Communication method and communication device

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a communication method and a communication device. The communication method may include: determining a first message frame, the first message frame including information indicating a resource unit, the resource unit being a single-type resource unit or a composite resource unit, and the resource unit being used for uplink transmission of a site; and transmitting the first message frame. The technical solution provided by the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure can achieve compatibility, improve spectrum utilization efficiency, and improve system throughput.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communications, and more particularly to communication methods and devices. [Background technology]

[0002] The Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) has established the IEEE802.11be study group (SG) to research next-generation Wi-Fi technologies (IEEE802.11a / b / g / n / ac). The scope of research will include 320 MHz bandwidth transmission, aggregation and cooperation of multiple frequency bands, etc., and is expected to improve speed and throughput by at least four times compared to the existing IEEE802.11ax standard. Main application scenarios include video transmission, AR (Augmented Reality), and VR (Virtual Reality).

[0003] Aggregation and cooperation of multiple frequency bands refers to the simultaneous communication between devices in the 2.4GHz, 5.8GHz, and 6-7GHz frequency bands. Simultaneous communication between devices in multiple frequency bands requires the definition and management of a new MAC (Media Access Control) mechanism. IEEE802.11be is also expected to support low-latency transmission.

[0004] In the discussion of the IEEE 802.11be standard, the maximum supported bandwidth is 320 MHz (160 MHz + 160 MHz), and it may also support 240 MHz (160 MHz + 80 MHz), as well as the bandwidth supported by the IEEE 802.11ax standard.

[0005] In the IEEE 802.11ax standard, within a certain communication bandwidth, an access point can allocate one single type of resource unit (RU) to one user (e.g., site) at a time, for example, via a trigger frame. For example, the resource unit types may be 26-subcarrier (26-tone), 52-tone, 106-tone, 242-tone, 484-tone, or 996-tone. In addition, in the IEEE 802.11be standard, an AP can allocate multiple RUs to an IEEE 802.11be site within a certain bandwidth.

[0006] In a real communication environment, there is a possibility that old sites (e.g., sites supporting the IEEE 802.11ax standard) and new sites (e.g., sites supporting the IEEE 802.11be standard) coexist, so the AP needs to simultaneously allocate single-type RUs to old sites and one composite RU to IEEE 802.11be sites. However, since the existing communication method only applies to the allocation of single-type RUs and not to the allocation of composite RUs, an extension is required to consider backward compatibility. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] Various aspects of the present disclosure address at least the above problems and / or shortcomings. Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide the following technical solutions. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to an access point, and can include: a step of determining a first message frame, where the first message frame includes information indicating a resource unit, the resource unit being a single type resource unit or a composite resource unit, and the resource unit being used for uplink transmission of a site; and a step of transmitting the first message frame.

[0009] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to a site, and can include the steps of receiving a first message frame, where the first message frame includes information indicating a resource unit, and the resource unit is a single type resource unit or a resource unit; and performing uplink transmission using the resource unit.

[0010] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication device is provided, which can be applied to an access point and can include: a processing module configured to determine a first message frame, the first message frame including information of a resource unit, the resource unit being a single type resource unit or a composite resource unit, and the resource unit being used for uplink transmission of a site; and a communication module configured to transmit the first message frame.

[0011] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication device is provided, the communication device being applicable to a site and including: a receiving module configured to receive a first message frame, the first message frame including information indicating a resource unit, the resource unit being a single type resource unit or a composite resource unit; and a transmitting module configured to perform uplink transmission using the resource unit.

[0012] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided an electronic device, the electronic device including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable by the processor, the computer program, when executed by the processor, implementing the method described above.

[0013] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the method described above. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] The technical solutions provided by the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure can achieve compatibility, improve spectrum utilization efficiency, and improve system throughput. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] The above and other features of the embodiments of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, taken in conjunction with the drawings. [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication scene. [Figure 2] 1 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a first message frame. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the format of a common information domain. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the format of a user information domain. [Figure 6] 1 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] To facilitate a complete understanding of various embodiments of the present disclosure, as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents, the following description is provided with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although various embodiments of the present disclosure include various specific details, these specific details are considered to be merely exemplary. Furthermore, descriptions of well-known techniques, functions, and structures may be omitted to provide a clear and concise description.

[0017] It is to be understood that as used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" can also include the plural forms unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. It is to be further understood that the term "comprising," as used in this disclosure, refers to the presence of the above-mentioned features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof.

[0018] In this specification, terms such as "first," "second," etc. may be used to describe various elements, but it is understood that these terms are used only to distinguish one element from another. Thus, a first element described below could be referred to as a second element without departing from the teachings of the example embodiments.

[0019] It should be noted that when an element is referred to as being "connected" or "coupled" to another element, it can be directly connected or coupled to the other element, or intermediary elements may be present. Also, as used herein, "connected" or "coupled" can include wireless connections or couplings. As used herein, the terms "and / or," or "at least one of," include any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0020] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains.

[0021] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication scene.

[0022] In a wireless LAN, a Basic Service Set (BSS) may consist of an Access Point (AP) and one or more stations (STAs) that communicate with the AP. A Basic Service Set can connect to a Distribution System (DS) through the AP and access another Basic Service Set to form an Extended Service Set (ESS).

[0023] An AP is a wireless switch or router for a wireless network, and is also the core of the network. AP devices can be used primarily as a bridge to connect wireless and wired networks. By using this type of access point AP, wired and wireless networks can be integrated.

[0024] By way of example, an AP may include software applications and / or circuitry to enable other types of nodes in the wireless network to communicate with the outside and inside of the wireless network through the AP. For example, an AP may be a terminal device or network device equipped with a Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) chip.

[0025] By way of example, a site (STA) may include, but is not limited to, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a wearable device, a computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a personal communication system (PCS) device, a personal information manager (PIM), a personal navigation device (PND), a global positioning system, a multimedia device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, and the like.

[0026] Although FIG. 1 shows one AP communicating with three sites (STA 1, STA 2, and STA 3), this is merely an example and embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto; for example, the APs and sites can have any number and / or type.

[0027] 2 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the communication method illustrated in FIG. 2 can be applied to an access point (AP).

[0028] 2, a first message frame can be determined in step 210. Specifically, by setting information related to resource units allocated to a site by the first message frame, when the site receives the first message frame, it can perform upstream transmission using the allocated resource units based on the set information.

[0029] According to one embodiment, the first message frame may include information indicating resource units that the site can use for uplink transmission. That is, the first message frame may allocate resource units to the site, allowing the site to perform uplink transmission using the allocated resource units. According to one embodiment, the resource units may be single-type resource units or multiple resource units (Multi-RU). Specifically, because an IEEE 802.11ax site supports only a single type of resource unit, the first message frame may allocate only a single type of resource unit to the IEEE 802.11ax site. Meanwhile, because an IEEE 802.11be site can support both single-type resource units and multiple resource units, the first message frame may allocate either a single type of resource unit or multiple resource units to the IEEE 802.11be site. To briefly describe the technical concept of the present disclosure, the following mainly describes an example in which a single type of resource unit is allocated to an IEEE 802.11ax site and multiple resource units are allocated to an IEEE 802.11be site.

[0030] For example, the first message frame may allocate a single type of resource unit to the old site, and the first message frame may allocate a composite resource unit to the new site, thereby simultaneously achieving compatibility between the old site and the new site when the old site and the new site coexist in a BSS. For ease of explanation, in the present disclosure, an example of an old site may be a site that supports the IEEE 802.11ax standard, and an example of a new site may be a site that supports the IEEE 802.11be standard. However, this is merely an example, and the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. In addition, hereinafter, a site that supports the IEEE 802.11ax standard may be abbreviated as an IEEE 802.11ax site, and a site that supports the IEEE 802.11be standard may be abbreviated as an IEEE 802.11be site.

[0031] According to one embodiment, a single-type resource unit may indicate that the allocated resource unit contains only a specific number of subcarriers (tones), for example, a single-type resource unit may be 26-tone, 52-tone, 106-tone, 242-tone, 484-tone, 996-tone.

[0032] According to one embodiment, a composite resource unit may be composed of resource units of a single type. In one example, a composite resource unit may be composed of two specific resource units of a single type associated with a bandwidth. For example, a composite resource unit may include at least a first resource unit of a single type and a second resource unit of a single type, where the first resource unit of a single type has a different number of subcarriers (tones) than the second resource unit of a single type. That is, a composite resource unit may be composed of at least two different single-type resource units, such as 26+52 tone (20 / 40MHz), 106+26 tone (20 / 40MHz), 484+242 tone (80MHz), 484+996 tone (160MHz), 996+484+242 tone (160MHz), 2x996 tone (160MHz), 2x996+484 tone (240MHz), 3x996+484 tone (320MHz), 4x996 tone (160+160MHz / 320MHz), etc.

[0033] It is understood that the above single type resource units and composite resource units are merely examples and are not limitations on the scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0034] The following describes in detail information indicating resource units included in a first message frame according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For ease of explanation, the first message frame may be a trigger frame in the following example. However, this is merely an example, and other types of frames are possible. The following describes the embodiment based on the IEEE 802.11ax standard and the IEEE 802.11be standard.

[0035] The general format of the trigger frame can be as shown in FIG. 3, an example of the common information domain (Common Info) included in the trigger frame can be as shown in FIG. 4, and the user information domain (User Info) of an example of the user information list domain (User Info List) included in the trigger frame can be as shown in FIG. 5.

[0036] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, resource unit information can be set based on an uplink bandwidth (UL BW) subdomain in the common information domain and a resource unit allocation (RU Allocation) subdomain in the user information domain. The RU Allocation subdomain can identify the size and location of the resource unit along with the UL BW, as shown in Table 1 below. [Table 1]

[0037] The least significant bit (B0) of the RU Allocation subdomain can be set corresponding to the bandwidth identified in the UL BW, and the other 7 bits (B7-B1) of the RU Allocation subdomain can identify a total of 128 values (0-127). Referring to Table 1, in the IEEE 802.11ax standard, each value (e.g., 0-68) in the RU Allocation subdomain can identify a corresponding single-type RU index. To achieve backward compatibility, the IEEE 802.11be standard can continue to use the RU Allocation subdomain to identify Multi-RU indexes.

[0038] According to one embodiment, since the IEEE 802.11ax standard already identifies single types of resource units using the numbers 0 to 68 in the RU Allocation subdomain, the IEEE 802.11be standard can define composite resource units using new values. For example, examples of composite resources can include one 2×996 tone, one 4×996 tone, six 52+26 tones, four 106+26 tones, four 484+242 tones, four 996+484 tones, eight 996+484+242 tones, twelve 2×996+484 tones, four 3×996 tones, eight 3×996+484 tones, etc. The above examples can be included in bandwidths of 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 80+80 / 160 MHz, and 160+160 / 320 MHz. The above examples of composite resources are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure, but are merely for illustrative purposes. For example, it is understood that each composite resource and its number in the embodiments may be different from the above examples, but may also be other variations.

[0039] In the example, a new value (e.g., 69-118) can be used to sequentially define six resource units of size (52+26 tone), four resource units of size (106+26 tone), four resource units of size (484+242 tone), four resource units of size (996+484 tone), eight resource units of size (996+484+242 tone), twelve resource units of size (2×996+484 tone), four resource units of size (3×996 tone), and eight resource units of size (3×996+484 tone). For example, the values "69-74" of the RU Allocation subdomain correspond to RU1-RU6, respectively, and each of RU1-RU6 may have (52+26 tones). That is, RU1-RU6 are composed of a single-type RU with 52 subcarriers and a single-type RU with 26 subcarriers. Other composite resource units can be set in a similar manner, and redundant explanations will be omitted for brevity. It should be understood that the above example is for illustrative purposes only and not for limitation, and other methods of setting the RU Allocation subdomain are also possible.

[0040] 3 to 5, the first message frame may include a resource unit allocation subdomain. The communication method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure may further include setting the resource unit allocation subdomain to a first value to indicate an index of a resource unit. Specifically, if the first value is set within a first range of possible values, the resource unit is a single-type resource unit. If the first value is set to a value different from the first range of possible values, the resource unit is a composite resource unit. In the example, the first range of values (e.g., 0-68 shown in Table 1) may correspond to the index of a single-type resource unit. That is, when determining the first message frame in step 210, for an IEEE 802.11ax site, a single-type resource unit may be allocated to the IEEE 802.11ax site using the RU Allocation subdomain (e.g., a corresponding value among 0-68) shown in Table 1. For an IEEE 802.11be site, a new value different from 0-68 may be set as the RU Allocation subdomain, thereby allocating a composite resource unit to the IEEE 802.11be site.

[0041] Since the maximum operating bandwidth supported by IEEE 802.11ax is 160 MHz, the following mainly describes a design example of the first message frame when IEEE 802.11be sites and IEEE 802.11ax sites are mixed in a bandwidth of 160 MHz or less and in a 160+160 MHz / 320 MHz bandwidth.

[0042] I. The AP's BSS operating channel bandwidth is 160 MHz or less. If the AP's BSS operating channel bandwidth is 160 MHz or less, IEEE 802.11be sites and IEEE 802.11ax sites may coexist in the BSS. However, since the IEEE 802.11ax sites only support a maximum bandwidth of 160 MHz, the UL BW value can identify a maximum of 160 MHz (80 + 80 MHz).

[0043] To maintain compatibility, the set of UL BWs may be the same as that of the existing standard. For IEEE 802.11ax sites, the values of the RU Allocation subdomain shown in Table 1 can be used to identify single-type resource units. However, for IEEE 802.11be sites, a new value can be used to identify composite resource units. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, for IEEE 802.11be sites, a reserved bit (B39) in the User Information domain can be defined as a first identifier, as shown in FIG. 5, and this first identifier can indicate that a composite resource unit has been allocated. That is, the first message frame according to an embodiment of the present disclosure can further include a first identifier indicating that a composite resource unit has been allocated. In one embodiment, a site receiving the first message frame can identify that the allocated resource unit is a composite resource unit based on the first identifier.

[0044] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in Case I, for an IEEE 802.11ax site, the setting method of the first message frame may be as follows: set bandwidth information in the UL BW, and correspondingly set the value of the RU Allocation subdomain according to Table 1. For an IEEE 802.11be site, the setting method of the first message frame may be as follows: set bandwidth information in the UL BW, and set the corresponding value of the RU Allocation subdomain using a value different from Table 1, and set the first identifier to indicate that a composite resource unit is allocated.

[0045] II. The BSS operating channel bandwidth of the AP is 160+160MHz / 320MHz. If the AP's BSS operating channel bandwidth is 160+160MHz / 320MHz, the maximum bandwidth that IEEE802.11ax sites can support is 160MHz, so IEEE802.11be sites and IEEE802.11ax sites may coexist in the BSS.

[0046] In Case II, for an IEEE 802.11ax site, the UL BW can be set to 160 MHz, and the RU Allocation subdomain can be set to the maximum resource unit (e.g., 2×996 tones in Table 1); for an IEEE 802.11be site, the RU Allocation subdomain is set as in Example I above, and the UL BW can be set to 160 MHz, but the resource units can be allocated within the low-band 160 MHz bandwidth (i.e., less than 160 MHz) or the high-band 160 MHz bandwidth (i.e., greater than 160 MHz and less than or equal to 320 MHz); therefore, referring to FIG. 4, the reserved bit (B63) in the common information domain can be defined as a third identifier, which can indicate the band corresponding to the composite resource unit.

[0047] According to one embodiment, in addition to setting the RU Allocation subdomain, the IEEE 802.11be site is required to further indicate bandwidth and band information corresponding to the composite resource unit using the UL BW together with a third identifier. In one example, for ease of explanation, the UL BW can be referred to as a second identifier indicating the bandwidth corresponding to the composite resource unit. That is, the first message frame can further include a second identifier indicating the bandwidth corresponding to the composite resource unit and a third identifier indicating the band corresponding to the composite resource unit. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the communication method shown in FIG. 2 can further include the steps of: setting the second identifier to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth, and setting the third identifier to a third value corresponding to a low band to indicate bandwidth information lower than 160 MHz. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the communication method shown in FIG. 2 can further include the steps of: setting the second identifier to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth, and setting the third identifier to a fourth value corresponding to a high band to indicate bandwidth information higher than 160 MHz.

[0048] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in Case II, for an IEEE 802.11ax site, the first message frame may be set as follows: set the UL BW to 160 MHz, and set the RU Allocation subdomain to the maximum resource unit (e.g., 2×996 tone in Table 1). For an IEEE 802.11be site, the first message frame may be set as follows: set the UL BW to 160 MHz, set the corresponding value of the RU Allocation subdomain using a value different from that in Table 1, and set the third identifier to indicate the low band or the high band. For example, when the UL BW is set to 160 MHz, a third identifier of 0 (i.e., the third value) may indicate the 160 MHz bandwidth of the low band, and a third identifier of 1 (i.e., the fourth value) may indicate the 160 MHz bandwidth of the high band. However, this is merely an example, and the embodiment of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. It should be understood that, for example, the value of the third identifier may be set inversely.

[0049] Although the embodiments of Case I and Case II have been described separately herein, it will be understood that various combinations and modifications can be made to the embodiments described in Case I and Case II.

[0050] Furthermore, the above describes a method for setting the first message frame when IEEE 802.11be sites and IEEE 802.11ax sites are mixed in a bandwidth of 160 MHz or less and in a 160+160 MHz / 320 MHz bandwidth. However, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. For example, IEEE 802.11be sites and IEEE 802.11ax sites may be mixed in a 160+80 MHz / 240 MHz bandwidth. In this case, to allocate resource units corresponding to the IEEE 802.11be sites for uplink transmission, the set of RU Allocation subdomains may be as shown in Case I and Case II above, and the UL BW may be redefined (e.g., other reserved bits may be used as the UL BW) to indicate the 160+80 MHz / 240 MHz bandwidth.

[0051] 2, the determined first message frame can be transmitted in step 220. According to one embodiment, a device (e.g., a site) that receives the first message frame can perform upstream transmission based on the information in the resource units of the first message frame.

[0052] 6 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the communication method illustrated in FIG. 6 can be applied to a site (STA).

[0053] Referring to FIG. 6 , in step 610, a first message frame may be received. According to one embodiment, the first message frame may include information indicating a resource unit, where the resource unit is a single-type resource unit or a composite resource unit. In one example, the composite resource unit may be composed of single-type resource units. For example, the composite resource unit may include at least a first single-type resource unit and a second single-type resource unit, where the first single-type resource unit has a different number of subcarriers than the second single-type resource unit. According to one embodiment, the composite resource unit is allocated with a bandwidth of 160 MHz or less. According to another example, the composite resource unit is allocated with a bandwidth of 160+160 MHz or 320 MHz.

[0054] According to one embodiment, the first message frame may include a resource unit allocation subdomain. According to another embodiment, the first message frame may further include a first identifier indicating that a composite resource unit has been allocated. According to another embodiment, the first message frame may further include a second identifier indicating a bandwidth corresponding to the composite resource unit and a third identifier indicating a band corresponding to the composite resource unit. Specifically, the set of first message frames may be similar to the embodiments described with reference to Figures 2 to 5, and for the sake of brevity, redundant description will be omitted here.

[0055] According to an embodiment, the communication method shown in Figure 6 may further include determining resource units for uplink transmission based on the value of the resource unit allocation subdomain. Continuing with reference to Figure 6, in step 620, uplink transmission may be performed using the determined resource units.

[0056] According to one embodiment, the communication method shown in FIG. 6 may further include a step of performing uplink transmission using a single type of resource unit in response to the resource unit allocation subdomain being set to the first range of possible values.

[0057] According to one embodiment, the communication method shown in Figure 6 may further include performing uplink transmission using the composite resource unit in response to the resource unit allocation subdomain being set to a value different from the first range of possible values. As explained above, the first range of values may correspond to the B7-B1 values of the resource unit allocation subdomain shown in Table 1, and for the sake of brevity, the description overlapping with the above example will be omitted here.

[0058] According to one embodiment, the communication method shown in FIG. 6 may further include a step of performing uplink transmission using a composite resource unit in a bandwidth lower than 160 MHz in response to the second identifier being set to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and the third identifier being set to a third value corresponding to a low band.

[0059] According to one embodiment, the communication method shown in FIG. 6 may further include a step of performing uplink transmission using a composite resource unit at a bandwidth higher than 160 MHz in response to the second identifier being set to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and the third identifier being set to a fourth value corresponding to a high band.

[0060] The communication method described with reference to Figures 2 to 6 can achieve compatibility in a communication environment where IEEE 802.11ax sites and IEEE 802.11be sites are mixed, specifically, it allows IEEE 802.11ax sites and IEEE 802.11be sites to simultaneously obtain uplink resources, improves spectrum utilization efficiency, allocates different resource units to different types of sites, and improves system throughput.

[0061] 7 is a block diagram illustrating a communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In one embodiment, the communication device illustrated in FIG. 7 can be applied to an access point (AP).

[0062] 7, the communication device 700 may include a processing module 710 and a communication module 720. The processing module 710 may be configured to determine a first message frame, where the first message frame may include information of a resource unit, where the resource unit may be a single type of resource unit or a composite resource unit, and where the resource unit is used for uplink transmission of the site. The communication module 720 may be configured to transmit the first message frame.

[0063] According to one embodiment, the composite resource unit is composed of resource units of a single type, for example, the composite resource unit may include at least a first resource unit of a single type and a second resource unit of a single type, where the first resource unit of a single type has a different number of subcarriers than the second resource unit of a single type.

[0064] According to one embodiment, the first message frame includes a resource unit allocation subdomain. The processing module 710 is further configured to set the resource unit allocation subdomain to a first value to indicate an index of the resource unit. According to one embodiment, the processing module 710 is further configured to set the first value to a value different from the first range of possible values to indicate that the resource unit is a single type resource unit. According to one embodiment, the processing module 710 is further configured to set the first value to a value different from the first range of possible values to indicate that the resource unit is a composite resource unit.

[0065] According to one embodiment, the first message frame further includes a first identifier indicating that the composite resource unit has been allocated. According to one embodiment, the first message frame further includes a second identifier indicating a bandwidth corresponding to the composite resource unit and a third identifier indicating a band corresponding to the composite resource unit. Specifically, the set of first message frames may be similar to the examples described with reference to Figures 2 to 5, and for the sake of brevity, a redundant description will be omitted here.

[0066] According to one embodiment, the processing module 710 is further configured to set the second identifier to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and to set the third identifier to a third value corresponding to a low band to indicate bandwidth information lower than 160 MHz.

[0067] According to one embodiment, the processing module 710 is further configured to set the second identifier to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and set the third identifier to a fourth value corresponding to a high band to indicate bandwidth information higher than 160 MHz.

[0068] The communication device shown in Figure 7 can perform the methods described with reference to Figures 2 to 5, and for the sake of brevity, redundant description will be omitted here. Furthermore, the communication device 700 shown in Figure 7 is merely exemplary, and the disclosed embodiments are not limited thereto. For example, the communication device 700 can further include other modules, such as a memory module. Furthermore, each module of the communication device 700 can be combined into a more complex module or divided into more individual modules.

[0069] 8 is a block diagram illustrating a communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In one embodiment, the communication device illustrated in FIG. 8 can be applied to a site (STA).

[0070] Referring to FIG. 8, a communication device 800 may include a receiving module 810, a processing module 820, and a transmitting module 830.

[0071] The receiving module 810 may be configured to receive a first message frame, the first message frame including information indicating a resource unit, the resource unit being a single-type resource unit or a composite resource unit. According to one embodiment, the composite resource unit may be composed of a single-type resource unit. For example, the composite resource unit may include at least a first single-type resource unit and a second single-type resource unit, the first single-type resource unit having a different number of subcarriers than the second single-type resource unit. According to one embodiment, the composite resource unit is allocated with a bandwidth of 160 MHz or less. According to another example, the composite resource unit is allocated with a bandwidth of 160+160 MHz or 320 MHz.

[0072] The processing module 820 may be configured to determine, based on the value of the resource unit allocation subdomain, a resource unit for performing an uplink transmission.

[0073] The transmitting module 830 may be configured to perform uplink transmission using the resource unit.

[0074] According to one embodiment, the processing module 820 may be further configured to, in response to the resource unit allocation subdomain being set to the first range of possible values, control the transmission module 830 to perform uplink transmission using a single type of resource unit.

[0075] According to one embodiment, the processing module 820 may be configured to control the transmitting module 830 to perform uplink transmission using the composite resource unit in response to the resource unit allocation subdomain being set to a value different from the first range of possible values.

[0076] As described in Cases I and II above, the first message frame may further include a first identifier indicating that the composite resource unit has been allocated. The first message frame may also include a second identifier indicating a bandwidth corresponding to the composite resource unit and a third identifier indicating a band corresponding to the composite resource unit. Specifically, the set of first message frames may be similar to the embodiments described with reference to Figures 2 to 5, and for the sake of brevity, a redundant description will be omitted here.

[0077] According to one embodiment, the processing module 820 may be further configured to, in response to the second identifier being set to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and the third identifier being set to a third value corresponding to a low band, control the transmission module 830 to perform uplink transmission using a composite resource unit in a bandwidth lower than 160 MHz.

[0078] According to one embodiment, the processing module 820 may be configured to control the transmitting module 830 to perform uplink transmission using a composite resource unit with a bandwidth higher than 160 MHz in response to the second identifier being set to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and the third identifier being set to a fourth value corresponding to a high band.

[0079] The communication device 800 shown in Figure 8 can perform the method described with reference to Figure 6, and for the sake of brevity, a duplicated description will be omitted here. Also, the communication device 800 shown in Figure 8 is merely exemplary, and embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. For example, the communication device 800 may further include a memory module, etc. Also, each module of the communication device 800 may be combined into a more complex module or divided into more individual modules.

[0080] The communication device described with reference to Figures 7 and 8 can achieve compatibility in a communication environment where IEEE 802.11ax sites and IEEE 802.11be sites are mixed, specifically, this allows IEEE 802.11ax sites and IEEE 802.11be sites to simultaneously obtain uplink resources, improve spectrum utilization efficiency, allocate different resource units to different types of sites, and improve system throughput.

[0081] Based on the same principle as the method provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, the embodiments of the present disclosure further provide an electronic device including a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores machine-readable instructions (also referred to as "computer programs"), and the processor executes the machine-readable instructions to realize the method described with reference to Figures 2 to 6.

[0082] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored therein, which, when executed by a processor, realizes the method described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6.

[0083] In exemplary embodiments, a processor may be any of the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in the present disclosure, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, transistor logic device, hardware component, or any combination thereof. A processor may also be any combination that provides computing functionality, such as a combination including one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, etc.

[0084] In an exemplary embodiment, memory may be, but is not limited to, ROM (Read Only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) or other optical disk storage, optical disk storage (including compressed optical disks, laser disks, optical disks, digital versatile optical disks, Blu-ray disks, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that contains or can be used to store program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer.

[0085] It should be understood that the steps in the flowcharts of the drawings are shown sequentially as indicated by the arrows, but are not necessarily performed sequentially as indicated by the arrows. Unless explicitly stated herein, there is no strict order restriction on the execution of these steps, and they may be performed in other orders. At least some of the steps in the flowcharts of the drawings may include multiple sub-steps or multiple phases, and these sub-steps or phases may not necessarily be completed at the same time but may be performed at different times, and may not necessarily be performed sequentially but may be alternated or interleaved with other steps or at least some of the sub-steps or phases of other steps.

[0086] Although the present disclosure has been shown and described with reference to several embodiments thereof, those skilled in the art will recognize that various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the scope of the present disclosure should not be limited to the embodiments, but should be limited by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A communication method applied to an access point, the communication method comprising: determining a first message frame, the first message frame including information indicating a resource unit, the resource unit being a single type resource unit or a composite resource unit according to support by a site communicating with the access point, the resource unit being used for uplink transmission of the site; transmitting the first message frame; The first message frame includes a resource unit allocation subdomain as information indicating resource units supported by the site; The communication method further includes setting the resource unit allocation subdomain to a first value to indicate an index of the resource unit; the resource unit is a single type resource unit if the first value is set to a first range of possible values, and the resource unit is a composite resource unit if the first value is set to a value different from the first range of possible values; the first message frame further includes a first identifier indicating that a composite resource unit has been allocated. A communication method comprising:

2. The composite resource unit is composed of resource units of a single type; 2. The communication method according to claim 1.

3. the composite resource unit includes at least a first single-type resource unit and a second single-type resource unit; the first single-type resource unit and the second single-type resource unit have different numbers of subcarriers; 3. The communication method according to claim 1 or 2.

4. the first message frame further includes a second identifier indicating a bandwidth corresponding to the composite resource unit and a third identifier indicating a band corresponding to the composite resource unit; 3. The communication method according to claim 1 or 2.

5. The communication method includes: setting the second identifier to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and the third identifier to a third value corresponding to a low band to indicate bandwidth information lower than 160 MHz; or and further comprising the steps of: setting the second identifier to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth; and setting the third identifier to a fourth value corresponding to a high band, to indicate bandwidth information higher than 160 MHz.

5. The communication method according to claim 4.

6. The composite resource unit is allocated with a bandwidth of 160 MHz or less; or The composite resource unit is allocated in a 160+160 MHz or 320 MHz bandwidth.

3. The communication method according to claim 1 or 2.

7. A communication method applied to a site, said communication method comprising: receiving a first message frame from an access point, the first message frame including information indicating a resource unit, the resource unit being a single type resource unit or a composite resource unit according to support by the site; performing uplink transmission using the resource unit; The first message frame includes a resource unit allocation subdomain as information indicating resource units supported by the site; The communication method further includes determining resource units for uplink transmission based on the value of the resource unit allocation subdomain; The communication method includes: and performing an uplink transmission using a composite resource unit in response to the resource unit allocation subdomain being set to a value different from a first range of possible values; the first message frame further includes a first identifier indicating that a composite resource unit has been allocated. A communication method comprising:

8. The composite resource unit is composed of resource units of a single type; 8. The communication method according to claim 7.

9. the composite resource unit includes at least a first single-type resource unit and a second single-type resource unit; the first single-type resource unit and the second single-type resource unit have different numbers of subcarriers; 9. The communication method according to claim 7 or 8.

10. the first message frame further includes a second identifier indicating a bandwidth corresponding to the composite resource unit and a third identifier indicating a band corresponding to the composite resource unit; 9. The communication method according to claim 7 or 8.

11. The communication method includes: performing uplink transmission using a composite resource unit in a bandwidth lower than 160 MHz in response to the second identifier being set to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and the third identifier being set to a third value corresponding to a low band; or and performing an uplink transmission using a composite resource unit in a bandwidth higher than 160 MHz in response to the second identifier being set to a second value corresponding to a 160 MHz bandwidth and the third identifier being set to a fourth value corresponding to a high band. The communication method according to claim 10.

12. The composite resource unit is allocated with a bandwidth of 160 MHz or less; or The composite resource unit is allocated in a 160+160 MHz or 320 MHz bandwidth.

9. The communication method according to claim 7 or 8.

13. A communication device applied to an access point, the communication device comprising:

1. A processing module configured to determine a first message frame, the first message frame including information of a resource unit, the resource unit comprising: a processing module for processing resource units of a single type or composite resource units, depending on the support of a site communicating with the access point, the resource units being used for upstream transmissions of the site; a communication module configured to transmit the first message frame; The first message frame includes a resource unit allocation subdomain as information indicating resource units supported by the site; the processing module is further configured to set the resource unit allocation subdomain to a first value to indicate an index of the resource unit; the resource unit is a single type resource unit if the first value is set to a first range of possible values, and the resource unit is a composite resource unit if the first value is set to a value different from the first range of possible values; the first message frame further includes a first identifier indicating that a composite resource unit has been allocated. A communication device comprising:

14. A communication device adapted to a site, the communication device comprising: a receiving module configured to receive a first message frame from an access point, the first message frame including information indicating a resource unit, the resource unit being a single type resource unit or a composite resource unit according to support by the site; a transmitting module configured to perform uplink transmission using the resource unit; The first message frame includes a resource unit allocation subdomain as information indicating resource units supported by the site; The communication device further includes a processing module configured to determine a resource unit for uplink transmission based on a value of the resource unit allocation subdomain; the processing module further comprising: configured to perform uplink transmission using a composite resource unit in response to the resource unit allocation subdomain being set to a value different from a first range of possible values; the first message frame further includes a first identifier indicating that a composite resource unit has been allocated. A communication device comprising:

15. An electronic device, A method according to claim 1 or 2, comprising: a memory; a processor; and a computer program stored in the memory and executable by the processor, the computer program implementing the method according to claim 1 or 2 when the processor executes the computer program. An electronic device characterized by:

16. An electronic device, A method according to claim 7 or 8, comprising: a memory; a processor; and a computer program stored in the memory and executable by the processor, the computer program being adapted to implement the method according to claim 7 or 8 when the processor executes the computer program. An electronic device characterized by:

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