Resource allocation method, storage medium, and electronic apparatus

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a resource allocation method, a storage medium, and an electronic apparatus. The method comprises: a first device sends at least one information frame, wherein the at least one information frame carries reserved resource indication information of the first device, and the first device is a transmission opportunity (TXOP) holder.

Description

A resource allocation method, storage medium, and electronic device

[0001] Cross-reference of related applications

[0002] This disclosure is based on Chinese patent application CN202410701776.X, filed on May 31, 2024, entitled “A Resource Allocation Method, Storage Medium and Electronic Device”, and claims priority to that patent application. The entire contents of that patent application are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] This disclosure relates to the field of communications, and more specifically, to a resource allocation method, a storage medium, and an electronic device. Background Technology

[0004] Currently, the use of Wi-Fi networks is growing rapidly, with the number of users and their demands constantly increasing, leading to a growing need for higher throughput, lower latency, and greater efficiency. As applications evolve, more and more applications (such as metaverse, cloud gaming, and real-time video streaming) have high requirements for low latency; therefore, reducing latency is one of the main goals of Wi-Fi 8.

[0005] High throughput and low latency are two key parameters for Quality of Service (QoS) and user experience. The IEEE 802.11 standard introduces various technologies, such as Transmission Opportunity (TXOP) and Triggered TXOP sharing (TXS), to improve QoS and user experience. Before TXOP, nodes that successfully competed for the channel only gained the transmission time for one data frame. If the data packet was large, multiple contentions might be required to complete the transmission, resulting in low throughput and high latency. After introducing the TXOP mechanism, nodes can obtain a segment of channel transmission time, allowing them to transmit multiple data frames, thus improving throughput and reducing latency.

[0006] In some cases, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) is a single-user access mechanism where both the Access Point (AP) and the Station (STA) compete for the right to use the entire channel, and the node that wins the competition uses the channel exclusively. In Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), non-traditional Access Points (APs) compete for the channel with traditional nodes, and the non-traditional AP that wins the competition obtains one TXOP (transmission time).

[0007] However, during the TXOP period, if a STA has low-latency data to transmit, it cannot acquire resources and must wait until the TXOP ends before competing for the channel, thus failing to meet low-latency requirements. On the one hand, to achieve high throughput, long and efficient TXOPs and large bandwidth should be allowed; on the other hand, to achieve low latency, the TXOP duration and / or bandwidth should be limited to reduce latency. Therefore, how can low-latency applications be enabled in networks with high-throughput transmission loads while minimizing the performance impact on high-throughput traffic? A balance needs to be struck between the two.

[0008] In conclusion, there is still no good solution to the above problems. Summary of the Invention

[0009] This disclosure provides a resource allocation method, storage medium, and electronic device to at least solve the problem in the related art that the low latency requirement cannot be met while the TXOP is occupied.

[0010] According to one embodiment of this disclosure, a resource allocation method is provided, the method comprising: a first device sending at least one information frame, wherein the at least one information frame carries reserved resource indication information of the first device, wherein the first device is a Transmission Opportunity (TXOP) holder.

[0011] According to another embodiment of this disclosure, a resource allocation method is provided, the method comprising: a second device receiving at least one information frame sent by a first device, wherein the at least one information frame carries reserved resource indication information of the first device resources, wherein the first device is a Transmission Opportunity (TXOP) holder.

[0012] According to yet another embodiment of this disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium is also provided, which stores a computer program, wherein the computer program is executed by a processor to perform the steps in any of the above method embodiments.

[0013] According to yet another embodiment of this disclosure, an electronic device is also provided, including a memory and a processor, the memory storing a computer program, the processor being configured to run the computer program to perform the steps in any of the above method embodiments.

[0014] According to yet another embodiment of this disclosure, a computer program product is also provided, including a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the steps in any of the above method embodiments. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 is a hardware structure block diagram of the resource reservation method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0016] Figure 2 is a flowchart of a resource reservation method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0017] Figure 3 is a flowchart of a resource reservation method according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0018] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of three types of reserved resources in the embodiments of this disclosure;

[0019] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the process of resource reservation and resource allocation during TXOP in one embodiment of this disclosure;

[0020] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the common information field in a MU-RTS frame according to an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0021] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the user information field in the basic trigger frame in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0022] Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating resource reservation and resource contention during TXOP in one embodiment of this disclosure;

[0023] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the resource reservation process during TXOP in one embodiment of this disclosure;

[0024] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of the extension of a CTS frame in one embodiment of this disclosure;

[0025] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of the time-frequency domain resource reservation and resource allocation process in one embodiment of this disclosure;

[0026] Figure 12 is a flowchart illustrating the time-frequency domain resource reservation and resource contention in one embodiment of this disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0027] The embodiments of this disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and examples.

[0028] It should be noted that the terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and drawings of this disclosure are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence.

[0029] The embodiments disclosed herein can be applied to wireless communication networks. A station (STA) and an access point (AP) are two core concepts in a wireless communication network architecture. APs and STAs can construct wireless networks based on different networking methods, and this disclosure does not impose any limitations on this.

[0030] In this embodiment, the Access Point (AP) is the central node of the wireless network, including but not limited to a wireless router. The Station of the STA (STA) is a terminal device in the wireless network, including but not limited to user devices capable of connecting to the internet such as laptops, smartphones, and tablets. The TXOP holder can be either an AP or a STA.

[0031] The methods and embodiments provided in this disclosure can be executed in mobile terminals, computer terminals, or similar computing devices. Taking a computer terminal as an example, FIG1 is a hardware structure block diagram of the resource reservation method of this disclosure. As shown in FIG1, the hardware board may include one or more (only one is shown in FIG1) processors 12 (processors 12 may include, but are not limited to, processing devices such as microprocessors MCUs or programmable logic devices) and a memory 14 for storing data. The computer terminal may also include a transmission device 16 for communication functions and an input / output device 18. Those skilled in the art will understand that the structure shown in FIG1 is only illustrative and does not limit the structure of the computer terminal. For example, the computer terminal may also include more or fewer components than shown in FIG1, or have a different configuration than shown in FIG1.

[0032] The memory 14 can be used to store computer programs, such as application software programs and modules, like the computer program corresponding to the resource reservation method in this embodiment. The processor 12 executes various functional applications and the resource reservation method by running the computer program stored in the memory 14, thus implementing the aforementioned method. The memory 14 may include high-speed random access memory and may also include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic storage devices, flash memory, or other non-volatile solid-state memory. In some instances, the memory 14 may further include memory remotely located relative to the processor 12, and these remote memories can be connected to a computer terminal via a network. Examples of such networks include, but are not limited to, the Internet, corporate intranets, local area networks, mobile communication networks, and combinations thereof.

[0033] The transmission device 16 is used to receive or send data via a network. Specific examples of the network described above may include a wireless network provided by a telecommunications provider. In one example, the transmission device 16 includes a Network Interface Controller (NIC), which can connect to other network devices via a base station to communicate with the Internet. In another example, the transmission device 16 may be a Radio Frequency (RF) module used for wireless communication with the Internet.

[0034] In this embodiment of the disclosure, the TXOP holder may reserve a portion of the time domain and / or frequency domain resources for use by other nodes during the TXOP time period, based on predetermined conditions such as the size of the data packet to be transmitted or other factors, while other non-reserved resources are allocated or competed for normally.

[0035] In one embodiment of this disclosure, a resource allocation method is provided. Figure 2 is a flowchart of a resource reservation method according to an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 2, the process includes the following steps:

[0036] In step S202, the first device sends at least one information frame.

[0037] In this embodiment, the at least one information frame carries reserved resource indication information of the first device, wherein the first device is a Transmission Opportunity (TXOP) holder.

[0038] This disclosure provides a resource allocation method in which the TXOP holder can reserve some resources for other devices during the TXOP period. This allows devices with special needs (such as low-latency transmission requirements) to compete for the reserved resources for data transmission. This avoids the situation in related technologies where the low-latency data transmission requirements of devices cannot be met during the TXOP period and channel competition can only occur after the TXOP ends. This solves the problem in related technologies where the low-latency requirements cannot be met during the TXOP period.

[0039] In some embodiments, the TXOP holder is a wireless access point or a wireless site.

[0040] In this embodiment, the data transmission between nodes in the wireless network is a destinationless transmission method, similar to broadcasting. Any STA or AP in the wireless network can receive the information frame sent by the first device.

[0041] In some embodiments, the reserved resource indication information is used to inform at least one second device of the reserved resources of the first device during TXOP, wherein the second device obtains the reserved resources through contention and performs data transmission on the reserved resources according to the transmission parameters of the reserved resources. For example, the second device may be a device with low-latency data transmission requirements or other special requirements.

[0042] In some embodiments, the reserved resource indication information includes at least one of the following:

[0043] Reserved resource indicator, used to indicate whether the first device has reserved resources;

[0044] Reserved resource information is used to indicate the reserved resources of the first device during TXOP;

[0045] The transmission parameters of the reserved resources.

[0046] In some embodiments, the type of reserved resources is time-domain resources or frequency-domain resources, and the type of reserved resources may also include both time-domain resources and frequency-domain resources.

[0047] In some embodiments, the transmission parameters of the reserved resources include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following: Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS), Number of Spatial Streams (NSS), Access Point Received Power (AP Rx Power), Guard Interval (GI), etc.

[0048] In some embodiments, the transmission parameters of the reserved resource are used to guide the transmission of data on the reserved resource. The transmission parameters of the reserved resource may also include a preferred access category (Preferred AC), which indicates the allowed access category or minimum access category of the data transmitted on the reserved resource.

[0049] In some cases, four access categories are defined to ensure the QoS requirements of real-time services. The priority (access category) is from high to low as voice (AC_VO), video (AC_VI), best-effort (AC_BE) and background (AC_BK), but this disclosure is not limited to these.

[0050] In some embodiments, step S202 may include the following steps:

[0051] Step S202A-1: The first device sends a first trigger frame carrying the reserved resource indication;

[0052] In step S202A-2, the first device sends a second trigger frame carrying the transmission parameters of the reserved resources.

[0053] The at least one information frame includes a first trigger frame and a second trigger frame, and the first trigger frame or the second trigger frame also carries the reserved resource information.

[0054] In one exemplary embodiment, the first trigger frame carries a reserved resource indication, and the second trigger frame carries reserved resource information and transmission parameters of the reserved resource; in another exemplary embodiment, the first trigger frame carries a reserved resource indication and reserved resource information, and the second trigger frame carries transmission parameters of the reserved resource.

[0055] In some embodiments, the aforementioned reserved resource indication, reserved resource information, and reserved resource transmission parameters may also be carried simultaneously in a single information frame.

[0056] In some embodiments, the reserved resource indication and the reserved resource information can be combined. For example, whether there is a reserved resource indication can be determined by whether there are reserved resources in the reserved resource information.

[0057] In some embodiments, the first trigger frame is a Multi-User Request To Send (MU-RTS) frame, and the second trigger frame is a basic trigger frame.

[0058] In this embodiment, the first device (i.e., the TXOP holder) is the AP, and the second and third devices are STAs. The first device can allocate resources to each third device and reserve resources that the second device can use. The second device is the user of the reserved resources, and the third device is the user of the unreserved resources.

[0059] In this embodiment, the MU-RTS frame sent by the AP can be received by multiple third devices. After parsing the MU-RTS frame, the third device replies with a Clear To Send (CTS) frame. The AP can only correctly receive multiple CTS frames sent by multiple third devices if their contents are identical. After receiving the CTS frame, the AP sends a basic trigger frame.

[0060] In some embodiments, the first trigger frame or the second trigger frame further carries information about a set of non-reserved resources configured by the first device for each of at least one third device and transmission parameters of the non-reserved resources.

[0061] In some embodiments, the first trigger frame includes a public information field and a frame control field, wherein the public information field or the frame control field includes at least one of the following: a reserved resource indication; a trigger frame type, wherein the trigger frame type of the first trigger frame is a trigger frame with resource reservation; a reserved resource type, wherein the reserved resource type includes no reservation, frequency domain resources, time domain resources, and time-frequency domain resources.

[0062] In some embodiments, the second trigger frame includes at least one user information field, wherein each user information field includes at least one of the following: a preset value of the association identifier AID12 field, used to indicate whether the current resource unit is the reserved resource; resource unit (RU) allocation; frequency domain resources; time domain resources; acknowledgment (ACK) strategy; modulation and coding scheme; number of spatial streams; access point received power; guard interval; preferred access category.

[0063] In this embodiment, the resource allocation during TXOP includes the allocation of time-domain resources and the allocation of frequency-domain resources. The frequency-domain resources can be divided into multiple sub-channels.

[0064] In one exemplary embodiment, if the reserved resource is a frequency domain resource, then the non-reserved resource is also a frequency domain resource. The third device can perform data transmission on the sub-channel of its allocated non-reserved resource throughout the entire TXOP period. The second device performs data transmission on the sub-channel of the reserved resource, and the end time of data transmission on both the non-reserved and reserved resources is the same as the end time of the TXOP.

[0065] In another exemplary embodiment, if the reserved resource is a time-domain resource, then the non-reserved resource is also a time-domain resource. The third device can transmit data in all sub-channels during the non-reserved time period, while the second device can transmit data in all sub-channels during the reserved time period. The non-reserved time period and the reserved time period do not overlap, and both are located during the TXOP period.

[0066] In another exemplary embodiment, if the type of reserved resource is time-frequency domain resource, then the non-reserved resource is also a time-frequency domain resource. The third device can transmit data in the sub-channel of the non-reserved resource during the non-reserved time period, while the second device can transmit data in the sub-channel of the reserved resource during the reserved time period.

[0067] In some embodiments, step S202 may include the following steps:

[0068] In step S202B, the first device sends a third trigger frame carrying the reserved resource indication, the reserved resource information, and the transmission parameters of the reserved resource. The at least one information frame includes one of the third trigger frames.

[0069] In some embodiments, the third trigger frame further carries information about at least one set of non-reserved resources and transmission parameters of the non-reserved resources, wherein the at least one set of non-reserved resources is used for random access of at least one third device, and the third device obtains the set of non-reserved resources through contention and performs data transmission on the non-reserved resources according to the transmission parameters of the non-reserved resources.

[0070] In some embodiments, the third trigger frame includes one of the following: a basic trigger frame, a Bandwidth Query Report Poll (BQRP) trigger frame, or a Buffer Status Report Poll (BSRP) trigger frame.

[0071] In some embodiments, the third trigger frame includes a public information field, a frame control field, and at least one user information field. The public information field or the frame control field includes at least one of the following: a reserved resource indication; a trigger frame type, wherein the trigger frame type of the third trigger frame is a trigger frame with resource reservation; a reserved resource type, wherein the reserved resource type includes no reservation, frequency domain resources, time domain resources, and time-frequency domain resources.

[0072] In some embodiments, each of the user information fields includes at least one of the following: a preset value for the associated identifier AID12 field, used to indicate whether the current resource unit is the reserved resource; resource unit (RU) allocation; frequency domain resources; time domain resources; acknowledgment (ACK) strategy; modulation and coding scheme; number of spatial streams; access point received power; guard interval; preferred access category.

[0073] In this embodiment, the first device (i.e., the TXOP holder) is the AP, and the second and third devices are STAs. The second device is a user of reserved resources, and the third device is a user of non-reserved resources.

[0074] In one exemplary embodiment, the AP can determine, based on certain conditions (such as STA buffering, predefined conditions, AP policies, etc.), to use sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 for random access by a third device, and reserve sub-resource 4 for use by a second device. The second device includes STA1, STA2, and STA3. STA1 / STA2 / STA3 receive and parse the third trigger frame to obtain transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, and GI. They then compete for sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3. If the competition is successful, they construct a data frame using the relevant transmission parameters and transmit data in the acquired sub-resource channel. If there is a data frame asynchrony, the data frame needs to be padded.

[0075] In one exemplary embodiment, multiple third devices compete to determine their respective sub-channel resources from non-reserved resources. The competition mechanism includes, but is not limited to, the Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access Random Access Backoff (OBO) mechanism.

[0076] In this embodiment, the resource allocation during TXOP includes the allocation of time-domain resources and the allocation of frequency-domain resources. The frequency-domain resources can be divided into multiple sub-channels.

[0077] In one exemplary embodiment, if the reserved resource is a frequency domain resource, then the non-reserved resource is also a frequency domain resource. The third device can acquire sub-channel resources through contention and perform data transmission on the sub-channel of the non-reserved resource it has acquired during the entire TXOP period. The second device performs data transmission on the sub-channel of the reserved resource, and the end time of data transmission on both the non-reserved and reserved resources is the same as the end time of the TXOP. If the reserved resource is a time domain resource, the third device competes for all frequency domain resources in the non-reserved time domain resources and performs data transmission on the sub-channel acquired during the non-reserved time period.

[0078] In some embodiments, step S202 may include the following steps:

[0079] In step S202C, the first device sends a control frame carrying the reserved resource indication and the reserved resource information, so that the second device and the fourth device can receive the control frame.

[0080] Wherein, the at least one information frame includes a control frame, the fourth device is used to determine whether the reserved resource is allowed to be reserved according to the reserved resource information, and the second device participates in the competition for the reserved resource if the fourth device allows the reserved resource to be reserved.

[0081] In some embodiments, after step S202C, the method further includes:

[0082] In step S203C, the first device receives a control frame response sent by the fourth device, which carries a reservation permission indication, wherein the reservation permission indication is used to indicate whether the reserved resource is allowed to be reserved.

[0083] In this embodiment, the first device (i.e., the TXOP holder) is the STA, and the fourth device is the AP. After the TXOP holder determines the reserved resources, it also needs to inform the AP. Only after the AP confirms that the reservation is allowed can the second device compete for the reserved resources.

[0084] In some embodiments, the control frame response also carries at least one set of transmission parameters for non-reserved resources; when the reservation permission indication is yes, the control frame response also carries the transmission parameters for the reserved resources.

[0085] In this embodiment, if the TXOP holder is a STA, the TXOP holder only sends a reserved resource indication and reserved resource information; the transmission parameters of the reserved resources are allocated and sent by the AP. Since the TXOP holder is a STA, the STA exclusively uses the non-reserved resources during the TXOP period. After step S203C, the method further includes step S204C, whereby the first device performs data transmission on the at least one set of non-reserved resources according to the transmission parameters of the non-reserved resources.

[0086] In one exemplary embodiment, the control frame is a Request To Send (RTS) frame, and the control frame response is a Clear To Send (CTS) frame, but this disclosure is not limited thereto. In wireless communication protocols, before transmitting data, the transmitting device (such as a STA) sends an RTS frame to inquire whether the receiving end is ready to receive data. If the channel is idle, the receiving device responds with a CTS frame, indicating that the channel is idle and data can be transmitted. This mechanism confirms the channel status before transmitting data, helping to reduce collisions during data transmission.

[0087] In this embodiment, the first device waits for a short period of time after sending an RTS frame in anticipation of receiving a CTS frame. If a CTS frame is not received within a certain time, the first device can resend the RTS frame or take other measures according to the protocol.

[0088] In some embodiments, the control frame includes one of the following: a reserved resource indication field and a reserved resource field; a field for indicating the reserved resource indication and the reserved resource.

[0089] In some embodiments, the control frame response includes at least one of the following: a reservation permission indication field; a special public information field and a special user information field; and a preferred access category.

[0090] In some embodiments, prior to step S202, the method further includes:

[0091] In step S200A, the first device acquires the low-latency transmission requirements of at least one second device and determines reserved resources based on the low-latency transmission requirements; or, in step S200B, the first device determines the required resources based on the transmission requirements and determines the remaining resources other than the required resources as the reserved resources. In step S200B, the transmission requirements can be those of the first device itself or those of other STAs.

[0092] Through the embodiments disclosed herein, the TXOP holder can reserve some resources for other devices during the TXOP period, so that devices with special needs (such as low-latency transmission requirements) can also achieve low-latency data transmission requirements during the TXOP period, thereby solving the problem in related technologies that low-latency requirements cannot be met during the TXOP period when it is occupied.

[0093] In another embodiment of this disclosure, a resource allocation method is also provided. Figure 3 is a flowchart of a resource reservation method according to another embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 3, the process includes the following steps:

[0094] In step S302, the second device receives at least one information frame sent by the first device, wherein the at least one information frame carries reserved resource indication information of the first device's resources, and wherein the first device is a Transmission Opportunity (TXOP) holder.

[0095] In this embodiment of the disclosure, a second device with special needs (such as low-latency transmission needs) can obtain the resource information reserved by the TXOP holder from the TXOP holder, and can also realize the low-latency data transmission needs during the TXOP period, thereby solving the problem in the related technology that the low-latency needs cannot be met when the TXOP is occupied.

[0096] In some embodiments, the reserved resource indication information includes at least one of the following:

[0097] Reserved resource indicator, used to indicate whether the first device has reserved resources;

[0098] Reserved resource information is used to indicate the reserved resources of the first device during TXOP;

[0099] The transmission parameters of the reserved resources.

[0100] In some embodiments, the types of reserved resources include time-domain resources or frequency-domain resources, and the types of reserved resources may also include both time-domain resources and frequency-domain resources.

[0101] In some embodiments, the method further includes the following step: Step S304, the second device determines the reserved resources of the first device during TXOP and the transmission parameters of the reserved resources based on the reserved resource indication information.

[0102] In some embodiments, the method further includes the following steps: step S306, the second device performs channel state detection in the channel of the reserved resource; step S308, after the channel state remains idle for a preset time, the second device participates in the competition for the reserved resource.

[0103] In some embodiments, after the second device participates in the competition for the reserved resource in step S306, the method further includes the following steps: Step S307A, if the competition is successful, the second device obtains the reserved resource, constructs a data frame according to the transmission parameters of the reserved resource, and transmits the data frame on the reserved resource; Step S307B, if the competition fails, the second device switches back to the main channel.

[0104] In some embodiments, before the second device performs channel state detection in the channel of the reserved resource in step S306, the method further includes the following steps:

[0105] Step S3051, the second device determines the access category priority of the data to be transmitted;

[0106] Step S3052: If the access category priority is higher than or equal to the preferred access category, the second device switches from the main channel to the channel of the reserved resource, wherein the reserved resource indication information further includes the preferred access category.

[0107] In some embodiments, step S302 may include the following steps:

[0108] Step S302A-1: The second device receives and parses the first trigger frame sent by the first device to obtain the reserved resource indication;

[0109] In step S302A-2, the second device receives and parses the second trigger frame sent by the first device to obtain the transmission parameters of the reserved resources.

[0110] The at least one information frame includes a first trigger frame and a second trigger frame, and the first trigger frame or the second trigger frame also carries the reserved resource information.

[0111] In one exemplary embodiment, the first trigger frame carries a reserved resource indication, and the second trigger frame carries reserved resource information and transmission parameters of the reserved resource; in another exemplary embodiment, the first trigger frame carries a reserved resource indication and reserved resource information, and the second trigger frame carries transmission parameters of the reserved resource.

[0112] In some embodiments, the first trigger frame is a Multi-User Request To Send (MU-RTS) frame, and the second trigger frame is a basic trigger frame.

[0113] In some embodiments, the first trigger frame includes a public information field and a frame control field, wherein the public information field or the frame control field includes at least one of the following: a reserved resource indication; a trigger frame type, wherein the trigger frame type of the first trigger frame is a trigger frame with resource reservation; a reserved resource type, wherein the reserved resource type includes no reservation, frequency domain resources, time domain resources, and time-frequency domain resources.

[0114] In some embodiments, the second trigger frame includes at least one user information field, wherein each user information field includes at least one of the following: a preset value of the associated identifier AID12 field, used to indicate whether the current resource unit is the reserved resource; RU allocation; frequency domain resources; time domain resources; ACK strategy; modulation and coding scheme; number of spatial streams; access point received power; guard interval; preferred access category.

[0115] In this embodiment, the first device (i.e., the TXOP holder) is the AP, and the second and third devices are STAs. The first device can allocate resources to each third device and reserve resources that the second device can use. The second device is the user of the reserved resources, and the third device is the user of the unreserved resources.

[0116] In this embodiment, the MU-RTS frame sent by the AP can be received by multiple third devices. After parsing the MU-RTS frame, the third device replies with a Clear To Send (CTS) frame. The AP can only correctly receive multiple CTS frames sent by multiple third devices if their contents are identical. After receiving the CTS frame, the AP sends a basic trigger frame.

[0117] In some embodiments, step S302 may include the following steps:

[0118] In step S302B, the second device receives and parses the third trigger frame sent by the first device to obtain the reserved resource indication, the reserved resource information, and the transmission parameters of the reserved resource, wherein the at least one information frame includes one of the third trigger frames.

[0119] In some embodiments, the third trigger frame includes one of the following: a basic trigger frame, a BQRP trigger frame, or a BSRP trigger frame.

[0120] In some embodiments, the third trigger frame includes a public information field, a frame control field, and at least one user information field. The public information field or the frame control field includes at least one of the following: a reserved resource indication; a trigger frame type, wherein the trigger frame type of the third trigger frame is a trigger frame with resource reservation; a reserved resource type, wherein the reserved resource type includes no reservation, frequency domain resources, time domain resources, and time-frequency domain resources.

[0121] In some embodiments, each of the user information fields includes at least one of the following: a preset value of the associated identifier AID12 field, used to indicate whether the current resource unit is the reserved resource; RU allocation; frequency domain resources; time domain resources; ACK strategy; modulation and coding scheme; number of spatial streams; access point received power; guard interval; preferred access category.

[0122] In this embodiment, the first device (i.e., the TXOP holder) is the AP, and the second and third devices are STAs. The second device is a user of reserved resources, and the third device is a user of non-reserved resources.

[0123] In some embodiments, step S302 may include the following steps:

[0124] In step S302C, the second device receives and parses the control frame sent by the first device to obtain the reserved resource indication and the reserved resource information, wherein the at least one information frame includes one of the control frames.

[0125] In this embodiment, the method further includes: step S303C, whereby the second device receives and parses the control frame response sent by the fourth device to obtain a reservation permission indication, wherein the reservation permission indication is used to indicate whether the reserved resource is allowed to be reserved, and the fourth device is used to determine whether the reserved resource is allowed to be reserved based on the reserved resource information in the control frame.

[0126] In this embodiment, the first device (i.e., the TXOP holder) is the STA, and the fourth device is the AP. After determining the reserved resources, the TXOP holder needs to inform the AP. Only after the AP confirms and allows the reservation can the second device compete for and use the reserved resources. In this embodiment, since the TXOP holder is the STA, the STA will exclusively occupy the non-reserved resources during the TXOP period.

[0127] In some embodiments, the method further includes: step S304C, where, if the permission reservation indication is yes, the second device participates in the competition for the reserved resources; and if the permission reservation indication is no, the second device does not use the reserved resources.

[0128] In some embodiments, when the reservation permission indication is yes, the control frame response also carries the transmission parameters of the reserved resources.

[0129] In one exemplary embodiment, the control frame is an RTS frame, and the control frame response is a CTS frame, but this disclosure is not limited thereto. In wireless communication protocols, before transmitting data, the transmitting device (such as a STA) sends an RTS frame to inquire whether the receiving end is ready to receive data. If the channel is idle, the receiving device responds with a CTS frame, indicating that the channel is idle and data can be transmitted. This mechanism confirms the channel status before transmitting data, helping to reduce collisions during data transmission.

[0130] In some embodiments, the control frame includes one of the following: a reserved resource indication field and a reserved resource field; a field for indicating the reserved resource indication and the reserved resource.

[0131] In some embodiments, the control frame response includes at least one of the following: a reservation permission indication field; a special public information field and a special user information field; and a preferred access category.

[0132] Through the embodiments of this disclosure, a second device with special needs (such as low-latency transmission needs) can obtain the resource information reserved by the TXOP holder and obtain the right to use the reserved resources through competition. The low-latency data transmission needs can also be realized during the TXOP period, thereby solving the problem in the related technology that the low-latency needs cannot be met when the TXOP is occupied.

[0133] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of three types of reserved resources in the embodiments of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 4, the reserved resources include the following three types:

[0134] Reserved type 1: TXOP holders reserve a portion of resources in the frequency domain for sharing, while other resources are allocated or competed for normally.

[0135] Type 2 reservation: TXOP holders reserve a portion of the frequency domain for a period of time for sharing, while other resources are allocated or competed for normally.

[0136] In reservation type 3, the TXOP holder reserves a portion of resources in the time domain for sharing, while other resources are allocated or competed for normally. This type can also be seen as a special case of reservation type 2, where all frequency domain resources are reserved for the same time period.

[0137] In this embodiment, the trigger frame can indicate the type of reserved resource through a reserved resource type field. For example, a subfield can be added to the common info field of the trigger frame, or a reserved subfield can be used to indicate the type of reservation. This subfield can also be used to replace the resource reservation indication information.

[0138] In this embodiment, the reserved resource types include, but are not limited to: no reservation, frequency domain resources, time domain resources, and time-frequency domain resources. Different values ​​of the reserved resource type field indicate different reserved resource types. For example, a value of 0 in the reserved resource type field indicates no reservation, a value of 1 indicates reservation type 1, a value of 2 indicates reservation type 2, and so on, but this disclosure is not limited to this.

[0139] The resource allocation method in this disclosure will be explained in detail below based on different types of reserved resources.

[0140] Example 1

[0141] In this embodiment, the reserved resource type is frequency domain resource. The AP is the TXOP holder, and the AP reserves a portion of the frequency domain resources for other STAs that need them during the TXOP time period, and the AP allocates resources to the STAs.

[0142] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the resource reservation and allocation process during TXOP in one embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 5, the process includes the following steps:

[0143] In step S501, the AP determines to allocate sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 to STA1 / STA2 / STA3, and reserves sub-resource 4. The AP then sends a MU-RTS trigger frame.

[0144] In this embodiment, in step S501, the AP allocates resources based on the acquired STA cache and / or other factors, such as predefined conditions and the AP's strategy. This disclosure does not limit the method of acquiring the STA cache.

[0145] In this embodiment, the information carried in the MU-RTS trigger frame includes, but is not limited to, reserved resource indication information.

[0146] In step S502, after STA1 / STA2 / STA3 receives and parses the MU-RTS frame, they reply with a CTS response.

[0147] In step S503, after receiving and parsing the MU-RTS frame, STA4 determines that there are reserved resources. If there is reserved resource information in the MU-RTS, STA4 can further determine the reserved resources.

[0148] Step S504: The AP sends basic trigger frames (TF).

[0149] In this embodiment, the basic trigger frame includes the following:

[0150] Information related to non-reserved resources: Sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 are respectively allocated to STA1 / STA2 / STA3, and the corresponding transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI, etc.

[0151] Information related to reserved resources includes: reserved resource information, transmission parameter information for reserved resources (MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI), and may also include preferred access class (Preferred AC), used to determine the data access class that can be used for transmission with the reserved resource. Among these, AP Rx Power is the AP's expected receive power; the actual power used by the STA during transmission may not be exactly the same.

[0152] In step S505, STA1 / STA2 / STA3 construct data frames based on the transmission parameters carried in the basic trigger frame and transmit data on the allocated sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3. If there is a lack of synchronization, the data frames need to be padded.

[0153] In step S506, STA4 parses the basic trigger frame to obtain reserved resource information and transmission parameter information of the reserved resources, such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI, etc., as well as Preferred AC (optional).

[0154] In this embodiment, steps S506 and steps S504 to S505 are not in any particular order.

[0155] In step S507, if STA4 has data to be transmitted, and the access class priority of the data to be transmitted is not lower than that of the Preferred AC, then proceed to step S508; otherwise, no further process is performed. In this embodiment, STA4 can be any STA with low-latency data transmission requirements, and this disclosure does not limit the number of STAs.

[0156] In step S508, STA4 switches to the channel containing the reserved resource based on the reserved resource information determined in step S503 or S506. During the TXOP period, STA4 performs channel detection on the reserved resource to check if its sub-channel is idle. After the sub-channel remains idle for a preset time, STA4 executes a backoff mechanism to compete for the resource. If STA4 successfully competes, it acquires the reserved resource. If it fails to compete, it switches back to the main channel. The preset time can be the Distributed Inter-Frame Space (DIFS) specified in the standard protocol.

[0157] In step S509, STA4 constructs a data frame based on the transmission parameters obtained in step S506 and transmits the data on the reserved resources. If misalignment exists, the data frame needs to be padded.

[0158] In step S510, after data transmission is complete, the AP sends acknowledgment frames to STA1 through STA4, and STA4 switches back to the primary channel. In this embodiment, the acknowledgment frames include ACK frames, Block Acknowledgment (BA) frames, and Multi-STA Block ACK frames.

[0159] In some embodiments, the MU-RTS contains only reserved resource indication information, and the basic trigger frame contains reserved resource information and transmission parameter information for the reserved resources. In other embodiments, the MU-RTS contains reserved resource indication information and reserved resource information, and the basic trigger frame contains only transmission parameter information for the reserved resources.

[0160] In this embodiment, the MU-RTS frame includes a common information field and a frame control field. Reserved resource indication information can be indicated through the common information field or the frame control field.

[0161] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the public information field in a MU-RTS frame according to an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 6, the public information field of MU-RTS can carry reserved resource indication information in any of the following ways:

[0162] The “Reserved Resource Indication” subfield directly indicates whether resources are reserved. This field can be a newly added subfield or a previously reserved subfield.

[0163] The trigger type can be expanded with the values ​​of its subfields, such as MU-RTS with resource reservations. Examples of trigger type subfield values ​​are shown in Table 1 below, but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0164] Table 1:

[0165] The aforementioned newly added or changed fields can be implemented not only in public information fields, but also in fields such as frame control fields and the first structure of frame format, and this disclosure does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0166] In this embodiment, the basic trigger frame includes at least one user information field (User Info), each user information field individually indicating the sub-channel resources of a RU, and whether the RU is a reserved resource.

[0167] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the user information field in a basic trigger frame according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 7, the user information field in the basic trigger frame may include:

[0168] The default value of the associated identifier AID12 field, and the newly added value, are used to indicate whether the current RU is a reserved resource.

[0169] In this embodiment, the user information field may further include at least one of the following subfields: Resource Unit Allocation (RU Allocation); Modulation and Coding Scheme; Number of Spatial Streams; Access Point Received Power; Guard Interval; Frequency Domain Resources; Time Domain Resources. These subfields are configuration parameters for each RU, including resource content and transmission parameters.

[0170] In some embodiments, the user information field also includes a trigger dependent user info field, which may include a preferred access category (AC). This field can be used to restrict the access category of data transmitted on the reserved resource, thereby specifying that data of certain access categories can use the reserved resource.

[0171] In an exemplary embodiment, the values ​​of the extended AID12 subfield are shown in Table 2 below. In the user information field, the value of the extended AID12 subfield can be used to indicate the reserved resource, as shown in Table 3 below. When AID12 = 2044, it indicates that RU-x is a reserved resource, where x is the sequence number of the resource unit.

[0172] Table 2:

[0173] Table 3:

[0174] In this embodiment, the STA first obtains information about resource reservation by parsing the resource reservation indication subfield or trigger frame type subfield of the public information field in the MU-RTS frame, and then determines the specific information related to the reserved resources by parsing the user information field of the basic trigger frame.

[0175] In this embodiment, the AP-side process includes: determining the reserved frequency domain resources based on the acquired STA cache and / or other factors, and announcing the reservation of resources through a MU-RTS trigger frame; indicating the reserved resources, the transmission parameters of the reserved resources, and the preferred access category that can use the reserved resources in the basic trigger frame.

[0176] In this embodiment, the process on the STA side includes: listening to and parsing MU-RTS frames and basic trigger frames on the main channel to obtain reserved relevant information; when there is data to be transmitted and the AC priority of the data to be transmitted is not lower than the allowed preferred access category, switching to the channel where the reserved resources are located to perform idle detection and resource contention; if the contention is successful, switching back to the main channel after the data transmission is completed and an acknowledgment is received; if the contention fails, switching back to the main channel directly.

[0177] Example 2

[0178] In this embodiment, the reserved resource type is frequency domain resource. The AP is the TXOP holder, and the AP reserves a portion of the frequency domain resource for other STAs that need it during the TXOP time period, and the STAs acquire the resource through competition.

[0179] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the process of resource reservation and resource contention during TXOP in one embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 8, the process includes the following steps:

[0180] In step S801, the AP determines that sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 will be used for random access by STAs, and sub-resource 4 will be reserved. The AP then sends a trigger frame.

[0181] In this embodiment, the AP determines reserved and non-reserved resources based on the obtained STA cache and / or other factors, such as predefined conditions and AP policies.

[0182] In this embodiment, the information carried in the trigger frame in step S801 includes, but is not limited to, the following:

[0183] Information related to non-reserved resources: Sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 are used for STA random access, and the corresponding transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI, etc.

[0184] Information related to reserved resources: reserved resource information, transmission parameter information of reserved resources (MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI, etc.), and may also include preferred access class (Preferred AC).

[0185] In step S802, STA1 / STA2 / STA3 receives and parses the trigger frame, obtaining transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, and GI. They then enable the OBO mechanism to compete for sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3. If successful, they construct a data frame using the relevant transmission parameters and transmit it on the acquired sub-resource. If synchronization issues exist, the data frame needs to be padded.

[0186] In step S803, after receiving and parsing the trigger frame, STA4 obtains the reserved resources and corresponding transmission parameter information, such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI, etc.; and the Preferred AC (if any).

[0187] In step S804, if STA4 has data to be transmitted and the AC priority of the data to be transmitted is not lower than that of the Preferred AC, then proceed to step 8; otherwise, do not proceed with the subsequent process.

[0188] In step S805, STA4 switches to the channel containing the reserved resource based on the reserved resource information determined in step S803, and checks whether the reserved resource is idle during the TXOP period. After the reserved resource remains idle for DIFS, STA4 executes a backoff mechanism to compete for the resource, and STA4 successfully acquires the reserved resource. If the competition fails, STA4 switches back to the main channel.

[0189] In step S806, STA4 constructs a data frame based on the transmission parameters obtained in step S805 and transmits the data on the reserved resources. If there is a synchronization problem, the data frame needs to be padded.

[0190] In step S807, after data transmission is complete, the AP sends ACK / BA / Multi-STA Block ACK confirmation frames to STA1-STA4. STA4 then switches back to the primary channel.

[0191] In this embodiment, the trigger frame in step S801 includes, but is not limited to, a basic trigger frame, a BQRP trigger frame, and a BSRP trigger frame. The trigger frame carries information related to reserved resources as well as information related to non-reserved resources.

[0192] In this embodiment, the trigger frame in step S801 includes a common information field, a frame control field, and at least one user information field. Resource reservation indication information can be carried by extending the common information field or the frame control field, and reserved resource information and transmission parameters of the reserved resources can be carried by extending the user information field. The extension methods of the common information field, frame control field, and user information field in this embodiment are similar to those in the previous embodiment, and will not be repeated here.

[0193] In this embodiment, the AP-side process includes: determining the reserved frequency domain resources based on the acquired STA buffer and / or other factors, and indicating the reserved resources, specific reserved resources, transmission parameters of the reserved resources, and preferred access category for using the reserved resources through trigger frames (such as basic trigger frames, BQRP trigger frames, and BSRP trigger frames). Embodiment 2 is similar to Embodiment 1, except that the trigger frame type is different, and Embodiment 2 indicates this within the same trigger frame, while Embodiment 1 indicates it within two trigger frames.

[0194] In this embodiment, the process on the STA side includes: listening to and parsing trigger frames on the main channel to obtain reserved relevant information; when there is data to be transmitted and the AC priority of the data to be transmitted is not lower than the allowed preferred access category, switching to the channel where the reserved resources are located for idle detection and resource contention; after successful contention and completion of data transmission and receipt of acknowledgment, or after failure of contention, switching back to the main channel. Embodiment 2 is similar to Embodiment 1, except that the type of information frame parsed is different.

[0195] Example 3

[0196] In this embodiment, the type of reserved resource is frequency domain resource. STA1 is the TXOP holder, and STA1 reserves a portion of the frequency domain resources during the TXOP period for use by other STAs that need them. However, the reserved resources need to be confirmed by the AP to allow the reservation.

[0197] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the resource reservation process during TXOP in one embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 9, the process includes the following steps:

[0198] In step S901, after obtaining TXOP, STA1 determines that sub-resource 4 can be reserved based on its own cache and / or other factors (such as predefined conditions, AP policies, etc.); STA1 sends an RTS frame.

[0199] In this embodiment, the information carried in the RTS frame includes, but is not limited to: there are reservable resources, and sub-resource 4 is a reservable resource.

[0200] In step S902, the AP receives and parses the RTS frame, and determines whether sub-resource 4 can be reserved based on some conditions or information (such as channel status); then sends a CTS frame.

[0201] In this embodiment, the CTS frame carries a determination result of whether sub-resource 4 is allowed to be reserved. If reservation is allowed, the CTS frame also carries the transmission parameters of the reserved resource (AP Rx Power, GI, MCS, NSS, Preferred AC, etc.). Regardless of whether resource reservation is allowed, the CTS frame will carry the transmission parameters (AP Rx Power, GI, MCS, NSS, etc.) configured by the AP for the non-reserved resources (sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3) so that STA1 can transmit data on the non-reserved resources.

[0202] In step S903, STA1 parses CTS to confirm that sub-resource 4 can be reserved and obtains the transmission parameters of non-reserved resources. STA1 constructs a data frame according to the transmission parameters and transmits it on non-reserved resources (sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3).

[0203] In this embodiment, if the CTS indicates that the resource cannot be reserved, STA1 can also transmit data in sub-resource 4.

[0204] In step S904, STA2 parses the RTS frame and CTS frame to obtain the reserved resources (sub-resource 4) and related transmission parameters (AP Rx Power, GI, Preferred AC, etc.).

[0205] In step S905, if STA2 has data to be transmitted and the AC priority of the data to be transmitted is not lower than that of the Preferred AC, then proceed to step S906; otherwise, do not proceed with the subsequent process.

[0206] In step S906, STA2 switches to the channel containing the reserved resource based on the reserved resource information determined in step S904, and checks whether the sub-channel of the reserved resource is idle during the TXOP period. After the reserved resource remains idle for DIFS, STA2 executes a backoff mechanism to compete for the resource, and STA2 successfully acquires the reserved resource. If the competition fails, it switches back to the main channel.

[0207] In step S907, STA2 constructs a data frame based on the transmission parameters obtained in step 4 and transmits it on the reserved resources. If there is a misalignment between the data frame and that of STA1, then the data frame needs to be padded.

[0208] In step S908, after data transmission is complete, the AP sends ACK / BA / Multi-STA Block ACK confirmation frames to STA1 and STA2. STA2 switches back to the main channel.

[0209] In this embodiment, the RTS frame contains at least two types of information: reserved resource indication information and reserved resource information. For example, each of these two types of information can be represented by a subfield, such as a reserved resource indication field and a reserved resource field; alternatively, both types of information can share a single subfield. The subfield can be expanded using newly added subfields or existing reserved fields, and this disclosure does not impose any limitations on this.

[0210] Figure 10 is an extended schematic diagram of a CTS frame in one embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 10, the CTS frame may include an allow reservation indication field.

[0211] In this embodiment, if the value of the Allow Reservation Indication field is Yes, then the CTS frame also contains a Special Common Info field and a Special User Info field. If the value of the Allow Reservation Indication field is No, then the CTS frame does not contain a Special Common Info field and a Special User Info field.

[0212] In this embodiment, the special public information field and the special user information field carry information related to reserved resources, such as transmission parameters (AP Rx Power, GI, MCS, NSS, etc.) and preferred access class (Preferred AC).

[0213] In some embodiments, the special user information field may also include a subfield indicating whether a portion is reserved. The main purpose is to distinguish whether the STA is STA1 or another STA that wants to use reserved resources. In other embodiments, this can also be achieved in other ways, such as through the AID12 field, but the AID12 field has 12 bits, which occupies a relatively large number of bits.

[0214] In this embodiment, the process on the STA1 side (TXOP holder) includes: determining the reserved frequency domain resources based on its own buffer and / or other factors, and announcing the reserved resource indication and reserved resources (such as sub-resource 4) via RTS frames. It receives and parses the reservation result replied by the AP via CTS frames to confirm whether the sub-resource can be reserved. This process can be seen as a negotiation process between STA1 and the AP.

[0215] In this embodiment, the AP-side process includes: determining whether sub-resource 4 is allowed to be reserved based on some conditions or information (such as channel status); the CTS frame carries the result of whether reservation is allowed, and if the result is that reservation is allowed, the CTS frame also carries relevant transmission parameter information and the minimum allowed access class, etc.

[0216] In this embodiment, the process on the STA2 side includes: listening to RTS or CTS on the main channel to obtain reserved relevant information; when there is data to be transmitted and the AC priority of the data to be transmitted is not lower than the allowed preferred access category, switching to the channel where the reserved resource is located to perform idle detection and compete for resources; after successfully competing and transmitting the data and receiving confirmation, or after failing to compete, switching back to the main channel.

[0217] Example 4

[0218] In this embodiment, the type of reserved resource is time-frequency domain resource. The AP is the TXOP holder, and the AP reserves a portion of the frequency domain resource for other STAs that need it, and the AP allocates resources to the STAs.

[0219] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of the time-frequency domain resource reservation and resource allocation in one embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 11, the process is basically the same as the process in Embodiment 1 above. The main difference is that the reserved resources (such as sub-resource 4) are reserved only for a part of the time period during the entire TXOP. During the non-reserved time period, sub-resource 4 is allocated by AP to STA4 for use.

[0220] In this embodiment, the user information field in the basic trigger frame contains two records about sub-resource 4, one for the non-reserved portion and the other for the reserved portion of sub-resource 4, with the specific contents as follows:

[0221] Non-reserved portion: Allocated to STA4, time period 1, ACK policy, and corresponding transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, and GI. The ACK policy can include: delayed feedback, no ACK feedback, and ACK feedback without feedback.

[0222] Reserved portion (identifiable by AID): Time period 2, preferred access category (Preferred AC), corresponding MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI and other transmission parameter information.

[0223] In this embodiment, STA4 constructs a data frame based on the transmission parameters carried in the basic trigger frame and transmits it during time period 1 of the allocated sub-resource 4; it performs ACK processing according to the ACK policy carried in the basic trigger frame; if the ACK policy is delayed feedback, it starts the process of waiting for ACK.

[0224] In this embodiment, STA5, which requires low-latency data transmission, will detect whether the sub-channel of the reserved resource is idle. After the reserved resource remains idle for DIFS, and within the reserved time period (time period 2), STA5 will execute a backoff mechanism to compete for the resource. If the competition is successful, STA5 will obtain the reserved resource; if the competition fails, STA5 will switch back to the main channel.

[0225] In this embodiment, the User Info or Common info field in the basic trigger frame carries reserved resource information and the ACK policy. The newly added ACK policy only applies to the transmission of non-reserved portions of the reserved resource channel (such as sub-channel 4). The ACK policy can be implemented by adding sub-fields or expanding existing reserved sub-fields.

[0226] In this embodiment, a time-domain resource subfield is added to the user information field, as shown in Table 4 below. When the AID (e.g., AID12) is 2044, it means that the corresponding RU-x is a reserved resource in time period 2. When the AID is 3, it means that the corresponding RU-x is a non-reserved resource in time period 1.

[0227] Table 4:

[0228] In this embodiment, since the same resource unit allocation (RU allocation) has two independent user information fields for the reserved part and the non-reserved part, other subfields in the user information field, such as MCS, AP Rx Power and other transmission parameter information, can be configured independently. That is, the transmission parameters and other information of sub-resource 4 in the reserved part and the non-reserved part can be different.

[0229] In this embodiment, the AP-side process includes: indicating resource reservation in the MU-RTS, indicating the time period information of the reserved and non-reserved portions of sub-resource 4 in the basic trigger frame (the reserved and non-reserved portions of the same RU allocation are two independent User Infos with different AID values), and the ACK policy. Other processes are similar to those in Embodiment 1.

[0230] In this embodiment, the STA-side process includes: STA4 (using the non-reserved portion of sub-resource 4) needs to determine the processing of the ACK according to the ACK policy. Other STA-side processes are basically the same as those in Embodiment 1.

[0231] Example 5

[0232] In this embodiment, the type of reserved resource is time-frequency domain resource. The AP is the TXOP holder, and the AP reserves a portion of the frequency domain resource for a portion of the time period for other STAs that need it, and the STAs compete for the resource.

[0233] Figure 12 is a flowchart of time-frequency domain resource reservation and resource contention in one embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 12, the process is basically the same as that in the above embodiment 2. The main difference is that the reserved resources (such as sub-resource 4) are reserved only for a part of the time period during the entire TXOP period. During the non-reserved time period, sub-resource 4 is contention-based by STA.

[0234] In this embodiment, during the non-reserved time period, sub-resource 4 is similar to other non-reserved resources 1 / 2 / 3. STA randomly accesses sub-resource 4 through contention. The contention mechanism used includes, but is not limited to, the OBO mechanism.

[0235] In this embodiment, the process further includes step S802': after receiving and parsing the trigger frame, STA4 obtains the allocated resources, time period, ACK policy, and corresponding transmission parameter information; it constructs a data frame using the relevant transmission parameters and transmits it on the corresponding time-frequency resources; it performs ACK processing according to the ACK policy; if it is a delayed feedback, it starts the process of waiting for ACK. This step can be executed simultaneously with step S802.

[0236] In this embodiment, the trigger frame may include one of the following: a basic trigger frame, a BQRP trigger frame, or a BSRP trigger frame.

[0237] In this embodiment, the User Info or Common Info field in the trigger frame carries reserved resource indication information, reserved resource information, reserved resource transmission parameters, and ACK policy. The newly added ACK policy only applies to the transmission of non-reserved portions of the reserved resource channel (such as sub-channel 4). The ACK policy can be implemented by adding sub-fields or expanding existing reserved sub-fields.

[0238] In an exemplary embodiment, the trigger frame is extended as follows: resource reservation can be indicated by the reserved resource indication subfield in the public information field or by the trigger frame type; the ACK policy can be indicated by adding a new subfield or a reservation subfield. In the user information field, for partially reserved sub-resources, there can be two User Info records with the same RU allocation. The reserved and non-reserved portions are identified by the AID12 value. For example, AID12 = 2044 indicates that RU-x is reserved in time period 1, while other values ​​indicate that RU-x is not reserved in time period 2. This disclosure does not limit the value of AID12; AID12 can be extended with new values ​​or other reserved values ​​can be used to indicate that the corresponding RU is a reserved resource.

[0239] Example 6

[0240] In this embodiment, the reserved resource type is time-domain resource. The AP is the TXOP holder, and the AP reserves a portion of the time period of all frequency-domain resources for other STAs that need them, and the AP allocates resources to the STAs. This embodiment can be considered a special case of embodiment 4 above, where each resource unit is divided into a reserved portion and a non-reserved portion, and the reserved time period is the same for each resource unit.

[0241] The processing flow in this embodiment is basically the same as that in Embodiment 1 above. The main difference is that sub-resources 1-4 are allocated to STA1-4 by AP during the non-reserved time period, while sub-resources 1-4 can be provided to other STAs for competition during the reserved time period.

[0242] In this embodiment, the MU-RTS frame sent by the AP carries reserved resource indication information.

[0243] In this embodiment, the basic trigger frame sent by the AP includes, but is not limited to, the following:

[0244] Non-reserved portions of sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 / 4: respectively allocated to STA1-STA4, time period 1, and transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI, etc. for each sub-resource.

[0245] Reserved portion of sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 / 4: Time period 2, Preferred AC, transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, GI, etc. for each sub-resource.

[0246] In this embodiment, STA5 / STA6, which require low-latency transmission, can compete for reserved resources and transmit data within a resource unit during time period 2. The competition mechanism includes, but is not limited to, a backoff mechanism. STA5 and STA6 do not necessarily have data transmissions simultaneously, but when both have low-latency data to transmit, the processing procedure is the same; the specific process can be found in steps S804 and S805 above. This disclosure does not limit the number of stations that can compete for reserved resources, and the processing flow is the same for each station.

[0247] In this embodiment, after the data transmission of sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 is completed within time period 1, the AP will also send ACK / BA / Multi-STA Block ACK confirmation frames to STA1-STA4.

[0248] In this embodiment, after STA5 and STA6 have completed data transmission within time period 2, the AP will also send ACK / BA / Multi-STA Block ACK confirmation frames to STA5 and STA6.

[0249] In this embodiment, the MU-RTS frame indicates resource reservation through the reserved resource indication subfield in the Common info or the trigger frame type. Multiple STAs perform ACK uniformly, without the need to set the ACK policy field separately.

[0250] In this embodiment, the MU-RTS frame uses User Info for each reserved sub-resource. There are two User Info records, which have the same RU allocation. The reserved and non-reserved portions are identified by their AID12 values. The specific details are similar to those in the embodiments described above and will not be repeated here.

[0251] Example 7

[0252] In this embodiment, the reserved resource type is time-domain resource. The AP is the TXOP holder, and the AP reserves a portion of the time period of all frequency-domain resources for other STAs that need them, and the STAs acquire the resources through competition. This embodiment can be considered a special case of embodiment 5 above, where each resource unit is divided into a reserved portion and a non-reserved portion, and the reserved time period is the same for each resource unit.

[0253] The processing flow in this embodiment is basically the same as that in the above embodiment 2. The main difference is that sub-resources 1-4 can be obtained by STA1-4 through competition during the non-reserved time period, and sub-resources 1-4 can be provided to other STA5 / STA6 that meet the predetermined conditions for competition during the reserved time period.

[0254] This embodiment requires only one trigger frame, including but not limited to the basic trigger frame, the BQRP trigger frame, and the BSRP trigger frame. The extension method of the trigger frame is similar to that of the above embodiment.

[0255] In this embodiment, the trigger frame may include the following:

[0256] The non-reserved portion of sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 is used for random access, time period 1, and transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, and GI corresponding to each sub-resource.

[0257] The reserved portion of sub-resources 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 includes: time period 2, preferred AC, and transmission parameter information such as MCS, NSS, AP Rx Power, and GI corresponding to each sub-resource.

[0258] Example 8

[0259] In this embodiment, the type of reserved resource is time-domain resource. STA1 is the TXOP holder, and STA1 reserves a portion of its frequency-domain resource time period for other STAs that need it. However, the reserved resource needs to be confirmed by the AP to allow the reservation.

[0260] In this embodiment, the process on the STA1 side (TXOP holder) includes: determining the reserved time-domain resources based on its own cache and / or other factors, and announcing the availability of reserved resources and the time-domain information to be reserved via an RTS trigger frame. It also receives and parses the CTS sent by the AP, and determines whether the resource can be reserved based on the result of the CTS. This process can be considered as a negotiation process with the AP.

[0261] In this embodiment, the AP-side process includes: determining whether the sub-resource is allowed to be reserved within the reservation period based on some conditions / information (such as channel status); and carrying the result of whether reservation is allowed in the CTS frame; if reservation is allowed, the CTS frame also carries relevant transmission parameter information and information such as the minimum allowed access class (or preferred access class).

[0262] In this embodiment, the process on the STA2 side (other STAs with data transmission needs) includes: listening to RTS frames and CTS frames to obtain relevant information about reserved resources; when the STA2 side has data to be transmitted and the AC priority of the data to be transmitted is not lower than the allowed preferred access category, idle detection and resource contention are performed during the reserved time period, and data transmission is performed if the contention is successful.

[0263] In this embodiment, the information carried in the RTS frame includes, but is not limited to: an indication that resources are available for reservation and that time period 1 is a reservable time period. The CTS frame carries the result of whether resource reservation is allowed and parameters such as Preferred AC.

[0264] In some embodiments, if the TXOP holder is an AP, the AP can first obtain low-latency transmission requirements (such as data packets, duration, etc.) before determining the reserved resources, and then determine the reserved resources and reservation type based on the low-latency transmission requirements. Alternatively, the AP can first obtain the transmission requirements of the TXOP, determine the required resources based on the transmission requirements, and determine the remaining resources other than the required resources as reserved resources.

[0265] In some embodiments, if the TXOP holder is a STA, the STA can determine the required resources based on its own transmission needs and reserve the remaining resources. Alternatively, the STA can also obtain the low-latency transmission needs of other STAs through the AP, and then determine the reserved resources and reservation type based on the low-latency transmission needs.

[0266] In some embodiments, the STA can implicitly feedback low-latency transmission requirements, that is, the STA can use any information frame (such as a QoS data frame or a QoS Null frame) to feedback low-latency requirement information.

[0267] In some embodiments, a TXOP holder may support multiple reservation types. For example, a field can be used to set the specific time for implementing each reservation type, thereby enabling the corresponding reservation type to be used at different times.

[0268] This disclosure presents a resource allocation method that reserves some resources during the TXOP (Transmission Optimization Period) to meet the low latency requirements during the TXOP. In the prior art, during the TXOP period, other STAs cannot acquire uplink transmission resources and can only compete for the channel after the TXOP ends, resulting in latency. However, in this disclosure, the TXOP holder, after successfully competing for channel usage rights and initiating TXOP transmission, can reserve a portion of the channel's time-domain and / or frequency-domain resources based on its own buffer size or other predefined conditions, sharing them with STAs in need. Other non-reserved resources are normally allocated and used by the AP or competed for by the STAs. The reserved resource types include frequency-domain, time-domain, and time-frequency-domain. When a STA has data to transmit, it acquires the right to use these resources through a contention mechanism. After successfully competing for the resources, it constructs a data frame based on the transmission parameters given by the AP in the control frame or response frame and transmits it on the reserved resources.

[0269] The entire process in this embodiment is divided into four stages: First, reserved resources are determined in the TXOP, and the TXOP holder announces the reserved resources through a trigger frame or RTS frame; Second, STAs meeting specific transmission requirements switch to the channel containing the reserved resources to compete for the right to use them; Third, STAs that successfully compete for the reserved resources use them; Fourth, STAs switch back to the primary channel from the channel containing the reserved resources. In this embodiment, the channel switching process only occurs when the reserved resource used by the STA is not the primary channel.

[0270] Through the embodiments disclosed herein, the low-latency data transmission requirements of other STAs can be met during TXOP, thereby solving the problem in related technologies that the low-latency requirements cannot be met during the TXOP period when it is occupied.

[0271] Embodiments of this disclosure also provide a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program is executed by a processor to perform the steps in any of the above method embodiments.

[0272] In one exemplary embodiment, the aforementioned computer-readable storage medium may include, but is not limited to, various media capable of storing computer programs, such as a USB flash drive, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), portable hard disk, magnetic disk, or optical disk.

[0273] Embodiments of this disclosure also provide an electronic device including a memory and a processor, the memory storing a computer program and the processor being configured to run the computer program to perform the steps in any of the above method embodiments.

[0274] In one exemplary embodiment, the electronic device may further include a transmission device and an input / output device, wherein the transmission device is connected to the processor and the input / output device is connected to the processor.

[0275] Embodiments of this disclosure also provide a computer program product, including a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the steps in any of the method embodiments described above.

[0276] Specific examples in this embodiment can be found in the examples described in the above embodiments and exemplary implementations, and will not be repeated here.

[0277] It is obvious to those skilled in the art that the modules or steps of this disclosure described above can be implemented using general-purpose computing devices. They can be centralized on a single computing device or distributed across a network of multiple computing devices. They can be implemented using computer-executable program code, and thus can be stored in a storage device for execution by a computing device. In some cases, the steps shown or described can be performed in a different order than those presented herein, or they can be fabricated as separate integrated circuit modules, or multiple modules or steps can be fabricated as a single integrated circuit module. Thus, this disclosure is not limited to any particular combination of hardware and software.

[0278] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this disclosure and is not intended to limit this disclosure. Various modifications and variations can be made to this disclosure by those skilled in the art. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the principles of this disclosure should be included within the scope of protection of this disclosure.

Claims

1. A method for resource allocation, the method comprising: sending, by a first device, at least one information frame, wherein the at least one information frame carries reservation resource indication information of the first device, and wherein the first device is a transmission opportunity (TXOP) holder.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The TXOP holder is a wireless access point or a wireless station.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, The reservation resource indication information is used to inform at least one second device of a reservation resource of the first device during a TXOP, wherein the second device obtains the reservation resource by contention and performs data transmission on the reservation resource according to transmission parameters of the reservation resource.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, The reservation resource indication information comprises at least one of the following: reservation resource indication, used to indicate whether the first device has a resource reservation; reservation resource information, used to indicate the reservation resource of the first device during the TXOP; transmission parameters of the reservation resource.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein, The type of the reservation resource comprises a time domain resource and / or a frequency domain resource.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein, The transmission parameters comprise at least one of the following: a modulation and coding scheme, a number of spatial streams, an access point receive power, and a guard interval.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein, The reservation resource indication information further comprises a preferred access category, used to indicate an allowed access category or a lowest access category of data transmitted on the reservation resource.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein, The first device sends at least one information frame, comprising: sending, by the first device, a first trigger frame carrying the reservation resource indication; sending, by the first device, a second trigger frame carrying the transmission parameters of the reservation resource; wherein the at least one information frame comprises one of the first trigger frame and one of the second trigger frame, and wherein the first trigger frame or the second trigger frame further carries the reservation resource information.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein, The first trigger frame is a multi-user request to send (MU-RTS) frame, and the second trigger frame is a basic trigger frame.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein, The first trigger frame or the second trigger frame further carries information of a set of non-reservation resources respectively configured by the first device for each of at least one third device and transmission parameters of the non-reservation resources.

11. The method of claim 4, wherein, The first device sends at least one information frame, comprising: sending, by the first device, a third trigger frame carrying the reservation resource indication, the reservation resource information, and the transmission parameters of the reservation resource, and wherein the at least one information frame comprises one of the third trigger frame.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein, The third trigger frame further carries information of at least one set of non-reservation resources and transmission parameters of the non-reservation resources, wherein the at least one set of non-reservation resources is used for random access of at least one third device, and wherein the third device obtains a set of the non-reservation resources by contention and performs data transmission on the non-reservation resources according to the transmission parameters of the non-reservation resources.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein, The third trigger frame comprises one of the following: a basic trigger frame, a bandwidth query report poll (BQRP) trigger frame, and a buffer status report poll (BSRP) trigger frame.

14. The method of claim 4, wherein, The first device sends at least one information frame, comprising: The first device sends a control frame carrying the reserved resource indication and the reserved resource information, so that the second device and the fourth device receive the control frame, wherein the at least one information frame includes one of the control frames, wherein the fourth device is used to determine whether the reserved resource is allowed to be reserved based on the reserved resource information, and the second device participates in the competition for the reserved resource if the fourth device allows the reserved resource to be reserved.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, After the first device sends a control frame carrying the reserved resource information, the method further includes: The first device receives a control frame response sent by the fourth device, which carries a reservation permission indication, wherein the reservation permission indication is used to indicate whether the reserved resource is allowed to be reserved.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein, The control frame response also carries at least one set of transmission parameters for non-reserved resources; When the permission reservation indication is yes, the control frame response also carries the transmission parameters of the reserved resources.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein, After the first device receives a control frame response carrying a reservation permission indication sent by the fourth device, the method further includes: The first device transmits data on the at least one set of non-reserved resources according to the transmission parameters of the non-reserved resources.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein, The control frame is a request to send an RTS frame.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein, The control frame response is to allow the transmission of CTS frames.

20. The method of claim 8, wherein, The first trigger frame includes a common information field and a frame control field, wherein the common information field or the frame control field includes at least one of the following: Reserved resource instructions; Trigger frame type, wherein the trigger frame type of the first trigger frame is a trigger frame with resource reservation; Reserved resource types, including no reserved, frequency domain resources, time domain resources, and time-frequency domain resources.

21. The method of claim 8, wherein, The second trigger frame includes at least one user information field, wherein each user information field contains at least one of the following: The preset value of the AID12 field is used to indicate whether the current resource unit is the reserved resource; resource unit RU allocation; frequency domain resources; time domain resources; ACK strategy; modulation and coding scheme; number of spatial streams; access point received power; guard interval; preferred access category.

22. The method of claim 11, wherein, The third trigger frame includes a public information field, a frame control field, and at least one user information field, wherein... The public information field or the frame control field contains at least one of the following: The reserved resource indication; Trigger frame type, wherein the trigger frame type of the third trigger frame is a trigger frame with resource reservation; Reserved resource types, wherein the reserved resource types include no reserved, frequency domain resources, time domain resources, and time-frequency domain resources; Each of the user information fields contains at least one of the following: The preset value of the AID12 field is used to indicate whether the current resource unit is the reserved resource; resource unit RU allocation; frequency domain resources; time domain resources; ACK strategy; modulation and coding scheme; number of spatial streams; access point received power; guard interval; preferred access category.

23. The method of claim 14, wherein, The control frame includes one of the following: a reserved resource indication field and a reserved resource field; a field for indicating the reserved resource indication and the reserved resource.

24. The method of claim 15, wherein, The control frame response comprises at least one of: an allowed reservation indication field; a special common information field and a special user information field; a preferred access category.

25. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Before the first device transmits the at least one information frame, the method further comprises: The first device obtains low-latency transmission requirements of at least one second device, and determines the reserved resource according to the low-latency transmission requirements; or The first device determines a demand resource according to transmission requirements, and determines a remaining resource except the demand resource as the reserved resource.

26. A resource allocation method, the method comprising: A second device receives at least one information frame transmitted by a first device, wherein the at least one information frame carries reserved resource indication information of the first device resource, and the first device is a transmission opportunity (TXOP) holder.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein, The reserved resource indication information comprises at least one of: a reserved resource indication for indicating whether the first device has resource reservation; reserved resource information for indicating reserved resources of the first device during a TXOP; transmission parameters of the reserved resource.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein, The type of the reserved resource comprises time domain resource and / or frequency domain resource.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein, The method further comprises: The second device determines the reserved resource of the first device during a TXOP and transmission parameters of the reserved resource according to the reserved resource indication information.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein, The method further comprises: The second device performs channel state detection in a channel of the reserved resource; After the channel state is idle for a preset time, the second device participates in contention for the reserved resource.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein, After the second device participates in contention for the reserved resource, the method further comprises: If the contention is successful, the second device obtains the reserved resource, constructs a data frame according to the transmission parameters of the reserved resource, and transmits the data frame on the reserved resource; If the contention fails, the second device switches back to a main channel.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein, Before the second device performs channel state detection in a channel of the reserved resource, the method further comprises: The second device determines an access category priority of to-be-transmitted data; In a case where the access category priority is higher than or equal to a preferred access category, the second device switches from a main channel to a channel of the reserved resource, wherein the reserved resource indication information further comprises the preferred access category.

33. The method of claim 27, wherein, The second device receives at least one information frame transmitted by a first device, comprising: The second device receives and parses a first trigger frame transmitted by the first device to obtain the reserved resource indication; The second device receives and parses a second trigger frame transmitted by the first device to obtain transmission parameters of the reserved resource; The at least one information frame comprises one first trigger frame and one second trigger frame, and the first trigger frame or the second trigger frame further carries the reserved resource information.

34. The method of claim 27, wherein, The second device receives at least one information frame transmitted by a first device, comprising: The second device receives and parses a third trigger frame sent by the first device to obtain the reserved resource indication, the reserved resource information, and the transmission parameter of the reserved resource, wherein the at least one information frame comprises the third trigger frame.

35. The method of claim 27, wherein, The second device receives at least one information frame sent by the first device, comprising: The second device receives and parses a control frame sent by the first device to obtain the reserved resource indication and the reserved resource information, wherein the at least one information frame comprises the control frame.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein, After the second device receives and parses the control frame sent by the first device, the method further comprises: The second device receives and parses a control frame response sent by a fourth device to obtain an allowed reservation indication, wherein the allowed reservation indication is used to indicate whether the reserved resource is allowed to be reserved, and the fourth device is used to determine whether the reserved resource is allowed to be reserved according to the reserved resource information in the control frame.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein, The method further comprises: In the case that the allowed reservation indication is yes, the second device participates in the competition for the reserved resource; In the case that the allowed reservation indication is no, the second device does not use the reserved resource.

38. The method of claim 36, wherein, In the case that the allowed reservation indication is yes, the control frame response further carries the transmission parameter of the reserved resource.

39. A computer readable storage medium having stored therein a computer program, wherein, The computer program is run by a processor to perform the method in any one of claims 1 to 38.

40. An electronic device comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to run the computer program to perform the method in any one of claims 1 to 38.

41. A computer program product comprising a computer program, wherein the computer program is run by a processor to implement the steps of the method in any one of claims 1 to 38.

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