CN108093462B

CN108093462B - Communication method and device based on awakening receiver

Info

Publication number: CN108093462B
Application number: CN201611031426.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 于健
Original assignee: Tsinghua University; Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Tsinghua University; Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2016-11-22
Filing date: 2016-11-22
Publication date: 2021-02-23
Anticipated expiration: 2036-11-22
Also published as: CN108093462A

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a communication method and equipment based on a wake-up receiver, the method is applied to an Access Point (AP) and a Station (STA), the AP and the STA are both provided with the wake-up receiver and a main transceiver, and the method comprises the following steps: when a main transceiver of the AP is awakened by an awakening receiver of the AP in a silence interval, the AP sends a first awakening frame to the awakening receiver of a first STA according to start information of the first STA so as to awaken the first STA, wherein the start information comprises a first start interval of the awakening receiver of the first STA, and the first start interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval; the AP communicates with the first STA. The present embodiment provides various specific implementations after introducing the wake-up receiver in the STA and the AP.

Description

Communication method and device based on awakening receiver

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of technical communications technologies, and in particular, to a communication method and device based on a wake-up receiver.

Background

A Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) generally includes an Access Point (AP) and one or more Stations (STAs). The STA may transmit wireless signals to other STAs in the WLAN network through the AP.

In a WLAN, the AP or STA is equivalent to a portion of energy wasted on listening when there is no received signal. To solve this problem, a sleep mechanism is proposed in the 802.11 protocol. For example, the STA may enter deep sleep when there is no data to transceive, to reduce the energy consumption for continuous listening. However, when the STA is in deep sleep, the AP can perform data transmission with the STA only after the STA wakes up, which results in a certain delay. To avoid the delay caused by the sleep mechanism, the STA usually follows a preset sleep policy, rather than waking up to check whether there is data to be received, which, however, reduces the sleep efficiency of the STA. Therefore, in the prior art, an attempt is made to provide a Low-Power Wake-Up Receiver (LP-WUR for short, or WUR for short) in the AP and the STA, and Wake Up the corresponding main Receiver after the LP-WUR receives the Wake-Up frame, so as to complete data transmission.

However, the prior art only introduces the wake-up receiver in the AP and the STA, but does not give a specific implementation. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a communication method based on a wake-up receiver.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the invention provides a communication method and equipment based on a wake-up receiver, and provides various specific implementation modes for introducing the wake-up receiver into an AP (access point) and an STA (station).

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a communication method based on a wake-up receiver, which is applied to an access point AP and a station STA, where the AP and the STA are both provided with the wake-up receiver and a main transceiver, and the method includes:

the method comprises the steps that a main transceiver of an AP is in a dormant state in a silent interval, a wakeup receiver of the AP can autonomously wake up the main transceiver of the AP or send wakeup frames to the wakeup receiver of the AP for other STAs to wake up the main transceiver of the AP, after the main transceiver of the AP is woken up, the AP determines that a first STA has a data transmission requirement and can be wakened up according to start-up information of the first STA, the main transceiver of the AP sends a first wakeup frame to the wakeup receiver of the first STA to wake up the first STA, the start-up information comprises a first start-up interval of the wakeup receiver of the first STA, the first start-up interval is a subset or a complete set of the silent interval, and the first STA keeps the wakeup receiver in a start-up state in the first start-up interval; after the first STA is awakened, the AP communicates with the first STA. In this embodiment, after the AP is awakened in the silence interval or actively awakened, the AP may further awaken the first STA in reverse to perform data transmission, that is, the embodiment provides specific operations of the main transceiver of the AP after being awakened, and the implementation manner may reduce the delay of data transmission between the AP and other STAs (the first STA).

In one possible design, before the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the wake-up receiver of the AP during the silence interval, the method further includes:

the AP sends a first notification frame in a unicast or broadcast mode and the like, wherein the first notification frame comprises the information of the silence interval;

the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by an awakening receiver of the AP in a silence interval, and the awakening receiver comprises:

and the awakening receiver of the AP receives a second awakening frame sent by a second STA in a silent interval, wherein the second awakening frame is used for indicating to awaken the main transceiver of the AP, and the awakening receiver of the AP awakens the main transceiver of the AP.

In one possible design, the first notification frame further includes information of a second on interval during which a wake-up receiver of the AP remains on, where the second on interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

and the awakening receiver of the AP receives a second awakening frame sent by a second STA in the second opening interval, and awakens the main transceiver of the AP.

In one possible design, the AP sends a first wakeup frame to a wakeup receiver of a first STA according to the startup information of the first STA, and further includes:

the AP sends a second notification frame to the first STA, wherein the second notification frame comprises opening indication information, and the opening indication information is used for indicating the first STA to keep a wake-up receiver of the first STA in an opening state in the first opening interval;

and the AP determines the opening information according to the sent second notification frame.

the AP sends a third notification frame to the first STA, wherein the third notification frame comprises the information of the silence interval so that the first STA determines state indication information;

a wakeup receiver of the AP receives a third wakeup frame sent by the first STA in the silence interval, where the third wakeup frame carries status indication information, and the status indication information is used to indicate the first on interval of the first wakeup receiver;

and the AP determines the starting information according to the state indication information.

when the awakening receiver of the AP receives a third awakening frame sent by the first STA in a silence interval, the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the awakening receiver of the AP, and the third awakening frame is used for indicating to awaken the main transceiver of the AP;

the AP receives state indication information sent by the first STA, wherein the state indication information is used for indicating the first opening interval of a wake-up receiver of the first STA;

In one possible design, the status indication information is also used to indicate a power on information of a primary transceiver of the first STA.

when the awakening receiver of the AP receives a fourth awakening frame sent by the first STA in a silence interval, the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the awakening receiver of the AP, and the fourth awakening frame is used for indicating to awaken the main transceiver of the AP;

the AP receives uplink data sent by the first STA;

after the uplink data is received, the AP sends reservation information to the first STA, wherein the reservation information is used for indicating the first starting interval of a wake-up receiver of the first STA;

and the AP determines the starting information according to the reservation information.

In one possible design, before the AP sends reservation information to the first STA, the method further includes:

after the uplink data is received, the AP sends a data transmission instruction to the first STA, wherein the data transmission instruction is used for indicating a main transceiver of the first STA to keep an awakening state;

and the AP sends downlink data to the first STA.

In one possible design, the method further includes:

the AP wake-up receiver receives a fifth wake-up frame sent by a third STA in a silence interval, wherein the fifth wake-up frame comprises release information, the release information comprises a release type, and the release type comprises any one of the following types: disassociating, deauthenticating, deleting service flow, deleting block confirmation, establishing and releasing direct link, and closing mesh network pairing.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a communication method based on a wake-up receiver, which is applied to an access point AP and a station STA, where the AP and the STA are both provided with the wake-up receiver and a main transceiver, and the method includes:

the method comprises the steps that a wakeup receiver of the STA receives a first wakeup frame sent by the AP in an opening interval, the wakeup receiver of the STA wakes up a main transceiver of the STA, wherein the AP is in a silent interval, the main transceiver of the AP is woken up in the silent interval, and the opening interval is a subset or a full set of the silent interval; the STA communicates with the AP.

In one possible design, before the wake-up receiver of the STA receives the first wake-up frame sent by the AP in the on-interval, the wake-up receiver further includes:

the STA receives a first notification frame sent by the AP, wherein the first notification frame comprises opening indication information, the opening indication information is used for indicating the STA to keep an awakening receiver of the STA in an opening state in the opening interval, and the opening interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

and the STA keeps the awakening receiver of the STA in an open state in the open interval.

the STA receives a second notification frame sent by the AP, wherein the second notification frame comprises the information of the silence interval;

the STA generates state indication information according to the information of the silence interval;

and the STA sends state indication information to the AP in the silence interval, wherein the state indication information is used for indicating the starting interval of a wake-up receiver of the STA.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides an access point AP, including:

a wake-up receiver for waking up a main transceiver of the AP in a silence interval;

the processor is used for determining the first STA as the STA to be awakened according to the starting information of the first STA;

a primary transceiver, configured to send a first wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of the first STA to wake up the first STA, where the start-up information includes a first start-up interval of the wake-up receiver of the first STA, and the first start-up interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

the primary transceiver is further configured to communicate with the first STA.

Based on the same inventive concept, as the principle and the beneficial effects of the AP to solve the problem may refer to the first aspect and each possible design and the beneficial effects of the first aspect, the implementation of the base station may refer to the implementation of the method, and repeated details are not repeated.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a station STA, including:

a wake-up receiver, configured to receive a first wake-up frame sent by the AP in an on-interval, and wake up a main transceiver of the STA, where the AP is in a silence interval, and the main transceiver of the AP is woken up in the silence interval, and the on-interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

a primary transceiver to communicate with the AP.

Based on the same inventive concept, as the principle and the beneficial effects of the STA to solve the problem may refer to the second aspect and the possible designs and the beneficial effects of the second aspect, the implementation of the user equipment may refer to the implementation of the method, and repeated details are not repeated.

According to the communication method and device based on the wake-up receiver provided by the embodiment, after the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the wake-up receiver of the AP in the silence interval, the AP sends the first wake-up frame to the wake-up receiver of the first STA according to the start information of the first STA to wake up the first STA, and since the first STA needs to keep the wake-up receiver thereof in the first start interval to be in the start state in the silence interval, it is ensured that the AP can wake up the first STA in reverse after being awakened or actively awakened in the silence interval to perform data transmission, that is, the embodiment provides specific operation of the main transceiver of the AP after being awakened, and the implementation manner can reduce delay of data transmission between the AP and the STA.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a communication network architecture based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 is a first signaling diagram of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3 is a signaling diagram ii of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a frame format of a notification frame according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 5 is a signaling diagram three of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 is a fourth signaling diagram of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a signaling diagram five of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of a frame format of a wake-up frame according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of a hardware structure of an AP according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of a hardware structure of an STA according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The network architecture and the service scenario described in the embodiment of the present invention are for more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, and do not form a limitation on the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present invention, and it can be known by those skilled in the art that the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present invention is also applicable to similar technical problems along with the evolution of the network architecture and the appearance of a new service scenario.

Fig. 1 is a communication network architecture based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 1, the network architecture includes an Access Point (AP) and a Station (STA). The AP can communicate with the STA, when the AP is a sending end, the STA is a receiving end, and when the STA is a sending end, the AP is a receiving end.

The AP is a wireless switch for the wireless network and is also the core of the wireless network. Wireless APs are access points for mobile computer users to access wired networks, primarily for use in broadband homes, inside buildings, and inside parks, typically covering distances from tens of meters to hundreds of meters. The STA is generally a client, and may be a computer equipped with a wireless network card, or a smart phone, a smart television, a PAD, a movie box, and the like with a WiFi module. The STAs may be mobile or stationary.

Both the AP and the STA provided in this embodiment are provided with a Main Radio (MR) and a Wake-up Receiver (WUR). The wake-up receiver is mainly used for receiving the wake-up frame and waking up the main transceiver, and the main transceiver is used for data communication. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that in the embodiments described below, the AP receives the wake-up frame in general, and the wake-up frame is received by a wake-up receiver of the AP, and the main transceiver of the AP is woken up by the wake-up receiver of the AP. If the transmission and reception processes of other APs are involved, they are performed by the main transceiver of the AP. The STA receives the wakeup frame, and particularly, the wakeup receiver of the STA receives the wakeup frame, and the primary transceiver of the STA is woken up by the wakeup receiver of the STA. If the transmission and reception procedures of other STAs are involved, it is done by the primary transceiver of the STA.

The Wake-Up Receiver may be a Low-Power Wake-Up Receiver (LP-WUR for short). For example, the energy consumption of the LP-WUR is about 0.1-1% of that of the main transceiver, namely less than 100 uW. In a specific possible implementation manner, a host transceiver of a receiving end (e.g., an AP) is in a sleep state (OFF), and a wakeup receiver is in an ON state (ON), when a transmitting end (e.g., an STA) needs to communicate with the receiving end, the STA first sends a wakeup frame (Wake Up Packet, WUP) to a WUR of the AP, and when the WUR of the AP correctly receives the WUP addressed to itself, the STA wakes Up the host transceiver of the AP, and at this time, the STA can communicate with the host transceiver of the awake AP.

Fig. 1 only shows one network architecture for communication based on the wake-up receiver, and for other network architectures, as far as the wireless AP and the STA are concerned, the protection scope of the present invention is included. For other network architectures, the present embodiment is not described herein.

Based on the prior art that only the wake-up receiver is introduced into the AP and the STA, but no specific implementation manner of communication between the AP and the STA is given, this embodiment provides a communication method based on the wake-up receiver, so as to provide a specific implementation manner of communication between the AP and the STA after the wake-up receiver is introduced into the AP and the STA. The following examples are given for illustrative purposes.

Fig. 2 is a first signaling diagram of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 2, the method includes:

s101, the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the awakening receiver of the AP in the silence interval.

When the AP has no messaging, the AP's primary transceiver enters a sleep state during the silence interval. The silence interval specifically refers to a time interval when the primary transceiver of the AP is in a sleep state. During the silence interval, the wake-up receiver of the AP may remain on for all of the time or for a portion of the time.

The wakeup receiver of the AP may autonomously wake up the main transceiver of the AP, or may send a wakeup frame to the wakeup receiver of the AP for other STAs, and then the wakeup receiver of the AP wakes up the main transceiver of the AP, and then the other STAs communicate with the AP.

S102, the AP sends a first awakening frame to an awakening receiver of the first STA according to the starting information of the first STA;

the start information includes a first start interval of a wake-up receiver of the first STA, and the first start interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval.

When the main transceiver of the AP is awakened, or the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by other STAs, and the AP and other STAs finish communicating. At this time, if the AP has a need to transmit data with the first STA in the same cell, the AP transmits a first wakeup frame to a wakeup receiver of the first STA according to predefined start-up information to wake up the primary transceiver of the first STA. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the first wake-up frame may be unicast or multicast or broadcast according to the service requirement, so as to wake up one or more or all of the first STAs in the cell.

In this embodiment, in the first on interval, the wake-up receiver of the first STA remains in an on state and may receive the first wake-up frame sent by the AP. The first open interval may be previously notified to the first STA by the AP through the notification frame, or may be determined by the first STA itself and notified to the AP through the notification frame. And the first on interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval, so that after the silence interval is awakened, the main transceiver of the AP can determine whether to send a first awakening frame to the first STA according to the first on interval, so as to awaken the first STA.

S103, the main transceiver of the first STA is awakened by the awakening receiver of the first STA;

s104, the AP communicates with the first STA.

After the wake-up receiver of the first STA receives the first wake-up frame sent by the AP, the wake-up receiver of the first STA wakes up the primary transceiver of the first STA. After the primary transceiver of the first STA is woken up, a wake-up acknowledgement frame is sent to the AP to inform the AP that it has woken up. After the first STA is awakened by the AP, the AP communicates with the first STA, i.e., both may perform data transmission.

In this embodiment, since the first STA needs to keep the wakeup receiver thereof in the on state in the first on interval in the silence interval, it is ensured that the AP wakes up the first STA in reverse after being awakened or actively awakened in the silence interval to perform data transmission, that is, this embodiment provides specific operations of the main transceiver of the AP after being awakened, and this implementation manner can reduce the delay of data transmission between the AP and other STAs (first STAs).

First, a specific implementation procedure of the AP being woken up by other STAs will be described with reference to specific embodiments.

Fig. 3 is a signaling diagram ii of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 3, the method includes:

s201, the AP sends a first notification frame, where the first notification frame includes information of the silence interval.

The AP transmits a first notification frame (notification frame) notifying all STAs in the cell that it will enter a power saving state, i.e., a sleep state. Subsequently, the AP enters a sleep state, turns off the main transceiver, and turns on the wake-up receiver.

The first notification frame may be a broadcast management frame, and carries different Information elements (Information elements), and the specific form of the first notification frame is not particularly limited in the present invention.

Specifically, the first notification frame includes information of the silence interval. For example, it may be: start time + duration, or start time + end time, or duration (default start time is the time at which the notification frame is received).

Optionally, the AP may further instruct, through the first notification frame, the STA having the wakeup receiver to keep the wakeup receiver in an on state in the entire silence interval or in a sub-interval specified in the silence interval, so that after the AP is actively or passively woken up, the AP may wake up another STA again, thereby communicating with the other STA. In the embodiment of fig. 2, the AP indicates the silence interval to the first STA through the first notification frame and indicates the first STA to keep waking up the receiver to keep on state in the first on interval.

Meanwhile, the wake-up receiver of the AP remains on during the silence interval, so that other STAs can wake up the AP.

S202, the second STA sends a second wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of the AP in the silence interval;

wherein the second wake-up frame is used to instruct to wake-up the main transceiver of the AP.

When a second STA in the cell needs to communicate with the AP, the AP is in a sleep state in the silence interval, so that the second STA sends a second wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of the AP in the silence interval to wake up a main transceiver of the AP.

Optionally, the wake-up receiver of the AP does not remain on throughout the silence interval, but remains on for a portion of the sub-intervals. At this time, the first notification frame further includes information of a second on interval during which the wake-up receiver of the AP remains on, where the second on interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval. Correspondingly, the second STA sends a second wake-up frame to the wake-up receiver of the AP in a second on interval to wake up the primary transceiver of the AP.

S203, the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the awakening receiver of the AP;

s204, the main transceiver of the AP sends a wakeup confirm frame to the second STA;

s205, the second STA communicates with the AP.

After the wake-up receiver of the AP receives the wake-up frame sent by the second STA, the main transceiver of the AP is woken up by the wake-up receiver of the AP, and then the main transceiver of the AP sends a wake-up confirm frame to the second STA, which has informed the second STA that the AP has been woken up. The second STA then communicates with the AP. For example, the second STA transmits a data frame to the AP, and the AP transmits a data acknowledgement frame to the second STA until data transmission is completed. When both data transmission are completed, the AP may perform S102 and subsequent steps shown in fig. 2.

For the specific implementation of the first notification frame described above, this example gives one possible implementation here. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a frame format of a notification frame according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in fig. 4, the element identifier and the length are used to indicate the type of the information element and the length of the subsequent information field, respectively. The AP sleep start time and the AP sleep end time are used to indicate the time parameters of the silence interval.

A WUR turn-on Flag (Flag) of the STA is used to indicate whether the STA is to turn on the WUR in the silence interval or the defined sub-interval, and the WUR turn-on sub-interval Flag of the STA is used to indicate whether the WUR turn-on sub-interval is to be defined. If the WUR turn-on Flag of the STA indicates that the WUR is to be turned on, and the WUR turn-on sub-interval Flag of the STA indicates that no WUR turn-on sub-interval exists, it means that the STA needs to turn on the WUR in the whole silence interval. The WUR open subinterval of the STA is used to define an open subinterval, and may indicate one or more segments of subintervals, which may be periodic or may be indicated separately. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the above indication may indicate the first on interval of the STA. The WUR open sub-interval Flag of the AP and the WUR open sub-interval of the AP are respectively similar to the station WUR open sub-interval Flag and the station WUR open sub-interval, and are used to indicate whether the AP side needs to define the sub-interval, that is, to indicate the second open interval of the AP.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the frame format may contain some or all of the above fields. For example, the corresponding function of Flag may be implemented by directly indicating the duration of the subinterval as the entire silence interval, instead of including the WUR open subinterval Flag of the STA and the WUR open subinterval Flag of the AP.

A detailed embodiment is adopted below to describe a specific implementation process of how the AP acquires the first open interval of the first STA in advance.

In one possible implementation, the AP indicates the first on interval to the first STA. Specifically, the AP sends a second notification frame to the first STA, where the second notification frame includes start indication information, and the start indication information is used to indicate that the first STA keeps a wake-up receiver of the first STA in a start state in a first start interval; and the AP determines the opening information according to the sent second notification frame. For a specific implementation manner of the opening indication information, reference may be specifically made to an implementation manner of the first opening interval in the first notification frame, which is not described herein again.

In another possible implementation, the first STA indicates the first on interval to the AP. For example, the STA receives a notification frame sent by the AP, where the notification frame includes information of the silence interval; and the STA generates state indication information according to the information of the silent interval, and the STA sends the state indication information to the AP, wherein the state indication information is used for indicating a first opening interval of a wake-up receiver of the STA. Optionally, the status indication information is further used to indicate a start-up information of the primary transceiver of the first STA.

In a specific implementation process, if the content of the status indication information for the first STA is MR on, WUR on/off, that is, when the main transceiver of the first STA is in an on state, the wake-up receiver is in an on or off state, and the wake-up receiver is in an off state, the indicated first on interval may be, for example, 0. If the subsequent AP has a need to transmit downlink data, the AP directly transmits the downlink data to the first STA after the primary transceiver of the AP is awakened. If the content of the status indication information for the first STA is MR off, WUR on, and if the subsequent AP has a need to transmit downlink data, after the main transceiver of the AP is awakened, the AP first sends a first awakening frame to the awakening receiver of the first STA, and the awakening receiver of the first STA awakens the main transceiver thereof. After the main transceiver wakes up, it sends a wake-up acknowledge frame to the AP, informing it that it has woken up.

Two possible implementation manners are given below for the specific implementation process in which the first STA indicates the first open interval to the AP.

Fig. 5 is a signaling diagram of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 5, the method includes:

s301, the AP sends a third notification frame, and the third notification frame comprises information of the silence interval;

s302, the first STA generates state indication information according to the information of the silence interval;

s303, the first STA sends a third wake-up frame to the AP wake-up receiver in the silence interval, wherein the third wake-up frame carries state indication information;

the state indication information is used to indicate a first on interval of the first wake-up receiver, and optionally, the state indication information is also used to indicate on information of the primary transceiver of the first STA.

S304, the AP determines the opening information according to the state indication information.

For a specific implementation manner of the third notification frame in this embodiment, reference may be made to an implementation manner of the first notification frame, and details of this embodiment are not described herein again.

The first STA acquires the starting time of the silence interval according to the information of the silence interval sent by the AP, and then determines a first opening interval in the silence interval, thereby generating state indication information.

In this embodiment, the first STA simply informs the AP of the MR and WUR states of the first STA, but does not intend to upload uplink data, and is not used to wake up the host transceiver of the AP. The first STA informs the AP of the state in advance, and the AP can send downlink data to the first STA or ask for uplink data as soon as possible.

Optionally, the third wake-up frame may also inform whether the AP is to be really woken up by an indication. Specifically, it may be indicated by an information field of the third wake-up frame: if the indication needs to wake up the AP really, the AP wakes up, sends a confirmation frame to inform the first STA that the first STA receives the third wake-up frame correctly, wakes up the MR of the AP, and waits for receiving the uplink data of the first STA, or sends downlink data to the first STA.

Fig. 6 is a fourth signaling diagram of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 6, the method includes:

s401, the AP sends a third notification frame to the first STA, wherein the third notification frame comprises information of a silence interval;

s402, the first STA generates state indication information according to the information of the silence interval;

s403, the first STA sends a third wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of the AP in the silence solution interval;

s404, the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the awakening receiver of the AP;

s405, the AP sends a wakeup confirmation frame to the first STA;

s406, the first STA sends state indication information to the AP;

s407, the AP determines the opening information according to the state indication information.

The difference between this embodiment and the embodiment in fig. 5 is that the first STA in this embodiment wakes up the main transceiver of the AP first, and sends the state indication information to the AP after the main transceiver of the AP wakes up, and after receiving the state indication information, if there is no communication demand, the main transceiver of the AP enters the sleep state again. Optionally, the STA may further indicate whether the AP needs to keep the awake state in the status indication information, which is similar to the embodiment in fig. 5, and this embodiment is not described again here.

In the embodiments of fig. 5 and fig. 6, the AP already enters the sleep state in the silence interval, and if the AP does not know the MR and WUR states of the STA at this time, or the AP knows that the MR and WUR of some STAs are all in the off state, this embodiment provides a mechanism so that the AP entering the sleep state knows the MR and WUR states of the STA, and if the AP has a need to send downlink data or ask for uplink data in advance in the silence interval, it may determine whether to send downlink data or ask for uplink data in advance according to the MR and WUR states of the STA.

In yet another possible implementation, the AP may reserve a first on interval to the first STA.

Fig. 7 is a signaling diagram five of a communication method based on a wake-up receiver according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 7, the method includes:

s501, the first STA sends a fourth wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of the AP in the silence interval;

s502, the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the awakening receiver of the AP;

s503, the first STA sends uplink data to the AP;

s504, after the uplink data are received, the AP sends a data transmission instruction to the first STA, and the data transmission instruction is used for indicating the main transceiver of the first STA to keep an awakening state;

s505, the AP sends downlink data to the first STA;

s504 and S505 are optional steps.

S506, after the downlink data is sent, the AP sends reservation information to the first STA, wherein the reservation information is used for indicating a first starting interval of a wake-up receiver of the first STA;

and S507, the AP determines opening information according to the reservation information.

In this embodiment, the first STA wakes up the primary transceiver of the AP first, and then sends uplink data to the AP, during which the AP may also send a data transmission indication in the data interaction, where the data transmission indication is used to indicate that the primary transceiver of the first STA maintains an awake state. Specifically, immediately after the reception of the uplink data, the AP continues the transmission of the downlink data with the first STA. The AP may send the data transmission instruction through an information bit in an acknowledgement frame that uplink data is successfully received and sent to the first STA, or may aggregate the acknowledgement frame with other MAC frames and carry the data transmission instruction through a High Throughput Control (HTC) field of another MAC frame, for example, a Quality of Service (QoS) Null frame. When the first STA receives the data transmission instruction, the first STA does not enter the sleep state after finishing transmitting the uplink data, but waits for receiving the downlink data. After the requirement is expressed and confirmed, the AP may immediately perform downlink data transmission with the first STA, or contend for a channel first, and perform downlink data transmission after acquiring the channel. Here depending on whether the AP is allowed to extend a transmission Opportunity (TXOP) or use a transmission Opportunity of the first STA.

In addition to indicating the requirement, the AP may also directly aggregate the acknowledgement frame with the downlink frame that needs to be sent to send the downlink frame, and indicate whether the downlink data transmission with the first STA is finished by indicating whether there are more downlink frames.

In addition, in the silence interval, if the AP is awakened by the first STA, during data interaction, in addition to immediately continuing to perform downlink data transmission with the first STA, the AP may also reserve a first open interval with the first STA, which requires the MR or WUR of the first STA to open. In the first open interval, if the AP has a requirement for data transmission, downlink data interaction is performed with the first STA in the first open interval.

In the embodiment, the AP sends the reservation information to the STA during uplink data transmission, so as to reserve transmission of downlink data during uplink data transmission, thereby reducing time delay and improving system efficiency.

In the above embodiment, for the notification frame sent by the AP to the STAs in the cell, when some STAs are turned on WUR and some STAs are turned on MR, there are the following transmission modes:

one possible transmission is for the AP to first transmit a WUP to wake up all destination STAs. The AP then sends a broadcast frame to the MRs of all STAs.

Another possible transmission is for the AP to transmit a WUP wake-up destination STA and inform the STA to prepare to receive the next beacon frame.

In another possible transmission scheme, the AP transmits a notification frame to the MR of the STA, and also transmits notification information to the WUR of the STA by carrying the notification information by the WUP.

On the basis of the above embodiment, the awake receiver of the AP may further receive a fifth awake frame sent by the third STA in the silence interval, where the fifth awake frame includes release information, and the release information includes a release type, and the release type includes any one of the following: disassociating, deauthenticating, deleting service flow, deleting block confirmation, establishing and releasing direct link, and closing mesh network pairing.

Specifically, when the third STA desires to perform operations such as disassociation (disassociation), deauthentication (deauthentication), Delete Traffic Stream (delte Traffic Stream, DELTS), Delete Block Acknowledgement (delte Block Acknowledgement, DELBA), Direct Link Setup release (DLS Teardown), Mesh peer Close (Mesh peer Close), etc., the third STA sends a corresponding MAC frame to the AP. Optionally, a reason code (reason code) for releasing a certain relationship may be carried. The above mentioned multiple MAC frames adopt a unified replay code field, some of which can be commonly used by multiple MAC frames, for example, when the replay code is 1, the meaning of indication is that there is no specific reason and can be used for all the above operations. Some reason codes can only be used in certain types of MAC frames, such as 4, indicating that disassociation is desired because it is no longer active and therefore can only be used in disassociated frames.

When the AP is in a sleep state, some information may be carried by the WUP, and an AP wake-up reply acknowledgement frame or the like is not required to notify that the AP has successfully received the information, for example, the AP is notified that the AP itself needs to disassociate.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of a frame format of a wake-up frame according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 8, the 802.11 protocol is taken as an example for explanation. The Legacy 802.11 preamble, which is optional, includes a Legacy Short Training Field (L-STF), a Legacy Long Training Field (L-LTF), and a Legacy signaling Field (L-SIG) to ensure backward compatibility so that STAs in previous releases of the standard can read the Legacy preamble portion. The duration information in the L-SIG may enable legacy devices to know the duration of the current packet, so that peripheral 802.11 devices of the preamble may not seize the channel within the duration, so as to protect the subsequent part of the wakeup frame from being interfered by the legacy 802.11 devices. The WUP part follows, and with OOK modulation only WURs can understand it. This part may include a Wake-up Preamble (Wake-up Preamble) to identify the WUP signal, a MAC Header (Medium Access Control) containing the WUR ID to distinguish between different WURs, a Frame body (Frame carrier, which may carry some other information), and a Frame Check Sequence (FCS) to ensure that the received data is the same as the data at the time of transmission. The WUR ID information here may be the complete network identification of the WUR, or a short network identification, or other information that may distinguish between different WURs.

When the WUP carries the release information, for example, the operations such as disassociation and deauthentication with the AP, DELTS, DELBA, DLS teardown, Mesh pending, etc. need to be performed, the following method can be adopted:

the WUP contains the type of the carried information, and the type contains one or more of disassociation, deauthentication, DELTS, DELBA, DLS teardown, and Mesh Peer Close, without containing a replay code. The advantage of this approach is that the overhead caused by the replay code is reduced, and the disadvantage is that the AP does not know the reason why the STA performs this type of operation.

The WUP includes a type of bearer information, and the type indicates that the WUP is a WUP including a replay code. And further distinguishing the operations to be specifically carried out through a replay code: disassociation, deauthentication, DELTS, DELBA, DLS teardown, Mesh Peer Close. The current partial reacon code is commonly used by one or more different MAC frames, so that defuzzification is needed, and a certain reacon code can refer to a certain MAC frame specifically or a certain specific operation specifically. For example, the different extension numbers may be applied to the replay codes without any specific reason. For example, when the replay code is 1, it indicates that there is no specific reason to perform disassociation, when the replay code is 2, it indicates that there is no specific reason to perform deauthentication, and when the replay code is 3, it indicates that there is no specific reason to perform DLS teardown, etc.

And simultaneously, the MAC frame type and the replay code are contained, only the replay code required by the corresponding MAC frame type is contained, and the replay code is correspondingly compressed. For example, when the reacson code is 10, it means that disassociation is performed because the information of the power capability element is unacceptable. The reason is only suitable for the disassociated MAC frame, so the reason code only exists in the reason code of the disassociated MAC frame, and for other types of MAC frames, the reason code is not needed, can be deleted and compressed uniformly.

In this embodiment, information is carried by the WUP, and since the rate of the WUP is low, overhead reduction needs to be considered, so that the replay code itself can be compressed, corresponding reservation conditions are reduced, and bits of the replay code are reduced.

The embodiment does not need to wake up the AP, and only transmits data through the wake-up frame, thereby reducing the power consumed by switching the state of the AP and turning on MR reception.

Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of a hardware structure of an AP according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 9, the AP includes: a main transceiver 11, a wake-up receiver 12, a processor 13 and a memory 14.

Wherein the memory 14 may comprise a high-speed RAM memory, and may also include a non-volatile storage NVM, such as at least one disk memory, and wherein the memory 14 may store therein computer-executable program code, including instructions; the instructions, when executed by the processor 13, cause the processor 13 to perform various processing functions and implement method steps of the present embodiment.

Specifically, the wake-up receiver 12 is configured to wake-up a main transceiver of the AP in a silence interval;

the processor 13 is configured to determine, according to the start information of the first STA, that the first STA is an STA to be awakened;

a primary transceiver 11, configured to send a first wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of the first STA to wake up the first STA, where the start-up information includes a first start-up interval of the wake-up receiver of the first STA, and the first start-up interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to communicate with the first STA.

Optionally, the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to send a first notification frame, where the first notification frame includes information of the silence interval;

the wake-up receiver 12 is specifically configured to receive a second wake-up frame sent by a second STA in a silence interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the AP, where the second wake-up frame is used to indicate to wake up the main transceiver of the AP.

Optionally, the first notification frame further includes information of a second on interval during which a wakeup receiver of the AP remains on, where the second on interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

the wake-up receiver 12 is specifically configured to receive a second wake-up frame sent by a second STA in the second on interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the AP.

Optionally, the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to send a second notification frame to the first STA, where the second notification frame includes start indication information, and the start indication information is used to indicate that the first STA keeps a wake-up receiver of the first STA in an on state in the first on interval;

the processor 13 is further configured to determine the opening information according to the sent second notification frame.

Optionally, the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to send a third notification frame to the first STA, where the third notification frame includes information of the silence interval, so that the first STA determines status indication information;

the wakeup receiver 12 is further configured to receive a third wakeup frame sent by the first STA in the silence interval, where the third wakeup frame carries status indication information, and the status indication information is used to indicate the first on interval of the first wakeup receiver;

the processor 13 is further configured to determine the starting information according to the status indication information.

the wakeup receiver 12 is further configured to receive a third wakeup frame sent by the first STA in a silence interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the AP, where the third wakeup frame is used to indicate to wake up the main transceiver of the AP;

the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to receive status indication information sent by the first STA, where the status indication information is used to indicate the first on interval of the wakeup receiver of the first STA;

Optionally, the status indication information is further used to indicate a start-up information of a primary transceiver of the first STA.

Optionally, the wake-up receiver 12 is further configured to receive a fourth wake-up frame sent by the first STA in a silence interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the AP, where the fourth wake-up frame is used to indicate to wake up the main transceiver of the AP;

the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to receive uplink data sent by the first STA;

the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to send reservation information to the first STA after the uplink data reception is completed, where the reservation information is used to indicate the first on interval of the wakeup receiver of the first STA;

the processor 13 is further configured to determine the starting information according to the reservation information.

Optionally, the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to send a data transmission instruction to the first STA after the uplink data reception is completed, where the data transmission instruction is used to instruct the primary transceiver of the first STA to keep an awake state;

the primary transceiver 11 is further configured to send downlink data to the first STA.

Optionally, the wake-up receiver 12 is further configured to receive a fifth wake-up frame sent by a third STA in a silence interval, where the fifth wake-up frame includes release information, and the release information includes a release type, where the release type includes any one of the following: disassociating, deauthenticating, deleting service flow, deleting block confirmation, establishing and releasing direct link, and closing mesh network pairing.

The AP provided in this embodiment may be used to implement the above method embodiments, and the implementation principle and technical effect are similar, which are not described herein again.

Fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of a hardware structure of an STA according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 10, the STA includes: a main transceiver 21, a wake-up receiver 22, a processor 23 and a memory 24.

Wherein the memory 24 may comprise a high-speed RAM memory, and may also include a non-volatile storage NVM, such as at least one disk memory, and wherein the memory 24 may store therein computer-executable program code, including instructions; the instructions, when executed by the processor 23, cause the processor 23 to perform various processing functions and implement method steps of the present embodiment.

Specifically, the wake-up receiver 22 is configured to receive a first wake-up frame sent by the AP in an on-interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the STA, where the AP is in a silence interval, and the main transceiver of the AP is woken up in the silence interval, and the on-interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

a primary transceiver 21 for communicating with the AP.

Optionally, the primary transceiver 21 is further configured to receive a first notification frame sent by the AP, where the first notification frame includes start indication information, where the start indication information is used to indicate the STA to keep a wake-up receiver of the STA in a start state in the start interval, and the start interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

the wake-up receiver 22 is further configured to maintain an on state during the on interval.

Optionally, the primary transceiver 21 is further configured to receive a second notification frame sent by the AP, where the second notification frame includes information of the silence interval;

the processor 23 is configured to generate status indication information according to the information of the silence interval;

the primary transceiver 21 is further configured to send status indication information to the AP in the silence interval, where the status indication information is used to indicate an on interval of a wake-up receiver of the STA.

The STA provided in this embodiment may be used to implement the above method embodiments, and the implementation principle and technical effect are similar, which are not described herein again.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that: all or a portion of the steps of implementing the above-described method embodiments may be performed by hardware associated with program instructions. The program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. When executed, the program performs steps comprising the method embodiments described above; and the aforementioned storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as ROM, RAM, magnetic or optical disks.

Finally, it should be noted that: the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solution of the present invention, and not to limit the same; while the invention has been described in detail and with reference to the foregoing embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that: the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments may still be modified, or some or all of the technical features may be equivalently replaced; and the modifications or the substitutions do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions depart from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A communication method based on a wake-up receiver is applied to an Access Point (AP) and a Station (STA), wherein the AP and the STA are both provided with the wake-up receiver and a main transceiver, and the method comprises the following steps:

when a main transceiver of the AP is awakened by an awakening receiver of the AP in a silence interval, the AP sends a first awakening frame to the awakening receiver of a first STA according to start information of the first STA so as to awaken the first STA, wherein the start information comprises a first start interval of the awakening receiver of the first STA, and the first start interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

the AP communicates with the first STA;

before the main transceiver of the AP is woken up by the wake-up receiver of the AP in a silence interval, further comprising:

the AP sends a first notification frame, wherein the first notification frame comprises the information of the silence interval;

and after the awakening receiver of the AP receives a second awakening frame sent by a second STA in a silent interval, awakening the main transceiver of the AP by the awakening receiver of the AP, wherein the second awakening frame is used for indicating to awaken the main transceiver of the AP.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first notification frame further comprises information of a second on-interval during which a wake-up receiver of the AP remains on, and wherein the second on-interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

and after the awakening receiver of the AP receives a second awakening frame sent by a second STA in the second opening interval, the main transceiver of the AP is awakened by the awakening receiver of the AP.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the AP sends a first wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of a first STA according to the startup information of the first STA, further comprising:

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the AP sends a first wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of a first STA according to the startup information of the first STA, further comprising:

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the AP sends a first wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of a first STA according to the startup information of the first STA, further comprising:

6. The method of claim 4 or 5, wherein the status indication information is further used to indicate a power-on information of a primary transceiver of the first STA.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the AP sends a first wake-up frame to a wake-up receiver of a first STA according to the startup information of the first STA, further comprising:

the AP receives uplink data sent by the first STA;

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising, before the AP transmitting reservation information to the first STA:

and the AP sends downlink data to the first STA.

9. The method of any one of claims 1 to 5 or 7-8, further comprising:

10. A communication method based on a wake-up receiver is applied to an Access Point (AP) and a Station (STA), wherein the AP and the STA are both provided with the wake-up receiver and a main transceiver, and the method comprises the following steps:

the method comprises the steps that a wakeup receiver of the STA receives a first wakeup frame sent by the AP in an opening interval, the wakeup receiver of the STA wakes up a main transceiver of the STA, wherein the AP is in a silent interval, the main transceiver of the AP is woken up in the silent interval, and the opening interval is a subset or a full set of the silent interval;

the STA communicating with the AP;

before the wake-up receiver of the STA receives the first wake-up frame sent by the AP in the on interval, the method further includes:

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the wake-up receiver of the STA further comprises, before receiving the first wake-up frame transmitted by the AP in an on-interval:

12. An access point, AP, comprising:

the primary transceiver is further configured to communicate with the first STA;

the primary transceiver is further configured to send a first notification frame, where the first notification frame includes information of the silence interval;

the wakeup receiver is specifically configured to receive a second wakeup frame sent by a second STA in a silence interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the AP, where the second wakeup frame is used to indicate to wake up the main transceiver of the AP.

13. The AP of claim 12, wherein the first notification frame further includes information of a second on-interval during which a wake-up receiver of the AP remains on, and wherein the second on-interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

the wakeup receiver is specifically configured to receive a second wakeup frame sent by a second STA in the second on interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the AP.

14. The AP of claim 12,

the primary transceiver is further configured to send a second notification frame to the first STA, where the second notification frame includes start indication information, and the start indication information is used to indicate that the first STA keeps a wake-up receiver of the first STA in an on state in the first on interval;

the processor is further configured to determine the opening information according to the sent second notification frame.

15. The AP of claim 12,

the primary transceiver is further configured to send a third notification frame to the first STA, where the third notification frame includes information of the silence interval, so that the first STA determines status indication information;

the wakeup receiver is further configured to receive a third wakeup frame sent by the first STA in the silence interval, where the third wakeup frame carries status indication information, and the status indication information is used to indicate the first on interval of the first wakeup receiver;

the processor is further configured to determine the opening information according to the status indication information.

16. The AP of claim 12,

the wakeup receiver is further configured to receive a third wakeup frame sent by the first STA in a silence interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the AP, where the third wakeup frame is used to indicate to wake up the main transceiver of the AP;

the primary transceiver is further configured to receive status indication information sent by the first STA, where the status indication information is used to indicate the first on interval of a wakeup receiver of the first STA;

17. The AP of claim 15 or 16, wherein the status indication information is further used for indicating a power on information of a primary transceiver of the first STA.

18. The AP of claim 12,

the wakeup receiver is further configured to receive a fourth wakeup frame sent by the first STA in a silence interval, and wake up the main transceiver of the AP, where the fourth wakeup frame is used to indicate to wake up the main transceiver of the AP;

the primary transceiver is further configured to receive uplink data sent by the first STA;

the primary transceiver is further configured to send reservation information to the first STA after the uplink data reception is completed, where the reservation information is used to indicate the first on interval of the wakeup receiver of the first STA;

the processor is further configured to determine the opening information according to the reservation information.

19. The AP of claim 18,

the primary transceiver is further configured to send a data transmission instruction to the first STA after the uplink data reception is completed, where the data transmission instruction is used to instruct the primary transceiver of the first STA to keep an awake state;

the primary transceiver is further configured to send downlink data to the first STA.

20. The AP of any one of claims 12 to 16 or 18-19,

the wakeup receiver is further configured to receive a fifth wakeup frame sent by a third STA in a silence interval, where the fifth wakeup frame includes release information, and the release information includes a release type, where the release type includes any one of the following: disassociating, deauthenticating, deleting service flow, deleting block confirmation, establishing and releasing direct link, and closing mesh network pairing.

21. A Station (STA), comprising:

a wake-up receiver, configured to receive a first wake-up frame sent by an AP in an on-interval, and wake up a main transceiver of the STA, where the AP is in a silence interval, and the main transceiver of the AP is woken up in the silence interval, and the on-interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

a primary transceiver for communicating with the AP;

the primary transceiver is further configured to receive a first notification frame sent by the AP, where the first notification frame includes start indication information, the start indication information is used to indicate the STA to keep a wake-up receiver of the STA in a start state in the start interval, and the start interval is a subset or a full set of the silence interval;

the wake-up receiver is further configured to maintain an on state during the on interval.

22. The STA of claim 21, further comprising, the processor,

the primary transceiver is further configured to receive a second notification frame sent by the AP, where the second notification frame includes information of the silence interval;

the processor is configured to generate status indication information according to the information of the silence interval;

the primary transceiver is further configured to send status indication information to the AP in the silence interval, where the status indication information is used to indicate an on interval of a wake-up receiver of the STA.