Method and device for associating aps for multi-AP framework in wireless LAN system

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an improved wireless LAN system. Specifically, the present disclosure relates to a method performed by a first AP in a wireless LAN system, the method comprising the steps of: transmitting, to a second AP, a first management frame for requesting M-AP association; and receiving, from the second AP, a second management frame including a response to the M-AP association.

Description

Method and device for combining APs for a multi-AP framework in a wireless LAN system

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a wireless local area network (WLAN) system. Specifically, the present disclosure relates to a method and apparatus for operating a Multi-AP (access point) in a wireless LAN system.

[0002] Wireless LAN (WLAN) systems are evolving for various purposes, such as improving transmission rates, increasing bandwidth, enhancing reliability, reducing errors, and reducing latency. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) publishes the 802.11 standard specification for wireless LAN systems, and the technology described in the 802.11 standard specification can be referred to as WiFi (or Wi-Fi, Wireless Fidelity).

[0003] Wi-Fi technology has evolved through several generations of 802.11 standards. For example, the 802.11ac standard covers improvements for VHT (very high throughput), the 802.11ax standard covers improvements for HE (high efficiency), and the 802.11be standard covers improvements for EHT (extreme high throughput).

[0004] Meanwhile, technologies to provide an improved wireless communication environment in wireless LAN systems are being discussed, and various technologies are being proposed and researched in response to the demand to further enhance the reliability of wireless LAN systems.

[0005] The present disclosure proposes a method and apparatus for association between APs for Multi-AP operation in a wireless LAN system. In particular, the present disclosure enables the performance of an association procedure between APs by sharing capability information among the APs for Multi-AP operation. Furthermore, through the association procedure between APs, the IDs of the APs and the ID of the M-AP can be set, respectively. Additionally, the present disclosure may define a new frame and elements included in the frame for the association procedure between APs.

[0006] The technical objectives to be achieved in this disclosure are not limited to those mentioned above, and other unmentioned technical problems may be considered by those skilled in the art from the embodiments of the present invention described below.

[0007] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a method performed by a first access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) system comprises the steps of: transmitting a first management frame to request a multi-AP association (M-AP association) to the second AP; and receiving a second management frame from the second AP that includes a response to the M-AP association, wherein the first management frame and the second management frame may include only an association identifier (AID) field, or may include the AID field and a management identifier (MID) field assigned to each M-AP session between the first AP and the second AP.

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a method performed by a second access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) system comprises the steps of receiving a first management frame from a first AP for requesting a multi-AP association, and transmitting a second management frame to the first AP that includes a response to the multi-AP association, wherein the first management frame and the second management frame may include only an association identifier (AID) field, or may include the AID field and a management identifier (MID) field assigned to each multi-AP session between the first AP and the second AP.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a first access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) system comprises a transceiver and at least one processor connected to said transceiver, said at least one processor is configured to transmit a first management frame to a second AP to request a multi-AP association, and to receive a second management frame from said second AP that includes a response to said M-AP association, said first management frame and said second management frame may include only an association identifier (AID) field, or may include said AID field and a management identifier (MID) field assigned to each M-AP session between said first AP and said second AP.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a second access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) system comprises a transceiver and at least one processor connected to the transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to receive a first management frame requesting a multi-AP association from a first AP and to transmit a second management frame containing a response to the multi-AP association to the first AP, and wherein the first management frame and the second management frame may include only an association identifier (AID) field, or may include the AID field and a management identifier (MID) field assigned to each multi-AP session between the first AP and the second AP.

[0011] According to the various embodiments proposed in this disclosure, by assigning a separate identifier to each specific Multi-AP operation between APs in a wireless LAN system, the management of Multi-AP operations in subsequent operations can be facilitated.

[0012] FIG. 1 illustrates the configuration of a device for wireless communication according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0013] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary structure of a wireless LAN system related to the present disclosure.

[0014] FIG. 3 illustrates a link setup process related to the present disclosure.

[0015] FIG. 4 illustrates a backoff operation related to the present disclosure.

[0016] FIG. 5 illustrates a CSMA / CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance) based frame transmission operation related to the present disclosure.

[0017] FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary format of a frame used in a wireless LAN system related to the present disclosure.

[0018] FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary format of a PPDU (physical layer protocol data unit) of a wireless LAN system related to the present disclosure.

[0019] FIG. 8 illustrates another exemplary format of a PPDU of a wireless LAN system related to the present disclosure.

[0020] FIG. 9 illustrates the configuration of a Multi-AP (multi-access point, M-AP) framework of a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0021] FIG. 10 illustrates the flow of signals for M-AP operation in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0022] FIG. 11 illustrates the configuration of an M-AP ID table in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0023] FIG. 12 illustrates the configuration of a management frame for an M-AP coupling procedure in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0024] FIG. 13 illustrates a configuration of an M-AP combination request element in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] FIG. 14 illustrates a configuration of an M-AP negotiation request element in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0026] FIG. 15 illustrates another configuration of an M-AP combination request element in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0027] FIG. 16 illustrates the configuration of the M-AP ID Request Mode field in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0028] FIG. 17 illustrates a configuration of an M-AP combined response element in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0029] FIG. 18 illustrates an M-AP framework in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0030] FIG. 19 illustrates an M-AP framework in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0031] FIG. 20 illustrates an M-AP framework in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0032] FIG. 21 illustrates an M-AP framework in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0033] FIG. 22 illustrates an example of the application of M-AP coupling and negotiation procedures in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0034] FIG. 23 illustrates an example of the application of M-AP coupling and negotiation procedures in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0035] FIG. 24 illustrates an example of the application of M-AP coupling and negotiation procedures in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0036] FIG. 25 illustrates the sequence of operations for M-AP coupling and negotiation procedures in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0037] Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that identical components in the accompanying drawings are represented by the same reference numerals whenever possible. Furthermore, detailed descriptions of known functions and configurations that may obscure the essence of the present disclosure will be omitted.

[0038] In describing the embodiments in this specification, technical details that are well known in the technical field to which this disclosure belongs and are not directly related to this disclosure are omitted. This is intended to convey the essence of this disclosure more clearly without obscuring it by omitting unnecessary explanations.

[0039] For the same reason, some components in the attached drawings have been exaggerated, omitted, or schematically depicted. Additionally, the size of each component does not entirely reflect its actual dimensions.

[0040] The advantages and features of the present disclosure and the methods for achieving them will become clear by referring to the embodiments described below in detail together with the accompanying drawings. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below but may be implemented in various different forms. The embodiments provided are merely to ensure that the disclosure of the present disclosure is complete and to fully inform those skilled in the art of the scope of the disclosure, and the present disclosure is defined only by the scope of the claims.

[0041] At this time, it will be understood that each block of the flowcharts and combinations of the flowcharts can be executed by computer program instructions. Since these computer program instructions can be loaded into the processor of a general-purpose computer, a specialized computer, or other programmable data processing equipment, the instructions executed through the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing equipment create means to perform the functions described in the flowchart block(s). Since these computer program instructions can also be stored in computer-available or computer-readable memory that can be directed toward the computer or other programmable data processing equipment to implement the function in a specific way, the instructions stored in computer-available or computer-readable memory can also produce a manufactured item containing instruction means to perform the function described in the flowchart block(s). Since computer program instructions can be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing equipment, instructions that perform a series of operation steps on the computer or other programmable data processing equipment to create a process executed by the computer can also provide steps for executing the functions described in the flowchart block(s).

[0042] Additionally, each block may represent a module, segment, or part of code containing one or more executable instructions for executing a specified logical function(s). It should also be noted that in some alternative execution examples, the functions mentioned in the blocks may occur out of order. For instance, two blocks described in succession may actually be executed substantially simultaneously, or the blocks may be executed in reverse order according to their corresponding functions.

[0043] In this embodiment, the term "part" refers to a software or hardware component, such as an FPGA or ASIC, and the "part" performs certain roles. However, the meaning of "part" is not limited to software or hardware. The "part" may be configured to reside in an addressable storage medium or configured to operate one or more processors. Accordingly, as an example, the "part" includes components such as software components, object-oriented software components, class components, and task components, as well as processes, functions, attributes, procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, microcode, circuits, data, databases, data structures, tables, arrays, and variables. The functions provided within the components and "parts" may be combined into a smaller number of components and "parts" or further separated into additional components and "parts." Furthermore, the components and "parts" may be implemented to operate one or more CPUs within a device or secure multimedia card.

[0044] In the present disclosure, when a component is described as being “connected,” “combined,” or “joined” with another component, this may include not only a direct connection but also an indirect connection in which another component exists between them. Furthermore, in the present disclosure, the terms “comprising” or “having” specify the presence of the mentioned features, steps, actions, elements, and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, actions, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0045] In the present disclosure, terms such as "first," "second," etc. are used solely for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another and are not used to limit the components, nor do they limit the order or importance of the components unless specifically stated otherwise. Accordingly, within the scope of the present disclosure, a first component in one embodiment may be referred to as a second component in another embodiment, and likewise, a second component in one embodiment may be referred to as a first component in another embodiment.

[0046] The terms used in this disclosure are for the description of specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the claims. As used in the description of embodiments and in the appended claims, the singular form is intended to include the plural form unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The term "and / or" as used in this disclosure may refer to one of the related enumerated items, or refers to and includes any and all possible combinations of two or more of them. Additionally, the " / " between words in this disclosure has the same meaning as "and / or" unless otherwise noted.

[0047] The embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to various wireless communication systems. For example, the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to wireless LAN systems. For example, the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to wireless LAN systems based on IEEE 802.11a / g / n / ac / ax / be standards. Furthermore, the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to wireless LAN systems based on the newly discussed IEEE 802.11bn (or UHR (ultra high reliability)) standards. Additionally, the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to next-generation wireless LAN systems based on standards after IEEE 802.11bn.

[0048] In addition, the examples of the present disclosure may be applied to cellular wireless communication systems. For example, the examples of the present disclosure may be applied to cellular wireless communication systems based on LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE-A (LTE advanced), and NR (New Radio) technologies based on 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) standard documents.

[0049] FIG. 1 illustrates the configuration of a device for wireless communication according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0050] The first device (100) and the second device (200) of FIG. 1 may be replaced with various terms such as terminal, wireless device, WTRU (Wireless Transmit and Receive Unit), UE (User Equipment), MS (Mobile Station), UT (user terminal), MSS (Mobile Subscriber Station), MSS (Mobile Subscriber Unit), SS (Subscriber Station), AMS (Advanced Mobile Station), WT (Wireless terminal), client terminal, or simply user.

[0051] In addition, the first device (100) and the second device (200) can be replaced with various terms such as Access Point (AP), Base Station (BS), fixed station, Node B, base transceiver system (BTS), network, Artificial Intelligence (AI) system, road side unit (RSU), repeater, router, relay, gateway, etc.

[0052] The device (100, 200) exemplified in FIG. 1 may be referred to as a station (STA). For example, the device (100, 200) exemplified in FIG. 1 may be referred to by various terms such as a transmitting device, a receiving device, a transmitting STA, or a receiving STA. For example, the STA (110, 200) may perform the role of an access point (AP) or a non-AP. That is, in the present disclosure, the STA (110, 200) may perform the functions of an AP and / or a non-AP. If the STA (110, 200) performs the AP function, it may simply be referred to as an AP, and if the STA (110, 200) performs the non-AP function, it may simply be referred to as a STA. Additionally, in the present disclosure, the AP may also be indicated as an AP STA.

[0053] Referring to FIG. 1, the first device (100) and the second device (200) can transmit and / or receive wireless signals through various wireless LAN technologies (e.g., technologies based on the IEEE 802.11 standard). The first device (100) and the second device (200) may include interfaces for the MAC (medium access control) layer and the PHY (physical) layer that comply with the specifications of the IEEE 802.11 standard.

[0054] In addition, the first device (100) and the second device (200) may additionally support various wireless communication technologies other than wireless LAN technology (e.g., 3GPP LTE, LTE-A, or technologies based on NR standard documents). In addition, the device of the present disclosure may be implemented as various devices such as mobile phones, vehicles, personal computers, AR (Augmented Reality) equipment, VR (Virtual Reality) equipment, etc. Furthermore, the STA of the present specification may support various communication services such as voice calls, video calls, data communication, autonomous driving, MTC (Machine-Type Communication), M2M (Machine-to-Machine), D2D (Device-to-Device), and IoT (Internet-of-Things).

[0055] The first device (100) includes one or more processors (102) and one or more memories (104), and may further include one or more transceivers (or transceivers, transceivers) (106) and / or one or more antennas (108). The processor (102) controls the memory (104) and / or transceivers (106) and may be configured to implement the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods and / or sequences of operation disclosed in this disclosure. For example, the processor (102) may process information within the memory (104) to generate first information and / or a first signal, and then transmit a wireless signal including the first information and / or the first signal through the transceiver (106). Additionally, the processor (102) may receive a wireless signal including second information and / or a second signal through a transceiver (106) and then store the information obtained through signal processing of the second information and / or the second signal in the memory (104). The memory (104) may be connected to the processor (102) and may store various information related to the operation of the processor (102). For example, the memory (104) may store software code including instructions for performing some or all of the processes controlled by the processor (102) or for performing the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods, and / or operation sequences disclosed in this disclosure. Here, the processor (102) and the memory (104) may be part of a communication modem / circuit / chip designed to implement wireless LAN technology (e.g., technology based on the IEEE 802.11 document). The transceiver (106) may be connected to the processor (102) and may transmit and / or receive wireless signals through one or more antennas (108). The transceiver (106) may include a transmitter and / or receiver. The transceiver (106) may be used in combination with an RF (Radio Frequency) unit.

[0056] The second device (200) includes one or more processors (202) and one or more memories (204), and may further include one or more transceivers (or transceivers) (206) and / or one or more antennas (208). The processor (202) controls the memory (204) and / or transceivers (206) and may be configured to implement the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods and / or sequences of operation disclosed in this disclosure. For example, the processor (202) may process information within the memory (204) to generate third information and / or a third signal, and then transmit a wireless signal including the third information and / or the third signal through the transceiver (206). Additionally, the processor (202) may receive a wireless signal including fourth information and / or a fourth signal through the transceiver (206), and then store information obtained through signal processing of the fourth information and / or the fourth signal in the memory (204). Memory (204) may be connected to the processor (202) and may store various information related to the operation of the processor (202). For example, memory (204) may store software code including instructions for performing some or all of the processes controlled by the processor (202) or for performing the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods, and / or sequences of operation disclosed in this disclosure. Here, the processor (202) and memory (204) may be part of a communication modem / circuit / chip designed to implement wireless LAN technology (e.g., technology based on the IEEE 802.11 document). A transceiver (206) may be connected to the processor (202) and may transmit and / or receive wireless signals through one or more antennas (208). The transceiver (206) may include a transmitter and / or receiver. The transceiver (206) may be used interchangeably with an RF unit.

[0057] Hereinafter, the hardware elements of the device (100, 200) will be described in more detail. Although not limited to the following, the operation of one or more protocol layers may be implemented by one or more processors (102, 202). For example, one or more processors (102, 202) may implement the operation of one or more layers (e.g., functional layers such as PHY, MAC). One or more processors (102, 202) may generate one or more Protocol Data Units (PDUs) and / or Service Data Units (SDUs) according to the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods, and / or operation sequences disclosed in this disclosure. One or more processors (102, 202) may generate messages, control information, data, or information according to the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods, and / or operation sequences disclosed in this disclosure. One or more processors (102, 202) may generate a signal (e.g., a baseband signal) including a PDU, SDU, message, control information, data, traffic, or information according to the functions, procedures, proposals, and / or methods disclosed in this disclosure and provide it to one or more transceivers (106, 206). One or more processors (102, 202) may receive a signal (e.g., a baseband signal) from one or more transceivers (106, 206) and may obtain a PDU, SDU, message, control information, data, traffic, or information according to the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods, and / or flowcharts disclosed in this disclosure.

[0058] One or more memories (104, 204) may be connected to one or more processors (102, 202) and may store various forms of data, signals, messages, information, programs, codes, instructions, and / or commands. One or more memories (104, 204) may be composed of ROM (read-only memory), RAM (random access memory), EPROM (erasable programmable ROM), EEPROM (electronically EPROM), flash memory, hard drive, registers, cache memory, computer-readable storage media, and / or combinations thereof. One or more memories (104, 204) may be located inside and / or outside of one or more processors (102, 202). Additionally, one or more memories (104, 204) may be connected to one or more processors (102, 202) through various technologies such as wired or wireless connections.

[0059] One or more transceivers (106, 206) may transmit user data, control information, data, traffic, wireless signals, and / or channels, etc., as mentioned in the methods and / or operation flowcharts, etc., of the present disclosure to one or more other devices. One or more transceivers (106, 206) may receive user data, control information, data, traffic, wireless signals, and / or channels, etc., as mentioned in the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods, and / or operation flowcharts, etc., disclosed in the present disclosure from one or more other devices. For example, one or more transceivers (106, 206) may be connected to one or more processors (102, 202) and may transmit and receive wireless signals. For example, one or more processors (102, 202) may control one or more transceivers (106, 206) to transmit user data, control information, traffic, wireless signals, and / or channels to one or more other devices. Additionally, one or more processors (102, 202) may control one or more transceivers (106, 206) to receive user data, control information, traffic, wireless signals and / or channels from one or more other devices. Additionally, one or more transceivers (106, 206) may be connected to one or more antennas (108, 208), and one or more transceivers (106, 206) may be configured to transmit and receive user data, control information, traffic, wireless signals and / or channels, etc., as described in the descriptions, functions, procedures, proposals, methods and / or flowcharts, etc. disclosed in this disclosure through one or more antennas (108, 208). In this disclosure, one or more antennas (108, 208) may be a plurality of physical antennas or a plurality of logical antennas (e.g., antenna ports).One or more transceivers (106, 206) can convert received wireless signals / channels, etc. from RF band signals to baseband signals in order to process received user data, control information, wireless signals / channels, etc. using one or more processors (102, 202). One or more transceivers (106, 206) can convert processed user data, control information, wireless signals / channels, etc. from baseband signals to RF band signals using one or more processors (102, 202). To this end, one or more transceivers (106, 206) may include (analog) oscillators and / or filters.

[0060] According to one example, one of the devices (100, 200) may perform the intended operation of an AP, and the other of the devices (100, 200) may perform the intended operation of a non-AP STA. As another example, the transceiver (106, 206) of FIG. 1 may perform the transmission and / or reception operation of a signal (e.g., a packet or PPDU (physical layer protocol data unit) according to IEEE 802.11a / b / g / n / ac / ax / be / bn, etc.).

[0061] In addition, in the present disclosure, the operation of generating transmission and reception signals or performing data processing or calculations in advance for transmission and reception signals by various STAs can be performed in the processor (102, 202) of FIG. 1. For example, examples of operations for generating transmit / receive signals or performing data processing or operations in advance for transmit / receive signals include: 1) operations for determining / acquiring / configuring / operating / decoding / encoding bit information of fields included in the PPDU (e.g., SIG (signal), STF (short training field), LTF (long training field), Data, etc.); 2) operations for determining / configuring / acquiring time resources or frequency resources (e.g., subcarrier resources) used for fields included in the PPDU (e.g., SIG, STF, LTF, Data, etc.); 3) operations for determining / configuring / acquiring specific sequences (e.g., pilot sequence, STF / LTF sequence, extra sequence applied to SIG) used for fields included in the PPDU (e.g., SIG, STF, LTF, Data, etc.); 4) power control operations and / or power saving operations applied to the STA; and 5) of the ACK (acknowledgement) signal. It may include operations related to determination / acquisition / configuration / operation / decoding / encoding, etc. In addition, in the following example, various information (e.g., information related to fields / subfields / control fields / parameters / power, etc.) used by various STAs for determination / acquisition / configuration / operation / decoding / encoding of transmission and reception signals may be stored in the memory (104, 204) of FIG. 1.

[0062] In the following, the downlink (DL) refers to a link for communication from an AP STA to a non-AP STA, and downlink PPDUs, packets, signals, etc., can be transmitted and received through the downlink. In downlink communication, the transmitter may be part of the AP STA, and the receiver may be part of the non-AP STA. The uplink (UL) refers to a link for communication from a non-AP STA to an AP STA, and uplink PPDUs, packets, signals, etc., can be transmitted and received through the uplink. In uplink communication, the transmitter may be part of the non-AP STA, and the receiver may be part of the AP STA.

[0063] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary structure of a wireless LAN system related to the present disclosure.

[0064] A wireless LAN system may have a structure composed of multiple components. Through the interaction of these multiple components, the wireless LAN system can support transparent STA mobility relative to the upper layer. A Basic Service Set (BSS) corresponds to the basic building block of a wireless LAN. Figure 2 exemplarily illustrates the existence of two BSSs (BSS 1 and BSS 2), each containing two STAs as members (STA 1 and STA 2 are included in BSS 1, and STA 3 and STA 4 are included in BSS 2). In Figure 2, the ellipse representing the BSS can also be understood as representing the coverage area where the STAs included in the corresponding BSS maintain communication. This area can be referred to as a Basic Service Area (BSA). If a STA moves outside the BSA, it cannot communicate directly with other STAs within that BSA.

[0065] Excluding the distributed system (DS) illustrated in Fig. 2, the most basic type of BSS in a wireless LAN is the Independent BSS (IBSS). For example, an IBSS can have a minimal form consisting of only two STAs. For instance, assuming other components are omitted, a BSS 1 composed of only STA 1 and STA 2, or a BSS 2 composed of only STA 3 and STA 4, can each be considered a representative example of an IBSS. Such a configuration is possible when the STAs can communicate directly without an AP. Furthermore, this type of wireless LAN is not configured through pre-planning but can be established when a LAN (local area network) is required, and it may also be referred to as an ad-hoc network. Since an IBSS does not include an AP, there is no centralized management entity. In other words, in an IBSS, STAs are managed in a distributed manner. In IBSS, all STAs can be mobile STAs, and since connections to DS are not allowed, they form a self-contained network.

[0066] The membership of an STA in a BSS can be dynamically changed by the STA being turned on or off, or by the STA entering or leaving the BSS area. To become a member of a BSS, an STA can join the BSS using a synchronization process. To access all services of the BSS infrastructure, an STA must be associated with the BSS. This association can be configured dynamically and may include the use of a Distribution System Service (DSS).

[0067] In a wireless LAN, the direct STA-to-STA distance can be limited by PHY performance. In some cases, this distance limit may be sufficient, but in others, communication between STAs over longer distances may be required. A DS can be configured to support extended coverage.

[0068] DS refers to a structure in which BSSs are interconnected. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, a BSS may exist as a component in an extended form of a network composed of multiple BSSs. DS is a logical concept and can be specified by the characteristics of the Distributed System Medium (DSM, DS medium). In this regard, the Wireless Medium (WM) and the DSM can be logically distinguished. Each logical medium is used for a different purpose and is utilized by different components. These media are not limited to being identical or different. The flexibility of the wireless LAN structure (DS structure or other network structure) can be explained by the fact that multiple media are logically distinct in this way. That is, the wireless LAN structure can be implemented in various ways, and the corresponding wireless LAN structure can be independently specified by the physical characteristics of each implementation.

[0069] DS can support mobile devices by providing seamless integration of multiple BSSs and providing logical services necessary for handling addresses to destinations. Additionally, DS may include a component called a portal that acts as a bridge for connecting the wireless LAN with other networks (e.g., IEEE 802.X).

[0070] An AP enables access to the DS via the WM for non-AP STAs coupled with it. An AP can refer to an entity that also possesses the functionality of an STA, and data movement between the BSS and the DS can be performed through the AP. For example, STA 2 and STA 3 shown in FIG. 2 possess the functionality of an STA and provide the function of enabling coupled non-AP STAs (STA 1 and STA 4) to access the DS. Furthermore, since all APs fundamentally correspond to STAs, all APs are addressable entities. The address used by the AP for communication on the WM and the address used by the AP for communication on the DSM do not necessarily have to be the same. A BSS composed of an AP and one or more STAs can be referred to as an infrastructure BSS.

[0071] Data transmitted from one of the STA(s) coupled to the AP to the STA address of the AP can always be received at an uncontrolled port and processed by an IEEE 802.1X port access entity. Additionally, if the controlled port is authenticated, the transmitted data (or frame) can be forwarded to the DS.

[0072] In addition to the structure of the aforementioned DS, an Extended Service Set (ESS) may be configured to provide wider coverage.

[0073] An ESS is a network of arbitrary size and complexity that can correspond to a set of BSSs connected to a single DS. However, an ESS does not contain a DS. An ESS network is characterized by appearing as an IBSS at the Logical Link Control (LLC) layer. STAs included in an ESS can communicate with each other, and mobile STAs can move from one BSS to another (i.e., within the same ESS) transparently to the LLC. APs included in a single ESS can have the same Service Set Identifier (SSID). The SSID is distinguished from the BSSID (BSS SSID), which is the identifier of the BSS.

[0074] In wireless LAN systems, no assumptions are made regarding the relative physical locations of BSSs, and all of the following forms are possible. BSSs may partially overlap, which is a form commonly used to provide continuous coverage. Additionally, BSSs may not be physically connected, and logically, there is no limit to the distance between BSSs. Furthermore, BSSs may be located in the same physical location, which can be used to provide redundancy. Additionally, one or more IBSS or ESS networks may physically exist in the same space as one (or more) ESS networks. This may apply to ESS network configurations where an ad-hoc network operates at a location where an ESS network exists, where wireless networks are physically overlapping by different organizations, or where two or more different access and security policies are required at the same location.

[0075] FIG. 3 illustrates a link setup process related to the present disclosure.

[0076] In order for an STA to set up links and transmit and receive data on a network, it must discover the network through an AP, perform authentication, establish an association, and set up security. The link setup process can also be referred to as the session initiation process or the session setup process. Additionally, the processes of discovery, authentication, association, and security setup within the link setup process can be collectively referred to as the association process.

[0077] In step 310, the STA can perform a network discovery operation. The network discovery operation may include the STA's scanning operation. That is, in order for the STA to access a network, it must find a network it can join. Before joining a wireless network, the STA must identify a compatible network, and the process of identifying networks existing in a specific area is called scanning.

[0078] Scanning methods include active scanning and passive scanning. Figure 3 illustrates a network discovery operation that includes an active scanning process as an example. In active scanning, the STA performing the scanning moves between channels to search for nearby APs, transmits a probe request frame, and waits for a response. The responder transmits a probe response frame as a response to the probe request frame to the STA that transmitted the probe request frame. Here, the responder may be the STA that last transmitted a beacon frame from the BSS of the channel being scanned. In a BSS, the AP becomes the responder because it transmits the beacon frame; however, in an IBSS, the responder is not constant because STAs within the IBSS take turns transmitting the beacon frame. For example, an STA that transmits a probe request frame on channel 1 and receives a probe response frame on channel 1 can store BSS-related information included in the received probe response frame and move to the next channel (e.g., channel 2) to perform scanning in the same way (i.e., transmit and receive probe request / response on channel 2).

[0079] Although not illustrated in FIG. 3, the scanning operation may be performed using a passive scanning method. In passive scanning, the STA performing the scanning waits for a beacon frame while switching between channels. A beacon frame is one of the management frames defined in IEEE 802.11, which announces the presence of a wireless network and is periodically transmitted to allow the scanning STA to find the wireless network and join it. In a BSS, the AP performs the role of periodically transmitting beacon frames, and in an IBSS, the STAs within the IBSS take turns transmitting beacon frames. When the scanning STA receives a beacon frame, it stores the information about the BSS included in the beacon frame and records the beacon frame information in each channel while moving to another channel. The STA that receives the beacon frame stores the BSS-related information included in the received beacon frame, moves to the next channel, and can perform scanning in the next channel in the same way. When comparing active scanning and passive scanning, active scanning has the advantage of lower delay and power consumption than passive scanning.

[0080] After the STA discovers the network, an authentication process can be performed in step 320. This authentication process may be referred to as the first authentication process to clearly distinguish it from the security setup operation in step 340 described later.

[0081] The authentication process involves the STA sending an authentication request frame to the AP, and the AP sending an authentication response frame to the STA in response. The authentication request frame and the authentication response frame used in the authentication process belong to management frames.

[0082] The authentication frame may include information regarding the authentication algorithm number, authentication transaction sequence number, status code, challenge text, Robust Security Network (RSN), Finite Cyclic Group, etc. These are some examples of information that may be included in the authentication request / response frame, and they may be replaced with other information or additional information may be included.

[0083] The STA can send an authentication request frame to the AP. Based on the information contained in the received authentication request frame, the AP can determine whether to allow authentication for the STA. The AP can provide the result of the authentication process to the STA through an authentication response frame.

[0084] After the STA is successfully authenticated, the association process can be performed in step 330. The association process includes the STA sending an association request frame to the AP, and in response, the AP sending an association response frame to the STA.

[0085] The association request frame may include information regarding various capabilities, beacon listen interval, service set identifier (SSID), supported rates, supported channels, robust security network (RSN), mobility domain, supported operating classes, Traffic Indication Map Broadcast request, interworking service capabilities, etc. For example, the association response frame may include information regarding various capabilities, status code, Association ID (AID), supported rates, Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) parameter set, Received Channel Power Indicator (RCPI), Received Signal to Noise Indicator (RSNI), mobility domain, timeout interval (e.g., association comeback time), overlapping BSS scan parameters, TIM broadcast response, Quality of Service (QoS) map, etc. These are some examples of information that may be included in a combined request / response frame, and the combined request / response frame may include other additional information.

[0086] After the STA is successfully joined to the network through the AP, the security setup process can be performed in step 340. The security setup process in step 340 may include an authentication process through RSNA (Robust Security Network Association) requests and responses. Additionally, if the authentication process in step 320 is referred to as the first authentication process, the security setup process in step 340 may also be referred to simply as the authentication process.

[0087] The security setup process of step 340 may include, for example, a private key setup process through a 4-way handshake via an EAPOL (Extensible Authentication Protocol over LAN) frame. Additionally, the security setup process may be performed according to a security method not defined in the IEEE 802.11 standard.

[0088] FIG. 4 illustrates a backoff operation related to the present disclosure.

[0089] In wireless LAN systems, the basic access mechanism of a MAC is the CSMA / CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance) mechanism. The CSMA / CA mechanism is also known as the Distributed Coordination Function (DCF) of IEEE 802.11 MACs, and it basically employs a "listen before talk" access mechanism. According to this type of access mechanism, the AP and / or STA perform Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) to sense the wireless channel or medium for a predetermined time interval (e.g., DIFS (DCF Inter-Frame Space)) before starting transmission. If the sensing result determines that the medium is in an idle status, the AP and / or STA start transmitting a frame through that medium. On the other hand, if the medium is detected to be occupied or busy, the AP and / or STA may not start their own transmission but wait for a predetermined delay period for medium access (e.g., a random backoff period) before attempting to transmit a frame. By applying a random backoff period, multiple STAs attempt to transmit frames after waiting for different periods of time, thereby minimizing collisions.

[0090] In addition, the IEEE 802.11 MAC protocol provides a Hybrid Coordination Function (HCF). The HCF is based on the aforementioned Point Coordination Function (PCF). The PCF is a polling-based synchronous access method that refers to a method of periodically polling so that all receiving APs and / or STAs can receive data frames. Furthermore, the HCF includes Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) and Controlled Channel Access (HCCA). EDCA is a contention-based access method for a provider to provide data frames to multiple users, while HCCA uses a non-contention-based channel access method utilizing a polling mechanism. Additionally, the HCF includes a media access mechanism to improve the Quality of Service (QoS) of a wireless LAN and can transmit QoS data during both the Contention Period (CP) and the Contention-Free Period (CFP).

[0091] With reference to FIG. 4, the operation based on the random backoff period is described. When a medium that was in an occupied / busy state changes to an idle state, multiple STAs may attempt to transmit data (or frames). As a measure to minimize collisions, each STA may select a random backoff count and wait for the corresponding slot time before attempting transmission. The random backoff count has a pseudo-random integer value and can be determined as one of the values ​​in the range from 0 to CW. Here, CW is the Contention Window parameter value. The CW parameter is given an initial value of CWmin, but in the event of transmission failure (e.g., failure to receive an ACK for a transmitted frame), the STA may double the CW. When the CW parameter value reaches CWmax, the STA may attempt to transmit data while maintaining the CWmax value until data transmission is successful, and if data transmission is successful, the CW is reset to the CWmin value. The values ​​of CW, CWmin, and CWmax can be set to 2n-1 (n=0, 1, 2, ...).

[0092] When the random backoff process begins, the STA continues to monitor the media while counting down the backoff slots according to the determined backoff count value. When the media is monitored as occupied, it stops the countdown and waits, and when the media becomes idle, it resumes the remaining countdown.

[0093] In the example of Fig. 4, when a packet to be transmitted arrives at the MAC of STA3, STA3 confirms that the medium is idle for DIFS and can immediately transmit the frame. The remaining STAs monitor whether the medium is occupied or idle and wait. Meanwhile, data to be transmitted may also arise at each of STA1, STA2, and STA5, and each STA, once it confirms that the medium is idle, waits for DIFS and then performs a countdown of the backoff slot according to a random backoff count value selected by each. Assume the case where STA2 selects the smallest backoff count value and STA1 selects the largest backoff count value. That is, it exemplifies a case where, at the point when STA2 finishes the backoff count and starts transmitting the frame, the remaining backoff time of STA5 is shorter than the remaining backoff time of STA1. STA1 and STA5 pause the countdown briefly and wait while STA2 occupies the medium. When STA2's possession ends and the medium becomes idle again, STA1 and STA5 wait for DIFS and then resume the paused backoff count. That is, STA1 and STA5 can start frame transmission after counting down the remaining backoff slots corresponding to the remaining backoff time. Since STA5's remaining backoff time was shorter than STA1's, STA5 starts frame transmission. Data to be transmitted may also occur in STA4 while STA2 is occupying the medium. When the medium becomes idle, STA4 waits for DIFS, performs a countdown based on a random backoff count value selected by itself, and can start frame transmission. The example in Figure 4 illustrates a case where STA5's remaining backoff time happens to match STA4's random backoff count value; in this case, a collision may occur between STA4 and STA5. If a collision occurs, neither STA4 nor STA5 receives an ACK, resulting in a failure of data transmission.In this case, STA4 and STA5 can double the CW value, select a random backoff count value, and perform a countdown. STA1 waits while the medium is occupied due to the transmission of STA4 and STA5, and when the medium becomes idle, it waits for DIFS, and then can start transmitting frames after the remaining backoff time has elapsed.

[0094] As shown in the example in Fig. 4, a data frame is a frame used for transmitting data to an upper layer and can be transmitted after a backoff performed after the elapsed time of DIFS from when the medium becomes idle. Additionally, a management frame is a frame used for exchanging management information without being transmitted to an upper layer, and is transmitted after a backoff performed after the elapsed time of an IFS such as DIFS or PIFS (Point coordination function IFS). A management frame may include a beacon, association request / response, re-association request / response, probe request / response, authentication request / response, etc., as a subtype frame. A control frame is a frame used to control access to the medium. A control frame is a subtype frame and may include a Request-To-Send (RTS), Clear-To-Send (CTS), Acknowledgment (ACK), Power Save-Poll (PS-Poll), Block ACK (B-ACK or BlockAck), Block ACK Request (BlockACKReq), Null Data Packet Announcement (NDP), Trigger, etc. If the control frame is not an acknowledgment frame of the previous frame, it is transmitted after a backoff performed after the elapsed DIFS; if it is an acknowledgment frame of the previous frame, it is transmitted after the short IFS (SIFS) elapsed without a backoff. The type and subtype of the frame can be identified by the type field and subtype field within the frame control (FC) field.

[0095] A QoS (Quality of Service) STA can transmit a frame after backoff, which is performed after the elapsed time of the arbitration IFS (AIFS) for the access category (AC) to which the frame belongs, i.e., AIFS[i] (where i is a value determined by the AC). Here, the frames for which AIFS[i] can be used can be data frames, management frames, and control frames rather than response frames.

[0096] FIG. 5 illustrates a CSMA / CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance) based frame transmission operation related to the present disclosure.

[0097] As previously mentioned, the CSMA / CA mechanism includes virtual carrier sensing in addition to physical carrier sensing, where the STA directly senses the medium. Virtual carrier sensing is intended to mitigate problems that may occur in medium access, such as the hidden node problem. For virtual carrier sensing, the STA's MAC can utilize the Network Allocation Vector (NAV). The NAV is a value that indicates to other STAs the time remaining until the medium becomes available, provided that the STA currently using or authorized to use the medium is using it. Therefore, the value set as the NAV corresponds to the period during which the medium is scheduled to be used by the STA transmitting the frame, and the STA receiving the NAV value is prohibited from accessing the medium during that period. For example, the NAV can be set based on the value of the "duration" field in the frame's MAC header.

[0098] In the example of FIG. 5, STA1 wants to transmit data to STA2, and STA3 is in a position to overhear part or all of the frames transmitted and received between STA1 and STA2.

[0099] In order to reduce the possibility of collisions between multiple STAs in a CSMA / CA-based frame transmission operation, a mechanism utilizing RTS / CTS frames may be applied. In the example of FIG. 5, while STA1 is transmitting, the medium may be determined to be idle based on the carrier sensing result of STA3. That is, STA1 may be a hidden node to STA3. Alternatively, in the example of FIG. 5, while STA2 is transmitting, the medium may be determined to be idle based on the carrier sensing result of STA3. That is, STA2 may be a hidden node to STA3. By exchanging RTS / CTS frames before performing data transmission and reception between STA1 and STA2, it is possible to prevent a STA outside the transmission range of either STA1 or STA2, or a STA outside the carrier sensing range for transmission from STA1 or STA3, from attempting to occupy the channel during data transmission and reception between STA1 and STA2.

[0100] Specifically, STA1 can determine whether the channel is in use through carrier sensing. In terms of physical carrier sensing, STA1 can determine the channel occupancy idle state based on the energy magnitude or signal correlation detected in the channel. Additionally, in terms of virtual carrier sensing, STA1 can determine the channel occupancy state using a NAV timer.

[0101] If the channel is idle during DIFS, STA1 can send an RTS frame to STA2 after performing backoff. If STA2 receives the RTS frame, it can send a CTS frame to STA1 as a response to the RTS frame after SIFS.

[0102] If STA3 cannot overhear a CTS frame from STA2 but can overhear an RTS frame from STA1, STA3 can set a NAV timer for the duration of subsequent consecutive frame transmissions (e.g., SIFS + CTS frame + SIFS + data frame + SIFS + ACK frame) using the duration information included in the RTS frame. Alternatively, if STA3 cannot overhear an RTS frame from STA1 but can overhear a CTS frame from STA2, STA3 can set a NAV timer for the duration of subsequent consecutive frame transmissions (e.g., SIFS + data frame + SIFS + ACK frame) using the duration information included in the CTS frame. That is, if STA3 can overhear one or more of the RTS or CTS frames from one or more of STA1 or STA2, it can set a NAV accordingly. If STA3 receives a new frame before the NAV timer expires, it can update the NAV timer using the duration information contained in the new frame. STA3 does not attempt channel access until the NAV timer expires.

[0103] If STA1 receives a CTS frame from STA2, it may transmit a data frame to STA2 after SIFS from the time the reception of the CTS frame is completed. If STA2 successfully receives the data frame, it may transmit an ACK frame, which is an acknowledgment of the data frame, to STA1 after SIFS. STA3 may determine whether the channel is in use through carrier sensing when the NAV timer expires. If STA3 determines that the channel is not in use by another terminal during DIFS from the time the NAV timer expires, it may attempt channel access after a contention window (CW) based on random backoff has passed.

[0104] FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary format of a frame used in a wireless LAN system related to the present disclosure.

[0105] Based on instructions or primitives (meaning a set of instructions or parameters) from the MAC layer, the PHY layer can prepare the MPDU (MAC PDU) to be transmitted. When the PHY layer receives an instruction from the MAC layer requesting the start of transmission, it switches to transmission mode and can construct the information provided by the MAC layer (e.g., data) into a frame and transmit it. Additionally, if the PHY layer detects a valid preamble of the received frame, it can monitor the preamble header and send an instruction to the MAC layer indicating the start of reception.

[0106] As such, information transmission and reception in wireless LAN systems are carried out in the form of frames, and for this purpose, the Physical Layer Protocol Data Unit (PPDU) frame format is defined.

[0107] A basic PPDU frame may include a short training field (STF), a long training field (LTF), a signal field (SIG), and a data field. The most basic (e.g., non-HT (high throughput)) PPDU frame format may consist only of a legacy-STF (Legacy-STF), a greenfield field (Legacy-LTF), a signal field, and a data field. Additionally, depending on the type of PPDU frame format (e.g., HT-mixed format PPDU, HT-greenfield format PPDU, VHT (very high throughput) PPDU, etc.), additional (or different types of) STF, LTF, and signal fields may be included between the signal field and the data field. Specific types of frame formats will be described later in FIG. 7.

[0108] STF is a signal for signal detection, AGC (automatic gain control), diversity selection, and precise time synchronization, while LTF is a signal for channel estimation and frequency error estimation. STF and LTF are signals for synchronization and channel estimation in the physical layer of OFDM (orthogonal frequency division multiplexing).

[0109] The SIG field may include a RATE field and a LENGTH field, etc. The RATE field may include information regarding the modulation and coding rates of the data. The LENGTH field may include information regarding the length of the data. Additionally, the SIG field may include a parity bit, a SIG TAIL bit, etc.

[0110] The data field may include a SERVICE field, a PSDU (physical layer service data unit), and PPDU TAIL bits, and may also include padding bits if necessary. Some bits of the SERVICE field may be used for synchronization of the descrambler at the receiver. The PSDU corresponds to a MAC PDU defined at the MAC layer and may contain data generated or used by the upper layer. The PPDU TAIL bits may be used to return the encoder to a 0 state. Padding bits may be used to adjust the length of the data field to a predetermined unit.

[0111] A MAC PDU is defined according to various MAC frame formats, and a basic MAC frame consists of a MAC header, a frame body, and a frame check sequence (FCS). A MAC frame is composed of a MAC PDU and can be transmitted or received through the PSDU of the data portion of the PPDU frame format.

[0112] The MAC header includes a frame control field, a duration / ID field, an address field, etc. The frame control field may contain control information necessary for frame transmission / reception. The duration / ID field may be set as the time for transmitting the corresponding frame, etc. The specific details of the Sequence Control, QoS Control, and HT Control subfields of the MAC header are omitted.

[0113] Although not illustrated in Fig. 6, the null-data packet (NDP) frame format refers to a frame format that does not include data packets. That is, an NDP frame refers to a frame format that includes the PLCP (physical layer convergence procedure) header portion (i.e., STF, LTF, and SIG fields) in a standard PPDU frame format, but excludes the remaining portion (i.e., data fields). An NDP frame may also be referred to as a short frame format.

[0114] FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary format of a PPDU (physical layer protocol data unit) of a wireless LAN system related to the present disclosure.

[0115] Various forms of PPDU are used in standards such as IEEE 802.11a / g / n / ac / ax / be. The basic PPDU format (the format of IEEE 802.11a / g) includes L-LTF, L-STF, L-SIG, and Data fields. The basic PPDU format may also be referred to as the non-HT PPDU format.

[0116] The HT PPDU format (the format of IEEE 802.11n) additionally includes HT-SIG, HT-STF, and HT-LFT(s) fields in addition to the basic PPDU format. The HT PPDU format illustrated in Fig. 7 can be referred to as the HT-mixed format. Although not illustrated, an HT-greenfield format PPDU may be defined, which is a format that does not include L-STF, L-LTF, and L-SIG, but consists of HT-GF-STF, HT-LTF1, HT-SIG, one or more HT-LTFs, and Data fields.

[0117] The VHT PPDU format (the format of IEEE 802.11ac) additionally includes VHT SIG-A, VHT-STF, VHT-LTF, and VHT-SIG-B fields in addition to the basic PPDU format.

[0118] The HE PPDU format (the format of IEEE 802.11ax) additionally includes the RL-SIG (Repeated L-SIG), HE-SIG-A, HE-SIG-B, HE-STF, HE-LTF(s), and PE (Packet Extension) fields in addition to the basic PPDU format. Depending on specific examples of the HE PPDU format, some fields may be excluded or their lengths may vary. For example, the HE-SIG-B field is included in the HE PPDU format for multi-user (MU), but is not included in the HE PPDU format for single-user (SU). Additionally, the HE trigger-based (TB) PPDU format does not include HE-SIG-B, and the length of the HE-STF field may vary to 8 μs. The HE ER (Extended Range) SU PPDU format does not include the HE-SIG-B field, and the length of the HE-SIG-A field may vary to 16 μs.

[0119] FIG. 8 illustrates another exemplary format of a PPDU of a wireless LAN system related to the present disclosure.

[0120] The EHT PPDU format of FIG. 8 (format of IEEE 802.11be) may include the EHT MU PPDU format and the EHT TB PPDU format. The EHT MU PPDU format corresponds to a PPDU that carries one or more data (or PSDU) for one or more users. The EHT MU PPDU may be used for both SU transmission and MU transmission, and the EHT MU PPDU may correspond to a PPDU for one receiving STA or multiple receiving STAs. The EHT-SIG is omitted in the EHT TB PPDU compared to the EHT MU PPDU. A STA that receives a trigger for UL MU transmission (e.g., a trigger frame or an RTS frame) may perform UL transmission based on the EHT TB PPDU format.

[0121] The EHT PPDU format additionally includes RL-SIG, U-SIG (Universal SIG), EHT-SIG, EHT-STF, EHT-LTF(s), and PE fields in addition to the basic PPDU format. Depending on the specific examples of the EHT PPDU format, some fields may be excluded or their lengths may vary. For example, depending on the previously described EHT MU PPDU format and EHT TB PPDU format, some fields of the EHT PPDU format may be included or excluded, or the length of specific fields may vary.

[0122] Meanwhile, the present disclosure describes a series of operations for assigning a Management ID (MID) through association or connection among a plurality of APs. More specifically, seamless communication between APs is required to perform coordination operations among APs, such as Coordinated Time Division Multiple Access (C-TDMA), Coordinated Restricted Target Awake Time (CR-TWT), Coordinated Spatial Reuse (C-SR), or Coordinated Beamforming (C-BF). Furthermore, the aforementioned coordination operations among APs may include functions for negotiating an operating mode or power saving mode scheduling by cooperating among APs, such as Coordinated Operating Mode Negotiation or Coordinated Power Saving Scheduling. At this time, as in the examples described above, cooperative operation between APs may be referred to as Multi-AP (M-AP or MAP, hereinafter referred to as M-AP), Coordinated-AP (C-AP), or Multi-AP Coordination (MAPC, or MAP-C), and for smooth M-AP operation, an operation or process for communication between APs may be referred to. Hereinafter, in the present disclosure, the cooperative operation between APs described above may be referred to as M-AP, but is not limited to this designation.

[0123] Additionally, the M-AP operation described in this disclosure may be performed in a single AP pair or an AP group comprising multiple APs. Accordingly, in the embodiments described below, at least these APs performing the M-AP operation may form a single AP pair or a single AP group.

[0124] FIG. 9 illustrates the configuration of a Multi-AP framework of a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0125] Referring to Fig. 9, in 802.11bn, the procedure for each AP to share or inform each other of the M-AP capabilities they support (hereinafter referred to as advertisement) and to negotiate or agree on which M-AP scheme to use can be defined as a general M-AP framework.

[0126] More specifically, in step 910, an advertisement of M-AP capability may broadcast or announce information regarding each AP's M-AP capability through a management frame. Additionally, the management frame for the advertisement of M-AP capability may be referred to as an M-AP capability advertisement frame. Thus, M-AP capability may be shared or exchanged between at least two APs (hereinafter referred to as AP1, AP2, and AP3) in an unencrypted state. Furthermore, the broadcasted M-AP capability of a specific AP may be discovered by at least one other AP. Thus, information related to M-AP between APs may be identified by the advertisement of M-AP capability. For example, an AP may identify information regarding whether at least one other AP supports M-AP or the M-AP operation status. In one embodiment, an AP may identify at least one other AP that will participate in M-AP operation. In one embodiment, APs participating in an M-AP operation may identify which M-AP operation (e.g., M-AP scheme) to perform based on information regarding the discovered M-AP capability. Of course, the M-AP scheme may be determined in a step after step 910 (e.g., an ICF (initial control frame) / ICR (initial control response) exchange operation at the TXOP (transmission opportunity) level).

[0127] In step 920, based on the M-AP capabilities exchanged between the APs, the APs may perform authentication. The authentication operation in step 920 may include an authentication procedure to determine whether M-AP operations can be performed between the APs. The authentication operation in step 920 may be WP3 (Wi-Fi Protected Access 3) based authentication. An AP may enhance security through the authentication operation to perform M-AP operations with an authenticated OBSS (overlapping basic service set) AP (e.g., an AP of another BSS that overlaps with its own BSS). Therefore, step 920 may not be a mandatory step and may be performed optionally depending on security requirements. For example, if authentication between the APs is completed prior to the operation of the present disclosure, step 920 may be omitted. As another example, step 920 may be performed as a separate step prior to step 940 below, or it may be performed together with step 940.

[0128] In step 930, based on steps 910 and 920, a combination or connection between APs (hereinafter referred to as M-AP combination) may be performed. For example, through step 910, M-AP capabilities are detected and mutually discovered APs may be assigned an M-AP AID (AID between APs or AID) to each AP for combination. Meanwhile, the M-AP AID assigned for mutual identification between APs may be referred to as an AID below, but it should be noted that it may refer to a different meaning from the AID assigned between an AP and a non-AP STA as described above. Additionally, the assigned AID is exchanged between APs so that the APs can identify each other's AIDs. In one embodiment, an AID may be assigned to each AP. In another embodiment, in addition to the M-AP AID, an ID to designate an AP pair or AP group may be additionally assigned, which may be referred to as an M-AP Group ID (or M-AP GID).

[0129] In step 940, APs may negotiate and / or agree on M-AP features. In this disclosure, negotiation or agreement may be used interchangeably with the same or similar meanings. Additionally, M-AP features may refer to features or functions that are distinguished according to an M-AP scheme, or, even if they relate to the same M-AP scheme, are distinguished according to a logical session (hereinafter referred to as a session) created through negotiation / agreement between APs.

[0130] In one embodiment, a configuration that can be used commonly between APs regardless of the M-AP scheme (e.g., common configuration or common M-AP configuration) may be negotiated. In one embodiment, a configuration specific to the M-AP scheme to be used between APs (e.g., M-AP specific configuration) may be negotiated. Thus, M-AP scheme-specific configurations, excluding common configurations, may be set between two APs (e.g., AP1-AP2, AP1-AP2, or AP2-AP3) on an M-AP scheme-specific basis. Additionally, different configurations may be applied to different logical sessions regarding a specific M-AP scheme between two specific APs.

[0131] In one embodiment, an identifier (hereinafter referred to as MID (management ID) or M-AP MID) may be assigned to manage at least one M-AP logical session (hereinafter referred to as an M-AP session) formed between APs through M-AP negotiation. Of course, the aforementioned M-AP session is merely a term intended to refer to a series of settings or connections created through an agreement formed between APs, and its meaning is not limited. For example, regarding M-AP, one MID may be assigned sequentially or in a specific order for each M-AP session or agreement established between APs. In this case, a single M-AP session established between APs may be a value representing a series of processes or procedures established for the APs to perform M-AP operations as an index. Alternatively, a single M-AP session established between APs may be a value used to identify at least a part of a series of processes or procedures established for the APs to perform M-AP operations. At this time, the series of processes or procedures established to perform the M-AP operation may refer to at least part of steps 920 or 940. The assigned MID may be shared among APs (e.g., AP1-AP2, AP1-AP2, or AP2-AP3), and thus APs sharing the same MID may indicate or identify, through the MID, the M-AP establishment formed by step 930 and / or the M-AP scheme determined by step 940 below, and the operation parameters or set of operation parameters used in the M-AP scheme.In one embodiment, APs sharing the same MID can smoothly manage parameters related to the M-AP coupling procedure corresponding to the MID (e.g., update, teardown, release, resume, or restart). Additionally, APs sharing the same MID can use the MID within the frame for parameter updating as an identifier to update the operational parameters of the M-AP scheme corresponding to the MID.

[0132] Meanwhile, if Step 940 is performed separately from Step 930, the MID described above may be assigned through Step 940. Specifically, if the M-AP scheme is determined in Step 940, only the M-AP AID designating the mutual APs may be mutually assigned in Step 930, and the MID may be assigned prior to Step 940 to designate the M-AP session between the APs created in Step 940. Therefore, if the operation of Step 940 described above is performed in conjunction with Step 930, the M-AP AID and M-AP MID may be assigned simultaneously with the process of specifying the M-AP scheme and negotiating the operational parameters applied to the M-AP scheme in Step 930, as described above. In this case, the frame exchanged by the APs in Step 930 may include the M-AP AID, M-AP MID, the M-AP scheme to be used, and some or all of the operational parameters to be applied to the M-AP scheme.

[0133] The names of each step in FIG. 9 described above are merely examples to explain the operation of the corresponding step and are not limited to the examples provided. Therefore, each step may be replaced with an appropriate term to describe the corresponding operation. For example, the M-AP combination in step 920 described above may be referred to as M-AP link establishment, M-AP pre-negotiation, M-AP pre-configuration, or M-AP ID allocation. Additionally, although the description in FIG. 9 describes M-AP operations performed between three APs, it can be applied in the same way when performed between two APs (e.g., a pair of APs) or three or more APs (e.g., a group of APs).

[0134] FIG. 10 illustrates the flow of signals for M-AP operation in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0135] Referring to FIG. 10, the flow of signals in an M-AP combination procedure including each step of FIG. 9 described above is explained. For example, the entire sequence of M-AP operations including the advertising, authentication, combination, and negotiation / agreement steps between AP1 to AP3 of FIG. 9 and AP2 can be configured as follows. Hereinafter, in the embodiment of FIG. 10, APs may refer to AP1 and AP2. Accordingly, descriptions that overlap with FIG. 9 may be omitted.

[0136] In step 1010, AP1 and AP2 may exchange information regarding each other's M-AP capabilities and M-AP coupling status. For example, information regarding M-AP capabilities may include the capability regarding cryptography used for M-AP authentication, or information regarding whether M-AP schemes are supported and the types and characteristics of the supported M-AP schemes. For example, information regarding M-AP coupling status may include M-AP-related information formed by the APs, such as M-AP schemes, M-AP identification information (e.g., the AID of each AP and the MID assigned between APs), or a list of APs.

[0137] In step 1020, APs may perform mutual authentication through an M-AP authentication procedure. For example, since the service providers (vendors) and / or settings between APs may differ, the M-AP authentication procedure may refer to a procedure to verify in advance whether access is possible or whether the use and negotiation of the M-AP scheme is possible. More specifically, in step 1023, AP2 may send an M-AP authentication request message to AP1. In step 1025, in response to step 1023, AP1 may send an M-AP authentication response message to AP2. Meanwhile, as described above in FIG. 9, the M-AP authentication procedure (1020) may be omitted in some cases. For example, if mutual authentication between APs is completed prior to the M-AP operation described in FIG. 10, step 1020 may be omitted.

[0138] In step 1030, APs may assign AIDs to each other through an M-AP combination procedure. More specifically, in step 1033, AP2 may send an M-AP combination request message to AP1. For example, the M-AP combination request message may include information indicating that it is a request for M-AP combination, or at least one of the AIDs of the counterpart AP (e.g., AP1) assigned by the AP requesting the combination (e.g., AP2). In step 1035, AP1 may send an M-AP combination response message to AP2. For example, the M-AP combination response message may include information indicating that it is a response to M-AP combination, or at least one of the AIDs of the AP requesting the combination (e.g., AP2). At this time, AP2 sending the M-AP combination request message may be referred to as the M-AP requesting AP or the M-AP combination request AP, and AP1 sending the M-AP combination response message may be referred to as the M-AP response AP or the M-AP combination response AP. In step 1030, the M-AP AID value that the AP assigns to the counterpart AP must be a value that is not an AID previously assigned to the non-AP STAs connected to the AP, and must also not be an M-AP AID value previously assigned to an AP other than the counterpart AP to which the M-AP AID is to be assigned through M-AP combination.

[0139] In step 1040, APs may perform M-AP protection setup. M-AP protection may be a procedure performed separately from the aforementioned step 1020 when additional encryption is required for security. Therefore, step 1040 is not a mandatory step and may be omitted depending on the circumstances. Meanwhile, whether additional encryption is required may be included in the M-AP combination request message (e.g., step 1033), so that information regarding whether additional encryption procedures will be performed may be conveyed in advance.

[0140] In step 1050, APs can perform M-AP feature negotiation / agreement. In one embodiment, a configuration that can be commonly used among APs regardless of the M-AP scheme (e.g., common configuration or common M-AP configuration) and / or a configuration specific to each M-AP scheme (e.g., M-AP specific configuration) may be negotiated. In this case, the configuration that can be commonly used may include at least one parameter that considers M-AP operations that are short-term or periodic (long-term). Accordingly, once the M-AP scheme is determined, an MID may be assigned to the M-AP session formed between the APs. As described above in FIG. 9, if steps 1030 and 1050 are performed as a single step, it goes without saying that an AID and a MID may be assigned in a single step.

[0141] At step 1060, APs can perform actions specific to M-AP features or M-AP schemes. For example, APs can perform actions corresponding to a specific M-AP scheme agreed upon at step 1050.

[0142] Meanwhile, the signalings in steps 1020 and 1030 described above (e.g., M-AP authentication request message, M-AP authentication response message, M-AP combination request message, and M-AP combination response message) may be transmitted via a management frame defined in IEEE 802.11 or a management frame newly defined in this disclosure. The management frame newly defined for signaling in this disclosure is described in detail below in FIG. 12.

[0143] The steps of FIG. 10 described above may be performed by omitting at least one step or by adding at least one new step and combining them with the steps described above. Additionally, the steps described above in FIG. 10 may be merged into a single step, or a single step may be separated into the steps described above. For example, although the above-described step 1050 was described as a separate step from step 1030, it may be performed in a single step (e.g., step 1030).

[0144] FIG. 11 illustrates the configuration of an M-AP ID table in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0145] Referring to FIG. 11, the configuration of an M-AP ID table stored and / or managed in each of the APs (e.g., AP1 to AP3) described in FIG. 9 above is explained. (a) is an example of M-AP coordination sessions (MAPC Sessions) formed between AP1 to AP3. A MAPC Session can be specified by a specific M-AP scheme and operational parameters applied to that scheme. (b) is an example of the configuration of an M-AP ID table managed by AP1. In one embodiment, three M-AP sessions may be formed between AP1 and AP2. In this case, the M-AP sessions formed between AP1 and AP2 in (a) may have different configurations or settings from the M-AP sessions formed between AP1 and AP3 and the M-AP sessions formed between AP2 and AP3. In (b), the M-AP ID table may include M-AP information related to the APs combined with AP1. The M-AP ID table of (b) may be stored and / or managed on AP1. For example, M-AP information may include a list of APs associated with AP1, AIDs assigned to APs associated with AP1 (e.g., AP2 and AP3), MIDs assigned to the corresponding sessions, and types of M-AP schemes. Of course, the information included in the M-AP ID table is not limited to the examples described above and is merely one example. In this case, different values ​​must be assigned to each AP associated with AP1 (e.g., AP2 and AP3). Additionally, even if the M-AP scheme with AP2 is the same, different values ​​may be set for each M-AP session, either sequentially or in a specific order. In this case, the MID may be used to distinguish sets of operation parameters and / or settings established according to multiple M-AP negotiations for the same AP and the same M-AP scheme.

[0146] More specifically, the AID assigned to the two APs is { , A pair can be formed as in}. At this time, is the index of the M-AP request AP, j is the index of the M-AP response AP, can refer to the index of an M-AP session created through M-AP negotiation / consensus between the M-AP requesting AP and the M-AP responding AP. At this time, An M-AP session with a value can be used to identify one of multiple M-AP establishments formed between two APs when defining a separate element format for Multi-AP long-term coordination (M-AP) performed over a long period. Therefore, if the M-AP establishments formed between two APs are designed to refer to the other AP with the same AID, an index value may be required to identify or distinguish a specific M-AP. Furthermore, by indexing or referring to the other AP for the same M-AP cooperation pair with a single AID, each AP combined in the same or similar manner as the AID established between the existing AP and STA can be identified. Additionally, since different settings may be applied even when the same APs have the same M-AP scheme, they can be indexed or referred to by a different MID for each setting. For example, in the case of C-TDMA, M-AP negotiation and consensus procedures for separate C-TDMA usage may be performed depending on the C-TDMA configuration for SCS Link 1 or event-driven C-TDMA configuration (e.g., on-demand and intra-TXOP cases), and different MIDs may be assigned to distinguish each configuration. As another example, in the case of C-BF, different MIDs may be assigned to distinguish them when the set of non-AP STAs to be supported by C-BF is different (e.g., supporting STA1 in BSS1 and supporting STA2 in BSS2, or when the pair of STAs in BSS1 and STA2 in BSS2 is different, or when STA3 in BSS1 and STA4 in BSS2).In the example described above, in the case of C-BF, AP1 having the same BSS1 and AP2 having BSS2 may be assigned the same M-AP AID to mutually refer to each other, but the beamforming settings that AP1 and AP2 cooperate to apply to support different non-AP STAs (e.g., STA1 and STA3 within BSS1) belonging to the same BSS1 may differ, so the MIDs corresponding to each setting may differ.

[0147] FIG. 12 illustrates the configuration of a management frame for an M-AP coupling procedure in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0148] Referring to FIG. 12(a), the M-AP coupling request message (1230) transmitted by the M-AP coupling request AP (1210) and the M-AP coupling response message transmitted by the M-AP coupling response AP (1220) can be transmitted through a management frame. In one embodiment, the management frame may be based on a management frame defined in IEEE 802.11. For example, an extended existing management frame may further include parameters required for the M-AP coupling procedure.

[0149] In another embodiment, a new management frame for the M-AP combination procedure may be defined in FIG. 12(b). For example, the newly defined management frame may include a MAC header field (1250), a category field (1260), an action field (1270), and a frame content field (1280). Meanwhile, the name (1280) of the frame content field is merely an example, and the use of the field or the values ​​included are not limited by the name. Also, although the frame content field (1280) is depicted as being composed of multiple fields, it may be composed of a single field. Furthermore, the composition of the frame content field (1280) may vary depending on the values ​​of the category field (1260) and the action field (1270). The category field (1260) may have a value indicating public (e.g., code=4). Alternatively, the category field (1260) may have a value indicating that it is a UHR action frame or a UHR protected action frame. The action field (1270) may include information regarding what action the management frame is for. For example, the action field (1270) may use a value designating an M-AP combination request or an M-AP combination response. Additionally, the frame content field (1280) may include multiple elements related to the M-AP combination request or the M-AP combination response. A description of the multiple elements included in the frame content field (1280) is provided in detail below from FIG. 13. Furthermore, according to some embodiments, when the M-AP combination request and the M-AP combination response are integrated with the M-AP negotiation procedure, the action field (1270) may include a value designating an M-AP negotiation request or an M-AP negotiation response. Additionally, the frame content field (1280) may include multiple elements related to the M-AP combination request and the M-AP combination response.

[0150] FIG. 13 illustrates a configuration of an M-AP combination request element in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0151] Referring to FIG. 13, a plurality of elements included in the frame content fields (e.g., the frame content fields described above (1280)) included in a new management frame for an M-AP combination request in the M-AP combination procedure may be referred to as M-AP combination request elements (or M-AP combination request element formats). Of course, the above names are not limited thereto. In one embodiment, the M-AP combination request elements constituting the frame content fields of a management frame for transmitting an M-AP combination request may include at least some of the following: an Element ID field (1305), a Length field (1310), an Element ID Extension field (1315), a Control field (1320) containing a value related to M-AP control, and an AID-related field. The Element ID field (1305) and the Element ID Extension field (1315) may each contain one octet. The Length field (1310) contains one octet and may contain a value for the length of the information transmitted through the M-AP combination request element. Additionally, the AID-related field may include the M-AP ID Request Mode field (1325) and the M-AP AID Allocation field (1330). As described in FIG. 10 above, if the M-AP combination step (e.g., step 1030) and the M-AP feature negotiation / agreement step (e.g., step 1050) are performed as separate steps, the frame content field of the management frame for transmitting the M-AP combination request message may include at least one of the fields described above. In another embodiment, as described in FIG. 10 above, if the M-AP combination operation (e.g., step 1030) and the M-AP feature negotiation / agreement operation (e.g., step 1050) are performed as a single step, the M-AP combination request element may further include a field related to the negotiation of M-AP features.At this time, the fields related to the negotiation of M-AP features may include the M-AP MID Allocation field (1335), the Requested M-AP scheme field (1340), the Common M-AP Info field (1345), and the Per-M-AP specific Info field (1350). Meanwhile, the fields constituting the M-AP combination request element described above are not limited to the meaning of "field" as defined in IEEE 802.11, and may include fields in the general sense. For example, the fields constituting a specific element format may refer to fields for indicating a corresponding value or fields related to a corresponding value.

[0152] Regarding the AID-related fields, the M-AP ID Request Mode field (1325) may be a control field of the M-AP combination request element and may include information indicating that the management frame contains fields for the M-AP combination request. Additionally, the M-AP AID Allocation field (1330) may include the AID value of the M-AP response AP assigned by the M-AP request AP.

[0153] In the fields related to the negotiation of M-AP features, the M-AP MID Allocation field (1335) may include a MID value assigned to a specific M-AP session. The Requested M-AP scheme field (1340) may include information for indicating the M-AP scheme corresponding to the assigned MID. The Common M-AP Info field (1345) may include information commonly required to perform the M-AP joining procedure (e.g., information applicable commonly between APs without being limited to a specific M-AP scheme or a specific M-AP session). The Per-M-AP specific Info field (1350) may include information required per M-AP scheme or M-AP session.

[0154] Meanwhile, the structure of the format, field names, values ​​indicated by the fields, the number of fields to which meaningful values ​​are assigned, the order of the fields, the number of octets or bits, and whether fields are included in the format, etc., as illustrated in FIG. 13 are merely examples and may be changed differently from the illustrated and described embodiments.

[0155] FIG. 14 illustrates a configuration of an M-AP negotiation request element in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0156] Referring to FIG. 14, in the case where the M-AP combining operation (e.g., step 1030) and the M-AP feature negotiation / agreement operation (e.g., step 1050) are performed as separate steps as described in FIG. 10 above, the elements constituting the frame content fields included in a new management frame for transmitting an M-AP negotiation request message may be referred to as M-AP negotiation request elements (or M-AP negotiation request element format). Of course, the above designation is not limited thereto. In one embodiment, the M-AP negotiation request elements constituting the frame content fields of a management frame for transmitting an M-AP negotiation request may include at least some of the following: an Element ID field (1405), a Length field (1410), an Element ID Extension field (1415), a Control field (1420), an AID-related field, and a field related to the negotiation of M-AP features. The Element ID field (1405) and the Element ID Extension field (1415) may each contain one octet. The Length field (1410) contains one octet and may contain a value regarding the length of the information transmitted through the M-AP negotiation request element. The Control field (1420) contains one octet and may contain a value related to M-AP control. Additionally, unlike the AID-related field of the M-AP combination request element of FIG. 13 described above, the AID-related field may only contain the M-AP ID Request Mode field (1425). Therefore, the AID-related field of the M-AP negotiation request element may not include the M-AP AID Allocation field (1430). This may be because the AID has already been assigned through the M-AP combination request mentioned earlier.Meanwhile, fields related to the negotiation of M-AP features may include at least some of the M-AP MID Allocation field (1435), Requested M-AP scheme field (1440), Common M-AP Info field (1445), and Per-M-AP specific Info field (1450). Meanwhile, the fields constituting the M-AP negotiation request element described above are not limited to the meaning of "field" as defined in IEEE 802.11, but may include fields in the general sense. For example, fields constituting a specific element format may refer to fields intended to indicate a corresponding value or fields related to a corresponding value. Each of the AID-related fields and fields related to the negotiation of M-AP features included in the M-AP negotiation request element of FIG. 14 may contain information of the same or similar nature as each field of the same name included in FIG. 13 described above. Therefore, redundant descriptions are omitted. However, unlike the M-AP ID Request Mode field (1325) of FIG. 13, the M-AP ID Request Mode field (1425) may be a control field of the M-AP negotiation request element and may include information to indicate that the management frame includes fields for the M-AP negotiation request.

[0157] Meanwhile, the structure of the format, field names, values ​​indicated by the fields, the number of fields to which meaningful values ​​are assigned, the order of the fields, the number of octets or bits, and whether fields are included in the format, etc., as illustrated in FIG. 14 are merely examples and may be changed differently from the illustrated and described embodiments.

[0158] FIG. 15 illustrates another configuration of an M-AP combination request element in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0159] Referring to FIG. 15, one configuration (a) of an M-AP combination request element for a single M-AP scheme and a configuration (b) of an M-AP combination request element that can be used when requesting M-AP combination for multiple M-AP schemes simultaneously are described. Meanwhile, in the embodiment of FIG. 15, the M-AP combination request element may likewise include at least one of the fields described in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, and the description of duplicate fields may be omitted. Meanwhile, the fields constituting the M-AP combination request element described above are not limited to the meaning of "field" as defined in IEEE 802.11, but may include fields in the general sense. For example, fields constituting a specific element format may refer to fields for indicating a corresponding value or fields related to a corresponding value.

[0160] In one embodiment, FIG. 15(a) may represent the configuration of an M-AP combination request element for a single M-AP scheme, specifically, at least some of the Capability Information field (1505), UHR capabilities field (1510), M-AP ID Request Mode field (1515), M-AP AID Allocation field (1520), M-AP MID Allocation field (1525), Requested M-AP scheme field (1530), Common M-AP Info field (1535), and Per-M-AP specific Info field (1540) may be included. The Capability Information field (1505) may include information regarding the M-AP capabilities of the M-AP combination request AP. The UHR capabilities field (1510) may exist when dot11UtraHighReliabilityOptionImplemented specified in IEEE 802.11 is true. The M-AP combination request element of FIG. 15 (a) may include AID-related fields and fields related to the negotiation of specific M-AP features. Thus, the M-AP combination request element of FIG. 15 (a) may include fields for the negotiation of a single M-AP scheme.

[0161] In another embodiment, FIG. 15(b) may represent the configuration of M-AP combination request elements for a plurality of M-AP schemes, specifically, may include a Capability Information field (1505), a UHR capabilities field (1510), an M-AP ID Request Mode field (1515), an M-AP Request Element 1 field (1545), an M-AP Request Element 2 field (1550), ..., and an M-AP Request Element N field (1555). Unlike FIG. 15(a), the M-AP Request Element N field (N>1) may include information for M-AP combination and negotiation for each M-AP session formed between the M-AP scheme and / or the M-AP combination request AP and the M-AP combination response AP. For example, the M-AP Request Element 1 field (1545) of FIG. 15 (b) may include at least some of the fields (e.g., 1520 to 1540) of FIG. 15 (a) or the information contained in the fields. Accordingly, the M-AP combination request element proposed in FIG. 15 (b) can be used to request M-AP combination and negotiation through a single management frame for multiple M-AP schemes.

[0162] Meanwhile, the structure of the format, field names, values ​​indicated by the fields, the number of fields to which meaningful values ​​are assigned, the order of the fields, the number of octets or bits, and whether fields are included in the format, etc., as illustrated in FIG. 15 are merely examples and may be changed differently from the illustrated and described embodiments.

[0163] FIG. 16 illustrates the configuration of the M-AP ID Request Mode field in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0164] Referring to FIG. 16, the configuration of sub-fields constituting the above-described M-AP ID Request Mode field (e.g., 1515) is described. For example, the M-AP ID Request Mode field (1610) may be composed of at least one sub-field, and at least one sub-field may include at least some of the Requested M-AP scheme present field (1620), M-AP MID Allocation present field (1630), and Number of M-AP ID Request Element field (1630). Meanwhile, the above-described M-AP ID Request Mode field is not limited to the meaning of "field" as defined in IEEE 802.11, and may include fields in the general sense. For example, fields constituting a specific element format may refer to fields for representing a corresponding value or fields related to a corresponding value.

[0165] More specifically, the Requested M-AP scheme present field (1620) may include information indicating whether the Requested M-AP scheme field (1650) exists. The M-AP MID Allocation present field (1630) may include information indicating whether the M-AP MID Allocation present field exists. The Number of M-AP ID Request Element field (1630) may be a field to support an embodiment that includes the List of M-AP ID Request Elements (e.g., a list of N M-AP ID Request Elements) described in FIG. 15 (b) in order to treat the following fields (e.g., M-AP AID Allocation field or Per-M-AP specific Info field) as a single element (e.g., M-AP ID Request Element) and perform the combination of multiple M-AP schemes in a single procedure (e.g., a single negotiation procedure). For example, the Number of M-AP ID Request Element field (1630) may mean the number of M-AP ID Request Elements (N>1) in the List of M-AP ID Request Elements.

[0166] The Requested M-AP scheme field (1650) may include information for indicating an M-AP scheme corresponding to the assigned MID. For example, the Requested M-AP scheme field (1650) may include at least one value among 0x01 (C-TDMA), 0x02 (CR-TWT), 0x03 (C-BF), 0x04 (C-SR), 0x05 (TXOP-level on-demand M-AP operation), 0x06 (Coordinated-Operating mode negotiation), or 0x07 (Coordinated-Power save scheduling). In one embodiment, if the Requested M-AP scheme field (1650) has a value of 0x05, it may mean that multiple M-AP schemes are supported rather than specifying and combining (and negotiating) a single specific M-AP scheme. Additionally, which M-AP scheme to use may be determined by performing negotiations during the TXOP's ICF / ICR exchange whenever a request is made (or from time to time). Additionally, the Per-M-AP specific Info field (1670) may contain a list of M-AP schemes that can be negotiated and operated during the TXOP's ICF / ICR exchange. The Requested M-AP scheme field (1650) may contain a reserved value if some of 0x01 (C-TDMA), 0x02 (CR-TWT), 0x03 (C-BF), 0x04 (C-SR), 0x05 (TXOP-level on-demand M-AP operation), 0x06 (Coordinated-Operating mode negotiation), or 0x07 (Coordinated-Power save scheduling) are not used.

[0167] The Common M-AP Info field (1660) may include a Protection Required field (1665). The Protection Required field (1665) may be a field indicating whether additional encryption procedures are required in the future for security purposes. Meanwhile, although not shown in FIG. 16, the Common M-AP Info field (1660) may further include a TWT SP Info field and a Time Synchronization Function Adjustment Info field. In this case, the TWT SP Info field may include a TWT element for updating and managing M-AP parameters. The Time Synchronization Function Adjustment Info field may include at least one of time synchronization information for time interval negotiation, a start time, or an M-AP operation. Additionally, the Time Synchronization Function Adjustment Info field may include a Measured time synchronization error field (in ppm (parts per million) units) for clock drift between the two APs and / or a Clock Info field including the start time of a relative clock that the two APs will use separately for M-AP operation.

[0168] The Per-M-AP specific Info field (1670) may include a Protection Required field (1675). The Protection Required field (1675) may be a field indicating whether additional encryption procedures are required in the future for security purposes. The Per-M-AP specific Info field (1670) may include M-AP scheme-specific information in the form of a container.

[0169] Meanwhile, the structure of the format, field names, values ​​indicated by the fields, the number of fields to which meaningful values ​​are assigned, the order of the fields, the number of octets or bits, and whether fields are included in the format, etc., as illustrated in FIG. 16 are merely examples and may be changed differently from the illustrated and described embodiments.

[0170] FIG. 17 illustrates a configuration of an M-AP combined response element in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0171] Referring to FIG. 17, the elements included in the frame content field of a new management frame for an M-AP combination response in the M-AP combination procedure may be referred to as M-AP combination response elements (or, M-AP combination response element format). Of course, the above designation is not limited. Additionally, the M-AP combination response elements may correspond to the M-AP combination request elements described in FIG. 13. In one embodiment, the M-AP combination response elements constituting the frame content field of a management frame for transmitting an M-AP combination response may include at least some of the Element ID field (1705), Length field (1710), AID-related fields, and fields related to the negotiation of M-AP features. However, the configuration of the M-AP combined response element in FIG. 17 may be an example where the M-AP combined step (e.g., Step 1030) and the M-AP feature negotiation / agreement step (e.g., Step 1050) are performed as a single step, as described in FIG. 10 above. Meanwhile, the fields constituting the M-AP combined response element described above are not limited to the meaning of "field" as defined in IEEE 802.11, and may include fields in the general sense. For example, the fields constituting a specific element format may refer to fields for indicating a corresponding value or fields related to a corresponding value.

[0172] The Element ID field (1705) may contain one octet. The Length field (1710) may contain one octet and may contain a value for the length of the information transmitted through the M-AP combined response element. Additionally, the AID-related fields may include the M-AP ID Response Mode field (1715) and the M-AP AID Allocation field (1720). The fields related to the negotiation of M-AP features may include at least some of the M-AP MID Allocation field (1725), the Confirmed M-AP scheme field (1730), and the Confirmed M-AP EDCA Parameter Set field (1735).

[0173] Regarding the AID-related fields, the M-AP ID Response Mode field (1715) may be a control field of the M-AP join request element and may contain information indicating that the management frame contains fields for the M-AP join request. Additionally, the M-AP AID Allocation field (1720) may contain the AID value of the M-AP request AP assigned by the M-AP response AP.

[0174] In the fields related to the negotiation of M-AP features, the M-AP MID Allocation field (1725) may include a MID value assigned to a specific M-AP session. In one embodiment, the value of the M-AP MID Allocation field (1725) included in the M-AP combination response element may have the same value as the M-AP MID Allocation field (1435) included in the M-AP combination request element or the M-AP MID Allocation field (1525) included in the M-AP negotiation request element. Accordingly, it may indicate that the M-AP combination request AP and the M-AP combination response AP have formed a successful combination through the M-AP combination process of the present disclosure. For example, if the value of the M-AP MID Allocation field (1725) included in the M-AP combination response element that the M-AP response AP responds to as a response to the M-AP combination request element or M-AP negotiation request element transmitted by the M-AP request AP is different from the value of the M-AP MID Allocation field (1435 or 1525) included in the M-AP combination request element or M-AP negotiation request element, the M-AP combination may be considered to have failed. The Confirmed M-AP scheme field (1730) may contain information for approval of the request for an M-AP scheme to be formed after the M-AP combination procedure. Thus, the Confirmed M-AP scheme field (1730) may be a field corresponding to the Requested M-AP scheme field (1340). The Confirmed M-AP EDCA Parameter Set field (1735) may contain information for acknowledging the request for an EDCA parameter set used when two APs perform frame exchange for M-AP negotiation / agreement / management operations. The EDCA parameters may also be applied within the C-(R-)TWT SP for M-AP operations.

[0175] Meanwhile, the structure of the format, field names, values ​​indicated by the fields, the number of fields to which meaningful values ​​are assigned, the order of the fields, the number of octets or bits, and whether fields are included in the format, etc., as illustrated in FIG. 17 are merely examples and may be changed differently from the illustrated and described embodiments.

[0176] In the following embodiments, the M-AP combination step (step 930) described in FIG. 9 above is performed as a separate step distinct from other steps as illustrated in FIG. 9, or the preceding M-AP authentication step (step 920) or subsequent APs are merged with the negotiation and / or agreement step of M-AP features (step 940) to be performed as a single step. Additionally, in the following embodiments, AP2 may be an AP requesting M-AP combination and may be an AP transmitting the request message for each of the following steps. Additionally, AP1 may be an AP responding to the M-AP combination request and may be an AP transmitting the response message for each of the following steps.

[0177] FIG. 18 illustrates an M-AP framework in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0178] Referring to FIG. 18, an example of a method for configuring a plurality of steps in an M-AP framework (Fig. 10) according to the embodiments described above is illustrated. For example, the M-AP capability advertising step (1810) may include signaling for exchanging M-AP capability information between APs. The M-AP authentication step (1820) may include authentication request and authentication response signaling to enhance security based on the M-AP capability exchanged between APs. Additionally, the M-AP combination step (1830) may include signaling for assigning the M-AP AID of the counterpart AP. The M-AP protection setting step (1840) may include a plurality of signalings for additional encryption for security, separate from the 1820 step. The M-AP feature negotiation / consensus step (1850) may include signaling for negotiation and / or consensus between APs by feature. Accordingly, negotiation and / or agreement operations may be performed for each feature, or a single negotiation and / or agreement operation may be performed for multiple features. And when the allocation of M-AP AID and MID is completed through the preceding steps, AP1 and AP2 may perform an operation corresponding to at least one M-AP scheme determined to be performed through the M-AP feature negotiation / agreement step (1850) (1860).

[0179] The above examples may be signalings based on the M-AP framework illustrated in FIG. 9 or FIG. 10 described above. Below, a case in which at least two steps are merged and performed is described.

[0180] FIG. 19 illustrates an M-AP framework in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0181] Referring to FIG. 19, another example of a method for configuring a plurality of steps in an M-AP framework (Fig. 10) according to the embodiments described above is illustrated. For example, the advertising step of M-AP capability (1910) may include signaling for exchanging M-AP capability information between APs. The M-AP joining step (1920) may include signaling for assigning the M-AP AID of the counterpart AP. Additionally, the signaling of the M-AP joining step (1920) may include information for M-AP authentication. Thus, the M-AP authentication step may be merged with the M-AP joining step (1920) without separate signaling. Furthermore, the M-AP protection setting step (1930) and the M-AP feature negotiation / agreement step (1940) may be performed as separate steps, as described in FIG. 18. And when the allocation of AID and MID is completed through the preceding steps, AP1 and AP2 can perform an action corresponding to at least one M-AP scheme decided to be performed through the M-AP feature negotiation / agreement step (1840) (1950).

[0182] FIG. 20 illustrates an M-AP framework in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0183] Referring to FIG. 20, another example of a method for configuring multiple steps in an M-AP framework (Fig. 10) according to the embodiments described above is illustrated. For example, the M-AP capability advertising step (2010) and the M-AP combination step (2020) may be performed as separate steps, as described in FIG. 18. However, the M-AP combination step and the M-AP feature negotiation / agreement step may be performed as a single step (2030). Thus, an M-AP AID may be assigned to the APs, and an MID may be assigned to each M-AP session generated through negotiation / agreement by M-AP feature. Additionally, an M-AP protection setting step (2040) may be performed for each feature. For example, additional encryption may be performed for each feature or each M-AP session generated between the APs. Meanwhile, if necessary, an additional M-AP negotiation / consensus step (2050) may be performed for each feature or each M-AP session for which additional encryption has been performed. And when the allocation of M-AP AID and MID is completed through the preceding steps, AP1 and AP2 may perform an action corresponding to at least one M-AP scheme decided to be performed through the M-AP feature negotiation / consensus step (2030 or 2050) (2060).

[0184] FIG. 21 illustrates an M-AP framework in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0185] Referring to FIG. 21, another example of a method for configuring a plurality of steps in an M-AP framework (Fig. 10) according to the embodiments described above is illustrated. For example, the advertising step of M-AP capability (2110) may include signaling for exchanging M-AP capability information between APs. The M-AP combining step (2120) may include signaling for assigning the M-AP AID of the counterpart AP. Additionally, the signaling of the M-AP combining step (2120) may include information for M-AP authentication. Thus, the M-AP authentication step may be merged with the M-AP combining step (2020) without separate signaling.

[0186] Meanwhile, the M-AP combination step and the M-AP feature negotiation / consensus step can be performed as a single step (2120). Thus, an M-AP AID is assigned to the APs, and an MID can be assigned to each M-AP session generated through negotiation / consensus by M-AP feature. Additionally, the signaling in step 2120 may include information for M-AP authentication. Then, an M-AP protection setting step (2130) can be performed for each feature. Furthermore, if necessary, an M-AP negotiation / consensus step (2140) may be additionally performed for each feature or each M-AP session to which additional encryption has been performed. And when the assignment of M-AP AID and MID is completed through the preceding steps, AP1 and AP2 can perform an action corresponding to at least one M-AP scheme decided to be performed through the M-AP feature negotiation / consensus step (2120 or 2140) (2150).

[0187] The embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 18 to 21 described above are merely examples of the M-AP framework (Fig. 10). Therefore, it is obvious that, in addition to the examples above, steps beyond these may be merged, or even a single step may be separated into multiple steps with distinct names. Consequently, the names used to refer to the merged or separated steps are not limited, and the operations in the M-AP framework (Fig. 10) described in the embodiments of the present disclosure may be merged or separated depending on the situation.

[0188] FIG. 22 illustrates an example of the application of M-AP coupling and negotiation procedures in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0189] Referring to FIG. 22, an example of applying embodiments of the present disclosure is described. Specifically, when the value of the Requested M-AP scheme field (1650) described in FIG. 16 is 0x05, a TXOP-level on-demand M-AP operation may be performed. At this time, a method for applying embodiments of the present disclosure is described.

[0190] For example, in order to perform an M-AP operation at the TXOP level, the following operations may need to be performed beforehand. The Sharing AP (BSS1) and the Shared AP (BSS2) may need to share their AIDs with each other in advance. Additionally, rather than specifying a particular M-AP scheme, it may be necessary for the APs to negotiate / agree in advance that they will perform negotiations on an M-AP scheme at the TXOP level. Accordingly, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, it may be explicitly indicated in the M-AP negotiation / agreement procedure that negotiations on an M-AP scheme at the TXOP level will be performed.

[0191] Accordingly, when a value corresponding to 'TXOP-level M-AP negotiation' is set in the Requested M-AP scheme field (1650) included in the M-AP combination request element, the M-AP scheme and related parameters to be used within the TXOP can be determined through the exchange of ICF (2210) / ICR (2220) within the TXOP between the Sharing AP and the Shared AP after the M-AP combination (e.g., a TXOP initiated by the transmission of the Sharing AP's ICF (2210) (e.g., a BSRP (buffer status report poll) trigger frame). Then, in the next TXOP, the Sharing AP can transmit a MU-RTS (multi-user request-to-send) trigger frame (2230) to the non-AP STA and the Shared AP in BSS1, respectively, and receive CTS frames (2240, 2250) from the non-AP STA and the Shared AP, respectively, in response to this. And the Sharing AP, Shared AP, and non-AP STA can perform operations according to the determined M-AP scheme. At this time, a predetermined time interval (e.g., IFS (Inter-Frame Space), DIFS (DCF (Distributed Coordination Function) IFS), or SIFS (short IFS)) may be required between each control frame.

[0192] FIG. 23 illustrates an example of the application of M-AP coupling and negotiation procedures in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0193] Referring to FIG. 23, an example of the application of embodiments of the present disclosure is described. Specifically, if two APs decide to use the same M-AP scheme according to the embodiments described above, the APs may configure different configuration sets for the same M-AP scheme. In this case, the two APs may assign an M-AP session ID to each configuration. Thus, each AP can facilitate management of each configuration (e.g., parameter update, dismantle, resume, or restart). Each configuration according to the M-AP scheme may be configured as shown in the following example.

[0194] (a) Common Info settings for a 64-bit M-AP scheme may include a Control field, an AP AID 12 field, a Bitmap field, a Requested Allocation Duration field, an LL Traffic indication field, an Access Category field, and a Reserved field.

[0195] (b) A 64-bit C-TDMA specific setting may include a Control field, an AP AID 12 field, a Bitmap field, a Requested Allocation Duration field, an LL Traffic indication field, an Access Category field, and a Reserved field.

[0196] (c) A 64-bit C-BF or C-SR specific configuration may include a Control field, an AP AID 12 field, a Bitmap field, an STA AID 12 field, a Sounding Requesting field, a Steering Matrix field, and a Reserved field.

[0197] The configuration of the common settings for the M-AP scheme or the settings for a specific M-AP scheme described above is merely an example, and at least one field may be omitted or added.

[0198] Meanwhile, although not disclosed in FIG. 23, an embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied as follows. For example, regarding M-AP schemes that have been created or determined between two APs, the management of which M-AP scheme is to be performed can be identified through an MID field (e.g., M-AP AID Allocation field) within an action frame for subsequent management. Accordingly, a management procedure may be performed for the M-AP scheme identified through the MID field.

[0199] FIG. 24 illustrates an example of the application of M-AP coupling and negotiation procedures in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0200] Referring to FIG. 24, a method for applying an embodiment of the present disclosure in an M-AP framework is described. The M-AP framework may consist of coordination (e.g., long-term coordination (2420, 2440) and / or short-term coordination (2430)) following an initial setup (2410) between APs and M-AP transmission (Tx) (2430). The M-AP coupling procedure proposed in the present disclosure may be added at the end of the initial setup (2410) step or linked to the Multi-AP set management of the long-term coordination (2420). For example, in the present disclosure, mutually assigned M-AP AID and M-AP MID values ​​in the M-AP coupling procedure (1030) to the M-AP negotiation procedure (1050) exist as some parameters within the frame exchanged in the coordination (e.g., long-term coordination (2420, 2440) and / or short-term coordination (2430)) and M-AP transmission (Tx) (2430) to designate an AP or specify an M-AP session.

[0201] FIG. 25 illustrates the sequence of operations for M-AP coupling and negotiation procedures in a wireless LAN system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0202] Referring to FIG. 25, the operation of an M-AP combination request AP for the M-AP combination procedure proposed in the present disclosure is illustrated, and some or all of the various embodiments related to the M-AP combination procedure described above may be applied identically or similarly to FIG. 25.

[0203] In step 2510, the first AP may transmit a first management frame for an M-AP combination request to the second AP. At this time, the first AP may be referred to as the M-AP combination request AP, and the second AP may be referred to as the M-AP combination response AP. In one embodiment, the first management frame for the M-AP combination request may include M-AP AID assignment information for the second AP. In one embodiment, the first management frame for the M-AP combination request may further include MID assignment information for an M-AP session created through M-AP feature negotiation / agreement between the first AP and the second AP.

[0204] In step 2520, the first AP may receive a second management frame containing an M-AP combination response from the second AP in response to an M-AP combination request. In one embodiment, the first management frame for the M-AP combination request may include M-AP AID assignment information for the first AP. Additionally, the second management frame may further include at least one of the following: confirmation of the M-AP scheme requested by the first AP in step 2510, MID assignment information, or EDCA parameters to be used during frame exchange for M-AP negotiation / agreement / management operations between the first AP and the second AP. In this case, the MID values ​​included in the first management frame and the second management frame may have the same value. The first AP may perform M-AP operations based on the information received through the second management frame and may utilize the MID when managing subsequent settings (e.g., updating, releasing, terminating, resuming, or restarting).

[0205] In addition, the first management frame and the second management frame are management frames defined in IEEE 802.11 and may further include parameters necessary for the M-AP coupling procedure. Alternatively, a newly defined management frame may be used.

[0206] Meanwhile, although an example of the operation of the M-AP combination request AP and the M-AP combination response AP has been described above based on the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 25, it is obvious that the operation of the M-AP combination request AP and the M-AP combination response AP may differ according to other examples described above.

[0207] Meanwhile, the present specification and drawings disclose preferred embodiments of the present disclosure. Although specific terms have been used, they are used merely in a general sense to facilitate the explanation of the technical content of the present disclosure and to aid in understanding the disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0208] Furthermore, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that, in addition to the embodiments described in this disclosure, other variations based on the technical concept of this disclosure are possible. For example, some or all of the contents of one embodiment described above may be combined with some or all of one or more other embodiments, and such combination is also included in the embodiments proposed in this disclosure.

Claims

1. A method performed by a first access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) system, The step of transmitting a first management frame to the second AP to request an M-AP (multi-AP) association; and The method includes the step of receiving a second management frame from the second AP that includes a response to the M-AP combination, and The first management frame and the second management frame may include only an association identifier (AID) field, or may include the AID field and a management identifier (MID) field assigned to each M-AP session between the first AP and the second AP. The above AID field includes the M-AP ID (identifier) ​​Allocation field, one of the M-AP AID Request Mode field or M-AP ID Response Mode field, and the M-AP ID (identifier) ​​Allocation field. A method in which the above MID field includes at least one of an M-AP MID Allocation field, an M-AP scheme field, an M-AP Info field, or an M-AP EDCA (enhanced distributed coordination access) parameter field.

2. In paragraph 1, the above method is, A step of transmitting information related to the M-AP of the first AP to the second AP; and The method further includes the step of receiving information related to the M-AP of the second AP from the second AP, and Information related to the M-AP of the first AP includes at least one of information regarding the M-AP capability or M-AP binding state of the first AP, and A method in which information related to the M-AP of the second AP comprises at least one of information regarding the M-AP capability or M-AP binding state of the second AP.

3. In paragraph 1, the above method is, The step of transmitting a third management frame for M-AP negotiation to the second AP; and The method further includes the step of receiving a fourth management frame containing a response to the M-AP negotiation from the second AP, and The above AID field is included in the above first management frame, and A method in which the above MID field is included in the above third management frame.

4. In Paragraph 1, A method in which the above M-AP scheme field indicates at least one of C-TDMA (coordinated time division multiple access), CR-TWT (coordinated restricted target awake time), C-SR (coordinated spatial reuse), or C-BF (coordinated beamforming).

5. A method performed by a second access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) system, A step of receiving a first management frame from a first AP to request an M-AP (multi-AP) association; and The method includes the step of transmitting a second management frame containing a response to the M-AP combination to the first AP, and The first management frame and the second management frame may include only an association identifier (AID) field, or may include the AID field and a management identifier (MID) field assigned to each M-AP session between the first AP and the second AP. The above AID field includes the M-AP ID (identifier) ​​Allocation field, one of the M-AP AID Request Mode field or M-AP ID Response Mode field, and the M-AP ID (identifier) ​​Allocation field. A method in which the above MID field includes at least one of an M-AP MID Allocation field, an M-AP scheme field, an M-AP Info field, or an M-AP EDCA (enhanced distributed coordination access) parameter field.

6. In paragraph 5, the above method is, A step of receiving information related to the M-AP of the first AP from the first AP; and The method further includes the step of transmitting information related to the M-AP of the second AP to the first AP, and Information related to the M-AP of the first AP includes at least one of information regarding the M-AP capability or M-AP binding state of the first AP, and A method in which information related to the M-AP of the second AP comprises at least one of information regarding the M-AP capability or M-AP binding state of the second AP.

7. In paragraph 5, the above method is, A step of receiving a third management frame for M-AP negotiation from the first AP; and The method further includes the step of transmitting a fourth management frame containing a response to the M-AP negotiation to the first AP, and The above AID field is included in the above first management frame, and A method in which the above MID field is included in the above third management frame.

8. In Paragraph 5, A method in which the above M-AP scheme field indicates at least one of C-TDMA (coordinated time division multiple access), CR-TWT (coordinated restricted target awake time), C-SR (coordinated spatial reuse), or C-BF (coordinated beamforming).

9. In a first access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) system, transceiver; and It includes at least one processor connected to the above-mentioned transmitting and receiving unit, and The above at least one processor is: Transmit a first management frame to request M-AP (multi-AP) association to the second AP, and It is configured to receive a second management frame containing a response to the M-AP combination from the second AP, and The first management frame and the second management frame may include only an association identifier (AID) field, or may include the AID field and a management identifier (MID) field assigned to each M-AP session between the first AP and the second AP. The above AID field includes the M-AP ID (identifier) ​​Allocation field, one of the M-AP AID Request Mode field or M-AP ID Response Mode field, and the M-AP ID (identifier) ​​Allocation field. The first AP, wherein the above MID field includes at least one of an M-AP MID Allocation field, an M-AP scheme field, an M-AP Info field, or an M-AP EDCA (enhanced distributed coordination access) parameter field.

10. In paragraph 9, the above at least one processor is: To the above-mentioned second AP, information related to the M-AP of the above-mentioned first AP is transmitted, and From the above second AP, it is further configured to receive information related to the M-AP of the above second AP, and Information related to the M-AP of the first AP includes at least one of information regarding the M-AP capability or M-AP binding state of the first AP, and The first AP, wherein the information related to the M-AP of the second AP comprises at least one of the M-AP capability or M-AP binding state of the second AP.

11. In paragraph 9, the above at least one processor is: Transmit a third management frame for M-AP negotiation to the above second AP, and, From the above second AP, it is further configured to receive a fourth management frame containing a response to the above M-AP negotiation, and The above AID field is included in the above first management frame, and The above MID field is the first AP included in the above third management frame.

12. In Paragraph 9, The first AP, wherein the above M-AP scheme field indicates at least one of C-TDMA (coordinated time division multiple access), CR-TWT (coordinated restricted target awake time), C-SR (coordinated spatial reuse), or C-BF (coordinated beamforming).

13. In a second access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) system, transceiver; and It includes at least one processor connected to the above-mentioned transmitting and receiving unit, and The above at least one processor is: Receive a first management frame from the first AP to request an M-AP (multi-AP) association, and The first AP is configured to transmit a second management frame containing a response to the M-AP combination, and The first management frame and the second management frame may include only an association identifier (AID) field, or may include the AID field and a management identifier (MID) field assigned to each M-AP session between the first AP and the second AP. The above AID field includes the M-AP ID (identifier) ​​Allocation field, one of the M-AP AID Request Mode field or M-AP ID Response Mode field, and the M-AP ID (identifier) ​​Allocation field. The second AP, wherein the above MID field includes at least one of an M-AP MID Allocation field, an M-AP scheme field, an M-AP Info field, or an M-AP EDCA (enhanced distributed coordination access) parameter field.

14. In paragraph 13, the above at least one processor is: From the first AP, information related to the M-AP of the first AP is received, and The above first AP is further configured to transmit information related to the M-AP of the above second AP, and Information related to the M-AP of the first AP includes at least one of information regarding the M-AP capability or M-AP binding state of the first AP, and The second AP, wherein the information related to the M-AP of the second AP comprises at least one of the M-AP capability or M-AP binding state of the second AP.

15. In paragraph 13, the above at least one processor is: From the above-mentioned first AP, receive a third management frame for M-AP negotiation, and, The above first AP is further configured to transmit a fourth management frame containing a response to the above M-AP negotiation, and The above AID field is included in the above first management frame, and The above MID field is the second AP included in the above third management frame.

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