Communication method, access point device, and communication system

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a communication method, an access point device, and a communication system. The communication method is executed by a shared access point device (shared AP) and comprises: determining a first wireless frame, wherein the first wireless frame comprises first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information being used for identifying that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame, and the second identification information being used for identifying TXS identification information of return transmission time by the shared AP to a sharing access point device (sharing AP), wherein the return transmission time of the Shared AP is time in a transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP; and sending the first wireless frame. The present invention further improves TXOP sharing mechanisms.

Description

Communication method, access point device and communication system Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method, an access point device, and a communication system. Background Art

[0002] With the continuous development of Wi-Fi technology, the next generation of Wi-Fi technology has been proposed: Ultra High Reliability (UHR). In UHR technology, access points (APs) can share the transmission time of transmission opportunities (TXOPs) with other APs. After other APs obtain the transmission time, they can further share it with associated station devices (STAs), facilitating non-triggered frame-based (Non-TB) data transmission or peer-to-peer (P2P) data transmission. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a TXOP processing method to improve the TXOP sharing mechanism and support UHR.

[0003] Summary of the Invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, an access point device, and a communication system to further improve the TXOP sharing mechanism.

[0005] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication method, performed by a shared access point device (Shared AP), the method comprising:

[0006] Determine a first radio frame; wherein the first radio frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP;

[0007] The first radio frame is sent.

[0008] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a communication method, which is performed by a Sharing AP device, and the method includes:

[0009] receiving a first radio frame;

[0010] The first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

[0011] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an access point device, wherein the access point device is a shared access point device (Shared AP), including:

[0012] A determination module, configured to determine a first radio frame; wherein the first radio frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information being used to identify that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information being used to identify TXS identification information for returning transmission time by the Shared AP to the Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP;

[0013] A sending module is used to send the first wireless frame.

[0014] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an access point device, wherein the access point device is a Sharing AP device, including:

[0015] A receiving module, configured to receive a first wireless frame;

[0016] The first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

[0017] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an access point device, including:

[0018] one or more processors;

[0019] The access point device is used to execute the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a communication system, including a first access point device and a second access point device; wherein the first access point device is configured to implement the communication method described in the first aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure, and the second access point device is configured to implement the communication method described in the second aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0021] An embodiment of the present disclosure also provides a storage medium storing instructions. When the instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the communication method as described in the first aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure, or executes the communication method as described in the second aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0022] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the shared access point device Shared AP carries first identification information and second identification information in the first radio frame, and the first identification information is used to identify the frame type of the first radio frame as a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identifier of the transmission time returned by the Shared AP to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP; and sends the first radio frame; in this way, the Sharing AP that receives the first radio frame can determine whether the TXS identifier is consistent with the TXS identifier of the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP based on the TXS identifier of the transmission time returned by the Shared AP to the sharing access point device Sharing AP in the second identification information, and if the two are consistent, re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP and perform data transmission within the re-held transmission time; at the same time, if the other device that receives the first radio frame is a neighboring AP of the Sharing AP, the data transmission process in the BSS where the channel competition Sharing AP is located can be suspended or postponed during the transmission time returned by the Shared AP to the Sharing AP, so as to avoid the Sharing AP from being affected by the data transmission. The data transmission process performed by the AP during the re-held transmission time causes interference.

[0023] 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

[0024] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the following drawings required for describing the embodiments are introduced. The following drawings are merely some embodiments of the present disclosure and do not impose specific limitations on the protection scope of the present disclosure.

[0025] FIG1a is one of exemplary schematic diagrams of an architecture of a communication system provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0026] FIG1b is a second exemplary schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0027] FIG2 is one of exemplary interaction diagrams of a communication method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0028] FIG3 is a second exemplary interaction diagram of a communication method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0029] FIG4 is a flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0030] FIG5 is a second flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0031] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of a structure of an access point device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0032] FIG7 is a second structural diagram of an access point device proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0033] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0034] FIG9 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, an access point device, and a communication system.

[0036] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication method, which is performed by a shared access point device (Shared AP). The method includes:

[0037] Determine a first radio frame; wherein the first radio frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP;

[0038] The first radio frame is sent.

[0039] In the above embodiment, the shared access point device Shared AP carries first identification information and second identification information in the first radio frame, wherein the first identification information identifies the frame type of the first radio frame as a transmission opportunity return frame; and the second identification information identifies the TXS identifier of the transmission time returned by the Shared AP to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP; and sends the first radio frame; in this way, the Sharing AP that receives the first radio frame can determine whether the TXS identifier is consistent with the TXS identifier of the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Sharing AP based on the TXS identifier of the transmission time returned by the Shared AP to the sharing access point device Sharing AP in the second identification information, and if the two are consistent, re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP and perform data transmission within the re-held transmission time; at the same time, if the other device that receives the first radio frame is a neighboring AP of Sharing AP102, it can suspend or postpone the data transmission process within its BSS during the transmission time returned by Shared AP101 to Sharing AP102, so as to avoid interruption of Sharing AP101. The data transmission process performed by AP102 during the re-held transmission time causes interference.

[0040] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments,

[0041] The first identification information is carried in a Common Info field of the first radio frame; wherein the first identification information is set to a first parameter value, and the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame;

[0042] The second identification information is carried in the user information field of the first radio frame.

[0043] In the above embodiment, the device that receives the first radio frame may parse the Common Info field and the User Info field of the first radio frame to obtain information identified by the first identification information and the second identification information.

[0044] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, before determining the first radio frame, the method further includes:

[0045] Receive a second wireless frame; wherein the second wireless frame includes third identification information, the third identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Sharing AP sharing the transmission opportunity with the first AP; the first AP is a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP;

[0046] In response to the Shared AP determining that the identification information of the first AP matches the identification information of the Shared AP, a Clear to Send (CTS) frame is sent.

[0047] In the above embodiment, the third identification information carried by the second wireless frame identifies the TXS identification information of the Sharing AP sharing the transmission opportunity with the first AP. When the Shared AP that receives the second wireless frame determines that the identification information of the first AP matches the identification information of the Shared AP, it can determine that the Sharing AP has shared the transmission opportunity with the Shared AP and sends a CTS frame to inform the neighboring APs of the Shared AP that the Shared AP is about to communicate within the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP, thereby avoiding interference of the neighboring APs of the Shared AP with the upcoming communication process of the Shared AP.

[0048] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the first radio frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations:

[0049] Instruct the Sharing AP to re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP;

[0050] Instructing a second AP to update a network configuration vector NAV of the second AP to zero; wherein the second AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP, and the second AP is not a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP;

[0051] Instruct a third AP to determine whether to update a NAV of the third AP according to the first radio frame; wherein the third AP is a common neighbor AP of the Sharing AP and the Shared AP.

[0052] In the above embodiment, the second AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP, and the second AP is not a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP; the third AP is a common neighbor AP of the Sharing AP and the Shared AP; the Sharing AP is instructed through the first wireless frame to re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP; the second AP is instructed to update the network configuration vector NAV of the second AP to zero; the third AP is instructed to determine whether to update the NAV of the third AP based on the first wireless frame; in this way, the Sharing AP can re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP, and at the same time, avoid the third AP from interfering with the communication process of the Sharing AP during the transmission time returned by the re-held Shared AP; and the Shared AP ends the communication process, and the second AP can also re-compete for the channel.

[0053] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, instructing the third AP to determine whether to update the NAV of the third AP based on the first radio frame includes:

[0054] instructing the third AP to update the NAV of the third AP to zero; wherein the TXS identification information in the second identification information that identifies the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the Sharing AP and the TXS identification information in the third identification information that identifies the Sharing AP sharing the transmission opportunity with the first AP do not match;

[0055] or

[0056] Instruct the third AP not to update the NAV of the third AP; wherein the TXS identification information in the second identification information identifying the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the Sharing AP matches the TXS identification information in the third identification information identifying the Sharing AP sharing the transmission opportunity to the first AP.

[0057] In the above embodiment, when the second identification information and the third identification information are different, that is, the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is not the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP, the third AP can re-compete for the channel, that is, the NAV of the third AP can be updated to zero, which will not interfere with the transmission process within the transmission time returned by the Shared AP;

[0058] When the second identification information and the third identification information are the same, that is, the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP, the third AP cannot re-compete for the channel, that is, it is necessary to maintain the NAV of the third AP and not update the NAV of the third AP to avoid interfering with the transmission process of the Sharing AP within the transmission time returned by the Shared AP.

[0059] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the CTS frame includes a duration field.

[0060] The Duration field indicates that the fourth AP does not update the NAV of the fourth AP when determining that the NAV of the fourth AP is greater than or equal to the value indicated by the Duration field; the fourth AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP;

[0061] or

[0062] The Duration field instructs the fourth AP to update the NAV of the fourth AP when determining that the NAV of the fourth AP is less than the value indicated by the Duration field.

[0063] In the above embodiment, the fourth AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP; the Duration field in the CTS frame indicates that when the fourth AP determines that the fourth NAV is greater than or equal to the value indicated by the Duration field, the fourth AP does not update the NAV of the fourth AP; or when it determines that the fourth AP's NAV is less than the value indicated by the Duration field, the fourth AP's NAV is updated; this can prevent the neighbor AP of the Shared AP from interfering with the communication process of the Shared AP during the transmission time shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

[0064] In combination with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the third identification information is carried in the User Info field of the second radio frame.

[0065] In the above embodiment, the third identification information is carried in the User Info field of the second radio frame. In this way, the device receiving the second radio frame can obtain the information identified by the third identification information by parsing the User Info field of the second radio frame.

[0066] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, after sending a confirmation sending frame CTS frame, the method further includes:

[0067] During the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP, the Shared AP performs data transmission in the basic service set BSS where the Shared AP is located.

[0068] In the above embodiment, the third identification information carried in the second wireless frame identifies that the Sharing AP shares the transmission opportunity with the first AP. When the Shared AP that receives the second wireless frame determines that the identification information identifying the first AP in the third identification information matches the identification information identifying the Shared AP in the second identification information, it can be determined that the Sharing AP has shared the transmission opportunity with the Shared AP; and data transmission is performed within the basic service set BSS where the Shared AP is located within the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

[0069] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication method, which is performed by a Sharing AP device. The method includes:

[0070] receiving a first radio frame;

[0071] The first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

[0072] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the first identification information is carried in the common information field of the first radio frame; wherein the first identification information is set to a first parameter value, and the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame;

[0073] The second identification information is carried in the user information field of the first radio frame.

[0074] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, before receiving the first radio frame, the method further includes:

[0075] Determine a second wireless frame; wherein the second wireless frame identifies that the Sharing AP shares a transmission opportunity with the first AP; the second wireless frame includes third identification information, and the third identification information is used to identify TXS identification information of the Sharing AP sharing a transmission opportunity with the first AP; the first AP is a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP;

[0076] The second radio frame is sent.

[0077] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, after receiving the first radio frame, the method further includes:

[0078] Re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP.

[0079] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the second radio frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations:

[0080] instructing the first AP to perform data transmission within the BSS where the first AP is located within a transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the first AP;

[0081] Instruct a fifth AP to update the NAV of the fifth AP to a value indicated by the duration field in the second radio frame; the fifth AP is an AP that is not the first AP among neighboring APs of the Sharing AP.

[0082] In the above embodiment, the fifth AP is an AP among the neighboring APs of the Sharing AP that is not the first AP. The second wireless frame instructs the first AP to transmit data within the BSS where the first AP is located within the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to it. At the same time, the fifth AP is instructed to update its NAV to the value indicated by the duration field in the second wireless frame. In this way, the fifth AP can be prevented from interfering with the communication process performed by the first AP within the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the first AP.

[0083] In combination with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the third identification information is carried in the User Info field of the second radio frame.

[0084] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an access point device, which is a shared access point device Shared AP, comprising at least one of a determination module and a sending module; wherein the Shared AP is used to execute the optional implementation method of the first aspect.

[0085] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an access point device, which is a sharing access point device Sharing AP, including a receiving module; wherein the above-mentioned Sharing AP is used to execute the optional implementation method of the second aspect.

[0086] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an access point device, including:

[0087] one or more processors;

[0088] The access point device is used to execute an optional implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect of the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0089] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a communication system, comprising a first access point device and a second access point device; wherein the first access point device is configured to perform the optional implementation method described in the first aspect, and the second access point device is configured to perform the optional implementation method described in the second aspect.

[0090] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a storage medium storing instructions, which, when executed on a communication device, enables the communication device to execute an optional implementation as described in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0091] 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 optional implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0092] 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 optional implementation of the first or second aspect.

[0093] 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 optional implementation of the first or second aspect.

[0094] It is understandable that the aforementioned access point devices, 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.

[0095] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, an access point device, and a communication system. In some embodiments, the terms communication method, signal transmission method, wireless frame transmission method, etc. can be used interchangeably, and the terms information processing system, communication system, etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0096] 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.

[0097] 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.

[0098] 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.

[0099] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, “plurality” refers to two or more.

[0100] In some embodiments, the terms "at least one," "one or more," "a plurality of," "multiple," and the like can be used interchangeably.

[0101] 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.

[0102] 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 similar when there are more branches such as A, B, C, etc.

[0103] 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.

[0104] 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.

[0105] 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.

[0106] 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", "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.

[0107] In some embodiments, devices and equipment can be interpreted as physical or virtual, and their names are not limited to the names recorded in the embodiments. In some cases, they can also be understood as "equipment", "device", "circuit", "network element", "node", "function", "unit", "section", "system", "network", "chip", "chip system", "entity", "subject", etc.

[0108] In some embodiments, "network" can be interpreted as devices included in the network, such as access network equipment, core network equipment, etc.

[0109] In some embodiments, obtaining data, information, etc. may comply with the laws and regulations of the country where the data is obtained.

[0110] In some embodiments, data, information, etc. may be obtained with the user's consent.

[0111] 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.

[0112] FIG1a and FIG1b are schematic diagrams showing the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0113] As shown in Figure 1a, a communication system 100 includes a shared access point device, Shared AP (Access Point, AP) 101, a sharing access point device, Sharing AP 102, a second AP 103, and a third AP 104. Referring to Figures 1a and 1b, the neighbor APs of Shared AP 101 include Sharing AP 101, a second AP 103, and a third AP 104. The neighbor APs of Sharing AP 102 include Shared AP 101 and a third AP 104. Second AP 103 is a neighbor AP of Shared AP 101, but not a neighbor AP of Sharing AP 102. Therefore, second AP 103 cannot receive wireless frames sent by Sharing AP 102. Third AP 104 is a common neighbor AP of Sharing AP 102 and Shared AP 101.

[0114] In some embodiments, the next-generation Wi-Fi standards working group, 802.11bn, proposes an AP-2-AP (AP-to-AP) TXOP Sharing (TXS) mechanism based on AP-2-STA (AP to STA) triggering. This approach enables coordination between multiple APs to improve the rational allocation of communication resources, enhance access efficiency, and achieve better network performance. In the AP-2-AP-triggered TXS mechanism, an AP that holds a TXOP and shares part of it with a neighboring AP is called a Sharing AP, and an AP that shares a TXOP with a Sharing AP is called a Shared AP.

[0115] In some embodiments, Shared AP 101, Sharing AP 102, second AP 103, and third AP 104 may be access points for mobile terminals to access wired networks. An AP acts as a bridge between a wired network and a wireless network. Its primary function is to connect wireless network clients and then connect the wireless network to the Ethernet. Specifically, an AP may be a terminal device or network device equipped with a wireless fidelity chip. Optionally, the AP may support multiple WLAN standards, including 802.11ax, 802.11be, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11bf, and 802.11bn, as well as support for the next generation 802.11 protocol, but is not limited thereto.

[0116] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, AP and STA (Station, station device) can be devices that support multiple connections, for example, they can be respectively represented as a multi-connection access point device (Access Point Multi-Link Device, AP MLD) and a multi-connection station device (Non-Access Point Multi-Link Device, Non-AP MLD); AP MLD can represent an access point that supports multi-connection communication functions, and non-AP MLD can represent a station that supports multi-connection communication functions.

[0117] In some embodiments, the station device includes, for example, a wireless communication chip, a wireless sensor, or a wireless communication terminal that supports Wi-Fi communication. Optionally, the wireless communication terminal includes, but is not limited to, at least one of a mobile phone, a wearable device, an Internet of Things device that supports Wi-Fi communication, a car with WiFi communication, a smart car, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal device in a smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in a smart city, and a wireless terminal device in a smart home.

[0118] Specifically, the site device may be a terminal device or network device with a Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) chip. Optionally, the site device may support multiple WLAN standards, such as 802.11ax, 802.11be, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11bf, and 802.11bn, as well as the next generation 802.11 protocol, but is not limited thereto.

[0119] 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.

[0120] 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.

[0121] The various embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to a wireless local area network (WLAN), such as a local area network that adopts the 802.11 series of protocols. In a WLAN, a basic service set (BSS) is a basic component of a WLAN. A BSS network is composed of station devices with certain associations within a specific coverage area. One scenario of association is that stations communicate directly with each other in an ad hoc network, which is called an independent basic service set (IBSS). Another more common scenario is that in a BSS network, there is only one central station with a dedicated BSS management function, which is called an access point device, and other stations in the BSS network that are not APs are called terminals, also called non-AP STAs. APs and non-AP STAs are collectively referred to as STAs. When describing STAs, there is no need to distinguish between APs and non-AP STAs. In the same BSS network, due to distance, transmission power, etc., a STA cannot detect other STAs that are farther away from it, and the two are hidden nodes of each other.

[0122] 2 and 3 are interactive schematic diagrams illustrating a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0123] As shown in FIG2 , the above method includes:

[0124] Step 201, Sharing AP102 determines a second wireless frame; wherein, the second wireless frame includes third identification information, and the third identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity with the first AP; the first AP is a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP;.

[0125] Optionally, the second radio frame may be a MU-RTS TXS Trigger frame or a MU-RTS TXS Trigger modification frame.

[0126] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the third identification information is carried in a User Info field of the second radio frame. The User Info field includes a first identification field; wherein the third identification information includes the first identification field.

[0127] As an example, the format of the User Info field in the MU-RTS TXS Trigger frame is shown in Table 1.

[0128] Table 1:

[0129] In Table 1, the AID12 field and the AP Identifier field share the fields indicated by B0 to B11 in the User Info field and occupy 12 bits. When the fields indicated by B0 to B11 in the User Info field include the AP Identifier field, the device with which the Sharing AP 102 shares the transmission opportunity is identified as a STA, and the AID12 field identifies the identification information of the STA (e.g., the STA's MAC (Media Access Control) address information or the MAC address information of the non-AP MLD to which the STA is attached). When the fields indicated by B0 to B11 in the User Info field include the AP Identifier field, the field identifies the identification information of the target Shared AP with which the Sharing AP 102 shares the transmission opportunity (e.g., the AP's MAC address information or the MAC address information of the AP MLD to which the AP is attached).

[0130] The RU Allocation (resource unit Allocation) field occupies 8 bits in the User Info field, with the corresponding bit order being B12 to B19; the Allocation Duration (allocation duration) field occupies 9 bits in the User Info field, with the corresponding bit order being B20 to B28, identifying the duration of the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to the first AP; the First Identifier field occupies 6 bits in the User Info field, with the corresponding bit order being B29 to B34, identifying the TXS identifier of the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to the first AP; the Reserved field occupies 4 bits in the User Info field, with the corresponding bit order being B35 to B38; the PS160 field indicates the master-slave (primary channel, secondary channel) 160, occupies 1 bit in the User Info field, with the corresponding bit order being B39.

[0131] Optionally, when the first identification field is set to different values, different TXS identifiers are identified. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the first identification field occupies 6 bits in the User Info field, up to 64 different shared transmission opportunities can be identified. For example, the first identification field can be set to "000000", which identifies the TXS identification information of Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity with AP1; the first identification field can be set to "000001", which identifies the TXS identification information of Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity with AP2; the first identification field can be set to "000010", which identifies the TXS identification information of Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity with AP3; the first identification field can be set to "000011", which identifies the TXS identification information of Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity with AP4; the number of bits occupied by the first identification field can be other values, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0132] Optionally, Sharing AP 102 can share transmission opportunities with one or more first APs, and each first AP has a one-to-one correspondence with the aforementioned AID12 / AP Identifier field, Allocation Duration field, and third identification information. That is, each first AP has a corresponding AID12 / AP Identifier field, Allocation Duration field, and third identification information.

[0133] For example, if Sharing AP102 shares transmission opportunities with AP1, AP2, AP3, and AP4 at the same time, that is, the first AP includes AP1, AP2, AP3, and AP4, then the first wireless frame includes: the AID12 / AP Identifier field, Allocation Duration field, and third identification information corresponding to AP1, the AID / AP Identifier field, Allocation Duration field, and third identification information corresponding to AP2, the AID / AP Identifier field, Allocation Duration field, and third identification information corresponding to AP3, and the AID12 / AP Identifier field, Allocation Duration field, and third identification information corresponding to AP4.

[0134] In the case where there are multiple first APs, the duration of the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP 102 to each first AP, that is, the duration information indicated by the Allocation Duration field may be different.

[0135] Taking the above-mentioned Sharing AP102 sharing transmission opportunities with AP1, AP2, AP3, and AP4 at the same time as an example, if the transmission opportunity held by Sharing AP102 is 16ms, then Sharing AP102 can share 2ms (milliseconds) to 5ms transmission opportunities with AP1 (duration is 3ms), share 5ms to 7ms transmission opportunities with AP2 (duration is 2ms), share 7ms to 11ms transmission opportunities with AP3 (duration is 4ms), and share 11ms to 15ms transmission opportunities with AP4 (duration is 4ms).

[0136] In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the second radio frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations:

[0137] Instructing the first AP to perform data transmission within the BSS where the first AP is located within the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP 102 to the first AP;

[0138] Instruct a fifth AP to update the NAV of the fifth AP to a value indicated by the duration field in the second radio frame; the fifth AP is an AP that is not the first AP among neighboring APs of the Sharing AP102.

[0139] Step 202: Sharing AP 102 sends a second wireless frame to a neighboring AP of Sharing AP 102.

[0140] Optionally, after sending the second radio frame to the neighboring AP of Sharing AP 102, Sharing AP 102 suspends or postpones the data transmission process in the BSS. Specifically, the duration for which Sharing AP 102 suspends or postpones the data transmission process in the BSS may be the transmission duration identified by the Duration field in the second radio frame.

[0141] In step 203 , when the identification information of the first AP matches the identification information of the Shared AP 101 , the Shared AP 101 sends a clear to send (CTS) frame to the neighboring AP of the Shared AP 101 .

[0142] As an example, after receiving the second wireless frame, Shared AP101 can determine whether the identification information of the first AP identified by the AID12 / AP Identifier field carried by the second wireless frame is the same as the identification information of Shared AP101. When the two are the same, it can be determined that Shared AP101 is included in the first AP, that is, Sharing AP102 shares the transmission opportunity with Shared AP101, and Shared AP101 can hold the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101. The specific transmission opportunity held is the transmission opportunity identified by the Allocation Duration field corresponding to the identification information of Shared AP101 in the second wireless frame.

[0143] Optionally, the Shared AP 101 may send a CTS frame to the neighboring APs of the Shared AP 101 within the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP 102 to the Shared AP 101 .

[0144] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the CTS frame includes a Duration field.

[0145] The Duration field indicates that the fourth AP does not update the NAV of the fourth AP when determining that the NAV of the fourth AP is greater than or equal to the value indicated by the Duration field; the fourth AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP 101;

[0146] or

[0147] The Duration field instructs the fourth AP to update the NAV of the fourth AP when determining that the NAV of the fourth AP is less than the value indicated by the Duration field.

[0148] Optionally, the value indicated by the Duration field is the duration required for the Shared AP 101 to perform data transmission in the basic service set BSS (hereinafter referred to as BSS2) where the Shared AP 101 is located.

[0149] Optionally, when the NAV of the fourth AP is greater than or equal to the value indicated by the Duration field, when Shared AP101 transmits data in BSS2, the fourth AP always considers that the channel is busy, does not compete for the channel, and does not interfere with the data transmission process of Shared AP101 in BSS2. When the NAV of the fourth AP is less than the value indicated by the Duration field, when Shared AP101 has not completed data transmission in BSS2 (specifically, after the NAV of the fourth AP becomes zero), the fourth AP may mistakenly believe that the channel is idle and start to compete for the channel, causing interference to the data transmission process of Shared AP101 in BSS2.

[0150] In response to this, in the above embodiment, the Duration field indicates that the fourth AP does not update the NAV of the fourth AP when it determines that the NAV of the fourth AP is greater than or equal to the value indicated by the Duration field; the fourth AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP101; the Duration field indicates that the fourth AP updates the NAV of the fourth AP when it determines that the NAV of the fourth AP is less than the value indicated by the Duration field, which can avoid the fourth AP interfering with the data transmission process of Shared AP101 within BSS2.

[0151] Optionally, the Duration field indicates that when the fourth AP determines that the NAV of the fourth AP is less than the value indicated by the Duration field, the fourth AP updates the NAV of the fourth AP to the value indicated by the Duration field.

[0152] Step 204 : Shared AP 101 transmits data within the basic service set (BSS) where Shared AP 101 is located within the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP 102 to Shared AP 101 .

[0153] Optionally, the Shared AP 101 may perform data transmission with an AP or STA associated with the Shared AP 101 within the basic service set (ie, the aforementioned BSS2); this is not limited in the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0154] Optionally, after the Shared AP 101 completes data transmission in the basic service set BSS where the Shared AP 101 is located within the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP 102 to the Shared AP 101, if there is remaining transmission time, step 205 may be executed.

[0155] In step 205, Shared AP101 determines a first wireless frame; wherein the first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the transmission time returned by Shared AP101 to the sharing access point device Sharing AP102; wherein the transmission time returned by Shared AP101 is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101.

[0156] After receiving the TXOP shared by Sharing AP 102, Shared AP 101 transmits data within the TXOP; Sharing AP 102 suspends or postpones data transmission within its BSS within the TXOP. However, if the TXOP shared by Sharing AP 102 to Shared AP 101 is longer, or if Shared AP 101 completes data transmission prematurely within the TXOP shared by Sharing AP 102, some of the shared TXOPs may be idle, resulting in resource waste.

[0157] To this end, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, Shared AP101 carries first identification information and second identification information in a first wireless frame, and identifies the frame type of the first wireless frame as a transmission opportunity return frame through the first identification information, and identifies the TXS identifier of the transmission time returned by Shared AP101 to Sharing AP102 through the second identification information, and the transmission time returned by Shared AP101 is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101, specifically: after Shared AP101 completes data transmission in advance, the remaining transmission time in the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101; in this way, Shared AP101 can return the remaining TXOP to Sharing AP102 in time when Sharing AP102 completes data transmission in advance within the TXOP shared with it, thereby avoiding waste of communication resources.

[0158] Optionally, the first radio frame may be a MU-RTS TXS Trigger frame or a MU-RTS TXS Trigger modification frame.

[0159] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first identification information is carried in a Common Info field of the first radio frame; wherein the first identification information is set to a first parameter value, and the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame;

[0160] The second identification information is carried in the user information field of the first radio frame.

[0161] Optionally, the Common Info field may include a first identifier, and the first identifier may occupy one bit in the Common Info field.

[0162] As an example, the first parameter value may be set to 0, that is, when the first identifier is set to 0, the first identifier identifies that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame. When the first identifier is not set to 0, the first identifier identifies that the frame type of the first radio frame is not a transmission opportunity return frame.

[0163] Optionally, the format of the User Info field is as shown in Table 1 above and is not described here in detail.

[0164] Optionally, the User Info field may include a second identification field, which occupies 6 bits in the User Info field, with the corresponding bit sequence being B29 to B34. The second identification information is the second identification field.

[0165] Optionally, when the second identification field is set to different values, different TXS identifiers are identified. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the second identification field occupies 6 bits in the User Info field, up to 64 different shared transmission opportunities can be identified. For example, the first identification field can be set to "000000", which identifies the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to AP1; the second identification field can be set to "000100", which identifies the TXS identification information of Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity to AP1; the second identification field can be set to "000101", which identifies the TXS identification information of Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity to AP2; the second identification field can be set to "000110", which identifies the TXS identification information of Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity to AP3; the second identification field can be set to "000111", which identifies the TXS identification information of Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity to AP4; the number of bits occupied by the first identification field can be other values, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0166] Optionally, when any two APs share or return a transmission opportunity, the corresponding TXS identification information is the same. For example, the TXS identification information when AP1 shares a transmission opportunity with AP2 and the TXS identification information when AP2 returns a transmission opportunity to AP1 is the same, for example, "100000".

[0167] In the above embodiment, the AP that receives the first wireless frame can obtain the information identified by the first identification information and the second identification information by parsing the Common Info field and the User Info field of the first wireless frame. In this way, the Sharing AP102 that receives the first wireless frame can regain the transmission time returned by the Shared AP101. At the same time, if the other device that receives the first wireless frame is a neighboring AP of the Sharing AP102, it can suspend or postpone the data transmission process within the BSS where the neighboring AP is located during the transmission time returned by the Shared AP101 to the Sharing AP102, so as to avoid interfering with the data transmission process of the Sharing AP102 during the regained transmission time.

[0168] Optionally, if a common neighbor AP of Shared AP 101 and Sharing AP 102 mistakenly believes that the channel is idle after receiving the first radio frame and starts to compete for the channel, Sharing AP 102 may be unable to regain the transmission time returned by Shared AP 101, or may interfere with Sharing AP 102's data transmission process during the remaining time returned by Shared AP 101. To this end, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first radio frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations:

[0169] Instructing the Sharing AP 102 to re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP 101;

[0170] Instruct the second AP 103 to update the network configuration vector NAV of the second AP 103 to zero; wherein the second AP 103 is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP 101, and the second AP 103 is not a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP 102;

[0171] Instruct the third AP 104 to determine whether to update the NAV of the third AP 104 according to the first radio frame; wherein the third AP 104 is a common neighbor AP of the Sharing AP 102 and the Shared AP 101.

[0172] In the above embodiment, although the second AP103 is a neighbor AP of Shared AP101, it is not a neighbor AP of Sharing AP102, that is, the second AP103 is not within the communication range of Sharing AP102, the data transmission process of the second AP103 in the BSS where it is located (hereinafter referred to as the data transmission process in BSS4) will not interfere with the data transmission process of Sharing AP102 in the remaining time returned by Shared AP101 (hereinafter referred to as the data transmission process in BSS1), and since the second AP103 is not a neighbor AP of Sharing AP102, the second AP103 will not receive the second wireless frame before receiving the first wireless frame; therefore, the first wireless frame can instruct the second AP103 to update the NAV of the second AP103 to zero, that is, the second AP103 can resume competing for the channel after Shared AP102 completes data transmission, without having to continuously suspend or postpone the data transmission process in BSS4, thereby avoiding waste of communication resources.

[0173] Since the third AP104 is a common neighbor AP of Sharing AP102 and Shared AP101, that is, the third AP104 is within the communication range of Sharing AP102, the data transmission process performed by the third AP104 in the BSS where it is located (hereinafter referred to as the data transmission process in BSS3) will interfere with the data transmission process in BSS1. Therefore, the first wireless frame can instruct the third AP104 to determine whether to update the NAV of the third AP104 based on whether Shared AP101 returns the remaining transmission time to Sharing AP102; to avoid the third AP104 interfering with the data transmission process of Sharing AP102 in BSS1 when Shared AP101 returns the remaining transmission time to Sharing AP102.

[0174] Optionally, the instructing the third AP 104 to determine whether to update the NAV of the third AP 104 according to the first radio frame includes:

[0175] instructing the third AP 104 to update the NAV of the third AP 104 to zero when the TXS identification information in the second identification information, which identifies that the Shared AP 101 returns the transmission time to the Sharing AP 102, and the TXS identification information in the third identification information, which identifies that the Sharing AP 102 shares the transmission opportunity with the first AP, do not match;

[0176] or

[0177] Instruct the third AP104 not to update the NAV of the third AP104 when the TXS identification information in the second identification information identifying the Shared AP101 returning transmission time to the Sharing AP102 matches the TXS identification information in the third identification information identifying the Sharing AP102 sharing transmission opportunities with the first AP.

[0178] Optionally, if the TXS identification information in the second identification information that identifies the Shared AP101 returning the transmission time to the Sharing AP102 and the TXS identification information in the third identification information that identifies the Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity with the first AP do not match, it means that the remaining transmission time returned by Shared AP101 to Sharing AP102 may not be the time in the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101; if the TXS identification information in the second identification information that identifies the Shared AP101 returning the transmission time to the Sharing AP102 and the TXS identification information in the third identification information that identifies the Sharing AP102 sharing the transmission opportunity with the first AP match, it means that the remaining transmission time returned by Shared AP101 to Sharing AP102 is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101.

[0179] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, if the third AP104 determines that the time returned by Shared AP101 may not be the time in the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101, the first wireless frame can instruct the third AP104 to update the NAV of the third AP104 to zero, that is, the third AP104 can restart the competition for the channel without having to continuously suspend or postpone the data transmission process within BSS3, thereby avoiding waste of communication resources.

[0180] If the third AP104 determines that the remaining transmission time returned by Shared AP101 to Sharing AP102 is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101, the first wireless frame can instruct the third AP104 not to update the NAV of the third AP104 and maintain the NAV of the third AP104, that is, the third AP104 cannot restart the competition for the channel and needs to continuously suspend or postpone the data transmission process within BSS3 to avoid interfering with the data transmission process within BSS1.

[0181] Step 206 : Shared AP 101 sends a first wireless frame to its neighboring AP.

[0182] Step 207: Sharing AP 102 regains the transmission time returned by Shared AP 101.

[0183] Optionally, the Sharing AP 102 may continue the channel contention or data transmission process of the Sharing AP 102 in the BSS in which it is located during the transmission time returned by the re-held Shared AP 101.

[0184] Step 208 : The second AP 103 updates the network configuration vector NAV of the second AP 103 to zero within the transmission time returned by the Sharing AP 102 after the Sharing AP 102 re-holds the Shared AP 101 .

[0185] Step 209 : The third AP 104 determines whether to update the NAV of the third AP 104 according to the first radio frame within the transmission time returned by the Sharing AP 102 after the Sharing AP 102 re-holds the Shared AP 101 .

[0186] Optionally, when the TXS identification information in the second identification information indicating that the Shared AP 101 returns the transmission time to the Sharing AP 102 does not match the TXS identification information in the third identification information indicating that the Sharing AP 102 shares the transmission opportunity with the first AP, the third AP 104 updates the NAV of the third AP 104 to zero;

[0187] When the TXS identification information in the second identification information indicating that the Shared AP101 returns the transmission time to the Sharing AP102 matches the TXS identification information in the third identification information indicating that the Sharing AP102 shares the transmission opportunity with the first AP, the NAV of the third AP104 is not updated, that is, the current NAV is maintained.

[0188] The optional implementation of step 207, step 208 and step 209 can refer to the optional implementation of step 205 in Figure 2, and will not be repeated here.

[0189] In the above embodiment, during the transmission time returned by Shared AP101 when Sharing AP102 regains possession, the second AP103 updates the NAV of the second AP103 to zero, that is, the second AP103 can restart competing for the channel without having to continuously suspend or postpone the data transmission process within BSS4, thereby avoiding waste of communication resources; the third AP104 determines whether to update the NAV of the third AP104 based on whether Shared AP101 returns the remaining transmission time to Sharing AP102, thereby avoiding the third AP104 from interfering with the data transmission process of Sharing AP102 within BSS1 when Shared AP101 returns the remaining transmission time to Sharing AP102.

[0190] In the above embodiment, the shared access point device Shared AP101 carries first identification information and second identification information in the first radio frame, and the first identification information is used to identify the frame type of the first radio frame as a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identifier of the transmission time returned by the Shared AP101 to the sharing access point device Sharing AP102; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP101 is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP102 to the Shared AP101; and the first radio frame is sent; in this way, the Sharing AP that receives the first radio frame can determine whether the TXS identifier of the transmission time returned by the Shared AP101 to the sharing access point device Sharing AP102 in the second identification information is consistent with the TXS identifier of the transmission opportunity shared by Sharing AP102 to Shared AP101, and if the two are consistent, re-hold the transmission time returned by Shared AP101 and perform data transmission within the re-held transmission time; at the same time, if the other device that receives the first radio frame is a neighboring AP of Sharing AP102, it can During the transmission time returned to the Sharing AP 102 , the AP 101 suspends or postpones the data transmission process within the BSS in which it is located, so as to avoid interfering with the data transmission process of the Sharing AP 102 during the transmission time that is re-held.

[0191] Referring to Figure 3 , the data exchange process is described below, taking the Sharing AP as AP5, the Shared AP as AP6, the second AP (i.e., a common neighbor AP of the Sharing AP and the Shared AP) as AP7, and the third AP (i.e., a neighbor AP of the Shared AP but not a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP) as AP8, and the BSS of AP5 as BSS5, AP6 as BSS6, AP7 as BSS7, and AP8 as BSS8 as an example. In Figure 3 , all APs within the dashed box are neighbor APs. For example, AP5, AP6, and AP7 are neighbor APs, and AP6 and AP8 are neighbor APs.

[0192] Step 1: In the TXOP held by AP5 (hereinafter referred to as the "TXOP held by AP5" as the "first TXOP"), AP5 determines a second radio frame during data transmission in BSS5 and sends the second radio frame to AP5's neighboring APs (i.e., AP6 and AP7); the first identification field carried in the second radio frame identifies the TXS identification information of the TXOP shared by AP5 and AP6 (hereinafter referred to as the "TXOP shared by AP5 to AP6" as the "second TXOP"). The transmission time in the first TXOP excluding the second TXOP is the fourth TXOP.

[0193] At the same time, AP5 suspends or postpones the data transmission process in BSS5 where AP5 is located.

[0194] Step 2: After receiving the second radio frame, AP6 determines that its identification information is the same as the identification information of the AP indicated by AP Identifier in the second radio frame, determines that AP6 is the target Shared AP, and sends a CTS frame to AP6's neighbor APs (i.e., AP5, AP7, and AP8).

[0195] After receiving the second radio frame, AP7 determines that its identification information is different from the identification information of the AP indicated by AP Identifier in the second radio frame, determines that AP7 is a non-target Shared AP, and sets AP7's NAV to the time length indicated by the second TXOP.

[0196] Step 3: After sending the CTS frame, AP6 performs data transmission within BSS6.

[0197] After receiving the CTS frame, AP5 determines that its NAV value is equal to the duration indicated by the Duration field in the CTS frame and does not update AP5's NAV.

[0198] After receiving the CTS frame, AP7 determines that its NAV value is equal to the duration indicated by the Duration field in the CTS frame and does not update AP7's NAV.

[0199] After receiving the CTS frame, AP8 determines that its NAV value is less than the duration indicated by the Duration field in the CTS frame, and updates the NAV value of AP8 to the duration indicated by the second TXOP.

[0200] Among them, AP8 is not a neighbor AP of AP5, and AP8 cannot receive the second wireless frame. Before AP8 receives the CTS frame, AP8 can perform channel contention or perform data transmission in BSS8.

[0201] Step 4: After AP6 completes the data transmission process in BSS6 in advance within the second TXOP, it determines the first radio frame and sends the first radio frame to AP6's neighboring APs (AP5, AP7, and AP8); the second identification field carried in the first radio frame identifies AP6 returning the TXS identification information of the remaining TXOPs in the second TXOP to AP5 (hereinafter, "the remaining TXOPs in the second TXOP" are referred to as "the third TXOP").

[0202] Step 5: After receiving the first radio frame, AP5 resumes holding the third TXOP. The length of the TXOP currently held by AP5 is: the third AP + the fourth AP.

[0203] AP7 is a common neighbor AP of AP5 and AP6. After receiving the second radio frame, AP7 will receive the first radio frame again. When AP7 determines that the second identification field carried by the first radio frame (that is, the TXS identification information of the TXOP shared by AP5 to AP6) and the first identification field carried by the first radio frame (that is, the TXS identification information of the remaining TXOPs in the second TXOP returned by AP6 to AP5) are the same, AP7 maintains its current NAV.

[0204] After receiving the first wireless frame, AP8 will not interfere with AP5's data transmission process in BSS5 because it is not a neighbor AP of AP5. AP8 can update its NAV to zero (as shown by "×" in Figure 3, AP8 no longer maintains its NAV) and re-compete for the channel.

[0205] In some embodiments, the names of information, etc. are not limited to the names described in the embodiments, and terms such as "information", "message", "signal", "signaling", "report", "configuration", "indication", "instruction", "command", "channel", "parameter", "domain", "field", "symbol", "bit", "data", "program", and "chip" can be used interchangeably.

[0206] In some embodiments, terms such as "moment", "time point", "time", and "time position" can be replaced with each other, and terms such as "duration", "period", "time window", "window", and "time" can be replaced with each other.

[0207] In some embodiments, terms such as wireless access scheme and waveform may be used interchangeably.

[0208] In some embodiments, terms such as "certain", "preset", "preset", "setting", "indicated", "a certain", "any", and "first" can be interchangeable. "Specific A", "preset A", "preset A", "setting A", "indicated A", "a certain A", "any A", and "first A" can be interpreted as A pre-specified in a protocol, etc., or as A obtained through setting, configuration, or indication, etc., or as specific A, a certain A, any A, or first A, etc., but not limited to this.

[0209] In some embodiments, the determination or judgment can be performed by a value represented by 1 bit (0 or 1), or by a true or false value (Boolean value) represented by true or false, or by comparison of numerical values ​​(for example, comparison with a predetermined value), but is not limited thereto.

[0210] In some embodiments, "not expecting to receive" can be interpreted as not receiving on time domain resources and / or frequency domain resources, or as not performing subsequent processing on the data after receiving it; "not expecting to send" can be interpreted as not sending, or as sending but not expecting the recipient to respond to the content sent.

[0211] 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 201 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 202 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 203 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 204 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 205 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 207 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 208 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 209 can be implemented as an independent embodiment; the combination of step 201 and step 202 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, the combination of step 201, step 202 and step 203 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, the combination of step 201, step 202, step 203 and step 204 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, the combination of step 205 and step 206 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 201, step 202, step 203, step 204, step 205 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. The combination of step 205 and step 206 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, the combination of step 205, step 206 and step 207 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, the combination of step 205, step 206 and step 208 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, the combination of step 205, step 206 and step 209 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, the combination of step 201, step 202, step 203, step 204, step 205, step 206 and step 207 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, the combination of step 201, step 202, step 203, step 204, step 205, step 206 and step 208 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the combination of step 201, step 202, step 203, step 204, step 205, step 206 and step 209 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

[0212] In some embodiments, reference may be made to other optional implementations described before or after the description corresponding to FIG. 2 .

[0213] FIG4 is a flowchart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0214] As shown in FIG4 , the above method can be applied to the shared access point device 101, and the above method includes:

[0215] Step 401, determine the first wireless frame; wherein, the first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein, the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

[0216] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first identification information is carried in a Common Info field of the first radio frame; wherein the first identification information is set to a first parameter value, and the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame;

[0217] The second identification information is carried in the user information field of the first radio frame.

[0218] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, before determining the first radio frame, the method further includes:

[0219] Receive a second wireless frame; wherein the second wireless frame includes third identification information, the third identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Sharing AP sharing the transmission opportunity with the first AP; the first AP is a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP;

[0220] In response to the Shared AP determining that the identification information of the first AP matches the identification information of the Shared AP, a Clear to Send (CTS) frame is sent.

[0221] Optionally, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the first radio frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations:

[0222] Instruct the Sharing AP to re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP;

[0223] Instructing a second AP to update a network configuration vector NAV of the second AP to zero; wherein the second AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP, and the second AP is not a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP;

[0224] Instruct a third AP to determine whether to update a NAV of the third AP according to the first radio frame; wherein the third AP is a common neighbor AP of the Sharing AP and the Shared AP.

[0225] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructing the third AP to determine whether to update the NAV of the third AP according to the first radio frame includes:

[0226] instructing the third AP to update the NAV of the third AP to zero; wherein the TXS identification information in the second identification information that identifies the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the Sharing AP and the TXS identification information in the third identification information that identifies the Sharing AP sharing the transmission opportunity with the first AP do not match;

[0227] or

[0228] Instruct the third AP not to update the NAV of the third AP; wherein the TXS identification information in the second identification information identifying the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the Sharing AP matches the TXS identification information in the third identification information identifying the Sharing AP sharing the transmission opportunity to the first AP.

[0229] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the CTS frame includes a Duration field.

[0230] The Duration field indicates that the fourth AP does not update the NAV of the fourth AP when determining that the NAV of the fourth AP is greater than or equal to the value indicated by the Duration field; the fourth AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP;

[0231] or

[0232] The Duration field instructs the fourth AP to update the NAV of the fourth AP when determining that the NAV of the fourth AP is less than the value indicated by the Duration field.

[0233] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the third identification information is carried in a User Info field of the second radio frame.

[0234] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, after sending a confirmation sending frame CTS frame, the method further includes:

[0235] During the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP, the Shared AP performs data transmission in the basic service set BSS where the Shared AP is located.

[0236] Optional implementations of step 401 can refer to the optional implementations of steps 201, 202, 203, 204, and 205 in FIG. 2 , and other related parts in the embodiment involved in FIG. 2 , which will not be described in detail here.

[0237] Step 402: Send the first wireless frame.

[0238] The optional implementation of step 402 can refer to the optional implementation of step 206 in FIG. 2 and other related parts in the embodiment involved in FIG. 2 , which will not be described in detail here.

[0239] 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 401 may be implemented as an independent embodiment; the combination of step 401 and step 402 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

[0240] In some embodiments, reference may be made to other optional implementations described before or after the description corresponding to FIG. 3 .

[0241] FIG5 is a second flowchart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0242] As shown in FIG5 , the above method can be applied to a shared access point device 102 , and the above method includes:

[0243] Step 501: receiving a first radio frame;

[0244] The first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

[0245] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the first identification information is carried in a Common Info field of the first radio frame; wherein the first identification information is set to a first parameter value, and the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first radio frame is a transmission opportunity return frame;

[0246] The second identification information is carried in the user information field of the first radio frame.

[0247] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, before receiving the first radio frame, the method further includes:

[0248] Determine a second wireless frame; wherein the second wireless frame identifies that the Sharing AP shares a transmission opportunity with the first AP; the second wireless frame includes third identification information, and the third identification information is used to identify TXS identification information of the Sharing AP sharing a transmission opportunity with the first AP; the first AP is a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP;

[0249] The second radio frame is sent.

[0250] Optionally, in this embodiment of the present disclosure, the second radio frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations:

[0251] instructing the first AP to perform data transmission within the BSS where the first AP is located within a transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the first AP;

[0252] Instruct a fifth AP to update the NAV of the fifth AP to a value indicated by the duration field in the second radio frame; the fifth AP is an AP that is not the first AP among neighboring APs of the Sharing AP.

[0253] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the third identification information is carried in a User Info field of the second radio frame.

[0254] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, after receiving the first radio frame, the method further includes:

[0255] Re-hold the transmission time returned by the Shared AP.

[0256] Optional implementations of step 501 can refer to the optional implementations of steps 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 206 and 207 in FIG2 , and other related parts in the embodiment involved in FIG2 , which will not be repeated here.

[0257] In some embodiments, reference may be made to other optional implementations described before or after the description corresponding to FIG. 5 .

[0258] The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide an apparatus for implementing any of the above methods. For example, an apparatus is provided, comprising units or modules for implementing each step performed by a terminal in any of the above methods. For another example, another apparatus is provided, comprising units or modules for implementing each step performed by a network device (e.g., an access network device, a core network function node, a core network device, etc.) in any of the above methods.

[0259] It should be understood that the division of the various units or modules in the above device is merely a division of logical functions. In actual implementation, they may be fully or partially integrated into a physical entity, or they may be physically separated. In addition, the units or modules in the device may be implemented in the form of a processor calling software: for example, the device includes a processor, the processor is connected to a memory, and the memory stores instructions. The processor calls the instructions stored in the memory to implement any of the above methods or implement the functions of the various units or modules of the above device, wherein 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 within the device or a memory 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), which realizes the functions of some or all of the above units or modules 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 rest by hardware circuits.

[0260] 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.

[0261] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an access point device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG6 , the access point device is a shared access point device, and the shared access point device 600 may include at least one of a determining module 601 and a sending module 602 .

[0262] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned determination module 601 is used to determine a first wireless frame; wherein, the first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, and the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein, the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP; the sending module 602 is used to send the first wireless frame.

[0263] Optionally, the determination module 601 is configured to execute at least one of the communication steps (e.g., step 205, step 202, step 205, and step 401, but not limited thereto) performed by the shared access point device 101 in any of the above methods, and will not be described in detail here. The sending module 602 is configured to execute at least one of the sending and receiving steps (e.g., step 203, step 204, step 206, and step 402, but not limited thereto) performed by the shared access point device 101 in any of the above methods, and will not be described in detail here.

[0264] FIG7 is a second schematic diagram of the structure of an access point device proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG7 , the access point device is a shared access point device, and the shared access point device 700 may include: a receiving module 701 .

[0265] In some embodiments, the receiving module 701 is configured to receive a first radio frame;

[0266] The first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information of the Shared AP returning the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

[0267] Optionally, the receiving module 701 is configured to execute at least one of the sending and receiving steps (eg, step 202 and step 501 , but not limited thereto) executed by the shared access point device 102 in any of the above methods, which will not be described in detail herein.

[0268] The shared access point device 700 may include a second determining module configured to execute at least one of the communication steps (eg, step 201 and step 207, but not limited thereto) executed by the shared access point device 102 in any of the above methods, which will not be described in detail herein.

[0269] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal 800 (e.g., user equipment) proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Terminal 800 can be a chip, chip system, or processor that supports a network device implementing any of the above methods, or a chip, chip system, or processor that supports a terminal implementing any of the above methods. Terminal 800 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.

[0270] As shown in Figure 8, terminal 800 includes one or more processors 801. Processor 801 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 communication devices (such as base stations, baseband chips, terminal devices, terminal device chips, DUs or CUs, etc.), execute programs, and process program data. Terminal 800 is used to perform any of the above methods.

[0271] In some embodiments, the terminal 800 further includes one or more memories 802 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memories 802 may be located outside the terminal 800.

[0272] In some embodiments, the terminal 800 further includes one or more transceivers 804. When the terminal 800 includes one or more transceivers 804, the transceiver 804 performs at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving in the above method (for example, step 202, step 203, step 204, step 206, step 402, and step 501, but not limited thereto), and the processor 801 performs at least one of the other steps (for example, step 201, step 205, step 202, step 205, step 207, and step 401, but not limited thereto).

[0273] 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.

[0274] In some embodiments, terminal 800 may include one or more interface circuits 803. Optionally, interface circuit 803 is connected to memory 802. Interface circuit 803 may be configured to receive signals from memory 802 or other devices, and may be configured to send signals to memory 802 or other devices. For example, interface circuit 803 may read instructions stored in memory 802 and send the instructions to processor 801.

[0275] The terminal 800 described in the above embodiment may be a communication device such as a user device, but the scope of the terminal 800 described in the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the terminal 800 may not be limited by FIG8 . 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 and 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.

[0276] FIG9 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip 900 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. If the terminal 1300 can be a chip or a chip system, reference can be made to the schematic diagram of the structure of the chip 900 shown in FIG9 , but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0277] The chip 900 includes one or more processors 901 , and the chip 900 is configured to execute any of the above methods.

[0278] In some embodiments, chip 900 further includes one or more 903. Optionally, interface circuit 903 is connected to memory 902. Interface circuit 903 can be used to receive signals from memory 902 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to memory 902 or other devices. For example, interface circuit 903 can read instructions stored in memory 902 and send the instructions to processor 901.

[0279] In some embodiments, the interface circuit 903 executes at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving in the above method (for example, step 202, step 203, step 204, step 206, step 402, step 501, but not limited to these), and the processor 901 executes at least one of the other steps (for example, step 201, step 205, step 202, step 205, step 207, step 401, but not limited to these).

[0280] In some embodiments, terms such as interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, and transceiver may be used interchangeably.

[0281] In some embodiments, the chip 900 further includes one or more memories 902 for storing instructions. Alternatively, all or part of the memory 902 may be external to the chip 900.

[0282] The present disclosure also provides a storage medium having instructions stored thereon. When the instructions are executed on the terminal 800, the terminal 800 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.

[0283] The present disclosure also provides a program product, which, when executed by the terminal 800, enables the terminal 800 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the program product is a computer program product.

[0284] The present disclosure also proposes a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform any one of the above methods.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Performed by the shared access point device Shared AP, the method includes: Determine a first wireless frame; wherein, the first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the transmission opportunity sharing TXS identification information for the Shared AP to return the transmission time to the sharing access point device Sharing AP; wherein, the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP; Send the first wireless frame.

2. The communication method according to claim 1, wherein, The first identification information is carried in the common information field Common Info field of the first wireless frame; wherein, the first identification information is set to a first parameter value, and the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; The second identification information is carried in the user information field User Info field of the first wireless frame.

3. The communication method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that Before determining the first wireless frame, the method further includes: Receive a second wireless frame; wherein, the second wireless frame includes third identification information, and the third identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information for the Sharing AP to share the transmission opportunity with the first AP; the first AP is a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP; In response to the identification information of the first AP matching the identification information of the Shared AP, send a clear to send frame CTS frame.

4. The communication method according to claim 3, wherein The first wireless frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations: Indicate that the Sharing AP re-holds the transmission time returned by the Shared AP; Indicate that the second AP updates the network allocation vector NAV of the second AP to zero; wherein, the second AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP and the second AP is not a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP; Indicate that the third AP determines whether to update the NAV of the third AP according to the first wireless frame; wherein, the third AP is a common neighbor AP of the Sharing AP and the Shared AP.

5. The communication method according to claim 4, wherein The indicating that the third AP determines whether to update the NAV of the third AP according to the first wireless frame includes: Indicate that the third AP updates the NAV of the third AP to zero; wherein, the TXS identification information in the second identification information that identifies the Shared AP to return the transmission time to the Sharing AP does not match the TXS identification information in the third identification information that identifies the Sharing AP to share the transmission opportunity with the first AP; Or Instruct the third AP not to update the NAV of the third AP; wherein, the TXS identification information indicating that the Shared AP returns the transmission time to the Sharing AP in the second identification information matches the TXS identification information indicating that the Sharing AP shares the transmission opportunity to the first AP in the third identification information.

6. The communication method according to claim 3, wherein The CTS frame includes a duration field. The duration field instructs that when the fourth AP determines that the NAV of the fourth AP is greater than or equal to the value indicated by the duration field, the fourth AP does not update the NAV of the fourth AP; the fourth AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP. Or The duration field instructs that when the fourth AP determines that the NAV of the fourth AP is less than the value indicated by the duration field, the fourth AP updates the NAV of the fourth AP.

7. The communication method according to claim 3, wherein The third identification information is carried in the User Info field of the second wireless frame.

8. The communication method according to claim 3, wherein After sending the Clear to Send (CTS) frame, the method further includes: During the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP, the Shared AP performs data transmission within the basic service set (BSS) where the Shared AP is located.

9. A communication method, characterized in that, Executed by a sharing access point device (Sharing AP), the method includes: Receiving a first wireless frame. Wherein, the first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information. The first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information for the Shared AP to return the transmission time to the sharing access point device (Sharing AP); wherein, the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

10. The communication method according to claim 9, wherein The first identification information is carried in the Common Info field of the first wireless frame; wherein, the first identification information is set to a first parameter value, and the first identification information is used to identify that the frame type of the first wireless frame is a transmission opportunity return frame. The second identification information is carried in the User Info field of the first wireless frame.

11. The communication method according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that Before receiving the first wireless frame, the method further includes: Determining a second wireless frame; wherein, the second wireless frame identifies that the Sharing AP shares the transmission opportunity to the first AP; the second wireless frame includes third identification information, and the third identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information for the Sharing AP to share the transmission opportunity to the first AP; the first AP is a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP. Sending the second wireless frame.

12. The communication method according to claim 11, wherein The first wireless frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations: Indicate that the Sharing AP re-holds the transmission time returned by the Shared AP; Indicate that the second AP updates the Network Allocation Vector (NAV) of the second AP to zero; wherein, the second AP is a neighbor AP of the Shared AP, and the second AP is not a neighbor AP of the Sharing AP; Indicate that the third AP determines whether to update the NAV of the third AP according to the first wireless frame; wherein, the third AP is a common neighbor AP of the Sharing AP and the Shared AP.

13. The communication method according to claim 12, wherein After receiving the first wireless frame, the method further includes: Re-holding the transmission time returned by the Shared AP.

14. The communication method according to claim 11, wherein The second wireless frame is used to indicate at least one of the following operations: Indicate that the first AP performs data transmission within the Basic Service Set (BSS) where the first AP is located during the transmission time indicated by the transmission opportunity indicated by the Sharing AP to the first AP; Indicate that the fifth AP updates the NAV of the fifth AP to the value indicated by the duration field in the second wireless frame; the fifth AP is an AP among the neighbor APs of the Sharing AP that is not the first AP.

15. The communication method according to claim 11, wherein The third identification information is carried in the User Info field of the second wireless frame.

16. An access point device, characterized in that, The access point device is the Shared Access Point Device (Shared AP), including: A determination module, configured to determine a first wireless frame; wherein, the first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify the frame type of the first wireless frame as a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information for the Shared AP to return the transmission time to the Sharing Access Point Device (Sharing AP); wherein, the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP; A sending module, configured to send the first wireless frame.

17. An access point device, characterized in that, The access point device is the Sharing Access Point Device (Sharing AP), including: A receiving module, configured to receive a first wireless frame; Wherein, the first wireless frame includes first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information is used to identify the frame type of the first wireless frame as a transmission opportunity return frame; the second identification information is used to identify the TXS identification information for the Shared AP to return the transmission time to the Sharing Access Point Device (Sharing AP); wherein, the transmission time returned by the Shared AP is the time in the transmission opportunity shared by the Sharing AP to the Shared AP.

18. An access point device, characterized in that, Including: One or more processors; Wherein, the access point device is configured to execute the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 8 or 9 to 15.

19. A communication system, characterized in that, It includes a first access point device and a second access point device; wherein, the first access point device is configured to implement the communication method described in any one of claims 1 to 8, and the second access point device is configured to implement the communication method described in any one of claims 9 to 15.

20. A storage medium, the storage medium stores instructions, characterized in that, When the instruction runs on a communication device, it causes the communication device to execute the communication method described in any one of claims 1 to 8 or 9 to 15.

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