Data transmission method, communication device, computer-readable storage medium, and chip

Abstract

The presently disclosed embodiments provide a data transmission method, a communication device, a computer-readable storage medium, and a chip. The method includes the steps of: generating a management frame by a first multilink device, the management frame including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information, the link indication information indicating that the management frame applies to at least one link corresponding to the link indication information; and transmitting the management frame to a second multilink device on a link on which the station indicated by the receiver address or the station indicated by the transmitter address operates. In this manner, in the presently disclosed embodiments, the management frame can include link indication information to indicate the link to which the management frame applies, so that cross-link transmission of the management frame can be performed and the second multilink device can apply the management frame to the correct link. This avoids processing errors.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communications, and more particularly to a data transmission method, a communication device, a computer-readable storage medium, and a chip. [Background technology]

[0002] A multi-link device (MLD) has multiple radio frequency modules and can operate on multiple different frequency bands or channels.

[0003] For communication between multilink devices, management frames may be transmitted on a link between a station associated with a multilink device and a station associated with another multilink device. However, current solutions do not fully utilize multilink capabilities, resulting in reduced transmission efficiency. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure provide a management frame mechanism for cross-link transmission to fully utilize resources based on multi-link capabilities.

[0005] According to a first aspect, a data transmission method is provided. The method includes: a first multilink device generates a management frame, the management frame including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information, the link indication information indicating that the management frame applies to at least one link corresponding to the link indication information; and the first multilink device transmits the management frame on a link on which the station indicated by the receiver address or the station indicated by the transmitter address operates. In this manner, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the management frame may include link indication information to indicate the link to which the management frame applies, so that cross-link transmission of the management frame can be performed and the device receiving the management frame can apply the management frame to the correct link. This avoids processing errors. The device receiving the management frame may be a second multilink device or a second single-link station.

[0006] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the link indication information includes a first address, and the first address includes address indication information. In one implementation, the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an access point AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. In other implementations, the address indication information indicates whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame.

[0007] In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD.

[0008] In other embodiments, the AP MAC address is the MAC address of a single-link AP or is the MAC address of an AP that is not affiliated with any AP MLD.

[0009] In this way, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the address indication information indicates whether the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD. This solution is applicable even if the MAC address of the MLD is the same as the MAC address of the associated station. This solution is more universal and can reduce signaling overhead.

[0010] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the address indication information is carried in the Individual / Group I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0011] In this way, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the address indication information can be carried in the I / G bit of the Address 3 field, which can efficiently utilize resources.

[0012] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the link indication information includes address indication information and a first address, and the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP.

[0013] In yet another embodiment of the first aspect, the first address of the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with AP MLD. In this case, the address indication information does not need to indicate which address the first address is. Optionally, the address indication information may indicate whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame.

[0014] The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0015] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0016] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the address indication information is a first value, and the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0017] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the link indication information further includes link identifier information, where the link identifier information indicates that the management frame applies to one or more links.

[0018] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the link indication information further includes link identifier information, the link identifier information being carried in a first element of the management frame, and the link identifier information indicating that the first element applies to one or more links.

[0019] In this way, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, all or part of the link can be indicated by the link identifier information, which expands the coverage and ensures communication performance.

[0020] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information indicating that the second element applies to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0021] In this manner, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, management frames are applied to all links without carrying link identifier information, which reduces signaling overhead and improves communication efficiency.

[0022] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the link identifier information includes at least one of one or more link identifiers or a link identifier bitmap.

[0023] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the address indication information is a second value, the first address is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, and the management frame is applied to a link on which the associated AP operates.

[0024] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the address indication information is a second value, the first address is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP that is not affiliated with any AP MLD, and the management frame is applied to the link on which the AP operates.

[0025] In this manner, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, management frames can be transmitted over the link so that the multi-link function can be fully utilized to effectively use resources, which improves resource utilization and further improves communication efficiency.

[0026] In some embodiments of the first aspect, generating the management frame includes constructing additional authentication data AAD, the AAD including a receiver address, a sender address, and a second address; generating a message integrity check MIC based on the AAD; and generating the management frame based on the MIC.

[0027] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0028] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0029] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame and the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0030] According to a second aspect, a data transmission method is provided, the method including: a second multilink device receiving a management frame from a first multilink device on a link on which a station in the second multilink device operates, the management frame including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information, the receiver address being an address of a station in the second multilink device, the link indication information indicating that the management frame applies to at least one link corresponding to the link indication information, and the second multilink device applying the management frame to the at least one corresponding link based on the link indication information.

[0031] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the link indication information includes a first address, and the first address includes address indication information. In one embodiment, the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an access point AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. The AP MAC address may be a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the address indication information indicates whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame.

[0032] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the address indication information being carried in an Individual / Group I / G bit of a MAC address in the Address 3 field of the management frame further includes the second multilink device masking the I / G bit in the Address 3 field of the management frame to 0 to obtain the first address in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0033] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the link indication information includes address indication information and a first address, and the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP may be a MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD.

[0034] In yet another embodiment of the second aspect, the first address of the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with AP MLD. In this case, the address indication information does not need to indicate which address the first address is. Optionally, the address indication information may indicate whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame. In other words, the address indication information can indicate whether the management frame includes link indication information.

[0035] The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0036] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the address indication information being carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 2 field of the management frame further includes masking the I / G bit in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0 to obtain the sender address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0037] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the address indication information is a first value, the first address is not all ones, and the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0038] In some embodiments of the second aspect, applying the management frame to at least one corresponding link includes, if the link indication information does not include link identifier information, applying the management frame to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device, or, if the link indication information includes link identifier information, applying the management frame to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information.

[0039] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the step of applying the management frame to at least one corresponding link includes, if the link indication information further includes link identifier information and the link identifier information is carried in a first element of the management frame, applying the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information.

[0040] In some embodiments of the second aspect, applying the management frame to the at least one corresponding link includes, if the second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information, applying the second element to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0041] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the link identifier information includes at least one of one or more link identifiers or a link identifier bitmap.

[0042] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the address indication information is a second value, the first address is not all ones, the first address is a MAC address of an AP, and the MAC address of the AP may be a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. Additionally, applying the management frame to the at least one corresponding link includes applying the management frame to a link on which the AP operates, specifically, a link on which the AP associated with the AP MLD operates.

[0043] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the management frame further includes a first message integrity check (MIC). The method further includes constructing additional authentication data (AAD), where the AAD includes a receiver address, a sender address, and a second address, generating a second MIC based on the AAD, and performing security verification of the management frame based on the first MIC and the second MIC.

[0044] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0045] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0046] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the management frame further includes a first address, wherein all bits of the first address are 1. The method further includes the second multilink device determining that the first address is a wildcard basic service set identifier BSSID.

[0047] In some embodiments of the second aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame and the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0048] According to a third aspect, there is provided a communications apparatus, the apparatus including: a generating unit configured to generate a management frame, the management frame including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information, the link indication information indicating that the management frame applies to at least one link corresponding to the link indication information; and a transmitting unit configured to transmit the management frame on a link on which a station indicated by the receiver address or a station indicated by the transmitter address operates.

[0049] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the link indication information includes a first address. The first address includes address indication information. The address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an access point AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. Alternatively, the address indication information indicates whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame.

[0050] The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0051] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the address indication information is carried in the Individual / Group I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0052] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the link indication information includes address indication information and a first address. In one implementation, the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0053] In another embodiment, the first address of the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with AP MLD. In this case, the address indication information does not need to indicate which address the first address is. Optionally, the address indication information may indicate whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame. In other words, the address indication information can indicate whether the management frame includes link indication information.

[0054] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0055] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the address indication information is a first value, and the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0056] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the link indication information further includes link identifier information, the link identifier information indicating that the management frame applies to one or more links.

[0057] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the link indication information further includes link identifier information, the link identifier information being carried in a first element of the management frame, and the link identifier information indicating that the first element applies to one or more links.

[0058] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information indicating that the second element applies to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0059] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the link identifier information includes at least one of one or more link identifiers or a link identifier bitmap.

[0060] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the address indication information is a second value, the first address is a MAC address of the AP, and the management frame is applied to a link on which the AP operates.

[0061] In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD.

[0062] In other embodiments, the AP MAC address is the MAC address of a single-link AP or is the MAC address of an AP that is not affiliated with any AP MLD.

[0063] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the generating unit is configured to construct additional authentication data AAD, the AAD including the receiver address, the sender address, and the second address, generate a message integrity check MIC based on the AAD, and generate the management frame based on the MIC.

[0064] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0065] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0066] In some embodiments of the third aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame and the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0067] According to a fourth aspect, there is provided a communications apparatus, including: a receiving unit configured to receive a management frame from a first multi-link device on a link over which a station in the communications apparatus operates, the management frame including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information, the receiver address being an address of the station in the communications apparatus, and the link indication information indicating that the management frame should be applied to at least one link corresponding to the link indication information; and a processing unit configured to apply the management frame to the at least one corresponding link based on the link indication information.

[0068] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the link indication information includes a first address, and the first address includes address indication information. In one embodiment, the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an access point AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. In other embodiments, the address indication information indicates whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame.

[0069] The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0070] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the address indication information is carried in an Individual / Group I / G bit of a MAC address in an Address 3 field of the management frame, and the processing unit is further configured to mask the I / G bit in the Address 3 field of the management frame to 0 to obtain the first address in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0071] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the link indication information includes address indication information and a first address, and the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP, and the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0072] In other embodiments of the fourth aspect, the first address of the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP may be the MAC address of an AP associated with AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with AP MLD. In this case, the address indication information does not need to indicate which address the first address is. Optionally, the address indication information may indicate whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame. In other words, the address indication information may indicate whether the management frame includes link indication information. In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 2 field of the management frame. The processing unit is further configured to mask the I / G bit in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0 to obtain the sender address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0073] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the address indication information is a first value, and the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0074] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the processing unit is configured to apply the management frame to all links establishing an association between the first multi-link device and the communication apparatus if the link indication information does not include link identifier information, or to apply the management frame to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information if the link indication information includes link identifier information.

[0075] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the processing unit is configured, when the link indication information further includes link identifier information and the link identifier information is carried in the first element of the management frame, to apply the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information.

[0076] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the processing unit is configured to, if the second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information, apply the second element to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0077] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the link identifier information includes at least one of one or more link identifiers or a link identifier bitmap.

[0078] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the address indication information is a second value and the first address is a MAC address of the AP. In one implementation, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. The processing unit is configured to apply the management frame to a link on which the associated AP operates.

[0079] In yet another embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of a single-link AP or the MAC address of an AP that is not aligned with any AP MLD. The processing unit is configured to apply the management frame to a link on which the single-link AP or the AP that is not aligned with any AP MLD operates. In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the management frame further includes a first message integrity check (MIC). The processing unit is further configured to construct additional authentication data (AAD), the AAD including a receiver address, a sender address, and a second address, generate a second MIC based on the AAD, and perform security validation of the management frame based on the first MIC and the second MIC.

[0080] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0081] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0082] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the management frame further includes a first address, wherein all bits of the first address are 1. The processing unit is further configured to determine, by the second multi-link device, that the first address is a wildcard basic service set identifier BSSID.

[0083] In some embodiments of the fourth aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame and the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0084] According to a fifth aspect, there is provided a communications device, the communications device including a transceiver and a processor, wherein when the processor executes a computer program, the device generates a management frame, the management frame including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information, the link indication information indicating that the management frame applies to at least one link corresponding to the link indication information, and the transceiver is enabled to transmit the management frame on a link on which the station indicated by the receiver address or the station indicated by the transmitter address operates.

[0085] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the apparatus further includes a memory coupled to the processor, the memory storing a computer program executable by the processor.

[0086] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the link indication information includes a first address, and the first address includes address indication information. In one embodiment, the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an access point AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. In other embodiments, the address indication information indicates whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame. In one embodiment, the AP MAC address is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the AP MAC address is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD. In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the address indication information is carried in an Individual / Group I / G bit of a MAC address in an Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0087] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the link indication information includes address indication information and a first address, and the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0088] In another embodiment of the fifth aspect, the first address of the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with AP MLD. In this case, the address indication information does not need to indicate which address the first address is. Optionally, the address indication information may indicate whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame. In other words, the address indication information can indicate whether the management frame includes link indication information.

[0089] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0090] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the address indication information is a first value, and the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0091] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the link indication information further includes link identifier information, the link identifier information indicating that the management frame applies to one or more links.

[0092] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the link indication information further includes link identifier information, the link identifier information being carried in a first element of the management frame, and the link identifier information indicating that the first element applies to one or more links.

[0093] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information indicating that the second element applies to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0094] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the link identifier information includes at least one of one or more link identifiers or a link identifier bitmap.

[0095] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the address indication information is a second value, the first address is a MAC address of the AP, and the management frame is applied to a link on which the AP operates. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0096] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, when the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to construct additional authentication data AAD, the AAD including a receiver address, a sender address, and a second address, generate a message integrity check MIC based on the AAD, and generate a management frame based on the MIC.

[0097] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0098] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0099] In some embodiments of the fifth aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame and the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0100] According to a sixth aspect, there is provided a communications apparatus, the communications apparatus including a transceiver and a processor, wherein when the processor executes a computer program, the apparatus receives, via the transceiver, a management frame from a first multilink device on a link on which a station in the communications apparatus operates, the management frame including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information, the receiver address being an address of the station in the communications apparatus, the link indication information indicating that the management frame applies to at least one link corresponding to the link indication information, and is enabled to apply the management frame to the at least one corresponding link based on the link indication information.

[0101] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the apparatus further includes a memory coupled to the processor, the memory storing a computer program executable by the processor.

[0102] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the link indication information includes a first address. The first address includes address indication information. The address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an access point AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0103] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the address indication information is carried in an Individual / Group I / G bit of a MAC address in an Address 3 field of the management frame. When the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to mask the I / G bit in the Address 3 field of the management frame to 0 to obtain a first address in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0104] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the link indication information includes address indication information and a first address. In one embodiment, the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In other embodiments, the address indication information indicates whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame. In one embodiment, the AP MAC address is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the AP MAC address is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0105] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the address indication information is carried in an I / G bit of a MAC address in an Address 2 field of the management frame. When the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to mask the I / G bit in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0 to obtain the sender address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0106] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the address indication information is a first value, and the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0107] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, when the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to apply the management frame to all links that establish an association between the first multi-link device and the communication apparatus if the link indication information does not include link identifier information, or to apply the management frame to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information if the link indication information includes link identifier information.

[0108] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, when the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to apply the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information if the link indication information further includes link identifier information and the link identifier information is carried in a first element of the management frame.

[0109] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, when the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to apply the second element of the management frame to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device if the second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information.

[0110] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the link identifier information includes at least one of one or more link identifiers or a link identifier bitmap.

[0111] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the address indication information is a second value and the first address is a MAC address of the AP. When the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to apply the management frame to the link on which the AP operates. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0112] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the management frame further includes a first message integrity check (MIC). When the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to construct additional authentication data (AAD), the AAD including the receiver address, the sender address, and the second address, generate a second MIC based on the AAD, and perform security verification of the management frame based on the first MIC and the second MIC.

[0113] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0114] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0115] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the management frame further includes a first address, wherein all bits of the first address are 1. When the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled by the second multilink device to determine that the first address is a wildcard basic service set identifier BSSID.

[0116] In some embodiments of the sixth aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame and the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0117] According to a seventh aspect, there is provided a communication method, the method comprising the steps of: constructing an AAD, the AAD including a receiver address, a sender address, and a second address, the second address being an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD; AAD and generating a MIC based on the

[0118] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the method further includes performing security validation on the received management frame based on the generated MIC and the MIC in the received management frame.

[0119] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the AAD, the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the AAD, and the second address is carried in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0120] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the second address is determined based on the first address to be carried in an Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0121] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0122] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0123] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the first address does not include address indication information, and the second address is obtained by setting the I / G bit in the first address to the value of the address indication information. In this manner, the second address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0124] In some other embodiments of the seventh aspect, the first address of the management frame is always set to a MAC address of the AP, and the second address is always set to a MAC address of the AP, which is a MAC address of an AP that is associated with AP MLD, or a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP that is not associated with AP MLD.

[0125] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero. The AAD includes the address indication information, and the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit in the Address 2 field of the AAD. In this manner, the sender address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0126] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the sender address is determined based on an address carried in an Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0127] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the sender address is the same as the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0128] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame includes address indication information, and the transmitter address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0.

[0129] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame does not include address indication information, and the sender address is obtained by setting the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to the value of the address indication information. In this manner, the sender address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0130] In some embodiments of the seventh aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame includes address indication information, and the transmitter address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0. In addition, the AAD includes address indication information, and the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0131] According to an eighth aspect, there is provided a communications apparatus, the apparatus comprising: a construction unit configured to construct an AAD, the AAD including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and a second address, the second address being an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP; AAD and a generating unit configured to generate an MIC based on the

[0132] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the apparatus further includes a verification unit configured to perform security verification on the received management frame based on the generated MIC and the MIC in the received management frame.

[0133] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the AAD, the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the AAD, and the second address is carried in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0134] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the second address is determined based on the first address to be carried in an Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0135] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0136] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0137] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the first address does not include address indication information, and the second address is obtained by setting the I / G bit in the first address to the value of the address indication information. In this manner, the second address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0138] In some other embodiments of the eighth aspect, the first address of the management frame is always set to a MAC address of an AP, and the second address is always set to a MAC address of an AP that is associated with AP MLD, or a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP that is not associated with AP MLD.

[0139] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to 0. The AAD includes the address indication information, and the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit in the Address 2 field of the AAD. In this manner, the sender address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0140] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the sender address is determined based on an address carried in an Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0141] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the sender address is the same as the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0142] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame includes address indication information, and the transmitter address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0.

[0143] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame does not include address indication information, and the sender address is obtained by setting the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to the value of the address indication information. In this manner, the sender address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0144] In some embodiments of the eighth aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame includes address indication information, and the transmitter address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0. In addition, the AAD includes address indication information, and the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0145] According to a ninth aspect, there is provided a communication device, the communication device including a transceiver and a processor, wherein when the processor executes a computer program, the device constructs an AAD, the AAD including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and a second address, the second address being an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP; AAD In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP that is associated with the AP MLD. In another embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of a single-link AP or is the MAC address of an AP that is not associated with any AP MLD.

[0146] In certain embodiments of the ninth aspect, the communications device further includes a memory coupled to the processor, the memory storing a computer program executable by the processor.

[0147] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, when the processor executes the computer program, the apparatus is enabled to perform security verification on the received management frame based on the generated MIC and the MIC in the received management frame.

[0148] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the AAD, the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the AAD, and the second address is carried in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0149] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the second address is determined based on the first address to be carried in an Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0150] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0151] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero.

[0152] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the first address does not include address indication information, and the second address is obtained by setting the I / G bit in the first address to the value of the address indication information. In this manner, the second address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0153] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zero. The AAD includes the address indication information, and the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit in the Address 2 field of the AAD. In this manner, the sender address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0154] In some other embodiments of the ninth aspect, the first address of the management frame is always set to a MAC address of the AP, and the second address is always set to a MAC address of the AP, which is a MAC address of an AP that is associated with AP MLD, or a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP that is not associated with AP MLD.

[0155] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the sender address is determined based on an address carried in an Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0156] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the sender address is the same as the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0157] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame includes address indication information, and the transmitter address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0.

[0158] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame does not include address indication information, and the sender address is obtained by setting the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to the value of the address indication information. In this manner, the sender address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. In one embodiment, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other embodiments, the MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of a single-link AP or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0159] In some embodiments of the ninth aspect, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame includes address indication information, and the transmitter address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0. In addition, the AAD includes address indication information, and the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0160] According to a tenth aspect, there is provided a multi-link device, the multi-link device comprising an apparatus according to any one of the third to sixth aspects, the seventh to eighth aspects, or the third to sixth and seventh to eighth aspects.

[0161] According to an eleventh aspect, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program which, when executed by a processor, performs the operations of the method of the first aspect, the second aspect, the seventh aspect, or any one of the embodiments of the first aspect, the second aspect, or the seventh aspect.

[0162] According to a twelfth aspect, there is provided a chip or chip system, the chip or chip system including a processing circuit and a communication interface, the processing circuit configured to perform the operations of a method according to the first aspect, the second aspect, the seventh aspect, or any one of the embodiments of the first aspect, the second aspect, or the seventh aspect.

[0163] According to a thirteenth aspect, there is provided a computer program or computer program product tangibly stored on a computer-readable medium and comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, enable a device to perform the operations of the method of the first aspect, the second aspect, the seventh aspect, or any one of the embodiments of the first aspect, the second aspect, or the seventh aspect.

[0164] According to a fourteenth aspect, a wireless communication system is provided. The system includes a first multilink device and a second multilink device. Alternatively, the system includes the first multilink device and a single-link station; or the system includes a second multilink device and a single-link station. The first multilink device may be a transmitting end, and the single-link station is a receiving end. Alternatively, the second multilink device may be a receiving end, and the single-link station is a transmitting end. The first multilink device may perform the operations of a method according to the first aspect, the seventh aspect, or any one of the embodiments of the first or seventh aspect. The second multilink device may perform the operations of a method according to the second aspect, the seventh aspect, or any one of the embodiments of the second or seventh aspect. The first multilink device may be AP MLD or non-AP MLD. The second multilink device may be AP MLD or non-AP MLD.

[0165] The features, advantages, and other aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure will become more apparent with reference to the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description. Some embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated herein by way of example, and not by way of limitation. In the accompanying drawings, the details are as follows: [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0166] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 100. FIG. [Figure 2] 2 is a schematic diagram of a connection scenario 200 for multi-link devices. [Figure 3] 3 is a schematic diagram of a multilink element format 300. FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a signaling interaction diagram of a data transmission process 400 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] 5 is a schematic diagram of a format 500 of a management frame according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6]6 is a schematic diagram of a multi-link device scenario 600 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] 7 is another signaling interaction diagram of a data transmission process 700 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is another schematic diagram of a management frame format 800 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] 9 is a schematic diagram of a format 900 of an AAD according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 10] 10 is a schematic flowchart of a data transmission method 1000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] 11 is another schematic flowchart of a data transmission process 1100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 12] 12 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1200 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 13] 13 is another schematic block diagram of a communication device 1300 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 14] 14 is yet another schematic block diagram of a communication device 1400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 15] 15 is a simplified block diagram of an exemplary apparatus 1500 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0167] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although several embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure may be implemented in various forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments described herein. On the contrary, these embodiments are provided so that the present disclosure can be fully and completely understood. It should be understood that the accompanying drawings and embodiments of the present disclosure are merely used as examples and are not intended to limit the protection scope of the present disclosure.

[0168] In the context of this disclosure, the term "wireless communication system" may refer to, for example, a wide area network system or a wireless local area network (WLAN) system. The wireless communication system may support multiple WLAN communication protocols, such as 802.11 ac / 802.11 ax / 802.11 be of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 series protocols, or any future IEEE 802.11 series protocol. For ease of explanation, the embodiments of this application use WLAN as an illustrative example. A WLAN may include multiple basic service sets (BSSs). A BSS may have a basic service set identifier (BSSID). Nodes of a BSS include access point stations and non-access point stations (Non-AP STAs).

[0169] The term "multi-link device (MLD)," sometimes called a multi-band device, refers to a wireless communication device that can support parallel transmission of multiple links. Compared with devices that only support single-link transmission, multi-link devices have higher transmission efficiency and higher throughput. A multi-link device includes multiple affiliated stations. An affiliated station is a logical station operating on a link. An affiliated station may be an access point (AP) or a non-access point station (STA). A multi-link device may operate in the 1 GHz, 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, or 6 GHz band, or in other bands. A multi-link device can implement wireless communication according to the 802.11 series protocol. For example, a station compliant with Extremely High Throughput (EHT), a station compliant with and based on 802.11be, or a station compliant with and supporting 802.11be, communicates with other devices. The other device may or may not be a multilink device.

[0170] The term "AP MLD" means that the station associated with the AP MLD is an AP, and may also be called a multi-link AP. The AP MLD is a non-AP associated with the AP MLD. STAThe AP MLD may be a device deployed in a wireless communication network to provide wireless communication functions for wireless devices. AP MLDs are primarily deployed in homes, buildings, and campuses, with a typical coverage radius of tens to hundreds of meters. Of course, AP MLDs may also be deployed outdoors. The AP MLD corresponds to a bridge connecting a wired network and a wireless network. The AP MLD's main function is to connect various wireless network clients together and then connect the wireless network to Ethernet. Specifically, the AP MLD may be a network device equipped with a Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) chip, such as a base station, router, gateway, repeater, communication server, switch, or bridge. The base station may include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, etc. In addition, the AP MLD may support the 802.11be standard or the next-generation WLAN standard of the 802.11be standard. AP MLD may also support WLAN standards such as 802.11ax, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, and 802.11a.

[0171] The term "non-AP MLD" means that a station associated with the non-AP MLD is a non-AP STA and may also be referred to as a multilink non-AP STA. A non-AP MLD may be a device with wireless transmission and reception capabilities and access a wireless local area network based on the AP MLD. A non-AP STA may be a wireless communication chip, a wireless sensor, or a wireless communication terminal. For example, a non-AP STA may be a user unit, an access terminal, a mobile station, a remote station, a subscriber station, a subscriber unit, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, a terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent, a user equipment, or a user equipment (UE) supporting Wi-Fi communication capabilities. For example, a non-AP STA may include various handheld devices, in-vehicle devices, wearable devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, computing devices, or other processing devices connected to wireless modems with wireless communication capabilities, as well as various forms of portable communication devices, handheld devices, portable computing devices, entertainment devices, gaming devices or systems, global positioning system devices, or any other suitable devices configured to perform network communication using a wireless medium. In addition, non-AP MLD can support the 802.11be standard or the next generation of the 802.11be standard. Non-AP MLD can also support WLAN standards such as 802.11ax, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, and 802.11a.

[0172] When AP MLD and non-AP MLD perform data transmission, a link identifier (link ID) or a link ID bitmap may be used to identify a link or a station on a link. The link identifier may include at least one of a Medium Access Control (MAC) address, an operation set, and a channel number, and may optionally further include a station identifier on the link, such as a station MAC address or a station associated identifier (AID). The link may have a link address, such as an affiliated station MAC address. The AP MLD may also have an AP MLD MAC address, which is called the MLD address for short.

[0173] In the wireless communication system of the present disclosure, both the transmitting end and the receiving end may be multi-link devices. This scenario is mainly used as an example in the embodiments of the present application. Alternatively, the transmitting end may be a single-link station and the receiving end is a multi-link device. Alternatively, the transmitting end may be a multi-link device and the receiving end is a single-link station.

[0174] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 100. As shown in FIG. 1, the wireless communication system 100 includes an AP 110(1), an AP 110(2), a non-AP STA 120(1), and a non-AP STA 120(2). Hereinafter, for ease of explanation, the AP 110(1) and the AP 110(2) are collectively referred to as the AP 110, and the non-AP STA 120(1) and the non-AP STA 120(2) are collectively referred to as the non-AP STA 120. It should be understood that the wireless communication system 100 of the present disclosure may alternatively include the AP 110(1), the AP 110(2), and one or more single-link non-AP STAs (not shown). Alternatively, the wireless communication system 100 of the present disclosure may include one or more single-link APs, non-AP STAs 120(1), and non-AP STAs 120(2).

[0175] For example, AP 110(1) and AP 110(2) may be APs associated with AP MLD, and non-AP STA 120(1) and non-AP STA 120(2) may be non-AP STAs associated with non-AP MLD. In the following description, the associated APs and associated non-APs are collectively referred to as the associated stations (STAs), and the APs and non-AP STAs are collectively referred to as STAs.

[0176] It should be understood that Figure 1 is only a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system, and may further include other network devices or terminal devices, for example, wireless relay devices and wireless backhaul devices. In addition, this diagram does not constitute a limitation on the number of AP MLDs or non-AP MLDs in the wireless communication system.

[0177] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a multi-link device connection scenario 200. Figure 2 shows an AP MLD 210 and a non-AP MLD 220. There are at least two links between the AP MLD 210 and the non-AP MLD 220. Figure 2 shows a first link 230 and a second link 240.

[0178] The AP MLD 210 has at least two logical APs. Figure 2 shows a first AP 212 and a second AP 214. Furthermore, the first AP 212 has a first AP physical layer 2121 and a first AP lower MAC layer 2122. The second AP 214 has a second AP physical layer 2141 and a second AP lower MAC layer 2142. The first AP 212 and the second AP 214 have a shared upper MAC layer 2124.

[0179] The non-AP MLD 220 has at least two logical non-AP STAs. Figure 2 shows a first non-AP STA 222 and a second non-AP STA 224. Additionally, the first non-AP STA 222 has a first non-AP STA physical layer 2221 and a first non-AP STA lower MAC layer 2222. The second non-AP STA 224 has a second non-AP STA physical layer 2241 and a second non-AP STA lower MAC layer 2242. The first non-AP STA 222 and the second non-AP STA have a shared upper MAC layer 2224.

[0180] It should be understood that Figure 2 is merely an example, for example, there may be more links between the AP MLD 210 and the non-AP MLD 220.

[0181] A non-AP MLD (e.g., non-AP MLD 220 in FIG. 2) can simultaneously establish associations with multiple links of an AP MLD (e.g., AP MLD 210 in FIG. 2) by performing a multi-link establishment operation for one link. Specifically, the multi-link establishment operation can be performed using a Multi-link Association Request frame and a Multi-link Association Response frame. The Multi-link Association Request frame and the Multi-link Association Response frame can carry information of multiple links to perform simultaneous associations with multiple links.

[0182] Referring to FIG. 2, for example, the multi-link establishment process may be that the non-AP MLD 220 sends a multi-link association request frame to the AP MLD 210 on the first link 230, where the multi-link association request frame carries non-AP STA side information of the first link 230 (i.e., information of the first non-AP STA 222) and further carries non-AP STA side information of the second link 240 (i.e., information of the second non-AP STA 224). After receiving the multi-link association request frame on the first link 230, the AP MLD 210 sends a multi-link association response frame on the first link 230 to the non-AP MLD 220, where the multi-link association response frame carries AP side information of the first link 230 (i.e., information of the first AP 212) and further carries AP side information of the second link 240 (i.e., information of the second AP 214). In this way, the first non-AP STA 222 and the second non-AP STA 224 of the non-AP MLD 220 establish associations with the first AP 212 and the second AP 214 of the AP MLD 210, respectively.

[0183] A Multi-link element may be defined to include relevant information of the non-AP MLD (eg, the first non-AP STA 222 and the second non-AP STA 224) in the Multi-link association request frame.

[0184] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a Multilink element format 300. As shown in Figure 3, the Multilink element includes an Element Identifier field 301, a Length field 302, an Element ID Extension field 303, a Multi-Link Control field 304, and a Common Information field. The Common Information field includes Field k, such as an MLD MAC address field 305, ..., a Capability field 306, a Per-STA Profile x field 307, and a Per-STA Profile y field 308 (if present).

[0185] The MLD common information section 310 is configured to carry information related to the MLD. The following Per-STA Profile x field 307 and Per-STA Profile y field 308 (if present) are optional sub-elements 320 that represent the configuration information of each station (per-STA profile).

[0186] Additionally, the multilink control field 304 includes a Type 314, an MLD MAC Address present 324, and a Reserved 334. For example, the Type 314 may be a Tunneled Direct Link Setup (TDLS).

[0187] Optionally, Per-STA Profile x field 307 includes Subelement ID 317, Length 327, and Contents 337, which includes Per-STA control field 3371, STA information field 3372, and STA configuration field 3373. Per-STA control field 3371 includes Link ID 33711 and STA MAC Address present 33712. STA configuration field 3373 includes Element 1. 1 ) 33731,..., Element Y 33732,..., and Non-Inheritance element 33733 (if present).

[0188] It will be understood that other fields may further be included between the MLD MAC address field 305 and field k 306 in Figure 3 and are not shown herein. Other elements, for example, element 2, element 3, ..., and element Y-1, are included between element 1 33731 and element Y 33732. Other elements may be included between element Y 33732 and non-inheritance element 337322, with non-inheritance element 33733 being the last element.

[0189] In communication between a multi-link device and another multi-link device, for example, communication between the AP MLD 210 and the non-AP MLD 220 shown in FIG. 2, a management frame transmitted by the first AP 212 is typically transmitted to the first non-AP STA 222 over the first link 230. However, current solutions cannot fully utilize the multi-link functionality, resulting in reduced transmission efficiency.

[0190] An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a data transmission solution in which management frames can be transmitted between links, and multi-link functionality is fully utilized, which ensures communication efficiency. Hereinafter, the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 4 to 9.

[0191] 4 is a signaling interaction diagram of a data transmission process 400 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The process 400 includes a first multilink device 401 and a second multilink device 402. The first multilink device 401 may be an AP MLD or a non-AP MLD. Correspondingly, the second multilink device 402 may be a non-AP MLD or an AP MLD.

[0192] For ease of explanation, in the following example, it may be assumed that the first multilink device 401 is an AP MLD, such as the AP MLD 210 shown in Figure 2, and the second multilink device 402 is a non-AP MLD, such as the non-AP MLD 220 shown in Figure 2. It will be understood that the communication process shown in Figure 4 is by way of example only and not limitation. In this embodiment of the present disclosure, interaction signaling not shown in Figure 4 may be included, or some signaling shown in Figure 4 is omitted.

[0193] In step 410 of process 400, the first multilink device 401 may first generate a management frame.

[0194] Specifically, the generated management frame may have the format shown in FIG.

[0195] 5 is a schematic diagram of a management frame format 500 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The format 500 includes a Frame Control 501, a Duration 502, an Address 1 503, an Address 2 504, an Address 3 505, a Sequence Control 506, an Address 4 507, a Frame Body 509, and a Frame Check Sequence (FCS) 510. The Frame Body 509 may include a Media Access Control Management Protocol Data Unit (MAC Management Protocol Data Unit). Additionally or optionally, the format 500 may further include a High Throughput Control (HT Control) 511.

[0196] For example, the frame control 501 may include multiple subfields, such as Protocol Version, Frame Type, Subtype, From Distributed System (From DS), To Distributed System (To DS), Retry, Power Management, and More Data. For example, a frame type of "00" indicates a management frame.

[0197] For example, duration 502 may indicate a transmission opportunity duration. Address 1 503, address 2 504, address 3 505, and address 4 507 may be collectively referred to as address fields and indicate the receiver address, transmitter address, source address, destination address, or BSSID of the management frame. Frame body 509 may carry specific information. FCS 510 may be used for error detection. For example, FCS 510 may include a 32-bit cyclic redundancy check (CRC). HT control 511 includes aggregated control (A-Control) and may further include a control list and padding.

[0198] It should be understood that there are two different types of management frames for communication between multi-link devices: MLD-level management frames and link-level management frames. MLD-level management frames are specific to an MLD and may apply to multiple links. It should be understood that if a management frame indicates only one link, an MLD-level management frame may also apply to the link. Link-level management frames may be specific to a particular link and apply to that particular link, or link-level management frames may be specific to a link and apply to that link. Furthermore, different MAC addresses may be used to distinguish frame types. For example, the MAC address of an MLD corresponds to an MLD-level management frame. The MAC address of an associated station corresponds to a link-level management frame, or the MAC address of a station not associated with any MLD corresponds to a link-level management frame. It should be understood that a station not associated with any MLD is a single-link station. In this embodiment, a station associated with an MLD is mainly used as an example for explanation. The implementation of a single-link station is similar to the implementation of an MLD. For brevity, the details will not be described again. It should be further understood that when at least one of the transmitting end and the receiving end is a single-link station, there is only one link between the transmitting end and the receiving end. Therefore, when transmitting a management frame, the transmitting end can set the content of the management frame according to the existing 802.11-2020 protocol version. After receiving the management frame, the receiving end can interpret and execute the content of the management frame according to the existing 802.11-2020 protocol version. This is because when at least one of the transmitting end and the receiving end is a single-link station, there is only one associated link between the transmitting end and the receiving end, and there is no possibility of cross-link transmission. Therefore, A1 and A2 in the management frame may be set to the station address, and A3 may be set to the MAC address of the AP, i.e., the BSSID. A specific implementation is as follows:

[0199] First, if the transmitting end is a single-link station, for example, a single-link AP, and the receiving end is a non-AP STA MLD, A3 is set to the MAC address of the transmitting end's single-link AP.

[0200] As another example, if the sender is a single-link station, e.g., a single-link non-AP STA, and the receiver is an AP MLD, A3 is set to the MAC address of the AP associated with the single-link non-AP STA. The AP associated with the single-link non-AP STA is the AP associated with the sender's AP MLD.

[0201] As another example, if the transmitting end is an AP MLD and the receiving end is a single-link station, e.g., a single-link non-AP STA, A3 is set to the MAC address of the AP associated with the receiving end, i.e., the non-AP STA. The associated AP is the AP associated with the AP MLD.

[0202] As another example, if the transmitting end is a non-AP STA MLD and the receiving end is a single-link station, for example, a single-link AP, A3 is set to the MAC address of the receiving end, ie, the single-link AP.

[0203] As another example, if both the transmitting end and the receiving end are single-link stations, e.g., if the transmitting end is a single-link AP and the receiving end is a single-link non-AP STA, A3 is set to the MAC address of the AP of the transmitting end. For example, if the receiving end is a single-link AP and the transmitting end is a single-link non-AP STA, A3 is set to the MAC address of the AP of the receiving end.

[0204] In the previous examples, the management frame or elements within the management frame apply to the associated link between the transmitting end and the receiving end. In subsequent embodiments, for example, both the transmitting end and the receiving end are multi-link devices. This embodiment is applicable when it is mentioned that either the transmitting end or the receiving end is a single-link station.

[0205] Optionally, a multi-link device may distinguish between types of management frames by using different MAC addresses (e.g., carried by address 3). For example, the MLD MAC address of an MLD corresponds to MLD-level management frames. For example, the MAC address of a station associated with an MLD corresponds to link-level management frames, or the MAC address of a single-link station or a station not associated with an MLD corresponds to link-level management frames.

[0206] The management frame may include a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information. The link indication information may indicate at least one link to which the management frame applies. The link indication information includes a first address.

[0207] Specifically, for MLD-level management frames, the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD. For link-level management frames, when both the transmitting end and the receiving end are multi-link devices, the management frame applies to one link or a specific link between the transmitting end and the receiving end. Alternatively, when at least one of the transmitting end and the receiving end is a single-link station, there is only one link between the transmitting end and the receiving end. In these two cases, the first address can be set to the MAC address of the AP, specifically the BSSID of the AP, for example, the BSSID of an AP associated with the AP MLD, or an AP not associated with any AP MLD, i.e., a single-link AP. In this embodiment, an AP associated with the AP MLD is mainly used as an example for explanation. In this way, the design of the first address can be useful for implementing cross-link transmission of management frames between multi-link devices. The first address is the BSSID of an AP not associated with any AP MLD, or the BSSID of a single-link AP. Similar implementations exist. For the sake of brevity, according to the various scenarios mentioned above, the address of A3 is the MAC address of an AP, specifically the MAC address of a single-link AP. In some cases, the "cooperative AP" in the following embodiments is replaced with "AP not cooperating with AP MLD" or "single-link AP". The details will not be described again.

[0208] For ease of explanation, in the following description, the MLD MAC address of an AP MLD is simply referred to as the MAC address of the AP MLD, and the MAC address of an AP associated with an AP MLD is simply referred to as the MAC address of the associated AP, which may be the BSSID of the associated AP.

[0209] In some examples, Address 1 503 may carry a receiver address of a management frame, Address 2 504 may carry a sender address of a management frame, and Address 3 505 may carry a first address.

[0210] For example, the receiver address may be the MAC address of the receiving station, and the sender address may be the MAC address of the transmitting station. The management frame is transmitted on the link on which the receiving station or the transmitting station operates.

[0211] For example, as shown in Table 1 below, when a management frame is transmitted from an AP MLD to a non-AP MLD, i.e., when the transmission direction is downlink, Address 1 503 can carry the MAC address of a non-AP STA, and Address 2 504 can carry the MAC address of an AP. When a management frame is transmitted from a non-AP MLD to an AP MLD, i.e., when the transmission direction is uplink, Address 1 503 can carry the MAC address of an AP, and Address 2 504 can carry the MAC address of a non-AP STA. When a management frame is transmitted from a non-AP MLD to a non-AP MLD, i.e., in the case of peer-to-peer communication, Address 1 503 and Address 2 504 carry the MAC addresses of the STAs. In addition, Address 3 505 carries the first address, regardless of uplink or downlink.

[0212] [Table 1]

[0213] In some other examples, for example, during air interface transmission, Address 1 503 can carry the address of the corresponding link of the management frame. Similarly, Address 2 504 can carry the address of the corresponding link of the management frame, and Address 3 505 can carry the first address.

[0214] For example, if the management frame applies to at least two links, the first multilink device 401 may generate an MLD-level management frame. If the management frame applies to one link, the first multilink device 401 may generate a link-level management frame. Optionally, in certain examples, if the management frame applies to a link, an MLD-level management frame may also be generated.

[0215] In this embodiment of the present disclosure, to implement crosslink transmission, Address 1 503 can carry a receiver address, Address 2 504 can carry a transmitter address, and Address 3 505 can carry a first address. For example, assume that the first multilink device 401 is the AP MLD 210 of FIG. 2 and the second multilink device is the non-AP MLD 220 of FIG. 2. In this case, Address 1 503 carries the MAC address of the non-AP STA associated with the non-AP MLD 220 (e.g., the MAC address of the first non-AP STA 222 of FIG. 2), and Address 2 504 carries the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD 210 (e.g., the BSSID of the first AP 212 of FIG. 2).

[0216] For example, in the existing protocol 802.11-2020, the MAC address of an AP is the same as the BSSID of the AP. Therefore, in some embodiments, the MAC address of a cooperating AP may be the BSSID of the cooperating AP.

[0217] In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the link indication information may include address indication information, which may indicate an attribute of the first address or a meaning of the first address, or the address indication information may indicate a type of the management frame.

[0218] Specifically, the address indication information indicates whether the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the AP. The address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1) indicating that the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD, and the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0) indicating that the first address is the MAC address of the cooperating AP. The MAC address of the cooperating AP may be the BSSID of the cooperating AP or the BSSID of an AP not cooperating with the AP MLD. In this embodiment, an AP cooperating with an MLD is mainly used as an example for explanation. The implementation of an AP not cooperating with any AP MLD or a single-link AP is similar to the implementation of an AP cooperating with an MLD. For simplicity, the "cooperating AP" in this embodiment may be replaced with an "AP not cooperating with the AP MLD" or a "single-link AP". Details will not be described again.

[0219] Since the first address is carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame, the address indication information can be considered to indicate whether the Address 3 field carries the MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the cooperating AP.

[0220] In another implementation, the address indication information may indicate a type of the management frame. Specifically, the address indication information may be a first value indicating that the management frame is an MLD-level management frame, and the address indication information may be a second value indicating that the management frame is a link-level management frame. The first value may be different from the second value. For example, the first value may be 1 and the second value may be 0. In another example, the first value may be 0 and the second value may be 1.

[0221] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first address may include address indication information. In other words, the address indication information is located within the first address, or the address indication information is some bits of the first address. Specifically, the address indication information may be carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame. For example, the address indication information may be carried in the Individual / Group (I / G) bit in the MAC address of the Address 3 field. In other words, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the I / G bit of the first address carried in the Address 3 field may be set to the value of the address indication information. The default value of the I / G bit of the first address may be 0. If the address indication information is a first value (1), the I / G bit of the first address may be reset to 1. If the address indication information is a second value (0), the I / G bit of the first address is kept at 0.

[0222] It will be understood that the specific location of the I / G bit is not limited in this embodiment of the present disclosure. For example, the I / G bit may be the least significant bit or bit B0 of the first byte of the Address 3 field, or may be located in another location. In other words, in this implementation, the Address 3 field is used to carry a first address, and the first address includes address indication information. For example, bit B0 in the first address is used as address indication information.

[0223] 6 is a schematic diagram of a multi-link device scenario 600 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 6 shows an AP MLD 610 and a non-AP MLD 620. The AP MLD 610 includes AP 1, AP 2, and AP 3. The non-AP MLD 620 includes non-AP STA 1, non-AP STA 2, and non-AP STA 3. It is assumed that three associated links have been established between the AP MLD 610 and the non-AP MLD 620 using a multi-link establishment process, including a first link 601, a second link 602, and a third link 603.

[0224] In some embodiments, if the management frame to be generated by the first multilink device 401 is an MLD-level management frame, when generating the management frame, the first multilink device 401 can set the I / G bit (i.e., address indication information) of the MAC address in Address 3 505 to a first value (e.g., 1), and the first address in Address 3 505 is the MAC address of the AP MLD. In this case, the first address of the management frame carries the address indication information. For example, the first value is "1" and the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD, but the I / G bit of the MAC address is set to "1" instead of "0".

[0225] For example, assume that the Address 3 field contains 48 bits and the I / G bit is located in bit B0 of the first byte. In this case, the MAC address of the AP MLD may first be represented as a 48-bit string, then bit B0 of the string is set to 1, and then the string with bit B0 set to 1 is carried in the Address 3 field.

[0226] It should be noted that in the existing 802.11-2020 protocol, the address in Address 2 (A2) of a management frame is the sender address and can only be a unicast address, while Address 3 (A3) is the BSSID of the AP and is generally also a unicast address. However, in the aforementioned embodiments in this disclosure in which the first address includes address designation information, the first address does not need to be all "1s." In some management frames, such as probe request frames, the A3 address of the management frame is set to all "1s." For example, if the A3 address is a wildcard BSSID, all 48 bits of the A3 address are "1s." In this case, the wildcard BSSID cannot carry address designation information. In other words, the embodiment in which the first address includes address designation information may be applied only when the address in Address 3 is not all "1s."

[0227] In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the address indication information may be located outside the first address. In this embodiment, the link indication information includes the address indication information and the first address, and the address indication information indicates whether the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the cooperating AP. In other words, in the above example, it is assumed that the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit of address 3. However, this is not limited to this embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0228] In one example, the address indication information may be carried in the I / G bit of Address 3 of the management frame. Specifically, when the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1), it indicates that the first address in Address 3 is the MAC address of the AP MLD. When the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0), it indicates that the first address in Address 3 is the MAC address of the cooperating AP. In other words, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the I / G bit of the address carried in the Address 2 field may be set to the value of the address indication information. The default value of the I / G bit of the address in the Address 2 field may be 0. When the address indication information is the first value (1), the I / G bit of the address in the Address 2 field is reset to 1. When the address indication information is the second value (0), the I / G bit of the address in the Address 2 field is kept at 0.

[0229] For example, the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1). When generating a management frame, the first multi-link device 401 may include the MAC address of the AP MLD in the Address 3 field. For the Address 2 field, a string represented by a transmitter address (e.g., the MAC address of AP 1 in FIG. 6) may be first determined, then the I / G bit of the string is set to 1, and then the string with the I / G bit set to 1 is carried in the Address 2 field.

[0230] In another example, the address indication information may be carried in the From DS and To DS of the frame control of the management frame. Specifically, if the address indication information is a first value (e.g., the first value may be From DS=1 and To DS=0), it indicates that the first address in Address 3 is the MAC address of the AP MLD. If the address indication information is a second value (e.g., the second value may be From DS=1 and To DS=1), it indicates that the first address in Address 3 is the MAC address of the cooperating AP.

[0231] It should be noted that the address indication information may alternatively be carried in other fields or bits, the details of which will not be described again in this disclosure.

[0232] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1), and the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD. The link indication information may further include link identifier information, or may not include link identifier information.

[0233] As described above, the address indication information is a first value, which can further indicate that the management frame is an MLD-level management frame.

[0234] In one example, a management frame may not carry link identifier information to indicate that the management frame applies to all links establishing an association, specifically, all links establishing an association between the first multilink device 401 and the second multilink device 402. Referring to Figure 6, if the management frame applies to all links, i.e., the first link 601, the second link 602, and the third link 603, the management frame may not carry link identifier information. This can reduce signaling overhead.

[0235] Furthermore, the above description "The management frame applies to all links that establish associations" is applicable when the Address 1 field (receiver address) of the management frame is a unicast address. When the Address 1 field (receiver address) of the management frame is a groupcast address, "The management frame applies to all links that establish associations" is replaced with "The management frame applies to all links." For example, when an AP associated with AP MLD transmits a groupcast management frame, "The management frame applies to all links that establish associations" is replaced with "The management frame applies to all links in the AP MLD." For example, a management frame may include at least one element. For example, the frame body 509 of the management frame may include one or more elements. Optionally, the element in the frame body 509 may have the format 300 shown in FIG. 3. In one example, the element can carry link identifier information. For example, the link identifier information is carried in the link ID field 33711 shown in FIG. 3. However, it will be understood that the elements within frame body 509 may alternatively have a different format than that of Figure 3. This is not a limitation of this disclosure.

[0236] If an element of a management frame (e.g., the second element) applies to all links establishing an association between the first multilink device 401 and the second multilink device 402, the second element may not carry link identifier information. In other words, the second element does not carry link identifier information to indicate to the second multilink device that the second element applies to all links. In other embodiments, the second element does not carry link identifier information to indicate to the second multilink device that the second element applies to the link on which the element is transmitted. The link ID may alternatively occupy another number of bits, e.g., 4 bits.

[0237] In another example, the management frame may carry link identifier information of the links to which the management frame is applied to indicate that the management frame is applied to at least one link. In other words, in this embodiment, the link indication information further includes link identifier information. For example, the link identifier information may be a link identifier (link ID) or a link identifier bitmap. Referring to FIG. 6, the management frame is applied to a first link 601 and a second link 602.

[0238] In one example, the link identifier information includes a link ID of the first link 601 and a link ID of the second link 602. For example, assume that two bits are used to carry the link IDs, and the link ID of the first link 601 is "00," the link ID of the second link 602 is "01," and the link ID of the third link 603 is "10." In this case, the link identifier information may include "00" and "01," indicating that the management frame applies to the first link 601 and the second link 602.

[0239] In another example, the link identifier information may include a link identifier bitmap. Bits in the link identifier bitmap corresponding to the first link 601 and the second link 602 are set to 1, and other bits are set to 0. In this embodiment, the number of bits included in the link identifier bitmap may be equal to (or greater than) the number of all links, or may be set to 8 or 16, and the sequence of bits included in the link identifier bitmap may have a correspondence with all links. For example, it is assumed that the bits included in the link identifier bitmap correspond to the first link 601, the second link 602, and the third link 603 sequentially from most significant bit to least significant bit. In this case, the link identifier information may include "110" indicating that the management frame applies to the first link 601 and the second link 602. In this way, the links to which the management frame applies can be clearly indicated with fewer bits.

[0240] For example, the management frame may include at least one element, and the link identifier information may be carried in an element (e.g., a first element) of the management frame. In other words, the first element of the management frame carries the link identifier information to indicate to a second multilink device to apply the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information.

[0241] For example, a management frame may include at least one element, and a second element of the management frame applies to all links. In this case, the second element may carry link identifier information, and the link identifier information may indicate all links. For example, bits corresponding to all associated links may be set to a preset value or a first value based on a link identifier bitmap to indicate that the second element applies to all corresponding links.

[0242] It will be understood that in this embodiment, if the link identifier information carried in the first element indicates a link, the second multilink device applies the first element to the link. If the link identifier information carried in the first element indicates multiple links (e.g., two links or all links), the second multilink device applies the first element to the multiple links.

[0243] The link identifier information includes at least one of one or more link identifiers or a link identifier bitmap.

[0244] In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0), and the first address is a MAC address of the cooperating AP. Specifically, the first address may be a BSSID of the cooperating AP, and the management frame may be applied by the second multi-link device to the link on which the cooperating AP operates.

[0245] As noted above, the address indication information may be a second value that further indicates that the management frame is a link-level management frame, which may be specific to and apply to a particular link, or the link-level management frame may be specific to and apply to a link.

[0246] "Link-level management frames may be specific to and apply to a particular link."

[0247] In one example, the management frame may not carry link identifier information to indicate that the management frame applies to the link on which the AP indicated by the first address operates.

[0248] In another example, the management frame may carry link identifier information of the links to which the management frame is applied to indicate that the management frame is applied to at least one link. In other words, in this embodiment, the link indication information further includes link identifier information. For example, the link identifier information may be a link identifier (link ID) or a link identifier bitmap. Referring to FIG. 6, the management frame is applied to a first link 601 and a second link 602.

[0249] In one example, the link identifier information includes a link ID of the first link 601 and a link ID of the second link 602. For example, assume that two bits are used to carry the link IDs, and the link ID of the first link 601 is "00," the link ID of the second link 602 is "01," and the link ID of the third link 603 is "10." In this case, the link identifier information may include "00" and "01," indicating that the management frame applies to the first link 601 and the second link 602. The link IDs may alternatively occupy other numbers of bits, for example, four bits.

[0250] In another example, the link identifier information may include a link identifier bitmap. Bits in the link identifier bitmap corresponding to the first link 601 and the second link 602 are set to 1, and other bits are set to 0. In this embodiment, the number of bits included in the link identifier bitmap may be equal to (or greater than) the number of all links, or may be set to 8 or 16, and the sequence of bits included in the link identifier bitmap may have a correspondence with all links. For example, it is assumed that the bits included in the link identifier bitmap correspond to the first link 601, the second link 602, and the third link 603 sequentially from most significant bit to least significant bit. In this case, the link identifier information may include "110" indicating that the management frame applies to the first link 601 and the second link 602. In this way, the links to which the management frame applies can be clearly indicated with fewer bits.

[0251] Optionally, the link indicated by the link identifier information includes a link identifier corresponding to an AP for transmitting the management frame, or the corresponding bit in the link identifier bitmap is set to one.

[0252] For example, the management frame may include at least one element, and the link identifier information may be carried in an element (e.g., a first element) of the management frame. In other words, the first element of the management frame carries the link identifier information to indicate to a second multilink device to apply the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information.

[0253] For example, a management frame may include at least one element, and a second element of the management frame applies to all links. In this case, the second element may carry link identifier information, and the link identifier information may indicate all links. For example, bits corresponding to all associated links may be set to a preset value or a first value based on a link identifier bitmap to indicate that the second element applies to all corresponding links.

[0254] It will be understood that in this embodiment, if the link identifier information carried in the first element indicates a link, the second multilink device applies the first element to the link. If the link identifier information carried in the first element indicates multiple links (e.g., two links or all links), the second multilink device applies the first element to the multiple links.

[0255] "Link-level management frames may be specific to a link and apply to that link." In this case, the management frame does not carry link identifier information.

[0256] Referring to FIG. 6, if the management is a link-level management frame and applies to the second link 602, the first address is the BSSID of the associated AP (ie, AP 2).

[0257] In one example, when downlink transmission occurs on the second link 602 and a management frame is applied to the second link 602, Address 1 carries the MAC address of non-AP STA 2, Address 2 carries the MAC address of AP 2, and Address 3 carries the BSSID of AP 2. In another example, when downlink transmission occurs on the first link 601 and a management frame is applied to the second link 602, Address 1 carries the MAC address of non-AP STA 1, Address 2 carries the MAC address of AP 1, and Address 3 carries the BSSID of AP 2. The management frame does not need to carry further link information, which can avoid repeated signaling instructions and reduce signaling overhead.

[0258] In step 420 of process 400 , the first multilink device 401 transmits a management frame to the second multilink device 402 .

[0259] The transmitting step may be performed in a unicast manner or a broadcast manner, which is not a limitation in the present disclosure.

[0260] Specifically, the first multilink device 401 can transmit a management frame to the second multilink device 402 on the link between Address 1 and Address 2 of the management frame.

[0261] In some examples, as shown in Figure 6, Address 1 in the management frame carries the MAC address of non-AP STA 1, and Address 2 in the management frame carries the MAC address of AP 1. In this case, AP MLD 610 can send management frames to non-AP STA 1 in non-AP MLD 620 using AP 1 on the first link 601, as shown by dashed line 630 in Figure 6.

[0262] In some other examples, Address 1 of the management frame carries the MAC address of non-AP STA 2, and Address 2 of the management frame carries the MAC address of AP 2, as shown in Figure 6. In this case, the AP MLD 610 can send the management frame to non-AP STA 2 in the non-AP MLD 620 using AP 2 on the second link 602, as shown by dashed line 640 in Figure 6.

[0263] In step 430 of process 400, the second multilink device 402 applies the received management frame to the indicated link or links.

[0264] As described above, the link indication information of the management frame includes the first address. The first address includes the address indication information. In other words, the address indication information is located in the first address. Alternatively, the link indication information of the management frame includes the first address and the address indication information.

[0265] In some embodiments, if the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1), the second multi-link device 402 may determine that the first address is an AP MLD MAC address. Optionally, the management frame may be further determined to be an MLD-level management frame.

[0266] If the first address includes address indication information, the second multilink device 402 can obtain the information carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame, reset the I / G bit to 0, and read the first address in Address 3, i.e., the MAC address of the AP MLD. Referring to the scenario of Figure 6, the first address may be the MAC address of the AP MLD 610.

[0267] Additionally, the second multi-link device 402 may determine whether the management frame carries link indication information.

[0268] If the management frame does not carry link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the management frame to all links (e.g., the first link 601, the second link 602, and the third link 603) that establish an association between the first multilink device 401 and the second multilink device 402. In one example, the management frame may be an ADD Block ACK (ADDBA) request frame or an ADD Block ACK frame.

[0269] If the management frame carries link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the management frame to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information. For example, referring to FIG. 6, if the management frame includes link identifier information for the first link 601 and the second link 602 (e.g., the link identifier information may include the link ID of the first link 601 and the link ID of the second link 602 using two link ID fields, or the link identifier information may be indicated by setting corresponding two bits in a link identifier bitmap to a first value), the management frame may be applied to the first link 601 and the second link 602. In one example, the management frame may be a Target Wake Time (TWT) configuration frame, where a TWT element in the TWT configuration frame carries link identifier information, and the link identifier information indicates one or more links to which the management frame should be applied.

[0270] For example, the management frame includes at least one element. If the first element carries link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information. If the second element does not carry link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the second element to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device 401 and the second multilink device 402. Alternatively, in other embodiments, if the second element does not carry link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the second element only to the link on which the management frame is transmitted (i.e., the link on which the station indicated by the receiver address or the station indicated by the transmitter address operates).

[0271] In some other embodiments, if the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0), the second multilink device 402 may determine that the first address is a MAC address of the associated AP. Optionally, the management frame may be further determined to be a link-level management frame. Furthermore, the second multilink device 402 may apply the management frame to the link on which the associated AP operates. In one example, the management frame may be a Notify Channel Width Frame Format frame.

[0272] The second multilink device 402 can obtain the information of Address 3 of the management frame and read the first address in Address 3, i.e., the BSSID of the cooperating AP. Referring to the scenario of Figure 6, it is assumed that the first address may be the BSSID of AP 2. In this case, the second multilink device 402 may apply the management frame to the link (i.e., the second link 602) associated with the first address (the BSSID of AP 2).

[0273] It will be appreciated that in this embodiment, the link to which the management frame applies is determined based on the first address (i.e., the MAC address of the associated AP) and is independent of the link over which the management frame is actually transmitted.

[0274] 6, it is assumed that Address 1 of the management frame carries the MAC address of non-AP STA 2, Address 2 of the management frame carries the MAC address of AP 2, and Address 3 of the management frame carries the BSSID of AP 2. In this case, the first multilink device 401 transmits the management frame to the second multilink device 402 on the second link 602, and the second multilink device 402 applies the management frame to the second link 602. In this embodiment, it can be seen that the link on which the management frame is actually transmitted and the link on which the management frame is applied are the same, and both are the second link 602. As another example, it is assumed that Address 1 of the management frame carries the MAC address of non-AP STA 1, Address 2 of the management frame carries the MAC address of AP 1, and Address 3 of the management frame carries the BSSID of AP 2. In this case, the first multilink device 401 transmits a management frame to the second multilink device 402 over the first link 601, but the second multilink device 402 applies the management frame to the second link 602. That is, the second multilink device 402 applies the management frame to a link (the second link 602) other than the link (the first link 601) over which the management frame is transmitted based on the first address. In this way, the link over which the management frame is transmitted and the link to which the management frame is applied may be the same or different, resulting in cross-link transmission of the management frame and full utilization of the multilink function. This improves communication efficiency.

[0275] Note that after receiving the management frame, the second multi-link device 402 can determine whether the address in Address 3 of the management frame is all ones. If so, the second multi-link device 402 can determine that a wildcard BSSID is in Address 3, and Address 3 does not carry address indication information. Whether the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of an associated AP is determined only if the address in Address 3 is not all ones.

[0276] In step 440 of process 400, the second multilink device 402 sends a reply acknowledgement frame of the management frame to the first multilink device 401.

[0277] 6, non-AP STA 1 in non-AP MLD 620 may transmit an acknowledgement frame to AP 1 in AP MLD 610 over the first link 601. In one example, the acknowledgement frame may include a positive acknowledgement (ACK).

[0278] In the examples described above with reference to Figures 4 to 6, it is assumed that the first multilink device 401 is an AP MLD and the second multilink device 402 is a non-AP MLD. It will be understood that the first multilink device 401 may be a non-AP MLD and the second multilink device 402 may be an AP MLD. The corresponding explanations are similar and will not be described in detail again in this specification.

[0279] According to the above description with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the management frame may include link indication information to indicate the link to which the management frame applies, so that the second multilink device can apply the management frame to the correct link. This avoids processing errors. Furthermore, the link indication information may include address indication information to indicate whether the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the cooperating AP. This solution is applicable even if the MAC address of the MLD is the same as the MAC address of the cooperating station. This solution is more universal and can reduce signaling overhead. In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the management frame may be transmitted over the link so that the multilink function can be fully utilized to effectively use resources. This improves resource utilization and further enhances communication efficiency.

[0280] It can be seen that this embodiment of the present disclosure provides a management frame mechanism for cross-link transmission so that the multi-link function can be used to fully utilize resources. Furthermore, processing abnormalities that occur when the type of management frame cannot be determined even if the MAC address of the MLD is identical to the MAC address of an associated station do not occur. In another aspect, the cross-link transmission mechanism allows the MLD MAC address of the MLD to be the same as the MAC address of one associated station. This reduces the overhead of the number of MAC addresses and reduces chip costs. Specifically, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the address indication information indicates a first address. This can reduce signaling overhead and ensure normal processing. In addition, the link-level management frame indicates the link to which the management frame applies based on at least the first address. This prevents the management frame from being applied to an incorrect link due to cross-link transmission. The MLD-level management frame can indicate several links to which the management frame applies based on additional link information. This expands the coverage area and ensures communication performance.

[0281] In another embodiment, Address 3 in a management frame always carries the MAC address of the AP. In other words, Address 3 in any management frame carries the MAC address of the AP and may not carry the AP MLD MAC address. The AP MAC address may be the MAC address of an associated AP or the MAC address of a single-link AP. The address indication information may indicate the type of the management frame. Specifically, the address indication information is a first value indicating that the management frame is an MLD-level management frame, and the address indication information is a second value indicating that the management frame is a link-level management frame. The first value is different from the second value. For example, the first value is 1 and the second value is 0. In another example, the first value is 0 and the second value is 1.

[0282] Furthermore, the MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of the AP transmitting the management frame, or the MAC address of another AP other than the MAC address of the AP transmitting the management frame within the same AP MLD.

[0283] The AP MAC address is the MAC address of the AP for transmitting the management frame. The link identifier information carried in the management frame is consistent with the above description: "Link-level management frames are specific to and may apply to a particular link." Details will not be described again in this specification.

[0284] The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of another AP other than the MAC address of the AP transmitting the management frame in the same AP MLD. The link identifier information carried in the management frame is consistent with the above description: "Link-level management frames are specific to and may apply to a particular link." Details will not be described again herein. FIG. 7 is another signaling interaction diagram of a data transmission process 700 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The process 700 includes a first multilink device 701 and a second multilink device 702. The first multilink device 701 may be an AP MLD or a non-AP MLD. Correspondingly, the second multilink device 702 may be a non-AP MLD or an AP MLD.

[0285] For ease of explanation, the following description may assume that the first multilink device 701 is the AP MLD 610 shown in Figure 6 and the second multilink device 702 is the non-AP MLD 620 shown in Figure 6. It will be understood that the communication process shown in Figure 7 is by way of example only and not limitation. In this embodiment of the present disclosure, interaction signaling not shown in Figure 7 may be included, or some signaling shown in Figure 7 is omitted.

[0286] In step 710 of process 700, the first multilink device 701 may initially generate a management frame. The management frame may be a robust management frame, also referred to as a protected management frame or an encrypted management frame, and may have the format shown in FIG.

[0287] 8 is another schematic diagram of a management frame format 800 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The format 800 includes a Frame Control 801, a Duration 802, an Address 1 803, an Address 2 804, an Address 3 805, a Sequence Control 806, an Address 4 807, a Counter-mode Cipher-Block Chaining Message Authentication Code (CBC-MAC) Protocol (CCMP) header or a Galois / Counter Mode Protocol (GCMP) header 808, a Frame Body 809, a Message Integrity Check (MIC) 812, and a Frame Check Sequence (FCS) 810. The Frame Body 809 may include an MMPDU. Additionally or optionally, the format 800 may further include a High Throughput Control (HT Control) 811.

[0288] For example, Frame Control 801 may include multiple subfields, such as Protocol Version, Frame Type, Subtype, From Distributed System (From DS), To Distributed System (To DS), Retry, Power Management, and More Data. For example, Frame Type "00" indicates a management frame.

[0289] For example, duration 802 may indicate a transmission opportunity duration. Address 1 803, Address 2 804, Address 3 805, and Address 4 807 may be collectively referred to as an address field. Frame body 509 may carry specific information. FCS 810 may be used for error detection. For example, FCS 810 may include a 32-bit Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC). HT Control 811 includes Aggregated Control (A-Control) and may further include a control list and padding.

[0290] It will be understood that for elements with like reference numerals in Figure 8, reference is made to the above description of like elements in Figure 5, and the details will not be described again here.

[0291] The management frame may include a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information, which may indicate at least one link to which the management frame applies.

[0292] In some examples, the link indication information may include a first address and address indication information. In some other examples, the link indication information may include a first address, and the first address includes address indication information. In other words, the address indication information is located at the first address. The address indication information indicates whether the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the cooperating AP. Specifically, the address indication information is a first value indicating that the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD, and the address indication information is a second value indicating that the first address is the MAC address of the cooperating AP.

[0293] When the address indication information is a first value and the first address is a MAC address of the AP MLD, the link indication information may further include link identifier information. For example, the link identifier information is carried in an element of the management frame. Alternatively, the management frame may not carry the link identifier information.

[0294] In particular, for specific embodiments of the receiver address, the sender address, and the link indication information, please refer to the description above with reference to Figure 4. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again here.

[0295] In one embodiment, the MIC 812 of the management frame of the format 800 shown in Figure 8 may be generated based on additional authentication data (AAD) constructed by the first multi-link device 701. AAD It should be understood that the process of constructing and / or analyzing the MIC and the corresponding process of generating and / or analyzing the MIC may be performed separately or may be combined with the process of generating and transmitting management frames provided in the above-described embodiments.

[0296] 9 is a schematic diagram of an AAD format 900 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The format 900 includes a frame control 901, an address 1 902, an address 2 903, an address 3 904, a sequence control 905, and an address 4 906.

[0297] For example, frame control 901 may be generated based on a portion of frame control 801. For example, a portion of frame control 801 (e.g., subtype, retry, and further data) may be excluded to generate frame control 901. That is, the excluded portion is masked to 0. For example, sequence control 905 may match sequence control 806, and address 4 906 may match address 4 807. In one embodiment, please refer to existing protocol 802.11-2021 for specific methods for constructing frame control 901, address 1 902, sequence control 905, and address 4 906 of the AAD.

[0298] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the address carried in Address 1 902 is the same as the address in Address 1 803, the address carried in Address 2 903 is the same as the address in Address 2 804, and the address carried in Address 3 904 is the same as the address in Address 3 805.

[0299] Specifically, Address 1 902 in format 900 can carry the receiver address of the management frame, Address 2 903 can carry the sender address of the management frame, and Address 3 904 can carry a second address. It should be understood that the management frame here may be a management frame corresponding to an AAD or the management frame described in the above embodiment. For example, when a management frame is transmitted from an AP MLD to a non-AP MLD, i.e., when the transmission direction is downlink, Address 1 902 can carry the MAC address of a non-AP STA, and Address 2 903 can carry the MAC address of an AP. When a management frame is transmitted from a non-AP MLD to an AP MLD, i.e., when the transmission direction is uplink, Address 1 902 can carry the MAC address of an AP, and Address 2 903 can carry the MAC address of a non-AP STA. In addition, Address 3 904 carries the second address, regardless of uplink or downlink.

[0300] In addition, during air interface transmission, Address 1 803 and Address 2 804 of the management frame may carry the address of the corresponding link on which the management frame is transmitted. In this case, Address 1 902 and Address 2 903 of the AAD may also carry the address of the corresponding link on which the management frame is transmitted, as shown in Table 2.

[0301] [Table 2]

[0302] In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, Address 1 902 and Address 2 903 in format 900 carry the corresponding MAC addresses of the MLD and are not replaced with the corresponding link addresses even during air interface transmissions. In other words, in this embodiment, during air interface transmissions, the addresses carried in Address 1 902 and Address 2 903 are still MAC addresses.

[0303] However, in this embodiment, the address carried in Address3 904 is the same as the address in Address3 805. In other words, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0304] Specifically, if the management frame is an MLD-level management frame, the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD. When an AAD is established, the second address in Address 3 904 of the AAD is also the MAC address of the AP MLD. When the management frame is a link-level management frame, the first address is the BSSID of the AP, which may be the BSSID of an AP associated with the AP MLD or the BSSID of an AP not associated with the AP MLD. When an AAD is established, the second address in Address 3 904 of the AAD is also the BSSID of the AP, which may be the BSSID of an AP associated with the AP MLD or the BSSID of an AP not associated with the AP MLD. Correspondingly, Address 1, Address 2, and Address 3 of the AAD may be listed in Table 3 below.

[0305] [Table 3]

[0306] In this embodiment, since Address 1 and Address 2 of the AAD are the corresponding MAC addresses of the MLD, the corresponding management frames are allowed to be transmitted over the link, and even if the management frames are not transmitted on the target link, re-encryption is not required. In this way, the multi-link function can be fully utilized, transmission flexibility can be improved, and link resources can be used effectively. This improves communication efficiency.

[0307] In the above description of the management frame, the management frame includes link indication information, which in turn includes address indication information.

[0308] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the address indication information is carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame. In other words, the first address includes the address indication information.

[0309] In one example, the address in Address 3 904 of the AAD may be the same as the address in Address 3 of the management frame. In other words, the second address of the AAD also includes address indication information.

[0310] In another example, the first address of the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP, and the second address is always set to the MAC address of the AP.

[0311] In another example, the address in Address 3 904 of the AAD is not necessarily identical to the address in Address 3 of the management frame. In other words, the second address of the AAD does not include address indication information. Specifically, if the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1), when the AAD is constructed, the address indication information in the Address 3 field of the management frame is reset to a default value (e.g., 0) and used as the second address in Address 3 904 of the AAD. If the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0), when the AAD is constructed, the address indication information in the Address 3 field of the management frame is kept at 0 and used as the second address in Address 3 904 of the AAD. In this case, it will be understood that the meaning of the first address can still be determined based on the address indication information in the management frame. Optionally, the type of the management frame is determined. Optionally, in this embodiment, the second address does not include address indication information, but the AAD can use other positions or bits to carry address indication information. In other words, the AAD includes address indication information, which is carried in the I / G bit of Address 2 of the AAD, or in the From DS and To DS of the frame control of the AAD, etc.

[0312] In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the address indication information is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0313] In one example, the address in Address 3 904 of the AAD is not necessarily identical to the address in Address 3 of the management frame. In other words, the second address of the AAD includes address indication information. Specifically, if the address indication information in the Address 2 field of the management frame is a first value (e.g., 1), when the AAD is constructed, the address indication information in the Address 3 field of the management frame is reset to 1 and used as the second address in Address 3 904 of the AAD. If the address indication information in the Address 2 field of the management frame is a second value (e.g., 0), when the AAD is constructed, the address indication information in the Address 3 field of the management frame remains 0 and is used as the second address in Address 3 904 of the AAD. In other words, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the I / G bit of the second address carried in the Address 3 field of the AAD may be set to the value of the address indication information. A default value of the I / G bit of the second address may be 0. If the address indication information is a first value (1), the I / G bit of the second address is reset to 1. If the address indication information is the second value (0), the I / G bit of the second address is kept at 0.

[0314] In another example, the address in Address 2 of the AAD 903 may be the same as the address in Address 2 of the management frame. In other words, the AAD also includes address indication information. In another example, the address in Address 2 of the AAD 903 is not necessarily the same as the address in Address 2 of the management frame. In other words, the AAD does not include address indication information. Specifically, if the address indication information in Address 2 of the management frame is a first value (e.g., 1), when the AAD is constructed, the address indication information in the Address 2 field of the management frame is reset to a default value (e.g., 0) and used as the address in Address 2 of the AAD 903. If the address indication information in Address 2 of the management frame is a second value (e.g., 0), when the AAD is constructed, the address indication information in the Address 2 field of the management frame remains 0 and is used as the address in Address 2 of the AAD 903. It will be understood that in this case, the meaning of the first address can still be determined based on the address indication information in Address 2 of the management frame. Optionally, the type of the management frame is determined.

[0315] Furthermore, the first multi-link device 701 may generate the MIC 812 using a cryptographic algorithm based on the constructed AAD and the frame body 809 .

[0316] In step 720 of process 700, the first multilink device 701 transmits a management frame to the second multilink device 702. Specifically, the first multilink device 701 can transmit the management frame to the second multilink device 702 on the link between Address 1 and Address 2 of the management frame.

[0317] For step 720 of Figure 7, please refer to the above description of step 420 of Figure 4. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again here.

[0318] In step 730 of process 700, the second multilink device 702 performs security verification of the received management frame.

[0319] In some embodiments, the second multilink device 702 may construct an AAD based on the received management frame, then generate a second MIC based on the constructed AAD and the frame body of the management frame, and perform security verification of the received management frame based on the MIC of the management frame (referred to as the first MIC) and the second MIC.

[0320] It should be understood that the process by which the second multilink device 702 constructs an AAD to obtain a second MIC may be performed independently, i.e., separately from the process by which the second multilink device 702 receives a management frame, or may be performed in combination with the process by which the second multilink device 702 receives a management frame and applies the management frame to at least one link.

[0321] The AAD constructed by the second multilink device 702 may have a format similar to the format 900 shown in Figure 9. Specifically, the manner in which the second multilink device constructs the AAD is similar to the manner in which the first multilink device 701 constructs the AAD shown in Figure 9. For details, please refer to the above description. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again herein.

[0322] After constructing the AAD, the second multilink device 702 may generate a second MIC based on the constructed AAD and the frame body of the received management frame. The second multilink device 702 may then compare the MIC of the received management frame (referred to as the first MIC) with the generated second MIC. If the two MIC fields are the same, this indicates that the management frame has not been tampered with, and subsequent processing may be performed. Conversely, if the two MIC fields are different, this indicates that the management frame has been tampered with.

[0323] In step 740 of process 700, the second multilink device 702 applies the received management frame to the indicated link or links.

[0324] Specifically, if security is verified in step 730, eg, if the first MIC matches the second MIC, then step 740 is executed.

[0325] As described above, the link indication information of the management frame includes the first address. The first address includes the address indication information. In other words, the address indication information is located in the first address. Alternatively, the link indication information of the management frame includes the first address and the address indication information.

[0326] In some embodiments, if the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1), the second multi-link device 402 may determine that the first address is an AP MLD MAC address. Optionally, the management frame may be further determined to be an MLD-level management frame.

[0327] If the first address includes address indication information, the second multilink device 402 can obtain the information carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame, reset the I / G bit to 0, and read the first address in Address 3, i.e., the MAC address of the AP MLD. Referring to the scenario of Figure 6, the first address may be the MAC address of the AP MLD 610.

[0328] Additionally, the second multi-link device 402 may determine whether the management frame carries link indication information.

[0329] If the management frame does not carry link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the management frame to all links (e.g., the first link 601, the second link 602, and the third link 603) that establish an association between the first multilink device 401 and the second multilink device 402. In one example, the management frame may be an ADD Block ACK (ADDBA) request frame or an ADD Block ACK frame.

[0330] If the management frame carries link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the management frame to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information. For example, referring to Figure 6, if the management frame includes link identifier information for the first link 601 and the second link 602, the management frame may be applied to the first link 601 and the second link 602. In one example, the management frame may be a Target Wake Time (TWT) configuration frame, where a TWT element in the TWT configuration frame carries link identifier information, and the link identifier information indicates one or more links to which the management frame should be applied.

[0331] For example, the management frame includes at least one element. If the first element carries link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information. If the second element does not carry link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the second element to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device 401 and the second multilink device 402. In other embodiments, if the second element does not carry link identifier information, the second multilink device 402 may apply the second element to the link on which the element is transmitted.

[0332] In some other embodiments, if the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0), the second multilink device 402 may determine that the first address is the MAC address of the associated AP. Optionally, the management frame may further be determined to be a link-level management frame. Furthermore, the second multilink device 402 may apply the management frame to the link on which the associated AP operates. In one example, the management frame may be a notify channel width frame format frame. The second multilink device 402 may obtain information about Address 3 of the management frame and read the first address in Address 3, i.e., the BSSID of the associated AP. Referring to the scenario of FIG. 6, it is assumed that the first address may be the BSSID of AP 2. In this case, the second multilink device 402 may apply the management frame to the link (i.e., the second link 602) associated with the first address (the BSSID of AP 2).

[0333] It will be appreciated that in this embodiment, the link to which the management frame applies is determined based on the first address (i.e., the MAC address of the associated AP) and is independent of the link over which the management frame is actually transmitted.

[0334] 6, it is assumed that Address 1 of the management frame carries the MAC address of non-AP STA 2, Address 2 of the management frame carries the MAC address of AP 2, and Address 3 of the management frame carries the BSSID of AP 2. In this case, the first multilink device 401 transmits the management frame to the second multilink device 402 on the second link 602, and the second multilink device 402 applies the management frame to the second link 602. In this embodiment, it can be seen that the link on which the management frame is actually transmitted and the link on which the management frame is applied are the same, and both are the second link 602. As another example, it is assumed that Address 1 of the management frame carries the MAC address of non-AP STA 1, Address 2 of the management frame carries the MAC address of AP 1, and Address 3 of the management frame carries the BSSID of AP 2. In this case, the first multilink device 401 transmits a management frame to the second multilink device 402 over the first link 601, but the second multilink device 402 applies the management frame to the second link 602. That is, the second multilink device 402 applies the management frame to a link (the second link 602) other than the link (the first link 601) over which the management frame is transmitted based on the first address. In this way, the link over which the management frame is transmitted and the link to which the management frame is applied may be the same or different, resulting in cross-link transmission of the management frame and full utilization of the multilink function. This improves communication efficiency.

[0335] In step 750 of process 700, the second multilink device 702 sends a reply acknowledgement frame of the management frame to the first multilink device 701. If the receiving end of the management frame is a single-link station, the single-link station returns an acknowledgement frame to the first multilink device 701.

[0336] 6, non-AP STA 1 in non-AP MLD 620 may transmit an acknowledgement frame to AP 1 in AP MLD 610 over the first link 601. In one example, the acknowledgement frame may include a positive acknowledgement (ACK).

[0337] In the above example, it is assumed that the first multilink device 701 is an AP MLD and the second multilink device 702 is a non-AP MLD. It should be understood that the first multilink device 701 may be a non-AP MLD and the second multilink device 702 may be an AP MLD. The corresponding explanations are similar, and the details will not be described again in this specification.

[0338] According to the above description, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the management frame can include link indication information to indicate the link to which the management frame applies, so that the second multilink device can apply the management frame to the correct link. This avoids processing errors. Furthermore, the link indication information can include address indication information to indicate whether the first address is the MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the cooperating AP. This solution is applicable even if the MAC address of the MLD is the same as the MAC address of the cooperating station. This solution is more universal and can reduce signaling overhead. In another aspect, a cross-link transmission mechanism allows the MLD MAC address of the MLD to be the same as the MAC address of one cooperating station. This reduces the overhead of the number of MAC addresses and reduces chip costs. In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the management frame can be transmitted over the link so that the multilink function can be fully utilized to effectively use resources. This improves resource utilization and further improves communication efficiency.

[0339] 10 is a schematic flowchart of a data transmission method 1000 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The method 1000 may be performed by a first multilink device. For example, the first multilink device may be implemented as the AP MLD 610 of FIG. 6 or the non-AP MLD 620 of FIG. 6.

[0340] Method 1000 begins at block 1010. In step 1010, a first multi-link device generates a management frame. The management frame includes a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information. The link indication information indicates that the management frame applies to at least one link corresponding to the link indication information.

[0341] For example, the management frame may have the format 500 shown in FIG. 5 or may conform to the format 800 shown in FIG. 8. The link indication information may include a first address. The first address is carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame. Additionally, a receiver address may be carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame. A sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0342] In some examples, the first address may include address indication information, such as the address indication information carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0343] In some other examples, the link indication information may include a first address and address indication information, for example, the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address or in another position in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0344] In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the address indication information can indicate whether the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. Specifically, when the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1), it indicates that the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD. When the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0), it indicates that the first address is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, and can be, for example, the BSSID of the AP associated with the AP MLD.

[0345] In some cases, the address indication information is a first value, and the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD. The link indication information may further include link identifier information, or may not include link identifier information.

[0346] Specifically, the link indication information includes link identifier information indicating the links to which the management frame applies, and does not include link identifier information indicating that the management frame applies to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0347] In this embodiment of the present disclosure, "applied to a link" may be understood as a target at a link, or may be applied to stations at both ends of the link, and in the following description will be collectively described as applied to the link.

[0348] In one example, the management frame includes at least one element: Link identifier information may be carried in a first element of the management frame indicating that the first element applies to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information.

[0349] In another example, the management frame includes at least one element, wherein a second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information indicating that the second element applies to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0350] For example, the link identifier information may be at least one of one or more link IDs or a link ID bitmap.

[0351] In other cases, the address indication information is a second value, and the first address is the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD, in which case the management frame is applied to the link on which the associated AP operates.

[0352] In some embodiments, when the protected management frame shown in Figure 8 is generated, an AAD may be further constructed when the management frame is generated, and the AAD includes a second address. A MIC is generated based on the constructed AAD. Then, the management frame is generated based on the MIC.

[0353] The constructed AAD may have the format 900 shown in Figure 9. The second address may be carried in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0354] In one example, when an AAD is established, the second address of the AAD may match the first address of the management frame. Specifically, if the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD, the second address is also the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD. If the first address is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, the second address is also the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD. If the first address is the MAC address of a single-link AP or the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD, the second address is also the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0355] In this embodiment, if the first address includes address indication information, the second address also includes address indication information accordingly. If the first address does not include address indication information, the second address also does not include address indication information accordingly. In other words, Address 3 of the AAD is consistent with the Address 3 field of the management frame in the air interface transmission.

[0356] In another example, if the first address includes address indication information, when the AAD is constructed, the address indication information in the first address may be reset to a default value (e.g., 0) and then used as the second address of the AAD.

[0357] In this embodiment, the first address includes address indication information, but the second address does not include address indication information.

[0358] In yet another example, the AAD may include address indication information carried in the I / G bit of Address 2 or Address 3 of the AAD. As with the previous embodiment in which the management frame includes address indication information, the details will not be described again in this specification.

[0359] In this way, the first multi-link device can construct an AAD and further generate a MIC based on this. Specifically, the management frame generated in step 1010 includes a MIC.

[0360] It will be appreciated that the specific purpose of the management frame is not limited in this embodiment of the present disclosure, and may be, for example, any one of a block add acknowledgement request frame, a block add acknowledgement frame, an announcement channel width frame format frame, a target wake time setting frame, a channel switch request frame, and a transmit power control (TPC) request frame.

[0361] For step 1010, please refer to the relevant description of step 410 in Figure 4 and step 710 in Figure 7. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again here.

[0362] In step 1020, the first multi-link device transmits a management frame on the link on which the station indicated by the receiver address or the station indicated by the transmitter address operates. For example, the management frame may be transmitted to a second multi-link device, or the management frame may be transmitted to a single-link station.

[0363] For step 1020, please refer to the relevant description of step 420 in Figure 4 and step 720 in Figure 7. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again here.

[0364] Optionally, after step 1020, the first multi-link device may further receive a response to the management frame from the second multi-link device or the single-link station, for example a reply acknowledgement frame.

[0365] In this manner, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the management frame can include link indication information to indicate the link to which the management frame applies, so that the second multilink device can apply the management frame to the correct link when the receiving end device is the second multilink device, which avoids processing errors.

[0366] The link indication information may include address indication information for indicating whether the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the AP. In one embodiment, the AP MAC address is the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD. This solution is applicable even if the MLD MAC address is the same as the MAC address of the associated station. This solution is more universal and can reduce signaling overhead. In this embodiment of the present disclosure, management frames can be transmitted over the link so that multi-link functionality can be fully utilized to effectively use resources. This improves resource utilization and further enhances communication efficiency. In another embodiment, the AP MAC address is the MAC address of a single-link AP or the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0367] 11 is another schematic flowchart of a data transmission method 1100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The method 1100 may be performed by a second multilink device. For example, the second multilink device may be implemented as the AP MLD 610 of FIG. 6 or the non-AP MLD 620 of FIG. 6.

[0368] Method 1100 begins at block 1110. In step 1110, a second multilink device receives a management frame from a first multilink device over a link on which a station in the second multilink device operates. The management frame includes a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information. The receiver address is the address of a station in the second multilink device. The link indication information indicates that the management frame applies to at least one link indicated by the link indication information.

[0369] For example, the management frame may have the format 500 shown in FIG. 5 or may conform to the format 800 shown in FIG. 8. The link indication information may include a first address. The first address is carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame. Additionally, a receiver address may be carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame. A sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0370] In some examples, the first address may include address indication information, such as the address indication information carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0371] In some other examples, the link indication information may include a first address and address indication information, for example, the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit of the MAC address or in another position in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0372] In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the address indication information can indicate whether the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of an AP in the AP MLD, specifically the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. Specifically, when the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1), it indicates that the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD. When the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0), it indicates that the first address is the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD, and can be, for example, the BSSID of the AP associated with the AP MLD.

[0373] In this case, the address indication information is a first value, the first address is not all ones, and the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD. The link indication information may further include link identifier information or may not include link identifier information.

[0374] Specifically, the link indication information includes link identifier information indicating the links to which the management frame applies, and does not include link identifier information indicating that the management frame applies to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0375] In one example, the management frame includes at least one element, a first element of the management frame carrying link identifier information, and in another example, the management frame includes at least one element, a second element of the management frame not carrying link identifier information.

[0376] For example, the link identifier information may be at least one of one or more link IDs or a link ID bitmap.

[0377] In other cases, the address indication information is a second value, and the first address is a MAC address of an AP, specifically, a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD.

[0378] In some embodiments, if the protected management frame shown in FIG. 8 is received in step 1110, the management frame may further include a first MIC.

[0379] In one implementation, for an embodiment of the management frame, please refer to the related description of the previous embodiment, and for the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again here.

[0380] In step 1120, the second multi-link device applies the management frame to at least one corresponding link based on the link indication information.

[0381] In some embodiments, if the received management frame includes the first MIC, the second multilink device further performs security verification on the management frame before step 1120. In order for the second multilink device to obtain the second MIC, AADIt should be understood that the below-described processes of constructing and performing security validation may be performed independently or in combination with the above-described processes of receiving a management frame in step 1120 and applying the management frame to at least one corresponding link.

[0382] Specifically, the second multi-link device can construct an AAD based on the management frame, where the AAD includes a second address, generate a second MIC based on the AAD, and perform security verification of the management frame based on the first MIC and the second MIC.

[0383] In one example, when the AAD is established, the second address of the AAD may match the first address of the management frame. Specifically, if the first address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD, the second address is also the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD. If the first address is the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD, the second address is also the MAC address of the AP associated with the AP MLD.

[0384] If the first address is the MAC address of a single-link AP or the MAC address of an AP that is not aligned with any AP MLD, the second address is also the MAC address of a single-link AP or the MAC address of an AP that is not aligned with any AP MLD.

[0385] In this embodiment, if the first address includes address indication information, the second address also includes address indication information accordingly, and if the first address does not include address indication information, the second address also does not include address indication information accordingly.

[0386] In another example, if the first address includes address indication information, when the AAD is constructed, the address indication information in the first address may be reset to a default value (e.g., 0) and then used as the second address of the AAD.

[0387] In this embodiment, the first address includes address indication information, but the second address does not include address indication information.

[0388] In this way, the second multi-link device can construct an AAD, based on which it can further generate a second MIC.

[0389] The second multilink device can compare the generated second MIC with the first MIC in the received management frame to verify the security of the management frame. For example, if the first MIC is different from the second MIC, it indicates that the management frame has been tampered with. If the first MIC is the same as the second MIC, it indicates that the management frame has not been tampered with and can be processed further.

[0390] In some examples, if the security is verified, i.e., if it is determined that the management frame has not been tampered with, step 1120 is performed.

[0391] In some embodiments, if the address indication information is a first value (e.g., 1), the second multi-link device can determine that the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD. Optionally, the management frame may be further determined to be an MLD-level management frame.

[0392] If the first address contains address indication information, the second multi-link device can obtain the information carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame, reset the I / G bit to 0, and read the first address in Address 3, i.e., the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0393] Furthermore, the second multi-link device can determine whether the management frame carries link indication information.

[0394] If the management frame does not carry link identifier information, the second multilink device may apply the management frame to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device. In one example, the management frame may be a block addition acknowledgement request frame or a block addition acknowledgement frame.

[0395] If the management frame carries link identifier information, the second multi-link device can apply the management frame to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information. In one example, the management frame can be a TWT configuration frame, where a TWT element in the TWT configuration frame carries link identifier information, and the link identifier information indicates one or more links to which the management frame should be applied.

[0396] For example, the management frame includes at least one element: if the first element carries link identifier information, the second multilink device can apply the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information; if the second element does not carry link identifier information, the second multilink device can apply the second element to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0397] In some other embodiments, if the address indication information is a second value (e.g., 0), the second multi-link device may determine that the first address is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD. Optionally, the management frame may be further determined to be a link-level management frame. Furthermore, the second multi-link device may apply the management frame to a link on which an AP associated with the AP MLD operates, or may apply the management frame to a link on which a single-link AP or an AP not associated with the AP MLD operates. In one example, the management frame may be an advertised channel width frame format frame.

[0398] For step 1120, please refer to the relevant description of step 430 in Figure 4 and step 740 in Figure 7. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again here.

[0399] Optionally, after step 1120, the second multilink device may further transmit a response to the management frame, for example a reply acknowledgement frame, to the first multilink device.

[0400] Specifically, the second multilink device can transmit a reply acknowledgement frame on the link on which the management frame was received, e.g., the reply acknowledgement frame may be transmitted on the link between the receiver address and the sender address of the management frame.

[0401] Thus, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the management frame received by the second multi-link device includes link indication information to indicate the link to which the management frame applies. In this way, even in a cross-link transmission scenario, the management frame can be applied to the correct link. This ensures correct processing and avoids communication errors.

[0402] In the above example, it has been described in detail that the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit of Address 3 of the management frame, but it should be noted that the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the address indication information may alternatively be carried in the I / G bit of Address 2 of the management frame, or the address indication information may be carried in the From DS and To DS of the Frame Control of the management frame, or in other positions or bits. In addition, those skilled in the art may similarly obtain specific implementations in which the address indication information is carried in other positions or bits. All of these specific implementations fall within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0403] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present disclosure, "first," "second," "third," etc. are intended only to indicate that multiple objects may be different, but two objects may be the same. "First," "second," "third," etc. should not be construed as limitations on the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0404] It should be further understood that the division of the embodiments of this application into methods, cases, categories, and embodiments is intended merely for ease of description and does not constitute any particular limitation. Features of methods, categories, cases, and embodiments may be combined with one another where it is logical.

[0405] It should be further understood that the above content is not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application, but is only intended to help those skilled in the art better understand the embodiments of the present application. Those skilled in the art can make various modifications, changes, combinations, etc. according to the above content. The modified, changed, or combined solutions also fall within the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0406] It should be further understood that references throughout this specification to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic associated with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the appearances of "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" herein are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. In addition, these particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. The sequence numbers of the processes described above do not imply an execution sequence in various embodiments of the present invention. The execution order of the processes should be determined according to the functions and internal logic of the processes and should not be construed as a limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0407] It should be further understood that the description of the foregoing contents focuses on highlighting the differences between the embodiments, and the same or similar contents of the embodiments may be referenced to each other. For the sake of simplicity, details will not be further described herein.

[0408] 12 is another schematic block diagram of a communication device 1200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The device 1200 may be implemented in a first multilink device, or may be implemented as a chip or chip system in the first multilink device. The scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0409] 12, the apparatus 1200 includes a generating unit 1210 and a transmitting unit 1220. The generating unit 1210 may be configured to generate a management frame. The management frame includes a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information. The link indication information indicates at least one link to which the management frame applies. The transmitting unit 1220 may be configured to transmit the management frame to a second multi-link device on a link between the receiver address and the transmitter address.

[0410] In some embodiments, the link indication information includes a first address. The first address includes address indication information. The address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of an access point (AP MLD) or a MAC address of an AP. The AP MAC address is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0411] In another implementation, the address indication information may indicate a type of the management frame. Specifically, the address indication information may be a first value indicating that the management frame is an MLD-level management frame, and the address indication information may be a second value indicating that the management frame is a link-level management frame. The first value may be different from the second value. For example, the first value may be 1 and the second value may be 0. In another example, the first value may be 0 and the second value may be 1.

[0412] In some embodiments, the address indication information is carried in the Individual / Group I / G bits of the MAC address in the Address 3 field of the management frame. In some other embodiments, the address indication information may be carried in the From DS and To DS of the Frame Control of the management frame.

[0413] In some embodiments, the link indication information includes address indication information and a first address, and the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0414] In another embodiment, the address indication information indicates whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame.

[0415] In some embodiments, the address indication information is carried in the I / G bits of the MAC address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0416] In some embodiments, the address indication information is a first value, the first address is not all ones, and the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0417] In some embodiments, the link indication information further includes link identifier information, the link identifier information indicating that the management frame applies to one or more links.

[0418] In some embodiments, the link indication information further includes link identifier information, the link identifier information being carried in a first element of the management frame, and the link identifier information indicating that the first element applies to one or more links.

[0419] In some embodiments, the second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information indicating that the second element applies to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device.

[0420] In some embodiments, the link identifier information includes at least one of a link identifier or a link identifier bitmap.

[0421] In some embodiments, the address indication information is a second value, the first address is not all ones, and the first address is a MAC address of an AP. The AP MAC address is a MAC address of an AP associated with AP MLD, or a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP not associated with AP MLD. The management frame is applied to a link on which an AP associated with AP MLD operates, or a link on which a single-link AP or AP not associated with AP MLD operates.

[0422] In some embodiments, the generating unit 1210 is configured to construct an AAD, where the AAD includes a receiver address, a transmitter address, and a second address, generate a MIC based on the AAD, and generate a management frame based on the MIC.

[0423] In some embodiments, the second address is the same as the first address.

[0424] In some embodiments, if the first address includes address indication information, the address indication information in the first address is set to a default value and then used as the second address.

[0425] In some embodiments, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame and the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0426] In some embodiments, the apparatus 1200 may further include a receiving unit 1230 configured to receive a reply acknowledgement frame from the second multilink device.

[0427] For example, the apparatus 1200 of Figure 12 may be configured to implement the process described with reference to the first multilink device of Figures 4 to 9. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again herein.

[0428] 13 is another schematic block diagram of a communication device 1300 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The device 1300 may be implemented in a second multilink device, or may be implemented as a chip or chip system in the second multilink device. The scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0429] 13, the apparatus 1300 includes a receiving unit 1310 and a processing unit 1320. The receiving unit 1310 may be configured to receive a management frame from a first multilink device on a link between a receiver address and a transmitter address. The management frame includes a receiver address, a transmitter address, and link indication information. The link indication information indicates at least one link to which the management frame applies. The processing unit 1320 may be configured to apply the management frame to at least one corresponding link based on the link indication information.

[0430] In some embodiments, the link indication information includes a first address. In one implementation, the first address includes address indication information. The address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD. In other implementations, the address indication information indicates whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame.

[0431] In some embodiments, the address indication information is carried in an Individual / Group I / G bit of a MAC address in an Address 3 field of the management frame. The processing unit 1320 is further configured to set the I / G bit in the Address 3 field of the management frame to a default value to obtain the first address in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0432] In some embodiments, the link indication information includes address indication information and a first address, and the address indication information indicates whether the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0433] In another embodiment, the first address of the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP. The MAC address of the AP is the MAC address of an AP associated with AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with AP MLD. In this case, the address indication information does not need to indicate which address the first address is. Optionally, the address indication information may indicate whether the management frame is an MLD-level management frame or a link-level management frame. In other words, the address indication information can indicate whether the management frame includes link indication information.

[0434] In some embodiments, the address indication information is carried in the I / G bits of the MAC address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0435] In some embodiments, the address indication information is a first value, the first address is not all ones, and the first address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD.

[0436] In some embodiments, the processing unit 1320 is configured to apply the management frame to all links establishing an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device if the link indication information does not include link identifier information, or to apply the management frame to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information if the link indication information includes link identifier information.

[0437] In some embodiments, the processing unit 1320 is configured to, if the link indication information further includes link identifier information and the link identifier information is carried in the first element of the management frame, apply the first element to one or more links indicated by the link identifier information.

[0438] In some embodiments, the processing unit 1320 is configured to apply the second element of the management frame to all links that establish an association between the first multilink device and the second multilink device if the second element of the management frame does not carry link identifier information.

[0439] In some embodiments, the link identifier information includes at least one of a link identifier or a link identifier bitmap.

[0440] In some embodiments, the address indication information is a second value, the first address is not all ones, and the first address is a MAC address of an AP. The MAC address of the AP is a MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, or a MAC address of a single-link AP, or a MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD. Further, the processing unit 1320 is configured to apply the management frame to a link on which the associated AP operates, or to apply the management frame to a link on which the single-link AP or an AP not associated with any AP MLD operates.

[0441] In some embodiments, the management frame further includes a first MIC. The processing unit 1320 is further configured to construct an AAD, the AAD including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and a second address, generate a second MIC based on the AAD, and perform security verification of the management frame based on the first MIC and the second MIC.

[0442] In some embodiments, the second address is the same as the first address. In some other embodiments, the first address in the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP, and the second address is always set to the MAC address of the AP.

[0443] In some embodiments, if the first address includes address indication information, the address indication information in the first address is set to a default value and then used as the second address.

[0444] In some embodiments, the management frame further includes a first address, where all bits of the first address are 1. The processing unit 1320 is further configured to determine, by the second multi-link device, that the first address is a wildcard BSSID.

[0445] In some embodiments, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the management frame and the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0446] In some embodiments, the apparatus 1300 may further include a transmitting unit 1330 configured to transmit a reply acknowledgement frame to the first multilink device.

[0447] For example, the apparatus 1300 of Figure 13 may be configured to perform the process described with reference to the second multilink device of Figures 4 to 9. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again herein.

[0448] 14 is yet another schematic block diagram of a communication device 1400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The device 1400 may be implemented within a first multilink device or a second multilink device, or may be implemented as a chip or chip system within the first multilink device or the second multilink device. The scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0449] 14, the apparatus 1400 includes a construction unit 1410 and a generation unit 1420. The construction unit 1410 is configured to construct an AAD, where the AAD includes a receiver address, a transmitter address, and a second address, where the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. The generation unit 1420 is configured to: AADThe MAC address of the AP may be the MAC address of an AP associated with AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with AP MLD.

[0450] In some embodiments, the apparatus 1400 may further include a verification unit 1430 configured to perform security verification on the received management frame based on the generated MIC and the MIC in the received management frame.

[0451] In some embodiments, the receiver address is carried in the Address 1 field of the AAD, the sender address is carried in the Address 2 field of the AAD, and the second address is carried in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0452] In some embodiments, the second address is determined based on the first address to be carried in the Address 3 field of the management frame.

[0453] In some embodiments, the second address is the same as the first address. In some other embodiments, the first address in the management frame is always set to the MAC address of the AP, and the second address is always set to the MAC address of the AP.

[0454] In some embodiments, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to zeros.

[0455] In some embodiments, the first address does not include address indication information, and the second address is obtained by setting the I / G bit in the first address to the value of the address indication information. In this manner, the second address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of an AP MLD or a MAC address of an AP. The AP MAC address is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0456] In some embodiments, the first address includes address indication information, and the second address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the first address to 0. The AAD includes the address indication information, and the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit in the Address 2 field of the AAD. In this manner, the sender address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is an MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or a MAC address of the AP. The AP MAC address is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD, or the MAC address of a single-link AP, or the MAC address of an AP not associated with the AP MLD.

[0457] In some embodiments, the sender address is determined based on the address carried in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0458] In some embodiments, the sender address is the same as the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame.

[0459] In some embodiments, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame includes address indication information, and the sender address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to zero.

[0460] In some embodiments, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame does not include address indication information, and the sender address is obtained by setting the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to the value of the address indication information. In this way, the sender address may include address indication information indicating whether the second address is the MLD MAC address of the AP MLD or the MAC address of the AP. The AP MAC address is the MAC address of an AP associated with the AP MLD or the MAC address of an AP not associated with any AP MLD.

[0461] In some embodiments, the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame includes address indication information, and the sender address is obtained by masking the address indication information in the address in the Address 2 field of the management frame to 0. Additionally, the AAD includes address indication information, and the address indication information is carried in the I / G bit in the Address 3 field of the AAD.

[0462] Specifically, for constructing the AAD by the construction unit 1410, please refer to the above description with reference to Fig. 9. For the sake of brevity, the details will not be described again herein.

[0463] It will be understood that the apparatus 1400 may be implemented as a part of the aforementioned apparatus 1200. For example, the generating unit 1210 includes a building unit 1410 and a generating unit 1420. The apparatus 1400 may be implemented as a part of the aforementioned apparatus 1300. For example, the processing unit 1320 includes a building unit 1410, a generating unit 1420, and a verifying unit 1430. For processes that may be implemented by the apparatus 1400, please refer to the relevant descriptions of the aforementioned embodiments.

[0464] 15 is a simplified block diagram of an exemplary apparatus 1500 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The apparatus 1500 may be configured to implement the first and second multilink devices in the aforementioned embodiments, for example, AP MLD and non-AP MLD. As shown in the figure, the apparatus 1500 includes one or more processors 1510, one or more memories 1520 coupled to the processors 1510, and a communication module 1540 coupled to the processors 1510.

[0465] The communication module 1540 may be configured to perform two-way communication. The communication module 1540 may have at least one communication interface for communication. The communication interface may include an interface necessary for communication with other devices.

[0466] The processor 1510 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may include, but is not limited to, one or more of the following: a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor (DSP), or a controller-based multi-core controller architecture. The device 1500 may have multiple processors, such as application-specific integrated circuit chips, which in turn belong to a clock synchronized with the main processor.

[0467] The memory 1520 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of non-volatile memory include, but are not limited to, at least one of: Read-Only Memory (ROM) 1524, Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM), flash memory, a hard disk, a Compact Disc (CD), a Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), or other magnetic and / or optical storage devices. Examples of volatile memory include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following: Random Access Memory (RAM) 1522, or other volatile memory that does not persist between power-off periods.

[0468] The computer program 1530 includes computer-executable instructions that are executed by the associated processor 1510. The program 1530 may be stored in the ROM 1524. The processor 1510 can load the program 1530 into the RAM 1522 to perform any suitable operations and processes.

[0469] The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented with the aid of a program 1530 such that the apparatus 1500 can perform any of the processes described with reference to Figures 4 to 11. Alternatively, the embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented using hardware or a combination of software and hardware.

[0470] In some embodiments, the program 1530 may be tangibly embodied in a computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium may be included in the device 1500 (e.g., in memory 1520) or other storage device that can be accessed by the device 1500. The program 1530 may be loaded from the computer-readable medium into RAM 1522 for execution. The computer-readable medium may include any type of tangible or non-volatile memory, such as a ROM, an EPROM, a flash memory, a hard disk, a CD, or a DVD.

[0471] In some embodiments, the communication module 1540 in the device 1500 may be implemented as a transmitter and receiver (or transceiver) and may be configured to transmit / receive system information such as management frames and acknowledgment frames. Furthermore, the device 1500 may further include one or more of a scheduler, a controller, and a radio frequency / antenna. Details will not be described again in this disclosure.

[0472] In other embodiments, the radio frequency / antenna may be located independently from the processor that performs the baseband processing, for example, in a distributed scenario, the radio frequency / antenna may be located independently and separately from the device 1500.

[0473] For example, the apparatus 1500 of Figure 15 may be implemented as a first multilink device or a second multilink device, or may be implemented as a chip or chip system within the first multilink device, or may be implemented as a chip or chip system within the second multilink device, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0474] 15 may be implemented as an AP MLD or a non-AP MLD, or may be implemented as a chip or chip system within an AP MLD, or may be implemented as a chip or chip system within a non-AP MLD, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0475] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a chip. The chip may include an input interface, an output interface, and a processing circuit. In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the input interface and the output interface can complete the above-mentioned signaling or data interaction, and the processing circuit can complete the generation and processing of signaling or data information.

[0476] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a chip system including a processor configured to support a first multi-link device or a second multi-link device to perform the functions of any one of the aforementioned embodiments. In a possible design, the chip system further includes a memory. The memory is configured to store necessary program instructions and data. When the processor executes the program instructions, a device in which the chip system is installed is enabled to perform the method of any one of the aforementioned embodiments. The chip system may include a chip or may include a chip and other discrete components.

[0477] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a processor configured to be coupled to a memory, the memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, enable the processor to perform methods and functions associated with the first multi-link device or the second multi-link device in any one of the aforementioned embodiments.

[0478] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a computer program product including instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enable the computer to perform the methods and functions associated with the first multi-link device or the second multi-link device in any one of the foregoing embodiments.

[0479] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores computer instructions, which, when executed by a processor, enable the processor to perform the method and function associated with the first multi-link device or the second multi-link device in any one of the foregoing embodiments.

[0480]

[0013] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a wireless communication system, the system including a first multilink device and a second multilink device, and in some examples, the system may include an AP MLD and a non-AP MLD.

[0481] In general, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software, or may be implemented in a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. While aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are shown and illustrated as block diagrams, flowcharts, or other diagrams, it should be understood that the blocks, apparatus, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented as, for example, by way of non-limiting example, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits, logic, general purpose hardware, controllers, other computing devices, or combinations thereof.

[0482] The present disclosure further provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as instructions included in program modules, that execute on a device on a real or virtual target processor to perform the processes / methods described above with reference to FIGS. 4-11. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. In various embodiments, the functionality of program modules may be combined or partitioned as desired. Machine-executable instructions for program modules may be executed in local or distributed devices. In distributed devices, program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

[0483] The computer program code used to implement the methods disclosed in this disclosure may be written in one or more programming languages. The computer program code may be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, so that when the program code is executed by the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, the functions / acts specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams are performed. The program code may run entirely on the computer, partially on the computer, as a separate software package, partially on the computer and partially on a remote computer, or entirely on a remote computer or server.

[0484] In the context of the present disclosure, computer program code or associated data may be carried by any suitable carrier such that a device, apparatus, or processor can perform the various processes and operations described above. Examples of carriers include signals, computer-readable media, etc. Examples of signals may include electrical, optical, radio, acoustic, or other forms of propagated signals such as carrier wave and infrared signals.

[0485] A computer-readable medium may be any tangible medium that contains or stores a program used in or associated with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. A computer-readable medium may be a computer-readable signal medium or a computer-readable storage medium. A computer-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination thereof. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media include an electrical connection with one or more wires, a portable computer disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination thereof.

[0486] Furthermore, although the operations of the methods disclosed in this disclosure are described in a particular order in the accompanying figures, this does not require or imply that these operations need to be performed in a particular order, or that all of the operations shown need to be performed to achieve a desired result. Instead, the order of execution of steps shown in the flowcharts may be changed. Additionally or optionally, some steps may be omitted, multiple steps may be combined into a single step for execution, and / or a single step may be broken down into multiple steps for execution. Furthermore, it should be noted that features and functions of two or more devices according to the present disclosure may be specified in a single device. Conversely, features and functions of a single device described above may be further divided into multiple devices for implementation.

[0487] The embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above. The foregoing description is exemplary, not exhaustive, and is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The choice of terms used herein is intended to fully explain the principles, practical applications, or improvements to market technologies of the embodiments, or to enable those skilled in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein. [Explanation of symbols]

[0488] 100 Wireless Communication System 110 AP 120 non-AP STA 200 Connection Scenarios 210 AP MLD 212 First Access Point 214 Second Access Point 220 non-AP MLD 222 First non-AP STA 224 Second non-AP STA 230 First Link 240 Second Link 300 Multilink Element Format 301 Element Identifier field 302 Length field 303 Element ID Extension field 304 Multilink Control Field 305 MLD MAC Address Field 306 Field k, Ability Field 307 Per-STA Profile x field 308 Per-STA Profile y field 310 MLD common information part 314 Type 317 Subelement ID 320 Optional Sub-Elements 324 MLD MAC address present 327 length 334 Reservation 337 Contents 400 Data Transmission Process 401 First Multilink Device 402 Second Multilink Device 500 Management Frame Format 501 Frame Control 502 Duration 503 Address 1 504 Address 2 505 Address 3 506 Sequence Control 507 Address 4 509 Frame Body 510 Frame Check Sequence (FCS) 511 High Throughput Control (HT Control) 600 Multilink Device Scenarios 601 First Link 602 Second Link 603 Third Link 610 AP MLD 620 non-AP MLD 630 dashed line 640 dashed line 700 Data Transmission Process 701 First Multilink Device 702 Second Multilink Device 800 Management Frame Format 801 Frame Control 802 Duration 803 Address 1 804 Address 2 805 Address 3 806 Sequence Control 807 Address 4 808 Counter mode Cipher-Block Chaining Message Authentication Code Protocol (CBC-MAC) Protocol (CCMP) header or Galois / Counter Mode Protocol (GCMP) header 809 Frame Body 810 Frame Check Sequence (FCS) 811 High Throughput Control (HT Control) 812 Message Integrity Check (MIC) 900 AAD format 901 Frame Control 902 Address 1 903 Address 2 904 Address 3 905 Sequence Control 906 Address 4 1000 Data Transmission Methods 1100 Data Transmission Process 1200 Communication Equipment 1210 generating units 1220 sending unit 1230 receiving unit 1300 Communication Equipment 1310 receiving unit 1320 Processing Unit 1330 sending unit 1400 Communication Equipment 1410 Construction Unit 1420 generating units 1430 Verification Unit 1500 equipment 1510 processor 1520 memory 1522 Random Access Memory (RAM) 1524 Read-Only Memory (ROM) 1530 Computer Programs 1540 Communication Module 2121 First AP physical layer 2122 First AP Lower MAC Layer 2124 Shared Upper MAC Layer 2141 Second AP physical layer 2142 Second AP Lower MAC Layer 2221 First non-AP STA physical layer 2222 First non-AP STA Lower MAC Layer 2224 Shared Upper MAC Layer 2241 Secondary non-AP STA physical layer 2242 Second non-AP STA Lower MAC Layer 3371 Per-STA Control Field 3372 STA (STA information) information field 3373 STA Configuration Fields Link ID 33711 33712 STA MAC address exists 33731 Element 1 (Element 2) 33732 Element Y 33733 Non-Inheritance element 337322 Non-inheriting elements

Claims

1. 1. A communication method comprising: constructing, by a first multilink device, additional authentication data (AAD), the AAD including a receiver address, a transmitter address, and a second address, the receiver address being carried in an Address 1 field of the AAD, the transmitter address being carried in an Address 2 field of the AAD, and the second address being carried in an Address 3 field of the AAD, wherein for downlink transmissions, the second address carries a media access control (MAC) address of an access point (AP) transmitting a management frame, and for uplink transmissions, the second address carries a MAC address of an AP receiving the management frame, the AP being associated with an AP multilink device (MLD); generating, by the first multilink device, a message integrity check (MIC) based on the AAD; generating, by the first multilink device, the management frame, the management frame including the receiver address, the transmitter address, a first address, and the MIC, the first address of the management frame being carried in an Address 3 field of the management frame, the first address carrying a Media Access Control (MAC) address of an Access Point (AP) transmitting the management frame; transmitting, by the first multilink device, the management frame to a second multilink device on a link on which the station indicated by the receiver address or the station indicated by the transmitter address operates; Including, The communication method, wherein the first address is the same as the second address.

2. In the case of downlink transmission, the receiver address carried in the Address 1 field is the MAC address of a non-AP STA at the receiving end, and the transmitter address carried in the Address 2 field is the MAC address of an Access Point (AP) at the transmitting end; or In the case of uplink transmission, the receiver address carried in the Address 1 field is the MAC address of the access point (AP) of the receiving end, and the transmitter address carried in the Address 2 field is the MAC address of the non-AP STA of the transmitting end; The transmitting end is the first multi-link device, and the receiving end is the second multi-link device; The method of claim 1.

3. In the case of downlink transmission, the receiver address carried in the Address 1 field is the MAC address of a non-AP MLD at the receiving end, and the transmitter address carried in the Address 2 field is the MAC address of an AP MLD at the transmitting end; or In the case of uplink transmission, the receiver address carried in the Address 1 field is the MAC address of an Access Point Multilink Device (AP MLD) at the receiving end, and the transmitter address carried in the Address 2 field is the MAC address of a Non-Access Point Multilink Device (non-AP MLD) at the transmitting end; The transmitting end is the first multi-link device, and the receiving end is the second multi-link device; The method of claim 1.

4. 1. A communication method comprising: receiving, by a second multilink device, a management frame from a first multilink device on a link on which a station in the second multilink device operates, the management frame including a receiver address, a transmitter address, a first address, and a first message integrity check (MIC), the first address of the management frame being carried in an Address 3 field of the management frame, the first address carrying a media access control (MAC) address of an access point (AP) transmitting the management frame, the AP being associated with an AP multilink device (MLD); constructing, by the second multilink device, additional authentication data (AAD), the AAD including the receiver address, the transmitter address, and a second address, the receiver address being carried in an Address 1 field of the AAD, the transmitter address being carried in an Address 2 field of the AAD, the second address being carried in an Address 3 field of the AAD, the transmitter address being carried in the Address 2 field of the AAD, and the second address being carried in the Address 3 field of the AAD, wherein for downlink transmission, the second address carries a Media Access Control (MAC) address of an access point (AP) transmitting the management frame, and for uplink transmission, the second address carries a MAC address of an AP receiving the management frame; generating, by the second multilink device, a second MIC based on the AAD; performing, by the second multilink device, security verification on the management frame based on the second MIC and the first MIC in the received management frame; Including, The communication method, wherein the first address is the same as the second address.

5. In the case of downlink transmission, the receiver address carried in the Address 1 field is the MAC address of a non-AP STA at the receiving end, and the transmitter address carried in the Address 2 field is the MAC address of an Access Point (AP) at the transmitting end; or In the case of uplink transmission, the receiver address carried in the Address 1 field is the MAC address of the access point (AP) of the receiving end, and the transmitter address carried in the Address 2 field is the MAC address of the non-AP STA of the transmitting end; The transmitting end is the first multi-link device, and the receiving end is the second multi-link device; The method of claim 4.

6. In the case of downlink transmission, the receiver address carried in the Address 1 field is the MAC address of a non-AP MLD at the receiving end, and the sender address carried in the Address 2 field is the MAC address of an AP MLD at the transmitting end; or In the case of uplink transmission, the receiver address carried in the Address 1 field is the MAC address of the Access Point Multilink Device (AP MLD) of the receiving end, and the transmitter address carried in the Address 2 field is the MAC address of the Non-Access Point Multilink Device (non-AP MLD) of the transmitting end; The transmitting end is the first multi-link device, and the receiving end is the second multi-link device; The method of claim 4.

7. A first multilink device configured to implement the method of any one of claims 1 to 3.

8. A second multilink device configured to implement the method of any one of claims 4 to 6.

9. 4. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, the computer program causing a method according to any one of claims 1 to 3 to be performed when executed by a processor of the first multi-link device.

10. 7. A computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program that, when executed by a processor of the second multi-link device, performs the method of any one of claims 4 to 6.

11. A chip comprising a processing circuit and a communication interface, the processing circuit configured to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 3.

12. A chip comprising a processing circuit and a communication interface, the processing circuit configured to perform the method of any one of claims 4 to 6.

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