Wireless communication method and communication device

Abstract

Provided are a wireless communication method and a communication device. The wireless communication method comprises: a first device sends a first frame to a second device, the first frame comprising first information, the first information being associated with a first operation mode of the first device, and the first operation mode allowing the first device in an awake state to perform communication in different capability modes.

Description

Wireless communication method and communication device Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and more particularly, to a wireless communication method and communication device. Background Art

[0002] To reduce power consumption in communication devices (such as access points and stations), power-saving modes have been introduced. However, current power-saving modes are inflexible and cannot achieve optimal energy savings while adapting to communication capabilities (e.g., frame exchange capabilities).

[0003] Summary of the Invention

[0004] The present application provides a wireless communication method and a communication device. The following introduces various aspects involved in the present application.

[0005] In a first aspect, a method for wireless communication is provided, comprising: a first device sending a first frame to a second device, the first frame comprising first information, the first information being associated with a first operating mode of the first device, the first operating mode allowing the first device to communicate in different capability modes in an awake state.

[0006] In a second aspect, a method for wireless communication is provided, including: a second device receives a first frame sent by a first device, the first frame includes first information, the first information is associated with a first operating mode of the first device, and the first operating mode allows the first device to communicate in different capability modes in an awake state.

[0007] According to a third aspect, a communication device is provided, which is a first device and includes: a first sending module for sending a first frame to a second device, the first frame including first information, the first information being associated with a first operating mode of the first device, and the first operating mode allowing the first device to communicate in different capability modes in an awake state.

[0008] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided, which is a second device, and the communication device includes: a first receiving module for receiving a first frame sent by a first device, the first frame including first information, the first information being associated with a first operating mode of the first device, and the first operating mode allowing the first device to communicate in different capability modes in an awake state.

[0009] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising a transceiver, a processor, and a memory, wherein the memory is used to store one or more computer programs, and the processor is used to call the computer program in the memory to enable the communication device to perform some or all of the steps in the above-mentioned various aspects of the method.

[0010] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes the above-mentioned communication device. In another possible design, the system may also include other devices that interact with the communication device in the solution provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0011] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program, and the computer program enables a communication device to execute part or all of the steps in the methods of the above aspects.

[0012] In an eighth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer program product, wherein the computer program product includes a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program is operable to cause a communication device to perform some or all of the steps of the methods described in each of the above aspects. In some implementations, the computer program product may be a software installation package.

[0013] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the processor can call and run a computer program from the memory to implement some or all of the steps described in the methods of the above aspects.

[0014] An embodiment of the present application introduces a first operating mode, which allows the first device to communicate in different capability modes when in an awake state. In this way, the first device can select different capability modes for communication according to different situations when in an awake state, which is conducive to achieving better energy-saving effects while ensuring communication capabilities. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] FIG1 is a diagram showing an example of a system architecture of a wireless communication system to which an embodiment of the present application is applicable.

[0016] FIG2 is a flow chart of a wireless communication method according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0017] FIG3 is an example diagram of a first operation mode based on negotiation control provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0018] FIG4 is another example diagram of the first operation mode based on negotiation control provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0019] FIG5 is a flow chart of a wireless communication method provided in another embodiment of the present application.

[0020] FIG6 is a diagram showing an example of the format of the first subfield.

[0021] FIG7 is a diagram showing an example of the format of the second subfield.

[0022] FIG8 is a diagram illustrating an example of the format of the capability adaptation energy saving control subfield.

[0023] FIG9 is a diagram illustrating an example of the format of the capability adaptation energy saving delay parameter subfield.

[0024] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the format of the low capability operating mode parameter subfield.

[0025] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of the format of the High Capability Operation Mode Parameters subfield.

[0026] FIG12 is a diagram showing an example of the format of the third subfield.

[0027] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of the format of the target capability mode operation parameter subfield.

[0028] FIG14 is an example diagram of a control frame with dynamic control of energy-saving mode capable of adaptation.

[0029] FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of the format of the capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching response subfield.

[0030] FIG16 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0031] FIG17 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in another embodiment of the present application.

[0032] FIG18 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] The technical solution in this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0034] Communication System

[0035] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as wireless local area networks (WLAN), wireless fidelity (WiFi), high performance radio local area networks (HIPELAN), wide area networks (WAN), cellular networks, or other communication systems. For another example, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applied to communication systems that adopt the 802.11 standard. For example, the 802.11 standard includes but is not limited to the 802.11ax standard, the 802.11be standard, and the next generation 802.11 standard.

[0036] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system applicable to embodiments of the present application. Referring to FIG1 , the communication devices in the communication system 100 may include access points (APs) 111 and 112, and stations (STAs) 121 and 122. STA 121 may access the network through AP 111, and STA 122 may access the network through AP 112.

[0037] In some implementations, a STA may establish an association with one or more APs, after which the associated STAs and APs may communicate. For example, as shown in FIG1 , AP 111 and STA 121 may communicate after establishing an association, and AP 112 and STA 122 may communicate after establishing an association.

[0038] In some implementations, the communication in the communication system 100 may be communication between an AP and a non-AP STA, communication between a non-AP STA and a non-AP STA, or communication between a STA and a peer STA, where a peer STA may refer to a device that communicates with the STA peer, for example, the peer STA may be an AP or a non-AP STA.

[0039] It should be understood that FIG1 exemplarily shows two AP STAs and two non-AP STAs, and the communication system 100 may also include a larger number of AP STAs, or the communication system 100 may include other numbers of non-AP STAs, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0040] In addition, the above communication system can be applied to scenarios of multi-device collaboration, such as multi-AP (multiple access points, multi-AP) collaboration, or multi-site collaboration.

[0041] In the embodiments of this application, the names of AP and / or STA are not limited. In some scenarios, AP can also be called AP STA, that is, in a sense, AP is also a type of STA. In other scenarios, STA can also be called non-AP STA.

[0042] In some scenarios, the aforementioned communication device may also be a "multi-link device (MLD)," i.e., a device that can communicate via multiple communication links, where the multiple communication links may include communication links in different frequency bands, such as millimeter wave bands and / or low-frequency bands. Generally, if the multi-link device is an AP, the AP may also be referred to as a "multi-link AP." If the multi-link device is a STA, the STA may also be referred to as a "multi-link STA."

[0043] In the embodiment of the present application, the AP can be a device in a wireless network. The AP can be a communication entity such as a communication server, a router, a switch, a bridge, or the AP can include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, etc. Of course, the AP can also be a chip or circuit or processing system in these various forms of devices, thereby realizing the method and function of the embodiment of the present application. The AP can be applied to a variety of scenarios, such as sensor nodes in smart cities (such as smart water meters, smart electricity meters, smart air detection nodes), smart devices in smart homes (such as smart cameras, projectors, displays, TVs, speakers, refrigerators, washing machines, etc.), nodes in the Internet of Things, entertainment terminals (such as wearable devices such as AR and VR), smart devices in smart offices (such as printers, projectors, etc.), Internet of Vehicles devices in the Internet of Vehicles, and some infrastructure in daily life scenarios (such as vending machines, self-service navigation counters in supermarkets, self-service checkout devices, self-service ordering machines), etc.

[0044] In some implementations, the role of a STA in a communication system is not absolute; in some scenarios, a STA can function as an AP. For example, when a mobile phone is connected to a router, it can be a non-AP STA, while when it is acting as a hotspot for other phones, it functions as an AP.

[0045] In the embodiments of the present application, a STA in the embodiments of the present application may be a device with wireless transceiver capabilities, such as a device that supports the 802.11 series of protocols and can communicate with an AP or other STAs. For example, a STA is any user communication device that allows a user to communicate with an AP and, in turn, with a WLAN. Examples of STAs include user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), access terminal, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, or user device.

[0046] The STA in the embodiment of the present application may also be a device that provides voice / data connectivity to users, such as a handheld device or vehicle-mounted device with wireless connection function. Examples include: mobile phones, tablet computers, laptop computers, PDAs, mobile internet devices (MIDs), wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, cellular phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, personal digital assistants (PDAs), handheld devices with wireless communication capabilities, computing devices or other processing devices connected to wireless modems, in-vehicle devices, wearable devices, terminal devices in 5G networks or future-evolved public land mobile communication networks. The terminal equipment in the network (PLMN), etc., is not limited to this in the embodiments of the present application.

[0047] By way of example and not limitation, in the embodiments of this application, the STA may also be a wearable device. Wearable devices, also known as wearable smart devices, are a general term for wearable devices that utilize wearable technology to intelligently design and develop wearable devices for everyday wear, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Examples include smart watches or smart glasses, as well as devices that focus on a specific application function and require integration with other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

[0048] In addition, in the embodiments of the present application, a STA can also be a terminal device in the Internet of Things (IoT) system. The IoT is an important component of the future development of information technology. Its main technical feature is to connect objects to the network through communication technology, thereby realizing an intelligent network that interconnects people and machines and things. In the embodiments of the present application, IoT technology can achieve massive connections, deep coverage, and terminal power saving through narrowband (NB) technology, for example.

[0049] Furthermore, in the embodiments of the present application, a STA may be a device in a connected vehicle system. The communication methods in a connected vehicle system are collectively referred to as V2X (where X represents everything). For example, V2X communication includes vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication, vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) communication, and vehicle-to-network (V2N) communication.

[0050] In addition, in the embodiment of the present application, STA may also include sensors such as smart printers, train detectors, gas stations, etc., whose main functions include collecting data (part of the terminal equipment), receiving AP control information and downlink data, and sending electromagnetic waves to transmit data to the AP.

[0051] In addition, the AP in the embodiment of the present application may be a device for communicating with a STA. The AP may be a network device in a wireless local area network. The AP may be used to communicate with the STA through the wireless local area network.

[0052] From the perspective of the communication standards supported by the AP, in some implementations, the AP can be a device that supports the 802.11be standard. The AP can also be a device that supports various current and future 802.11 family WLAN standards, such as 802.11ax, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, and 802.11a.

[0053] From the perspective of STA-supported communication standards, in some implementations, non-AP STAs can support the 802.11be standard. Non-AP STAs can also support various current and future 802.11 family wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, including 802.11ax, 802.11ac, 802.11n, 802.11g, 802.11b, and 802.11a.

[0054] In the embodiments of the present application, there is no limitation on the frequency bands supported by WLAN technology. In some implementations, the frequency bands supported by WLAN technology may include, but are not limited to, low frequency bands (e.g., 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz) and high frequency bands (e.g., 45 GHz, 60 GHz).

[0055] It should be understood that the specific forms of STA and AP in the embodiments of the present application are not particularly limited and are merely illustrative.

[0056] Power Management

[0057] Currently, some specifications or protocols (such as IEEE 802.11) define that a non-AP STA can adopt the following two power management modes: active mode and energy-saving mode.

[0058] When the STA is in active mode (or awake state), the STA can receive and send frames at any time. In some embodiments, the STA being in active mode can also be understood as the STA remaining awake in active mode. For example, in active mode, a non-high-efficiency (HE) STA remains awake. For another example, in active mode, a HE STA remains awake unless the HE STA is unavailable. It should be noted that an unavailable STA cannot receive a physical layer protocol data unit (PHY protocol data unit, PPDU). Scenarios that allow STA to be unavailable include one or more of the following: opportunistic power save, intra-PPDU power save of non-AP HE STA, and target wake time (TWT) information frame exchange for flexible wake-up time.

[0059] Energy-saving mode includes two power states: awake and doze. When a STA is awake, it is fully powered. When doze, it cannot send or receive non-WUR PPDUs, resulting in very low power consumption. In energy-saving mode, a STA can send or receive frames after entering the awake state; otherwise, it remains doze.

[0060] Spatial multiplexing (SM) energy saving

[0061] In the related art, STAs consume power on all active receive chains, even if they do not necessarily need all active receive chains for actual frame exchange. To address this issue, the SM power saving feature allows non-AP STAs to use only one active receive chain most of the time.

[0062] The STA controls which receive chains are active through the PHY-RXCONFIG.request primitive, which defines the PHYCONFIG_VECTOR parameter ACTIVE_RXCHAIN_SET to indicate which receive chain of the STA should be active.

[0063] The SM energy saving mode (or SM operation mode) may include a dynamic SM energy saving mode and a static SM energy saving mode. The following description is made by taking a non-AP STA including a high throughput (HT) STA as an example.

[0064] In dynamic SM power saving mode, an HT STA activates multiple receive chains upon receiving the start of a frame exchange sequence addressed to it. An enhanced directional multi-gigabit (EDMG) STA activates multiple receive chains only when a received frame indicates that subsequent transmission requires activation of multiple receive chains. Such a frame exchange sequence should begin with a single spatial stream individually addressed frame, which is not a trigger frame but requires an immediate response and is addressed to the STA in dynamic SM power saving mode. For HT STAs, the request to send (RTS) / clear to send (CTS) sequence can be used for this purpose. For EDMG STAs in dynamic SM power saving mode, the grant / grant acknowledgment (Grant Ack) sequence is required. Depending on its spatial stream capabilities and operating mode, the STA should be able to receive PPDUs transmitted using multiple spatial streams after a short interframe space (SIFS) has elapsed since the end of the PPDU it sent as an immediate response. After the frame exchange sequence ends, the STA may immediately switch back to single receive chain mode.

[0065] In static SM power-saving mode, the STA maintains only one active receive chain.

[0066] STA can use SM power saving frame to communicate its SM power saving state. The SM power saving subfield in the HT capabilities element (HT capabilities element) or EDMG capabilities element (EDMG capabilities element) of the STA's association request frame (or reassociation request frame), or the SM power saving subfield in the HE 6GHz bandwidth capabilities element (HE 6GHz band capabilities element) of the STA's association request frame (or reassociation request frame) can also achieve the purpose of STA communicating SM power saving state. The SM power saving frame can carry the SM power control field (SM power control field). The SM power saving enabled subfield contained in the SM power control field can indicate whether the STA has turned on the SM power saving function. The SM mode (SM Mode) subfield contained in the SM power control field can indicate the SM power saving mode. That is, the SM mode can indicate whether the STA uses the dynamic SM power saving mode or the static SM power saving mode. The scheme using the association request frame (or reassociation request frame) allows the STA to use a single receive chain immediately after association (or reassociation). For example, the SM energy saving subfield of the HT capability element or HE 6 GHz bandwidth capability element carried by the association request frame (or reassociation request frame) may indicate the SM energy saving mode to be run immediately after association (or reassociation).

[0067] It should be noted that the number of active receive chains will only be changed after the SM Energy Saving Mode indication is successfully transmitted (i.e., by acknowledging a frame carrying the HT Capability element or the EDMG Capability element, or by acknowledging a frame carrying the HE 6 GHz Band Capability element, or by acknowledging an SM Energy Saving Mode frame). The SM Energy Saving Mode indication shall be transmitted using a separately addressed frame.

[0068] A HE non-AP STA in dynamic SM power saving mode, if supporting HE dynamic SM power saving, shall follow the dynamic SM power saving procedure and shall also enable its multiple receive chains if the trigger frame in response to the initiating frame exchange sequence meets the following conditions: the trigger frame is transmitted in a single spatial stream; the trigger frame comes from the associated AP; the trigger frame is a MU-RTS trigger frame, a buffer status report poll (BSRP) trigger frame, or a BQRP trigger frame and contains a User Info field with the AID12 subfield equal to the 12 least significant bits of the starting association identifier (AID) of the HE non-AP STA.

[0069] A HE non-AP STA shall, based on its spatial stream capabilities and operating mode, be able to receive PPDUs sent using multiple spatial streams a SIFS after the end of the PPDU it sends as a response. After the frame exchange sequence is complete, the HE non-AP STA may immediately switch back to single receive chain mode.

[0070] Enhanced multi-link single radio (EMLSR) operation

[0071] The EMLSR operation allows a non-AP MLD with multiple receive links to listen on one or more EMLSR links. The corresponding non-AP STAs to which the non-AP MLD is attached are awake, thereby receiving the initial control frames sent by the AP MLD-attached AP using non-HT (repeated) PPDUs and participating in frame exchanges on the links where the initial control frames were received.

[0072] A non-AP MLD can specify a set of links between the non-AP MLD and its associated AP MLD to operate in EMLSR mode. The set of links that are enabled and apply EMLSR mode is called an EMLSR link. If a non-AP STA affiliated with the non-AP MLD operating on one of the EMLSR links is awake, all STAs affiliated with the non-AP MLD that are not operating on EMLSR-enabled links should be asleep.

[0073] When a non-AP MLD runs in EMLSR mode on an EMLSR link, a non-AP STAT running on the EMLSR link and attached to the non-AP MLD cannot run in dynamic SM power saving mode on the EMLSR link.

[0074] Non-AP MLD and AP MLD supporting EMLSR mode can use rules 1 to 4 to perform operations in EMLSR mode.

[0075] Rule 1: A non-AP MLD should be able to monitor an EMLSR link by waking up its attached non-AP STA corresponding to the EMLSR link. This monitoring operation includes CCA and receiving the initial control frame of the frame exchange initiated by the AP MLD. A non-AP STA operating on an EMLSR link can change its power management mode; a non-AP STA can monitor the EMLSR link in active mode or in PS mode while awake.

[0076] Rule 2: When an AP MLD-affiliated AP initiates a frame exchange with a non-AP MLD on an EMLSR link that is neither a group address data frame nor a group address management frame, it should initiate the frame exchange by sending an initial control frame to the non-AP MLD, with the following restrictions: The initial control frame of the frame exchange should be sent in non-HT PPDU or non-HT duplicate PPDU format at a rate of 6 Mb / s, 12 Mb / s, or 24 Mb / s; the AP MLD-affiliated AP sets the padding field length of the initial control frame according to the rules defined in Trigger Frame Padding, ensuring that the MAC padding duration of the initial control frame is greater than or equal to the EMLSR padding delay; the initial control frame should be a MU-RTS trigger frame or a BSRP trigger frame. The number of spatial streams responding to the BSRP trigger frame should be limited to one and should be indicated in the BSRP trigger frame.

[0077] Rule 3: After receiving an initial control frame and transmitting an immediate response frame in response to the frame exchange, a non-AP STA affiliated with a non-AP MLD listening on the corresponding link can transmit or receive frames on the link that received the initial control frame but should not transmit or receive frames on other EMLSR links. Subject to its spatial stream capabilities, operating mode, and the minimum MAC frame padding duration of the initial control frame padding field, the non-AP STA affiliated with the non-AP MLD on the link that received the initial control frame should be able to receive PPDUs sent using multiple spatial streams after the SIFS following the completion of the transmission of the response frame to the initial control frame request. During the frame exchange, other APs affiliated with the AP MLD must not send frames on other EMLSR links to other non-AP STAs affiliated with the non-AP MLD.

[0078] Rule 4: The non-AP MLD should switch back to the listening operation on the EMLSR link after the EMLSR transition delay time at the end of the frame exchange.

[0079] To reduce power consumption in communication devices (such as access points and stations), related technologies have introduced power-saving modes. For example, the IEEE 802.11 specification defines power-saving modes for stations (including awake and dormant states). However, current power-saving modes are inflexible, lack precise controllability, and cannot achieve effective energy savings while adapting to communication capabilities (such as frame exchange capabilities).

[0080] As an example, in the power management mode defined by the current specification, when the STA is in active mode or awakened in energy-saving mode, the STA needs to be in a fully powered or full-power state, which results in poor energy-saving effects. In order to improve the energy-saving effect of STA, the related technology proposes the EMLSR mode. However, the operation of the EMLSR mode is mainly aimed at multi-link devices, and although the device in the EMLSR mode monitors with low-power monitoring capabilities, when entering the frame exchange, the STA still needs to switch to the full-power (or high-energy consumption) state (even if the current frame exchange does not require full-power switching capabilities).

[0081] To address the above issues, the embodiments of the present application introduce a new operating mode (hereinafter referred to as the first operating mode) that allows a communication device to communicate in different capability modes while awake, thereby facilitating adaptation of communication capabilities while achieving optimal energy conservation. The following describes an embodiment of the method of the present application.

[0082] Figure 2 is a flow chart of a wireless communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. The method shown in Figure 2 is described from the perspective of interaction between a first device and a second device. The first device and the second device are first introduced below.

[0083] In the embodiment of the present application, the first device refers to a device that sends the first frame (or first information), that is, the first device is a device that indicates relevant information of the first operating mode. In some embodiments, the first device refers to the initiator of the first frame (or first information).

[0084] In some embodiments, the first device may be a station device, such as STA 121 or STA 122 shown in FIG1 . For example, the first device may be a non-AP STA. For another example, the first device may be a station device of a multi-link device. For another example, the first device may be a station device of a non-multi-link device.

[0085] In some embodiments, the first device may be an access point device, such as AP 111 or AP 112 shown in FIG1 . For example, the first device may be an AP. For another example, the first device may be an access point device of a multi-link device. For another example, the first device may be an access point device of a non-multi-link device.

[0086] In the embodiment of the present application, the second device refers to a device that receives the first frame (or the first message), that is, the second device is a device that receives relevant information of the first operating mode. In some embodiments, the second device refers to a responder of the first frame (or the first message).

[0087] In some embodiments, the second device may be a station device, such as STA 121 or STA 122 shown in FIG1 . For example, the second device may be a non-AP STA. For another example, the second device may be a station device of a multi-link device. For another example, the second device may be a station device of a non-multi-link device.

[0088] In some embodiments, the second device may be an access point device, such as AP 111 or AP 112 shown in FIG1 . For example, the second device may be an AP. For another example, the second device may be an access point device of a multi-link device. For another example, the second device may be an access point device of a non-multi-link device.

[0089] In some embodiments, when the first device is a station device, the second device may be an access point device.

[0090] In some embodiments, when the first device is a site device, the second device may be a site device.

[0091] In some embodiments, when the first device is an access point device, the second device may be a station device.

[0092] In some embodiments, when the first device is an access point device, the second device may be an access point device.

[0093] In some embodiments, the first device may have one or more receive chains. For example, the first device may be a station device having a single or multiple receive chains. Alternatively, the first device may be an access point device having a single or multiple receive chains.

[0094] In some embodiments, the second device may have one or more receive chains. For example, the second device may be a station device having a single or multiple receive chains. Alternatively, the second device may be an access point device having a single or multiple receive chains.

[0095] The method shown in FIG2 includes step S210 , which is described below.

[0096] In step S210, the first device sends a first frame to the second device. In the embodiment of the present application, the first frame includes first information.

[0097] In some embodiments, the first information is associated with a first operating mode (or first energy-saving mode, capability-adapted energy-saving operating mode, etc.) of the first device. In other words, the first information is related to the first operating mode of the first device, that is, the first information includes information related to the first operating mode of the first device.

[0098] An embodiment of the present application introduces a first operating mode, which allows the first device to communicate in different capability modes when in an awake state. In this way, the first device can select different capability modes for communication according to different situations when in an awake state, which is conducive to achieving better energy-saving effects while ensuring communication capabilities.

[0099] For ease of understanding, the first operation mode is first introduced below.

[0100] In an embodiment of the present application, the first operating mode allows the first device to communicate in different capability modes while in an awake state. That is, when the first device is in the first operating mode, the first device can communicate in different capability modes while in an awake state. In other words, the first operating mode may include multiple capability modes (or include different capability modes), and the first device can select one capability mode from the multiple capability modes for communication.

[0101] In some embodiments, the first operating mode may include an awake state and other states other than the awake state (eg, a sleep state), and the first device can communicate (or operate) in different capability modes in the awake state of the first operating mode.

[0102] The embodiments of the present application do not limit the communication process. For example, the "communication" mentioned in the embodiments of the present application may include one or more of the following communication processes: monitoring the operating channel, receiving information or data, sending information or data, performing frame exchange, etc.

[0103] The embodiments of the present application do not limit the multiple capability modes included in the first operating mode. For example, the first operating mode may include one or more of the following capability modes: low capability mode, high capability mode, and full capability mode. In some embodiments, the full capability mode can be understood as belonging to one of the high capability modes, that is, the high capability mode can include the full capability mode.

[0104] In some embodiments, the different capability modes included in the first operating mode are pre-negotiated or determined by default. For example, the low capability mode and / or high capability mode included in the first operating mode are pre-negotiated or determined by default.

[0105] In some embodiments, the first operating mode may be associated with one or more operating parameters. Exemplarily, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode may include one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode, a delay parameter for switching between different capability modes, a mode index corresponding to the low-capability mode, and a mode index corresponding to the high-capability mode.

[0106] In some embodiments, the first operating mode may be associated with one or more operating parameters to indicate different capability modes through the one or more operating parameters. For example, the first operating mode may be associated with one or more of the following operating parameters, or in other words, the first operating mode may be indicated by one or more of the following operating parameters: operating bandwidth, number of receive chains, modulation and coding scheme (MCS) modulation parameter, number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams, number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams, data rate, and supported PPDU formats for reception.

[0107] Taking the first operating mode including the low capability mode as an example, the low capability mode can be associated with one or more of the following operating parameters: operating bandwidth in low capability mode, the number of receiving chains in low capability mode, modulation and coding scheme MCS modulation parameters in low capability mode, the number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in low capability mode, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in low capability mode, the data rate in low capability mode, and the PPDU format supported for reception in low capability mode.

[0108] Taking the first operating mode including the high capability mode as an example, the high capability mode can be associated with one or more of the following operating parameters: operating bandwidth in the high capability mode, the number of receiving chains in the high capability mode, modulation and coding scheme MCS modulation parameters in the high capability mode, the number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in the high capability mode, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in the high capability mode, the data rate in the high capability mode, and the PPDU format that can be received in the high capability mode.

[0109] In some embodiments, the number of receivable spatiotemporal streams / spatial streams associated with the first operating mode may refer to the maximum number of receivable spatiotemporal streams / spatial streams. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. For example, the number of receivable spatiotemporal streams / spatial streams associated with the first operating mode may refer to the minimum number of receivable spatiotemporal streams / spatial streams.

[0110] In some embodiments, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams associated with the first operating mode may refer to the maximum number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. For example, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams associated with the first operating mode may refer to the minimum number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams.

[0111] In some embodiments, the first operating mode includes different operating parameters associated with the multiple capability modes. For example, the operating parameters associated with the low capability mode are different from the operating parameters associated with the high capability mode. Alternatively, the operating parameters associated with the low capability mode are different from the operating parameters associated with the full capability mode.

[0112] In some embodiments, the different operating parameters associated with the multiple capability modes may mean that the values ​​of the operating parameters associated with the multiple capability modes are different.

[0113] Taking the example of the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode including operating bandwidth, number of receive chains, MCS modulation parameters, number of receivable space-time / spatial streams, number of transmittable space-time / spatial streams, data rate, and supported PPDU formats for reception, different capability modes may refer to different operating bandwidths, number of receive chains, MCS modulation parameters, number of receivable space-time / spatial streams, number of transmittable space-time / spatial streams, data rate, and supported PPDU formats for reception. Taking the example of the first operating mode including a low-capability operating mode and a high-capability operating mode, the low-capability mode may refer to the first device being able to communicate using a lower bandwidth, fewer receive chains, lower-order MCS modulation parameters, fewer space-time / spatial streams, lower data rate, and a PPDU format with lower processing overhead; the high-capability mode may refer to the first device being able to communicate using a higher bandwidth, more receive chains, higher-order MCS modulation parameters, more space-time / spatial streams, higher data rate, and a PPDU format with higher processing overhead.

[0114] Taking the example of the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode including the operating bandwidth, the number of receive chains, and the PPDU format that can be received, different capability modes may refer to the different operating bandwidths, the number of receive chains, and the PPDU format that can be received included in the different capability modes. Taking the example of the first operating mode including a low-capability operating mode and a high-capability operating mode, the low-capability mode may mean that the first device can use a lower bandwidth, fewer receive chains, and a PPDU format with low processing overhead for communication; the high-capability mode may mean that the first device can use a higher bandwidth, more receive chains, and a PPDU format with high processing overhead for communication.

[0115] In some embodiments, the first operating mode may include different capability modes, and each capability mode may be associated with different operating parameters (for example, different values ​​of operating parameters). Taking the first operating mode including a low capability mode and a high capability mode as an example, the low capability mode may be associated with a variety of different values ​​of operating parameters, and the high capability mode may be associated with a variety of different values ​​of operating parameters. As an example, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include an operating bandwidth and the number of receiving chains. An operating bandwidth of 20 MHz and 1 receiving chain as operating parameters can be understood as a low capability mode, an operating bandwidth of 40 MHz and 2 receiving chains as operating parameters can also be understood as a low capability mode, an operating bandwidth of 80 MHz and 4 receiving chains as operating parameters can be understood as a high capability mode, an operating bandwidth of 160 MHz and 6 receiving chains as operating parameters can also be understood as a high capability mode, etc. As another example, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include the operating bandwidth, the number of receiving chains and the MCS modulation parameters. The operating parameters of 20 MHz operating bandwidth, 1 receiving chain and low-order MCS modulation parameters can be understood as a low-capability mode. The operating parameters of 40 MHz operating bandwidth, 2 receiving chains and low-order MCS modulation parameters can also be understood as a low-capability mode. The operating parameters of 80 MHz operating bandwidth, 4 receiving chains and high-order MCS modulation parameters can be understood as a high-capability mode. The operating parameters of 160 MHz operating bandwidth, 6 receiving chains and high-order MCS modulation parameters can also be understood as a high-capability mode, etc.

[0116] In other words, in some embodiments, the first operating mode may be associated with operating parameters for different gears, and one or more of the operating parameters for the different gears may correspond to a capability mode. For example, the first operating mode may be associated with operating parameters for five gears, one or more of the five gears may correspond to a low capability mode, and the other gears may correspond to a high capability mode. As an example, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include operating bandwidth and the number of receive chains. The first operating mode is associated with operating parameters for five gears, and the operating parameters for these five gears are: Gear 1 (20 MHz operating bandwidth, 1 receive chain), Gear 2 (40 MHz operating bandwidth, 2 receive chains), Gear 3 (60 MHz operating bandwidth, 3 receive chains), Gear 4 (80 MHz operating bandwidth, 4 receive chains), and Gear 5 (160 MHz operating bandwidth, 6 receive chains). Gears 1 and 2 may correspond to the low capability mode, while Gears 3, 4, and 5 may correspond to the high capability mode.

[0117] In some embodiments, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode may include other operating parameters in addition to the operating parameters for indicating different capability modes. For example, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode may also include a delay parameter for switching between different capability modes.

[0118] In some embodiments, the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes may include one or more of the following: the minimum delay required to switch from a low capability mode to a high capability mode (or a full capability mode), and the minimum delay required to switch from a high capability mode (or a full capability mode) to a low capability mode.

[0119] In some embodiments, the minimum delay required to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) may include the minimum MAC fill duration of the frame required to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode), such as the minimum MAC fill duration of the initial frame required to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode).

[0120] In some embodiments, the minimum delay required to switch from the high-capability (or full-capability mode) to the low-capability mode may also be referred to as the transition delay of the first operating mode.

[0121] In some embodiments, the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes can be pre-negotiated or determined by default. For example, the switching delay from a low capability mode to a high capability mode can be pre-negotiated or determined by default. Alternatively, the switching delay from a high capability mode to a low capability mode can be pre-negotiated or determined by default.

[0122] In some embodiments, the parameters associated with the first operating mode may further include a mode index corresponding to the low-capability mode and / or a mode index corresponding to the high-capability mode. The mode index can be used to represent different capability modes or different capability gears. For example, a mode index of 0 can represent a low-capability mode, and a mode index of 1 can represent a high-capability mode. For another example, when the mode index is 0, 1, or 2, they all represent low-capability modes, wherein the operating parameters associated with the low-capability modes corresponding to different mode indexes are different (for example, the operating bandwidth represented by a mode index of 0 is 20MHz, the operating bandwidth represented by a mode index of 1 is 40MHz, and the operating bandwidth represented by a mode index of 2 is 80MHz); when the mode index is 3 or 4, they all represent high-capability modes, wherein the operating parameters associated with the high-capability modes corresponding to different mode indexes are different (for example, the operating bandwidth represented by a mode index of 3 is 160MHz, and the operating bandwidth represented by a mode index of 4 is 320MHz).

[0123] In the embodiments of the present application, there may be multiple types of first operating modes. For example, the types of first operating modes may include a static first operating mode and a dynamic first operating mode. In some embodiments, the static first operating mode may mean that the first device maintains a low-capability mode for operation in this operating mode. In some embodiments, the dynamic first operating mode may mean that the first device may switch from a low-capability mode to a high-capability mode for operation in this operating mode.

[0124] In some embodiments, the dynamic first operating mode may also be referred to as a dynamic energy-saving mode, a dynamic energy-saving mode, etc.

[0125] In some embodiments, the dynamic first operation mode may include multiple modes. For example, the dynamic first operation mode may include one or more of the following: a first operation mode based on default operation, a first operation mode based on mandatory control, and a first operation mode based on negotiated control.

[0126] That is to say, in an embodiment of the present application, the type of the first operating mode may include one or more of the following: a static first operating mode, a first operating mode based on default operation, a first operating mode based on forced control, and a first operating mode based on negotiated control.

[0127] In some embodiments, the type of the first operating mode may be pre-negotiated or determined by default.

[0128] The types of the first operation mode are described in detail below.

[0129] Static first operating mode

[0130] When the type of the first operating mode is a static first operating mode, the first device can maintain a low-capability mode for communication (for example, maintain a low-capability mode for frame exchange). For example, when the type of the first operating mode is a static first operating mode, the first device can only maintain a low-capability mode for communication. In some embodiments, the first device maintaining a low-capability mode for communication can also be understood as the first device not performing a switch from a low-capability mode to a high-capability mode when performing a frame exchange, or the first device not switching from a low-capability mode to a high-capability mode when performing a frame exchange. In other words, when the type of the first operating mode is a static first operating mode, the first device monitors the operating channel and performs transceiver operations in a low-capability mode.

[0131] Taking the first device as a site device as an example, when the first device is in a static first operation mode, during the frame exchange process initiated by the access point device (or the opposite site device) associated with the first device and the first device, the first device maintains communication in a low-capability mode (that is, the first device monitors the operation channel and performs sending and receiving operations in the low-capability mode).

[0132] First operation mode based on default operation

[0133] When the first device is in the first operating mode based on the default operation, during the frame exchange initiated by the second device with the first device, when the first device receives the second frame sent by the second device (a frame used to instruct the first device to perform the frame exchange), the second frame can be received based on one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, and operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode indicated by the first frame. After the first device receives the second frame, the first device can switch to the high-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence (i.e., the frame exchange sequence in which the second frame is located).

[0134] Taking the first device as a station device as an example, when the first device operates in a first operating mode based on default operation, when the access point device (or peer station device) associated with the first device sends a second frame to the first device, the operating parameters (such as operating bandwidth, number of receive chains, etc.) used by the first device in the process of receiving the second frame are constrained by the operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode and / or the operating parameters indicated by the first frame (which can also be understood as the operating parameters notified by the first operating mode). After the second frame exchange, the first device can use the operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode to exchange frames until the frame exchange sequence in which the second frame exchange occurs ends.

[0135] In some embodiments, after the current frame exchange sequence (ie, the frame exchange sequence in which the second frame exchange is located) ends, the first device may switch back to the low-capability mode.

[0136] In some embodiments, the second frame may be transmitted using a PPDU that satisfies the low capability mode of the first device, to ensure that the first device can receive the second frame in the low capability mode.

[0137] In some embodiments, the second frame may be transmitted at a rate that meets the low capability mode requirement of the first device, so as to ensure that the first device can receive the second frame in the low capability mode.

[0138] In some embodiments, the second frame may include an initial frame and / or a trigger frame. The initial frame may be, for example, an initial control frame or a QoS null frame. The trigger frame may be, for example, a MU-RTS trigger frame or a basic trigger frame. The initial frame or trigger frame may be used to instruct the first device to perform frame exchange. The format of the second frame may be described below and is not described in detail here.

[0139] In some embodiments, the first device receiving the second frame may also be understood as the first device receiving a PPDU carrying the second frame. The second device sending the second frame may also be understood as the second device sending a PPDU carrying the second frame.

[0140] In some embodiments, when the first device is in a first operating mode based on default operation, when the second device sends a second frame to the first device, the filling delay of the PPDU carrying the second frame needs to be greater than or equal to the minimum delay required for the first device to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode indicated in the first frame (or, minimum filling delay, minimum MAC filling delay, etc.), to ensure that the first device in the first operating mode based on default operation can switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode before the end time point of the PPDU transmission.

[0141] The first operating mode based on forced control

[0142] When the first device is in the first operation mode based on mandatory control, the first device may switch between different capability modes based on an instruction from the second device.

[0143] When the first device is in the first operating mode based on forced control, the first device can monitor the operating channel or perform transceiver operations in a low-capability mode when it is awake. When the second frame sent to the first device is received (a frame used to indicate whether the first device has switched to a high-capability mode), the first device can perform corresponding operations according to the instructions of the second frame.

[0144] As an implementation method, the second frame may include fourth information, and the fourth information is used to indicate whether the first device switches to high-capability mode. In some embodiments, the fourth information can be understood as imperative indication information. That is, if the fourth information instructs the first device to switch to high-capability mode, the first device switches to high-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence (the frame exchange sequence where the second frame is located). If the fourth information instructs the first device not to switch to high-capability mode, the first device maintains low-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence (the frame exchange sequence where the second frame is located).

[0145] Taking the first device as a site device as an example, when the first device operates in the first operating mode based on forced control, the first device monitors the operating channel or performs transceiver operations in the low-capability mode when awake. When the first device receives the second frame, it can determine whether to switch to the high-capability mode based on the indication of the second frame. For example, if the second frame indicates switching to the high-capability mode, the first device switches to the high-capability mode in the current frame exchange sequence to perform frame exchange. Alternatively, if the second frame indicates not switching to the high-capability mode, the first device maintains the low-capability mode in the current frame exchange sequence to perform frame exchange.

[0146] In some embodiments, after the current frame exchange sequence (ie, the frame exchange sequence in which the second frame exchange is located) ends, the first device may switch back to the low-capability mode.

[0147] In some embodiments, the second frame may be transmitted using a PPDU that satisfies the low capability mode of the first device, to ensure that the first device can receive the second frame in the low capability mode.

[0148] In some embodiments, the second frame may be transmitted at a rate that meets the low capability mode requirement of the first device, so as to ensure that the first device can receive the second frame in the low capability mode.

[0149] In some embodiments, the second frame may include an initial frame and / or a trigger frame. The initial frame may be, for example, an initial control frame or a QoS null frame. The trigger frame may be, for example, a MU-RTS trigger frame or a basic trigger frame. The initial frame or trigger frame may be used to indicate whether the first device is switched to high-capability mode. The format of the second frame may be described below and will not be described in detail here.

[0150] In some embodiments, the first device receiving the second frame may also be understood as the first device receiving a PPDU carrying the second frame. The second device sending the second frame may also be understood as the second device sending a PPDU carrying the second frame.

[0151] In some embodiments, when the first device is in the first operating mode based on forced control, when the second device sends a second frame to the first device, the filling delay of the PPDU carrying the second frame needs to be greater than or equal to the minimum delay required for the first device to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode in the first frame (or, minimum filling delay, minimum MAC filling delay, etc.), to ensure that the first device in the first operating mode based on forced control can switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode before the end time point of the PPDU transmission.

[0152] The first operation mode based on negotiation control

[0153] When the first device is in the first operation mode based on negotiation control, the first device can negotiate with the second device to determine switching between different capability modes, which is beneficial to reducing the switching frequency of the first device.

[0154] When the first device is in the first operating mode based on negotiated control, the first device can monitor the operating channel or perform transceiver operations in a low-capability mode when it is awake. When it receives a second frame sent to the first device (a frame for requesting (or instructing) the first device to switch to a high-capability mode), it can determine and respond whether to switch according to the instructions of the second frame.

[0155] In some embodiments, the second frame may include one or more of the following information: second information and third information. The second information may be used to request the first device to switch to the high-capability mode. The third information may be used to indicate requested operating parameters (e.g., requested operating bandwidth, requested number of receive chains, etc.), that is, the third information may be used to indicate operating parameters associated with the first operating mode (e.g., high-capability mode) to which the first device is requested to switch.

[0156] As an implementation manner, the second frame may include the second information. After receiving the second frame, the first device may determine whether to switch to the high-capability mode according to the second information.

[0157] As another implementation, the second frame may include third information. After receiving the second frame, the first device may determine whether to switch to the high-capability mode and operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode according to the third information.

[0158] As another implementation, the second frame may include the second information and the third information. After receiving the second frame, the first device may determine whether to switch to the high-capability mode and the operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode according to the second information and the third information.

[0159] In some embodiments, after receiving the second frame, the first device may send a response frame to the second frame to the second device.

[0160] In some embodiments, the response frame to the second frame sent by the first device to the second device may indicate one or more of the following: whether the first device switches according to the second information, and operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches.

[0161] In some embodiments, the target capability mode to which the first device switches may be a high capability mode. In this case, the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches are operating parameters associated with the high capability mode.

[0162] In some embodiments, if the response frame of the second frame instructs the first device to switch according to the second information, the first device can switch to the high-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence (the frame exchange sequence in which the second frame is located).

[0163] In some embodiments, if the response frame of the second frame indicates that the first device does not switch according to the second information, the first device may maintain a low capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence (the frame exchange sequence in which the second frame is located).

[0164] In some embodiments, the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches (the operating parameters carried by the response frame of the second frame) are the same as the operating parameters associated with the high capability mode to which the second device requests the first device to switch (the operating parameters carried by the second frame). Taking the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode as an example, where the operating parameters include the operating bandwidth and the number of receive chains, the operating parameters carried by the second frame and the operating parameters carried by the response frame of the second frame can both be: 80 MHz operating bandwidth and 4 receive chains.

[0165] In some embodiments, the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches (the operating parameters carried by the response frame of the second frame) are different from the operating parameters associated with the high capability mode to which the second device requests the first device to switch (the operating parameters carried by the second frame). Taking the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode as an example, which include the operating bandwidth and the number of receive chains, the operating parameters carried by the second frame may be: 160 MHz operating bandwidth, 4 receive chains, and the operating parameters carried by the response frame of the second frame may be: 80 MHz operating bandwidth, 4 receive chains.

[0166] In some embodiments, when the second device requests the first device to switch to high-capability mode in the second frame, the first device may agree to the second device's request, that is, the first device may indicate switching to high-capability mode in the response frame of the second frame.

[0167] In some embodiments, when the second device requests the first device to switch to the high-capability mode in the second frame, the first device may agree to the request of the second device and agree to use the operating parameters requested by the second device for frame exchange.

[0168] In some embodiments, when the second device requests the first device to switch to high-capability mode in the second frame, the first device may agree to the second device's request but refuse to exchange frames using the operating parameters requested by the second device. In this case, the first device may indicate the new operating parameters (i.e., the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode) in the response frame of the second frame.

[0169] In some embodiments, if the second device requests the first device to switch to the high-capability mode in the second frame, the first device may reject the request of the second device.

[0170] Taking the first device as a site device as an example, when the first device operates in the first operating mode based on negotiation control, the first device monitors the operating channel or performs transceiver operations in a low-capability mode when awake. When the first device receives the second frame, it can determine and respond based on the indication of the second frame whether to switch to the high-capability mode. For example, the second frame requests the first device to switch to the high-capability mode. If the first device accepts the switch to the high-capability mode, it switches to the high-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence; if the first device refuses to switch to the high-capability mode, it maintains the low-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence. In some embodiments, the first device can accept the switch to the high-capability mode but does not accept the use of the operating parameters requested by the second device for frame exchange. In this case, the first device can indicate new operating parameters (i.e., operating parameters associated with the target capability mode) to the second device to perform frame exchange based on the new operating parameters.

[0171] In some embodiments, after the current frame exchange sequence (ie, the frame exchange sequence in which the second frame exchange is located) ends, the first device may switch back to the low-capability mode.

[0172] In some embodiments, the second frame may be transmitted using a PPDU that satisfies the low capability mode of the first device, to ensure that the first device can receive the second frame in the low capability mode.

[0173] In some embodiments, the second frame may be transmitted at a rate that meets the low capability mode requirement of the first device, so as to ensure that the first device can receive the second frame in the low capability mode.

[0174] In some embodiments, the second frame is received by the first device before entering into a frame exchange. In some embodiments, the second frame is received by the first device when entering into a frame exchange or during a frame exchange.

[0175] In some embodiments, the second frame may include an initial frame and / or a trigger frame. The initial frame may, for example, be an initial control frame or a QoS null frame. The trigger frame may, for example, be a MU-RTS trigger frame or a basic trigger frame. The initial frame or trigger frame may be used to request the first device to switch to a high-capability mode and / or indicate requested operating parameters. The format of the second frame may be described below and will not be described in detail here.

[0176] In some embodiments, the response frame of the second frame may include one or more of the following: a block confirmation frame, a response frame to a trigger frame. The format of the response frame of the second frame may be described below and will not be described in detail here.

[0177] In some embodiments, the first device receiving the second frame may also be understood as the first device receiving a PPDU carrying the second frame. The second device sending the second frame may also be understood as the second device sending a PPDU carrying the second frame.

[0178] In some embodiments, when the first device is in the first operating mode based on negotiated control, when the second device sends a second frame to the first device, the filling delay of the PPDU carrying the second frame needs to be greater than or equal to the minimum delay required for the first device to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode in the first frame (or, minimum filling delay, minimum MAC filling delay, etc.), so as to ensure that the first device in the first operating mode based on negotiated control can switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode before the end time point of the PPDU transmission.

[0179] Two examples of the first operation mode based on negotiation control are given below in conjunction with FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 .

[0180] As shown in Figure 3, when the first device is in the first operation mode based on negotiation control, the first device performs a listening operation in a low-capability mode. When the second device obtains a transmission opportunity and sends a second frame (e.g., a QoS empty frame) to the first device, and the second frame carries second information to request the first device to switch to a high-capability mode, if the first device rejects the switching request, it maintains the current low-capability mode. When the second device obtains another transmission opportunity and sends a second frame (e.g., a QoS empty frame) to the first device, and the second frame carries second information to request the first device to switch to a high-capability mode, if the first device accepts the switching request, it switches to a high-capability mode in the current frame exchange sequence for frame exchange, and returns to a low-capability mode after the frame exchange is completed.

[0181] As shown in Figure 4, when the first device is in the first operation mode based on negotiation control, the first device performs a listening operation in a low-capability mode. When the second device obtains a transmission opportunity and sends a second frame (such as a QoS empty frame) to the first device, and the second frame carries the second information and the third information, the first device can send a response frame (for example, an ACK frame) of the second frame to the second device to carry the switching response information. For example, if the first device accepts the switching request, the response frame of the second frame may include an indication of acceptance of the switching and / or operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to be switched to. At the same time, the first device switches to the high-capability mode corresponding to the operating parameters indicated by the response frame of the second frame in the current frame exchange sequence for frame exchange, and returns to the low-capability mode after the frame exchange is completed.

[0182] Based on the above introduction to the first operation mode, the first frame and the first information are introduced below.

[0183] In some embodiments, the first frame is used to indicate (or notify) relevant information of the first operating mode of the first device. For example, the first frame indicates relevant information of the first operating mode of the first device through the first information. The embodiment of the present application uses the first frame to indicate (or notify) relevant information of the first operating mode, which is conducive to ensuring that other devices (such as the second device) communicate with the first device according to the first operating mode of the first device (for example, according to the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode of the first device), thereby saving device power consumption while ensuring normal communication.

[0184] In some embodiments, the first frame may include a control field. For example, the first frame may include an A-Control field.

[0185] In some embodiments, the first information may be carried in a control field of the first frame. For example, the first information may be carried in an A-Control field of the first frame.

[0186] In some embodiments, the first frame may be a management frame, eg, a class 3 management frame.

[0187] In some embodiments, the first frame may be a data frame, eg, a QoS data frame.

[0188] In some embodiments, the first frame may be an existing frame. For example, the first frame may be an existing frame including a control field (e.g., an A-Control field). As an example, the first frame may include one or more of the following: a Quality of Service (QoS) data frame, a QoS null frame, or a Class 3 management frame. When the first operating mode (or the first information) is indicated in an existing frame including a control field, transmission speed is fast and signaling overhead is reduced.

[0189] In some embodiments, when the first frame is a QoS data frame, the first frame may be a separately addressed QoS data frame.

[0190] However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. For example, the first frame may also be a newly defined frame (e.g., a newly defined management frame). The newly defined frame may be used to indicate information related to the first operating mode of the first device. For example, the newly defined frame may indicate first information, where the first information includes information related to the first operating mode of the first device. In some embodiments, the newly defined frame may include a control field, where the control field may be used to carry the first information.

[0191] In some embodiments, the first frame is sent by the first device to the second device after the first device associates with the second device.

[0192] In some embodiments, the first frame may also be used to request the second device to immediately confirm the first frame. For example, the first frame may also be used to request the second device to immediately confirm the first information.

[0193] In an embodiment of the present application, the first information may indicate one or more pieces of information related to the first operating mode of the first device. For example, the first information may be used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operating mode, operating parameters associated with the first operating mode, and a method for switching between different capability modes of the first device when in an awake state.

[0194] As an example, the first information may indicate that the first device is changing its first operating mode. For example, the first information may indicate that the first device is enabling / disabling the first operating mode.

[0195] As another example, the first information may indicate that the first device is updating an operating parameter associated with the first operating mode. For example, the first information may indicate an updated operating parameter associated with the first operating mode.

[0196] Exemplarily, the first information may instruct the first device to adjust operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode. The first device may adjust the operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode to perform one or more of the following: receiving an initial frame sent by the second device, receiving a frame sent by the second device when in the low-capability mode, and sending a frame when in the low-capability mode. The operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode that the first device may adjust may include one or more of the following: maximum operating bandwidth in the low-capability mode, maximum number of receive chains, supported MCS modulation parameters, number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams, number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams, maximum data rate, and supported PPDU format for reception.

[0197] For example, the first information may instruct the first device to adjust operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode. The operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode that can be adjusted by the first device may include one or more of the following: a maximum operating bandwidth in the high-capability mode, a maximum number of receive chains, a supported MCS modulation parameter, a number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams, a number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams, a maximum data rate, and a PPDU format that can be received.

[0198] Exemplarily, the first information may instruct the first device to adjust a delay parameter for switching between different capability modes. For example, the first information may indicate a minimum MAC padding duration of an initial frame required for the first device to switch from a low capability mode to a high capability mode, and / or a minimum delay required for the first device to switch from a high capability mode to a low capability mode.

[0199] Exemplarily, the first information may instruct the first device to adjust the mode index corresponding to the low-capability mode and / or adjust the mode index corresponding to the high-capability mode.

[0200] As another example, the first information may indicate a switching method between different capability modes.

[0201] In some embodiments, the switching manner between different capability modes includes a switching manner from a low capability mode to a high capability mode.

[0202] In some embodiments, if the high capability mode does not include the full capability mode, the switching method between different capability modes may include switching from the low capability mode to the full capability mode, and may also include switching from the high capability mode to the full capability mode.

[0203] In some embodiments, the switching manner between different capability modes may be determined based on the type of the first operating mode. For an introduction to the type of the first operating mode, please refer to the above text and will not be repeated here.

[0204] In some embodiments, the switching manner between different capability modes may include one or more of the following switching manners.

[0205] Switching mode 1: When the first device receives the second frame (such as the initial frame), it switches to high-capability mode for frame exchange, and returns to low-capability mode after the current frame exchange sequence ends, so as to use low-capability mode for monitoring operations and / or transceiver operations.

[0206] Switching mode 1 corresponds to the first operating mode based on the default operation. That is, when the first device is in the first operating mode based on the default operation, the first device can switch using switching mode 1. In some embodiments, switching mode 1 can also be understood as the default switching mode.

[0207] Switching mode 2: When the first device receives an initial control frame (such as a MU-RTS frame), it switches to a high-capability mode for frame exchange, and returns to a low-capability mode after the current frame exchange sequence ends, so as to use the low-capability mode for monitoring operations and / or transceiver operations; when the first device receives an initial frame that is not an initial control frame (such as a QoS empty frame), the first device determines whether to switch to a high-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence based on the indication of the initial frame of the non-initial control frame.

[0208] Switching mode 2 corresponds to the first operation mode based on forced control. That is, when the first device is in the first operation mode based on forced control, the first device can use switching mode 2 for switching.

[0209] Switching mode 3: The first device determines whether to switch to high-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence based on the fourth information carried by the second frame (such as the initial frame or the trigger frame). The fourth information is an imperative instruction information. For example, if the fourth information instructs the first device to switch to high-capability mode, the first device switches to high-capability mode according to the instruction of the fourth information. Alternatively, if the fourth information instructs the first device not to switch to high-capability mode, the first device does not switch to high-capability mode according to the instruction of the fourth information.

[0210] Switching mode 3 corresponds to the first operation mode based on forced control. That is, when the first device is in the first operation mode based on forced control, the first device can use switching mode 3 to switch.

[0211] Switching mode 4: The first device responds to the second device's request to switch based on the second information and / or third information carried in the second frame. For example, if the second device requests that the second device switch to high-capability mode, and the first device accepts the switching request, the first device switches to high-capability mode and performs frame exchanges in the current frame exchange sequence. If the first device rejects the switching request, the first device maintains low-capability mode and performs frame exchanges in the current frame exchange sequence.

[0212] Switching mode 4 corresponds to the first operation mode based on negotiation control. That is, when the first device is in the first operation mode based on negotiation control, the first device can use switching mode 4 to switch.

[0213] In some embodiments, the switching manner between different capability modes may be pre-negotiated or determined by default.

[0214] FIG5 is a flow chart of a wireless communication method according to another embodiment of the present application. The method shown in FIG5 includes steps S510 to S530.

[0215] In step S510, a first device sends a first frame to a second device, wherein the first frame includes first information.

[0216] For the introduction of step S510, please refer to the relevant introduction of step S210 above, and for the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

[0217] In step S520 , the first device adjusts an operating parameter associated with the first operating mode based on the first information.

[0218] In some embodiments, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device receives a transmission opportunity in which confirmation information for the first frame is received from the second device.

[0219] In some embodiments, when the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are adjusted to reduce the capability of the first device (for example, from a high-capability mode to a low-capability mode), the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode take effect after the first device receives a transmission opportunity containing confirmation information for the first frame from the second device.

[0220] In some embodiments, when one or more of the following conditions are met, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device receives the transmission opportunity containing confirmation information for the first frame from the second device: enabling the first operating mode, reducing the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode, and increasing the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes.

[0221] In some embodiments, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after a transmission opportunity in which the first device expects to receive confirmation information for the first frame from the second device.

[0222] In some embodiments, when adjusting the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode is not for reducing the capability of the first device, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device expects to receive confirmation information for the first frame from the second device during a transmission opportunity.

[0223] In some embodiments, when one or more of the following conditions are not met, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device expects to receive a transmission opportunity in which confirmation information for the first frame is received from the second device: enabling the first operating mode, reducing the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode, and increasing the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes.

[0224] In some embodiments, lowering the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode may include one or more of the following: adjusting the operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode to the operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, adjusting the operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode from higher capability parameters to lower capability parameters, and adjusting the operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode from higher capability parameters to lower capability parameters.

[0225] In some embodiments, increasing the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes may include one or more of the following: increasing the delay parameters required to switch from a low capability mode to a high capability mode, and increasing the delay parameters required to switch from a high capability mode to a low capability mode.

[0226] In step S530, the second device updates the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode of the first device based on the first information. For example, the second device may update the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode of the first device based on the most recently received first information.

[0227] In some embodiments, after the second device updates the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode of the first device based on the first information, it can communicate with the first device based on the updated operating parameters. For example, after the second device updates the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode of the first device based on the first information, it can initiate and conduct frame exchange with the first device in the first operating mode.

[0228] As an example, the second device can send an initial frame (such as an initial control frame) that meets the receiving capability requirements of the first device in low-capability mode to the first device based on the updated operating parameters (such as the maximum operating bandwidth in low-capability mode, the supported MCS modulation parameters, the maximum number of receivable spatial streams, the supported PPDU format for reception, etc.) to initiate frame exchange with the first device.

[0229] In some embodiments, when the first device is in a dynamic first operating mode, the filling delay of the PPDU of the second frame sent by the second device needs to be greater than or equal to the delay parameter for switching between different capabilities recently received by the first device to ensure that the first device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode before the end time point of the PPDU transmission.

[0230] In some embodiments, when the first device is in a dynamic first operating mode, after the second device sends a second frame and receives a response or confirmation from the first device, during a frame exchange sequence initiated by the second frame, the second device should send a frame to the first device that meets the receiving capability requirements of the first device in the high-capability mode based on the latest received operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode (such as the maximum operating bandwidth in the high-capability mode, the supported MCS modulation parameters, the maximum number of receivable spatial streams, the PPDU format that can be received, etc.).

[0231] The embodiment of the present application does not limit the execution order of step S520 and step S530. For example, step S520 can be executed before step S530, after step S530, or simultaneously with step S530.

[0232] The previous article introduced the communication process between the first device and the second device, as well as various frames and information. The following article introduces the format of the frames or information involved in this application.

[0233] As mentioned above, the first frame may include a control field (such as an A-Control field), and the control field may carry the first information. First, the format of the control field included in the first frame is introduced.

[0234] It should be noted that the names of the various fields or subfields mentioned below are only examples and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present application. Each field or subfield below can be replaced with other names, for example, the capability adaptation energy saving control subfield can be replaced with the fourth subfield, the capability adaptation energy saving delay parameter can be replaced with the fifth subfield, etc.

[0235] In the MAC frame format defined in related technologies (e.g., the IEEE 802.11 specification), the HT Control field can be carried in a QoS data frame, a QoS null frame, a management frame, or a control wrapper frame, as determined by the +HTC subfield of the frame control field. The HT Control field consists of 32 bits (B0-B31 bits). When both B0 and B1 bits are set to 1, it indicates that the HT Control field is a HE variant HT Control field, and bits B2-B31 are A-Control subfields. The A-Control subfield contains a control list subfield and a padding subfield. The "Control List" subfield contains one or more control subfields. Each control subfield contains a 4-bit Control Identification (Control ID) subfield and a variable-length Control Information subfield. The Control ID subfield indicates the type of information carried in the "Control Information" subfield.

[0236] To carry the first information in the first frame, this embodiment of the present application defines one or more of the following subfields in the control field of the first frame: a first subfield and a second subfield. To carry the second information and / or third information in the second frame, this embodiment of the present application defines a third subfield in the control field of the second frame. These first, second, and third subfields may be control subfields included in the "Control List" subfield. The first, second, and third subfields are described below in conjunction with Table 1.

[0237] Table 1

[0238] The first subfield is used to indicate operating parameters associated with the first operating mode. In other words, the first subfield can be used to define operating parameters that the first device may adopt after enabling (or entering) the first operating mode, such as operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode and operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode. In some embodiments, the first subfield can be referred to as a first operating mode parameter control subfield.

[0239] As a possible implementation, the first subfield may indicate a mode index and operating parameters associated with the mode index. The mode index may be used to identify different capability modes included in the first operating mode. For example, the mode index may be used to identify a low capability mode or a high capability mode, or in other words, the mode index may be used to identify operating parameters associated with a low capability mode or operating parameters associated with a high capability mode. For another example, the mode index may be used to identify operating parameters of different gears. For an introduction to operating parameters of different gears, please refer to the previous text. As an example, when the mode index is 0, it indicates the operating parameters of gear 1; when the mode index is 1, it indicates the operating parameters of gear 2; and when the mode index is 2, it indicates the operating parameters of gear 3. Among them, the operating parameters of gear 1 and gear 2 are both operating parameters associated with the low capability mode, and the operating parameters of gear 3 are operating parameters associated with the high capability mode.

[0240] Figure 6 shows an example of a possible format of the first subfield. As shown in Figure 6, the first subfield may include a mode index and operating parameters associated with the mode index, such as the mode index and the operating bandwidth associated with the mode index, MCS modulation parameters, the number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams, and the PPDU formats supported for reception.

[0241] The mode index subfield may be used to indicate the identifier of the capability mode included in the first operating mode defined by the first subfield. In some embodiments, the mode index subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the mode index subfield may occupy other numbers of bits.

[0242] The operating bandwidth subfield may indicate the operating bandwidth for receiving and / or sending supported by the first device in the first operating mode indicated by the mode index. In some embodiments, the operating bandwidth subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this, and the operating bandwidth subfield may occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the operating bandwidth subfield. For example, the operating bandwidth subfield may be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for 20MHz, set to 1 for 40MHz; set to 2 for 80MHz; set to 3 for 160MHz and 80+80MHz; set to 4 for 320MHz; and other reserved. For another example, the operating bandwidth subfield may be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for 20MHz, set to 1 for 40MHz; set to 2 for 80MHz; set to 3 for 160MHz, set to 4 for 80+80MHz; set to 5 for 320MHz; and other reserved.

[0243] The MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported can be used to indicate the MCS index corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the first device in the first operating mode indicated by the mode index. In some embodiments, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported can occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this, and the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported can occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported. For example, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported can adopt the following encoding method: set to 0 for binary phase shift keying (BPSK), set to 1 for quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), set to 2 for 16 quadrature amplitude modulation (16-QAM), ..., set to 6 for 2048-QAM, and set to 7 for 4096-QAM. For another example, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation can be coded as follows: set to 0 for QPSK, set to 1 for BPSK, set to 2 for 16-QAM, ..., set to 6 for 2048-QAM, and set to 7 for 4096-QAM.

[0244] The Rx NSS subfield may be used to indicate the maximum number of spatial streams (NSS) supported for reception by the first device in the first operating mode indicated by the mode index. As a feasible implementation, the value of the Rx NSS may be set to NSS minus 1. In some embodiments, the Rx NSS subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the Rx NSS subfield may occupy another number of bits.

[0245] The Tx NSTS subfield may be used to indicate the maximum number of space-time streams (NSTS) supported for transmission by the first device in the first operating mode indicated by the mode index. As a feasible implementation, the value of the Tx NSTS may be set to NSTS minus 1. In some embodiments, the Tx NSTS subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the Tx NSTS subfield may occupy another number of bits.

[0246] The Supported PPDU Formats subfield may be used to indicate the PPDU formats supported for reception and / or transmission by the first device in the first operating mode indicated by the mode index. In some embodiments, the Supported PPDU Formats subfield may occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the Supported PPDU Formats subfield may occupy another number of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method for the supported PPDU formats. A feasible encoding method is provided below in conjunction with Table 2.

[0247] Table 2

[0248] As shown in Table 2, the value is set to 0 for non-HT PPDU or non-HT duplicate PPDU, 1 for HT PPDU, 2 for HE PPDU, 3 for extremely high throughput (EHT) PPDU, 4 for ultra high reliability (UHR) PPDU, and other reserved. However, the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this. For example, the value is set to 0 for HT PPDU, 1 for HE PPDU, 2 for non-HT PPDU or non-HT duplicate PPDU, 3 for EHT PPDU, 4 for UHR, and other reserved.

[0249] In some embodiments, when the processing capability requirement of a certain PPDU format is less than or equal to the supported PPDU format indicated by the first device, it means that the first device also supports receiving and / or sending the PPDU format.

[0250] The second subfield may be used by the first device to instruct a change in the first operating mode, such as enabling / disabling the first operating mode, updating operating parameters associated with the first operating mode, etc. In some embodiments, the second subfield may be referred to as a first operating mode control subfield.

[0251] In some embodiments, the second subfield may be used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operating mode, delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, and operating parameters associated with the first operating mode.

[0252] In some embodiments, the second subfield may utilize a mode index to indicate operating parameters associated with the first operating mode. Thus, the second device may determine the first operating mode indicated by the first device based on the mode index, for example, by determining the first operating mode indicated by the first device based on the mode index and the first subfield.

[0253] Figure 7 shows an example of a possible format of the second subfield. As shown in Figure 7, the second subfield may include one or more of the following subfields: capability adaptation energy saving control subfield, capability adaptation energy saving delay parameter subfield, low capability operation parameter information subfield, and high capability operation parameter information subfield.

[0254] In some embodiments, the capability adaptation and energy saving control subfield may occupy 7 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the capability adaptation and energy saving control subfield may occupy other numbers of bits.

[0255] Figure 8 shows an example of a possible format of the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Control subfield. As shown in Figure 8, the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Control subfield may include one or more of the following subfields: Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Enable subfield, Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Mode subfield, Switching Mode subfield, Default Low Capability Operation subfield, Default High Capability Operation subfield, and Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Delay Parameter Control subfield.

[0256] The capability adaptation energy saving enable subfield can be used to indicate whether the first device enables the first operating mode. In some embodiments, the capability adaptation energy saving enable subfield can occupy 1 bit. As an implementation method, when the capability adaptation energy saving enable subfield takes a value of 1, it indicates that the first device enables the first operating mode; when the capability adaptation energy saving enable subfield takes a value of 0, it indicates that the first device disables (does not enable) the first operating mode, that is, turns off the function of the first operating mode. As another implementation method, when the capability adaptation energy saving enable subfield takes a value of 1, it indicates that the first device disables the first operating mode; when the capability adaptation energy saving enable subfield takes a value of 0, it indicates that the first device enables the first operating mode. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the capability adaptation energy saving enable subfield can also use multiple bits to indicate whether the first device enables the first operating mode.

[0257] The capability adaptation energy saving mode subfield can be used to indicate the type of the first operating mode. In some embodiments, the capability adaptation energy saving mode subfield can occupy 1 bit. As an implementation method, when the capability adaptation energy saving mode subfield is set to 1, it indicates a dynamic first operating mode; when the capability adaptation energy saving mode subfield is set to 0, it indicates a static first operating mode. As another implementation method, when the capability adaptation energy saving mode subfield is set to 1, it indicates a static first operating mode; when the capability adaptation energy saving mode subfield is set to 0, it indicates a dynamic first operating mode. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the capability adaptation energy saving mode subfield can also use multiple bits to indicate the type of the first operating mode.

[0258] The switching mode subfield can be used to indicate the switching mode between different capability modes of the first device in the dynamic first operating mode. In some embodiments, the switching mode subfield can occupy 2 bits. However, the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this, and the switching mode subfield can occupy other numbers of bits. As an implementation method, when the switching mode subfield is set to 0, it indicates switching mode 1; when the switching mode subfield is set to 1, it indicates switching mode 2; when the switching mode subfield is set to 2, it indicates switching mode 3; and when the switching mode subfield is set to 3, it indicates switching mode 4. For an introduction to the switching modes between different capability modes, please refer to the previous text. However, the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this. For example, when the switching mode subfield is set to 0, it indicates switching mode 2; when the switching mode subfield is set to 1, it indicates switching mode 3; the switching mode subfield is set to 2, it indicates switching mode 4; and the switching mode subfield is set to 3, it indicates switching mode 1.

[0259] The default low capability operation subfield can be used to indicate whether the default low capability mode is adopted. In some embodiments, the default low capability operation subfield can occupy 1 bit. As an implementation, if the first device adopts the default low capability mode, the default low capability operation subfield is set to 1, otherwise, the low capability operation subfield is set to 0. As another implementation, if the first device adopts the default low capability mode, the default low capability operation subfield is set to 0, otherwise, the low capability operation subfield is set to 1. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the default low capability operation subfield can also use multiple bits to indicate whether the default low capability mode is adopted.

[0260] The embodiments of the present application do not limit the default low-capability mode, or in other words, the embodiments of the present application do not limit the operating parameters associated with the default low-capability mode. As an implementation method, the default low-capability operation mode may be defined as: the monitoring capability includes the ability to perform CCA and receive the initial frame of the frame exchange initiated by the second device; it has an operating bandwidth of 20MHz, can receive non-HT PPDU or non-HT duplicate PPDU, and supports a rate of 6Mb / s, 12Mb / s, or 24Mb / s. As another implementation method, the default low-capability operation mode may be defined as: the monitoring capability includes the ability to perform CCA and receive the initial frame of the frame exchange initiated by the second device; it has an operating bandwidth of 40MHz, can receive HT PPDU, and supports a rate of 6Mb / s, 12Mb / s, or 24Mb / s.

[0261] In some embodiments, when the default low capability operation subfield indicates 0, the low capability operation parameter information subfield exists in the capability adaptation energy saving operation mode control subfield, and the low capability mode adopts the operation parameters indicated by the low capability operation parameter information subfield.

[0262] The default high-capability operation subfield can be used to indicate whether the default high-capability mode is adopted. In some embodiments, the default high-capability operation subfield can occupy 1 bit. As an implementation method, if the first device adopts the default high-capability mode, the default high-capability operation subfield is set to 1, otherwise, the high-capability operation subfield is set to 0. As another implementation method, if the first device adopts the default high-capability mode, the default high-capability operation subfield is set to 0, otherwise, the high-capability operation subfield is set to 1. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the default high-capability operation subfield can also use multiple bits to indicate whether the default high-capability mode is adopted.

[0263] The embodiments of the present application do not limit the default high-capability mode, or in other words, the embodiments of the present application do not limit the operating parameters associated with the default high-capability mode. As an implementation method, the default high-capability mode can be specified as a full-capability mode, that is, the capabilities corresponding to the first operating mode indicated by the first device include one or more of the following: the capabilities corresponding to the capability elements (such as UHR capability elements) carried at the time of association, the capabilities corresponding to the exchanged operating mode notification frames, and the capabilities corresponding to the first operating mode defined by the first frame. As another implementation method, the default high-capability operating mode can be specified as: the monitoring capabilities include the ability to perform CCA and receive the initial frame of the frame exchange initiated by the second device; it has an operating bandwidth of 160MHz, can receive EHT PPDU, and supports rates of 24Mb / s, 36Mb / s, or 48Mb / s.

[0264] In some embodiments, when the default high capability operation subfield indicates 0, the high capability operation parameter information subfield exists in the capability adaptation energy saving operation mode control subfield, and the high capability operation adopts the operation parameters indicated by the high capability operation parameter information subfield.

[0265] The Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Delay Parameter Control subfield may be used to indicate whether the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Delay Parameter field is present in the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Operation Mode Control subfield. In some embodiments, the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Delay Parameter Control subfield may occupy one bit. As an implementation, when the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Mode subfield is equal to 1 and the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Delay Parameter field is present in the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Operation Mode Control subfield, the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Control subfield is set to 1; otherwise, it is set to 0.

[0266] The format of the capability adaptation energy-saving control subfield is introduced above with reference to FIG8 . The format of the capability adaptation energy-saving delay parameter subfield is introduced below with reference to FIG9 .

[0267] As shown in FIG9 , the capability adaptation energy-saving delay parameter subfield may include one or more of the following subfields: capability adaptation energy-saving filling delay, capability adaptation energy-saving conversion delay.

[0268] The capability adaptation energy-saving fill delay subfield can be used to indicate the minimum MAC fill duration of the initial frame requested by the first device. For example, the capability adaptation energy-saving fill delay subfield can indicate the minimum MAC fill duration of the initial frame required for the first device to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode). In some embodiments, the capability adaptation energy-saving fill delay subfield can occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this, and the capability adaptation energy-saving fill delay subfield can occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the encoding method of the capability adaptation energy-saving fill delay subfield. A feasible encoding method is given below in conjunction with Table 3.

[0269] Table 3

[0270] As shown in Table 3, 0 is set for 0 μs, 1 is set for 32 μs, 2 is set for 64 μs, 3 is set for 128 μs, 4 is set for 256 μs, and other values ​​are reserved. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. For example, 0 is set for 32 μs, 1 is set for 64 μs, 2 is set for 128 μs, 3 is set for 256 μs, 4 is set for 512 μs, and other values ​​are reserved.

[0271] The capability adaptation energy-saving conversion delay subfield can be used to indicate the minimum delay required for the first device to switch from a high-capability mode (or a full-capability mode) to a low-capability mode when the first device is in the first operating mode. In some embodiments, the capability adaptation energy-saving conversion delay subfield can occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this, and the capability adaptation energy-saving conversion delay subfield can occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the encoding method of the capability adaptation energy-saving conversion delay subfield. A feasible encoding method is given below in conjunction with Table 4.

[0272] Table 4

[0273] As shown in Table 4, the value for 0 μs is set to 0, the value for 32 μs is set to 1, the value for 64 μs is set to 2, the value for 128 μs is set to 3, the value for 256 μs is set to 4, and other values ​​are reserved. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. For example, the value for 32 μs is set to 0, the value for 64 μs is set to 1, the value for 128 μs is set to 2, the value for 256 μs is set to 3, the value for 512 μs is set to 4, and other values ​​are reserved.

[0274] The low-capability operation parameter information subfield and the high-capability operation parameter information subfield are introduced below respectively.

[0275] In some embodiments, the low-capability operation parameter information subfield can be indicated by a mode index, and the mode index can be used to indicate the operation parameter corresponding to the mode index defined by the capability adaptation energy-saving operation mode parameter control subfield carrying the mode index. For example, the capability adaptation energy-saving operation mode parameter control subfield defines that the operation parameter corresponding to the mode index of 0 is A, the operation parameter corresponding to the mode index of 1 is B, the operation parameter corresponding to the mode index of 2 is C, etc. Then, when the value of the low-capability operation parameter information subfield is 0, it indicates that the operation parameter corresponding to the low-capability mode is A, and when the value of the low-capability operation parameter information subfield is 1, it indicates that the operation parameter corresponding to the low-capability mode is B, etc.

[0276] In some embodiments, the high-capability operation parameter information subfield can be indicated by a mode index, and the mode index can be used to indicate the operation parameter corresponding to the mode index defined by the capability adaptation energy-saving operation mode parameter control subfield carrying the mode index. For example, the capability adaptation energy-saving operation mode parameter control subfield defines that the operation parameter corresponding to the mode index of 0 is A, the operation parameter corresponding to the mode index of 1 is B, the operation parameter corresponding to the mode index of 2 is C, etc. Then, when the value of the high-capability operation parameter information subfield is 0, it indicates that the operation parameter corresponding to the high-capability mode is A, and when the value of the high-capability operation parameter information subfield is 1, it indicates that the operation parameter corresponding to the high-capability mode is B, etc.

[0277] In some embodiments, the low capability operation parameter information subfield may be indicated using the low capability operation mode parameter subfield. The format of the low capability operation mode parameter subfield is exemplarily introduced below.

[0278] FIG10 shows an example of a possible format of the low-capability operation mode parameter subfield. As shown in FIG10 , the low-capability operation mode parameter subfield may include one or more of the following subfields: a low-capability operation bandwidth subfield, an MCS index corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the low-capability, a low-capability Rx NSS, a low-capability Tx NSTS, and a low-capability supported PPDU format.

[0279] The low-capability operation bandwidth subfield may indicate the operating bandwidth for receiving and / or sending supported by the first device in low-capability mode. In some embodiments, the low-capability operation bandwidth subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the low-capability operation bandwidth subfield may occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the low-capability operation bandwidth subfield. For example, the low-capability operation bandwidth subfield may be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for 20MHz, set to 1 for 40MHz; set to 2 for 80MHz; set to 3 for 160MHz and 80+80MHz; set to 4 for 320MHz; and other reserved. For another example, the low-capability operation bandwidth subfield may be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for 20MHz, set to 1 for 40MHz; set to 2 for 80MHz; set to 3 for 160MHz, set to 4 for 80+80MHz; set to 5 for 320MHz; and other reserved.

[0280] The MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the low capability mode can be used to indicate the MCS index corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the first device in the low capability mode. In some embodiments, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the low capability mode can occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this, and the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the low capability mode can occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the low capability mode. For example, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the low capability mode can be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for BPSK, set to 1 for QPSK, set to 2 for 16-QAM, ..., set to 6 for 2048-QAM, and set to 7 for 4096-QAM. For another example, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the low capability mode can be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for QPSK, set to 1 for BPSK, set to 2 for 16-QAM, ..., set to 6 for 2048-QAM, and set to 7 for 4096-QAM.

[0281] The Low Capability Rx NSS subfield may be used to indicate the maximum NSS supported for reception by the first device in low capability mode. As a feasible implementation, the value of the Low Capability Rx NSS may be set to NSS minus 1. In some embodiments, the Low Capability Rx NSS subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the Low Capability Rx NSS subfield may occupy another number of bits.

[0282] The Low Capability Tx NSTS subfield may be used to indicate the maximum NSTS supported for transmission by the first device in low capability mode. As a feasible implementation, the value of the Low Capability Tx NSTS may be set to NSTS minus 1. In some embodiments, the Low Capability Tx NSTS subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the Low Capability Tx NSTS subfield may occupy another number of bits.

[0283] The PPDU format subfield supported by low capability can be used to indicate the PPDU format supported for reception and / or transmission by the first device in low capability mode. In some embodiments, the PPDU format subfield supported by low capability can occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiment of the present application is not limited thereto, and the PPDU format subfield supported by low capability can occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the encoding method of the PPDU format supported by low capability. For the introduction related to the encoding method of the PPDU format supported by low capability, please refer to the relevant introduction of Table 2 above.

[0284] In some embodiments, the low capability operation parameter information subfield may be indicated using the low capability operation mode parameter subfield. The format of the low capability operation mode parameter subfield is exemplarily introduced below.

[0285] FIG11 shows an example of a possible format of the High Capability Operation Mode Parameters subfield. As shown in FIG11 , the High Capability Operation Mode Parameters subfield may include one or more of the following subfields: a High Capability Operation Bandwidth subfield, an MCS index corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the High Capability, a High Capability Rx NSS, a High Capability Tx NSTS, and a High Capability Supported PPDU Format.

[0286] The high-capability operating bandwidth subfield may indicate the operating bandwidth for receiving and / or sending supported by the first device in high-capability mode. In some embodiments, the high-capability operating bandwidth subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the high-capability operating bandwidth subfield may occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the high-capability operating bandwidth subfield. For example, the high-capability operating bandwidth subfield may be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for 20MHz, set to 1 for 40MHz; set to 2 for 80MHz; set to 3 for 160MHz and 80+80MHz; set to 4 for 320MHz; and other reserved. For another example, the high-capability operating bandwidth subfield may be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for 20MHz, set to 1 for 40MHz; set to 2 for 80MHz; set to 3 for 160MHz, set to 4 for 80+80MHz; set to 5 for 320MHz; and other reserved.

[0287] The MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the high-capability mode can be used to indicate the MCS index corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the first device in the high-capability mode. In some embodiments, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the high-capability mode can occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this, and the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the high-capability mode can occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the high-capability mode. For example, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the high-capability mode can be encoded in the following manner: 0 for BPSK, 1 for QPSK, 2 for 16-QAM, ..., 6 for 2048-QAM, and 7 for 4096-QAM. For another example, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the high-capability mode can be encoded in the following manner: 0 for QPSK, 1 for BPSK, 2 for 16-QAM, ..., 6 for 2048-QAM, and 7 for 4096-QAM.

[0288] The High Capability Rx NSS subfield may be used to indicate the maximum NSS supported for reception by the first device in high capability mode. As a feasible implementation, the value of the High Capability Rx NSS may be set to NSS minus 1. In some embodiments, the High Capability Rx NSS subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the High Capability Rx NSS subfield may occupy another number of bits.

[0289] The High Capability Tx NSTS subfield may be used to indicate the maximum NSTS supported for transmission by the first device in high capability mode. As a feasible implementation, the value of the High Capability Tx NSTS may be set to NSTS minus 1. In some embodiments, the High Capability Tx NSTS subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the High Capability Tx NSTS subfield may occupy another number of bits.

[0290] The PPDU format subfield supported by high capability may be used to indicate the PPDU format supported for reception and / or transmission by the first device in high capability mode. In some embodiments, the PPDU format subfield supported by high capability may occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the PPDU format subfield supported by high capability may occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the PPDU format supported by high capability. For an introduction to the encoding method of the PPDU format supported by high capability, please refer to the relevant introduction in Table 2 above.

[0291] The third subfield may be used to indicate whether the first device in the first operating mode switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence after receiving the second frame. In some embodiments, the third subfield may be referred to as a first operating mode switching control subfield.

[0292] In some embodiments, the third subfield may be carried in the HE variant HT Control field as a control subfield included in the A-Control subfield.

[0293] In some embodiments, the third subfield may be carried in the second frame.

[0294] In some embodiments, the control information subfield of the third subfield may include switching information to indicate whether the first device in the first operating mode switches from low capability mode to high capability mode (or full capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence after receiving the second frame.

[0295] In some embodiments, the third subfield can be used to indicate one or more of the following: whether the first device switches the capability mode, the switching method between different capability modes, the target capability mode to which the first device switches, and the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches.

[0296] Figure 12 shows an example of a possible format of the third subfield. As shown in Figure 12, the third subfield (e.g., the control information subfield of the third subfield) may include one or more of the following subfields: a handover indication subfield, a handover type subfield, a target capability mode subfield, and a target capability mode operation parameter subfield.

[0297] The switching indication subfield can be used to indicate whether the first device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence. In some embodiments, the switching indication subfield can occupy 1 bit. As an implementation method, when the switching indication subfield value is 1, it indicates that the device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence; when the switching indication subfield value is 0, it indicates that no switching is required. As another implementation method, when the switching indication subfield value is 0, it indicates that the device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence; when the switching indication subfield value is 1, it indicates that no switching is required. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the switching indication subfield can also occupy multiple bits to indicate whether the device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence.

[0298] The handover type subfield can be used to indicate the type of handover, or the handover type subfield can be used to indicate the type of the first operating mode associated with the handover. In some embodiments, the handover type subfield can occupy 1 bit. As an implementation method, when the handover type subfield value is 0, it indicates that the current handover indication is based on forced control handover, that is, the handover type subfield carries forced handover indication information. When the first device receives the handover indication subfield, it determines whether to switch based on the information indicated by the handover indication subfield; when the handover type subfield value is 1, it indicates that the current handover indication is based on negotiated control handover, that is, the handover type subfield carries requested handover indication information. When the first device receives the handover indication subfield, it can accept or reject the requested handover indication. As another implementation, when the Handover Type subfield value is 1, it indicates that the current handover indication is based on forced control handover, that is, the Handover Type subfield carries forced handover indication information. When the first device receives the Handover Indication subfield, it determines whether to perform handover based on the information indicated by the Handover Indication subfield. When the Handover Type subfield value is 0, it indicates that the current handover indication is based on negotiated control handover, that is, the Handover Type subfield carries requested handover indication information. When the first device receives the Handover Indication subfield, it can accept or reject the requested handover indication. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the Handover Indication subfield can also occupy multiple bits to indicate the type of handover or the type of the first operating mode associated with the handover.

[0299] The target capability mode subfield can be used to indicate whether the target capability mode switched to is a high capability mode or a full capability mode. In some embodiments, the target capability mode subfield can occupy 2 bits, but the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the target capability mode subfield can also occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the target capability mode subfield. As an implementation method, the target capability mode subfield value indicates 0, indicating that the target capability mode is a high capability mode; the target capability mode subfield value indicates 1, indicating that the target capability mode is a full capability mode; the target capability mode subfield indicates 2, indicating that the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode are indicated by the target capability mode operation parameter subfield carried by the capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching control subfield.

[0300] The Target Capability Mode Operation Parameters subfield may be used to indicate the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode. In some embodiments, the Target Capability Mode Operation Parameters subfield may be carried in a third subfield. In some embodiments, the Target Capability Mode Operation Parameters subfield may be carried in the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Mode Switch Response subfield. The Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Mode Switch Response subfield will be described later and will not be described in detail here.

[0301] Figure 13 shows an example of a possible format of the target capability mode operation parameter subfield. As shown in Figure 13, the target capability mode operation parameter subfield may include one or more of the following subfields: target operating bandwidth, MCS index corresponding to the target supported highest order modulation, target capability Rx NSS, target capability Tx NSTS, and target capability supported PPDU formats.

[0302] The target capability operating bandwidth subfield may indicate the operating bandwidth for receiving and / or sending supported by the first device in the target capability mode. In some embodiments, the target capability operating bandwidth subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this, and the target capability operating bandwidth subfield may occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the target capability operating bandwidth subfield. For example, the target capability operating bandwidth subfield may be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for 20MHz, set to 1 for 40MHz; set to 2 for 80MHz; set to 3 for 160MHz and 80+80MHz; set to 4 for 320MHz; and other reserved. For another example, the target capability operating bandwidth subfield may be encoded in the following manner: set to 0 for 20MHz, set to 1 for 40MHz; set to 2 for 80MHz; set to 3 for 160MHz, set to 4 for 80+80MHz; set to 5 for 320MHz; and other reserved.

[0303] The MCS index subfield corresponding to the target capability supporting the highest order modulation can be used to indicate the MCS index corresponding to the highest order modulation supported by the first device in the target capability mode. In some embodiments, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the target capability supporting the highest order modulation can occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this, and the MCS index subfield corresponding to the target capability supporting the highest order modulation can occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the MCS index subfield corresponding to the target capability supporting the highest order modulation. For example, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the target capability supporting the highest order modulation can be encoded using the following method: set to 0 for BPSK, set to 1 for QPSK, set to 2 for 16-QAM, ..., set to 6 for 2048-QAM, and set to 7 for 4096-QAM. For another example, the MCS index subfield corresponding to the target capability supporting the highest order modulation can be encoded using the following method: set to 0 for QPSK, set to 1 for BPSK, set to 2 for 16-QAM, ..., set to 6 for 2048-QAM, and set to 7 for 4096-QAM.

[0304] The Target Capability Rx NSS subfield may be used to indicate the maximum NSS supported for reception by the first device in target capability mode. As a feasible implementation, the value of the Target Capability Rx NSS may be set to NSS minus 1. In some embodiments, the Target Capability Rx NSS subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the Target Capability Rx NSS subfield may occupy another number of bits.

[0305] The Target Capability Tx NSTS subfield may be used to indicate the maximum NSTS supported for transmission by the first device in target capability mode. As a feasible implementation, the value of the Target Capability Tx NSTS may be set to NSTS minus 1. In some embodiments, the Target Capability Tx NSTS subfield may occupy 4 bits. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the Target Capability Tx NSTS subfield may occupy another number of bits.

[0306] The PPDU format subfield supported by the target capability can be used to indicate the PPDU format supported for reception and / or transmission by the first device in the target capability mode. In some embodiments, the PPDU format subfield supported by the target capability can occupy 3 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto, and the PPDU format subfield supported by the target capability can occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the PPDU format supported by the target capability. For the introduction related to the encoding method of the PPDU format supported by the target capability, please refer to the relevant introduction of Table 2 above.

[0307] The preceding description describes how the third subfield can be carried in the second frame to indicate the switching information requested by the second device. However, embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. For example, the second frame can be a control frame capable of dynamic control of capability adaptation energy-saving mode, thereby indicating the switching information requested by the second device. The following describes the second frame being a control frame capable of dynamic control of capability adaptation energy-saving mode.

[0308] In some embodiments, when the first device is in the first operating mode, when the second device initiates or conducts communication with the first device, the second device can request the first device to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence through a control frame with dynamic control of capability adaptation energy-saving mode.

[0309] In some embodiments, the control frame capable of adapting to dynamic control of the energy-saving mode may be extended and defined based on the MU-RTS trigger frame or basic trigger frame defined in the existing IEEE 802.11be standard.

[0310] As an implementation, a control frame capable of dynamically controlling the capability adaptation energy-saving mode can be extended based on the MU-RTS trigger frame. For example, a switching indication subfield and a target capability mode subfield can be added to the Common Info field of the MU-RTS trigger frame. A possible implementation is shown below in conjunction with FIG14.

[0311] The switching indication subfield can be used to indicate whether the first device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence. In some embodiments, the switching indication subfield can occupy 1 bit. As an implementation method, when the switching indication subfield value is 1, it indicates that the device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence; when the switching indication subfield value is 0, it indicates that no switching is required. As another implementation method, when the switching indication subfield value is 0, it indicates that the device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence; when the switching indication subfield value is 1, it indicates that no switching is required. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the switching indication subfield can also occupy multiple bits to indicate whether the device switches from low-capability mode to high-capability mode (or full-capability mode) in the current frame exchange sequence.

[0312] As an implementation manner, as shown in FIG14 , the handover indication subfield may occupy 1 bit, for example, the handover indication subfield may be included in bit B36 in the common information field of the MU-RTS trigger frame.

[0313] The target capability mode subfield can be used to indicate whether the target capability mode switched to is a high capability mode or a full capability mode. In some embodiments, the target capability mode subfield can occupy 2 bits, but the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, the target capability mode subfield can also occupy other numbers of bits. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the encoding method of the target capability mode subfield. As an implementation method, the target capability mode subfield value indicates 0, indicating that the target capability mode is a high capability mode; the target capability mode subfield value indicates 1, indicating that the target capability mode is a full capability mode; the target capability mode subfield indicates 2, indicating that the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode are indicated by the target capability mode operation parameter subfield carried by the capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching control subfield.

[0314] As an implementation manner, as shown in FIG14 , the target capability mode subfield may occupy 1 bit. For example, the target capability mode subfield may be included in bit B63 in the common information field of the MU-RTS trigger frame.

[0315] For the definitions of other subfields in FIG14 , please refer to the description of the prior art and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0316] The capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching response subfield is introduced below.

[0317] In some embodiments, the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Mode Switching Response subfield may be carried in a response frame of the second frame. For example, the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Mode Switching Response subfield may be carried in a block acknowledgment frame. Alternatively, the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Mode Switching Response subfield may be carried in a response frame of the triggering frame.

[0318] In some embodiments, after receiving the second frame (for example, the second frame contains the third subfield), the first device can indicate whether it has received the capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching information indicated or requested by the second device by carrying the capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching response subfield in the response frame of the second frame.

[0319] Figure 15 shows an example of a possible format of the capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching response subfield. As shown in Figure 15, the capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching response subfield may include one or more of the following subfields: a response type subfield and a target capability mode operation parameter subfield.

[0320] The Response Type subfield may be used to indicate whether the first device accepts the request from the second device, or in other words, whether the first device accepts the request to switch to the first operating mode sent by the second device. It should be noted that the request from the second device or the request to switch to the first operating mode sent by the second device may be carried in the second frame, for example, in the Capability Adaptation Energy Saving Mode Switching Control subfield of the second frame.

[0321] In some embodiments, the response type subfield may occupy 2 bits. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. For example, the response type subfield may occupy other numbers of bits.

[0322] The embodiment of the present application does not limit the encoding method of the response type subfield. A feasible encoding method is given below in conjunction with Table 5.

[0323] Table 5

[0324] As shown in Table 5, receiving a handover request is set to 0, rejecting a handover request and maintaining the current low capability mode is set to 1, accepting a handover request but switching to the target capability mode indicated by the target capability mode operation parameter subfield is set to 2, and other settings are reserved. However, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For example, rejecting a handover request and maintaining the current low capability mode is set to 0, accepting a handover request but switching to the target capability mode indicated by the target capability mode operation parameter subfield is set to 1, receiving a handover request is set to 2, and other settings are reserved.

[0325] In some embodiments, when the response type subfield indicates "accept the switching request, but will switch to the target capability mode indicated by the target capability mode operation parameter subfield" (see code 2 in the table), the capability adaptation energy-saving mode switching response subfield can carry the target capability mode operation parameter subfield, wherein the target capability mode operation parameter subfield indicates the operation parameters associated with the high capability mode that the first device is about to enter. For the relevant introduction to the target capability mode operation parameter subfield, please refer to the relevant introduction of Figure 13 above.

[0326] The method embodiments of the present application are described in detail above, and the device embodiments of the present application are described in detail below. It should be understood that the description of the method embodiments corresponds to the description of the device embodiments, so for parts not described in detail, reference can be made to the above method embodiments.

[0327] Figure 16 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device 1600 provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device 1600 shown in Figure 16 can be any of the first devices described above. The communication device 1600 can include a first sending module 1610. The first sending module 1610 can be configured to send a first frame to a second device, where the first frame includes first information associated with a first operating mode of the first device, where the first operating mode allows the first device to communicate in different capability modes while in an awake state.

[0328] In an embodiment of the present application, the above-mentioned communication device 1600 can be used to execute some or all of the method steps executed by the first device in the above-mentioned method embodiment. For example, when the first device is the initiator, the communication device 1600 can be used to execute some or all of the method steps executed by the initiator in the scheme introduced in conjunction with Figures 2 to 15 above. The communication device 1600 includes units or modules for executing the method steps corresponding to the aforementioned Figures 2 to 15. The method flow has been described in detail in the aforementioned embodiment. The modules in this embodiment have the same functions or perform the same steps, which will not be repeated here. However, as those skilled in the art should know, the text descriptions corresponding to the aforementioned Figures 2 to 15 can be introduced into this embodiment and correspond to the modules in the communication device 1600.

[0329] In some embodiments, the first sending module 1610 may be a transceiver 1830. The communication device 1600 may further include a processor 1810 and a memory 1820, as specifically shown in FIG18 .

[0330] Figure 17 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device 1700 provided in another embodiment of the present application. The communication device 1700 shown in Figure 17 can be any of the second devices described above. The communication device 1700 can include a first receiving module 1710. The first receiving module 1710 can be configured to receive a first frame sent by a first device, the first frame including first information associated with a first operating mode of the first device, the first operating mode allowing the first device to communicate in different capability modes while awake.

[0331] In an embodiment of the present application, the above-mentioned communication device 1700 can be used to execute some or all of the method steps executed by the second device in the above-mentioned method embodiment. For example, when the second device is a responder, the communication device 1700 can be used to execute some or all of the method steps executed by the responder in the scheme introduced in conjunction with Figures 2 to 15 above. The communication device 1700 includes units or modules for executing the method steps corresponding to the aforementioned Figures 2 to 15. The method flow has been described in detail in the aforementioned embodiment. The modules in this embodiment have the same functions or perform the same steps, which will not be repeated here. However, as those skilled in the art should know, the text descriptions corresponding to the aforementioned Figures 2 to 15 can be introduced into this embodiment and correspond to the modules in the communication device 1700.

[0332] In some embodiments, the first receiving module 1710 may be a transceiver 1830. The communication device 1700 may further include a processor 1810 and a memory 1820, as specifically shown in FIG18 .

[0333] Figure 18 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. The dashed lines in Figure 18 indicate that the unit or module is optional. Device 1800 can be used to implement the method described in the above method embodiment. Device 1800 can be a chip or a communication device.

[0334] The device 1800 may include one or more processors 1810. The processor 1810 may support the device 1800 to implement the method described in the method embodiment above. The processor 1810 may be a general-purpose processor or a special-purpose processor. For example, the processor may be a central processing unit (CPU). Alternatively, the processor may be another general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware component, etc. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may be any conventional processor, etc.

[0335] The apparatus 1800 may further include one or more memories 1820. The memories 1820 store programs that can be executed by the processor 1810, causing the processor 1810 to perform the methods described in the above method embodiments. The memories 1820 may be independent of the processor 1810 or integrated into the processor 1810.

[0336] The apparatus 1800 may further include a transceiver 1830. The processor 1810 may communicate with other devices or chips via the transceiver 1830. For example, the processor 1810 may transmit and receive data with other devices or chips via the transceiver 1830.

[0337] The present invention also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing a program. The computer-readable storage medium can be applied to the communication device provided in the present invention, and the program enables a computer to execute the method performed by the communication device in each embodiment of the present invention.

[0338] The present application also provides a computer program product. The computer program product includes a program. The computer program product can be applied to the communication device provided in the present application, and the program causes a computer to execute the method performed by the communication device in each embodiment of the present application.

[0339] The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program. The computer program can be applied to the communication device provided in the embodiments of the present application, and the computer program enables a computer to execute the method executed by the communication device in each embodiment of the present application.

[0340] It should be understood that the terms "system" and "network" in this application can be used interchangeably. In addition, the terms used in this application are only used to explain the specific embodiments of this application and are not intended to limit this application. The terms "first", "second", "third", and "fourth" in the specification and claims of this application and the accompanying drawings are used to distinguish different objects rather than to describe a specific order. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions.

[0341] In the embodiments of the present application, a "field" may also be referred to as a "field," a "subfield," or a "subfield." A field may occupy one or more bytes (byte / octet), or a field may occupy one or more bits (bit).

[0342] In the embodiments of this application, the term "indication" may refer to a direct indication, an indirect indication, or an indication of an association. For example, "A indicates B" may refer to a direct indication of B, e.g., B can obtain information through A; it may refer to an indirect indication of B, e.g., A indicates C, e.g., B can obtain information through C; or it may refer to an association between A and B.

[0343] In the embodiment of the present application, "B corresponding to A" means that B is associated with A and B can be determined based on A. However, it should be understood that determining B based on A does not mean determining B based solely on A, but B can also be determined based on A and / or other information.

[0344] In the embodiments of the present application, the term "corresponding" may indicate a direct or indirect correspondence between the two, or an association relationship between the two, or a relationship between indication and indication, configuration and configuration, etc.

[0345] In the embodiments of the present application, "pre-defined" or "pre-configured" may be implemented by pre-storing corresponding codes, tables, or other methods that can be used to indicate relevant information in devices (e.g., including APs and STAs). The present application does not limit the specific implementation method. For example, pre-defined may refer to information defined in a protocol.

[0346] In the embodiments of this application, the term "and / or" is simply a description of the association relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. In addition, the character " / " in this document generally indicates that the related objects are in an "or" relationship.

[0347] In the embodiments of this application, the term "include" can refer to direct inclusion or indirect inclusion. Alternatively, the term "include" in the embodiments of this application can be replaced with "indicates" or "is used to determine." For example, "A includes B" can be replaced with "A indicates B" or "A is used to determine B."

[0348] In various embodiments of the present application, the size of the serial numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not mean the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

[0349] In the embodiments of the present application, the “protocol” may refer to a standard protocol in the communication field, for example, it may include a WiFi protocol and related protocols used in future WiFi communication systems, and the present application does not limit this.

[0350] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely schematic. For example, the division of the units is merely a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0351] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of these units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0352] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0353] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, 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 can be read by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more available media integrated therein. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a digital versatile disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0354] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included in the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A wireless communication method, characterized in that: include: A first device sends a first frame to a second device, where the first frame includes first information associated with a first operation mode of the first device, where the first operation mode allows the first device to communicate in different capability modes in an awake state.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The first frame includes a control field, and the first information is carried in the control field.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The first frame includes one or more of the following: a quality of service (QoS) data frame, a QoS empty frame, and a management frame.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The first information is used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operation mode; operating parameters associated with the first operating mode; a manner of switching between different capability modes of the first device in an awake state; Among them, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode, delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, mode index corresponding to the low-capability mode, and mode index corresponding to the high-capability mode.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that The switching manner between the different capability modes includes a switching manner from a low capability mode to a high capability mode.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that The switching manner between the different capability modes is determined based on the type of the first operation mode.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The type of the first operation mode includes one or more of the following: a static first operation mode, a first operation mode based on default operation, a first operation mode based on mandatory control, and a first operation mode based on negotiated control.

8. The method according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that The type of the first operation mode is a static first operation mode, and the first device maintains a low-capability mode to perform frame exchange.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that The method further comprises: The first device receives, in a low capability mode, a second frame sent by the second device; The first device sends a response frame to the second frame to the second device; The second frame includes second information and / or third information, the second information is used to request the first device to switch to a high-capability mode, and the third information is used to indicate the operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode to which the first device is requested to switch; the response frame is used to indicate one or more of the following: whether the first device switches according to the second information, and the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The method further comprises: If the response frame instructs the first device to switch according to the second information, the first device switches to a high-capability mode to perform frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence; and / or If the response frame indicates that the first device does not perform switching according to the second information, the first device maintains a low capability mode to perform frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence.

11. The method according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that The response frame includes one or more of the following: a block confirmation frame, and a response frame to a trigger frame.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that The method further comprises: The first device receives, in a low-capability mode, a second frame sent by the second device, where the second frame includes fourth information, where the fourth information is used to indicate whether the first device is switched to a high-capability mode; If the fourth information indicates that the first device is switched to the high-capability mode, the first device is switched to the high-capability mode to perform frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence; and / or If the fourth information indicates that the first device does not switch to the high capability mode, the first device maintains the low capability mode to perform frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that The method further comprises: The first device receives a second frame sent by the second device, the second frame being used to instruct the first device to perform frame exchange, the second frame being received based on one or more of: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, and operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode indicated by the first frame; The first device switches to a high-capability mode to perform frame exchange in a current frame exchange sequence.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, characterized in that If the first device switches to the high-capability mode to perform frame exchange, the method further includes: After the current frame exchange sequence is completed, the first device switches back to the low capability mode.

15. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 14, characterized in that The second frame is transmitted using a physical layer protocol data unit PPDU that meets the low capability mode of the first device.

16. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 15, characterized in that The second frame includes an initial frame and / or a trigger frame.

17. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, characterized in that: The operating parameters associated with the low capability mode in the first operating mode include one or more of the following: an operating bandwidth in the low capability mode, a number of receive chains in the low capability mode, a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) modulation parameter in the low capability mode, a number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in the low capability mode, a number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in the low capability mode, a data rate in the low capability mode, and a PPDU format that can be received in the low capability mode; The operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode in the first operating mode include one or more of the following: operating bandwidth in high-capability mode, the number of receiving chains in high-capability mode, modulation and coding scheme MCS modulation parameters in high-capability mode, the number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in high-capability mode, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in high-capability mode, the data rate in high-capability mode, and the PPDU format supported for reception in high-capability mode.

18. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 17, characterized in that The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, and the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes include one or more of the following: Minimum delay required to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode; Minimum delay required to switch from high-capability mode to low-capability mode.

19. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 18, characterized in that The method further comprises: The first device adjusts an operating parameter associated with the first operating mode based on the first information; The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device receives the transmission opportunity containing the confirmation information for the first frame from the second device; or, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device expects to receive the transmission opportunity containing the confirmation information for the first frame from the second device.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein When one or more of the following conditions are met, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device receives the transmission opportunity in which the confirmation information for the first frame is received from the second device: enabling the first operating mode; reducing an operating parameter associated with the first operating mode; Increase the delay parameter for switching between different capability modes.

21. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 20, characterized in that The control field of the first frame includes a first subfield, where the first subfield is used to indicate a mode index and an operating parameter associated with the mode index, where the mode index is used to identify different capability modes included in the first operating mode.

22. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 21, characterized in that The control field of the first frame includes a second subfield, which is used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operating mode, the delay parameters for switching between the different capability modes, and the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode.

23. The method according to claim 22, characterized in that The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are indicated by a mode index.

24. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 23, characterized in that The first device has one or more receive chains.

25. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 24, characterized in that The first device is a station device, and the second device is a station device or an access point device; or the first device is an access point device, and the second device is a station device or an access point device.

26. A wireless communication method, characterized in that: include: The second device receives a first frame sent by the first device, where the first frame includes first information, and the first information is associated with a first operation mode of the first device, where the first operation mode allows the first device to communicate in different capability modes in an awake state.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein The first frame includes a control field, and the first information is carried in the control field.

28. The method according to claim 26 or 27, characterized in that The first frame includes one or more of the following: a quality of service (QoS) data frame, a QoS empty frame, and a management frame.

29. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 28, characterized in that The first information is used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operation mode; operating parameters associated with the first operating mode; a manner of switching between different capability modes of the first device in an awake state; Among them, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode, delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, mode index corresponding to the low-capability mode, and mode index corresponding to the high-capability mode.

30. The method according to claim 29, wherein The switching manner between the different capability modes includes a switching manner from a low capability mode to a high capability mode.

31. The method according to claim 29 or 30, characterized in that The switching manner between the different capability modes is determined based on the type of the first operation mode.

32. The method according to claim 31, characterized in that The type of the first operation mode includes one or more of the following: a static first operation mode, a first operation mode based on default operation, a first operation mode based on mandatory control, and a first operation mode based on negotiated control.

33. The method according to claim 31 or 32, characterized in that The type of the first operation mode is a static first operation mode, and the first device maintains a low-capability mode to perform frame exchange.

34. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 33, wherein: The method further comprises: The second device sends a second frame to the first device; The second device receives a response frame to the second frame sent by the first device; The second frame includes second information and / or third information, the second information is used to request the first device to switch to a high-capability mode, and the third information is used to indicate the operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode to which the first device is requested to switch; the response frame is used to indicate one or more of the following: whether the first device switches according to the second information, and the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches.

35. The method according to claim 34, wherein The response frame includes one or more of the following: a block confirmation frame, and a response frame to a trigger frame.

36. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 33, wherein: The method further comprises: The second device sends a second frame to the first device, where the second frame includes fourth information, where the fourth information is used to indicate whether the first device switches to the high-capability mode.

37. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 33, wherein: The method further comprises: The second device sends a second frame to the first device, where the second frame is used to instruct the first device to perform frame exchange. The second frame is received according to one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, the operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode indicated by the first frame.

38. The method according to any one of claims 34 to 37, wherein: The second frame is transmitted using a physical layer protocol data unit PPDU that meets the low capability mode of the first device.

39. The method according to any one of claims 34 to 38, wherein The second frame includes an initial frame and / or a trigger frame.

40. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 39, wherein The method further comprises: The second device updates, based on the first information, an operating parameter associated with the first operating mode of the first device; The second device communicates with the first device based on the updated operating parameters.

41. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 40, characterized in that: The operating parameters associated with the low capability mode in the first operating mode include one or more of the following: an operating bandwidth in the low capability mode, a number of receive chains in the low capability mode, a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) modulation parameter in the low capability mode, a number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in the low capability mode, a number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in the low capability mode, a data rate in the low capability mode, and a PPDU format that can be received in the low capability mode; The operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode in the first operating mode include one or more of the following: operating bandwidth in high-capability mode, the number of receiving chains in high-capability mode, modulation and coding scheme MCS modulation parameters in high-capability mode, the number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in high-capability mode, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in high-capability mode, the data rate in high-capability mode, and the PPDU format supported for reception in high-capability mode.

42. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 41, wherein: The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, and the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes include one or more of the following: Minimum delay required to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode; Minimum delay required to switch from high-capability mode to low-capability mode.

43. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 42, wherein: The control field of the first frame includes a first subfield, where the first subfield is used to indicate a mode index and an operating parameter associated with the mode index, where the mode index is used to identify different capability modes included in the first operating mode.

44. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 43, wherein: The control field of the first frame includes a second subfield, which is used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operating mode, the delay parameters for switching between the different capability modes, and the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode.

45. The method according to claim 44, wherein The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are indicated by a mode index.

46. ​​The method according to any one of claims 26 to 45, wherein: The first device has one or more receive chains.

47. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 46, wherein: The first device is a station device, and the second device is a station device or an access point device; or the first device is an access point device, and the second device is a station device or an access point device.

48. A communication device, characterized in that The communication device is a first device, and the communication device includes: The first sending module is used to send a first frame to the second device, where the first frame includes first information, and the first information is associated with a first operation mode of the first device, where the first operation mode allows the first device to communicate in different capability modes in an awake state.

49. The communication device according to claim 48, characterized in that The first frame includes a control field, and the first information is carried in the control field.

50. The communication device according to claim 48 or 49, characterized in that The first frame includes one or more of the following: a quality of service (QoS) data frame, a QoS empty frame, and a management frame.

51. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 50, characterized in that The first information is used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operation mode; operating parameters associated with the first operating mode; a manner of switching between different capability modes of the first device in an awake state; Among them, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode, delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, mode index corresponding to the low-capability mode, and mode index corresponding to the high-capability mode.

52. The communication device according to claim 51, wherein The switching manner between the different capability modes includes a switching manner from a low capability mode to a high capability mode.

53. The communication device according to claim 51 or 52, characterized in that The switching manner between the different capability modes is determined based on the type of the first operation mode.

54. The communication device according to claim 53, characterized in that The type of the first operation mode includes one or more of the following: a static first operation mode, a first operation mode based on default operation, a first operation mode based on mandatory control, and a first operation mode based on negotiated control.

55. The communication device according to claim 53 or 54, characterized in that The type of the first operation mode is a static first operation mode, and the first device maintains a low-capability mode to perform frame exchange.

56. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 55, characterized in that The communication device further includes: a first receiving module, configured to receive a second frame sent by the second device in a low capability mode; A second sending module, configured to send a response frame of the second frame to the second device; The second frame includes second information and / or third information, the second information is used to request the first device to switch to a high-capability mode, and the third information is used to indicate the operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode to which the first device is requested to switch; the response frame is used to indicate one or more of the following: whether the first device switches according to the second information, and the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches.

57. The communication device according to claim 56, characterized in that The communication device further includes a first communication module, configured to: If the response frame instructs the first device to switch according to the second information, switching to a high-capability mode to perform frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence; and / or If the response frame indicates that the first device does not perform switching according to the second information, the low capability mode is maintained to perform frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence.

58. The communication device according to claim 56 or 57, characterized in that The response frame includes one or more of the following: a block confirmation frame, and a response frame to a trigger frame.

59. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 55, characterized in that The communication device further includes: a second receiving module, configured to receive, in a low-capability mode, a second frame sent by the second device, where the second frame includes fourth information, where the fourth information is used to indicate whether the first device is switched to a high-capability mode; A second communication module is configured to: if the fourth information indicates that the first device switches to a high-capability mode, the first device switches to a high-capability mode for frame exchange in a current frame exchange sequence; and / or, if the fourth information indicates that the first device does not switch to a high-capability mode, the first device maintains a low-capability mode for frame exchange in the current frame exchange sequence.

60. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 55, characterized in that The communication device further includes: a third receiving module, configured to receive a second frame sent by the second device, where the second frame is used to instruct the first device to perform frame exchange, and the second frame is received based on one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, and operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode indicated by the first frame; The third communication module is configured to switch to a high-capability mode to perform frame exchange in a current frame exchange sequence.

61. The communication device according to any one of claims 56 to 60, characterized in that If the first device switches to the high-capability mode to perform frame exchange, the communication device further includes: The switching module is used to switch back to the low-capacity mode after the current frame exchange sequence is completed.

62. The communication device according to any one of claims 56 to 61, characterized in that The second frame is transmitted using a physical layer protocol data unit PPDU that meets the low capability mode of the first device.

63. The communication device according to any one of claims 56 to 62, characterized in that The second frame includes an initial frame and / or a trigger frame.

64. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 63, characterized in that: The operating parameters associated with the low capability mode in the first operating mode include one or more of the following: an operating bandwidth in the low capability mode, a number of receive chains in the low capability mode, a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) modulation parameter in the low capability mode, a number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in the low capability mode, a number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in the low capability mode, a data rate in the low capability mode, and a PPDU format that can be received in the low capability mode; The operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode in the first operating mode include one or more of the following: operating bandwidth in high-capability mode, the number of receiving chains in high-capability mode, modulation and coding scheme MCS modulation parameters in high-capability mode, the number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in high-capability mode, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in high-capability mode, the data rate in high-capability mode, and the PPDU format supported for reception in high-capability mode.

65. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 64, characterized in that The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, and the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes include one or more of the following: Minimum delay required to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode; Minimum delay required to switch from high-capability mode to low-capability mode.

66. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 65, characterized in that The communication device further includes: an adjusting module, configured to adjust an operating parameter associated with the first operating mode based on the first information; The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device receives the transmission opportunity containing the confirmation information for the first frame from the second device; or, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device expects to receive the transmission opportunity containing the confirmation information for the first frame from the second device.

67. The communication device according to claim 66, characterized in that When one or more of the following conditions are met, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are effective after the first device receives the transmission opportunity in which the confirmation information for the first frame is received from the second device: enabling the first operating mode; reducing an operating parameter associated with the first operating mode; Increase the delay parameter for switching between different capability modes.

68. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 67, characterized in that The control field of the first frame includes a first subfield, where the first subfield is used to indicate a mode index and an operating parameter associated with the mode index, where the mode index is used to identify different capability modes included in the first operating mode.

69. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 68, characterized in that The control field of the first frame includes a second subfield, which is used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operating mode, the delay parameters for switching between the different capability modes, and the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode.

70. The communication device according to claim 69, characterized in that The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are indicated by a mode index.

71. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 70, characterized in that The first device has one or more receive chains.

72. The communication device according to any one of claims 48 to 71, characterized in that The first device is a station device, and the second device is a station device or an access point device; or the first device is an access point device, and the second device is a station device or an access point device.

73. A communication device, characterized in that The communication device is a second device, and the communication device includes: A first receiving module is configured to receive a first frame sent by a first device, wherein the first frame includes first information associated with a first operating mode of the first device, wherein the first operating mode allows the first device to operate in different capability modes in an awake state. to communicate.

74. The communication device according to claim 73, characterized in that The first frame includes a control field, and the first information is carried in the control field.

75. The communication device according to claim 73 or 74, characterized in that The first frame includes one or more of the following: a quality of service (QoS) data frame, a QoS empty frame, and a management frame.

76. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 75, characterized in that The first information is used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operation mode; operating parameters associated with the first operating mode; a manner of switching between different capability modes of the first device in an awake state; Among them, the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode, delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, mode index corresponding to the low-capability mode, and mode index corresponding to the high-capability mode.

77. The communication device according to claim 76, characterized in that The switching manner between the different capability modes includes a switching manner from a low capability mode to a high capability mode.

78. The communication device according to claim 76 or 77, characterized in that The switching manner between the different capability modes is determined based on the type of the first operation mode.

79. The communication device according to claim 78, characterized in that The type of the first operation mode includes one or more of the following: a static first operation mode, a first operation mode based on default operation, a first operation mode based on mandatory control, and a first operation mode based on negotiated control.

80. The communication device according to claim 78 or 79, characterized in that The type of the first operation mode is a static first operation mode, and the first device maintains a low-capability mode to perform frame exchange.

81. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 80, characterized in that The communication device further includes: A first sending module, configured to send a second frame to the first device; a second receiving module, configured to receive a response frame to the second frame sent by the first device; The second frame includes second information and / or third information, the second information is used to request the first device to switch to a high-capability mode, and the third information is used to indicate the operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode to which the first device is requested to switch; the response frame is used to indicate one or more of the following: whether the first device switches according to the second information, and the operating parameters associated with the target capability mode to which the first device switches.

82. The communication device according to claim 81, characterized in that The response frame includes one or more of the following: a block confirmation frame, and a response frame to a trigger frame.

83. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 80, characterized in that The communication device further includes: The second sending module is configured to send a second frame to the first device, where the second frame includes fourth information, and the fourth information is used to indicate whether the first device switches to a high-capability mode.

84. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 80, characterized in that The communication device further includes: A third sending module is used to send a second frame to the first device, where the second frame is used to instruct the first device to perform frame exchange, and the second frame is received based on one or more of the following: operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode, and operating parameters associated with the low-capability mode indicated by the first frame.

85. The communication device according to any one of claims 81 to 84, characterized in that The second frame is transmitted using a physical layer protocol data unit PPDU that meets the low capability mode of the first device.

86. The communication device according to any one of claims 81 to 85, characterized in that The second frame includes an initial frame and / or a trigger frame.

87. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 86, characterized in that The communication device further includes: an updating module, configured to update an operating parameter associated with a first operating mode of the first device based on the first information; A communication module is configured to communicate with the first device based on the updated operating parameters.

88. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 87, characterized in that: The operating parameters associated with the low capability mode in the first operating mode include one or more of the following: an operating bandwidth in the low capability mode, a number of receive chains in the low capability mode, a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) modulation parameter in the low capability mode, a number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in the low capability mode, a number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in the low capability mode, a data rate in the low capability mode, and a PPDU format that can be received in the low capability mode; The operating parameters associated with the high-capability mode in the first operating mode include one or more of the following: operating bandwidth in high-capability mode, the number of receiving chains in high-capability mode, modulation and coding scheme MCS modulation parameters in high-capability mode, the number of receivable space-time streams / spatial streams in high-capability mode, the number of transmittable space-time streams / spatial streams in high-capability mode, the data rate in high-capability mode, and the PPDU format supported for reception in high-capability mode.

89. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 88, characterized in that The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode include delay parameters for switching between different capability modes, and the delay parameters for switching between different capability modes include one or more of the following: Minimum delay required to switch from low-capability mode to high-capability mode; Minimum delay required to switch from high-capability mode to low-capability mode.

90. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 89, characterized in that The control field of the first frame includes a first subfield, where the first subfield is used to indicate a mode index and an operating parameter associated with the mode index, where the mode index is used to identify different capability modes included in the first operating mode.

91. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 90, characterized in that The control field of the first frame includes a second subfield, which is used to indicate one or more of the following: enabling / disabling the first operating mode, the delay parameters for switching between the different capability modes, and the operating parameters associated with the first operating mode.

92. The communication device according to claim 91, characterized in that The operating parameters associated with the first operating mode are indicated by a mode index.

93. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 92, characterized in that The first device has one or more receive chains.

94. The communication device according to any one of claims 73 to 93, characterized in that The first device is a station device, and the second device is a station device or an access point device; or the first device is an access point device, and the second device is a station device or an access point device.

95. A communication device, characterized in that The communication device comprises a transceiver, a memory and a processor, wherein the memory is used to store a program, and the processor is used to call the program in the memory so as to enable the communication device to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-25 or 26-47.

96. A device, characterized in that The device comprises a processor configured to call a program from a memory so as to cause the device to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 25 or 26 to 47.

97. A chip, characterized in that The device comprises a processor configured to call a program from a memory so that a device equipped with the chip executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 25 or 26 to 47.

98. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that A program is stored thereon, the program causing a computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-25 or 26-47.

99. A computer program product, characterized in that The method comprises a program for causing a computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 25 or 26 to 47.

100. A computer program, characterized in that The computer program causes a computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 25 or 26 to 47.

Images