US 11,963,155 B2Granted

Coordinated access point transmissions

AssigneeQUALCOMM Incorporated

InventorsYanjun Sun, George Cherian, Alfred Asterjadhi, Sai Yiu Duncan Ho, Abhishek Pramod Patil

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Abstract

This disclosure provides methods, devices and systems for sharing resources of a wireless medium. Particular implementations relate more specifically to coordinated AP (CAP) time-division-multiple-access (TDMA) and orthogonal-frequency-division-multiple access (OFDMA) techniques for sharing the time or frequency resources of a transmission opportunity (TXOP). According to such techniques, an AP that wins contention and gains access to the wireless medium for the duration of a TXOP may share its time or frequency resources with other selected APs. To share its resources, the winning AP may partition the TXOP into multiple time or frequency segments each including respective time or frequency resources representing a portion of the TXOP, and allocate each of the time or frequency segments to itself or to one of the selected APs.

Claims24

Dependent claims

A method for wireless communication by a first wireless station in a first basic service set (BSS) associated with a first wireless access point, the method comprising:

receiving a first packet from the first wireless access point that includes scheduling information for a transmission opportunity obtained by a second wireless access point associated with a second BSS, the scheduling information indicating one or more portions of the transmission opportunity, the scheduling information including one or more access point identifiers associated with one or more respective wireless access points, the scheduling information further indicating which one or more portions of the transmission opportunity are allocated to each respective wireless access point of the one or more wireless access points for communicating with its respective BSS, the one or more portions being nonoverlapping and each portion of the transmission opportunity being allocated to a different wireless access point;
receiving a trigger frame from the first wireless access point in a portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point;
and
transmitting data to the first wireless access point in the portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point in response to receiving the trigger frame based on the scheduling information including a first access point identifier associated with the first wireless access point, the transmission of the data to the first wireless access point in response to the trigger frame being further based on:
refraining from updating an inter-BSS network allocation vector in association with receiving a second packet that includes the first access point identifier during the transmission opportunity from the second wireless access point, from another wireless access point associated with an access point identifier included in the scheduling information, or from a wireless station in a BSS associated with another wireless access point associated with an access point identifier included in the scheduling information;
or
ignoring an inter-BSS network allocation vector in association with the first packet or the trigger frame indicating that no carrier sensing is required for transmission of data to the first wireless access point in the portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point in response to receiving the trigger frame;
or
not updating an inter-BSS network allocation vector and not updating an intra-BSS network allocation vector in association with the scheduling information including the first access point identifier.

6 more elements

A wireless communication device comprising:

at least one processor and at least one memory communicatively coupled with the at least one processor and storing processor-readable code that, when executed by the at least one processor, is configured to:
operate in a first basic service set (BSS) associated with a first wireless access point;
receive a first packet from the first wireless access point that includes scheduling information for a transmission opportunity obtained by a second wireless access point associated with a second BSS, the scheduling information indicating one or more portions of the transmission opportunity, the scheduling information including one or more access point identifiers associated with one or more respective wireless access points, the scheduling information further indicating which one or more portions of the transmission opportunity are allocated to each respective wireless access point of the one or more wireless access points for communicating with its respective BSS, the one or more portions being nonoverlapping and each portion of the transmission opportunity being allocated to a different wireless access point;
receive a trigger frame from the first wireless access point in a portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point;
and
transmit data to the first wireless access point in the portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point in response to receiving the trigger frame based on the scheduling information including a first access point identifier associated with the first wireless access point, the transmission of the data to the first wireless access point in response to the trigger frame being further based on:
refraining from updating an inter-BSS network allocation vector in association with receiving a second packet that includes the first access point identifier during the transmission opportunity from the second wireless access point, from another wireless access point associated with an access point identifier included in the scheduling information, or from a wireless station in a BSS associated with another wireless access point associated with an access point identifier included in the scheduling information;
or
ignoring an inter-BSS network allocation vector in association with the first packet or the trigger frame indicating that no carrier sensing is required for transmission of data to the first wireless access point in the portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point in response to receiving the trigger frame;
or
not updating an inter-BSS network allocation vector and not updating an intra-BSS network allocation vector in association with the scheduling information including the first access point identifier.

8 more elements

A method for wireless communication by a first wireless access point associated with a first basic service set (BSS), the method comprising:

receiving a first packet from a second wireless access point associated with a second BSS, the first packet including scheduling information for a transmission opportunity obtained by the second wireless access point, the scheduling information indicating one or more portions of the transmission opportunity, the scheduling information including one or more access point identifiers associated with one or more wireless access points, the scheduling information further indicating which one or more portions of the transmission opportunity are allocated to each respective wireless access point of the one or more wireless access points for communicating with its respective BSS, the one or more portions being nonoverlapping and each portion of the transmission opportunity being allocated to a different wireless access point;
and
in response to receiving the first packet, and based on the scheduling information including a first access point identifier associated with the first wireless access point, transmitting data to, or triggering the transmission of data from, one or more wireless stations in the first BSS in a portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point based on the scheduling information, wherein:
the transmission of the data to, or the triggering of the transmission of data from, the one or more wireless stations is further based on refraining from updating an inter-BSS network allocation vector and refraining from updating an intra-BSS network allocation vector in response to receiving the first packet in association with the scheduling information including the first access point identifier;
or
the transmission of the data to, or the triggering of the transmission of data from, the one or more wireless stations is further based on refraining from updating an inter-BSS network allocation vector in association with detecting a second packet that includes the first access point identifier during the transmission opportunity from the second wireless access point, from another wireless access point associated with an access point identifier included in the scheduling information, or from a wireless station in a BSS associated with the second wireless access point or another wireless access point associated with an access point identifier included in the scheduling information;
or
the triggering of the transmission of the data from the one or more wireless stations in the first BSS comprises transmitting a trigger frame to each of the one or more wireless stations in the portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point, the second packet or the trigger frame indicating that no carrier sensing is required for the transmission of data to the first wireless access point in the portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point in response to receiving the trigger frame.

5 more elements

A wireless communication device comprising:

at least one processor and
at least one memory communicatively coupled with the at least one processor and storing processor-readable code that, when executed by the at least one processor, is configured to:
operate as a first wireless access point associated with a first basic service set (BSS);
receive a first packet from a second wireless access point associated with a second BSS, the first packet including scheduling information for a transmission opportunity obtained by the second wireless access point, the scheduling information indicating one or more portions of the transmission opportunity, the scheduling information including one or more access point identifiers associated with one or more wireless access points, the scheduling information further indicating which one or more portions of the transmission opportunity are allocated to each respective wireless access point of the one or more wireless access points for communicating with its respective BSS, the one or more portions being nonoverlapping and each portion of the transmission opportunity being allocated to a different wireless access point;
and
in response to receiving the first packet, and based on the scheduling information including a first access point identifier associated with the first wireless access point, transmit data to, or trigger the transmission of data from, one or more wireless stations in the first BSS in a portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point based on the scheduling information, wherein:
the transmission of the data to, or the triggering of the transmission of data from, the one or more wireless stations is further based on refraining from updating an inter-BSS network allocation vector and refraining from updating an intra-BSS network allocation vector in response to receiving the first packet in association with the scheduling information including the first access point identifier;
or
the transmission of the data to, or the triggering of the transmission of data from, the one or more wireless stations is further based on refraining from updating an inter-BSS network allocation vector in association with detecting a second packet that includes the first access point identifier during the transmission opportunity from the second wireless access point, from another wireless access point associated with an access point identifier included in the scheduling information, or from a wireless station in a BSS associated with the second wireless access point or another wireless access point associated with an access point identifier included in the scheduling information;
or
the triggering of the transmission of the data from the one or more wireless stations in the first BSS comprises transmitting a trigger frame to each of the one or more wireless stations in the portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point, the second packet or the trigger frame indicating that no carrier sensing is required for the transmission of data to the first wireless access point in the portion of the transmission opportunity allocated to the first wireless access point in response to receiving the trigger frame.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 17/249,070Filed 18 Feb 2021 · us provisional application
Priority: 6 Mar 2020
Published: US 2021/0282161 A19 Sep 2021
Granted: 16 Apr 2024
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

H04W 72/12
Local resource management: wireless traffic scheduling
H04W 72/20
Local resource management: control channels or signalling for resource management
H04W 16/10
Resource partitioning among network components, e.g. reuse partitioning: dynamic resource partitioning
H04W 16/14
Network planning, e.g. coverage or traffic planning tools; Network deployment, e.g. resource partitioning or cells structures: spectrum sharing…