Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application relates to a communication method and apparatus. An access point device sends a trigger frame, wherein the trigger frame is used for triggering a first station to send first uplink data, and the first station is a station that cannot send first information. The access point device sends the first information, wherein and / or, the trigger frame is further used for triggering a second station to send the first information, and the first information is used for enabling a third station not to send data when the first station sends uplink data. The access point device receives the first uplink data from the first station. In embodiments of the present application, the access point device and / or the second station can replace the first station which cannot send the first information to send the first information, thereby reducing the interference when the first station sends data.

Description

Communication method and device

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China on January 25, 2024, with application number 202410114355.7 and application name "A Communication Method and Device", the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0003] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and device. Background Art

[0004] The physical layer protocol data unit (PHY protocol data unit, PPDU) includes a legacy preamble. By sending the legacy preamble, the station (STA) receiving the legacy preamble can remain silent during the transmission time of the PPDU to reduce interference.

[0005] However, some STAs cannot send traditional preambles. Therefore, when these STAs send PPDUs, there may be significant interference due to the inability to send traditional preambles. Summary of the Invention

[0006] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus for reducing interference when an AMP device sends a PPDU.

[0007] In a first aspect, a first communication method is provided, which can be executed by an access point device (e.g., an AP) or by a chip system that can implement the functions of an access point device. The method includes: sending a trigger frame, the trigger frame being used to trigger a first station to send first uplink data, the first station being a station that is unable to send first information; sending first information, and / or the trigger frame is also used to trigger a second station to send first information, the first information being used to cause a third station not to send data when the first station sends uplink data, wherein the third station is the second station, or the third station is at least one station other than the first station and the second station; and receiving the first uplink data from the first station.

[0008] In the embodiment of the present application, the access point device can send the first information and / or can trigger the second station to send the first information. The first information can cause the third station to not send data when the first station is sending uplink data. For example, the third station can remain silent when the first station is sending uplink data. This is equivalent to the access point device and / or the second station sending the first information on behalf of the first station, which can reduce interference when the first station is sending data.

[0009] In an optional embodiment, sending a trigger frame includes: sending the trigger frame at a first bandwidth; sending first information includes: sending the first information at a second bandwidth, wherein the first bandwidth is smaller than the second bandwidth; receiving first uplink data from the first site includes: receiving the first uplink data from the first site at the first bandwidth. For example, if the first site does not support sending uplink data at the second bandwidth, the uplink data may be sent at the first bandwidth. The trigger frame may also be sent at the first bandwidth, so that both the first site and the second site can receive the trigger frame. In addition, the first information may be sent at the second bandwidth to meet the transmission requirements of the first information.

[0010] In an optional embodiment, sending the first information includes: sending the first information after the trigger frame is sent and after a SIFS time interval. The SIFS is equivalent to taking into account the processing time of the receiving end of the trigger frame (e.g., the first station, or the first station and the second station, etc.). That is, it is generally believed that after the access point device completes sending the trigger frame, after the SIFS, the receiving end of the trigger frame has completed receiving the trigger frame. That is, the time the access point waits after the SIFS and the time when the receiving end of the trigger frame completes receiving the trigger frame can be aligned.

[0011] In an optional embodiment, the first information includes a traditional preamble or a short frame, and the short frame includes the traditional preamble and a frame body. This is equivalent to the access point device and / or the second station in the embodiment of the present application being able to send only the traditional preamble or send the complete information (short frame) including the traditional preamble, which is more flexible.

[0012] In an optional embodiment, the traditional preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF and L-SIG; or, the traditional preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, BPSK-mark1 and BPSK-mark2. If the traditional preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF and L-SIG, the duration of the traditional preamble is shorter, the waiting time for the first STA is shorter, and the transmission efficiency of uplink data can be improved. Alternatively, the traditional preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, BPSK-mark1 and BPSK-mark2, so that the traditional preamble has the characteristic of automatic detection, and the receiving end of the traditional preamble can determine that the traditional preamble is the traditional preamble that the receiving end should receive according to the format and / or demodulation method of the traditional preamble, or distinguish the traditional preamble from other versions of traditional preambles.

[0013] In an optional implementation, the short frame includes CTS, NDP or ACK. In addition, the short frame can also be implemented in other ways, which are not limited.

[0014] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: sending an excitation signal, and / or the trigger frame is further used to trigger the second station to send an excitation signal, wherein the excitation signal is used to provide the first station with energy for sending the first uplink data. For example, for a station that has no energy storage capability or has limited energy storage capability, it may not be possible to send uplink data using the energy provided by the station itself, and the uplink data must be sent using backscatter. For such devices, the access point device and / or the second station can send an excitation signal so that the first station can obtain energy through the excitation signal to send uplink data.

[0015] In an optional embodiment, the trigger frame is used to trigger the first station to send uplink data, including: when the access point device sends the first information, the trigger frame includes at least one user information field, one of the at least one user information field includes a user identification field, the user identification field is used to indicate the first station, and the trigger frame is used to instruct the first station to send the first uplink data. If the access point device sends the first information, the trigger frame may not necessarily trigger the second station. For example, the trigger frame may not necessarily include relevant information about the second station (such as an identification, etc.). However, the trigger frame is to trigger the first station to send uplink data, so the trigger frame may include information about the first station. For example, the user identification field in one of the at least one user information field includes the identification of the first station, thereby indicating the first station.

[0016] In an optional embodiment, the trigger frame is further used to trigger the second station to send the first information, including: the trigger frame includes at least one user information field, one of the at least one user information field includes a user identification field and a user type field, the user identification field is used to indicate the second station, and the user type field is used to indicate the sending of the first information. For example, the user identification field may include the identifier of the second station, and the user type field may indicate the behavior of the second station (e.g., sending the first information), so that the user information field is equivalent to instructing (or triggering) the second station to send the first information.

[0017] In an optional embodiment, at least two of the fields other than the user identification field in the user information field are reserved fields. The format of the user information field in the embodiment of the present application can be obtained by updating the format of the traditional user information field. For the embodiment of the present application, except for the user identification field, the other fields in the user information field may not be used (the user information field in the embodiment of the present application may include a user type field or may not include a user type field. Optionally, the user type field may be a newly added field in the user information field and therefore may not belong to the traditional user information field. Therefore, the "other fields other than the user identification field" mentioned here may not include the user type field). Therefore, the embodiment of the present application can make at least two fields in the user information field other than the user information field as reserved fields, so there is no need to set valid values ​​for the at least two fields, which can simplify the implementation of access points and sites.

[0018] In an optional implementation, the common information field of the trigger frame includes a trigger type field, the value of the trigger type field being a first value, the first value being used to indicate that the trigger frame is used to trigger a station that is unable to send the first information to send uplink data. This embodiment of the present application expands the value of the trigger type field, enabling the trigger type field to indicate richer content and enabling the trigger frame to trigger stations of the first type.

[0019] In an optional embodiment, the first value has a value range of [9, 15]. For example, the trigger type field occupies 4 bits, and these 4 bits have a total of 16 values, or 16 states, of which states 0 to 8 have been defined, and the remaining states 9 to 15 are reserved. Optionally, the value range of the first value is, for example, [9, 15]. This means that the embodiment of the present application can use the reserved value of the trigger type field as the first value without further expanding the number of bits occupied by the trigger type field, which can be more compatible with existing technologies.

[0020] In an optional embodiment, the common information field further includes an uplink length field for indicating the length of the first uplink data, wherein at least six of the fields in the common information field other than the trigger type field and the uplink length field are reserved fields. For this embodiment of the present application, other fields in the common information field other than the trigger type field and the uplink length field may not be used. Therefore, this embodiment of the present application may reserve at least six fields in the common information field other than the trigger type field and the uplink length field, thereby eliminating the need to set valid values ​​for the at least six fields and simplifying the implementation of access point devices and stations.

[0021] In an optional embodiment, the trigger frame includes at least one first user information field, each first user information field in the at least one first user information field is used to indicate a site that cannot send the first information, and one first user information field in the at least one first user information field is used to indicate the first site, and the trigger frame is used to instruct the first site to send the first uplink data.

[0022] In an optional embodiment, the trigger frame includes at least one second user information field, each second user information field in the at least one second user information field is used to indicate a site for sending the first information and / or for sending an excitation signal to a site that cannot send the first information, and one second user information field in the at least one second user information field is used to indicate the second site.

[0023] For example, the format of the trigger frame is a format newly defined in an embodiment of the present application. In this format, the first type of site and the second type of site can be separated and indicated by different (or different types of) user information fields, making the indication of different types of sites clearer.

[0024] In an optional embodiment, the first uplink data uses a first spreading code. For example, if the access point device triggers multiple first-type stations to send uplink data (the first station is one of the stations) through a trigger frame, then optionally, different stations can use different spreading codes to send uplink data to reduce collisions.

[0025] In a second aspect, a second communication method is provided, which can be executed by a site device (such as an STA) or by a chip system that can implement the functions of the site device. The site is, for example, a site of the first type, such as a first site. The method includes: receiving a trigger frame, the trigger frame being used to trigger the first site to send first uplink data, the first site being a site that cannot send first information; after waiting for a first duration, sending the first uplink data, the first duration being greater than or equal to the duration of the first information, the first information being used to cause a third site not to send data when the first site sends uplink data, wherein the third site is the second site, or the third site is at least one site other than the first site and the second site.

[0026] In an optional implementation, receiving the trigger frame includes: receiving the trigger frame at a first bandwidth; sending the first uplink data includes: sending the first uplink data at the first bandwidth.

[0027] In an optional implementation, the first information includes a traditional preamble or a short frame, and the short frame includes the traditional preamble and a frame body.

[0028] In an optional implementation manner, the legacy preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG; or, the legacy preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, BPSK-mark1, and BPSK-mark2.

[0029] In an optional implementation, the short frame includes CTS, NDP or ACK.

[0030] In an optional implementation, the first duration is the duration of the first information; or, the first duration is the sum of the duration of the first information and SIFS.

[0031] In an optional implementation, sending the first uplink data includes: receiving an excitation signal; and sending the first uplink data using energy provided by the excitation signal.

[0032] In an optional embodiment, the trigger frame is used to trigger the first site to send uplink data, including: the trigger frame includes at least one user information field, one user information field in the at least one user information field includes a user identification field, the user identification field is used to indicate the first site, and the trigger frame is used to indicate the first site to send the first uplink data.

[0033] In an optional implementation manner, at least two fields in the one user information field except the user identification field are reserved fields.

[0034] In an optional embodiment, the common information field of the trigger frame includes a trigger type field, the value of the trigger type field is a first value, and the first value is used to indicate that the trigger frame is used to trigger a station that cannot send the first information to send uplink data.

[0035] In an optional implementation, the first value is in the range of [9, 15].

[0036] In an optional embodiment, the common information field also includes an uplink length field for indicating the length of the first uplink data, wherein at least five fields in the common information field except the trigger type field and the uplink length field are reserved fields.

[0037] In an optional embodiment, the trigger frame includes at least one first user information field, each first user information field in the at least one first user information field is used to indicate a site that cannot send the first information, and one first user information field in the at least one first user information field is used to indicate the first site, and the trigger frame is used to instruct the first site to send the first uplink data.

[0038] In an optional implementation, the first uplink data uses a first spreading code.

[0039] Regarding the technical effects brought about by the second aspect or various optional implementations, reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the first aspect or corresponding implementations.

[0040] In a third aspect, a third communication method is provided, which can be executed by a site device (such as a STA) or by a chip system that can implement the functions of a site device. The site is, for example, a site of the second type, such as a second site. The method includes: receiving a trigger frame, the trigger frame being used to trigger the second site to send first information and / or an excitation signal, the first information being used to cause the third site not to send data when the first site sends the first uplink data, the excitation signal being used to provide the first site with energy for sending the first uplink data, wherein the third site is the second site, or the third site is at least one site other than the first site and the second site; sending the first information and / or the excitation signal. Optionally, the first site is a site that is unable to send the first information.

[0041] In an optional implementation, receiving the trigger frame includes: receiving the trigger frame at a first bandwidth; sending the first information includes: sending the first information at a second bandwidth, wherein the first bandwidth is smaller than the second bandwidth.

[0042] In an optional implementation, the first information includes a traditional preamble or a short frame, and the short frame includes the traditional preamble and a frame body.

[0043] In an optional implementation manner, the legacy preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG; or, the legacy preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, BPSK-mark1, and BPSK-mark2.

[0044] In an optional implementation, the short frame includes CTS, NDP or ACK.

[0045] In an optional embodiment, the trigger frame is used to trigger the second site to send the first information and / or the excitation signal, including: the trigger frame includes at least one user information field, one user information field in the at least one user information field includes a user identification field and a user type field, the user identification field is used to indicate the second site, and the user type field is used to indicate the sending of the first information and / or the excitation signal.

[0046] In an optional implementation manner, at least two fields in the one user information field except the user identification field are reserved fields.

[0047] In an optional embodiment, the trigger frame includes at least one second user information field, each second user information field in the at least one second user information field is used to indicate a site for sending the first information and / or for sending an excitation signal to a site that cannot send the first information, and one second user information field in the at least one second user information field is used to indicate the second site.

[0048] Regarding the technical effects brought about by the third aspect or various optional implementations, reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the first aspect or corresponding implementations.

[0049] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device has the function of implementing the behavior in the method embodiment described in the first aspect. The beneficial effects can be found in the above description and will not be repeated here.

[0050] The communication device may be the access point device described in the first aspect above, or an electronic device configured in the access point device (e.g., a chip system), or a larger device that includes the access point device. The communication device includes corresponding means or modules for executing the above method. For example, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also referred to as a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also referred to as a transceiver module).

[0051] For example, the transceiver unit is used to send a trigger frame, which is used to trigger the first site to send the first uplink data, and the first site is a site that cannot send the first information; the transceiver unit is also used to send the first information, and / or the trigger frame is also used to trigger the second site to send the first information, and the first information is used to make the third site not send data when the first site sends uplink data, wherein the third site is the second site, or the third site is at least one site other than the first site and the second site; the transceiver unit is also used to receive the first uplink data from the first site.

[0052] In an optional implementation, the communication device includes a storage unit, and the processing unit can be coupled to the storage unit and execute programs or instructions in the storage unit to enable the communication device to perform the functions of the above-mentioned access point device.

[0053] In an optional embodiment, the communication device includes a processor coupled to a memory, configured to execute instructions in the memory to implement the method performed by the access point device described in the first aspect. Optionally, the communication device also includes other components, such as an antenna, an input / output module, an interface, and the like. These components may be hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0054] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device has the function of implementing the behavior in the method embodiment described in the second aspect. The beneficial effects can be found in the above description and will not be repeated here.

[0055] The communication device may be the first site described in the second aspect above, or an electronic device (e.g., a chip system) configured in the first site, or a larger device including the first site. The communication device includes corresponding means or modules for performing the above method. For example, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also referred to as a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also referred to as a transceiver module).

[0056] For example, the transceiver unit is used to receive a trigger frame, which is used to trigger the first site to send first uplink data, and the first site is a site that cannot send first information; the transceiver unit is also used to send the first uplink data after waiting for a first time period, and the first time period is greater than or equal to the time period of the first information, and the first information is used to prevent the third site from sending data when the first site sends uplink data, wherein the third site is the second site, or the third site is at least one site other than the first site and the second site.

[0057] In an optional embodiment, the communication device includes a storage unit, and the processing unit can be coupled to the storage unit and execute the program or instructions in the storage unit to enable the communication device to perform the functions of the above-mentioned first site.

[0058] In an optional embodiment, the communication device includes a processor coupled to a memory, configured to execute instructions in the memory to implement the method performed by the first station described in the second aspect. Optionally, the communication device also includes other components, such as an antenna, an input / output module, an interface, etc. These components may be hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0059] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device has the function of implementing the behavior in the method embodiment described in the third aspect. The beneficial effects can be found in the above description and will not be repeated here.

[0060] The communication device may be the second site described in the third aspect above, or an electronic device (e.g., a chip system) configured in the second site, or a larger device including the second site. The communication device includes corresponding means or modules for performing the above method. For example, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also referred to as a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also referred to as a transceiver module).

[0061] For example, the transceiver unit is used to receive a trigger frame, the trigger frame is used to trigger the second station to send first information and / or an excitation signal, the first information is used to prevent the third station from sending data when the first station sends first uplink data, and the excitation signal is used to provide the first station with energy for sending the first uplink data, wherein the third station is the second station, or the third station is at least one station other than the first station and the second station; the transceiver unit is also used to send the first information and / or the excitation signal. Optionally, the first station is a station that is unable to send the first information.

[0062] In an optional embodiment, the communication device includes a storage unit, and the processing unit can be coupled to the storage unit and execute the program or instructions in the storage unit to enable the communication device to perform the functions of the above-mentioned second site.

[0063] In an optional embodiment, the communication device includes a processor coupled to a memory, configured to execute instructions in the memory to implement the method performed by the second station described in the third aspect. Optionally, the communication device also includes other components, such as an antenna, an input / output module, an interface, etc. These components may be hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0064] In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, such as an access point device, or a chip or chip system used in an access point device. The communication device includes a communication interface and a processor, and optionally, a memory. The memory is configured to store a computer program, and the processor is coupled to the memory and the communication interface. When the processor reads the computer program or instructions, the communication device executes the method performed by the access point device in the first aspect.

[0065] In an eighth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device is, for example, a site device, or a chip or chip system used in a site device. The communication device includes a communication interface and a processor, and optionally, a memory. The memory is configured to store a computer program. The processor is coupled to the memory and the communication interface. When the processor reads the computer program or instructions, the communication device executes the method performed by the first site device in the second aspect.

[0066] In a ninth aspect, a communication device is provided, such as a site device, or a chip or chip system used in a site device. The communication device includes a communication interface and a processor, and optionally, a memory. The memory is configured to store a computer program, and the processor is coupled to the memory and the communication interface. When the processor reads the computer program or instructions, the communication device executes the method performed by the site device in the third aspect.

[0067] In a tenth aspect, a communication system is provided, which may include an access point device and a first station. The access point device may execute the method performed by the access point device in the first aspect, and the first station may execute the method performed by the first station in the second aspect. Optionally, the access point device may be implemented using the communication device described in the fourth or seventh aspect, and the first station may be implemented using the communication device described in the fifth or eighth aspect.

[0068] In an optional embodiment, the communication system further includes a second station, which can execute the method executed by the second station in the third aspect. Optionally, the second station can be implemented by the communication device described in the sixth aspect or the ninth aspect.

[0069] In the eleventh aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, wherein the computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program, and when the computer program is run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method as described in any one of the first to third aspects.

[0070] In a twelfth aspect, a computer program product is provided, comprising a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method described in any one of the first to third aspects.

[0071] In the thirteenth aspect, a chip or chip system is provided, comprising a processor and an interface, wherein the processor is used to call and run instructions from the interface, and when the processor executes the instructions, the method described in any one of the first to third aspects is implemented. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0072] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional leader;

[0073] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of an embodiment of the present application;

[0074] FIG3 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0075] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a format of a first PPDU in an embodiment of the present application;

[0076] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a format of a trigger frame in an embodiment of the present application;

[0077] FIG6A is a schematic diagram of a conventional format of a common information field in a trigger frame;

[0078] FIG6B is a schematic diagram of a common information field in a trigger frame according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0079] FIG7A is a schematic diagram of a format of a trigger frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0080] FIG7B is a schematic diagram of another format of a trigger frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0081] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of the traditional format of the user information field in the trigger frame;

[0082] FIG9 is a schematic diagram of a trigger frame in a new format provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0083] FIG10 is a flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0084] 11A to 11E are several execution flow charts of the communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0085] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of a format of a traditional preamble in an embodiment of the present application;

[0086] FIG13 is a schematic diagram of several formats of conventional preambles;

[0087] 14A to 14E are several execution flow charts of the communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0088] FIG15 is a flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0089] FIG16 is a schematic diagram of a device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0090] FIG17 is a schematic diagram of another device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0091] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0092] In the embodiments of the present application, the number of nouns, unless otherwise specified, means "singular noun or plural noun", that is, "one or more". "At least one" means one or more, and "plural" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there may be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B means: A or B. "At least one of the following items" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c means: a, b, c, a and b, a and c, b and c, or a and b and c, where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

[0093] In the embodiments of this application, ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the size, content, order, timing, priority, or importance of multiple objects. For example, the first type and the second type can be the same type or different types, and such names do not indicate differences in the devices, application scenarios, priorities, or importance corresponding to the two types. In addition, the numbering of the steps in the various embodiments introduced in this application is only for distinguishing different steps and is not used to limit the order of the steps.

[0094] The technical features involved in the embodiments of this application are introduced below.

[0095] During the development of 802.11 by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), a requirement was that some later-defined operating modes must be backward compatible with 802.11a. Therefore, starting with 802.11n, each generation of PPDUs includes a legacy preamble, the same as the 802.11a preamble, to ensure backward compatibility with 802.11a.

[0096] The legacy preamble primarily consists of the legacy short training field (L-STF), the legacy long training field (L-LTF), and the legacy signaling field (L-SIG), as shown in Figure 1. The L-STF is 8 microseconds (μs) long and contains 10 repeated segments. The receiver of this legacy preamble can use this repetitive nature for PPDU detection, automatic gain control (AGC) setting, initial frequency offset estimation, and initial time synchronization. The L-LTF is 8 μs long and contains two 3.2 μs repeated segments and a 1.6 μs guard interval. The receiver uses the L-LTF for further frequency and timing corrections and channel estimation. The L-SIG is 4 μs long and carries information such as the rate and length of the PPDU. For example, the length field within the L-SIG indicates the PPDU's duration, and the rate field within the L-SIG indicates the PPDU's rate. In addition, the L-SIG also includes fields such as parity, tail, and reserved, as shown in Figure 1. For STAs that receive the traditional preamble, they should remain silent for at least the duration of the PPDU indicated by the L-SIG, for example, and transmit after the duration to reduce interference.

[0097] Currently, wireless local area network (WLAN) applications based on IEEE 802.11 technology have been deployed in many market segments, including the traditional consumer electronics market and the booming Internet of Things market. In order to reduce the deployment and operation and maintenance costs of wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) Internet of Things, the IEEE 802.11 working group is discussing an Internet of Things device that supports energy harvesting. This new project is named the ambient power (AMP) project, and the Internet of Things device can also be called an AMP device. Radio frequency (RF) wireless power transfer (WPT) is introduced in AMP devices, so that capacitors that support RF WPT can be used instead of traditional batteries, solving the bottleneck problem caused by traditional batteries. For AMP devices, one or more of the following characteristics may be met:

[0098] (1) At least one data communication mode in the sub-1 GHz frequency band;

[0099] (2) There is at least one data communication mode in the 2.4 GHz band, and the communication access category (AC) is set to background (AC_BK);

[0100] (3) At least one WPT mode in the Sub-1 GHz band to indicate RF energy harvesting;

[0101] AMP's application scenarios include but are not limited to smart homes, smart farms, smart factories, logistics / warehousing, supermarket distribution, indoor positioning, or data centers.

[0102] For AMP devices, some classifications can be made. In the embodiment of the present application, for example, one classification method is to divide AMP devices into three categories, namely Class A, Class B and Class C. Among them, Class A AMP devices have a large energy storage capacity and support existing Wi-Fi protocols (such as IEEE 802.11b / g / n, etc.); Class B AMP devices have a certain energy storage capacity, do not support existing Wi-Fi protocols, and only support low-power transceiver operations; Class C AMP devices have no or only limited energy storage capacity, do not support existing Wi-Fi protocols, and only support low-power reception and back-reflection operations. Among them, Class B AMP devices and Class C AMP devices only support low-power transceiver operations, so they cannot support larger bandwidths, and can only support bandwidths of, for example, 4MHz or even smaller. The traditional preamble introduced above has a bandwidth of 20MHz. It can be seen that Class B AMP devices or Class C AMP devices may not be able to send traditional preambles. Therefore, when Class B AMP devices or Class C AMP devices send PPDUs, there may be greater interference due to the inability to send traditional preambles.

[0103] In view of this, the access point device in the embodiments of the present application can send the first information and / or can trigger the second station to send the first information. The first information can cause the third station to not send data when the first station sends uplink data. For example, the third station can remain silent when the first station sends uplink data. This is equivalent to the access point device and / or the second station sending the first information on behalf of the first station, which can reduce interference with the first station's data transmission.

[0104] The embodiments of the present application can be applied to local area networks (LANs), in particular WLANs, for example, WLANs that adopt any one of the IEEE 802.11 series protocols. WLANs may include one or more basic service sets (BSSs), and the network nodes in the basic service set include access points (APs) and stations (STAs). The embodiments of the present application can also be applied to wireless LAN systems that support IEEE 802.11ax next-generation wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) protocols, such as 802.11be, Wi-Fi 7, or extremely high throughput (EHT), such as 802.11be next generation, Wi-Fi 8, ultra high reliability (UHR, 802.11bn), Wi-Fi AI, and other 802.11 series protocols. It can also be applied to wireless personal area network systems based on ultra-wide band (UWB), and sensing systems.

[0105] The embodiments of the present application may also be applicable to wireless local area networks such as the Internet of Things (IoT) network or the Vehicle to X (V2X) network. Of course, the embodiments of the present application may also be applicable to other possible communication systems, such as a long term evolution (LTE) communication system, an LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) communication system, an LTE time division duplex (TDD) communication system, a universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), a world-wide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, a fifth generation (5G) communication system, or a future evolved communication system (such as a sixth generation (6G) communication system).

[0106] The following takes the embodiment of the present application applied to WLAN as an example. See Figure 2, which is a network architecture diagram of a WLAN applicable to the embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 takes the WLAN as an example, in which one AP and two STAs are included, and the STA is a mobile phone. Among them, the STA associated with the AP can receive frames sent by the AP (such as trigger frames), and can also send frames to the AP (such as uplink data). The embodiment of the present application can be applicable to communication between AP and STA, or it can also be applicable to communication between AP and AP, for example, each AP can communicate with each other through a distributed system (DS), or the embodiment of the present application can also be applicable to communication between STA and STA, for example, STAs communicate directly without going through the AP. Among them, the number of APs performing communication in the embodiment of the present application can be one or more, and the number of STAs performing communication can be one or more.

[0107] In the embodiments of the present application, an access point device is an AP and a station is a STA. The stations include, for example, AP STAs and / or non-AP STAs. For example, the first station described herein (hereinafter referred to as the first STA) may include an AP STA and / or a non-AP STA; the second station described herein (hereinafter referred to as the second STA) may include an AP STA and / or a non-AP STA, and so on.

[0108] An AP can be an access point for a terminal device to enter a wired (or wireless) network. An AP is equivalent to a bridge connecting a wired network and a wireless network. Its main function is to connect various wireless network clients together and then connect the wireless network to the Ethernet. For example, an AP can be a terminal device (such as a mobile phone) or a network device (such as a router) with a mobile hotspot (Wi-Fi) chip. In an embodiment of the present application, an AP can be a device that supports the 802.11be standard, or it can be a device that supports multiple WLAN standards such as 802.11ax, 802.11ay, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, 802.11a or 802.11be, 802.11bn, and future 802.11 series.

[0109] A STA can be a wireless communication chip, wireless sensor, or wireless communication terminal, also known as a user. For example, a STA can be a mobile phone supporting Wi-Fi communication, a tablet supporting Wi-Fi communication, a set-top box supporting Wi-Fi communication, a smart TV supporting Wi-Fi communication, a smart wearable device supporting Wi-Fi communication, an in-vehicle communication device supporting Wi-Fi communication, or a computer supporting Wi-Fi communication. Optionally, a STA can support the 802.11be standard, or multiple WLAN standards such as 802.11ax, 802.11ay, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11be, 802.11bn, and future 802.11 series standards.

[0110] The number of APs and STAs shown in FIG2 is only an example, and may be more or less.

[0111] In order to better introduce the embodiments of the present application, the methods provided by the embodiments of the present application are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the method flow charts corresponding to the various embodiments of the present application, all steps represented by dotted lines are optional steps. The methods provided by the various embodiments of the present application can be applied to the network architecture shown in Figure 2. For example, the AP involved in the various embodiments of the present application can be the AP in Figure 2, the first STA involved in the various embodiments of the present application can be STA1 in Figure 2, and the second STA involved in the various embodiments of the present application can be STA2 in Figure 2.

[0112] An embodiment of the present application provides a communication method. Please refer to Figure 3, which is a flowchart of the method.

[0113] S301: The AP sends a trigger frame. Accordingly, the first STA receives the trigger frame; accordingly, the second STA can also receive the trigger frame. For example, if the trigger frame is sent via broadcast, multiple STAs can receive the trigger frame. This embodiment of the application uses the first STA and the second STA as examples for description.

[0114] The trigger frame can be used to trigger one or more STAs to send uplink data, and the one or more STAs include the first STA. For example, the trigger frame can be used to trigger one or more STAs of the first type to send uplink data, and the first STA is a STA of the first type. The first type of STA is a STA that cannot send the first information, or a STA that supports a bandwidth less than 20MHz. For example, the bandwidth supported by the first type of STA (for example, the maximum bandwidth supported by the first STA) is the first bandwidth, and the first bandwidth is relatively small, for example, less than 20MHz; and the transmission bandwidth of the first information is the second bandwidth, and the second bandwidth is relatively large, for example, 20MHz, or may be greater than 20MHz. It can be seen that the first type of STA does not support the second bandwidth, and therefore, the first type of STA cannot send the first information. For example, the first type of STA includes a Class B AMP device and / or a Class C AMP device.

[0115] For example, the trigger frame may be included in a first PPDU, which is, for example, called a downlink (DL) AMP PPDU. The format of the first PPDU is, for example, referred to in FIG4 . As can be seen, the first PPDU may include a traditional preamble, a synchronization (Sync) field, and a data (data) field. Optionally, the format of the first PPDU is the format defined by IEEE 802.11ba, which is also the PPDU format used by wake-up radio (WUR). The traditional preamble may include L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG. In addition, the traditional preamble may also include binary phase shift keying (BPSK)-mark 1 and BPSK-mark 2 fields. Optionally, the trigger frame is included in the data field of the first PPDU. The traditional preamble included in the first PPDU may be transmitted in the second bandwidth, while the synchronization field and data field included in the first PPDU may be transmitted in the first bandwidth, and the first bandwidth may be smaller than the second bandwidth. Alternatively, the first PPDU may use other formats. For example, the traditional preamble of the first PPDU may be as shown in FIG. 1 , including L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG, but not including BPSK-mark1 and BPSK-mark2.

[0116] The first bandwidth is, for example, a bandwidth supported by the first type of STA, such as 4 MHz, or may be greater than or less than 4 MHz. The second bandwidth may be a bandwidth not supported by the first type of STA, but supported by both the AP and the second type of STA. The second bandwidth is greater than the first bandwidth, such as 20 MHz, or may be greater than or less than 20 MHz.

[0117] Optionally, the trigger frame can also be used to trigger one or more second-type STAs to send the first information and / or the excitation signal, and / or the AP can send the first information and / or the excitation signal. For example, the second STA is one of the second-type STAs triggered by the trigger frame. The second-type STA is, for example, an STA used to send the first information and / or to send the excitation signal to a STA that cannot send the first information (for example, a first-type STA). For example, the second-type STA supports a larger bandwidth, for example, greater than or equal to 20 MHz, which can be adapted to the bandwidth of the first information (for example, the bandwidth of the first information can be greater than or equal to 20 MHz). Therefore, the second-type STA can send the first information. For another example, the second-type STA has a certain energy storage capacity and can send radio frequency signals (for example, excitation signals). Therefore, the second-type STA can send the excitation signal to the first-type STA. For example, the second-type STA may include a Class A AMP STA, and may also include a non-AMP STA, etc.

[0118] It can be seen that in the embodiment of the present application, the AP can send the first information, and / or can trigger the second type of STA to send the first information, and the first STA that cannot send the first information does not need to send the first information, but can send uplink data. The first information can cause the third STA not to send data when the first STA sends uplink data, for example, the third STA can remain silent when the first STA sends uplink data. The third STA, for example, includes at least one STA other than the first STA, and the at least one STA, for example, includes the second STA, or may not include the second STA. It can be understood that, through the first information, one or more STAs other than the first STA can remain silent when the first STA sends uplink data, thereby reducing interference with the uplink data. Therefore, it is equivalent to the AP and / or the second type of STA sending the first information instead of the first STA, which can reduce interference when the first STA sends data.

[0119] In addition, the excitation signal can be used to cause the STA receiving the excitation signal to modulate (for example, using load modulation) the information to be sent by the STA (for example, uplink data) onto the excitation signal and transmit it. The excitation signal can be a continuous wave (for example, a sine wave), or the excitation signal can also be a Wi-Fi signal, a Bluetooth signal, or a long-range radio (LoRa) signal. For example, if the first STA has no energy storage capability or has limited energy storage capability, for example, if the first STA is a Class C AMP device, the first STA is unable to send uplink data using the energy provided by the first STA. Then, the AP and / or the second type of STA can also send an excitation signal to the first STA, so that the first STA can send uplink data with the help of the energy of the excitation signal, thereby improving the success rate of the first STA sending uplink data.

[0120] Optionally, the first information may include a traditional preamble, or a short frame. Optionally, the short frame may include a traditional preamble, and may also include a frame body (frame body), for example, it is understood that the traditional preamble is a part of the short frame. Equivalent to the AP and / or the second type of STA in the embodiment of the present application may only send a traditional preamble, or send complete information (short frame) including a traditional preamble. Optionally, the short frame includes, for example, clear to send (CTS), a null data packet (NDP) or an ACK, or may also include other short frames, without limitation. The format of the traditional preamble or the content included will be described in detail in other embodiments later.

[0121] S302: The AP sends the first information, and / or the second STA sends the first information. Alternatively, S302 may be understood as the AP sending the first information and / or the trigger frame also triggering the second STA to send the first information. Therefore, the AP sends the first information and / or the second STA sends the first information.

[0122] As previously described, the trigger frame in S301 can trigger one or more second-type STAs to transmit first information. A second STA is one of the one or more second-type STAs. FIG3 uses the second STA transmitting the first information as an example. For example, if the second STA is triggered by the trigger frame, it can transmit the first information.

[0123] S303: The first STA sends first uplink data. Correspondingly, the AP receives the first uplink data.

[0124] The first STA is triggered by the trigger frame in S301 and can then send the first uplink data. Since the AP and / or the second type STA sends the first information on behalf of the first STA, the first STA that is unable to send the first information does not need to send the first information, but can instead send the first uplink data. This is equivalent to having the AP and / or the second type STA send the first information on behalf of the first STA, which can reduce interference when the first STA sends uplink data, allowing the STA that is unable to send the first information to also send uplink data.

[0125] Regarding the trigger frame described in the embodiment shown in FIG3 , there may be different implementations, which are described below with examples.

[0126] 1. The first implementation of the trigger frame: In this implementation, the embodiment of the present application may adopt the traditional format of the trigger frame as the format of the trigger frame in the embodiment of the present application.

[0127] The trigger frame may include a common information field and at least one user information field. For example, the format of the trigger frame can be seen in Figure 5. As shown in Figure 5, the trigger frame may include a frame control field, a duration field, a receiving address (RA) field, a transmitting address (TA) field, a common information field, at least one user information field, a padding field, and a frame check sequence (FCS) field.

[0128] Among them, the public information field may include a trigger type field, and the trigger type field occupies 4 bits. These 4 bits have a total of 16 values, or 16 states, of which states 0 to 8 have been defined, and the remaining states 9 to 15 are reserved. The trigger frame in the embodiment of the present application can be used to trigger the AMP device to send uplink data, so the embodiment of the present application can make the value of the trigger type field the first value (or make the state of the trigger type field the first state), and the first value can indicate that the trigger frame is used to trigger the first type of STA to send uplink data. Optionally, the value range of the first value is, for example, [9,15], which is equivalent to the embodiment of the present application using the reserved value of the trigger type field as the first value without having to expand the number of bits occupied by the trigger type field, which can be better compatible with existing technologies.

[0129] Table 1 shows an example of the value and content indicated by the trigger type field. The X in Table 1 represents the first value in the embodiment of the present application. The AMP uplink (UL) corresponding to X indicates that the AMP device is transmitting uplink data. The AMP device here, for example, is an AMP device that cannot transmit a traditional preamble or is not capable of transmitting a traditional preamble. Table 1 uses the example of a first type of STA including an AMP device.

[0130] Table 1

[0131] Optionally, X can be any value from 9 to 15. For example, X can be 9, and the values ​​other than X from 9 to 15 are reserved.

[0132] Please refer to FIG. 6A , which is a schematic diagram of a traditional format of a common information field in a trigger frame. The common information fields may include a trigger type field, an uplink length (UL length) field, a more trigger frames (more TF) field, a carrier sense required (CS required) field, an uplink bandwidth (UL BW) field, a guard interval (GI) and high efficiency (HE) / EHT-LTF type / triggered transmission opportunity (TXOP) sharing mode field, a reserved field, a number of HE / EHT-LTF symbols field, an LDPC extra symbol segment field, an AP TX power field, a pre-FEC padding factor field, a packet extension disambiguation (PE disambiguation) field, an uplink spatial reuse field, a HE / EHT P160 field, a special user information field flag field, an EHT reserved field, and a trigger dependent common information field. B0 to B63 in FIG6A represent bits occupied by each field, and “Number of bits” in FIG6A represents the number of bits occupied by each field.

[0133] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present application, at least six of the remaining fields in the common information field, excluding the trigger type field and the uplink length field, may be reserved fields. The common information field shown in FIG6A includes five reserved fields (including an EHT reserved field). For this embodiment of the present application, other fields in the common information field, excluding the trigger type field and the uplink length field, may not be used. Therefore, in this embodiment of the present application, at least six fields in the common information field, excluding the trigger type field and the uplink length field, may be reserved fields, eliminating the need to set valid values ​​for these at least six fields, thereby simplifying the implementation of the AP and STA. Optionally, these at least six fields may include some or all of the five reserved fields originally included in the common information field, or may not include these five reserved fields, without limitation. As an example, other than the trigger type field, the uplink length field, and the AP transmit power field, the remaining fields in the common information field may all be reserved fields. This significantly simplifies the implementation of the AP and STA while preserving as many valid fields as possible. As another example, except for the trigger type field and the uplink length field, the remaining fields in the public information field can all be reserved fields, which can greatly simplify the implementation of the AP and STA. In addition, optionally, the trigger-based public information field included in the public information field is variable, which can be understood as the public information field may include the trigger-based public information field or may not include the trigger-based public information field. Therefore, the public information field in the embodiment of the present application may include the trigger-based public information field or may not include the trigger-based public information field.

[0134] For example, the public information field in the embodiment of the present application does not include the trigger-based public information field, and the remaining fields in the public information field except the trigger type field and the uplink length field are reserved fields. For this, please refer to Figure 6B. This can simplify the implementation of APs and STAs and reduce transmission overhead.

[0135] In addition to the common information field, the trigger frame may also include at least one user information field, for which reference may continue to be made to Figure 5. Each of the at least one user information field may include a user identification field, which may indicate a STA, indicating that the trigger frame triggered the STA.

[0136] After the AP sends the trigger frame, the AP and / or the second-type STA will send the first information and / or the stimulation signal, as described below. For example, if the AP sends the first information and stimulation signal but the second-type STA does not, or if the AP sends the first information but the second-type STA does not (the stimulation signal does not need to be sent), then the trigger frame may optionally not trigger the second-type STA and only trigger the first STA; or alternatively, the trigger frame may not trigger the second-type STA and only trigger the first-type STA. Therefore, if the AP sends the first information and stimulation signal but the second-type STA does not, or if the AP sends the first information but the second-type STA does not (the stimulation signal does not need to be sent), the at least one user information field may not indicate the second-type STA, thereby preventing the second-type STA from being triggered. The second STA belongs to the second-type STA. If the trigger frame triggers the second-type STA to send the first information and / or stimulation signal, the second STA may be a second-type STA triggered by the trigger frame. Second-type STAs include STAs capable of sending the first information and / or stimulation signal. For example, in embodiments of the present application, the second type of STA may be referred to as a legacy preamble transmitting (LPT) STA, or may have other names. For example, the second type of STA may support a second bandwidth, while the first type of STA supports a first bandwidth but not the second bandwidth, and the first bandwidth is smaller than the second bandwidth. For example, the second bandwidth is 20 MHz, and the first bandwidth is 4 MHz or smaller.

[0137] However, even if the at least one user information field does not trigger the second type of STA, the at least one user information field still triggers the first type of STA (the first STA is a first type of STA triggered by the at least one user information field) to send uplink data. For example, one of the user information fields in the at least one user information field is used to trigger the first STA. The user information field may include a user identification field. The user identification field may indicate the first STA (for example, including the identification of the first STA). In this case, it can be considered that the trigger frame instructs the first STA to send uplink data. Reference is made to Figure 7A, which is a schematic diagram of a trigger frame in an embodiment of the present application. The trigger frame includes a common information field and at least one user information field (Figure 7A takes at least one user information field included in the user information list as an example). The common information field includes a trigger type field (for example, occupying 4 bits) and an uplink length field (for example, occupying 12 bits). In addition, there is no restriction on whether the common information field also includes other fields. One of the user information fields in the at least one user information field includes a user identification field. For another example, one of the at least one user information fields is used to trigger a first STA. The user information field may include a user identification field and may also include a user type field. The user identification field may indicate the first STA, for example, including the first STA's identifier. The user type field may indicate the transmission of uplink data. In this case, the user information field is equivalent to instructing the first STA to transmit uplink data. Figure 7A takes the example of a user information field that does not include a user type field.

[0138] Referring again to FIG7B , which is another schematic diagram of a trigger frame in an embodiment of the present application, the trigger frame includes a common information field and at least one user information field. The common information field includes a trigger type field (e.g., occupying 4 bits) and an uplink length field (e.g., occupying 12 bits). One user information field in the at least one user information field includes a user identification field and a user type field. If the trigger frame is also used to trigger other STAs (e.g., other STAs of the first type) to send uplink data, the other user information fields in the at least one user information field can also indicate other STAs in a manner similar to that for the first STA. In FIG7A and FIG7B , the number of bits occupied by the corresponding fields is only an example.

[0139] Alternatively, if the first information and / or stimulation signal is transmitted by the second STA (or by a second-type STA), or if both the AP and the second STA (or the second-type STA) transmit the first information and / or stimulation signal, then the trigger frame can trigger the first-type STA to transmit uplink data and also trigger one or more second-type STAs to transmit the first information. These one or more second-type STAs may include the second STA. For example, one user information field in the at least one user information field is used to trigger the second STA. This user information field may include a user identification field and a user type field. For an example of this, see FIG7B . The user identification field may indicate the second STA, for example, including the second STA's identifier; the user type field may indicate the transmission of the first information and / or stimulation signal. Thus, this user information field is equivalent to instructing the second STA to transmit the first information and / or stimulation signal. In this case, some of the at least one user information field may be used to trigger the first-type STA, while others may be used to trigger the second-type STA. The implementation of the user information field used to trigger the first-type STA can be found in the above description.

[0140] As described above, the User Type field occupies, for example, two bits, or may occupy more or fewer bits, without limitation. Different values ​​(or different states) of the User Type field may indicate different STA behaviors. For example, see Table 2 for an example implementation of the User Type field.

[0141] Table 2

[0142] The first column of Table 2 indicates the value of the user type field. According to Table 2, if the value of the user type field is "0", it means that the STA indicated by the user information field where the user type field is located is an AMP STA, and the behavior of the AMP STA is to send uplink data. Alternatively, if the value of the user type field is "1", it means that the STA indicated by the user information field where the user type field is located is an LPT STA, and the behavior of the LPT STA is to send a traditional preamble, and so on. Among them, for the same LPT STA (for example, the second STA), the AP may trigger the second STA to send both a traditional preamble and an excitation signal. In this case, if the user type field occupies 2 bits, there can be two user information fields in the at least one user information field to indicate the second STA. For example, the user identification fields in the two user information fields both include the identification of the second STA, the value of the user type field included in one of the two user information fields is "1", and the value of the user type field included in the other of the two user information fields is "2".

[0143] For another example, please refer to Table 3, which is an example of another implementation of the user type field. In this example, the user type field occupies 3 bits.

[0144] Table 3

[0145] The first column of Table 3 shows the value of the User Type field. According to Table 3, if the value of the User Type field is "0," it indicates that the STA indicated by the User Information field in which the User Type field resides is an AMP STA, and the AMP STA's behavior is to transmit uplink data. Alternatively, if the value of the User Type field is "1," it indicates that the STA indicated by the User Information field in which the User Type field resides is an LPT STA, and the LPT STA's behavior is to transmit a legacy preamble. Alternatively, if the value of the User Type field is "3," it indicates that the STA indicated by the User Information field in which the User Type field resides is an LPT STA, and the LPT STA's behavior is to transmit a legacy preamble and an excitation signal, and so on. For the same LPT STA (e.g., the second STA), the AP may trigger the second STA to transmit both a legacy preamble and an excitation signal. In this case, if the User Information field occupies three bits, then one User Information field in the at least one User Information field can be used to indicate the second STA. For example, the User Identifier field in the User Information field includes the identifier of the second STA, and the value of the User Type field included in the User Information field is "3." Compared to Table 2, Table 3 provides a simpler indication of STA behavior. Furthermore, the user type field in Table 2 occupies fewer bits than in Table 3, which helps reduce transmission overhead. Alternatively, the user type field may be implemented in other ways, which are not limited.

[0146] Please refer to Figure 8, which is a schematic diagram of the traditional format of the user information field in the trigger frame. The user information field may include an association identification (AID) 12 field, an RU allocation field, an uplink forward error correction code type (UL FEC coding type) field, an uplink EHT modulation and coding strategy (UL EHT-MCS) field, a reserved field, a spatial stream allocation (SS allocation) field, an uplink target receive power (UL target receive power) field, a PS160 field, and a trigger-dependent user information field. The user type field mentioned above may be a newly defined field in the user information field. For example, the user type field may be implemented by an existing bit in the user information field, or a new bit may be added to the user information field as the user type field.

[0147] The format of the user information field in the embodiment of the present application can be an update of the format of the traditional user information field. Optionally, in the user information field of the embodiment of the present application, at least two of the remaining fields, excluding the user identification field, can be reserved fields. Alternatively, the user information field in the embodiment of the present application can be obtained by setting at least two of the remaining fields, excluding the user identification field, in the traditional user information field as reserved fields. The user information field shown in Figure 8 includes a reserved field. For the embodiment of the present application, the other fields, excluding the user identification field, of the user information field can be unused. Therefore, the embodiment of the present application can reserve at least two fields, excluding the user information field, in the user information field. This eliminates the need to set valid values ​​for these at least two fields, simplifying the implementation of APs and STAs. Optionally, these at least two fields can include a reserved field originally included in the common information field, or they can exclude this reserved field, without limitation.

[0148] As can be seen from the foregoing, the user information field may include a user type field or may not include a user type field (for example, if the first information and the excitation signal are sent by the AP but the second type of STA does not send the first information or the excitation signal, or if the first information is sent by the AP but the second type of STA does not send the first information (the excitation signal does not need to be sent), then the user information field is used to trigger the first type of STA, and the user information field may include a user type field or may not include the user type field). If the user information field includes a user type field, the user type field may occupy one or more bits in the at least two fields, that is, one or more bits in the reserved field may be used as the user type field, thereby eliminating the need to add new bits in the user information field as the user type field and increasing the overhead of the user information field.

[0149] As mentioned above, the excitation signal may or may not be sent. For example, for a STA with a certain energy storage capacity, uplink data can be sent using the energy provided by the STA itself without resorting to back reflection. If the trigger frame is used to trigger such a STA to send uplink data, then neither the AP nor the second type of STA needs to send an excitation signal. Such STAs include, for example, Class B AMP STAs, and may also include other STAs. For another example, for a STA that does not have energy storage capacity or has limited energy storage capacity, it is not possible to send uplink data using the energy provided by the STA itself, but must use back reflection to send uplink data. In this case, if the trigger frame is used to trigger such a STA to send uplink data, then the AP and / or the second type of STA may send an excitation signal. Such STAs include, for example, Class C AMP STAs, and may also include other STAs.

[0150] Among them, back reflection can also be called backscattering. Backscattering technology is a wireless technology that can achieve signal transmission and encoding without an active transmitter. In backscattering technology, the signal transmitter does not need to actively generate radio frequency signals, but communicates by reflecting electromagnetic waves from other devices. Similar to the principle of radar, when the electromagnetic wave reaches the surface of an object, a part of the electromagnetic wave will be reflected by the object, and the strength of the reflected signal depends on the shape, material, or distance between the object and the electromagnetic wave transmitter. For example, in backscattering technology, the signal transmitter (such as the first STA in the embodiment of the present application) can modulate the radio frequency signal from other devices (such as the excitation signal from the AP and / or the second type of STA) to transmit data, without the need for the signal transmitter to generate the radio frequency signal by itself.

[0151] 2. Second implementation of the trigger frame: In this implementation, the embodiment of the present application may define a new format for the trigger frame.

[0152] For example, the trigger frame may include at least one first user information field, and each first user information field in the at least one first user information field may indicate a first type of STA. Taking the first type of STA as an AMP STA (for example, including a Class B AMP STA and / or a Class C AMP STA) as an example, the first user information field may also be referred to as an AMP user information field, or may have other names. For example, one first user information field in the at least one first user information field may indicate (or trigger) a first STA, and the trigger frame may instruct the first STA to send uplink data. For example, the one first user information field is used to trigger the first STA, and the first user information field may include a user identification field, and the user identification field may indicate the first STA (for example, including the identification of the first STA). In this case, it can be considered that the trigger frame instructs the first STA to send uplink data.

[0153] Optionally, the trigger frame may further include at least one second user information field. Each second user information field in the at least one first user information field may indicate a second-type STA. For example, if the second-type STA is an LPT STA, the second user information field may also be referred to as an LPT user information field, or may have other names. For example, one of the at least one second user information fields may indicate (or trigger) a second STA. For example, the second user information field may be used to trigger the second STA. The second user information field may include a user identification field, which may indicate the second STA (e.g., include the second STA's identifier). Furthermore, the second user information field may also include a user type field (or a type field, or may have other names). The user type field may indicate that the second STA transmits the first information and / or the excitation signal. In other words, the second user information field may indicate (or trigger) the second STA to transmit the first information and / or the excitation signal. The user type field may occupy one or more bits. Table 4 shows an example of the user type field, in which the user type field occupies one bit.

[0154] Table 4

[0155] The first column of Table 4 represents the value of the user type field. Table 4 takes the second type of STA as an LPT STA as an example. According to Table 4, if the value of the user type field is "0", it means that the LPT STA indicated by the user information field where the user type field is located sends a traditional preamble; or if the value of the user type field is "1", it means that the STA indicated by the user information field where the user type field is located sends an excitation signal. Among them, for the same LPT STA (for example, the second STA), the AP may trigger the second STA to send both a traditional preamble and an excitation signal. In this case, if the user type field occupies 2 bits, there can be two second user information fields in the at least one second user information field to indicate the second STA. For example, the user identification fields in the two second user information fields both include the identification of the second STA, the user type field included in one of the two second user information fields has a value of "0", and the user type field included in the other of the two second user information fields has a value of "1".

[0156] For another example, please refer to Table 5, which is an example of another implementation of the user type field. In this example, the user type field occupies 2 bits.

[0157] Table 5

[0158] The first column of Table 5 shows the value of the User Type field. According to Table 5, if the value of the User Type field is "0," it indicates that the LPT STA indicated by the User Information field in which the User Type field resides transmits a legacy preamble; alternatively, if the value of the User Type field is "1," it indicates that the LPT STA indicated by the User Information field in which the User Type field resides transmits an excitation signal; alternatively, if the value of the User Type field is "2," it indicates that the LPT STA indicated by the User Information field in which the User Type field resides transmits both a legacy preamble and an excitation signal, and so on. For the same LPT STA (e.g., the second STA), the AP may trigger the second STA to transmit both a legacy preamble and an excitation signal. In this case, if the User Information field occupies two bits, then one second User Information field in the at least one second User Information field may be used to indicate the second STA. For example, the User Identification field in the second User Information field includes the identifier of the second STA, and the value of the User Type field included in the second User Information field is "2." Compared to Table 4, Table 5 provides a simpler indication of LPT STA behavior. Furthermore, the user type field in Table 4 occupies fewer bits, which helps reduce transmission overhead. Alternatively, the user type field may be implemented in other ways, which are not limited.

[0159] Alternatively, the trigger frame may not include the second user information field. For example, if the AP sends the first information and the excitation signal but the second type STA does not, or if the AP sends the first information but the second type STA does not (the excitation signal does not need to be sent), then the trigger frame may not trigger the second type STA, and thus may not include the second user information field. Alternatively, even if the trigger frame does not trigger the second type STA, the trigger frame format is fixed, and thus the trigger frame may still include at least one second user information field, but the value of the at least one second user information field may be invalid, for example, the value of the at least one second user information field may be a default value.

[0160] Optionally, the trigger frame may further include a common information field, such as an uplink length field, but may not include any other fields. Alternatively, the common information field may include one or more fields in a conventional common information field in addition to the uplink length field, without limitation.

[0161] Please refer to Figure 9, which is a schematic diagram of a trigger frame of a new format provided in an embodiment of the present application. The trigger frame includes, for example, a frame control field, a duration field, an RA field, a TA field, a common information field, at least one first user information field, at least one second user information field, a padding field, and an FCS field. In Figure 9, at least one first user information field is included in the first list, at least one second user information field is included in the second list, the first list is located before the second list, and the name of the first list is AMP user information list (AMP user information list) and the name of the second list is LPT user information list (LPT user information list). In Figure 9, the common information field includes an uplink length field; the first user information field includes a user identification field (the user identification field is also called AMP STA ID, or it can also have other names); the second user information field includes a user identification field (the user identification field is, for example, AID12) and a user type field (the user type field is also called LPT STA type, or it can also have other names).

[0162] For the receiving end of the trigger frame (for example, including the first STA or the first type of STA; or including the first type of STA and the second type of STA), it is possible to determine whether the receiving end is triggered or determine the behavior of the receiving end by parsing the trigger frame. For example, for the receiving end, the fields in the trigger frame can be parsed in sequence from front to back. Taking Figure 9 as an example, the first list is in front and the second list is in the back. Therefore, regardless of the first type of STA (for example, the first STA) or the second type of STA (for example, the second STA), the first user information field in the first list can be parsed first in sequence from front to back. For the first STA, if the identifier of the first STA is detected in the first user information field in the first list, the first STA can stop parsing the first list and the second list, that is, the first STA does not need to parse the remaining first user information fields in the first list, and does not need to parse the second list.

[0163] For the second STA, each first user information field in the first list can be parsed in turn to determine whether it includes the identifier of the second STA. If the first user information field in the first list does not include the identifier of the second STA, the second STA can continue to parse the second user information field in the second list after parsing all the first user information fields in the first list. For example, if the second STA detects the identifier of the second STA in a second user information field in the second list, the second STA can stop parsing the remaining second user information fields in the second list (for example, the user type field adopts the implementation shown in Table 5); or, the second STA can continue to parse the remaining second user information fields in the second list to determine whether it includes the identifier of the second STA until all the second user information fields in the second list are parsed (for example, the user type field adopts the implementation shown in Table 4).

[0164] Alternatively, for the second STA, the first user information field in the first list can be parsed. For a certain first user information field in the first list (for example, the first first user information field from the front to the back in the first list), the second STA determines that the first user information field does not include the user type field. The second STA can then determine that the first list is not a list corresponding to the second type of STA. The second STA can then stop parsing the remaining user information fields in the first list and start parsing the second user information fields in the next list (i.e., the second list). For example, if the second STA detects the identifier of the second STA in a certain second user information field in the second list, the second STA can stop parsing the remaining second user information fields in the second list; alternatively, the second STA can continue to parse the remaining second user information fields in the second list to determine whether they include the identifier of the second STA until all second user information fields in the second list are parsed.

[0165] The above description uses Figure 9 as an example, that is, the first list is in front and the second list is in the back. However, the embodiments of the present application do not limit the positions of the first and second lists. For example, the second list may be in front and the first list may be in the back. For the receiving end, the fields in the trigger frame can still be parsed in order from front to back. For example, if the second list is in front and the first list is in the back, then the second user information field in the second list can be parsed first in the order from front to back, regardless of whether it is the first STA or the second STA. For the second STA, if the second STA's identifier is detected in a second user information field in the second list, the second STA can stop parsing the remaining second user information fields in the second list; alternatively, the second STA can continue to parse the remaining second user information fields in the second list to determine whether the second STA's identifier is included therein until all the second user information fields in the second list are parsed. Since the second STA has already detected the second STA's identifier in the second list, the second STA does not need to parse the first list again.

[0166] For the first STA, each second user information field in the second list can be parsed in sequence to determine whether it contains the first STA's identifier. If the second user information field in the second list does not contain the first STA's identifier, the first STA can continue to parse the first user information field in the first list after parsing all the second user information fields in the second list. For example, if the first STA detects the first STA's identifier in a first user information field in the first list, the first STA can stop parsing the remaining first user information fields in the first list.

[0167] Alternatively, for the first STA, the second user information field in the second list can be parsed. For a certain second user information field in the second list (for example, the first second user information field from the front to the back in the second list), the first STA determines that the second user information field includes a user type field. The first STA can then determine that the second list is not a list corresponding to the first type of STA. The first STA can then stop parsing the remaining second user information fields in the second list and start parsing the first user information fields in the next list (i.e., the first list). For example, if the first STA detects the first STA's identifier in a certain first user information field in the first list, the first STA can stop parsing the remaining first user information fields in the first list.

[0168] Next, another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application is introduced, which can be regarded as a specific example of the embodiment shown in Figure 3. Please refer to Figure 10, which is a flowchart of the method.

[0169] S1001: An AP sends a trigger frame. Accordingly, a first STA receives the trigger frame; accordingly, a second STA may also receive the trigger frame.

[0170] The trigger frame may be used to trigger one or more first-type STAs to transmit uplink data, including the first STA. Optionally, the trigger frame may also be used to trigger one or more second-type STAs to transmit first information and / or an excitation signal, and / or the AP may transmit the first information and / or an excitation signal. For example, the second STA may be one of the one or more second-type STAs.

[0171] S1001 and S301 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 may be the same step, so for more information about S1001 , reference may be made to S301 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 .

[0172] S1002: The AP sends the first information, and / or the second STA sends the first information. Alternatively, S1002 may be understood as the AP sending the first information and / or the trigger frame also triggering the second STA to send the first information. Therefore, the AP sends the first information and / or the second STA sends the first information.

[0173] S1002 may be the same step as S302 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 .

[0174] If the first information is sent by the AP, the AP may optionally send the first information after the trigger frame in S1001 is sent and after a short interframe space (SIFS) period, where the SIFS is, for example, 16 μs. For this purpose, please refer to FIG. 11A or FIG. 11B . FIG. 11A and FIG. 11B both take the example of not sending an excitation signal and the example of the trigger frame triggering a Class B AMP STA to send uplink data. In FIG. 11A and FIG. 11B , after receiving the trigger frame, the Class B AMP STA waits for a first time duration before sending uplink data. The difference between FIG. 11A and FIG. 11B is that the first time duration is different, which will be described later in S1004. For example, the AP starts timing when the trigger frame is sent and ends timing at the SIFS time. At the end of timing, the first information may be sent. The SIFS is equivalent to taking into account the processing time of the receiver of the trigger frame (e.g., the first STA, or the first STA and the second STA, etc.). In other words, it's generally assumed that after the AP completes sending the trigger frame, the SIFS period elapses before the receiver of the trigger frame completes receiving it. This means that the time the AP waits for the SIFS period and the time the receiver completes receiving the trigger frame can be aligned. Therefore, the AP sends the first information after waiting the SIFS period, and the first STA waits the first period of time after receiving the trigger frame before sending uplink data, achieving time alignment.

[0175] If the second STA sends the first information, it can send the first information after completing reception of the trigger frame in S1001. For this purpose, refer to Figure 11C , which uses the example of an LPT STA as the second STA. Figure 11C uses the example of a Class B AMP STA that does not need to send an excitation signal and the trigger frame triggering the transmission of uplink data by the Class B AMP STA. The time when the second STA completes reception of the trigger frame can be aligned with the time when the SIFS after the AP sends the trigger frame expires. In Figure 11C , after receiving the trigger frame, the Class B AMP STA waits for the first duration before sending uplink data.

[0176] As described above with respect to the trigger frame, the trigger frame can trigger one or more second-type STAs to send the first information, and / or the AP can send the first information after sending the trigger frame. For example, if only one second-type STA sends the first information, or only the AP sends the first information, the coverage of the first information is limited, and some STAs may not receive the first information. In this case, these STAs may not remain silent when the first STA sends uplink data, but may instead send data, thereby potentially interfering with the first STA's uplink data. Therefore, in an embodiment of the present application, the AP can trigger one or more second-type STAs to send the first information through a trigger frame, and / or the AP can send the first information. Sending the first information by more devices can increase the coverage of the first information, allowing more STAs to receive the first information and reducing interference with the first STA's uplink data. If the AP triggers multiple second-type STAs to send the first information through a trigger frame, the AP can determine which second-type STAs it triggers to send the first information. If both the AP and the second type of STA send the first information, the AP can send the first information when the SIFS time arrives after the trigger frame is sent, and the second type of STA can send the first information when the trigger frame is received. That is, the way of sending the first information is similar.

[0177] For example, referring to Figure 11D, take the example of the AP triggering two second-type STAs (LPT STA 1 and LPT STA 2 in Figure 11D) to send the first information, and the AP does not send the first information, for example, one of the two STAs is the second STA. In addition, Figure 11D takes the example of not having to send an excitation signal, and takes the example of the trigger frame triggering the Class B AMP STA to send uplink data. The two or more second-type STAs triggered by the AP can send the first information when the trigger frame of S1001 is received. For example, the time when the two second-type STAs complete receiving the trigger frame can be aligned with the time when the SIFS after the AP sends the trigger frame arrives. In Figure 11D, after receiving the trigger frame, the Class B AMP STA will wait for the first period of time before sending the uplink data.

[0178] For another example, referring to Figure 11E , an example is given in which an AP sends first information and the AP triggers two second-type STAs (LPT STA 1 and LPT STA 2 in Figure 11E ) to send the first information, for example, one of the two STAs is the second STA. Furthermore, Figure 11E takes the example of not having to send an excitation signal, and takes the example of a Class B AMP STA being triggered by the trigger frame to send uplink data. The AP can send the first information after the trigger frame in S1001 is sent and after a SIFS interval, where the SIFS is, for example, 16 μs. The two or more second-type STAs triggered by the AP can both send the first information after receiving the trigger frame in S1001. For example, the time when the two second-type STAs complete receiving the trigger frame can be aligned with the time when the SIFS arrives after the AP sends the trigger frame, that is, the AP and the two second-type STAs can send the first information at the same time. In Figure 11E , after receiving the trigger frame, the Class B AMP STA waits for the first duration before sending the uplink data. Optionally, the transmission power of the AP may be greater than that of the STA, so the coverage of the first information sent by the AP may be wider. The AP also participates in sending the first information, so that more STAs may remain silent when the first STA sends uplink data.

[0179] The embodiment shown in Figure 3 describes that, in this embodiment of the present application, the first information can cause a third STA not to transmit data when the first STA transmits uplink data, or can cause the third STA to remain silent when the first STA transmits uplink data. The third STA may include at least one STA other than the first STA, which may, for example, include or exclude the second STA. It can be understood that the first information can cause one or more STAs other than the first STA to remain silent when the first STA transmits uplink data, thereby reducing interference with the uplink data.

[0180] For example, whether it is an AP or a second-type STA, if it wants to send the first information, it can be sent in the second bandwidth. However, as mentioned above, the first STA (or the first-type STA) does not support the second bandwidth, so the first STA (or the first-type STA) cannot send the first information. Therefore, in this embodiment of the present application, the AP and / or the second-type STA can send the first information instead of the first STA (or the first-type STA), thereby enabling the first STA to send uplink data with less interference.

[0181] The first type of STA is an STA that cannot send the first information, or an STA that supports a bandwidth less than 20 MHz. For example, the first type of STA supports a first bandwidth that is relatively small, such as less than 20 MHz; while the transmission bandwidth of the first information is a second bandwidth that is relatively large, such as 20 MHz, or may be greater than 20 MHz. In other words, if the first information is to be sent, it should be sent in the second bandwidth, but the first type of STA does not support the second bandwidth. Therefore, the first type of STA cannot send the first information.

[0182] For example, a second-type STA is used to transmit the first information and / or to transmit an excitation signal to a STA (e.g., a first-type STA) that is unable to transmit the first information. For example, a second-type STA supports the second bandwidth, and therefore, the second-type STA can transmit the first information. For another example, a second-type STA has a certain energy storage capacity and can transmit RF signals (e.g., an excitation signal), and therefore, the second-type STA can transmit an excitation signal to a first-type STA.

[0183] For more introduction to concepts such as the first type of STA and the second type of STA, please refer to the embodiment shown in FIG3 .

[0184] In the embodiment shown in FIG3 , it is introduced that the first information may include a traditional preamble or a short frame. For related content, reference may be made to the embodiment shown in FIG3 .

[0185] As an optional implementation of the traditional preamble, the traditional preamble may include an L-STF, an L-LTF, and an L-SIG. For this, see Figure 1. The duration of the traditional preamble is, for example, 20 μs. This shorter duration shortens the waiting time for the first STA, thereby improving uplink data transmission efficiency.

[0186] Alternatively, as another optional implementation of the legacy preamble, the legacy preamble may include L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, BPSK-mark1, and BPSK-mark2. For this, see Figure 12. For example, the format of the legacy preamble is defined by IEEE 802.11ba, which is also the format of the legacy preamble in the PPDU used by WUR. The following describes why the legacy preamble may include L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, BPSK-mark1, and BPSK-mark2.

[0187] Figure 13 shows several legacy preamble formats. In Figure 13, 11a represents 802.11a, 11n-Mixed Format (MF) represents 802.11n-MF, 11ac represents 802.11ac, 11ba represents 802.11ba, 11ax represents 802.11ax, and 11be represents 802.11be. As can be seen, different versions of the legacy preamble may include different content. For example, the legacy preamble of 802.11n-MF includes HT-SIG1 and HT-SIG2; the legacy preamble of 802.11ac includes very high throughput (VHT)-SIG-A1 and VHT-SIG-A2; the legacy preamble of 802.11ac includes the repeat L-SIG (RL-SIG) and high-efficiency signaling field A (HE-SIG A); and the legacy preamble of 802.11be includes the RL-SIG and the universal signaling field (U-SIG). In addition, after the traditional preamble of 802.11ba is completed, the two subsequent dotted lines are narrower than the two dotted lines corresponding to the traditional preambles of other versions. This indicates that the bandwidth of the traditional preamble of 802.11ba and the subsequent content (such as the synchronization field and data, see Figure 4) are different. The bandwidth of the traditional preamble can be greater than the bandwidth of the subsequent content.

[0188] WLAN system devices are backward compatible. For example, devices supporting the 802.11ax standard can send PPDUs defined in 802.11ax, as well as PPDUs defined in 802.11a, 802.11n-MF, 802.11ac, and 802.11ba. Receivers supporting higher versions can also identify and receive PPDUs of the same version as well as those of earlier versions.

[0189] For example, the HT-SIG1 and HT-SIG2 fields of 802.11n-MF both use quadrature BPSK (QBPSK) modulation, where QBPSK represents a 90-degree rotation of the BPSK constellation. 802.11ac's VHT-SIG-A1 and VHT-SIG-A2 use BPSK and QBPSK modulation, respectively. For 802.11ba, backward compatibility must meet one or more of the following requirements:

[0190] (1) BPSK-mark1 of 802.11ba can use BPSK modulation, while the HT-SIG1 and HT-SIG2 fields of 802.11n-MF both use QBPSK modulation. Therefore, the 802.11n-MF receiver can determine that the 802.11ba PPDU is not the PPDU that the 802.11n-MF receiver should receive.

[0191] (2) BPSK-mark2 of 802.11ba can use BPSK modulation, while VHT-SIG-A1 and VHT-SIG-A2 of 802.11ac use BPSK and QBPSK modulation respectively. Therefore, an 802.11ac receiver can determine that the 802.11ba PPDU is not the PPDU that the 802.11ac receiver should receive.

[0192] (3) Although both the RL-SIG and HE-SIGA of the 802.11ax PPDU are modulated using BPSK, the RL-SIG follows the L-SIG in the PPDU. Therefore, the 802.11ax receiver can determine whether a PPDU is a PPDU that the 802.11ax receiver should receive by the repetitive nature of the L-SIG and RL-SIG and the fact that the length of the L-SIG is not divisible by 3.

[0193] (4) Although the RL-SIG and U-SIG of the PPDU of 802.11be also use BPSK modulation, this PPDU is similar to the PPDU of 802.11ax, and also has an RL-SIG after the L-SIG. However, starting from 802.11be, a U-SIG is added to the traditional preamble. The U-SIG includes a physical layer version identifier (PHY version identifier). The physical layer version identifier is "0", indicating EHT. The physical layer version identifier is "1" to "7", which are all reserved values. The physical layer version identifier can be used to explicitly indicate that the PPDU is an 802.11be PPDU.

[0194] It can be seen that by adopting the PPDU or traditional preamble in the above format, the receivers of various protocol versions can identify the PPDU that the receiver should receive, that is, the PPDU or traditional preamble has the characteristic of automatic detection. The traditional preamble or PPDU in the embodiment of the present application may also have the characteristic of automatic detection. Therefore, optionally, the format of the traditional preamble in the embodiment of the present application can use a format similar to 802.11ba. For example, the traditional preamble in the embodiment of the present application may include L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, BPSK-mark1 and BPSK-mark2. Taking into account that the WUR device will also use the traditional preamble or PPDU in this format, in order to distinguish it from the WUR, optionally, the synchronization sequence included in the PPDU in the embodiment of the present application may be different from the synchronization sequence included in the PPDU corresponding to the WUR device, thereby enabling the receiving end of the PPDU to distinguish whether it is the PPDU of the WUR or the PPDU of the embodiment of the present application (for example, called AMP PPDU). For example, the synchronization sequence may be included in the synchronization field of the PPDU. For details about the synchronization field, please refer to Figure 4.

[0195] S1003: The AP sends an excitation signal, and / or the second STA sends an excitation signal. Alternatively, S1003 may be understood as the AP sending an excitation signal and / or the trigger frame also triggering the second STA to send an excitation signal. Therefore, the AP sends an excitation signal and / or the second STA sends an excitation signal.

[0196] According to the embodiment shown in FIG3 or the description of the trigger frame above, the trigger frame can trigger a second-type STA to transmit first information and / or an excitation signal. The second STA is one of the one or more second-type STAs. FIG10 uses the second STA as an example. For example, if the first STA has no energy storage capability or has limited energy storage capability, resulting in the first STA being unable to transmit uplink data using the energy provided by the first STA, the AP and / or the second-type STA can transmit an excitation signal to the first STA, so that the first STA can transmit uplink data using the energy of the excitation signal, thereby improving the success rate of the first STA transmitting uplink data.

[0197] As can be seen from the above description of the trigger frame, the excitation signal may or may not be sent, and the reasons are not repeated here. If the excitation signal does not need to be sent, then S1003 may not be executed, and therefore S1003 is an optional step.

[0198] If the excitation signal needs to be sent, the AP may send the first information and the excitation signal, and the AP does not trigger the second type of STA to send the first information and the excitation signal; alternatively, the AP may send the first information and the excitation signal, and the AP may also trigger the second type of STA to send the first information and / or the excitation signal through a trigger frame, for example, triggering the second STA to send the first information and / or the excitation signal; alternatively, the AP does not send the first information and the excitation signal, and the AP may trigger the second type of STA to send the first information and the excitation signal through a trigger frame, for example, triggering the second STA to send the first information and the excitation signal; alternatively, the AP may send the first information, and the AP may trigger the second type of STA to send the excitation signal through a trigger frame, for example, triggering the second STA to send the excitation signal; alternatively, the AP may send the excitation signal, and the AP may trigger the second type of STA to send the first information through a trigger frame, for example, triggering the second STA to send the first information; alternatively, the AP may send the first information, and the AP may trigger the second type of STA to send the first information and the excitation signal through a trigger frame, for example, triggering the second STA to send the first information and the excitation signal; alternatively, the AP may send the excitation signal, and the AP may trigger the second type of STA to send the first information and the excitation signal through a trigger frame, for example, triggering the second STA to send the first information and the excitation signal, and so on. The specific device or devices that send the first information or the excitation signal may be decided by the AP.

[0199] If the first information and the excitation signal are sent by the AP, the AP may optionally send the first information after the trigger frame in S1001 is sent and after a SIFS time interval, where the SIFS is, for example, 16μs. When the first information is sent, the AP may send an excitation signal, for which reference may be made to FIG14A. FIG14A takes the trigger frame triggering the Class C AMP STA to send uplink data as an example. In FIG14A, after receiving the trigger frame, the Class C AMP STA will wait for the first time duration before sending the uplink data, which will be described in other steps later. For example, the AP starts timing from the time the trigger frame is sent, and ends timing at the SIFS time. When the timing ends, the first information may be sent, and the AP may send an excitation signal when the first information is sent. For an introduction to the SIFS, reference may be made to the embodiment shown in FIG3.

[0200] Alternatively, if the second STA sends the first information and the excitation signal, and the AP does not send the first information and the excitation signal, the second STA can send the first information after receiving the trigger frame in S1001, and can send the excitation signal after sending the first information. For this, refer to Figure 14B, which takes the example of the second STA being an LPT STA and the trigger frame triggering the Class C AMP STA to send uplink data. The time when the second STA completes receiving the trigger frame and the time when the SIFS after the AP sends the trigger frame expires can be aligned. In Figure 14B, after receiving the trigger frame, the Class C AMP STA waits for the first duration before sending the uplink data.

[0201] Alternatively, if the AP sends the first information without sending the excitation signal, and the second STA sends the excitation signal without sending the first information, then optionally, the AP can send the first information after the trigger frame in S1001 is sent and after a SIFS time interval, where the SIFS is, for example, 16μs. For the second STA, the second STA can send the excitation signal when the first time duration arrives after the trigger frame is received. This time can be the same as the time when the first information is sent. For this, please refer to Figure 14C. Figure 14C takes the second STA as an LPT STA as an example, and takes the trigger frame triggering the C-type AMP STA to send uplink data as an example. For example, the second STA can start timing from the time the trigger frame is received, and when the first time duration arrives, the second STA can send the excitation signal. In Figure 14C, after receiving the trigger frame, the C-type AMP STA will wait for the first time duration before sending the uplink data.

[0202] Alternatively, if the AP sends an excitation signal without sending the first information, and the second STA sends the first information without sending an excitation signal, then optionally, the second STA can send the first information after receiving the trigger frame in S1001, and the AP can send the excitation signal after a SIFS interval after sending the trigger frame in S1001, and then wait for the first duration to expire. For this, please refer to Figure 14D. Figure 14D takes the example of the second STA being an LPT STA, and the example of the trigger frame triggering the Class C AMP STA to send uplink data. In Figure 14D, after receiving the trigger frame, the Class C AMP STA will wait for the first duration to send uplink data.

[0203] The aforementioned Figures 14A to 14D all take one STA (second STA) as an example. According to the above introduction to the trigger frame, the trigger frame can trigger at least one STA to send the first information and / or the excitation signal, and / or the AP can send the first information and / or the excitation signal. For example, if only one STA sends the first information and / or the excitation signal, or only the AP sends the first information and / or the excitation signal, then for the first information, the coverage of the first information is limited, and some STAs may not receive the first information. Then, these STAs may not remain silent when the first STA sends uplink data, but will send data, thereby causing interference to the uplink data of the first STA. Therefore, in an embodiment of the present application, the AP can trigger at least one STA to send the first information through a trigger frame, and / or the AP can send the first information. Sending the first information through more devices can increase the coverage of the first information, so that more STAs can receive the first information, and can also reduce interference with the uplink data of the first STA. As for the excitation signal, if the excitation signal is sent by only one STA, or only by the AP, the energy of the excitation signal is limited. The first STA may not receive the excitation signal, or the energy of the excitation signal is greatly attenuated when it reaches the first STA, resulting in the first STA being unable to obtain energy to send uplink data. Therefore, in an embodiment of the present application, the AP can trigger at least one STA to send an excitation signal through a trigger frame, and / or the AP can send an excitation signal. Sending the excitation signal through more devices can increase the energy of the excitation signal, so that the first STA can obtain enough energy to send uplink data through the excitation signal. As for which STAs the AP triggers to send the first information and / or the excitation signal, it can be implemented by the AP.

[0204] For example, the AP triggers three second-type STAs (e.g., LPT STA1, LPT STA2, and LPT STA3) to send first information and / or excitation signals, wherein the AP instructs LPT STA1 to send the first information and excitation signal, instructs LPT STA2 to send the excitation signal, and instructs LPT STA3 to send the first information. In this example, the AP neither sends the first information nor the excitation signal. LPT STA1 can then send the first information upon receiving the trigger frame S1001, and can send the excitation signal upon receiving the first information. LPT STA2 can send the excitation signal upon the first time duration after receiving the trigger frame. LPT STA3 can send the first information upon receiving the trigger frame S1001. For this, please refer to Figure 14E. Figure 14E takes the example of a Class C AMP STA being triggered by the trigger frame to send uplink data. In Figure 14E, after receiving the trigger frame, the Class C AMP STA waits for the first time duration to send uplink data.

[0205] If multiple second-type STAs transmit excitation signals, the AP can optionally select a STA with a similar distance to the first STA to transmit the excitation signal. For example, the distance difference between any two STAs participating in transmitting the excitation signal and the first STA can be less than or equal to a first threshold, i.e., the distances between the two STAs and the first STA are similar. The excitation signals transmitted by the STAs participating in transmitting the excitation signal then arrive at the first STA at similar times. For example, the excitation signals can arrive at the first STA at the same time, reducing the probability of cancellation of the excitation signals transmitted by these STAs due to different transmission delays. If the AP also participates in transmitting the excitation signal, for example, both the AP and a second STA transmit excitation signals, the distance between the AP and the first STA and the distance between the second STA and the first STA can be less than or equal to the first threshold. In other words, the distances between the different devices (including the AP and / or STAs) participating in transmitting the excitation signal and the first STA can be similar, so that the excitation signals transmitted by these devices can arrive at the first STA at the same time as much as possible. For the first STA, this is equivalent to receiving excitation signals with superimposed energy, which helps the first STA obtain more energy to transmit uplink data.

[0206] In addition to the several situations shown in Figures 14A to 14E, as can be seen from the previous text, there are many different ways for the AP and / or the second STA to send the first information and / or excitation signal, and the sending process is similar, which will not be illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

[0207] In the aforementioned Figures 11A to 11D and Figures 14A to 14E, the AP may also send an ACK, which may be, for example, an ACK corresponding to the first uplink data (to be described in the next step), for example, indicating the success or failure of reception of the first uplink data. Optionally, the AP may send the ACK when the SIFS time has elapsed after the first STA completes sending the first uplink data. The SIFS time may be considered the transmission time of the first uplink data. Alternatively, the AP may also send the ACK immediately upon completing reception of the first uplink data.

[0208] S1004: The first STA sends first uplink data. Correspondingly, the AP receives the first uplink data.

[0209] S1004 may be the same step as S303 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 .

[0210] If the first STA does not need to send the first uplink data by backreflection, but can send the first uplink data by energy provided by the first STA, then the first STA can send the first uplink data when the first time duration after receiving the trigger frame of S301 is reached. Alternatively, if the first STA does not need to send the first uplink data by energy of the received excitation signal, but can send the first uplink data by energy provided by the first STA, then the first STA can send the first uplink data when the first time duration after receiving the trigger frame of S1001 is reached. Regarding the backreflection method, please refer to the relevant content of the first implementation method of the trigger frame mentioned above.

[0211] Alternatively, if the first STA transmits the first uplink data by back reflection, or the first STA transmits the first uplink data by receiving an excitation signal, the first STA may transmit the first uplink data upon or after receiving the excitation signal, and the excitation signal may come from the AP and / or at least one second type STA (including the second STA). Considering that the excitation signal has a certain transmission delay, the excitation signal is sent when the first information is sent. Therefore, for the first STA, when the first time period after receiving the trigger frame of S1001 arrives, it may not be possible to receive the excitation signal immediately. Therefore, optionally, the first STA may start listening for the excitation signal when the first time period after receiving the trigger frame of S1001 arrives. When or after receiving the excitation signal, the first STA may transmit the uplink data using the energy obtained from the excitation signal. For example, in the aforementioned Figures 14A to 14E, the time when the excitation signal starts to be sent is aligned with the time when the first STA sends the uplink data. In actual applications, the time when the first STA sends the uplink data may be later than the time when the excitation signal starts to be sent. Among them, because the first STA may continue to send uplink data for a period of time, the sending end of the excitation signal (such as the AP and / or at least one second type of STA) may continue to send the excitation signal for a period of time. Among them, if the sending end of the excitation signal includes an AP, the AP may send the excitation signal and receive the uplink data simultaneously, so the AP may send the excitation signal and receive the uplink data respectively through different antennas. Optionally, if the AP wants to send the first information and the excitation signal, the AP may use the same antenna or different antennas to send the first information and the excitation signal.

[0212] The first uplink data is, for example, included in the second PPDU, and the second PPDU is an uplink PPDU. Optionally, in addition to sending the first uplink data, the first STA may also send a first preamble. For example, the first preamble and the first uplink data are included in the second PPDU. The first STA sending the first uplink data in the embodiment of the present application may be replaced by the first STA sending the second PPDU. The transmission bandwidth of the first preamble is, for example, the first bandwidth, that is, the first preamble may be a preamble that supports transmission at a smaller bandwidth. The first bandwidth is a bandwidth supported by the first STA, so that the first STA can send the first preamble. In addition, the transmission bandwidth of the first uplink data is, for example, also the first bandwidth, so that the first STA can send the first uplink data. The first preamble may also be called an AMP preamble, or may have other names. For example, the first preamble may include a synchronization sequence for a receiving device (e.g., an AP) to perform reception synchronization for the first uplink data. Optionally, the first preamble may also include a SIG field, which may indicate information such as the length and / or MCS of the first uplink data.

[0213] The first bandwidth is, for example, 4 MHz, or may be greater than or less than 4 MHz. The second bandwidth is greater than the first bandwidth, and is, for example, a bandwidth supported by both the AP and the second type of STA, such as 20 MHz, or may be greater than or less than 20 MHz.

[0214] As mentioned above, the first STA can send the first uplink data when the first duration after receiving the trigger frame is reached. The first duration can be implemented in different ways. For example, the first duration can be the duration of the first information; or, the first duration can be the sum of the duration of the first information and SIFS. Taking the first STA as a Class B STA as an example, for example, the first information is sent by the AP, if the AP uses different antennas to send the first information and receive the first uplink data, then the first duration can be the duration of the first information, for which reference can be made to Figure 11A; or, if the AP uses the same antenna to send the first information and receive the first uplink data, then the first duration can be the sum of the duration of the first information and SIFS, for which reference can be made to Figure 11B.

[0215] Optionally, the AP may trigger one or more STAs to send uplink data using a trigger frame. For this step, refer to S1501 in Figure 15. The communication method shown in Figure 15 takes the AP triggering multiple STAs as an example, and takes the multiple STAs as an example, where the multiple STAs include STA a and STA b. For example, in an embodiment of the present application, the AP may trigger one or more STAs of the first type to send uplink data using a trigger frame, and the first STA is one of them.

[0216] If the AP triggers multiple STAs to send uplink data, then optionally, different STAs among the multiple STAs can use different spreading codes to send uplink data, which is equivalent to different STAs using different frequency division multiplexing methods to send uplink data, so as to reduce the probability of uplink data collision. For example, referring to S1502 in Figure 15, STA a sends uplink data a to the AP, and STA b sends uplink data b to the AP, where uplink data a uses spreading code a, and STA b uses spreading code b. For example, one of the multiple STAs (for example, including STA a and STA b) is the first STA, and the first STA can use direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) spread spectrum modulation to send uplink data, and the other STAs among the multiple STAs except the first STA can use other spread spectrum modulation methods to send uplink data. Optionally, the spread spectrum code (or spread spectrum method) adopted by each STA can be determined by the STA itself, or can be indicated by the AP. For example, the AP can indicate the spread spectrum code to each STA through a trigger frame (for example, for the embodiment of the present application, it can be the trigger frame in S1501). For example, for any one of the STAs, the spread spectrum code used by the STA can be indicated through the user information field used to indicate the STA in the trigger frame; or, the AP can also indicate the spread spectrum code to each STA through other methods (for example, the AP sends other information), and there is no restriction on this.

[0217] Alternatively, if the AP triggers multiple STAs to send uplink data, the multiple STAs may reduce collisions by other means rather than by using different spread spectrum codes, such as by time division multiplexing and / or code division multiplexing, etc., and there is no restriction on this.

[0218] The relevant contents shown in FIG15 may be combined with the embodiment shown in FIG3 or the embodiment shown in FIG10 , or may not be combined with the embodiment shown in FIG3 or the embodiment shown in FIG10 , but may be independent embodiments. If the embodiment shown in FIG15 is combined with the embodiment shown in FIG3 , then S1501 may be the same step as S301 in the embodiment shown in FIG3 , and S1502 may be the same step as S303 in the embodiment shown in FIG3 ; alternatively, if the embodiment shown in FIG15 is combined with the embodiment shown in FIG10 , then S1501 may be the same step as S1001 in the embodiment shown in FIG10 , and S1502 may be the same step as S1004 in the embodiment shown in FIG10 .

[0219] Alternatively, if the content shown in FIG15 is an independent embodiment, the types of the multiple STAs are not limited. For example, the multiple STAs may include first-type STAs and / or second-type STAs, or may include other STAs. Furthermore, if the content shown in FIG15 is an independent embodiment, the format of the trigger frame used to indicate the spreading code or other information is not limited. For example, the trigger frame may be implemented using either of the two trigger frame implementations described above, or the trigger frame may be implemented using a traditional format.

[0220] In summary, in the embodiments of the present application, the AP can send the first information, and / or can trigger the second type of STA to send the first information, and the first STA that does not support the second bandwidth does not have to send the first information in the second bandwidth, but can send uplink data in the supported first bandwidth. The first information can be used to prevent the third STA from sending data when the first STA sends uplink data. For example, the third STA can remain silent when the first STA sends uplink data. Thus, it is equivalent to the AP and / or the second type of STA sending the first information instead of the first STA that cannot send the first information, so that even if the first STA cannot send the first information, when sending uplink data, the interference is small because other devices (AP and / or the second type of STA) send the first information instead of the first STA, which is beneficial to improving the success rate of uplink data transmission of the first STA.

[0221] Figure 16 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device 1600 may be the AP or the circuit system in the AP described in the embodiment shown in any of Figures 3, 10 or 15, for implementing the method corresponding to the AP in the above method embodiment. Alternatively, the communication device 1600 may be the first STA or the circuit system in the first STA described in the embodiment shown in any of Figures 3, 10 or 15, for implementing the method corresponding to the first STA in the above method embodiment. Alternatively, the communication device 1600 may be the second STA or the circuit system in the second STA described in the embodiment shown in Figure 3 or 10, for implementing the method corresponding to the second STA in the above method embodiment. For example, a circuit system is a chip or a chip system.

[0222] The communication device 1600 includes at least one processor 1601. Processor 1601 can be used for internal processing of the device, implementing certain control processing functions. Optionally, processor 1601 includes instructions. Optionally, processor 1601 can store data. Optionally, different processors can be independent devices, located in different physical locations, or on different integrated circuits. Optionally, different processors can be integrated into one or more processors, for example, on one or more integrated circuits.

[0223] Optionally, the communication device 1600 includes one or more memories 1603 for storing instructions. Optionally, data may also be stored in the memories 1603. The processor and memory may be provided separately or integrated together.

[0224] Optionally, the communication device 1600 includes a communication line 1602 and at least one communication interface 1604. Since the memory 1603, the communication line 1602 and the communication interface 1604 are all optional, they are indicated by dotted lines in FIG16 .

[0225] Optionally, the communication device 1600 may further include a transceiver and / or an antenna. The transceiver may be used to send information to or receive information from other devices. The transceiver may be referred to as a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, an input / output interface, etc., and is used to implement the transceiver functions of the communication device 1600 via the antenna. Optionally, the transceiver includes a transmitter and a receiver. For example, the transmitter may be used to generate a radio frequency signal from a baseband signal, and the receiver may be used to convert the excitation signal into a baseband signal.

[0226] The processor 1601 may include a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of the present application.

[0227] Communication link 1602 may include a pathway for transmitting information between the aforementioned components.

[0228] The communication interface 1604 uses any transceiver or other device for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), wired access network, etc.

[0229] The memory 1603 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, an optical disc storage (including a compact disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), a magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory 1603 may exist independently and be connected to the processor 1601 via the communication line 1602. Alternatively, the memory 1603 may be integrated with the processor 1601.

[0230] The memory 1603 is used to store computer-executable instructions for executing the solution of the present application, and the execution is controlled by the processor 1601. The processor 1601 is used to execute the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 1603, thereby implementing the steps performed by the AP or the first STA or the second STA in the embodiment shown in any of Figures 3, 10, or 15.

[0231] Optionally, the computer-executable instructions in the embodiments of the present application may also be referred to as application code, which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0232] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the processor 1601 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 in FIG16 .

[0233] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the communication device 1600 may include multiple processors, such as the processor 1601 and the processor 1605 in FIG16 . Each of these processors may be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. The processor herein may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0234] When the communication device 1600 shown in FIG16 is a chip, such as a chip of a first STA, a chip of a second STA, or a chip of an AP, the chip includes a processor 1601 (and may also include a processor 1605), a communication circuit 1602, and a communication interface 1604. Optionally, the chip may include a memory 1603. Specifically, the communication interface 1604 may be an input interface, a pin, or a circuit. The memory 1603 may be a register, a cache, or the like. The processor 1601 and the processor 1605 may be a general-purpose CPU, a microprocessor, an ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of a program according to any of the above-described embodiments of the communication method.

[0235] In the embodiments of the present application, the functional modules of the device can be divided according to the above-mentioned method examples. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into a processing module. The above-mentioned integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is schematic and is only a logical functional division. In actual implementation, other division methods can be used. For example, in the case of dividing each functional module according to each function, Figure 17 shows a schematic diagram of a device. The device 1700 can be the AP, the first STA, or the second STA involved in the above-mentioned method embodiments. The device 1700 includes a sending unit 1701, a processing unit 1702, and a receiving unit 1703. The sending unit 1701 and the receiving unit 1703 can be two functional units, which respectively implement the sending function and the receiving function; alternatively, the sending unit 1701 and the receiving unit 1703 can be the same functional unit, which can implement both the sending function and the receiving function.

[0236] It should be understood that the device 1700 can be used to implement the steps performed by the AP or the first STA or the second STA in the communication method of the embodiment of the present application. The relevant features can refer to the embodiments shown in any of the figures in Figures 3, 10 or 15 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0237] Optionally, the functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 1701, the receiving unit 1703, and the processing unit 1702 in FIG17 may be implemented by the processor 1601 in FIG16 calling computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 1603. Alternatively, the functions / implementation processes of the processing unit 1702 in FIG17 may be implemented by the processor 1601 in FIG16 calling computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 1603, and the functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 1701 and the receiving unit 1703 in FIG17 may be implemented by the communication interface 1604 in FIG16.

[0238] Optionally, when the device 1700 is a chip or a circuit, the functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 1701 and the receiving unit 1703 can also be implemented through pins or circuits.

[0239] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed, the method performed by the AP or the first STA or the second STA in the above-mentioned method embodiment is implemented. In this way, the functions described in the above-mentioned embodiments can be implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application can be essentially or in other words, the part that contributes or the part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a ROM, a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

[0240] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes: computer program code, which, when running on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method executed by the AP or the first STA or the second STA in any of the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0241] An embodiment of the present application also provides a processing device, including a processor and an interface; the processor is used to execute the method executed by the AP or the first STA or the second STA involved in any of the above method embodiments.

[0242] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When software is used for implementation, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more available media integrations. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (e.g., a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid-state drive (SSD)).

[0243] The various illustrative logic units and circuits described in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or operated by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor, and optionally, the general-purpose processor can also be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller or state machine. The processor can also be implemented by a combination of computing devices, such as a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a digital signal processor core, or any other similar configuration.

[0244] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in the embodiments of the present application can be directly embedded in hardware, software units executed by a processor, or a combination of the two. The software unit can be stored in RAM, flash memory, ROM, erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), EEPROM, registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROMs, or other storage media in any form known in the art. Exemplarily, the storage medium can be connected to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium can also be integrated into the processor. The processor and storage medium can be provided in an ASIC, which can be provided in a terminal device. Alternatively, the processor and storage medium can also be provided in different components in the terminal device.

[0245] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operating steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, so that the instructions executed on the computer or other programmable device provide steps for implementing the functions specified in one or more processes in the flowchart and / or one or more boxes in the block diagram.

[0246] The contents of the various embodiments of this application can refer to each other. If there is no special explanation and logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their internal logical relationships.

[0247] It is understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the AP and / or the first STA and / or the second STA may perform some or all of the steps in the embodiments of the present application. These steps or operations are merely examples. In the embodiments of the present application, other operations or variations of various operations may also be performed. In addition, the steps may be performed in a different order than those presented in the embodiments of the present application, and not all operations in the embodiments of the present application may need to be performed.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to an access point device, the method includes: Sending a trigger frame for triggering a first station to send first uplink data, where the first station is a station that cannot send first information; Sending first information, and / or the trigger frame is further used to trigger a second station to send first information, where the first information is used to cause a third station not to send data when the first station sends the first uplink data, and the third station is the second station, or the third station is at least one station other than the first station and the second station; Receiving the first uplink data from the first station.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The sending of the trigger frame includes: sending the trigger frame in a first bandwidth; The sending of the first information includes: sending the first information in a second bandwidth, where the first bandwidth is less than the second bandwidth; The receiving of the first uplink data from the first station includes: receiving the first uplink data from the first station in the first bandwidth.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The sending of the first information includes: Sending the first information when a short inter-frame space (SIFS) time elapses after the trigger frame is sent.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The first information includes a legacy preamble or a short frame, and the short frame includes the legacy preamble and a frame body.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein: The legacy preamble includes a legacy short training field (L-STF), a legacy long training field (L-LTF), and a legacy signaling field (L-SIG); or, The legacy preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, binary phase shift keying mark 1 (BPSK-mark1), and BPSK-mark2.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that The short frame includes a clear to send (CTS), a null data packet (NDP), or an acknowledgment (ACK).

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The method further includes: Sending an incentive signal, and / or the trigger frame is further used to trigger the second station to send an incentive signal, where the incentive signal is used to provide energy for the first station to send the first uplink data.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The trigger frame is used to trigger a first station to send first uplink data, including: When the first information is sent by the access point device, the trigger frame includes at least one user information field, and one of the at least one user information fields includes a user identification field for indicating the first station, and the trigger frame is used to instruct the first station to send the first uplink data.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that The trigger frame is further used to trigger the second station to send first information, including: The trigger frame includes at least one user information field, and one of the at least one user information fields includes a user identification field and a user type field, where the user identification field is used to indicate the second station, and the user type field is used to indicate the sending of the first information.

10. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that At least two of the other fields in the one user information field except the user identification field are reserved fields.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that The common information field of the trigger frame includes a trigger type field, and the value of the trigger type field is a first value, where the first value is used to indicate that the trigger frame is used to trigger a station that cannot send the first information to send uplink data.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein The value range of the first value is [9, 15].

13. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that, The common information field further includes an uplink length field, which is used to indicate the length of the first uplink data. Among them, At least six fields among the other fields in the common information field except the trigger type field and the uplink length field are reserved fields.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that The trigger frame includes at least one first user information field, and each first user information field in the at least one first user information field is used to indicate a station that cannot send the first information. One first user information field in the at least one first user information field is used to indicate the first station, and the trigger frame is used to indicate the first station to send the first uplink data.

15. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 and 14, wherein The trigger frame includes at least one second user information field, and each second user information field in the at least one second user information field is used to indicate a station that is used to send the first information and / or send an incentive signal to a station that cannot send the first information. One second user information field in the at least one second user information field is used to indicate the second station.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, characterized in that The first uplink data uses a first spreading code.

17. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to the first station, the method includes: Receiving a trigger frame, where the trigger frame is used to trigger the first station to send first uplink data; After waiting for a first duration, sending the first uplink data, where the first duration is greater than or equal to the duration of the first information, and the first information is used to cause a third station not to send data when the first station sends the first uplink data. Among them, the third station is the second station, or the third station is at least one station other than the first station and the second station.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein The first duration is the duration of the first information; or, The first duration is the sum of the duration of the first information and SIFS.

19. The method according to claim 17 or 18, characterized in that, The trigger frame is used to trigger the first station to send uplink data, including: The trigger frame includes at least one user information field, and one user information field in the at least one user information field includes a user identification field, and the user identification field is used to indicate the first station, and the trigger frame is used to indicate the first station to send the first uplink data.

20. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to the second station, the method includes: Receiving a trigger frame, where the trigger frame is used to trigger the second station to send the first information and / or an incentive signal, the first information is used to cause a third station not to send data when the first station sends the first uplink data, and the incentive signal is used to provide energy for the first station to send the first uplink data. Among them, the third station is the second station, or the third station is at least one station other than the first station and the second station; Transmit the first information and / or the excitation signal.

21. The method according to claim 20, characterized in that, The trigger frame is used to trigger the second station to transmit the first information and / or the excitation signal, including: The trigger frame includes at least one user information field, and one of the at least one user information fields includes a user identification field and a user type field. The user identification field is used to indicate the second station, and the user type field is used to indicate the transmission of the first information and / or the excitation signal.

22. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 21, characterized in that, The common information field of the trigger frame includes a trigger type field, and the value of the trigger type field is a first value. The first value is used to indicate that the trigger frame is used to trigger a station that cannot transmit the first information to transmit uplink data.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein The value range of the first value is [9, 15].

24. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 23, characterized in that, The first information includes a traditional preamble or a short frame, and the short frame includes the traditional preamble and a frame body.

25. The method according to claim 24, wherein The traditional preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG; or The traditional preamble includes L-STF, L-LTF, L-SIG, BPSK-mark1, and BPSK-mark2.

26. The method according to claim 24 or 25, characterized in that, The short frame includes CTS, NDP, or ACK.

27. A communication device, characterized in that, The communication device includes a processor and a memory. The memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is used to execute the computer program stored on the memory, so that the communication device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, or so that the communication device executes the method according to any one of claims 17 to 26.

28. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, it causes the computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, or causes the computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 17 to 26.

29. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, it causes the computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, or causes the computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 17 to 26.

30. A chip system, characterized in that, The chip system includes: A processor and an interface. The processor is used to call and run instructions from the interface. When the processor executes the instructions, it implements the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, or implements the method according to any one of claims 17 to 26.

Images