Method and device for performing NPCA in wireless LAN system

Abstract

Various embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a method and device for performing NPCA in a wireless LAN system. The method performed by an access point (AP) in a wireless local access network (LAN) system, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, may comprise the steps of: identifying transmission related to an overlapping basic service set (OBSS) on a primary channel; identifying a non-primary channel access (NPCA) duration for NPCA; and transmitting an initial control frame (ICF) through a non-primary channel (NPCH) within the NPCA duration.

Description

Method and device for performing NPCA in a wireless LAN system

[0001] The present disclosure generally relates to wireless LAN systems, and more specifically to a method and apparatus for performing NPCA in a wireless LAN system.

[0002] A Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), also known as Wi-Fi, is a network that enables internet access via mobile devices or laptops within a certain distance from an access point (AP). WLAN technology continues to evolve in line with the rise of the internet and the expansion of the smartphone market, and is being utilized to provide high-speed data services throughout entire cities, including in schools, airports, hotels, and offices.

[0003] The WiFi Alliance defines WiFi as a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) product based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard. IEEE 802.11a and b, published in 1997 and 1999 respectively, are standards utilizing unlicensed bands at 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz; IEEE 802.11b provides a transmission speed of 11 Mbps, while IEEE 802.11a provides a transmission speed of 54 Mbps. IEEE 802.11g provides a transmission speed of 54 Mbps by applying Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) at 2.4 GHz. IEEE 802.11n applies multiple input multiple output OFDM (MIMO-OFDM) to provide a transmission speed of 300 Mbps using four spatial streams. IEEE 802.11n supports a channel bandwidth of up to 40 MHz, in which case it provides a transmission speed of 600 Mbps.

[0004] Subsequently, the IEEE 802.11ac standard was introduced, which uses a maximum bandwidth of 160 MHz and supports eight spatial streams to support speeds up to 1 Gbit / s, and the IEEE 802.11ax standard was introduced, which provides multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO) in the uplink and downlink and supports spatial frequency reuse and dynamic fragmentation. Since then, research is underway on 802.11be, which aims to achieve theoretical speeds of 46 Gbps by supporting up to 320 ultra-wide channels, multi-link operation, and 4kQAM.

[0005] Various embodiments of the present disclosure aim to provide a method and apparatus for performing NPCA in a wireless LAN system.

[0006] A method performed by an access point (AP) in a wireless local access network (LAN) system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure may include the steps of identifying a transmission related to an overlapping basic service set (OBSS) in a primary channel, identifying an NPCA duration for non-primary channel access (NPCA), and transmitting an initial control frame (ICF) through a non-primary channel (NPCH) within the NPCA duration. The initial control frame may include one or more special user information fields. Among the one or more special user information fields, the first special user information field may include an NPCA duration presence subfield indicating whether information representing the NPCA duration exists. If the above NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a first value, the information indicating the NPCA interval is not included in the initial control frame, and if the above NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a second value, the information indicating the NPCA interval may be included in the initial control frame.

[0007] A method performed by a station (STA) in a wireless local access network (LAN) system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure may include the steps of identifying a transmission related to an overlapping basic service set (OBSS) in a primary channel and receiving an initial control frame (ICF) through a non-primary channel (NPCH) within a non-primary channel access (NPCA) interval. The initial control frame may include one or more special user information fields. Among the one or more special user information fields, the first special user information field may include an NPCA duration presence subfield indicating whether information indicating an NPCA interval exists. If the NPCA duration presence subfield indicates a first value, the information indicating the NPCA interval is not included in the initial control frame, and if the NPCA duration presence subfield indicates a second value, the information indicating the NPCA interval may be included in the initial control frame.

[0008] An access point (AP) of a wireless LAN (local access network) system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure may include a transceiver and a control unit configured to identify transmissions related to an overlapping basic service set (OBSS) in a primary channel, identify a duration for non-primary channel access (NPCA), and transmit an initial control frame (ICF) through a non-primary channel (NPCH) within the NPCA duration. The initial control frame may include one or more special user information fields. Among the one or more special user information fields, the first special user information field may include an NPCA duration presence subfield indicating whether information representing the NPCA duration exists. When the above NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a first value, the information indicating the NPCA interval is not included in the initial control frame, and when the above NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a second value, the information indicating the NPCA interval may be included in the initial control frame.

[0009] A station (STA) of a wireless LAN (local access network) system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure may include a transceiver and a control unit configured to identify transmissions related to an overlapping basic service set (OBSS) in a primary channel and to receive an initial control frame (ICF) through a non-primary channel (NPCH) within a non-primary channel access (NPCA) interval. The initial control frame may include one or more special user information fields. Among the one or more special user information fields, a first special user information field may include an NPCA duration presence subfield indicating whether information indicating an NPCA interval exists. If the NPCA duration presence subfield indicates a first value, the information indicating the NPCA interval is not included in the initial control frame, and if the NPCA duration presence subfield indicates a second value, the information indicating the NPCA interval may be included in the initial control frame.

[0010] According to one embodiment, when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the first special user information field does not include a trigger-dependent user information subfield, and when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the first special user information field includes a trigger-dependent user information subfield, and the trigger-dependent user information subfield may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0011] According to one embodiment, the first special user information field includes a trigger-dependent user information subfield regardless of the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield, and when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the trigger-dependent user information subfield includes a reserved bit, and when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0012] According to one embodiment, when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the second special user information field does not include information indicating the NPCA interval, and when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the second special user information field may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0013] According to one embodiment, the start time of the NPCA interval may be defined based on at least one of the time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel or the time after the NPCA switching delay from the time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel.

[0014] According to one embodiment, the last point in time of the NPCA interval may be defined based on at least one of the point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the primary channel ends or the point in time prior to the NPCA switching back delay from the point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the primary channel ends.

[0015] Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method and apparatus for channel access in a wireless LAN system.

[0016] The drawings attached below are intended to aid in understanding various embodiments of the present disclosure and provide various embodiments of the present disclosure together with a detailed description. However, the technical features of the various embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to specific drawings, and the features disclosed in each drawing may be combined with one another to form new embodiments. Reference numerals in each drawing represent structural elements.

[0017] FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating an example of a wireless communication network to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a drawing illustrating an example of the structure of an electronic device for performing a WLAN connection to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0019] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a link setup process of a general wireless LAN to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0020] FIG. 4 is a drawing illustrating an example of a hidden node and an exposed node to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable, and an example of an RTS and CTS for solving the problem of a hidden node and an exposed node.

[0021] FIG. 5 is a drawing illustrating an example of a frame structure used in an IEEE 802.11 system to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0022] FIG. 6 is a drawing illustrating an example of a NAV setting to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0023] FIG. 7 is a drawing illustrating an example of a TXOP to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0024] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a channel connection to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0025] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of an NPCA operation performed by an NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0026] FIG. 10 is a drawing showing an example of a trigger frame (TF) to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0027] FIG. 11 is a drawing showing an example of a Special User Info field included in a trigger frame to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0028] Figure 12 is a diagram showing an example of a special user information field including an NPCA duration presence subfield according to the first method.

[0029] Figure 13 is a diagram showing an example of a special user information field including an NPCA duration presence subfield according to the second method.

[0030] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example in which information indicating an NPCA section to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable is included in a second special user information field.

[0031] FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of a first special user information field including an NPCA primary channel indication subfield and an NPCA duration presence subfield according to the first method.

[0032] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a first special user information field including an NPCA primary channel indication subfield and an NPCA duration presence subfield according to the second method.

[0033] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example in which information indicating an NPCA section to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable is included in a second special user information field.

[0034] FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an ICF transmission method to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0035] FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating an ICF receiving method to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0036] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0037] In describing the embodiments, 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.

[0038] 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. Identical or corresponding components in each drawing have been assigned the same reference number.

[0039] 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 of the present disclosure are provided merely to make the present disclosure 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. Throughout the specification, like reference numerals refer to like components.

[0040] At this point, it will be understood that each block of the process flow diagrams and combinations of the flow diagrams can be executed by computer program instructions. Since these computer program instructions can be loaded into the processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose 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 flow diagram 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 means of instruction to perform the function described in the flow diagram block(s).

[0041] Since computer program instructions can be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing equipment, instructions that execute a computer or other programmable data processing equipment by performing a series of operation steps on the computer or other programmable data processing equipment to create a process executed by the computer may 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 specific 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 depending on the corresponding function.

[0043] In this embodiment, the term "part" used refers to a software or hardware component such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array) or an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit), 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 may be configured to run one or more processors. Accordingly, according to some embodiments, 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." In addition, the components and 'parts' may be implemented to utilize one or more CPUs within the device or secure multimedia card. Furthermore, according to some embodiments, the 'parts' may include one or more processors.

[0044] Exemplary embodiments are described below in relation to wireless LAN systems solely for the sake of simplicity. It should be understood that the exemplary embodiments are equally applicable to systems using signals of one or more wired standards or protocols (e.g., Ethernet and / or HomePlug, PLC standards), as well as other wireless networks (e.g., cellular networks, pico networks, femto networks, satellite networks). As used herein, WLAN and Wi-Fi® Terms such as IEEE 802.11 standard family, BLUETOOTH ® Communications may be controlled by (Bluetooth), HiperLAN (a set of wireless standards comparable to IEEE 802.11 standards, mainly used in Europe), and other technologies having a relatively short wireless propagation range. Accordingly, the terms WLAN and WiFi may be used interchangeably in this specification. Additionally, while the following describes an infrastructure WLAN system comprising one or more APs and multiple wireless stations (STAs), exemplary embodiments are equally applicable to other WLAN systems, such as multiple WLANs, peer-to-peer (or independent basic service set) systems, Wi-Fi Direct systems, and / or hotspots.

[0045] Additionally, while this specification describes the exchange of data frames between wireless devices, exemplary embodiments may be applied to the exchange of any data unit, packet, and / or frame between wireless devices. Accordingly, the term "frame" may include any frame, packet, or data unit such as, for example, protocol data units (PDUs), MAC (media access control) protocol data units (MPDUs), and PLCP (physical layer convergence procedure) protocol data units (PPDUs). The term "A-MPDU" may mean aggregated MPDUs. In the following description, "(A-)MPDU" may be understood to encompass both MPDUs and / or A-MPDUs. In the following, a wireless LAN, or WLAN network, may be a network implementing at least one of the IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standard families, such as defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 standard or its amendments (including, but not limited to, 802.11ah, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, and 802.11be).

[0046] In the following description, many specific details, such as examples of specific components, circuits, and processes, are presented to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. As used herein, the term “connected” means being directly connected or being connected through one or more intervening components or circuits. The term “connected AP” means an access point to which a given wireless station is currently associated and / or connected (e.g., there exists a communication channel or link established between the access point and the given wireless station). Additionally, in the following description and for illustrative purposes, specific nomenclature is presented to provide a thorough understanding of exemplary embodiments. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these specific details may not be necessary to implement the exemplary embodiments. In other cases, to avoid obscuring the present disclosure, well-known circuits and devices are illustrated in block diagram form.

[0047] The operating principles of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings. In describing the present disclosure below, specific descriptions of related known functions or configurations will be omitted if it is determined that such detailed descriptions would unnecessarily obscure the essence of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the terms described below are defined in consideration of their functions in the present disclosure, and these may vary depending on the intentions or practices of the user or operator. Therefore, their definitions should be based on the content throughout this specification.

[0048] FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating an example of a wireless communication network to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0049] A wireless communication network (100) may be an example of a wireless LAN, such as a Wi-Fi network. The wireless communication network (100) may include multiple wireless communication devices, such as an AP (102) and multiple STAs (stations, 104). Although only one AP (102) is shown, the wireless communication network (100) may also include multiple APs (102).

[0050] A STA is a logical entity that includes a physical layer interface for a MAC and a wireless medium, and includes APs and non-AP STAs (Non-AP stations). Among the STAs, a portable terminal operated by a user is a Non-AP STA, and when simply referred to as STA, it may also refer to a Non-AP STA. Hereinafter, STA may refer to a non-AP STA. Each of the STAs (104) may be referred to as a terminal or a device. The terms 'terminal' or 'device' used in this specification may be referred to as a mobile station (MS), user equipment (UE), user terminal (UT), wireless terminal, access terminal (AT), terminal, subscriber unit, subscriber station (SS), wireless device, wireless communication device, wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), mobile node, mobile, or other terms. Various embodiments of the terminal may include cellular telephones, smartphones having wireless communication capabilities, personal handheld terminals (PDAs) having wireless communication capabilities, wireless modems, portable computers having wireless communication capabilities, imaging devices such as digital cameras having wireless communication capabilities, gaming devices having wireless communication capabilities, home appliances for storing and playing music having wireless communication capabilities, home appliances capable of wireless internet access and browsing, as well as portable units or terminals integrating combinations of such functions. Additionally, the terminal may include machine-to-machine (M2M) terminals and machine-type communication (MTC) terminals / devices, but is not limited thereto. In this specification, the terminal may be referred to as an electronic device or simply a device.

[0051] An AP (102) is an entity that provides access to a distribution system (DS) via a wireless medium to an Associated Station (STA) connected to it. An AP may also be called a central controller, base station (BS), Node-B, base transceiver system (BTS), or site controller.

[0052] An exemplary coverage area (106) of an AP (102) capable of representing the basic service area (BSA) of a wireless communication network (100) is illustrated. The AP (102) periodically broadcasts beacon frames (beacon frames may be interchangeable with beacons) containing a basic service set identifier (BSSID) to enable any STA (104) within the wireless range of the AP (102) to be associated with or re-associated with the AP (102) to establish or maintain individual communication links (108) (or may be referred to as Wi-Fi links) with the AP (102). The AP (102) can provide access to external networks for various STAs (104) within the WLAN through individual communication links (108).

[0053] A single AP (102) and an associated set of STAs (104) may be referred to as a basic service set (BSS) managed by the individual AP (102). The BSS may be identified to users by a service set identifier (SSID), as well as to other devices by a BSSID, which may be the MAC address of the AP (102).

[0054] BSS can be classified into infrastructure BSS and independent BSS (IBSS). The BSS shown in Fig. 1 is an IBSS, and it is also possible to establish an infrastructure BSS (not shown). An infrastructure BSS includes one or more STAs and APs, and in principle, communication between non-AP STAs in an infrastructure BSS is carried out via an AP, but if a direct link is established between non-AP STAs, direct communication between non-AP STAs is also possible.

[0055] Multiple infrastructure BSSs can be interconnected via DS. Multiple BSSs connected via DS are called an extended service set (ESS). STAs included in an ESS can communicate with each other, and within the same ESS, STAs can move from one BSS to another while communicating seamlessly.

[0056] A DS is a mechanism that connects multiple APs; it does not necessarily have to be a network, and there are no restrictions on its form as long as it can provide a specified distribution service. For example, a DS can be a wireless network such as a mesh network, or it can be a physical structure that connects APs to each other.

[0057] Additionally, AP (102) and STA (104) may be referred to as AP-MLD (access point multi-link device) and STA-MDL, respectively. This may mean that AP and STA can support multi-link operation.

[0058] Below, an example of a hierarchical structure according to the 802.11 standard is described.

[0059] The 802.11 standard document develops MAC and PHY protocols corresponding to Wi-Fi wireless access technology. The Data Link Layer (DLL) includes the MAC sublayer, which is responsible for media access control. It receives packets from the upper layer, 802.1X Port Filtering, via the MAC_SAP interface, constructs them into IEEE 802.11 MAC frames, and transmits them to the physical layer. The physical layer includes the PLCP (Physical Layer Convergence Procedure) sublayer and the PDM (Physical Medium Dependent) sublayer. The PLCP sublayer is responsible for converting the IEEE 802.11 MAC frames constructed by the MAC sublayer into PLCP frames. The PLCP frames are then transmitted to the target terminal through the PMD sublayer.

[0060] Various management frames that manage Wi-Fi wireless access are not transmitted at the upper layers of 802.1X. Instead, these management frames are transmitted as requests and responses between Station Management Entities (SMEs) located within each terminal. An SME is a layer-independent entity that may exist within a separate management plane or appear to be off-the-side. For example, if an AP wants to configure a BSS, it instructs the transmission of beacons via the MLME_SAP interface, specifically the MLME-START.request and MLME-START.confirm primitives. If an STA wants to establish an association with the corresponding AP, it instructs the transmission of association Request / Response frames via the MLME-ASSOCIATE.request, MLME-ASSOCIATE.response, MLME-ASSOCIATE.confirm, and MLME-ASSOCIATE.indication primitives. Meanwhile, if you wish to set operational parameter values ​​related to the physical layer, the SME can set various physical layer parameter values ​​through the PLCP_SAP interface.

[0061] FIG. 2 is a drawing illustrating an example of the structure of an electronic device for performing a WLAN connection to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0062] Referring to FIG. 2, the electronic device (200) may be connected to an AP (210), and the electronic device (200) may include a processor (or control unit) (230) and a communication module (or transceiver) (220). The electronic device (200) may be the STA (104) of FIG. 1, in which case the electronic device (200) may be connected to the AP (210) as illustrated. Alternatively, the electronic device (200) may be the AP (102) of FIG. 1, in which case the electronic device may be connected to the STA (104) and / or another AP as illustrated in FIG. 1.

[0063] The communication module (220) uses a Wi-Fi communication method (e.g., IEEE Std 802.11) TM Based on ), it can receive communication signals from the outside or transmit communication signals to the outside. For example, the communication module (220) can operate based on Wi-Fi communication methods such as IEEE 802.11ac, 802.11ax, 802.11be, or 802.11bn, and in particular, IEEE 802.11be or 802.11bn supports wider bandwidth, higher data throughput, and shorter latency compared to IEEE 802.11ax, thereby improving performance.

[0064] The communication module (220) may include a transceiver (224) for transmitting and receiving data with an external device and a communication processor (222) (e.g., a communication processor (not shown), or a short-range wireless communication module (e.g., a Wi-Fi chipset)). Depending on various embodiments, the communication module (220) may further include memory.

[0065] According to various embodiments, the transceiver (224) can convert a baseband transmission signal into a wireless signal or convert a received wireless signal into a baseband reception signal.

[0066] According to various embodiments, the communication module (220) may further include, in addition to the transceiver (224) and the communication processor (222), components for OFDM or OFDMA (orthogonal frequency division multiple access), such as a modulator, a digital-analog converter, a frequency converter, an A / D converter, an amplifier, and / or a demodulator.

[0067] According to various embodiments not shown, the electronic device (200) may be electrically connected to a communication module of the AP (210) and may include at least one antenna module that supports a communication protocol and / or frequency band supported by the communication module of the AP (210).

[0068] The communication processor (222) can control the transceiver (224) to form a communication connection with the AP (210). For example, the communication connection may include a Wi-Fi network. For example, the communication processor (222) can control the transceiver (224) to form a wireless connection with the AP (200) using a WLAN standard in the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, or 6 GHz band such as IEEE 802.11ac, 802.11ax, 802.11be, or 802.11bn. Alternatively, the communication processor (222) can control the transceiver (191) to form a wireless connection with the AP (210) using a WLAN standard in the 60 GHz band such as IEEE 802.11ad or 802.11ay. In addition, the method of communicating between the electronic device (200) and the AP (210) using a WLAN standard can be referred to as a communication method based on STA mode.

[0069] According to various embodiments, the processor (230) may include an application processor. The processor (230) may perform a designated operation of the electronic device (200) or control other hardware (e.g., a communication module (220)) to perform a designated operation. The processor (230) may control the electronic device (200) to perform operations according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, if the electronic device (200) is a STA, the processor (230) may control the STA to perform an operation of the STA according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. If the electronic device (200) is an AP, the processor (230) may control the AP to perform an operation of the AP according to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0070] According to various embodiments, the AP (210) may support the operation of transmitting packets to an external network and / or the operation of receiving packets from an external network based on a connection between a plurality of electronic devices (e.g., electronic device (200)) and an external network (e.g., the Internet, an external LAN, or a cellular network).

[0071] For example, the AP (210) may be a wireless router. The AP (210) may be a dedicated wireless router or a general-purpose device that supports mobile hotspot functions, and there are no limitations on its implementation. For example, the AP (210) may include the same components (e.g., a processor and / or a communication module) as the electronic device (200). Additionally, the AP (210) may transmit and receive data with an external device, such as a server. For example, the AP (210) may transmit at least some of the data received from the server to the electronic device (200).

[0072] If the electronic device (200) of FIG. 2 corresponds to the AP (102), the electronic device (200) may include a separate communication module for connection with an external network, although not shown. This communication module may be controlled by a processor (230) or by a separate processor. The separate communication module may include a transceiver and a processor, and may also include memory. Additionally, the electronic device (200) may include a separate antenna module or a wired connection device for connection with an external network.

[0073] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a link setup process of a general wireless LAN to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0074] In order for an STA to set up a link and transmit and receive data on a network, it must first discover the network, perform authentication, establish an association, and go through authentication procedures for security. The link setup process can also be referred to as the session initiation process or the session setup process. Additionally, the discovery, authentication, association, and security setup processes of the link setup process can be collectively referred to as the association process.

[0075] Referring to FIG. 3, the STA (300) can perform a network discovery operation. The network discovery operation may include a scanning operation of the STA (300). That is, in order for the STA (300) to access a network, it must find a network that it can join. Before joining a wireless network, the STA (300) must identify a compatible network, and the process of identifying networks existing in a specific area is called scanning.

[0076] Scanning methods include active scanning and passive scanning. In active scanning, the STA (300) performing the scanning moves between channels and sends a probe request frame (322) to search for nearby APs and waits for a response. The responder sends a probe response frame (324) as a response to the probe request frame to the STA that sent the probe request frame. Here, the responder may be the AP or STA that last sent a beacon frame from the BSS of the channel being scanned. In FIG. 3, an example of a BSS that becomes the responder is shown where the AP (310) sends a beacon frame (320). In an IBSS, the responder is not constant because the STAs within the IBSS take turns sending beacon frames. For example, if an STA transmits a probe request frame on channel 1 and receives a probe response frame on channel 1, the STA can store the BSS-related information included in the received probe response frame and move to the next channel to perform scanning in the same way.

[0077] Scanning operations may be performed using a passive scanning method. In passive scanning, the STA performing the scanning detects beacon frames while switching between channels. A beacon frame is one of the management frames 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. Figure 3 illustrates an example of a BSS in which an AP (310) periodically transmits beacon frames (320) to an STA (300), and in an IBSS, STAs within the IBSS take turns transmitting beacon frames. When the scanning STA receives a beacon frame, it stores information about the BSS included in the beacon frame and records the beacon frame information in each channel while moving to another channel. When comparing active scanning and passive scanning, active scanning has the advantage of having less delay and power consumption than passive scanning.

[0078] After the STA (300) discovers the network, an authentication process may be performed. This authentication process may be referred to as the first authentication process to clearly distinguish it from the security setup operation (350) described later. The authentication process includes the STA (300) sending an authentication request frame (330) to the AP (310), and in response, the AP (310) sending an authentication response frame (332) to the STA (300). The authentication frame used in the authentication request / response corresponds to a management frame.

[0079] 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.

[0080] AP (310) can determine whether to allow authentication for the STA based on the information included in the received authentication request frame. AP (310) can provide the result of the authentication processing to the STA (300) through an authentication response frame.

[0081] After the STA is successfully authenticated, an association process can be performed. The association process includes the STA (300) sending an association request frame (340) to the AP (310), and in response, the AP (310) sending an association response frame (342) to the STA (300).

[0082] For example, the associated request frame may include information regarding various capabilities, beacon listen interval, SSID, supported rates, supported channels, RSN (robust security network), mobility domain, supported operating classes, traffic indication map broadcast request, interworking service capabilities, etc.

[0083] For example, an association response frame may include information related to various capabilities, status code, association ID (AID), support rate, enhanced distributed channel access (EDCA) parameter set, received channel power indicator (RCPI), received signal to noise indicator (RSNI), mobility domain, timeout interval (association comeback time), overlapping BSS scan parameters, TIM broadcast response, QoS map, etc.

[0084] This is a partial example of the information that may be included in the associated request / response frame, and it may be replaced with other information or additional information may be included.

[0085] Although not yet described, a security setup process can be performed after the STA is successfully associated with the network. The security setup process may be described as an authentication process through RSNA (robust security network association) requests / responses, and the authentication process (330) may be called the first authentication process, and the security setup process may also be called the authentication process.

[0086] The security setup process may include, for example, a private key setup process through a 4-way handshake via an EAPOL (extensible authentication protocol over LAN) frame, or may be performed according to a security method not defined in the IEEE 802.11 standard.

[0087] The following describes the Media Access Control Protocol provided by 802.11.

[0088] In wireless LAN systems based on IEEE 802.11, the basic access mechanism of a MAC is based on a distributed coordination function (DCF) utilizing the carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA / CA) method. There are two methods for detecting carriers in DCF: physical carrier sense and virtual carrier sense. The physical carrier sense method detects channel conditions at the physical layer and informs the MAC layer, while the virtual carrier sense method reserves a channel in advance by broadcasting the channel occupancy time to surrounding stations. An STA or AP that has secured a transmission channel records and transmits this channel occupancy time within an RTS and / or CTS or data frame; other STAs receiving this information determine that the channel is in use during this time and avoid channel occupancy contention, thereby avoiding collisions.

[0089] The physical carrier sensing method basically employs a listen before talk access mechanism, and according to this type of access mechanism, the AP and / or STA can perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) to sense the wireless channel, carrier, or medium for a predetermined time interval before starting transmission. The predetermined time interval is referred to as the inter-frame space (IFS) and may vary depending on the priority of the traffic to be transmitted. That is, priority can be determined by the length of the time interval, and packets with higher priority may have shorter time intervals.

[0090] The above IFS may include SIFS (short IFS), PIFS (priority IFS), DIFS (distributed (coordination function) IFS), AIFS (arbitration IFS), etc. SIFS is the shortest time interval and can be used primarily as a waiting time for control information. PIFS is a medium-length time interval and can be for packets of medium priority (PIFS = SIFS + 1 slot time). DIFS is the longest time interval compared to SIFS and PIFS, has a low priority, and can be used primarily as a waiting time to check whether the channel is in use (DIFS = SIFS + 2 slot time). That is, for example, an STA intending to perform transmission can listen to (or detect the channel) whether the channel is in use during the DIFS period.

[0091] If sensing results determine that the medium is in an idle status, the AP and / or STA begin transmitting a frame through the medium. Conversely, if the medium is detected to be in an occupied status, the AP and / or STA may not begin their own transmission but wait for a delay period (e.g., a random backoff period) for accessing the medium before attempting to transmit a frame. By applying a random backoff period, multiple STAs are expected to attempt to transmit frames after waiting for different periods of time, thereby minimizing collisions.

[0092] However, since this DCF method does not consider the priority between STAs, it has the problem of being difficult to support various forms of data transmission and QoS (Quality of Service); therefore, HCF (hybrid coordination function) was introduced. HCF is based on the aforementioned DCF and PCF (point coordination function). PCF refers to a polling-based synchronous access method that periodically polls all receiving APs and / or STAs so that they can receive data frames. HCF includes EDCA (enhanced distributed channel access), a contention-based channel access method, and HCCA (HCF controlled channel access), a contention-based method utilizing a polling mechanism. Furthermore, HCF includes a media access mechanism to enhance the QoS of the WLAN and can transmit QoS data during both the contention period (CP) and the contention-free period (CFP).

[0093] FIG. 4 is a drawing illustrating an example of a hidden node and an exposed node to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable, and an example of an RTS and CTS for solving the problem of a hidden node and an exposed node.

[0094] Figure 4 (a) (400) is an example of a hidden node. When STA A and STA B are communicating and STA C has information to transmit, STA A is transmitting information to STA B, but when STA C performs carrier sensing before sending data to STA B, it can be determined that the medium is idle. This is because STA C may not be able to sense STA A's transmission (i.e., medium occupancy) at its location. In this case, a collision occurs because STA B receives information from STA A and STA C simultaneously. At this time, STA A can be considered a hidden node of STA C.

[0095] (b)(410) is an example of an exposed node. In a situation where STA B is transmitting data to STA A, STA C may have information to transmit to STA D. In this case, if STA C performs carrier sensing, it can determine that the medium is occupied due to the transmission by STA B. Accordingly, STA C must wait until the medium becomes idle, even if it has information to transmit to STA D. However, in reality, since STA A is outside the transmission range of STA C, the transmission from STA C and the transmission from STA B may not conflict from STA A's perspective, so STA C ends up waiting unnecessarily until STA B stops transmitting. In this case, STA C can be referred to as the exposed node of STA B.

[0096] In order to efficiently utilize the collision avoidance mechanism in the above situation, short signaling packets such as RTS (request to send) and CTS (clear to send) may be used. An STA intending to transmit data transmits an RTS to a STA intending to receive data, and the receiving STA that receives the RTS responds to the transmitting STA with a CTS frame. The RTS and / or CTS between the two STAs may cause surrounding STA(s) to overhear, thereby causing the surrounding STA(s) to consider whether to transmit information between the two STAs.

[0097] (c)(420) is an example of how to solve the hidden node problem. Assume that both STA A and STA C are trying to send data to STA B. When STA A sends an RTS to STA B, STA B sends a CTS to STA A. STA C, which overhears the RTS and CTS, delays its media access until the data transmission of STA A and STA B is finished, thereby avoiding collisions.

[0098] (d)(430) is an example of a method for solving the exposed node problem. STA B, which intends to send data to STA A, sends an RTS, and STA A, which is to receive the data, sends a CTS to respond to the RTS. In this case, if STA C receives only the RTS sent by STA B and does not receive the CTS sent by STA A, STA C can determine that STA A is outside the carrier sensing area of ​​STC C. In this case, STA C can determine that no collision will occur even if it sends data to another STA (e.g., STA D) and can send the data.

[0099] FIG. 5 is a drawing illustrating an example of a frame structure used in an IEEE 802.11 system to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0100] The PPDU (physical layer protocol data unit) format can be configured to include the STF (short training field), LTF (long training field), SIG (signal) field, and data field. The most basic (e.g., non-HT (high throughput)) PPDU frame format can be configured to include only the L-STF (legacy-STF), L-LTF (legacy-LTF), SIG field, and data field.

[0101] STF can be used for frame timing acquisition, automatic gain control (AGC), diversity detection, and coarse frequency / time synchronization. LTF can be used for fine frequency / time synchronization and channel estimation. STF and LTF together can be referred to as the PLCP preamble, and the PLCP preamble can be described as a signal for synchronization and channel estimation in the OFDM physical layer.

[0102] The SIG field can be used to transmit control information for demodulation and decoding of the data field. The SIG field may include information regarding the data rate and data length. Additionally, the SIG field may include a parity bit, a SIG TAIL bit, etc.

[0103] 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 the descrambler at the receiver. The PSDU corresponds to the MPDU (mac protocol data unit) 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 state of 0. Padding bits may be used to adjust the length of the data field to a predetermined unit.

[0104] MPDUs are 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 an MPDU and can be transmitted or received through the PSDU of the data portion in the PPDU format.

[0105] The MAC header is defined as an area including a frame control field, a duration / ID field, an address 1 field, an address 2 field, an address 3 field, a sequence control field, an address 4 field, a QoS control field, and an HT control field.

[0106] The frame control field contains information about the corresponding MAC frame characteristics. The interval / identifier field can be implemented to have different values ​​depending on the type and subtype of the corresponding MAC frame.

[0107] Fields 1 through 4 of the address are used to indicate the BSSID, source address (SA), destination address (DA), transmitting address (TA) representing the transmitting STA address, and receiving address (RA) representing the receiving STA address.

[0108] The sequence control field is configured to include a sequence number and a fragment number. The sequence number may indicate the sequence number assigned to the corresponding MAC frame. The fragment number may indicate the number of each fragment of the corresponding MAC frame.

[0109] The QoS control field contains information related to QoS. The QoS control field may be included if the Subtype subfield indicates a QoS data frame. The HT control field contains control information related to HT and / or VHT transmission and reception techniques.

[0110] The frame body is defined as the MAC payload, contains the data to be transmitted from the upper layer, and has a variable size. For example, the maximum MPDU size can be 11,454 octets, and the maximum PPDU size can be 5.484 ms.

[0111] FCS is defined as the MAC footer and is used for error detection in MAC frames.

[0112] The first three fields (frame control field, interval / identifier field, and address 1 field) and the very last field (FCS field) constitute the minimum frame format and are present in all frames. Other fields may exist only in specific frame types.

[0113] The following describes the network allocation vector (NAV) used in wireless LAN networks.

[0114] As previously mentioned, the CSMA / CA mechanism includes virtual carrier sensing in addition to physical carrier sensing, where the AP and / or STA directly senses the medium. Virtual carrier sensing is intended to compensate for problems that may occur in medium access, such as hidden node issues. For virtual carrier sensing, the MAC of a wireless LAN system may utilize NAV. NAV is a value that indicates to other APs and / or STAs the time remaining until the medium becomes available, provided that the AP and / or STA currently using or authorized to use the medium is using the medium. Therefore, the value set as NAV corresponds to the period during which the medium is scheduled to be used by the AP and / or STA transmitting the frame, and the STA receiving the NAV value is prohibited from accessing the medium during that period. NAV can be set, for example, based on the value of the duration field in the MAC header of the frame.

[0115] FIG. 6 is a drawing illustrating an example of a NAV setting to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0116] Referring to FIG. 6, the source STA (source STA, 600) transmits an RTS frame after DIFS, and the destination (610) transmits a CTS frame after SIFS. The destination STA designated as the recipient via the RTS frame does not set the NAV. Some of the remaining STAs (620) receive the RTS frame and set the NAV (630), while others receive the CTS frame and set the NAV (640).

[0117] If a CTS frame (e.g., PHY-RXSTART.indication primitive) is not received within a certain period from the time when an RTS frame is received (e.g., when a MAC receives the PHY-RXEND.indication primitive corresponding to the RTS frame), STAs that set or updated the NAV through the RTS frame may reset the NAV (e.g., 0). The certain period may be (2*aSIFSTime + CTS_Time + aRxPHYStartDelay + 2*aSlotTime). CTS_Time may be calculated based on the length and data rate of the CTS frame indicated by the RTS frame. The above certain period may be the NAVTimeout period.

[0118] In FIG. 6, for convenience, NAV setting or updating is exemplified through an RTS frame or a CTS frame, but NAV setting / resetting / updating may also be performed based on the interval field of various other frames, such as non-HT PPDU, HT PPDU, VHT PPDU, or HE PPDU (for example, the interval field within the MAC header of a MAC frame).

[0119] In addition, 802.11ax introduced basic NAV and intra-BSS NAV. Basic NAV is always set (mandatory) to NAV based on frames transmitted by APs or STAs other than itself, while intra-BSS NAV is optionally set to NAV based on frames transmitted by the BSS to which it belongs. An AP or STA can access the medium when both NAV timers have expired (or after the NAV time interval has elapsed).

[0120] The following describes TXOP. TXOP (transmission opportunity) was newly introduced in 802.11e MACs to guarantee QoS and increase channel utilization. To guarantee QoS, TXOP can be used to allocate an opportunity for priority transmission when two or more packets belong to the same AC (access category).

[0121] FIG. 7 is a drawing illustrating an example of a TXOP to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0122] STAs participating in QoS transmission can obtain a TXOP that allows them to transmit traffic for a certain period using two channel access methods, such as EDCA and HCCA. TXOP acquisition is possible by succeeding in EDCA contention or receiving a QoS CF-Poll (Contention-Free Poll) frame from an AP; the former is called an EDCA TXOP, and the latter is called a Polled TXOP. In this way, the concept of a TXOP can be used to grant a certain amount of time for any STA to transmit a frame, or to forcibly limit the transmission time.

[0123] The transmission start time and maximum transmission time of a TXOP are determined by the AP, and this is notified to the STA by a beacon frame in the case of an EDCA TXOP, and by a QoS CF-Poll frame in the case of a Polled TXOP.

[0124] NAV can be understood as a type of timer designed to protect the TXOP of a transmitting STA (e.g., a TXOP holder). An STA can protect the TXOPs of other STAs by not performing channel access during the period when the NAV set for it is valid. In current wireless LAN systems, the TXOP duration is set via the duration field of the MAC header. That is, the TXOP holder and the TXOP responder (e.g., an Rx STA) include all the TXOP information necessary for the transmission and reception of frames in the duration field of the frames being exchanged between them. Third-party STAs that are not the TXOP holder or TXOP responder (e.g., third-party STAs) check the duration field of the frames exchanged between the TXOP holder and the TXOP responder, and delay channel usage until the NAV period expires by setting or updating the NAV.

[0125] The 802.11be standard is described below. Also known as EHT (extremely high throughput), 802.11be operates across the 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz bands. It is being developed to provide low latency and high network throughput by introducing a 320 MHz wide bandwidth, 4096QAM, multiple resource units (RUs), and multi-link operation (MLO), offering speeds up to 46 Gbps—4.8 times faster than WiFi 6. Specifically, 802.11be provides a 320 MHz wide bandwidth in the 6 GHz band and can transmit data via MU-MIMO, which offers 16 spatial streams in both uplink and downlink. It also achieves high transmission efficiency by adopting 4096QAM. Furthermore, it features enhanced spectrum efficiency by flexibly performing spectrum resource scheduling through multiple RUs, and the ability to simultaneously transmit and receive data across various frequency bands and channels through multi-link operation.

[0126] The following describes OBSS (overlapping basic service set). As the number of users increases, the performance of existing wireless LAN networks, such as transmission rates, decreases significantly. This is because wireless LAN systems fundamentally utilize the CSMA / CA method, which corresponds to time division access control; therefore, when an adjacent network is detected, the frequency resources of the same band are shared for the duration of the adjacent network's activity.

[0127] Currently, it is common for multiple APs to operate in specific areas, and in such cases, wireless LAN network performance degradation occurs due to coverage overlap between APs. This is because the APs of each BSS and the STAs connected to them are affected by signals from adjacent BSSs, leading to interference and a reduction in transmission rates caused by collisions between signals transmitted simultaneously. BSSs that can affect signal transmission in this way (or have overlapping coverage) can be referred to as overlapping BSSs (OBSS). To address this problem, interference avoidance techniques are being researched, such as dividing the bandwidth available to each user so that it does not overlap or performing channel switching to unused channels, as well as interference alignment techniques that minimize the impact of interference even when using the same bandwidth.

[0128] FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a channel connection to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable. FIG. 8 is intended to illustrate non-primary channel access (NPCA). In FIG. 8, a wideband channel is exemplified as being configured with a 20 MHz primary channel (primary 20 MHz channel) and a plurality of 20 MHz secondary channels (secondary 20 MHz channels). This is for convenience of explanation and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0129] The primary channel (or BSS primary channel) is a common channel operated by all STAs that are members of the BSS. For example, in a 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz, or 80 + 80 MHz BSS, the primary channel may be the primary 20 MHz channel.

[0130] A secondary channel is a channel associated with a primary channel and is used to create a channel wider than the primary channel. For example, in a 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz, or 80 + 80 MHz BSS, the secondary channel may be a secondary 20 MHz channel.

[0131] According to the current 801.11 standard, for any transmission (e.g., transmission on 20 / 40 / 80 / 160 / 320 MHz channels), the primary channel (primary 20 MHz channel) must be idle to access a wideband channel larger than 20 MHz. Therefore, if the primary channel is busy, the AP / STA cannot transmit on any idle secondary channel. In other words, if the primary channel is busy, transmission cannot be performed on that secondary channel even if it is idle.

[0132] For example, referring to Fig. 8(a), transmission cannot be performed even if the secondary channel is available, if the primary channel is busy.

[0133] For example, the primary channel may be busy due to interference from a 20 MHz PPDU corresponding to an OBSS (overlapping BSS), and in this case, transmission cannot be performed even if 60 MHz secondary channels are available.

[0134] For example, the primary channel may be busy due to interference from a 40 MHz PPDU corresponding to OBSS, and in this case, transmission cannot be performed even if 40 MHz secondary channels are available.

[0135] In other words, according to the current 801.11 standard, when the primary channel is idle, the STA can transmit packets. That is, when the primary channel is idle, the STA can perform transmission (e.g., transmission of an 80MHz PPDU) using both the primary and secondary channels. This applies equally to the STA's UL (uplink) transmission as well as the AP's DL (downlink) transmission.

[0136] Therefore, current secondary channel access mechanisms (or schemes) are inefficient for wideband channels (e.g., 160 MHz channels, 320 MHz channels) or large bandwidths, and thus a better secondary channel access mechanism (or scheme) is needed to fully utilize wideband channels.

[0137] NPCA (non-primary channel access) is being discussed as a solution to the aforementioned problem. NPCA can be triggered based on OBSS PPDU and / or OBSS TXOP. According to NPCA, if the primary channel is busy and a secondary channel is available, the AP / STA can transmit on the available secondary channel.

[0138] An NPCA primary channel may be defined among (or within) secondary channels. The NPCA primary channel may be a channel where channel access (e.g., EDCA) is performed while the primary channel is busy. That is, the NPCA primary channel may be a channel within the secondary channels where channel access is performed while the primary channel is busy. For example, the NPCA primary channel may have a bandwidth of 20 MHz, but this is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the disclosure. The NPCA primary channel may be named an anchor channel, but the disclosure is not limited to this specific designation.

[0139] For example, referring to Fig. 8(b), when the primary channel is busy, transmission can be performed on available secondary channels.

[0140] For example, if the primary channel is busy due to interference by a 20 MHz PPDU corresponding to OBSS, the STA can transmit packets (e.g., 60 MHz PPDU) on available secondary channels while the primary channel is busy. Channel access can be performed on an anchor channel within the secondary channels, and accordingly, packets can be transmitted on the secondary channels when the anchor channel is idle. This applies equally to UL transmission by the STA as well as DL transmission by the AP.

[0141] For example, if the primary channel is busy due to interference by a 40 MHz PPDU corresponding to OBSS, the STA can transmit packets (e.g., 40 MHz PPDU) on available secondary channels while the primary channel is busy. Channel access can be performed on an anchor channel within the secondary channels, and accordingly, packets can be transmitted on the secondary channels when the anchor channel is idle. This applies equally to UL transmission by the STA as well as DL transmission by the AP.

[0142] In the description of an embodiment of the present disclosure, NPCA AP may mean an AP having the capability to perform NPCA (or an AP that performs / is capable of performing an action related to NPCA), and NPCA STA may mean an STA that is associated with NPCA AP and has the capability to perform NPCA (or an STA that performs / is capable of performing an action related to NPCA). Unless specifically stated otherwise, AP, NPCA AP, STA, and NPCA STA may be used interchangeably in the present disclosure. In particular, NPCA AP and NPCA STA used for the following description each mean an AP and / or STA that has the capability to perform NPCA, and their meaning is not limited to an AP and / or STA that is performing NPCA at the time of description.

[0143] When the OBSS initiates an OBSS TXOP, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA within the BSS may set BasicNAV and perform NPCA. For example, BasicNAV may be set for the primary channel. For example, when it is identified that the OBSS has initiated an OBSS TXOP based on an RTS-CTS exchange, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA within the BSS may set BasicNAV and perform NPCA. Here, whether to perform NPCA may be identified based on a comparison between the OBSS TXOP and a specific duration threshold. For example, if the OBSS TXOP is shorter than (or less than) the specific duration threshold, NPCA may not be performed. Conversely, if the OBSS TXOP is longer than (or greater than) the specific duration threshold, NPCA may be performed. This takes into account that when the OBSS TXOP is relatively short, it may be advantageous to wait until the OBSS TXOP ends rather than to perform an operation based on NPCA.

[0144] Between the NPCA APs and / or NPCA STAs within the BSS, secondary channels on which NPCA operates and anchor channels (e.g., 20 MHz anchor channels) for performing channel access (e.g., EDCA) procedures within the secondary channels may be pre-configured / pre-agreed upon. The secondary channels on which NPCA operates may be named NPCHs (non-primary channels), but the present disclosure is not limited to these specific names.

[0145] The operation of the NPCA AP can be as follows.

[0146] An NPCA AP may not perform NPCA within a band outside the operating bandwidth. That is, an NPCA AP can perform NPCA within the operating bandwidth.

[0147] NPCA AP can perform NPCA if the secondary channel is idle during the interval of PIFS immediately preceding the starting point of OBSS TXOP.

[0148] If the NPCA AP has a separate NAV timer, that is, if a separate NPCH NAV timer for the anchor channel is set, and the NPCH NAV timer has a non-zero value, the NPCA AP may not be able to initiate a TXOP within the NPCH. If the NPCA AP has a separate NAV timer, that is, if a separate NPCH NAV timer for the anchor channel is set, and the NPCH NAV timer is zero, the NPCA AP may initiate a TXOP within the NPCH.

[0149] An NPCA AP can perform channel access (e.g., EDCA contention) on an anchor channel where OBSS transmissions do not overlap, and the remaining channels within the NPCH (excluding the anchor channel) can be accessed by ED (energy detection). For example, if the anchor channel is idle just before the backoff counter expires, it can be accessed on the remaining channels.

[0150] The operation of NPCA STA can be as follows.

[0151] An NPCA STA can switch the operating bandwidth to perform NPCA. Unlike an NPCA AP, which does not perform NPCA in bands outside the operating bandwidth, an NPCA STA can perform NPCA by changing the operating bandwidth. For example, an NPCA STA can perform NPCA by changing to an operating bandwidth according to the instructions / configurations of the AP and / or a predefined / agreed-upon bandwidth.

[0152] The NPCA capability of an STA and / or the on / off status of its NPCA capability can be established through prior information and / or message exchange. The STA and AP can verify whether NPCA can be performed, i.e., NPCA capability, by exchanging Probe requests and Probe responses or Association requests and Association responses. Subsequently, APs and STAs capable of performing NPCA can exchange information on nearby visible (detected) OBSS (e.g., MAC addresses or color information of OBSS APs and STAs) to establish a list of OBSSs that are not in a hidden relationship, and perform NPCA when transmission occurs due to the corresponding OBSS. When performing NPCA, the anchor channel for EDCA execution and the NPCH capable of transmitting data including the anchor channel can be established in advance through information exchange between the NPCA AP and the NPCA STA.

[0153] Unless specifically stated otherwise, in the description of an embodiment of the present disclosure, "greater than" may be replaced with "greater than," and "greater than" may be replaced with "greater than." Unless specifically stated otherwise, in the description of an embodiment of the present disclosure, "less than" may be replaced with "less than," and "less than" may be replaced with "less than."

[0154] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of an NPCA operation performed by an NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0155] FIG. 9 illustrates an example in which an NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA operates within a total bandwidth of 160 MHz, including a channel (P80) with a primary channel and a channel (S80) with a secondary channel, but this is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure. Unless otherwise specifically stated below, the channel (P80) with a primary channel may be used interchangeably with the primary channel, and the channel (S80) with a secondary channel may be used interchangeably with the secondary channel or NPCH.

[0156] Referring to FIG. 9, in a bandwidth (P80) including a primary channel, the OBSS can perform an initial control frame (ICF)-initial control response (ICR) exchange and transmit one or more OBSS PPDUs and one or more OBSS BAs (block ACKs) within an OBSS TXOP.

[0157] The NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA identify that the primary channel (P80) is busy by the OBSS TXOP, and if the secondary channel (S80) is available, they can perform NPCA on the secondary channel (S80). The NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA can perform NPCA during an NPCA period (NPCA duration). The NPCA period may include one or more NPC TXOPs (NPC TXOP #1, ..., NPC TXOP #N). When initiating an NPC TXOP, the NPCA AP can transmit an ICF and receive an ICR, which is a response to the ICF, from the NPCA STA. The NPCA STA can receive the ICF and transmit an ICR, which is a response to the ICF. Subsequently, the NPCA AP transmits one or more NPCA PPDUs, and the NPCA STA can transmit BA (block ACK) information for the NPCA PPDUs.

[0158] According to one embodiment, a trigger frame (TF) can be used as a role for an ICF transmitted at the start of a TXOP. For example, a MU-RTS (multi-user request to send) trigger frame and / or a BSRP (buffer status report poll) trigger frame can be used as an ICF.

[0159] FIG. 10 is a drawing showing an example of a trigger frame (TF) to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0160] Referring to FIG. 10, a trigger frame may include at least one of a frame control field, a duration field, an RA (recipient STA address) field, a TA (transmitting STA address) field, a common information field, one or more User Info fields, and a Frame Check Sum (FCS). The RA field indicates the address or ID of the receiving STA, and the TA field indicates the address of the transmitting STA.

[0161] The Common Information field may include at least one of a Length subfield, a Cascade Indication, a HE-SIG A Information subfield, a CP / LTF Type subfield, a Trigger Type subfield, and a Trigger-dependent Common Info subfield. The Length subfield indicates the L-SIG length of the UL TB (trigger-based) PPDU. The Cascade Indication indicates whether there is a transmission of a subsequent trigger frame following the current trigger frame. The HE-SIG A Information subfield indicates the content included in the HE-SIG A of the UL TB PPDU. The CP / LTF Type subfield indicates the CP and HE LTF types included in the UL TB PPDU. The Trigger Type subfield indicates the type of the trigger frame. The trigger frame may include type-specific Common Information and type-specific Per User Info. The trigger type may be set to, for example, a basic trigger type (e.g., type 0), a Beamforming Report Poll Trigger type (e.g., type 1), a MU-BAR (Multi-user Block Ack Request) type (e.g., type 2), or a MU-RTS (multi-user request to send) type (e.g., type 3), but is not limited thereto. If the trigger type is MU-BAR, the trigger-dependent common information subfield may include a GCR (Groupcast with Retries) indicator and a GCR address.

[0162] The user information field may include at least one of the association ID (AID) subfield, resource unit (RU) allocation subfield, coding type subfield, MCS field, dual sub-carrier modulation (DCM) subfield, spatial stream allocation subfield, and trigger dependent user information subfield. The AID subfield indicates the AID of the STA to use the corresponding resource unit to transmit the MPDU of the UL TB PPDU. The RU allocation subfield indicates the resource unit for the STA to transmit the UL TB PPDU. The coding type subfield indicates the coding type of the UL TB PPDU transmitted by the STA. The MCS subfield indicates the MCS of the UL TB PPDU transmitted by the STA. The DCM subfield indicates information regarding the dual-carrier modulation of the UL TB PPDU transmitted by the STA. The SS allocation subfield indicates information about the spatial streams of the UL TB PPDU transmitted by the STA. If the trigger type is MU-BAR, the trigger-dependent individual user information subfield may include BAR control and BAR information.

[0163] According to one embodiment, when a trigger frame is generated by an EHT AP or transmitted to an EHT terminal, the trigger frame may further include a Special User Info field. The Special User Info field may be a user information field in which a predefined special Association ID (AID) value is set. The predefined AID value representing the Special User Info field may be one or more, and a user information field containing one of the predefined AID values ​​may be considered as a Special User Info field. The Special User Info field may be used to transmit common information between terminals while using the format of a user information field. For example, the Special User Info field may include information common between terminals, such as uplink bandwidth information for the EHT terminal.

[0164] FIG. 11 is a drawing showing an example of a Special User Info field included in a trigger frame to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0165] Referring to FIG. 11, the special user information field includes an AID subfield, a PHY version Identifier subfield, a UL bandwidth Extension subfield, an EHT Spatial Reuse subfield, and a U-SIG disregard and Validate subfield, and may include a reserved bit. Optionally, the special user information field may further include a Trigger Dependent User info subfield.

[0166] The AID subfield may have a specific predefined AID (Association ID) value to indicate that it is a special user information field. The PHY version Identifier subfield may indicate the PHY version of the requested TB PPDU, excluding the HE TB PPDU. For EHT, the PHY version Identifier field is set to 0, and values ​​from 1 to 7 may be reserved. The UL Bandwidth Extension subfield may indicate the bandwidth of the requested TB PPDU (i.e., the bandwidth in the U-SIG field of the EHT TB PPDU). The EHT Spatial Reuse subfield may convey a value to be included in the corresponding Spatial Reuse subfield in the U-SIG field of the EHT TB PPDU. The U-SIG Disregard and Validate subfield may convey a value to be included in the Disregard and Validate subfield of the U-SIG field of the requested EHT TB PPDU. Special user information fields may further include trigger-dependent user info subfields with a predefined length depending on the type of trigger frame containing the said special user information field. Trigger-dependent user info fields are described in detail below.

[0167] If the trigger frame includes multiple special user information fields, each special user information field may include the same or different subfields, and the special user information field illustrated in FIG. 11 represents only one example of a structure that can be used as a special user information field and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0168] NPCA duration

[0169] When the occupation of the primary channel (P80) by the OBSS ends, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA performing the NPCA in the secondary channel (S80) may terminate the NPCA and participate in the competition to occupy the primary channel again. At this time, if the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA perform the NPCA due to the occupation of the primary channel by different OBSSs, or if there is a Hidden OBSS that a specific NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA has not identified, the understanding of the time when the occupation of the primary channel (P80) by the OBSS ends may differ for each NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA constituting the BSS. For example, assuming that the first NPCA AP and / or the first NPCA STA identifies that the primary channel is busy by the first OBSS TXOP, and the second NPCA AP and / or the second NPCA STA identifies that the primary channel is busy by the second OBSS TXOP, the time at which the first OBSS TXOP ends and the time at which the second OBSS TXOP ends may be different from each other, so the time at which the first NPCA AP and / or the first NPCA STA ends the NPCA and returns to the primary channel and the time at which the second NPCA AP and / or the second NPCA STA ends the NPCA and returns to the primary channel may be different from each other. As such, when the timing of terminating NPCA and returning to the primary channel differs between the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA, there may be periods where at least some of the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA constituting the BSS operate with different operating bandwidths, which results in a decrease in data transmission and reception efficiency.In particular, if the timing at which the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA return to the primary channel differs, there may be periods where data communication is impossible between the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA, and in the worst case, connection or access failure may occur. Therefore, it is necessary for the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA constituting the BSS to have a common understanding of the timing at which they terminate the NPCA and return to the primary channel. This is called NPCA coordination.

[0170] Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method for NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA that define an NPCA duration for NPCA coordination and perform NPCA to transmit and receive information indicating the NPCA duration.

[0171] The NPCA interval represents a time interval during which the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA performs an NPCA operation, and may be a time interval defined from a first time point (start time point) to a second time point (end time point).

[0172] The first time point (start time) of the NPCA interval may be defined based on at least one of the following.

[0173] - The point in time when a transmission associated with OBSS is identified on the primary channel; and / or

[0174] - A point in time after the NPCA switching delay from the time when the transmission associated with OBSS was identified on the primary channel;

[0175] The second time point (last time point) of the NPCA interval can be defined based on at least one of the following.

[0176] - The point in time when transmission related to OBSS on the primary channel ends; and / or

[0177] - A point in time prior to the time when the transmission related to OBSS ends on the primary channel by the NPCA switching back delay;

[0178] The NPCA switching delay can be determined based on the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA transmitting information indicating the NPCA interval. If the entity transmitting the information indicating the NPCA interval is the NPCA AP, the NPCA switching delay can be determined based on the largest value among the NPCA switching delays of the NPCA STAs participating in the NPCA.

[0179] The NPCA switching back delay can be determined based on the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA transmitting information indicating the NPCA interval. If the entity transmitting the information indicating the NPCA interval is the NPCA AP, the NPCA switching back delay can be determined based on the largest value among the NPCA switching back delays of the NPCA STAs participating in the NPCA.

[0180] According to one embodiment, when an NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA performs an NPCA operation, information for indicating an NPCA interval defined based on a first time point (start time point) and a second time point (end time point) for NPCA coordination may be transmitted and received on an NPCH.

[0181] Information representing the NPCA interval may be defined based on at least one of the following.

[0182] - Information representing the NPCA interval may be information that directly represents the time interval from the start time to the end time of the NPCA interval. According to this definition, information representing the NPCA interval may represent a fixed value regardless of when the ICF is transmitted.

[0183] - The information representing the NPCA interval may be information representing the remaining time interval after the time when the ICF containing the information representing the NPCA interval is transmitted, within the entire NPCA interval. That is, it may be information representing the remaining time interval from the time when the ICF is transmitted to the end of the NPCA interval, rather than from the start time of the NPCA interval. According to this definition, the information representing the NPCA interval may have different values ​​depending on the time when the ICF is transmitted.

[0184] According to one embodiment, information indicating the NPCA interval may be included in an ICF transmitted at the start of an NPC TXOP and transmitted over an NPCH. In this case, a trigger frame may be used as the ICF; for example, a MU-RTS (multi-user request to send) trigger frame and / or a BSRP (buffer status report poll) may be used as the ICF. The information indicating the NPCA interval may be included in the first special user information field and / or the second special user information field of the trigger frame used as the ICF. Below, a method for transmitting information indicating the NPCA interval via the ICF will be described in detail.

[0185] (1) 1st special user information field

[0186] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval may be included in a first special user information field of a trigger frame used as an ICF. The first special user information field may have a predefined AID value (e.g., AID=2007). The predefined AID value is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure. The first special user information field may be a special user information field including subfields described with reference to FIG. 11, for example. As described with reference to FIG. 11, the first special user information field includes 3 bits of reserved bits, and the 3 reserved bits may not be sufficient to convey information indicating an NPCA interval.

[0187] Accordingly, information indicating an NPCA section according to one embodiment of the present disclosure can be transmitted using a Trigger-Dependent User info subfield that may be optionally included in a special user information field.

[0188] The trigger frame type containing the current trigger-dependent user information subfield and the length of the trigger-dependent user information subfield are as follows.

[0189] - In Basic trigger frames and Beamforming Report Pool (BFRP) trigger frames, special user information fields may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield of one octet length. The trigger-dependent user information subfield may include reserved bits.

[0190] - In a MU-BAR (Multi-user Block Ack Request) trigger frame, the special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield of 4 octets in length. The trigger-dependent user information subfield may include a BAR type subfield configured to represent a Compressed BAR. Except for the BAR type subfield, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may include reserved bits.

[0191] - In trigger frames other than the basic trigger frame, BFRP trigger frame, and MU-BAR trigger frame, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may not exist in the first special user information field.

[0192] According to the definition of a trigger frame type that includes an existing trigger-dependent user information subfield, the trigger-dependent user information subfield is not included in the first special user information field within the MU-RTS trigger frame and / or BSRP trigger frame used as an ICF. Therefore, in order to convey information indicating an NPCA interval through the first special user information, it is necessary to redefine a trigger frame type that includes the trigger-dependent user information subfield so that the trigger-dependent user information subfield can be included in the first special user information field within the MU-RTS trigger frame and / or BSRP trigger frame used as an ICF.

[0193] According to one embodiment, a trigger frame type including a trigger-dependent user information subfield can be redefined as follows.

[0194] - In Basic trigger frames and Beamforming Report Pool (BFRP) trigger frames, the first special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield of one octet length. The trigger-dependent user information subfield may include a reserved bit.

[0195] - In a MU-BAR (Multi-user Block Ack Request) trigger frame, the first special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield of 4 octets in length. The trigger-dependent user information subfield may include a BAR type subfield configured to represent a Compressed BAR. Except for the BAR type subfield, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may include reserved bits.

[0196] - In a MU-RTS trigger frame and / or a BSRP trigger frame, the first special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield of N octets in length. For example, N may be 2, but this does not limit the scope of the disclosure and N may have any integer value. In this case, the first special user information field within the MU-RTS trigger frame and / or the BSRP trigger frame may always include a trigger-dependent user information subfield, or optionally include a trigger-dependent user information subfield depending on the presence of information indicating an NPCA interval.

[0197] - In trigger frames other than the basic trigger frame, BFRP trigger frame, MU-BAR trigger frame, MU-RTS trigger frame, and BSRP trigger frame, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may not exist in the first special user information field.

[0198] An NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA transmitting an ICF can identify an NPCA interval defined according to the method described above, and when initiating an NPC TXOP, transmit information indicating the NPCA interval through the trigger-dependent user information subfield of the first special user information field within the ICF.

[0199] An NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA receiving an ICF can receive information indicating an NCPA segment through a trigger-dependent user information subfield of a first special user information field within the received ICF when initiating an NPC TXOP, and can identify an NPCA segment based on this.

[0200] (2) Second special user information field

[0201] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval may be included in a second special user information field of a trigger frame used as an ICF. The second special user information field may have an AID value different from that of the first special user information field. The second special user information field may have a predefined AID value (for example, AID=2008). The predefined AID value is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure. The subfields included in the second special user information field may be the same as or at least partially different from the subfields included in the first special user information field. That is, the second special user information field may have a structure that is the same as or different from the first special user information field described with reference to FIG. 11.

[0202] According to one embodiment, the second special user information field may include an NCPA section subfield for information indicating an NPCA section. For example, the second special user information field may have a different structure from the first special user information field, and the information indicating the NPCA section may be transmitted through a separate NPCA section subfield rather than a trigger-dependent user information subfield. In this case, if the second special user information field does not include information about the NCPA section, the NPCA section subfield may be considered as a reserved bit or used for other purposes.

[0203] According to one embodiment, the second special user information field has reserved bits, and information indicating the NPCA interval can be transmitted using at least some of the reserved bits. For example, the second special user information field may have a structure different from the first special user information field and may have a number of reserved bits greater than the number required for information indicating the NPCA interval (e.g., 16 bits), and information indicating the NPCA interval may be transmitted using at least some of the reserved bits. In this case, if the second special user information field does not include information regarding the NCPA interval, at least some of the reserved bits may remain as reserved bits or be used for other purposes.

[0204] According to one embodiment, the second special user information field includes a trigger-dependent user information subfield and may include information indicating an NPCA interval through the trigger-dependent user information subfield. For example, if the second special user information field has the same structure as the first special user information field, or even if it has a different structure from the first special user information field but does not have a sufficient number of reserved bits to include an NPCA interval subfield, the information indicating the NPCA interval may be transmitted through the trigger-dependent user information subfield. In this case, the method of transmitting information indicating the NPCA interval through the trigger-dependent user information subfield of the first special user information field described above may be applied equally to the method of transmitting information indicating the NPCA interval through the trigger-dependent user information subfield of the second special user information. For example, in a MU-RTS trigger frame and / or a BSRP trigger frame, the second special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield of N octets length. For example, N may be 2, but this does not limit the scope of the disclosure, and N may have any integer value. In this case, the second special user information field within the MU-RTS trigger frame and / or BSRP trigger frame may always include a trigger-dependent user information subfield, or optionally include a trigger-dependent user information subfield depending on the presence of information indicating an NPCA interval.

[0205] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval may be predefined to be included in a first special user information field.

[0206] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval may be predefined to be included in a second special user information field.

[0207] According to one embodiment, whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in a first special user information field or in a second special user information field can be configured by the NCAP AP and / or NPCA STA.

[0208] According to one embodiment, it may be determined whether information indicating an NPCA range is included in a first special user information field or a second special user information field depending on specific conditions. For example, if the ICF includes a second special user information field, information indicating an NPCA range may be included in the second special user information. If the ICF does not include a second special user information field, information indicating an NPCA range may be included in the first special user information field.

[0209] As described above, information about the NPCA section can be transmitted through the ICF transmitted and received when an NPC TXOP starts within the NPCA section, and through this, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA can have a common understanding of the section where the NPCA is performed, thereby enabling the NPCA to be performed efficiently.

[0210] NPCA duration presence subfield

[0211] An NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA may occupy and use one or more NPC TXOPs while performing NPCA within an NPCA interval. For example, an NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA may occupy NPC TXOP #1, ..., NPC TXOP #N within a single NPCA interval to transmit and receive data, and in this case, an ICF may be transmitted and received for each NPC TXOP. Each ICF is intended for an NPC TXOP included in the same NPCA interval and may therefore be associated with the same NPCA interval. Therefore, it may be possible to include information indicating the NPCA interval in only some of the ICFs, rather than including information indicating the NPCA interval in all ICFs transmitted from multiple NPC TXOPs. For example, some ICFs associated with multiple NPC TXOPs within an NPCA interval (for example, an ICF associated with the first NPC TXOP after the time point of the NPCA interval) may contain information indicating the NPCA interval, while other ICFs may not contain information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0212] Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method for conveying whether information indicating an NPCA interval is actually included within an ICF.

[0213] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a first special user information field included in an ICF may include an NPCA duration presence subfield in addition to information indicating an NPCA duration. The NPCA duration presence subfield has a size of 1 bit and may indicate whether information indicating an NPCA duration exists within the first special user information field and / or the second special user information field of the ICF. One bit of the reserved bits of the first special user information field may be used as the NPCA duration presence subfield.

[0214] If the NPCA range existence subfield has a first value, the NPCA range existence subfield may indicate that there is no information indicating an NPCA range within the first special user information field and / or the second special user information field. For example, if the NPCA range existence subfield has a value of "0", the first special user information field and / or the second special user information field may not contain information indicating an NPCA range.

[0215] If the NPCA range existence subfield has a second value, the NPCA range existence subfield may indicate that information representing an NPCA range exists within the first special user information field and / or the second special user information field. For example, if the NPCA range existence subfield has a value of "1", the first special user information field and / or the second special user information field may include information representing an NPCA range.

[0216] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval can be transmitted through the trigger-dependent user information field of the first special user information field.

[0217] At this time, the trigger-dependent user information subfield for information indicating the NPCA interval may or may not exist in the first special user information field according to the following two methods.

[0218] In the first method, the trigger-dependent user information field may exist only when the NPCA range existence subfield indicates that information representing the NPCA range exists (the value of the NPCA range existence subfield is "1"). If the NPCA range existence subfield indicates that information representing the NPCA range does not exist (the value of the NPCA range existence subfield is "0"), the trigger-dependent user information field may not exist.

[0219] In the second method, the trigger-dependent user information field may exist regardless of whether the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates that information representing the NPCA interval exists or that information representing the NPCA interval does not exist.

[0220] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a first special user information field including an NPCA duration presence subfield according to the first method.

[0221] In the first method, the first special user information field may or may not include a trigger-dependent user information field depending on the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 12(a), the trigger-dependent user information field within the first special user information field may have a size of 0 or N bits depending on the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield. For example, N bits may be 16 bits, but this is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0222] If the value of the NPCA range existence subfield indicates that information representing an NPCA range exists, the first special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information field. For example, the trigger-dependent user information field may have a size of 2 bytes (16 bits). If the value of the NPCA range existence subfield indicates that information representing an NPCA range does not exist, the first special user information field may not include a trigger-dependent user information field. That is, the bit size allocated to the trigger-dependent user information field may be 0.

[0223] FIG. 12(b) shows an example of a first special user information field when the NPCA interval existence subfield represents a first value (when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "0"). In this case, the first special user information field may not include information representing the NPCA interval, and as shown in FIG. 12(b), the first special user information field may not include a trigger-dependent user information subfield for information representing the NCPA interval.

[0224] FIG. 12(c) shows an example of a first special user information field when the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a second value (when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "1"). In this case, the first special user information field may include information indicating an NPCA interval, and as illustrated in FIG. 12(c), the first special user information field may further include a trigger-dependent user information subfield for information indicating an NPCA interval. For example, the trigger-dependent user information field may have a size of 2 bytes (16 bits), the information indicating an NPCA interval may have a size of 15 bits, and the remaining 1 bit may be a reserved bit.

[0225] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a first special user information field including an NPCA duration presence subfield according to the second method.

[0226] In the second method, the first special user information field may always include a trigger-dependent user information field regardless of the value of the NCPA interval existence subfield. The trigger-dependent user information field within the first special user information field may have a predetermined N-bit size regardless of the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield. For example, N bits may be 16 bits, but this is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0227] FIG. 13(a) shows an example of a first special user information field when the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a first value (when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "0"). In this case, the first special user information field does not include information indicating the NPCA interval, but may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield as illustrated in FIG. 13(a). Here, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may be considered as a reserved bit.

[0228] FIG. 13(b) shows an example of a first special user information field when the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a second value (when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "1"). In this case, the first special user information field may include information indicating an NPCA interval and may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield for information indicating an NPCA interval as illustrated in FIG. 13(b). The trigger-dependent user information field may have a size of 2 bytes (16 bits), the information indicating an NPCA interval may have a size of 15 bits, and the remaining 1 bit may be a reserved bit.

[0229] According to one embodiment, information indicating the NPCA interval can be transmitted through a second special user information field.

[0230] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example in which information indicating an NPCA section to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable is included in a second special user information field.

[0231] Referring to FIG. 14, the NPCA interval existence subfield may be included in the first special user information field. The NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate whether information regarding the NPCA interval exists in the second special user information field.

[0232] If the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate that there is no information indicating an NPCA interval within the second special user information field. For example, if the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "0", the second special user information field may not contain information indicating an NPCA interval. If at least some of the NCPA interval subfields or reserved bits are used within the second special user information field for information indicating an NPCA interval, the NPCA interval subfields or at least some of the reserved bits may be considered as reserved bits or used for other purposes. If a trigger-dependent user information field is used within the second special user information field for information indicating an NPCA interval, the trigger-dependent user information field may or may not exist according to the first method or the second method, just as previously described for the first special user information field.

[0233] If the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate that information representing an NPCA interval exists within the second special user information field. For example, if the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "1", the second special user information field may include information representing an NPCA interval. For example, the information representing an NPCA interval may be included in the NPCA interval subfield within the second special user information field, at least a portion of the reserved bits, and / or the trigger-dependent user information field.

[0234] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval is predefined to be included in a first special user information field, and an NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the first special user information field.

[0235] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval is predefined to be included in a second special user information field, and an NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the second special user information field.

[0236] According to one embodiment, whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in a first special user information field or in a second special user information field can be configured by NCAP AP and / or NPCA STA, and the NPCA interval existence subfield can indicate whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the first special user information field or the second special user information field depending on the configuration.

[0237] According to one embodiment, it may be determined whether information indicating an NPCA range is included in a first special user information field or a second special user information field depending on specific conditions. For example, if the ICF includes a second special user information field, the information indicating an NPCA range is included in the second special user information, and the NPCA range existence subfield may indicate whether the information indicating an NPCA range is included in the second special user information field. If the ICF does not include a second special user information field, the information indicating an NPCA range is included in the first special user information field, and the NPCA range existence subfield may indicate whether the information indicating an NPCA range is included in the first special user information field.

[0238] NPCA primary channel indication subfield

[0239] Information indicating the NPCA interval may be used for NPCA coordination between NPCA APs and / or NPCA STAs performing NPCA when the primary channel is busy with the transmission of OBSS. If the ICF is transmitted on the primary channel, information indicating the NPCA interval may not be necessary because the ICF is for a TXOP that includes the primary channel. Therefore, information indicating the NPCA interval and / or the NPCA interval presence subfield may be included in the ICF on the premise that the ICF is transmitted on a secondary channel (e.g., an NPCA primary channel) rather than the primary channel.

[0240] Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method for conveying whether an ICF is an ICF transmitted for NPCA operation.

[0241] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a first special user information field included in an ICF may further include an NPCA primary channel indication subfield to indicate whether the ICF is transmitted on an NPCA primary channel rather than a primary channel (BSS primary channel). The NPCA primary channel indication subfield has a size of 1 bit and may indicate whether the ICF including the first special user information field is transmitted on an NPCA primary channel rather than a primary channel. One bit of the reserved bits of the first special user information field may be used as the NPCA primary channel indication subfield.

[0242] If the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield has a first value, the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield may indicate that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the primary channel (BSS primary channel) or is not transmitted on the NPCA primary channel. For example, if the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "0", the ICF containing the first special user information field containing the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield may be transmitted on the primary channel or may be an ICF that is not transmitted on the NPCA primary channel. This means that the transmitted ICF is not an ICF for an NPC TXOP, and therefore, in this case, the NPCA interval presence subfield may be considered as a reserved bit. The first special user information field may not include a trigger-dependent user information subfield, or it may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield containing a reserved bit.

[0243] If the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield has a second value, the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield may indicate that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel and not on the primary channel. For example, if the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "1", the ICF containing the first special user information field containing the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield may be transmitted on the NPCA primary channel and may be an ICF that is not transmitted on the primary channel. This means that the transmitted ICF is an ICF for an NPC TXOP, and therefore, in this case, the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate the existence of information indicating an NPCA interval through a value of "0" or "1" as described above. For example, if the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield is "0", the first special user information field and / or the second special user information field of the ICF does not contain information indicating the NPCA interval, and if the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield is "1", the first special user information field and / or the second special user information field of the ICF may contain information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0244] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval can be transmitted through the trigger-dependent user information field of the first special user information field.

[0245] At this time, the trigger-dependent user information subfield for information indicating the NPCA interval may or may not exist in the first special user information field according to the following two methods.

[0246] In the first method, (1) the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel and not on the primary channel (the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "1"), and (2) the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates that information indicating an NPCA interval exists (the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield is "1"). If the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "0", or if the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield is "0", the trigger-dependent user information field may not exist.

[0247] In the second method, (1) the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that the ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted in the NPCA primary channel and not in the primary channel (the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "1"), and (2) the trigger-dependent user information field may exist regardless of whether the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates that there is information indicating the NPCA interval or that there is no information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0248] FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of a first special user information field including an NPCA primary channel indication subfield and an NPCA duration presence subfield according to the first method.

[0249] In the example of FIG. 15, to indicate that the ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted for the NPC TXOP, it is assumed that the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator is the second value (the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "1").

[0250] In the first method, the first special user information field may or may not include a trigger-dependent user information field depending on the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield. As illustrated in FIG. 15(a), the trigger-dependent user information field within the first special user information field may have a size of 0 or N bits depending on the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield. For example, N bits may be 16 bits, but this is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0251] If the value of the NPCA range existence subfield indicates that information representing an NPCA range exists, the first special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information field. For example, the trigger-dependent user information field may have a size of 2 bytes (16 bits). If the value of the NPCA range existence subfield indicates that information representing an NPCA range does not exist, the first special user information field may not include a trigger-dependent user information field. That is, the bit size allocated to the trigger-dependent user information field may be 0.

[0252] FIG. 15(b) shows an example of a first special user information field when the NPCA interval existence subfield represents a first value (when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "0"). In this case, the first special user information field may not include information representing the NPCA interval, and as shown in FIG. 15(b), the first special user information field may not include a trigger-dependent user information subfield for information representing the NCPA interval.

[0253] FIG. 15(c) shows an example of a first special user information field when the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a second value (when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "1"). In this case, the first special user information field may include information indicating an NPCA interval, and as illustrated in FIG. 15(c), the first special user information field may further include a trigger-dependent user information subfield for information indicating an NPCA interval. For example, the trigger-dependent user information field may have a size of 2 bytes (16 bits), the information indicating an NPCA interval may have a size of 15 bits, and the remaining 1 bit may be a reserved bit.

[0254] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a first special user information field including an NPCA primary channel indication subfield and an NPCA duration presence subfield according to the second method.

[0255] In the example of FIG. 16, to indicate that the ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted for the NPC TXOP, it is assumed that the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator is the second value (the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "1").

[0256] In the second method, the first special user information field may always include a trigger-dependent user information field regardless of the value of the NCPA interval existence subfield. The trigger-dependent user information field within the first special user information field may have a predetermined N-bit size regardless of the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield. For example, N bits may be 16 bits, but this is for illustrative purposes only and does not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0257] FIG. 16(a) shows an example of a first special user information field when the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a first value (when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "0"). In this case, the first special user information field does not include information indicating the NPCA interval, but may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield as illustrated in FIG. 16(a). Here, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may be considered as a reserved bit.

[0258] FIG. 16(b) shows an example of a first special user information field when the NPCA interval existence subfield indicates a second value (when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "1"). In this case, the first special user information field may include information indicating an NPCA interval and may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield for information indicating an NPCA interval as illustrated in FIG. 16(b). The trigger-dependent user information field may have a size of 2 bytes (16 bits), the information indicating an NPCA interval may have a size of 15 bits, and the remaining 1 bit may be a reserved bit.

[0259] According to one embodiment, information indicating the NPCA interval can be transmitted through a second special user information field.

[0260] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example in which information indicating an NPCA section to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable is included in a second special user information field.

[0261] Referring to FIG. 17, the NPCA primary channel indication subfield and the NPCA interval existence subfield may be included in the first special user information field. The NPCA primary channel indication may indicate whether an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on an NPCA primary channel rather than a primary channel. The NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate whether information regarding an NPCA interval exists in the second special user information field.

[0262] If the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate that there is no information indicating an NPCA interval within the second special user information field. For example, (1) the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel rather than the primary channel (the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "1"), and (2) if the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "0", the second special user information field may not contain information indicating an NPCA interval. If at least some of the NCPA interval subfields or reserved bits within the second special user information field are used for information indicating an NPCA interval, the NPCA interval subfields or at least some of the reserved bits may be considered as reserved bits or used for other purposes. If a trigger-dependent user information field is used within the second special user information field for information indicating an NPCA interval, the trigger-dependent user information field may or may not exist according to the first method or the second method, just as described above for the first special user information field.

[0263] If the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate that information indicating an NPCA interval exists within the second special user information field. For example, (1) the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel rather than the primary channel (the value of the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield is "1"), and (2) the NPCA interval existence subfield has a value of "1", the second special user information field may include information indicating an NPCA interval. As an example, the information indicating an NPCA interval may be included in the NPCA interval subfield within the second special user information field, at least a portion of the reserved bits, and / or the trigger-dependent user information field.

[0264] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval may be predefined to be included in a first special user information field. When the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF including the first special user information field is transmitted on an NPCA primary channel rather than on a primary channel, the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the first special user information field.

[0265] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval may be predefined to be included in a second special user information field. When the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel rather than on the primary channel, the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the second special user information field.

[0266] According to one embodiment, whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in a first special user information field or in a second special user information field may be configurable by the NCAP AP and / or NPCA STA. When the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel rather than on the primary channel, the NPCA interval presence subfield may indicate, depending on the configuration, whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the first special user information field or the second special user information field.

[0267] According to one embodiment, it may be determined whether information indicating an NPCA interval is included in a first special user information field or a second special user information field depending on specific conditions. For example, if the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel but not on the primary channel, and the ICF contains the second special user information field, the information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the second special user information, and the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate whether the information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the second special user information field. If the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel but not on the primary channel, and the ICF does not contain the second special user information field, the information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the first special user information field, and the NPCA interval existence subfield may indicate whether the information indicating an NPCA interval is included in the first special user information field.

[0268] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval may be predefined to be included in a second special user information field. The ICF may or may not include the second special user information field. If the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that the ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the NPCA primary channel rather than on the primary channel, and the second special user information field exists in the ICF, the second special user information field may include information indicating an NPCA interval. In this case, the first special user information field may not include an NPCA interval existence subfield, or the NPCA interval existence subfield may be considered as a reserved bit.

[0269] According to one embodiment, information indicating an NPCA interval may be predefined to be included in a second special user information field. If the NPCA primary channel indicator subfield indicates that an ICF containing the first special user information field is transmitted on the primary channel but not on the NPCA primary channel, then the second special user information field exists in the ICF, and the second special user information field may include information indicating an NPCA interval. In this case, the first special user information field may not include an NPCA interval existence subfield, or the NPCA interval existence subfield may be considered as a reserved bit.

[0270] Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 18 and 19, a transmission and reception method of an ICF to which various embodiments of the present invention are applicable will be described. The flowcharts of FIGS. 18 and 19 are drawings illustrating exemplary methods that can be implemented according to the principles of the present disclosure and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure, and various modifications may be made to the methods illustrated in the flowcharts. For example, although they are illustrated as a series of steps, the various steps in each figure may overlap, occur in parallel, occur in a different order, or occur multiple times. In other examples, steps may be omitted or replaced with other steps. Additionally, the AP and / or STA may additionally perform steps for applying the various embodiments of the present disclosure described above, even though they are not illustrated in FIGS. 18 and 19.

[0271] FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an ICF transmission method to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0272] In step 1802, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA can identify transmissions associated with OBSS in the primary channel.

[0273] In step 1804, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA can identify the NPCA interval for the NPCA.

[0274] In step 1806, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA may transmit an initial control frame via the NPCH within the NPCA interval.

[0275] According to one embodiment, the initial control frame transmitted in step 1806 may include one or more special user information fields. Among the one or more special user information fields, the first special user information field may include an NPCA section existence subfield indicating whether information indicating the NPCA section exists. If the NPCA section existence subfield indicates a first value, the information indicating the NPCA section may not be included in the initial control frame. If the NPCA section existence subfield indicates a second value, the information indicating the NPCA section may be included in the initial control frame.

[0276] According to one embodiment, when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the first special user information field may not include a trigger-dependent user information subfield. When the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the first special user information field includes a trigger-dependent user information subfield, and the trigger-dependent user information subfield may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0277] According to one embodiment, the first special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield regardless of the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield. When the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the trigger-dependent user information subfield includes a reserved bit, and when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0278] According to one embodiment, when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the second special user information field does not include information indicating the NPCA interval, and when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the second special user information field may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0279] According to one embodiment, the start time of the NPCA interval identified in step 1804 may be defined based on at least one of the time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel, or a time after the NPCA switching delay from the time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel.

[0280] According to one embodiment, the last point in time of the NPCA interval identified in step 1804 may be defined based on at least one of the point in time when the transmission related to OBSS in the primary channel ends, or the point in time prior to the NPCA switching back delay from the point in time when the transmission related to OBSS in the primary channel ends.

[0281] FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating an ICF receiving method to which various embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable.

[0282] In step 1902, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA can identify transmissions associated with OBSS in the primary channel.

[0283] In step 1904, the NPCA AP and / or NPCA STA can receive an initial control frame via the NPCH within the NPCA interval.

[0284] According to one embodiment, the initial control frame received in step 1904 may include one or more special user information fields. Among the one or more special user information fields, the first special user information field may include an NPCA section existence subfield indicating whether information representing the NPCA section exists. If the NPCA section existence subfield indicates a first value, the information representing the NPCA section may not be included in the initial control frame. If the NPCA section existence subfield indicates a second value, the information representing the NPCA section may be included in the initial control frame.

[0285] According to one embodiment, when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the first special user information field may not include a trigger-dependent user information subfield. When the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the first special user information field includes a trigger-dependent user information subfield, and the trigger-dependent user information subfield may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0286] According to one embodiment, the first special user information field may include a trigger-dependent user information subfield regardless of the value of the NPCA interval existence subfield. When the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the trigger-dependent user information subfield includes a reserved bit, and when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the trigger-dependent user information subfield may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0287] According to one embodiment, when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a first value, the second special user information field does not include information indicating the NPCA interval, and when the NPCA interval existence subfield has a second value, the second special user information field may include information indicating the NPCA interval.

[0288] According to one embodiment, the start time of the NPCA interval may be defined based on at least one of the time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel, or the time after the NPCA switching delay from the time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel.

[0289] According to one embodiment, the last point in time of the NPCA interval may be defined based on at least one of the point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the primary channel ends, or the point in time prior to the NPCA switching back delay from the point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the primary channel ends.

[0290] Methods according to the claims or embodiments described in the specification of the present disclosure may be implemented in the form of hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0291] When implemented in software, a computer-readable storage medium may be provided for storing one or more programs (software modules). One or more programs stored in the computer-readable storage medium are configured for execution by one or more processors within an electronic device. One or more programs include instructions that cause the electronic device to execute methods according to the claims or embodiments described in the specification of this disclosure.

[0292] Such programs (software modules, software) may be stored in random access memory, non-volatile memory including flash memory, ROM (Read Only Memory), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM), magnetic disc storage devices, Compact Disc-ROM (CD-ROM), Digital Versatile Discs (DVDs), or other forms of optical storage devices, magnetic cassettes. Alternatively, they may be stored in memory composed of some or all of these. Additionally, each constituent memory may include multiple units.

[0293] Additionally, the program may be stored on an attachable storage device accessible via a communication network such as the Internet, Intranet, Local Area Network (LAN), Wide LAN (WLAN), or Storage Area Network (SAN), or a combination thereof. Such a storage device may be connected to a device performing an embodiment of the present disclosure through an external port. Additionally, a separate storage device on a communication network may be connected to a device performing an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0294] In the specific embodiments of the present disclosure described above, the components included in one embodiment are expressed in a singular or plural form according to the specific embodiment presented. However, the singular or plural expression is selected to suit the situation presented for convenience of explanation, and the present disclosure is not limited to singular or plural components; even if a component is expressed in the plural form, it may be composed in the singular form, or even if a component is expressed in the singular form, it may be composed in the plural form.

[0295] Meanwhile, the embodiments of the present disclosure disclosed in this specification and drawings are merely specific examples provided to facilitate the explanation of the technical content of the present disclosure and to aid in understanding the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. That is, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that other variations based on the technical concept of the present disclosure are possible. Furthermore, each of the above embodiments may be combined and operated together as needed.

[0296] Meanwhile, the order of description in the drawings illustrating the method of the present disclosure does not necessarily correspond to the order of execution, and the order of execution may be changed or executed in parallel.

[0297] Alternatively, drawings describing the method of the present disclosure may omit some components and include only some components to the extent that the essence of the present disclosure is not impaired.

[0298] Additionally, the method of the present disclosure may be implemented by combining some or all of the contents included in each embodiment to the extent that it does not impair the essence of the present disclosure.

[0299] Various embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above. The foregoing description of the present disclosure is for illustrative purposes only and is not limited to the embodiments disclosed. Those skilled in the art will understand that other specific forms can be easily modified without altering the technical spirit or essential features of the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the claims set forth below rather than by the foregoing detailed description, and all modifications or variations derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and equivalent concepts should be interpreted as being included within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A method performed by an access point (AP) in a wireless LAN (local access network) system, A step of identifying transmissions associated with the overlapping basic service set (OBSS) in the primary channel; A step of identifying an NPCA duration for non-primary channel access (NPCA); and The method includes the step of transmitting an initial control frame (ICF) through a non-primary channel (NPCH) within the above NPCA interval, and The above NPCA interval is defined from the start point to the end point, and The above ICF includes one or more special user information fields, and A method characterized in that a special user information field having a predefined AID (association ID) value among the one or more special user information fields includes a subfield representing information related to the NPCA interval.

2. In Paragraph 1, The starting point of the above NPCA section is, The point in time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel above; or A time point after the NPCA switching delay from the time when the transmission related to OBSS was identified in the primary channel; A method characterized by being defined based on at least one of the following.

3. In Paragraph 1, The last point in the above NPCA interval is, The point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the above primary channel ends; or A point in time prior to the NPCA switching back delay from the point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the above primary channel ends; A method characterized by being defined based on at least one of the following.

4. In Paragraph 1, A method characterized in that the value of the above subfield has a fixed value regardless of when the ICF is transmitted.

5. In Paragraph 1, A method characterized in that the value of the above subfield is calculated based on the length of the remaining NPCA interval from the time when the ICF is transmitted until the last time of the NPCA interval.

6. In a method performed by a STA (station) in a wireless LAN (local access network) system, A step of identifying transmissions associated with an overlapping basic service set (OBSS) in a primary channel; and It includes the step of receiving an initial control frame (ICF) through a non-primary channel (NPCH) within a non-primary channel access (NPCA) period, and The above NPCA interval is defined from the start point to the end point, and The above ICF includes one or more special user information fields, and A method characterized in that one or more of the above special user information fields, having a predefined AID (association ID) value, includes a subfield representing information related to an NPCA interval.

7. In Paragraph 6, The starting point of the above NPCA section is, The point in time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel above; or A time point after the NPCA switching delay from the time when the transmission related to OBSS was identified in the primary channel; A method characterized by being defined based on at least one of the following.

8. In Paragraph 6, The last point in the above NPCA interval is, The point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the above primary channel ends; or A point in time prior to the NPCA switching back delay from the point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the above primary channel ends; A method characterized by being defined based on at least one of the following.

9. In Paragraph 6, A method characterized in that the value of the above subfield has a fixed value regardless of when the ICF is transmitted.

10. In Paragraph 6, A method characterized in that the value of the above subfield is calculated based on the length of the remaining NPCA interval from the time when the ICF is transmitted until the last time of the NPCA interval.

11. In an AP (access point) of a wireless LAN (local access network) system, Transmitter / receiver; and Identify transmissions associated with the overlapping basic service set (OBSS) on the primary channel, and Identify the NPCA duration for NPCA (non-primary channel access), and It includes a control unit configured to transmit an initial control frame (ICF) through a non-primary channel (NPCH) within the above NPCA interval, and The above NPCA interval is defined from the start point to the end point, and The above ICF includes one or more special user information fields, and AP characterized in that a special user information field having a predefined AID (association ID) value among the one or more special user information fields above includes a subfield representing information related to the NPCA interval.

12. In Paragraph 11, The starting point of the above NPCA section is, The point in time when a transmission related to OBSS is identified in the primary channel above; or A time point after the NPCA switching delay from the time when the transmission related to OBSS was identified in the primary channel; Defined based on at least one of the following, The last point in the above NPCA interval is, The point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the above primary channel ends; or A point in time prior to the NPCA switching back delay from the point in time when transmission related to OBSS in the above primary channel ends; AP characterized by being defined based on at least one of the following.

13. In Paragraph 11, AP characterized in that the value of the above subfield has a fixed value regardless of when the ICF is transmitted.

14. In Paragraph 11, AP characterized in that the value of the above subfield is calculated based on the length of the remaining NPCA interval from the time when the ICF is transmitted until the last time of the NPCA interval.

15. In a STA (station) of a wireless LAN (local access network) system, Transmitter / receiver; and Identify transmissions associated with the overlapping basic service set (OBSS) on the primary channel, and It includes a control unit configured to receive an initial control frame (ICF) via a non-primary channel (NPCH) within a non-primary channel access (NPCA) period, and The above NPCA interval is defined from the start point to the end point, and The above ICF includes one or more special user information fields, and STA characterized in that a special user information field having a predefined AID (association ID) value among the one or more special user information fields above includes a subfield representing information related to an NPCA interval.

Images