Communication apparatus and communication method for prioritized traffic

A communication apparatus, comprising:

• a receiver, which, in operation, receives from another communication apparatus a notification of one or more priority service periods (SPs), each SP being a time period in which transmission of frames belonging to a traffic type different from a traffic type designated by the other communication apparatus is restricted;
• and
• circuitry, which, in operation, determines if at least one frame of the designated traffic type is to be transmitted in one of the one or more SPs, and refrains from transmitting during the one of the one or more SPs in response to the determination that there are no frames of the designated traffic type to be transmitted, wherein:
• the circuitry, in operation, controls transmission to the other communication apparatus of a first request signal specifying a set of parameters for the one of the one or more SPs, the first request signal including:
• a wake up time, a minimum wake up duration, a wake interval, a channel, or combinations thereof;
• the receiver, in operation, receives from the other communication apparatus a first response signal indicating an acceptance of the set of parameters specified for the one of the one or more SPs;
• and
• the circuitry, in response to receiving the first response signal, determines that the communication apparatus is associated with the one of the one or more SPs and set up with the set of parameters for transmissions during the one of the one or more SPs.