Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of communications, and in particular to a communication method and apparatus. The present application can support IEEE protocols, such as an IEEE 802.11be / Wi-Fi 7 / EHT protocol, an IEEE 802.11bn / UHR / Wi-Fi 8 protocol, an IEEE 802.15 / UWB protocol, an IEEE 802.11bf / sensing protocol, and an integrated millimeter wave (IMMW) protocol, a NearLink protocol or the like. A first station may carry non-acknowledgment information in an acknowledgment frame. The non-acknowledgment information may include, but is not limited to, IDC information, link state information, transceiving capability information, or buffer state information. The first station may be a TXOP holder, or may not be a TXOP holder. Therefore, by carrying non-acknowledgment information in an acknowledgment frame, the sending delay of non-acknowledgment information can be effectively reduced, thereby improving the communication efficiency.

Description

Communication method and apparatus

[0001] The present application claims priority to the Chinese patent application No. 202410890616.4, filed on July 3, 2024, entitled "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, and in particular, to a communication method and apparatus. BACKGROUND

[0003] In the system involved in 802.11, a station can include two working modes and two working states. The two working modes can be an active mode and a power saving mode, and the two working states are an awake state (or called a wake state) and a doze state. When the station works in the active mode, the station can always be in the awake state. When the station works in the power saving mode, the station can be in the awake state or the doze state.

[0004] With the development of wireless technology, more and more wireless devices support multi-link communication, such as simultaneously communicating in 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz frequency bands, or simultaneously communicating in different channels of the same frequency band, etc., thereby improving the communication rate between devices. Such devices are usually referred to as multi-link devices (MLD). Generally, after a station obtains a transmission opportunity by channel contention, the station can send a wireless frame on a link to indicate the power saving mode of the MLD to which the station belongs. Thus, the power saving mode management of different links in the MLD can be realized, thereby flexibly managing the power saving mode of the multi-link device.

[0005] However, the above method causes a large delay of the above wireless frame. SUMMARY

[0006] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus, which can effectively reduce the transmission delay of information and improve communication efficiency.

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

[0008] The first station receives the wireless frame; and the first station transmits an acknowledgement frame of the wireless frame, the acknowledgement frame comprising at least one of: in-device coexistence (IDC) information of the first station, transceiving capability information of the first station, buffer status information of the first station, or link status information of the first station.

[0009] In other words, the acknowledgement frame comprises non-acknowledgement information, which is information other than acknowledgement information. The non-acknowledgement information can also be referred to as control information. For example, the non-acknowledgement information can comprise at least one of: IDC information of the first station, transceiving capability information of the first station, buffer status information of the first station, or link status information of the first station. The names of the IDC information, the transceiving capability information, the buffer status information, or the link status information shown in embodiments of the present application are merely examples and do not limit embodiments of the present application.

[0010] As an example, the first station can comprise a non-access point station (non-AP STA), which can be a WLAN device or a chip or functional module arranged in a WLAN device. The second station can comprise an access point (AP), which can be a WLAN device or a chip or functional module arranged in a WLAN device. As another example, the first station can comprise an AP, which can be a WLAN device or a chip or functional module arranged in a WLAN device. The second station can comprise a non-AP STA, which can be a WLAN device or a chip or functional module arranged in a WLAN device. The WLAN device comprises a device involved in Wi-Fi or a device involved in Bluetooth or a device involved in ultra-wideband, etc.

[0011] For example, the AP can be an AP belonging to an AP MLD. The non-AP STA can be a non-AP STA belonging to a non-AP MLD. Of course, the AP can not be an AP belonging to an AP MLD, and the non-AP STA can not be a non-AP STA belonging to a non-AP MLD.

[0012] In embodiments of the present application, the first station effectively reduces the transmission delay of the information by including the information in the acknowledgement frame, so that the second station can learn the information in time, and the communication efficiency is improved.

[0013] When the information is not included in the acknowledgement frame, if the information is included in the non-acknowledgement frame, the first station needs to obtain the opportunity to send the non-acknowledgement frame after successfully competing for the channel, thereby causing a large transmission delay of the information. For example, when the first station is not a TXOP holder, the first station cannot actively send the wireless frame, and when the first station needs to indicate the information to the second station, the first station needs to obtain the opportunity to send the non-acknowledgement frame by competing for the channel after receiving the wireless frame sent by the TXOP holder.

[0014] However, in the embodiments of the present application, the information is included in the acknowledgement frame, and no matter whether the first station is a TXOP holder, the first station can timely send the acknowledgement frame, thereby effectively reducing the transmission delay of the information. The first station can be a TXOP holder or can not be a TXOP holder, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0015] In a 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 and the like), or can be a chip, a functional module, a processing system or a communication component arranged in the WLAN device. The method includes the following steps.

[0016] The second station sends a wireless frame; and the second station receives an acknowledgement frame of the wireless frame, and the acknowledgement frame includes at least one of IDC information of the first station, transceiving capability information of the first station, buffer status information of the first station, and link status information of the first station.

[0017] The description of the second aspect can refer to the first aspect, and will not be described in detail here.

[0018] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the method further includes: the second station determines the information of the first station according to the acknowledgement frame, and the information of the first station includes at least one of the IDC information of the first station, the transceiving capability information of the first station, the buffer status information of the first station, or the link status information of the first station.

[0019] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the confirmation frame comprises a first information field, the first information field comprises a first association identifier (AID) field, a value of the first AID field is a first value, and the first value is used to indicate that the first information field is used to carry non-confirmation information; or the confirmation frame comprises a first information field, the first information field comprises a first AID field and a first control response (CR) type field, a value of the first AID field is a second value, and a value of the first CR type field is a third value, the second value and the third value are used to indicate that the first information field is used to carry non-confirmation information.

[0020] The non-confirmation information can be any one of IDC information, transceiving capability information, buffer status information, or link status information.

[0021] As an example, the first value (or the second value) can be different for different non-confirmation information. In this case, the information carried in the first information field can be distinguished by the different first values (or second values).

[0022] As another example, the third value can be different for different non-confirmation information. In this case, the information carried in the first information field can be distinguished by the different third values. For example, the second value can be the same for different non-confirmation information, and the third value can be different. Or the second value can be different for different non-confirmation information, and the third value can also be different. Of course, the second value can be different for different non-confirmation information, and the third value can be the same. The non-confirmation information carried in the first information field can be distinguished by the first value, the second value, or the third value.

[0023] For example, one first information field can be used to carry one non-confirmation information. For example, the confirmation frame can comprise one or more first information fields.

[0024] In the embodiments of the present application, by designing the value of the AID field or by designing the value of the AID field and the value of the CR type field, the second station can effectively identify the information carried in the confirmation frame, so that the second station can timely and effectively obtain the information.

[0025] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the confirmation frame further includes a second information field, the second information field including a second AID field, a value of the second AID field being a fourth value, the fourth value being used to indicate that the second information field is used to carry padding information; or the confirmation frame further includes a second information field, the second information field including a second AID field and a second CR type field, a value of the second AID field being a fifth value, a value of the second CR type field being a sixth value, the fifth value and the sixth value being used to indicate that the second information field is used to carry padding information; and the second information field is located before the first information field.

[0026] For the sake of distinction, the AID field carried in the first information field is referred to as a first AID field, and the CR type field carried in the first information field is referred to as a first CR type field in the embodiments of the present application. The AID field carried in the second information field is referred to as a second AID field, and the CR type field carried in the second information field is referred to as a second CR type field. In specific implementations, the first AID field and the second AID field can not be distinguished, and are collectively referred to as an AID field. The first CR type field and the second CR type field can not be distinguished, and are collectively referred to as a CR type field.

[0027] For example, the confirmation frame can include one or more second information fields. In the embodiments of the present application, the confirmation frame includes the second information field, so that the first station has sufficient time to prepare the non-confirmation information.

[0028] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the confirmation frame is a multi-STA blockack (MBA) frame; the first information field is a first per AID traffic identifier (TID) information field; and the second information field is a second per AID TID information field.

[0029] The per AID TID information field in the MBA frame can also be referred to as a field similar to the per AID TID information field, or a per AID TID information field similar field, etc. In the embodiments of the present application, by designing to carry the non-confirmation information in the MBA frame, the MBA frame can be better multiplexed, and the signaling design can be simplified.

[0030] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the link state information is used to indicate whether a station belonging to the first MLD is available, and the first station is the station belonging to the first MLD.

[0031] The station affiliated to the first MLD can or can not include the first station, and the embodiments of the present application do not make any limitation.

[0032] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station indicates the link state information of the MLD where the first station is located to the second station, so that the second station can learn which links in the first MLD are available and which links are unavailable in time according to the link state information. Therefore, the second station can send data frames through the available links, and the transmission rate of the data frames is improved.

[0033] In combination with the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, whether the station is available includes whether the station is in a power saving mode, or whether the station is in an awake state.

[0034] Alternatively, whether the station is available includes whether the station is in an active mode, or whether the station is in an active mode or a power saving mode. Alternatively, whether the station is available includes whether the station is in an awake state or a sleep state. The awake state can also be referred to as a wake-up state or a wake-up state.

[0035] In combination with the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the link state information includes a power management (PM) bitmap, and each bit in the PM bitmap is used to indicate whether the corresponding station is available. Alternatively, the link state information includes a link identification ID, and the link ID is used to indicate that the corresponding station is available.

[0036] In combination with the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the IDC information includes at least one of the following: an available duration of the first station, an unavailable duration of the first station, a time when the first station enters the first mode, a duration when the first station is in the first mode, or a transceiving capability of the first station in the first mode.

[0037] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station entering the IDC can represent that the first station enters the first mode. For example, the first mode can be referred to as a low-capability mode or a weak mode, and the embodiments of the present application do not make any limitation on the specific name of the first mode.

[0038] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station indicates the coexistence information of the device where the first station is located to the second station, so that the second station can learn the working time of the first station, and the second station can select a suitable time to communicate with the first station, thereby further improving the communication efficiency.

[0039] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the transceiving capability information includes at least one of a bandwidth of the first station, a number of spatial streams of the first station, or a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) of the first station.

[0040] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station indicates the transceiving capability information of the first station to the second station, so that the second station can effectively learn the bandwidth, the number of spatial streams, or the MCS of the first station, and thus the second station can send a wireless frame to the first station by using matching parameters.

[0041] With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in a possible implementation, the buffer status information includes at least one of a total amount of data buffered by the first station, an amount of data of a low-latency service buffered by the first station, or an amount of data of a first traffic identifier (TID) buffered by the first station.

[0042] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station indicates the buffer status information of the first station to the second station, so that the second station can explicitly learn the above information of the first station, and thus the second station can reasonably perform resource allocation.

[0043] In a third aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, which can be applied to a first station. The first station can include a wireless local area network (WLAN) device (including a Wi-Fi device, etc.), or a chip, a functional module, a processing system, or a communication component, etc. disposed in the WLAN device. The method includes:

[0044] The first station generates a multi-user (MU) block acknowledgement request (BAR) frame, and the MU BAR frame includes a first type field used to indicate an initial control frame (ICF) type of the MU BAR frame. The first station sends the MU BAR frame.

[0045] The ICF type can be used by the first station to indicate the second station to perform an action corresponding to the ICF type. In other words, the ICF type can be used to indicate the second station to perform a function or a step corresponding to the ICF type, etc.

[0046] In the embodiments of the present application, the MU BAR frame can make the second station effectively know the action it can perform according to the ICF type indicated by the first type field, that is, the second station can effectively know the ICF type of the MU BAR frame according to the ICF type, or the second station can effectively know the function of the MU BAR frame according to the ICF type. The functions of different ICF frames can be effectively realized by multiplexing the MU BAR frame.

[0047] In a fourth aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, which can be applied to a second station, which can include a wireless local area network (WLAN) device (including a Wi-Fi device, etc.), or a chip, a functional module, a processing system or a communication component in the WLAN device, etc. The method includes:

[0048] The second station receives a MU BAR frame, and the MU BAR frame includes a first type field, which is used to indicate the ICF type of the MU BAR frame; and the second station parses the MU BAR frame.

[0049] The description of the fourth aspect can refer to the third aspect, which will not be described in detail here. The description of the first station and the second station in the third aspect and the fourth aspect can refer to the first aspect, which will not be described in detail here.

[0050] In combination with the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the second station parsing the MU BAR frame includes:

[0051] If the ICF type is the first type, the second station knows that the first station requests the second station to feed back IDC information according to the MU BAR frame; or,

[0052] If the ICF type is the second type, the second station knows that the first station requests the second station to improve the receiving capability of the second station according to the MU BAR frame; or,

[0053] If the ICF type is the third type, the second station knows that the first station indicates the second station to switch a channel according to the MU BAR frame; or,

[0054] If the ICF type is the fourth type, the second station knows that the first station requests the second station to wake up one or more links in the MLD where the second station is located according to the MU BAR frame.

[0055] In combination with the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the method further includes:

[0056] If the ICF type is the first type, the second station feeds back its IDC information; or,

[0057] if the ICF type is the second type, the second station increases its receiving capability; or

[0058] if the ICF type is the third type, the second station switches a channel; or

[0059] if the ICF type is the fourth type, the second station wakes up one or more links in a multi-link device in which the second station is located.

[0060] For example, the switched channel is determined according to the MU BAR frame, or is indicated by the first station through the MU BAR frame. The one or more links can be determined according to the MU BAR frame, or be indicated by the first station through the MU BAR frame.

[0061] With reference to the third aspect or the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner,

[0062] if the ICF type is the first type, the MU BAR frame is used to request the second station to feed back IDC information of the second station; or

[0063] if the ICF type is the second type, the MU BAR frame is used to request the second station to increase its receiving capability; or

[0064] if the ICF type is the third type, the MU BAR frame is used to instruct the second station to switch a channel; or

[0065] if the ICF type is the fourth type, the MU BAR frame is used to request the second station to wake up one or more links in a multi-link device in which the second station is located.

[0066] With reference to the third aspect or the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the MU BAR frame further includes an information field, which can be used to carry information corresponding to the ICF type of the MU BAR frame.

[0067] With reference to the third aspect or the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner, if the ICF type is the third type, the information field is used to carry channel information, which is used to instruct the second station to switch a channel; or if the ICF type is the fourth type, the information field is used to carry link information, which is used to instruct the second station to wake up a link.

[0068] With reference to the third aspect or the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the first type field is carried in B5-B11 in a BAR control field in the MU BAR frame.

[0069] For example, the first type field can occupy part or all of the bits in B5-B11.

[0070] In a possible implementation manner, the MU BAR frame further comprises a second type field, and a length of the information field in the MU BAR frame is determined by the second type field.

[0071] In a possible implementation manner, the second type field is carried in B1-B4 in the BAR control field in the MU BAR frame.

[0072] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which is configured to execute the method in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect or any possible implementation manner.

[0073] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which comprises a processor configured to execute the method in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect or any possible implementation manner.

[0074] In a possible implementation manner, the memory is located outside the communication apparatus.

[0075] In a possible implementation manner, the memory is located inside the communication apparatus.

[0076] 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.

[0077] In a possible implementation manner, the communication apparatus further comprises a transceiver configured to receive information or send information.

[0078] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which comprises a logic circuit and an interface, 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 execute the method in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect or any possible implementation manner.

[0079] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer readable storage medium, which is configured to store a computer program, when the computer program is executed on a computer, the method in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect or any possible implementation manner is executed.

[0080] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, which, when executed on a computer, causes the method shown in any one of the first aspect to the fourth aspect or any possible implementation manner thereof to be performed.

[0081] In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which comprises a first station configured to perform the method shown in the first aspect or any possible implementation manner of the first aspect, and a second station configured to perform the method shown in the second aspect or any possible implementation manner of the second aspect.

[0082] In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which comprises a first station configured to perform the method shown in the third aspect or any possible implementation manner of the third aspect, and a second station configured to perform the method shown in the fourth aspect or any possible implementation manner of the fourth aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0083] FIG. 1a is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0084] FIG. 1b is another schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0085] FIG. 2a is a schematic diagram of an architecture of an MLD according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0086] FIG. 2b is a schematic diagram of an address of an MLD according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0087] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0088] FIG. 4a is a schematic diagram of a format of a confirmation frame according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0089] FIG. 4b is a schematic diagram of a format of an MBA frame according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0090] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a format of a per-AID TID information field according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0091] FIGS. 6a to 6d are schematic diagrams of formats of respective per-AID TID information fields according to embodiments of the present application;

[0092] FIG. 7 is another schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0093] FIG. 8a is a schematic diagram of a format of a MU BAR frame according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0094] FIG. 8b is a schematic diagram of a format of a dependent trigger user information field according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0095] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0096] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of another structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0097] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of yet another structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0098] To facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the present application, the present application will be further described below with reference to the drawings.

[0099] The terms "first" and "second" and the like in the specification of the present application, claims, and drawings are used only to distinguish different objects, and are not used to describe 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, etc. including a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but can optionally include other steps or units not listed, or can optionally include other steps or units inherent to the process, method, product, or device, etc.

[0100] In this document, "embodiment" means that the specific features, structures, or characteristics described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the present application. The appearance of this phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily mean the same embodiment is referred to, nor does it mean that independent or alternative embodiments are mutually exclusive or alternative to each other. It is explicitly and implicitly understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein can be combined with other embodiments.

[0101] In the present application, "at least one" means one or more, "multiple" means two or more, "at least two" means two or three and more, and "and / or" is used to describe the association relationship of the associated objects, which means 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 that 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".

[0102] In this application, the "indication" can include direct indication, indirect indication, display indication, implicit indication. When describing that certain indication information is used to indicate A, it can be understood that the indication information carries A, directly indicates A, or indirectly indicates A.

[0103] In this application, the information indicated by the indication information is referred to as the to-be-indicated information. The information shown below for indicating certain information can be referred to as indication information. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the to-be-indicated information, for example, but not limited to, the to-be-indicated information can be directly indicated, such as the to-be-indicated information itself or the index of the to-be-indicated information. The to-be-indicated information can also be indirectly indicated by indicating other information, where the other information and the to-be-indicated information have an association relationship. The to-be-indicated information can also be only indicated a part, and the other part of the to-be-indicated information is known or agreed in advance. For example, the indication of a specific information can also be achieved by means of the arrangement order of each information agreed in advance (for example, the protocol stipulates), thereby reducing the indication overhead to a certain extent. In addition, the to-be-indicated information can be sent as a whole, or can be sent separately into multiple sub-information, and the sending period and / or sending opportunity of these sub-information can be the same or different.

[0104] In this application, "sending" and "receiving" represent the direction of signal transmission. For example, "sending information to XX" can be understood as that 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 that the source of the information is YY, which can include direct receiving from YY through the air interface, and also can include 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 carried out between devices, for example, between network devices and terminal devices, or can be carried out within a device, for example, between components, between modules, between chips, between software modules or hardware modules in a device through a bus, a wire or an interface.

[0105] The following introduces a communication system related to an embodiment of the present application.

[0106] 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.

[0107] 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, stadiums and exhibition halls, concert halls, hotel rooms, dormitories, wards, classrooms, supermarkets, squares, streets, manufacturing workshops, and warehouses, etc. Of course, the devices (such as access points or stations) supporting WLAN communication or sensing can be sensor nodes in smart cities (such as smart water meters, smart electricity meters, and smart air detection nodes), smart devices in smart homes (such as smart cameras, projectors, display screens, televisions, sound systems, refrigerators, washing machines, etc.), nodes in the Internet of Things, entertainment terminals (such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), etc. wearable devices), smart devices in smart offices (such as printers, projectors, amplifiers, sound systems, etc.), Internet of Vehicles devices in the Internet of Vehicles, infrastructure in daily life scenarios (such as vending machines, self-service navigation stations in supermarkets, self-service checkout devices, self-service ordering machines, etc.), and devices in large sports and music venues, etc.

[0108] Although the embodiments of the present application mainly take WLAN as an example, especially the network applying to 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.

[0109] 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 station (STA). The following is a detailed description:

[0110] 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-access point station (non-AP STA) or other access points) in the WLAN network or energy transmission, 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 mainly functions 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 STAs, which can support 802.11 series protocols or subsequent protocols, 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 the like. The AP can include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations and the like. 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. The description of the AP herein is also applicable to the AP multi-link device (AP MLD) shown below.

[0111] The STA is a device with wireless communication function, which supports communication or sensing or energy transmission by 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. In the WLAN system, the station can be referred to as a non-access point station (non-AP STA). For example, the 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 whole device, or a chip or processing system or functional module installed in the whole 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 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 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 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. The description of the STA herein is also applicable to the non-AP multi-link device (non-AP MLD) shown below.

[0112] FIG. 1a is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 1a, the embodiments of the present application can be applied to the communication or sensing between an AP and a non-AP STA, between an AP and an AP, or between a non-AP STA and a non-AP STA in a WLAN, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. For example, the AP can communicate or sense with a single non-AP STA, or the AP can communicate or sense with multiple non-AP STAs simultaneously. For another example, the communication or sensing between the AP and the multiple non-AP STAs can be divided into downlink transmission in which the AP sends signals to multiple non-AP STAs simultaneously, and uplink transmission in which multiple non-AP STAs send signals to the AP.

[0113] As a possible implementation manner, the AP1 can be an AP belonging to one of the AP MLDs, or the AP2 is an AP belonging to one of the AP MLDs. The non-AP STA1 or the non-AP STA2 or the non-AP STA3 can be a non-AP STA belonging to one of the non-AP MLDs. Wherein, the AP and the non-AP STA, the AP and the AP, the non-AP STA and the non-AP STA can support a WLAN communication protocol, which can include the protocol of the IEEE 802.11 series, such as can be applicable to the 802.11bn protocol, of course, also applicable to the protocol after the 802.11bn.

[0114] The non-AP STA in FIG. 1a is a mobile phone, and the AP is a router as an example, which does not mean that the type of the AP and the non-AP STA in the embodiments of the present application is limited. At the same time, the number of APs and the number of non-AP STAs shown in FIG. 1a are only examples, 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.

[0115] As a possible implementation manner, the AP can be an AP belonging to an AP MLD. As another possible implementation manner, the non-AP STA can be a non-AP STA belonging to a non-AP MLD.

[0116] A multi-link device (MLD) refers to a device that has multiple STAs (such as an AP or a non-AP STA) working on different frequency bands or channels at the same time. When the channels on which two stations in a multi-link device work are far enough apart, they can operate independently without interfering with each other. If any two stations support simultaneous transmitting and receiving (STR) between them, i.e., one station transmits while the other station receives, they can be said to have STR capability between them, otherwise, they can be said to have non-simultaneous transmitting and receiving (NSTR) capability between them. A multi-link device includes multiple affiliated stations, which can be physical stations or logical stations, each of which can work on a link or a frequency band or a channel. The affiliated stations shown here can be APs or non-AP STAs. For the sake of convenience, the multi-link device with affiliated stations as APs can be referred to as a multi-link AP or a multi-link AP device or an AP multi-link device (AP MLD). The multi-link device with affiliated stations as non-AP STAs can be referred to as a multi-link STA or a multi-link STA device or a STA multi-link device (STA MLD), or the multi-link device with affiliated stations as non-AP STAs can be referred to as a multi-link non-AP or a multi-link non-AP device or a non-AP multi-link device (non-AP MLD). The multi-link device (here, it can be a non-AP MLD or an AP MLD) is a communication device with wireless communication function. The communication device can be a whole device, or a chip or a processing system installed in the whole device, and the device in which the chip or the processing system is installed can realize the methods and functions of the embodiments of the present application under the control of the chip or the processing system.

[0117] The multi-link device can implement wireless communication in compliance with the 802.11 series protocols, for example, in compliance with EHT, or in compliance with 802.11be or compatible with 802.11be, so as to realize communication with other devices. Of course, the other devices can be multi-link devices or can not be multi-link devices. A multi-link device and another multi-link device establish multiple links, such as link 1, link 2, and link n shown in FIG. 1b.

[0118] Fig. 1b is another architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Fig. 1b, the AP MLD includes AP1, AP2, …, APn; the non-AP MLD includes non-AP STA1, non-AP STA2, …, non-AP STAn. n is a positive integer. For example, the AP MLD and the non-AP MLD can communicate in parallel through at least two of the link1, link2, …, linkn. STA1 in the non-AP MLD establishes link1 with AP1 in the AP MLD, STA2 in the non-AP MLD establishes link2 with AP2 in the AP MLD, and so on, and STAn in the non-AP MLD establishes link with APn in the AP MLD. Thus, the non-AP MLD and the AP MLD can communicate after the association is established. For example, the multi-link device in the embodiment of the present application can be a single-antenna device or a multi-antenna device. For example, it can be a device with more than two antennas. The number of antennas included in the multi-link device is not limited in the embodiment of the present application. The frequency band in which the multi-link device operates can include, but is not limited to, sub 1GHz, 2.4GHz, 5GHz, 6GHz, and high frequency 60GHz, and the like, which are not listed one by one here.

[0119] Fig. 2a is an architecture of a MLD according to an embodiment of the present application. The 802.11 standard focuses on the 802.11 physical layer (PHY) and medium access control (MAC) layer part in the multi-link device, so Fig. 2a exemplarily shows the PHY and MAC layer.

[0120] As shown in Fig. 2a, the multi-link device (such as the AP MLD or the non-AP MLD) can include the PHY (such as PHY#1, PHY#2 shown in Fig. 2a) and the MAC layer. The physical layer can be used to process the physical layer signal, and the MAC layer can be used to process the MAC layer signal. In the MAC layer, it can also be divided into a high-MAC layer (such as high-MAC shown in Fig. 2a) and a plurality of low-MAC layers (such as low-MAC#1, low-MAC#2 shown in Fig. 2a).

[0121] The plurality of APs belonging to the AP MLD are independent from each other at the low MAC layer, independent from each other at the PHY, and share the high MAC layer. The plurality of STAs belonging to the non-AP MLD are independent from each other at the low MAC layer, independent from each other at the PHY, and share the high MAC layer. The high MAC layer is connected to the plurality of low MAC layers respectively, and the high MAC layer can be shared by the plurality of links. For example, the high MAC layer mainly completes the allocation of sequence numbers (SNs) and packet numbers (PNs) of MAC service data units (MSDUs) and encryption and decryption operations. For example, the low MAC layer mainly completes the assembly of MAC protocol data units (MPDUs) of the respective links, channel access, packet sending and receiving confirmation, and the like. The functions implemented by the high MAC layer or the low MAC layer shown herein are only examples, and should not be construed as limiting the embodiments of the present application.

[0122] In FIG. 2a, the PHY #1, the low MAC #1, and the high MAC in the AP MLD can be regarded as AP1, and the PHY #2, the low MAC #2, and the high MAC can be regarded as AP2. That is, the AP MLD can include two AP entities. In the non-AP MLD, the case is similar, that is, the high MAC layer in the non-AP MLD is also shared by the plurality of links, the PHY #1, the low MAC #1, and the high MAC are regarded as STA1 (or non-AP STA1), and the PHY #2, the low MAC #2, and the high MAC are regarded as STA2 (or non-AP STA2). That is, the non-AP MLD includes two STA entities (i.e., two non-AP STA entities). For example, the PHY #1 of AP1 in the AP MLD and the PHY #1 of STA1 in the non-AP MLD can work on the same channel, such as AP1 and STA1 implementing communication through a link (such as link 1 shown in FIG. 2a). The PHY #2 of AP2 in the AP MLD and the PHY #2 of STA2 in the non-AP MLD can work on the same channel, such as AP2 in the AP MLD and STA2 in the non-AP MLD implementing communication through a link (such as link 2 shown in FIG. 2a).

[0123] Exemplarily, the high MAC and the low MAC can be implemented by one processor in a chip system of the multi-link device, and can also be implemented by different software processing modules in one chip system, and the like, which are not listed here. FIG. 2a can be a division of functional modules of the multi-link device, and each module shown in FIG. 2a can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of a software functional module, and the like. The PHY and the MAC layer shown in FIG. 2a can be understood as a logical division, and other division manners can be used in actual implementation. FIG. 2a is exemplarily shown by taking that the multi-link device includes two stations, and in actual implementation, the multi-link device can include more or fewer stations, which are not listed here. In the embodiments of the present application, the frequency band in which the multi-link device operates can include, but is not limited to, sub 1GHz, 2.4GHz, 5GHz, 6GHz, and the like, which are not listed one by one here.

[0124] FIG. 2b is an address diagram of the MLD provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 2b, for the multi-link device, one link address can be corresponded on each link in each multi-link device, such as the link address 1 (link address 1) and the link address 2 (link address 2) in FIG. 2b, and the multi-link device can also correspond an MLD MAC address (MLD MAC address). Taking the architecture shown in FIG. 2a as an example, the high MAC layer can be uniquely identified by the MAC address of the corresponding MLD, and the low MAC layer can be uniquely identified by the MAC address of the corresponding link, such as low MAC #1 and low MAC #2, which can correspond to the MAC addresses of the corresponding links respectively. The MLD MAC address can also be referred to as the MLD high MAC layer address, and the link address can also be referred to as the MLD low MAC layer address.

[0125] The following introduces the terms related to the embodiments of the present application.

[0126] 1, working mode

[0127] The working mode of the station can include an active mode and a power saving mode. Of course, the working mode shown here is only an example, and other working modes can also appear later as the standard progresses, which are not limited by the embodiments of the present application.

[0128] Generally, the method for switching between the active mode and the power save mode can be as follows: after successfully contending for the channel, the station can send a wireless frame, which includes a frame control field, and the frame control field can include a power management (PM) field. If the value of the PM field is set to 1, it indicates that the station wants to switch from the active mode to the power save mode; otherwise, if the value of the PM field is set to 0, it indicates that the station wants to switch from the power save mode to the active mode.

[0129] 2. Working state

[0130] In the active mode, the station can always be in the awake state. In the power save mode, the station can be in the awake state or the sleep state. Generally, taking the non-AP STA as an example, when the non-AP STA is in the power save mode, the method for switching between the awake state and the sleep state can be as follows: the non-AP STA periodically wakes up to receive a beacon frame. When the AP has downlink traffic to transmit, the AP can carry the traffic indication information related to the non-AP STA in the traffic indication map (TIM) information element in the beacon frame, so as to indicate the non-AP STA that it has downlink traffic to receive. If the non-AP STA wants to tell the AP that it has switched from the sleep state to the awake state, it can send a power save poll (PS-Poll) frame to the AP. The non-AP STA sending the PS-Poll frame can indicate that the non-AP STA is in the awake state, and the AP can send downlink traffic to the non-AP STA. In the process of the AP sending the downlink data frame to the non-AP STA, the value of the more data field in the frame control field in the last downlink data frame can be set to 0, indicating that the AP has no subsequent data to send. After the non-AP STA replies to the acknowledgement, the AP can consider that the non-AP STA has switched to the sleep state again.

[0131] The method related to the embodiments of the present application is introduced below.

[0132] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application. As an example, the first station can be an AP, and the second station can be a non-AP STA. As another example, the first station can be a non-AP STA, and the second station can be an AP. As an example, the AP can be one of APs belonging to an AP MLD, or the AP can be a single-link device. The non-AP STA can be one of non-AP STAs belonging to a non-AP MLD, or the non-AP STA can be a single-link device. The description of the AP or the non-AP STA can refer to the foregoing, and will not be described in detail herein. As yet another example, the first station can be a grant (G) node, and the second station can be a terminal (T) node; or the first station can be a T node, and the second station can be a G node. The description of the G node and the T node can refer to the Starlink protocol, and will not be described in detail herein.

[0133] As shown in FIG. 3, the method includes the following steps.

[0134] 301. The second station transmits a wireless frame, and the first station can receive the wireless frame.

[0135] In a possible implementation, before the second station transmits the wireless frame, the second station can generate the wireless frame. The format of the wireless frame is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0136] As an example, the wireless frame can be a data frame or a management frame. The type of the wireless frame is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0137] As an example, the second station can be a TXOP holder, and the second station can actively transmit the wireless frame. The first station as a non-TXOP holder (or the first station is not a TXOP holder) can receive the wireless frame, or reply to an acknowledgement frame of the wireless frame, or reply to a response frame of the wireless frame. In the embodiments of the present application, the first station as a non-TXOP holder can effectively improve the transmission delay of the non-acknowledgement information by carrying the non-acknowledgement information in the acknowledgement frame. Generally, the first station and the second station can compete for a channel. After the channel competition succeeds, the station obtaining the TXOP can be referred to as a TXOP holder. Correspondingly, the station not obtaining the TXOP can be referred to as a non-TXOP holder.

[0138] As another example, the first station can be a TXOP holder. The first station can transmit a trigger frame to the second station, and the second station can receive the trigger frame. After the second station receives the trigger frame, the second station can transmit the wireless frame (as step 301). The trigger frame can be used to schedule the second station, or in other words, the trigger frame can be used to allocate information for the second station.

[0139] 302. The first station transmits an acknowledgement frame of the wireless frame, and correspondingly, the second station can receive the acknowledgement frame, the acknowledgement frame can comprise at least one of the following: the IDC information of the first station, the transceiving capability information of the first station, the buffer status information of the first station, or the link status information of the first station.

[0140] The information shown in step 302 is only an example, the acknowledgement frame can comprise non-acknowledgement information, the non-acknowledgement information is information other than the acknowledgement information, and the non-acknowledgement information can comprise at least one of the information shown in step 302.

[0141] In a possible implementation, before the first station transmits the acknowledgement frame, the acknowledgement frame can also be generated. The format of the acknowledgement frame can be referred to below, and will not be described in detail here.

[0142] As a possible implementation, the wireless frame and the acknowledgement frame shown in FIG. 3 can be referred to steps 301 and 302.

[0143] As another possible implementation, the wireless frame can comprise link information, the link information can be used to indicate a link to be woken up by the first station, or in other words, the link information can be used to indicate that the MLD in which the first station is located wakes up one or more links, or in other words, the link information can be used to indicate a link to be woken up by the MLD in which the first station is located, or in other words, the link information can be used to suggest that the MLD in which the first station is located switches a station working on a link to be woken up to a wake-up state for data reception. For example, the link information can be carried in an HT-control field in the wireless frame. For example, the link information can be a link ID bitmap, each bit in the link ID bitmap can be used to indicate whether to wake up a corresponding link. For example, the length of the link ID bitmap can be the same as the number of stations included in the MLD in which the second station is located. For another example, the link information can be a link ID, the link ID can be used to indicate to wake up a link corresponding to the link ID. The link information can also be referred to as link recommendation information, etc. The link information can also be described with reference to FIG. 7 below. As an example, after the first station receives the wireless frame from the second station, the first station can transmit an acknowledgement frame, the acknowledgement frame can be referred to step 302, or the acknowledgement frame can comprise acknowledgement information. As another example, in a case where the first station (or the MLD in which the first station is located) accepts the link information suggested by the second station, a PS-Poll frame can be transmitted on a corresponding link. The corresponding link can be considered as the above-mentioned link to be woken up.

[0144] The acknowledgement frame shown in the embodiments of the present application can be a response frame or a reply frame of the wireless frame.

[0145] 303. The second station resolves the acknowledgement frame.

[0146] The second station can obtain non-acknowledgement information from the acknowledgement frame. The information obtained by the second station from the acknowledgement frame can be referred to as follows.

[0147] The above various non-acknowledgement information is described as follows.

[0148] (1) Link state information of the first station

[0149] The link state information can be used to indicate the state information of the stations belonging to the first MLD. The link state information can be used to indicate whether the stations belonging to the first MLD are available. In other words, the link state information can be used to indicate the available stations in the first MLD. For example, the link state information can be used to indicate the power saving mode of the stations belonging to the first MLD. The first MLD can be the MLD to which the first station belongs. The stations belonging to the first MLD can or can not include the first station. By indicating the available stations to the second station, the first station can enable the second station to transmit wireless frames to these available stations, thereby improving the transmission rate.

[0150] Since the link state information needs to indicate the state of the stations belonging to the first MLD, when the first station is a single-link device, the link state information can not be included in the acknowledgement frame. As described above with respect to FIG. 1b, there is a one-to-one correspondence between the stations and the links, and therefore the link state information can also be used to indicate the state information of the links associated with the stations in the first MLD, or in other words, the link state information can be used to indicate the state information of the links in the first MLD. In view of the relationship between the stations and the links, the link state information can also be referred to as station state information.

[0151] As an example 1, the link state information can be used to indicate the working mode in which the station is located. For example, the working mode can include an active mode and a power saving mode. Whether the station is available includes whether the station is in the power saving mode, or whether the station is in the active mode, or whether the station is in the active mode or the power saving mode. When the station is in the active mode, the station is available.

[0152] For example, the link status information can be used to indicate that the first station wants the station #1 in the MLD in which the first station is located to switch from the power save mode to the active mode. For another example, the link status information can be used to indicate that the station #1 is already in the active mode. The station #1 is an available station as indicated in the link status information. That is, the mode of the stations in the MLD in which the first station is located can be changed (or switched) before the first station sends the link status information. Alternatively, the mode of the stations in the MLD in which the first station is located can be changed after the first station sends the link status information. The mode of each station after the change matches the mode of each station as indicated in the link status information.

[0153] As another example 2, the link status information can be used to indicate the working state in which a station is located. Exemplarily, the working state can include a wake state and a sleep state. Whether a station is available includes whether the station is in the wake state or whether the station is in the wake state or the sleep state. When a station is in the wake state, the station is available. The wake state can be a wake state in the power save mode or a wake state in the active mode. The wake state can also be referred to as an awake state or a wake-up state.

[0154] In a case where the link status information is used to indicate that a station is in the wake state, for example, the first station (such as a non-AP STA) sends a confirmation frame including link status information indicating that station A is in the wake state, which can be considered that station A sends a PS-Poll frame to the second station (such as an AP). Correspondingly, the second station can be considered to have received the PS-Poll frame sent by station A when the second station receives the link status information and the link status information indicates that station A is in the wake state. Thus, the second station can send a data frame to station A. For another example, the first station sends a confirmation frame including link status information indicating that station A is in the wake state, which can be considered that station A can omit the step of sending a PS-Poll frame. Correspondingly, the second station can know that station A omits the step of sending a PS-Poll frame when the second station receives the link status information and the link status information indicates that station A is in the wake state. Thus, the second station can send a data frame to station A.

[0155] The example 1 and the example 2 can be separate examples, or the example 1 and the example 2 can be combined. When the example 1 and the example 2 are combined, the link status information can be used to indicate the working mode in which a station is located and the working state in which the station is located; or the link status information can be used to indicate the working mode in which a station is located and the working state in which the station is located when the station is in the power save mode.

[0156] As a possible implementation, the link state information can comprise a bitmap, each bit in the bitmap can be used to indicate whether a corresponding station (or link) is available. As the number of stations indicated by the link state information is N, the 1st bit to the Nth bit in the bitmap can correspond to the link IDs in ascending order. The link ID can indicate a station working on the link indicated by the link ID. As the link ID can be used to indicate a station working on the link indicated by the link ID and belonging to the first MLD. That is, there is a one-to-one correspondence between the link ID and the station belonging to the first MLD. The relationship between the link and the station can refer to the description of FIG. 1b or FIG. 2a above. The N is less than or equal to the number of stations in the MLD (or the number of links corresponding to the MLD). The number of stations indicated by the link state information can be the same as the number of stations included in the MLD.

[0157] As an example, the value of a bit in the bitmap is 1 can indicate that the station corresponding to the bit is available, and the value of the bit is 0 can indicate that the station corresponding to the bit is unavailable. Alternatively, the value of a bit in the bitmap is 0 can indicate that the station corresponding to the bit is available, and the value of the bit is 1 can indicate that the station corresponding to the bit is unavailable. The correspondence between the value of the bit and the meaning is not listed one by one below.

[0158] As an example, the length of the first bitmap is a fixed length. The first bitmap can occupy M bits. M is a positive integer. As M = 4, or M = 8, or M = 12, or M = 16, etc., which are not listed one by one here. The values of M listed here are exemplified with even numbers, and in specific implementation, M can also be an odd number, which is not listed here. The N is a positive integer less than or equal to M.

[0159] As an example, the first MLD can include up to 16 stations, or the first MLD can correspond to up to 16 links, the first bitmap can occupy 16 bits. For example, the 16 bits in the first bitmap can correspond to a first station and 15 other stations, the other stations refer to the stations in the first MLD except the first station. For another example, the number of stations in the first MLD is 4, the 1st bit to the 4th bit in the first bitmap can correspond to a station in turn, and the 5th bit to the 16th bit in the first bitmap can be reserved bits.

[0160] As another example, the length of the first bitmap is variable. For example, the length of the first bitmap can vary with the number of stations in the first MLD. Optionally, the confirmation frame can include information indicating the length of the first bitmap.

[0161] As an example, the link state information can include a bitmap, each bit in the bitmap can be used to indicate whether the corresponding station is in the active mode or the power saving mode. Alternatively, each bit in the bitmap can be used to indicate whether the corresponding station is in the awake state or the sleep state. The bitmap can be referred to as a PM bitmap. For ease of description, the PM bitmap is taken as an example in the following description of the format of the acknowledgement frame.

[0162] The second station can learn from the bitmap which stations are in the active mode and which stations are in the power saving mode, so that the second station can transmit the wireless frame through the link corresponding to the station in the active mode. Alternatively, the second station can learn from the bitmap which stations are in the awake state and which stations are in the sleep state, so that the second station can transmit the wireless frame through the link corresponding to the station in the awake state.

[0163] As another example, the link state information can include two bitmaps, one of the two bitmaps (referred to as bitmap A) can be used to indicate whether the corresponding station is in the active mode or the power saving mode, and the other bitmap (referred to as bitmap B) can be used to indicate whether the station in the power saving mode is in the awake state or the sleep state.

[0164] For example, bitmap A occupies M1 bits, and the number of stations in the power saving mode indicated by the M1 bits is M2. Bitmap B can occupy M2 bits, and M2 is a positive integer less than or equal to M1. The M2 bits can correspond to the stations in the power saving mode indicated by the M1 bits in turn. When M2 = 0, the link state information can not include bitmap B. Alternatively, the acknowledgement frame can include information indicating whether bitmap B exists.

[0165] The second station can transmit the wireless frame through the station in the active mode or the station in the power saving mode in the awake state, so as to more accurately indicate the state of the station and further improve the transmission rate of the wireless frame.

[0166] As another possible implementation, the link state information can include a link ID. That is, the station corresponding to the link ID included in the link state information is available. The link state information can include one or more link IDs, and the number of link IDs is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0167] As an example, the link ID included in the link state information can indicate that the station corresponding to the link ID is in the active mode.

[0168] As another example, the link ID included in the link state information can indicate that the station corresponding to the link ID is in an awake state.

[0169] For each of the above implementations, the link state information can include information indicating whether the first station is available, or does not include the information indicating whether the first station is available. The application embodiments are not limited to whether the information indicating whether the first station is available is included in the link state information.

[0170] In the embodiments of the application, the first station can enable the second station to know which links in the first MLD are available and which links are not available in time by indicating the link state information of the MLD in which the first station is located to the second station. Thus, the second station can send data frames through available links, thereby improving the transmission rate of data frames.

[0171] (2) IDC information of the first station

[0172] The IDC information can be used to indicate coexistence information within the device in which the first station is located. The device in which the first station is located can include the first station, and in addition to the first station, the device can also include other wireless modules, which can include but are not limited to at least one of the following: Bluetooth (BT), ultra wideband (UWB), or star flash, etc. That is, the station and other wireless modules can coexist in the above device. The description of the device in which the first station is located can refer to the description of the coexistence mechanism in the standard. For example, the device in which the first station is located can include a single-link device or a multi-link device in which the first station is located, and other wireless modes.

[0173] The IDC information includes at least one of the following: available duration of the first station, unavailable duration of the first station, time when the first station enters the first mode, duration when the first station is in the first mode, or transceiving capability of the first station in the first mode.

[0174] The available duration of the first station can also represent how long the first station will be unavailable, or the time when the first station is unavailable.

[0175] The unavailable duration of the first station can also represent the duration when the first station is unavailable.

[0176] The time when the first station enters the first mode can also represent how long the first station will enter the first mode; or the duration when the first station is in the non-first mode.

[0177] The time duration that the first station is in the first mode can also represent a time duration that the first station can continuously be in the first mode.

[0178] The transceiving capability of the first station in the first mode can also represent a transmission capability of the first station in the first mode. The transceiving capability can include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: a maximum bandwidth of the first station in the first mode, a maximum number of spatial streams of the first station in the first mode, and a maximum MCS of the first station in the first mode.

[0179] The first station entering the IDC can represent that the first station enters the first mode. For the device in which the first station is located, the first station can transceive signals, and other wireless modules can also transceive signals. Thus, interference can exist between the first station and the other wireless modules. Therefore, when the first station enters the IDC mechanism, the capability of the first station can be weakened. As described above, the first mode can be referred to as a low-capability mode or a weak mode, and the specific name of the first mode is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0180] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station can indicate the IDC information to the second station, so that the second station can effectively learn the IDC information of the first station. Thus, the second station can effectively send wireless frames to the first station, reasonably arrange the transmission time of the wireless frames, improve the transmission rate of the wireless frames, and improve the communication efficiency.

[0181] (3) Transceiving capability information of the first station

[0182] The transceiving capability information of the first station can include transceiving capability information of the first station in a non-first mode. For example, the transceiving capability information of the first station in a second mode. The second mode can be a mode in which the first station exits the IDC, or a high-capability mode, etc. The transceiving capability information includes at least one of the following: a bandwidth of the first station, a number of spatial streams of the first station, or an MCS of the first station. The bandwidth can include a maximum bandwidth, the number of spatial streams can include at least one of a maximum number of spatial streams or a minimum number of spatial streams, and the MCS can include at least one of a maximum MCS or a minimum MCS.

[0183] In view of the relationship between the spatial stream and the space-time stream, the number of spatial streams shown in the embodiments of the present application can also be replaced by the number of space-time streams. Alternatively, the transceiving capability information can include the number of spatial streams and the number of space-time streams. The description of the number of spatial streams and the number of space-time streams herein is also applicable to the description of (2) above.

[0184] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station indicates the transceiving capability information of the first station to the second station, so that the second station can effectively learn the bandwidth, the number of spatial streams or the MCS of the first station, and thus the second station can send a wireless frame to the first station by matching parameters.

[0185] (4) Buffer status information of the first station

[0186] The buffer status information can include the data amount of each TID cached by the first station. For example, the buffer status information of the first station includes at least one of the following: the total data amount cached by the first station, the data amount of low-latency service cached by the first station, or the data amount of the first TID cached by the first station.

[0187] For example, the TID of the data of the low-latency service is a specific TID. The first TID can be the TID of the non-low-latency service data cached by the first station. The buffer status information of the first station can include the data amount of one or more first TIDs cached by the first station.

[0188] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station indicates the buffer status information of the first station to the second station, so that the second station can explicitly learn the above information of the first station, and thus the second station can reasonably perform resource allocation.

[0189] The frame format of the acknowledgement frame is introduced below.

[0190] FIG. 4a is a format diagram of the acknowledgement frame provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 4a, the acknowledgement frame can include at least one of the following fields: frame control, duration, receiver address (RA), transmitter address (TA), frame body or frame check sequence (FCS). FIG. 4a also exemplarily shows the length of each field, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to the length of each field.

[0191] The frame body field can include at least one of the following: a first information field, a second information field or a third information field. The embodiments of the present application are not limited to the number of each information field. The description of the first information field, the second information field and the third information field can be referred to below.

[0192] The names or lengths or positions of various frames or elements or fields shown in the embodiments of the present application are only examples and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present application. The following are examples of fields, and the fields, subfields, elements or subelements are not specifically distinguished, but should not be considered as limiting the embodiments of the present application. The unit of the length of each field can be bits, bytes, or double bytes, which are not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0193] In the embodiments of the present application, the fields shown in the dashed lines in the drawings are optional fields, and the fields with a length of 0 are also optional fields.

[0194] For example, the confirmation frame can be a multi-STA blockack (MBA) frame. For example, the information field can be referred to as a per AID TID information field, or a field similar to the per AID TID information field, or a field similar to the per AID TID information field, and the specific name of the information field is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. For ease of description, the per AID TID information field is taken as an example in the following description, but this is not intended to limit the embodiments of the present application. For example, the first information field is referred to as a first per AID TID information (per AID TID info) field, the second information field is referred to as a second per AID TID information field, and the third information field is referred to as a third per AID TID information field. The third per AID TID information field can be located before the first per AID TID information field. The second per AID TID information field can be located before the first per AID TID information field. FIG. 4a exemplarily shows one first information field, one second information field and one third information field, and the number of fields is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0195] FIG. 4b is a format diagram of an MBA frame provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 4b, the MBA frame can include at least one of the following fields: frame control, duration, RA, TA, blockack control (BA control), BA information (BA information) or FCS. FIG. 4b also exemplarily shows the lengths of the fields. FIG. 4b also shows the positions of the per AID TID information fields.

[0196] In the embodiments of the present application, by designing to carry non-confirmation information in the MBA frame, the MBA frame can be better multiplexed, and the signaling design is simplified.

[0197] The following introduces the information field (i.e., the per AID TID information field) related to the embodiments of the present application.

[0198] FIG. 5 is a format of the per-AID TID information field according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 5, the per-AID TID information field includes an AID TID information field and a field carrying non-acknowledgement information or acknowledgement information. The AID TID information field can include an AID field. FIG. 5 is an example of the AID field being an AID 11 field, but is not a limitation on the embodiments of the present application. For ease of description, the AID field is described below by way of example of the AID 11 field. FIG. 5 also shows lengths of the fields by way of example, which are not a limitation on the embodiments of the present application.

[0199] Optionally, the AID TID information field can further include a CR type field. The AID field or the CR type field can be used to identify the non-acknowledgement information or the acknowledgement information carried in the per-AID TID information field.

[0200] Optionally, the AID TID information field can further include an acknowledgement type (acktype) field and a TID field.

[0201] Optionally, the AID TID information field can further include a length field, which can be used to indicate a length of the non-acknowledgement information or the acknowledgement information carried in the per-AID TID information field.

[0202] FIGS. 6a-6d are formats of the per-AID TID information fields according to embodiments of the present application. The descriptions of FIGS. 6a-6d can refer to FIG. 5 or the following description, and are not described in detail here. FIGS. 6a-6d also show lengths of the fields by way of example, which are not a limitation on the embodiments of the present application.

[0203] The AID 11 field in FIGS. 6a-6d is not specifically distinguished as a first AID 11 field, a second AID 11 field, or a third AID 11 field. The AID 11 fields carried in different per-AID TID information fields can be collectively referred to as AID 11 fields, or the AID 11 field carried in the first per-AID TID information field can be referred to as a first AID 11 field, the AID 11 field carried in the second per-AID TID information field can be referred to as a second AID 11 field, and the AID 11 field carried in the third per-AID TID information field can be referred to as a third AID 11 field. Correspondingly, the above description of the CR type field is also applicable. The specific name of the AID field or the CR type field is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0204] As a possible implementation, the AID 11 field can be used to identify whether the non-acknowledgement information or the acknowledgement information carried in the per-AID TID information field corresponding to the AID 11 field. Or, the AID 11 field can be used to distinguish whether the information carried in the per-AID TID information field corresponding to the AID 11 field is the acknowledgement information, or the link state information, or the IDC information, or the transceiving capability information, or the buffer status information, or the padding information. Or, the AID 11 field can be used to identify whether the information carried in the per-AID TID information field corresponding to the AID 11 field is the link state information, or the IDC information, or the transceiving capability information, or the buffer status information. Or, the AID 11 field can be used to identify whether the information carried in the per-AID TID information field corresponding to the AID 11 field is the link state information, or the IDC information, or the transceiving capability information, or the buffer status information, or the padding information.

[0205] As an example, the value of the first AID 11 field is a first value, which can be used to indicate that the per-AID TID information field corresponding to the first AID 11 field (i.e., the first per-AID TID information field) carries the non-acknowledgement information. Or, the first value can be used to indicate that the per-AID TID information field is the first per-AID TID information field.

[0206] For example, the value of the first AID 11 field is a first value #1, and the first per-AID TID information field can be used to carry the link state information.

[0207] For another example, the value of the first AID 11 field is a first value #2, and the first per-AID TID information field can be used to carry the IDC information.

[0208] For another example, the value of the first AID 11 field is a first value #3, and the first per-AID TID information field can be used to carry the transceiving capability information.

[0209] For another example, the value of the first AID 11 field is a first value #4, and the first per-AID TID information field can be used to carry the buffer status information.

[0210] For example, the first value #1 to the first value #4 can be a value between 2008 and 2044, or 2046, or 2047, etc.

[0211] The format of the first per-AID TID information field can refer to FIG. 6a and FIG. 6b. When the first value #1~the first value #4 can be used to distinguish the non-acknowledgement information carried by the first per-AID TID information field, the first per-AID TID information field can comprise a length field, which can be used to indicate the length of the non-acknowledgement information; or the first per-AID TID information field can comprise a present field (as shown below).

[0212] Optionally, the acknowledgement frame can comprise a plurality of first per-AID TID information fields, such as the first per-AID TID information field #1 can be used to carry the link state information, the first per-AID TID information field #2 can be used to carry the IDC information, the first per-AID TID information field #3 can be used to carry the transceiving capability information, and the first per-AID TID information field #4 can be used to carry the buffer status information. When the acknowledgement frame comprises a plurality of first per-AID TID information fields, the acknowledgement frame can further comprise a present field, which can be used to indicate whether the first per-AID TID information field #1~the first per-AID TID information field #4 exists. The present field can occupy 4 bits, or the length of the present field can be increased when other non-acknowledgement information appears subsequently. The present field can be carried in the BA control field, or the first per-AID TID information field in the BA information, etc.

[0213] In the embodiments of the present application, the first value #1~the first value #4 can be different values, so that the second station can know the information carried in the first per-AID TID information field according to the values. The second station can know that the information carried in the first per-AID TID information field is the PM bitmap, or the IDC information, or the transceiving capability information, or the buffer status information according to the different values of the AID 11 field.

[0214] As another example, the value of the second AID 11 field is the fourth value, which can be used to indicate that the per-AID TID information field corresponding to the second AID 11 field (i.e. the second per-AID TID information field) carries the padding information. Or in other words, the fourth value can be used to indicate that the per-AID TID information field is the second per-AID TID information field.

[0215] The fourth value can be a value between 2008 and 2044, or 2046, or 2047, etc. The first value and the fourth value can be different values, so that the second station can learn the information carried by the first per-AID TID information field according to the difference between the first value and the fourth value. Or, the second station can distinguish the first per-AID TID information field from the second per-AID TID information field according to the difference between the first value and the fourth value.

[0216] Fig. 6c exemplarily shows two different formats of the AID TID information field. As shown in (1) of Fig. 6c, the AID TID information field can include an AID 11 field (or referred to as a second AID 11 field), and optionally, a CR type field. As shown in (2) of Fig. 6c, the AID TID information field can include an AID 11 field (or referred to as a second AID 11 field), and optionally, a padding length field, which can be used to indicate the length of the padding field. For example, the length of the padding field is fixed. In the case that the length of the padding field is fixed, the AID TID information field can not include the padding length field. For another example, the length of the padding field can be indicated by the padding length field. The MBA frame can include one or more second per-AID TID information fields.

[0217] Exemplarily, the MBA frame can include one or more first per-AID TID information fields. Optionally, the MBA frame can further include one or more second per-AID TID information fields. When the MBA frame includes the second per-AID TID information field, the second per-AID TID information field can be located before the first per-AID TID information field. By including the second per-AID TID information field in the MBA frame, the first station can have enough time to prepare the first per-AID TID information field.

[0218] As another example, the third AID 11 field has a seventh value, which can be used to indicate that the per-AID TID information field (i.e., the third per-AID TID information field) corresponding to the third AID 11 field carries the acknowledgement information. Or, the seventh value can be used to indicate that the per-AID TID information field is the third per-AID TID information field.

[0219] The seventh value can be an AID of the first station, or a preset value. The aforementioned AID of the first station, or the preset value can be used to indicate that each AID TID information field corresponding to the third AID 11 field is used to carry the acknowledgement information. For example, when the first station is a non-AP STA, the third AID 11 field in the MBA frame sent by the non-AP STA can be used to carry the AID of the non-AP STA, or the value of the third AID 11 field is a preset value.

[0220] FIG. 6d exemplarily shows the format of the third AID TID information field. As shown in FIG. 6d, the third AID TID information field can include at least one of the following: AID TID information, BA starting sequence control, or BA bitmap. The BA starting sequence control field and the BA bitmap field can be used to carry the acknowledgement information of the wireless frame received by the first station. For example, the AID TID information field can include at least one of the following: AID 11 (i.e., the third AID 11), ACK type, or TID. For other descriptions about FIG. 6c, please refer to the 802.11 standard, which will not be described in detail herein.

[0221] The first value, the fourth value, and the seventh value can be different values. The second station identifies the information carried by each AID TID information field through the different values carried by the AID 11 field.

[0222] As another possible implementation, the information carried by each AID TID information field can be distinguished through the AID 11 field and the CR type field. In other words, whether each AID TID information field is the first AID TID information field, the second AID TID information field, or the third AID TID information field can be distinguished through the AID 11 field and the CR type field.

[0223] As an example, the value of the first AID 11 field in the first AID TID information field used to carry the link state information / IDC information / transmit / receive capability information / buffer status information can be the same. For example, the first AID TID information field can include a first CR type field, which can be used to identify whether the non-acknowledgement information carried in the first AID TID information field is link state information, IDC information, transmit / receive capability information, or buffer status information.

[0224] As another example, the value of the AID 11 field in each AID TID information field (including the first and / or second AID TID information field) for carrying non-acknowledgement information is the same as the value of the AID 11 field in each AID TID information field for carrying acknowledgement information. Each AID TID information field (including the first and / or second AID TID information field) can include a CR type field, which can be used to identify the non-acknowledgement information carried in each AID TID information field (including the first and / or second AID TID information field). The non-acknowledgement information shown herein includes at least one of the following: link status information, IDC information, transceiving capability information, buffer status information, or padding information.

[0225] Of course, there can be at least two values different in the value of the first AID 11 field in the first AID TID information field for carrying link status information / IDC information / transceiving capability information / buffer status information. For example, the value of the first AID 11 field in the first AID TID information field for carrying link status information can be different from the value of the first AID 11 field in the first AID TID information field for carrying IDC information, and so on, which will not be listed one by one herein. Alternatively, the value of the first AID 11 field in the first AID TID information field for carrying IDC information can be different from the value of the second AID 11 field in the second AID TID information field for carrying padding information.

[0226] The AID 11 field and the CR type field can be used to identify the non-acknowledgement information carried in the AID TID information field corresponding to the AID 11 field. Alternatively, the AID 11 field and the CR type field can be used to distinguish whether the information carried in the AID TID information field corresponding to the AID 11 field is link status information, IDC information, transceiving capability information, buffer status information, or padding information. The CR type field is shown in FIGS. 6a-6c.

[0227] For example, the first AID TID information field includes a first AID 11 field and a first CR type field, the value of the first AID 11 field is a second value, and the value of the first CR type field is a third value, the second value and the third value being used to indicate that the first AID TID information field is used to carry non-acknowledgement information.

[0228] For example, the value of the first AID 11 field is a second value #1, and the value of the first CR type field is a third value #1, the first AID TID information field can be used to carry link status information.

[0229] For example, the first AID 11 field has a second value #2, the first CR type field has a third value #2, and the first per-AID TID information field can be used to carry IDC information.

[0230] For example, the first AID 11 field has a second value #3, the first CR type field has a third value #3, and the first per-AID TID information field can be used to carry transceiver capability information.

[0231] For example, the first AID 11 field has a second value #4, the first CR type field has a third value #4, and the first per-AID TID information field can be used to carry buffer status information.

[0232] For example, the third values #1-#4 can be different, two of the second values #1-#4 can be the same, or all the second values #1-#4 can be different. Alternatively, the third values #1-#4 can be the same, and all the second values #1-#4 can be different.

[0233] The second value #1 can be the same as or different from the first value #1. The second value #2 can be the same as or different from the first value #2. The second value #3 can be the same as or different from the first value #3. The second value #4 can be the same as or different from the first value #4. The second values #1-#4 can be a value between 2008 and 2044, or 2046, or 2047, etc.

[0234] For example, the second per-AID TID information field includes a second AID 11 field and a second CR type field, the second AID 11 field has a fifth value, and the second CR type field has a sixth value. The fifth and sixth values are used to indicate that the second per-AID TID information field is used to carry padding information.

[0235] The fifth value can be the same as or different from the second value, and the sixth value is different from the third value. Alternatively, the sixth value is the same as the third value, and the second value is different from the fifth value. The fifth value can be the same as or different from the fourth value. For example, the fifth value can be a value between 2008 and 2044, or 2046, or 2047, etc.

[0236] The specific values of the above values are not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0237] In the embodiments of the present application, the first station effectively reduces the transmission delay of the information by including the information in the confirmation frame, so that the second station can learn the information in time, and the communication efficiency is improved.

[0238] FIG. 7 is another schematic diagram of the communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application. The description of the first station and the second station can refer to the above, and will not be repeated here. As shown in FIG. 7, the method includes the following steps.

[0239] In a possible implementation, the method shown in FIG. 7 includes step 701.

[0240] 701. The first station generates a MU BAR frame, and the MU BAR frame includes a first type field, which can be used to indicate the ICF type of the MU BAR frame.

[0241] The MU BAR frame is a kind of trigger frame. However, in the embodiments of the present application, the MU BAR frame can also implement one or more ICF functions. Generally, after the interaction of the initial control frame (ICF) and the initial control response (ICR) of the station, data transmission can be performed. In other words, the interaction of the ICF and the ICR can be used as the start of data transmission. By multiplexing the MU BAR frame to implement the ICF function, the signaling design can be simplified.

[0242] The description of the MU BAR frame can refer to the following, and will not be described here first. The MU BAR frame can also be represented as a MU-BAR frame.

[0243] 702. The first station transmits the MU BAR frame, and correspondingly, the second station receives the MU BAR frame.

[0244] 703. The second station analyzes the MU BAR frame.

[0245] The second station can effectively learn the action indicated by the first station for the second station to perform by analyzing the MU BAR frame. The action performed by the second station can refer to the following, and will not be described here first.

[0246] The first type field and the ICF type related to the embodiments of the present application are introduced below.

[0247] The first type field can be used to indicate the ICF function implemented by the MU BAR frame; or in other words, the first type field can be used to instruct the second station to perform an action (or function or step) corresponding to the ICF type indicated by the first type field; or in other words, the ICF type can be used to instruct the second station to perform an action (or function or step) corresponding to the ICF type. For example, the first type field can be referred to as an ICF type field. For ease of description, the ICF type field is used as an example in the following description.

[0248] As an example, the ICF type is the first type, and the MU BAR frame can be used to request the second station to feed back IDC information of the second station. Or in other words, the ICF type is the first type, and the MU BAR frame is an ICF in IDC. Or in other words, the ICF type is the first type, and the MU BAR frame can be used to implement the function of the ICF in IDC. For example, the value of the ICF type field can be a second value, which indicates that the ICF type is the first type. The description of the second value can also refer to the description of the first type.

[0249] In IDC, the first station can send an ICF to the second station through which the first station requests the second station to feed back the status of the second station. In the embodiments of the present application, by including a first type field in the MU BAR frame, the ICF type of the MU BAR frame indicated by the first type field is the first type, so that the second station can effectively learn from the first type field that the first station requests it to feed back IDC information. After receiving the MU BAR frame with the ICF type of the first type, the second station can send the IDC information of the second station to the first station. The description of the IDC information can refer to FIG. 3, which will not be described in detail here.

[0250] As another example, the ICF type is the second type, and the MU BAR frame is used to request the second station to improve the receiving capability of the second station. Or in other words, the ICF type is the second type, and the MU BAR frame is an ICF in dynamic power save. Or in other words, the ICF type is the second type, and the MU BAR frame can be used to implement the function of the ICF in the dynamic power save mechanism. For example, the value of the ICF type field can be a third value, which indicates that the ICF type is the second type. The description of the third value can also refer to the description of the second type.

[0251] In the dynamic energy saving mechanism, the second station can adopt the low capability to monitor the ICF. After receiving the ICF, the second station can switch to the high capability to communicate. The low capability is more energy saving, and the high capability has a faster communication rate. When the second station has no data transmission, the low capability can be adopted to monitor, so as to effectively save the power consumption. Therefore, in the dynamic energy saving mechanism, the first station can send the ICF to the second station, and request the second station to improve the receiving capability of the second station through the ICF. In the embodiment of the application, the first type field is included in the MU BAR frame, and the ICF type of the MU BAR frame indicated by the first type field is the second type. Therefore, the second station can effectively learn that the first station requests to improve the receiving capability of the second station according to the first type field, so as to switch to the high capability to communicate. It can be understood that the low capability and the high capability are relative, and the low capability and the high capability can be different in bandwidth, or different in the number of spatial streams, or different in MCS, and the like.

[0252] As another example, the ICF type is the third type, and the MU BAR frame is used to instruct the second station to switch the channel. Or, the ICF type is the third type, and the MU BAR frame is the ICF in the dynamic subband operation (DSO). Or, the ICF type is the third type, and the MU BAR frame can be used to implement the function of the ICF in the DSO. For example, the value of the ICF type field can be the fourth value, and the fourth value indicates that the ICF type is the third type. The description of the fourth value can also refer to the description of the third type.

[0253] In the DSO mechanism, the first station can have a larger bandwidth than the second station. When the first station communicates with multiple second stations at the same time, the first station can send the ICF, and the ICF can be used to instruct to switch the bandwidth of one or more second stations to the original bandwidth of the second station, but still contained in the bandwidth of the first station. Therefore, the large bandwidth capability of the first station can be effectively utilized. Therefore, in the DSO mechanism, the first station can send the ICF to the second station, and request the second station to switch to other channels to communicate through the ICF. The ICF can be used to indicate at least one of the following: the identifier of the second station (such as the AID 12 of the second station), and the channel to which the second station corresponding to the identifier switches. For example, the identifier of the second station can be carried in the AID 12 field in FIG. 8a. The MU BAR frame shown in the embodiment of the application can implement the function of the ICF.

[0254] Optionally, the MU BAR frame can further comprise an information field, which can be used to carry information corresponding to the ICF type. For example, the ICF type is the third type, the information field can be used to carry channel information, which can be used to indicate a channel to be switched by the second station; or in other words, the channel information can be used to instruct the second station to switch to the channel indicated by the channel information. The information field can further comprise an identifier of the second station. The identifier of the second station can correspond to the channel information, for example, channel information #1 can correspond to the second station #1, and channel information #2 can correspond to the second station #2. Thus, the second station can effectively know whether it needs to switch the channel and which channel it needs to switch to.

[0255] The information field can be referred to as a BAR information field or an ICF information field, and the name of the information field is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. For the convenience of description, the BAR information field is taken as an example in the following description. For example, the BAR information field can be included in the dependent trigger user information field in the common information field in the MU BAR frame.

[0256] Optionally, the MU BAR frame can further comprise a second type field, and the length of the information field can be determined by the second type field. For example, the second type field can be referred to as a BAR type field, and the name of the second type field is not limited. The length of the BAR information field can be described below.

[0257] As another example, the ICF type is the fourth type, and the MU BAR frame is used to request the second station to wake up one or more links in the multi-link device where the second station is located. Or in other words, the ICF type is the fourth type, and the MU BAR frame is the ICF in the cross-link PM. Or in other words, the ICF type is the fourth type, and the MU BAR frame can be used to implement the function of the ICF in the cross-link PM. For example, the value of the ICF type field is the fifth value, which indicates that the ICF type is the fourth type. The description of the fifth value can also refer to the description of the fourth type.

[0258] In the cross-link PM mechanism, the first station can send an ICF to the second station, through which the second station is informed (or suggested) to wake up the stations on other links in the MLD in which the second station is located; or through which the second station is instructed to wake up one or more links in the MLD in which the second station is located; or through which the second station is instructed to switch one or more links in the MLD in which the second station is located to a state of receiving wireless frames. The state of receiving wireless frames shown herein includes but is not limited to the power saving mode or the active mode, or other power saving modes proposed in subsequent standards, etc. The MU BAR frame shown in the embodiments of the present application can realize the function of the ICF.

[0259] Optionally, the MU BAR frame can further include an information field, which can be used to carry information corresponding to the ICF type. For example, when the ICF type is the fourth type, the information field can be used to carry link information, which can be used to indicate the links to be woken up by the second station; or the link information can be used to indicate the links to be woken up by the MLD in which the second station is located. That is, the link information can include the information of one or more links. The second station receiving the MU BAR frame can learn from the information field which links it needs to wake up, or can learn from the information field which links the MLD in which it is located needs to wake up.

[0260] As an example, the link information can be a link ID bitmap, also known as a PM bitmap. Each bit in the link ID bitmap can be used to indicate whether to wake up the corresponding link. For example, the length of the link ID bitmap can be the same as the number of stations included in the MLD in which the second station is located. For the description of the link ID bitmap, reference can be made to the description of the bitmap in the link state information above. The link ID bitmap shown herein is similar to the indication principle of the bitmap shown above, and will not be described in detail herein.

[0261] As another example, the link information can include the ID of the link to be woken up. For example, the link information includes the ID of the link to be woken up. For the description of the ID of the link, reference can be made to the description of the link ID in the link state information above. The ID of the link shown herein is similar to the indication principle of the link ID shown above, and will not be described in detail herein.

[0262] For other descriptions of the information field, reference can be made to the above examples, and will not be described in detail herein.

[0263] In the embodiments of the present application, the function of the ICF is realized by multiplexing the MU BAR frame, which can simplify the signaling design.

[0264] The format of the MU BAR frame involved in the embodiments of the present application is introduced below.

[0265] Figure 8a is a schematic diagram of a format of the MU BAR frame according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 8a, the MU BAR frame includes a common info field and one or more user info fields. Each user info field can correspond to a second station. Figure 8a also shows an example of the common info field and the user info fields. The common info field is described below. Figure 8a also shows an example of the length of each field. The length of each field is only an example and does not limit the embodiments of the present application.

[0266] The ellipsis in Figure 8a omits the user info fields. Other descriptions of the MU BAR frame can be found in the 802.11 standard and are not described in detail here. The format of the MU BAR frame shown in Figure 8a is only an example and can change as the standard evolves. Even if the format of the MU BAR frame changes, as long as the MU BAR frame includes the user info fields, the MU BAR frame is within the scope of protection of the embodiments of the present application.

[0267] The common info field includes a trigger type field. As shown in the common info field in Figure 8a, B0-B3.

[0268] As an example, the value of the trigger type field can be 2, and the type of the corresponding trigger frame is MU BAR. Table 1 shows an example of the relationship between the value of the trigger type field and the type of the corresponding trigger frame. In the embodiments of the present application, the value of the trigger type field in the common info field in the MU BAR frame can be 2.

[0269] Table 1

[0270] As another example, the value of the trigger type field can be any one of 9-15, and the type of the corresponding trigger frame is a new MU BAR or a similar frame of the MU BAR. Table 2 shows an example of the relationship between the value of the trigger type field and the type of the corresponding trigger frame. In the embodiments of the present application, the value of the trigger type field in the common info field in the MU BAR frame can be any one of 9-15.

[0271] Table 2

[0272] Other descriptions of Table 1 and Table 2 can be found in the 802.11 standard and are not described in detail here.

[0273] The common info field does not include a trigger dependent common info field. The common info field can include a trigger dependent user info field.

[0274] Fig. 8b is a format of a trigger dependent user info field according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Fig. 8b, the trigger dependent user info field includes a BAR control field and a BAR information field. Fig. 8b also shows lengths of the fields as examples, which are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present application.

[0275] The BAR control field can include an ICF type field. The ICF type field can be carried in B5-B11 of the BAR control field in the MU BAR frame. The ICF type field can occupy some or all of the bits in B5-B11. Fig. 8b is an example in which the ICF type field occupies 4 bits. In actual implementation, the ICF type field can occupy more or less bits, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0276] When the ICF type field has a first value, the MU BAR frame is a conventional MU BAR frame. The MU BAR frame can be used to request acknowledgement information, such as acknowledgement information of one or more users, and does not have the ICF function shown above.

[0277] Table 3 shows a relationship between values of the ICF type field and meanings. The meanings in Table 3 show scenarios or mechanisms to which the ICF function implemented by the MU BAR frame is applied.

[0278] Table 3

[0279] Fig. 8b also shows a BAR type field, which can be carried in B1-B4 of the BAR control field in the MU BAR frame. The value of the BAR type field can be determined according to the ICF type of the MU BAR frame. Alternatively, the length of the BAR information field can carry corresponding information for different ICF types. The length of the BAR information field can be variable.

[0280] As an example, the value of the BAR type field in the BAR control field is 2 (only for example), the length of the BAR information field can be 2 bytes. As another example, the value of the BAR type field in the BAR control field is 3 (only for example), the length of the BAR information field can be 4*n bytes. The value of n can be indicated by the TID information (TID_INFO) field in the BAR control field. Or, the value of n can be determined by the value of the TID information (TID_INFO) field in the BAR control field. For example, n = 1+Value(TID_INFO). Value(TID_INFO) represents the value of the TID information field.

[0281] The first station can set the value of the BAR type field and the value of the TID_INFO field by the length of the BAR information.

[0282] In the embodiments of the present application, the MU BAR frame can make the second station effectively know the action that can be performed according to the ICF type indicated by the first type field, that is, the second station can effectively know the ICF type of the MU BAR frame according to the ICF type, or the second station can effectively know the function of the MU BAR frame according to the ICF type. The functions of different ICF frames can be effectively realized by multiplexing the MU BAR frame.

[0283] In a possible implementation, the method shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 7 can be combined, so as to be another communication method. The communication method can include: the first station sends a MU BAR frame to the second station, and the second station receives the MU BAR frame. The second station sends an acknowledgement frame to the first station, and the first station receives the acknowledgement frame. The acknowledgement frame can be an acknowledgement frame for the MU BAR frame. For the combination, refer to FIG. 3 and FIG. 7, which will not be described in detail here.

[0284] The communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application will be introduced below.

[0285] The present application divides the function modules of the communication device according to the above-mentioned method embodiments. For example, each function module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated in one processing module. The integrated module can be realized in the form of hardware or in the form of a software function module. It should be noted that the division of the modules in the present application is illustrative, and is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, another division mode can be used. The communication device of the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. 9 to FIG. 11.

[0286] Figure 9 is a structure diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 9, the communication apparatus includes a processing module 901 and a transceiver module 902. The transceiver module 902 can implement corresponding communication functions, and the processing module 901 can implement corresponding processing functions. The transceiver module 902 can also be referred to as an interface, a communication interface, or a communication module, etc.

[0287] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be configured to perform actions performed by a first station in the above method embodiments. The first station can be the apparatus itself or a chip or a functional module configured in the apparatus, etc. The transceiver module 902 can be configured to perform transceiver-related operations of the first station in the above method embodiments, and the processing module 901 can be configured to perform processing-related operations of the first station in the above method embodiments.

[0288] The transceiver module 902 can be configured to receive or input a wireless frame. For example, the transceiver module 902 can be configured to receive a wireless frame. For another example, after receiving a wireless frame through a radio frequency module and an antenna module, the transceiver module 902 can input the wireless frame to the processing module so that the processing module processes the wireless frame. The above description about receiving or inputting also applies to the following description, which will not be repeated here.

[0289] The processing module 901 can be configured to parse the wireless frame. The processing module 901 can also be configured to generate an acknowledgement frame.

[0290] The transceiver module 902 can also be configured to send or output an acknowledgement frame. For example, the transceiver module 902 can be configured to send an acknowledgement frame to a second station. For another example, the transceiver module 902 can also be configured to output an acknowledgement frame generated by the processing module. The above description about sending or outputting also applies to the following description, which will not be repeated here.

[0291] Referring to Figure 9, in some other embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be configured to perform actions performed by a second station in the above method embodiments. The second station can be the apparatus itself or a chip or a functional module configured in the apparatus, etc. The transceiver module 902 can be configured to perform transceiver-related operations of the second station in the above method embodiments, and the processing module 901 can be configured to perform processing-related operations of the second station in the above method embodiments.

[0292] The transceiver module 902 can be configured to send or output a wireless frame. The processing module 901 can be configured to generate a wireless frame.

[0293] The transceiver module 902 can also be configured to receive or input an acknowledgement frame. The processing module 901 can be configured to parse the acknowledgement frame.

[0294] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be configured to perform the actions of the first station in the above method embodiments. The first station can be the apparatus itself or a chip or function module configured in the apparatus. The transceiver module 902 can be configured to perform the transceiver-related operations of the first station in the above method embodiments. The processing module 901 can be configured to perform the processing-related operations of the first station in the above method embodiments.

[0295] The processing module 901 can be configured to generate the MU BAR frame. The transceiver module 902 can be configured to transmit or output the MU BAR frame.

[0296] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be configured to perform the actions of the second station in the above method embodiments. The second station can be the apparatus itself or a chip or function module configured in the apparatus. The transceiver module 902 can be configured to perform the transceiver-related operations of the second station in the above method embodiments. The processing module 901 can be configured to perform the processing-related operations of the second station in the above method embodiments.

[0297] The transceiver module 902 can be configured to receive or input the MU BAR frame. The processing module 901 can be configured to parse the MU BAR frame. The processing module 901 can be further configured to perform actions corresponding to the ICF type of the MU BAR frame.

[0298] For example, the transceiver module 902 can include a radio frequency module, an antenna module, etc. For example, the steps of transmitting or receiving shown above can be implemented by the radio frequency module and the antenna module. For example, the transceiver module 902 can include an input / output module, etc. For example, the steps of outputting or inputting shown above can be implemented by the input / output module.

[0299] Optionally, in the above embodiments, the communication apparatus can further include a storage module. The storage module can be configured to store instructions and / or data. The processing module 901 can read the instructions and / or data in the storage module, so that the communication apparatus implements the above method embodiments.

[0300] In the above embodiments, the specific descriptions of the terms, names, or steps can refer to the descriptions in the above method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0301] The specific descriptions of the transceiver module and the processing module in the above embodiments are only examples. For the specific functions or steps of the transceiver module and the processing module, please refer to the above method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0302] It can be understood that the division of modules in the above apparatus is only a logical function division, each function can correspond to a function module, or two or more functions can be integrated in a function module. In actual implementation, all or part of the modules can be integrated into one physical entity, or distributed in different physical entities. In addition, the above function modules can be implemented in the form of hardware, or in the form of software, or in the form of hardware combined with software.

[0303] In one example, the functional units in any of the above apparatuses can be one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the above methods, such as one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or one or more central processing units (CPUs), one or more microcontroller units (MCUs), one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), or one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or a combination of at least two of these integrated circuit forms.

[0304] 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 form of product with the functions of the communication apparatus described in FIG. 9 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.

[0305] In a possible implementation, in the communication apparatus shown in FIG. 9, the processing module 901 can be one or more processors, and the transceiver module 902 can be a transceiver, or the transceiver module 902 can also be a sending module and a receiving module, the sending module can be a transmitter, and the receiving module can be a receiver, and the sending 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, 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 sending 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. After the above information is output by the processor, the above information can also need to be processed further, and then reach the transceiver. Similarly, the process of receiving information in the above method can be the process of receiving inputted above information by the processor. When the processor receives the inputted information, the transceiver receives the above information and inputs it to the processor. Furthermore, after the transceiver receives the above information, the above information can need to be processed further, and then input to the processor.

[0306] FIG. 10 is another structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 10, the communication apparatus 100 includes one or more processors 1020 and a transceiver 1010.

[0307] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be used to execute the steps or methods or functions performed by the first station, for example, the processor 1020 can be used to execute the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 901 shown in FIG. 9, and the transceiver 1010 can be used to execute the functions or steps implemented by the transceiver module 902 shown in FIG. 9. The specific description of the processor 1020 and the transceiver 1010 can refer to FIG. 9 or the method embodiments shown above, and will not be described in detail here.

[0308] In some embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be used to execute the steps or methods or functions performed by the first station, for example, the processor 1020 can be used to execute the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 901 shown in FIG. 9, and the transceiver 1010 can be used to execute the functions or steps implemented by the transceiver module 902 shown in FIG. 9. The specific description of the processor 1020 and the transceiver 1010 can refer to FIG. 9 or the method embodiments shown above, and will not be described in detail here.

[0309] In each implementation of the communication apparatus shown in FIG. 10, the transceiver can include a receiver and a transmitter, the receiver is configured to perform the function (or operation) of receiving, and the transmitter is configured to perform the function (or operation) of transmitting. And the transceiver is configured to communicate with other devices / apparatuses through a transmission medium.

[0310] Optionally, the communication device 100 can further include one or more memories 1030 for storing program instructions and / or data. The memory 1030 is coupled to the processor 1020. The coupling between the communication device, unit or module in the embodiments of the present application is indirect coupling or communication connection between the communication device, unit or module, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms, for information interaction between the communication device, unit or module. The processor 1020 can operate in cooperation with the memory 1030. The processor 1020 can execute the program instructions stored in the memory 1030. Optionally, at least one of the one or more memories can be included in the processor.

[0311] The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific connection medium between the transceiver 1010, the processor 1020 and the memory 1030. In FIG. 10, the memory 1030, the processor 1020 and the transceiver 1010 are connected through the bus 1040, which is represented by a thick line in FIG. 10, and the connection mode between other components is only schematically illustrated and is not limited. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For convenience of representation, only one thick line is used in FIG. 10, but it does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

[0312] 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 conjunction 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.

[0313] 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), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), and the like. 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 and the like). 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.

[0314] The processor 1020 is mainly used for processing communication protocols and communication data, controlling the whole communication device, executing software programs, and processing data of the software programs. The memory 1030 is mainly used for storing software programs and data. The transceiver 1010 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. The input and output devices, such as touch screens, display screens, keyboards, and the like, are mainly used for receiving user input data and outputting data to users.

[0315] When the communication device is powered on, the processor 1020 can read the software program in the memory 1030, 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 1020 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 through the antenna in the form of electromagnetic waves. 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 1020. The processor 1020 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0316] 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.

[0317] The communication apparatus shown in the embodiments of the present application can also have more components than those shown in FIG. 10, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this. The method performed by the processor and the transceiver shown above is only an example, and the steps actually performed by the processor and the transceiver can refer to the method described above. The dashed part in FIG. 10 represents an option.

[0318] In another possible implementation, in the communication apparatus shown in FIG. 9, the processing module 901 can be one or more logic circuits, and the transceiving module 902 can be an input / output interface, also referred to as a communication interface, or an interface circuit, or an interface, etc. Alternatively, the transceiving module 902 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, and the sending module and the receiving module are integrated into one module, for example, an input / output interface.

[0319] FIG. 11 is another structure of a communication apparatus provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 11, the communication apparatus shown in FIG. 11 includes a logic circuit 1101 and an interface 1102. That is, the processing module 901 can be implemented by the logic circuit 1101, and the transceiving module 902 can be implemented by the interface 1102. The logic circuit 1101 can be a chip, a processing circuit, an integrated circuit, or a system on chip (SoC) chip, etc., and the interface 1102 can be a communication interface, an input / output interface, a pin, etc. For example, FIG. 11 is shown by taking the communication apparatus as a chip, and the chip includes the logic circuit 1101 and the interface 1102.

[0320] In the embodiments of the present application, the logic circuit and the interface can also be coupled to each other. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific connection mode of the logic circuit and the interface. For example, the logic circuit 1101 can be used to perform the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 901 shown in FIG. 9, and the interface 1102 can be used to perform the functions or steps implemented by the transceiving module 902 shown in FIG. 9. For specific description of the logic circuit 1101 and the interface 1102, refer to the method embodiments shown in FIG. 9 or above, which will not be described in detail here.

[0321] The communication apparatus shown in the embodiments of the present application can implement the method provided by the embodiments of the present application in the form of hardware, or implement the method provided by the embodiments of the present application in the form of software, etc., and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0322] 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 perform the method in any of the preceding embodiments.

[0323] The application further provides a computer program for implementing the operations and / or processes performed by each station in the method provided by the application.

[0324] The application further provides a computer readable storage medium having computer code stored therein, which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform the operations and / or processes performed by each communication device in the method provided by the application.

[0325] The application further provides a computer program product comprising computer code or a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, causes the operations and / or processes performed by each station in the method provided by the application to be performed.

[0326] In several embodiments provided by the application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, communication device and method can be implemented in other manners. For example, the embodiments of the communication device described above are merely schematic; for example, the division of the modules is merely a logical function division; an actual implementation can be another division manner, for example, multiple modules or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the displayed or discussed mutual couplings or direct couplings or communication connections between different modules can be indirect couplings or communication connections through some interfaces, communication devices or modules, and can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0327] 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 can be distributed on multiple network modules. Part or all of the modules can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the technical effects of the scheme provided by the embodiments of the application.

[0328] In addition, each functional module in each embodiment of the application can be integrated into a processing module, or each module can exist physically, or two or more modules can be integrated into one module. The integrated module can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of a software functional module.

[0329] The integrated module, if implemented in the form of a software function module and sold or used as an independent product, can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solutions of the present application essentially or say the part that contributes to the prior art, or the whole 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, including a plurality of instructions to make a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) execute all or part of the steps of the method described in various 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.

[0330] The above is only 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 comprises: The first station receives a wireless frame; The first station transmits an acknowledgement frame of the wireless frame, the acknowledgement frame comprising at least one of: in-device coexistence IDC information of the first station, transceiving capability information of the first station, buffer status information of the first station, or link status information of the first station.

2. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: The second station transmits a wireless frame; The second station receives an acknowledgement frame of the wireless frame, the acknowledgement frame comprising at least one of: in-device coexistence IDC information of the first station, transceiving capability information of the first station, buffer status information of the first station, or link status information of the first station.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the acknowledgement frame comprises a first information field, the first information field comprising a first association identification AID field, a value of the first AID field being a first value, the first value being used to indicate that the first information field is used to carry the link status information; or the acknowledgement frame comprises a first information field, the first information field comprising a first AID field and a first control response CR type field, a value of the first AID field being a second value, a value of the first CR type field being a third value, the second value and the third value being used to indicate that the first information field is used to carry the link status information.

4. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the acknowledgement frame comprises a first information field, the first information field comprising a first AID field, a value of the first AID field being a first value, the first value being used to indicate that the first information field is used to carry the IDC information; or the acknowledgement frame comprises a first information field, the first information field comprising a first AID field and a first CR type field, a value of the first AID field being a second value, a value of the first CR type field being a third value, the second value and the third value being used to indicate that the first information field is used to carry the IDC information.

5. The method of claim 3 or 4, wherein the acknowledgement frame further comprises a second information field, the second information field comprising a second AID field, a value of the second AID field being a fourth value, the fourth value being used to indicate that the second information field is used to carry padding information; or the acknowledgement frame further comprises a second information field, the second information field comprising a second AID field and a second CR type field, a value of the second AID field being a fifth value, a value of the second CR type field being a sixth value, the fifth value and the sixth value being used to indicate that the second information field is used to carry padding information; wherein the second information field is located before the first information field.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, the acknowledgement frame is a multi-station block acknowledgement MBA frame; the first information field is a first per-AID traffic identification TID information field; or the second information field is a second per-AID TID information field.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The link state information is used to indicate whether a station affiliated to a first multi-link device (MLD) is available, the first station being a station affiliated to the first MLD.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, Whether the station is available includes: Whether the station is in a power saving mode; or, Whether the station is in an awake state.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein, The link state information includes a power management (PM) bitmap, each bit in the PM bitmap being used to indicate whether a corresponding station is available; or, The link state information includes a link identification (ID), the link ID being used to indicate that a corresponding station is available.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, The IDC information includes at least one of: An available duration of the first station, an unavailable duration of the first station, a time when the first station enters a first mode, a duration when the first station is in the first mode, or a transceiving capability of the first station in the first mode.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that, The transceiving capability information includes at least one of: A bandwidth of the first station, a number of spatial streams of the first station, or a modulation and coding strategy (MCS) of the first station.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that, The buffer status information includes at least one of: A total amount of data buffered by the first station, an amount of data of a low latency service buffered by the first station, or an amount of data of a first traffic identification (TID) buffered by the first station.

13. A method of communication, comprising: The method includes: A first station generates a multi-user (MU) block acknowledgement request (BAR) frame, the MU BAR frame including a first type field, the first type field being used to indicate an initial control frame (ICF) type of the MU BAR frame; The first station sends the MU BAR frame to a second station.

14. A communication method, comprising: The method includes: A second station receives a multi-user (MU) block acknowledgement request (BAR) frame, the MU BAR frame including a first type field, the first type field being used to indicate an initial control frame (ICF) type of the MU BAR frame; The second station parses the MU BAR frame.

15. The method of claim 13 or 14, wherein: If the ICF type is a first type, the MU BAR frame is used to request the second station to feed back in-device coexistence (IDC) information of the second station; or, If the ICF type is a second type, the MU BAR frame is used to request the second station to improve a receiving capability of the second station; or, If the ICF type is a third type, the MU BAR frame is used to instruct the second station to switch a channel; or, If the ICF type is a fourth type, the MU BAR frame is used to request the second station to wake up one or more links in a multi-link device in which the second station is located.

16. The method according to any one of claims 13-15, characterized in that, The MU BAR frame further includes an information field; If the ICF type is the third type, the information field is used to carry channel information, the channel information being used to indicate a channel to be switched by the second station; or, If the ICF type is the fourth type, the information field is used to carry link information, the link information being used to indicate a link to be woken up by the second station.

17. The method according to any one of claims 13-16, characterized by, The first type field is carried in B5-B11 in a BAR control field in the MU BAR frame.

18. The method according to any one of claims 13-17, characterized by, The MU BAR frame further comprises a second type field, the length of the information field in the MU BAR frame being determined by the second type field.

19. A communications device, characterized by A processor for performing the method of any of claims 1-18.

20. A communications device, characterized by A logic circuit and an interface are coupled; The interface is for inputting and / or outputting information, and the logic circuit is for performing the method of any of claims 1-18.

21. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, A computer readable storage medium for storing a computer program which, when executed, performs the method of any of claims 1-18.

22. A computer program product, characterised in that, A computer program product which, when executed, performs the method of any of claims 1-18.

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