Communication method, and AP and storage medium

Abstract

The embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the technical field of communications. Provided are a communication method, and an AP and a storage medium. The method comprises: determining a first radio frame, wherein the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordination operation capability of a first AP by means of at least one indication domain; and sending the first radio frame. The embodiments of the present disclosure can provide an indication mode for a multi-AP coordination operation capability.

Description

Communication method, AP, and storage medium Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method, an AP, and a storage medium. Background Art

[0002] The basic idea of ​​multi-AP coordinated operation is that APs with coordination capabilities can coordinate other APs that support multi-AP coordinated operation through cooperative transmission mode to achieve time-frequency resource sharing, spatial multiplexing or joint transmission, thereby reducing interference between cells, ensuring user service quality, improving network communication speed and reducing latency.

[0003] At present, the multi-AP coordination mechanism will be further studied to improve the relevant processes of multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0004] Summary of the Invention

[0005] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, an AP, and a storage medium, which can provide a method for indicating the coordinated operation capability of multiple APs.

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication method, the method comprising:

[0007] Determine a first radio frame, where the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field;

[0008] Send the first wireless frame.

[0009] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication method, the method comprising:

[0010] A first radio frame is received, where the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field.

[0011] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an AP, including:

[0012] A processing module is configured to determine a first radio frame, wherein the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field;

[0013] The transceiver module is used to send the first wireless frame.

[0014] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an AP, including:

[0015] The transceiver module is configured to receive a first wireless frame, where the first wireless frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field.

[0016] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an AP, comprising one or more processors;

[0017] Among them, the above-mentioned AP is used in the communication method provided by the first aspect or the second aspect of the embodiment of this disclosure.

[0018] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a storage medium storing instructions. When the instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the communication method provided in the first aspect or the second aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0019] In the seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication system, which includes a first AP and a second AP; wherein the first AP is configured to execute the method described in the first aspect, and the second AP is configured to execute the method described in the second aspect.

[0020] Based on the communication method, AP, and storage medium provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for indicating the coordinated operation capability of multiple APs can be provided.

[0021] Additional aspects and advantages of the embodiments of the present disclosure will be given in part in the following description, which will become apparent from the following description or be learned through practice of the present disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present disclosure. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without any creative work.

[0023] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] FIG2 is an interactive schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0025] FIG3 is a flow chart showing a communication method performed by a first AP according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0026] FIG4 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method performed by a second AP according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0027] FIG5a is a schematic diagram of the structure of an AP proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0028] FIG5 b is a second schematic diagram of the structure of the AP proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0029] FIG6 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0030] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip proposed according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, an AP, and a storage medium.

[0032] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication method, the method comprising:

[0033] Determine a first radio frame, where the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field;

[0034] Send the first wireless frame.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the first AP may directly indicate the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through at least one indication field in the first radio frame, which is conducive to improving the indication process of the multi-AP coordinated operation capability.

[0036] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first wireless frame jointly indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the above-mentioned first AP through the first indication field and the second indication field, or the above-mentioned first wireless frame indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the above-mentioned first AP through the third indication field.

[0037] In the above embodiment, the first wireless frame may indicate the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP in a variety of ways, which is conducive to improving the diversification of the indication methods of the multi-AP coordinated operation capability.

[0038] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, when the identification value of the first indication field is a first value and the identification value of the second indication field is a second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and does not support being coordinated by other APs;

[0039] When the identification value of the first indication field is the first value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs;

[0040] When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs but supports being coordinated by other APs;

[0041] When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0042] In the above embodiment, the first wireless frame can jointly indicate whether the first AP indicates multi-AP coordinated operation through different identification values ​​of the two indication fields, and when the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation, the type of multi-AP coordinated operation specifically supported by the first AP (such as whether it supports coordination with other APs, whether it supports coordination by other APs, etc.), which is conducive to saving signaling resources.

[0043] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first wireless frame includes an ultra-high reliability capability element field, the above-mentioned ultra-high reliability capability element field includes an ultra-high reliability media access control capability field, and the above-mentioned ultra-high reliability media access control capability field includes the above-mentioned first indication field and the above-mentioned second indication field.

[0044] In the above embodiment, the first radio frame can carry the first indication field and the second indication field through the existing information field, which is conducive to saving signaling resources.

[0045] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, when the identification value of the third indication field is a third value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation;

[0046] When the identification value of the third indication field is the fourth value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0047] In the above embodiment, the first radio frame can directly indicate whether the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation through the third indication field, which is conducive to the second AP receiving the first radio frame to quickly determine whether the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0048] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, when the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation, the first radio frame further includes a fourth indication field;

[0049] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the fifth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs but does not support being coordinated by other APs;

[0050] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the sixth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs but supports being coordinated by other APs;

[0051] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the seventh value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordinating with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs.

[0052] In the above embodiment, the first wireless frame can indicate the specific multi-AP coordination operation type supported by the first AP (such as whether it supports coordination with other APs, whether it supports coordination by other APs, etc.) through different identification values ​​of the fourth indication field when supporting multi-AP coordination operation. This is beneficial to saving signaling resources and is also beneficial for the second AP receiving the first wireless frame to quickly determine the multi-AP coordination operation type supported by the first AP.

[0053] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation control field, and the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation control field includes the above-mentioned third indication field.

[0054] In the above embodiment, the first radio frame can carry the third indication field through the existing information field, which is beneficial to saving signaling resources.

[0055] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation capability field in the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field is the above-mentioned fourth indication field.

[0056] In the above embodiment, the first radio frame can carry the fourth indication field through the existing information field, which is beneficial to saving signaling resources.

[0057] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication method, the method comprising:

[0058] A first radio frame is received, where the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field.

[0059] In the above embodiment, the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP can be directly indicated through at least one indication field in the first radio frame, which is conducive to improving the indication process of the multi-AP coordinated operation capability.

[0060] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first wireless frame jointly indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the above-mentioned first AP through the first indication field and the second indication field, or the above-mentioned first wireless frame indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the above-mentioned first AP through the third indication field.

[0061] In the above embodiment, the first wireless frame may indicate the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP in a variety of ways, which is conducive to improving the diversification of the indication methods of the multi-AP coordinated operation capability.

[0062] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, when the identification value of the first indication field is a first value and the identification value of the second indication field is a second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and does not support being coordinated by other APs;

[0063] When the identification value of the first indication field is the first value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs;

[0064] When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs but supports being coordinated by other APs;

[0065] When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0066] In the above embodiment, the first wireless frame can jointly indicate whether the first AP indicates multi-AP coordinated operation through different identification values ​​of the two indication fields, and when the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation, the type of multi-AP coordinated operation specifically supported by the first AP (such as whether it supports coordination with other APs, whether it supports coordination by other APs, etc.), which is conducive to saving signaling resources.

[0067] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first wireless frame includes an ultra-high reliability capability element field, the above-mentioned ultra-high reliability capability element field includes an ultra-high reliability media access control capability field, and the above-mentioned ultra-high reliability media access control capability field includes the above-mentioned first indication field and the above-mentioned second indication field.

[0068] In the above embodiment, the first radio frame can carry the first indication field and the second indication field through the existing information field, which is conducive to saving signaling resources.

[0069] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, when the identification value of the third indication field is a third value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation;

[0070] When the identification value of the third indication field is the fourth value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0071] In the above embodiment, the first radio frame can directly indicate whether the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation through the third indication field, which is conducive to the second AP receiving the first radio frame to quickly determine whether the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0072] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, when the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation, the first radio frame further includes a fourth indication field;

[0073] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the fifth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs but does not support being coordinated by other APs;

[0074] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the sixth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs but supports being coordinated by other APs;

[0075] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the seventh value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordinating with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs.

[0076] In the above embodiment, the first wireless frame can indicate the specific multi-AP coordination operation type supported by the first AP (such as whether it supports coordination with other APs, whether it supports coordination by other APs, etc.) through different identification values ​​of the fourth indication field when supporting multi-AP coordination operation. This is beneficial to saving signaling resources and is also beneficial for the second AP receiving the first wireless frame to quickly determine the multi-AP coordination operation type supported by the first AP.

[0077] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation control field, and the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation control field includes the above-mentioned third indication field.

[0078] In the above embodiment, the first radio frame can carry the third indication field through the existing information field, which is beneficial to saving signaling resources.

[0079] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation capability field in the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field is the above-mentioned fourth indication field.

[0080] In the above embodiment, the first radio frame can carry the fourth indication field through the existing information field, which is beneficial to saving signaling resources.

[0081] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0082] Determine a second wireless frame, where the second wireless frame is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request;

[0083] Sending the second wireless frame;

[0084] Among them, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordination request is used to request the third AP that receives the above-mentioned second wireless frame to participate in multi-AP coordination and coordinate the above-mentioned third AP, or the above-mentioned multi-AP coordination request is used to request the second AP that sends the above-mentioned second wireless frame to participate in multi-AP coordination and request the third AP that receives the above-mentioned second wireless frame to coordinate the above-mentioned second AP.

[0085] In the above embodiment, the second AP can initiate a multi-AP coordination request through the second wireless frame, which is used to request the third AP that receives the second wireless frame to participate in the multi-AP coordination and coordinate the third AP, or to request the second AP that sends the second wireless frame to participate in the multi-AP coordination and request the third AP that receives the second wireless frame to coordinate the second AP, which is conducive to improving the interactive process of the multi-AP coordination operation.

[0086] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned second wireless frame includes a fifth indication field, and when the identification value of the above-mentioned fifth indication field is an eighth value, the second wireless frame is used to request the above-mentioned third AP to participate in multi-AP coordination and coordinate the above-mentioned third AP; when the identification value of the above-mentioned fifth indication field is a ninth value, the above-mentioned second wireless frame is used to request the above-mentioned second AP to participate in multi-AP coordination and request the above-mentioned third AP to coordinate the above-mentioned second AP.

[0087] In the above embodiment, the second radio frame can directly indicate the specific request content of the multi-AP coordination request through the fifth indication field, which is beneficial to saving signaling resources and is beneficial for the third AP receiving the second radio frame to quickly determine the request content of the multi-AP coordination request.

[0088] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field includes a coordination request type subfield, and the above-mentioned coordination request type subfield is the above-mentioned fifth indication field.

[0089] In the above embodiment, the second radio frame can reuse the existing information field as the fifth indication field, which is beneficial to solving signaling resource problems.

[0090] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned second radio frame also includes a sixth indication field, and the above-mentioned sixth indication field is used to indicate the first time interval for receiving the third radio frame, and the above-mentioned third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance or rejection of the above-mentioned multi-AP coordination request.

[0091] In the above embodiment, the second radio frame may further indicate the response time of the third AP receiving the second radio frame to the second radio frame through the sixth indication field, which is conducive to further improving the interaction process of the multi-AP coordination request.

[0092] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the above-mentioned second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation element field, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordination operation element field includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set field, the above-mentioned multi-AP coordination operation parameter set field includes a coordination request timeout duration subfield, and the above-mentioned coordination request timeout duration subfield is the above-mentioned sixth indication field.

[0093] In the above embodiment, the second radio frame can indicate the time interval for the third AP receiving the second radio frame to send the third radio frame through the coordination request timeout duration subfield, which helps the third AP quickly determine the time interval for sending the third radio frame.

[0094] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, when the third radio frame is received within the first time interval and the third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance of the multi-AP coordination request, a multi-AP coordination operation is performed with the third AP;

[0095] When the third wireless frame is not received within the first time interval, or when the third wireless frame is received within the first time interval and the third wireless frame is used to indicate rejection of the multi-AP coordination request, no multi-AP coordination operation is performed with the third AP.

[0096] In the above embodiment, the second AP that sends the second radio frame may terminate the current multi-AP coordination process if it does not receive the third radio frame within the first time interval, or if it receives the third radio frame within the first time interval and the third radio frame indicates a rejection of the multi-AP coordination request. The second AP may then perform multi-AP coordination with the third AP that sent the third radio frame if it receives the third radio frame within the first time interval and the third radio frame indicates an acceptance of the multi-AP coordination request. Based on this, the interactive process of multi-AP coordination can be further improved.

[0097] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an AP, including:

[0098] A processing module is configured to determine a first radio frame, wherein the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field;

[0099] The transceiver module is used to send the first wireless frame.

[0100] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an AP, including:

[0101] The transceiver module is configured to receive a first wireless frame, where the first wireless frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field.

[0102] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an AP, comprising one or more processors;

[0103] The above-mentioned AP is used to execute the communication method provided by the method described in the first aspect, the second aspect, the optional implementation of the first aspect, and the optional implementation of the second aspect.

[0104] In the sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a communication system, which includes a first AP and a second AP; wherein the first AP is configured to execute the method described in the first aspect and the optional implementation method of the first aspect, and the second AP is configured to execute the method described in the second aspect and the optional implementation method of the second aspect.

[0105] In the seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a storage medium, which stores instructions. When the instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the method described in the first aspect, the second aspect, the optional implementation of the first aspect, and the optional implementation of the second aspect.

[0106] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a program product. When the program product is executed by a communication device, the communication device executes the method described in the first aspect, the second aspect, the optional implementation of the first aspect, and the optional implementation of the second aspect.

[0107] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method described in the first aspect, the second aspect, the optional implementation of the first aspect, and the optional implementation of the second aspect.

[0108] In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a chip or a chip system, wherein the chip or chip system includes a processing circuit configured to execute the method described in the first aspect, the second aspect, the optional embodiment of the first aspect, and the optional embodiment of the second aspect.

[0109] It is understandable that the above-mentioned communication devices, APs, communication systems, storage media, program products, computer programs, chips, or chip systems are all used to perform the methods proposed in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Therefore, the beneficial effects that can be achieved can refer to the beneficial effects of the corresponding methods and will not be repeated here.

[0110] The present disclosure provides a communication method, an AP, and a storage medium. In some embodiments, the terms "communication method" and "information processing method" are interchangeable, the terms "communication device" and "information processing device" are interchangeable, and the terms "information processing system" and "communication system" are interchangeable.

[0111] The embodiments of the present disclosure are not exhaustive and are merely illustrative of some embodiments, and are not intended to be a specific limitation on the scope of protection of the present disclosure. In the absence of contradiction, each step in a certain embodiment can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps can be arbitrarily combined. For example, a solution after removing some steps in a certain embodiment can also be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the order of the steps in a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily exchanged. In addition, the optional implementation methods in a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily combined; in addition, the embodiments can be arbitrarily combined. For example, some or all steps of different embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, and a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily combined with the optional implementation methods of other embodiments.

[0112] In each embodiment of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified or provided for by logic, the terms and / or descriptions between the embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form a new embodiment based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0113] The terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure.

[0114] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, elements expressed in the singular, such as "a", "an", "the", "above", "said", "the", "the", etc., may mean "one and only one", or "one or more", "at least one", etc. For example, when using articles such as "a", "an", "the" in English in translation, the noun following the article may be understood as a singular expression or a plural expression.

[0115] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, “plurality” refers to two or more.

[0116] In some embodiments, the terms "at least one," "one or more," "a plurality of," "multiple," etc. may be used interchangeably.

[0117] In some embodiments, descriptions such as "at least one of A and B," "A and / or B," "A in one case, B in another case," or "in response to one case A, in response to another case B" may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: in some embodiments, A (A is executed independently of B); in some embodiments, B (B is executed independently of A); in some embodiments, execution is selected from A and B (A and B are selectively executed); and in some embodiments, A and B (both A and B are executed). The above is also applicable when there are more branches such as A, B, and C.

[0118] In some embodiments, "A or B" and other descriptions may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: in some embodiments, A (A is executed independently of B); in some embodiments, B (B is executed independently of A); in some embodiments, execution is selected from A and B (A and B are selectively executed). The above is also applicable when there are more branches such as A, B, C, etc.

[0119] The prefixes such as "first" and "second" in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only used to distinguish different description objects and do not constitute any restriction on the position, order, priority, quantity or content of the description objects. For the statement of the description object, please refer to the description in the context of the claims or embodiments, and no unnecessary restriction should be constituted due to the use of prefixes. For example, if the description object is a "field", the ordinal number before the "field" in the "first field" and the "second field" does not limit the position or order between the "fields". "First" and "second" do not limit whether the "fields" they modify are in the same message, nor do they limit the order of the "first field" and the "second field". For another example, if the description object is a "level", the ordinal number before the "level" in the "first level" and the "second level" does not limit the priority between the "levels". For another example, the number of description objects is not limited by the ordinal number and can be one or more. Taking "first device" as an example, the number of "devices" can be one or more. In addition, the objects modified by different prefixes can be the same or different. For example, if the description object is "device", then the "first device" and the "second device" can be the same device or different devices, and their types can be the same or different; for another example, if the description object is "information", then the "first information" and the "second information" can be the same information or different information, and their contents can be the same or different.

[0120] In some embodiments, “including A,” “comprising A,” “used to indicate A,” and “carrying A” can be interpreted as directly carrying A or indirectly indicating A.

[0121] In some embodiments, terms such as "in response to...", "in response to determining...", "in the case of...", "at the time of...", "when...", "if...", "if...", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0122] In some embodiments, terms such as "greater than", "greater than or equal to", "not less than", "more than", "more than or equal to", "not less than", "higher than", "higher than or equal to", "not less than", and "above" can be replaced with each other, and terms such as "less than", "less than or equal to", "not greater than", "less than", "less than or equal to", "not more than", "lower than", "lower than or equal to", "not higher than", and "below" can be replaced with each other.

[0123] In some embodiments, obtaining data, information, etc. may comply with the laws and regulations of the country where the data is obtained.

[0124] In some embodiments, data, information, etc. may be obtained with the user's consent.

[0125] In addition, each element, each row, or each column in the table of the embodiment of the present disclosure can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the combination of any elements, any rows, and any columns can also be implemented as an independent embodiment.

[0126] FIG1 is a schematic diagram showing the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0127] As shown in FIG1 , a communication system 100 includes a first access point (AP) device 101 and a second AP 102 .

[0128] In some embodiments, the first AP 101 and the second AP 102 can be access points for mobile terminals to access a wired network. The AP acts as a bridge between a wired network and a wireless network. Its primary function is to connect various wireless network clients together and then connect the wireless network to the Ethernet. Specifically, the first AP 101 and the second AP 102 can be terminal devices or network devices equipped with wireless fidelity chips. Optionally, the first AP 101 and the second AP 102 can support multiple WLAN standards such as 802.11ax, 802.11be, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, and 802.11a, as well as support the next generation 802.11 protocol, but are not limited thereto.

[0129] In some embodiments, the first AP 101 and the second AP 102 can communicate with each other or with their respective associated stations (STAs). The STA can be a device including a wireless communication chip supporting WiFi communication capabilities, a wireless sensor, or a wireless communication terminal. Optionally, the wireless communication terminal can be, for example, at least one of a mobile phone, a wearable device, an IoT device supporting WiFi communication capabilities, a car with WiFi communication capabilities, a smart car, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device used in industrial control, a wireless terminal device used in self-driving, a wireless terminal device used in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal device used in smart grids, a wireless terminal device used in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device used in smart cities, and a wireless terminal device used in smart homes, but is not limited thereto.

[0130] Specifically, a STA can be a terminal device or network device with a Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) chip. Optionally, the STA can support multiple WLAN standards such as 802.11ax, 802.11be, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, and 802.11a, as well as the next generation 802.11 protocol, but is not limited thereto.

[0131] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the AP and STA may be devices supporting multiple connections, for example, they may be respectively represented as an access point device supporting multiple connections (Access Point Multi-Link Device, AP MLD) and a site device supporting multiple connections (Non-Access Point Multi-Link Device, Non-AP MLD); AP MLD may represent an access point supporting multiple connection communication functions, and non-AP MLD may represent a site supporting multiple connection communication functions.

[0132] It can be understood that the communication system described in the embodiment of the present disclosure is for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present disclosure, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure. Ordinary technicians in this field can know that with the evolution of the system architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure is also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0133] The following embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to the communication system 100 shown in FIG1 , or a portion thereof, but are not limited thereto. The entities shown in FIG1 are illustrative only. The communication system may include all or part of the entities shown in FIG1 , or may include other entities outside of FIG1 . The number and form of the entities are arbitrary, and the entities may be physical or virtual. The connection relationships between the entities are illustrative only. The entities may be connected or disconnected, and the connection may be in any manner, including direct or indirect, wired or wireless.

[0134] The various embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to wireless local area networks (WLANs), such as IEEE 802.11 system standards, such as 802.11a / b / g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax, or their successors, such as 802.11be, also known as Wi-Fi 7 or the extremely high throughput (EHT) standard, or even later generations. Alternatively, the various embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to wireless local area network systems such as Internet of Things (IoT) networks or Vehicle to X (V2X) networks. Of course, the embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to other possible communication systems, such as long term evolution (LTE) system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD) system, universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), world-wide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, and future fifth generation (5G) communication system.

[0135] The existing 802.11 protocol mainly focuses on how to achieve higher throughput, higher speed, and higher access efficiency within a single Basic Service Set (BSS) or a single AP. There is little research on coordinated transmission between multiple BSSs or multiple APs. With the increase in frequency bands supported by Wi-Fi devices, the trend of higher frequencies, and the diversification of communication services, WLAN equipment deployment is becoming increasingly dense. The increasingly dense APs bring more interference between cells and increase the risk of access conflicts. To further improve user service quality and overall network performance, the next-generation Wi-Fi standard research group UHR is pursuing improvements in communication speed, communication latency, and reliability within a single BSS, while also focusing on coordination between multiple APs. Through collaborative cooperation between multiple APs, communication resources can be more reasonably allocated, ensuring communication quality while improving access efficiency and achieving better network performance.

[0136] In a WLAN, the BSS is a fundamental component. A BSS network consists of associated devices within a specific coverage area. One type of association involves STAs communicating directly with each other within an ad hoc network, known as an Independent Basic Service Set (IBSS). A more common scenario involves a BSS network with a single central station, called an AP, dedicated to managing the BSS. The BSS network includes at least one STA associated with the AP.

[0137] The basic concept of multi-AP coordination is that APs with coordination capabilities can coordinate with neighboring APs (supporting multi-AP coordination) through cooperative transmission mode to achieve time-frequency resource sharing, spatial reuse, or joint transmission, thereby reducing inter-cell interference, ensuring user service quality, improving network communication speeds, and reducing latency. On the other hand, multi-AP coordination is based on the AP's own willingness, and not all APs are willing to be coordinated. For example, people do not want their AP to be controlled or coordinated by a neighboring AP.

[0138] Multi-AP coordinated transmission has attracted much attention, but how to discover APs with multi-AP coordination capabilities, how to establish multi-AP coordinated transmission, and how to manage multi-AP coordinated transmission remain unclear. Therefore, a standardized multi-AP coordinated transmission method and process are needed.

[0139] The following will further describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure in a clear and complete manner with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the embodiments described are only part of the embodiments of the present disclosure and do not constitute all the embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by persons of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present disclosure without creative effort shall fall within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0140] FIG2 is an interactive diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG2 , the method includes:

[0141] In step S21 , a first AP sends a first radio frame to a second AP. The first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through at least one indication field.

[0142] In some embodiments, the first AP may send a first wireless frame to neighboring APs in a broadcasting manner, and the first AP may inform the neighboring APs of the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through the first wireless frame.

[0143] Optionally, the second AP is a neighbor AP of the first AP.

[0144] In some embodiments, the first radio frame may jointly indicate the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through the first indication field and the second indication field.

[0145] Optionally, the first indication field includes at least one bit, and the first indication field may be an identification bit for supporting multi-AP coordination operation mode 1 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 1).

[0146] Optionally, the second indication field includes at least one bit, and the second indication field may be an identification bit for supporting multi-AP coordination operation mode 2 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 2).

[0147] Optionally, the first wireless frame may be a beacon frame.

[0148] In some embodiments, when the identification value of the first indication field is a first value and the identification value of the second indication field is a second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and does not support being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0149] Alternatively, when the identification value of the first indication field is the first value and the second indication field is empty, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and does not support being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0150] That is, at this time, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs, but does not allow other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0151] When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0152] Alternatively, when the first indication field is empty and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0153] That is, at this time, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs, but allows other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0154] When the identification value of the first indication field is the first value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and supporting being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0155] That is, at this time, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and allows other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0156] When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation, that is, to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination of other APs and does not allow other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0157] The first value and the second value are different values. For example, the first value may be 1 and the second value may be 0, which is not limited here.

[0158] In some embodiments, the first radio frame includes an ultra-high reliability medium access control capabilities (UHR MAC Capabilities) field, and the ultra-high reliability medium access control capabilities (UHR MAC Capabilities) field includes a first indication field and a second indication field.

[0159] As an example, the first wireless frame includes an ultra-high reliability media access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field, and the ultra-high reliability media access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field includes a flag for supporting multi-AP coordination operation mode 1 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 1) and a flag for supporting multi-AP coordination operation mode 2 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 2).

[0160] In some embodiments, the first wireless frame includes an ultra-high reliability capability element (UHR Capabilities element) field, the ultra-high reliability capability element (UHR Capabilities element) field includes an ultra-high reliability medium access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field, and the ultra-high reliability medium access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field includes a first indication field and a second indication field.

[0161] As an example, the first wireless frame includes an ultra-high reliability capability element (UHR Capabilities element) field, the ultra-high reliability capability element (UHR Capabilities element) field includes an ultra-high reliability medium access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field, and the ultra-high reliability medium access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field includes a support for multi-AP coordination operation mode 1 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 1) identification bit and a support for multi-AP coordination operation mode 2 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 2) identification bit.

[0162] In some embodiments, the first radio frame may indicate the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through a third indication field.

[0163] Optionally, when the identification value of the third indication field is the third value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation; when the identification value of the third indication field is the fourth value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0164] The third value and the fourth value are different values. For example, the third value may be 1 and the fourth value may be 0, which is not limited here.

[0165] Optionally, the third indication field includes at least one bit.

[0166] Optionally, the third indication field may be a multi-AP coordinated operation support flag.

[0167] In some embodiments, when the first radio frame includes a third indication field and the identification value of the third indication field is the first value, that is, when the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation, the first radio frame also includes a fourth indication field.

[0168] Optionally, the fourth indication field includes at least one bit.

[0169] Optionally, when the first radio frame includes the third indication field and the identification value of the third indication field is the second value, that is, when the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation, the first radio frame does not include the fourth indication field.

[0170] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is not the fifth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and does not support being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0171] That is, at this time, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs, but does not allow other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0172] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the sixth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0173] That is, at this time, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs, but allows other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0174] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the seventh value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0175] That is, at this time, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and allows other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0176] Among them, the fifth value, the sixth value and the seventh value are different values, such as the fifth value, the sixth value and the seventh value can be 1, 2, and 3 respectively, and there is no limitation here.

[0177] In some embodiments, the first radio frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field includes a third indication field.

[0178] Optionally, the third indication field may be a multi-AP coordination support (M-AP Coordination Support) flag.

[0179] As an example, the first radio frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation support (M-AP Coordination Support) identification bit.

[0180] In some embodiments, the first wireless frame includes an AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field includes a third indication field.

[0181] Optionally, the third indication field may be a multi-AP coordination support (M-AP Coordination Support) flag.

[0182] As an example, the first wireless frame includes an AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation support (M-AP Coordination Support) identification bit.

[0183] In some embodiments, the first radio frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field includes a fourth indication field.

[0184] Optionally, the fourth indication field may be any information field or at least one bit in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set). For example, the fourth indication field may be the multi-AP coordination operation capability (M-AP Coordination Capabilities) field in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field.

[0185] In some embodiments, the first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation capability (M-AP Coordination Capabilities) field in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field is a fourth indication field.

[0186] Step S22: The second AP sends a second radio frame to the third AP, where the second radio frame is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request to the third AP.

[0187] In some embodiments, the second AP may receive a first radio frame sent by at least one AP, and determine, based on the first radio frame, the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of each AP that sends the first radio frame.

[0188] Furthermore, the second AP may send a second wireless frame to the neighboring AP according to the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the second AP and the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the neighboring AP, so as to initiate a multi-AP coordination request to the neighboring AP.

[0189] Optionally, the third AP is a neighbor AP of the second AP.

[0190] Optionally, the third AP may be the first AP.

[0191] Optionally, when the second AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation and supports coordination of other APs, the second AP may send a second radio frame to a third AP that supports multi-AP coordinated operation and supports being coordinated by other APs. The second radio frame is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request to the third AP, and at this time, the multi-AP coordination request is used to request the third AP that receives the second radio frame to participate in multi-AP coordination and request coordination of the third AP.

[0192] Optionally, when the second AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation and supports other APs to coordinate the second AP, the second AP may send a second radio frame to a third AP that supports multi-AP coordinated operation and supports coordination of other APs. The second radio frame is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request to the third AP, and in this case, the multi-AP coordination request is used to request the second AP that sends the second radio frame to participate in the multi-AP coordination and to request the third AP that receives the second radio frame to coordinate the second AP.

[0193] In some embodiments, the second wireless frame includes a fifth indication field, and when the identification value of the fifth indication field is an eighth value, the second wireless frame is used to request the third AP to participate in multi-AP coordination and coordinate the third AP; when the identification value of the fifth indication field is a ninth value, the second wireless frame is used to request the second AP to participate in multi-AP coordination and request the third AP to coordinate the second AP.

[0194] The eighth value and the ninth value are different values. For example, the eighth value may be 0 and the ninth value may be 1, and there is no limitation here.

[0195] In some embodiments, the second radio frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field includes a fifth indication field.

[0196] The fifth indication field may be any information field or at least one bit of the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field.

[0197] Optionally, the second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) domain, the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) domain includes a coordination request type (Coordination Request Type) subdomain, and the coordination request type (Coordination Request Type) subdomain is the fifth indication domain.

[0198] In some embodiments, the second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the coordination request type subfield in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field is a fifth indication field.

[0199] In some embodiments, the second radio frame further includes a sixth indication field, the sixth indication field is used to indicate a first time interval for receiving a third radio frame, and the third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance or rejection of a multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second radio frame.

[0200] The third radio frame is sent by the third AP and is used to respond to the second radio frame, specifically to indicate acceptance or rejection of the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second radio frame.

[0201] The first time interval is a time interval in which the second AP expects the third AP to return a third wireless frame.

[0202] Optionally, the sixth indication field may include at least one bit.

[0203] As an example, the sixth indication field may be a coordination request timeout subfield.

[0204] Optionally, the second radio frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field includes a sixth indication field.

[0205] The sixth indication field may be any information field or at least one bit of the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field.

[0206] Optionally, the second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) domain, the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) domain includes a coordination request timeout (Coordination Request Timeout) subfield, and the coordination request timeout (Coordination Request Timeout) subfield is the sixth indication domain.

[0207] In some embodiments, the second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the coordination request timeout (Coordination Request Timeout) subfield in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field is the sixth indication field.

[0208] Step S23: The second AP determines whether a third radio frame is received within the first time, where the third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance or rejection of the multi-AP coordination request.

[0209] After sending the second radio frame, the second AP may determine whether a third radio frame sent by the third AP and used to respond to the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second radio frame is received within the first time interval.

[0210] The third AP is an AP that receives the second wireless frame.

[0211] The third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance or rejection of the multi-AP coordination request.

[0212] The third radio frame may indicate acceptance or rejection of the multi-AP coordination request through the seventh indication field.

[0213] As an example, when the identification value of the seventh indication field is the tenth value, the third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance of the multi-AP coordination request; when the identification value of the seventh indication field is the eleventh value, the third radio frame is used to indicate rejection of the multi-AP coordination request.

[0214] The tenth value and the eleventh value may be different values, for example, the tenth value may be 1 and the eleventh value may be 0, and there is no limitation here.

[0215] Optionally, the third wireless frame may be a beacon frame.

[0216] Optionally, the seventh indication field may be any information field or at least one bit in the third radio frame.

[0217] If the second AP determines that the third wireless frame is not received within the first time interval, step S24 is executed. If the second AP determines that the third wireless frame is received within the first time interval, step S25 is executed.

[0218] In step S24, the second AP does not perform multi-AP coordination operation with the third AP.

[0219] Step S25: The second AP determines whether the third AP accepts the multi-AP coordination request.

[0220] In some embodiments, if the second AP determines according to the third radio frame that the third AP rejects the multi-AP coordination request, that is, determines that the third radio frame is used to indicate rejection of the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second AP, the second AP executes step S24.

[0221] In some embodiments, if the second AP determines according to the third wireless frame that the third AP accepts the multi-AP coordination request, that is, determines that the third wireless frame is used to indicate acceptance of the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second AP, the second AP executes step S26.

[0222] Step S26: The second AP and the third AP perform multi-AP coordination operation.

[0223] The communication method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of the aforementioned steps and embodiments. For example, any one of step S21 or step S22 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and steps S22 to S26 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0224] FIG3 is a flow chart of a communication method performed by a first AP according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5 , the method includes:

[0225] Step S31: determining a radio frame, wherein a first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first AP through at least one indication field.

[0226] In some embodiments, the first radio frame may jointly indicate the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through the first indication field and the second indication field.

[0227] Optionally, the first indication field includes at least one bit, and the first indication field may be an identification bit for supporting multi-AP coordination operation mode 1 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 1).

[0228] Optionally, the second indication field includes at least one bit, and the second indication field may be an identification bit for supporting multi-AP coordination operation mode 2 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 2).

[0229] Optionally, the first wireless frame may be a beacon frame.

[0230] In some embodiments, when the identification value of the first indication field is a first value and the identification value of the second indication field is a second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and does not support being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0231] Alternatively, when the identification value of the first indication field is the first value and the second indication field is empty, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and does not support being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0232] That is, at this time, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs, but does not allow other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0233] When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0234] Alternatively, when the first indication field is empty and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0235] That is, at this time, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs, but allows other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0236] When the identification value of the first indication field is the first value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and supporting being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0237] That is, at this time, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and allows other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0238] When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation, that is, to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination of other APs and does not allow other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0239] The first value and the second value are different values. For example, the first value may be 1 and the second value may be 0, which is not limited here.

[0240] In some embodiments, the first radio frame includes an ultra-high reliability medium access control capabilities (UHR MAC Capabilities) field, and the ultra-high reliability medium access control capabilities (UHR MAC Capabilities) field includes a first indication field and a second indication field.

[0241] As an example, the first wireless frame includes an ultra-high reliability media access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field, and the ultra-high reliability media access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field includes a flag for supporting multi-AP coordination operation mode 1 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 1) and a flag for supporting multi-AP coordination operation mode 2 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 2).

[0242] In some embodiments, the first wireless frame includes an ultra-high reliability capability element (UHR Capabilities element) field, the ultra-high reliability capability element (UHR Capabilities element) field includes an ultra-high reliability medium access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field, and the ultra-high reliability medium access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field includes a first indication field and a second indication field.

[0243] As an example, the first wireless frame includes an ultra-high reliability capability element (UHR Capabilities element) field, the ultra-high reliability capability element (UHR Capabilities element) field includes an ultra-high reliability medium access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field, and the ultra-high reliability medium access control capability (UHR MAC Capabilities) field includes a support for multi-AP coordination operation mode 1 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 1) identification bit and a support for multi-AP coordination operation mode 2 (M-AP Coordination Operation Mode 2) identification bit.

[0244] In some embodiments, the first radio frame may indicate the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through a third indication field.

[0245] Optionally, when the identification value of the third indication field is the third value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation; when the identification value of the third indication field is the fourth value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0246] The third value and the fourth value are different values. For example, the third value may be 1 and the fourth value may be 0, which is not limited here.

[0247] Optionally, the third indication field includes at least one bit.

[0248] Optionally, the third indication field may be a multi-AP coordinated operation support flag.

[0249] In some embodiments, when the first radio frame includes a third indication field and the identification value of the third indication field is the first value, that is, when the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation, the first radio frame also includes a fourth indication field.

[0250] Optionally, the fourth indication field includes at least one bit.

[0251] Optionally, when the first radio frame includes the third indication field and the identification value of the third indication field is the second value, that is, when the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation, the first radio frame does not include the fourth indication field.

[0252] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is not the fifth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and does not support being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0253] That is, at this time, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs, but does not allow other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0254] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the sixth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0255] That is, at this time, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs, but allows other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0256] When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the seventh value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs when supporting multi-AP coordinated operation.

[0257] That is, at this time, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs and allows other APs to coordinate with the first AP.

[0258] Among them, the fifth value, the sixth value and the seventh value are different values, such as the fifth value, the sixth value and the seventh value can be 1, 2, and 3 respectively, and there is no limitation here.

[0259] In some embodiments, the first radio frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field includes a third indication field.

[0260] Optionally, the third indication field may be a multi-AP coordination support (M-AP Coordination Support) flag.

[0261] As an example, the first radio frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation support (M-AP Coordination Support) identification bit.

[0262] In some embodiments, the first wireless frame includes an AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field includes a third indication field.

[0263] Optionally, the third indication field may be a multi-AP coordination support (M-AP Coordination Support) flag.

[0264] As an example, the first wireless frame includes an AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation control (M-AP Coordination Operation Control) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation support (M-AP Coordination Support) identification bit.

[0265] In some embodiments, the first radio frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field includes a fourth indication field.

[0266] Optionally, the fourth indication field may be any information field or at least one bit in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set). For example, the fourth indication field may be the multi-AP coordination operation capability (M-AP Coordination Capabilities) field in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field.

[0267] In some embodiments, the first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation capability (M-AP Coordination Capabilities) field in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field is a fourth indication field.

[0268] Step S32: Send a first wireless frame.

[0269] In some embodiments, the first AP may send a first wireless frame to neighboring APs in a broadcasting manner, and the first AP may inform the neighboring APs of the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through the first wireless frame.

[0270] Optionally, the first AP may send a first wireless frame to a certain AP during communication with the AP, so as to inform the AP of the multi-AP cooperative operation capability of the first AP.

[0271] FIG4 is a flow chart of a communication method performed by a second AP according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG4 , the method includes:

[0272] Step S41: Receive a first radio frame, where the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first AP through at least one indication field.

[0273] In some embodiments, the first radio frame is sent by the first AP and is used to indicate the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through at least one indication field.

[0274] For the relevant content of the first wireless frame, please refer to the relevant description of step S31 in Figure 3, which will not be repeated here.

[0275] In some embodiments, the second AP may be a neighbor AP of the first AP. The first AP may send the first wireless frame to its neighbor AP by broadcasting. The second AP, as a neighbor AP of the first AP, may receive the first wireless frame broadcast by the first AP.

[0276] Optionally, the second AP may receive the first wireless frame sent to it by the first AP during the process of communicating with the first AP.

[0277] Step S42: Send a second wireless frame, which is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request.

[0278] In some embodiments, the second AP may send a second radio frame to the neighboring AP, where the second radio frame is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request.

[0279] The AP that receives the second radio frame is the third AP, that is, the second AP may initiate a multi-AP coordination request to the third AP that receives the second radio frame through the second radio frame.

[0280] The second AP may send the second wireless frame to the neighboring AP according to the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the neighboring AP and the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the second AP.

[0281] The second AP may determine the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the neighboring AP based on the first wireless frame sent by the neighboring AP, or may determine it in other ways, such as based on pre-configured information of the neighboring AP, which is not limited here.

[0282] Optionally, when the second AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation and supports coordination of other APs, the second AP may send a second radio frame to a third AP that supports multi-AP coordinated operation and supports being coordinated by other APs. The second radio frame is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request to the third AP, and at this time, the multi-AP coordination request is used to request the third AP that receives the second radio frame to participate in multi-AP coordination and request coordination of the third AP.

[0283] Optionally, when the second AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation and supports other APs to coordinate the second AP, the second AP may send a second radio frame to a third AP that supports multi-AP coordinated operation and supports coordination of other APs. The second radio frame is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request to the third AP, and in this case, the multi-AP coordination request is used to request the second AP that sends the second radio frame to participate in the multi-AP coordination and to request the third AP that receives the second radio frame to coordinate the second AP.

[0284] In some embodiments, the second wireless frame includes a fifth indication field, and when the identification value of the fifth indication field is an eighth value, the second wireless frame is used to request the third AP to participate in multi-AP coordination and coordinate the third AP; when the identification value of the fifth indication field is a ninth value, the second wireless frame is used to request the second AP to participate in multi-AP coordination and request the third AP to coordinate the second AP.

[0285] The eighth value and the ninth value are different values. For example, the eighth value may be 0 and the ninth value may be 1, and there is no limitation here.

[0286] In some embodiments, the second radio frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field includes a fifth indication field.

[0287] The fifth indication field may be any information field or at least one bit of the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field.

[0288] Optionally, the second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) domain, the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) domain includes a coordination request type (Coordination Request Type) subdomain, and the coordination request type (Coordination Request Type) subdomain is the fifth indication domain.

[0289] In some embodiments, the second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the coordination request type subfield in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field is a fifth indication field.

[0290] In some embodiments, the second radio frame further includes a sixth indication field, the sixth indication field is used to indicate a first time interval for receiving a third radio frame, and the third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance or rejection of a multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second radio frame.

[0291] The third radio frame is sent by the third AP and is used to respond to the second radio frame, specifically to indicate acceptance or rejection of the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second radio frame.

[0292] The first time interval is a time interval during which the second AP expects to receive the second radio frame and the third AP returns the third radio frame.

[0293] Optionally, the sixth indication field may include at least one bit.

[0294] As an example, the sixth indication field may be a coordination request timeout subfield.

[0295] Optionally, the second radio frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field includes a sixth indication field.

[0296] The sixth indication field may be any information field or at least one bit of the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field.

[0297] Optionally, the second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) domain, the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) domain includes a coordination request timeout (Coordination Request Timeout) subfield, and the coordination request timeout (Coordination Request Timeout) subfield is the sixth indication domain.

[0298] In some embodiments, the second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field, the multi-AP coordination operation element (M-AP Coordination Operation element) field includes a multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field, and the coordination request timeout (Coordination Request Timeout) subfield in the multi-AP coordination operation parameter set (M-AP Coordination Operation Parameter Set) field is the sixth indication field.

[0299] In some embodiments, the second radio frame may be a beacon frame.

[0300] Step S43, when a third wireless frame sent by a third AP is received within the first time interval and the third wireless frame is used to indicate acceptance of the multi-AP coordination request, multi-AP coordination operation is performed with the third AP; when a third wireless frame sent by the third AP is not received within the first time interval, or a third wireless frame sent by the third AP is received within the first time interval and the third wireless frame is used to indicate rejection of the multi-AP coordination request, multi-AP coordination operation is not performed with the third AP.

[0301] In some embodiments, after sending the second radio frame, the second AP may determine whether a third radio frame sent by the third AP is received within the first time.

[0302] The third AP is an AP that receives the second radio frame. The third radio frame is used to respond to the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second radio frame, and is specifically used to indicate acceptance or rejection of the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second AP.

[0303] The third radio frame may indicate acceptance or rejection of the multi-AP coordination request through the seventh indication field.

[0304] As an example, when the identification value of the seventh indication field is the tenth value, the third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance of the multi-AP coordination request; when the identification value of the seventh indication field is the eleventh value, the third radio frame is used to indicate rejection of the multi-AP coordination request.

[0305] The tenth value and the eleventh value may be different values, for example, the tenth value may be 1 and the eleventh value may be 0, and there is no limitation here.

[0306] Optionally, the third wireless frame may be a beacon frame.

[0307] Optionally, the seventh indication field may be any information field or at least one bit in the third radio frame.

[0308] If the second AP determines that it has not received the third wireless frame sent by the third AP within the first time interval, it will not perform multi-AP coordination operation with the third AP. If the second AP determines that it has received the third wireless frame sent by the third AP within the first time interval, it will determine whether the third AP accepts the multi-AP coordination request.

[0309] In some embodiments, if the second AP determines that the third AP rejects the multi-AP coordination request based on the third radio frame, that is, determines that the third radio frame is used to indicate rejection of the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second AP, the second AP does not perform multi-AP coordination operation with the third AP.

[0310] In some embodiments, if the second AP determines according to the third radio frame that the third AP accepts the multi-AP coordination request, that is, determines that the third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance of the multi-AP coordination request initiated by the second AP, the second AP performs multi-AP coordination operation with the third AP.

[0311] The communication method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of the aforementioned steps and embodiments. For example, step S41 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, or steps S42-S43 may be implemented as independent embodiments, but are not limited thereto.

[0312] The communication method provided in the present disclosure can establish collaborative operations between multiple APs, providing a basis for achieving reasonable allocation of resources between multiple APs and improving spectrum utilization efficiency and network performance.

[0313] FIG5a is a schematic diagram of the structure of an AP according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5a , the AP 510 may include at least one of a processing module 5101 and a transceiver module 5102 .

[0314] In some embodiments, the processing module 5101 is configured to determine a first wireless frame, wherein the first wireless frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through at least one indication field; and the transceiver module 5102 is configured to send the first wireless frame.

[0315] Optionally, the processing module 5101 is configured to execute at least one of the steps (e.g., step S31, but not limited thereto) performed by the first AP in any of the above methods, which are not described in detail here. The transceiver module 5102 is configured to execute at least one of the communication steps (e.g., step S21, step S32, but not limited thereto) performed by the first AP in any of the above methods, which are not described in detail here.

[0316] FIG5 b is a second schematic diagram of the structure of an AP proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5 b , the AP 520 may include at least one of a transceiver module 5201 and the like.

[0317] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 5202 is configured to receive a first radio frame, where the first radio frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through at least one indication field.

[0318] Optionally, the transceiver module 5202 is used to execute at least one of the communication steps (eg, step S22, step S42-step S43, but not limited thereto) performed by the second AP in any of the above methods, which will not be described in detail here.

[0319] Optionally, AP520 may further include a processing module 5202, which is used to execute at least one of the steps (such as steps S23-S26, steps S42-S43, but not limited thereto) performed by the second AP in any of the above methods, which will not be repeated here.

[0320] It should be understood that the division of the above units or modules is merely a division of logical functions. In actual implementation, they may be fully or partially integrated into a single physical entity, or they may be physically separated. In addition, the units or modules may be implemented in the form of a processor calling software: for example, including a processor connected to a memory, the memory storing instructions, and the processor calling the instructions stored in the memory to implement any of the above methods or the functions of the above units or modules, where the processor is, for example, a general-purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a microprocessor, and the memory is a memory inside or outside the device. Alternatively, the units or modules in the device can be implemented in the form of hardware circuits, and the functions of some or all of the units or modules can be realized by designing the hardware circuits. The above-mentioned hardware circuits can be understood as one or more processors; for example, in one implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and the functions of some or all of the above units or modules are realized by designing the logical relationship of the components in the circuit; for example, in another implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit can be realized by a programmable logic device (PLD). Taking a field programmable gate array (FPGA) as an example, it can include a large number of logic gate circuits, and the connection relationship between the logic gate circuits is configured by configuring the configuration file, thereby realizing the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. All units or modules of the above devices can be realized in the form of software called by the processor, or in the form of hardware circuits, or in part by the form of software called by the processor, and the remaining part by the form of hardware circuits.

[0321] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capability. In one implementation, the processor can be a circuit with instruction reading and execution capability, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a graphics processing unit (GPU) (which can be understood as a microprocessor), or a digital signal processor (DSP); in another implementation, the processor can implement certain functions through the logical relationship of the hardware circuit, and the logical relationship of the above hardware circuit is fixed or reconfigurable, such as a hardware circuit implemented by a processor as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a programmable logic device (PLD), such as an FPGA. In a reconfigurable hardware circuit, the process of the processor loading a configuration document and implementing the hardware circuit configuration can be understood as the process of the processor loading instructions to implement the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. In addition, it can also be a hardware circuit designed for artificial intelligence, which can be understood as an ASIC, such as a neural network processing unit (NPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), a deep learning processing unit (DPU), etc.

[0322] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Communication device 600 can be a first AP or a second AP, or can be a chip, chip system, or processor that supports the first AP or the second AP in implementing any of the above methods. The communication device can be used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments. For details, please refer to the description of the above method embodiments.

[0323] As shown in Figure 6, the communication device 600 includes one or more processors 601. Processor 601 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, for example, a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit can be used to control the communication device (such as a base station, baseband chip, terminal device, terminal device chip, DU or CU, etc.), execute programs, and process program data. The communication device 600 is used to perform any of the above methods.

[0324] In some embodiments, the communication device 600 further includes one or more memories 602 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memory 602 may be outside the communication device 600.

[0325] In some embodiments, the communication device 600 further includes one or more transceivers 603. When the communication device 600 includes one or more transceivers 603, the transceiver 603 performs at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving in the above method (for example, steps S21-S22, step S32, and step S41-S42, but not limited thereto), and the processor 601 performs at least one of the other steps (for example, steps S23-S26, step S31, step S43, etc., but not limited thereto).

[0326] In some embodiments, a transceiver may include a receiver and / or a transmitter. The receiver and transmitter may be separate or integrated. Optionally, the terms transceiver, transceiver unit, transceiver, and transceiver circuit may be used interchangeably; the terms transmitter, transmitting unit, transmitter, and transmitting circuit may be used interchangeably; and the terms receiver, receiving unit, receiver, and receiving circuit may be used interchangeably.

[0327] In some embodiments, the communication device 600 may include one or more interface circuits 604. Optionally, the interface circuit 604 is connected to the memory 602. The interface circuit 604 may be configured to receive signals from the memory 602 or other devices, and may be configured to send signals to the memory 602 or other devices. For example, the interface circuit 604 may read instructions stored in the memory 602 and send the instructions to the processor 601.

[0328] The communication device 600 described in the above embodiment may be a first AP or a second AP, but the scope of the communication device 600 described in the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 600 may not be limited by FIG. 6 . The communication device may be an independent device or may be part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be: 1) an independent integrated circuit IC, or a chip, or a chip system or subsystem; (2) a collection of one or more ICs, optionally, the above IC collection may also include a storage component for storing data or programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a modem; (4) a module that can be embedded in other devices; (5) a receiver, a terminal device, an intelligent terminal device, a cellular phone, a wireless device, a handheld device, a mobile unit, an in-vehicle device, a network device, a cloud device, an artificial intelligence device, etc.; (6) others, etc.

[0329] 7 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip 700 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The chip 700 includes one or more processors 701, and the chip 700 is configured to execute any of the above methods.

[0330] In some embodiments, chip 700 further includes one or more interface circuits 703. Optionally, interface circuit 703 is connected to memory 702. Interface circuit 703 can be used to receive signals from memory 702 or other devices, and interface circuit 703 can be used to send signals to memory 702 or other devices. For example, interface circuit 703 can read instructions stored in memory 702 and send the instructions to processor 701.

[0331] In some embodiments, the interface circuit 703 performs at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving in the above method (for example, step S21-step S22, step S32, step S41-step S42, but not limited to these), and the processor 701 performs at least one of the other steps (for example, step S23-step S26, step S31, step S43, etc., but not limited to these).

[0332] In some embodiments, terms such as interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, and transceiver may be used interchangeably.

[0333] In some embodiments, the chip 700 further includes one or more memories 702 for storing instructions. Alternatively, all or part of the memory 702 may be external to the chip 700.

[0334] The present disclosure also provides a storage medium having instructions stored thereon. When the instructions are executed on the communication device 600, the communication device 600 executes any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, but is not limited thereto and may also be a storage medium readable by other devices. Optionally, the storage medium may be a non-transitory storage medium, but is not limited thereto and may also be a transient storage medium.

[0335] The present disclosure also provides a program product, which, when executed by the communication device 600, enables the communication device 600 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the program product is a computer program product.

[0336] The present disclosure also proposes a computer program, which, when run on a computer, enables the computer to execute any of the above methods. The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure and an explanation of the technical principles used. Those skilled in the art should understand that the scope of disclosure involved in the present disclosure is not limited to the technical solutions formed by a specific combination of the above-mentioned technical features, but should also cover other technical solutions formed by any combination of the above-mentioned technical features or their equivalent features without departing from the above-mentioned disclosed concepts. For example, the above-mentioned features are replaced with the technical features with similar functions disclosed in the present disclosure (but not limited to) and the technical solutions formed.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Determine a first wireless frame, wherein the first wireless frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field; The first radio frame is sent.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The first radio frame jointly indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through the first indication field and the second indication field, or the first radio frame indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through the third indication field.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that When the identification value of the first indication field is a first value and the identification value of the second indication field is a second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs but does not support being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the first indication field is the first value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs but supports being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first radio frame includes an ultra-high reliability capability element field, the ultra-high reliability capability element field includes an ultra-high reliability medium access control capability field, and the ultra-high reliability medium access control capability field includes the first indication field and the second indication field.

5. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that: When the identification value of the third indication field is a third value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation; When the identification value of the third indication field is the fourth value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that When the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation, the first wireless frame further includes a fourth indication field; When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the fifth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs but does not support being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the sixth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs but supports being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the seventh value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordinating with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs.

7. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation control field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation control field includes the third indication field.

8. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation capability field in the multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field is the fourth indication field.

9. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: A first wireless frame is received, where the first wireless frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The first radio frame jointly indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through the first indication field and the second indication field, or the first radio frame indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first AP through the third indication field.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that When the identification value of the first indication field is a first value and the identification value of the second indication field is a second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs but does not support being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the first indication field is the first value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP supports coordinating other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the first value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs but supports being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the first indication field is the second value and the identification value of the second indication field is the second value, the first indication field and the second indication field are used to jointly indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

12. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The first radio frame includes an ultra-high reliability capability element field, the ultra-high reliability capability element field includes an ultra-high reliability medium access control capability field, and the ultra-high reliability medium access control capability field includes the first indication field and the second indication field.

13. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that When the identification value of the third indication field is a third value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation; When the identification value of the third indication field is the fourth value, the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support multi-AP coordinated operation.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that When the third indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports multi-AP coordinated operation, the first wireless frame further includes a fourth indication field; When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the fifth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordination with other APs but does not support being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the sixth value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP does not support coordination with other APs but supports being coordinated by other APs; When the identification value of the fourth indication field is the seventh value, the fourth indication field is used to indicate that the first AP supports coordinating with other APs and supports being coordinated by other APs.

15. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation control field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation control field includes the third indication field.

16. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that The first wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field, and the multi-AP coordinated operation capability field in the multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field is the fourth indication field.

17. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The method further comprises: Determine a second wireless frame, where the second wireless frame is used to initiate a multi-AP coordination request; sending the second wireless frame; The multi-AP coordination request is used to request a third AP that receives the second wireless frame to participate in multi-AP coordination and coordinate the third AP, or the multi-AP coordination request is used to request the second AP that sends the second wireless frame to participate in multi-AP coordination and request the third AP that receives the second wireless frame to coordinate the second AP.

18. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that The second wireless frame includes a fifth indication field. When the identification value of the fifth indication field is an eighth value, the second wireless frame is used to request the third AP to participate in multi-AP coordination and to coordinate the third AP; when the identification value of the fifth indication field is a ninth value, the second wireless frame is used to request the second AP to participate in multi-AP coordination and to request the third AP to coordinate the second AP.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that The second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field, the multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field includes a coordination request type subfield, and the coordination request type subfield is the fifth indication field.

20. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that The second radio frame further includes a sixth indication field, where the sixth indication field is used to indicate a first time interval for receiving a third radio frame, where the third radio frame is used to indicate acceptance or rejection of the multi-AP coordination request.

21. The method according to claim 20, characterized in that The second wireless frame includes a multi-AP coordinated operation element field, the multi-AP coordinated operation element field includes a multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field, the multi-AP coordinated operation parameter set field includes a coordination request timeout duration subfield, and the coordination request timeout duration subfield is the sixth indication field.

22. The method according to claim 20, characterized in that The method further comprises: When the third wireless frame is received within the first time interval and the third wireless frame is used to indicate acceptance of the multi-AP coordination request, performing a multi-AP coordination operation with the third AP; When the third radio frame is not received within the first time interval, or the third radio frame is received within the first time interval and the third radio frame is used to indicate rejection of the multi-AP coordination request, no multi-AP coordination operation is performed with the third AP.

23. An AP, characterized in that: include: A processing module, configured to determine a first wireless frame, wherein the first wireless frame indicates a multi-AP coordinated operation capability of a first access point AP through at least one indication field; A transceiver module is used to send the first wireless frame.

24. An AP, characterized in that: include: The transceiver module is used to receive a first wireless frame, where the first wireless frame indicates the multi-AP coordinated operation capability of the first access point AP through at least one indication field.

25. An AP, characterized in that: include: one or more processors; The AP is used to execute the communication method described in any one of claims 1-8 or the communication method described in any one of claims 9-22.

26. A communication system, characterized in that: The invention comprises a first AP and a second AP, wherein the first AP device is configured to implement the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, and the second AP device is configured to implement the communication method according to any one of claims 9 to 22.

27. A storage medium storing instructions, characterized in that: When the instruction is executed on a communication device, the communication device is caused to execute the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 22.

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