Information indication method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application provides an information indication method and apparatus, for use in reducing the overhead of manufacturer identifier indication. In the present application, by indicating a basic service set and a manufacturer identifier in a basic service set color field of a PPDU, the overhead of manufacturer identifier indication can be saved. The present application supports IEEE protocols such as an IEEE 802.11be / WiFi 7 / EHT protocol, an IEEE 802.11bn / UHR / WiFi 8 protocol, an Integrated mmWave / integrated millimeter wave (IMMW) protocol, an IEEE 802.15 / UWB protocol, or an IEEE 802.11bf / sensing protocol.

Description

Information indication 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 March 8, 2024, with application number 202410269064.5 and application name "A Method and Device for Information Indication", the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

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

[0004] Wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, starting with 802.11a / b / g and progressing through 802.11n, 802.11ac, and finally 802.11ax, define the signaling format of the physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU). To better support vendor-specific features, the standard is currently discussing the inclusion of customized information in the PPDU, such as vendor identification and vendor-specific information.

[0005] The IEEE 802.11 standard defines two types of manufacturer identifiers: organizationally unique identifiers (OUIs) and company IDs (CIDs). CIDs are 24 bits, while OUIs are either 24 or 36 bits. Both identifiers have significant overhead, resulting in high PPDU indication overhead. Reducing the manufacturer identifier overhead is a pressing issue. Furthermore, the 36-bit OUI is not currently considered, so how to carry the OUI is also a pressing issue. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present application provides an information indication method and apparatus for reducing the overhead of indicating manufacturer identification.

[0007] In a first aspect, embodiments of the present application provide an information indication method, which can be applied to a first device, or a chip or chipset in the first device. It is understood that the first device can be an access point or station. Taking the first device as an example, the first device generates and transmits a PPDU, wherein the PPDU includes a basic service set color field, which is used to indicate a basic service set and a manufacturer identifier.

[0008] By indicating the manufacturer's identifier in the basic service set color field, this application enables manufacturers to identify the manufacturer's identifier during PPDU transmission, thereby avoiding intercommunication issues caused by mutual interference between different manufacturers. Furthermore, by associating the value of the basic service set color field with the manufacturer's identifier, the basic service set color field can simultaneously indicate the basic service set and the manufacturer's identifier, thereby reducing the manufacturer's identifier indication overhead. In addition, by indicating the manufacturer's identifier in the basic service set, this application enables the PPDU to carry a 36-bit OUI manufacturer's identifier without increasing overhead.

[0009] In one possible design, the basic service set color field is carried in bits 7 to 12 of the first symbol of the general signaling field. This approach can minimize changes to the PPDU format, thereby improving forward compatibility.

[0010] In one possible design, the basic service set color field is also carried on at least one of the following bits: bits 20-bit 24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field.

[0011] In the IEEE 802.11be standard, bits B20-B24 of the first OFDM symbol in the U-SIG field are "don't care" bits, and bits B25 is an acknowledgment bit. In the second OFDM symbol, bits B2 and B8 are acknowledgment bits. This demonstrates that the above approach can utilize the reserved bits in the U-SIG field in the IEEE 802.11be standard to carry more information about the vendor identifier, thereby reducing the amount of vendor identifier information carried in the UHR-SIG field and, in turn, reducing overhead. In other words, with the same overhead, the PPDU can carry more vendor identifier information, allowing vendors to better identify their identities, reducing the likelihood of interference between different vendors, and improving interoperability between vendors.

[0012] In one possible design, the PPDU further includes a first bit set, the first bit set being used to indicate whether the basic service set color field indicates a manufacturer identifier, the first bit set including at least one bit. This approach can prevent the second device from identifying the value of the basic service set color field in the U-SIG field in the IEEE 802.11be standard and standards prior to IEEE 802.11be as a manufacturer identifier, thereby improving accuracy.

[0013] In one possible design, the first bit set includes at least one of the following bits: bits 20-24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field. In the IEEE 802.11be standard, bits B20-B24 of the first OFDM symbol of the U-SIG field are don't care bits, bit B25 is an acknowledgment bit, B2 of the second OFDM symbol is an acknowledgment bit, and bit B8 is an acknowledgment bit. Therefore, the above method can utilize the reserved bits of the U-SIG field in the IEEE 802.11be standard to indicate whether the basic service set color field indicates the manufacturer identifier, thereby indicating whether the basic service set color field indicates the manufacturer identifier without increasing overhead.

[0014] In one possible design, among the bits carrying the basic service set color field, the bit used to carry the manufacturer identifier includes the first bit, and the first bit is used to indicate that the type of the manufacturer identifier is an organizational unique identifier or a company identifier. This method is beneficial for the receiving end to identify the CID and OUI.

[0015] In one possible design, the remaining information in the manufacturer identifier except for the information indicated by the basic service set color field is indicated by at least one of the following fields: a general signaling field, an ultra-reliable signaling field, or a manufacturer-specific signaling field.

[0016] In one possible design, the remaining information is indicated by the first common coding block of the ultra-reliable signaling field. Indicating the remaining information of the manufacturer identifier by the first common coding block of the ultra-reliable signaling field can reduce the overhead of the PPDU indicating the manufacturer identifier.

[0017] In one possible design, for manufacturer identifiers of the 24-bit organization unique identifier or company identifier or the 36-bit organization unique identifier, the length of the first common coding block is the same. In this approach, by making the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field of equal length, decoding at the receiving end is facilitated.

[0018] In one possible design, for the manufacturer identifier type of a 24-bit organization unique identifier or company identifier, the first common coding block indicates the remaining information and Q bits of manufacturer-specific information, where Q is an integer greater than or equal to 12; if the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the first common coding block indicates the remaining information and (Q-12) bits of manufacturer-specific information.

[0019] Through the above method, for different manufacturer identification lengths, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all the information in the remaining information of the manufacturer identification, so that the manufacturer can obtain the complete manufacturer identification during the PPDU transmission process, thereby avoiding mutual interference between different manufacturers and improving interoperability between different manufacturers.

[0020] In one possible design, for a manufacturer identifier of a 24-bit organization unique identifier or a company identifier or a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the number of bits corresponding to the manufacturer identifier information indicated by the first common coding block is the same.

[0021] In the above method, for different manufacturer identification lengths, the number of bits of the manufacturer identification indicated by the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field is the same, thereby reducing the complexity of parsing the manufacturer identification at the receiving end, and therefore, further facilitating decoding at the receiving end.

[0022] In one possible design, if the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the first public coding block indicates the value of the high-order M bits of the manufacturer identifier, where M is an integer greater than 0 and less than or equal to (24-P).

[0023] Since the 36-bit OUI carries an additional 12 bits of OUI information using the most significant 12 bits, using the first common code block of the UHR-SIG field to indicate the most significant K bits of the manufacturer identifier can better distinguish different manufacturer identifiers. Therefore, the above method can further facilitate the distinction of manufacturer identifiers.

[0024] In one possible design, the length of the first common coding block is 52 bits.

[0025] In a second aspect, embodiments of the present application provide an information indication method, which can be applied to a second device, or a chip or chipset in the second device. It is understood that the second device can be an access point or station. Taking the second device as an example, the second device receives a PPDU and parses the PPDU to determine a manufacturer identifier. The PPDU includes a basic service set color field, which is used to indicate a basic service set and a manufacturer identifier.

[0026] By indicating the manufacturer's identifier in the basic service set color field, this application enables manufacturers to identify the manufacturer's identifier during PPDU transmission, thereby avoiding interoperability issues caused by mutual interference between different manufacturers. Furthermore, by associating the value of the basic service set color field with the manufacturer's identifier, the basic service set color field can simultaneously indicate the basic service set and the manufacturer's identifier, saving the manufacturer's identifier indication overhead. Furthermore, by indicating the manufacturer's identifier in the basic service set, this application enables the PPDU to carry a 36-bit OUI manufacturer's identifier without increasing overhead.

[0027] In one possible design, the basic service set color field is carried in bits 7 to 12 of the first symbol of the general signaling field. This approach can minimize changes to the PPDU format, thereby improving forward compatibility.

[0028] In one possible design, the second device parses the PPDU and obtains the first information of the manufacturer identification from bits 7 to 12 of the first symbol of the general signaling field.

[0029] In one possible design, the basic service set color field is also carried on at least one of the following bits: bits 20-bit 24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field.

[0030] In the IEEE 802.11be standard, bits B20-B24 of the first OFDM symbol in the U-SIG field are "don't care" bits, and bits B25 is an acknowledgment bit. In the second OFDM symbol, bits B2 and B8 are acknowledgment bits. This demonstrates that the above approach can utilize the reserved bits in the U-SIG field in the IEEE 802.11be standard to carry more information about the vendor identifier, thereby reducing the amount of vendor identifier information carried in the UHR-SIG field and, in turn, reducing overhead. In other words, with the same overhead, the PPDU can carry more vendor identifier information, allowing vendors to better identify their identities, reducing the likelihood of interference between different vendors, and improving interoperability between vendors.

[0031] In one possible design, the second device obtains the second information of the manufacturer identification from at least one of the following bits: bits 20-bit 24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field; and determines the manufacturer identification based on the first information and the second information.

[0032] In one possible design, the PPDU further includes a first bit set, the first bit set being used to indicate whether the basic service set color field indicates a manufacturer identifier, the first bit set including at least one bit. This approach can prevent the second device from identifying the value of the basic service set color field in the U-SIG field in the IEEE 802.11be standard and standards prior to IEEE 802.11be as a manufacturer identifier, thereby improving accuracy.

[0033] In one possible design, the second device obtains the basic service set color field indicating the manufacturer identification based on the first bit set.

[0034] In one possible design, the second device obtains the basic service set color field indicating the manufacturer identification based on the second bit set in the PPDU, and the second bit set is composed of the first bit set and the bits carrying the basic service set color field.

[0035] In one possible design, the first bit set includes at least one of the following bits: bits 20-24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field. In the IEEE 802.11be standard, bits B20-B24 of the first OFDM symbol of the U-SIG field are don't care bits, bit B25 is an acknowledgment bit, B2 of the second OFDM symbol is an acknowledgment bit, and bit B8 is an acknowledgment bit. Therefore, the above method can utilize the reserved bits of the U-SIG field in the IEEE 802.11be standard to indicate whether the basic service set color field indicates the manufacturer identifier, thereby indicating whether the basic service set color field indicates the manufacturer identifier without increasing overhead.

[0036] In one possible design, the second device obtains the third information of the manufacturer identification based on at least one of the following fields: a general signaling field, an ultra-high reliability signaling field, or a manufacturer-specific signaling field, and the third information is the information in the manufacturer identification other than the information indicated by the basic service set color field; the manufacturer identification is determined based on the information obtained from the basic service set color field and the third information.

[0037] In one possible design, among the bits carrying the basic service set color field, the bit used to carry the manufacturer identifier includes the first bit, and the first bit is used to indicate that the type of the manufacturer identifier is an organizational unique identifier or a company identifier. This method is beneficial for the receiving end to identify the CID and OUI.

[0038] In one possible design, the remaining information in the manufacturer identifier except for the information indicated by the basic service set color field is indicated by at least one of the following fields: a general signaling field, an ultra-reliable signaling field, or a manufacturer-specific signaling field.

[0039] In one possible design, the remaining information is indicated by the first common coding block of the ultra-reliable signaling field. Indicating the remaining information of the manufacturer identifier by the first common coding block of the ultra-reliable signaling field can reduce the overhead of the PPDU indicating the manufacturer identifier.

[0040] In one possible design, the second device decodes the first common coding block of the ultra-high reliable signaling field; and obtains third information based on the decoded common coding block.

[0041] In one possible design, for manufacturer identifiers of the 24-bit organization unique identifier or company identifier or the 36-bit organization unique identifier, the length of the first common coding block is the same. In this approach, by making the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field of equal length, decoding at the receiving end is facilitated.

[0042] In one possible design, for the manufacturer identifier type of a 24-bit organization unique identifier or company identifier, the first common coding block indicates the remaining information and Q bits of manufacturer-specific information, where Q is an integer greater than or equal to 12; if the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the first common coding block indicates the remaining information and (Q-12) bits of manufacturer-specific information.

[0043] Through the above method, for different manufacturer identification lengths, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all the information in the remaining information of the manufacturer identification, so that the manufacturer can obtain the complete manufacturer identification during the PPDU transmission process, thereby avoiding mutual interference between different manufacturers and improving interoperability between different manufacturers.

[0044] In one possible design, for a manufacturer identifier of a 24-bit organization unique identifier or a company identifier or a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the number of bits corresponding to the manufacturer identifier information indicated by the first common coding block is the same.

[0045] In the above method, for different manufacturer identification lengths, the number of bits of the manufacturer identification indicated by the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field is the same, thereby reducing the complexity of parsing the manufacturer identification at the receiving end, and therefore, further facilitating decoding at the receiving end.

[0046] In one possible design, if the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the first public coding block indicates the value of the high-order M bits of the manufacturer identifier, where M is an integer greater than 0 and less than or equal to (24-P).

[0047] Since the 36-bit OUI carries an additional 12 bits of OUI information using the most significant 12 bits, using the first common code block of the UHR-SIG field to indicate the most significant K bits of the manufacturer identifier can better distinguish different manufacturer identifiers. Therefore, the above method can further facilitate the distinction of manufacturer identifiers.

[0048] In one possible design, the length of the first common coding block is 52 bits.

[0049] In a third aspect, the present application further provides a communication device, wherein the device is a first device or a chip in the first device, and the first device may be an access point or a station. The communication device has the function of implementing any of the methods provided in the first aspect above. The communication device may be implemented in hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software implementations. The hardware or software includes one or more units or modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0050] In one possible design, the communication device includes: a processor configured to support the communication device in executing the corresponding functions of the first device in the method described above. The communication device may also include a memory, which may be coupled to the processor and stores program instructions and data necessary for the communication device. Optionally, the communication device also includes an interface circuit for supporting communication between the communication device and a second device, such as the transmission and reception of data or signals. Exemplarily, the communication interface may be a transceiver, circuit, bus, module, or other type of communication interface.

[0051] In one possible design, the communication device includes corresponding functional modules for implementing the steps in the above method. The functions can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software implementations. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0052] In one possible design, the structure of the communication device includes a processing unit (or processing module) and a communication unit (or communication module). These units can perform the corresponding functions in the above method example. For details, please refer to the description of the method provided in the first aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0053] In a fourth aspect, the present application further provides a communication device, wherein the device is a second device or a chip in the second device, and the second device may be an access point or a station. The communication device has the function of implementing any of the methods provided in the second aspect above. The communication device can be implemented in hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more units or modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0054] In one possible design, the communication device includes: a processor configured to support the communication device in executing the corresponding functions of the second device in the method described above. The communication device may also include a memory, which may be coupled to the processor and stores program instructions and data necessary for the communication device. Optionally, the communication device also includes an interface circuit for supporting communication between the communication device and the first device, such as the transmission and reception of data or signals. Exemplarily, the communication interface may be a transceiver, circuit, bus, module, or other type of communication interface.

[0055] In one possible design, the communication device includes corresponding functional modules for implementing the steps in the above method. The functions can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software implementations. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0056] In one possible design, the structure of the communication device includes a processing unit (or processing module) and a communication unit (or communication module). These units can perform the corresponding functions in the above method example. For details, please refer to the description of the method provided in the second aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0057] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising a processor and an interface circuit, wherein the interface circuit is used to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor or send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device, and the processor is used to implement the method in the aforementioned first aspect and any possible design through logic circuits or execution code instructions.

[0058] In the sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising a processor and an interface circuit, the interface circuit being used to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor or to send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device, the processor being used to implement the method in the aforementioned second aspect and any possible design through logic circuits or executing code instructions.

[0059] In the seventh aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which stores a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed by a processor, the method of the aforementioned first aspect or second aspect and any possible design is implemented.

[0060] In an eighth aspect, a computer program product storing instructions is provided, which, when executed by a processor, implements the method in the aforementioned first aspect or second aspect and any possible design.

[0061] In a ninth aspect, a chip system is provided, comprising a processor and a memory, for implementing the method of the first or second aspect and any possible design. The chip system may be composed of a chip alone or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0062] In a tenth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising the apparatus described in the first aspect (such as the first device) and the apparatus described in the second aspect (such as the second device).

[0063] The technical effects that can be achieved by the technical solutions in any of the third to tenth aspects mentioned above can be described with reference to the technical effects that can be achieved by the technical solutions in the first aspect mentioned above, and the repeated parts will not be repeated. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0064] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of an information indication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a PPDU according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0067] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the structure of another PPDU according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0068] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of the structure of another PPDU according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0069] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of the structure of another PPDU according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0070] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of the structure of another PPDU according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0071] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of another PPDU according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0072] FIG9 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0073] FIG10 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0074] In order to make the embodiments of the present application easier to understand, some descriptions involved in the embodiments of the present application are first explained below. These descriptions should not be regarded as limiting the scope of protection claimed by the present invention.

[0075] 1. Vendor specific information: This information is the information that the manufacturer needs for private design. It can also be called manufacturer customized information, manufacturer information, etc. This application does not limit the name of this information.

[0076] 2. Universal Signaling (U-SIG) Field

[0077] In the IEEE 802.11be standard, the U-SIG field can exist in a multi-user (MU) extremely high throughput (EHT) PPDU (EHT MU PPDU) or a trigger-based (TB) EHT PPDU (EHT TB PPDU), and can be two orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in length. The U-SIG field uses binary phase shift keying (BPSK) modulation with a code rate of half. Before encoding the U-SIG field, each symbol can carry 26 bits (B0-B25), and two symbols together carry 52 bits. Taking the EHT MU PPDU as an example, the contents of the U-SIG field are shown in Table 1.

[0078] Table 1

[0079] 3. BSS color field

[0080] A BSS Color value of 0 disables the BSS Color. If enabled, the access point (AP) can select a BSS Color value from 1 to 63. The AP will try to avoid conflicts with BSS Color values ​​from other BSSs. A station (STA) can use the BSS Color field to determine whether a PPDU originates from its own BSS, that is, whether the PPDU originates from the cell to which the STA belongs.

[0081] 4. Disregard bit and validate bit: In the wireless local area network (WLAN) standard, there are two types of reserved bits: Disregard bit and Validate bit.

[0082] In the embodiments of the present application, "at least one" refers to one or more, and "more" refers to two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: the existence of A alone, the existence of A and B at the same time, and the existence of B 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. "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 can represent: 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.

[0083] Also, unless otherwise specified, ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" in the embodiments of the present application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the size, content, order, timing, priority or importance of multiple objects.

[0084] The above describes some of the terms involved in this application. The following describes the relevant technical background of this application.

[0085] In each generation of standards, reserved bits are rarely redefined or assigned new functions in subsequent standards because various manufacturers use them for proprietary or manufacturer-specific designs. If a standard assigns new functions to these reserved bits, conflicts with the manufacturer's proprietary designs, interoperability issues can arise. For example, an AP from manufacturer A implements a new EHT PPDU format using the uplink and downlink indication and confirmation status of the compressed mode subfield to implement hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ). However, a subsequent standard specifies this status as a new EHT PPDU format for AP collaboration, and an AP from manufacturer B implements it according to the subsequent standard. When an AP from manufacturer A sends the new EHT PPDU format for HARQ, an AP from manufacturer B will assume that manufacturer A wishes to collaborate with it and will participate in the transmission, causing interoperability issues and mutual transmission interference. Alternatively, if manufacturers A and B use the same bits to implement different manufacturer-specific functions, the same issue can arise.

[0086] Currently, it has been proposed that management frames can carry manufacturer identification and manufacturer-specific information. However, since management frames are media access control (MAC) layer frames, manufacturers cannot parse the manufacturer identification in the management layer during PPDU transmission, resulting in interoperability issues between different manufacturers.

[0087] One possible solution is to carry the manufacturer identification and manufacturer-specific information in the signaling field of the PPDU. For example, the universal signaling (U-SIG) field of the PPDU can indicate whether a vendor-specific signaling (VS-SIG) field exists. The VS-SIG field is used to carry the manufacturer identification and manufacturer-specific information.

[0088] The IEEE 802.11 standard defines two types of vendor identifiers: organizationally unique identifiers (OUIs) and company IDs (CIDs). The CID is 24 bits, while the OUI is either 24 or 36 bits. The overhead associated with both identifiers is relatively high, leading to higher PPDU overhead. Furthermore, the 36-bit OUI is not currently considered, so how to carry the OUI remains an urgent issue.

[0089] Based on this, the present application provides an information indication method and device. The present application reduces the overhead of manufacturer-specific information by carrying part / all of the manufacturer identification information through the BSS color field. In addition, when the manufacturer identification length is different, the remaining information of the manufacturer identification can also be carried through the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field, so that the 36-bit OUI indication can be achieved. Moreover, by making the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field equal in length, the implementation complexity of the receiving end can be reduced. Among them, the method and the device are based on the same inventive concept. Since the principles of solving the problem by the method and the device are similar, the implementation of the device and the method can refer to each other, and the repeated parts will not be repeated.

[0090] The embodiments of the present application can be applied to WLAN scenarios, for example, they can be applied to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 system standards, such as 802.11a / b / g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax standards, or their next generations, such as the 802.11be standard, Wi-Fi 7 or EHT protocol, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11bf / sensing protocol, and the next generation of 802.11be, such as Wi-Fi 8 (802.11bn, ultra high reliability, ultra high reliability (UHR), or even the next generation standard. Alternatively, the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to IEEE 802.15 / ultra wide band (UWB) protocol, millimeter wave standard, next generation millimeter wave standard, integrated millimeter wave standard (integrated millimeter wave standard) wave, IMMW). Of course, the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to other possible communication systems, such as LTE system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, 5G communication system, and future 6G communication system. For example, access points and sites can be devices used in the Internet of Vehicles, IoT nodes and sensors in the Internet of Things (IoT), smart cameras in smart homes, smart remote controls, smart water meters and electricity meters, and sensors in smart cities. The following takes the scenario in which the embodiments of the present application can be applied to WLAN as an example. It should be understood that WLAN started with the 802.11a / g standard and went through 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax and 802.11be.802.11n is also known as high throughput (HT); 802.11ac is also known as very high throughput (VHT); 802.11ax is also known as high efficiency (HE) or Wi-Fi 6; 802.11be is also known as EHT or Wi-Fi 7. Standards prior to HT, such as 802.11a / b / g, are collectively referred to as non-HT.

[0091] The application scenario of the embodiment of the present application can be communication between an AP and one or more STAs, and is also applicable to communication between APs and between STAs. For example, please refer to Figure 1, which shows a network architecture diagram of a WLAN applicable to the embodiment of the present application. Figure 1 takes the WLAN as an example, including two APs, AP1 and AP2, STA1 and STA2 associated with AP1, and STA3 connected to STA2. Among them, AP1 can communicate with STA1 and STA2, AP1 and AP2 can communicate, and STA2 can communicate with STA. It should be understood that the number of APs and STAs in Figure 1 is only an example, and can be more or less.

[0092] An access point is a point through which terminal devices (such as mobile phones) access wired (or wireless) networks. These devices are primarily deployed in homes, buildings, and campuses, with a typical coverage radius of tens to hundreds of meters. They can also be deployed outdoors. An access point acts as a bridge between wired and wireless networks, connecting wireless network clients and then connecting the wireless network to the Ethernet. Specifically, an access point can be a terminal device (such as a mobile phone) or network device (such as a router) equipped with a Wi-Fi chip. It can also be a wireless communication chip, wireless sensor, or wireless communication terminal with access point functionality. Access points can be devices supporting various WLAN standards, including the 802.11 family and next-generation Wi-Fi protocols (such as 802.11be, Wi-Fi 7, or EHT). They can also support 802.11be, the next generation of Wi-Fi protocols (such as Wi-Fi 8, UHR, 11bn), or Wi-Fi AI standards. The access point may also be a device supporting millimeter wave standard, ultra-wideband (UWB) standard, next-generation millimeter wave standard, and IMW standard.

[0093] A station may be a wireless communication chip, a wireless sensor, or a wireless communication terminal, etc., and may also be referred to as a user. For example, a station may be a mobile phone that supports Wi-Fi communication functions, a tablet computer that supports Wi-Fi communication functions, a set-top box that supports Wi-Fi communication functions, a smart TV that supports Wi-Fi communication functions, a smart wearable device that supports Wi-Fi communication functions, a vehicle-mounted communication device that supports Wi-Fi communication functions, and a computer that supports Wi-Fi communication functions, etc. Optionally, the station may support multiple WLAN standards of the 802.11 family and the next generation Wi-Fi protocol (such as 802.11be, Wi-Fi 7, or EHT), or may also support the next generation Wi-Fi protocol of 802.11be (such as Wi-Fi8, UHR, 11bn), or Wi-Fi AI standard, ultra-wideband (UWB), millimeter wave standard, UHR next generation millimeter wave standard, IMMW standard. The AP and STA involved in the embodiments of the present application may be APs and STAs applicable to IEEE 802.11 system standards, UHR, millimeter wave standards, next generation millimeter wave standards, integrated millimeter wave standards, etc. An AP is a device deployed in a wireless communication network to provide wireless communication functions for its associated STAs. The AP can serve as the hub of the communication system and is usually a network-side product that supports the MAC and PHY of the 802.11 system standard. For example, it can be a base station, router, gateway, repeater, communication server, switch or bridge and other communication equipment, wherein the base station can include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, etc. Here, for the convenience of description, the above-mentioned devices are collectively referred to as APs. STAs are usually terminal products that support the 802.11 family and multiple WLAN standards of the next-generation Wi-Fi protocol (such as 802.11be, Wi-Fi 7 or EHT), or can also support the 802.11be next-generation Wi-Fi protocol (such as Wi-Fi 8, UHR, 11bn), or the media access control (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) of the Wi-Fi AI standard, ultra-wideband (UWB), millimeter wave standard, UHR next-generation millimeter wave standard, IMW standard, etc., such as mobile phones, laptops, etc.

[0094] 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.

[0095] It should be noted that the names of the fields involved in this application are only exemplary names and do not limit the names of the fields.

[0096] It should be understood that in this application, Bn represents the bit numbered (or serial numbered) n. The bits included in the field in this application are numbered starting from 0. Therefore, Bn represents the n+1th bit. For example, bit 7 (B7) represents the 8th bit, and bit 20 (B20) represents the 21st bit. It should be noted that this application does not limit the numbering method of the bits, nor does it limit the description method of the bit position. For example, for the 8th bit, if the numbering starts from 0, it can be described as B7, if the numbering starts from 1, it can be described as B8. Of course, it can also be directly described as "the 8th bit", etc.

[0097] Illustratively, the bits in the first symbol of the U-SIG field may also be described as bits in U-SIG-1, and the bits in the second symbol of the U-SIG field may also be described as bits in U-SIG-2.

[0098] To adapt to the evolution of standards, the UHR-SIG field in this application may also evolve into the SIG field of the corresponding generation after the UHR standard, which is not specifically limited here.

[0099] For the convenience of description, this application refers to a certain type of bits (such as bits that implement a certain function) as a bit set. It should be noted that the bit set in this application refers to one or more bits, and does not refer to the meaning of the action of "set".

[0100] It should be understood that the structure of the PPDU shown in this application is only an example and does not limit the fields included in the PPDU and the positions of the fields.

[0101] The present application provides an information indication method that can be applied to a WLAN system, such as the WLAN system shown in FIG1 . For example, the first device can be an AP, and the corresponding second device can be a STA. Alternatively, the first device can be a STA, and the corresponding second device can be an AP. Alternatively, the first device can be a STA, and the corresponding second device can also be a STA.

[0102] As shown in FIG2 , the method includes:

[0103] S201: A first device generates a PPDU.

[0104] The PPDU includes a BSS color field, which indicates a basic service set and a manufacturer identifier.

[0105] Optionally, the BSS color field may indicate part or all of the manufacturer identification information.

[0106] Furthermore, in an embodiment in which the BSS color field indicates partial information of the manufacturer's identification, the BSS color field may indicate the most significant bit (MSB) Z bits and / or the least significant bit (LSB) Y bits of the manufacturer's identification, where Z and Y are integers greater than 0.

[0107] The specific method in which the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer identifier will be described in detail below.

[0108] Optionally, the PPDU may also include one or more of the following fields: legacy short training field (L-STF) field, legacy long training field (L-LTF) field, legacy signaling field (L-SIG) field, legacy signaling field repeated (RL-SIG) field, U-SIG field, ultra high reliability signaling field (UHR-SIG) field, ultra high reliability short training field (UHR-STF) field, ultra high reliability long training field (UHR-LTF) field, data and data packet extension (PE), and vendor specific signaling field (vendor specific SIG, VS-SIG).

[0109] S202: The first device sends a PPDU, and the second device receives the PPDU accordingly.

[0110] S203: The second device determines the manufacturer identifier according to the PPDU.

[0111] The method for determining the manufacturer identifier will be described below in conjunction with the method for indicating the manufacturer identifier in the BSS color field.

[0112] By indicating the manufacturer's identifier in the BSS color field, this application allows manufacturers to identify the manufacturer's identifier during PPDU transmission, thereby avoiding interoperability issues caused by mutual interference between different manufacturers. Furthermore, by associating the value of the BSS color field with the manufacturer's identifier, the BSS color field can simultaneously indicate both the BSS and the manufacturer's identifier, reducing the manufacturer's identifier indication overhead.

[0113] In addition, by indicating the manufacturer identifier in the BSS color field, the present application enables the PPDU to carry the 36-bit OUI manufacturer identifier without increasing the overhead.

[0114] The following first introduces two examples of the structure of the BSS color field.

[0115] In example 1, the BSS color field is carried in bits B7 to B12 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field. For example, the BSS color field may be as shown in FIG3 or FIG4.

[0116] In example 1, the BSS color field may indicate 6 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier.

[0117] Based on Example 1, the second device may obtain the manufacturer identifier in the following manner: parsing the PPDU; and obtaining 6 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier according to B7-B12 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field.

[0118] By using the method of Example 1, changes to the PPDU format can be minimized, thereby improving forward compatibility.

[0119] In Example 2, the BSS color field may also be carried in bits B7-B12 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field and at least one of the following: bits B20-B24 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field, bits B25 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field, bits B2 of the second symbol of the U-SIG field, or bits B8 of the second symbol of the U-SIG field. Figures 5 and 6 show examples of the BSS color field being carried in bits B20-B24 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field.

[0120] In Example 2, the BSS color field may indicate N bits of information in the manufacturer identifier, where N is greater than 6. For example, taking Figures 5 and 6 as examples, the BSS color field may indicate 11 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier, ie, N=11.

[0121] A possible example is that if the number of bits carrying the BSS color field is greater than or equal to the total number of bits of the manufacturer identifier, the BSS color field can indicate all information of the manufacturer identifier, that is, N is equal to the total number of bits of the manufacturer identifier.

[0122] Taking Figures 5 and 6 as an example, the second device can obtain the manufacturer identifier in the following manner: parse the PPDU; obtain 6 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier based on B7-B12 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field, and obtain 5 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier based on B20-B24 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field.

[0123] Further, the second device may determine the manufacturer identifier based on 6 bits of information obtained from B7-B12 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field and 5 bits of information obtained from B20-B24 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field.

[0124] In the IEEE 802.11be standard, bits B20-B24 of the first OFDM symbol in the U-SIG field are Disregard bits, and B25 is the Validate bit. In the second OFDM symbol, bits B2 and B8 are Validate bits. This shows that the above approach can utilize the reserved bits in the U-SIG field in the IEEE 802.11be standard to carry more information about the manufacturer's identification, thereby reducing the manufacturer's identification information carried in the UHR-SIG field and, in turn, reducing overhead. In other words, with the same overhead, the PPDU can carry more information about the manufacturer's identification, allowing manufacturers to better identify their identification, reducing the probability of mutual interference between different manufacturers, and improving interoperability between different manufacturers.

[0125] The above describes the structure of the BSS Color field and how the BSS Color field indicates the manufacturer's ID.

[0126] As described above, the BSS color field may indicate partial information of the manufacturer's identification. If the BSS color field indicates partial information of the manufacturer's identification, the remaining information in the manufacturer's identification other than the partial information may be indicated by at least one of the following fields: the U-SIG field, the UHR-SIG field, or the VS-SIG field.

[0127] Accordingly, the second device can determine the remaining information of the manufacturer identification based on at least one of the following fields: U-SIG field, UHR-SIG field, or VS-SIG field, and determine the manufacturer identification based on the remaining information and the information determined according to the BSS color field.

[0128] Taking the UHR-SIG field as an example, the UHR-SIG field can include one or more UHR-SIG content channels. A UHR-SIG content channel can include common fields and user-specific fields. The common fields of a UHR-SIG content channel can be included in one or more common coding blocks. The user-specific fields can be included in one or more user coding blocks.

[0129] Based on this, in one possible approach, the remaining information can be indicated by the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field. Specifically, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all the remaining information. Based on this, when the second device obtains the remaining information of the manufacturer's identifier, it can specifically decode the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field and determine the remaining information of the manufacturer's identifier based on the decoded common coding block.

[0130] For example, if the manufacturer identifier is a 24-bit OUI or CID, the first common coding block in the UHR-SIG field can indicate all / part of the remaining (24-P) bits of information in the manufacturer identifier. If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit OUI, the first common coding block in the UHR-SIG field can indicate all / part of the remaining (30-P) bits of information in the manufacturer identifier. P is the number of bits corresponding to the information indicated by the BSS color field in the manufacturer identifier.

[0131] Assuming that the BSS Color field indicates 6 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier, that is, P=6, if the manufacturer identifier is a 24-bit OUI or CID, all or part of the remaining 18 bits of information can be indicated in the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field. If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit OUI, all or part of the remaining 30 bits of information can be indicated in the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field.

[0132] Optionally, if the first common coding block in the UHR-SIG field indicates part of the remaining information, the partial information may be the K-bit information of the MSB of the manufacturer identifier, where K is an integer greater than 0, for example, K=12. That is, the first common coding block in the UHR-SIG field may indicate the K-bit information of the MSB of the manufacturer identifier. Since the 36-bit OUI carries the additional 12-bit OUI information through the 12 bits of the MSB, indicating the K-bit information of the MSB of the manufacturer identifier through the first common coding block in the UHR-SIG field can better distinguish different manufacturer identifiers. Therefore, the above method can further help distinguish the manufacturer identifiers.

[0133] It should be noted that, for manufacturer logos of different lengths, the value of K may be the same or different, and is not specifically limited here.

[0134] In one optional solution, for a 24-bit OUI, a 24-bit CID, or a 36-bit OUI, the length of the first common coded block of the UHR-SIG field is the same. In this approach, by making the first common coded block of the UHR-SIG field of equal length, decoding at the receiving end is facilitated.

[0135] In one example, the number of bits of the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can be fixed to 52 bits. In this way, in the case of MCS 0, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field occupies 2 symbols. When the modulation and coding strategy adopted by the UHR-SIG field is MCS1, the first common coding block occupies 1 symbol. Encoding and decoding are performed in units of symbols to obtain manufacturer-specific information, which can simplify the processing at the receiving end.

[0136] Optionally, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field may also carry manufacturer-specific information. For example, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field may also carry manufacturer-specific common information in the manufacturer-specific information.

[0137] The user code block of the UHR-SIG field may also carry manufacturer-specific information for a single user, ie, manufacturer-specific user information.

[0138] Two examples of the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field are described below.

[0139] Example A: For a 24-bit OUI or CID manufacturer identifier, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all of the remaining 24-P bits of information in the manufacturer identifier and Q bits of manufacturer-specific information. If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit OUI, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all of the remaining 36-P bits of information in the manufacturer identifier and (Q-12) bits of manufacturer-specific information. Q is an integer greater than or equal to 12. As shown in Figure 7.

[0140] Taking the BSS Color field indicating 6 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier, that is, P=6 and Q=12, as an example, for a manufacturer identifier type of 24-bit OUI or CID, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all the remaining 18 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier and 12 bits of manufacturer-specific information. If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit OUI, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all the remaining 30 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier.

[0141] Through the solution of Example A, for different manufacturer identification lengths, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all the information in the remaining information of the manufacturer identification, so that the manufacturer can obtain the complete manufacturer identification during the PPDU transmission process, thereby avoiding mutual interference between different manufacturers and improving interoperability between different manufacturers.

[0142] Example B: For a manufacturer identifier with a 24-bit OUI or CID type, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate R bits of information in the remaining information in the manufacturer identifier, and optionally, can also indicate L bits of manufacturer-specific information (such as manufacturer-specific public information), where R is a value greater than 0 and not greater than (24-P). If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit OUI, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate R bits of information in the remaining information in the manufacturer identifier, and optionally, can also indicate L bits of manufacturer-specific information (such as manufacturer-specific public information). As shown in Figure 8.

[0143] Assuming that the BSS Color field indicates 6 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier, that is, P=6, R=18, for a manufacturer identifier type of 24-bit OUI or CID, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate all of the remaining 18 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier and L bits of manufacturer-specific information (such as manufacturer-specific public information). If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit OUI, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate 18 bits of information in the remaining 30 bits of information in the manufacturer identifier and L bits of manufacturer-specific information (such as manufacturer-specific public information).

[0144] Based on the above assumptions, a specific example is that the BSS Color field indicates the 6-bit information of the LSB of the manufacturer identifier, namely, [B0-B5] of the manufacturer identifier. For a 24-bit OUI or CID type of the manufacturer identifier, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate [B6-B23] of the manufacturer identifier and L-bit manufacturer-specific information (such as manufacturer-specific public information). If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit OUI, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate [B6-B11] and [B24-B35] of the manufacturer identifier and L-bit manufacturer-specific information (such as manufacturer-specific public information).

[0145] Through the solution of Example B, for different manufacturer identification lengths, the number of bits of the manufacturer identification indicated by the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field is the same, thereby reducing the complexity of parsing the manufacturer identification at the receiving end, and therefore, further facilitating decoding at the receiving end.

[0146] According to the above description, the first public coding block of the UHR-SIG field can also indicate manufacturer-specific public information.

[0147] For different manufacturer identifier lengths, the manufacturer-specific public information indicated by the first common encoding block of the UHR-SIG field can be of different lengths. For example, the manufacturer-specific public information indicated by the first common encoding block of the UHR-SIG field in Example A above is of different lengths. Through the above design, for a manufacturer identifier type of 24-bit OUI or CID, the first common encoding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate more detailed manufacturer-specific public information. For a manufacturer identifier type of 36-bit OUI, the first common encoding block of the UHR-SIG field can indicate manufacturer-specific public information with less overhead.

[0148] For different manufacturer identifier lengths, the manufacturer-specific public information indicated by the first common coded block of the UHR-SIG field can also be of equal length. For example, for different manufacturer identifier lengths, the number of bits of the manufacturer identifier indicated by the first common coded block of the UHR-SIG field can be fixed, as described in Example B. Thus, when the first common coded block of the UHR-SIG field is of equal length, the manufacturer-specific public information indicated by the first common coded block of the UHR-SIG field can be of equal length.

[0149] Optionally, the present application may also utilize one or more bits in the PPDU to carry switch information carrying a manufacturer identifier, where the switch information indicates whether the BSS color field carries the manufacturer identifier. For ease of description, the one or more bits in the PPDU that carry the switch information are referred to as a first bit set. That is, the PPDU also includes a first bit set, which is used to carry the above-mentioned switch information. The first bit set may also be used to indicate whether the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer identifier, and the first bit set includes at least one bit.

[0150] For example, the first bit set may include at least one of the following: at least one bit in the U-SIG field, or at least one bit in the UHR-SIG field. For example, the first bit set may include at least one of the following: bits B20-B24 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field, bit B25 of the first symbol of the U-SIG field, bit B2 of the second symbol of the U-SIG field, or bit B8 of the second symbol of the U-SIG field.

[0151] The above approach can prevent the second device from identifying the value of the BSS color field in the U-SIG field in the IEEE 802.11be standard and standards before IEEE 802.11be as a manufacturer identifier, thereby improving accuracy.

[0152] In an exemplary description, the bits carrying the switching information may be considered as bits in the bits carrying the BSS color field, i.e., the BSS color field may carry the switching information. Optionally, in this example, the first bit set may be G bits of the MSB of the bits carrying the BSS color field, where G is an integer greater than 0.

[0153] The following takes the first bit set including 1 bit (hereinafter referred to as bit A) and the BSS color field as the structure described in Example 1 as an example to introduce two ways for the second device to determine whether the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer identification.

[0154] Assume that when the value of bit A is 1, it indicates that the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer's identifier. When the value of bit A is 0, it indicates that the BSS color field does not indicate the manufacturer's identifier. It should be noted that the value of bit A here is only an example, and this application does not limit the correspondence between the value of bit A and whether the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer's identifier.

[0155] In mode A, the second device can determine whether the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer's identifier based on the value carried by bit A. For example, when the value carried by bit A is 1, it can be determined that the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer's identifier. When the value carried by bit A is 0, it can be determined that the BSS color field does not indicate the manufacturer's identifier.

[0156] In mode B, the second device can determine whether the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer's identification based on the value of the BSS Color field. For example, when the value carried by bit A is 1, the value range of the BSS Color field is 64-127. Therefore, when the value of the BSS Color field is within the range of 64-127, it can be determined that the BSS color field indicates the manufacturer's identification. When the value carried by bit A is 0, the value range of the BSS Color field is 1-63. Therefore, when the value of the BSS Color field is within the range of 1-63, it can be determined that the BSS color field does not indicate the manufacturer's identification.

[0157] The above describes how the PPDU carries the manufacturer identifier. Optionally, the PPDU may also carry manufacturer-specific information corresponding to the manufacturer identifier.

[0158] Exemplarily, the manufacturer-specific information corresponding to the manufacturer identifier may be carried in at least one of the following fields: a U-SIG field or a UHR-SIG field.

[0159] Alternatively, the manufacturer-specific information corresponding to the manufacturer identifier may also be carried in the VS-SIG field. The PPDU may include one or more VS-SIG fields. The VS-SIG field may be located after the U-SIG field, after the UHR-SIG field, or after the UHR-LTF field.

[0160] In one possible implementation, among the bits carrying the BSS color field, the bit used to carry the manufacturer identifier includes a first bit (e.g., Bit X), and the first bit is used to indicate whether the manufacturer identifier is an OUI or a CID. Exemplarily, when the first bit is 0, it indicates that the manufacturer identifier is an OUI, and when the first bit is 1, it indicates that the manufacturer identifier is a CID.

[0161] By indicating the manufacturer's identifier in the BSS color field, this application allows manufacturers to identify the manufacturer's identifier during PPDU transmission, thereby avoiding interoperability issues caused by mutual interference between different manufacturers. Furthermore, by associating the value of the BSS color field with the manufacturer's identifier, the BSS color field can simultaneously indicate both the BSS and the manufacturer's identifier, reducing the manufacturer's identifier indication overhead.

[0162] In addition, by indicating the manufacturer identifier in the BSS color field, the present application enables the PPDU to carry the 36-bit OUI manufacturer identifier without increasing the overhead.

[0163] In addition, when the lengths of the manufacturer identifiers are different, the remaining information of the manufacturer identifier can be carried by the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field, thereby realizing the indication of a 36-bit OUI.

[0164] Furthermore, by making the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field of equal length, the implementation complexity of the receiving end can be reduced.

[0165] It should be noted that the above-mentioned method of carrying the manufacturer identification information through the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field, that is, the method in which the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field is of equal length, or the method in which the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field carries the manufacturer identification information of equal length, and the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field is of equal length, can be implemented independently without relying on the method described in Figure 5. For example, part of the manufacturer identification information is carried through other fields other than the BSS color field in the PPDU (such as fields other than the BSS color field in the U-SIG field, the UHR-SIG field, the VS-SIG field, etc.), and the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field carries the remaining bits of the manufacturer identification information in a manner of equal length common coding blocks. For another example, the first common coding block of the UHR-SIG field carries all the bits of the manufacturer identification information in a manner of equal length common coding blocks, and so on.

[0166] Based on the same inventive concept as the method embodiment, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, the structure of which may be as shown in FIG. 9 , including a communication unit 901 and a processing unit 902 .

[0167] In one embodiment, a communication device can be specifically used to implement the method performed by the first device in the embodiment of Figure 2. The communication device can be the first device or a communication module in the first device. The device can be the first device itself, or a chip or chipset in the first device, or a portion of a chip used to perform the functions of the related method. The chip can be, for example, a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system-on-chip (SoC) chip or system-in-package (SIP) chip containing a modem core. The first device can be a receiving point or station. The processing unit 902 is used to generate a PPDU, wherein the PPDU includes a basic service set color field, and the basic service set color field is used to indicate the basic service set and the manufacturer identifier. The communication unit 901 is used to send the PPDU.

[0168] In one embodiment, a communication device can be specifically used to implement the method performed by the second device in the embodiment of FIG. 2 . The communication device can be the second device or a communication module in the second device. The device can be the second device itself, or a chip, chipset, or a portion of a chip in the second device that performs the functions of the related method. The chip can be, for example, a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system-on-chip (SoC) chip or system-in-package (SIP) chip containing a modem core. The second device can be a receiving point or station. The communication unit 901 is configured to receive a PPDU, wherein the PPDU includes a basic service set color field that indicates a basic service set and a manufacturer identifier. The processing unit 902 is configured to parse the PPDU to determine the manufacturer identifier.

[0169] Optionally, when determining the manufacturer identifier based on the PPDU, the processing unit 902 is specifically configured to: parse the PPDU; and obtain first information of the manufacturer identifier from bits 7 to 12 of the first symbol of the general signaling field.

[0170] Optionally, the processing unit 902 is also used to: obtain the second information of the manufacturer identification from at least one of the following bits: bits 20-bit 24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field; and determine the manufacturer identification based on the first information and the second information.

[0171] Optionally, the processing unit 902 is further configured to obtain, based on the first bit set, that the basic service set color field indicates the manufacturer identifier.

[0172] Optionally, when determining the manufacturer identifier based on the PPDU, the processing unit 902 is further used to: obtain the basic service set color field indicating the manufacturer identifier based on the second bit set in the PPDU, where the second bit set is composed of the first bit set and the bits carrying the basic service set color field.

[0173] Optionally, the processing unit 902 is further used to obtain third information of the manufacturer identification based on at least one of the following fields: a general signaling field, an ultra-high reliability signaling field, or a manufacturer-specific signaling field, where the third information is information in the manufacturer identification other than the information indicated by the basic service set color field; and the manufacturer identification is determined based on the information obtained from the basic service set color field and the third information.

[0174] Optionally, the processing unit 902 is further configured to decode a first common coding block of the ultra-reliable signaling field; and obtain the third information according to the decoded common coding block.

[0175] The division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods. In addition, the functional modules in the various embodiments of the present application can be integrated into a processor, or can exist physically separately, or two or more modules can be integrated into one module. The above-mentioned integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It is understood that the functions or implementations of the various modules in the embodiments of the present application can be further referred to the relevant description of the method embodiment.

[0176] In one possible embodiment, a communication device may be as shown in FIG10 . The device may be a communication device or a chip within the communication device, wherein the communication device may be a terminal device or a network device in the above embodiments. The device includes a processor 1001 and a communication interface 1002, and may also include a memory 1003. The processing unit 902 may be the processor 1001. The communication unit 901 may be the communication interface 1002. Optionally, the processor 1001 and the memory 1003 may be integrated.

[0177] The processor 1001 may be a CPU, a digital processing unit, or the like. The communication interface 1002 may be a transceiver, an interface circuit such as a transceiver circuit, or a transceiver chip, or the like. The device further includes: a memory 1003 for storing programs executed by the processor 1001. The memory 1003 may be a non-volatile memory, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD), or a volatile memory (volatile memory), such as a random-access memory (RAM). The memory 1003 is 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.

[0178] The processor 1001 is used to execute the program code stored in the memory 1003, specifically to execute the actions of the processing unit 902, which will not be described in detail in this application. The communication interface 1002 is specifically used to execute the actions of the communication unit 901, which will not be described in detail in this application.

[0179] The specific connection medium between the communication interface 1002, processor 1001, and memory 1003 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. In Figure 10, the embodiment of the present application shows that the memory 1003, processor 1001, and communication interface 1002 are connected via bus 1004. The bus is represented by a bold line in Figure 10. The connection method between other components is only for schematic illustration and is not limiting. Buses can be divided into address buses, data buses, control buses, etc. For ease of representation, only one bold line is used in Figure 10, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0180] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing computer software instructions required to execute the above-mentioned processor, which includes a program required to execute the above-mentioned processor.

[0181] An embodiment of the present application further provides a communication system, including a communication device for implementing the first device function in the embodiment of FIG. 2 and a communication device for implementing the second device function in the embodiment of FIG. 2 .

[0182] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the embodiments of the present application can be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, the present application can adopt the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment, or an embodiment in combination with software and hardware. Moreover, the present application can adopt the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to magnetic disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) that contain computer-usable program code.

[0183] The present application is described with reference to the flowcharts and / or block diagrams of the methods, devices (systems), and computer program products according to the present application. It should be understood that each flow and / or box in the flow chart and / or block diagram, as well as the combination of the flow chart and / or box in the flow chart and / or block diagram, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device produce a device for implementing the functions specified in one or more flow charts and / or one or more boxes in the block diagram.

[0184] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce a product including an instruction device that implements the functions specified in one or more processes in the flowchart and / or one or more boxes in the block diagram.

[0185] 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.

[0186] Obviously, those skilled in the art may make various changes and modifications to the present application without departing from the scope of the present application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Generate a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU), wherein the PPDU includes a basic service set color field, and the basic service set color field is used to indicate a basic service set and a manufacturer identifier; Send the PPDU.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The basic service set color field is carried in bit 7 to bit 12 of the first symbol of the general signaling field.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein The basic service set color field is also carried on at least one of the following bits: bits 20-bit 24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein The PPDU further includes a first bit set, where the first bit set is used to indicate whether the basic service set color field indicates the manufacturer identifier, and the first bit set includes at least one bit.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein The first bit set includes at least one of the following bits: bits 20-bit 24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: Among the bits carrying the basic service set color field, the bits used to carry the manufacturer identifier include a first bit, and the first bit is used to indicate that the type of the manufacturer identifier is an organization unique identifier or a company identifier.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: The remaining information in the manufacturer identification except the information indicated by the basic service set color field is indicated by at least one of the following fields: a general signaling field, an ultra-reliable signaling field, or a manufacturer-specific signaling field.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein The remaining information is indicated by the first common coding block of the ultra-reliable signaling field.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein For a manufacturer identifier of a 24-bit organization unique identifier or a company identifier or a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the length of the first common coding block is the same.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein For a manufacturer identifier that is a 24-bit organization unique identifier or company identifier, the first common coding block indicates the remaining information and Q bits of manufacturer specific information, where Q is an integer greater than or equal to 12; If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the first common coding block indicates the remaining information and (Q-12) bits of manufacturer specific information.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein The type of the manufacturer identifier of the first common coding block is a 24-bit organization unique identifier or a company identifier or a 36-bit organization unique identifier, and the number of bits corresponding to the manufacturer identifier information indicated by the first common coding block is the same.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the first public coding block indicates the value of the high-order M bits of the manufacturer identifier, where M is an integer greater than 0 and less than or equal to (24-P).

13. An information indication method, characterized in that: include: receiving a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU), wherein the PPDU includes a basic service set color field, where the basic service set color field is used to indicate a basic service set and a manufacturer identifier; The PPDU is parsed to determine the manufacturer identifier.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein The basic service set color field is carried in bit 7 to bit 12 of the first symbol of the general signaling field.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein The basic service set color field is also carried on at least one of the following bits: bits 20-bit 24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field.

16. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein: The PPDU further includes a first bit set, where the first bit set is used to indicate whether the basic service set color field indicates the manufacturer identifier, and the first bit set includes at least one bit.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein The first bit set includes at least one of the following bits: bits 20-bit 24 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 25 of the first symbol of the general signaling field, bit 2 of the second symbol of the general signaling field, or bit 8 of the second symbol of the general signaling field.

18. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 17, wherein: Among the bits carrying the basic service set color field, the bits used to carry the manufacturer identifier include a first bit, and the first bit is used to indicate that the type of the manufacturer identifier is an organization unique identifier or a company identifier.

19. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 18, wherein: The remaining information in the manufacturer identification except the information indicated by the basic service set color field is indicated by at least one of the following fields: a general signaling field, an ultra-reliable signaling field, or a manufacturer-specific signaling field.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein The remaining information is indicated by the first common coding block of the ultra-reliable signaling field.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein For a manufacturer identifier of a 24-bit organization unique identifier or a company identifier or a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the length of the first common coding block is the same.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein For a manufacturer identifier that is a 24-bit organization unique identifier or company identifier, the first common coding block indicates the remaining information and Q bits of manufacturer specific information, where Q is an integer greater than or equal to 12; If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the first common coding block indicates the remaining information and (Q-12) bits of manufacturer specific information.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein For a manufacturer identifier that is a 24-bit organization unique identifier or a company identifier or a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the number of bits corresponding to the manufacturer identifier information indicated by the first common coding block is the same.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein If the manufacturer identifier is a 36-bit organization unique identifier, the first public coding block indicates the value of the high-order M bits of the manufacturer identifier, where M is an integer greater than 0 and less than or equal to (24-P).

25. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory is used to store program instructions, and when the processor executes the program instructions, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 13 to 24 is executed.

26. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that The computer storage medium stores computer-readable instructions, and when the computer-readable instructions are executed on the communication device, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 13 to 24 is executed.

27. A computer program product, characterized in that When the computer program product is run on a device, the device is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12 or the method according to any one of claims 13 to 24.

28. A communication system, characterized in that: The system includes a first device and a second device, the first device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, and the second device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 13 to 24.

29. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a unit or module for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, or comprises a unit or module for executing the method according to any one of claims 13 to 24.

30. A chip, characterized in that: The chip is coupled to the memory and is configured to read and execute program instructions stored in the memory to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, or to implement the method according to any one of claims 13 to 24.

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