating the transmission of an M-AP status update frame by a shared AP according to one embodiment is shown. [Figure 7] This flowchart illustrates a method for operating a shared AP according to one embodiment. [Figure 8] This flowchart illustrates a method for operating a shared access point (AP) according to one embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0054] Hereafter, the same reference numeral refers to the same or at least functionally equivalent feature.

[0055] The following description refers to accompanying drawings that form part of the Disclosure and illustrate specific aspects of the embodiments of the Disclosure or specific aspects in which the embodiments of the Disclosure may be used. It is understood that the embodiments of the Disclosure may be used in other aspects and may include structural or logical modifications not shown in the drawings. Therefore, the following detailed description should not be constrained to mean limiting meaning, and the scope of the Disclosure is defined by the accompanying claims.

[0056] For example, it should be understood that disclosures relating to a described method may also apply to a corresponding device or system configured to perform that method, and vice versa. For example, if one or more steps of a particular method are described, the corresponding device may include one or more units, e.g., functional units (e.g., one unit that performs one or more steps, or multiple units, each performing one or more of the steps), even if such one or more units are not explicitly described or illustrated, for performing the steps of the one or more methods described. On the other hand, for example, if a particular device is described based on one or more units, e.g., functional units, the corresponding method may include one step to perform the function of one or more units (e.g., one step performing the function of one or more units, or multiple steps each performing one or more functions of the multiple units), even if such one or more steps are not explicitly described or illustrated. Furthermore, it should be understood that the various exemplary embodiments and / or features of the aspects described herein may be combined with each other unless otherwise specified.

[0057] Figure 1 shows an exemplary wireless communication network 100, which includes a shared AP 110 having multiple associated non-AP stations 115a-c for coordinated transmission according to one embodiment, and a shared AP 120 having multiple associated non-AP stations 125a,b (also called STA 125a,b). To be understood, and as will be explained in more detail below, being a shared AP and a shared AP can be thought of as the roles or functions provided by the shared AP 110 and shared AP 120 in the exemplary scenario shown in Figure 1, but the opposite may occur in further coordinated transmission. In other words, in further coordinated transmission, AP 120 acts as the shared AP and AP 110 is the shared AP.

[0058] The wireless communication network 100 may be a WLAN (also known as a Wi-Fi network 100) compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard framework. For clarity, Figure 1 shows only a single shared AP 120 along with its associated non-AP stations 125a, b, but embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented with multiple shared APs 120, such as the exemplary shared AP 120 shown in Figure 1.

[0059] As an example, Figure 1 shows a scenario of Cooperative Beamforming Transmission (also known as CoBF transmission). However, as can be understood, embodiments disclosed herein may also be implemented in other types of cooperative transmission schemes. CoBF transmission is a cooperative scheme proposed for next-generation Wi-Fi for simultaneous data transmission by several APs. This cooperative scheme assumes that each participating AP has the ability to precode its transmission signal, thereby minimizing (also known as nulling) mutual interference between this AP and non-AP stations, i.e., OBSS (overlapping BSS) STAs, during cooperative transmission. Like all other cooperative schemes, CoBF is initialized by a sharing AP that proposes to other APs (called shared APs) to transmit simultaneously. The proposed resources in this case are spatial streams, and the sharing AP allocates a certain number of spatial streams to each shared AP. CoBF can utilize an additional sounding procedure to estimate the channel between the APs and non-AP stations. Based on the estimated channel, the APs can construct a precoder matrix to generate beams and nulls toward the non-AP stations participating in the current CoBF transmission.

[0060] The shared AP 110 shown in Figure 1 is configured to share at least a portion of the transmit opportunity TXOP with the shared AP 120 under the same coordinating agreement within a multi-AP set (also known as an M-AP set) to participate in coordinating transmits, such as coordinating beamforming transmits. As illustrated in Figure 1, the shared AP 110 comprises a processing circuit 111 and a communication interface 113, specifically a wireless communication interface 113 compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard framework. The processing circuit 111 may be implemented in hardware and / or software and may comprise a digital circuit, or both analog and digital circuits. The digital circuit may comprise components such as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a digital signal processor (DSP), or a general-purpose processor. The shared AP 110 may further comprise a memory 114 configured to store executable program code that, when executed by the processing circuit 111, causes the shared AP 110 to perform the functions and methods described herein.

[0061] Similarly, the exemplary shared AP 120 illustrated in Figure 1 comprises a processing circuit 121 and a communication interface 123, specifically a wireless communication interface 123 conforming to the IEEE 802.11 standard framework. The processing circuit 121 may be implemented in hardware and / or software and may comprise a digital circuit, or both analog and digital circuits. The digital circuit may comprise components such as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a digital signal processor (DSP), or a general-purpose processor. The shared AP 120 may further comprise a memory 124 configured to store executable program code that, when executed by the processing circuit 121, causes the exemplary shared AP 120 to perform the functions and methods described herein.

[0062] Similarly, an exemplary non-AP station 125a associated with the exemplary shared AP 120 illustrated in Figure 1 comprises a processing circuit 126a and a communication interface 127a, specifically a wireless communication interface 127a conforming to the IEEE 802.11 standard framework. The processing circuit 126a may be implemented in hardware and / or software and may comprise a digital circuit, or both analog and digital circuits. The digital circuit may comprise components such as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a digital signal processor (DSP), or a general-purpose processor. The exemplary non-AP station 125a may further comprise a memory 128a configured to store executable program code that, when executed by the processing circuit 126a, causes the exemplary non-AP station 125a to perform the functions and methods described herein.

[0063] Some co-transmission schemes may involve communication between APs 110 and 120 and their OBSS stations 115a-c, 125a, and b, i.e., between APs 110 and 120 and non-AP stations 115a-c, 125a, and b associated with other APs. For example, as already mentioned above, in the case of CoBF transmission, APs 110 and 120 can perform a sounding procedure and request sounding feedback reports from both non-AP stations associated with them and non-AP stations associated with other APs (also known as OBSS, or overlapping non-AP stations).

[0064] Figure 2a illustrates a conventional M-AP cooperative transmission flow scheme 200. The M-AP cooperative transmission flow scheme 200 shown in Figure 2 includes the following main stages: In stage 201, one set of APs is determined to participate in cooperative transmission (this set is called a multi-AP set or M-AP set). In cooperative transmission agreement stages 203 and 223, all member APs of the M-AP set or a subset thereof agree to share each acquired TXOP or a portion thereof with at least one other member AP operating under the same agreement. The cooperative agreement can persist across several TXOPs 213a-b, 231b in which a particular participant, i.e., the shared AP 120, can exchange TXOPs. As already mentioned above, each TXOP can be owned by an individual AP (referred to as the sharing AP 110), but all other APs, i.e., the shared AP 120, can only transmit when triggered to do so by the sharing AP 110, as illustrated by the pre-TX stages 211a, 211b, and 231a in Figure 2. The sharing AP 110 decides which APs to share resources with and how in the current TXOP (this is announced by the sharing AP and may be approved by the shared AP).

[0065] As further illustrated in Figure 2a, M-AP cooperative operations 210, 230 may be defined over a specific period of time, after which they may be modified or terminated / restarted. This may include, for example, time limits to allow the dynamic behavior of the Wi-Fi network 100 and certain parameters / processes to be tracked and modified accordingly.

[0066] The M-AP operating principle discussed by the IEEE defines two main roles: the shared AP 110 and the shared AP 120. Only the shared AP 110, i.e., the holder of the current TXOP, can initiate the M-AP cooperative transmission / procedure. All shared APs 120 must be triggered by the shared AP 110 to initiate transmission.

[0067] This raises the question of how the shared AP 120 can notify the sharing AP 110 and / or other APs of changes / updates related to the current M-AP cooperative transmission operation. For example, how can the shared AP 120 indicate that it wants to discontinue the cooperative agreement? While prior art discusses and mentions specific ideas for terminating M-AP cooperative transmission operation, it does not provide detailed solutions for the shared AP 120.

[0068] Current prior art ideas do not provide a solution for the shared AP 120 to indicate any changes related to M-AP operation, particularly beyond the shared AP 120's intention to terminate participation in the coordinate agreement under the M-AP set. Therefore, it is necessary to enable the shared AP 120 to easily and efficiently provide relevant information about changes that may affect the operation of M-AP coordinate transmission.

[0069] As schematically illustrated in Figure 2b, TXOP 213a is initiated following the M-AP trigger frame 202. The problem here is that the sharing AP 110 does not know when there are important things to indicate on the shared AP 120. A simple way is to create a polling frame 215, which would require the shared AP 120 to actively indicate whether there are any changes in the coordination parameters, for example, by sending a status update report 217. However, in order to prevent the shared AP 120 from waiting too long for an opportunity to indicate this, the polling 215 must be sent frequently (e.g., every TXOP 213a~b, 231b). On the other hand, sending this polling 215 frequently would incur overhead, as most of the time the sharing AP has no changes to indicate.

[0070] Figure 3 shows the pre-transmission (pre-TX) stage of M-AP coordinated transmission performed by a shared AP 110 and a shared AP 120 according to one embodiment. As illustrated in Figure 3, the shared AP 110 sends a sequential procedure trigger frame 302 to initiate a sequential procedure 303 with each of the shared APs operating under the same coordinate agreement. Once the sequential procedure 303, which may include further frame exchanges, is complete, the shared AP 120 can send a frame 305 to the shared AP 110. Figure 3a shows a more specific example of Figure 3, where the sequential procedure 303 is a coordinated beamforming (CoBF) sounding procedure performed by the shared AP 110 and the shared AP 120. In the more specific example of Figure 3a, the shared AP 110 sends a CoBF sounding trigger frame 202 to the shared AP 120. The CoBF sounding procedure 303 may involve several frames being exchanged between the shared AP 120 and its associated non-AP STA and / or (unassociated) OBSS non-AP STA. Once the CoBF sounding procedure 303, illustrated in Figure 3a, is complete, the shared AP 120 can send a conflict instruction frame 305 to the sharing AP 110.

[0071] As schematically illustrated in Figures 3 and 3a and described in more detail below, the main idea of ​​the present application is to include, in addition to other data, a new field called a coordinating state field 307 by the shared AP 120 within any frame 305 transmitted to the shared AP 110. The coordinating state field 307 may be a short field, i.e., a short field of a few bits to a few bytes that can indicate that a particular change is needed and can also provide short relevant information about the modified parameter. This allows the shared AP 120 to notify the shared AP 110 of changes to the coordinating transmission agreements 203, 223 in any frame 305 transmitted to the shared AP 110, specifically during TXOPs 213a, 213b, and 231a.

[0072] As already mentioned above, the shared access point AP 120 is configured to participate in coordinated transmission to one or more non-AP stations 125a,b associated with the shared AP 120 and one or more further non-AP stations 115a-c associated with the shared AP 110, by utilizing at least a portion of at least one TXOP 213a, 213b, 231a acquired and shared by the shared AP 110 operating under the coordinated transmission agreements 203, 223 (also known as the coordinated agreements) within the multi-AP, M-AP set.

[0073] The processing circuit 121 of the shared AP 120 is configured to modify at least one of several coordinate operation-related parameters used by the shared AP 120 for coordinate transmission.

[0074] The communication interface 123 of the shared AP 120 is configured to include a coordination state field 307 in the frame 305 transmitted to the sharing AP 110. The coordination state field 307 contains information indicating at least one modified parameter among a plurality of coordination operation-related parameters. Complementarily, the communication interface 113 of the sharing AP 110 is configured to receive the frame 305 from the shared AP 120, which may be one of a plurality of shared APs 120.

[0075] Figure 4a shows a schematic diagram illustrating a proposed form of a coordinating state field 307 that may be included in a frame 305 transmitted by a shared AP 120 according to one embodiment. As schematically illustrated in Figure 4a, the coordinating state field 307 may include a bitmap. Each bit 401-411 of the bitmap may correspond to one of several coordinating operation-related parameters. The value of each bit 401-411 may indicate whether the corresponding parameter has been modified; that is, each bit 401-411 may be set to a true / false state to indicate a particular change.

[0076] A bitmap can contain multiple bits, 401 through 411. As illustrated in Figure 4a, a bitmap can contain 6 bits. As can be understood, a bitmap may instead contain fewer or more than 6 bits.

[0077] As further illustrated in Figure 4a, the multiple coordinating operation-related parameters used by the shared AP 120 for coordinating transmission may include, specifically, bits in the bitmap, a first parameter 401 indicating a change in the bandwidth of the coordinating transmission, a second parameter 403 indicating a change in the number of transmit space streams for coordinating transmission, a third parameter 405 indicating a change in the number of receive space streams for coordinating transmission, a fourth parameter 407 indicating a shared AP 120 that is no longer a member of the current coordinating agreement within the M-AP set, a fifth parameter 409 indicating a temporary suspension of the shared AP 120 participating in the coordinating transmission that occurs at any time point until the end of the coordinating agreement, and / or a sixth parameter 411 reserved for further instructions or application-specific instructions. As understood, the order of parameters 401-411 may be arbitrarily selected.

[0078] Alternatively, the coordinating state field 307 may contain one encoded value from a set of encoded values, as illustrated in Figure 4b. Each encoded value may correspond to one of several coordinating operation-related parameters and may indicate whether the corresponding parameter has been modified. A set of encoded values ​​may indicate a corresponding parameter, similar to the first to sixth parameters 401-411. A set of encoded values ​​may further include a value indicating that at least one of the several coordinating operation-related parameters has not been changed.

[0079] For example, a set of encoded values ​​may include multiple sequences of 3-bit values. The encoded values ​​may be associated to indicate states as follows: that sequence "000" may indicate no change in at least one of several coordinating parameters; sequence "001" may indicate a change in the bandwidth of the coordinating transmission; sequence "010" may indicate a change in the number of transmit space streams for the coordinating transmission; sequence "011" may indicate a change in the number of receive space streams for the coordinating transmission; sequence "100" may indicate a shared AP 120 that is no longer a member of the current coordinating agreement within the M-AP set; sequence "101" may be reserved for further instructions or application-specific instructions; and sequence "111" may indicate a pause of a shared AP 120 participating in the coordinating transmission that occurs at any point in time until the end of the coordinating agreement. As understood, the association of sequences may be arbitrarily selected.

[0080] Figure 4c shows a schematic diagram illustrating the format of a coordinating state parameter field 311 that may be included in a frame 305 transmitted by a shared AP 120 according to one embodiment. As schematically illustrated in Figure 4b, the frame 305 may further include a coordinating state parameter field 311 that includes information indicating the value of at least one modified parameter among a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters.

[0081] The Coordination Status Parameter Field 311 can provide more detailed information about some changes, such as specifying the new values ​​of updated parameters. The Coordination Status Parameter Field 311 may be transmitted following the Coordination Status Field 307. The Coordination Status Parameter Field 311 may include one or more subfields 421, 423, 425, each of which is, for example, 4 bits, in response to the number of changes, as illustrated in Figure 4c.

[0082] In the case of bitmap format, there may be multiple subfields 421, 423, and 425 corresponding to each change shown. In the case of encoded value format, there may be a single subfield corresponding to the change shown.

[0083] For example, as illustrated in Figure 4c, the coordination state parameter field 311 may include a first subfield 421 indicating a new value for the number of transmit space streams for coordinated transmission, a second subfield 423 indicating a new value for the number of receive space streams for coordinated transmission, and / or a third subfield 425 indicating a declared period for temporary suspension in units of time or units of TXOP(number) of shared APs 120 participating in coordinated transmission under the current coordination agreement.

[0084] Figure 4d is a schematic diagram illustrating further possible forms of a coordinating state field 307 that may be included in a frame 305 transmitted by a shared AP 120 according to one embodiment. As schematically illustrated in Figure 4d, in this embodiment, the coordinating state field 307 may include a plurality of subfields 401-411, each subfield may include the actual values ​​of the corresponding operation-related parameters. In one embodiment, the values ​​of each set of coordinating operation-related parameters may include values ​​indicating that there has been no change to the corresponding parameters. As an example, the coordinating state field illustrated in Figure 4d includes a subfield 401 for the value of the coordinating transmission bandwidth, a subfield 403 for the number of transmit space streams for the coordinating transmission, a subfield 405 for the number of receive space streams for the coordinating transmission, a subfield 407 for the value of a parameter indicating a pause of the shared AP 120 participating in the current coordinating transmission, occurring at any time portion until the end of the coordinating agreement, a subfield 409 for the value of a parameter indicating that the shared AP 120 is no longer a member of the coordinating agreement in the M-AP set, and a reserved subfield 411.

[0085] In general, the transmission of the cooperation state field 307 may be performed according to a first transmission mode, a second transmission mode, or a third transmission mode. As understood, the shared AP 120 and the sharing AP 110 may be configured to operate based on the first transmission mode, the second transmission mode, and / or the third transmission mode.

[0086] In the first transmission mode, i.e., the unrequested mode, the shared AP 120 may independently decide to add a cooperation state field 307 and optionally a cooperation state parameter field 311 to any frame 305 sent to the sharing AP, which may, for example, be part of a completion instruction frame 305, as illustrated in Figure 3b.

[0087] A second transmission mode, i.e., a request mode, may include a cooperation state request instruction. The shared AP 110 can indicate to the shared AP 120 that it will transmit the cooperation state field 307 and optionally the cooperation state parameter field 311 in the next M-AP cooperation-related frame. For example, an M-AP trigger frame 302 that initiates a sequential procedure may include this instruction, and the shared AP 120 can transmit the cooperation state field in a completion instruction frame 305, as illustrated in Figure 3b.

[0088] More specifically, in the second transmission mode, the communication interface 113 of the shared AP 110 may be configured to send a trigger frame 302 to the shared AP 120 in order to notify the shared AP 120 that it will send a frame 305 to the shared AP 110, and the communication interface 123 of the shared AP 120 may be configured to send a frame 305 to the shared AP 110 after receiving a trigger frame 302 from the shared AP 110.

[0089] A third transmission mode may include M-AP coordination state polling. The shared AP 110 can transmit a dedicated frame or add instructions to the M-AP trigger frame 202 and request the shared AP 120 to transmit a frame containing a coordination state update field 307 and optionally a coordination state parameter field 311. In this third transmission mode, the shared AP 120 must transmit a dedicated response frame immediately after receiving instructions in the polling frame or trigger frame.

[0090] More specifically, in the third transmission mode, the communication interface 113 of the shared AP 110 may be configured to send a coordination status polling frame to the shared AP 120, and the communication interface 123 of the shared AP 120 may be configured to receive a coordination status polling frame from the shared AP 110 and send a frame 305 to the shared AP 110 in response.

[0091] Figure 5 shows a schematic diagram illustrating an indication of the presence of a cooperative state field 307 in a frame 305 transmitted by a shared AP 120 according to one embodiment. In the first transmission mode, when the shared AP 120 decides to add a state update to frame 305, the shared AP 120 can indicate to the shared AP 110 that the state update is being transmitted by the cooperative state field 307.

[0092] As illustrated in Figure 5, frame 305 may be a completion instruction frame, which may include, for example, a MAC header field 501 and an M-AP instruction field 503. The M-AP instruction field 503 may include multiple subfields, such as an M-AP set identifier subfield, a coordination agreement identifier subfield, and subfields for the AP address and / or identifier. An instruction for the presence of a state update included in the current frame may be made by instruction 505, specifically by a single flag bit 505. This flag bit may be set to "1", for example, if frame 305 includes a coordination state field 307. As further illustrated in Figure 5, the coordination state field 307 may be transmitted as the first or last field of the payload in frame 305.

[0093] Figure 6 shows a schematic diagram illustrating the transmission of an M-AP status update frame 309 by a shared AP 110. An M-AP status update frame 309 may be transmitted by the shared AP 110 to indicate one or more specific updates / changes. The M-AP status update frame 309 may be transmitted to a specific AP or several shared APs and may contain unicast information to each of those APs. Alternatively, the M-AP status update frame 309 may be transmitted as a broadcast frame to all relevant shared APs, specifically to all shared APs 120 within the range of the shared AP 110. The M-AP status update frame 309 may be transmitted when any of the shared APs 120 transmit a cooperative status field 307, or when the shared AP 110 needs to indicate a change. If the M-AP status update frame 309 is transmitted as a unicast frame, it may request an ACK frame 313 from the intended recipient.

[0094] The M-AP state update frame may include an M-AP set identifier indicating an M-AP set, a coordinating state field 307, a coordinating state parameter field 311 if required by the corresponding transmission mode, and / or a coordinating agreement identifier within the M-AP set in particular. The coordinating agreement identifier can identify one of several coordinating agreements within the M-AP set, and the shared AP 110 and shared AP 120 operate under the coordinating agreement identified by the coordinating agreement identifier within the M-AP set.

[0095] More specifically, the communication interface 113 of the shared AP 110 may be configured to send an M-AP state update frame 309 to at least one further shared AP 120 among a plurality of shared APs 120, and the communication interface 123 of the shared AP 120 is configured to receive the state update frame 309 from the shared AP 110. The state update frame 309 may include a coordination state field 307 containing information indicating identification information for at least one modified parameter among a plurality of coordination operation-related parameters, the at least one parameter being modified by the shared AP 110 or a further shared AP 120 of the current coordination agreement. In response to receiving the state update frame 309 from the shared AP 110, the communication interface 123 may be configured to send an acknowledgment frame 311 to the shared AP 110.

[0096] Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method 700 for operating a shared access point AP 120 according to one embodiment. As already described above, the shared access point AP 120 is configured to participate in coordinated transmission to one or more non-AP stations 125a, b associated with the shared AP 120 and one or more further non-AP stations 115a~c associated with the shared AP 110, by utilizing at least a portion of at least one TXOP acquired and shared by the shared AP 110 operating under a coordinated transmission agreement in a multi-AP, M-AP set.

[0097] Method 700 includes step 701 of modifying at least one parameter of several coordinate operation-related parameters used by the shared AP 120 for coordinate transmission.

[0098] Method 700 further comprises step 703, which includes a coordination state field 307 in a frame 305 transmitted to the shared AP 110, wherein the coordination state field 307 includes information indicating at least one modified parameter among a plurality of coordination operation-related parameters. As already described above, in one embodiment, the frame may further include a coordination state parameter field 311 in addition to the coordination state field.

[0099] Since Method 700 can be implemented by the shared AP 120, further features of Method 700 are derived directly from the functionality of the shared AP 120, as well as from its various embodiments described above and below.

[0100] Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method 800 for operating a shared access point AP 110 according to one embodiment. As already described above, the shared AP 110 is configured to share at least a portion of the transmit opportunity TXOP with multiple shared APs 120 operating under a cooperative agreement within a multi-AP, M-AP set, in order to participate in coordinated transmission to one or more non-AP stations 115a-c associated with the shared AP 110 and multiple further non-AP stations associated with multiple shared APs 120.

[0101] Method 800 includes step 801 of receiving a frame 305 from one of a plurality of shared APs 120, wherein the frame 305 includes a coordinating state field 307 which includes information indicating identification information for at least one modified parameter of a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters used by the shared AP 120 for coordinating transmission. As already described above, the shared AP 120 may further include an indication of the presence of the coordinating state field 307 in any frame transmitted by the shared AP 120 during the pretransmission stage.

[0102] Method 800 is a step of sending a status update frame 309 to at least one further shared AP 120 of a plurality of shared APs 120, the status update frame 309 further includes a coordinating status field 307 which includes information indicating identification information of at least one modified parameter of a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters.

[0103] Method 800 may further include the step of requesting the shared AP 120 to send frame 305 to the shared AP 110 by sending a coordination status polling frame to the shared AP 120.

[0104] Since Method 800 can be implemented by the shared AP 110, further features of Method 800 are derived directly from the functions of the shared AP 110, as well as from its various embodiments described above and below.

[0105] Those skilled in the art will understand that the “blocks” (“units”) in various figures (methods and apparatus) represent or illustrate the function of embodiments of the present disclosure (not necessarily individual “units” of hardware or software), and thus equally illustrate the function or features of embodiments of apparatus and embodiments of methods (unit = step).

[0106] It should be understood that in some embodiments provided in this application, the disclosed systems, apparatus, and methods may be implemented in different ways. For example, the embodiments of the apparatus described are illustrative only. For example, the division of units is merely a logical functional division, and actual implementations may involve different divisions. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not performed. In addition, the mutual coupling, direct coupling, or communication connection shown or discussed may be implemented using some interfaces. Indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatus or units may be implemented in electronic, mechanical, or other forms.

[0107] Units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and parts shown as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to the actual needs in order to achieve the objectives of the solution of the embodiment.

[0108] In addition, the functional units in the embodiments disclosed herein may be integrated into a single processing unit, or each unit may exist physically independently, or two or more units may be integrated into a single unit. [Explanation of symbols]

[0109] 115a~c Non-AP stations 110 Sharing side AP 125a,b Non-AP station 120 Shared AP 100 Wireless Communication Networks 111 Processing Circuit 113 Communication Interface 114 memory 121 Processing Circuit 123 Communication Interface 124 memory 126a Processing circuit 127a Communication Interface 128a memory 200 M-AP Cooperative Transmission Flow Scheme 201 stages 203, 223 Coordinated transmission agreement stage 213a~b, 231b TXOP 211a, 211b, 231a TX pre-stage 210, 230 M-AP cooperative operation 100 Wi-Fi networks 213a TXOP 202 M-AP trigger frame 215 Polling Frame 217 Status Update Report 303 Sequential Procedure 302 Sequential Procedure Trigger Frame 30 frames 303 Sequential Procedure 202 CoBF Sounding Trigger Frame 305 Conflict Instruction Frame 307 Cooperative State Field 213a, 213b, 231a TXOP 401-411 bits 311 Cooperative State Parameter Field 421, 423, 425 subfields 401-411 Subfields 501 MAC Header Field 503 M-AP instruction field 505 Instructions 309 M-AP status update frame 311 Acknowledgment Response Frame 700 methods 800 ways

Claims

1. A shared access point (AP) (120) configured to participate in coordinated transmission by utilizing at least a portion of at least one transmit opportunity (TXOP) acquired and shared by a shared access point (AP) (110) operating under a coordinate agreement within a multi-AP (M-AP) set, A processing circuit (121) configured to modify at least one parameter among several coordinate operation-related parameters, A communication interface (123) configured to include a cooperation state field (307) in a frame (305) transmitted to the shared AP (110), wherein the cooperation state field (307) includes information indicating at least one modified parameter among the plurality of cooperation operation related parameters, and A shared AP (120) equipped with this.

2. The shared AP (120) according to claim 1, wherein the frame (305) further includes an indication (505) that the coordinating state field (307) is present in the frame (305).

3. The shared AP (120) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the coordinating state field (307) includes a bitmap, each bit of the bitmap corresponds to one of the plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters, and the value of each bit indicates whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

4. The shared AP(120) according to claim 3, wherein the bitmap includes a plurality of bits.

5. The shared AP (120) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the coordinating state field (307) includes one encoded value from a set of encoded values, each encoded value corresponding to one parameter from a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters, and indicating whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

6. The shared AP(120) according to claim 5, wherein the set of encoded values ​​comprises a plurality of sequences of 3-bit values.

7. The shared AP(120) according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the set of encoded values ​​includes a value indicating that there is no change in at least one of the plurality of coordinate operation-related parameters.

8. The shared AP (120) according to any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein the frame (305) further includes a coordinating state parameter field (311) which includes information indicating the value of at least one modified parameter among the plurality of coordinating operation related parameters indicated in the coordinating state field (307).

9. The shared AP (120) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the coordinating state field (307) includes a set of subfields, each subfield containing one value of the coordinating operation-related parameter from a set of values ​​corresponding to the coordinating operation-related parameter.

10. The shared AP(120) according to claim 9, wherein each of the set of values ​​for the coordinate operation-related parameters includes a value indicating that there is no change to the corresponding parameter.

11. The shared AP(120) according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the plurality of coordinate operation-related parameters include a parameter indicating a change in the bandwidth of the coordinate transmission, a parameter indicating a change in the number of transmit space streams for the coordinate transmission, a parameter indicating a temporary suspension of the shared AP(120) currently participating in the coordinate transmission that occurs in any time portion until the end of the coordinate agreement, and / or a parameter indicating the shared AP(120) that is no longer a member of the coordinate agreement in the M-AP set.

12. The shared AP (120) according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the communication interface (123) is configured to transmit the frame (305) to the shared AP (110) after receiving the trigger frame (302) from the shared AP (110).

13. The shared AP (120) according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the communication interface (123) is configured to receive a coordinating state polling frame from the shared AP (110) and to transmit the frame (305) to the shared AP (110) in response to the transmission of the coordinating state polling frame.

14. The shared AP (120) according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the communication interface (123) is configured to receive an M-AP state update frame (309) from the shared AP (110), the M-AP state update frame (309) includes a coordinating state field (307) which includes information indicating at least one parameter among a plurality of coordinating operation related parameters, the at least one parameter being modified by the shared AP (110) or a further shared AP (120) of the current coordinating agreement.

15. The shared AP (120) according to claim 14, wherein the communication interface (123) is configured to transmit an acknowledgment frame (313) to the shared AP (110) in response to receiving the M-AP status update frame (309) from the shared AP (110).

16. The shared AP (120) according to claim 14 or 15, wherein the M-AP state update frame (309) includes an M-AP set identifier indicating the M-AP set.

17. The shared AP (120) according to any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein the M-AP state update frame (309) further includes a coordinating agreement identifier within the M-AP set, the coordinating agreement identifier identifies one of a plurality of coordinating agreements within the M-AP set, and the shared AP (110) and the shared AP (120) operate under the coordinating agreement identified by the coordinating agreement identifier within the M-AP set.

18. A method (700) for operating a shared access point (AP) (110) that is operating under a coordinate agreement within a multi-AP (M-AP) set and is configured to participate in coordinate transmission by taking advantage of at least one transmission opportunity (TXOP) that is acquired and shared by the shared access point (AP) (110), A step (701) of modifying at least one parameter among several coordinate operation-related parameters, A step of including a coordination state field (307) in a frame (305) transmitted to the shared AP (110), wherein the coordination state field (307) includes information indicating at least one modified parameter among the plurality of coordination operation-related parameters. Method (700), including.

19. A shared access point AP (110) configured to share at least a portion of the Transmit Opportunity (TXOP) with multiple shared APs (120) operating under a cooperative agreement within a multi-AP (M-AP) set in order to participate in coordinated transmission, A sharing AP (110) comprising a communication interface (113) configured to receive a frame (305) from one of the plurality of shared APs (120), wherein the frame (305) includes a coordinating state field (307) which includes information indicating at least one modified parameter of a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters used by the shared AP (120) for the coordinating transmission.

20. The shared AP (110) according to claim 19, wherein the frame (305) further includes an indication (505) that the presence of the cooperative state field (307).

21. The shared AP (110) according to claim 19 or 20, wherein the coordinating state field (307) includes a bitmap, each bit of the bitmap corresponds to one of the plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters, and the value of each bit indicates whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

22. The shared AP (110) according to claim 21, wherein the bitmap includes a plurality of bits.

23. The shared AP (110) according to any one of claims 19 to 22, wherein the coordinating state field (307) includes one encoded value from a set of encoded values, each encoded value corresponding to one parameter from a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters, and indicating whether the corresponding parameter has been modified.

24. The shared AP (110) according to claim 23, wherein the one set of encoded values ​​includes a plurality of sequences of 3-bit values.

25. The shared AP (110) according to claim 23 or 24, wherein the set of encoded values ​​includes a value indicating that there is no change in at least one of the plurality of cooperative operation-related parameters.

26. The shared AP (110) according to any one of claims 21 to 25, wherein the frame (305) further includes a coordinating state parameter field (311) which includes information indicating the value of at least one modified parameter among the plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters indicated in the coordinating state field (307).

27. The shared AP (110) according to any one of claims 19 to 26, wherein the coordinating state field (307) includes a set of subfields, each subfield containing one value of the coordinating operation-related parameter from a set of values ​​corresponding to the coordinating operation-related parameter.

28. The shared AP (110) according to claim 27, wherein each of the set of values ​​for the coordinate operation-related parameters includes a value indicating no change to the corresponding parameter.

29. The shared AP (110) according to any one of claims 19 to 28, wherein the plurality of coordinate operation-related parameters include a parameter indicating a change in the bandwidth of the coordinate transmission, a parameter indicating a change in the number of transmit space streams for the coordinate transmission, a parameter indicating a temporary suspension of the shared AP (120) participating in the current coordinate transmission that occurs in any time portion until the end of the coordinate agreement, and / or a parameter indicating the shared AP (120) that is no longer a member of the coordinate agreement in the M-AP set.

30. The shared AP (110) according to any one of claims 19 to 29, wherein the communication interface (113) is configured to send a trigger frame (302) to the shared AP (120) in order to notify the shared AP (120) to send the frame (305) to the shared AP (110).

31. The shared AP (110) according to any one of claims 19 to 30, wherein the communication interface (113) is configured to transmit a cooperative state polling frame to the shared AP (120).

32. The communication interface (113) is configured to transmit a state update frame (309) to at least one further shared AP (120) among the plurality of shared APs (120), wherein the state update frame (309) includes a coordinating state field (307) which includes the information indicating at least one modified parameter among the plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters, according to any one of claims 19 to 31.

33. The shared AP (110) according to claim 32, wherein the state update frame (309) includes an M-AP set identifier indicating the M-AP set.

34. The shared AP (110) according to claim 32 or 33, wherein the state update frame (309) further includes a coordinating agreement identifier in the M-AP set, the coordinating agreement identifier identifies one of a plurality of coordinating agreements in the M-AP set, and the shared AP (110) and the plurality of shared APs (120) operate under the coordinating agreement identified by the coordinating agreement identifier in the M-AP set.

35. A method (800) for operating a shared access point (AP) (110) configured to share at least a portion of a transmission opportunity (TXOP) with multiple shared APs (120) operating under a cooperative agreement in a multi-AP (M-AP) set in order to participate in coordinated transmission, Step (801) receiving a frame (305) from one of the plurality of shared APs (120), wherein the frame (305) includes a coordinating state field (307) which includes information indicating at least one modified parameter of a plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters used by the shared AP (120) for the coordinating transmission. Method (800), including.

36. The method (800) according to claim 35, further comprising the step of transmitting a state update frame (309) to at least one further shared AP (120) among the plurality of shared APs (120), wherein the state update frame (309) includes a coordinating state field (307) which includes the information indicating the at least one modified parameter among the plurality of coordinating operation-related parameters.

37. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable storage medium for storing program code, wherein when the program code is executed by a computer or processor, the computer or processor is instructed to execute the method according to claim 18 (700) or the method according to claim 35 or 36 (800).

Images