Data transmission method and apparatus, AP, and terminal

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application relate to the technical field of communications, and provide a data transmission method and apparatus, an AP, and a terminal. The method is applied to an AP, and comprises: performing data transmission with a terminal by means of sub-carriers comprised in an RU corresponding to the terminal, wherein a different terminal corresponds to a different RU, sub-carriers comprised in each RU are divided into one or more sub-carrier groups, each sub-carrier group comprises a first preset number of sub-carriers, and the sub-carriers comprised in each sub-carrier group are spaced apart from other sub-carriers that do not belong to said sub-carrier group. By applying the embodiments of the present application, data transmission between an AP and terminals can be achieved on the basis of an OFDMA mode, thereby improving the stability of data transmission, increasing the cell coverage radius of the AP, and improving the balance between uplink power and downlink power.

Description

Data transmission methods, access points (APs), terminals, and devices Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a data transmission method, access point (AP), terminal, and apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access) is a multiplexing technology based on OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing). It utilizes OFDM to subcarrierize the channel and then transmits data simultaneously to different terminals via different subcarriers. Unlike OFDM, OFDMA divides all subcarriers within the same bandwidth into several subcarrier groups. Each group is called a RU (Resource Unit), which can be allocated to different terminals simultaneously.

[0003] See Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of an OFDM mode provided in related technologies.

[0004] In the diagram, the horizontal axis represents the time domain (t), and the vertical axis represents the frequency domain (f). The different rectangles in the diagram represent time-frequency domain resources within different time units. Different terminals use different time-frequency domain resources when transmitting data; that is, different terminals correspond to different time-frequency domain resources represented by different rectangles. It can be seen that in OFDM operating mode, the time-frequency domain resources corresponding to each terminal occupy the entire channel bandwidth.

[0005] See Figure 2, which is a schematic diagram of an OFDMA mode provided in related technologies.

[0006] In the diagram, the horizontal axis represents the time domain (t), and the vertical axis represents the frequency domain (f). The squares of different colors in the diagram represent the RUs used by different terminals for data transmission. It can be seen that, compared with OFDM mode, OFDMA mode offers more flexible allocation of time and frequency domain resources.

[0007] In order to take advantage of the characteristics of OFDMA mode, a wireless local area network data transmission method based on OFDMA mode between AP (Access Point) and terminal is needed.

[0008] Summary of the Invention

[0009] The purpose of this application is to provide a data transmission method, access point (AP), terminal, and device to realize data transmission between the AP and the terminal based on OFDMA mode. The specific technical solution is as follows:

[0010] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a data transmission method applied to a wireless access point (AP), the method comprising:

[0011] Data transmission is performed with the terminal through the subcarrier contained in the resource unit RU corresponding to the terminal;

[0012] The RUs corresponding to different terminals are different. The subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the intervals between the subcarriers contained in each subcarrier group do not belong to other subcarriers in that subcarrier group.

[0013] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a data transmission method applied to a terminal, the method comprising:

[0014] Data is transmitted with the AP through the subcarriers contained in the resource unit RU corresponding to the terminal;

[0015] The RUs corresponding to different terminals are different. The subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the intervals between the subcarriers contained in each subcarrier group do not belong to other subcarriers in that subcarrier group.

[0016] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide an access point (AP), the AP comprising:

[0017] processor;

[0018] transceiver;

[0019] A machine-readable storage medium storing machine-executable instructions that can be executed by the processor; the machine-executable instructions cause the processor to perform the method steps described in any one of the first aspects.

[0020] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a terminal, the terminal comprising:

[0021] processor;

[0022] transceiver;

[0023] A machine-readable storage medium storing machine-executable instructions that can be executed by the processor; the machine-executable instructions cause the processor to perform the method steps described in any one of the second aspects.

[0024] Fifthly, embodiments of this application provide a data transmission apparatus applied to a wireless access point (AP), the apparatus comprising:

[0025] The first data transmission module is used to transmit data with the terminal through the subcarrier contained in the resource unit RU corresponding to the terminal;

[0026] The RUs corresponding to different terminals are different. The subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the intervals between the subcarriers contained in each subcarrier group do not belong to other subcarriers in that subcarrier group.

[0027] Sixthly, embodiments of this application provide a data transmission apparatus applied to a terminal, the apparatus comprising:

[0028] The second data transmission module is used to transmit data with the AP through the subcarrier contained in the resource unit RU corresponding to the terminal;

[0029] The RUs corresponding to different terminals are different. The subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the intervals between the subcarriers contained in each subcarrier group do not belong to other subcarriers in that subcarrier group.

[0030] In a seventh aspect, embodiments of this application provide a machine-readable storage medium storing machine-executable instructions, which, when invoked and executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement the method described in either the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0031] Eighthly, embodiments of this application provide a computer program product that causes a processor to implement the method described in either the first or second aspect.

[0032] Beneficial effects of the embodiments in this application:

[0033] In the solution provided in this application, the AP and the terminal communicate via RU. The subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarrier groups, and the subcarriers in each subcarrier group are separated by other subcarriers that do not belong to that subcarrier group. Because there are intervals between the subcarriers in the subcarrier groups, there are intervals between the subcarriers used when the AP and the terminal transmit data. That is, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal is relatively dispersed. If signal attenuation occurs in a short period of time, the data transmission quality of multiple subcarriers arranged sequentially within the signal attenuation period will decrease. In this case, if the subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal are arranged continuously without intervals, the data transmission quality of the subcarriers corresponding to that terminal will generally decrease, thereby affecting the overall data transmission quality of the terminal. However, in this application, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the terminal is relatively dispersed. Even if signal attenuation occurs in a short period of time, it will only affect a small number of subcarriers corresponding to some terminals and will not affect the overall data transmission of the terminal. Furthermore, since the subcarriers corresponding to the terminals are relatively dispersed, when the AP transmits a signal to the terminal via a subcarrier, it can concentrate the power of adjacent, unused subcarriers that do not correspond to the terminal to complete the data transmission. This can increase the signal coverage radius, and thus the coverage radius of the AP cell. It can also improve the power distribution area (PSD) between the AP and the terminal, and improve the balance between uplink and downlink power. Attached Figure Description

[0034] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other embodiments can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0035] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an OFDM mode provided in related technologies;

[0036] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of an OFDMA mode provided in related technologies;

[0037] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the RU for Wi-Fi 6 provided in related technologies;

[0038] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the RU for Wi-Fi 7 provided in related technologies;

[0039] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the distribution of the first seed carrier group provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0040] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the distribution of the second seed carrier group provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0041] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the distribution of the third seed carrier group provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0042] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the distribution of the fourth seed carrier group provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0043] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the location of the first type of idle subcarrier provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0044] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of the location of the second type of idle subcarrier provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0045] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of the location of the third type of idle subcarrier provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0046] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of a DL PPDU multi-user transmission process based on dRU resources provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0047] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of a UL PPDU multi-user transmission process based on dRU resources provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0048] Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an AP provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0049] Figure 15 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0050] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0051] To distinguish this application from related technologies, the related technologies will be described first.

[0052] Prior to Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) 6, Wi-Fi protocol standards primarily used OFDM modulation, dividing the channel into multiple subcarriers. This improved speed and provided strong anti-interference capabilities, but a single channel could only serve one user at a time. Wi-Fi 6 introduced OFDMA technology, resulting in narrower subcarrier bandwidth and the concept of a Run-Unit (RU). A single channel can serve multiple users simultaneously. In Wi-Fi 6, each RU contains both data subcarriers and pilot subcarriers. For example, the smallest 26-tone RU consists of 24 data subcarriers and 2 pilot subcarriers, while a 52-tone RU contains 48 data subcarriers and 4 pilot subcarriers. For further details, please refer to the protocol's detailed description. Data subcarriers are used to transmit data, while pilot subcarriers are used to transmit phase and track parameters. In addition, there are unused subcarriers, or idle subcarriers, which do not transmit data and are often used for boundary protection.

[0053] See Figure 3, which is a schematic diagram of a Wi-Fi 6 RU provided in the related technology.

[0054] As shown in Figure 3, the horizontal axis represents the frequency domain, and the vertical axis represents the time domain. The rectangles in the figure represent time-frequency domain resources. Taking a 20MHz bandwidth as an example, there are nine 26-tone RUs. The eight rectangles marked with "26" represent eight 26-tone RUs, and the two rectangles marked with "13" between the rectangles marked with "26" together form one 26-tone RU. The subcarriers numbered -69, -3 to +3, and +69, indicated by the arrows, are null (idle) subcarriers and do not transmit any data. The subcarriers numbered -3 to +3 serve as seven DC (Direct Current) subcarriers. Additionally, there are six null subcarriers on the left and five null subcarriers on the right as edge protection. Uplink and downlink transmission support 26-tone RUs, including the 52-tone RU marked 52 in the diagram, the 106-tone RU marked 106, the 242-tone RU marked 242, and 484-tone RUs, 996-tone RUs, and 2x996-tone RUs not shown in the diagram. There are 3 DCs between the 242-tone RUs.

[0055] In Wi-Fi 6, each terminal can only use a single RU resource, lacking flexibility. Wi-Fi 7 overcomes this limitation, allowing a terminal to simultaneously occupy multiple RU resources, and RUs of different sizes (i.e., containing different numbers of subcarriers) can be combined. However, to balance reducing implementation complexity and spectrum resource utilization efficiency, some restrictions are imposed. Only small RUs occupying less than 20MHz of spectrum resources are allowed to be combined, and large RUs occupying 20MHz or more of spectrum resources are allowed to be combined. Small RUs cannot be combined with large RUs.

[0056] See Figure 4, which is a schematic diagram of the RU for Wi-Fi 7 provided in the related technology.

[0057] The RU distribution shown in Figure 4 is similar to that shown in Figure 3. Compared to Figure 3, the 242-tone RU is omitted in Figure 4. Furthermore, the non-white RUs in Figure 4 represent RUs occupied by terminals. Different RUs can be occupied by different terminals.

[0058] However, there are problems with the related technologies. First, in Wi-Fi 6, each terminal occupies one RU, and an RU consists of consecutive subcarriers, meaning that each terminal can only use consecutive subcarriers. In Wi-Fi 7, although a terminal can occupy multiple RUs, each RU still consists of consecutive subcarriers, so the subcarriers used by the terminal are still mostly consecutive.

[0059] In this scenario, for LPI (Low Power Indoor) conditions, because the access point (AP) needs to continuously transmit data with the same terminal across consecutive subcarriers, and the AP's power is low, the energy available for data transmission with the terminal in each subcarrier is limited. This results in very low PSD (Power Spectral Density) for both the AP and the terminal. Consequently, AP cell coverage is reduced, and there is an imbalance in uplink and downlink transmission power between the AP and the terminal.

[0060] Furthermore, if signal attenuation occurs within a short period, signal transmission problems will occur on consecutive subcarriers within that time. If the subcarrier occupied by the terminal happens to be one of these subcarriers, the terminal will be unable to transmit data normally during this period.

[0061] To address the aforementioned issues, this application provides a data transmission method.

[0062] In one embodiment of this application, the AP can achieve data transmission through the following step A.

[0063] Step A: Data transmission is performed with the aforementioned terminal through the subcarriers contained in the resource unit RU corresponding to the terminal.

[0064] The RUs (Responsible Containers) for different terminals are different. The subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the intervals between the subcarriers in each subcarrier group do not belong to other subcarriers in that subcarrier group. For example, an RU may contain 1, 2, 4, or 8 subcarrier groups.

[0065] Because the subcarriers contained in a subcarrier group are spaced apart from each other, such a subcarrier group can also be called a dRU (Distributed Resource Unit), and an RU composed of such subcarrier groups can also be called a dRU.

[0066] In one embodiment of this application, the first preset number can be set according to requirements. Of course, in order to maintain consistency with the protocol standards of Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 7, the first preset number can be set to 26. That is, each subcarrier group contains 26 subcarriers, and this subcarrier group can be referred to as a 26-tone.

[0067] In another embodiment of this application, the first preset number corresponding to different data transmission bandwidths can be the same or different. For example, when the data transmission bandwidth is 20MHz or 40MHz, the first preset number is 26. If the data transmission bandwidth is 80MHz, the first preset number can be larger, such as 52.

[0068] Furthermore, the number of other subcarriers spaced between two sequentially adjacent subcarriers in the same subcarrier group can be fixed or varied. For example, there can be a fixed interval of three other subcarriers between two sequentially adjacent subcarriers in the same subcarrier group. Alternatively, there can be an interval of two other subcarriers between the first and second subcarriers, and an interval of four other subcarriers between the second and third subcarriers, etc. Assigning subcarriers to subcarrier groups using a fixed number of subcarriers can reduce configuration complexity, but the embodiments of this application are not limited to using a fixed number of subcarriers.

[0069] Furthermore, any terminal connected to the AP is applicable to the solution provided in this application embodiment. The terminal can be a STA (Station) or a user terminal such as a mobile phone or computer. The terminal transmits data with the AP through the subcarriers contained in its corresponding RU, and can only transmit uplink data or downlink data in a subcarrier.

[0070] In a subcarrier group containing 26 subcarriers, if an RU contains one subcarrier group, then an RU containing 26 subcarriers is referred to as a 26-tone. If an RU contains two subcarrier groups, then an RU containing 52 subcarriers is referred to as a 52-tone. If an RU contains four subcarrier groups, then an RU can contain 104 subcarriers, which is referred to as a 104-tone. Alternatively, if there are 106 subcarriers, then the RU contains four subcarrier groups and two idle subcarriers, which is referred to as a 106-tone. The two idle subcarriers can be located on either side of all non-idle subcarriers for boundary protection. The two idle subcarriers can also be located at any pre-set position between non-idle subcarriers; this embodiment does not limit this.

[0071] When an RU contains multiple subcarrier groups, each RU contains the same number of subcarrier groups, but different RUs contain different numbers of subcarrier groups. There is a fourth preset number of subcarrier groups belonging to other RUs between any two subcarrier groups belonging to the same RU. For example, if an RU contains two subcarrier groups, RU1 may include the first and sixth subcarrier groups, spaced 4 subcarrier groups apart. RU2 includes the second and seventh subcarrier groups, also spaced 4 subcarrier groups apart. RU3 includes the third and eighth subcarrier groups, also spaced 4 subcarrier groups apart. And so on. The fourth preset number is 4.

[0072] In one embodiment of this application, the number of each RU is represented by the number of the subcarrier group contained in that RU.

[0073] For example, if an RU contains two subcarrier groups, then RU1 can include the first and sixth subcarrier groups, and RU1 is numbered as subcarrier group 1 + subcarrier group 6. RU2 contains the second and seventh subcarrier groups, and RU2 is numbered as subcarrier group 2 + subcarrier group 7. RU3 contains the third and eighth subcarrier groups, and RU3 is numbered as subcarrier group 3 + subcarrier group 8. And so on.

[0074] As can be seen from the above, the AP and the terminal communicate via RU. The subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarrier groups, and the subcarriers in each subcarrier group are separated by other subcarriers that do not belong to that subcarrier group. Because there are gaps between the subcarriers in the subcarrier groups, there are gaps between the subcarriers used when the AP and the terminal transmit data. That is, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal is relatively dispersed. If signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, the data transmission quality of multiple subcarriers arranged sequentially within the period of signal attenuation will decrease. In this case, if the subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal are arranged consecutively without gaps, the data transmission quality of the subcarriers corresponding to that terminal will generally decrease, thus affecting the overall data transmission quality of the terminal. However, in this application, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the terminal is relatively dispersed. Even if signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, it will only affect a small number of subcarriers corresponding to some terminals and will not affect the overall data transmission of the terminal. Furthermore, since the subcarriers corresponding to the terminals are relatively dispersed, when the AP transmits a signal to the terminal via a subcarrier, it can concentrate the power of adjacent, unused subcarriers that do not correspond to the terminal to complete the data transmission. This can increase the signal coverage radius, and thus the coverage radius of the AP cell. It can also improve the power distribution area (PSD) between the AP and the terminal, and improve the balance between uplink and downlink power.

[0075] In another embodiment of this application, the above method further includes:

[0076] When the number of other subcarriers between two sequentially adjacent subcarriers in the same subcarrier group is not fixed, a second preset number can be set. When allocating subcarriers within a subcarrier group, all subcarriers except those not participating in distributed RU allocation are divided into different groups. Each group contains the second preset number + 1 consecutive subcarriers. When there are gaps between subcarriers within the same subcarrier group, each subcarrier in one group can be arbitrarily allocated to different subcarrier groups.

[0077] When the number of other subcarriers between two adjacent subcarriers in the same subcarrier group is fixed, the remaining subcarriers, except for the subcarriers that are not included in the subcarrier group allocation, are arranged in order according to their subcarrier numbers.

[0078] Between every two subcarriers belonging to the same subcarrier group, configure a second preset number of subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups:

[0079] Among them, the aforementioned preset subcarriers that do not participate in RU allocation include: preset idle subcarriers that do not participate in data transmission. That is, apart from the preset subcarriers that do not participate in RU allocation, there is a second preset number of subcarriers between two sequentially adjacent subcarriers.

[0080] In this case, the numbering of each subcarrier group is represented by the number of the first subcarrier, the number of the last subcarrier, and a first value. The first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value. For example, the second value could be 1, 2, 3, etc. In the examples below, the second value is uniformly set to 1, meaning the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and 1.

[0081] Alternatively, regardless of whether the number of other subcarriers between two sequentially adjacent subcarriers in the same subcarrier group is fixed, for each subcarrier group, the numbers of all subcarriers belonging to that subcarrier group can be recorded separately to indicate the location of the subcarriers in that subcarrier group.

[0082] The numbering of the aforementioned subcarrier groups can also be referred to as group numbering.

[0083] In one embodiment of this application, when the data transmission bandwidth is 20MHz, the second preset quantity is 3 or 8. It should be noted that the second preset quantity of 3 or 8 is only a preferred embodiment, and can be adjusted as needed in actual application.

[0084] Referring to Figure 5, it is a schematic diagram of the distribution of the first seed carrier group provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0085] Figure 5 shows the distribution of the nine subcarrier groups when the data transmission bandwidth is 20MHz, the first preset number is 26, and the second preset number is 8.

[0086] Each square in the diagram represents a subcarrier, and the numbers on each subcarrier are their numbers. There are 245 subcarriers, ranging from -122 to 122. The vertical axis represents the frequency domain, and the horizontal axis represents the time domain. Subcarriers numbered -5 to 5 in the diagram are idle subcarriers, which in this embodiment belong to the pre-defined subcarriers that do not participate in subcarrier group allocation. Besides these subcarriers, the numbers -122, -113, -104, -95, -86, -77, -68, -59, -50, -41, -32, -23, -14, 6, 15, 24, 33, 42, 51, 60, 69, 78, 87, 96, 105, and 114 belong to a subcarrier group. The numbers -121, -112, -103, -94, -85, -76, -67, -58, -49, -40, -31, -22, -13, 7, 16, 25, 34, 43, 52, 61, 70, 79, 88, 97, 106, and 115 belong to one subcarrier group. The numbers -120, -111, -102, -93, -84, -75, -66, -57, -48, -39, -30, -21, -12, 8, 17, 26, 35, 44, 53, 62, 71, 80, 89, 98, 107, and 116 belong to another subcarrier group. The numbers -119, -110, -101, -92, -83, -74, -65, -56, -47, -38, -29, -20, -11, 9, 18, 27, 36, 45, 54, 63, 72, 81, 90, 99, 108, and 117 belong to one subcarrier group. The numbers -118, -109, -100, -91, -82, -73, -64, -55, -46, -37, -28, -19, -10, 10, 19, 28, 37, 46, 55, 64, 73, 82, 91, 100, 109, and 118 belong to one subcarrier group. The numbers -117, -108, -99, -90, -81, -72, -63, -54, -45, -36, -27, -18, -9, 11, 20, 29, 38, 47, 56, 65, 74, 83, 92, 101, 110, and 119 belong to one subcarrier group. The numbers -116, -107, -98, -89, -80, -71, -62, -53, -44, -35, -26, -17, -8, 12, 21, 30, 39, 48, 57, 66, 75, 84, 93, 102, 111, and 120 belong to another subcarrier group. The numbers -115, -106, -97, -88, -79, -70, -61, -52, -43, -34, -25, -16, -7, 13, 22, 31, 40, 49, 58, 67, 76, 85, 94, 103, 112, and 121 belong to one subcarrier group.The subcarriers numbered -114, -105, -96, -87, -78, -69, -60, -51, -42, -33, -24, -15, -6, 14, 23, 32, 41, 50, 59, 68, 77, 86, 95, 104, 113, and 122 belong to one subcarrier group. As shown in the diagram, excluding idle subcarriers, for each subcarrier group, there is an interval of 8 subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups between every two subcarriers belonging to the same group.

[0087] As shown in the figure, the frequency domain positions of the subcarriers in each subcarrier group span 20MHz. Using the notation shown earlier, the subcarrier group numbers can be represented as: dRU1: [-122:9:114], dRU2: [-121:9:115], dRU3: [-120:9:116], dRU4: [-119:9:117], dRU5: [-118:9:118], dRU6: [-117:9:119], dRU7: [-116:9:120], dRU8: [-115:9:121], dRU9: [-114:9:122].

[0088] Taking dRU1 as an example, the above representation is explained as follows: [-122:9:114] indicates that the first subcarrier in dRU1 is numbered -122, the first value is the second preset quantity + the second value (the second value is 1) = 9, indicating that there is one subcarrier belonging to dRU1 in every 9 subcarriers, and the last subcarrier is numbered 114. This pattern continues to determine the subcarrier numbers in each dRU.

[0089] Referring to Figure 6, it is a schematic diagram of the distribution of the second seed carrier group provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0090] Figure 6 shows the distribution of the eight subcarrier groups when the data transmission bandwidth is 20MHz, the first preset number is 26, and the second preset number is 3.

[0091] Each square in the diagram represents a subcarrier, and the numbers on each subcarrier are their numbers. There are 245 subcarriers, ranging from -122 to 122. The vertical axis represents the frequency domain, and the horizontal axis represents the time domain. Subcarriers numbered -18 to 18 in this embodiment are pre-defined subcarriers that do not participate in subcarrier group allocation. Subcarriers numbered -5 to 5 are idle subcarriers. Besides these subcarriers, subcarriers numbered -122 to -19 with the same color depth belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered 19 to 122 with the same color depth belong to the same distributed RU. As shown in the diagram, except for subcarriers numbered -18 to 18, for each subcarrier group, there is a gap of 3 subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups between every two subcarriers belonging to the same group.

[0092] Among them, the subcarriers numbered -18 to -6 and 6 to 18 can be configured as idle subcarriers, or configured as ordinary RUs in which there is no interval between the included subcarriers. Such RUs can be called NRUs (Normal Resource Units).

[0093] As shown in the figure, the frequency domain position of the subcarriers in each subcarrier group spans half of 20MHz, i.e., 10MHz. As shown in the previous representation, the subcarrier numbers contained in each subcarrier group can be represented as: dRU1: [-122:4:-22], dRU2: [-121:4:-21], dRU3: [-120:4:-20], dRU4: [-119:4:-19], dRU5: [-18:-6; 6:18] or idle subcarriers, dRU6: [19:4:119], dRU7: [20:4:120], dRU8: [21:4:121], dRU9: [22:4:122].

[0094] The numbering of subcarriers in dRU1-dRU4 and dRU6-dRU9 is represented in the same way as the subcarrier representation in the distributed RU in Figure 5 above, and will not be repeated here. dRU5: [-18:-6; 6:18] indicates that the subcarriers in dRU5 are subcarriers numbered -18 to -6 and 6 to 18. The subcarriers in this subcarrier group can be used to transmit data or configured as idle subcarriers.

[0095] Furthermore, embodiments of this application provide a 20MHz bandwidth dRU grouping and indication method.

[0096] The dRU resource grouping method for a 20MHz PPDU (Physical Protocol Data Unit) is as follows: each subcarrier group contains 26 subcarriers. A dRU containing one subcarrier group is represented by a 26-tone representation. A dRU containing two subcarrier groups is represented by a 52-tone representation. A dRU containing three subcarrier groups is represented by a 106-tone representation.

[0097] For specific RU instruction methods, please refer to Table 1.

[0098] Table 1 is a first type of RU instruction table provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0099] Table 1

[0100] Table 1 is based on the allocation method shown in Figures 5 and 6 above. It should be noted that this embodiment does not limit the size of the first preset quantity and the second preset quantity, nor does it limit the number of other subcarrier groups between sequentially adjacent subcarrier groups contained in the same RU to be fixed. Table 1 is only one allocation form.

[0101] The dRU index and subcarrier range for 52-tone and 106-tone are expressed in dRU units. For 52-tone dRU type 120MHz, dRU1+dRU6 indicates that the 52-tone dRU is composed of two subcarrier groups, dRU1 and dRU6. The meanings of other items in the table can be deduced similarly, and will not be elaborated further here.

[0102] The dRU index and subcarrier range for 106-tone dRU type 1 20MHz are represented by dRU and NULL (idle subcarrier). The dRU1+dRU3+dRU6+dRU8+2Null for 106-tone dRU type 1 20MHz indicates that the 106-tone dRU is composed of four subcarrier groups: dRU1, dRU3, dRU6, and dRU8, plus two idle subcarriers. The meanings of other items in the table can be derived similarly, and will not be elaborated further here.

[0103] When the data transmission bandwidth is 40MHz, the second preset quantity is 8 or 17. It should be noted that the second preset quantity of 8 or 17 is only a preferred embodiment, and can be adjusted as needed in actual application.

[0104] See Figure 7, which is a schematic diagram of the distribution of the third seed carrier group provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0105] Figure 7 shows the distribution of the 18 subcarrier groups when the data transmission bandwidth is 40MHz, the first preset number is 26, and the second preset number is 8.

[0106] Each rectangle in the diagram represents a subcarrier, and the number on each subcarrier is its ID. There are 489 subcarriers, ranging from -244 to 244. Due to image size limitations, this diagram divides a complete image into three parts. The actual order of the three parts in Figure 7 from top to bottom should be: the first image to the left of the second image, and the second image to the left of the third image.

[0107] In the figure, the vertical axis represents the frequency domain, and the horizontal axis represents the time domain. Subcarriers numbered -10 to 10 are idle subcarriers, which in this embodiment belong to the pre-defined subcarriers that do not participate in subcarrier group allocation. Besides these subcarriers, the subcarriers numbered -244, -235, -226, -217, -208, -199, -190, -181, -172, -163, -154, -145, -136, -127, -118, -109, -100, -91, -82, -73, -64, -55, -46, -37, -28, and -19 belong to the same subcarrier group. The numbers -243, -234, -225, -216, -207, -198, -189, -180, -171, -162, -153, -144, -135, -126, -117, -108, -99, -90, -81, -72, -63, -54, -45, -36, -27, and -18 belong to the same subcarrier group. The numbers -242, -233, -224, -215, -206, -197, -188, -179, -170, -161, -152, -143, -134, -125, -116, -107, -98, -89, -80, -71, -62, -53, -44, -35, -26, and -17 belong to the same subcarrier group. The numbers -241, -232, -223, -214, -205, -196, -187, -178, -169, -160, -151, -142, -133, -124, -115, -106, -97, -88, -79, -70, -61, -52, -43, -34, -25, and -16 belong to the same subcarrier group. The numbers -240, -231, -222, -213, -204, -195, -186, -177, -168, -159, -150, -141, -132, -123, -114, -105, -96, -87, -78, -69, -60, -51, -42, -33, -24, and -15 belong to the same subcarrier group. The numbers -239, -230, -221, -212, -203, -194, -185, -176, -167, -158, -149, -140, -131, -122, -113, -104, -95, -86, -77, -68, -59, -50, -41, -32, -23, and -14 belong to the same subcarrier group. The numbers -238, -229, -220, -211, -202, -193, -184, -175, -166, -157, -148, -139, -130, -121, -112, -103, -94, -85, -76, -67, -58, -49, -40, -31, -22, and -13 belong to the same subcarrier group.The numbers -237, -228, -219, -210, -201, -192, -183, -174, -165, -156, -147, -138, -129, -120, -111, -102, -93, -84, -75, -66, -57, -48, -39, -30, -21, and -12 belong to the same subcarrier group. The numbers -236, -227, -218, -209, -200, -191, -182, -173, -164, -155, -146, -137, -128, -119, -110, -101, -92, -83, -74, -65, -56, -47, -38, -29, -20, and -11 belong to the same subcarrier group. The numbers 11, 20, 29, 38, 47, 56, 65, 74, 83, 92, 101, 110, 119, 128, 137, 146, 155, 164, 173, 182, 191, 200, 209, 218, 227, and 236 also belong to the same subcarrier group. Numbers 12, 21, 30, 39, 48, 57, 66, 75, 84, 93, 102, 111, 120, 129, 138, 147, 156, 165, 174, 183, 192, 201, 210, 219, 228, and 237 belong to the same subcarrier group. Numbers 13, 22, 31, 40, 49, 58, 67, 76, 85, 94, 103, 112, 121, 130, 139, 148, 157, 166, 175, 184, 193, 202, 211, 220, 229, and 238 belong to the same subcarrier group. Numbers 14, 23, 32, 41, 50, 59, 68, 77, 86, 95, 104, 113, 122, 131, 140, 149, 158, 167, 176, 185, 194, 203, 212, 221, 230, and 239 belong to the same subcarrier group. Numbers 15, 24, 33, 42, 51, 60, 69, 78, 87, 96, 105, 114, 123, 132, 141, 150, 159, 168, 177, 186, 195, 204, 213, 222, 231, and 240 belong to the same subcarrier group. Numbers 16, 25, 34, 43, 52, 61, 70, 79, 88, 97, 106, 115, 124, 133, 142, 151, 160, 169, 178, 187, 196, 205, 214, 223, 232, and 241 belong to the same subcarrier group. Numbers 17, 26, 35, 44, 53, 62, 71, 80, 89, 98, 107, 116, 125, 134, 143, 152, 161, 170, 179, 188, 197, 206, 215, 224, 233, and 242 belong to the same subcarrier group.Numbers 18, 27, 36, 45, 54, 63, 72, 81, 90, 99, 108, 117, 126, 135, 144, 153, 162, 171, 180, 189, 198, 207, 216, 225, 234, and 243 belong to the same subcarrier group. Numbers 19, 28, 37, 46, 55, 64, 73, 82, 91, 100, 109, 118, 127, 136, 145, 154, 163, 172, 181, 190, 199, 208, 217, 226, 235, and 244 also belong to the same subcarrier group. As shown in the figure, except for idle subcarriers, for each subcarrier group, there is an interval of 8 subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups between every two subcarriers belonging to the same subcarrier group.

[0108] As shown in the figure, the frequency domain position of the subcarriers in each subcarrier group spans half of 40MHz, i.e., 20MHz. Using the notation shown earlier, each subcarrier group can be represented as: dRU1: [-244:9:-19], dRU2: [-243:9:-18], dRU3: [-242:9:-17], dRU4: [-241:9:-16], dRU5: [-240:9:-15], dRU6: [-239:9:-14], dRU7: [-238:9:-13], dRU8: [-237:9:-12], d... RU9: [-236:9:-11], dRU10: [11:9:236], dRU11: [12:9:237], dRU12: [13:9:238], dRU13: [14:9:239], dRU14: [15:9:240], dRU15: [16:9:241], dRU16: [17:9:242], dRU17: [18:9:243], dRU18: [19:9:244].

[0109] Taking dRU1 as an example, the above representation is explained as follows: [-244:9:-19] means that the first subcarrier in dRU1 is numbered -244, the first value is the second preset quantity + the second value (the second value is 1) = 9, and the last subcarrier is numbered -19. This pattern continues to determine the subcarrier numbers in each dRU.

[0110] See Figure 8, which is a schematic diagram of the distribution of the fourth seed carrier group provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0111] Figure 8 shows the distribution of the 18 subcarrier groups when the data transmission bandwidth is 40MHz, the first preset number is 26, and the second preset number is 17.

[0112] Each rectangle in the diagram represents a subcarrier, and the number on each subcarrier is its ID. There are 489 subcarriers, ranging from -244 to 244. Due to image size limitations, this diagram divides a complete image into three parts. The actual order of the three parts in Figure 8 from top to bottom should be: the first image to the left of the second image, and the second image to the left of the third image.

[0113] The vertical axis represents the frequency domain, and the horizontal axis represents the time domain. Subcarriers numbered -10 to 10 are idle subcarriers, which in this embodiment belong to the pre-defined subcarriers that do not participate in subcarrier group allocation. Besides these subcarriers, the subcarriers numbered -244, -266, -208, -190, -172, -154, -136, -118, -100, -82, -64, -46, -28, 11, 29, 47, 65, 83, 101, 119, 137, 155, 173, 191, 209, and 227 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -243, -265, -207, -189, -171, -153, -135, -117, -99, -81, -63, -45, -27, 12, 30, 48, 66, 84, 102, 120, 138, 156, 174, 192, 210, and 228 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -242, -264, -206, -188, -170, -152, -134, -116, -98, -80, -62, -44, -26, 13, 31, 49, 67, 85, 103, 121, 139, 157, 175, 193, 211, and 229 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -241, -263, -205, -187, -169, -151, -133, -115, -97, -79, -61, -43, -25, 14, 32, 50, 68, 86, 104, 122, 140, 158, 176, 194, 212, and 230 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -240, -262, -204, -186, -168, -150, -132, -114, -96, -78, -60, -42, -24, 15, 33, 51, 69, 87, 105, 123, 141, 159, 177, 195, 213, and 231 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -239, -261, -203, -185, -167, -149, -131, -113, -95, -77, -59, -41, -23, 16, 34, 52, 70, 88, 106, 124, 142, 160, 178, 196, 214, and 232 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -238, -260, -202, -184, -166, -148, -130, -112, -94, -76, -58, -40, -22, 17, 35, 53, 71, 89, 107, 125, 143, 161, 179, 197, 215, and 233 belong to the same subcarrier group.Subcarriers numbered -237, -259, -201, -183, -165, -147, -129, -111, -93, -75, -57, -39, -21, 18, 36, 54, 72, 90, 108, 126, 144, 162, 180, 198, 216, and 234 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -236, -258, -200, -182, -164, -146, -128, -110, -92, -74, -56, -38, -20, 19, 37, 55, 73, 91, 109, 127, 145, 163, 181, 199, 217, and 235 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -235, -257, -199, -181, -163, -145, -127, -109, -91, -73, -55, -37, -19, 20, 38, 56, 74, 92, 110, 128, 146, 164, 182, 200, 218, and 236 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -234, -256, -198, -180, -162, -144, -126, -108, -90, -72, -54, -36, -18, 21, 39, 57, 75, 93, 111, 129, 147, 165, 183, 201, 219, and 237 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -233, -255, -197, -179, -161, -143, -125, -107, -89, -71, -53, -35, -17, 22, 40, 58, 76, 94, 112, 130, 148, 166, 184, 202, 220, and 238 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -232, -254, -196, -178, -160, -142, -124, -106, -88, -70, -52, -34, -16, 23, 41, 59, 77, 95, 113, 131, 149, 167, 185, 203, 221, and 239 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -231, -253, -195, -177, -159, -141, -123, -105, -87, -69, -51, -33, -15, 24, 42, 60, 78, 96, 114, 132, 150, 168, 186, 204, 222, and 240 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -230, -252, -194, -176, -158, -140, -122, -104, -86, -68, -50, -32, -14, 25, 43, 61, 79, 97, 115, 133, 151, 169, 187, 205, 223, and 241 belong to the same subcarrier group.Subcarriers numbered -229, -251, -193, -175, -157, -139, -121, -103, -85, -67, -49, -31, -13, 26, 44, 62, 80, 98, 116, 134, 152, 170, 188, 206, 224, and 242 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -228, -250, -192, -174, -156, -138, -120, -102, -84, -66, -48, -30, -12, 27, 45, 63, 81, 99, 117, 135, 153, 171, 189, 207, 225, and 243 belong to the same subcarrier group. Subcarriers numbered -227, -249, -191, -173, -155, -137, -119, -101, -83, -65, -47, -29, -11, 28, 46, 64, 82, 100, 118, 136, 154, 172, 190, 208, 226, and 244 belong to the same subcarrier group. As shown in the figure, except for subcarriers numbered -10 to 10, for each subcarrier group, there is an interval of 8 subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups between any two subcarriers belonging to the same group.

[0114] As shown in the figure, the frequency domain positions of the subcarriers in each subcarrier group span 40MHz. Using the notation shown earlier, the subcarrier numbers within each subcarrier group can be represented as follows: dRU1: [-244:18:227], dRU2: [-243:18:228], dRU3: [-242:18:229], dRU4: [-241:18:230], dRU5: [-240:18:231], dRU6: [-239:18:232], dRU7: [-238:18:233], dRU8: [-237:18:234], dRU9: [-236:18:235],dRU10[-235:18:236],dRU11[-234:18:237],dRU12[-233:18:238],dRU13:[-232:18:239],dRU1 4: [-231:18:240], dRU15: [-230:18:241], dRU16: [-229:18:242], dRU17: [-228:18:243], dRU18: [-227:18:244].

[0115] Furthermore, embodiments of this application provide a 40MHz bandwidth dRU grouping and indication method.

[0116] The dRU resource grouping method for a 40MHz PPDU is as follows: each subcarrier group contains 26 subcarriers. When a dRU contains one subcarrier group, it is grouped into 26-tone groups. When a dRU contains two subcarrier groups, it is grouped into 52-tone groups. When a dRU contains three subcarrier groups, it is grouped into 106-tone groups.

[0117] For specific RU instruction methods, please refer to Table 2.

[0118] Table 2 is a second type of RU instruction table provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0119] Table 2

[0120] Table 2 is based on the allocation method shown in Figures 7 and 8. It should be noted that this embodiment does not limit the size of the first preset quantity and the second preset quantity, nor does it limit the number of other subcarriers between sequentially adjacent subcarriers in the same RU to be fixed. Table 2 is only one allocation form.

[0121] The dRU index and subcarrier range corresponding to 52-tone and 106-tone are expressed in units of dRU. There are two allocation methods for 52-tone. For example, 52-tone-dRU type 1 20MHz Opt 1 corresponds to dRU1+dRU10, meaning that the dRU of the 52-tone is composed of two subcarrier groups, dRU1 and dRU10. The meanings of other items in the table can be derived similarly, and will not be elaborated further here.

[0122] The dRU index and subcarrier range for 106-tone dRU type 1 20MHz are represented by dRU and null. The dRU1+dRU6+dRU10+dRU15+2Null for 106-tone dRU type 1 20MHz indicates that the 106-tone dRU is composed of four subcarrier groups (dRU1, dRU6, dRU10, and dRU15) and two idle subcarriers. The meanings of other items in the table can be derived similarly, and will not be elaborated further here.

[0123] The location of the idle subcarriers is described below.

[0124] In one embodiment of this application, the aforementioned idle subcarrier is located in the middle position of all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the aforementioned idle subcarrier is a DC subcarrier.

[0125] Specifically, the idle subcarriers are arranged consecutively, and the subcarrier located at the center of the idle subcarriers is the central subcarrier among all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth. In this case, all idle subcarriers are used as DC subcarriers. The number of idle subcarriers can be configured according to requirements, and the embodiments in this application are not limited thereto.

[0126] In this case, see Figure 9, which is a schematic diagram of the location of the first type of idle subcarrier provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0127] Due to image size limitations, the subcarriers are displayed in two rows in the figure. As can be seen from the figure, the idle subcarriers are 11 DC subcarriers, located in the middle position of all subcarriers.

[0128] In one example, with a data transmission bandwidth of 20MHz, there are 245 subcarriers, including 11 idle subcarriers that are all used as DC subcarriers. The 11 DC subcarriers are located in the middle of the 245 subcarriers, and the other non-idle subcarriers are located on both sides of the DC subcarriers, with 117 non-idle subcarriers on each side.

[0129] In another example, with a data transmission bandwidth of 40MHz, there are 489 subcarriers, including 21 idle subcarriers that are all used as DC subcarriers. The 21 DC subcarriers are located in the middle of the 489 subcarriers, and the other non-idle subcarriers are located on both sides of the DC subcarriers, with 234 non-idle subcarriers on each side.

[0130] In another embodiment of this application, there are idle subcarriers at the foremost, last, and middle positions among all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarrier at the middle position is a DC subcarrier.

[0131] Specifically, the preset idle subcarriers can be divided into three parts. The data volume of the three parts can be the same or different. Alternatively, the number of idle subcarriers at the foremost position can be the same as the number of idle subcarriers at the last position, but different from the number of idle subcarriers in the middle position. The number of idle subcarriers can be configured according to requirements, and the embodiments in this application do not limit this.

[0132] The idle subcarriers located at the very front and the very back can provide protection against out-of-band interference.

[0133] Referring to Figure 10, it is a schematic diagram of the location of the second type of idle subcarrier provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0134] Due to image size limitations, the subcarriers are displayed in two rows in the figure. As can be seen from the figure, the idle subcarriers in the middle position are 5 DC subcarriers, the remaining idle subcarriers are the 4 idle (null) subcarriers at the very front position and the 4 idle (null) subcarriers at the very back position, and the remaining subcarriers are non-idle subcarriers.

[0135] In one example, with a data transmission bandwidth of 20MHz, there are 245 subcarriers, including 11 idle subcarriers divided into 3 parts. Three of these idle subcarriers are positioned in the middle as DC subcarriers. The remaining 8 idle subcarriers are evenly divided into two parts, located at the very front and the very back. The other non-idle subcarriers are located on either side of the DC subcarriers, with 117 non-idle subcarriers on each side.

[0136] In another example, with a data transmission bandwidth of 40MHz, there are 489 subcarriers, including 21 idle subcarriers divided into 3 parts. Five of these idle subcarriers are positioned in the middle as DC subcarriers. The remaining 16 idle subcarriers are evenly divided into two parts, located at the very front and the very back. The other non-idle subcarriers are located on either side of the DC subcarriers, with 234 non-idle subcarriers on each side.

[0137] In another embodiment of this application, there is a third preset number of idle subcarriers at the middle position of all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth. Except for the third preset number of idle subcarriers located at the middle position, the other idle subcarriers are located at any position among all the above-mentioned subcarriers. The idle subcarrier located at the middle position is a DC subcarrier.

[0138] Specifically, a third preset number of idle subcarriers are configured at the middle position of all subcarriers. The remaining idle subcarriers can be configured at any position among all subcarriers using a random allocation method, or one or more idle subcarriers can be configured every fifth preset number of non-idle subcarriers. Except for the third preset number of subcarriers located in the middle position, the configuration positions of other idle subcarriers can be adjacent or non-adjacent. This application embodiment does not limit the specific value of the third preset number.

[0139] Referring to Figure 11, it is a schematic diagram of the location of the third type of idle subcarrier provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0140] Due to image size limitations, the subcarriers are displayed in two rows in the figure. As can be seen from the figure, the idle subcarrier in the middle is the DC subcarrier, and the remaining subcarriers are non-idle subcarriers. The vertical lines represent the other idle subcarriers besides the DC subcarriers, which are located between the non-idle subcarriers.

[0141] In one example, with a data transmission bandwidth of 20MHz, there are 245 subcarriers, including 11 idle subcarriers. Three of these idle subcarriers are positioned in the middle as DC subcarriers. One of the remaining eight idle subcarriers is inserted between every 26 non-idle subcarriers.

[0142] In another example, with a data transmission bandwidth of 40MHz, there are 489 subcarriers, including 21 idle subcarriers divided into 3 parts. Five of these idle subcarriers are positioned in the middle as DC subcarriers. One of the remaining 16 idle subcarriers is inserted between every 26 non-idle subcarriers.

[0143] Before the AP and the terminal can transmit data using the RU, the RU needs to be configured between them. This requires the prior transmission of configuration information between the two. The configuration method is described below.

[0144] In one embodiment of this application, the method further includes steps B-E, through which the terminal determines the number of the subcarrier in the RU used in the process of transmitting downlink data.

[0145] Step B: Send the first trigger frame to the aforementioned terminal.

[0146] The first trigger frame includes a Variant User Info Field, which carries a first parameter and a second parameter. The first parameter represents the RU number corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, and the second parameter represents a first value. The first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value.

[0147] The first trigger frame mentioned above can be MU-RTS (Multi-User Request-To-Send).

[0148] Step C: Receive the trigger frame response sent by the terminal based on the first trigger frame.

[0149] When the first trigger frame is MU-RTS, the above trigger frame response is CTS (Clear To Send).

[0150] Step D: Send a DL PPDU (DownLink Physical Protocol Data Unit) to the aforementioned terminal. The DL PPDU includes a Common Info Field, which carries a third parameter representing the data transmission bandwidth. This enables the terminal to determine the subcarrier number in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the first, second, and third parameters and the pre-stored first information.

[0151] The aforementioned first information represents the correspondence between data transmission bandwidth, first value, RU number, and subcarrier number.

[0152] When the data transmission bandwidth represented by the third parameter is different, the RU number represented by the first parameter is different. That is, there is a correspondence between the third parameter, the first parameter, and the RU number.

[0153] Step E: Receive the ACK (Acknowledge) information sent by the terminal.

[0154] In one embodiment of this application, the aforementioned information exchange between the AP and the terminal is a configuration information transmission using a TB (Trigger Based, passively triggered) frame exchange mechanism. MU-RTS and DL PPDU are TB exchange frames. The third parameter is recorded using the Common Info Field in the TB exchange frame. The first and second parameters are recorded using the Variant User Info Field in the TB exchange frame.

[0155] The Common Info Field is 2 bits in size, while the Variant User Info Field can be 8 bits, with bits numbered B0-B7 from front to back. B0 can be reserved. B1-B7 have 128 different values, each corresponding to a different RU number.

[0156] Alternatively, the number of bits in the Variant User Info Field can be determined based on the number of values ​​required. For example, if the required number of different values ​​is 41, then the number of bits in the Variant User Info Field is 6.

[0157] Specifically, the first piece of information can be represented in the form of data tables shown in Tables 1 and 2 above.

[0158] Alternatively, if the interval between subcarriers in the RU is not fixed, the first information can be represented in the form of data transmission bandwidth, RU number, and the correspondence between the numbers of each subcarrier contained in RUs with different numbers. In this case, the AP sends the third parameter and the first parameter to the terminal, and the terminal can determine the number of the subcarrier in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the first information, the third parameter, and the first parameter.

[0159] In addition, to determine the RU number corresponding to the third parameter and the first parameter, the terminal also stores third information. This third information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first parameter, and the RU number.

[0160] See Table 3, which is a schematic diagram of a third type of information provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0161] Table 3

[0162] In Table 3, B1-B7 correspond to the first parameter. The meaning of Table 3 is as follows: if the value of B1-B7 is 0, and the data transmission bandwidth represented by the third parameter is 20MHz or 40MHz, then the RU contains 26 subcarriers, and the corresponding RU number is dRU1. If the value of B1-B7 is 1, and the data transmission bandwidth is 20MHz or 40MHz, then the RU contains 26 subcarriers, and the corresponding RU number is dRU2. And so on. Based on the third information, the RU number corresponding to the third parameter and the first parameter can be determined.

[0163] It should be noted that the values ​​of the first parameter shown in Table 3, and the correspondence between the values ​​of the first parameter and the RU number, are only examples, and this application embodiment does not limit them.

[0164] In one embodiment of this application, in order to transmit downlink data with the terminal, the AP may send a first trigger frame carrying a first parameter and a second parameter to the terminal.

[0165] After receiving the first trigger frame, the terminal replies with a trigger frame response to the AP, confirming receipt of the first trigger frame. The AP then sends a DL PPDU carrying the third parameter in the terminal's corresponding dRU resource. The terminal receives the DL PPDU in the dRU resource indicated by the first trigger frame, and replies with an ACK message upon successful reception.

[0166] It should be noted that regardless of whether there is one or more terminals connected to the AP, the AP sends the third, first, and second parameters in the same way for each terminal.

[0167] Referring to Figure 12, it is a schematic diagram of a DL PPDU multi-user transmission process based on dRU resources provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0168] The diagram includes four STAs: STA1, STA2, STA3, and STA4, which act as terminals. The AP sends a first trigger frame and a DL-PPDU to each of the four STAs. Each STA then sends a trigger frame response and an ACK back to the AP.

[0169] In the process described above, the AP sends the first parameter and the third parameter to the STA through the first trigger frame and DL PPDU respectively to complete the configuration of the RU.

[0170] In another embodiment of this application, the above method further includes the following step F-step I, through which the terminal determines the number of the subcarrier in the RU used in the process of transmitting uplink data.

[0171] Step F: Send a second trigger frame to the aforementioned terminal. The second trigger frame includes a variant user information field, which carries the fourth parameter and the fifth parameter, so that the aforementioned terminal can determine the subcarrier number in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the current data transmission bandwidth, the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter, and the pre-stored first information.

[0172] The fourth parameter represents the RU number corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, the fifth parameter represents the first value, the first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the RU number, and the subcarrier number, and the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value. The second trigger frame can be MU-RTS (Multi-User Request-To-Send).

[0173] Step G: Receive the UL PPDU (UpLink Physical Protocol Data Unit) sent by the aforementioned terminal.

[0174] The aforementioned UL PPDU includes a public information field, which carries a sixth parameter representing the data transmission bandwidth.

[0175] Step H: Based on the fourth, fifth, and sixth parameters and the pre-stored first information, determine the subcarrier number in the RU corresponding to the terminal.

[0176] Specifically, the fourth parameter is equivalent to the first parameter mentioned above, the fifth parameter is equivalent to the second parameter mentioned above, and the sixth parameter is equivalent to the third parameter mentioned above. Descriptions of the fourth, fifth, and sixth parameters, as well as the first piece of information, can be found above and will not be repeated here.

[0177] Step 1: Send ACK information to the aforementioned terminal.

[0178] In one embodiment of this application, for uplink data transmission, the AP can send a trigger frame carrying a fourth and a fifth parameter to the terminal. Upon receiving the trigger frame, the terminal sends a UL PPDU carrying a sixth parameter to the AP using its corresponding dRU resource. Finally, after receiving the UL PPDU, the AP replies with an ACK to the terminal, completing the RU configuration of the terminal. The trigger frame and the UL PPDU are TB frames.

[0179] Referring to Figure 13, it is a schematic diagram of a UL PPDU multi-user transmission process based on dRU resources provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0180] As shown in the diagram, there are four STAs acting as terminals: STA1, STA2, STA3, and STA4. The AP sends a trigger frame to the STAs, the STAs send a UL PPDU back to the AP, and then the AP sends an AP response back to the STAs.

[0181] It should be noted that the diagram showing four STAs is merely an example. Regardless of whether there is one or more terminals communicating with the AP, the AP and the terminal exchange the fourth, fifth, and sixth parameters in the same way for each terminal.

[0182] Since this application embodiment does not limit the second preset quantity and data transmission bandwidth, the subcarrier numbers included in the RU will differ depending on the second preset quantity and data transmission bandwidth. Therefore, in order to ensure that the AP and the terminal can use a unified RU for data transmission, it is necessary to unify the second preset quantity and data transmission bandwidth between the AP and the terminal in advance.

[0183] Therefore, the above method also includes step J.

[0184] Step J: Send the seventh parameter and the eighth parameter to the aforementioned terminal so that the terminal can determine the subcarrier number in each RU based on the seventh parameter, the eighth parameter and the pre-stored second information.

[0185] Among them, the seventh parameter represents the data transmission bandwidth, the eighth parameter represents the first value, and the second information represents the correspondence between the first value, the data transmission bandwidth, and the subcarrier number in the RU.

[0186] In one embodiment of this application, for different first values, subcarriers of different RUs can be pre-allocated for different data transmission bandwidths, and the allocation results can be recorded using the methods described in Tables 1 and 2 above. The aforementioned second information is stored in both the AP and the terminal, so that after transmitting the seventh and eighth parameters, the subcarriers included in each RU can be unified between the two based on the pre-stored second information.

[0187] As can be seen from the above, the subcarriers included in the RU are not limited in the embodiments of this application. Different methods can be used to allocate subcarriers in the RU and to achieve unified configuration between the AP and the terminal.

[0188] Corresponding to the aforementioned data transmission method applied to an AP, this application provides a data transmission method applied to a terminal.

[0189] In one embodiment of this application, applied to a terminal, the method includes:

[0190] Data is transmitted with the AP through the subcarriers contained in the resource unit RU corresponding to the terminal;

[0191] The RUs corresponding to different terminals are different. The subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the intervals between the subcarriers contained in each subcarrier group do not belong to other subcarriers in that subcarrier group.

[0192] As can be seen from the above, the AP and the terminal communicate via RU. The subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarrier groups, and the subcarriers in each subcarrier group are separated by other subcarriers that do not belong to that subcarrier group. Because there are gaps between the subcarriers in the subcarrier groups, there are gaps between the subcarriers used when the AP and the terminal transmit data. That is, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal is relatively dispersed. If signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, the data transmission quality of multiple subcarriers arranged sequentially within the period of signal attenuation will decrease. In this case, if the subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal are arranged consecutively without gaps, the data transmission quality of the subcarriers corresponding to that terminal will generally decrease, thus affecting the overall data transmission quality of the terminal. However, in this application, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the terminal is relatively dispersed. Even if signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, it will only affect a small number of subcarriers corresponding to some terminals and will not affect the overall data transmission of the terminal. Furthermore, since the subcarriers corresponding to the terminals are relatively dispersed, when the AP transmits a signal to the terminal via a subcarrier, it can concentrate the power of adjacent, unused subcarriers that do not correspond to the terminal to complete the data transmission. This can increase the signal coverage radius, and thus the coverage radius of the AP cell. It can also improve the power distribution area (PSD) between the AP and the terminal, and improve the balance between uplink and downlink power.

[0193] In one embodiment of this application, the method further includes:

[0194] Of all the subcarriers, except for the subcarriers that are pre-defined not to participate in the subcarrier group allocation, the remaining subcarriers are arranged in order according to their subcarrier numbers;

[0195] Between every two subcarriers belonging to the same subcarrier group, a second preset number of subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups are configured;

[0196] Among them, the preset subcarriers that do not participate in RU unit allocation include: preset idle subcarriers that do not participate in data transmission.

[0197] In one embodiment of this application, the number of each subcarrier group is represented by the number of the first subcarrier, the number of the last subcarrier, and a first value contained in the subcarrier group;

[0198] Wherein, the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value.

[0199] In one embodiment of this application, the idle subcarrier is located in the middle of all subcarriers, and the idle subcarrier is a DC subcarrier.

[0200] In one embodiment of this application, there are idle subcarriers at the foremost, last, and middle positions among all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarrier at the middle position is a DC subcarrier.

[0201] In one embodiment of this application, there is a third preset number of idle subcarriers at the middle position of all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth. Except for the third preset number of idle subcarriers located at the middle position, the other idle subcarriers are located at any position among all the subcarriers. The idle subcarrier located at the middle position is a DC subcarrier.

[0202] In one embodiment of this application, when the RU contains multiple subcarrier groups, each RU contains the same number of subcarrier groups, but different RUs contain different numbers of subcarrier groups.

[0203] There is a fourth preset number of subcarrier groups belonging to other RUs between every two subcarrier groups belonging to the same RU.

[0204] In one embodiment of this application, the number of each RU is represented by the number of the subcarrier group contained in that RU.

[0205] In one embodiment of this application, the method further includes:

[0206] Receive a first trigger frame sent by the AP; wherein the first trigger frame includes a variant user information field, the variant user information field is used to carry a first parameter and a second parameter, the first parameter represents the RU number corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, the second parameter represents a first value, and the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value;

[0207] Reply with a trigger frame response to the AP;

[0208] The AP sends a downlink physical layer protocol data unit (DL PPDU), wherein the DL PPDU includes a common information field, which carries a third parameter representing the data transmission bandwidth.

[0209] Based on the first parameter, the second parameter, the third parameter, and the pre-stored first information, the number of the subcarrier in the RU corresponding to the terminal is determined, wherein the first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the number of the RU, and the number of the subcarrier.

[0210] Reply with an ACK message to the AP.

[0211] In one embodiment of this application, the method further includes:

[0212] The second trigger frame sent by the AP is received. The second trigger frame includes a variant user information field, which is used to carry a fourth parameter and a fifth parameter. The fourth parameter represents the number of the RU corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, and the fifth parameter represents a first value. The first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value.

[0213] Based on the current data transmission bandwidth, the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter, and the pre-stored first information, the subcarrier number in the RU corresponding to the terminal is determined;

[0214] The AP sends an uplink physical protocol data unit (UL PPDU) to the AP. The UL PPDU includes a common information field, which carries a sixth parameter. Upon receiving the sixth parameter, the AP determines the subcarrier number in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the fourth, fifth, and sixth parameters and pre-stored first information. The sixth parameter represents the data transmission bandwidth, and the first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the RU number, and the subcarrier number.

[0215] Receive the ACK information sent by the AP.

[0216] As can be seen from the above, the subcarriers included in the RU are not limited in the embodiments of this application. Different methods can be used to allocate subcarriers in the RU and to achieve unified configuration between the AP and the terminal.

[0217] In one embodiment of this application, the first preset quantity is 26.

[0218] In one embodiment of this application, when the data transmission bandwidth is 20MHz, the second preset quantity is 3 or 8;

[0219] With a data transmission bandwidth of 40MHz, the second preset quantity is 8 or 17.

[0220] Corresponding to the aforementioned data transmission method applied to an AP, this application also provides an AP.

[0221] As shown in Figure 14, the AP includes:

[0222] Processor 1401;

[0223] Transceiver 1404;

[0224] A machine-readable storage medium 1402 stores machine-executable instructions that can be executed by the processor 1401; the machine-executable instructions cause the processor 1401 to execute a data transmission method applied to the AP.

[0225] As shown in Figure 14, the AP may also include a communication bus 1403. The processor 1401, machine-readable storage medium 1402, and transceiver 1404 communicate with each other via the communication bus 1403. The communication bus 1403 can be a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus or an Extended Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus, etc. This communication bus 1403 can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc.

[0226] The transceiver 1404 can be a wireless communication module, which interacts with other devices under the control of the processor 1401.

[0227] Machine-readable storage medium 1402 may include random access memory (RAM) or non-volatile memory (NVM), such as at least one disk storage device. Alternatively, machine-readable storage medium 1402 may also be at least one storage device located remotely from the aforementioned processor.

[0228] Processor 1401 can be a general-purpose processor, including a central processing unit (CPU), a network processor (NP), etc.; it can also be a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components.

[0229] As can be seen from the above, the AP and the terminal communicate via RU. The subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarrier groups, and the subcarriers in each subcarrier group are separated by other subcarriers that do not belong to that subcarrier group. Because there are gaps between the subcarriers in the subcarrier groups, there are gaps between the subcarriers used when the AP and the terminal transmit data. That is, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal is relatively dispersed. If signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, the data transmission quality of multiple subcarriers arranged sequentially within the period of signal attenuation will decrease. In this case, if the subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal are arranged consecutively without gaps, the data transmission quality of the subcarriers corresponding to that terminal will generally decrease, thus affecting the overall data transmission quality of the terminal. However, in this application, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the terminal is relatively dispersed. Even if signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, it will only affect a small number of subcarriers corresponding to some terminals and will not affect the overall data transmission of the terminal. Furthermore, since the subcarriers corresponding to the terminals are relatively dispersed, when the AP transmits a signal to the terminal via a subcarrier, it can concentrate the power of adjacent, unused subcarriers that do not correspond to the terminal to complete the data transmission. This can increase the signal coverage radius, and thus the coverage radius of the AP cell. It can also improve the power distribution area (PSD) between the AP and the terminal, and improve the balance between uplink and downlink power.

[0230] Corresponding to the aforementioned data transmission method applied to a terminal, this application also provides a terminal.

[0231] As shown in Figure 15, the terminal includes:

[0232] Processor 1501;

[0233] Transceiver 1504;

[0234] A machine-readable storage medium 1502 stores machine-executable instructions that can be executed by the processor 1501; the machine-executable instructions cause the processor 1501 to execute a data transmission method applied to a terminal.

[0235] As shown in Figure 15, the terminal may also include a communication bus 1503. The processor 1501, machine-readable storage medium 1502, and transceiver 1504 communicate with each other via the communication bus 1503. The communication bus 1503 can be a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus or an Extended Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus, etc. This communication bus 1503 can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc.

[0236] Transceiver 1504 can be a wireless communication module. Under the control of processor 1501, transceiver 1504 interacts with other devices for data exchange.

[0237] Machine-readable storage medium 1502 may include random access memory (RAM) or non-volatile memory (NVM), such as at least one disk storage device. Alternatively, machine-readable storage medium 1502 may also be at least one storage device located remotely from the aforementioned processor.

[0238] Processor 1501 can be a general-purpose processor, including a central processing unit (CPU), a network processor (NP), etc.; it can also be a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components.

[0239] As can be seen from the above, the AP and the terminal communicate via RU. The subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarrier groups, and the subcarriers in each subcarrier group are separated by other subcarriers that do not belong to that subcarrier group. Because there are gaps between the subcarriers in the subcarrier groups, there are gaps between the subcarriers used when the AP and the terminal transmit data. That is, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal is relatively dispersed. If signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, the data transmission quality of multiple subcarriers arranged sequentially within the period of signal attenuation will decrease. In this case, if the subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal are arranged consecutively without gaps, the data transmission quality of the subcarriers corresponding to that terminal will generally decrease, thus affecting the overall data transmission quality of the terminal. However, in this application, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the terminal is relatively dispersed. Even if signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, it will only affect a small number of subcarriers corresponding to some terminals and will not affect the overall data transmission of the terminal. Furthermore, since the subcarriers corresponding to the terminals are relatively dispersed, when the AP transmits a signal to the terminal via a subcarrier, it can concentrate the power of adjacent, unused subcarriers that do not correspond to the terminal to complete the data transmission. This can increase the signal coverage radius, and thus the coverage radius of the AP cell. It can also improve the power distribution area (PSD) between the AP and the terminal, and improve the balance between uplink and downlink power.

[0240] Corresponding to the aforementioned data transmission method applied to an AP, this application provides a data transmission apparatus applied to an AP, the apparatus comprising:

[0241] The first data transmission module, used in the method, further includes:

[0242] The AP sends a fourth parameter and a fifth parameter, wherein the fourth parameter represents the number of the RU corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, and the fifth parameter represents a first value, wherein the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value;

[0243] Based on the current data transmission bandwidth, the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter, and the pre-stored first information, the number of the subcarrier in the RU corresponding to the terminal is determined, and a sixth parameter is fed back to the AP. After receiving the sixth parameter, the AP determines the number of the subcarrier in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter, the sixth parameter, and the pre-stored first information. The sixth parameter represents the data transmission bandwidth, and the first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the RU number, and the subcarrier number.

[0244] As can be seen from the above, the AP and the terminal communicate via RU. The subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarrier groups, and the subcarriers in each subcarrier group are separated by other subcarriers that do not belong to that subcarrier group. Because there are gaps between the subcarriers in the subcarrier groups, there are gaps between the subcarriers used when the AP and the terminal transmit data. That is, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal is relatively dispersed. If signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, the data transmission quality of multiple subcarriers arranged sequentially within the period of signal attenuation will decrease. In this case, if the subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal are arranged consecutively without gaps, the data transmission quality of the subcarriers corresponding to that terminal will generally decrease, thus affecting the overall data transmission quality of the terminal. However, in this application, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the terminal is relatively dispersed. Even if signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, it will only affect a small number of subcarriers corresponding to some terminals and will not affect the overall data transmission of the terminal. Furthermore, since the subcarriers corresponding to the terminals are relatively dispersed, when the AP transmits a signal to the terminal via a subcarrier, it can concentrate the power of adjacent, unused subcarriers that do not correspond to the terminal to complete the data transmission. This can increase the signal coverage radius, and thus the coverage radius of the AP cell. It can also improve the power distribution area (PSD) between the AP and the terminal, and improve the balance between uplink and downlink power.

[0245] In one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0246] The first configuration module is used to arrange the remaining subcarriers according to their numbers, except for the preset subcarriers that do not participate in the subcarrier group allocation; and to configure a second preset number of subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups between every two subcarriers belonging to the same subcarrier group.

[0247] Among them, the preset subcarriers that do not participate in RU unit allocation include: preset idle subcarriers that do not participate in data transmission.

[0248] In one embodiment of this application, the number of each subcarrier group is represented by the number of the first subcarrier, the number of the last subcarrier, and a first value contained in the subcarrier group;

[0249] Wherein, the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value.

[0250] In one embodiment of this application, the idle subcarrier is located in the middle of all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarrier is a DC subcarrier.

[0251] In one embodiment of this application, there are idle subcarriers at the foremost, last, and middle positions among all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarrier at the middle position is a DC subcarrier.

[0252] In one embodiment of this application, there is a third preset number of idle subcarriers at the middle position of all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth. Except for the third preset number of idle subcarriers located at the middle position, the other idle subcarriers are located at any position among all the subcarriers. The idle subcarrier located at the middle position is a DC subcarrier.

[0253] In one embodiment of this application, when the RU contains multiple subcarrier groups, each RU contains the same number of subcarrier groups, but different RUs contain different numbers of subcarrier groups.

[0254] There is a fourth preset number of subcarrier groups belonging to other RUs between every two subcarrier groups belonging to the same RU.

[0255] In one embodiment of this application, the number of each RU is represented by the number of the subcarrier group contained in that RU.

[0256] In one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0257] The first trigger frame sending module is used to send a first trigger frame to the terminal; the first trigger frame includes a variant user information field, the variant user information field is used to carry a first parameter and a second parameter, the first parameter represents the RU number corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, the second parameter represents a first value, and the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value;

[0258] A response receiving module is used to receive a trigger frame response sent by the terminal according to the first trigger frame;

[0259] The DL PPDU sending module is used to send a downlink physical layer protocol data unit (DL PPDU) to the terminal. The DL PPDU includes a common information field, which carries a third parameter representing the data transmission bandwidth. This allows the terminal to determine the subcarrier number in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the first parameter, the second parameter, the third parameter, and pre-stored first information. The first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the RU number, and the subcarrier number.

[0260] The first ACK receiving module is used to receive ACK information sent by the terminal.

[0261] In one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0262] The second trigger frame sending module is used to send a second trigger frame to the terminal. The second trigger frame includes a variant user information field, which carries a fourth parameter and a fifth parameter so that the terminal can determine the subcarrier number in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the current data transmission bandwidth, the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter and the pre-stored first information. The fourth parameter represents the RU number corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, the fifth parameter represents the first value, the first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the RU number and the subcarrier number, and the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value.

[0263] The UL PPDU receiving module is used to receive the uplink physical protocol data unit (UL PPDU) sent by the terminal. The UL PPDU includes a common information field, which carries a sixth parameter, representing the data transmission bandwidth.

[0264] The subcarrier number determination module is used to determine the number of the subcarrier in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter, the sixth parameter and the pre-stored first information;

[0265] The ACK sending module is used to send ACK information to the terminal.

[0266] As can be seen from the above, the subcarriers included in the RU are not limited in the embodiments of this application. Different methods can be used to allocate subcarriers in the RU and to achieve unified configuration between the AP and the terminal.

[0267] In one embodiment of this application, the first preset quantity is 26.

[0268] In one embodiment of this application, when the data transmission bandwidth is 20MHz, the second preset quantity is 3 or 8;

[0269] With a data transmission bandwidth of 40MHz, the second preset quantity is 8 or 17.

[0270] Corresponding to the aforementioned data transmission method applied to a terminal, this application provides a data transmission apparatus applied to a terminal, the apparatus comprising:

[0271] The second data transmission module is used to transmit data with the AP through the subcarrier contained in the resource unit RU corresponding to the terminal;

[0272] The RUs corresponding to different terminals are different. The subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the intervals between the subcarriers contained in each subcarrier group do not belong to other subcarriers in that subcarrier group.

[0273] As can be seen from the above, the AP and the terminal communicate via RU. The subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal are divided into one or more subcarrier groups. Each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarrier groups, and the subcarriers in each subcarrier group are separated by other subcarriers that do not belong to that subcarrier group. Because there are gaps between the subcarriers in the subcarrier groups, there are gaps between the subcarriers used when the AP and the terminal transmit data. That is, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal is relatively dispersed. If signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, the data transmission quality of multiple subcarriers arranged sequentially within the period of signal attenuation will decrease. In this case, if the subcarriers corresponding to the same terminal are arranged consecutively without gaps, the data transmission quality of the subcarriers corresponding to that terminal will generally decrease, thus affecting the overall data transmission quality of the terminal. However, in this application, the distribution of subcarriers corresponding to the terminal is relatively dispersed. Even if signal attenuation occurs for a short period of time, it will only affect a small number of subcarriers corresponding to some terminals and will not affect the overall data transmission of the terminal. Furthermore, since the subcarriers corresponding to the terminals are relatively dispersed, when the AP transmits a signal to the terminal via a subcarrier, it can concentrate the power of adjacent, unused subcarriers that do not correspond to the terminal to complete the data transmission. This can increase the signal coverage radius, and thus the coverage radius of the AP cell. It can also improve the power distribution area (PSD) between the AP and the terminal, and improve the balance between uplink and downlink power.

[0274] In one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0275] The second configuration module is used to arrange the remaining subcarriers according to their numbers, except for the preset subcarriers that do not participate in the subcarrier group allocation; and to configure a second preset number of subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups between every two subcarriers belonging to the same subcarrier group.

[0276] Among them, the preset subcarriers that do not participate in RU unit allocation include: preset idle subcarriers that do not participate in data transmission.

[0277] In one embodiment of this application, the number of each subcarrier group is represented by the number of the first subcarrier, the number of the last subcarrier, and a first value contained in the subcarrier group;

[0278] Wherein, the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value.

[0279] In one embodiment of this application, the idle subcarrier is located in the middle of all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarrier is a DC subcarrier.

[0280] In one embodiment of this application, there are idle subcarriers at the foremost, last, and middle positions among all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarrier at the middle position is a DC subcarrier.

[0281] In one embodiment of this application, there is a third preset number of idle subcarriers at the middle position of all subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth. Except for the third preset number of idle subcarriers located at the middle position, the other idle subcarriers are located at any position among all the subcarriers. The idle subcarrier located at the middle position is a DC subcarrier.

[0282] In one embodiment of this application, when the RU contains multiple subcarrier groups, each RU contains the same number of subcarrier groups, but different RUs contain different numbers of subcarrier groups.

[0283] There is a fourth preset number of subcarrier groups belonging to other RUs between every two subcarrier groups belonging to the same RU.

[0284] In one embodiment of this application, the number of each RU is represented by the number of the subcarrier group contained in that RU.

[0285] In one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0286] The first trigger frame receiving module is used to receive the first trigger frame sent by the AP; wherein, the first trigger frame includes a variant user information field, the variant user information field is used to carry a first parameter and a second parameter, the first parameter represents the RU number corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, the second parameter represents a first value, and the first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value;

[0287] The response sending module is used to reply with a trigger frame response to the AP;

[0288] The DL PPDU receiving module is used to receive the downlink physical layer protocol data unit (DL PPDU) sent by the AP, wherein the DL PPDU includes a common information field, which is used to carry a third parameter, the third parameter representing the data transmission bandwidth;

[0289] The first number determination module is used to determine the number of the subcarrier in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the first parameter, the second parameter, the third parameter and the pre-stored first information, wherein the first information represents the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the correspondence between the RU number and the subcarrier number;

[0290] The ACK response module is used to send an ACK confirmation message to the AP.

[0291] In one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0292] The second trigger frame receiving module is used to receive the second trigger frame sent by the AP. The second trigger frame includes a variant user information field, which is used to carry a fourth parameter and a fifth parameter. The fourth parameter represents the number of the RU corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, and the fifth parameter represents a first value. The first value is the sum of the second preset quantity and the second value.

[0293] The second number determination module is used to determine the number of the subcarrier in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the current data transmission bandwidth, the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter and the pre-stored first information;

[0294] The UL PPDU transmitting module is used to send an uplink physical protocol data unit (UL PPDU) to the AP. The UL PPDU includes a common information field, which carries a sixth parameter. After receiving the sixth parameter, the AP determines the subcarrier number in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the fourth, fifth, and sixth parameters and pre-stored first information. The sixth parameter represents the data transmission bandwidth, and the first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the RU number, and the subcarrier number.

[0295] The second ACK receiving module is used to receive the ACK information sent by the AP.

[0296] As can be seen from the above, the subcarriers included in the RU are not limited in the embodiments of this application. Different methods can be used to allocate subcarriers in the RU and to achieve unified configuration between the AP and the terminal.

[0297] In one embodiment of this application, the first preset quantity is 26.

[0298] In one embodiment of this application, when the data transmission bandwidth is 20MHz, the second preset quantity is 3 or 8;

[0299] With a data transmission bandwidth of 40MHz, the second preset quantity is 8 or 17.

[0300] Based on the same inventive concept, and according to the data transmission method provided in the above-described embodiments of this application, a machine-readable storage medium is proposed, which stores machine-executable instructions. When called and executed by a processor, the machine-executable instructions cause the processor to implement the steps of any data transmission method applied to an AP or terminal.

[0301] In another embodiment provided in this application, a computer program product containing instructions is also provided, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the steps of any of the data transmission methods applied to an AP or terminal in the above embodiments.

[0302] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved entirely or partially through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented entirely or partially in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., solid state disk (SSD)).

[0303] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitations, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0304] The various embodiments in this specification are described in a related manner. Similar or identical parts between embodiments can be referred to mutually. Each embodiment focuses on describing the differences from other embodiments. In particular, the embodiments of methods, apparatuses, access points (APs), terminals, computer-readable storage media, and computer program products applied to terminals are basically similar to the method embodiments, so the descriptions are relatively simple; relevant parts can be referred to the descriptions of the method embodiments.

[0305] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this application and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this application are included within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A data transmission method, characterized by, The method is applied to a wireless access point (AP), and the method comprises the following steps: A terminal performs data transmission with the terminal through subcarriers contained in a resource unit (RU) corresponding to the terminal; Different RUs correspond to different terminals, the subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups, each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the subcarriers contained in each subcarrier group are spaced apart from other subcarriers in the subcarrier group.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises the following steps: Among all the subcarriers, except for preset subcarriers that do not participate in subcarrier group allocation, the remaining subcarriers are arranged in the order of the subcarrier numbers; Between every two subcarriers belonging to the same subcarrier group, a second preset number of subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups are arranged; The preset subcarriers that do not participate in RU unit allocation include preset idle subcarriers that do not participate in data transmission.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, The number of each subcarrier group is represented by the number of the first subcarrier contained in the subcarrier group, the number of the last subcarrier, and a first value; The first value is the sum of the second preset number and a second value.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein, The idle subcarrier is located in the middle of all the subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarrier is a direct current (DC) subcarrier.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein, Idle subcarriers exist in the front end, the rear end, and the middle of all the subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarrier in the middle is a DC subcarrier.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein, A third preset number of idle subcarriers exist in the middle of all the subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and except for the third preset number of idle subcarriers in the middle, other idle subcarriers are located at any position in all the subcarriers, and the idle subcarrier in the middle is a DC subcarrier.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein, When the RU contains multiple subcarrier groups, the number of subcarrier groups contained in each RU is the same, and the subcarrier groups contained in different RUs are different; Every two subcarrier groups belonging to the same RU are spaced apart by a fourth preset number of subcarrier groups belonging to other RUs.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein, The number of each RU is represented by the number of the subcarrier group contained in the RU.

9. The method according to any one of claims 2-6, characterized in that, The method further comprises the following steps: A first trigger frame is sent to the terminal, the first trigger frame includes a variant user information field, the variant user information field is used to carry a first parameter and a second parameter, the first parameter represents the number of the RU corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, and the second parameter represents a first value, which is the sum of the second preset number and a second value; A trigger frame response sent by the terminal according to the first trigger frame is received; A downlink physical layer protocol data unit (DL PPDU) is sent to the terminal, the DL PPDU includes a common information field, the common information field is used to carry a third parameter, the third parameter represents the data transmission bandwidth, so that the terminal determines the number of the subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal according to the first parameter, the second parameter, the third parameter, and first information stored in advance; the first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the number of the RU, and the number of the subcarrier; Acknowledgement (ACK) information sent by the terminal is received.

10. The method of any one of claims 2-6, wherein, The method further comprises the following steps: sending a second trigger frame to the terminal, the second trigger frame comprising a variant user information field, the variant user information field being used to carry a fourth parameter and a fifth parameter, so that the terminal determines the number of subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal according to the current data transmission bandwidth, the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter and pre-stored first information, the fourth parameter representing the number of the RU corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, the fifth parameter representing the first value, the first information representing the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the number of the RU and the number of the subcarriers, the first value being the sum of the second preset number and a second value; receiving an uplink physical protocol data unit (UL PPDU) sent by the terminal, the UL PPDU comprising a common information field, the common information field being used to carry a sixth parameter, the sixth parameter representing the data transmission bandwidth; determining the number of subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal according to the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter, the sixth parameter and the pre-stored first information; and sending ACK information to the terminal. The first preset number is 26.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, In the case of a data transmission bandwidth of 20 MHz, the second preset number is 3 or 8.

12. The method of any one of claims 2-6, wherein, In the case of a data transmission bandwidth of 40 MHz, the second preset number is 8 or 17. The method is applied to a terminal, and the method comprises:

13. A data transmission method, characterized by, performing data transmission with an AP through subcarriers contained in a resource unit (RU) corresponding to the terminal; wherein the RUs corresponding to different terminals are different, the subcarriers contained in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups, each subcarrier group contains a first preset number of subcarriers, and the subcarriers contained in each subcarrier group are spaced apart from other subcarriers in the subcarrier group. The method further comprises:

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, arranging the remaining subcarriers in the order of the number of the subcarriers, except for preset subcarriers that do not participate in the allocation of the subcarrier groups, among all the subcarriers; configuring a second preset number of subcarriers belonging to other subcarrier groups between every two subcarriers belonging to the same subcarrier group. The preset subcarriers that do not participate in the allocation of the RU units include preset idle subcarriers that do not participate in data transmission. The number of each subcarrier group is represented by the number of the first subcarrier, the number of the last subcarrier and a first value contained in the subcarrier group.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, The first value is the sum of the second preset number and a second value. The idle subcarriers are located in the middle of all the subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarriers are direct current (DC) subcarriers.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein, Idle subcarriers exist in the frontmost position, the last position and the middle position of all the subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarriers in the middle position are DC subcarriers.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein, A third preset number of idle subcarriers exist in the middle position of all the subcarriers in the transmission bandwidth, and the idle subcarriers other than the third preset number of idle subcarriers in the middle position are located at any position in all the subcarriers, and the idle subcarriers in the middle position are DC subcarriers.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein, ​ 19. The method of claim 13, wherein, The number of subcarrier groups contained in each RU is the same, and the number of subcarrier groups contained in different RUs is different. Every two subcarrier groups belonging to the same RU are separated by a fourth preset number of subcarrier groups belonging to other RUs.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein, The number of each RU is represented by the number of subcarrier groups contained in the RU.

21. The method of any one of claims 14-18, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving a first trigger frame sent by the AP; wherein the first trigger frame comprises a variant user information field, the variant user information field being used to carry a first parameter and a second parameter, the first parameter representing the number of the RU corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, and the second parameter representing a first value, the first value being the sum of the second preset number and a second value; replying to the AP with a trigger frame response; receiving a downlink physical layer protocol data unit (DL PPDU) sent by the AP, wherein the DL PPDU comprises a common information field, and the common information field is used to carry a third parameter representing the data transmission bandwidth; determining the number of subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal according to the first parameter, the second parameter, the third parameter, and first information stored in advance, wherein the first information represents the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the number of the RU, and the number of subcarriers; replying to the AP with an acknowledgement (ACK) information.

22. The method of any one of claims 14-18, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving a second trigger frame sent by the AP, wherein the second trigger frame comprises a variant user information field, and the variant user information field is used to carry a fourth parameter and a fifth parameter, the fourth parameter representing the number of the RU corresponding to the data transmission bandwidth, and the fifth parameter representing the first value, the first value being the sum of the second preset number and the second value; determining the number of subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal according to the current data transmission bandwidth, the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter, and the first information stored in advance; sending an uplink physical protocol data unit (UL PPDU) to the AP, wherein the UL PPDU comprises a common information field, and the common information field is used to carry a sixth parameter, so that the AP determines the number of subcarriers in the RU corresponding to the terminal based on the fourth parameter, the fifth parameter, the sixth parameter, and the first information stored in advance after receiving the sixth parameter, the sixth parameter representing the data transmission bandwidth, and the first information representing the correspondence between the data transmission bandwidth, the first value, the number of the RU, and the number of subcarriers; receiving an ACK information sent by the AP.

23. The method of any one of claims 13-20, wherein, The first preset number is 26.

24. The method of any one of claims 14-18, wherein, In the case of a data transmission bandwidth of 20 MHz, the second preset number is 3 or 8. In the case of a data transmission bandwidth of 40 MHz, the second preset number is 8 or 17.

25. An AP, comprising: The wireless access point (AP) comprises: a processor; a transceiver; a machine-readable storage medium storing machine-executable instructions executable by the processor; the machine-executable instructions cause the processor to perform the method steps of any one of claims 1-12.

26. A terminal, characterized by The terminal comprises: a processor; a transceiver; A machine-readable storage medium having stored machine executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the method steps of any of claims 13-24.

27. A data transmission device, characterized by The device is applied to a wireless access point (AP), and the device comprises: A first data transmission module is configured to perform data transmission with the terminal through subcarriers included in a resource unit (RU) corresponding to the terminal. Different terminals correspond to different RUs, and the subcarriers included in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups, each of which includes a first preset number of subcarriers, and the subcarriers included in each subcarrier group are spaced apart from other subcarriers in the subcarrier group.

28. A data transmission device, characterized by The device is applied to a terminal, and the device comprises: A second data transmission module is configured to perform data transmission with the AP through subcarriers included in a resource unit (RU) corresponding to the terminal. Different terminals correspond to different RUs, and the subcarriers included in the RU are divided into one or more subcarrier groups, each of which includes a first preset number of subcarriers, and the subcarriers included in each subcarrier group are spaced apart from other subcarriers in the subcarrier group.

29. A machine-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The machine executable instructions, when invoked and executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement the method of any of claims 1-12 or 13-24.

30. A computer program product, characterised in that, The computer program product causes the processor to implement the method of any of claims 1-12 or 13-24.

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