CN110024461B

CN110024461B - Synchronous downlink transmission coordination

Info

Publication number: CN110024461B
Application number: CN201780074172.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 黄柏凯; 劳伦·卡里乌; 罗伯特·斯泰西; 李庆华; 蒋锋
Original assignee: Intel IP Corp
Current assignee: Intel IP Corp
Priority date: 2016-12-30
Filing date: 2017-09-29
Publication date: 2023-06-02
Anticipated expiration: 2037-09-29
Also published as: WO2018125355A1; CN110024461A

Abstract

Systems, methods, and devices related to simultaneous downlink transmission coordination are described. The device may identify device information received from the first device. The device may determine an access point trigger frame, the access point trigger frame comprising: an indication of simultaneous transmissions, and one or more frequency allocations to be used by the first device during the simultaneous transmissions. The device may cause an access point trigger frame to be sent to the first device. The apparatus may cause one or more data frames to be transmitted to the station apparatus using at least one of the one or more frequency allocations.

Description

Synchronous downlink transmission coordination

Cross Reference to Related Applications

This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application No.62/440,543 filed on the date of 2016 at 12 and U.S. provisional application No.62/440,530 filed on the date of 2016 at 12, the disclosures of both of which are hereby incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to systems, methods, and devices for wireless communications, and more particularly, to systems, methods, and devices for simultaneous downlink transmission coordination.

Background

Wireless devices are becoming more and more popular and request access to wireless channels. In order to provide bandwidth and acceptable response time to users of Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), efficient use of resources of the WLAN is very important.

Drawings

Fig. 1 depicts a diagram illustrating an example network environment of an early bit indication system in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 depicts an illustrative diagram of a transmission scheduled between an access point and two devices using a trigger frame in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3A depicts an illustrative schematic diagram of a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3B depicts an illustrative schematic diagram of simultaneous multicast and broadcast transmission coordination in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram of simultaneous multicast and broadcast transmission coordination in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 5 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram of a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 6A-6B depict illustrative diagrams of simultaneous downlink transmission coordination systems in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 7A depicts an illustrative diagram of a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 8 depicts an illustrative diagram of a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 9A illustrates a flow diagram of an illustrative process for a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 9B illustrates a flow diagram of an illustrative process for a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 10 illustrates a functional diagram of an example communication station that can be suitable for use as a user device in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 11 illustrates a block diagram of an example machine on which any of one or more techniques (e.g., methods) may be performed, according to one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Example embodiments described herein provide certain systems, methods, and devices for providing signaling information to Wi-Fi devices in various Wi-Fi networks, including but not limited to IEEE 802.11ax (referred to as HE or HEW).

The following description and the drawings set forth specific embodiments sufficiently to enable those skilled in the art to practice them. Other embodiments may include structural, logical, electrical, process, and other changes. Portions and features of some embodiments may be included in, or substituted for, those of others. The embodiments set forth in the claims include all available equivalents of those claims.

During communication between two devices, one or more frames may be transmitted and received.

IEEE 802.11ax has introduced trigger frames to solicit (solicit) simultaneous uplink transmissions from, for example, an Access Point (AP) to one or more station devices (STAs) in a Basic Service Set (BSS). The trigger frame may allow the APs solicited by the trigger frame to perform time synchronization and frequency synchronization such that simultaneous uplink transmissions do not interfere with each other. In a Wi-Fi environment, there is typically more than one AP in the vicinity. However, within a BSS, the communication is typically one-to-many or many-to-one. For example, an AP may communicate in a downlink direction with one or more STAs associated with the AP, and the one or more STAs may communicate in an uplink direction with the AP. Different APs belonging to different BSSs typically perform channel access at different times from each other when communicating with their STAs to avoid interference. However, the APs do not participate in simultaneous uplink transmissions with each other. It is not possible to achieve that two APs synchronize with each other to transmit simultaneously to one or more STAs so that the transmission can be correctly decoded by the receiving device. Thus, for an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) or multi-user (MU) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) scheme in the presence of multiple APs and multiple STAs, system performance may not be optimized.

Example embodiments of the present disclosure relate to systems, methods, and devices for simultaneous downlink transmission coordination.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may cause simultaneous downlink transmissions between one or more APs in one or more BSSs to be coordinated using a coordination frame (hereinafter referred to as a trigger frame). The trigger frame may trigger simultaneous transmissions with one or more STAs in the downlink direction from different APs.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may cause a device (e.g., an AP) to send a trigger frame to another device (e.g., another AP). The trigger frame may contain information associated with coordinating simultaneous transmissions between each device and one or more STAs. The information may include synchronization of downlink data to one or more STAs. This may result in many-to-many communication in the downlink and/or uplink directions.

The foregoing description is for the purpose of illustration and is not intended to be limiting. Many other examples, configurations, processes, etc., some of which are described in detail below, may exist. Example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example network environment in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure. The wireless network 100 may include one or more user devices 120 and one or more Access Points (APs) 102 that may communicate in accordance with an IEEE 802.11 communication standard, including IEEE 802.11 ax. User device(s) 120 may be a non-stationary mobile device (e.g., without a fixed location) or may be a fixed device.

In some embodiments, user device 120 and AP 102 may include a computer system similar to the functional diagram of fig. 10 and/or one or more computer systems of the example machine/system of fig. 11.

One or more illustrative user devices 120 and/or APs 102 may be operated by one or more users 110. It should be noted that any addressable unit may be a Station (STA). The STA may exhibit a number of different characteristics, each of which determines (shape) its function. For example, a single addressable unit may be a portable STA, a quality of service (QoS) STA, a dependent STA, and a hidden STA at the same time. One or more of the illustrative user devices 120 and the AP 102 may be STAs. One or more of the illustrative user devices 120 and/or APs 102 may operate as a Personal Basic Service Set (PBSS) control point/access point (PCP/AP). User device(s) 120 (e.g., 124, 126, or 128) and/or AP 102 may include any suitable processor-driven device including, but not limited to: mobile or non-mobile (e.g., static) devices. For example, user device(s) 120 and/or AP 102 may include user devices (UEs), stations (STAs), access Points (APs), software-enabled APs (softaps), personal Computers (PCs), wearable wireless devices (e.g., bracelets, watches, glasses, rings, etc.), desktop computers, mobile computers, laptop computers, ultrabook ^TM Computers, notebook computers, tablet computers, server computers, handheld devices, internet of things (IoT) devices, sensor devices, PDA devices, handheld PDA devices, on-board devices, off-board devices, hybrid devices (e.g., incorporating cellular phone functionality with PDA device functionality), consumer devices, on-board devices, off-board devices, mobile or portable devices, non-mobile or non-portable devices, mobile phones, cellular phones, PCS devices, PDA devices including wireless communication devices, mobile or portable GPS devices, DVB devices, relatively small computing devices, non-desktop computers, "shared living (Carry Small Live Large, CSLL)" devices, ultra Mobile Devices (UMD), ultra Mobile PCS (UMPC), mobile Internet Devices (MID), "Origami" devices or computing devices, devices supporting Dynamic Combinable Computing (DCC), context-aware devices, video devices, audio devices, a/V devices, set Top Boxes (STB), blu-ray disc (BD) playersBD recorder, digital Video Disc (DVD) player, high Definition (HD) DVD player, DVD recorder, HD DVD recorder, personal Video Recorder (PVR), broadcast HD receiver, video source, audio source, video sink, audio sink, stereo tuner, broadcast radio receiver, flat panel display, personal Media Player (PMP), digital Video Camera (DVC), digital audio player, speaker, audio receiver, audio amplifier, gaming device, data source, data sink, digital Still Camera (DSC), media player, smart phone, television, music player, or the like. Other devices including smart devices, such as lights, air conditioners, automotive components, household components, appliances, may also be included in the list.

As used herein, the term "internet of things device" ("IoT device") is used to refer to any object (e.g., appliance, sensor, etc.) that has an addressable interface (e.g., internet Protocol (IP) address, bluetooth Identifier (ID), near Field Communication (NFC) ID, etc.) and is capable of communicating information to one or more other devices via a wired or wireless connection. The IoT devices may have passive communication interfaces (such as Quick Response (QR) codes, radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags, NFC tags, or the like) or active communication interfaces (such as modems, transceivers, transmitter-receivers, or the like). IoT devices may have a particular set of attributes (e.g., device state or status (such as whether the IoT device is on or off, idle or active, available for task execution or busy, etc.), cooling or heating functions, environmental monitoring or recording functions, lighting functions, sounding functions, etc.), which may be embedded in and/or controlled/monitored by a Central Processing Unit (CPU), microprocessor, ASIC, or the like, and configured for connection to an IoT network (such as a local ad-hoc (ad-hoc) network or the internet). For example, ioT devices may include, but are not limited to: refrigerators, toasters, ovens, microwave ovens, freezers, dishwashers, vessels, hand-held tools, washing machines, dryers, ovens, air conditioners, thermostats, televisions, lights, cleaners, sprinklers, electricity meters, gas meters, etc., so long as the devices are equipped with addressable communication interfaces for communicating with IoT networks. IoT devices may also include cellular telephones, desktop computers, laptop computers, tablet computers, personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), and the like. Accordingly, ioT networks may be composed of a combination of "traditional" internet-accessible devices (e.g., laptop or desktop computers, cellular phones, etc.) and devices that typically do not have internet connectivity (e.g., dishwashers, etc.).

The user device(s) 120 and/or the AP102 may also include, for example, mesh stations in a mesh network in accordance with one or more IEEE 802.11 standards and/or 3GPP standards.

Any of the one or more user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, 128) and the AP102 may be configured to communicate with each other wirelessly or by wire via one or more communication networks 130 and/or 135. User device(s) 120 may also communicate with each other peer-to-peer or directly with or without AP 102. Any communication network 130 and/or 135 may include, but is not limited to: any of a combination of different types of suitable communication networks (e.g., broadcast network, wired network, public network (e.g., the internet), private network, wireless network, cellular network, or any other suitable private and/or public network). Further, any communication network 130 and/or 135 may have any suitable communication range associated therewith, and may include: such as the world wide web (e.g., the internet), a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a Local Area Network (LAN), or a Personal Area Network (PAN). Further, any communication network 130 and/or 135 may include any type of medium that may carry network traffic, including, but not limited to: coaxial cable, twisted pair, fiber optics, coaxial hybrid fiber optic (HFC) medium, microwave terrestrial transceivers, radio frequency communication medium, white space communication medium, ultra-high frequency communication medium, satellite communication medium, or any combination thereof.

Any of the one or more user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, 128) and the AP102 may include one or more communication antennas. The one or more communication antennas may be any suitable type of antennas corresponding to the communication protocols used by user device 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, and 128) and AP 102. Some non-limiting examples of suitable communication antennas include: wi-Fi antennas, institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 family standard-compliant antennas, directional antennas, non-directional antennas, dipole antennas, folded dipole antennas, patch antennas, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antennas, omni-directional antennas, quasi-omni-directional antennas, and the like. One or more communication antennas may be communicatively coupled to the radio to transmit and/or receive signals, e.g., communication signals to and/or from user device 120 and/or AP 102.

Any of the one or more user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, 128) and the AP102 may be configured to perform directional transmission and/or directional reception in connection with wireless communications in a wireless network. Any of the one or more user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, 128) and AP102 may be configured to perform such directional transmission and/or reception using a set of multiple antenna arrays (e.g., DMG antenna arrays or the like). Each of the plurality of antenna arrays may be used for transmission and/or reception in a respective specific direction or range of directions. Any of the one or more user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, 128) and the AP102 may be configured to perform any given directional transmission towards the defined one or more transmitting sectors. Any of the one or more user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, 128) and AP102 may be configured to perform any given directional reception from the defined one or more receiving sectors.

MIMO beamforming in a wireless network may be accomplished using RF beamforming and/or digital beamforming. In some embodiments, in performing a given MIMO transmission, user device 120 and/or AP 102 may be configured to perform MIMO beamforming using all or a subset of its one or more communication antennas.

Any of the user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, 128) and the AP 102 may include any suitable radio and/or transceiver for transmitting and/or receiving Radio Frequency (RF) signals to communicate with each other in a bandwidth and/or channel corresponding to a communication protocol utilized by any of the one or more user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, 128) and the AP 102. The radio component may include hardware and/or software for modulating and/or demodulating the communication signals according to a pre-established transmission protocol. The radio may also have hardware and/or software instructions for communicating via one or more WiFi protocols and/or WiFi direct protocols, such as protocols standardized by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard. In certain example embodiments, a radio component in cooperation with a communication antenna may be configured to communicate over a 2.4GHz channel (e.g., 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11 ax), a 5GHz channel (e.g., 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11 ax), or a 60GHz channel (e.g., 802.11 ad). In some embodiments, non-WiFi protocols may be used for communication between devices, such as bluetooth, dedicated Short Range Communication (DSRC), ultra High Frequency (UHF) (e.g., 802.11af, 802.22), white space frequency (e.g., white space), or other packetized radio communication. The radio may include any known receiver and baseband suitable for communicating via a communication protocol. The radio component may also include a Low Noise Amplifier (LNA), an additional signal amplifier, an analog-to-digital (a/D) converter, one or more buffers, and a digital baseband.

When an AP (e.g., AP 102) establishes communication with one or more user devices 120 (e.g.,

user devices

124, 126, and/or 128), AP 102 may communicate in the downlink direction and user devices 120 may communicate in the uplink direction with AP 102 by sending frames in either direction. User devices 120 may also communicate peer-to-peer or directly with each other with or without AP 102. The data frame may be preceded by one or more preambles, which may be part of one or more headers. These preambles may be used to allow a device (e.g., AP 102 and/or user device 120) to detect a new incoming data frame from another device. The preamble may be a signal used in network communications to synchronize transmission timing between two or more devices (e.g., between an AP and a user device).

The trigger frame 104 may be transmitted using a preamble along with other signaling, such as resource allocation, to coordinate uplink OFDMA operations. The trigger frame is a frame containing a preamble and other fields that can be sent from the AP informing all user equipments served by the AP that channel access is available. With OFDMA, the AP may send a trigger frame for various reasons (e.g., to allocate resources). The user equipment may use the allocated resources (e.g., 2MHz spectrum in a particular portion of the channel) to send its data back to the AP.

STAs are typically located at different distances from the AP. The distance may be associated with an actual measurement of the distance to the AP, or by using a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) or signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) measurement to define the proximity of the STA to the AP. For example, a STA may be defined to be close to an AP if the STA has a particular level of RSSI and/or SNR compared to a predetermined threshold. Similarly, when a STA is defined to be near or not near, the distance between the STA and the AP may be compared to a threshold. It should be appreciated that how a device is defined as being near (near) or not near (far) may be determined based on the implementation. When the AP transmits the trigger frame, the trigger frame may not arrive at each STA at the same time due to propagation delay. Once the STA receives the trigger frame, it needs to give a response after a certain time delay (e.g., short inter-frame space (SIFS)). Simultaneous transmissions from STAs to the AP may be considered simultaneous because the propagation delay is not very large. The AP may consider the uplink transmissions received from these STAs to be simultaneous transmissions and may thus decode them. As the signal propagates at the speed of light, propagation delays associated with devices at different distances from the AP may be considered negligible, such that the AP considers any simultaneous uplink transmissions to be received at approximately the same time. In order for an AP to successfully distinguish simultaneous transmissions received from multiple STAs, the AP and STAs may employ frequency distinction using OFDMA or spatial distinction using MU-MIMO, or any other mechanism that distinguishes and minimizes interference between simultaneous transmissions.

Fig. 2 depicts an illustrative diagram of a transmission scheduled between an access point and two devices using a trigger frame.

Referring to fig. 2, ap 202 may communicate with two user devices (e.g., STA 222 and STA 224). The AP may transmit trigger frames 206 that may be received by STA 222 and STA 224.

IEEE 802.11ax has introduced trigger frames to solicit simultaneous uplink transmissions in a Basic Service Set (BSS). The trigger frame (e.g., trigger frame 206) may allow STAs solicited by the trigger frame to have time and frequency synchronization such that simultaneous uplink transmissions (e.g., data frames 208 and 210) do not interfere with each other. AP 202 may respond with acknowledgements 212 for each or two data frames received (e.g., data frames 208 and 210). As a result, OFDMA or MU-MIMO uplink transmission may be accomplished through the trigger frame to increase system throughput. However, for Wi-Fi transmissions, there is typically more than one AP in the vicinity of STA 222 and STA 222. Different APs typically perform channel access at different times to avoid interference. As a result, system performance cannot be optimized using simultaneous transmission using OFDMA or MU-MIMO schemes. It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive.

Referring to fig. 3A, two APs (e.g., AP 302 and AP 304) are shown that may calibrate or coordinate their transmissions to transmit to their respective STAs (e.g., STA 322 and STA 324) simultaneously.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may determine a trigger frame (e.g., trigger frame 306) that may trigger simultaneous transmissions from different APs during downlink transmissions. For example, AP 302 may determine a trigger frame 306 to send to AP304 to trigger AP304 to perform a simultaneous transmission with AP 302. Based on the trigger frame 306, the AP 302 and the AP304 may calibrate their response times. Based on the information included in the trigger frame 306, the AP 302 and the AP304 may transmit to their respective STAs simultaneously. In this example, AP 302 may transmit data frame 308 to STA 322 and AP304 may simultaneously transmit data frame 310 to STA 324. While the downlink transmission coordination system may enable STA 322 and STA 324 to receive

data frames

308 and 310, respectively, and to properly decode each of these data frames even if AP 302 and AP304 transmit both data frames simultaneously.

In one embodiment, the transmission (e.g., data frame 308 and/or data frame 310) may be sent after channel access time delay 301. The channel access time delay 301 may be an inter-frame interval between a trigger frame and a simultaneous transmission of a solicited short inter-frame space (SIFS).

In one embodiment, the trigger frame 306 may indicate a duration of simultaneous downlink transmissions (e.g., duration 303) and a duration of simultaneous uplink acknowledgements (e.g., duration 305).

In one embodiment, the trigger frame 306 may indicate that the content of the common physical preamble should be used by the solicited AP.

In one embodiment, trigger frame 306 may indicate the format of a frame (e.g., PLCP Protocol Data Unit (PPDU)) for simultaneous downlink transmissions (e.g., data frames 308 and 310) and simultaneous uplink transmissions (e.g., acknowledgement frames 312 and 314).

This mechanism may require some coordination between the APs, whether over the air or through a Distribution System (DS) (where the backend controller controls all APs).

In one embodiment, an AP sending a trigger frame to solicit one or more other APs to perform simultaneous transmissions may need to know some information associated with the neighboring AP and STA that it will trigger. The information may include one or more of the following: the buffer status of neighboring APs and STAs, the mapping of STAs in areas close to the AP or in areas where frequency selection is desired (away areas), the interference level (fine or coarse) between the STA and the AP. In this case, the AP that sent the trigger frame may send a frequency allocation (or other resource allocation) and may define, for example, that a certain frequency will be used to be reported as mapping to STAs in an area close to the solicited AP. The trigger frame may also indicate various frequencies that the solicited AP uses when communicating with STAs defined to be in an area away from the solicited AP. The solicited AP may then use the allocated frequency to transmit to its STAs.

In one embodiment, the AP that sent the trigger frame may collect information from other APs. This information may be exchanged by sending and receiving messages between APs. The information may be associated with the STA and/or an AP serving the STA. The information may include an identification of the STA, a distance of the STA to its serving AP, a signal strength of the STA to its serving AP, or any other information that may determine the location and signal strength of the STA.

STAs are typically located at different distances from the AP. The distance may be associated with an actual measurement of the distance to the AP or by defining the proximity of the STA to the AP using a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) or signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) measurement. For example, a STA may be defined to be close to an AP if the STA has a particular level of RSSI and/or SNR compared to a predetermined threshold. Similarly, when a STA is defined to be near or not near, the distance between the STA and the AP may be compared to a threshold. It should be appreciated that how a device is defined as being near (near) or not near (far) may be determined based on the implementation.

The information may also include an identification of the AP, a coverage area of the AP, or a location of the AP (e.g., coordinates or other location identification information) that is solicited for simultaneous communication. The AP that sent the trigger frame may then determine how to allocate resources (e.g., frequencies, resource units, subchannels, frequency bands, etc.) based on the collected information. The AP that transmits the trigger frame may determine which frequency the AP should use when transmitting its downlink data and when the STA transmits its uplink data based on some criteria. For example, the AP may compare particular values received from those solicited APs to a threshold. Based on the comparison, the AP may determine one or more frequency selections that it may transmit in the trigger frame.

In one embodiment, the trigger frame may indicate which AP is solicited for transmission. The trigger frame may indicate which sub-channel is used for the solicited AP to transmit. The trigger frame may indicate which group of STAs to transmit for the subchannel of the solicited AP. The AP that sent the trigger frame may transmit at the same time as the other APs solicited by the trigger frame for transmission. The solicited AP or the AP transmitting the trigger frame may be synchronized with the end of the trigger frame to achieve timing synchronization and minimize interference between the APs transmitting simultaneously. The inter-frame spacing between the trigger frame and the solicited simultaneous transmission is SIFS. The APs solicited by the AP perform CCA (including physical carrier or virtual carrier sensing between inter-frame intervals) to determine whether the solicited AP may transmit after the triggered frame solicitation. The solicited AP or the AP transmitting the trigger frame is synchronized with the clock of the AP transmitting the trigger frame to achieve frequency synchronization and minimize carrier frequency offset and interference between the APs transmitting simultaneously. The solicited AP may be a soft AP or an ad hoc STA (e.g., a STA that sends a device-to-device transmission to another STA). The trigger frame may indicate the power to be used by each solicited AP for simultaneous transmissions.

It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive.

Referring to fig. 3B, two APs (e.g., AP 352 and AP 354) are shown. AP 352 may send trigger frame 356 to AP 354 that will act as a trigger instructing AP 354 to perform synchronized transmission of one or more multicast or broadcast frames (e.g., multicast/broadcast frames 358, 360, 362, and 364).

Trigger frame 356 may indicate a common MAC header 357 that is used to solicit transmissions as shown in fig. 3B. Trigger frame 356 may indicate a multicast/broadcast address (e.g., receiver Address (RA) in MAC header 357) for the solicited AP to send the multicast transmission. Trigger frame 356 may indicate a common transmitter address (e.g., TA in MAC header 357) for the solicited AP to send the multicast transmission. Trigger frame 356 may indicate the requested data rate for simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame 356 may indicate the same scrambling seed (scrambling seed) used for the solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame 356 may indicate the PPDU format for the solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. Trigger frame 356 may indicate the coding option for the solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. Trigger frame 356 may indicate a packet index for a packet to be included in multicast/broadcast data transmitted by the solicited AP. Trigger frame 356 may indicate the type of control frame used for broadcast transmissions from the solicited AP. As a result, each solicited AP can know the format of the frame that should be transmitted (e.g., for broadcast transmission). Trigger frame 356 may indicate the number of times the same multicast transmission is repeated. This may be used to increase the probability that each STA in the vicinity can receive the transmission. The separation of each multicast/broadcast transmission may be a short inter-frame space (SIFS) (e.g., SIFS 351 and 355). Trigger frame 356 may indicate bandwidth 353 for multicast/broadcast transmissions. It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive.

Referring to fig. 4, three APs (e.g.,

APs

402, 404, and 406) are shown that may coordinate to facilitate simultaneous multicast/broadcast transmissions to three STAs (e.g.,

STAs

422, 424, and 426).

In one embodiment, the simultaneous multicast and broadcast transmission coordination system may use a trigger frame that may trigger simultaneous multicast or broadcast transmissions from different APs (e.g.,

APs

402, 404, and 406). Since different APs transmit the same multicast or broadcast content simultaneously on the same channel, the signal strengths from different APs may be considered the same signal and may be combined at the STA. As a result, interference effects between different APs are minimized.

In the example of fig. 4, AP 402 may send trigger frames to AP 404 and AP 406. Based on the trigger frame, AP 402, AP 404, and AP 406 may coordinate simultaneous transmissions to

STAs

422, 424, and 426. The AP may send multicast/broadcast frames to all STAs in the vicinity so that these transmissions are sent from all APs simultaneously.

In one embodiment, the AP sending the trigger frame may need to know some information associated with the neighboring AP and STA that it will trigger. The information may include at least one of: the buffer status of neighboring APs and STAs, the mapping of STAs in areas close to the AP or in areas where frequency selection is desired, or the interference level (fine or coarse) between the STA and the AP.

In one embodiment, the AP that sent the trigger frame may collect information from other APs. This information may be exchanged by sending and receiving messages between APs. The information may be associated with the STA and/or an AP serving the STA. The information may include an identification of the STA, a distance of the STA to its serving AP, a signal strength of the STA to its serving AP, or any other information that may determine the location and signal strength of the STA. The information may also include an identification of the AP, a coverage area of the AP, or a location of the AP (e.g., coordinates or other location identification information) that is solicited for simultaneous communication. The AP that sent the trigger frame may then determine how to allocate resources (e.g., frequencies, resource units, subchannels, frequency bands, etc.) based on the collected information. The AP that transmits the trigger frame may determine which frequency the AP should use when transmitting its downlink data and when the STA transmits its uplink data based on some criteria. For example, the AP may compare particular values received from those solicited APs to a threshold. Based on the comparison, the AP may determine one or more frequency selections that it may transmit in the trigger frame.

Referring to fig. 5, three APs (e.g., AP1, AP2, and AP 3) and six STAs (e.g., STA 551, STA 552, STA 553, STA 554, STA555, and STA 556) are shown. This example shows that STA 551 and STA 554 are served by AP1, STA 552 and STA555 are served by AP2, and STA 553 and STA556 are served by AP 3. This example also shows that STA 551, STA 552, and STA 553 are very close to AP1, AP2, and AP3, respectively, and STA 554, STA555, and STA556 are not close to their serving APs (e.g., AP1, AP2, and AP 3), respectively.

As mentioned before, no known solution enables simultaneous transmissions from different APs to have time and frequency synchronization so that simultaneous downlink transmissions do not interfere with each other. For example, if AP1 transmits a signal to STA 554 and AP2 transmits a signal to STA555, there may be interference between AP1 and AP2 signals if they are to be transmitted simultaneously.

In one embodiment, for enhanced spectrum utilization, if a STA is determined to be close to its serving AP, the AP may transmit to STAs close to it because the AP may easily identify transmissions from the close STAs because it is sufficient to identify that signals are coming from the close STAs based on only power level differences (e.g., received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), etc.), and interference from other STAs may not be a problem, in which case these signals may have lower power levels.

Thus, it will be easy to tell the AP to use the same frequency to communicate with their respective close STAs because the following assumption can be ensured to hold: interference is minimized due to the proximity of STAs to the serving AP. However, if the AP is serving a distant STA, interference may affect these communications.

Control in Wi-Fi is given to the APs, which perform channel sensing to determine whether another AP is transmitting on the channel. In the case where another AP is transmitting, the AP will avoid the channel until the channel is clear. Conventionally, for Wi-Fi APs, different APs cannot coordinate transmitting to different, distant STAs at different frequencies. Different APs also cannot coordinate transmitting to different, nearby STAs at the same frequency.

However, with the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system, the APs can transmit simultaneously without causing interference with other APs.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may facilitate frequency reuse while minimizing interference between neighboring APs. For example, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may include one or more processors that may be configured to send trigger frames to one or more APs to instruct the one or more APs how to be able to send any data they have simultaneously to one or more STAs that may be associated with the APs. The trigger frame may contain an operating frequency indication (in the case of OFDMA). For example, one or more APs may transmit to STAs near the one or more APs using the same frequency.

An AP that will send a trigger frame may collect information from other APs. This information may be exchanged by sending and receiving messages between APs. The information may be associated with the STA and/or an AP serving the STA. The information may include an identification of the STA, a distance of the STA to its serving AP, a signal strength of the STA to its serving AP, or any other information that may determine the location and signal strength of the STA. The information may also include an identification of the AP, a coverage area of the AP, or a location of the AP (e.g., coordinates or other location identification information) that is solicited for simultaneous communication. The AP that sent the trigger frame may then determine how to allocate resources (e.g., frequencies, resource units, subchannels, frequency bands, etc.) based on the collected information. The AP that transmits the trigger frame may determine which frequency the AP should use when transmitting its downlink data and when the STA transmits its uplink data based on some criteria. For example, the AP may compare particular values received from those solicited APs to a threshold. Based on the comparison, the AP may determine one or more frequency selections that it may transmit in the trigger frame.

In the example of fig. 5, AP1, AP2, and AP3 may receive the trigger frame and may extract from the trigger frame a frequency indication that AP1, AP2, and AP3 use the same frequency (e.g., frequency 501) when communicating with a nearby STA. In this case, since the STA 551, the STA552, and the STA 553 are determined to be adjacent to the AP1, the AP2, and the AP3, respectively, these APs can use the frequency 501 without interfering with each other.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may include one or more processors that may be configured to send a trigger frame to one or more APs to indicate that different frequencies are used for STAs determined not to be proximate to but still served by the one or more APs. For example, AP1, AP2, and AP3 may use different frequencies when communicating with STA 554, STA555, and STA 556 (which are determined not to be in proximity to AP1, AP2, and AP3, respectively). For example, the trigger frame may indicate that frequency 502 may be used by AP3, frequency 503 may be used by AP2, and frequency 504 may be used by AP 1. Having one or more APs use different frequencies when communicating with their STAs simultaneously allows for better spectrum usage and efficient bandwidth usage with minimal or no interference.

Referring to fig. 6A, a simulation to demonstrate the gain obtained by using the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system is shown. Fig. 6A shows seven APs (e.g., AP1, AP2, AP3, AP4, AP5, AP6, and AP 7). Each of these APs is shown as serving one STA. For example, AP1 serving STA 601, AP2 serving STA 602, AP3 serving STA 603, AP4 serving STA 604, AP5 serving STA 605, AP6 serving STA 606, AP7 serving STA607. Each of these APs may have a coverage area represented by one hexagon. STAs are shown as being located at the edge of the coverage area of each of their respective serving APs.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may cause an AP (e.g., AP 1) to send a trigger frame to other APs (e.g., AP2, AP3, AP4, AP5, AP6, and AP 7). The trigger frame may contain an indication of the frequency usage of these APs. For example, the trigger frame may inform the APs: AP1 will transmit to STA 601 on subchannel 1, AP3 should transmit to STA 603 on subchannel 2, AP5 should transmit to STA 605 on subchannel 2, and AP7 should transmit to STA607 on subchannel 2. In addition, the trigger frame may indicate that AP2 should transmit to STA 602 on subchannel 3, AP4 should transmit to STA604 on subchannel 3, and AP6 should transmit to STA 606 on subchannel 3.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may inform STAs (e.g., STA 601, STA 602, STA 603, STA604, STA 605, STA 606, and STA 607) to send their uplink acknowledgements on one or more subchannels. For example, the trigger frame may contain an indication of: STA 601 should send its acknowledgement to AP1 on subchannel 1, STA 603 should send its acknowledgement to AP3 on subchannel 2, STA 605 should send its acknowledgement to AP5 on subchannel 2, and STA607 should send an acknowledgement to AP7 on subchannel 2. Further, the trigger frame may contain an indication of: STA 602 should send its acknowledgement to AP2 on subchannel 3, STA604 should send its acknowledgement to AP4 on subchannel 3, and STA 606 should send its acknowledgement to AP6 on subchannel 3. It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive.

Referring to fig. 6B, the results of the simulation are shown. The baseline is determined based on the following assumptions: seven APs (e.g., AP1, AP2, AP3, AP4, AP5, AP6, and AP 7) perform channel access and transmit a High Efficiency (HE) Single User (SU) PPDU using a Request To Send (RTS)/Clear To Send (CTS) mechanism instead of using a trigger frame. As can be seen from fig. 6B, the simulation resulted in an approximately 26% increase in average throughput.

Referring to fig. 7A, a simulation to demonstrate the gain obtained by using the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system is shown. Fig. 7A shows seven APs (e.g., AP1, AP2, AP3, AP4, AP5, AP6, and AP 7). Each of these APs is shown as one STA service. For example, AP1 serves STA701, AP3 serves STA702, AP3 serves STA703, AP4 serves STA704, AP5 serves STA705, AP6 serves STA706, and AP7 serves STA707. Each of these APs may have a hexagonal shape represented by a coverage area. STAs are shown as being close to their respective serving APs.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may cause an AP (e.g., AP 1) to send a trigger frame to other APs (e.g., AP2, AP3, AP4, AP5, AP6, and AP 7). The trigger frame may contain an indication of the frequency usage of these APs. For example, the trigger frame may inform the AP to transmit using the same frequency because the STA is close to its serving AP.

For example, an AP may collect information from other APs. This information may be exchanged by sending and receiving messages between APs. The information may be associated with the STA and/or an AP serving the STA. The information may include an identification of the STA, a distance of the STA to its serving AP, a signal strength of the STA to its serving AP, or any other information that may determine the location and signal strength of the STA. The information may also include an identification of the AP, a coverage area of the AP, or a location of the AP (e.g., coordinates or other location identification information) that is solicited for simultaneous communication. The AP that sent the trigger frame may then determine how to allocate resources (e.g., frequencies, resource units, subchannels, frequency bands, etc.) based on the collected information. The AP that transmits the trigger frame may determine which frequency the AP should use when transmitting its downlink data and when the STA transmits its uplink data based on some criteria. For example, the AP may compare particular values received from those solicited APs to a threshold. Based on the comparison, the AP may determine one or more frequency selections that it may transmit in the trigger frame.

In one embodiment, the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system may inform STAs (e.g., STA 701, STA 702, STA 703, STA 704, STA 705, STA 706, and STA 707) to send their uplink acknowledgements on the same frequency. For example, the trigger frame may contain an indication of: STAs should send their acknowledgements to their respective AP indications using a particular frequency. It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive.

Referring to fig. 8, the results of the simulation are shown. The baseline is determined based on the following assumptions: seven APs (e.g., AP1, AP2, AP3, AP4, AP5, AP6, and AP 7) perform channel access and transmit a High Efficiency (HE) Single User (SU) PPDU using a Request To Send (RTS)/Clear To Send (CTS) mechanism instead of using a trigger frame. As can be seen from fig. 8, the simulation yields an average throughput increase of about 200%.

Fig. 9A shows a flow diagram of an illustrative process for a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

At block 902, a device (e.g., user device(s) 120 and/or AP 102 of fig. 1) may identify device information received from a first device. For example, an AP sending a trigger frame to solicit one or more other APs to perform simultaneous transmissions may need to determine device information associated with neighboring APs and STAs that it will trigger. The device information may include one or more of the following: the buffer status of neighboring APs and STAs, the mapping of STAs in areas close to the AP or in areas where frequency selection is desired (away areas), the interference level (fine or coarse) between STAs and the AP.

The AP transmitting the trigger frame may collect information from other APs. This information may be exchanged by sending and receiving messages between APs. The information may be associated with the STA and/or an AP serving the STA. The information may include an identification of the STA, a distance of the STA to its serving AP, a signal strength of the STA to its serving AP, or any other information that may determine the location and signal strength of the STA. The information may also include an identification of the AP, a coverage area of the AP, or a location of the AP (e.g., coordinates or other location identification information) that is solicited for simultaneous communication. The AP that sent the trigger frame may then determine how to allocate resources (e.g., frequencies, resource units, subchannels, frequency bands, etc.) based on the collected information. The AP that transmits the trigger frame may determine which frequency the AP should use when transmitting its downlink data and when the STA transmits its uplink data based on some criteria. For example, the AP may compare particular values received from those solicited APs to a threshold. Based on the comparison, the AP may determine one or more frequency selections that it may transmit in the trigger frame.

At block 904, the device may determine an access point trigger frame comprising: an indication of simultaneous transmissions and one or more frequency allocations to be used by the first device during the simultaneous transmissions.

STAs are typically located at different distances from the AP. When the AP transmits the trigger frame, the trigger frame may not arrive at each STA at the same time due to propagation delay. Once the STA receives the trigger frame, it needs to give a response after a certain time delay (e.g., short inter-frame space (SIFS)). Simultaneous transmissions from STAs to the AP may be considered simultaneous because the propagation delay is not very long. The AP may consider the uplink transmissions received from these STAs to be simultaneous transmissions and may decode them as such. As the signal propagates at the speed of light, propagation delays associated with devices at different distances from the AP may be considered negligible, such that the AP considers any simultaneous uplink transmissions to be received at approximately the same time. In order for an AP to successfully distinguish simultaneous transmissions received from multiple STAs, the AP and STAs may employ frequency distinction using OFDMA or spatial distinction using MU-MIMO, or any other mechanism that distinguishes and minimizes interference between simultaneous transmissions. The access point trigger frame may indicate to other APs receiving the trigger frame a duration of simultaneous downlink transmissions (e.g., from AP to STA) and a duration of simultaneous uplink acknowledgements (e.g., from STA to AP). The access point trigger frame may indicate the content of the common physical preamble that should be used by the solicited AP. The access point trigger frame may indicate the format of a frame (e.g., PPDU) for simultaneous downlink and uplink transmissions.

At block 906, the device may cause an access point trigger frame to be sent to the first device. For example, a device sending a trigger frame may send a frequency allocation (or other resource allocation) and may define that, for example, a certain frequency may be used for STAs that are reported to be mapped into an area close (near) to the solicited AP. The trigger frame may also indicate various frequencies that the solicited AP is to use when communicating with STAs in an area defined to be far away (not close) from the solicited AP. The solicited AP may then use those frequency allocations to transmit to its STAs.

For example, for enhanced spectrum utilization, if a STA is determined to be close to its serving AP, the AP may transmit to STAs close to it because the AP may easily identify transmissions from the close STAs because it is sufficient to identify that signals are coming from the close STAs based on only power level differences (e.g., received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), etc.), and interference from other STAs may not be a problem, in which case these signals may have lower power levels. Thus, it will be easy to tell the AP to use the same frequency to communicate with their respective close STAs because the following assumption can be ensured to hold: interference is minimized due to the proximity of STAs to the serving AP. However, if the AP is serving a distant STA, interference may affect these communications. The trigger frame may indicate which frequency to use when the AP communicates with STAs that are not close to it. Having different frequencies when communicating with STAs simultaneously allows for better spectrum usage and efficient bandwidth usage with minimal or no interference.

At block 908, the device may cause one or more data frames to be transmitted to the station device using at least one of the one or more frequency allocations. For example, the device may use a particular frequency based on the indication in the trigger frame. The device will send its data frames to the STA associated with the AP using the particular frequency. The data frames may be transmitted simultaneously with other APs that are transmitting their data frames to their respective STAs.

The data frame may also be a multicast or broadcast frame. In this case, the trigger frame may indicate a common MAC header for soliciting transmissions. The trigger frame may indicate a multicast/broadcast address (e.g., receiver Address (RA) in the MAC header) that the solicited AP uses to send the multicast transmission. The trigger frame may indicate a common transmitter address (e.g., TA in MAC header) for the solicited AP to send the multicast transmission. The trigger frame may indicate the requested data rate for simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame may indicate the same scrambling seed used for the solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame may indicate a PPDU format for solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame may indicate the coding option for the solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame may indicate a packet index of a packet to be included in the multicast/broadcast data transmitted by the solicited AP. The trigger frame may indicate a type of control frame for broadcast transmissions from the solicited AP. As a result, each solicited AP can know the format of the frame that should be transmitted (e.g., for broadcast transmission). The trigger frame may indicate the number of times the same multicast transmission is repeated. This may be used to increase the probability that each STA in the vicinity can receive the transmission. The separation of each multicast/broadcast transmission may be SIFS. The trigger frame may indicate a bandwidth for multicast/broadcast transmissions. It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive.

Fig. 9B shows a flowchart of an illustrative process 950 for a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination system in accordance with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.

At block 952, a device (e.g., user device(s) 120 and/or AP 102 of fig. 1) may identify an access point trigger frame received from the device. STAs are typically located at different distances from the AP. When the AP transmits the trigger frame, the trigger frame may not arrive at each STA at the same time due to propagation delay. Once the STA receives the trigger frame, it needs to give a response after a certain time delay (e.g., short inter-frame space (SIFS)). Simultaneous transmissions from STAs to the AP may be considered simultaneous because the propagation delay is not very long. The AP may consider the uplink transmissions received from these STAs to be simultaneous transmissions and may decode them as such. As the signal propagates at the speed of light, propagation delays associated with devices at different distances from the AP may be considered negligible, such that the AP considers any simultaneous uplink transmissions to be received at approximately the same time. In order for an AP to successfully distinguish simultaneous transmissions received from multiple STAs, the AP and STAs may employ frequency distinction using OFDMA or spatial distinction using MU-MIMO, or any other mechanism that distinguishes and minimizes interference between simultaneous transmissions. The access point trigger frame may indicate to other APs receiving the trigger frame a duration of simultaneous downlink transmissions (e.g., from AP to STA) and a duration of simultaneous uplink acknowledgements (e.g., from STA to AP). The access point trigger frame may indicate the content of the common physical preamble that should be used by the solicited AP. The access point trigger frame may indicate the format of a frame (e.g., PPDU) for simultaneous downlink and uplink transmissions. An AP that sends a trigger frame to solicit one or more other APs to perform simultaneous transmissions may need to know some information associated with the neighboring AP and STA that it will trigger. The information may include one or more of the following: the buffer status of neighboring APs and STAs, the mapping of STAs in areas close to the AP or in areas where frequency selection is desired (away areas), or the interference level (fine or coarse) between the STA and the AP. This information may be exchanged by sending and receiving messages between APs. The information may be associated with the STA and/or an AP serving the STA. The information may include an identification of the STA, a distance of the STA to its serving AP, a signal strength of the STA to its serving AP, or any other information that may determine the location and signal strength of the STA. The information may also include an identification of the AP, a coverage area of the AP, or a location of the AP (e.g., coordinates or other location identification information) that is solicited for simultaneous communication. The AP that sent the trigger frame may then determine how to allocate resources (e.g., frequencies, resource units, subchannels, frequency bands, etc.) based on the collected information. The AP that transmits the trigger frame may determine which frequency the AP should use when transmitting its downlink data and when the STA transmits its uplink data based on some criteria. For example, the AP may compare particular values received from those solicited APs to a threshold. Based on the comparison, the AP may determine one or more frequency selections that it may transmit in the trigger frame.

The data frame may also be a multicast or broadcast frame. In this case, the trigger frame may indicate a common MAC header for soliciting transmissions. The trigger frame may indicate a multicast/broadcast address (e.g., receiver Address (RA) in the MAC header) that the solicited AP uses to send the multicast transmission. The trigger frame may indicate a common transmitter address (e.g., TA in MAC header) for the solicited AP to send the multicast transmission. The trigger frame may indicate the requested data rate for simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame may indicate the same scrambling seed used for the solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame may indicate a PPDU format for solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame may indicate the coding option for the solicited simultaneous transmissions from different APs. The trigger frame may indicate a packet index of a packet to be included in the multicast/broadcast data transmitted by the solicited AP. The trigger frame may indicate a type of control frame for broadcast transmissions from the solicited AP. As a result, each solicited AP can know the format of the frame that should be transmitted (e.g., for broadcast transmission). The trigger frame may indicate the number of times the same multicast transmission is repeated. This may be used to increase the probability that each STA in the vicinity can receive the transmission. The separation of each multicast/broadcast transmission may be SIFS. The trigger frame may indicate a bandwidth for multicast/broadcast transmissions.

At block 954, the device may identify a first frequency to be used during communication with one or more first station devices. For example, the device may use a particular frequency based on the indication in the trigger frame. The device will send its data frames to the STA associated with the AP using the particular frequency. The data frames may be transmitted simultaneously with other APs that are transmitting their data frames to their respective STAs. For example, the trigger frame may indicate that the first frequency is used for some station devices.

At block 956, the device may identify a second frequency to be used during communication with one or more second station devices. The trigger frame may also indicate that other frequencies are used for other station devices.

At block 958, the device may cause a first frame to be transmitted to one or more first station devices using a first frequency. For example, the trigger frame may indicate to the AP that the frame should be transmitted to certain station devices using a first frequency, which may be determined based on the proximity of the station devices to the AP. For example, the AP may use the first frequency for nearby or proximate STAs.

At block 960, the device may cause a second frame to be transmitted to one or more second station devices using a second frequency. For example, the trigger frame may indicate to the AP that the frame should be transmitted to certain station devices using a second frequency, which may be determined based on the proximity of the station devices to the AP. For example, the AP may use a second frequency for non-proximate STAs. It should be appreciated that other frequencies may also be used for non-proximate STAs to minimize interference with other APs that may be transmitting simultaneously based at least in part on trigger frames soliciting such other APs to participate in the simultaneous transmission.

Fig. 10 illustrates a functional diagram of an exemplary communication station 1000, in accordance with some embodiments. In one embodiment, fig. 10 illustrates a functional block diagram of a communication station that may be suitable for use as AP 102 (fig. 1) or user device 120 (fig. 1) in accordance with some embodiments. Communication station 1000 may also be suitable for use as a handheld device, mobile device, cellular telephone, smart phone, tablet, netbook, wireless terminal, laptop, wearable computer device, femtocell, high Data Rate (HDR) subscriber station, access point, access terminal, or other Personal Communication System (PCS) device.

Communication station 1000 may include communication circuitry 1002 and a transceiver 1010 for transmitting signals to and receiving signals from other communication stations using one or more antennas 1001. The communication circuit 1002 may include circuitry that may operate physical layer (PHY) communication and/or Medium Access Control (MAC) communication to control access to a wireless medium, and/or operate any other communication layer to transmit and receive signals. Communication station 1000 may also include processing circuitry 1006 and memory 1008 arranged to perform the operations described herein. In some embodiments, the communication circuit 1002 and the processing circuit 1006 may be configured to perform the operations detailed in fig. 1, 2, 3A-3B, 4, 5, 6A-6B, 7A, 8, 9A-9B.

According to some embodiments, the communication circuit 1002 may be arranged to compete for the wireless medium and configure frames or packets for communication over the wireless medium. The communication circuit 1002 may be arranged to send and receive signals. The communication circuit 1002 may also include circuitry for modulation/demodulation, up/down conversion, filtering, amplification, and the like. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 1006 of the communication station 1000 may include one or more processors. In other embodiments, two or more antennas 1001 may be coupled to a communication circuit 1002 that is arranged for transmitting and receiving signals. Memory 1008 may store information for configuring processing circuitry 1006 to perform operations for configuring and transmitting message frames and performing various operations described herein. Memory 1008 may include any type of memory, including non-transitory memory, for storing information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, memory 1008 may include computer-readable storage devices, read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices, and other storage devices and media.

In some embodiments, communication station 1000 may be part of any of the following: a portable wireless communication device (e.g., a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)), a laptop or portable computer with wireless communication capability, a web tablet, a wireless telephone, a smart phone, a wireless headset, a pager, an instant messaging device, a digital camera, an access point, a television, a medical device (e.g., a heart rate monitor, a blood pressure monitor, etc.), a wearable computer device, or another device that may receive and/or transmit information wirelessly.

In some embodiments, communication station 1000 may include one or more antennas 1001. Antenna 1001 may include one or more directional or omnidirectional antennas including, for example, dipole antennas, monopole antennas, patch antennas, loop antennas, microstrip antennas or other types of antennas suitable for transmission of RF signals. In some embodiments, instead of two or more antennas, a single antenna with multiple holes may be used. In these embodiments, each aperture may be considered a separate antenna. In some multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) embodiments, the antennas may be effectively separated to achieve spatial diversity and different channel characteristics that may occur between each antenna and the antennas of the transmission station.

In some embodiments, communication station 1000 may include one or more of a keyboard, a display, a non-volatile memory port, multiple antennas, a graphics processor, an application processor, speakers, and other mobile device elements. The display may be an LCD screen including a touch screen.

Although communication station 1000 is illustrated as having several separate functional elements, two or more of the functional elements may be combined and may be implemented by combinations of software-configured elements, such as processing elements including Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), and/or other hardware elements. For example, some elements may comprise one or more microprocessors, DSPs, field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), radio Frequency Integrated Circuits (RFICs), and combinations of various hardware and logic circuitry for performing at least the functions described herein. In some embodiments, the functional elements of communication station 1000 may refer to one or more processes operating on one or more processing elements.

Some embodiments may be implemented in one or a combination of hardware, firmware, and software. Other embodiments may also be implemented as instructions stored on a computer-readable storage device, which may be read and executed by at least one processor to implement the operations described herein. A computer-readable storage device may include any non-transitory storage mechanism for storing information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, computer-readable storage devices may include read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices, and other storage devices and media. In some embodiments, communication station 1000 may include one or more processors and may be configured with instructions stored on a computer-readable storage device.

Fig. 11 illustrates a block diagram of an example of a machine 1100 or system upon which any one or more of the techniques (e.g., methods) discussed herein may be implemented. In other embodiments, machine 1100 may operate as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine 1100 may operate in the capacity of a server machine, a client machine, or both, in a server-client network environment. In an example, machine 1100 may be used as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (P2P) (or other distributed) network environment. Machine 1100 may be a Personal Computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a mobile telephone, a wearable computer device, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine (e.g., base station) capable of executing instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Moreover, while a single machine is illustrated, the term "machine" shall also be taken to include any collection of machines that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, such as cloud computing, software as a service (SaaS), other computer cluster configurations.

Examples as described herein may include or may operate on logic or several components, modules, or mechanisms. A module is a tangible entity (e.g., hardware) capable of performing specified operations when operated on. The modules include hardware. In an example, the hardware may be specifically configured (e.g., hardwired) to perform certain operations. In another example, hardware may include configurable execution units (e.g., transistors, circuits, etc.) and computer-readable media containing instructions that configure the execution units to perform particular operations when operated. The configuration may be under the direction of an execution unit or loading mechanism. Thus, when the device is running, the execution unit is communicatively coupled to the computer readable medium. In this example, the execution unit may be a member of more than one module. For example, in operation, the execution unit may be configured by a first instruction set to implement a first module at one point in time and by a second instruction set to implement a second module at a second point in time.

The machine (e.g., computer system) 1100 may include a hardware processor 1102 (e.g., a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), a hardware processor core, or any combination thereof), a main memory 1104, and a static memory 1106, some or all of which may communicate with each other via an interconnection link (e.g., bus) 1108. The machine 1100 may also include a power management device 1132, a graphical display device 1110, an alphanumeric input device 1112 (e.g., a keyboard), and a User Interface (UI) navigation device 1114 (e.g., a mouse). In an example, the graphical display device 1110, the alphanumeric input device 1112, and the UI navigation device 1114 may be a touch screen display. The machine 1100 may additionally include a storage device (i.e., a drive unit) 1116, a signal generating device 1118 (e.g., a speaker), a simultaneous downlink transmission coordination device 1119, a network interface device/transceiver 1120 coupled to an antenna(s) 1130, and one or more sensors 1128, such as a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor, compass, accelerometer, or other sensor. The machine 1100 can include an output controller 1134, e.g., a serial (e.g., universal Serial Bus (USB)), parallel, or other wired or wireless (e.g., infrared (IR), near Field Communication (NFC), etc.) connection to communicate with or control one or more peripheral devices (e.g., printer, card reader, etc.).

The storage device 1116 may include a machine-readable medium 1122 on which is stored one or more data structures or sets of instructions 1124 (e.g., software) embodying or utilized by any one or more of the techniques or functions described herein. The instructions 1124 may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory 1104, within the static memory 1106, or within the hardware processor 1102 during execution thereof by the machine 1100. In an example, one or any combination of the hardware processor 1102, the main memory 1104, the static memory 1106, or the storage device 1116 may constitute machine-readable media.

While downlink transmission coordination device 1119 may perform or implement any of the operations and processes described and illustrated above (e.g., processes 900 and 950). For example, at the same time the downlink transmission coordination device 1119 may identify the device information received from the first device. For example, an AP sending a trigger frame to solicit one or more other APs to perform simultaneous transmissions may need to know some information associated with the neighboring AP and STA that it will trigger. The information may include one or more of the following: the buffer status of neighboring APs and STAs, the mapping of STAs in areas close to the AP or in areas where frequency selection is desired (away areas), the interference level (fine or coarse) between the STA and the AP. The AP transmitting the trigger frame may collect information from other APs. This information may be exchanged by sending and receiving messages between APs. The information may be associated with the STA and/or an AP serving the STA. The information may include an identification of the STA, a distance of the STA to its serving AP, a signal strength of the STA to its serving AP, or any other information that may determine the location and signal strength of the STA. The information may also include an identification of the AP, a coverage area of the AP, or a location of the AP (e.g., coordinates or other location identification information) that is solicited for simultaneous communication. The AP that sent the trigger frame may then determine how to allocate resources (e.g., frequencies, resource units, subchannels, frequency bands, etc.) based on the collected information. The AP that transmits the trigger frame may determine which frequency the AP should use when transmitting its downlink data and when the STA transmits its uplink data based on some criteria. For example, the AP may compare particular values received from those solicited APs to a threshold. Based on the comparison, the AP may determine one or more frequency selections that it may transmit in the trigger frame.

The simultaneous downlink transmission coordination device 1119 may determine an access point trigger frame that includes an indication of simultaneous transmissions. STAs are typically located at different distances from the AP. When the AP transmits the trigger frame, the trigger frame may not arrive at each STA at the same time due to propagation delay. Once the STA receives the trigger frame, it needs to give a response after a certain time delay (e.g., short inter-frame space (SIFS)). Simultaneous transmissions from STAs to the AP may be considered simultaneous because the propagation delay is not very long. The AP may consider the uplink transmissions received from these STAs to be simultaneous transmissions and may decode them as such. As the signal propagates at the speed of light, propagation delays associated with devices at different distances from the AP may be considered negligible, such that the AP considers any simultaneous uplink transmissions to be received at approximately the same time. In order for an AP to successfully distinguish simultaneous transmissions received from multiple STAs, the AP and STAs may employ frequency distinction using OFDMA or spatial distinction using MU-MIMO, or any other mechanism that distinguishes and minimizes interference between simultaneous transmissions. The access point trigger frame may indicate to other APs receiving the trigger frame a duration of simultaneous downlink transmissions (e.g., from AP to STA) and a duration of simultaneous uplink acknowledgements (e.g., from STA to AP). The access point trigger frame may indicate the content of the common physical preamble that should be used by the solicited AP. The access point trigger frame may indicate a format of a frame (e.g., PPDU) that is transmitted simultaneously downlink and uplink.

While the downlink transmission coordination device 1119 may cause the access point trigger frame to be sent to the first device. For example, a device sending a trigger frame may send a frequency allocation (or other resource allocation) and may define, for example, that a certain frequency is to be used for STAs in an area that is reported to be mapped to (near) the solicited AP. The trigger frame may also indicate various frequencies that the solicited AP is to use when communicating with STAs in an area defined to be far away (not close) from the solicited AP. The solicited AP may then use those frequency allocations to transmit to its STAs. For example, for enhanced spectrum utilization, if a STA is determined to be close to its serving AP, the AP may transmit to STAs close to it because the AP may easily identify transmissions from the close STAs because it is sufficient to identify that signals are coming from the close STAs based on only power level differences (e.g., received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), etc.), and interference from other STAs may not be a problem, in which case these signals may have lower power levels. Thus, it will be easy to tell the AP to use the same frequency to communicate with their respective close STAs because the following assumption can be ensured to hold: interference is minimized due to the proximity of STAs to the serving AP. However, if the AP is serving a distant STA, interference may affect these communications. The trigger frame may indicate which frequency to use when the AP communicates with STAs that are not close to it. Having different frequencies when communicating with STAs simultaneously allows for better spectrum usage and efficient bandwidth usage with minimal or no interference.

While downlink transmission coordination device 1119 may cause one or more data frames to be transmitted to a station device using at least one of the one or more frequency allocations. For example, the device may use a particular frequency based on the indication in the trigger frame. The device will send its data frames to the STA associated with the AP using the particular frequency. The data frames may be transmitted simultaneously with other APs that are transmitting their data frames to their respective STAs.

It should be understood that the above is only a subset of the content that the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination device 1119 may be configured to perform, and that other functions included in the present disclosure may also be performed by the simultaneous downlink transmission coordination device 1119.

While the machine-readable medium 1122 is shown to be a single medium, the term "machine-readable medium" may include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) configured to store the one or more instructions 1124.

Various embodiments may be implemented in whole or in part in software and/or firmware. The software and/or firmware may take the form of instructions contained in or on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. These instructions may then be read and executed by one or more processors to enable performance of the operations described herein. The instructions may be in any suitable form, such as, but not limited to: source code, compiled code, interpreted code, executable code, static code, dynamic code, and the like. Such computer-readable media may include any tangible, non-transitory media for storing information in one or more computer-readable forms, such as, but not limited to: read Only Memory (ROM); random Access Memory (RAM); a magnetic disk storage medium; an optical storage medium; flash memory, etc.

The term "machine-readable medium" can include any medium capable of storing, encoding or carrying instructions for execution by the machine 1100 and that cause the machine 1100 to perform any one or more of the techniques of this disclosure, or that can store, encode or carry data structures used by or associated with such instructions. Non-limiting examples of machine readable media may include solid state memory, and optical and magnetic media. In an example, a high capacity machine readable medium includes: a machine readable medium having a plurality of particles with a static mass. Specific examples of high capacity machine readable media may include: nonvolatile memory, such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM)) and flash memory devices; magnetic disks, such as internal hard disks and removable disks; magneto-optical disk; CD-ROM and DVD-ROM discs.

The instructions 1124 may also be implemented using a transmission medium, over a communications network 1126, via a network interfaceThe device/transceiver 1120 transmits or receives using any of a variety of transmission protocols, such as: frame relay, internet Protocol (IP), transmission Control Protocol (TCP), user Datagram Protocol (UDP), hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), etc. Example communication networks may include a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a packet data network (e.g., the internet), a mobile telephone network (e.g., a cellular network), a Plain Old Telephone (POTS) network, a wireless data network (e.g., institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 family of standards (referred to as

) The IEEE 802.16 standard family (called +.>

) The IEEE 802.15.4 family of standards, peer-to-peer (P2P) networks, etc. In an example, the network interface device/transceiver 1120 may include one or more physical jacks (e.g., ethernet, coaxial, or telephone jacks) or one or more antennas to connect to the communications network 1126. In an example, the network interface device/transceiver 1120 may include multiple antennas to communicate wirelessly using at least one of single-input multiple-output (SIMO), multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), or multiple-input single-output (MISO) techniques. The term "transmission medium" shall be taken to include any intangible medium that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions for execution by the machine 1100, and includes digital or analog communications signals, or other intangible medium to facilitate communication of such software. The operations and processes described and illustrated above may be performed or implemented in any suitable order as desired in various embodiments. Additionally, in some embodiments, at least a portion of the operations may be performed in parallel. Further, in some embodiments, fewer or more operations than those described may be performed.

The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. The terms "computing device," "user device," "communication station," "handheld device," "mobile device," "wireless device," and "user device" (UE) as used herein refer to a wireless communication device, such as a cellular telephone, smart phone, tablet, netbook, wireless terminal, laptop computer, femtocell, high Data Rate (HDR) subscriber station, access point, printer, point-of-sale device, access terminal, or other Personal Communication System (PCS) device. The device may be mobile or stationary.

As used in this document, the term "communication" is intended to include transmission, or reception, or both transmission and reception. This may be particularly useful in the claims when describing the organization of data sent by one device and received by another device, but infringes on the claim requiring only the functionality of one of the devices. Similarly, when only the function of one of these devices is claimed, the bidirectional exchange of data between two devices (during which both devices transmit and receive) may be described as "communication". The term "transmitting" as used herein with respect to wireless communication signals includes transmitting wireless communication signals and/or receiving wireless communication signals. For example, a wireless communication unit capable of transmitting wireless communication signals may include a wireless transmitter for transmitting wireless communication signals to at least one other wireless communication unit, and/or a wireless communication receiver for receiving wireless communication signals from at least one other wireless communication unit.

As used herein, unless otherwise specified the use of the ordinal adjectives "first", "second", "third", etc., to describe a common object, merely indicate that different instances of like objects are being referred to, and are not intended to imply that the objects so described must be in a given sequence, either temporally, spatially, in ranking, or in any other manner.

The term "access point" (AP) as used herein may be a fixed station. An access point may also be referred to as an access node, a base station, an evolved node B (eNodeB), or some other similar terminology known in the art. An access terminal may also be referred to as a mobile station, user Equipment (UE), wireless communication device, or some other similar terminology known in the art. Embodiments disclosed herein relate generally to wireless networks. Some embodiments may relate to wireless networks operating in accordance with one of the IEEE 802.11 standards.

Some embodiments may be used in conjunction with various devices and systems, such as Personal Computers (PCs), desktop computers, mobile computers, laptop computers, notebook computers, tablet computers, server computers, handheld devices, personal Digital Assistant (PDA) devices, handheld PDA devices, on-board devices, off-board devices, hybrid devices, on-board devices, off-board devices, mobile or portable devices, consumer devices, non-mobile or non-portable devices, wireless communication stations, wireless communication devices, wireless Access Points (APs), wired or wireless routers, wired or wireless modems, video devices, audio-video (a/V) devices, wired or wireless networks, wireless area networks, wireless Video Area Networks (WVAN), local Area Networks (LANs), wireless LANs (WLANs), personal Area Networks (PANs), wireless PANs (WPANs), and the like.

Some embodiments may be used in conjunction with the following: a unidirectional and/or bidirectional radio communication system, a cellular radiotelephone communication system, a mobile telephone, a cellular telephone, a radiotelephone, a Personal Communications System (PCS) device, a PDA device that includes a wireless communication device, a mobile or portable Global Positioning System (GPS) device, a device that includes a GPS receiver or transceiver or chip, a device that includes an RFID element or chip, a Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) transceiver or device, a Single Input Multiple Output (SIMO) transceiver or device, a Multiple Input Single Output (MISO) transceiver or device, a device having one or more internal and/or external antennas, a Digital Video Broadcast (DVB) device or system, a multi-standard radio device or system, a wired or wireless handheld device (e.g., a smart phone), a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) device, and the like.

Some embodiments may be used in conjunction with one or more types of wireless communication signals and/or systems that adhere to one or more wireless communication protocols that may include, for example, radio Frequency (RF), infrared (IR), frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM), orthogonal FDM (OFDM), time Division Multiplexing (TDM), time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), extended TDMA (E-TDMA), general Packet Radio Service (GPRS), extended GPRS, code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), wideband CDMA (WCDMA), CDMA 2000, single carrier CDMA, multi-carrier modulation (MDM), discrete Multitone (DMT), bluetooth, global Positioning System (GPS), wi-Fi, wi-Max, zigBee, ultra Wideband (UWB), global system for mobile communication (GSM), 2G, 2.5G, 3G, 3.5G, 4G, fifth generation (5G) mobile networks, 3GPP, long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-advanced, EDGE, enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE), and the like. Other embodiments may be used in various other devices, systems, and/or networks.

There may be an apparatus according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The device may include a memory and processing circuitry configured to determine device information received from a first device. The processing circuit may be further configured to determine an access point trigger frame, which may include: an indication of simultaneous transmissions, and one or more frequency allocations to be used by the first device during the simultaneous transmissions. The processing circuit may be further configured to cause an access point trigger frame to be sent to the first device. The processing circuitry may be further configured to cause the one or more data frames to be transmitted to the station device using at least one of the one or more frequency allocations.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The device information includes at least one of: a buffer status of the first device or one or more station devices associated with the first device, a mapping of one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, a mapping of one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximity region of the first device, or an interference level of the first device. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine that the station device is proximate to the device. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine that the first frequency is to be used during communication with the station apparatus. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine that the station device is not proximate to the device. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine to use the second frequency during communication with the station apparatus. The processing circuitry may be further configured to indicate in the access point trigger frame: for one or more first station devices associated with the first device in the proximity of the first device, the first device will use a first frequency. The processing circuitry may be further configured to indicate in the access point trigger frame: for one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximate region of the first device, the first device will use a third frequency. The second frequency is different from the third frequency. The access point trigger frame also includes one or more duration of the simultaneous transmissions. The access point trigger frame also includes a duration of one or more response transmissions, wherein the one or more response transmissions are associated with one or more simultaneous transmissions. The one or more data frames include a multicast frame or a broadcast frame. The device may also include a transceiver configured to transmit and receive wireless signals. The device may also include one or more antennas coupled to the transceiver.

There may be an apparatus according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The device may include a memory and processing circuitry configured to determine an access point trigger frame received from the device. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine a first frequency to be used during communication with one or more first associated station devices. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine a second frequency to be used during communication with one or more second associated station devices. The processing circuitry may be further configured to cause the first frame to be transmitted to one or more first associated station devices using the first frequency. The processing circuitry may be further configured to cause the second frame to be transmitted to one or more second associated station devices using the second frequency.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The access point trigger frame includes a duration of one or more simultaneous transmissions or a duration of one or more responsive transmissions, wherein the one or more responsive transmissions are associated with the one or more simultaneous transmissions. The processing circuitry may also be configured to determine that the station device is proximate. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine that the first frequency is to be used during communication with the station apparatus. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine that the station device is not proximate to the device. The processing circuitry may be further configured to determine that the second frequency is to be used during communication with the station apparatus. The processing circuitry may be further configured to cause transmission of information to the device, wherein the information includes at least one of: a buffer status of one or more associated station devices, a mapping of one or more associated first station devices in a proximity region, a mapping of one or more associated second station devices in a non-proximity region, or an interference level. The device may also include a transceiver configured to transmit and receive wireless signals. The device may also include one or more antennas coupled to the transceiver.

According to example embodiments of the disclosure, there may be a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations. The operations may include determining an access point trigger frame received from a device. The operations may include determining a first frequency to be used during communication with one or more first associated station devices. The operations may include determining a second frequency to be used during communication with one or more second associated station devices. The operations may include causing a first frame to be transmitted to one or more first associated station devices using a first frequency. The operations may include causing a second frame to be transmitted to one or more second associated station devices using a second frequency.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The access point trigger frame includes a duration of one or more simultaneous transmissions or a duration of one or more responsive transmissions, wherein the one or more responsive transmissions are associated with the one or more simultaneous transmissions. The operations may also include determining that the station device is proximate. The operations may include determining that a first frequency is to be used during communication with a station device. The operations may also include determining that the station device is not proximate to the device. The operations may include determining that the second frequency is to be used during communication with the station device. The operations also include causing information to be sent to the device, wherein the information includes at least one of: a buffer status of one or more associated station devices, a mapping of one or more first associated station devices in a proximity region, a mapping of one or more second associated station devices in a non-proximity region, or an interference level.

According to example embodiments of the disclosure, there may be a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations. The operations may include determining device information received from the first device. The operations may include determining an access point trigger frame, which may include: an indication of simultaneous transmissions, and one or more frequency allocations to be used by the first device during the simultaneous transmissions. The operations may include causing an access point trigger frame to be sent to the first device. The operations may include transmitting one or more data frames to the station device using at least one of the one or more frequency allocations.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The device information includes at least one of: a buffer status of the first device or one or more station devices associated with the first device, a mapping of one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, a mapping of one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximity region of the first device, or an interference level of the first device. The operations may also include determining that the station device is proximate to the device. The operations may include determining that a first frequency is to be used during communication with a station device. The operations may also include determining that the station device is not proximate to the device. The operations may include determining that the second frequency is to be used during communication with the station device. The operations further include indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, the first device will use the first frequency. The operations further include indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximate region of the first device, the first device will use a third frequency. The second frequency is different from the third frequency. The access point trigger frame also includes one or more duration of the simultaneous transmissions. The access point trigger frame also includes a duration of one or more response transmissions, wherein the one or more response transmissions are associated with one or more simultaneous transmissions. The one or more data frames include a multicast frame or a broadcast frame.

According to example embodiments of the present disclosure, a method may be included. The method may include determining device information received from a device. The method may include determining an access point trigger frame, which may include: an indication of simultaneous transmissions, and one or more frequency allocations to be used by the device during the simultaneous transmissions. The method may include causing an access point trigger frame to be sent to the device. The method may include transmitting one or more data frames to a station device using at least one of the one or more frequency allocations.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The information includes one of the following: a buffer status of one or more associated station devices, a mapping of one or more first associated station devices in a proximity region, a mapping of one or more second associated station devices in a non-proximity region, or an interference level. The method may also include determining that the station device is proximate to the device. The method may include determining that a first frequency is to be used during communication with a station device. The method may also include determining that the station device is not proximate to the device. The method may include determining that a second frequency is to be used during communication with the station device. The method may further include indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, the first device will use the first frequency. The method may further include indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximate region of the first device, the first device will use a third frequency. The second frequency is different from the third frequency. The access point trigger frame also includes one or more duration of the simultaneous transmissions. The access point trigger frame also includes a duration of one or more response transmissions, wherein the one or more response transmissions are associated with one or more simultaneous transmissions. Wherein the one or more data frames comprise multicast frames or broadcast frames.

According to example embodiments of the present disclosure, a method may be included. The method may include determining an access point trigger frame received from a device. The method may include determining a first frequency to be used during communication with one or more first associated station devices. The method may include determining a second frequency to be used during communication with one or more second associated station devices. The method may include causing a first frame to be transmitted to one or more first associated station devices using a first frequency. The method may include causing a second frame to be transmitted to one or more second associated station devices using a second frequency.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The access point trigger frame includes a duration of one or more simultaneous transmissions or a duration of one or more responsive transmissions, wherein the one or more responsive transmissions are associated with the one or more simultaneous transmissions. The method may also include determining that the station device is proximate. The method may include determining that a first frequency is to be used during communication with a station device. The method may also include determining that the station device is not proximate to the device. The method may include determining that a second frequency is to be used during communication with the station device. The method may also include causing information to be sent to the device, wherein the information includes one of: a buffer status of one or more associated station devices, a mapping of one or more first associated station devices in a proximity region, a mapping of one or more second associated station devices in a non-proximity region, or an interference level.

In example embodiments of the present disclosure, there may be an apparatus. The apparatus may include means for determining device information received from a first device. The apparatus may include means for determining an access point trigger frame, the access point trigger frame may include: an indication of simultaneous transmissions, and one or more frequency allocations to be used by the first device during the simultaneous transmissions. The apparatus may include means for causing an access point trigger frame to be transmitted to a first device. The apparatus may include means for causing one or more data frames to be transmitted to a station device using at least one of the one or more frequency allocations.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The device information includes at least one of: a buffer status of the first device or one or more station devices associated with the first device, a mapping of one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, a mapping of one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximity region of the first device, or an interference level of the first device. The apparatus may also include means for determining that the station device is proximate to the device. The apparatus may also include means for determining that the first frequency is to be used during communication with the station device. The apparatus may also include means for determining that the station device is not proximate to the device. The apparatus may also include means for determining that a second frequency is to be used during communication with the station device. The apparatus may also include means for indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, the first device will use the first frequency. The apparatus may also include means for indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximate region of the first device, the first device will use a third frequency. The second frequency is different from the third frequency. The access point trigger frame also includes one or more duration of the simultaneous transmissions. The access point trigger frame also includes a duration of one or more response transmissions, wherein the one or more response transmissions are associated with one or more simultaneous transmissions. The one or more data frames include a multicast frame or a broadcast frame.

In example embodiments of the present disclosure, there may be an apparatus. The apparatus may include means for determining an access point trigger frame received from a device. The apparatus may include means for determining a first frequency to be used during communication with one or more first associated station devices. The apparatus may include means for determining a second frequency to be used during communication with one or more second associated station devices. The apparatus may include means for causing a first frame to be transmitted to one or more first associated station devices using a first frequency. The apparatus may include means for causing a second frame to be transmitted to one or more second associated station devices using a second frequency.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The access point trigger frame includes a duration of one or more simultaneous transmissions or a duration of one or more responsive transmissions, wherein the one or more responsive transmissions are associated with the one or more simultaneous transmissions. The apparatus may also include means for determining that the station device is proximate to the device. The apparatus may include means for determining that a first frequency is to be used during communication with a station device. The apparatus may also include means for determining that the station device is not proximate to the device. The apparatus may include means for determining that a second frequency is to be used during communication with the station device. The apparatus may also include means for sending information to a device, wherein the information includes at least one of: a buffer status of the associated one or more station devices, a mapping of one or more first associated station devices in a proximity region, a mapping of one or more second associated station devices in a non-proximity region, or an interference level.

Certain aspects of the present disclosure are described above with reference to block diagrams and flowchart illustrations of systems, methods, apparatus, and/or computer program products according to various embodiments. It will be understood that one or more blocks of the block diagrams and flowchart illustrations, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and flowchart illustrations, respectively, can be implemented by computer-executable program instructions. Likewise, some blocks of the block diagrams and flowchart illustrations may not necessarily need to be performed in the order presented, or at all, according to some embodiments.

These computer-executable program instructions may be loaded onto a special purpose computer or other special purpose machine, processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a particular machine, such that the instructions which execute on the computer, processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus create means for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart block(s). These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable medium produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function(s) specified in the flowchart block(s). By way of example, certain embodiments may provide a computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code or program instructions embodied therein, the computer readable program code adapted to be executed to implement one or more functions specified in the flowchart block(s). The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational elements or steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the elements or steps specified in the flowchart block(s).

Accordingly, blocks of the block diagrams and flowchart illustrations support combinations of means for performing the specified functions, combinations of elements or steps for performing the specified functions and program instruction means for performing the specified functions. It will also be understood that each block of the block diagrams and flowchart illustrations, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and flowchart illustrations, can be implemented by special purpose, hardware-based computer systems that perform the specified functions, elements or steps, or combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.

Conditional language (e.g., "may," "capable," "may," or "may") is generally intended to convey that certain implementations may include (and other implementations do not include) certain features, elements, and/or operations unless explicitly stated otherwise or otherwise understood in the context of use. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements, and/or operations are in any way required for one or more implementations or that one or more implementations necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without user input or prompting, whether these features, elements, and/or operations are included in or are performed in any particular implementation.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the disclosure set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which this disclosure pertains having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.

Claims

1. A communication device comprising a memory and processing circuitry configured to:

determining device information received from a first device;

determining an access point trigger frame, the access point trigger frame comprising: an indication of triggering simultaneous transmissions by the communication device and the first device with a station device in a downlink direction, and one or more frequency allocations to be used by the first device during the simultaneous transmissions;

causing the access point trigger frame to be sent to the first device; and is also provided with

Such that one or more data frames are transmitted to the station device using at least one of the one or more frequency allocations.

2. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the device information comprises at least one of: a buffer status of the first device or one or more station devices associated with the first device, a mapping of one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, a mapping of one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximity region of the first device, or an interference level of the first device.

3. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:

determining that the station device is proximate to the communication device; and is also provided with

A first frequency is determined to be used during communication with the station apparatus.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:

determining that the station device is not proximate to the communication device; and is also provided with

A second frequency is determined to be used during communication with the station apparatus.

5. The communication device of claim 3, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to: indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, the first device will use the first frequency.

6. The communication device of claim 4, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to: indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximate region of the first device, the first device will use a third frequency.

7. The communication device of claim 6, wherein the second frequency is different than the third frequency.

8. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the access point trigger frame further comprises: duration of one or more simultaneous transmissions.

9. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the access point trigger frame further comprises: a duration of one or more response transmissions, wherein the one or more response transmissions are associated with the one or more simultaneous transmissions.

10. The communication device of claim 1, wherein the one or more data frames comprise: multicast frames or broadcast frames.

11. The communication device of claim 1, further comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive wireless signals.

12. The communication device of claim 11, further comprising: one or more antennas coupled to the transceiver.

13. A communication method for a first device, comprising:

determining an access point trigger frame received from a communication device, the access point trigger frame comprising: an indication of triggering simultaneous transmissions by the communication device and the first device with a station device in a downlink direction, and one or more frequency allocations to be used by the first device during the simultaneous transmissions;

determining a first frequency to be used during communication with one or more first associated station devices in a proximity region of the first device based on the access point trigger frame;

determining a second frequency to be used during communication with one or more second associated station devices in a non-proximity region of the first device based on the access point trigger frame;

causing a first frame to be transmitted to the one or more first associated station devices using the first frequency; and is also provided with

Causing a second frame to be transmitted to the one or more second associated station devices using the second frequency.

14. The communication method of claim 13, wherein the access point trigger frame comprises: a duration of one or more simultaneous transmissions or a duration of one or more responsive transmissions, wherein the one or more responsive transmissions are associated with the one or more simultaneous transmissions.

15. The communication method according to claim 13, further comprising: causing information to be transmitted to the communication device, wherein the information includes at least one of: a buffer status of one or more associated station devices, a mapping of one or more first associated station devices in a proximity region, a mapping of one or more second associated station devices in a non-proximity region, or an interference level.

16. A machine readable medium comprising code which, when executed, causes a machine to perform the communication method of any of claims 13-15.

17. A communication method for a communication device, comprising:

determining device information received from a first device;

causing the access point trigger frame to be sent to the first device; and

18. The communication method of claim 17, wherein the information comprises at least one of: a buffer status of one or more associated station devices, a mapping of one or more first associated station devices in a proximity region, a mapping of one or more second associated station devices in a non-proximity region, or an interference level.

19. The communication method according to claim 17, further comprising:

20. The communication method according to claim 17, further comprising:

21. The communication method of claim 19, further comprising: indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more first station devices associated with the first device in a proximity region of the first device, the first device will use the first frequency.

22. The communication method of claim 20, further comprising: indicating in the access point trigger frame: for one or more second station devices associated with the first device in a non-proximate region of the first device, the first device will use a third frequency.

23. The communication method of claim 22, wherein the second frequency is different from the third frequency.