Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of wireless communications, and particularly relates to a communication method and apparatus. The present application can support IEEE protocols, such as IEEE802.11be / Wi-Fi 7 / EHT protocols, IEEE 802.11bn / UHR / Wi-Fi 8 protocols, IEEE 802.15 / UWB protocols, IEEE 802.11bf / sensing protocols, integrated millimeter wave (IMMW) protocols or sparklink protocols. The communication method comprises: a first station sending a PPDU on the basis of a first DRU; and a second station receiving the PPDU on the basis of the first DRU, wherein the distribution bandwidth of the first DRU may be aggregated from M instances of discontinuous 20 MHz, and the index of a sub-carrier in the first DRU may be determined on the basis of the index of a sub-carrier in a second DRU; and the size of the second DRU is the same as that of the first DRU, and the magnitude of the distribution bandwidth of the second DRU is the same as that of the distribution bandwidth of the first DRU.

Description

Communication method and apparatus

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application No. 202410742235.1, filed on June 7, 2024, with the State Intellectual Property Office of China, with the title of “Communication method and apparatus”, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, in particular to a communication method and apparatus. BACKGROUND

[0003] Wireless local area network (WLAN) has gone through many generations since its development, including 802.11a / b / g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax, 802.11be and 802.11bn, etc. Among them, 802.11n standard is called high throughput (HT), 802.11ac standard is called very high throughput (VHT), 802.11ax standard is called high efficient (HE), 802.11be standard is called extremely high throughput (EHT), and 802.11bn can be called ultra high reliability (UHR). For standards before HT, such as 802.11a / b / g, etc., they can be collectively referred to as non-HT. The above throughput can also be referred to as throughput.

[0004] Currently, a low power indoor (LPI) communication mode is defined, which strictly limits the maximum power and maximum frequency spectrum density of transmission. The transmission power of a device is limited by both the maximum power and the maximum power spectrum density, i.e., the transmission power cannot exceed the maximum power value, and the power spectrum density (PSD) of the transmission cannot exceed the maximum power spectrum density. Compared with the maximum power, the limitation of the maximum power spectrum density is more stringent, and the maximum power allowed for transmission is usually more limited by the power spectrum density. For a station, when the bandwidth is 320 MHz, the transmission power of the station reaches the limit of the specified maximum power. When the bandwidth is less than 320 MHz, because of the limitation of the maximum power spectrum density, the station can only transmit at a lower power (here, the power is lower than the specified maximum power). Based on this, a distributed resource unit (DRU) technology is proposed to improve the transmission power. The basic idea of the DRU is to disperse the continuous subcarriers in a resource unit (RU) to the widest bandwidth possible to reduce the number of subcarriers in 1 MHz, so as to increase the transmission power of each subcarrier and thus increase the total transmission power.

[0005] However, in the existing scheme, the distribution bandwidth (DBW) is composed of continuous 20 MHz, which results in low channel utilization. SUMMARY

[0006] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and device, which can fully utilize discontinuous 20 MHz, so as to aggregate into larger discrete, improve channel utilization, and improve resource utilization.

[0007] In a first aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, which can be applied to a first station, which can include a wireless local area network (WLAN) device (including a Wi-Fi device, etc.), or a chip, functional module, processing system or communication component, etc. provided in the WLAN device. The method includes:

[0008] generating a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) according to the first DRU, and transmitting the PPDU;

[0009] The first discrete bandwidth corresponding to the first DRU is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHzs, M is an integer greater than or equal to 2; the indexes of the subcarriers in the first DRU are shifted by x indexes to the left or y indexes to the right with respect to the indexes of the first part of the subcarriers in the second DRU, the number of the subcarriers in the second DRU is the same as that in the first DRU, the second discrete bandwidth corresponding to the second DRU is continuous M 20MHzs, and x and y are integers.

[0010] The PPDU can also be referred to as a physical layer convergence procedure protocol data unit. The number of the subcarriers in the first DRU can also be referred to as the size of the first DRU. The size of the first DRU is the same as that of the second DRU. The first discrete bandwidth is the discrete bandwidth of the first DRU, and the second discrete bandwidth is the discrete bandwidth of the second DRU, and the size of the first discrete bandwidth is the same as that of the second discrete bandwidth.

[0011] The discontinuous M 20MHzs means that there are at least two 20MHzs discontinuous or at least one or more 20MHzs unavailable (or unused) between the two 20MHzs in the M 20MHzs. For example, there are one or more 20MHzs unavailable between the nth 20MHz and the (n+1)th 20MHz in the M 20MHzs. n is an integer less than or equal to M.

[0012] The indexes of the subcarriers in the first DRU are shifted by x indexes to the left or y indexes to the right with respect to the indexes of the first part of the subcarriers in the second DRU, including:

[0013] The indexes of the subcarriers in the first DRU are shifted by x indexes to the left or y indexes to the right with respect to the indexes of the first part of the subcarriers in the second DRU, or the indexes of the second part of the subcarriers in the second DRU are shifted by y indexes to the right; or,

[0014] The indexes of the subcarriers in the first DRU are shifted by x indexes to the left or y indexes to the right with respect to the indexes of the first part of the subcarriers in the second DRU, or the indexes of the second part of the subcarriers in the second DRU are shifted by y indexes to the right.

[0015] In the embodiments of the present application, the indexes of the subcarriers in the DRU in the second discrete bandwidth are all exemplified by the relative subcarrier indexes. For example, the indexes of the subcarriers in the second DRU are relative to the indexes of the subcarriers in the second discrete bandwidth.

[0016] As an example, the first station can include a non-access point station (non-AP STA), which can be a WLAN device or a chip or a functional module arranged in a WLAN device. The second station can include an access point (AP), which can be a WLAN device or a chip or a functional module arranged in a WLAN device. As another example, the first station can include an AP, which can be a WLAN device or a chip or a functional module arranged in a WLAN device. The second station can include a non-AP STA, which can be a WLAN device or a chip or a functional module arranged in a WLAN device.

[0017] In the embodiments of the present application, the first discrete bandwidth can be aggregated by M 20MHz, so as to be aggregated into a discrete bandwidth larger than 20MHz, thereby fully utilizing the discontinuous 20MHz, improving the transmission power, improving the channel utilization, and improving the resource utilization. Meanwhile, the embodiments of the present application also design the indexes of the subcarriers in the first DRU under the first discrete bandwidth, and perfect the subcarrier planning under the first discrete bandwidth.

[0018] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner, before generating the PPDU according to the first DRU, the method further includes: receiving a trigger frame, the trigger frame including indication information, the indication information being used to indicate that in a frequency sub-block corresponding to the indication information, the first discrete bandwidth is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHz.

[0019] The first station can include a non-AP STA, and the second station can include an AP. Therefore, by including the indication information in the trigger frame, the first station can be effectively indicated the discrete bandwidth of the first DRU, so that the first station can know the first DRU used for transmitting the PPDU.

[0020] In the second aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, which can be applied to a second station. The second station can include a WLAN device (including a Wi-Fi device, etc.), or a chip, a functional module, a processing system or a communication component arranged in a WLAN device. The method includes:

[0021] receiving the PPDU; and parsing the PPDU according to the first DRU; wherein a first discrete bandwidth corresponding to the first DRU is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHzs, M is an integer greater than or equal to 2; indexes of subcarriers in the first DRU correspond to indexes of a first part of subcarriers in a second DRU which are shifted left by x indexes, or indexes of a second part of subcarriers in the second DRU which are shifted right by y indexes, a number of subcarriers in the second DRU is same as a number of subcarriers in the first DRU, a second discrete bandwidth corresponding to the second DRU is continuous M 20MHzs, x and y are integers.

[0022] With reference to the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner, before the PPDU is received according to the first DRU, the method further includes:

[0023] sending a trigger frame, the trigger frame including indication information, the indication information being used to indicate that in a frequency sub-block corresponding to the indication information, the first discrete bandwidth is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHzs.

[0024] The description of the second aspect can refer to the first aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0025] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner, a value of x or y is determined according to a position of a first subcarrier #2 in the second DRU in the second discrete bandwidth and a position of a first subcarrier #1 in the first DRU in the first discrete bandwidth. Alternatively, the value of x or y is determined according to the position of the first subcarrier #2 in the second DRU in the second discrete bandwidth, the position of the first subcarrier #1 in the first DRU in the first discrete bandwidth, and a value of M.

[0026] The first subcarrier #1 can be a subcarrier in the first DRU, and the position of the first subcarrier #2 in the second DRU is same as the position of the first subcarrier #1 in the first DRU. For example, the first subcarrier #2 is an N1th subcarrier in the second DRU, and the first subcarrier #1 is an N1th subcarrier in the first DRU. N1 is an integer.

[0027] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the first DRU includes a first subcarrier #1 and a second subcarrier #1, the second DRU includes a first subcarrier #2 and a second subcarrier #2, the position of the first subcarrier #1 in the first DRU is same as the position of the first subcarrier #2 in the second DRU, and the position of the second subcarrier #1 in the first DRU is same as the position of the second subcarrier #2 in the second DRU.

[0028] For example, if the first subcarrier #2 is the N1th subcarrier in the second DRU, then the first subcarrier #1 is the N1th subcarrier in the first DRU. For another example, if the second subcarrier #2 is the N2th subcarrier in the second DRU, then the second subcarrier #1 is the N2th subcarrier in the first DRU. N1 and N2 are integers.

[0029] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 80 MHz, or for one frequency sub-block in the bandwidth of the PPDU, the index of the subcarrier with the index less than 0 in the first DRU corresponds to the index of the subcarrier with the index less than 0 in the second DRU shifted left by 256 indexes, and the index of the subcarrier with the index greater than 0 in the first DRU corresponds to the index of the subcarrier with the index greater than 0 in the second DRU shifted right by 256 indexes.

[0030] The index of the subcarrier in the first DRU shown herein can be the subcarrier index relative to one frequency sub-block, or the subcarrier index when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 80 MHz.

[0031] In the embodiments of the present application, the second DRU can be one DRU in the subcarrier planning corresponding to the second discrete bandwidth, and the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU is designed under the aggregated first discrete bandwidth proposed in the present application, so that the subcarrier planning under the aggregated first discrete bandwidth can be perfected, and the transmission power of the first station is effectively improved.

[0032] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, when the bandwidth of the PPDU is greater than 80 MHz, the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU is determined according to the index of the first part of subcarriers in the second DRU, the index of the second part of subcarriers in the second DRU, and the position of the frequency sub-block in which the first discrete bandwidth is located in the bandwidth of the PPDU.

[0033] The index of the subcarrier in the first DRU shown herein is the subcarrier index relative to the bandwidth of the PPDU.

[0034] In the embodiments of the present application, according to the relationship between the first DRU and the second DRU, not only the subcarrier planning of the first DRU when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 80 MHz is perfected, but also the subcarrier planning of the first DRU when the bandwidth of the PPDU is greater than 80 MHz, such as 160 MHz or 320 MHz, is designed.

[0035] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the first discrete bandwidth is 40 MHz, the frequency sub-block in which the first discrete bandwidth is located is 80 MHz, and according to the order from low to high frequency, the first discrete bandwidth is aggregated from the first 20 MHz and the fourth 20 MHz in the 80 MHz.

[0036] In a possible implementation manner of the first aspect or the second aspect, the second 20MHz and the third 20MHz in the 80MHz are punctured.

[0037] For example, "1" represents non-puncturing, and "0" represents puncturing. When the puncturing manner of the preamble is "1001", the embodiment of the present application specifically designs the DRU in the first discrete bandwidth, and perfects the subcarrier planning.

[0038] In a possible implementation manner of the first aspect or the second aspect, the indication information is contained in a special user information field in the trigger frame.

[0039] In a possible implementation manner of the first aspect or the second aspect, the first discrete bandwidth is located in an Nth frequency sub-block in the bandwidth of the PPDU, the index of the first DRU is the same as the index of a third DRU, the discrete bandwidth of the third DRU is a second discrete bandwidth, the bandwidth of the PPDU corresponding to the second discrete bandwidth is the same as the bandwidth of the PPDU corresponding to the first discrete bandwidth, the second discrete bandwidth is located in the Nth frequency sub-block, and the number of subcarriers in the first DRU is the same as the number of subcarriers in the third DRU.

[0040] The N is a positive integer. For example, when one frequency sub-block is 80MHz and the first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, in the case that the bandwidth of the PPDU is greater than or equal to 80MHz, the index of the third DRU in the low 40MHz in one frequency sub-block can correspond to the index of the first DRU in the aggregated 40MHz, or the index of the third DRU in the high 40MHz in one frequency sub-block can correspond to the index of the first DRU in the aggregated 40MHz. The index of the first DRU being the same as the index of the third DRU includes that the index of the first DRU in the bandwidth of the PPDU is the same as the index of the third DRU in the bandwidth of the PPDU.

[0041] In a possible implementation manner of the first aspect or the second aspect, the first discrete bandwidth and the second discrete bandwidth can both be located in the Nth frequency sub-block in the bandwidth of the PPDU, and the index of each DRU in the subcarrier planning corresponding to the first discrete bandwidth can correspond to the index of each DRU in the subcarrier planning corresponding to the second discrete bandwidth.

[0042] In a third aspect, the embodiment of the present application provides a communication device for executing the method in any of the first aspect to the second aspect or any possible implementation manner. The first communication device includes a module for executing the method in any of the first aspect to the second aspect or any possible implementation manner.

[0043] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, comprising a processor configured to implement a method recited in any of the above first aspect to the second aspect or any possible implementation of the above first aspect to the second aspect. The processor is configured to execute a program stored in the memory, and when the program is executed, the method recited in any of the above first aspect to the second aspect or any possible implementation of the above first aspect to the second aspect is implemented.

[0044] In a possible implementation, the memory is located outside the communication apparatus.

[0045] In a possible implementation, the memory is located inside the communication apparatus.

[0046] In an embodiment of the present application, the processor and the memory can also be integrated into one device, that is, the processor and the memory can also be integrated together. For example, the communication apparatus can be a chip.

[0047] In a possible implementation, the communication apparatus further comprises a transceiver configured to receive or send information.

[0048] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, comprising a logic circuit and an interface, the logic circuit and the interface being coupled; the interface is configured to input and / or output information, and the logic circuit is configured to implement a method recited in any of the above first aspect to the second aspect or any possible implementation of the above first aspect to the second aspect.

[0049] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer readable storage medium for storing a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, causes a method recited in any of the above first aspect to the second aspect or any possible implementation of the above first aspect to the second aspect to be implemented.

[0050] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, which, when executed on a computer, causes a method recited in any of the above first aspect to the second aspect or any possible implementation of the above first aspect to the second aspect to be implemented.

[0051] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, comprising a first station and a second station, the first station is configured to implement a method recited in the above first aspect or any possible implementation of the above first aspect, and the second station is configured to implement a method recited in the above second aspect or any possible implementation of the above second aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0052] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of channel division of 6 GHz according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0054] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of 80MHz preamble puncturing according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0055] FIG. 4a is a schematic diagram of 20MHz subcarrier distribution and RU distribution according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] FIG. 4b is a schematic diagram of 40MHz subcarrier distribution and RU distribution according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0057] FIG. 4c is a schematic diagram of 80MHz subcarrier distribution and RU distribution according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0058] FIG. 5a is a schematic diagram of EHT multiple user physical layer protocol data unit (MU PPDU) format according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] FIG. 5b is a schematic diagram of EHT trigger based physical layer protocol data unit (TB PPDU) format according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] FIG. 5c is a schematic diagram of uplink multi-user transmission according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] FIG. 5d is a schematic diagram of trigger frame format according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] FIG. 7a is a schematic diagram of aggregated 40MHz according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] FIG. 7b is a schematic diagram of 20MHz according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of subcarrier index mapping according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of PPDU frequency when the bandwidth is 320MHz according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0067] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0068] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of another structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0069] FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of yet another structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0070] For the purpose of understanding the technical solutions of the present application, the present application will be further described below with reference to the drawings.

[0071] The terms "first" and "second" and the like in the description, claims, and drawings of the present application merely mean different objects and do not imply a particular order. In addition, the terms "include" and "have" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or device, or the like, that includes a list of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but can optionally further include other steps or units not listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or devices.

[0072] Reference herein to "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the present application. The appearance of the phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment, nor is it necessarily mutually exclusive of other embodiments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the expressions explicit and implicit herein that the embodiments described herein can be combined with other embodiments.

[0073] In the present application, "at least one" means one or more, "multiple" means two or more, "at least two" means two or three or more, and "and / or" is used to describe the association relationship of the associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships, for example, "A and / or B" can mean: only A, only B, and A and B exist at the same time, where A and B can be singular or plural. "Or" means there can be two relationships, such as only A, only B; when A and B are not mutually exclusive, it can also mean that there are three relationships, such as only A, only B, and A and B exist at the same time. The character " / " generally represents an "or" relationship between the associated objects before and after it. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions means any combination of these items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can mean: a, b, c, "a and b", "a and c", "b and c", or "a and b and c".

[0074] In the present application, "sending" and "receiving" represent the direction of signal transmission. For example, "sending information to XX" can be understood as the destination of the information is XX, which can include direct sending through the air interface, and also includes indirect sending through the air interface by other units or modules. "Receiving information from YY" can be understood as the source of the information is YY, which can include direct receiving from YY through the air interface, and also includes indirect receiving from YY through the air interface from other units or modules. "Sending" can also be understood as the "output" of the chip interface, and "receiving" can also be understood as the "input" of the chip interface. In other words, sending and receiving can be between devices, such as between network devices and terminal devices, or within a device, such as between components, modules, chips, software modules or hardware modules within a device through a bus, wire or interface.

[0075] The following introduces the system related to the embodiments of the present application.

[0076] The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applied to a WLAN system, such as Wi-Fi and the like. The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applicable to the institute of electrical and electronics engineers (IEEE) 802.11 series protocols (or standards), for example, the 802.11be protocol, the 802.11bn protocol (or Wi-Fi 8, also referred to as ultra high reliability (UHR) or ultra high reliability and throughput (UHRT), etc.), or a next-generation protocol of the 802.11bn protocol or a protocol supporting ambient power (AMP), and the like, which will not be listed one by one. The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to a wireless personal area network (WPAN) based on millimeter wave (MMW), such as integrated MMW (IMMW), ultra wideband (UWB) technology, and the like. The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applicable to the IEEE 802.15 series protocols, for example, the 802.15.4a protocol, the 802.15.4z protocol or the 802.15.4ab protocol, or a future generation UWB WPAN protocol, and the like, which will not be listed one by one. The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to a spark link or nearlink standard protocol. The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to a communication system, for example, can be an internet of things (IoT) system, a vehicle-to-everything (V2X, X can represent any thing) system, a device-to-device (D2D) system, a narrow band IoT (NB-IoT) system, a long term evolution (LTE) system, a 5th-generation (5G) communication system, and a new communication system to be appeared in future communication development, and the like.For example, the V2X can include vehicle to vehicle (V2V), vehicle to infrastructure (V2I), vehicle to pedestrian (V2P) or vehicle to network (V2N) communication, etc.

[0077] The WLAN system can provide high-rate and low-latency transmission. With the continuous evolution of WLAN application scenarios, the WLAN system will be applied to more scenarios or industries, such as the Internet of Things industry, the Internet of Vehicles industry, or the banking industry, enterprise offices, sports venues, exhibition halls, music halls, hotel rooms, dormitories, wards, classrooms, supermarkets, squares, streets, manufacturing workshops, and warehouses, etc. Of course, the device (such as an access point or a station) supporting WLAN communication or sensing can be a sensor node in a smart city (such as a smart water meter, a smart electricity meter, a smart air detection node), a smart device in a smart home (such as a smart camera, a projector, a display screen, a television, a sound system, a refrigerator, a washing machine, etc.), a node in the Internet of Things, an entertainment terminal (such as an augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) wearable device), a smart device in a smart office (such as a printer, a projector, a loudspeaker, a sound system, etc.), a vehicle-to-vehicle device in the Internet of Vehicles, infrastructure in daily life scenarios (such as a vending machine, a self-service navigation station in a supermarket, a self-service checkout device, a self-service ordering machine, etc.), and a device in a large sports or music venue, etc.

[0078] Although the embodiments of the present application mainly take WLAN as an example, especially the network applying to the IEEE 802.11 series standards. The various aspects involved in the embodiments of the present application can be extended to other networks using various standards or protocols. For example, Bluetooth, high performance radio LAN (HIPERLAN) (a wireless standard similar to the IEEE 802.11 standard) and wide area network (WAN) or other now known or later developed networks.

[0079] In a possible implementation, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be implemented by a communication device in a communication system. For example, the communication device can be an access point (AP) or a non-access point station (non-AP STA).

[0080] The AP is a device with wireless communication function, which supports communication or sensing or energy transmission using WLAN protocol, has the function of communication or sensing with other devices (such as non-AP STA or other access points) in the WLAN network, and of course, can also have the function of communication or sensing or energy transmission with other devices. Alternatively, the access point is equivalent to a bridge connecting wired and wireless networks, and its main function is to connect various wireless network clients together and then access the wireless network to the Ethernet. In the WLAN system, the access point can be referred to as an access point station (AP STA). The device with wireless communication function can be a whole device, or a chip, processing system or functional module installed in the whole device, and the device installed with the chip or processing system or functional module can realize the method and function of the embodiments of the present application under the control of the chip or processing system or functional module. The AP in the embodiments of the present application is a device providing services for non-AP STA, which can support 802.11 series protocol or subsequent protocol, etc. For example, the access point can be an access point for terminals (such as mobile phones) to enter wired (or wireless) networks, and is mainly deployed in homes, buildings and parks, with a typical coverage radius of tens of meters to hundreds of meters, and of course, can also be deployed outdoors. For another example, the AP can be a communication server, a router, a switch, a network bridge and other communication entities; the AP can include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, etc. Of course, the AP can also be a chip or processing system or module in the above various forms of devices, so as to realize the method and function of the embodiments of the present application.

[0081] The non-AP STA is a device with wireless communication function, supports communication or sensing or energy transmission using WLAN protocol, and has the ability to communicate or sense or energy transmission with other non-AP STAs or access points in the WLAN network. For example, the non-AP STA is any user communication device that allows a user to communicate or sense or energy transmission with an AP and then communicate with a WLAN. The device with wireless communication function can be a complete device, or a chip or processing system or functional module installed in the complete device. The device installed with the chip or processing system or functional module can realize the method and function of the embodiments of the present application under the control of the chip or processing system or functional module. For example, the non-AP STA can be a wireless communication chip, a wireless sensor or a wireless communication terminal, and can also be referred to as a user. For another example, the non-AP STA can be a mobile phone supporting Wi-Fi communication function, a tablet computer supporting Wi-Fi communication function, a set-top box supporting Wi-Fi communication function, a smart television supporting Wi-Fi communication function, a smart wearable device supporting Wi-Fi communication function, a vehicle-mounted communication device supporting Wi-Fi communication function, and a computer supporting Wi-Fi communication function. Of course, the non-AP STA can also be a chip or processing system or module in the above various forms of devices, thereby realizing the method and function of the embodiments of the present application.

[0082] For example, the embodiments of the present application can be applied to the communication or sensing between the AP and the non-AP STA, the communication between the AP and the AP, or the communication or sensing between the non-AP STA and the non-AP STA in the WLAN, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. Optionally, the AP can communicate or sense with a single non-AP STA, or the AP can simultaneously communicate or sense with multiple non-AP STAs. Specifically, the communication or sensing between the AP and the multiple non-AP STAs can be divided into downlink transmission in which the AP simultaneously sends signals to multiple non-AP STAs, and uplink transmission in which multiple non-AP STAs send signals to the AP. The communication between the AP and the non-AP STA, the communication between the AP and the AP, and the communication or sensing between the non-AP STA and the non-AP STA can support the WLAN communication protocol, which can include the IEEE 802.11 series of protocols, such as the 802.11bn protocol, and of course also applies to the protocols after 802.11bn.

[0083] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication system can include one or more APs and one or more non-AP STAs. Two access points, e.g., AP1 and AP2, and three stations, e.g., non-AP STA1, non-AP STA2, and non-AP STA3, are shown in FIG. 1. As an example, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be applied to data communication or sensing or energy transfer between one AP and one or more non-AP STAs, e.g., the communication or sensing between AP1 and non-AP STA1 shown in FIG. 1, or the communication or sensing between AP1 and non-AP STA1 and non-AP STA2 shown in FIG. 1. As another example, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be applied to communication between APs, e.g., the communication or sensing between AP1 and AP2 shown in FIG. 1. As yet another example, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be applied to communication or sensing between non-AP STAs, e.g., the communication or sensing between non-AP STA2 and non-AP STA3 shown in FIG. 1.

[0084] In FIG. 1, the non-AP STA is a mobile phone and the AP is a router as an example, which does not limit the types of APs and non-AP STAs in the embodiments of the present application. Meanwhile, the number of APs and non-AP STAs shown in FIG. 1 is only an example, and the number of APs or non-AP STAs can be more or less in specific implementation, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0085] The following introduces the terms or names related to the embodiments of the present application.

[0086] 1. Channel division

[0087] Generally, a 20MHz subchannel can be taken as a basic unit of a channel. A 20MHz can include one 20MHz subchannel; a 40MHz can include two 20MHz subchannels; an 80MHz can include four 20MHz subchannels; a 160MHz can include eight 20MHz subchannels; a 320MHz can include sixteen 20MHz subchannels, and so on, which will not be listed one by one here. Generally, when the bandwidth of a PPDU is greater than 20MHz, the 20MHz can be referred to as a subchannel; when the bandwidth of a PPDU is 20MHz, the 20MHz can be referred to as a channel or a frequency range, etc.

[0088] A set of multiple sub-channels can be referred to as a frequency subblock (or subblock) or a frequency tile, etc. For example, 4 20MHz sub-channels can form an 80MHz frequency subblock. For 160MHz bandwidth, 4 20MHz sub-channels form an 80MHz frequency subblock, and 160MHz can correspond to 2 80MHz frequency subblocks. The present application is exemplified by 80MHz frequency subblocks, and the methods below applicable to 80MHz frequency subblocks are also applicable to other units of frequency subblocks.

[0089] To prevent excessive interference between different channels, for 5GHz or 6GHz, 40MHz channels do not overlap each other.

[0090] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of channel division of 6GHz according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 2, from left to right, the first 20MHz and the second 20MHz form the first 40MHz, the third 20MHz and the fourth 20MHz form the second 40MHz, and so on. Since the 40MHz channels do not overlap each other, the second 20MHz and the third 20MHz cannot form a 40MHz channel.

[0091] In addition, since 320MHz is relatively scarce, the first 160MHz and the second 160MHz can be allowed to form a 320MHz-1 channel. At the same time, the second 160MHz and the third 160MHz can be allowed to form a 320MHz-2 channel. The description of channel division herein is also applicable below.

[0092] 2. Preamble puncture

[0093] For some sub-channels, in a period of time or at a specific time, they cannot be used due to at least one of the following reasons:

[0094] (1) There is a radar signal. In unlicensed spectrum, WLAN users can actively avoid when they find a radar signal.

[0095] (2) There is an authorized user. On some specific channels, there may be authorized users, and WLAN users can actively avoid when they find authorized users.

[0096] (3) There is interference from other users.

[0097] For these scenarios where transmission sub-channels are not allowed, a preamble puncture transmission method can be used. Through the preamble puncture transmission method, the transmitter can still transmit a PPDU when one or more 20MHz sub-channels are in a busy state.

[0098] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of 80MHz preamble puncturing according to an embodiment of the present application. In order from low to high frequency, 80MHz can include channel 1 (CH1) to channel 4 (CH4). FIG. 3 exemplarily shows a manner of puncturing transmission on 80MHz bandwidth. Of course, the puncturing manner shown in FIG. 3 is merely an example and is not intended to limit the embodiments of the present application.

[0099] 3. Bandwidth limited station

[0100] Different stations support different maximum bandwidth capabilities, especially in 5GHz and 6GHz spectrum. For a station that only supports 20MHz bandwidth, it can be referred to as 20MHz only STA. For a station that supports maximum bandwidth of 80MHz, it can be referred to as 80MHz only STA. Of course, the 80MHz only STA also supports 20MHz, 40MHz and other relatively small bandwidths. For a station that supports maximum bandwidth of 160MHz, it can be referred to as 160MHz only STA. Of course, the 160MHz only STA can also support 80MHz, 40MHz, 20MHz and other relatively small bandwidths.

[0101] In addition to the hardware limitation, in order to save energy, a station can work in a bandwidth mode smaller than the maximum bandwidth capability for a period of time. For example, for an 80MHz only STA, it can choose to support maximum operating bandwidth of 20MHz for a period of time, and the above period of time can be referred to as a station that only supports 20MHz operation (20MHz only operating STA).

[0102] Generally, a STA whose supported bandwidth is smaller than the bandwidth of a PPDU is referred to as a bandwidth limited STA. For example, when the bandwidth of a PPDU is 80MHz, the 80MHz only STA is a STA that supports full bandwidth, and the STA is a bandwidth limited STA, not a bandwidth capability limited STA. The bandwidth capability limited STA refers to a STA whose supported bandwidth is smaller than the bandwidth of a PPDU.

[0103] 4. Regular resource unit (RRU) or multi-resource unit (MRU)

[0104] The regular continuous RU based subcarrier plan (or subcarrier distribution) is as follows:

[0105] As an example, when the bandwidth is 20MHz, the whole bandwidth (i.e., 20MHz) can be composed of one whole 242-tone RU, or various combinations of 26-tone RU, 52-tone RU, 106-tone RU. Each RU can include data subcarriers and pilot subcarriers. The data subcarriers can be used to carry data information, and the pilot subcarriers can be used for phase offset and / or frequency offset estimation, etc. In addition to the RUs, the bandwidth can also include at least one of the following: one or more guard subcarriers, one or more null subcarriers, one or more direct current (DC) subcarriers. The description of RU or subcarrier herein also applies to other bandwidths shown below, and will not be repeated hereinafter.

[0106] FIG. 4a is a schematic diagram of subcarrier distribution and RU distribution of 20MHz according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 4a, 20MHz can include 9 26-tone RUs, or 4 52-tone RUs, or 2 106-tone RUs, or 1 242-tone.

[0107] A 26-tone RU is an RU including 26 subcarriers, a 52-tone RU is an RU including 52 subcarriers, a 106-tone RU is an RU including 106 subcarriers, and a 242-tone RU is an RU including 242 subcarriers, and so on.

[0108] As another example, when the bandwidth is 40MHz, the whole bandwidth (i.e., 40MHz) can be composed of one whole 484-tone RU, or various combinations of 26-tone RU, 52-tone RU, 106-tone RU, 242-tone RU. The whole bandwidth is approximately equivalent to a copy of the subcarrier planning of 20MHz.

[0109] FIG. 4b is a schematic diagram of subcarrier distribution and RU distribution of 40MHz according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 4b, 40MHz can include 18 26-tone RUs, or 8 52-tone RUs, or 4 106-tone RUs, or 2 242-tone RUs, or 1 484-tone RU.

[0110] As yet another example, when the bandwidth is 80MHz, the entire bandwidth (i.e., 80MHz) can be composed of one entire 996-tone RU, or various combinations of 26-tone RUs, 52-tone RUs, 106-tone RUs, 242-tone RUs, 484-tone RUs.

[0111] Figure 4c is a schematic diagram of subcarrier distribution and RU distribution of 80MHz according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 4c, 80MHz can include 36 26-tone RUs, or 16 52-tone RUs, or 8 106-tone RUs, or 4 242-tone RUs, or 2 484-tone RUs, or 1 996-tone RU. Wherein 484L and 484R represent the left half and the right half of a 484-tone RU, respectively, containing 242 subcarriers, which is another representation of 484+5DC. For example, taking the subcarrier range of a 484-tone RU as [-500:-12], "484L" is the low frequency part relative to the frequency center of the 484-tone RU, i.e., [-500:-259], and "484R" is the high frequency part relative to the frequency center of the 484-tone RU, i.e., [-253:-12]. Similarly, for example, taking the subcarrier range of a 484-tone RU as [12:500], "484L" is [12:253], and "484R" is [259:500]. Here, no longer enumerate one by one.

[0112] In the present application, [a:c] can mean all integers from a to c (a and c are also integers), with a step of 1. That is: a, (a+1), (a+2), (a+3), …, c; no longer elaborate below. For example, [259:500] represents 259, 260, 261, 262, …, 498, 499, 500. As another example, [-500:-259] represents -500, -499, -498, -497, …, -260, -259.

[0113] As yet another example, when the bandwidth is 160MHz, the entire bandwidth can be regarded as a copy of the subcarrier distribution of two 80MHz, i.e., the entire bandwidth can be composed of one entire 2*996-tone RU, or various combinations of 26-tone RUs, 52-tone RUs, 106-tone RUs, 242-tone RUs, 484-tone RUs, 996-tone RUs. When the bandwidth is 320MHz, the entire bandwidth can be regarded as a copy of the subcarrier distribution of four 80MHz. Here, no longer enumerate one by one.

[0114] In the above various subcarrier plans, in units of 242-tone RUs (i.e., 20MHz), the leftmost of FIGS. 4a-4c can be the lowest frequency, and the rightmost of FIGS. 4a-4c can be the highest frequency. From left to right, the 242-tone RUs can be labeled: first (1 st ), second (2 nd ), …, and sixteenth (16 th ). Taking a 320MHz bandwidth as an example, the data field in a radio frame can occupy up to 16 242-tone RUs, that is, in the data field, up to 16 242-tone RUs can be one-to-one corresponding to 16 20MHz channels in frequency from low to high.

[0115] In addition to the above-mentioned RUs, there can also be RUs as follows: a 52+26-tone RU composed of one 52-tone RU and one 26-tone RU, a 106+26-tone RU composed of one 106-tone RU and one 26-tone RU, a 996+484-tone RU composed of one 996-tone RU and one 484-tone RU, a 2*996+484-tone RU composed of two 996-tone RUs and one 484-tone RU, a 3*996-tone MRU composed of three 996-tone RUs, and a 3*996+484-tone RU composed of three 996-tone RUs and one 484-tone RU. The above-mentioned combined RUs can be referred to as MRUs. The symbol “*” in this application means “multiply” or “times”.

[0116] At the bandwidth level, when the subcarrier spacing is 78.125KHz, the 26-tone RU can correspond to about 2MHz (i.e., 26*78.125KHz = 2031.25KHz ≈ 2MHz), the 52-tone RU can correspond to about 4MHz, the 106-tone RU can correspond to about 8MHz, and the 242-tone RU can correspond to about 20MHz. The sizes of other RUs can be similarly added or multiplied, and this application will not be repeated.

[0117] The continuous RU in this application refers to an RU composed of a plurality of continuous subcarriers, or a continuous RU composed of two groups of continuous subcarrier groups, each group of continuous subcarrier groups including a plurality of continuous subcarriers, and the two groups of continuous subcarrier groups are only separated by guard subcarriers, null subcarriers, or direct current subcarrier spacing. Of course, the continuous RU can also be other names, such as a regular RU. The terms “continuous RU” and “regular RU” can be used interchangeably, and this application does not limit the name of the continuous RU.

[0118] The RUs shown in FIGs. 4a-4c above can be referred to as regular RUs. Such regular RUs have a smaller bandwidth and lower transmit power than the distributed RUs. The “lower” here is relative to the distributed RUs, which can have further increased transmit power relative to the regular RUs.

[0119] 5. Distributed resource unit (DRU)

[0120] Recently, a communication committee has promulgated regulations on 6 GHz spectrum, which defines a low power indoor (LPI) communication method for indoor use, with strict limits on the maximum power and maximum spectral density of transmission. For example, for an AP, the maximum power is 30 decibel-milliwatts (dBm), and the maximum power spectral density is 5 dBm / megahertz (MHz). For a non-AP STA, the maximum power is 24 dBm, and the maximum power spectral density is -1 dBm / MHz. The transmit power of a device is limited by both the maximum power and the maximum power spectral density. First, the transmit power cannot exceed the maximum power value, and the power spectral density of the transmission cannot exceed the maximum power spectral density. Compared to the maximum power, the maximum power spectral density is more restrictive, and the maximum power allowed for transmission is usually more limited by the power spectral density. As the transmission bandwidth increases, the maximum transmit power of the device also increases accordingly, as shown in Table 1. When the bandwidth is the maximum 320 MHz, the limit of the maximum power specified by the regulation is reached. Below this bandwidth, the maximum transmit power is limited by the maximum power spectral density, and only a lower power can be transmitted.

[0121] Table 1

[0122] Due to the power spectral density limitation, a limited number of subcarriers are distributed to a wider bandwidth, which can obtain the transmission power improvement, i.e., the distributed RU or the distributed RU. It is commonly used in uplink multi-user transmission (only as an example), and the distributed RU is sent by multiple users, which can improve the transmission power of each user under the condition of a certain bandwidth. For example, the maximum power spectral density is limited in the form of 1 MHz transmission power not exceeding x mw, considering the 78.125 kHz carrier spacing, 1 MHz contains 12.8 (about 13) subcarriers. Since the average power of each subcarrier is the same during transmission, the maximum number of subcarriers carrying signals in any 13 consecutive subcarriers will determine the average power of each subcarrier, and in turn determine the transmission power of the signal. For example, under the condition of 20M bandwidth (total of 242 subcarriers), among all the 13 consecutive subcarriers, the maximum number of subcarriers carrying signals is 5, and the average power of each subcarrier will be x (mw) / 5. Considering that there are 26 subcarriers carrying signals, the total transmission power will be (x (mw) / 5)*26.

[0123] The DRU includes a plurality of subcarriers which are discrete in the frequency domain, or a plurality of subcarriers whose indexes are discrete, or a plurality of subcarriers whose indexes are non-continuous. The plurality of discrete subcarriers can be partially discrete or completely discrete. For example, the plurality of discrete subcarriers can include a part of subcarriers which are continuous in frequency and a part of subcarriers which are non-continuous in frequency. For another example, the plurality of discrete subcarriers can be completely non-continuous in frequency. The "continuous in frequency" as shown above can also be referred to as the indexes of the subcarriers being continuous, and the "non-continuous in frequency" can also be referred to as the indexes of the subcarriers being non-continuous. The "distributed RU" and "DRU" or "discrete RU" can be used interchangeably in the present application. It should also be understood that the DRU referred to in the present application refers to the RU whose subcarriers are discrete in the frequency domain, that is, the RU with this characteristic is referred to as the distributed RU or the discrete RU in the present application, but the RU with this characteristic can also have other names in practice, which is not limited in the present application.

[0124] The design principle of the DRU is that the RU size and the relationship between different RU sizes in each discrete bandwidth are the same as those of the RRU. The relationship between different RU sizes as shown in Tables 2 and 3 below also applies to the RRU. The relationship between different RU sizes in the DRU is the same as that in the RRU.

[0125] Table 2 exemplarily shows the number of DRUs and the DRU indexes under different RU sizes when the discrete bandwidth is 20 MHz. Table 3 exemplarily shows the number of DRUs and the DRU indexes under different RU sizes when the discrete bandwidth is 40 MHz.

[0126] Table 2

[0127] Table 3

[0128] In this application, the RU size can also be referred to as RU type or RU size, which refers to the number of subcarriers included in the RU. The 26-tone RU in Table 2 and Table 3 can also be referred to as 26, that is, the RU with 26 subcarriers; the 52-tone RU can also be referred to as 52, that is, the RU with 52 subcarriers, and so on. The DRU index refers to the number of DRUs under the discrete bandwidth, and the DRU index can also be referred to as the DRU number. For example, when the discrete bandwidth is 20MHz, there can be 9 26-tone RUs in the 20MHz, and the indexes of the 9 26-tone RUs can be 1-9 in turn. Of course, when the starting index is 0, the indexes of the 9 26-tone DRUs can also be 0-8 in turn.

[0129] 6、Hybrid PPDU

[0130] For each user receiving the same trigger frame, the PPDU can be sent according to the DRU (or the PPDU is sent in the DRU mode), or the PPDU can be sent according to the RRU (or the PPDU is sent in the RRU mode). Generally, the PPDU can be sent according to the DRU on an 80MHz bandwidth, or the PPDU can be sent according to the RRU. That is, in the 80MHz bandwidth, the mixed transmission of the DRU and the RRU can not occur. Here, 80MHz is taken as an example, and subsequent other bandwidths can occur as the standard progresses, and the mixed transmission of the DRU and the RRU can not occur in the other bandwidths. For example, the other bandwidths can include 160MHz, and the like, which are not listed here. For another example, the other bandwidths and the size of the frequency sub-block are the same, and are 160MHz, and the like.

[0131] 7、PPDU

[0132] The PPDU can include a multiple user physical layer protocol data unit (MU PPDU) and a trigger-based physical layer protocol data unit (TB PPDU).

[0133] For ease of description, the format of the MU PPDU and the TB PPDU is described below by taking EHT as an example. It can be understood that the description of the EHT MU PPDU and the EHT TB PPDU below is also applicable to the description of the PPDU in other standards. For example, the description of the EHT MU PPDU and the EHT TB PPDU below is also applicable to the description of the UHR MU PPDU and the UHR TB PPDU, and the description of the IMMW MU PPDU and the IMMW TB PPDU, and the like, which are not listed one by one here. Of course, the names of the PPDU in different standards can change, and therefore the names of the UHR MU PPDU or the UHR TB PPDU and the like shown above are only examples and should not be considered as a limitation on the present application.

[0134] FIG. 5a is a schematic diagram of the format of the EHT MU PPDU provided by the embodiments of the present application. The meanings and roles of the fields in the EHT MU PPDU can be referred to Table 4.

[0135] Table 4

[0136] FIG. 5b is a schematic diagram of the format of the EHT TB PPDU provided by the embodiments of the present application. The description of the fields in the EHT TB PPDU can be referred to Table 4, which is not described in detail here.

[0137] FIG. 5c is a schematic diagram of the flow of the uplink multi-user transmission provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 5c, the flow of the uplink multi-user transmission can include that the AP (taking AP1 as an example in FIG. 5c) sends a trigger frame for triggering the uplink multi-user transmission, and the trigger frame carries the identifier information and the resource allocation information of one or more non-AP STAs; the non-AP STA receives the trigger frame, parses the user information field matched with the association identifier of the non-AP STA from the trigger frame, and then sends the EHT TB PPDU on the resource unit indicated by the resource unit allocation subfield in the user information field; and the AP receives the EHT TB PPDU from the non-AP STA, and can send an acknowledgement frame. Since the AP has informed the scheduling information of each non-AP STA through the trigger frame, the EHT-SIG is not included in the EHT TB PPDU. FIG. 5c exemplarily shows three non-AP STAs, and the number of non-AP STAs is not limited by the embodiments of the present application.

[0138] FIG. 5d is a schematic diagram of a format of a trigger frame provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 5d, the trigger frame can include a common information field and a user information list field. The common information field can contain common information that all non-AP STAs scheduled by the trigger frame need to read, and the user information list field can include one or more user information fields. One user information field can contain information that one non-AP STA needs to read.

[0139] FIG. 5d is an example of an EHT variant user information field. As the standard evolves, UHR variant user information fields and the like can also appear in the future. The specific format of the UHR variant user information field is not limited by embodiments of the present application. For example, the format of the UHR variant user information field can be the same as that of the EHT variant user information field. Of course, the present application is not limited thereto. The format of the trigger frame shown in FIG. 5d is only an example. As the standard evolves, other formats of trigger frames can also appear in the future, which are not limited by embodiments of the present application. As a possible implementation, the trigger frame in the subsequent standard can also adopt the format of the trigger frame shown in FIG. 5d.

[0140] The user information field includes, but is not limited to, a resource unit allocation subfield (RU allocation subfield) and a master-slave 160 subfield (PS160 subfield). Generally, the RU or MRU allocated by the non-AP STA can be indicated by at least one of the following subfields: the resource unit allocation subfield (RU allocation subfield), the master-slave 160 subfield (PS160 subfield), the uplink bandwidth subfield (UL BW subfield) in the common information field, and the uplink bandwidth extension subfield (UL BW extension subfield) in the special user information field. In the common information field, B55 (only an example) indicates whether there is a special user information field in the user information list field. The special user information field can have multiple functions, such as being used for extension of the common information field, or being used to carry information of a specific user, etc. The function of the special user information field is not limited by the present application.

[0141] The B0 bits in the RU allocation subfield, the B7 to B1 bits in the RU allocation subfield, the PS160 subfield, and the mapping between the RU and the MRU are shown in Table 5. The bandwidth of the PPDU is determined by the UL BW subfield and the UL BW extension subfield. The RU size (or MRU size) and location can be determined by the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield, etc. That is, the non-AP STA can learn the bandwidth of the PPDU, the RU (or MRU) size and location, etc. through the trigger frame. Optionally, the non-AP STA can also learn the discrete bandwidth of the DRU through the trigger frame.

[0142] Table 5 shows an example of the interpretation of the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield.

[0143] Table 5

[0144] In one possible implementation, N in the above Table 5 can be obtained by the formula N = 2 * X1 + X0. The values of X1 and X0 can be seen from Table 6, which shows an example of a lookup table for X1 and N. Table 5 and Table 6 can be applied not only to RRU, but also to DRU.

[0145] Table 6

[0146] P80 in the above Table 6 represents the primary 80MHz channel, S80 represents the secondary 80MHz channel, and S160 represents the secondary 160MHz channel.

[0147] In the above Table 6, the configuration refers to the order of P80, S80, and S160 in the absolute frequency, from left to right, representing from low frequency to high frequency. For example, [P80 S80] means that the primary 80MHz channel is the first 80MHz channel from low to high frequency, and the secondary 80MHz channel is the second 80MHz channel from low to high frequency; or in other words, [P80 S80] means that the primary 80MHz channel is the low 80MHz channel, and the secondary 80MHz channel is the high 80MHz channel. For another example, [S80 P80 S160] means that the secondary 80MHz channel is the low 80MHz channel in the low 160MHz channel, the primary 80MHz channel is the high 80MHz channel in the low 160MHz channel, and the secondary 160MHz channel is the high 160MHz channel.

[0148] The "field" or "subfield" in each embodiment shown in the present application is only an example, and the present application does not limit the distinction between the "field" or "subfield", "element" or "subelement". Similarly, the present application does not limit the name of each "field" or "subfield".

[0149] The method related to the embodiments of the present application is introduced below.

[0150] As a possible implementation manner 1, the user information field in the trigger frame can carry information indicating one RRU (or can be understood as RU), such as indicating the position and size of the RRU (refer to the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield described above). Optionally, the user information field can also carry 1-bit indication information, and the 1 bit can be used to indicate whether the above-mentioned RRU (or can be understood as RU) is actually an RRU or a DRU. Optionally, the user information field can also carry 2-bit information indicating the distribution bandwidth (DBW) of the DRU. For example, 00 represents 20 MHz, 01 represents 40 MHz, 10 represents 80 MHz, and 11 represents 160 MHz. For example, when the above-mentioned 1-bit indication information indicates that it is actually an RRU, the above-mentioned 2 bits can be reserved bits. The above-mentioned carrying information indicating one RRU can also be: carrying information indicating one RU. The above-mentioned 1-bit indication information can be used to indicate whether the RU is an RRU or a DRU.

[0151] Generally, there can be a fixed mapping from RRU to DRU, and when a RRU and a distribution bandwidth are given, there can be a specific DRU distributed in the above-mentioned distribution bandwidth. That is, when the size and position of a RRU are determined, according to the distribution bandwidth of the RRU, there can be a unique DRU distributed in the above-mentioned distribution bandwidth. Among them, the frequency domain range of the distribution bandwidth is related to the specific position of the RRU, and the index of the DRU can also be related to the position of the RRU. Here, the mapping relationship from RRU to DRU is also applicable to the following.

[0152] For implementation manner 1, the non-AP STA can know the distribution bandwidth according to the corresponding user information field, and in this way, the indication of the distribution bandwidth is clear and flexible.

[0153] However, there is a problem in the above-mentioned implementation mode 1, that is, the indication mode may not need to be so flexible, and the above-mentioned implementation mode 1 will cause too large signaling overhead. For example, there is an 80MHz PPDU, the user information field of station A indicates the first 26-tone RU in the 80MHz, and the user information field of station B indicates the second 26-tone RU in the 80MHz. In fact, according to the position of the RRU, the two 26-tone RUs before mapping are both in the first 20MHz of the 80MHz. Since the above-mentioned RRU is in the same 20MHz, the discrete bandwidths of the above-mentioned RRU can be the same. Therefore, it can not need so flexible discrete granularity, such as one discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, and the other discrete bandwidth is 80MHz, which not only is complex to implement, but also is easy to cause resource allocation conflict from the signaling point of view. Therefore, as another more possible implementation mode, if the RRU corresponding to the DRU of the above-mentioned two stations has part or all subcarriers existing in a certain 20MHz at the same time, the discrete bandwidths of these DRUs should be consistent. In other words, there is no intersecting discrete bandwidth. For example, for a 20MHz, it does not contain both in 40MHz and in 80MHz.

[0154] As another possible implementation mode 2, when there is no preamble puncturing in an 80MHz, the following DBW is supported:

[0155] 1. 80MHz; the purpose of supporting this configuration is to obtain the maximum power gain, corresponding to no puncturing case 1111;

[0156] 2. 20MHz+20MHz+40MHz or 40MHz+20MHz+20MHz; the purpose of supporting this configuration is to support 20MHz only station to participate in transmission, corresponding to no puncturing case 1111.

[0157] When there is a 20MHz punctured in an 80MHz, the following cases can be considered to be supported:

[0158] 1. x+20MHz+40MHz; applicable to preamble puncturing case 0111;

[0159] 2. 20MHz+x+40MHz; applicable to preamble puncturing case 1011;

[0160] 3. 40MHz+x+20MHz; applicable to preamble puncturing case 1101;

[0161] 4. 40MHz+20MHz+x; applicable to preamble puncturing case 1110.

[0162] When there is one 40MHz being punctured in the 80MHz, the following cases can be considered to be supported:

[0163] 1. 40MHz+x+x; applicable to the preamble puncturing case 1100;

[0164] 2. x+x+40MHz; applicable to the preamble puncturing case 0011.

[0165] The above preamble puncturing cases are taken as an example of 4 bits corresponding to 4 20MHz frequencies in low to high order, one bit being 1 indicates no puncturing, and one bit 0 indicates puncturing.

[0166] As another possible implementation 3, taken as an example of one frequency sub-block equaling to 80MHz, the DBW corresponding to the DRU in the 80MHz is indicated. Table 7 exemplarily shows an indication method:

[0167] Table 7

[0168] 00 in Table 7 indicates a normal RU, and 01 indicates a discrete bandwidth of 80MHz. The specific meanings of the above DBW=Left(20)+Right(40) and DBW=Left(40)+Right(20) are:

[0169] Left(20)+Right(40): when the RRU in the 80MHz is in the left 40MHz, its DBW=20MHz; when the RRU in the 80MHz is in the right 40MHz, its DBW=40MHz.

[0170] Left(40)+Right(20): when the RRU in the 80MHz is in the left 40MHz, its DBW=40MHz; when the RRU in the 80MHz is in the right 40MHz, its DBW=20MHz.

[0171] From the above, it can be seen that no matter which implementation, when the discrete bandwidth is greater than 20MHz, the discrete bandwidth is composed of multiple continuous 20MHz. For example, when the discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, the two 20MHz in the 40MHz are continuous, i.e. the frequencies are continuous. Therefore, how to utilize multiple discontinuous 20MHz is urgent to be solved.

[0172] In view of this, the embodiment of the present application provides a communication method and device, which can fully utilize discontinuous multiple 20MHz to aggregate into a larger discrete bandwidth, thereby improving resource utilization and channel utilization. The discontinuous multiple 20MHz in the present application means that the multiple 20MHz can be discontinuous, and the discontinuity is not caused by a protected subcarrier or a null subcarrier or a direct current subcarrier spacing. For example, in order from low to high frequency, the highest frequency subcarrier in the first 20MHz of the multiple 20MHz is discontinuous with the lowest frequency subcarrier in the second 20MHz, and the discontinuity is not caused by a protected subcarrier or a null subcarrier or a direct current subcarrier spacing. In other words, there is one or more unusable or unused 20MHz between the first 20MHz and the second 20MHz.

[0173] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application. In the method, the first station can be a non-AP STA, and the second station can be an AP; or the first station can be an AP, and the second station can be a non-AP STA. The description of the first station and the second station can be referred to the above, and will not be described in detail here. As shown in FIG. 6, the method comprises:

[0174] 602, the first station generates a PPDU according to a first DRU, the first discrete bandwidth corresponding to the first DRU being aggregated by discontinuous M 20MHz, M being an integer greater than or equal to 2; or the first discrete bandwidth corresponding to the first DRU being 20MHz.

[0175] The first station can generate a PPDU according to the RU size and position of the first DRU. For example, the first station can generate a PPDU according to the RU size, position, and first discrete bandwidth of the first DRU. The description of the RU size, position, and first discrete bandwidth of the first DRU can be referred to the below, and will not be described here.

[0176] As an example 1, when the first discrete bandwidth is aggregated by discontinuous M 20MHz, there can be an unusable channel between the discontinuous M 20MHz, and the unavailability can include being punctured. For example, when M = 2, the first discrete bandwidth can be 40MHz. That is, the first discrete bandwidth can be aggregated by two discontinuous 20MHz, and there can be one 20MHz unusable (or unused) or two 20MHz unusable (or unused) between the two 20MHz, and the like, which will not be listed here.

[0177] Figure 7a is a schematic diagram of aggregated 40MHz according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 7a, the aggregated 40MHz can be aggregated from the first 20MHz and the fourth 20MHz in the 80MHz. For example, when M=4, the first discrete bandwidth is 80MHz, and the 80MHz can be aggregated from four 20MHz. When the bandwidth of the PPDU is 160MHz, the preamble puncturing pattern can be 1010, 1100; or 1010, 1001; or 1001, 1001; or 1011, 0010; and the like, which are not listed here. Here, "1" represents no puncturing, and "0" represents puncturing. Each bit can correspond to a 20MHz, and the above eight bits can correspond to eight 20MHz. In the order of frequency from low to high, the xthbit can correspond to the xth20MHz in the 160MHz, where x is greater than or equal to 1 and less than or equal to 8.

[0178] As another example 2, when the first discrete bandwidth is 20MHz, there can be at least two 20MHz unavailable (or unused) in the frequency sub-block where the 20MHz is located. The reason for unavailability can include puncturing.

[0179] Figure 7b is a schematic diagram of 20MHz according to an embodiment of the present application. In Figures 7a and 7b, the second 20MHz and the third 20MHz in the 80MHz are punctured. At this time, the preamble puncturing pattern can be 1001. In Figure 7a, the first 20MHz and the fourth 20MHz in the 80MHz are aggregated into a 40MHz discrete bandwidth. Thus, the transmission power can be increased due to the increase of the discrete bandwidth. In Figure 7b, the first 20MHz and the fourth 20MHz in the 80MHz correspond to 20MHz discrete bandwidths, respectively. Thus, the 20MHz only device can be allowed to participate in transmission, and the transmission performance of the 20MHz only device can be ensured. Of course, the 20MHz shown in Figure 7b can also be applicable to 40MHz only devices or 80MHz only devices, and the like, which are not listed here.

[0180] For the aggregated 40MHz, it can also be referred to as a DBW configuration of 20 (part 1 of DBW 40) + x + x + 20 (part 2 of DBW 40). For the 20MHz shown in Figure 7b, it can also be referred to as a DBW configuration of 20 (DBW=20) + x + x + 20 (DBW=20).

[0181] The index of the subcarriers in the first DRU and the index of the first DRU will be described below, and are not described in detail here.

[0182] The process of generating the PPDU by the first station can include, but is not limited to, the following processes: scrambling, LDPC encoding, stream parsing, constellation mapping, LDPC subcarrier mapping, stream cyclic shifting, spatial and frequency mapping. In the process of generating the PPDU by the first station, a frequency domain signal can be formed first, and then a time domain signal is formed through IDFT, and an OFDM symbol is formed through insertion of a cyclic prefix and windowing (insertGI and windowing). A plurality of OFDM symbols can constitute a PPDU. Of course, the processes shown here are only examples, and in actual applications, the process of generating the PPDU can also have more or fewer steps, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited.

[0183] As a possible implementation, the first station can be a non-AP STA. Before the first station generates the PPDU according to the first DRU, the method shown in FIG. 6 can further include: 601, the second station sends a trigger frame, and correspondingly, the first station receives the trigger frame.

[0184] For the above example 1, the trigger frame can be described as follows:

[0185] The trigger frame can include indication information, which is used to indicate that the first discrete bandwidth is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHz; or in other words, the indication information can be used to indicate that the discrete bandwidth of the RRU in the frequency sub-block corresponding to the indication information is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHz; or in other words, the indication information can be used to indicate the DBW configuration of 20 (part 1 of DBW 40) + x + x + 20 (part 2 of DBW 40); or in other words, the indication information can be used to indicate that the aggregation 40MHz is of the puncturing mode 1001.

[0186] For example, one indication information in the trigger frame can correspond to one frequency sub-block. For example, when the frequency sub-block is 80MHz, one indication information can be used to indicate the DBW configuration in the frequency sub-block corresponding to the indication information. For example, the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320MHz, and the trigger frame can include four indication information, and the four indication information can indicate the DBW in the four 80MHz in turn. According to the order of frequency from low to high, the four indication information can correspond to the four 80MHz in the 320MHz in turn. Of course, the indication information can also be one-to-one corresponding to the 80MHz according to the order of frequency from high to low, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this.

[0187] As an example, the length of the indication information in the trigger frame can be fixed length, such as each indication information occupies z bits, then the indication information in the trigger frame can occupy z*n bits, n represents the number of indication information in the trigger frame. Taking Table 8 as an example, z=3. n is a positive integer. The value of n can be determined by the bandwidth. For example, n=4; or n=8; or n=6; or n=16, and the like, which are not listed one by one here. For example, one indication information corresponds to one 80MHz, and the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320MHz. The trigger frame includes 4 indication information, and each indication information occupies 3 bits. Then the indication information in the trigger frame can occupy 12 bits. When the bandwidth of the PPDU is 160MHz, the first two indication information in the trigger frame can indicate two 80MHz respectively, and the last two indication information in the trigger frame can be reserved. As another example, the length of the indication information in the trigger frame can be variable, such as one indication information corresponds to one 80MHz, and the bandwidth of the PPDU is 160MHz. The trigger frame includes 2 indication information.

[0188] Tables 8 and 9 exemplarily show the indication method of DBW. Tables 8 and 9 are exemplarily shown by taking the frequency sub-block as 80MHz, but not as a limitation to the embodiments of the present application.

[0189] Table 8

[0190] Table 9

[0191] When the DBW in Tables 8 and 9 is 160MHz, the RRU in the 80MHz corresponding to "100" can be mapped into the discrete bandwidth of 160MHz. The correspondence between the indication and the meaning in Tables 8 and 9 is only an example, and not as a limitation to the embodiments of the present application.

[0192] Taking Table 9 as an example, when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320MHz, the trigger frame includes 4 indication information, and the values of the 4 indication information are shown in Table 10:

[0193] Table 10

[0194] In order from low to high frequency, "000" can indicate that the station can transmit a PPDU according to the RRU in the 1st 80MHz in 320MHz. "010" can indicate that the station can transmit a PPDU according to the RRU in the 2nd 80MHz in 320MHz, wherein the DBW of the RRU in the 80MHz is 20MHz when the RRU is in the left 40MHz, and the DBW of the RRU in the 80MHz is 40MHz when the RRU is in the right 40MHz. "001" indicates that the DBW of the RRU in the 3rd 80MHz in 320MHz is 80MHz. "011" indicates that the DBW of the RRU in the 4th 80MHz in 320MHz is 40MHz when the RRU is in the left 40MHz, and the DBW of the RRU in the 80MHz is 20MHz when the RRU is in the right 40MHz. " / " in Table 10 and Table 11 indicates that it is unavailable. As shown above, the station can learn the RRU through the RU allocation subfield and the PS160 subfield in the user info field in the trigger frame.

[0195] Taking Table 9 as an example, when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320MHz, four indication information can be included in the trigger frame, and the values of the four indication information are shown in Table 11.

[0196] Table 11

[0197] In order from low to high frequency, "101" indicates that the DBW of the RRU in the 2nd 80MHz in 320MHz is 20MHz, which is suitable for transmission of 20MHz only devices. "110" indicates that the DBW of the RRU in the 3rd 80MHz in 320MHz is 40MHz, which is aggregated from the 1st 20MHz and the 4th 20MHz in the 80MHz. The above 40-1 and 40-2 respectively indicate the two parts of the aggregated 40MHz. Other descriptions about Table 11 can refer to Table 10 or Table 7, and the like, which will not be described in detail herein.

[0198] The indication information can be carried in a common information field in the trigger frame, or in a special user information field in the trigger frame, or in a user information field in the trigger frame, etc. Taking the case where the indication information is carried in the special user information field as an example, the indication information in the trigger frame can occupy 3*4 bits, and one 80MHz can correspond to 3 bits. Taking the case where the bandwidth of the PPDU is 80MHz as an example, the station can read the first indication information in the trigger frame, and thus knows the discrete bandwidth of the DRU corresponding to the RRU in the 80MHz. Taking the case where the bandwidth of the PPDU is 160MHz as an example, the station can read the first indication information and the second indication information in the trigger frame, and according to the 80MHz in which the RRU corresponding to the station is located, knows the discrete bandwidth of the DRU corresponding to the RRU. Here, the above cases are not listed one by one.

[0199] For the above example 2, the trigger frame can have the following description:

[0200] The trigger frame can include indication information, which can refer to Table 7. When the second 20MHz and the third 20MHz in the frequency sub-block corresponding to the indication information are unavailable, the value of the indication information can be "10" or "11".

[0201] For example, when the value of the indication information is "10", the RRU in the 80MHz corresponding to the indication information is in the left 40MHz, and the DBW of the RRU is 20MHz; when the RRU in the 80MHz is in the right 40MHz, the DBW of the RRU is 40MHz. In the embodiment of the present application, the AP can trigger a 20MHz only device to participate in transmission, and when the RRU in the 80MHz is in the right 40MHz, even if the 20MHz only device knows that the DBW is 40MHz, the 20MHz only device defaults the DBW to 20MHz due to limited capability.

[0202] For another example, when the value of the indication information is "11", the RRU in the 80MHz corresponding to the indication information is in the left 40MHz, and the DBW of the RRU is 40MHz; when the RRU in the 80MHz is in the right 40MHz, the DBW of the RRU is 20MHz. In the embodiment of the present application, the AP can trigger a 20MHz only device to participate in transmission, and when the RRU in the 80MHz is in the left 40MHz, even if the 20MHz only device knows that the DBW is 40MHz, the 20MHz only device defaults the DBW to 20MHz due to limited capability.

[0203] For each of the trigger frames shown above, the first station can learn the RU size and location, and the aggregated first discrete bandwidth from the trigger frame, and thus the DRU corresponding to the RRU. The correspondence between the RRU and the DRU can refer to the above or the 802.11 standard. The description of the trigger frame can refer to the description of the above FIG. 5d, Table 5, Table 6, or the implementation 1, etc.

[0204] As another possible implementation, the first station can be an AP. For downlink transmission, the information of the first DRU can be indicated in a signal (SIG) field in a downlink PPDU, such as the UHR-SIG field or the IMMW-SIG field in the downlink PPDU. The description of the indication manner can refer to the description of the indication information above, which is not described in detail here.

[0205] 603. The first station transmits a PPDU, and the second station receives the PPDU correspondingly.

[0206] 604. The second station parses the PPDU according to the first DRU.

[0207] The process of the second station parsing the PPDU can include, but is not limited to, the following processing: digital baseband signal processing, removing the cyclic prefix, DFT to obtain the frequency domain signal, demapping, deconstellation mapping, channel decoding, descrambling, etc. Of course, the processing shown here is only an example, and in actual application, the process of parsing the PPDU can also have more or fewer steps, which is not limited by the embodiments of the application.

[0208] As a possible implementation, when the second station is an AP, the AP can receive the PPDU according to the DRU allocated by the first station, and thus learn the content in the PPDU. Optionally, the AP can also reply an acknowledgement frame after receiving the PPDU. The other descriptions of the uplink transmission can also refer to the above FIG. 5c, etc.

[0209] As another possible implementation, when the second station is a non-AP STA, the non-AP STA can learn the first DRU according to the signaling field in the PPDU, and then receive the PPDU according to the first DRU, and thus learn the content in the PPDU.

[0210] In the embodiments of the application, the first discrete bandwidth can be aggregated by M 20MHz, so as to be aggregated into a discrete bandwidth larger than 20MHz, which fully utilizes the discontinuous 20MHz, improves the transmission power, improves the channel utilization, and improves the resource utilization. At the same time, the embodiments of the application also design the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU under the first discrete bandwidth, which perfects the subcarrier planning under the first discrete bandwidth.

[0211] The signaling indication of the preamble puncturing mode can be included in the trigger frame or the PPDU shown in the embodiments of the present application, or can not be included. For example, the signaling indication of the preamble puncturing mode can be designed in combination with the indication information shown in the embodiments of the present application, and the indication manner of the preamble puncturing mode is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0212] The index of the subcarrier in the first DRU is introduced below.

[0213] The first discrete bandwidth is M discontinuous 20MHz, and the following is described.

[0214] The first DRU includes a first subcarrier #1 and a second subcarrier #1, and the second DRU includes a first subcarrier #2 and a second subcarrier #2. The position of the first subcarrier #1 in the first DRU is the same as the position of the first subcarrier #2 in the second DRU, and the position of the second subcarrier #1 in the first DRU is the same as the position of the second subcarrier #2 in the second DRU. For example, the first subcarrier #2 is the N1th subcarrier in the second DRU, and the first subcarrier #1 is the N1th subcarrier in the first DRU. For another example, the second subcarrier #2 is the N2th subcarrier in the second DRU, and the second subcarrier #1 is the N2th subcarrier in the first DRU. N1 and N2 are integers.

[0215] That is, the index of the first subcarrier #1 can be obtained by shifting the index of the first subcarrier #2 by x indexes (or y indexes). The index of the second subcarrier #1 can be obtained by shifting the index of the second subcarrier #2 by x indexes (or y indexes). The relative positions of the subcarriers in the first DRU can be adapted to the relative positions of the subcarriers in the second DRU.

[0216] The above-mentioned same position is for the position of the second DRU in the second discrete bandwidth and the position of the first DRU in a frequency subblock. That is, the first subcarrier #1 and the second subcarrier #1 refer to the subcarriers in the first DRU relative to a frequency subblock, and the first subcarrier #2 and the second subcarrier #2 refer to the subcarriers in the second DRU relative to a continuous M 20MHz.

[0217] For example, the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU can correspond to the index of the first part of the subcarriers in the second DRU shifted to the left by x indexes, or the index of the second part of the subcarriers in the second DRU shifted to the right by y indexes. x and y are integers.

[0218] The RU size of the first DRU is the same as the RU size of the second DRU. The second discrete bandwidth corresponding to the second DRU is M continuous 20MHz. For example, M=2, the first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz aggregated by 2 discontinuous 20MHz, and the second discrete bandwidth is 40MHz formed by 2 continuous 20MHz.

[0219] For example, the indexes of the part of subcarriers in the first DRU can correspond to the indexes of the first part of subcarriers in the second DRU shifted left by x indexes, or the indexes of the second part of subcarriers in the second DRU shifted right by y indexes; or, the indexes of all the subcarriers in the first DRU correspond to the indexes of the first part of subcarriers in the second DRU shifted left by x indexes, and the indexes of the second part of subcarriers in the second DRU shifted right by y indexes.

[0220] The value of x or y is determined according to the position of the first subcarrier #2 in the second DRU in the second discrete bandwidth and the position of the first subcarrier #1 in the first DRU in the first discrete bandwidth. Alternatively, the value of x or y is determined according to the position of the first subcarrier #2 in the second DRU in the second discrete bandwidth, the position of the first subcarrier #1 in the first DRU in the first discrete bandwidth, and the value of M. M can be used to determine the size of the first discrete bandwidth or the second discrete bandwidth. The value of x can be the same as or different from the value of y.

[0221] In the embodiments of the present application, the relative positions between the subcarriers in the M continuous 20MHz can correspond to the relative positions between the subcarriers in the M discontinuous 20MHz. That is, the subcarrier planning of the M continuous 20MHz is adapted to the M discontinuous 20MHz, and the relative positions between the subcarriers in the first DRU in the subcarrier planning of the M discontinuous 20MHz are the same as the relative positions between the subcarriers in the second DRU in the subcarrier planning of the M continuous 20MHz. The relative positions shown here are for the subcarriers in the first DRU, for example, the number of subcarriers in the first DRU is 26, and the relative positions between the 26 subcarriers are the same as the relative positions between the 26 subcarriers in the second DRU.

[0222] For example, with a subcarrier spacing of 78.125 KHz, the indices of the valid subcarriers in the second discrete bandwidth can be [-244:-3] and [3:244], which contains 484 subcarriers in total. In the order of frequency from low to high, the indices of the subcarriers in the first 20 MHz in the 80 MHz can include [-500:-259], and the indices of the subcarriers in the fourth 20 MHz in the 80 MHz can include [259:500]. Thus, the continuous 40 MHz can be split to obtain the subcarrier planning of the aggregated 40 MHz composed of two discontinuous 20 MHz. That is, the indices of the subcarriers with an index less than 0 in the first DRU are equal to the indices of the subcarriers with an index less than 0 in the second DRU shifted to the left by x indices, and the indices of the subcarriers with an index greater than 0 in the first DRU are equal to the indices of the subcarriers with an index greater than 0 in the second DRU shifted to the right by y indices.

[0223] For example, the values of x and y can be determined according to the size of the first discrete bandwidth and the size of the frequency sub-block. For example, the size of the first discrete bandwidth is 40 MHz, and the size of the frequency sub-block is 80 MHz, and thus x=y=256. The [-244:-3] in the second discrete bandwidth can correspond to [-500:-259] in the 80 MHz (i.e., shifted to the left by 256 subcarriers), and the [3,244] in the second discrete bandwidth can correspond to [259,500] in the 80 MHz (i.e., shifted to the right by 256 subcarriers).

[0224] It can be understood that after the indices of the subcarriers in the first DRU are determined according to the indices of the subcarriers in the second DRU, the indices of part or all of the subcarriers in the first DRU can be adjusted so that the final indices of the subcarriers in the first DRU have a certain offset from the indices after the shifting. For example, the final indices of the subcarriers in the first DRU can have a shifted relationship of 256 indices from the indices of the subcarriers in the second DRU, or a shifted relationship of 255 indices, or a shifted relationship of 256 indices for part of the subcarriers and a shifted relationship of 255 indices for another part of the subcarriers, and the like, which will not be listed one by one here.

[0225] FIG. 8 is a mapping diagram of subcarrier indices provided by an embodiment of the present application. In the order of frequency from low to high, the numbers in FIG. 8 represent the positions of the 20 MHz in the bandwidth of the PPDU, for example, the number 1 can represent that the 20 MHz is located in the first 20 MHz in the bandwidth of the PPDU. The indices of the subcarriers in the second DRU in the continuous 40 MHz and the indices of the subcarriers in the first DRU in the aggregated 40 MHz in FIG. 8 can be as follows.

[0226] Table 12 exemplarily shows the subcarrier indexes of different RU sizes when the second discrete bandwidth is 40MHz. Table 12 can be understood as the subcarrier planning corresponding to the second discrete bandwidth when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 40MHz. Alternatively, Table 12 can also be understood as the subcarrier planning relative to the second discrete bandwidth, or the relative subcarrier indexes of the second DRU in the second discrete bandwidth, when the bandwidth of the PPDU is greater than 40MHz (for example, the bandwidth of the PPDU is 80MHz / 160MHz / 320MHz, etc.). The second DRU can be one of the DRUs in Table 12. For the bandwidth of the PPDU greater than 40MHz, the absolute subcarrier indexes of the second discrete bandwidth in the bandwidth of the PPDU are not shown in the embodiments of the present application.

[0227] The embodiments of the present application do not limit the subcarrier indexes and the DRU indexes shown in Table 12. The subcarrier indexes and the DRU indexes in each DRU shown in Table 12 are only examples, and the focus of Table 12 and Table 13 is to illustrate the relationship between the indexes of the subcarriers in the first DRU and the indexes of the subcarriers in the second DRU.

[0228] Table 12

[0229] For Table 12, the indexes of the subcarriers with indexes greater than 0 in one DRU (i.e., the second DRU) in Table 12 can be shifted right by 256 indexes, so that the indexes of the subcarriers with indexes greater than 0 in the corresponding first DRU can be obtained. The indexes of the subcarriers with indexes less than 0 in one DRU in Table 12 can be shifted left by 256 indexes, so that the indexes of the subcarriers with indexes less than 0 in the corresponding first DRU can be obtained. In a specific implementation, a station can store the subcarrier indexes in the second DRU, and when the discrete bandwidth of the station is the first discrete bandwidth, the station can obtain the subcarrier indexes of the first DRU according to the stored subcarrier indexes of the second DRU. Alternatively, the station can directly store the subcarrier indexes of the first DRU. In the embodiments of the present application, the process of determining the subcarrier indexes of the first DRU from the subcarrier indexes of the second DRU is only an example, and the standard can define the process of determination, or directly give the subcarrier indexes of the first DRU. As long as the subcarrier indexes of the first DRU and the subcarrier indexes of the second DRU meet the above conditions, they all belong to the protection scope of the present application.

[0230] Table 13 exemplarily shows the subcarrier indices of different DRU sizes when the first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, which corresponds to Table 12. The first DRU can be one of the DRUs in Table 13. For example, when the RU size of the second DRU is 26 and the subcarrier indices of the second DRU are [-242:18:-26, 10:18:226], the subcarrier indices of the first DRU can be [-498:18:-282, 266:18:482].

[0231] Table 13

[0232] Table 13 can be understood as the subcarrier planning of the first discrete bandwidth when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 80MHz, or Table 13 can also be understood as the subcarrier planning of the first discrete bandwidth relative to the subcarriers within 80MHz when the bandwidth of the PPDU is greater than 80MHz (e.g., the bandwidth of the PPDU is 160MHz / 320MHz, etc.), or in other words, the relative subcarrier indices of the first DRU within 80MHz. The indices of the DRUs shown in Table 12 and Table 13 are only examples, and the indices of the DRUs can also be referred to below.

[0233] For the bandwidth of the PPDU being greater than 80MHz, the indices of the subcarriers in the first DRU are determined according to the indices of the first part of subcarriers in the second DRU, the indices of the second part of subcarriers in the second DRU, and the position of the frequency subblock where the first discrete bandwidth is located in the bandwidth of the PPDU.

[0234] When the bandwidth of the PPDU is 160MHz, the absolute subcarrier indices of one 80MHz within 160MHz can be obtained by shifting the relative subcarrier indices within 80MHz shown above. For example, the absolute subcarrier indices of one 80MHz within 160MHz can be obtained by shifting the relative subcarrier indices within 80MHz by 512 indices. Of course, the 512 indices shown here are only examples, and 511 indices or 510 indices, etc. can also be shifted, which will not be listed one by one here.

[0235] As shown in FIG. 8, the index of the subcarriers in the first DRU can correspond to: the subcarriers with index less than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth being shifted left by 256 indices and then left by 512 indices (as numbered 1), and the subcarriers with index greater than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth being shifted right by 256 subcarriers and then left by 512 indices (as numbered 4); or, the subcarriers with index less than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth being shifted left by 256 indices and then right by 512 indices (as numbered 5), and the subcarriers with index greater than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth being shifted right by 256 subcarriers and then right by 512 indices (as numbered 8). The shifting processes shown here are merely examples, and in a specific implementation, the index of the subcarriers in the first DRU can also be obtained directly according to the relationship between the first DRU and the second DRU.

[0236] For example, the index of the subcarriers in the second DRU is [-242:18:-26, 10:18:226], when the first DRU is within the 1st 80MHz of the 160MHz, the index of the subcarriers of the first DRU can be [-242-256-512:18:-26-256-512, 10+256-512:18:226+256-512], i.e., [-1010:18:-794, -246:18:-30]. When the first DRU is within the 2nd 80MHz of the 160MHz, the index of the subcarriers of the first DRU can be [-242-256+512:18:-26-256+512, 10+256+512:18:226+256+512], i.e., [14:18:230, 778:18:994].

[0237] Table 14 exemplarily shows the index of the subcarriers of different DRU sizes when the first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, the bandwidth of the PPDU is 160MHz, and the first discrete bandwidth is within the 1st 80MHz of the 160MHz, corresponding to Table 12.

[0238] Table 14

[0239] Table 15 exemplarily shows the index of the subcarriers of different DRU sizes when the first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, the bandwidth of the PPDU is 160MHz, and the first discrete bandwidth is within the 2nd 80MHz of the 160MHz, corresponding to Table 12.

[0240] Table 15

[0241] Table 14 and Table 15 are examples of the index of the subcarriers of the first DRU can also change when the index of the subcarriers of the second DRU changes, for the relationship between the two DRUs can refer to the above.

[0242] When the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320MHz, the absolute subcarrier index of one 80MHz within the 320MHz can be obtained by shifting the relative subcarrier index within the 80MHz shown above. For example, the absolute subcarrier index of one 80MHz within the 320MHz can be obtained by shifting the relative subcarrier index within the 80MHz by 1024 indices. Of course, the 1024 indices shown here is only an example, as it can also be shifted by 1023 indices, or 1022 indices, etc., which will not be listed one by one here.

[0243] As shown in FIG. 8, the index of the subcarriers in the first DRU can correspond to:

[0244] The subcarriers with index less than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth are shifted left by 256 indices, then shifted left by 512 indices, then shifted left by 1024 indices, and the subcarriers with index greater than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth are shifted right by 256 indices, then shifted left by 512 indices, then shifted left by 1024 indices (as numbered 4); or,

[0245] The subcarriers with index less than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth are shifted left by 256 indices, then shifted right by 512 indices, then shifted right by 1024 indices (as numbered 13), and the subcarriers with index greater than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth are shifted right by 256 indices, then shifted right by 512 indices, then shifted right by 1024 indices (as numbered 16); or,

[0246] The subcarriers with index less than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth are shifted left by 256 indices, then shifted right by 512 indices, then shifted left by 1024 indices (as numbered 5), and the subcarriers with index greater than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth are shifted right by 256 indices, then shifted right by 512 indices, then shifted left by 1024 indices (as numbered 8); or,

[0247] The subcarriers with index less than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth are shifted left by 256 indices, then shifted left by 512 indices, then shifted right by 1024 indices (as numbered 9), and the subcarriers with index greater than 0 in the second DRU within the second discrete bandwidth are shifted right by 256 indices, then shifted left by 512 indices, then shifted right by 1024 indices (as numbered 12).

[0248] The above translation process is only an example, and in a specific implementation, the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU can be directly obtained according to the relationship between the first DRU and the second DRU, or the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU can be obtained through another translation process, which is not limited in the embodiments of the application.

[0249] Table 16 exemplarily shows the subcarrier indexes of different DRU sizes when the first discrete bandwidth is 40 MHz, the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320 MHz, and the first discrete bandwidth is within the first 80 MHz of the 320 MHz, which corresponds to Table 12.

[0250] Table 16

[0251] Table 17 exemplarily shows the subcarrier indexes of different DRU sizes when the first discrete bandwidth is 40 MHz, the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320 MHz, and the first discrete bandwidth is within the second 80 MHz of the 320 MHz, which corresponds to Table 12.

[0252] Table 17

[0253] Table 18 exemplarily shows the subcarrier indexes of different DRU sizes when the first discrete bandwidth is 40 MHz, the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320 MHz, and the first discrete bandwidth is within the third 80 MHz of the 320 MHz, which corresponds to Table 12.

[0254] Table 18

[0255] Table 19 exemplarily shows the subcarrier indexes of different DRU sizes when the first discrete bandwidth is 40 MHz, the bandwidth of the PPDU is 320 MHz, and the first discrete bandwidth is within the fourth 80 MHz of the 320 MHz, which corresponds to Table 12.

[0256] Table 19

[0257] It can be understood that in the above determination of the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU according to the index of the subcarrier in the second DRU, the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU can be as shown in the above tables, or the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU can also have a certain offset. For example, in Tables 13-19 above, part or all of the subcarriers in the first DRU can have an offset of 1 index or 2 indexes or 3 indexes, etc.

[0258] In the case of a first discrete bandwidth of 20 MHz, the following is described:

[0259] The index of the subcarriers in the first DRU can be obtained by shifting the index of the subcarriers of the DRU within 20MHz.

[0260] Table 20 exemplarily shows the subcarrier indexes of the DRU under different RU types in 20MHz. Table 20 is only an example, and should not be understood as a limitation to the embodiments of the present application.

[0261] Table 20

[0262] In the order of frequency from low to high, the first DRU can correspond to the first 20MHz in 80MHz. The index of the subcarriers of the first DRU can correspond to the index of the DRU when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 20MHz, shifted left by 128 indexes, and then shifted left by 256 indexes. Taking Table 20 as an example, the index of the subcarriers in the first DRU can be as shown in Table 21.

[0263] Table 21

[0264] In the order of frequency from low to high, the first DRU can correspond to the fourth 20MHz in 80MHz. The index of the subcarriers of the first DRU can correspond to the index of the DRU when the bandwidth of the PPDU is 20MHz, shifted right by 128 indexes, and then shifted right by 256 indexes. Taking Table 20 as an example, the index of the subcarriers in the first DRU can be as shown in Table 22.

[0265] Table 22

[0266] Both Table 21 and Table 22 are examples of the index of the DRU relative to 80MHz, and should not be understood as a limitation to the embodiments of the present application.

[0267] The index of the first DRU shown in Tables 13-19 above is an example, and the index of the first DRU can also be as follows:

[0268] Generally, the index of a DRU can be divided into a relative index and a global index (or absolute index). The relative index refers to the index in a DBW, for example, in a 80MHz DBW, there are 4 484-tone DRUs, and the indexes of the 4 484-tone DRUs are 1-4 respectively. The global index refers to the index of a DRU in the bandwidth of a PPDU. Taking 320MHz as an example, there are 16 484-tone DRUs in 320MHz, and the indexes of the 16 484-tone DRUs are 1-16 respectively. According to the frequency from low to high, the indexes of the 4 484-tone DRUs in the first 80MHz are 1-4 respectively, the indexes of the 4 484-tone DRUs in the second 80MHz are 5-8 respectively, the indexes of the 4 484-tone DRUs in the third 80MHz are 9-12 respectively, and the indexes of the 4 484-tone DRUs in the fourth 80MHz are 13-16 respectively.

[0269] For a DBW, it is easier to describe a DRU using a relative index. For the bandwidth of a PPDU, it is easier to describe a DRU using a global index. Because of the advantages of the relative index and the global index, there is a distinction between the relative index and the global index.

[0270] For the first discrete bandwidth, the relative index of the first DRU can refer to the description of Table 3 above, which will not be repeated here. The indexes of the DRUs shown in Tables 13-19 above can be understood as relative indexes.

[0271] For the global index of the first DRU, the embodiments of the present application provide the following two ways:

[0272] FIG. 9 is a frequency diagram of a PPDU with a bandwidth of 320MHz according to an embodiment of the present application. The following examples are described with the frequency from low to high. There can be 4 80MHz in 320MHz, and FIG. 9 shows the low frequency 40MHz in each 80MHz.

[0273] Method 1: The index of the first DRU is determined by adding a new index.

[0274] For example, 320MHz can include 8 40MHz which are composed of 2 continuous 20MHz. For an RU size, if there are m indexes in a 40MHz, then for the global index, there can be 8*m indexes. For example, if there are 18 26-tone DRUs in a 40MHz, then for the 26-tone DRU, there can be 18*8=144 indexes in 320MHz. For example, if there are 4 106-tone DRUs in a 40MHz, then for the 106-tone DRU, there can be 4*8=32 indexes in 320MHz.

[0275] For the aggregated 40MHz, there can be 4 aggregated 40MHz in 320MHz, so for an RU size, there can be 4*m indexes.

[0276] For example, if the RU size is 106-tone DRU, then there can be 4*8+4*4 106-tone DRUs (i.e. 48 106-tone DRUs) in 320MHz, and the indexes of the 48 106-tone DRUs can be 1-48 respectively. For the aggregated 40MHz, the indexes of the 16 106-tone DRUs can be 33-48 respectively.

[0277] Method 2: determining the index of the first DRU by multiplexing the index.

[0278] The first discrete bandwidth is located in the Nth frequency sub-block in the bandwidth of the PPDU, and the index of the first DRU is the same as the index of the third DRU. The discrete bandwidth of the third DRU is the second discrete bandwidth, the bandwidth of the PPDU corresponding to the second discrete bandwidth is the same as the bandwidth of the PPDU corresponding to the first discrete bandwidth, the second discrete bandwidth is located in the Nth frequency sub-block, and the number of subcarriers in the first DRU is the same as the number of subcarriers in the third DRU.

[0279] For example, the global index of the DRU in the low 40MHz or the high 40MHz in the 1st 80MHz can correspond to the index of the DRU in the aggregated 40MHz in the 1st 80MHz. The index of the DRU in the low 40MHz or the high 40MHz in the 2nd 80MHz can correspond to the index of the DRU in the aggregated 40MHz in the 2nd 80MHz. The index of the DRU in the low 40MHz or the high 40MHz in the 3rd 80MHz can correspond to the index of the DRU in the aggregated 40MHz in the 3rd 80MHz. The index of the DRU in the low 40MHz or the high 40MHz in the 4th 80MHz can correspond to the index of the DRU in the aggregated 40MHz in the 4th 80MHz.

[0280] RU size, the index of the 26-tone DRU in the low 40MHz of the 1st 80MHz is 1-18, then the index of the 26-tone DRU in the aggregated 40MHz of the 1st 80MHz is also 1-18. The index of the 26-tone DRU in the low 40MHz of the 2nd 80MHz is 37-54, then the index of the 26-tone DRU in the aggregated 40MHz of the 2nd 80MHz is also 37-54. Here, it is not listed one by one.

[0281] Although the index of the DRU is the same, the station can know through the indication information above whether the DBW is composed of the continuous 2 20MHzs or the aggregated 40MHz composed of the discontinuous 2 20MHzs, so as to know the index of the DRU and the index of the subcarrier in the DRU definitely. That is, for one RU size, the index of the DRU can correspond to two kinds of DBW, the first one is the aggregated 40MHz, and the second one is the continuous 40MHz. For example, the index of the RRU is 5, the RRU corresponds to the 1st 80MHz in the bandwidth of the PPDU, and the discrete bandwidth of the RRU is the first discrete bandwidth, then according to Table 16, the index of the subcarrier of the DRU 5 corresponding to the RRU 5 can be [-2017:18:-1801, -1253:18:-1037]. For another example, the index of the RRU is 38, the RRU corresponds to the 2nd 80MHz in the bandwidth of the PPDU, and the discrete bandwidth of the RRU is the first discrete bandwidth, then according to Table 17, the index of the subcarrier of the DRU 38 corresponding to the RRU 38 can be [-1001:18:-785, -237:18:-21].

[0282] It can be understood that, the above Fig. 8 is illustrated by taking M=2 as an example, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to M=4 (the aggregated bandwidth is 80MHz) or M=8 (the aggregated bandwidth is 160MHz) and the like. For example, the continuous 4 20MHzs are adapted to the discontinuous 4 20MHzs, or the continuous 8 20MHzs are adapted to the discontinuous 8 20MHzs and the like. The adaptation process can refer to the description about the translation above, and will not be described one by one here.

[0283] The communication apparatus provided by the embodiments of the present application will be introduced below.

[0284] The present application divides the functional modules of the communication device according to the above method embodiments. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated module can be realized in the form of hardware or in the form of a software functional module. It should be noted that the division of the modules in the present application is illustrative, and is only a logical functional division. In actual implementation, there can be another division manner. The communication device of the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 10-12.

[0285] FIG. 10 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 10, the communication device includes a processing module 1001 and a transceiver module 1002. The transceiver module 1002 can realize corresponding communication functions, and the processing module 1001 is configured to realize corresponding processing functions. The transceiver module 1002 can also be referred to as an interface, a communication interface, or a communication module, etc.

[0286] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication device can be configured to perform the actions performed by the first station in the above method embodiments. At this time, the first station can be the Wi-Fi device itself or a chip or functional module configured in the device, etc. The transceiver module 1002 is configured to perform the transceiving related operations of the first station in the above method embodiments, and the processing module 1001 is configured to perform the processing related operations of the first station in the above method embodiments.

[0287] The processing module 1001 can be configured to generate a PPDU according to the first DRU, and the transceiver module 1002 can be configured to send or output the PPDU.

[0288] For example, the transceiver module 1002 can include a radio frequency module, an antenna module, etc. For example, the above-mentioned sending or receiving steps can be realized by the radio frequency module and the antenna module. For example, the transceiver module 1002 can include an input / output module, etc. For example, the above-mentioned output or input steps can be realized by the input / output module.

[0289] Referring to FIG. 10, in another embodiment of the present application, the communication device can be configured to perform the actions performed by the second station in the above method embodiments. At this time, the second station can be the Wi-Fi device itself or a chip or functional module configured in the device, etc. The transceiver module 1002 is configured to perform the transceiving related operations of the second station in the above method embodiments, and the processing module 1001 is configured to perform the processing related operations of the second station in the above method embodiments.

[0290] The transceiver module 1002 can be configured to receive or input a PPDU, and the processing module 1001 can be configured to parse the PPDU.

[0291] For example, the transceiver module 1002 can include a radio frequency module, an antenna module, etc. For example, the transmitting or receiving steps shown above can be implemented by the radio frequency module and the antenna module. For example, the transceiver module 1002 can include an input / output module, etc. For example, the outputting or inputting steps shown above can be implemented by the input / output module.

[0292] Optionally, in each of the above embodiments, the communication apparatus can further include a storage module, which can be used to store instructions and / or data, and the processing module 1001 can read the instructions and / or data in the storage module, so that the communication apparatus implements the foregoing method embodiments. For example, the storage module can store the subcarrier planning shown above, etc.

[0293] In each of the above embodiments, the specific description of each term or name or step, etc. can refer to the introduction in the method embodiments above, which will not be repeated here.

[0294] The specific description of the transceiver module and the processing module shown in each of the above embodiments is only an example. For the specific functions or executed steps of the transceiver module and the processing module, etc., please refer to the above method embodiments, which will not be described here.

[0295] The communication apparatus of the embodiments of the present application is introduced above, and possible product forms of the communication apparatus are introduced below. Any product in any form that has the functions of the communication apparatus shown in FIG. 10 above falls within the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application. The following introduction is only an example, and does not limit the product form of the communication apparatus of the embodiments of the present application.

[0296] In a possible implementation, in the communication apparatus shown in FIG. 10, the processing module 1001 can be one or more processors, and the transceiver module 1002 can be a transceiver, or the transceiver module 1002 can also be a transmitting module and a receiving module, the transmitting module can be a transmitter, and the receiving module can be a receiver, and the transmitting module and the receiving module are integrated in one device, for example, a transceiver. In the embodiments of the present application, the processor and the transceiver can be coupled, etc., and the connection manner of the processor and the transceiver is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. In the process of executing the above method, the process of transmitting information in the above method can be the process of outputting the above information by the processor. When the above information is output, the processor outputs the above information to the transceiver, so that the transceiver transmits the above information. After the above information is output by the processor, it can also need to be processed further, and then reaches the transceiver. Similarly, the process of receiving information in the above method can be the process of receiving the input above information by the processor. When the processor receives the input information, the transceiver receives the above information and inputs it to the processor. Further, after the transceiver receives the above information, the above information can need to be processed further, and then input to the processor.

[0297] Figure 11 is another structure of the communication apparatus provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in Figure 11, the communication apparatus 110 includes one or more processors 1120 and a transceiver 1110.

[0298] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be configured to perform the steps or methods or functions performed by the first station, for example, the processor 1120 can be configured to perform the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 1001 as shown in Figure 10, and the transceiver 1110 can be configured to perform the functions or steps implemented by the transceiving module 1002 as shown in Figure 10. The specific description of the processor 1120 and the transceiver 1110 can refer to the method embodiments shown in Figure 10 or the above description, and will not be repeated here.

[0299] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be configured to perform the steps or methods or functions performed by the first station, for example, the processor 1120 can be configured to perform the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 1001 as shown in Figure 10, and the transceiver 1110 can be configured to perform the functions or steps implemented by the transceiving module 1002 as shown in Figure 10. The specific description of the processor 1120 and the transceiver 1110 can refer to the method embodiments shown in Figure 10 or the above description, and will not be repeated here.

[0300] In each implementation of the communication apparatus shown in Figure 11, the transceiver can include a receiver configured to perform the functions (or operations) of receiving and a transmitter configured to perform the functions (or operations) of transmitting. The transceiver is configured to communicate with other devices / apparatuses via a transmission medium.

[0301] Optionally, the communication apparatus 110 can further include one or more memories 1130 configured to store program instructions and / or data. The memory 1130 is coupled to the processor 1120. The coupling in the embodiments of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between the communication apparatus, units or modules, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms, for information interaction between the communication apparatus, units or modules. The processor 1120 can operate in cooperation with the memory 1130. The processor 1120 can execute the program instructions stored in the memory 1130. Optionally, at least one of the one or more memories can be included in the processor.

[0302] The specific connection medium between the transceiver 1110, the processor 1120 and the memory 1130 in the embodiments of the present application is not limited. In FIG. 11, the memory 1130, the processor 1120 and the transceiver 1110 are connected through a bus 1140, which is represented by a thick line in FIG. 11, and the connection mode between other components is only illustrative and is not limited. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus and the like. For convenience of representation, only one thick line is used in FIG. 11, but it does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

[0303] In the embodiments of the present application, the processor can be a general processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, etc., which can implement or execute the disclosed methods, steps and logic block diagrams in the embodiments of the present application. The general processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in combination with the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as execution completed by a hardware processor, or executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor, etc.

[0304] In the embodiments of the present application, the memory can include, but is not limited to, a non-volatile memory such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD), a random access memory (RAM), an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), a read-only memory (ROM) or a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), etc. The memory is any storage medium that can be used to carry or store program codes in the form of instructions or data structures and can be read and / or written by a computer (such as the communication device shown in the present application, etc.), but is not limited thereto. The memory in the embodiments of the present application can also be a circuit or any other device capable of realizing a storage function, used for storing program instructions and / or data.

[0305] The processor 1120 is mainly used for processing communication protocols and communication data, and controlling the whole communication device, executing software programs, and processing data of the software programs. The memory 1130 is mainly used for storing software programs and data. The transceiver 1110 can include a control circuit and an antenna, and the control circuit is mainly used for converting baseband signals and radio frequency signals and processing the radio frequency signals. The antenna is mainly used for receiving and transmitting radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input and output devices, such as touch screens, display screens, keyboards, etc., are mainly used for receiving user input data and outputting data to users.

[0306] When the communication device is powered on, the processor 1120 can read the software program in the memory 1130, interpret and execute the instructions of the software program, and process the data of the software program. When data needs to be transmitted wirelessly, the processor 1120 performs baseband processing on the data to be transmitted, and outputs the baseband signal to the radio frequency circuit. The radio frequency circuit converts the baseband signal into a radio frequency signal, and transmits the radio frequency signal in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is transmitted to the communication device, the radio frequency circuit receives the radio frequency signal through the antenna, converts the radio frequency signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor 1120. The processor 1120 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0307] In another implementation, the radio frequency circuit and the antenna can be arranged independently of the processor performing baseband processing, for example, in a distributed scenario, the radio frequency circuit and the antenna can be arranged remotely from the communication device.

[0308] The communication device shown in the embodiments of the present application can also have more components than those shown in FIG. 11, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this. The methods performed by the processor and the transceiver shown above are only examples, and the specific steps performed by the processor and the transceiver can refer to the methods introduced above. The optional part in FIG. 11 is indicated by a dashed line.

[0309] In another possible implementation, in the communication device shown in FIG. 10, the processing module 1001 can be one or more logic circuits, and the transceiving module 1002 can be an input and output interface, also known as a communication interface, or an interface circuit, or an interface, etc. Alternatively, the transceiving module 1002 can also be a sending module and a receiving module. The sending module can be an output interface, and the receiving module can be an input interface. The sending module and the receiving module are integrated into one module, such as an input and output interface.

[0310] FIG. 12 is another structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 12, the communication apparatus shown in FIG. 12 includes a logic circuit 1201 and an interface 1202. That is, the processing module 1001 can be implemented by the logic circuit 1201, and the transceiver module 1002 can be implemented by the interface 1202. The logic circuit 1201 can be a chip, a processing circuit, an integrated circuit, or a system on chip (SoC) chip, and the interface 1202 can be a communication interface, an input / output interface, a pin, etc. For example, FIG. 12 is a chip including the logic circuit 1201 and the interface 1202.

[0311] In an embodiment of the present application, the logic circuit and the interface can also be coupled with each other. The specific connection mode of the logic circuit and the interface is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. For example, the logic circuit 1201 can be used to execute the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 1001 shown in FIG. 10, and the interface 1202 can be used to execute the functions or steps implemented by the transceiver module 1002 shown in FIG. 10. The specific description of the logic circuit 1201 and the interface 1202 can refer to the method embodiments shown in FIG. 10 or the above description, which will not be described in detail here.

[0312] The communication apparatus shown in the embodiments of the present application can be used to implement the method provided in the embodiments of the present application in the form of hardware, or can be used to implement the method provided in the embodiments of the present application in the form of software, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0313] In addition, the embodiments of the present application also provide a communication system, which includes a first station and a second station, and the first station and the second station can be used to execute the method in any of the preceding embodiments. Alternatively, the communication system includes an AP and a non-AP STA, and the AP and the non-AP STA can be used to execute the method in any of the preceding embodiments.

[0314] The present application also provides a computer program for implementing the operations and / or processes performed by each station in the method provided by the present application.

[0315] The present application also provides a computer readable storage medium, which stores computer code, when the computer code runs on a computer, so that the computer executes the operations and / or processes performed by each communication apparatus in the method provided by the present application.

[0316] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes computer code or a computer program, when the computer code or the computer program runs on a computer, so that the operations and / or processes performed by each station in the method provided by the present application are executed.

[0317] In several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, communication device and method can be implemented in other manners. For example, the above described communication device embodiments are merely illustrative, and the division of modules can be different, for example, the modules or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between the modules shown or discussed can be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interface, communication device or module, and can be electrical, mechanical or other forms of connection.

[0318] The modules illustrated as separate components can or can not be physically separate, and the components illustrated as modules can or can not be physical modules, i.e., can be located in one place or distributed to multiple network modules. Some or all of the modules can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the technical effects of the solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0319] In addition, the functional modules in each of the embodiments of the present application can be integrated into one processing module, or each module can exist physically, or two or more modules can be integrated into one module. The above integrated module can be realized in the form of hardware or in the form of a software functional module.

[0320] The integrated module, if realized in the form of a software functional module and sold or used as an independent product, can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the present application essentially or the part of the prior art that contributes to the technical solutions, or all or part of the technical solutions can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a readable storage medium, and includes a number of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned readable storage medium includes: a U disk, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and various media that can store program codes.

[0321] The above is merely a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can easily think of changes or replacements within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be covered within the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to a first station, and the method comprises: generating a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) according to a first distributed resource unit (DRU); sending the PPDU; wherein a first discrete bandwidth corresponding to the first DRU is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHz, M is an integer greater than or equal to 2; indices of subcarriers in the first DRU correspond to indices of a first part of subcarriers in a second DRU shifted left by x indices or indices of a second part of subcarriers in the second DRU shifted right by y indices, a number of subcarriers in the second DRU is the same as a number of subcarriers in the first DRU, a second discrete bandwidth corresponding to the second DRU is continuous M 20MHz, and x and y are integers.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, in a case where a bandwidth of the PPDU is 80MHz or for one frequency subblock, indices of subcarriers in the first DRU with an index less than 0 correspond to indices of subcarriers in the second DRU with an index less than 0 shifted left by 256 indices, and indices of subcarriers in the first DRU with an index greater than 0 correspond to indices of subcarriers in the second DRU with an index greater than 0 shifted right by 256 indices.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, in a case where the bandwidth of the PPDU is greater than 80MHz, indices of subcarriers in the first DRU are determined according to indices of a first part of subcarriers in the second DRU, indices of a second part of subcarriers in the second DRU, and a position of a frequency subblock in which the first discrete bandwidth is located in the bandwidth of the PPDU.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, and the first DRU is any one of the following DRUs, the relative index of the first DRU in the frequency sub-block where the first discrete bandwidth is located and the index of the sub-carrier in the first DRU are as follows: wherein the DRU size represents a number of subcarriers in the first DRU.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, the first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, a frequency subblock in which the first discrete bandwidth is located is 80MHz, and in a sequence from low to high in frequency, a second 20MHz and a third 20MHz in the 80MHz are punctured.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, before the generating the PPDU according to the first DRU, the method further comprises: receiving a trigger frame, the trigger frame comprising indication information, the indication information being used to indicate that in a frequency subblock corresponding to the indication information, the first discrete bandwidth is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHz.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein, the indication information is contained in a special user information field in the trigger frame.

8. The method of any of claims 1-7, wherein the first discrete bandwidth is located in an Nth frequency subblock in a bandwidth of the PPDU, and an index of the first DRU is the same as an index of a third DRU; wherein a discrete bandwidth of the third DRU is the second discrete bandwidth, a bandwidth of a PPDU corresponding to the second discrete bandwidth is the same as a bandwidth of a PPDU corresponding to the first discrete bandwidth, the second discrete bandwidth is contained in the Nth frequency subblock, and a number of subcarriers in the first DRU is the same as a number of subcarriers in the third DRU.

9. A communication method characterized by comprising: the method is applied to a second station, and the method comprises: receiving a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU); parsing the PPDU according to a first distributed resource unit (DRU); The first discrete bandwidth corresponding to the first DRU is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHz, M is an integer greater than or equal to 2; The index of the subcarrier in the first DRU is shifted left by x indexes of the index of the first part of subcarriers in the second DRU, or is shifted right by y indexes of the index of the second part of subcarriers in the second DRU, the number of subcarriers in the second DRU is the same as the number of subcarriers in the first DRU, the second discrete bandwidth corresponding to the second DRU is continuous M 20MHz, x and y are integers.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein, In the case that the bandwidth of the PPDU is 80MHz, or for one frequency sub-block, the index of the subcarrier with index less than 0 in the first DRU is shifted left by 256 indexes of the index with index less than 0 in the second DRU, and the index of the subcarrier with index greater than 0 in the first DRU is shifted right by 256 indexes of the index with index greater than 0 in the second DRU.

11. The method according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that, In the case that the bandwidth of the PPDU is greater than 80MHz, the index of the subcarrier in the first DRU is determined according to the index of the first part of subcarriers in the second DRU, the index of the second part of subcarriers in the second DRU, and the position of the frequency sub-block where the first discrete bandwidth is located in the bandwidth of the PPDU.

12. The method according to any one of claims 9-11, characterized in that, The first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, and the first DRU is any one of the following DRUs, the relative index of the first DRU in the frequency sub-block where the first discrete bandwidth is located and the index of the sub-carrier in the first DRU are as follows: The DRU size represents the number of subcarriers in the first DRU.

13. The method according to any one of claims 9-12, characterized in that, The first discrete bandwidth is 40MHz, the frequency sub-block where the first discrete bandwidth is located is 80MHz, and in the order of frequency from low to high, the second 20MHz and the third 20MHz in the 80MHz are punctured.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, characterized in that, Before the first DRU receives the PPDU, the method further comprises: sending a trigger frame, the trigger frame comprising indication information, the indication information being used to indicate that in the frequency sub-block corresponding to the indication information, the first discrete bandwidth is aggregated by M discontinuous 20MHz.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, The indication information is contained in a special user information field in the trigger frame.

16. The method of any of claims 9-15, wherein The Nth frequency sub-block in the bandwidth of the PPDU comprises the first discrete bandwidth, and the index of the first DRU is the same as the index of a third DRU; The discrete bandwidth of the third DRU is the second discrete bandwidth, the bandwidth of the PPDU corresponding to the second discrete bandwidth is the same as the bandwidth of the PPDU corresponding to the first discrete bandwidth, and the second discrete bandwidth is contained in the Nth frequency sub-block, and the number of subcarriers in the first DRU is the same as the number of subcarriers in the third DRU.

17. A communications device, characterized by The module for performing the method of any of claims 1-8, or the module for performing the method of any of claims 9-16.

18. A communications device, characterized by The processor for performing the method of any of claims 1-8, or the processor for performing the method of any of claims 9-16.

19. A communications device, characterized by The logic circuit and the interface are coupled. The interface is configured to input and / or output information, and the logic circuit is configured to perform the method of any one of claims 1-8, or the logic circuit is configured to perform the method of any one of claims 9-16.

20. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer readable storage medium is configured to store a computer program, which, when executed, performs the method of any one of claims 1-8, or the method of any one of claims 9-16.

21. A computer program product, characterised in that, The computer program product, when executed, performs the method of any one of claims 1-8, or the method of any one of claims 9-16.

22. A communication system, characterized by The system comprises a first station configured to perform the method of any one of claims 1-8, and a second station configured to perform the method of any one of claims 9-16.

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