Scheduling with the basic service set

Abstract

A method, apparatus, and computer-readable medium for scheduling within a basic service set (BSS) are disclosed. An apparatus for a station (STA) is disclosed, including a processing circuit configured to decode a first frame, the first frame including an Very High Throughput (EHT) operation information field, the EHT operation information field including a channel width subfield and a channel center frequency segment, the channel width subfield indicating a basic service set (BSS) contiguous channel width, and the channel center frequency segment indicating a channel center frequency for a BSS channel width in which the BSS operates at 6 GHz. The processing circuit is further configured to encode a second frame, the second frame including an indication of the STA's buffer status, configure the STA to transmit the second frame in accordance with the UL resource allocation, and decode a third frame, the third frame including an indication of the STA's dormant state period.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] [Claims of Priority] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 055,520, filed July 23, 2020, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0002] [Technical Field] Embodiments relate to devices operating according to a wireless local area network (WLAN) and Wi-Fi networks including networks operating according to different versions or generations of IEEE 802.11 family of standards. Some embodiments relate to scheduling in a basic service set (BSS) that uses service periods and provides downtime to stations.

Background Art

[0003] Efficient use of resources in a wireless local area network (WLAN) is important for providing bandwidth and acceptable response times to WLAN users. However, in many cases, there are many devices trying to share the same resources, and some devices are limited by the communication protocols they use and the hardware bandwidth. Additionally, wireless devices may need to operate in both new protocols and legacy device protocols, and wireless devices may need to operate in multiple frequency bands.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0004] The present disclosure is illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings. Like reference numerals in the figures indicate like elements.

[0005] [Figure 1] A block diagram of a wireless architecture according to some embodiments.

[0006] [Figure 2] A front-end module circuit for use in the wireless architecture of FIG. 1, according to some embodiments.

[0007] [Figure 3] Several embodiments of wireless IC circuits for use in the wireless architecture of Figure 1 are shown.

[0008] [Figure 4] Several embodiments of baseband processing circuits for use in the wireless architecture of Figure 1 are shown.

[0009] [Figure 5] Several embodiments of WLAN are shown.

[0010] [Figure 6] This specification shows a block diagram of an exemplary machine capable of carrying out one or more of the techniques (e.g., methodologies) described herein.

[0011] [Figure 7] This shows a block diagram of an exemplary wireless device in which one or more of the techniques (e.g., methodologies or operations) described in this specification can be implemented.

[0012] [Figure 8] This document illustrates scheduling in the Basic Service Set (BSS) in several embodiments.

[0013] [Figure 9] Several embodiments of timely power saving (OPS) elements are shown.

[0014] [Figure 10] Several embodiments of the OPS element are shown.

[0015] [Figure 11] Several embodiments of scheduling in BSS are shown.

[0016] [Figure 12]A method for scheduling in a BSS according to some embodiments is shown.

[0017] [Figure 13] A method for scheduling in a BSS according to some embodiments is shown. **Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention**

[0018] The following description and drawings fully explain specific embodiments so that those skilled in the art can implement them. Other embodiments may incorporate structural, logical, electrical, processing, and other changes. Parts and features of some embodiments may be included in or replace parts and features of other embodiments. The embodiments described in the claims cover all available equivalents of those claims.

[0019] Some embodiments relate to a method, computer-readable medium, and device for ordering or scheduling location measurement reports, traffic indication maps (TIMs), and other information in a SP. Some embodiments relate to a method, computer-readable medium, and apparatus for extending a TIM. Some embodiments relate to a method, computer-readable medium, and device for defining a SP during a beacon interval (BI) that can be based on TWT.

[0020] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a wireless architecture 100 according to some embodiments. The wireless architecture 100 may include a wireless front-end module (FEM) circuit 104, a wireless IC circuit 106, and a baseband processing circuit 108. The wireless architecture 100 as shown includes both a wireless local area network (WLAN) function and a Bluetooth (BT) function, but embodiments are not so limited. In the present disclosure, "WLAN" and "Wi-Fi" are used synonymously.

[0021] The FEM circuit 104 may include a WLAN or Wi-Fi FEM circuit 104A and a Bluetooth (BT) FEM circuit 104B. The WLAN FEM circuit 104A may include a receive signal path that includes a circuit. This circuit is configured to operate on a WLAN RF signal received from one or more antennas 101, amplify the received signal, and provide the amplified version of the received signal to the WLAN radio IC circuit 106A for further processing. The BTFEM circuit 104B may include a receive signal path that may include a circuit. This circuit is configured to operate on a BTRF signal received from one or more antennas 101, amplify the received signal, and provide the amplified version of the received signal to the BT radio IC circuit 106B for further processing. The FEM circuit 104A may also include a transmit signal path that may include a circuit. This circuit is configured to amplify the WLAN signal provided by the radio IC circuit 106A for wireless transmission by one or more of the antennas 101. Furthermore, the FEM circuit 104B may also include a transmit signal path which may include a circuit configured to amplify the BT signal provided by the wireless IC circuit 106B for wireless transmission by one or more antennas. In the embodiment of Figure 1, FEM 104A and FEM 104B are shown as separate from each other, but embodiments are not limited in that way and their scope includes the use of FEMs (not shown) which include transmit and / or receive paths for both WLAN and BT signals, or the use of one or more FEM circuits in which at least some of the FEM circuits share transmit and / or receive signal paths for both WLAN and BT signals.

[0022] The wireless IC circuit 106, as shown in the figure, may include a WLAN wireless IC circuit 106A and a BT wireless IC circuit 106B. The WLAN wireless IC circuit 106A may include a receive signal path. This receive signal path may include a circuit that downconverts the WLAN RF signal received from the FEM circuit 104A and provides the baseband signal to the WLAN baseband processing circuit 108A. On the other hand, the BT wireless IC circuit 106B may include a receive signal path. This receive signal path may include a circuit that downconverts the BT RF signal received from the FEM circuit 104B and provides the baseband signal to the BT baseband processing circuit 108B. The WLAN wireless IC circuit 106A may also include a transmit signal path. This transmit signal path upconverts the WLAN baseband signal provided by the WLAN baseband processing circuit 108A and provides the WLAN RF output signal to the FEM circuit 104A for subsequent wireless transmission by one or more antennas 101. The BT wireless IC circuit 106B may also include a transmit signal path. The transmit signal path upconverts the BT baseband signal provided by the BT baseband processing circuit 108B and provides the BT RF output signal to the FEM circuit 104B for subsequent wireless transmission by one or more antennas 101. In the embodiment of Figure 1, the wireless IC circuits 106A and 106B are shown as separate from each other, but embodiments are not limited in that way, and their scope includes the use of wireless IC circuits (not shown) that include transmit signal paths and / or receive signal paths for both WLAN and BT signals, or the use of one or more wireless IC circuits in which at least some of the wireless IC circuits share transmit and / or receive signal paths for both WLAN and BT signals.

[0023] The baseband processing circuit 108 may include a WLAN baseband processing circuit 108A and a BT baseband processing circuit 108B. The WLAN baseband processing circuit 108A may include memory, such as a set of RAM arrays, in, for example, a fast Fourier transform or inverse fast Fourier transform block (not shown) of the WLAN baseband processing circuit 108A. Each of the WLAN baseband circuit 108A and the BT baseband circuit 108B further includes one or more processors and control logic to process signals received from the corresponding WLAN or BT receive signal path of the wireless IC circuit 106, and further generates corresponding WLAN or BT receive signal path baseband signals for the transmit signal path of the wireless IC circuit 106. Each of the baseband processing circuits 108A and 108B may further include physical layer (PHY) and medium access control layer (MAC) circuits and further interface with the application processor 124 for generating and processing baseband signals and for controlling the operation of the wireless IC circuit 106.

[0024] Referring further to Figure 1, according to the illustrated embodiment, the WLAN-BT coexistence circuit 113 includes logic to provide an interface between the WLAN baseband circuit 108A and the BT baseband circuit 108B, enabling use cases that require WLAN and BT coexistence. Furthermore, a switch 103 may be provided between the WLANFEM circuit 104A and the BT FEM circuit 104B to enable switching between WLAN and BT radio as needed for the application. Furthermore, although the antenna 101 is shown as being connected to the WLANFEM circuit 104A and the BT FEM circuit 104B respectively, embodiments may include, to that extent, the sharing of one or more antennas, such as between the WLANFEM and the BT FEM, or the provision of one or more antennas connected to each of the FEMs 104A or 104B.

[0025] In some embodiments, the front-end module circuit 1204, the radio IC circuit 106, and the baseband processing circuit 108 may be located on a single radio card, such as a wireless radio card 102. In some other embodiments, one or more antennas 101, the FEM circuit 104, and the radio IC circuit 106 may be located on a single radio card. In some other embodiments, the radio IC circuit 106 and the baseband processing circuit 108 may be located on a single chip or an integrated circuit (IC), such as IC 112.

[0026] In some embodiments, the wireless radio card 102 may include a WLAN radio card and may be configured for Wi-Fi communication, but the scope of embodiments is not limited thereto. In some of these embodiments, the wireless architecture 100 may be configured to receive and transmit orthogonal frequency division multiplexed (OFDM) or orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) communication signals over a multi-carrier communication channel. The OFDM or OFDMA signal may include multiple orthogonal subcarriers.

[0027] In some of these multi-carrier embodiments, the wireless architecture 100 may be part of Wi-Fi communication stations (STAs), such as a wireless access point (AP), a base station, or a mobile device including a Wi-Fi device. In some of these embodiments, the wireless architecture 100 may be configured to transmit and receive signals in accordance with specific communication standards and / or protocols, such as any of the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) standards including IEEE 802.11n-2009, IEEE 802.11-2012, IEEE 802.11-2016, IEEE 802.11ac, and / or IEEE 802.11ax standards and / or proposed WLAN specifications, but the scope of embodiments is not limited in this respect. The wireless architecture 100 may also be suitable for transmitting and / or receiving communications in accordance with other technologies and standards.

[0028] In some embodiments, the wireless architecture 100 may be configured for high-efficiency (HE) Wi-Fi (HEW) communication in accordance with the IEEE 802.11ax standard. In these embodiments, the wireless architecture 100 may be configured to communicate in accordance with OFDMA technology, but the scope of embodiments is not limited thereto.

[0029] In some other embodiments, the wireless architecture 100 may be configured to transmit and receive signals transmitted using one or more other modulation techniques such as coarse-spectrum modulation (e.g., direct sequence code division multiple access (DS-CDMA) and / or frequency-hopping code division multiple access (FH-CDMA)), time-division multiplexing (TDM) modulation, and / or frequency-division multiplexing (FDM) modulation.

[0030] In some embodiments, as further shown in Figure 1, the BT baseband circuit 108B may conform to a Bluetooth (BT) connectivity standard such as Bluetooth, Bluetooth 4.0, or Bluetooth 5.0, or any other iteration of the Bluetooth standard. In embodiments including BT functionality, as shown in the example of Figure 1, the radio architecture 100 may be configured to establish BT synchronous connection-oriented (SCO) links and / or BT low energy (BT LE) links. In some of the embodiments including functionality, the radio architecture 100 may be configured to establish extended SCO (eSCO) links for BT communication, but the scope of embodiments is not limited thereto. In some of these embodiments including BT functionality, the radio architecture may be configured to engage in BT asynchronous connection-less (ACL) communication, but the scope of embodiments is not limited thereto. In some embodiments, as shown in Figure 1, the functions of the BT radio card and the WLAN radio card may be combined on a single wireless radio card, such as a single wireless radio card 102; however, embodiments are not limited thereto, and their scope includes separate WLAN and BT radio cards.

[0031] In some embodiments, the wireless architecture 100 may include other wireless cards, such as a cellular wireless card configured for cellular (e.g., LTE, LTE-Advanced, or 5G communication).

[0032] In some embodiments of IEEE 802.11, the wireless architecture 100 may be configured for communication over various channel bandwidths, including bandwidths with center frequencies of approximately 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, and 5 GHz, and channel bandwidths of approximately 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 2.5 MHz, 4 MHz, 5 MHz, 8 MHz, 10 MHz, 16 MHz, 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz (with adjacent bandwidth), or 80+80 MHz (160 MHz) (with non-adjacent bandwidth). In some embodiments, a 320 MHz channel bandwidth may be used. However, the scope of embodiments is not limited with respect to the center frequencies described above.

[0033] Figure 2 shows FEM circuit 200 in several embodiments. FEM circuit 200 is an example of a circuit that may be suitable for use as a WLAN and / or BT FEM circuit 104A / 104B (Figure 1), but other circuit configurations may also be suitable.

[0034] In some embodiments, the FEM circuit 1204a may include a TX / RX switch 202 for switching between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEM circuit 200 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuit 200 may include a low-noise amplifier (LNA) 206. The LNA 206 amplifies the received RF signal 203 and provides the amplified received RF signal 207 as an output (e.g., to the radio IC circuit 106 (Figure 1)). The transmit signal path of the circuit 200 may include a power amplifier (PA) for amplifying the input RF signal 209 (e.g., provided by the radio IC circuit 106), and one or more filters 212 such as a band-pass filter (BPF), a low-pass filter (LPF), or other type of filter for generating an RF signal 215 for subsequent transmission (e.g., by one or more of the antennas 101 (Figure 1)).

[0035] In some dual-mode embodiments of Wi-Fi communication, the FEM circuit 200 may be configured to operate in either the 2.4 GHz frequency spectrum or the 5 GHz frequency spectrum. In these embodiments, the receive signal path of the FEM circuit 200 may include a receive signal path duplexer 204 that separates the signal from each spectrum, and separate LNAs 206 may be provided for each spectrum as shown. In these embodiments, the transmit signal path of the FEM circuit 200 may also include a power amplifier 210, a frequency spectrum-specific filter 212 such as a BPF, LPF, or other type of filter, and a transmit signal path duplexer 214 that provides the signal of one of the different spectra to the signal transmit path for subsequent transmission by one or more of the antennas 101 (Figure 1). In some embodiments, BT communication may utilize the 2.4 GHz signal path and may utilize the same FEM circuit 200 as that used for WLAN communication.

[0036] Figure 3 shows several embodiments of the wireless integrated circuit (IC) circuit 300. The wireless IC circuit 300 is an example of a circuit that may be suitable for use as a WLAN or BT wireless IC circuit 106A / 106B (Figure 1), but other circuit configurations may also be suitable.

[0037] In some embodiments, the wireless IC circuit 300 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the wireless IC circuit 300 may include at least a mixer circuit 302, such as a down-conversion mixer circuit, an amplifier circuit 306, and a filter circuit 308. The transmit signal path of the wireless IC circuit 300 may include at least a filter circuit 312 and a mixer circuit 314, such as an up-conversion mixer circuit. The wireless IC circuit 300 may also include a combining circuit 304 for combining frequencies 305 for use by mixer circuits 302 and 314. According to some embodiments, the mixer circuits 302 and / or 314 may each be configured to provide a direct return function. The latter type of circuit presents a much simpler architecture compared to a standard superheterodyne mixer circuit, and any flicker noise similarly caused can be mitigated, for example, through the use of OFDM modulation. Figure 3 shows only a simplified version of the wireless IC circuit and may include embodiments where each of the illustrated circuits includes one or more components, although these are not shown. For example, the mixer circuits 320 and / or 314 may each include one or more mixers, and the filter circuits 308 and / or 312 may each include one or more filters, such as one or more BPFs and / or LPFs, depending on the application's needs. For example, when the mixer circuits are of the direct conversion type, each may include two or more mixers.

[0038] In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 302 may be configured to downconvert the RF signal 207 received from the FEM circuit 104 (Figure 1) based on the combined frequency 305 provided by the combining circuit 304. The amplifier circuit 306 may be configured to amplify the downconverted signal, and the filter circuit 308 may include an LPF configured to remove unwanted signals from the downconverted signal to generate an output baseband signal 307. The output baseband signal 307 may be provided to the baseband processing circuit 108 (Figure 1) for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signal 307 may be a zero-frequency baseband signal, but this is not a requirement. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 302 may include a passive mixer, but the scope of embodiments is not limited thereto.

[0039] In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 314 may be configured to upconvert the input baseband signal 311 based on the combined frequency 305 provided by the combining circuit 304 to generate an RF output signal 209 for the FEM circuit 104. The baseband signal 311 may be provided by the baseband processing circuit 108 and may be filtered by the filter circuit 312. The filter circuit 312 may include an LPF or a BPF, but the scope of the embodiments is not limited thereto.

[0040] In some embodiments, mixer circuits 302 and 314 may each include two or more mixers, each configured for orthogonal down-conversion and / or up-conversion with the help of the combining unit 304. In some embodiments, mixer circuits 302 and 314 may each include two or more mixers, each configured for image rejection (e.g., Hartley image rejection). In some embodiments, mixer circuits 302 and 314 may each be configured for direct down-conversion and / or direct up-conversion. In some embodiments, mixer circuits 302 and 314 may be configured for superheterodyne operation, but this is not required.

[0041] According to one embodiment, the mixer circuit 302 may include a quadrature passive mixer (for example, for in-phase (I) and quadrature-phase (Q) paths). In such an embodiment, the RF input signal 207 from Figure 3 may be down-converted to provide I and Q baseband output signals to be transmitted to the baseband processor.

[0042] The quadrature passive mixer uses a local oscillator or combiner such as the LO frequency 305 of the combiner 304 (Figure 3) to generate the LO frequency (f LO The LO may be driven by a 0-90 degree time-varying LO switching signal provided by an orthogonal circuit configured to receive the LO. In some embodiments, the LO frequency may be the carrier frequency, and in other embodiments, the LO frequency may be a part of the carrier frequency (e.g., half the carrier frequency, one-third the carrier frequency). In some embodiments, the 0-90 degree time-varying switching signal may be generated by a combiner, but the scope of embodiments is not limited thereto.

[0043] In some embodiments, the LO signal may have different duty cycles (the percentage of a cycle in which the LO signal is High) and / or offsets (the difference between the start points of each period). In some embodiments, the LO signal may have a 25% duty cycle and a 50% offset. In some embodiments, each branch of the mixer circuit (e.g., the in-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) paths) may operate at a 25% duty cycle, which can result in a significant reduction in power consumption.

[0044] The input signal 207 (Figure 2) may include a balanced signal, but the scope of the embodiment is not limited thereto. The I and Q baseband output signals may be supplied to a low-noise amplifier such as the amplification circuit 306 (Figure 3) or to the filter circuit 308 (Figure 3).

[0045] In some embodiments, the output baseband signal 307 and the input baseband signal 311 may be analog baseband signals, but the scope of the embodiments is not limited thereto. In some alternative embodiments, the output baseband signal 307 and the input baseband signal 311 may be digital baseband signals. In these alternative embodiments, the wireless IC circuit may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuits.

[0046] In some dual-mode embodiments, separate wireless IC circuits may be provided for processing signals for each spectrum or for other spectra not mentioned herein, but the scope of embodiments is not limited thereto.

[0047] In some embodiments, the combining circuit 304 may be a fractional N combiner or a fractional N / N+1 combiner, but the scope of embodiments is not limited thereto, and other types of frequency combiners may be suitable. For example, the combining circuit 304 may be a delta-sigma combiner, a frequency multiplexer, or a combiner including a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider. According to some embodiments, the combining circuit 304 may include a digital combining circuit. The advantage of a digital combining circuit is that, although it still includes some analog components, its area can be significantly reduced compared to that of an analog combining circuit. In some embodiments, the frequency input to the combining circuit 304 is provided by a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO), but this is not required. A divider-controlled input may be further provided by a baseband processing circuit 108 (Figure 1) or an application processor 111 (Figure 1), depending on the desired output frequency 305. In some embodiments, the frequency divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a lookup table (in the Wi-Fi card) based on the channel number and channel center frequency determined or indicated by the application processor 111.

[0048] In some embodiments, the combining circuit 304 may be configured to generate a carrier frequency as the output frequency 305, and in other embodiments, the output frequency 305 may be a part of the carrier frequency (e.g., half the carrier frequency, one-third the carrier frequency). In some embodiments, the output frequency 305 is the LO frequency (f LO ) is acceptable.

[0049] Figure 4 shows a partial block diagram of the baseband processing circuit 400 according to several embodiments. The baseband processing circuit 400 is an example of a circuit that may be suitable for use as baseband 108 (Figure 1), but other circuit configurations may also be suitable. The baseband processing circuit 400 may include a receive baseband processor (RX BBP) 402 that processes the received baseband processing signal 309 provided by the radio IC circuit 106 (Figure 1), and a transmit baseband processor (TXBBP) 404 that generates the transmit baseband signal 311 for the radio IC circuit 106. The baseband processing circuit 400 may also include control logic 406 that coordinates the operation of the baseband processing circuit 400.

[0050] In some embodiments (for example, when an analog baseband signal is exchanged between the baseband processing circuit 400 and the radio IC circuit 106), the baseband processing circuit 400 may include an ADC 410 that converts the analog baseband signal received from the radio IC circuit 106 into a digital baseband signal for processing by the RX BBP 402. In these embodiments, the baseband processing circuit 400 may also include a DAC 412 that converts the digital baseband signal from the TX BBP 404 into an analog baseband signal.

[0051] In some embodiments for communicating OFDM or OFDMA signals, such as through a baseband processor 108A, the transmitting baseband processor 404 may be configured to generate an OFDM or OFDMA signal suitable for transmission by performing an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT). The receiving baseband processor 402 may be configured to process the received OFDM or OFDMA signal by performing an FFT. In some embodiments, the receiving baseband processor 402 may be configured to detect the presence of the OFDM or OFDMA signal by performing autocorrelation, to detect a preamble such as a short preamble, and to detect a long preamble by performing crosscorrelation. The preamble may be a predetermined part of a frame structure for Wi-Fi communication.

[0052] Referring to Figure 1, in some embodiments, antenna 101 (Figure 12) may include one or more directional or omnidirectional antennas, each including, for example, a dipole antenna, a monopole antenna, a patch antenna, a loop antenna, a microstrip antenna, or other types of antennas suitable for transmitting RF signals. In some MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output) embodiments, the antennas may be efficiently separated by utilizing spatial diversity and the resulting different channel characteristics. Antenna 101 each includes a phase array antenna. set This may include, but the embodiments are not limited thereto.

[0053] Although the wireless architecture 100 has been illustrated as having several distinct functional elements, one or more of these functional elements may be combined and implemented by a combination of software components such as processing elements including a digital signal processor (DSP), and / or other hardware elements. For example, some elements may include one or more microprocessors, DSPs, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs), and various hardware and logic circuit combinations for performing at least the functions described herein. In some embodiments, a functional element may represent one or more processes to be performed on one or more processing elements.

[0054] Figure 5 shows WLAN 500 in several embodiments. WLAN 500 may include a basis service set (BSS) which may include an access point (AP) 502, a plurality of stations (STAs) 504, and a plurality of legacy devices 506. In some embodiments, the STAs 504 and / or APs 502 are configured to operate in accordance with IEEE 802.11be ultra-high throughput (EHT). In some embodiments, the STAs 504 and / or APs 502 are configured to operate in accordance with IEEE 802.11az. In some embodiments, IEEE 802.11EHT may be called Next Generation 802.11.

[0055] AP502 may be an AP that uses IEEE 802.11 for transmission and reception. AP502 may be a base station. AP502 may use other communication protocols as well as the IEEE 802.11 protocol. The EHT protocol may be called by different names depending on several embodiments. The IEEE 802.11 protocol may include the use of orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), and / or code division multiple access (CDMA). The IEEE 802.11 protocol may include multiple access techniques. For example, the IEEE 802.11 protocol may include space-division multiple access (SDMA) and / or multiple-user multiple-input multiple-output (MU-MIMO). There may be multiple AP502s that are part of an extended service set (ESS). The control unit (not shown) may store information common to multiple AP502s, control multiple BSSs, and assign, for example, a primary channel, a color, etc. The AP502s may be connected to the internet.

[0056] Legacy device 506 may operate in accordance with one or more of the IEEE 802.11a / b / g / n / ac / ad / af / ah / aj / ay / ax or other legacy wireless communication standards. Legacy device 506 may be an STA or an IEEE STA. STA 504 may be a wireless transceiver such as a mobile phone, portable electronic wireless communication device, smartphone, handheld radio device, wireless glasses, wireless wristwatch, wireless personal device, tablet, or other device that can transmit and receive using the IEEE 802.11 protocol such as IEEE 802.11be or other wireless protocols.

[0057] AP502 can communicate with legacy device 506 according to legacy IEEE 802.11 communication technology. For example, AP502 can also be configured to communicate with STA504 according to legacy IEEE 802.11 communication technology.

[0058] In some embodiments, HE or EHT frames can be configured to have the same bandwidth as the channel. HE or EHT frames may be Physical Layer Convergence Procedure (PLCP) Protocol Data Units (PPDUs). In some embodiments, PPDU may be an abbreviation for Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU). In some embodiments, there may be different types of PPDUs that have different fields and different physical layers and / or different media access control (MAC) layers. Examples include single-user (SU) PPDUs, multi-user (MU) PPDUs, extended-range (ER) SU PPDUs, and / or trigger-based (TB) PPDUs. In some embodiments, EHT may be the same as or similar to HE PPDUs.

[0059] The channel bandwidth may be 20 MHz, 40 MHz, or 80 MHz, 80+80 MHz, 160 MHz, 160+160 MHz, 320 MHz, 320+320 MHz, or 640 MHz. In some embodiments, channel bandwidths less than 20 MHz may be 1 MHz, 1.25 MHz, 2.03 MHz, 2.5 MHz, 4.06 MHz, 5 MHz, and 10 MHz, or a combination thereof or another bandwidth less than or equal to the available bandwidth may be used. In some embodiments, the channel bandwidth may be based on a large number of active data subcarriers. In some embodiments, the channel bandwidth is based on 26, 52, 106, 242, 484, 996, or 2x996 active data subcarriers or tones spaced at 20 MHz intervals. In some embodiments, the channel bandwidth is 256 tones spaced at 20 MHz intervals. In some embodiments, the channels are multiples of 26 tones or multiples of 20 MHz. In some embodiments, a 20 MHz channel may include 242 active data subcarriers or tones that can determine the size of a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The allocation of bandwidth or a large number of tones or subcarriers may be referred to as resource unit (RU) allocation according to some embodiments.

[0060] In some embodiments, 26 subcarrier RUs and 52 subcarrier RUs are used in 20MHz, 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, and 80+80MHz OFDMA HE PPDU formats. In some embodiments, 106 subcarrier RUs are used in 20MHz, 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, and 80+80MHz OFDMA and MU-MIMO HE PPDU formats. In some embodiments, 242 subcarrier RUs are used in 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, and 80+80MHz OFDMA and MU-MIMO HE PPDU formats. In some embodiments, 484 subcarrier RUs are used in 80MHz, 160MHz, 80MHz OFDMA, and MU-MIMO HE PPDU formats. In some embodiments, 996 subcarrier RUs are used in 160MHz, 80+80MHz OFDMA, and MU-MIMO HE PPDU formats.

[0061] HE or EHT frames can be configured to transmit multiple spatial streams compliant with MU-MIMO and OFDMA. In other embodiments, AP502, STA504, and / or legacy equipment 506 may also implement different technologies such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) 2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO), Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), Bluetooth®, Low Power Bluetooth®, or other technologies.

[0062] According to several embodiments of IEEE 802.11, for example, the IEEE 802.11EHT / ax embodiment, the HE AP502 can operate as a master station coordinated to compete in order to exclusively control the radio medium (e.g., during a competition period) to obtain a Transmission Opportunity (TXOP). The AP502 may transmit an EHT / HE trigger frame transmission, which may include a schedule of simultaneous UL / DL transmissions from the STA504. The AP502 may transmit a time period of TXOP and subchannel information. During the TXOP, the STA504 may communicate with the AP502 according to non-competition-based multiple access techniques such as OFDMA or MU-MIMO. This differs from conventional WLAN communication, where the devices communicate according to competition-based communication techniques rather than multiple access techniques. During the HE or EHT control period, the AP502 may communicate with station 504 using one or more HE or EHT frames. During the TXOP, the HE STA504 may operate on subchannels smaller than the operating range of the AP502. During the TXOP, legacy stations suppress communication. Legacy stations may need to receive communications from HE AP502 in order to postpone communication.

[0063] According to some embodiments, during a TXOP, STA 504 can compete for the wireless medium with a legacy device 506 that is excluded from wireless medium competition during master synchronous transmission. In some embodiments, the trigger frame may indicate a UL-MU-MIMO and / or UL OFDMA TXOP. In some embodiments, the trigger frame may include DLUL-MU-MIMO and / or DL ​​OFDMA with a schedule indicated in the preamble portion of the trigger frame.

[0064] In some embodiments, the multiple access technique used in HE or EHT TXOP may, although not required, be a scheduled OFDMA technique. In some embodiments, the multiple access technique may be a time-division multiple access (TDMA) technique or a frequency-division multiple access (FDMA) technique. In some embodiments, the multiple access technique may be a space-division multiple access (SDMA) technique. In some embodiments, the multiple access technique may be a code-division multiple access (CDMA) technique.

[0065] AP502 can also communicate with legacy stations 506 and / or STA504 according to legacy IEEE 802.11 communication technology. In some embodiments, AP502 can also be configured to communicate with STA504 outside of TXOP according to legacy IEEE 802.11 or IEEE 802.11EHT / ax communication technology, but this is not a requirement.

[0066] In some embodiments, the STA504 may be the "group owner" (GO) in peer-to-peer operation mode. The wireless device may be the STA504 or the HE AP502.

[0067] In some embodiments, the STA504 and / or AP502 are configured to operate in accordance with IEEE 802.11mc. In an exemplary embodiment, the wireless architecture of Figure 1 is configured to implement the STA504 and / or AP502. In an exemplary embodiment, the front-end module circuit of Figure 2 is configured to implement the STA504 and / or AP502. In an exemplary embodiment, the wireless IC circuit of Figure 3 is configured to implement the STA504 and / or AP502. In an exemplary embodiment, the baseband processing circuit of Figure 4 is configured to implement the STA504 and / or AP502.

[0068] In exemplary embodiments, the STA504, AP502, the STA504 device, and / or the AP502 device may include one or more of the wireless architecture of Figure 1, the front-end module circuit of Figure 2, the wireless IC circuit of Figure 3, and / or the baseband processing circuit of Figure 4.

[0069] In exemplary embodiments, the wireless architecture of Figure 1, the front-end module circuit of Figure 2, the wireless IC circuit of Figure 3, and / or the baseband processing circuit of Figure 4 can be configured to perform the methods and operations / functions described herein in relation to Figures 1 to 11.

[0070] In exemplary embodiments, STA504 and / or AP502 are configured to perform the methods and operations / functions described herein in relation to Figures 1 to 11. In exemplary embodiments, the equipment of STA504 and / or AP502 are configured to perform the methods and functions described herein in relation to Figures 1 to 11. The term Wi-Fi may refer to one or more IEEE 802.11 communication standards. AP and STA may refer to EHT access points and / or EHT stations, as well as legacy equipment 506.

[0071] In some embodiments, STA504 is an EHT STA unit. In some embodiments, AP502 is an EHT AP unit. In some embodiments, HE STA or HE AP is a legacy device 506. In some embodiments, if STA504 is not operating as an AP, it may be referred to as a non-APSTA or non-AP. In some embodiments, STA504 may be referred to as an AP STA or non-AP.

[0072] In some embodiments, the Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) may be a Physical Layer Convergence Procedure (PLCP) Protocol Data Unit (PPDU). In some embodiments, the AP502 and STA504 can communicate according to any of the IEEE 802.11 standards. IEEE 802.11be (trademark) / D1.1, June 2021, IEEE 802.11-REVmd (trademark) / D3.4, March 2020, and IEEE 802.11ax are incorporated herein by reference.

[0073] Figure 6 shows a block diagram of an exemplary machine 600 capable of performing one or more of the techniques (e.g., methodologies) described herein. In alternative embodiments, machine 600 may operate as a standalone machine or be connected to other computers (e.g., networked). In a networked deployment, machine 600 may operate as a server machine, a client machine, or both in a server-client environment. In the example, machine 600 may operate as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (P2P) (or other distributed) network environment. Machine 600 may be an HE AP 502, an EVT station 504, a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable communication device, a mobile phone, a smartphone, a web facility, a network router, a switch, or a bridge, or any machine capable of executing (sequential or other) instructions specifying actions to be performed by the machine. Furthermore, although only a single device is given as an example, the term “machine” also includes a collection of machines that individually or collectively execute a set of instructions (or sets of instructions) to perform one or more of the methodologies described herein, such as cloud computing, software as a service (SaaS), and other computer cluster configurations.

[0074] The machine (e.g., a computer system) 600 may include a hardware processor 602 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a hardware processor core, or any combination thereof), main memory 604, and static memory 606, some or all of which may communicate with each other via an internal link (e.g., a bus) 608.

[0075] Specific examples of main memory 604 include random access memory (RAM) and, in some embodiments, semiconductor memory devices that may include storage locations within the semiconductor, such as registers. Specific examples of static memory 606 may include non-volatile memory and flash memory devices such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., EPROM (Electrically Programmable Read-Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory)), magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical disks, RAM, and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks.

[0076] The machine 600 may further include a display device 610, an input device 612 (e.g., a keyboard), and a user interface (UI) navigation device 614 (e.g., a mouse). In the example, the display device 610, the input device 612, and the UI navigation device 614 may be touchscreen displays. The machine 600 may further include a mass storage device (e.g., a drive unit) 616, a signal generator 618 (e.g., a speaker), a network interface device 620, and one or more sensors 621 such as a Global Positioning System (GPS). The machine 600 may include an output control unit 628 such as a serial (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB), parallel, or other wired or wireless (e.g., infrared (IR), near-field communication (NFC), etc.)) connection, and may communicate with or control one or more peripheral devices (e.g., a printer, a card reader, etc.). In some embodiments, the processor 602 and / or instruction 624 may include processing circuits and / or transceiver circuits.

[0077] The storage device 616 may include a machine-readable medium 622. The machine-readable medium 622 stores one or more data structures or sets of instructions 624 (e.g., software) that implement or utilize any one or more of the technologies or functions described in this specification. The instructions 624 may reside, all or at least partially, in main memory 604, static memory 606, or hardware processor 602 while being executed by machine 600. In this example, one or any combination of hardware processor 602, main memory 604, static memory 606, or storage device 616 may constitute the machine-readable medium.

[0078] Specific examples of machine-readable media may include non-volatile memory and flash memory devices such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., EPROM or EEPROM), magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical disks, RAM, CD-ROMs, and DVD-ROM disks.

[0079] Although the machine-readable medium 622 is shown as a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” may include a single or multiple mediums configured to store one or more instructions 624 (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and / or associated caches and servers).

[0080] The apparatus of machine 600 may include one or more of the following: a hardware processor 602 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a hardware processor core, or any combination thereof), main memory 604 and static memory 606, a sensor 621, a network interface device 620, an antenna 660, a display device 610, an input device 612, a UI navigation device 614, a mass storage device 616, an instruction 624, a signal generator 618, and an output control unit 628. The apparatus may be configured to perform one or more of the methods and / or operations disclosed in this specification. The apparatus may be intended as a component of machine 600 to perform one or more of the methods and / or operations disclosed in this specification, and / or a portion of one or more of the methods and / or operations disclosed in this specification. In some embodiments, the apparatus may include pins or other means for receiving power. In some embodiments, the apparatus may include power regulation hardware.

[0081] The term “machine-readable medium” may include any medium capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions causing machine 600 to perform any one or more of the technologies of this disclosure for execution by machine 600, or data structures used by or associated with such instructions. Examples of non-limiting machine-readable mediums may include solid memory, and optical and magnetic media. Specific examples of machine-readable mediums may include non-volatile memory and flash memory devices such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., EPROM (Electrically Programmable Read-Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory)), magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical disks, RAM (Random Access Memory), and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks. In some examples, machine-readable medium may include non-temporary machine-readable medium. In some examples, machine-readable medium may include machine-readable medium that is not a temporarily propagating signal.

[0082] Instruction 624 may further be transmitted or received via a communication network 626 using a transmission medium via a network interface device 620 that utilizes any one of many transport protocols (e.g., Frame Relay, Internet Protocol (IP), TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), UDP (User Datagram Protocol), HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol), etc.). Illustrative communication networks may include, in particular, a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network), a packet data network (e.g., the Internet), a mobile telephone network (e.g., a cellular network), a POTS (Plain Old Telephone) network, and a wireless data network (e.g., the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.11 standard family known as Wi-Fi®, the IEEE 802.16 standard family known as WiMAX®), the IEEE 802.15.4 standard family, the LTE (Long Term Evolution) standard family, the UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) standard family, and a P2P (peer-to-peer) network.

[0083] In the example, the network interface device 620 may include one or more physical jacks (e.g., Ethernet, coaxial, or telephone jacks) or one or more antennas for connecting to the communication network 626. For example, the network interface device 620 may include one or more antennas 660 for wireless communication using at least one of single-input multiple-output (SIMO), multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), or multiple-input single-output (MISO) technology. In some examples, the network interface device 620 may be able to wirelessly communicate using Multiple User MIMO technology. The term “transmission medium” includes intangible media on which instructions for execution by machine 600 can be stored, encoded, or carried, and which include digital or analog communication signals or other intangible media to facilitate communication of such software.

[0084] Examples described in this specification may include or operate on logic or a number of components, modules, or mechanisms. A module is a tangible entity (e.g., hardware) capable of performing a specified operation and may be configured or arranged in a particular manner. In the example, a circuit may be arranged as a module in a particular manner (e.g., internally or with respect to an external entity such as another circuit). In the example, all or part of one or more computer systems (e.g., standalone, client, or server computer systems), or one or more hardware processors, may be configured by firmware or software (e.g., instructions, application parts, or applications) as modules that operate to perform a specified operation. In the example, the software may reside on a machine-readable medium. In the example, the software, when executed by the hardware underlying the module, causes the hardware to perform the specified operation.

[0085] Therefore, the term “module” is understood to encompass tangible entities that are physically configured, specifically configured (e.g., hardwired), or temporarily configured (e.g., transiently) (e.g., programmed) to operate in a particular way or to perform some or all of any operations described herein. Considering an example where a module is temporarily configured, each module does not need to be instantiated at any given moment. For example, if a module includes a general-purpose hardware processor configured using software, the general-purpose hardware processor may be configured as different modules at different times. The software, therefore, may configure the hardware processor to, for example, configure a particular module at one point in time and different modules at different points in time.

[0086] Some embodiments may be implemented entirely or partially in software and / or firmware. This software and / or firmware may be contained in or take the form of instructions written on a non-temporary computer-readable storage medium. These instructions may be read and executed by one or more processors to enable the performance of the operations described herein. The instructions may be, but are not limited to, any suitable form, such as source code, compiled code, interpreter code, executable code, static code, or dynamic code. Such computer-readable media may include tangible non-temporary media such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, and flash memory, for storing information in a format readable by one or more computers.

[0087] Figure 7 shows a block diagram of an exemplary wireless device 700 capable of performing one or more of the techniques (e.g., methodologies or operations) described in this specification. The wireless device 700 may be an HE device or an HE wireless device. The wireless device 700 may be an HE STA 504, an HE AP 502, and / or an HE STA or HE AP. The HE STA 504, HE AP 502, and / or an HE AP or HE STA may include some or all of the components shown in Figures 1-7. The wireless device 700 may be an example of the machine 600 disclosed in relation to Figure 6.

[0088] The radio device 700 may further include a processing circuit 708. The processing circuit 708 may include a transceiver 702, a physical layer circuit (PHY circuit) 704, and a MAC layer circuit (MAC circuit) 706, one or more of which may enable the transmission and reception of signals with other radio devices 700 (e.g., HE AP502, HE STA504, and / or legacy device 506) using one or more antennas 712. As an example, the PHY circuit 704 may perform various coding and decoding functions, including the formation of a baseband signal for transmission and decoding of received signals. As another example, the transceiver 702 may perform various transmission and reception functions, such as converting signals between the baseband range and the radio frequency (RF) range.

[0089] Therefore, the PHY circuit 704 and the transceiver 702 may be separate components, or they may be part of a combined component, such as the processing circuit 708. Furthermore, some of the described functions related to the transmission and reception of signals may be performed by a combination of any or all of the PHY circuit 704, the transceiver 702, the MAC circuit 706, the memory 710, and other components or layers. The MAC circuit 706 can control access to the wireless medium. The wireless device 700 may also include a memory 710 configured to perform the operations described herein, and for example, some of the operations described herein may be performed by instructions stored in the memory 710.

[0090] Antenna 712 (some embodiments may include only one antenna) may include one or more directional or omnidirectional antennas, including, for example, a dipole antenna, a monopole antenna, a patch antenna, a loop antenna, a microstrip antenna, or other types of antennas suitable for transmitting RF signals. In some MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output) embodiments, antenna 712 may be efficiently separated by utilizing spatial diversity and the resulting different channel characteristics.

[0091] One or more of the memory 710, transceiver 702, PHY circuit 704, MAC circuit 706, antenna 712, and / or processing circuit 708 may be coupled together. Furthermore, although the memory 710, transceiver 702, PHY circuit 704, MAC circuit 706, and antenna 712 are shown as separate components, one or more of the memory 710, transceiver 702, PHY circuit 704, MAC circuit 706, and antenna 712 may be integrated into an electronic package or chip.

[0092] In some embodiments, the wireless device 700 may be a mobile device, as described in connection with Figure 6. In some embodiments, the wireless device 700 may be configured to operate in accordance with one or more wireless communication standards described herein (e.g., IEEE 802.11, as described in connection with Figures 1-6). In some embodiments, the wireless device 700 may include one or more components, as described in connection with Figure 6 (e.g., a display device 610, an input device 612, etc.). Although the wireless device 700 has been illustrated as having several distinct functional elements, one or more of the functional elements may be combined and implemented by a combination of software components such as a processing element including a digital signal processor (DSP), and / or other hardware elements. For example, some elements may include one or more microprocessors, DSPs, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs), and various combinations of hardware and logic circuits to perform at least the functions described herein. In some embodiments, function An element may represent one or more operations to be performed on one or more processing elements.

[0093] In some embodiments, the equipment of the wireless device 700 or the equipment used by the wireless device 700 may include various components of the wireless device 700 as shown in Figure 7 and / or the components of Figures 1 to 6. Thus, the techniques and operations referring to the wireless device 700 described herein can be applied in some embodiments to the equipment for the wireless device 700 (e.g., HE AP502 and / or HE STA504). In some embodiments, the wireless device 700 is configured to decode and / or encode signals, packets, and / or frames, e.g., PPDUs, as described herein.

[0094] In some embodiments, the MAC circuit 706 may be configured to receive control of the medium for the HE TXOP and to compete for the radio medium during the competition period in order to encode or decode the HE PPDU. In some embodiments, the MAC circuit 706 may be configured to compete for the radio medium based on channel competition settings, transmit power levels, and a specific channel evaluation level (e.g., energy detection level).

[0095] The PHY circuit 704 can be configured to transmit signals according to one or more communication standards described herein. For example, the PHY circuit 704 can be configured to transmit HE PPDU. The PHY circuit 704 may include circuits for modulation / demodulation, up-conversion / down-conversion, filtering, amplification, etc. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 708 may include one or more processors. The processing circuit 708 may be configured to perform functions based on instructions stored in RAM or ROM, or based on dedicated circuits. The processing circuit 708 may include processors such as general-purpose processors or dedicated processors. The processing circuit 708 may implement one or more functions related to the antenna 712, transceiver 702, PHY circuit 704, MAC circuit 706, and / or memory 710. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 708 may be configured to perform one or more of the functions / operations and / or methods described herein.

[0096] In mmWave technology, a highly directional, independent, and relevant effective radio channel may be used for communication between a station (e.g., HE station 504 or radio equipment 700 in Figure 5) and an access point (e.g., HE AP 502 or radio equipment 700 in Figure 5). To accommodate directionality, beamforming techniques are used to radiate energy in a specific direction with a specific beamwidth for communication between the two devices. Directional propagation concentrates the transmitted energy toward the target device to compensate for significant energy loss in the channel between the two communication devices. Using directional transmission extends the range of millimeter-wave communication compared to using the same transmitted energy with omnidirectional propagation.

[0097] The use of contention based on Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) remains common in BSS500 with STA504 and AP502, limiting the QoS performance improvements achievable in legacy networks. Furthermore, the lack of a unified definition for scheduled operation client devices, such as the STA504, makes low-power optimization and consistent operation across different AP502s using chipsets from different vendors difficult. performance We are having trouble achieving that.

[0098] The technical challenges include how to use the radio spectrum more efficiently to schedule STAs under IEEE 802.11 and continue to meet Quality of Service (QoS) requirements. There are also technical challenges regarding how to reduce the power consumption of battery-dependent radio equipment.

[0099] In some embodiments, efficiency issues are addressed by providing an ordered sequence of frame exchanges that improves QoS performance in high-density congested networks while handling dynamic fluctuations in data traffic. In congested networks with many competing STAs, a fully scheduled mode STA504 cannot use enhanced distributed channel access (EDCA). This allows the AP502 to manage the BSS500 (which can span IEEE 802.11be multilinks) more efficiently than the EDCA mechanism used by the STA504, and to provide the QoS requirements for multiple associated STA504s on the BSS500.

[0100] In some embodiments, a frame exchange ordering sequence is provided that improves high-density congested network QoS performance through scheduled mode operation while taking into account dynamic traffic fluctuations. In some embodiments, power consumption issues are addressed by providing a unified sequence that allows STA504 manufacturers to design a balanced performance-to-power consumption trade-off without significantly impacting overall network capacity or efficiency. In some embodiments, power consumption issues are addressed by improving the amount of time that radio devices such as STAs enter low-power mode.

[0101] In some embodiments, the QoS and power saving (PS) performance of the STA504 in the BSS500 is improved even under dynamic traffic conditions. Periodic service periods, for example, service period N836, begin with a polling phase, and polling phase 828, for example, allows the STA504 to reduce power consumption by flexibly determining how much of each service period (SP) it participates in.

[0102] Figure 8 shows scheduling in the Basic Service Set (BSS) 800 according to several embodiments. Figure 8 shows the transmitter 802, time 804, channel 806, beacon interval 838, and service period N836. Transmitter 802 indicates whether AP 502, STA 504, or both are transmitting in phase. Time 804 progresses from left to right. Channel 806 indicates that the transmission is occurring within a channel of the radio spectrum within the bandwidth (e.g., 2.4 / 5 / 6 GHz). Channel 806 values ​​can be 640 MHz, 320 MHz, 160 MHz, 80 MHz, 80+80 MHz, etc. The beacon interval 838 is divided into one or more service periods, for example, service period N836.

[0103] The AP504 is configured to divide the Target Beacon Transmission Time (TBTT) into one or more service periods, such as service period N836, during which a sequence of stepwise operations, as disclosed in Figure 8 and herein, are performed.

[0104] Polling phase 828 includes a BCAST TIM frame 808, a Null Data Packet (NDP) Feedback Report Polling (NFRP) trigger frame (TF) 810, an NDP response 812, a Buffer State Report Polling (BSRP) TF 814, and a BSRP response 816. One or more of these may be optional or replaced by other transmissions. In polling phase 828, AP502 announces the presence of downlink (DL) data and polls STA504 for uplink (UL) resource needs, such as STA504 sending data to AP502 indicating QoS needs. Polling phase 828 may use different transmissions to AP502 to indicate DL data and determine STA504's UL resource needs.

[0105] AP502 signals the presence of DL data for STA504 in BCAST TIM frame 808. BCAST TIM frame 808 may be the base TIM frame. Upon decoding BCAST TIM frame 808, STA504 can be configured to enter a sleep state, such as Doze, if there is no DL data (or if the intention is to ignore the DL data), if STA504 has no UL data, or if, under other conditions, STA504 does not need to be running.

[0106] In some embodiments, the STA504 is notified of the presence of DL data in different ways. For example, a modified NFRP TF is used when the NFRP TF is modified to include an indication of the DL data for the STA504 in different parts of the LTF of the NFRP TF sent to the STA504. In some embodiments, the modified NFRP TF is followed by detailed TIM elements for each STA504 where DL data is pending. The STA504 can know early whether it has DL data and can sleep if there is no other reason to continue activity (for example, if there is no UL data for AP502 and there are no other requirements to not sleep).

[0107] Polling phase 828 is continued with NFRP TF810, a broadcast frame that polls multiple STA504s for UL data. Polling of STA504s is performed using another packet or element.

[0108] In one embodiment, the NFRP TF810 includes a feedback type subfield encoding of the STA504 to indicate the data type and the request for a UL resource. For example, the value may indicate that the STA504 only has low-latency UL traffic. In some embodiments, this value indicates whether the STA504 has a UL resource for the TID for which the AP502 is requesting the presence of UL data.

[0109] In one embodiment, the NDP response 812 may cause STA504 to report the presence of UL traffic in response to NFRP TF810 and indicate whether to schedule it in SPN836. For example, a feedback type subfield may include a value indicating whether STA504 has data and whether STA504 wishes to be scheduled in SPN836.

[0110] In some embodiments, the set of association IDs (AIDs) assigned by AP502 to an EHT STA, e.g., STA504, is contiguous and orthogonal to those assigned to legacy STAs, so AP502 can only indicate EHT STAs for NFRP TF810. In embodiments, if there are few STA504s to which UL resources are allocated, NFRP TF810 and NDP response 812 are not performed.

[0111] Polling phase 828 continues with one or more broadcast frames requesting detailed queue sizes for UL packets at STA504 (e.g., detailed UL resource requests from STA504). AP504 then determines the necessary UL resources to allocate to data phase 834 of SPn836.

[0112] In some embodiments, the BSRP TF814 is used to determine detailed UL resource requests from the STA504, such as UL buffer status. In one embodiment, if the AP502 does not intend to use the information present by such polling in the resource allocation phase 830, the transmission of the BSRP TF814 or a BSRP-like frame is not performed. For example, the AP502 may allocate UL resources by transmitting a basic TF (which indicates one or more STA504s) with a default UL length field (and assigning channels and spatial streams to the STA504) in the subsequent data phase 834, or in a first basic TF for a particular STA504 following at least the resource allocation phase 830. The BSRP response 816 is the STA504 responding with detailed information regarding the UL resource request or requirement. According to some embodiments, the BSRP response 816 is a trigger-based (TB) PPDU. According to some embodiments, the BSRP response 816 includes an ULBSR report from the STA504.

[0113] In resource allocation phase 830, AP502 sends one or more frames to notify STA504 whether to allocate a resource (e.g., UL / DL) in SPn836. If no resource is allocated, STA504 may remain dormant for the remainder of SPn836.

[0114] In one embodiment, AP502 transmits a BCAST OPS frame 818 that includes an OPS Duration field set to the end of SPn836. The time granularity of the OPS frame can be changed from 1 millisecond to another value. Figure 9 is disclosed in conjunction with Figure 8. Figure 9 shows a Timely Power Saving (OPS) element 900 according to several embodiments. The OPS element 900 includes an element ID field 1002, a length field 1004, an element ID extension field 1006, an OPS duration field 1008, and an OPS duration granularity field 1010. The OPS element 900 can be included in the BCAST OPS frame 818. Legacy equipment 506 cannot correctly decode the OPS element 900. The OPS duration granularity field 1010 can be set to indicate a value that extends to the end of SPn836. In some embodiments, the OPS duration granularity field 1010 can be set to a granularity finer than milliseconds.

[0115] In one embodiment, AP502 transmits a BCAST OPS frame 818 with the OPS period 1008 field set to a time before the end of SPn836. Furthermore, BCAST OPS frames or OPS frames can be transmitted during SPn836. STA504 can use the information in the OPS frames as follows: STA504 that have not yet been scheduled will remain dormant for the duration of those unscheduled OPS frames. STAs that were previously scheduled in SPn836 may remain dormant for the remainder of SPn838 if they are not scheduled in the OPS frames. Frames other than BCAST OPS frames 818 may be transmitted. BCAST OPS frame 818 is a BCAST indicated to all STA504 not shown, which, according to several embodiments, is scheduled to allow power saving until the end of the OPS period.

[0116] In one embodiment, AP502 may send an extended or EHT version of the OPS frame to notify STA504 whether it is scheduled within a time window identified by its start and end times. For example, the OPS element 900 or another element or frame may include a field indicating whether it is scheduled in SPn836, and optionally one or more fields indicating the disclosure and end times in SPn836 when STA504 is scheduled, will be scheduled in the future, or may be scheduled. If the OPS elements 900, 1000 are included in an OPS frame or Fast Initial Link Setup (FILS) discovery frame, the OPS Duration field indicates the duration of the OPS period. If STA is not explicitly scheduled during this period, STA may transition to a dormant state.

[0117] According to several embodiments, the AP502 can signal assignments only for a limited period after the transmission of an OPS frame. The AP502 can aggregate multiple such OPS frames into a single A-MPDU.

[0118] The sounding phase 832 may perform a sounding 820 scheduled for STA504 to receive DL and / or UL resource allocations by AP502. The sounding phase 832 is optional. The data phase 834 includes one or more UL / DL pay TXOPs 822, 824, 826. For example, AP502 sends a TF containing the scheduled DL and / or UL resource allocations for STA504, STA504 decodes and responds with DL data and simultaneously sends UL data to AP502. In some embodiments, AP502 may send data directly to only one STA504 and allocate UL resources to only one STA504 to send resources to AP502.

[0119] Figure 10 shows OPS element 1000 in several embodiments. In some embodiments, OPS elements 900 and 1000 are EHT OPS elements. Figure 10 includes an element ID field 1002, a length field 1004, an element ID extension field 1006, an OPS duration field 1008, and an OPS start offset field 1010.

[0120] The OPS start offset 1010 field specifies the start offset from the transmission time of the OPS frame until the STA504, indicated in the corresponding TIM element within the frame, is no longer scheduled.

[0121] Figure 11 shows scheduling in BSS1100 according to several embodiments. STA504 is effectively scheduled within a specific time period in SPn1136 using OPS elements 1000. For example, STA1 and STA2, which are STA504, are scheduled using OPS frames, while STA3 and STA4, which are STA504, are scheduled together using an aggregated OPS frame 1000.

[0122] In one embodiment, the assignment can be performed by a FILS frame containing a TIM element. In one embodiment, for reliability, AP502 sends a unicast TWT Info frame in SU or MU PPDU to notify SPn1136 when a particular STA is scheduled. Unscheduled STA504s will enter a dormant state after receiving this frame, while other STA504s may enter a dormant state until their scheduled time.

[0123] In the embodiments, SPn836,1136 are broadcast target wake-up time (TWT) SPs. The TWT element corresponding to this SP includes a field that signals the presence of an ordered phase. For example, one of the reserved bits in the Broadcast TWT Info subfield is used to signal the presence of an ordered phase. SPn836,1136 are indicated by one or more fields in transmission to the STA504. One or more fields may indicate the time and duration of the SP, such as the time relative to the start of the beacon interval. The duration of the SP may be fixed. The STA504 is configured not to perform contention-based access to the radio spectrum during the SP. In some embodiments, there is an SP element that defines the start time and duration of the SP. In some embodiments, the beacon interval is divided into segments by duration, and SPs are regularly spaced within segments, such as every four segments. In some embodiments, AP502 transmits a PPDU indicating the duration of the PPDU, which extends to the end of the SP, before or at the start of the SP, so that the legacy device 506 postpones it during the SP, for example, to avoid conflict for wireless media.

[0124] The Broadcast TWT can use one of its recommended fields' reserved values ​​to signal the presence of an ordered phase or SP. Additionally, the TWT element may indicate the presence of individual components within SPn1136, such as sounding 820, BCAST TIM frame 808, BSRP TF814, etc.

[0125] In the embodiment, SPn1136 is generated periodically or ad-hoc. For example, AP502 may not use SPs called ordered SPs, such as SPn1136, at some beacon intervals, but may restart using ordered SPs. A frame in polling phase 828 or another phase may include additional signaling indicating ordered SP operation, such as the end of the current ordered SP, or the time when a new ordered SP is scheduled after SPn1136.

[0126] For example, a TIM frame may include signaling indicating ordered SPs, as well as the termination of SPn 836, 1136. An OPS frame may include signaling indicating when the terminated ordered SPn 836, 1136 and the start of the next ordered SP will occur. UL / DL payload TXOPs for STA-1, 2 1122, STA-3, 4, and UL / DL payload TXOP 1126 can be executed in trigger frames containing UL and DL data according to several embodiments. STA504 is configured, according to several embodiments, to avoid conflict with the radio spectrum, for example, channel 806 in SPn 836, 1136.

[0127] Figure 12 shows scheduling methods 1200 in BSS according to several embodiments. Method 1200 starts with operation 1202, decoding a first frame from an access point (AP), the first frame constituting a service period indication. For example, STA504 in Figures 8 and 11 may receive a frame before the start of service periods N836, 1136, which indicate a service period. The frame may include a target wake-up time (TWT) element.

[0128] Method 1200 continues operation 1204 during the service period and decodes a trigger frame indicating the STA's UL resource allocation in order to send an indication of the STA's buffer status to the AP. For example, the STA 504 in Figures 8 and 11 can decode a BSRP TF814 or an NFRP TF810.

[0129] Method 1200 continues with operation 1206 to encode a second frame that includes a display of the STA's buffer state. For example, STA 504 in Figures 8 and 11 can encode an NDP response 812 or a BSRP response 816.

[0130] Method 1200 continues with operation 1208 and configures the STA to send a second frame according to the UL resource allocation. For example, STA504 in Figures 8 and 11 can be configured to send an NDP response 812 or a BSRP response 816.

[0131] Method 1200 continues with operation 1210 and decodes the third frame, which includes an indication of the STA's pause period. For example, STA 504 in Figures 8 and 11 can decode the BCAST OPS frame 818.

[0132] Method 1200 may include one or more additional operations. One or more operations of Method 1200 may be optional. Method 1200 can be performed by AP502 equipment, AP502, STA (non-AP STA)504 equipment, or STA504 (non-AP STA).

[0133] Figure 13 shows scheduling methods 1300 in BSS according to several embodiments. Method 1300 starts with operation 1302 and encodes a first frame for STA, which is a first frame containing a service duration instruction. For example, AP502 in Figures 8 and 11 may encode a frame before the start of SPN836, 1136. The frame may include a target wake-up time (TWT) element.

[0134] Method 1300 continues in Operation 1304, encoding a trigger frame for a certain service period within the service period, the trigger frame instructing the STA to send an uplink (UL) resource allocation to the AP for an indication of the STA's buffer state, the UL resource allocation indicating orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) and multi-user (MU) multiple input (MI) multiple output (MO) (MU-MIMO). Method 1300 continues in Operation 1306, configuring the AP to transmit the trigger frame. For example, AP502 in Figures 8 and 11 encodes an NFRP TF810 or BSRP TF814, and the equipment of AP502 can be configured to transmit an NFRP TF810 or BSRP TF814.

[0135] Method 1300 continues with operation 1308 and decodes a second frame, which includes an indication of the STA's buffer state. For example, AP502 in Figures 8 and 11 can decode the NDP response 812 and the BSRP response 816.

[0136] Method 1300 continues with operation 1310 and encodes a third frame that includes an instruction for the STA's pause period. For example, AP502 in Figures 8 and 11 can encode and transmit a BCAST OPS frame 818.

[0137] Method 1300 may include one or more additional operations. One or more operations of Method 1300 may be optional. Method 1300 can be performed by an AP502 device, an AP502, an STA (non-AP STA)504 device, or an STA504 (non-AP STA).

[0138] The abstract is provided in accordance with 37C.FRSection1.72(b), which requires an abstract that allows the reader to confirm the nature and essence of the technical disclosure. It is understood that it is not to be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. The following claims are incorporated herein into the detailed description, and each claim is independent of itself as a distinct embodiment.

Claims

1. Equipment for a station (STA), the equipment includes a memory and a processing circuit coupled to the memory, the processing circuit is The first frame from the access point (AP) is decoded, and the first frame includes an instruction for the service period. During a service period within the aforementioned service period, the trigger frame from the AP is decoded, and the trigger frame indicates the allocation of uplink (UL) resources to the STA for sending an instruction to the AP regarding the buffer state of the STA. The second frame is encoded, and the second frame includes an indication of the buffer state of the STA. The STA is configured to transmit the second frame to the AP in accordance with the UL resource allocation. The third frame from the AP is decoded, the third frame includes an OPS element, the OPS element includes an OPS period which is the period during the data phase of the service period in which the STA is scheduled, and an OPS period granularity field which has a granularity finer than 1 millisecond. A device configured to determine, based on the OPS period and the OPS period granularity field, a portion of the data phases included in the service period as the STA's idle period.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the buffer state indication of the STA includes a quality of service (QoS) control field or a buffer state report (BSR) control subfield.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the trigger frame is a BSR trigger frame.

4. The UL resource allocation is a first UL resource allocation, and the processing circuit is After the aforementioned period, the basic trigger frame is decoded, the basic trigger frame includes downlink (DL) data for the STA, and includes a second UL resource allocation for the STA to transmit UL data to the AP, Encode a trigger-based physical layer protocol data unit (TB PPDU), and the TB PPDU includes the UL data. The apparatus according to claim 1, further configured as follows.

5. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to decode a fourth frame from the AP, the fourth frame including a traffic instruction map (TIM) element, the TIM element indicating the availability of data from the STA.

6. The device according to claim 5, wherein the fourth frame has a destination address indicating a broadcast address.

7. The UL resource allocation is a first UL resource allocation, and the processing circuit is The null data packet (NDP) feedback report pole (NFRP) TF is decoded, and the NFRP TF includes a second UL resource allocation for the STA to indicate the buffer state or resource request of the STA. The response to the NFRP TF is encoded within the NDP, The STA is configured to transmit the NDP according to the second UL resource allocation. The apparatus according to claim 5, further configured as follows.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the buffer state or resource request is an indication of whether the STA has low-latency buffer data.

9. The fourth frame and the NFRP TF are decoded before the trigger frame, and the processing circuit, The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein if the TIM element indicates that no data exists for the STA and the STA does not have low-latency buffer data, the apparatus enters a dormant state until the end of the service period.

10. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the dormancy period indicates that the AP does not address frames to the STA during the dormancy period, and the STA suppresses the execution of access to the wireless medium based on contention during the dormancy period.

11. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to enter a pause state during the period.

12. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first frame includes a target startup time (TWT) element, and the TWT element includes a field that indicates the service period.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the field is a broadcast TWT recommended field.

14. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the processing circuit is further configured in the operating bandwidth to suppress the execution of access to the wireless medium based on competition during the service period.

15. The STA is configured to operate in accordance with IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering) 802.11be, and the STA is a non-AP STA. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a transceiver circuit coupled to the memory and an antenna coupled to the transceiver circuit.

16. A non-temporary computer-readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by one or more processors of equipment for a station (STA), the instructions are: The first frame from the access point (AP) is decoded, and the first frame includes an instruction for the service period. During a service period within the aforementioned service period, the trigger frame from the AP is decoded, and the trigger frame indicates the allocation of uplink (UL) resources to the STA for sending an instruction to the AP regarding the buffer state of the STA. The second frame is encoded, and the second frame includes an indication of the buffer state of the STA. The STA is configured to transmit the second frame to the AP in accordance with the UL resource allocation. The third frame from the AP is decoded, the third frame includes an OPS element, the OPS element includes an OPS period which is the period during the data phase of the service period in which the STA is scheduled, and an OPS period granularity field which has a granularity finer than 1 millisecond. Based on the OPS period and the OPS period granularity field, a portion of the data phases included in the service period is determined to be the STA's idle period. A non-temporary computer-readable storage medium comprising one or more processors.

17. The aforementioned UL resource allocation is a first UL resource allocation, and the one or more processors are After the aforementioned period, the basic trigger frame is decoded, the basic trigger frame includes downlink (DL) data for the STA, and includes a second UL resource allocation for the STA to transmit UL data to the AP, Encode a trigger-based physical layer protocol data unit (TB PPDU), and the TB PPDU includes the UL data. A non-temporary computer-readable storage medium according to claim 16, further configured as such.

18. Equipment for an access point (AP), the equipment includes a memory and a processing circuit coupled to the memory, the processing circuit being Encode a first frame to the station (STA), the first frame including an instruction for the service period, During a service period within the aforementioned service period, a trigger frame is encoded, the trigger frame indicating an uplink (UL) resource allocation for the STA to transmit an instruction on the buffer state of the STA to the AP, the UL resource allocation indicating orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) and multi-user multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO), The AP is configured to transmit the trigger frame, The second frame from the STA is decoded, and the second frame includes an instruction on the buffer state of the STA. A third frame is encoded, the third frame includes an OPS element, the OPS element includes an OPS period which is the period during which the STA is scheduled within the data phase of the service period, and an OPS period granularity field which indicates a granularity finer than 1 millisecond, and based on the OPS period and the OPS period granularity field, a portion of the data phase included in the service period is indicated as a dormant period of the STA. The third frame is transmitted to the STA. A device that is configured in such a way.

19. The UL resource allocation is a first resource allocation, and the processing circuit is After the aforementioned period, the basic trigger frame is decoded, the basic trigger frame includes downlink (DL) data for the STA and includes a second UL resource allocation for the STA to transmit UL data to the AP, Encode a trigger-based physical layer protocol data unit (TB PPDU), and the TB PPDU includes the UL data. The apparatus according to claim 18, further configured as follows.

20. The aforementioned processing circuit is The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein a fourth frame is encoded for transmission, the fourth frame including a traffic instruction map (TIM) element, the TIM element indicating the availability of the STA data.

21. The device according to claim 20, wherein the fourth frame has a destination address indicating a broadcast address.

22. The UL resource allocation is a first UL resource allocation, and the processing circuit is Encode a null data packet (NDP) feedback report pole (NFRP) TF, wherein the NFRP TF includes a second UL resource allocation for the STA to indicate the buffer state or resource request of the STA. According to the second UL resource allocation, the NDP is decoded, and the NDP is a response to the NFRP TF. The apparatus according to claim 20, further configured as follows.

23. The apparatus according to claim 22, wherein the buffer state or resource request is an indication of whether the STA has low-latency buffer data.

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