Method and apparatus for triggering uplink transmissions in a wireless local area network - Patents.com

Abstract

An embodiment of the present invention provides a method and apparatus for triggering uplink transmission in a wireless local area network (WLAN). The method for triggering uplink transmission includes: an access point (AP) generates a trigger frame based on a type of physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission requested by multiple stations (STAs) in the WLAN, the trigger frame includes a common information field, the common information field indicates whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating a type of PPDU transmission; and transmitting the generated trigger frame to the multiple STAs. By the method and apparatus proposed by the embodiment of the present invention, the generated trigger frame can be used to request different types of uplink transmission in the WLAN.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] FIELD This application relates to wireless communications, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for triggering uplink transmissions using enhanced trigger frames in a wireless local area network (WLAN). [Background technology]

[0002] The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11be extremely high throughput (EHT) WLAN supports up to 320 MHz bandwidth (BW). High efficiency (HE) stations (STAs) are expected to be in the same EHT basic service set (BSS) as Release 1 (R1) EHT STAs and / or Release 2 (R2) EHT STAs. To maximize the throughput of EHT BSSs with wide bandwidth (e.g., 320 MHz), a frequency domain aggregated physical layer protocol data unit (FD-A-PPDU) is proposed, which is supported by HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs. It should be understood that R1 EHT STAs do not support transmission and reception of FD-A-PPDU.

[0003] In wireless communication, a trigger frame may be generated by an access point (AP) and used to request physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission from multiple STAs. However, since there are various types of PPDU transmissions in IEEE 802.11be EHT WLAN, such as HE triggered-based (TB) PPDU transmissions from HE STAs, R1 EHT STAs and / or R2 EHT STAs, EHT TB PPDU transmissions from R1 EHT STAs and / or R2 EHT STAs, and TB FD-A-PPDU transmissions from both HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs, it is necessary to provide an enhanced trigger frame suitable for triggering different types of PPDU transmissions in WLAN. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The embodiments of the present invention provide a method and apparatus for triggering different types of uplink transmissions in a WLAN using a proposed enhanced trigger frame. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present invention, embodiments of the present invention provide a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN, the method may be implemented by an AP in the WLAN, and includes: an access point (AP) generating a trigger frame based on a type of physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission requested from multiple stations (STAs) in the WLAN, where a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating a type of PPDU transmission; and the AP transmitting the generated trigger frame to the multiple STAs.

[0006] According to a second aspect of the present invention, embodiments of the present invention provide an AP for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN, the AP comprising: a memory configured to store instructions for triggering uplink transmission in the WLAN; and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the processor configured to execute the instructions to generate a trigger frame based on a type of PPDU transmission requested by a plurality of stations (STAs) in the WLAN, and transmit the generated trigger frame to the plurality of STAs, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating a type of PPDU transmission.

[0007] According to a third aspect of the present invention, embodiments of the present invention provide a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN, which may be implemented by a STA in the WLAN, and includes: the STA receiving a trigger frame from an access point (AP), the trigger frame being generated based on types of PPDU transmissions requested by a plurality of STAs, a common information field of the trigger frame including a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further including a second subfield indicating a type of PPDU transmission; and the STA determining the type of the requested PPDU transmission by decoding the common information field of the received trigger frame.

[0008] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, each embodiment of the present invention provides a STA, comprising: a memory configured to store instructions for triggering an uplink transmission in a WLAN; and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the processor configured to execute the instructions to receive a trigger frame from an access point (AP) and decode a common information field of the received trigger frame to determine a type of requested PPDU transmission, the trigger frame being generated based on types of PPDU transmissions requested by multiple STAs, the common information field of the trigger frame including a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating a type of PPDU transmission.

[0009] According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, embodiments of the present invention provide a computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform a method for triggering uplink transmissions in a WLAN according to any embodiment of the present invention. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1A] 1 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a WLAN in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention; [Figure 1B] 2 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a first type of PPDU transmission in a WLAN; [Figure 1C] FIG. 2 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a second type of PPDU transmission in a WLAN; [Figure 1D] FIG. 2 is an exemplary schematic diagram of a third type of PPDU transmission in a WLAN; [Figure 1E] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of uplink multi-user (MU) transmission according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 1F] 1 is a block diagram of the HE TB PPDU format. [Figure 1G] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the EHT TB PPDU format. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a trigger frame format according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2B] FIG. 2 is an exemplary block diagram of an EHT format user information field format according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2C] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a dedicated user information field format according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 4 is a flowchart of a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN, implemented by an AP, according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4A] FIG. 1 illustrates one option of BW allocation for TB FD-A-PPDU transmission according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 4B] FIG. 1 illustrates one option of BW allocation for TB FD-A-PPDU transmission according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 4C] FIG. 13 illustrates one option of BW allocation for TB FD-A-PPDU transmission according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5A] 1 is a schematic diagram of an AP for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 5B] 1 is a schematic diagram of a first device for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart of a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN implemented by a STA according to some embodiments of the present invention. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart of a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN implemented by a STA according to some embodiments of the present invention. [Figure 8A] 2 is a schematic diagram of a STA for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 8B] 2 is a schematic diagram of a second device for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a format of a common information field of a trigger frame according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a format of a common information field of a trigger frame according to a second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] In the following, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a more complete understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. However, it will be understood by one skilled in the art that embodiments of the present invention may be practiced without some or all of these specific details. It should be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0012] An embodiment described in the context of one of a method or apparatus may be equally valid for the other method or apparatus, and similarly, an embodiment described in the context of a method may be equally valid for the apparatus, and vice versa.

[0013] Features described in the context of an embodiment may be applied correspondingly to the same or similar features of other embodiments. Features described in the context of an embodiment may be applied correspondingly to those other embodiments even if they are not explicitly described in those embodiments. Also, addition and / or combination and / or substitution of features described in the context of an embodiment may be applied correspondingly to the same or similar features of the other embodiments.

[0014] As used herein, the terms "a," "an," and "of" in connection with a feature or component include a reference to one or more features or components. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of the associated listed items. As used herein, terms such as "first," "second," and "third" are used for distinction purposes only and are not intended to impose numerical requirements on their objects. As used herein, the term "configured to" is interchangeable with "operable" or "applied to."

[0015] The embodiment of the present invention proposes a trigger frame that can be used to request different types of PPDU transmission in a WLAN. Compared with the existing trigger frame, the enhanced trigger frame proposed by the embodiment of the present invention further includes a first subfield in the common information field of the trigger frame, which is used to indicate that the trigger frame is a first type of trigger frame, i.e., an 802.11ax trigger frame, or a second type of trigger frame, i.e., the proposed enhanced trigger frame, and when the trigger frame is a second type of trigger frame, the common information field of the trigger frame further includes a second subfield in the common information field, which is used to indicate the type of PPDU transmission requested.

[0016] 1A is an exemplary schematic diagram of a WLAN 100 according to some embodiments of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1A, the WLAN 100 includes an AP 101 and multiple different types of STAs, such as an HE STA 102, an R1 EHT STA 103, and an R2 EHT STA 104. In the WLAN 100, a trigger frame can be used to request three different types of PPDU transmissions:

[0017] First-type PPDU transmission: The first-type PPDU transmission includes multiple HE TB PPDUs transmitted from multiple HE STAs 102, R1 EHT STAs 103 and / or R2 EHT STAs 104. Figure 1B is an exemplary schematic diagram of the first-type PPDU transmission in the WLAN 100. In this example, a trigger frame is used to request HE TB PPDU transmission from the HE STA (STA1) and the R1 EHT STA (STA2).

[0018] Second-type PPDU transmission: The second-type PPDU transmission includes multiple EHT TB PPDUs transmitted from multiple R1 EHT STAs 103 and / or R2 EHT STAs 104. Figure 1C is an exemplary schematic diagram of a second-type PPDU transmission in a WLAN 100. In this example, a trigger frame is used to request EHT TB PPDU transmissions from the R1 EHT STA (STA1) and the R2 EHT STA (STA2).

[0019] Third type PPDU transmission: The third type PPDU transmission includes a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from at least one HE STA 102 and at least one R2 EHT STA 104, and the TB FD-A-PPDU transmission includes an HE TB PPDU transmission and an EHT TB PPDU transmission. The HE TB PPDU transmission may include at least one HE TB PPDU transmitted from at least one HE STA 102 and / or at least one R2 EHT STA 104. The EHT TB PPDU transmission may include at least one EHT TB PPDU transmitted from at least one R2 EHT STA. Figure 1D is an exemplary schematic diagram of a third type PPDU transmission in a WLAN 100. In this example, a trigger frame is used to request a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from an HE STA (STA1) and an R2 EHT STA (STA2).

[0020] FIG. 1E is a schematic diagram of uplink multi-user (MU) transmission according to one embodiment of the present invention. In uplink transmission, a trigger frame from an AP is used to request a third type of PPDU transmission, i.e., TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from multiple HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs. Each scheduled HE STA and R2 EHT STA transmits a TB PPDU based on the scheduling information in the received trigger frame. The TB PPDU transmitted by each scheduled HE STA is an HE TB PPDU, and the TB PPDU transmitted by each scheduled R2 EHT STA is an HE TB PPDU or an EHT TB PPDU. The TB FD-A-PPDU transmission includes an HE TB PPDU transmission and an EHT TB PPDU transmission, the HE TB PPDU transmission includes one or more HE TB PPDUs, and the EHT TB PPDU broadcast transmission includes one or more EHT TB PPDUs. One or more HE TB PPDUs and one or more EHT TB PPDUs are transmitted by the scheduled STAs on non-overlapping frequency and / or spatial domain resources in the 320 MHz channel. The AP transmits a multi-STA Block Acknowledgement (BA) frame in response to the received TB FD-A-PPDU.

[0021] 1F and 1G are block diagrams of the formats of the HE TB PPDU and the EHT TB PPDU, respectively. In the HE TB PPDU, the non-HT short training field (L-STF), the non-HT long training field (L-LTF), the non-HT signal field (L-SIG), the repeated L-SIG (RL-SIG) field, and the HE signal A field (HE-SIG-A) are called pre-HE modulation fields, and the HE short training field (HE-STF), the HE long training field (HE-LTF), the data field, and the packet extension (PE) field are called HE modulation fields. In the EHT TB PPDU, the L-STF, the L-LTF, the L-SIG field, the RL-SIG field, and the universal signal (U-SIG) field are called pre-EHT modulation fields, and the EHT-STF, the EHT-LTF, the data field, and the PE field are called EHT modulation fields.

[0022] Each HE-LTF or EHT-LTF symbol has the same guard interval (GI) duration as each data symbol, and the duration is 0.8 μs, 1.6 μs, or 3.2 μs. The HE-LTF field includes three types: 1xHE-LTF, 2xHE-LTF, and 4xHE-LTF. Similarly, the EHT-LTF field includes three types: 1xEHT-LTF, 2xEHT-LTF, and 4xEHT-LTF. The duration of each 1xHE-LTF / EHT-LTF, 2xHE-LTF / EHT-LTF, or 4xHE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol without GI is 3.2 μs, 6.4 μs, or 12.8 μs, respectively. The duration of each data symbol without GI is 12.8 μs. The PE field duration of the HE TB PPDU is 0 μs, 4 μs, 8 μs, 12 μs, or 16 μs, and the PE field duration of the EHT TB PPDU is 0 μs, 4 μs, 8 μs, 12 μs, 16 μs, or 20 μs.

[0023] In an EHT BSS with a large BW (such as 320 MHz), the trigger frame is used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from multiple HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs. The TB FD-A-PPDU may include at least one HE TB PPDU and at least one EHT TB PPDU, where the HE-LTF field of the HE TB PPDU has the same symbol duration and the same GI duration as the EHT-LTF field of the EHT TB PPDU. The number of HE-LTF symbols in the HE TB PPDU may be the same as or different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the EHT TB PPDU. If the number of HE-LTF symbols is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols, each HE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol may have a different duration or the same duration as each data symbol. That is, the duration of each HE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol without GI may be 6.4 μs or 12.8 μs. If the number of HE-LTF symbols is different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols, each HE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol shall have the same duration as each data symbol, i.e., the duration of each HE-LTF / EHT-LTF symbol without GI shall be 12.8 μs. Therefore, the pre-HE modulation field of the HE TB PPDU and the pre-EHT modulation field of the EHT TB PPDU can maintain orthogonality in the frequency domain for each symbol.

[0024] FIG. 2A is a block diagram of a trigger frame format according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2A, the trigger frame includes a common information field and a user information list field or user info list field. The common information field further includes a first subfield, which indicates that the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, i.e., an 802.11ax trigger frame, or a second type trigger frame, i.e., a proposed enhanced trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield, which indicates a type of PPDU transmission requested, or whether the trigger frame is used to request a second type PPDU transmission or a third type PPDU transmission.

[0025] The user information list field may include three types of user information fields, including an HE format user information (information / info) field, an EHT format user information field, and a dedicated user information field. The type of user information fields included in the user information list is determined based on the type of PPDU transmission requested, which will be described in more detail below in some embodiments of the present invention. The HE format user information field is defined in the IEEE 802.11ax standard.

[0026] 2B is an exemplary block diagram of an EHT format user information field format according to one embodiment of the present invention. The resource unit (RU) assignment subfield, together with the PS160 subfield in the EHT format user information field, is used to indicate the RU or multiple resource units (MRU) to which the TB PPDU is transmitted by the STA, which is indicated by the AID12 subfield of the EHT format user information field, i.e., the STA has an AID that matches the AID12 field of the EHT format user information field. Since the EHT format user information field is designed to be backward compatible with the HE format user information field, in some embodiments of the present invention, a STA can determine the RU or MRU assigned to itself by simply decoding the user information field using the AID12 subfield that matches the STA's AID, even if it cannot know in advance whether the user information field is a HE format user information field or an EHT format user information field.

[0027] The Dedicated User Information field carries the required U-SIG subfields of the requested EHT TB PPDU. The Dedicated User Information field is located immediately after the Common Information field in the trigger frame. Figure 2C illustrates an example of a format of the Dedicated User Information field according to one embodiment of the present invention. In this example, the AID12 subfield is set to a first value, e.g., 2007, and is used to indicate the Dedicated User Information field. The PPDU Bandwidth (PPDU BW) subfield is used to indicate the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0028] 3 is a flow chart of a method 300 implemented by an AP for triggering uplink transmissions in a WLAN 100, according to one embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment of the invention, the method 300 may be implemented by an AP, such as the AP 101 of FIG. 1A. In alternative embodiments, the method 300 may be implemented by any other suitable network interface device.

[0029] In block 301, the AP 101 generates a trigger frame based on a type of PPDU transmission requested by multiple STAs in the WLAN (such as the HE STA 102, the R1 EHT STA 103, and / or the R2 EHT STA 104). A common information field of the generated trigger frame includes a first subfield, which indicates that the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame (i.e., an 802.11ax trigger frame) or a second type trigger frame (i.e., an enhanced trigger frame proposed by an embodiment of the present invention), and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the trigger frame further includes a second subfield, which indicates a type of PPDU transmission or indicates whether the trigger frame is used to request a second type PPDU transmission or a third type PPDU transmission.

[0030] In block 302, the generated trigger frame is transmitted to multiple STAs.

[0031] In this embodiment, the first subfield can be set to 0 or 1 to indicate whether the generated trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame. For example, if the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, the first subfield is set to 0, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the first subfield is set to 1.

[0032] In this embodiment, if a first type PPDU transmission is requested, the first subfield of the common information is set to indicate that the generated trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, and the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate the BW allocated for the first type PPDU transmission.

[0033] In this embodiment, when a second type of PPDU transmission is requested, the first subfield of the common information field is set to indicate that the type of the trigger frame is a second type of trigger frame, and the second subfield of the common information field is set to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission requested is the second type of PPDU transmission.

[0034] If a second type PPDU transmission is requested, at least one subfield for resource unit (RU) allocation, e.g., the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield in the EHT format user information field of the generated trigger frame, is set to indicate an RU or multiple resource units (MRU), the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield of the EHT format user information field transmits an EHT TB PPDU in the RU or MRU, and a subfield of the dedicated user information field, such as the PPDU BW subfield, is set to indicate the bandwidth (BW) allocated for the second type PPDU transmission.

[0035] In this embodiment, when a third type PPDU transmission is requested, the first subfield of the common information field is set to indicate that the type of the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, and the second subfield is set to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission.

[0036] In this embodiment, the second subfield of the common information field may be set to 0 or 1 to indicate the type of PPDU transmission. For example, if the type of PPDU transmission requested is a second type PPDU transmission, the second subfield is set to 0, and if the type of PPDU transmission requested is a third type PPDU transmission, the second subfield is set to 1.

[0037] When a third type PPDU transmission is requested, the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate the BW allocated for the HE TB PPDU transmission of the third type PPDU transmission, at least one subfield for RU allocation in the user information field of the generated trigger frame, e.g., the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield of the EHT format user information field or the RU allocation subfield of the HE format user information field, is set to indicate an RU or an MRU, the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield of the user information field transmits a TB PPDU in that RU or MRU, and a subfield of the dedicated user information field, such as the PPDU BW subfield, is set to indicate the BW allocated for the EHT TB PPDU transmission of the third type PPDU transmission.

[0038] In this embodiment, when a third type PPDU transmission is required, for a 320 MHz BW TB FD-A-PPDU, the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission is the 80 MHz primary channel (P80) or the 160 MHz primary channel (P160), while the BW allocated for EHT PPDU transmission from an R2 EHT STA is the 160 MHz secondary channel (S160) or one of the two 80 MHz frequency segments of S160. For a 320 MHz BW FD-A-PPDU transmission, there are three possible options for bandwidth allocation for TB FD-A-PPDU transmission:

[0039] Option 1: As shown in FIG. 4A, if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, allocate an 80 MHz primary channel for HE TB PPDU transmission and allocate a 160 MHz secondary channel for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0040] Option 2: As shown in FIG. 4B, if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW, allocate a 160 MHz primary channel for EHT TB PPDU transmission and allocate an unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment in the 160 MHz secondary channel for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0041] Option 3: As shown in FIG. 4C, if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, allocate a 160 MHz primary channel for HE TB PPDU transmission and allocate a 160 MHz secondary channel for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0042] In this embodiment, if a third type PPDU transmission is requested, and the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU, then a third subfield of the common information field, e.g., a subfield entitled "Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodically", is set to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0043] In this embodiment, when a third type PPDU transmission is requested, if the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU, the third subfield of the common information field, e.g., the subfield named "Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodically", is set to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU, and the fourth subfield of the common information field is set to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. It should be noted that the fourth subfield is a newly added subfield in the common information field of the trigger frame.

[0044] In this embodiment, the UL BW subfield of the common information field may be set according to a predetermined UL BW subfield encoding rule, a subfield of a dedicated user information field such as the PPDU BW subfield may be set according to a predetermined encoding rule for the subfield, the third subfield may be set based on the value indicated in the Doppler subfield of the common information field and the predetermined encoding rule for the third subfield, and the fourth subfield may be set according to a predetermined rule for the fourth subfield.

[0045] 5A is a schematic diagram of an AP 101 for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention. The AP 101 comprises a memory 101a and a processor 101b communicatively coupled to the memory 101a, where the memory 101a is configured to store instructions for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN, and the processor 101b is configured to execute the instructions to perform a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention, such as the method shown in FIG. 3 above.

[0046] In this embodiment, the processor 101b is configured to execute instructions to generate a trigger frame based on a type of PPDU transmission requested from multiple stations (STAs) in a WLAN, and transmit the generated trigger frame to the multiple STAs, wherein a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating a type of PPDU transmission.

[0047] In this embodiment, if a first type PPDU transmission is requested, the processor 101b is further configured to set, by executing instructions, a first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the generated trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, and further configured to set, by executing instructions, a UL BW subfield of the common information field to indicate the BW allocated for the first type PPDU transmission.

[0048] In this embodiment, when a second type PPDU transmission is requested, the processor 101b is further configured to execute instructions to set a first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, and to set a second subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of the PPDU transmission is a second type PPDU transmission. The processor 101b is further configured to execute instructions to set at least one subfield for RU allocation, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield, of the EHT format user information field of the trigger frame to indicate the RU or MRU to which the EHT TB PPDU is transmitted by the STA, and the STA is configured to set a subfield of a dedicated user information field, such as the PPDU BW subfield, indicated by the AID12 subfield of the EHT format user information field, to indicate the BW allocated for the second type PPDU transmission.

[0049] In this embodiment, when a third type PPDU transmission is requested, the processor 101b is further configured to execute instructions to set a first subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, and to set a second subfield of the common information field to indicate that the type of the PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission. The processor 101b is further configured to execute instructions to set a UL BW subfield of the common information field to indicate a BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmission, set at least one subfield for RU allocation of the user information field of the trigger frame, for example, the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield of the EHT format user information field or the RU allocation subfield of the HE format user information field, to indicate an RU or an MRU, and the STA indicated by the AID12 subfield of the user information field transmits a TB PPDU in the RU or the MRU, and set a subfield of the dedicated user information field of the trigger frame, for example, the PPDU BW subfield, to indicate a BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0050] In order to establish a link between the BW allocation and the channel allocation for the HE TB PPDU transmission and the EHT TB PPDU transmission in the TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, the processor 101b further executes instructions to allocate an 80 MHz primary channel for the HE TB PPDU transmission and a 160 MHz secondary channel for the EHT TB PPDU transmission, if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, or to allocate a 160 MHz primary channel for the HE TB PPDU transmission and an unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of the 160 MHz secondary channel for the EHT TB PPDU transmission, if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 8 ... When the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, it is configured to allocate a 160 MHz primary channel for HE TB PPDU transmission and a 160 MHz secondary channel for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0051] In this embodiment, the processor 101b may be further configured to set a third subfield of the common information field to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU by executing an instruction. Specifically, if a first type PPDU transmission is requested, the third subfield is set to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU, if a second type PPDU transmission is requested, the third subfield is set to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU, and if a third type PPDU transmission is requested, the third subfield is set to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. In this case, the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0052] Exemplarily, if a third type PPDU transmission is requested, the processor 101b may be further configured to execute instructions to set a third subfield of the common information field to indicate a number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU and set a fourth subfield of the common information field to indicate a number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU, where the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU may be different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0053] 5B is a schematic diagram of a first device 500 for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to one embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the device 500 includes a trigger frame generating unit 500a and a sending unit 500b. The trigger frame generating unit is configured to generate a trigger frame according to a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention, for example, the method shown in FIG. 3 above.

[0054] 6 is a flow chart of a method 600 for triggering uplink transmissions in a WLAN in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention. In these embodiments, the method 600 is implemented by a STA, such as, for example, the HE STA 102, the R1 EHT STA 103, and / or the R2 EHT STA 104 of FIG. 1A. In alternative embodiments, the method 600 may be implemented by any other suitable client device.

[0055] In block 601, a STA receives a trigger frame from an AP, where the trigger frame is generated based on a type of PPDU transmission requested by multiple STAs, and a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, where the first subfield indicates whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the trigger frame further includes a second subfield indicating a type of PPDU transmission.

[0056] In block 602, the STA determines the type of PPDU transmission requested by decoding the common information field of the received trigger frame.

[0057] FIG. 7 is a flow chart of a method 700 for triggering uplink transmissions in a WLAN, according to one embodiment of the invention.

[0058] In block 701, the STA receives a trigger frame from the AP.

[0059] At block 702, a first sub-field of the common information field is decoded.

[0060] In block 703, if the first subfield is set to indicate that the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, the process proceeds to block 704, and if the first subfield is set to indicate that the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the process proceeds to block 705.

[0061] At block 704, it is determined that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a first type PPDU transmission.

[0062] If the STA is an R1 EHT STA or an R2 EHT STA and it is determined that the requested PPDU transmission is a first type PPDU transmission, the STA identifies the HE format user information field using an AID12 subfield matching the AID of the STA, and decodes the identified HE format user information field. Further, the UL BW subfield of the common information field is decoded to determine the BW allocated to the first type PPDU transmission. Based on the information in the common information field and the identified HE format user information field, the STA prepares and transmits an HE TB PPDU.

[0063] At block 705, the second subfield of the common information field is decoded to determine the type of PPDU transmission requested.

[0064] In block 706, if the second subfield is set to indicate that the requested PPDU transmission is a second type PPDU transmission, the process proceeds to block 707, and if the second subfield is set to indicate that the requested PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission, the process proceeds to block 708.

[0065] In block 707, it is determined that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a second type of PPDU transmission.

[0066] If it is determined that the requested PPDU transmission is a second type PPDU transmission, the STA identifies an EHT format user information field having an AID12 subfield matching the AID of the STA, and decodes the identified EHT format user information field. For example, the STA decodes at least one subfield for RU allocation, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield, of the identified EHT format user information field to determine the RU or MRU to which the EHT TB PPDU is transmitted by the STA, and decodes a subfield of the dedicated user information field of the received trigger frame, such as the PPDU BW subfield, to determine the BW allocated to the second type PPDU transmission. The STA prepares and transmits the EHT TB PPDU based on the information of the common information field, the identified EHT format user information field, and the dedicated user information field.

[0067] At block 708, it is determined that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission.

[0068] If it is determined that the requested PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission, the STA also decodes the UL BW subfield of the common information field to determine the BW allocated to the HE TB PPDU transmission of the third type PPDU transmission, identifies a user information field of the received trigger frame, which has an AID12 subfield matching the AID of the STA, decodes at least one subfield for RU allocation of the identified user information field to determine the RU or MRU allocated to the TB PPDU transmission from the STA, decodes a subfield of the dedicated user information field of the received trigger frame, for example, the PPDU BW subfield, to determine the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission, and determines to transmit the HE TB PPDU if the assigned RU or MRU is located within the BW assigned to the HE TB PPDU transmission, or determines to transmit the EHT TB PPDU if the assigned RU or MRU is located within the BW assigned to the EHT TB transmission. Illustratively, in some other examples of the present invention, if an RU is assigned to a STA and the assigned RU is located within a BW assigned for EHT TB PPDU transmission, the STA may decide to transmit an HE TB PPDU, or if an MRU is assigned to a STA, or an RU is assigned to a STA and the assigned RU is located within a BW assigned for EHT TB PPDU transmission, the STA may decide to transmit an EHT TB PPDU.

[0069] In this embodiment, if the requested PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission, for example, a 320 MHz BW TB FD-A-PPDU, and the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and a subfield of the dedicated user information field (for example, the PPDU BW subfield) is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, the STA transmits the HE TB PPDU on the 80 MHz primary channel or transmits the EHT TB PPDU on the 160 MHz secondary channel; if the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and a subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW, the STA transmits the HE TB PPDU on the 160 MHz primary channel or transmits the EHT TB PPDU on the unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of the 160 MHz secondary channel; When configured to indicate BW, the STA transmits an HE TB PPDU on the 160 MHz primary channel or an EHT TB PPDU on the 160 MHz secondary channel.

[0070] If a third type PPDU transmission is requested, the STA decodes the third subfield of the common information field to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU, if the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0071] Exemplarily, if the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU, the STA decodes a third subfield of the common information field, e.g., a subfield named "Number of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodically," to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU, or decodes a fourth subfield of the common information field to determine the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHE TB PPDU.

[0072] In this embodiment, the UL BW subfield of the common information field can be decoded according to a predetermined encoding rule for the UL BW subfield, a subfield of the dedicated user information field, e.g. the PPDU BW subfield, can be decoded according to a predetermined encoding rule for said subfield, the third subfield of the common information field can be decoded based on the value indicated in the Doppler subfield of the common information field and the predetermined encoding rule for the third subfield, and the fourth subfield of the common information field can be decoded according to a predetermined rule for the fourth subfield.

[0073] 8A is a schematic diagram of a STA 800A for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to one embodiment of the present invention. The STA 800A comprises a memory 801a and a processor 802a communicatively coupled to the memory. In one embodiment, the memory 801a is configured to store instructions for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention, such as the method 600 or the method 700 shown in Figures 6 and 7 above, and the processor 802a is configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory to perform the method for triggering uplink transmission according to some embodiments of the present invention.

[0074] In this embodiment, the processor 802a is configured to receive a trigger frame from an AP by executing instructions, and decode a common information field of the received trigger frame to determine a type of requested PPDU transmission, where the trigger frame is generated based on the types of PPDU transmission requested from multiple STAs, and the common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the common information field further includes a second subfield indicating the type of PPDU transmission.

[0075] In this example, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to decode a first subfield of the common information field and, if the first subfield is set to indicate that the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame, determine that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a first type PPDU transmission. The processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to decode a UL BW subfield of the common information field to determine a BW allocated to the first type PPDU transmission.

[0076] In this embodiment, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to decode a first subfield of the common information field, and if the first subfield is set to indicate that the trigger frame is a second type of trigger frame, decode a second subfield of the common information field, and if the second subfield is set to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission is a second type of PPDU transmission, determine that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a second type of PPDU transmission. The processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to identify an EHT format user information field of the received trigger frame, the EHT format user information field having an AID12 subfield matching the AID of the STA, decode at least one subfield for RU allocation, such as the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield, of the identified EHT format user information field to determine the RU or MRU to which the EHT TB PPDU is transmitted by the STA, and decode a subfield of the dedicated user information field of the received trigger frame, such as the PPDU BW subfield, to determine the BW allocated to the second type of PPDU transmission.

[0077] In this embodiment, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to decode a first subfield of the common information field, and if the first subfield is set to indicate that the received trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, decode a second subfield of the common information field, and if the second subfield is set to indicate that the type of PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission, determine that the type of the requested PPDU transmission is a third type PPDU transmission. In this case, the processor 802a is further configured to execute instructions to decode a UL BW subfield of the common information field to determine a BW allocated to the HE TB PPDU transmission, identify a user information field of the received trigger frame having an AID12 subfield matching the AID of the STA, decode at least one subfield for RU allocation of the identified user information field to determine an RU or MRU allocated to the TB PPDU transmission from the STA, decode a subfield, for example a PPDU BW subfield, of a dedicated user information field of the received trigger frame to determine a BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission, and determine to transmit the HE TB PPDU if the assigned RU or MRU is located within the BW assigned to the HE TB PPDU transmission, or determine to transmit the EHT TB PPDU if the assigned RU or MRU is located within the BW assigned to the EHT TB PPDU transmission, by executing instructions to: Illustratively, in some alternative embodiments, the processor 802a is configured to execute instructions to determine to transmit an HE TB PPDU if an RU is assigned to a STA and the assigned RU is located within a BW assigned for HE TB PPDU transmission, or to transmit an EHT TB PPDU if an MRU is assigned to a STA, or if an RU is assigned to a STA and the assigned RU is located within a BW assigned for EHT TB PPDU transmission.

[0078] In addition, to provide a link between BW allocation and channel allocation for HE TB PPDU transmission and EHT TB PPDU transmission in a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, the processor 802a further executes instructions to transmit the HE TB PPDU on the 80 MHz primary channel or transmit the EHT TB PPDU on the 160 MHz secondary channel when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW, or transmit the HE TB PPDU on the 160 MHz primary channel or transmit the EHT TB PPDU on an unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of the 160 MHz secondary channel when the UL BW subfield of the common information field is set to indicate 160 MHz BW and the subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate 80 MHz BW. When set to indicate BW, it is configured to transmit HE TB PPDUs on a 160 MHz primary channel or EHT TB PPDUs on a 160 MHz secondary channel.

[0079] In this embodiment, the processor 802a may be further configured to execute instructions to decode a third subfield of the common information field to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU. Specifically, if a first type PPDU transmission is requested, the STA decodes the third subfield to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU, if a second type PPDU transmission is requested, the STA decodes the third subfield to determine the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU, if a third type PPDU transmission is requested, the STA decodes the third subfield to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU or the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0080] Exemplarily, when a third type TB PPDU transmission is requested, the processor 802a may be further configured to execute instructions to decode the third subfield to determine the number of HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU, and to decode the fourth subfield of the common information field to determine the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU. It should be noted that the fourth subfield is a newly added subfield in the common information field.

[0081] Fig. 8B is a schematic diagram of a second device 800B for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to one embodiment of the present invention. The device 800B includes a receiving unit 801b and a decoding unit 802b, which are configured to perform a method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention, for example, the method 600 and the method 700 shown in Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 above. In one embodiment, the receiving unit 801b is configured to receive a trigger frame from an AP, where the trigger frame is generated based on the type of PPDU transmission requested by multiple STAs in the WLAN, a common information field of the trigger frame includes a first subfield, where the first subfield indicates whether the trigger frame is a first type trigger frame or a second type trigger frame, and if the trigger frame is a second type trigger frame, the trigger frame further includes a second subfield indicating a type of PPDU transmission, and the decoding unit 802b is configured to decode the common information of the received trigger frame to determine the type of the requested PPDU transmission.

[0082] In the following, two embodiments of the present invention are described to explain the details of the method for triggering uplink transmission in a WLAN according to some embodiments of the present invention. It should be noted that these embodiments are used for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0083] Example 1 9 is a block diagram of a format of a common information field of a trigger frame according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the first subfield of the common information field is an enhanced trigger frame flag subfield, which indicates whether the trigger frame is an 802.11ax trigger frame or an enhanced trigger frame. The enhanced trigger frame flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame and is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame. The second subfield of the common information field is an A-PPDU flag subfield, which indicates the type of PPDU transmission or whether a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission (i.e., a third type PPDU transmission) or an EHT TB PPDU transmission (i.e., a second type PPDU transmission) is requested. The A-PPDU flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an EHT TB PPDU transmission is requested and is set to 1 to indicate a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested. Note that when the enhanced trigger frame flags subfield is set to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, there is no dedicated user information field in the trigger frame and the A-PPDU flags subfield is reserved.

[0084] When the trigger frame is used to request a first type of PPDU transmission, i.e., an HE TB PPDU transmission from an HE STA, an R1 EHT STA, and / or an R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, the UL BW subfield is set to indicate the BW allocated for the requested HE TB PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the HE-SIG-A field of each requested HE TB PPDU, and the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, together with the Doppler subfield, indicates the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU. In this case, the R1 EHT STA or the R2 EHT STA treats the user information field with the AID12 subfield matching its own AID as a HE format user information field and transmits the HE TB PPDU. Table 1 shows an example of a predetermined encoding rule for the UL BW subfield when the trigger frame is used to request an HE TB PPDU transmission. Table 2 shows an example of a predetermined encoding rule for the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 0.

[0085] [Table 1]

[0086] [Table 2]

[0087] In one example, based on the predefined encoding rules shown in Tables 1 and 2, if a trigger frame is used to request a 160 MHz HE TB PPDU transmission with four spatial streams and no midamble (a training sequence used for channel estimation) from an HE STA, an R1 EHT STA and / or an R2 EHT STA, the UL BW subfield is set to 3 to indicate 160 / 80+80 MHz BW of the requested HE TB PPDU, the Doppler subfield is set to 0 to indicate no midamble in the requested HE TB PPDU, and the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is set to 2 to indicate four HE-LTF symbols in the requested HE TB PPDU.

[0088] If the trigger frame is used to request a second type of PPDU transmission, i.e., an EHT TB PPDU transmission from an R1 EHT STA and / or an R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame, the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate that an EHT TB PPDU transmission is requested, the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field indicates the BW allocated for the requested EHT TB PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the U-SIG of each requested EHT TB PPDU, and the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is reused to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. In this case, the R1 EHT STA or the R2 EHT STA treats the user information field with the AID12 subfield matching its own AID as an EHT format user information field and transmits the EHT TB PPDU. Table 3 shows an example of a predetermined encoding rule for the PPDU BW subfield when the trigger frame is used to request an EHT TB PPDU transmission. Table 4 shows an example of a predetermined encoding rule for the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield of the trigger frame when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 and the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0.

[0089] [Table 3]

[0090] [Table 4]

[0091] In one example, based on the predefined encoding rules shown in Tables 3 and 4, if a trigger frame is used to request a 320 MHz EHT TB PPDU transmission having 12 spatial streams from an R1 EHT STA and / or an R2 EHT STA, the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to 4 or 5 to indicate the 320 MHz BW of the requested EHT TB PPDU, and the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is set to 5 to indicate 12 EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0092] If the trigger frame is used to request a third type PPDU transmission, i.e., a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from an HE STA and an R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame, the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate that a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested, the UL BW subfield indicates the BW allocated to the HE TB PPDU transmission of the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the HE-SIG-A field of each requested HE TB PPDU, the PPDU BW subfield of the Dedicated User Information field indicates the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission of the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the U-SIG field of each requested EHT TB PPDU, and the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, together with the Doppler subfield, indicates the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission of the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the U-SIG field of each requested EHT TB PPDU. The subfield indicates the number of HE-LTF symbols in the PPDU and the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. In this embodiment, the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. Table 5 shows an example of a predetermined encoding rule for the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 and the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 1.

[0093] [Table 5]

[0094] In one example, based on the predetermined encoding rules shown in Table 1, Table 3, and Table 5, if a trigger frame is used to request a 320 MHz BW TB FD-A-PPDU transmission (including one 80 MHz HE TB PPDU transmission with four spatial streams and no midamble and one 160 MHz EHT TB PPDU transmission with four spatial streams), the UL BW subfield is set to 2 to indicate the 80 MHz BW of the requested HE TB PPDU transmission, the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to 3 to indicate the 160 MHz BW of the requested EHT TB PPDU transmission, the Doppler subfield is set to 0 to indicate the absence of a midamble in each requested HE TB PPDU, and the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is set to 2 to indicate four HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU and four EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0095] In a first embodiment, the trigger frame is used only to request a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, and the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is the same as the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0096] Example 2 FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a format of a common information field of a trigger frame according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the first subfield of the common information field is an enhanced trigger frame flag subfield of the common information field, which indicates whether the trigger frame is an 802.11ax trigger frame or an enhanced trigger frame. The enhanced trigger frame flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, and is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame. The second subfield of the common information field is an A-PPDU flag subfield, which indicates the type of PPDU transmission, or whether a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission (i.e., a third type PPDU transmission) or an EHT TB PPDU transmission (i.e., a second type PPDU transmission) is requested. The A-PPDU flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an EHT TB PPDU transmission is requested, and is set to 1 to indicate a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested. The Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield indicates the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU. If the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flags subfield is set to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, the trigger frame has no dedicated user information field and the A-PPDU Flags subfield and the Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield are reserved.

[0097] If the trigger frame is used to request a first type PPDU transmission, i.e., an HE TB PPDU transmission from an HE STA, R1 EHT STAs and / or R2 EHT STAs, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate an 802.11ax trigger frame, the UL BW subfield is set to indicate the BW allocated for the requested HE TB PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the HE-SIG-A field of each requested HE TB PPDU, and the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, together with the Doppler subfield, indicates the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU. In this case, the R1 EHT STA or the R2 EHT STA treats the User Information field with the AID12 subfield equal to its own AID as a HE format User Information field and transmits the HE TB PPDU. The UL BW subfield, the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, and the Doppler subfield can be set according to a predetermined encoding rule for these subfields, for example, the examples of the predetermined encoding rules shown in Tables 1 and 2.

[0098] If the trigger frame is used to request a second type of PPDU transmission, i.e., EHT TB PPDU transmission from R1 EHT STA and / or R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame, the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0 to indicate that an EHT TB PPDU transmission is requested, the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to indicate the BW allocated for the requested EHT TB PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the U-SIG field of each requested EHT TB PPDU, and the Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield is set to indicate the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. Table 6 shows an example of a predetermined encoding rule for the Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield of the trigger frame when the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 and the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 0 according to the second embodiment. In this case, the R1 EHT STA or the R2 EHT STA treats the user information field with the AID12 subfield matching its own AID as an EHT format user information field and transmits an EHT TB PPDU.

[0099] [Table 6]

[0100] In one example, based on the predefined encoding rules shown in Tables 3 and 6, if a trigger frame is used to request a 320 MHz EHT TB PPDU transmission having 12 spatial streams from an R1 EHT STA and / or an R2 EHT STA, the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to 4 or 5 to indicate the 320 MHz BW of the requested EHT TB PPDU, and the Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield is set to 5 to indicate 12 EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0101] If the trigger frame is used to request a third type PPDU transmission, i.e., a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from an HE STA and an R2 EHT STA, the Enhanced Trigger Frame Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate an enhanced trigger frame, the A-PPDU Flag subfield is set to 1 to indicate that a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested, the UL BW subfield indicates the BW allocated to the HE TB PPDU transmission of the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the HE-SIG-A field of each requested HE TB PPDU, the PPDU BW subfield of the Dedicated User Information field indicates the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission of the requested TB FD-A-PPDU transmission, i.e., the BW in the U-SIG field of each requested EHT TB PPDU, the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield together with the Doppler subfield indicates the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU, and the Number Of The EHT-LTF Symbols subfield indicates the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU. The UL BW subfield, the PPDU BW subfield, the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield, the Doppler subfield, and the Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield can be set according to a predetermined encoding rule for these subfields, for example, examples of the predetermined encoding rules shown in Tables 1, 2, 3, and 6.

[0102] In one example, based on the predefined encoding rules shown in Table 1, Table 2, Table 3, and Table 6, if the trigger frame is used to request a 320 MHz BW TB FD-A-PPDU transmission (including one 80 MHz HE TB PPDU transmission with four spatial streams and no midamble and one 160 MHz EHT TB PPDU transmission with four spatial streams), the UL BW subfield is set to 2 to indicate the 80 MHz BW of the requested HE TB PPDU transmission, the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is set to 3 to indicate the 160 MHz BW of the requested EHT TB PPDU transmission, the Doppler subfield is set to 0 to indicate the absence of a midamble in each requested HE TB PPDU, the Number Of HE-LTF Symbols And Midamble Periodicity subfield is set to 2 to indicate four HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU, and the Number Of EHT-LTF Symbols subfield is set to 3 to indicate the 160 MHz BW of each requested EHT TB PPDU. Set to 2 to indicate 4 EHT-LTF symbols in the PPDU.

[0103] In a second embodiment, the generated trigger frame may be used to request a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission using two separate subfields to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU and the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU, where the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in each requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0104] In some embodiments of the present invention, when a trigger frame is used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmissions from multiple HE STAs and R2 EHT STAs, the UL BW subfield of the common information field is used to indicate the BW allocated for HE TB PPDU transmissions, and the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field is used to indicate the BW allocated for EHT TB PPDU transmissions. Table 6 shows an example of a predetermined encoding rule for the UL BW subfield of the common information field and the PPDU BW subfield of the dedicated user information field when a trigger frame is used to request TB FD-A-PPDU transmissions. The UL BW subfield is set to 2 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 3, which corresponds to BW allocation option 1 shown in Figure 4A. The UL BW subfield is set to 3 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 2, which corresponds to BW allocation option 2 shown in Figure 4B. The UL BW subfield is set to 3 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 3, which corresponds to BW allocation option 3 shown in Figure 4C. That is, if the UL BW subfield is set to 2 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 3, then the BW allocated to the HE TB PPDU transmission is P80 and the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission is S160. If the UL BW subfield is set to 3 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 2, then the BW allocated to the HE TB PPDU transmission is P160 and the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission is the unpunctured 80 MHz frequency segment of S160. If the UL BW subfield is set to 3 and the PPDU BW subfield is set to 3, then the BW allocated to the HE TB PPDU transmission is P160 and the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission is S160.

[0105] In some embodiments of the present invention, when the trigger frame is used to request a third type of PPDU transmission, i.e., a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission from multiple HE STAs and an R2 EHT STA, the R1 EHT STA treats the user information field with the AID12 subfield matching its own AID as an EHT format user information field and transmits an EHT TB PPDU. The R2 EHT STA treats the user information field with the AID12 subfield matching its own AID as an HE format user information field or an EHT format user information field depending on whether the assigned RU or MRU is located within the BW assigned for HE TB PPDU transmission or the BW assigned for EHT TB PPDU transmission. Specifically, if the assigned RU or MRU is located within the BW assigned for HE TB PPDU transmission, the R2 EHT STA treats the user information field having an AID12 subfield that matches its own AID as an HE format user information field, and if the assigned RU or MRU is located within the BW assigned for EHT TB PPDU transmission, the R2 EHT STA treats the user information field having an AID12 subfield that matches its own AID as an EHT format user information field.

[0106] An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer product including instructions which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform any of the methods for triggering uplink transmission according to any embodiment of the present invention.

[0107] At least some steps of the method for triggering an uplink transmission according to any embodiment of the present invention described above may be implemented by hardware, a processor executing firmware instructions, a processor executing software instructions, or any combination thereof. When implemented by a processor executing software or firmware instructions, the software or firmware instructions may be stored in any computer readable memory, such as a magnetic disk, optical disk, or other storage medium, RAM or ROM or flash memory, a processor, a hard disk drive, an optical disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, etc. Similarly, the software or firmware instructions may be distributed to a user or system via any known or desired distribution method, including, for example, a computer readable disk or other removable computer storage mechanism, or via a communication medium.

[0108] As described above, in the methods and apparatus provided in each embodiment of the present invention, the proposed enhanced trigger frame can be used to request different types of PPDU transmission in a WLAN, because a first subfield is introduced in the common information field of the trigger frame, indicating the type of the trigger frame, i.e., whether the trigger frame is an existing 802.11ax trigger frame or an enhanced trigger frame, and if the first subfield indicates that the trigger frame is an enhanced trigger frame, a second subfield is further introduced, indicating the type of requested PPDU transmission, i.e., whether EHT TB PPDU transmission or TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested.

[0109] Furthermore, in some embodiments of the present invention, when a TB A-PPDU transmission is requested, the BW allocated to the EH TB PPDU transmission in the TB FD-A-PPDU transmission and the BW allocated to the EHT TB PPDU transmission in the TB FA-PPDU transmission are indicated by the UL BW subfield in the common information field and the PPDU BW subfield in the dedicated user information field, respectively. Also, one embodiment of the present invention provides a method for associating the BW allocations with corresponding channel allocations for the EH TB PPDU transmission and the EHT TB PPDU transmission. Additionally, in some embodiments of the present invention, two separate subfields in the common information field are used to indicate the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU and the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU, such that a trigger frame can be used to request a TB FD-A PPDU transmission in which the number of HE-LTF symbols in each requested HE TB PPDU is different from the number of EHT-LTF symbols in the requested EHT TB PPDU.

[0110] It should be understood that the above-described embodiments and features are to be considered as illustrative and not limiting. Many other embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the present invention. The scope of the present invention should therefore be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. Moreover, certain terminology has been used for the purpose of clarity of description and is not intended to limit the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims

1. 1. A method for triggering uplink transmissions in a wireless local area network (WLAN), comprising: An access point (AP) generates a trigger frame based on a type of physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission requested by a plurality of stations (STAs) in the WLAN, the trigger frame having a common information field including a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether a dedicated user information field is present in the trigger frame; If the trigger frame is an enhanced trigger frame, the common information field includes an aggregated physical layer protocol data unit (A-PPDU) flag subfield, the A-PPDU flag subfield indicating whether a trigger-based frequency domain aggregated physical layer protocol data unit (TB FD-A-PPDU) transmission is requested or an very high throughput trigger-based physical layer protocol data unit (EHT TB PPDU) transmission is requested, the A-PPDU flag subfield being set to 0 to indicate that the EHT TB PPDU transmission is requested and being set to 1 to indicate that the TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested; When a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested and the bandwidth (BW) of the TB FD-A-PPDU is set to 320 MHz, the BW allocated to a high-efficiency trigger-based physical layer protocol data unit (HE TB PPDU) transmission, as indicated by an uplink bandwidth (UL BW) subfield of the common information field, is a primary channel of 80 MHz or a primary channel of 160 MHz, and the BW allocated to an EHT PPDU transmission from a Release-2 very high-throughput station (R2 EHT STA), as indicated by a subfield of the dedicated user information field, is a secondary channel of 160 MHz; and transmitting, by the AP, a generated trigger frame to the plurality of STAs.

2. When the first subfield indicates that a dedicated user information field is present in the trigger frame, the dedicated user information field is located immediately after the common information field. The method of claim 1.

3. If the first subfield indicates the presence of a dedicated user information field in the trigger frame, the dedicated user information field carries a required universal signal (U-SIG) subfield of the requested PPDU. The method of claim 1.

4. the requested PPDU transmission is an Very High Throughput (EHT) Trigger-Based (TB) PPDU; The method of claim 1.

5. 1. An access point (AP) for triggering an uplink transmission in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the AP comprising: a memory configured to store instructions for triggering an uplink transmission in the WLAN; and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the processor executing the instructions to: configured to generate a trigger frame based on a type of physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission requested by a plurality of stations (STAs) in the WLAN, and transmit the generated trigger frame to the plurality of STAs; a common information field of the trigger frame including a first subfield, the first subfield indicating whether a dedicated user information field is present in the trigger frame; If the trigger frame is an enhanced trigger frame, the common information field includes an aggregated physical layer protocol data unit (A-PPDU) flag subfield, the A-PPDU flag subfield indicating whether a trigger-based frequency domain aggregated physical layer protocol data unit (TB FD-A-PPDU) transmission is requested or an very high throughput trigger-based physical layer protocol data unit (EHT TB PPDU) transmission is requested, the A-PPDU flag subfield being set to 0 to indicate that the EHT TB PPDU transmission is requested and being set to 1 to indicate that the TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested; When a TB FD-A-PPDU transmission is requested and the bandwidth (BW) of the TB FD-A-PPDU is set to 320 MHz, the BW allocated to a high-efficiency trigger-based physical layer protocol data unit (HE TB PPDU) transmission, as indicated by an uplink bandwidth (UL BW) subfield of the common information field, is a primary channel of 80 MHz or a primary channel of 160 MHz, and the BW allocated to an EHT PPDU transmission from a Release-2 very high-throughput station (R2 EHT STA), as indicated by a subfield of the dedicated user information field, is a secondary channel of 160 MHz.

6. If the first subfield indicates that a dedicated user information field is present in the trigger frame, the dedicated user information field is located immediately after the common information field. The AP according to claim 5.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein if the first subfield indicates the presence of a dedicated user information field in the trigger frame, the dedicated user information field carries required U-SIG subfields of the requested PPDU. The AP according to claim 5.

8. the requested PPDU transmission is an EHT TB PPDU; The AP according to claim 5.

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