Channel access method and device

Abstract

The present application provides a channel access method and device, facilitating clarifying a method for each communication device to determine a channel access technology, so that communication devices in the same basic service set can access a channel on the basis of the same target channel access technology, thereby improving the communication efficiency and maintaining the system performance. The method comprises: generating a first frame, wherein the first frame is used for instructing a receiving end to determine a target channel access technology, the first frame comprises information of a channel access technology, and the channel access technology comprises a spatial reuse (SR) technology and / or a non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology; and sending the first frame.

Description

Channel access method and apparatus

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202410445616.3, filed on April 12, 2024, entitled “Channel Access Method and Apparatus”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to a channel access method and apparatus. Background Technology

[0003] The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard is one of the mainstream wireless access standards and has been widely adopted. The IEEE 802.11a standard only supported a 20MHz bandwidth, but the bandwidth has been continuously increased in subsequent standard evolutions. The 802.11n standard supports a maximum bandwidth of 40MHz, the 802.11ac / ax standard supports a maximum bandwidth of 160(80+80)MHz, and the 802.11be standard supports a maximum bandwidth of 320MHz. To ensure backward compatibility during standard evolution, regardless of the bandwidth, there is a unique 20MHz primary channel (PCH). This 20MHz primary channel must be included when transmitting data using any bandwidth. One problem this causes is that when this unique primary channel is busy, all other idle secondary channels (SCH) become unusable, leading to reduced system efficiency.

[0004] Currently, some related technologies allow access points (APs) and non-access point stations (non-AP STAs) to switch from primary channel to secondary channel operation, such as non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology; other related technologies allow APs and non-AP STAs to reuse the primary channel to improve resource utilization, such as spatial reuse (SR) technology.

[0005] However, there are no clear rules on which technology each node should operate on. This can lead to situations where, in the same basic service set (BSS), some APs and at least one non-AP STAs may reuse the primary channel while others switch from the primary channel to the secondary channel. This can cause non-AP STAs that are not on the same channel as the AP to malfunction, resulting in a decrease in system performance. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This application provides a channel access method and apparatus, which helps to clarify the method for determining the channel access technology for each communication device, so that each communication device in the same basic service set can access the channel based on the same target channel access technology, which helps to improve communication efficiency and maintain system performance.

[0007] Firstly, this application provides a channel access method applied to a first communication device, which can be an access point (AP) or a chip within the AP; this application does not limit the specific application to this method. The method includes: generating a first frame, the first frame being used to instruct a receiving end to determine a target channel access technology, the first frame including information about the channel access technology, the channel access technology including spatial multiplexing (SR) technology and / or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology; and transmitting the first frame.

[0008] It should be understood that the receiver of the first frame is in the same BSS as the first communication device; for example, the receiver could be a third communication device.

[0009] It should also be understood that after the first communication device sends the first frame, if the first communication device also receives a physical protocol data unit (PPDU) from the overlapping basic service set (OBSS), then the first communication device also needs to determine the target channel access technology based on the channel access technology information included in the first frame, and the first communication device and the third communication device in the same BSS determine the target channel access technology in the same way.

[0010] In this embodiment, the first frame sent by the first communication device includes information on the channel access technology. The first frame instructs the receiving end to determine a unique target channel access technology based on this information. The channel access technology includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology and / or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. The target channel access technology is one of SR technology and NPCA technology. This is beneficial because when each communication device in the same BSS receives PPDUs from sources not belonging to this BSS, it can determine a unique target channel access technology. This also helps to avoid different communication devices using different channel access technologies due to interference from external BSSs, thus improving system performance.

[0011] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first communication device determines the target channel access technology based on information about the channel access technology.

[0012] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first frame includes a first element and / or a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element is used to indicate parameters of the SR technology.

[0013] Optionally, the first element may be an NPCA parameter set element. The first element may also include one or more of the following fields: element ID, length, element ID extension, NPCA control, NDPA disallowed, NDPA allowed, NDPA information present, NPCA packet detection level, or NPCA packet detection level offset. This application does not specifically limit the fields included in the first element.

[0014] Optionally, the second element can be a spatial reuse parameter set element, which may include one or more of the following fields: element ID, length, element ID extension, spatial reuse control (SR control), non-SRG OBSS PD max offset, spatial reuse group OBSS PD min offset, spatial reuse group OBSS PD max offset, spatial reuse group basic service set color bitmap, spatial reuse group partial basic service set identifier bitmap, parameter spatial reuse disallowed (PSR disallowed), non-SRG OBSS PD SR disallowed, and non-SRG offset present. The fields included in the second element are: present field, SRG information present field, HE-SIGA_spatial_reuse_value15_allowed field, or reserved field. This application does not impose specific limitations on the fields included in the second element.

[0015] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first element includes first indication information, which is used to indicate whether the use of NPCA technology is permitted.

[0016] In some possible implementations, the first indication information can be indicated by the value of the NPCA disallowed field or the NPCA allowed field. Taking the first indication information indicated by the value of the NPCA disallowed field as an example, if the NPCA disallowed field occupies 1 bit, then a value of 0 in the NPCA disallowed field can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is allowed, and a value of 1 in the NPCA disallowed field can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is not allowed.

[0017] Optionally, NPCA does not allow fields to be subfields of NPCA-controlled fields, but this application does not impose such a restriction.

[0018] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first element further includes second indication information, which is used to indicate an NPCA packet detection (PD) threshold.

[0019] In some possible implementations, the second indication information can be indicated directly through the NPCA packet detection threshold field, or indirectly through the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field.

[0020] Optionally, the NPCA packet detection threshold field or the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field can be a subfield of the NPCA control field, or it can be a field parallel to the NPCA control field. This application does not make any specific limitations on this.

[0021] In some implementations, the NPCA control field includes an NPCA information present subfield, and when the NPCA information present subfield indicates that NPCA information is present, the first element includes an NPCA packet detection threshold field or an NPCA packet detection threshold offset field.

[0022] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) is received from an Overlapping Basic Service Set (OBSS) and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold; or, determining the SR technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from an OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the NPCA PD threshold.

[0023] In this embodiment, a first frame is published by a first communication device. The first frame includes an NPCA PD threshold. When the first communication device receives a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) from an Overlapping Basic Service Set (OBSS), the target channel access technology is determined based on the relationship between the first received power of the PPDU and the NPCA PD threshold. This provides a rule for the first communication device to select a channel access technology, which is beneficial for communication devices of the same BSS to access the channel with the same channel access technology, thereby improving communication efficiency and system performance.

[0024] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0025] In one possible implementation, the third indication information can be indicated by the value of the maximum offset field of the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD, and the fourth indication information can be indicated by the minimum offset field and the maximum offset field of the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD.

[0026] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to a first value; and determining the SR technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0027] In this embodiment, a first frame is published by a first communication device. The first frame includes third indication information and / or fourth indication information. When the first communication device receives a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) from an Overlapping Basic Service Set (OBSS), the target channel access technology is determined based on the relationship between the first received power of the PPDU and the non-spatial multiplexing group (OBSS) PD threshold indicated by the third indication information and / or the spatial multiplexing group (OBSS) PD threshold indicated by the fourth indication information. This provides a rule for the first communication device to select a channel access technology, which is beneficial for communication devices of the same BSS to access the channel with the same channel access technology, thereby improving communication efficiency and system performance.

[0028] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; the NPCA PD threshold is greater than or equal to a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0029] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when the first received power of the PPDU received from the OBSS is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold.

[0030] It should be understood that in related technologies, when the first communication device receives a PPDU from the OBSS, if the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, the conditions for using SR technology are met. In this embodiment, the NPCA PD threshold is set to be greater than or equal to the first value, and it is stipulated that if the first received power of the PPDU received from the OBSS is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold, the conditions for using SR technology are not met. Therefore, the NPCA technology is determined as the target channel access technology. This does not conflict with the conditions for allowing the use of SR technology specified in related technologies. That is, if the first received power of the PPDU received from the OBSS is less than the first value, it can still be considered that the use of SR technology is allowed. However, because the conditions for NPCA technology are not met, the use of NPCA technology is not allowed. This approach does not change the conditions for whether SR technology is allowed in related technologies, which is convenient for implementation.

[0031] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method is applied to a first communication device, and the first frame further includes fifth indication information for indicating information of a second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device, the information of the second communication device including the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of the PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device.

[0032] In conjunction with the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from the OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the updated NPCA PD threshold; and determining the SR technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from the OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the updated NPCA PD threshold, wherein the updated NPCA PD threshold is the sum of the difference between the first received power and the second received power and the NPCA PD threshold.

[0033] It should be understood that the second communication device can be either an AP or a non-AP STA. The second received power is detected by the first communication device based on the PPDU received from the second communication device. Therefore, when the PPDU received by the first communication device from the OBSS belongs to the second communication device, the updated NPCA PD threshold is equal to the NPCA PD threshold indicated in the first frame.

[0034] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the second element includes third indication information and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; the determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the SR technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from the OBSS does not belong to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0035] In one possible implementation, if the first communication device determines that the PPDU received from the OBSS does not belong to the second communication device, it can assume that NPCA technology is not allowed at present. If the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value at this time, that is, the conditions for using SR technology are met, then SR technology is determined to be the target channel access technology.

[0036] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first frame further includes fifth indication information, which is used to indicate information about a second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of a PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device, wherein the PPDU does not belong to the second communication device.

[0037] In one possible implementation, if the first communication device determines that the received PPDU from the OBSS does not belong to the second communication device, it can determine the target channel access technology based on the relationship between the NPCA PD threshold indicated in the first frame and the first received power of the PPDU.

[0038] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the target channel access technology based on the priority of the SR technology and the NPCA technology.

[0039] In some implementations, NPCA technology has a higher priority than SR technology. It can be assumed that if the first indication information in the first element indicates that NPCA is allowed, then the target channel access technology is NPCA technology. If the first indication information indicates that NPCA is not allowed, then the target channel technology is SR technology. Even if there is a second element, it does not matter how the second element indicates; we can only focus on the information indicated by the first element.

[0040] In other implementations, SR technology has a higher priority than NPCA technology. It can be assumed that if the value of the field in the second element indicating whether SR technology is allowed indicates that SR technology is allowed, then the target channel access technology is SR technology. If the value of the field in the second element indicating whether SR technology is allowed indicates that SR technology is not allowed, then the target channel technology is NPCA technology. Even if the first element exists, it is not important how the first element indicates it. Only the information indicated by the second element needs to be considered.

[0041] It should be understood that the priority of SR technology and NPCA technology can be agreed upon by the protocol, configured at the factory, or configured by other communication devices through signaling. This application does not make specific limitations on this.

[0042] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

[0043] For example, the first frame may be a beacon frame. The first communication device periodically broadcasts the first frame within the BSS. It is worth noting that the content of the first frame may be different after each broadcast cycle. The first communication device may determine the available target channel access technology based on the channel access technology information contained in the latest transmitted first frame.

[0044] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a channel access method applied to a third communication device, which may be a non-AP STA or a chip within a non-AP STA; this application does not specifically limit this. The third communication device is in the same basic service set as the aforementioned first communication device. The method includes: receiving a first frame, the first frame being used to instruct a receiving end to determine a target channel access technology, the first frame including information about the channel access technology, the channel access technology including Spatial Multiplexing (SR) technology and / or Non-Master Channel Access (NPCA) technology; and determining the target channel access technology based on the information about the channel access technology.

[0045] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first frame includes a first element and / or a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element is used to indicate parameters of the SR technology.

[0046] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first element includes first indication information, which is used to indicate whether the use of NPCA technology is permitted.

[0047] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first element further includes second indication information, which is used to indicate the PD threshold for NPCA packet detection.

[0048] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) is received from the Overlapping Basic Service Set (OBSS) and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold.

[0049] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the SR technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the NPCA PD threshold.

[0050] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0051] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to a first value, determining the NPCA technology as the target channel access technology, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0052] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, determining the SR technology as the target channel access technology, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0053] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; the NPCA PD threshold is greater than or equal to a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0054] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when the first received power of the PPDU received from the OBSS is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold.

[0055] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method is applied to a third communication device, and the first frame further includes fifth indication information for indicating information about a second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of the PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device.

[0056] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from the OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the updated NPCA PD threshold, wherein the updated NPCA PD threshold is the sum of the difference between the first received power and the second received power and the NPCA PD threshold.

[0057] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the SR technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from the OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the updated NPCA PD threshold, wherein the updated NPCA PD threshold is the sum of the difference between the first received power and the second received power and the NPCA PD threshold.

[0058] It should be understood that the first communication device and the third communication device may be some distance apart, and the received power detected by the first communication device and the third communication device for the same PPDU from OBSS may be different. Based on the second received power of the second communication device detected by the first communication device, the first received power of the PPDU received by the third communication device is corrected so that when the first communication device and the third communication device receive the same OBSS PPDU, the target channel access technology obtained by the above rules is as similar as possible (i.e., the first communication device and the third communication device both use NPCA technology, or both use SR technology).

[0059] In this embodiment, the difference between the first received power and the second received power is used to compensate for the difference in received power between the third communication device and the first communication device for the same PPDU. In this way, when the first communication device and one or more third communication devices associated with the first communication device determine the target channel access technology based on the first received power and the NPCA PD threshold, the relationship between the NPCA PD threshold and the first received power of the PPDU is more consistent. This is beneficial for each communication device to determine a unified target channel access technology based on the rules provided in this embodiment.

[0060] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the second element includes third indication information and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; the determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the SR technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from the OBSS does not belong to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0061] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first frame further includes fifth indication information, which is used to indicate information about a second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of a PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device, wherein the PPDU does not belong to the second communication device.

[0062] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, determining the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: determining the target channel access technology based on the priority of the SR technology and the NPCA technology.

[0063] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the second frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

[0064] Thirdly, this application provides a channel access technology applied to a first communication device, which can be an access point (AP) or a chip within the AP; this application does not limit the specific application to this. The method includes: generating a second frame, the second frame indicating a target channel access technology, the second frame including information about the target channel access technology, the target channel access technology including spatial multiplexing (SR) technology or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology; and transmitting the second frame.

[0065] It should be understood that if the first communication device also receives a PPDU from the OBSS after sending the second frame, then the first communication device will also access the channel based on the target channel access technology indicated in the second frame. That is, the first communication device and the third communication device in the same BSS determine the target channel access technology in the same way. The number of third communication devices can be one or more, and this application does not limit the number of third communication devices.

[0066] In this embodiment, the first communication device directly indicates the target channel access technology that is allowed to be used through the second frame. When both the first and third communication devices receive PPDUs from sources that do not belong to this BSS, they can access the channel based on the target channel access technology indicated by the second frame. This helps to avoid different access channels due to different channel access technologies used by each communication device in the presence of external BSS interference, which is beneficial to improving system performance.

[0067] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the method further includes: the first communication device accessing the channel using the target channel access technology.

[0068] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the second frame includes a first element and a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element is used to indicate parameters of the SR technology.

[0069] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the first element includes first indication information, which indicates whether the use of NPCA technology is permitted.

[0070] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the second element includes a parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, a non-spatial multiplexing group overlapping basic service set OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and a spatial multiplexing group information presence field; when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is permitted, and the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is disallowed, the target channel access technology is the NPCA technology.

[0071] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the second element further includes a parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, a non-spatial multiplexing group overlapping basic service set OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and a spatial multiplexing group information presence field; when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is not allowed, and the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is allowed, the target channel access technology is the SR technology.

[0072] For example, the value of the NPCA Not Allowed field in the first element can indicate whether NPCA technology is allowed.

[0073] In one possible implementation, if the NPCA-disallowed field has the second value, it indicates that the NPCA technology is allowed; if the NPCA-disallowed field has the third value, it indicates that the NPCA technology is not allowed. If the values ​​of the parameter space reuse disallowed field, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space reuse group information existence field do not simultaneously satisfy the following conditions: the parameter space reuse disallowed field has the fourth value, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field has the fifth value, and the space reuse group information existence field has the sixth value, it indicates that the SR technology is allowed. If the values ​​of the parameter space reuse disallowed field, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space reuse group information existence field simultaneously satisfy the following conditions: the parameter space reuse disallowed field has the fourth value, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field has the fifth value, and the space reuse group information existence field has the sixth value, it indicates that the SR technology is not allowed.

[0074] Optionally, the NPCA disallowed field, parameter space reuse disallowed field, non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and space reuse group information existence field can each occupy 1 bit, the second value can be 0, the third value can be 1, the fourth value can be 1, the fifth value can be 1, and the sixth value can be 0. However, this application does not make specific restrictions on the number of bits occupied by each field and the meaning of the value.

[0075] The method provided in this application embodiment directly indicates the target channel access technology through the indication information contained in the first and second elements. Neither the first nor the third communication device needs to determine it themselves. This is beneficial for accessing the channel based on the same target channel access technology when both the first and third communication devices receive PPDUs from sources that do not belong to this BSS.

[0076] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the second frame includes sixth indication information, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology.

[0077] In one possible implementation, the first frame includes a first field, and the first indication information can be indicated by the value of the first field. For example, the first field may be an NPCA-allowed and SR-allowed field, or an NPCA-allowed and SR-disallowed field, or an NPCA-disallowed and SR-allowed field, or an NPCA-disallowed and SR-disallowed field; this application does not specifically limit this.

[0078] Taking the first field as an NPCA-allowed and SR-allowed field, and the first field occupying 2 bits as an example, the NPCA-allowed and SR-allowed field being 10 can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is allowed but the use of SR technology is not allowed; the NPCA-allowed and SR-allowed field being 01 can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is not allowed but the use of SR technology is allowed. The meaning of the value of the first field in this application is not specifically limited.

[0079] The method provided in this application embodiment directly indicates the target channel access technology through the sixth indication information, without the need for indication through the first element or the second element. This is beneficial for saving bits in the first frame and also saves the parsing cost of the receiving end, thereby improving communication efficiency.

[0080] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the second frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

[0081] Optionally, the second frame may be a beacon frame, a probe response frame, or any other management frame that can carry the aforementioned indication information; this application does not specifically limit this.

[0082] For example, the second frame may be a beacon frame. The first communication device periodically broadcasts the second frame within the BSS. It is worth noting that the content of the second frame may be different after each broadcast cycle. Both the first communication device and the third communication device that receives the second frame may access the channel based on the target channel access technology indicated in the latest received second frame.

[0083] Fourthly, this application also provides a channel access method applied to a third communication device, which may be a non-AP STA or a chip within a non-AP STA; this application does not specifically limit this application. The third communication device is in the same basic service set as the aforementioned first communication device. The method includes: receiving a second frame, the second frame being used to indicate a target channel access technology, the second frame including information about the target channel access technology, the target channel access technology including spatial multiplexing (SR) technology or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology; and accessing a channel using the target channel access technology.

[0084] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the second frame includes a first element and a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element is used to indicate parameters of the SR technology.

[0085] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the first element includes first indication information, which indicates whether the use of NPCA technology is permitted.

[0086] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the second element includes a parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, a non-spatial multiplexing group overlapping basic service set OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and a spatial multiplexing group information presence field; when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is permitted, and the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is disallowed, the target channel access technology is the NPCA technology.

[0087] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the second element further includes a parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, a non-spatial multiplexing group overlapping basic service set OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and a spatial multiplexing group information presence field; when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is not allowed, and the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is allowed, the target channel access technology is the SR technology.

[0088] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the second frame includes sixth indication information, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology.

[0089] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the second frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

[0090] Fifthly, this application provides a channel access apparatus, including a module for implementing the method in any of the possible implementations of the first, second, third, or fourth aspects.

[0091] A sixth aspect provides another channel access device, including a processor coupled to a memory, which can be used to execute instructions in the memory to implement the methods in any of the possible implementations of the first, second, third, or fourth aspects described above. Optionally, the device further includes a memory. Optionally, the device further includes a communication interface, to which the processor is coupled.

[0092] A seventh aspect provides a processor, comprising: an input circuit, an output circuit, and a processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured to receive signals through the input circuit and transmit signals through the output circuit, causing the processor to execute the method in any of the possible implementations of the first, second, third, or fourth aspects described above.

[0093] In specific implementation, the processor can be a chip, the input circuit can be an input pin, the output circuit can be an output pin, and the processing circuit can be a transistor, gate circuit, flip-flop, and various logic circuits. The input signal received by the input circuit can be received and input by, for example, but not limited to, a receiver, and the signal output by the output circuit can be output to, for example, but not limited to, a transmitter and transmitted by the transmitter. Furthermore, the input circuit and the output circuit can be the same circuit, which is used as the input circuit and the output circuit at different times. This application does not limit the specific implementation of the processor and various circuits.

[0094] Eighthly, a processing apparatus is provided, including a processor and a memory. The processor is configured to read instructions stored in the memory and to receive signals via a receiver and transmit signals via a transmitter to execute the methods in any of the possible implementations of the first, second, third, or fourth aspects described above.

[0095] Optionally, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories.

[0096] Alternatively, the memory can be integrated with the processor, or the memory can be set up separately from the processor.

[0097] In specific implementation, the memory can be a non-transitory memory, such as read-only memory (ROM), which can be integrated with the processor on the same chip or set on different chips. The embodiments of this application do not limit the type of memory or the way the memory and processor are set.

[0098] It should be understood that the relevant data interaction process, such as sending indication information, can be the process of outputting indication information from the processor, and receiving capability information can be the process of the processor receiving input capability information. Specifically, the processed output data can be output to the transmitter, and the input data received by the processor can come from the receiver. Here, the transmitter and receiver can be collectively referred to as a transceiver.

[0099] The processing device in the eighth aspect above can be a chip. The processor can be implemented in hardware or software. When implemented in hardware, the processor can be a logic circuit, integrated circuit, etc. When implemented in software, the processor can be a general-purpose processor that reads software code stored in memory. The memory can be integrated into the processor or located outside the processor and exist independently.

[0100] Ninthly, a computer program product is provided, comprising: a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions) that, when executed, causes a computer to perform the methods in any of the possible implementations of the first, second, third, or fourth aspects described above.

[0101] In a tenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided that stores a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions) that, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform the methods in any of the possible implementations of the first, second, third, or fourth aspects described above. Attached Figure Description

[0102] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0103] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the bandwidth of a master channel and a slave channel provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0104] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the principle of SR technology provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0105] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the NPCA technology principle provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0106] Figure 5 is a schematic flowchart of a channel access method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0107] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the format of a first element provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0108] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the format of a second element provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0109] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the format of a neighboring STA information list provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0110] Figure 9 is a schematic flowchart of another channel access method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0111] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of another format of the first element provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0112] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a channel access device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0113] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of another channel access device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0114] The technical solutions in this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0115] In the embodiments of the present application, terms such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish identical or similar items with basically the same functions and effects. For example, the first value and the second value are only used to distinguish different values, and do not limit their order. Those skilled in the art can understand that terms such as "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity and execution order, and terms such as "first" and "second" do not necessarily mean different.

[0116] It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplarily" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or explanations. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplarily" or "for example" in this application should not be construed as more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplarily" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a specific manner.

[0117] In the embodiments of the present application, "at least one" means one or more, and "multiple" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one (item)" or its similar expression refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single item (s) or plural item (s). For example, at least one (item) of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, a - b, a - c, b - c, or a - b - c, where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

[0118] The technical solutions of this application embodiment can be applied to various communication systems, such as: wireless local area network (WLAN) communication systems, general packet radio service (GPRS), long term evolution (LTE) systems, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) systems, LTE time division duplex (TDD) systems, universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication systems, 5th generation (5G) systems, or new radio (NR), etc.

[0119] The following is an illustrative example, using a WLAN system as an example, to describe the application scenarios and methods of the embodiments of this application.

[0120] Specifically, the embodiments of this application can be applied to wireless local area networks (WLANs), and can be applied to any of the IEEE 802.11 series protocols currently used in WLANs, especially WLAN systems based on the 802.11be standard, the 802.11bn standard, and their subsequent improvements. A WLAN may include one or more basic service sets (BSSs). Network nodes in a BSS may include access point stations (AP STAs) and non-access point stations (non-AP STAs). In the embodiments of this application, AP STAs are abbreviated as APs, and non-AP STAs are abbreviated as STAs. In some implementations, AP STAs and non-AP STAs may be collectively referred to as stations or nodes, and this application does not limit this.

[0121] Specifically, the station (STA) in this application embodiment can also be referred to as a system, user unit, access terminal, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, user equipment, or user equipment (UE). The STA can be a cellular phone, cordless phone, session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, wireless local loop (WLL) station, personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld device with wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi) communication capabilities, wearable device, computing device, or other processing device connected to a wireless modem. The STA product is typically a terminal product supporting the IEEE 802.11 series standards, such as a mobile phone or laptop. The STA can have a single antenna, multiple antennas, or more than two antennas. For example, the STA may include physical layer (PHY) processing circuitry and media access control (MAC) processing circuitry. The physical layer processing circuitry can process physical layer signals, and the MAC layer processing circuitry can process MAC layer signals.

[0122] The access point (AP) in this embodiment can be used to communicate with the STA via a wireless local area network (WLAN) and transmit the STA's data to the network side, or transmit data from the network side to the STA. An AP can also be called a wireless access point or a hotspot. An AP is an access point for mobile users to access a wired network, mainly deployed in homes, buildings, and campuses, but can also be deployed outdoors. An AP acts as a bridge connecting wired and wireless networks, its main function being to connect various wireless network clients together and then connect the wireless network to the Ethernet. Specifically, an AP can be a terminal device or network device with a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) chip. Optionally, an AP can be a device supporting multiple WLAN standards such as 802.11. Specifically, an AP can have multiple antennas or a single antenna. Exemplarily, an AP can include physical layer (PHY) processing circuitry and media access control (MAC) processing circuitry. The PHY processing circuitry can process physical layer signals, and the MAC processing circuitry can process MAC layer signals.

[0123] In some implementations, the AP and STA can communicate wirelessly using either single-user multiple-input multiple-output (SU-MIMO) or multi-user multiple-input multiple-output (MU-MIMO) technology. Each STA can be equipped with one or more antennas, and each AP can support parallel uplink transmission across multiple sites. Specifically, the STA or AP includes an adjustable-beam antenna, a corresponding radio frequency (RF) channel, a signal processing module, and a protocol module, etc.

[0124] The connection between the antenna and the RF channel can be either predefined or switchable. The RF channel connects to the signal processing module for digital-to-analog or analog-to-digital conversion and for transmitting and receiving signal processing. The signal processing module generates and receives reference signals for measurement, estimates signal strength, channel quality, or channel coefficients. It also connects to a local clock source to modulate or demodulate signals to the target frequency band. The local clock source provides a time reference for when to transmit a specified physical layer (PHY) protocol data unit (PPDU). The signal processing module can trigger the transmission of a specified PPDU at a specified time. The signal processing module also connects to the protocol module for packet encapsulation and decapsulation, and executes the protocol-defined packet transmission and reception sequence, including transmitting and receiving training frames, and responding with response frames. The signal processing module or protocol module can also indicate the beam used by the antenna during transmission or reception.

[0125] Optionally, the STA or AP in the embodiments of this application may also include an external interface module, but the embodiments of this application are not limited thereto.

[0126] Below, we will first give a brief introduction to some of the concepts or terms involved in this application.

[0127] 1. Basic Service Set (BSS)

[0128] A Basic Service Set (BSS) is a fundamental component of an 802.11 local area network. A BSS can include one Access Point (AP) and several non-AP STAs. Non-AP STAs in this BSS can transmit data packets to the wired network through the AP of this BSS.

[0129] In some implementations, a BSS can also be referred to as a cell, but this application does not specifically limit this.

[0130] 2. Overlapping Basic Service Set (OBSS)

[0131] When the signal ranges of multiple BSSs partially or completely overlap, an OBSS is formed. Figure 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a communication system 100 applicable to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 1, non-AP STA 1, non-AP STA 2, non-AP STA 3 and AP 1 connected to AP 1 form BSS1, and non-AP STA 4, non-AP STA 5, non-AP STA 6 and AP 2 connected to AP 2 form BSS2. BSS1 and BSS2 have an overlapping area as shown in the figure, that is, BSS1 can be understood as the OBSS of BSS2, and BSS2 can also be understood as the OBSS of BSS1.

[0132] 3. Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA) / Collision Avoidance (CA) Mechanism

[0133] It should be understood that WLAN uses a shared channel for communication. When multiple stations (APs and non-AP STAs can both be referred to as stations) are on the same channel, they can all listen to (or receive) all communications on that channel. To avoid conflicts and collisions, related technologies use CSMA / CA mechanisms to avoid conflicts.

[0134] For example, if station A wants to send data to station B, it needs to first check the channel status. If station A finds the channel to be idle, it opens a backoff window to compete for the channel after waiting for one distributed coordination function interframe space (DIFS). If station A's backoff counter first decreases to 0, station A sends a data frame and waits for acknowledgment. The data frame sent by station A carries the network allocation vector (NAV) information for that data frame. Other stations receiving this frame update their own NAV information, indicating that the channel is busy during this period and that if they have data to send, they need to delay and wait. After station B correctly receives the data frame, it waits for a short interframe space (SIFS) and then sends an acknowledgment (ACK) frame to station A. When station B finishes sending its ACK frame, the channel becomes idle. After waiting for the DIFS time, other stations that need to send data begin to compete for the channel using the backoff algorithm. The station whose backoff counter first decreases to 0 begins to send a data frame.

[0135] It should be understood that although a frame sent by a station can be received by a non-target receiving station, the non-target receiving station will ignore or discard the frame if it finds that the receiving address is not itself after parsing the frame header.

[0136] It should also be understood that the available bandwidth of a site consists of several channels with a bandwidth of 20MHz. For example, if the site's bandwidth is 160MHz, then this bandwidth can consist of eight 20MHz channels. As shown in Figure 2, among all channels within the available bandwidth, there is one main channel and several secondary channels (or sub-channels). The main channel is a common operating channel for all sites in a BSS. Each site in the BSS can compete for channel resources on the main channel. Relevant technical regulations stipulate that sites must ensure the main channel is idle when competing for channels. Otherwise, if the main channel is busy, even if a large number of secondary channels are idle, the site can only receive information and cannot immediately participate in channel competition to avoid interfering with sites that are transmitting. Optionally, the main channel or secondary channels can also be other bandwidths, such as 40MHz, which is not limited in this application.

[0137] As BSS density increases, OBSS scenarios become more common. As shown in Figure 1, BSS1 and BSS2 may operate on the same main channel. This can lead to stations within BSS1 or BSS2 receiving Physical Protocol Data Units (PPDUs) from stations outside their own BSS. For example, non-AP STA 4 in Figure 1 can receive PPDUs sent by AP 2 in its own BSS (i.e., BSS2) as well as PPDUs sent by AP 1 or non-AP STA 3 in an external BSS (i.e., BSS1). If traditional methods are used, when non-AP STA 4 wants to send data to AP 2, it may always detect that the main channel is busy because stations in BSS1 are using the main channel to send data. This would require non-AP STA 4 to update its waiting time based on the NAV in the received data frame, preventing it from immediately performing backoff and competing for the channel, thus affecting the station's transmission efficiency.

[0138] Below, we introduce two related technologies to address the above issues:

[0139] Related technology 1: Spatial reuse (SR) technology

[0140] SR technology includes spatial reuse parameter (SRP) technology and SR technology based on OBSS packet detection (PD). The latter will be described as an example, and can be simply referred to as SR based on OBSS PD.

[0141] Figure 3 illustrates an exemplary schematic diagram of the SR technology principle based on OBSS PD. As shown in Figure 3, when a station in this BSS receives a PPDU from an external BSS, if the received power Pr of the PPDU is less than the OBSS PD threshold (which can be called the OBSS_PD Level), it is considered that the transmission energy of this PPDU is small and will not affect the transmission of this station. Therefore, the station in this BSS can consider the main channel to be idle and ignore the network allocation vector (NAV) carried in the PPDU. It can open a contention window and execute a backoff procedure to compete for the channel.

[0142] It should be understood that after a station in this BSS completes the backoff procedure and obtains the right to use the main channel, if a station in an external BSS is still transmitting, the station in this BSS and the station in the external BSS can reuse the main channel and transmit data on the main channel simultaneously. In this way, the station in this BSS does not need to wait for the NAV duration to perform channel access, which is beneficial to improving communication efficiency and increasing channel resource utilization.

[0143] Related Technology 2: Non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology

[0144] Figure 4 illustrates an exemplary schematic diagram of the NPCA technology principle. As shown in Figure 4, when a station in this BSS receives a PPDU from an external BSS, if the duration of the NAV carried by the PPDU exceeds a preset duration, the station in this BSS can switch its radio frequency from the primary channel to a pre-set secondary channel.

[0145] It should be understood that in the OBSS scenario, the distance between each station is relatively short. It can be understood that if one station in this BSS can receive the PPDU from the external BSS, other stations in this BSS can also receive the PPDU from the external BSS. Therefore, for each station in this BSS, regardless of whether the PPDU is received simultaneously or sequentially, if the duration of the NAV carried by the PPDU is greater than a preset duration, it can switch from the primary channel to the secondary channel.

[0146] In some implementations, each station in this BSS completes radio frequency handover within a handover delay. After handover, it performs channel access and frame exchange on the slave channel, and switches back to the primary channel before the NAV carried in the external BSS's PPDU ends, continuing to perform channel access and frame exchange on the primary channel. In this way, when each station in this BSS receives a PPDU from an external BSS on the primary channel, it does not need to wait for the duration corresponding to the NAV on the primary channel. Instead, it can switch to the slave channel to perform channel access and frame exchange. Before the NAV ends, i.e., before the external BSS's PPDU is sent, it switches back to the primary channel to continue performing channel contention, frame exchange, and other processes. This improves communication efficiency and, when the primary channel is busy, utilizes the idle slave channel, thus improving channel resource utilization.

[0147] Understandably, if a station in this BSS receives a PPDU from an external BSS on the main channel with a received power Pr less than the OBSS PD threshold, and its carried NAV is also greater than the preset duration involved in the aforementioned NPCA, then each station in this BSS can continue operating in one of the following two ways:

[0148] Method 1: Based on SR technology, the stations in this BSS determine that the main channel is idle and ignore the NAV carried in the PPDU of the external BSS, and continue to work on the main channel, that is, perform channel access on the main channel.

[0149] Method 2: Based on NPCA technology, the stations in this BSS switch to working from the channel.

[0150] It is worth noting that this BSS may include at least one AP or multiple non-AP STAs. Related technologies do not explicitly specify whether each station should use mode 1 or mode 2 in this scenario. This means that after receiving a PPDU from an external BSS, it is uncertain whether each station in this BSS will remain on the primary channel or switch to the secondary channel. If some stations remain on the primary channel while others switch to the secondary channel, the non-AP STAs not on the same channel as the AP cannot exchange frames with the AP in this BSS. In other words, the non-AP STAs cannot send or receive data normally, and the AP cannot send data to them either, affecting the communication efficiency between the non-AP STAs and the AP, and leading to a decrease in the overall system performance of this BSS.

[0151] In view of this, embodiments of this application provide a channel access method and apparatus, which uses the AP in this BSS to indicate information about the channel access technology, so that the receiving end can determine a unique target channel access technology. The target channel access technology is one of NPCA and SR technologies, which makes the processing method of each station in this BSS when receiving PPDU from an external BSS uniform. This helps to avoid the existence of non-AP STAs in each station of this BSS that are not working on the same channel as the AP in this BSS, and helps to improve system performance.

[0152] The channel access method of this application will now be described in detail with reference to Figures 5 to 10. The embodiments shown in this application illustrate the channel access method provided by this application from the perspective of device interaction. The specific forms and quantities of the devices shown are merely examples and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation of the method provided in this application.

[0153] Figure 5 is a schematic flowchart of a channel access method 500 provided in an embodiment of this application. This method 500 can be applied to the communication system shown in Figure 1. The method 500 specifically includes the following steps:

[0154] S501. The first communication device generates a first frame. The first frame is used to instruct the receiving end to determine the target channel access technology. The first frame includes information about the channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology and / or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology.

[0155] S502, the first communication device sends a first frame; correspondingly, the third communication device receives the first frame.

[0156] S503, the third communication device determines the target channel access technology based on information from the channel access technology.

[0157] It should be understood that the first communication device and the third communication device are in the same BSS. The first communication device can be an AP in the BSS, and the third communication device can be any non-AP STA associated with the first communication device.

[0158] It should also be understood that after the first communication device sends the first frame, if the first communication device also receives the PPDU from the OBSS, then the first communication device also determines the target channel access technology based on the channel access technology information included in the first frame, and the first communication device and the third communication device in the same BSS determine the target channel access technology in the same way.

[0159] In this embodiment, the first frame sent by the first communication device includes information on the channel access technology. The first frame instructs the receiving end to determine a unique target channel access technology based on this information. The channel access technology includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology and / or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. The target channel access technology is one of SR technology and NPCA technology. This is beneficial for each communication device in the same BSS to clearly identify the unique allowed channel access technology when they all receive PPDUs from sources that do not belong to this BSS. It also helps to avoid different communication devices using different channel access technologies due to interference from external BSSs, thus improving system performance.

[0160] It should be understood that since the first communication device and the second communication device are in the same BSS, it can generally be assumed that the third communication device can also receive the PPDU of the external BSS that the first communication device can receive, and similarly, the first communication device can also receive the PPDU of the external BSS that the third communication device can receive.

[0161] Optionally, the first communication device and the third communication device may receive PPDUs from the external BSS simultaneously or may not receive PPDUs from the external BSS simultaneously; this application does not limit this.

[0162] In one possible implementation, after sending the first frame and receiving the PPDU of the external BSS, the first communication device determines the target channel access technology based on the channel access technology information included in the first frame; after receiving the first frame and then receiving the PPDU of the external BSS, the third communication device determines the target channel access technology based on the channel access technology information included in the first frame. That is, the above-mentioned S503 may not be executed immediately after S502, but this application does not limit this.

[0163] As an optional embodiment, the first frame includes a first element and / or a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element is used to indicate parameters of the SR technology.

[0164] It should be understood that the first frame can be implemented in three ways: the first frame includes only the first element, the first frame includes only the second element, or the first frame includes either the first element or the second element. The following will provide a detailed explanation of each of these three possible implementations.

[0165] The first implementation of the first frame: The first frame may only include the first element.

[0166] In one possible implementation, the first element may include first indication information and second indication information, or only the second indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate whether NPCA technology is allowed, and the second indication information is used to indicate the PD threshold for NPCA packet detection.

[0167] Optionally, the first element may be an NPCA parameter set element. The first element may also include one or more of the following fields: element ID, length, element ID extension, NPCA control, NDPA disallowed, NDPA allowed, NDPA information present, NPCA packet detection level, or NPCA packet detection level offset. This application does not specifically limit the fields included in the first element.

[0168] In one possible implementation, the first indication information can be indicated by the value of a field in the first element.

[0169] In one example, the value of the NPCA Not Allowed field can be used to indicate this. Optionally, the NPCA Not Allowed field can occupy 1 bit. When the NPCA Not Allowed field is 1, it can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is not allowed. When the NPCA Not Allowed field is 0, it can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is allowed. This application does not specifically limit the number of bits occupied by the NPCA Not Allowed field or the meaning of its value.

[0170] In another example, the first indication information can also be indicated by the value of the NPCA allow field. Optionally, the NPCA allow field can also occupy 1 bit. When the NPCA allow field is set to 1, it can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is allowed. When the NPCA allow field is set to 0, it can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is not allowed. The embodiments of this application do not specifically limit the number of bits occupied by the NPCA allow field or the meaning of its value.

[0171] In one possible implementation, the second indication information can also be indicated by the value of a field in the first element.

[0172] In one example, the second indication information can be indicated by the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field. The value of the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field can be x, and the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold can be -82 + x, with the unit being decibels per milliwatt (dBm). Specifically, when the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field is 15, the NPCA packet detection threshold contained in the first frame sent by the first communication device is -82 + 15 = -67 dBm. In some implementations, the maximum value of x can be specified as 20, thus the maximum value of the NPCA packet detection threshold is -62 dBm, but this embodiment does not specifically limit this.

[0173] In another example, the second indication information can also be indicated by the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold field. In this case, the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold field is the NPCA packet detection threshold value contained in the first frame sent by the first communication device.

[0174] It should be understood that the values ​​of the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field or the NPCA packet detection threshold field mentioned above are all represented in binary. For example, the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field representing decimal "15" can be understood as the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field being "1111", in which case the NPCA packet detection threshold is -67dBm. However, if you want to directly express "-67" using the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field, one possible value is "11000011" or "10111101". Compared to "1111", it requires more bits. Therefore, in some implementations, the "NPCA packet detection threshold offset field" can be used to indicate the NPCA packet detection threshold. This helps to save bits in the first frame and also helps the receiver to parse it quickly.

[0175] Figure 6 illustrates an exemplary possible format diagram of the first element. As shown in Figure 6, the aforementioned NPCA not allowed field and NPCA information present field can be subfields of the NPCA control field. In some implementations, when the value of the NPCA information present field indicates that NPCA information exists, there is an NPCA packet detection threshold offset field, and the second indication information is indicated through the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field.

[0176] Optionally, the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field can also be a subfield of the NPCA control field. The format shown in Figure 6 is only an example. This application does not limit the specific names of each field or their specific positions in the first element.

[0177] The second way to implement the first frame: The first frame includes only the second element.

[0178] In one possible implementation, the second element may include third and / or fourth indication information, the third indication information being used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the fourth indication information being used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and indication information indicating whether SR technology is permitted.

[0179] Optionally, the second element can be a spatial reuse parameter set element, which may include one or more of the following fields: element ID, length, element ID extension, spatial reuse control (SR control), non-SRG OBSS PD max offset, spatial reuse group OBSS PD min offset, spatial reuse group OBSS PD max offset, spatial reuse group basic service set color bitmap, spatial reuse group partial basic service set identifier bitmap, parameter spatial reuse disallowed (PSR disallowed), non-SRG OBSS PD SR disallowed, and non-SRG offset present. The second element can be one of the following fields: present, SRG information present, HESIGA_spatial_reuse_value15_allowed, or reserved. Figure 7 illustrates an example of one format for the second element.

[0180] In one possible implementation, the third indication information can be indicated by the value of the maximum offset field of the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD; the fourth indication information can be indicated by the values ​​of the minimum offset field of the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD and the maximum offset field of the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD; the indication information on whether SR technology is allowed can be jointly indicated by the values ​​of the parameter spatial multiplexing not allowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR not allowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information existence field.

[0181] In some examples, the parameter space multiplexing disallowed field, the non-space multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space multiplexing group information presence field each occupy 1 bit. When the parameter space multiplexing disallowed field, the non-space multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space multiplexing group information presence field are all simultaneously 1, 1, and 0, it can indicate that the use of SR technology is not allowed. When the parameter space multiplexing disallowed field, the non-space multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space multiplexing group information presence field do not simultaneously satisfy the condition of being 1, 1, and 0, it can indicate that the use of SR technology is allowed. However, this application does not specifically limit the number of bits occupied by each field or the meaning of the value.

[0182] The third way to implement the first frame: The first frame includes a first element and a second element.

[0183] In one possible implementation, the first element can be as described in the first implementation of the first frame above, and the second element can be as described in the second implementation of the first frame above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0184] The following four methods are described for the first and third communication devices to determine the target channel access technology based on the channel access technology information included in the first frame.

[0185] Method 1: Prioritize target channel access technology based on SR technology and NPCA technology.

[0186] In one possible implementation, the priority of SR technology and NPCA technology can be agreed upon by the protocol, configured at the factory, or configured by other communication devices through signaling. This application does not specifically limit this.

[0187] In some implementations, NPCA technology has a higher priority than SR technology. It can be assumed that if the first indication information in the first element indicates that NPCA is allowed, then the target channel access technology is NPCA technology. If the first indication information indicates that NPCA is not allowed, then the target channel technology is SR technology. Even if there is a second element, it does not matter how the second element indicates; we can only focus on the information indicated by the first element.

[0188] In other implementations, SR technology has a higher priority than NPCA technology. It can be assumed that if the value of the field in the second element indicating whether SR technology is allowed indicates that SR technology is allowed, then the target channel access technology is SR technology. If the value of the field in the second element indicating whether SR technology is allowed indicates that SR technology is not allowed, then the target channel technology is NPCA technology. Even if the first element exists, it is not important how the first element indicates it. Only the information indicated by the second element needs to be considered.

[0189] Method 2: Determine the target channel access technology based on the second indication information included in the first element for indicating the NPCA PD threshold. This method is applicable to the first implementation method and the third implementation method of the first frame, or the case where the first communication device also sends the first element through other frames outside the first frame in the second implementation method of the first frame.

[0190] In this case, when the first and third communication devices receive a PPDU from the OBSS, they determine the target channel access technology according to the following rule 1: if a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold indicated in the first frame, the NPCA technology is determined to be the target channel access technology; if a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the NPCA PD threshold indicated in the first frame, the SR technology is determined to be the target channel access technology.

[0191] Optionally, Rule 1 above may be agreed upon by the protocol, configured at the factory, or configured by other communication devices through signaling; this application does not specifically limit this.

[0192] In some implementations, the communication device may determine the target channel access technology using rule 1 above without considering the conditions set in the relevant technologies for using SR and NPCA technologies.

[0193] In another implementation, when determining the target channel access technology using Rule 1 above, the communication device may also consider the conditions set in related technologies for using SR technology and NPCA technology. For example, when the communication device determines NPCA technology as the target channel access technology based on Rule 1 above, it still needs to determine that the duration of the NAV carried by the PPDU from the OBSS is greater than a preset duration before it can actually use NPCA technology to access the channel. Similarly, when the communication device determines SR technology as the target channel access technology based on Rule 1 above, it still needs to determine that the first received power of the PPDU from the OBSS is also less than the OBSS PD threshold before it can actually use SR technology to access the channel.

[0194] It should also be understood that the exclusion of the second element in the first implementation of the first frame does not mean that the first communication device does not send the second element. The first communication device may carry the second element in other frames and send them. This application does not limit this.

[0195] In one possible implementation, the first frame may also include fifth indication information, or the first communication device may carry the fifth indication information in other frames besides the first frame. The fifth indication information is used to indicate information about the second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power received by the first communication device from the PPDU of the second communication device.

[0196] Optionally, the second communication device can be an AP or a non-AP STA. The number of second communication devices can be one or more. The identifier of the second communication device can be any identifier that can uniquely represent the device, such as the MAC address of the second communication device or Internet Protocol (IP). This application does not make any specific limitations in this regard.

[0197] Optionally, the fifth indication information can be indicated through the neighbor STA information list field, where STAs include both AP STAs and non-AP STAs. For example, Figure 8 shows a schematic diagram of the format of the neighbor STA information list field in the first frame. As shown in Figure 6, the neighbor STA information list field can include at least one neighbor STA information subfield. If multiple neighbor STA information subfields exist, they can be sequentially represented as neighbor STA information 1 subfield, neighbor STA information 2 subfield, and so on, without further elaboration. Furthermore, each neighbor STA information subfield may also include a MAC address subfield and a received power Pr* subfield.

[0198] Optionally, if the neighbor STA information is the neighbor AP STA information, the above MAC address subfield can be replaced with the BSSID subfield, and this application does not limit this.

[0199] Furthermore, a specific implementation of the above-mentioned method two includes: determining the target channel access technology based on the second indication information and the fifth indication information included in the first element for indicating the NPCA PD threshold. This method is also applicable to the first implementation method and the third implementation method of the first frame.

[0200] Specifically, in this case, when the first and third communication devices receive a PPDU from the OBSS, they determine the target channel access technology according to the following rule 2: if the received PPDU from the OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the updated NPCA PD threshold, the NPCA technology is determined as the target channel access technology; if the received PPDU from the OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the updated NPCA PD threshold, the SR technology is determined as the target channel access technology; wherein, the updated NPCA PD threshold is the sum of the difference between the first and second received power and the NPCA PD threshold.

[0201] In some implementations, the first and third communication devices can determine whether a received PPDU from the OBSS belongs to the second communication device based on the identification information of the second communication device included in the information of the second communication device. For example, the first and third communication devices can parse the sender address corresponding to the frame header of the PPDU. If the sender address corresponds to the identifier of the second communication device, the PPDU can be considered to belong to the second communication device; otherwise, the PPDU is considered not to belong to the second communication device.

[0202] It should be understood that different communication devices within the same BSS may be at different distances from a second communication device in an outer BSS. Therefore, the first received power (denoted as Pr) of the PPDU detected by each communication device when receiving the PPDU from the second communication device may be different. In this embodiment, the NPCA PD threshold indicated by the second indication information in the first element is regarded as a baseline (denoted as δ). * The first receiving power (denoted as Pr*) of the PPDU received from the second communication device by the first communication device is used to correct the first receiving power of the PPDU actually detected by the third communication device (or the first communication device) from the OBSS, so that the first and third communication devices can make a more accurate judgment on which technology to use to access the channel based on the updated NPCA PD threshold (denoted as δ).

[0203] Alternatively, one possible way to calculate the updated NPCA PD threshold is δ = δ* + (Pr - Pr*), which is not specifically limited. It is worth noting that when the first communication device calculates the updated NPCA PD threshold using δ = δ* + (Pr - Pr*), since Pr = Pr*, δ = δ*.

[0204] Furthermore, in some implementations, if the received PPDU from the OBSS does not belong to the second communication device, the first and third communication devices can determine the target channel access technology according to Rule 1 above, which will not be described again here. Moreover, the first communication device can subsequently add the information of the communication device to which the PPDU belongs to the aforementioned neighboring STA information list to enrich the list information.

[0205] In other implementations, when the received PPDU from the OBSS does not belong to the second communication device, it can be considered that NPCA technology is not allowed but SR technology is allowed. Furthermore, if the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, SR technology can be determined as the target channel access technology. The first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0206] Method 3: Determine the target channel access technology based on the third and / or fourth indication information included in the second element. This method is applicable to the second and third implementation methods of the first frame, or the case where the first communication device also sends the second element through other frames outside the first frame in the first implementation method of the first frame.

[0207] In this case, when the first and third communication devices receive a PPDU from the OBSS, they determine the target channel access technology according to the following rule 3: if the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to a first value, the NPCA technology is determined as the target channel access technology; if the first received power of the PPDU is less than the first value, the SR technology is determined as the target channel access technology; wherein, the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0208] It should be understood that when the second element indicates that SR technology is permitted, it can typically only allow one of the spatial multiplexing group and the non-spatial multiplexing group. Correspondingly, the third indication information used to indicate the OBSS PD threshold of the non-spatial multiplexing group and the fourth indication information used to indicate the OBSS PD threshold of the spatial multiplexing group may not exist simultaneously. Therefore, when the second element only includes the third indication information, the first value can be the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold indicated by the third indication information. When the second element only includes the fourth indication information, the first value can be the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold indicated by the fourth indication information. When the second element includes both the third and fourth indication information, the first value can be the maximum value between the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0209] Optionally, rule 3 above may also be agreed upon by the protocol, configured at the factory, or configured by other communication devices through signaling. This application does not specifically limit this.

[0210] It should also be understood that when the first communication device sends the second element through the second implementation of the first frame, it does not mean that the first communication device will not send the first element. The first communication device can carry the first element in other frames for transmission, and this application does not make specific limitations in this regard.

[0211] Method 4: The target channel access technology is determined based on the second indication information included in the first element for indicating the NPCA PD threshold, the third indication information included in the second element, and / or the fourth indication information. This method is applicable to the third implementation of the first frame, or the case where the first communication device also sends the second element through other frames outside the first frame in the first implementation of the first frame, or the case where the first communication device also sends the first element through other frames outside the first frame in the second implementation of the first frame.

[0212] In one possible implementation, the NPCA PD threshold is greater than or equal to a first value, which is the maximum of the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0213] In this case, when the first and third communication devices receive a PPDU from the OBSS, they determine the target channel access technology according to the following rule 4: if the first received power of the received PPDU from the OBSS is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold, the NPCA technology is determined as the target channel access technology; if the first received power of the received PPDU from the OBSS is less than the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold (e.g., when the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field in the second element is 0) or less than the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold (e.g., when the spatial multiplexing group information exists field in the second element is 1), the SR technology is determined as the target channel access technology.

[0214] In one possible implementation, the second indication information is indicated by the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold is indicated by the value of the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD maximum offset field, and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold is indicated by the values ​​of the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD minimum offset field and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD maximum offset field. One way to ensure that the NPCA PD threshold is greater than or equal to the first value is to set the value of the NPCA packet detection threshold offset field to be greater than the value of the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD maximum offset field, or the value of the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD maximum offset field, or the maximum value between the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD maximum offset field and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD maximum offset field.

[0215] Optionally, rule 4 above may also be agreed upon by the protocol, configured at the factory, or configured by other communication devices through signaling. This application does not specifically limit this.

[0216] It is worth noting that the specific communication device may adopt any of the above-mentioned rules 1, 2, 3 or 4, or may be configured by signaling through the protocol, factory configuration or other communication devices. This application does not make any specific restrictions on this.

[0217] It should also be noted that the above discussion is based on the condition that the first received power of the PPDU received from the OBSS is greater than or equal to -82 dBm and less than or equal to -62 dBm. This is because if the first received power is less than -82 dBm, the PPDU energy can be considered too small and its interference can be ignored, indicating that the channel is idle. If the first received power is greater than -62 dBm, the PPDU energy can be considered too large and cannot be ignored, indicating that the channel is busy and no further discussion is needed.

[0218] Optionally, the first frame may be a beacon frame, a probe response frame, or any other management frame that can carry the aforementioned indication information; this application does not specifically limit this. For example, the first frame may be a beacon frame. The first communication device periodically broadcasts the first frame within the BSS. It is worth noting that the content of the first frame may be different after each broadcast cycle. Both the first communication device and the third communication device that receives the first frame can determine the available target channel access technology based on the channel access technology information contained in the latest received first frame.

[0219] Figure 9 shows a schematic flowchart of another channel access method 900. This method 900 can be applied to the communication system shown in Figure 1. Method 900 specifically includes the following steps:

[0220] S901, the first communication device generates a second frame, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology. The second frame includes information about the target channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology.

[0221] S902, the first communication device sends the second frame; correspondingly, the third communication device receives the second frame.

[0222] S903, the third communication device accesses the channel using target channel access technology.

[0223] It should be understood that if the first communication device also receives a PPDU from the OBSS after sending the second frame, then the first communication device will also access the channel based on the target channel access technology indicated in the second frame. That is, the first communication device and the third communication device in the same BSS determine the target channel access technology in the same way. The number of third communication devices can be one or more, and this application does not limit the number of third communication devices.

[0224] In this embodiment, the first communication device directly indicates the target channel access technology that is allowed to be used through the second frame. When both the first and third communication devices receive PPDUs from sources that do not belong to this BSS, they can access the channel based on the target channel access technology indicated by the second frame. This helps to avoid different access channels due to different channel access technologies used by each communication device in the presence of external BSS interference, which is beneficial to improving system performance.

[0225] As an optional embodiment, the second frame includes a first element and a second element. The first element is used to indicate parameters related to the NPCA technology, and the second element is used to indicate parameters related to the SR technology. The content and format of the first element can be as described in the first implementation of the first frame above, and the content and format of the second element can be as described in the second implementation of the first frame above, which will not be repeated here.

[0226] It is worth noting that the NPCA information existence field, NPCA packet detection threshold field, or NPCA packet detection threshold offset field of the first element described in the first implementation of the first frame in this scheme can be optional fields. For example, the format of the first element in this scheme can be as shown in Figure 10.

[0227] As an optional embodiment, the first element includes first indication information for indicating whether NPCA technology is allowed; the second element includes a parameter spatial reuse not allowed field, a non-spatial reuse group overlap basic service set OBSS PD SR not allowed field, and a spatial reuse group information existence field for jointly indicating whether SR technology is allowed.

[0228] In one possible implementation, when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is permitted, and the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information existence field jointly indicate that SR technology is not permitted, the target channel access technology is NPCA technology.

[0229] In another possible implementation, when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is not allowed, the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information existence field jointly indicate that SR technology is allowed, the target channel access technology is SR technology.

[0230] For example, the value of the NPCA Not Allowed field in the first element can indicate whether NPCA technology is allowed.

[0231] In one possible implementation, if the NPCA-disallowed field has the second value, it indicates that the NPCA technology is allowed; if the NPCA-disallowed field has the third value, it indicates that the NPCA technology is not allowed. If the values ​​of the parameter space reuse disallowed field, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space reuse group information existence field do not simultaneously satisfy the following conditions: the parameter space reuse disallowed field has the fourth value, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field has the fifth value, and the space reuse group information existence field has the sixth value, it indicates that the SR technology is allowed. If the values ​​of the parameter space reuse disallowed field, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space reuse group information existence field simultaneously satisfy the following conditions: the parameter space reuse disallowed field has the fourth value, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field has the fifth value, and the space reuse group information existence field has the sixth value, it indicates that the SR technology is not allowed.

[0232] Optionally, the NPCA disallowed field, parameter space reuse disallowed field, non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and space reuse group information existence field can each occupy 1 bit, the second value can be 0, the third value can be 1, the fourth value can be 1, the fifth value can be 1, and the sixth value can be 0. However, this application does not make specific restrictions on the number of bits occupied by each field and the meaning of the value.

[0233] The method provided in this application embodiment directly indicates the target channel access technology through the indication information contained in the first and second elements. Neither the first nor the third communication device needs to determine it themselves. This is beneficial for accessing the channel based on the same target channel access technology when both the first and third communication devices receive PPDUs from sources that do not belong to this BSS.

[0234] As an optional embodiment, the second frame includes sixth indication information, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology.

[0235] In one possible implementation, the first frame includes a first field, and the first indication information can be indicated by the value of the first field. For example, the first field may be an NPCA-allowed and SR-allowed field, or an NPCA-allowed and SR-disallowed field, or an NPCA-disallowed and SR-allowed field, or an NPCA-disallowed and SR-disallowed field; this application does not specifically limit this.

[0236] Taking the first field as an NPCA-allowed and SR-allowed field, and the first field occupying 2 bits as an example, the NPCA-allowed and SR-allowed field being 10 can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is allowed but the use of SR technology is not allowed; the NPCA-allowed and SR-allowed field being 01 can indicate that the use of NPCA technology is not allowed but the use of SR technology is allowed. The meaning of the value of the first field in this application is not specifically limited.

[0237] The method provided in this application embodiment directly indicates the target channel access technology through the sixth indication information, without the need for indication through the first element or the second element. This is beneficial for saving bits in the first frame and also saves the parsing cost of the receiving end, thereby improving communication efficiency.

[0238] It is worth noting that indicating the target channel access technology through the first indication information, the parameter spatial multiplexing not allowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR not allowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information existence field, and / or indicating the target channel access technology through the sixth indication information, can both indicate the situation where both SR technology and NPCA technology are allowed, and the situation where neither SR technology nor NPCA technology is allowed.

[0239] In some examples, the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is allowed (e.g., the NPCA disallowed field can be 0), the parameter space multiplexing disallowed field, the non-space multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is allowed (e.g., the parameter space multiplexing disallowed field, the non-space multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space multiplexing group information presence field do not simultaneously satisfy the parameter space multiplexing disallowed field being 1, the non-space multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field being 1, and the space multiplexing group information presence field being 0), and / or, the sixth indication information indicates that both SR technology and NPCA technology are allowed (e.g., NPCA is allowed and the SR allowed field is 11). In this case, the communication device can also execute the methods corresponding to the above-described methods two, three, or four.

[0240] In other examples, the first indication indicates that NPCA technology is not allowed (e.g., the NPCA disallowed field can be 1), the parameter space reuse disallowed field, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space reuse group information existence field jointly indicate that SR technology is not allowed (e.g., the parameter space reuse disallowed field, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the space reuse group information existence field simultaneously satisfy the parameter space reuse disallowed field being 1, the non-space reuse group OBSS PD SR disallowed field being 1, and the space reuse group information existence field being 0), and / or, the sixth indication indicates that both SR technology and NPCA technology are not allowed (e.g., NPCA is allowed and the SR allowed field is 00).

[0241] Optionally, the first communication device may disable both SR and NPCA via a second frame if OBSS is detected to be absent, but this application does not limit this.

[0242] Optionally, the second frame can be a beacon frame, a probe response frame, or any other management frame that can carry the aforementioned indication information; this application does not specifically limit this. For example, the second frame can be a beacon frame, which the first communication device periodically broadcasts within the BSS. It is worth noting that the content of the second frame may differ after each broadcast cycle. Both the first communication device and the third communication device that receives the second frame can access the channel based on the target channel access technology indicated in the latest received second frame. Alternatively, the first and second frames can be broadcast alternately; this application does not specifically limit the method by which the first communication device sends the first frame and / or the second frame.

[0243] It should be understood that the steps in the above embodiments can also be coupled to each other, and this application does not limit this. Furthermore, the sequence numbers of the above processes do not imply a specific 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 this application.

[0244] It should also be understood that the above description of the names of each field is not a specific limitation on the name of the field, and each field may have other names, which are not specifically limited in this application.

[0245] The channel access method of the present application embodiment has been described in detail above with reference to Figures 5 to 10. The channel access device of the present application embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to Figures 11 and 12.

[0246] Figure 11 shows a channel access device 1100 provided in an embodiment of this application. The channel access device 1100 includes a processing module 1101 and a transceiver module 1102.

[0247] In a first possible implementation, the channel access device 1100 is used to implement the steps and processes corresponding to the first communication device described above.

[0248] The processing module 1101 is used to generate a first frame, which is used to instruct the receiving end to determine the target channel access technology. The first frame includes information about the channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology and / or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. The transceiver module 1102 is used to transmit the first frame.

[0249] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is also used to determine the target channel access technology based on information from the channel access technology.

[0250] Optionally, the first frame includes a first element and / or a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technique and the second element is used to indicate parameters of the SR technique.

[0251] Optionally, the first element includes first indication information, which indicates whether the use of NPCA technology is permitted.

[0252] Optionally, the first element may also include second indication information, which is used to indicate the PD threshold for NPCA packet detection.

[0253] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is specifically used to determine NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when it receives a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) from the Overlapping Basic Service Set (OBSS) and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold.

[0254] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine SR technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the NPCA PD threshold.

[0255] Optionally, the second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0256] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0257] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine SR technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0258] Optionally, the second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; the NPCA PD threshold is greater than or equal to a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0259] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when the first received power of the PPDU received from the OBSS is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold.

[0260] Optionally, the first frame may also include fifth indication information, which indicates information about the second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of the PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device.

[0261] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the updated NPCA PD threshold. The updated NPCA PD threshold is the difference between the first received power and the second received power, plus the sum of the NPCA PD threshold.

[0262] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine SR technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the updated NPCA PD threshold. The updated NPCA PD threshold is the difference between the first received power and the second received power, plus the sum of the NPCA PD threshold.

[0263] Optionally, the second element includes third indication information and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; the processing module 1101 is further specifically used to determine SR technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from OBSS does not belong to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0264] Optionally, the first frame may also include fifth indication information, which is used to indicate information about the second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of the PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device. The PPDU does not belong to the second communication device.

[0265] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is also specifically used for priority determination of target channel access technology based on SR technology and NPCA technology.

[0266] Optionally, the first frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

[0267] In the second possible implementation, the channel access device 1100 is used to implement the steps and processes corresponding to the third communication device described above.

[0268] The receiving module 1102 is used to receive a first frame, which is used to instruct the receiving end to determine the target channel access technology. The first frame includes information about the channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology and / or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. The processing module 1101 is used to determine the target channel access technology based on the information about the channel access technology.

[0269] Optionally, the first frame includes a first element and / or a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technique and the second element is used to indicate parameters of the SR technique.

[0270] Optionally, the first element includes first indication information, which indicates whether the use of NPCA technology is permitted.

[0271] Optionally, the first element may also include second indication information, which is used to indicate the PD threshold for NPCA packet detection.

[0272] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is specifically used to determine NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when it receives a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) from the Overlapping Basic Service Set (OBSS) and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold.

[0273] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine SR technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the NPCA PD threshold.

[0274] Optionally, the second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0275] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0276] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine SR technology as the target channel access technology when a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0277] Optionally, the second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; the NPCA PD threshold is greater than or equal to a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0278] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when the first received power of the PPDU received from the OBSS is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold.

[0279] Optionally, the first frame may also include fifth indication information, which indicates information about the second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of the PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device.

[0280] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine NPCA technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the updated NPCA PD threshold. The updated NPCA PD threshold is the difference between the first received power and the second received power, plus the sum of the NPCA PD threshold.

[0281] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is further configured to determine SR technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the updated NPCA PD threshold. The updated NPCA PD threshold is the difference between the first received power and the second received power, plus the sum of the NPCA PD threshold.

[0282] Optionally, the second element includes third indication information and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; the processing module 1101 is further specifically used to determine SR technology as the target channel access technology when the received PPDU from OBSS does not belong to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

[0283] Optionally, the first frame may also include fifth indication information, which is used to indicate information about the second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of the PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device. The PPDU does not belong to the second communication device.

[0284] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is also specifically used for priority determination of target channel access technology based on SR technology and NPCA technology.

[0285] Optionally, the first frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

[0286] In the third possible implementation, the channel access device 1100 is used to implement the steps and processes corresponding to the first communication device.

[0287] The processing module 1101 is used to generate a second frame, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology. The second frame includes information about the target channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. The transceiver module 1102 is used to transmit the second frame.

[0288] Optionally, the processing module 1101 is also used to access the channel using target channel access technology.

[0289] Optionally, the second frame includes a first element and a second element, the first element being used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element being used to indicate parameters of the SR technology.

[0290] Optionally, the first element includes first indication information, which indicates whether the use of NPCA technology is permitted.

[0291] Optionally, the second element includes a parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, a non-spatial multiplexing group overlapping basic service set OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and a spatial multiplexing group information presence field; when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is permitted, and the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is disallowed, the target channel access technology is NPCA technology.

[0292] Optionally, the second element also includes a parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, a non-spatial multiplexing group overlapping basic service set OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and a spatial multiplexing group information presence field; when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is not allowed, the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is allowed, the target channel access technology is SR technology.

[0293] Optionally, the second frame includes a sixth indication information, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology.

[0294] Optionally, the second frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

[0295] In the fourth possible implementation, the channel access device 1100 is used to implement the steps and processes corresponding to the third communication device described above.

[0296] The transceiver module 1102 is used to receive a second frame, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology. The second frame includes information about the target channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. The processing module 1101 is used to access the channel using the target channel access technology.

[0297] Optionally, the second frame includes a first element and a second element, the first element being used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element being used to indicate parameters of the SR technology.

[0298] Optionally, the first element includes first indication information, which indicates whether the use of NPCA technology is permitted.

[0299] Optionally, the second element includes a parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, a non-spatial multiplexing group overlapping basic service set OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and a spatial multiplexing group information presence field; when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is permitted, and the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is disallowed, the target channel access technology is NPCA technology.

[0300] Optionally, the second element also includes a parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, a non-spatial multiplexing group overlapping basic service set OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and a spatial multiplexing group information presence field; when the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is not allowed, the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is allowed, the target channel access technology is SR technology.

[0301] Optionally, the second frame includes a sixth indication information, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology.

[0302] Optionally, the second frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

[0303] It should be understood that the device 1100 here is embodied in the form of a functional module. The term "module" here can refer to an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), electronic circuitry, a processor (e.g., a shared processor, a proprietary processor, or a group processor, etc.) and memory for executing one or more software or firmware programs, integrated logic circuitry, and / or other suitable components supporting the described functions. In an alternative example, those skilled in the art will understand that the device 1100 may be specifically the first communication device or the third communication device in the above embodiments, or the functions described in the above embodiments may be integrated into the device 1100. The device 1100 may be used to execute the various processes and / or steps corresponding to the first or third communication device in the above method embodiments; to avoid repetition, these will not be described again here.

[0304] The aforementioned device 1100 has the function of implementing the corresponding steps performed by the first or third communication device in the above method; the above function can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above function.

[0305] In embodiments of this application, the device 1100 in FIG9 may also be a chip or a chip system, such as a system on chip (SoC).

[0306] Figure 12 shows a schematic block diagram of a channel access device 1200 provided in an embodiment of this application. The device 1200 includes a processor 1201, a transceiver 1202, and a memory 1203. The processor 1201, transceiver 1202, and memory 1203 communicate with each other via an internal connection path. The memory 1203 stores instructions, and the processor 1201 executes the instructions stored in the memory 1203 to control the transceiver 1202 to transmit and / or receive signals.

[0307] It should be understood that device 1200 may specifically be the first communication device or the third communication device in the above embodiments, and may be used to execute the various steps and / or processes corresponding to the first communication device or the third communication device in the above method embodiments. Optionally, the memory 1203 may include read-only memory and random access memory, and provide instructions and data to the processor. A portion of the memory may also include non-volatile random access memory. For example, the memory may also store device type information. The processor 1201 may be used to execute instructions stored in the memory, and when the processor 1201 executes instructions stored in the memory, the processor 1201 is used to execute the various steps and / or processes of the above method embodiments. The transceiver 1202 may include a transmitter and a receiver, the transmitter may be used to implement the various steps and / or processes corresponding to the transceiver for performing a transmitting action, and the receiver may be used to implement the various steps and / or processes corresponding to the transceiver for performing a receiving action.

[0308] It should be understood that, in the embodiments of this application, the processor may be a central processing unit (CPU), or it may be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0309] In implementation, each step of the above method can be completed by integrated logic circuits in the processor's hardware or by instructions in software. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of this application can be directly manifested as execution by a hardware processor, or as a combination of hardware and software modules within the processor. The software modules can reside in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, or other mature storage media in the art. This storage medium is located in memory, and the processor executes the instructions in the memory, combining them with its hardware to complete the steps of the above method. To avoid repetition, detailed descriptions are omitted here.

[0310] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program for implementing the methods shown in the above-described method embodiments.

[0311] This application also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions) that, when run on a computer, allows the computer to perform the methods shown in the above-described method embodiments.

[0312] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0313] Those skilled in the art will understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0314] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0315] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. 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 the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0316] In addition, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

[0317] If a function is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods of the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

Claims

1. A channel access method, characterized in that, The method includes: A first frame is generated, which is used to instruct the receiving end to determine the target channel access technology. The first frame includes information about the channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology and / or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. Send the first frame.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: The target channel access technology is determined based on the information from the aforementioned channel access technology.

3. A channel access method, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive a first frame, which is used to instruct the receiving end to determine the target channel access technology. The first frame includes information about the channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology and / or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. The target channel access technology is determined based on the information from the aforementioned channel access technology.

4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that, The first frame includes a first element and / or a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element is used to indicate parameters of the SR technology.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The first element includes first indication information, which indicates whether NPCA technology is permitted.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that, The first element also includes second indication information, which is used to indicate the PD threshold for NPCA packet detection.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: If a Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) is received from an Overlapping Basic Service Set (OBSS), and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold, then the NPCA technology is determined to be the target channel access technology.

8. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: If a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the NPCA PD threshold, the SR technology is determined to be the target channel access technology.

9. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that, The second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: If a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to a first value, the NPCA technology is determined to be the target channel access technology, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

11. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: If a PPDU is received from the OBSS and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, the SR technology is determined to be the target channel access technology, where the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

12. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The second element includes third and / or fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-space multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the space multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; The NPCA PD threshold is greater than or equal to a first value, wherein the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that, The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: If the first received power of the PPDU received from the OBSS is greater than or equal to the NPCA PD threshold, the NPCA technology is determined to be the target channel access technology.

14. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The first frame also includes fifth indication information, which is used to indicate information about a second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of the PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device.

15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: If the received PPDU from OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is greater than or equal to the updated NPCA PD threshold, the NPCA technology is determined to be the target channel access technology. The updated NPCA PD threshold is the sum of the difference between the first received power and the second received power and the NPCA PD threshold.

16. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: If the received PPDU from OBSS belongs to the second communication device and the first received power of the PPDU is less than the updated NPCA PD threshold, the SR technology is determined to be the target channel access technology. The updated NPCA PD threshold is the sum of the difference between the first received power and the second received power and the NPCA PD threshold.

17. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The second element includes a third indication information and / or a fourth indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold; The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: If the received PPDU from OBSS does not belong to the second communication device, and the first received power of the PPDU is less than a first value, the SR technology is determined to be the target channel access technology, where the first value is the maximum value among the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold, or the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold and the spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD threshold.

18. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The first frame also includes fifth indication information, which is used to indicate information about a second communication device located in the OBSS of the first communication device. The information about the second communication device includes the identifier of the second communication device and the second received power of the PPDU received by the first communication device from the second communication device, wherein the PPDU does not belong to the second communication device.

19. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that, The determination of the target channel access technology based on the information of the channel access technology includes: The target channel access technology is determined based on the priority of the SR technology and the NPCA technology.

20. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 19, characterized in that, The first frame is either a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

21. A channel access method, characterized in that, The method includes: A second frame is generated, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology. The second frame includes information about the target channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. Send the second frame.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, The method further includes: Access the channel using the target channel access technology.

23. A channel access method, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive a second frame, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology. The second frame includes information about the target channel access technology, which includes spatial multiplexing (SR) technology or non-primary channel access (NPCA) technology. Access the channel using the target channel access technology.

24. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 23, characterized in that, The second frame includes a first element and a second element, wherein the first element is used to indicate the parameters of the NPCA technology and the second element is used to indicate the parameters of the SR technology.

25. The method according to claim 24, characterized in that, The first element includes first indication information, which indicates whether NPCA technology is permitted.

26. The method according to claim 25, characterized in that, The second element includes a parameter space reuse not allowed field, a non-space reuse group overlap basic service set OBSS PD SR not allowed field, and a space reuse group information existence field; When the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is permitted, and the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is disallowed, the target channel access technology is the NPCA technology.

27. The method according to claim 25, characterized in that, The second element also includes a parameter space reuse not allowed field, a non-space reuse group overlap basic service set OBSS PD SR not allowed field, and a space reuse group information existence field; When the first indication information indicates that NPCA technology is not allowed, the parameter spatial multiplexing disallowed field, the non-spatial multiplexing group OBSS PD SR disallowed field, and the spatial multiplexing group information presence field jointly indicate that SR technology is allowed, the target channel access technology is the SR technology.

28. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 27, characterized in that, The second frame includes a sixth indication information, which is used to indicate the target channel access technology.

29. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 28, characterized in that, The second frame is a beacon frame or a probe response frame.

30. A channel access device, characterized in that, include: A module for implementing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 20, or a module for implementing the method as described in any one of claims 21 to 29.

31. A channel access device, characterized in that, include: A processor coupled to a memory storing computer-executable instructions, the processor executing the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, such that the processor performs the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 20, or performs the method as claimed in any one of claims 21 to 29.

32. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, Used to store a computer program, the computer program including instructions for implementing the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 20, or instructions for performing the method as claimed in any one of claims 21 to 29.

33. A computer program product, said computer program product comprising computer program code, characterized in that, When the computer program code is run on a computer, it causes the computer to implement the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 20, or to perform the method as described in any one of claims 21 to 29.

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