CN118042635A

CN118042635A - System and method for non-primary channel utilization in a network

Info

Publication number: CN118042635A
Application number: CN202311477730.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: S·维尔马; S·阿迪卡里; M·J·菲舍尔; V·埃尔采格
Original assignee: Avago Technologies General IP Singapore Pte Ltd
Current assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Ltd
Priority date: 2022-11-12
Filing date: 2023-11-08
Publication date: 2024-05-14

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a system and method for non-primary channel utilization in a network. The first device includes at least one processor configured to communicate with a second device using a primary channel, detect an occupancy of the primary channel by a third device, and communicate with the second device using a secondary channel in response to the occupancy of the third device. The supplemental channel is selected from a set of channels. The set of channels is determined at least in part in response to information or parameters exchanged during association of the first device with the second device.

Description

System and method for non-primary channel utilization in a network

Cross reference to related applications

The present application claims priority from the indian provisional patent application No. 2022-21064890 filed on 11/12 of 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to systems and methods of communication between a Station (STA) and an Access Point (AP) or other communication device.

Background

Over the past few decades, the market for wireless communication devices has grown by orders of magnitude due to the use of portable devices and the increase in connectivity and data transfer between a wide variety of devices. Digital switching technology facilitates the massive deployment of wireless communication networks that are affordable and easy to use. Further, improvements in digital and Radio Frequency (RF) circuit fabrication, as well as advances in circuit integration and other aspects, have made wireless devices smaller, cheaper, and more reliable. Wireless communications may operate in accordance with various standards such as IEEE 802.11x, bluetooth, global system for mobile communications (GSM), code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), and so on. With the development of higher data throughput and other changes, newer standards are continually being developed and adopted, such as advances from IEEE 802.11n to IEEE 802.11ac to 8-2/11 be.

Disclosure of Invention

In one aspect, the present disclosure relates to a first apparatus for communicating with a second apparatus, the first apparatus comprising: circuitry configured to: communicating with the second device using a primary channel; detecting occupancy of the primary channel by a third device; and communicate with the second device using an auxiliary channel responsive to the occupancy of the third device, the auxiliary channel selected from a set of channels determined at least in part responsive to information exchanged during association of the first device with the second device.

In another aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a first apparatus for communicating over a network, the first apparatus comprising: circuitry configured to: communication using a secondary channel after association on a primary channel is completed, wherein the secondary channel is selected at least in part in response to parameters exchanged during the association, wherein the parameters indicate an ability to perform preamble decoding operations in parallel on a plurality of channels, an ability to perform idle channel assessment operations in parallel on a plurality of channels, an idle channel assessment ability to not perform the idle channel assessment operations in parallel on a plurality of channels, or a preamble decoding operation ability to not perform the preamble decoding operations in parallel on a plurality of channels.

In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to a method of switching from a primary channel to a secondary channel, the method comprising: associating with a first device using the primary channel; detecting occupancy of the primary channel by a second device; communicating with the first device using the secondary channel at least in response to the occupancy of the second device, the secondary channel being selected in response to a parameter exchanged during association using the primary channel, wherein the parameter indicates a capability of performing a preamble decoding operation on a plurality of channels in parallel, a capability of performing a clear channel assessment operation on a plurality of channels in parallel, a clear channel assessment capability of not performing the clear channel assessment operation on a plurality of channels in parallel, or a preamble decoding operation capability of not performing the preamble decoding operation on a plurality of channels in parallel.

Drawings

Various objects, aspects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent and better understood by referring to the detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like characters identify corresponding elements throughout. In the drawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical, functionally similar, and/or structurally similar elements.

Fig. 1A is a block diagram depicting a network environment including one or more access points in communication with one or more devices or stations, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIGS. 1B and 1C are block diagrams depicting computing devices used in connection with the methods and systems described herein, according to some embodiments.

Fig. 2A is a block diagram depicting a network including Access Points (APs) and Stations (STAs), according to some embodiments.

Fig. 2B is a more detailed block diagram of an STA configured for non-primary channel utilization operation in accordance with some embodiments.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram of a wider bandwidth including subbands for use in the network illustrated in fig. 2A, according to some embodiments.

Fig. 4 is a block diagram depicting a transmitting device and a receiving device configured for non-primary channel utilization, in accordance with some embodiments.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart illustrating example transmission device operations for a non-primary channel utilization setting operation of the network illustrated in fig. 2A, according to some embodiments.

Fig. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating example receiving device operations for a non-primary channel utilization setting operation of the network illustrated in fig. 2A, according to some embodiments.

The details of various embodiments of methods and systems are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below.

Detailed Description

The following IEEE standards, including any draft versions of such standards(s) and draft modifications of such standards, are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety and form part of this disclosure for all purposes: the WiFi alliance standards and IEEE 802.11 standards, including but not limited to IEEE 802.11a^TM、IEEE 802.11b^TM、IEEE 802.11g^TM、IEEE 802.11n^TM;802.11be^TM and IEEE P802.11ac ^TM standards. While the present disclosure may refer to aspects of the standard(s), the present disclosure is in no way limited by the standard(s).

For the purposes of reading the description of the various embodiments below, the following descriptions of the various sections of the specification and their respective contents may be helpful:

Section a describes a network environment and computing environment that may be used to practice the embodiments described herein; and

Section B describes embodiments of non-primary channel utilization protocols and methods, and apparatuses using such protocols and methods.

Various embodiments disclosed herein relate to protocols for communicating using non-primary channels. In some embodiments, the systems and methods utilize information from a handshake or association operation to automatically select a non-primary channel for communication. In some embodiments, the protocol may be part of an Extremely High Throughput (EHT) protocol for networks, such as IEEE 802.11be standard networks and higher. In some embodiments, the systems and methods communicate packets over an idle portion of bandwidth outside of the primary channel (e.g., over the secondary channel) without requiring primary channel communications to establish communications over bandwidth outside of the primary channel. For example, if the primary 20 megahertz (MHz) bandwidth channel is busy, devices such as STAs or APs are configured to transmit on an idle portion of the operating bandwidth, which provides advantages over conventional 802.11 standard devices. In some embodiments, the systems and methods switch to an idle non-primary channel with little communication overhead to more efficiently utilize the bandwidth of a network (e.g., an 802.11 network).

The inefficient use of bandwidth results in a loss of bandwidth utilization and the loss increases with increasing operating bandwidth. For example, in an 802.11be standard network, a busy 20MHz primary channel of 320MHz bandwidth channels prevents STAs from accessing the remaining 200MHz bandwidth that is idle. In some embodiments, systems and methods of non-primary channel utilization operate in the same frequency band as unlicensed technologies, such as Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) and new radio-unlicensed (NR-U) technologies, and still meet or adapt to IEEE 802.11 standard requirements and/or provide a 20MHz channel for system information and/or beacon signals. In some embodiments, the systems and methods employ protocols that are backward compatible with legacy devices that operate only on the primary 20MHz channel. In some embodiments, communications on non-primary channels may be to or from a client device (e.g., STA) or AP, or may be between other types of communication devices. The client device or AP may be implemented in a device that includes one or more Integrated Circuits (ICs) packaged in an IC package.

Some embodiments relate to a first apparatus for communicating with a second apparatus. The first device includes at least one processor or circuitry configured to communicate with the second device using a primary channel, detect occupancy of the primary channel by a third device, and communicate with the second device using a secondary channel in response to occupancy of the third device. The supplemental channel is selected from a set of channels. The set of channels is determined at least in part in response to information or parameters exchanged during association of the first device with the second device. In some embodiments, occupancy may refer to a device using a channel such that communications by other devices on the channel are adversely affected (e.g., due to interference, noise, etc.). In some embodiments, occupancy may be caused by Overlapping Basic Service Sets (OBSSs). In some embodiments, occupancy may be detected by sensing the received signal strength on the channel or carrier sensing. In some embodiments, occupancy may be detected by operations including, but not limited to, energy detection, clear Channel Assessment (CCA) operations, and/or preamble decoding operations.

In some embodiments, the at least one processor is further configured to communicate with the second device using the primary channel when occupancy of the third device is complete. In some embodiments, the first device comprises a Station (STA) device that communicates via an 802.11be protocol. In some embodiments, the information includes a first capability of the first device and a second capability of the second device. In some embodiments, capability may refer to the capability of a device to perform communication tasks including, but not limited to, parallel or sequential preamble decoding operations or parallel or sequential CCA. In some embodiments, the first capability is a capability to perform preamble decoding operations on multiple channels in parallel. In some embodiments, the number of channels in the set of channels is less than or equal to the number of channels on which the preamble decoding operation is performed in parallel. In some embodiments, the second capability includes a capability to perform idle channel assessment operations on multiple channels in parallel. In some embodiments, the Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) operation comprises a virtual clear channel assessment operation. In some embodiments, CCA operation or clear channel assessment may refer to a procedure for determining whether a channel or portion thereof is clear. In some embodiments, CCA operation may include carrier sensing and/or energy detection on a channel or portion thereof. In some embodiments, CCA may be performed in unlicensed spectrum, because devices may not have exclusive access to the spectrum and typically must determine whether the channel is clear through direct measurement, observation, and detection mechanisms (e.g., CCA). In some embodiments, an energy detection operation may refer to an operation in which an energy level on a channel is detected to determine whether the channel is busy, occupied, or otherwise available/unavailable.

In some embodiments, a preamble decoding operation may refer to an operation performed by any device to determine or decode a preamble to detect the presence of a packet on a channel. In some embodiments, the virtual clear channel assessment operation may refer to a procedure that instructs a device to indicate that media is busy for a period of time longer than the device would normally indicate that media is busy in a single transmission (e.g., instructs a STA to assert a CCA operation for the entire duration of the entire frame exchange sequence). In some embodiments, the ability to perform preamble decoding operations on multiple channels in parallel may refer to the ability to perform preamble decoding operations on more than one channel at the same time, nearly the same time, or within the same time period. In some embodiments, the ability to perform clear channel assessment operations on multiple channels in parallel may refer to the ability to perform CCA operations on more than one channel at the same time, nearly the same time, or within the same time period.

In some embodiments, the second capability includes a capability that does not include the capability to perform clear channel assessment operations on multiple channels in parallel. The second capability includes a capability to perform a clear channel assessment operation on a single channel and the clear channel assessment operation may include a virtual clear channel assessment operation.

In some embodiments, the set of channels is channels for data transmission. In some embodiments, the set of channels is a channel for data transfer, and the first capability includes a capability to not perform preamble decoding operations on multiple channels in parallel. In some embodiments, data transfer may refer to data communication over one or more channels or bandwidths.

Some embodiments relate to a first apparatus for communicating over a network. The first device includes at least one processor or circuitry configured to communicate using a secondary channel after association on a primary channel is completed. The supplemental channel is selected at least in part in response to the parameters exchanged during the association. The parameter indicates an ability to perform preamble decoding operations in parallel on the plurality of channels, an ability to perform idle channel assessment operations in parallel on the plurality of channels, an ability to idle channel assessment operations that does not include an ability to perform idle channel assessment operations in parallel on the plurality of channels, or an ability to preamble decoding operations that does not perform preamble decoding operations in parallel on the plurality of channels.

In some embodiments, the first device comprises a Station (STA) device that communicates via an 802.11be protocol. In some embodiments, the parameter comprises a delay time. In some embodiments, the delay time is used to allow the receiver to re-tune for preamble detection on a different channel.

In some embodiments, the auxiliary channel is a 20MHz channel. In some embodiments, the supplemental channel is selected from a list of anchor channels determined at least in part in response to the parameter.

Some embodiments relate to a method of switching from a primary channel to a secondary channel. The method comprises the following steps: associating with the first device using the primary channel; detecting occupation of a primary channel by a second device; and communicating with the first device using the supplemental channel in response to at least occupancy by the second device. The secondary channel is selected at least in part in response to parameters exchanged during association using the primary channel. The parameter indicates an ability to perform preamble decoding operations in parallel on the plurality of channels, an ability to perform idle channel assessment operations in parallel on the plurality of channels, an idle channel assessment ability that does not include an ability to perform idle channel assessment operations in parallel on the plurality of channels, or a preamble decoding operation ability that does not perform preamble decoding operations in parallel on the plurality of channels.

In some embodiments, the method further includes performing a preamble decoding operation prior to communicating with the second device on the secondary channel. In some embodiments, the method further includes performing a clear channel assessment operation on the secondary channel prior to communicating with the second device on the secondary channel.

In some embodiments, a channel may refer to any portion of the electromagnetic spectrum used to communicate data. The portions may have various bandwidths and may be combined to form a wider bandwidth or channel. In some embodiments, the channel may have a 5MHz spacing around the center frequency and may occupy a frequency band of at least 20 MHz. Authentication and association under the 802.11 standard provides a method for provisioning client devices in a network with different levels of access. The connection between the AP and the STA must typically be authenticated by and associated with the AP, which may then be used to exchange data packets. In some embodiments, the primary channel may refer to a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum used to authorize and/or authenticate the connection. In some embodiments, a primary channel may also refer to a channel that is monitored for activity according to some channel access protocols (e.g., 802.11 EDCA) to determine when to allow a channel access attempt. In some embodiments, the primary channel is a channel used to transmit beacon signals and other management frames. In some embodiments, the primary channel may be indicated in a primary channel field. The terms primary channel and primary control channel are used interchangeably herein. The secondary channel may refer to a channel that is not a primary channel.

In some embodiments, authentication may refer to a procedure of how a client device accesses a network. In some embodiments, authentication provides identification to ensure that the client is allowed to access the network. In some embodiments, association may refer to a handshake procedure or other procedure for associating two devices. In some embodiments, association refers to a procedure that causes an authenticated client device to become associated with an AP. In some embodiments, the association allows the network to determine where to send data intended for the client device (e.g., send the data through an AP associated with the client device). In general, client devices are associated with only a single AP. The association may involve the exchange of parameters and information (e.g., capability information and supplemental channel selection information) for coordinating communications between devices. In some embodiments, the association may involve beacon frames, response frames, and other management frames.

According to some example network operations, the AP uses a primary control channel (e.g., 40/80/160/320MHz sub-band or channel) within a wider bandwidth. Authentication and association is performed at least on the primary control channel. For example, management frames including, but not limited to, beacons, probe responses, deauthentication/disassociation frames are communicated upon a wider bandwidth primary control channel (e.g., 20MHz sub-band).

In some embodiments, a primary channel or primary control channel may refer to a channel contained within the bandwidth (e.g., wider bandwidth) of a larger channel that includes a secondary bandwidth channel or secondary channel. For example, a link may include a set of consecutive 20MHz channels, with one of the channels being the primary channel. In some embodiments, the primary channel uses the upper half or the lower half of the bandwidth of the wider channel, while the secondary channel uses the remaining half of the bandwidth of the wider channel. In some embodiments, the bandwidths of the primary and secondary channels are unequal, and the primary channel occupies a subband and one or more secondary channels occupy the remaining subbands in the wider bandwidth. In some embodiments, the secondary channel has more or less bandwidth than the primary channel. In some embodiments, the primary channel is for client devices supporting only a smaller channel bandwidth (e.g., 20 MHz), while the primary and secondary channels may be used for client devices supporting wider channel capabilities. In some embodiments, there are multiple secondary bandwidth channels and a single primary bandwidth channel each having the same bandwidth. In some embodiments, the terms primary and secondary do not imply a particular priority and are interchangeable with the first and second, and vice versa.

In some embodiments, the primary channel is a common operating channel for All Stations (STAs) that are members of a Basic Service Set (BSS). For example, in a 20MHz, 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, or 80+80MHz, 320MHz bandwidth BSS, the primary channel is a 20MHz channel. In some embodiments, the primary channel is used to transmit all management frames and to determine whether to allow access attempts, while the secondary channel is an adjacent channel to the primary channel. The secondary channel may be combined with the primary channel to form another primary channel of the next broader bandwidth.

A frame may refer to a data transmission unit. For example, a frame may refer to a container of a single network packet. A data frame may refer to a frame containing data. An ACK frame may refer to an acknowledgement message acknowledging receipt of a frame, and a block ACK frame may refer to an acknowledgement message acknowledging receipt of a number of frames. Parameters for use in non-primary channel utilization may be provided in management frames and acknowledgement frames. In some embodiments, a management frame may refer to any frame used to provide data control or coordinated communications. The management frames may include frames provided during association and authentication, as well as other handshakes and messaging.

A. Computing and network environment

Before discussing particular embodiments of the present solution, it may be helpful to describe aspects of the operating environment and related associated components (e.g., hardware elements) in connection with the methods and systems described herein. Referring to fig. 1A, an embodiment of a network environment is depicted. Briefly, a network environment includes a wireless communication system including one or more Access Points (APs) or network devices 106, one or more client devices (e.g., STAs) or wireless communication devices 102, and network hardware components or network hardware 192. For example, the wireless communication device 102 may include a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a personal computer, and/or a cellular telephone device. Details of embodiments of each station or wireless communication device 102 and AP or network device 106 are described in more detail with reference to fig. 1B and 1C. In one embodiment, the network environment may be an ad hoc network environment, an infrastructure wireless network environment, a subnet environment, and the like. The network device 106 or AP may be operably coupled to the network hardware 192 via a local area network connection. In some embodiments, the network device 106 is a 5G base station. Network hardware 192, which may include routers, gateways, switches, bridges, modems, system controllers, appliances, and the like, may provide local area network connectivity for the communication system. Each of the network devices 106 or APs may have an associated antenna or antenna array to communicate with wireless communication devices in its area. The wireless communication device 102 may register with a particular network device 106 or AP to receive services from the communication system (e.g., via SU-MIMO or MU-MIMO configuration). For direct connections (e.g., point-to-point communications), some wireless communication devices may communicate directly via an allocated channel and communication protocol. Some wireless communication devices 102 may be mobile or relatively stationary with respect to the network device 106 or the AP.

In some embodiments, the network device 106 or AP includes a device or module (including a combination of hardware and software) that allows the wireless communication device 102 to connect to a wired network using wireless fidelity (WiFi) or other standards. The network device 106 or AP may sometimes be referred to as a Wireless Access Point (WAP). The network device 106 or AP may be implemented (e.g., configured, designed, and/or constructed) for operation in a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). In some embodiments, the network device 106 or the AP may connect to the router as a standalone device (e.g., via a wired network). In other embodiments, the network device 106 or AP may be a component of a router. The network device 106 or AP may provide multiple devices with access to the network. For example, the network device 106 or AP may connect to a wired ethernet connection and provide wireless connectivity for other devices 102 using a radio frequency link to utilize the wired connection. The network device 106 or AP may be implemented to support standards for sending and receiving data using one or more radio frequencies. Those standards and frequencies used by them may be defined by IEEE (e.g., IEEE 802.11 standards). The network device 106 or AP may be configured and/or used to support public internet hotspots and/or extend the Wi-Fi signal range of the network over the network.

In some embodiments, the access point or network device 106 may be used for a wireless network (e.g., IEEE 802.11, bluetooth, zigBee, any other type of radio frequency based network protocol, and/or variations thereof), such as in a home, in a vehicle, or in a building. Each of the wireless communication devices 102 may include a built-in radio and/or be coupled to a radio. Such wireless communication devices 102 and/or access points or network devices 106 may operate in accordance with various aspects of the disclosure presented herein to enhance performance, reduce cost and/or size, and/or enhance broadband applications. Each wireless communication device 102 may have the capability to function as a client node seeking access to resources (e.g., data and connections with network nodes such as servers) via one or more access points or network devices 106.

The network connection may include any type and/or form of network and may include any of the following: point-to-point networks, broadcast networks, telecommunications networks, data communication networks, computer networks. The topology of the network may be a bus, star or ring network topology. The network may have any such network topology known to those of skill in the art that is capable of supporting the operations described herein. In some embodiments, different types of data may be transmitted via different protocols. In other embodiments, the same type of data may be transmitted via different protocols.

The communication device 102 and access point or network device 106 may be deployed and/or executed on any type and form of computing device, such as a computer, network device, or appliance capable of communicating over any type and form of network and performing the operations described herein. Fig. 1B and 1C depict block diagrams of a computing device 100 for practicing an embodiment of a wireless communication device 102 or a network device 106. As shown in fig. 1B and 1C, each computing device 100 includes a processor 121 (e.g., a central processing unit) and a main memory unit 122. As shown in fig. 1B, computing device 100 may include storage 128, mounting device 116, network interface 118, I/O controller 123, display devices 124 a-124 n, keyboard 126, and pointing device 127 (e.g., a mouse). The storage 128 may include an operating system and/or software. As shown in fig. 1C, each computing device 100 may also include additional optional elements, such as a memory port 103, a bridge 170, one or more input/output devices 130 a-130 n, and a cache memory 140 in communication with the central processing unit or processor 121.

Central processing unit or processor 121 is any logic circuitry that is responsive to main memory unit 122 and processes instructions fetched from the main memory unit. In many embodiments, the central processing unit or processor 121 is provided by a microprocessor unit, such as: a microprocessor unit manufactured by intel corporation (Intel Corporation of SANTA CLARA, california) of santa clara, california; a microprocessor unit manufactured by International Business machines corporation of white Prain, N.Y. (International Business Machines of WHITE PLAINS, new York); or a microprocessor unit manufactured by advanced micro-device company (Advanced Micro Devices ofSunnyvale, california) of senyverer, california. The computing device 100 may be based on any of these processors, or any other processor capable of operating as described herein.

Main memory unit 122 may be one or more memory chips capable of storing data and allowing microprocessor or processor 121 to directly access any storage location, such as Static Random Access Memory (SRAM), dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), ferroelectric RAM (FRAM), NAND flash, NOR flash, and Solid State Drive (SSD), of any type or variation. The main memory unit 122 may be based on any of the memory chips described above, or any other available memory chip capable of operating as described herein. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1B, processor 121 communicates with a main memory unit 122 via a system bus 150 (described in more detail below). FIG. 1C depicts an embodiment of a computing device 100 in which the processor communicates directly with a main memory unit 122 via a memory port 103. For example, in FIG. 1C, the main memory unit 122 may be a DRDRAM.

FIG. 1C depicts an embodiment in which the main processor 121 communicates directly with the cache memory 140 via an auxiliary bus (sometimes referred to as a backside bus). In other embodiments, the main processor 121 communicates with the cache memory 140 using the system bus 150. The cache 140 typically has a faster response time than the main memory unit 122 and is provided by, for example, SRAM, BSRAM, or EDRAM. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1C, the processor 121 communicates with various I/O devices 130 via a local system bus (e.g., system bus 150). Various buses may be used to connect the central processing unit or processor 121 to any of the I/O devices 130, such as a VESA VL bus, an ISA bus, an EISA bus, a Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, a PCI-X bus, a PCI-Express bus, or a NuBus. For embodiments in which the I/O device is a video display 124, the processor 121 may use an Advanced Graphics Port (AGP) to communicate with the display 124. FIG. 1C depicts an embodiment of a computer or computer system 100 in which a host processor 121 may communicate directly with I/O device 130b, e.g., via HYPERTRANSPORT, RAPIDIO or INFINIBAND communication techniques. Fig. 1C also depicts an embodiment in which a local bus is mixed with direct communication: the processor 121 communicates with I/O device 130a using a local interconnect bus while communicating directly with I/O device 130 b.

A wide variety of I/O devices 130 a-130 n may be present in computing device 100. The input device includes a keyboard, a mouse, a track pad, a track ball, a microphone, a dial, a touch pad, a touch screen, and a drawing pad. The output device includes a video display, a speaker, an inkjet printer, a laser printer, a projector, and a dye sublimation printer. The I/O devices may be controlled by an I/O controller 123, as shown in FIG. 1B. The I/O controller may control one or more I/O devices such as a keyboard 126 and a pointing device 127, such as a mouse or optical pen. In addition, the I/O devices may also provide storage and/or installation media for the computing device 100. In other embodiments, computing device 100 may provide a USB connection (not shown) to receive a handheld USB storage device, such as the USB flash drive family of devices manufactured by Roche Alamitos, inc. (Twintech Industry, inc. of Los Alamitos, california).

Referring again to FIG. 1B, the computing device 100 may support any suitable mounting device 116, such as a disk drive, CD-ROM drive, CD-R/RW drive, DVD-ROM drive, flash memory drive, tape drives of various formats, USB devices, hard drives, network interfaces, or any other device suitable for installing software and programs. The computing device 100 may further include a storage device (e.g., one or more hard drives or redundant arrays of independent disks) for storing an operating system and other related software and for storing application software programs, such as any program or software 120 for implementing (e.g., configured and/or designed for) the systems and methods described herein. Optionally, any of the mounting devices 116 may also be used as a storage device. Additionally, the operating system and software may run from a bootable medium.

Furthermore, computing device 100 may include a network interface 118 to interface to a network through various connections including, but not limited to, standard telephone lines, LAN or WAN links (e.g., 802.11, T1, T3, 56kb, X.25, SNA, DECNET), broadband connections (e.g., ISDN, frame Relay, ATM, gigabit Ethernet, ethernet over SONET), wireless connections, or some combination of any or all of the above. The connection may be established using various communication protocols, such as TCP/IP, IPX, SPX, netBIOS, ethernet, ARCNET, SONET, SDH, fiber distributed data interface (FDDI)、RS232、IEEE 802.11、IEEE 802.11a、IEEE 802.11b、IEEE 802.11g、IEEE 802.11n、IEEE 802.11ac、IEEE 802.11ad、CDMA、GSM、WiMax, and direct asynchronous connection. In one embodiment, the computing device 100 communicates with other computing devices 100' via any type and/or form of gateway or tunneling protocol, such as Secure Socket Layer (SSL) or Transport Layer Security (TLS). The network interface 118 may comprise a built-in network adapter, network interface card, PCMCIA network card, card bus network adapter, wireless network adapter, USB network adapter, modem, or any other device suitable for interfacing the computing device 100 to any type of network capable of communication and performing the operations described herein.

In some embodiments, the computing device 100 may include or be connected to one or more display devices 124 a-124 n. As such, any of the I/O devices 130 a-130 n and/or the I/O controller 123 may include any type and/or form of suitable hardware, software, or combination of hardware and software to support, enable, or provide for the connection and use of the display devices 124 a-124 n by the computing device 100. For example, computing device 100 may include any type and/or form of video adapter, video card, driver, and/or library to interface, communicate, connect, or otherwise use display devices 124 a-124 n. In one embodiment, the video adapter may include a plurality of connectors to interface to the display devices 124 a-124 n. In other embodiments, computing device 100 may include multiple video adapters, with each video adapter connected to display devices 124 a-124 n. In some embodiments, any portion of the operating system of computing device 100 may be configured to use multiple display devices 124 a-124 n. In other embodiments, the I/O device 130 may be a bridge between the system bus 150 and an external communication bus, such as a USB bus, a apple desktop bus, an RS-232 serial connection, a SCSI bus, a FireWire 800 bus, an Ethernet bus, an AppleTalk bus, a gigabit Ethernet bus, an asynchronous transfer mode bus, a fibre channel bus, a fiber optic bus, a serial attached Small computer System interface bus, a USB connection, or an HDMI bus.

The computing device 100 of the kind depicted in fig. 1B and 1C may operate under the control of an operating system that controls the scheduling of tasks and access to system resources. The computing device 100 may run any operating system, such as any version of the Microsoft WINDOWS operating system, different releases of the Unix and Linux operating systems, any version of the MAC OS for a Macintosh computer, any embedded operating system, any real-time operating system, any open source operating system, any proprietary operating system, any operating system for a mobile computing device, or any other operating system capable of running on a computing device and performing the operations described herein. Typical operating systems include, but are not limited to: android manufactured by Google inc (Google inc.); WINDOWS 7, 8, and 10 manufactured by microsoft corporation (Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, washington) of redmond, washington; MAC OS manufactured by apple computer of cupertino, california (Apple Computer of Cupertino); webOS manufactured by dynamic research corporation (RESEARCH IN Motion) (RIM); OS/2 manufactured by International Business machines corporation of Armonk, N.Y.; and freely available operating system Linux issued by the company of karde, salt lake city, utah (Caldera corp. Of SALT LAKE CITY, utah), or any type and/or form of Unix operating system, among others.

The computer system or computing device 100 may be any workstation, telephone, desktop, laptop or notebook computer, server, handheld computer, mobile telephone or other portable telecommunications device, media playback device, gaming system, mobile computing device, or any other type and/or form of computing, telecommunications or media device capable of communicating. In some embodiments, computing device 100 may have different processors, operating systems, and input devices consistent with the device. For example, in one embodiment, computing device 100 is a smart phone, mobile device, tablet computer, or personal digital assistant. Moreover, computing device 100 may be any workstation, desktop, laptop or notebook computer, server, handheld computer, mobile telephone, any other computer, or other form of computing or telecommunications device capable of communicating and having sufficient processor power and memory capacity to perform the operations described herein.

Aspects of the operating environments and components described above will become apparent in the context of the systems and methods disclosed herein.

B. Non-primary channel utilization

Disclosed herein are systems and methods that may be used in communication systems, including but not limited to Wi-Fi networks (e.g., IEEE 802.11 standard networks). Referring to fig. 2A, a wireless communication network or system 200 includes client devices or STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216. STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216 may be used in the systems discussed with reference to fig. 1A-C.

Any number of STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216 may be used in the network or system 200. A station or STA may refer to any device for communicating in the communication system 200 and includes, but is not limited to, a fixed, portable, or mobile laptop computer, a desktop personal computer, a personal digital assistant, a workstation, a wearable device, a smart phone, or a Wi-Fi phone. In some embodiments, a STA (e.g., a client device) may connect to another STA.

An access point or AP may refer to a device for communicatively coupling one or more non-AP devices (e.g., client devices or STAs) to a network. In some embodiments, an AP may enable non-AP devices to connect and communicate with a network. In some embodiments, the AP is a Wireless Access Point (WAP) configured to enable wireless communications between non-AP devices. APs include, but are not limited to, mobile, portable, or fixed hotspots, routers, bridges, or other communication devices. The AP may provide services to the STA, e.g., act as a point of attachment to another network or to another AP or STA.

STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216 may each include a wireless transceiver and various modules for communicating via a connection. The modules may be software (e.g., firmware) and/or hardware components. In some embodiments, each of STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216 includes a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer circuit compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard and a Physical (PHY) layer interface to wireless media and may be part of a larger device or system. In some embodiments, each of STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216 operate in accordance with standards other than the IEEE 802.11 standard. In some embodiments, STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216 may communicate directly with each other (e.g., via a direct connection external to a network associated with system 200).

After authentication and association, a connection for wireless communication may be established between at least one of the STAs 202, 204, and 206 and at least one of the APs 212, 214, and 216. For example, STA 202 has a connection 218 to AP 212. STAs 202, 204, and 206 each include circuitry (e.g., a processor or processing circuit 230), and APs 212, 214, and 216 each include circuitry (e.g., processing circuit 230) for establishing and canceling connection 218 and communicating data across connection 218. In some embodiments, connection 218 is a wireless connection formed using association and authorization operations. Connection 218 may be used to communicate data, such as frames. The connection 218 may be of any type and/or form. In some embodiments, data may be transmitted over connection 218 via different protocols.

The components of STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216 may be provided as one or more ICs in an Integrated Circuit (IC) package. The IC package may be a single chip package or a multi-chip module. In some embodiments, STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 212, 214, and 216 operating in accordance with the 802.11be standard may support 320MHz as the maximum operating bandwidth on any one link. non-AP devices such as STAs 202, 204, and 206 (shown as device 102 in fig. 1A) may support bandwidths less than 320 MHz. Accordingly, the AP or network device 106 may utilize a channel switching protocol to improve network traffic (e.g., uplink traffic and downlink traffic) from the AP or network device 106 to the non-AP or wireless communication device 102 (fig. 1C).

In some embodiments, system 200 may operate on one or more links. For example, the AP 212 operating on more than one link is an AP multi-link device (AP MLD). AP MLDs operating on two links typically utilize one 5 gigahertz (GHz) link and one 6GHz link. In some embodiments, the 5GHz link is 160MHz and the bandwidth is narrower. In some embodiments, the bandwidth of the 6GHz link is up to 320MHz. In some embodiments, the AP MLD may optionally have an additional 2.4GHz link. In some embodiments, the 2.4GHz link has a narrower bandwidth than the 5GHz and 6GHz links. An STA 208 operating on a link with an AP 212, where the STA operating bandwidth is narrower than the AP bandwidth on the link, may be configured to switch between a primary channel and a secondary channel of the AP operating bandwidth. For example, the 320MHz operating bandwidth of an AP may be divided into 160MHz primary (160P) subchannels and 160MHz secondary (160S) subchannels. It should be appreciated that other bandwidth values are possible. For example, a 160MHz operating channel may be divided into 4x 40MHz subchannels, with the first subchannel being the primary channel and the other subchannels being the secondary channels. In some embodiments, the width of the sub-channels may be 20MHz or 40MHz or 80MHz or 160MHz, etc., while the width of the operating channels may be 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, 320MHz, etc. In some embodiments, the sub-channel is a Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) sub-channel.

In some embodiments, STAs 208 associated with the AP 212 typically operate on a portion of the overall operating channel that includes the primary 20MHz sub-channel or channels designated by the AP 212 as the primary 20MHz channel. For example, when two 160MHz STAs are associated with an AP 212 operating a 320MHz channel, the two STAs will operate on the same 160MHz subchannel of the 320MHz operating channel. Since the 20MHz primary channel exists in only one location and two STAs must include the 20MHz primary channel in the corresponding operational width. STAs that may switch from a primary subchannel or channel to operate at least temporarily on a different subchannel or channel that does not include the primary 20MHz subchannel or channel are labeled as bandwidth aggregation (BWA) STAs and/or STAs. This STA indicates this capability when associated with the AP. In some embodiments, the terms subchannel and channel, and bandwidth and sub-bandwidth are used interchangeably.

For example, for 320 megahertz bandwidths of the primary and secondary channels, each 20MHz channel may be available or unavailable independently, as there are other devices operating with smaller bandwidths (e.g., other technologies—for some technologies and transmit power, the access granularity in the unlicensed spectrum is 20 megahertz). Wi-Fi channel access may be restricted using a particular 20 megahertz channel.

Referring to fig. 2B, the STA 208 is configured for non-primary channel utilization, according to some embodiments. In some embodiments, STA 208 includes network interface 210, processing circuitry 230, channel switching module 238, receiver 240, and transmitter 242. The processing circuit 230 includes a processor 234 and a memory 236. The processing circuitry 230 is any circuitry or components that may perform logic and communication processing for the STA 208. The AP 212 may have similar architecture and components as the STA 208 and is configured for non-primary channel utilization. STAs 202, 204, and 206 and APs 214 and 216 may have similar architecture and components to STA 208.

In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 230 is implemented as a field programmable gate array, application specific integrated circuit, hardware, software executing processor, or state machine. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 230 is part of several layers (e.g., MAC layer, network layer, PHY layer) of an IEEE 802.11 standard device. In some embodiments, processing circuitry 230 may be configured to perform communication operations, non-primary channel utilization and its settings, channel selection, frame construction and processing, association operations, authorization operations, connection settings, disassociation operations, and deauthentication operations. In some embodiments, instructions for processing circuitry 230 may be stored in a non-transitory medium such as memory 236. Processing circuitry 230 of AP 212 is similar to processing circuitry 230.

Memory 236 may be one or more devices (e.g., RAM, ROM, flash memory, hard disk storage) for storing data and/or computer code to complete and/or facilitate the various processes described herein. Memory 236 may be or include non-transitory volatile memory, non-volatile memory, and non-transitory computer storage media. Memory 236 may include database components, object code components, script components, or any other type of information structure for supporting the various activities and information structures described herein. The memory 236 may be communicatively coupled to the processor 234 and include computer code or instructions for performing one or more processes described herein. The processor 234 may be implemented as one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), hardware, field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), a set of processing components, as well as a software executing processor, state machine, or other suitable electronic processing components. As such, the STA 208, AP 212, or network device 106 (fig. 1A-C) is configured to run various modules and/or programs and store associated data in a database of memory 236. The modules (e.g., module 238) may be implemented in AP software (e.g., MAC layer or PHY layer software) or STA software (e.g., MAC layer or PHY layer software).

In some embodiments, the network interface 210 is structured and used to establish connections with other computing systems and devices, such as the wireless communication device 102, the network hardware 192, other access points, or the network device 106 (fig. 1A-C), via a network, such as a WAN connection, a LAN connection, a WLAN connection, etc. The network interface 210 contains program logic that facilitates the connection of the STA 208 to a network connection. For example, the network interface 210 may include any combination of wireless network transceivers (e.g., cellular modems, bluetooth transceivers, wi-Fi transceivers, transmitters 242, etc.) and/or wired network transceivers (e.g., ethernet transceivers). In some arrangements, the network interface 210 includes hardware (e.g., processors, memory, etc.) and machine readable media sufficient to support communication via a plurality of data communication channels. A network interface or network interface circuit may refer to any circuit or circuitry (with or without software) configured to establish a connection with other computing systems. The network interface 210 may include the physical layer circuitry necessary to communicate with a data link layer standard, such as ethernet or Wi-Fi. The circuit may prepare and control the flow of data over the network.

In various embodiments, transmitter 242 is a transmitter module (sometimes referred to as a "transmitter circuit"). Transmitter 242 may be configured to provide or transmit wireless signals representative of data or frames. A transmitter may refer to any circuit for communicating radio frequency data (e.g., frames). The transmitter 242 may include circuitry for encoding, modulating, processing, and providing frames as wireless signals.

In various embodiments, the receiver 240 is a receiver module (sometimes referred to as a "receiver circuit"). Receiver 240 may be configured to receive wireless signals representing data or frames. A receiver may refer to any circuit for communicating radio frequency data (e.g., frames). Receiver 240 may include circuitry for decoding, demodulating, processing, and providing frames derived from the transmitted wireless signal.

In some embodiments, processing circuitry 230 includes a channel switching module 238 (sometimes referred to as "channel switching circuitry 238"). Channel switching module 238 may be configured to communicatively couple with one or more client devices or STAs 208 (e.g., non-AP devices) and may be configured to allocate one or more STAs 202, 204, 206, and 208 and APs 212, 214, and 216 on one of the primary or secondary channels (e.g., an anchor channel). In particular, channel switching module 238 may be configured to perform the non-primary channel utilization operations described herein. For example, the channel switching module 238 may be configured to determine network traffic associated with the STA 208. Accordingly, the channel switching module 238 may utilize a channel switching protocol to improve network traffic (e.g., uplink traffic and downlink traffic) from the AP 212 to the STA 208. The channel switching protocol includes a protocol for moving between a primary channel and a secondary channel. In particular, the channel switching module 238 may enable the AP 212 or STA 208 to dynamically switch between channels based on, for example, occupancy of a primary channel, actual network traffic, and/or anticipated network traffic. For example, the channel switching module 238 may be configured to switch from the primary bandwidth channel to operate on the secondary bandwidth channel when the primary channel becomes busy due to network traffic unrelated to this BSS and is indicated as busy for at least the next 3 ms. A channel switching circuit or unit may refer to any circuit or circuitry (with or without software) configured to designate one or more devices to communicate over a channel or portion of a channel.

In various embodiments, channel switching for non-primary channel utilization is performed by channel switching module 238. In particular, in some embodiments, the channel switching module 238 may be configured to cause the AP 212 or STA 208 to select a channel based on information obtained earlier (e.g., during association). In some embodiments, the channel switching module 238 may operate or share operations with other components of the STA 208 or the AP 212 to enable channel selection and non-primary channel utilization.

Referring to fig. 3, in some embodiments, AP 212 may communicate with STA 204 using channel 300. Channel 300 includes a primary channel 302 (e.g., 20 MHz), a secondary channel 304 (e.g., 20 MHz), a secondary channel 306 (e.g., 20 MHz), a secondary channel 308 (e.g., 20 MHz), a secondary channel 310 (e.g., 20 MHz), a secondary channel 312 (e.g., 20 MHz), a secondary channel 314 (e.g., 20 MHz), and a secondary channel 316 (e.g., 20 MHz). Any of the secondary channels 304-316 may be primary control channels and the primary channel 302 may be changed to a secondary channel. Channel 300 may also be allocated as a single wider bandwidth 340 (e.g., 160 MHz), wider bandwidth 330 (e.g., 80 MHz), and wider bandwidth 332 (e.g., 80 MHz). Channel 300 may also be allocated as wider bandwidth 320 (e.g., 40 MHz), wider bandwidth 322 (e.g., 40 MHz), wider bandwidth 324 (e.g., 40 MHz), and wider bandwidth 326 (e.g., 40 MHz). Communications may occur over any of channels 302 to 316 or wider bandwidths 320 to 340. Channels 302-316 and wider bandwidths 320-340 may be referred to as channels, subbands, bandwidths, or bandwidth channels.

In some embodiments, the transmitter 242 is configured with parallel multi-channel capability. In some embodiments, transmitter 242 may include multiple radio components for parallel operation on multiple channels. In some embodiments, the multi-channel capability allows the STA 208 to perform a full carrier collision avoidance or Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) operation in parallel on multiple channels in its operating bandwidth, including a primary channel (e.g., primary channel 302). If the primary channel is busy, CCA operation continues on other channels, such as secondary channels (e.g., channels 304-316). In some embodiments, the STA 208 is configured to perform full CCA operations in parallel on multiple channels, thereby reducing delay in gaining access to non-primary channels. In some embodiments, CCA operations are performed on N channels in parallel. The number N may be any integer (e.g., 2, 4, 5, 8, 16, 32, etc.). In some embodiments, the number N is related to the capabilities of the transmitter 242 and the receiver 240. In some embodiments, performing CCA operations in parallel may refer to CCA operations performed on different channels at least partially simultaneously, nearly simultaneously, or within the same time period.

In some embodiments, transmitter 242 may not be configured with multiple parallel channel capability. In some embodiments, the STA 208 is configured to perform full CCA operations (e.g., ED plus virtual CCA and preamble detection) on only one channel at a time. In some embodiments, the transmitter 242 without parallel multi-channel capability is configured to perform full CCA operation on other channels after it determines that the primary channel is busy and the source and/or destination of the busy channel is not related to the STA 208 and/or BSS. In some embodiments, sequential CCA operations (e.g., suitable for devices that cannot perform full CCA in parallel on multiple channels) may delay gaining access to a clear non-primary channel. In some embodiments, performing CCA operations in sequence may refer to CCA operations performed at least partially on different channels at different times (e.g., one after the other). In some embodiments, the STA 208 is configured to perform sequential CCA operations only during occupancy of a primary channel (e.g., channel 302) determined by examining the duration of communications occupying a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) and/or transmission opportunity (TXOP) of the primary channel.

In some embodiments, a PPDU may refer to a frame containing a preamble and a data field. In some embodiments, the preamble field contains transmission vector format information. In some embodiments, a TXOP may refer to the duration during which STAs 208 may exchange frames after gaining control over the transmission medium through a contention process. By providing this information about the expected frame exchange time period, the TXOP is intended to increase the throughput of high priority data (e.g., voice and video) and provide virtual media occupancy information used by other STAs in performing CCA operations.

In some embodiments, the receiver 240 is configured with multiple parallel channel capabilities. In some embodiments, receiver 240 may include multiple radio components for parallel operation on multiple channels. Receiver 240 is configured to perform preamble decoding in parallel on multiple channels in its operating bandwidth, including a primary channel (e.g., primary channel 302). Thus, the transmitter 242 may select any of the non-primary channels (e.g., secondary channels 304-316) to communicate data to the receiver 240. For a receiver 240 with a single receive chain for the entire link, once preamble decoding is started on a particular channel, the preambles being broadcast on the remaining channels may not be received during the brief period of time that preamble decoding is being performed on one particular channel. In some embodiments, the receiver 240 is configured to reallocate receiver chain resources from the primary channel after the receiver chain has decoded sufficient information to determine the duration of primary channel occupancy and the correlation of the busy channel, where the correlation is determined at least in part by the identity of the BSS of the STA involved in the frame exchange that is generating the busy channel condition, or where the busy condition is not due to a transmission created by or intended to be received by a given peer of the STA 208.

In some embodiments, the receiver 240 may not be configured with multiple parallel channel capability. In some embodiments, the receiver 240 may be configured to perform preamble decoding operations on only one channel at a time. In some embodiments, the receiver 240 is configured to perform a preamble decoding operation on the other channel after the receiver 240 or STA 208 determines that the primary channel is busy. In some embodiments, STAs 208 that are unable to perform preamble decoding operations in parallel on multiple channels perform sequential preamble decoding operations. The sequential preamble decoding operation may limit the flexibility of the transmitter 242 (of another device) to select any of the non-primary channels to transmit data to the receiver 240. In some embodiments, once STA 208 determines that the primary channel is occupied by a non-related device (e.g., a device that is not a member of the same BSS as receiver 240), and receiver 240 has decoded sufficient information to determine the duration of primary channel occupancy, receiver 240 may switch to alternate channels for possible reception on those channels. In some embodiments, an uncorrelated device may refer to any device that is not involved in frame exchanges involving a given peer of STA 208. The STA 208 and the AP 212 may have a receiver and a transmitter with the respective capabilities of the receiver 240 and the transmitter 242 discussed above.

In some embodiments, performing preamble decoding operations in parallel may refer to preamble decoding operations performed on different channels at least partially simultaneously, nearly simultaneously, or within the same time period. In some embodiments, sequentially performing preamble decoding operations may refer to preamble decoding operations performed at least partially on different channels at different times (e.g., one after the other).

Non-primary channel utilization operation is discussed below with respect to transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 with reference to fig. 4. In some embodiments, the transmitting device 404 is a STA or AP, such as STAs 202, 204, 206, and 208 and APs 212, 214, and 216 operating in accordance with the 802.11 standard as modified herein. In some embodiments, receiving device 408 is a STA or AP, such as STAs 202, 204, 206, and 208 and APs 212, 214, and 216 operating in accordance with the 802.11 standard as modified herein. In some embodiments, receiving device 408 and transmitting device 404 include similar components.

The transmission device 404 includes processing circuitry or other circuitry configured to provide operations as described herein. In some embodiments, the transmitting device 404 includes a memory or storage device 410 for storing capabilities of the device 404 and other devices including the receiving device 408, a memory or storage device 410 for storing channels for use in non-primary channel utilization, and a CCA module 414 for CCA operation. In some embodiments, receiving device 408 includes a memory or storage device 410 for storing capabilities of device 408 and other devices including transmitting device 404, a memory or storage device 410 for storing channels for use in non-primary channel utilization, and a decoding module 414 for preamble decoding operations.

When receiving device 408 receives an indication of some external OBSS (overlapping BSSs), e.g., detects a preamble from another set of devices outside the network, receiving device 408 assumes that transmitting device 404 also detects an OBSS and moves to the next channel in a particular order for transmission. In order to reduce the probability that the transmitting device 404 does not detect an OBSS and the receiving device 408 has detected an OBSS (and vice versa), the threshold for detecting an OBSS may be increased. For example, a threshold for signal strength from an OBSS may be increased to increase the probability that both receiving device 408 and transmitting device 404 detect an OBSS. In some embodiments, the threshold is set at-72 dBm and may be increased to-62 dBm.

In some embodiments, if the channels can be decoded in parallel, the set delay of receiving device 408 may be used for a re-tuning operation to begin listening on multiple channels. If the channels can be decoded serially, the receiving device 408 must switch from one channel to another and the delay may be different. A set of delays may be provided for the retuning operation. In some embodiments, operations and capabilities including receiver and transmitter capabilities and/or anchor channels are provided during association (at the beginning of association). This information may be provided in a message of a frame (e.g., a management frame provided during association). In some embodiments, retuning (retune or retuning) may refer to an operation in which the radio is set to a frequency or bandwidth that is different from its current frequency or bandwidth.

In some embodiments, if receiving device 408 is configured with parallel multi-channel capability and transmitting device 404 is configured with parallel multi-channel capability or is configured to perform full CCA operation (i.e., ED plus virtual CCA and preamble detection) on only one channel at a time, transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 may operate according to the first non-primary channel utilization operation. According to the first non-primary channel utilization operation, if the receiving device 408 supports preamble decoding operations on multiple channels in parallel, non-primary channel utilization is possible. In a first non-primary channel utilization operation, transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 agree on a set of anchor channels. In some embodiments, the set may be determined based on information exchanged between the receiving device 408 and the transmitting device 404. The information may include capability information related to the capabilities of the respective transmitter 242 and receiver 240. In some embodiments, the information may be exchanged during association or authentication, in response to a request, during synchronization, or in other handshake operations. In some embodiments, an anchor channel may refer to any channel determined to be used for non-primary channel utilization. In some embodiments, the anchor channel may be provided as a list during association or handshake of two devices. The anchor channel may be a bandwidth associated with a wider bandwidth that serves a wider bandwidth channel. In some embodiments, the anchor channel may be a channel on which beacons and other broadcast frames are transmitted. Not all PPDU transmissions necessarily contain an anchor channel.

According to one example, if the transmitting device 404 is capable of performing CCA in parallel on four 20MHz channels and the receiving device 408 is capable of receiving the preamble in parallel on four 20MHz channels and the operating bandwidth is 80MHz (e.g., four 20MHz channels), then there is no anchor channel. Transmitting device 404 may freely transmit on any 20MHz channel and receiving device 408 is able to decode the transmission. In one example, if the operating bandwidth is 160MHz (e.g., eight 20MHz channels) instead of 80MHz, then parallel operation covers 80MHz of the 160MHz operating bandwidth. In some embodiments, the transmitting device 404 and the receiving device 408 may divide the bandwidth into four sets of 40MHz bandwidths, with each 40MHz bandwidth having one 20MHz anchor channel. In some embodiments, in 8 channels (e.g., an operating bandwidth of 160 MHz), transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 select four channels that serve as anchor channels and may operate in parallel if receiving device 408 attempts to decode the preamble. Any transmission may include at least one of the four channels. The other four channels may be included as long as the transmission uses at least one of the anchor channels that allows the receiving device 408 to detect and decode the preamble.

In some embodiments, the number of anchor channels is less than or equal to the number of channels on which receiving device 408 supports parallel preamble decoding operations. In some embodiments, the number of anchor channels is greater than the number of channels on which the transmitting device 404 supports parallel CCA operation. In some embodiments, the anchor channels may be equally spaced in the operating bandwidth of the transmission/reception device 408, and the first anchor channel is a primary 20MHz channel.

In some embodiments, the transmission is provided on at least one of the anchor channels associated with the first non-primary channel utilization operation. In one example where the number of channels on which the transmitting device 404 supports parallel CCA operation is less than the number of anchor channels, the transmitting device 404 may divide the anchor channels into a smaller set of the same number of channels on which the transmitting device 404 supports parallel CCA operation. In some embodiments, the transmitting device 404 starts a new CCA operation or procedure and media synchronization operation or procedure on the first set and moves from one set to the next if it is determined that the selected first set is busy for some minimum duration.

In some embodiments, if the primary 20MHz channel is occupied by an Overlapping BSS (OBSS), then the primary channel is not part of the transmission. In some embodiments, the primary 20MHz channel is not part of the transmission only for the duration of the first non-primary channel utilization operation. In some embodiments, only the perspective of the transmitting device 404 is important. In some embodiments, since receiving device 408 is able to decode the preamble in parallel on other anchor channels, receiving device 408 sees that OBSS on the primary 20MHz does not adversely affect the first non-primary channel utilization operation. In some embodiments, receiving device 408 is able to receive the preamble on any of those channels, regardless of whether the primary 20MHz is busy, because the number of anchor channels is less than or equal to the number of channels on which receiving device 408 supports parallel preamble decoding operations, and because the anchor channels were previously negotiated or selected.

In some embodiments, prior to transmission by the transmitting device 404 on any of the anchor channels, the transmitting device 404 allows the receiving device 408 a time gap (e.g., SAMESETDELAY parameters) to re-tune to a state in which the receiving device 408 can again decode the preambles on all of the anchor channels if the transmitting device 404 has detected a preamble on any of the other anchor channels. SAMESETDELAY parameters may be negotiated or derived from information received or exchanged between the receiving device 408 and the transmitting device 404 (e.g., during association).

In some embodiments, if receiving device 408 is configured to have parallel multi-channel capability or is configured to perform sequential preamble decoding operations and transmitting device 404 is configured to perform full CCA operations in parallel or is configured to perform full CCA operations (i.e., energy Detection (ED) plus virtual CCA) on only one channel at a time, transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 may operate according to a second non-primary channel utilization operation. According to the second non-primary channel utilization operation, non-primary channel utilization is possible even if the receiving device 408 supports preamble decoding operations on only one channel at a time. In some embodiments, receiving device 408 is configured to support preamble decoding operations on one channel at a time and is configured to switch to an alternate channel after determining the correlation and duration of the primary channel's occupancy (e.g., OBSS occupancy).

In some embodiments, transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 agree on the order in which the different channels are used for data exchange without any anchor channels in the second non-primary channel utilization operation. In some embodiments, the order is TR1, TR2, etc., where TR1 and TR2 represent data transfer (e.g., over a series of channels). In some embodiments, the transmitting device 404 has its own sequence of channel sets in which to perform parallel CCA operations. In some embodiments, the sets are T1, T2, etc., where T1 and T2 are channel sets. In some embodiments, the transmitting device 404 is configured to perform CCA operations by decoding a preamble on a first channel or set of channels in the sequence of channels used for data transmission TR1. In some embodiments, this set includes the primary 20MHz channel and thus has overlap with the first channel or set of channels negotiated for data transfer TR1. In some embodiments, if Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) is done on any channel corresponding to TR1 (i.e., the device wins the channel access), the device transmits on that channel for data transfer TR1.

In some embodiments, before transmitting on any of the channels in the set, if the transmitting device 404 has detected a preamble on any of the channels in the data transfer TR1, the transmitting device 404 is configured to allow the receiving device 408 to re-tune in the time slot corresponding to the SAMESETDELAY parameters of the data transfer TR 1. In some embodiments, if no channel corresponding to data transfer TR1 is available and the primary 20MHz channel is occupied by an OBSS, then transmission device 404 attempts to transmit on the second channel or set of channels for data transfer TR2 only for the duration that the primary 20MHz channel is busy with data transfer TR 1. In some embodiments, transmitting device 404 allows or waits for a time gap corresponding to OtherSetDelay parameters of receiving device 408 when attempting to transmit on the next set of channels.

In some embodiments, if the second channel or set of channels for data transfer TR2 is outside of channel set T1, then the second channel or set of channels is intended to be part of data transfer TR 2. In that case, the transmitting device 404 needs to start a new CCA procedure on channel T2. Further, in the case, a media synchronization process is used. In some embodiments, media synchronization may be performed by forcing a request to send/clear to send (RTS/CTS) at the beginning of a transmission, using a lower CCA threshold, and/or setting a limit on the maximum number of failed attempts.

In some embodiments, when the primary 20MHz channel is busy and the second set of channels for data transmission TR2 is also unavailable, the transmitting device 404 attempts to transmit on the set of channels for data transmission TR3 (if data transmission TR3 has a channel outside of channel T3, then a new CCA procedure is started). In some embodiments, this may continue until all channels are unavailable.

In some embodiments, control returns to the first set of channels for data transfer TR1 upon expiration of a duration (e.g., NAV or PPDU length) determined during decoding on the primary 20MHz channel. After returning to the primary 20MHz channel, if the return is before the expiration of the decoding duration, then the media synchronization process need not be used.

According to one example, the transmitting device 604 and the receiving device 608 operate in a serial fashion over multiple sets of channels. In some embodiments, with the same capabilities as described in the anchor channel example above (the transmitting device 604 is able to perform CCA in parallel on four 20MHz channels and the receiving device 608 is able to receive preambles in parallel on four 20MHz channels), when the operating bandwidth is 160MHz, the transmitting device 604 and the receiving device 408 divide the channels into two groups of four channels each. The two groups are channels for data transfer TR1 and TR 2. When operating on group TR1, transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 may exchange data on any of the four 20MHz channels of TR1 without any anchor channels. When none of the channels of group TR1 are available, operation moves to group TR2 and there are no anchor channels in any set. In some embodiments where the transmitting device 404 and the receiving device 408 are capable of supporting CCA/preamble decoding (e.g., non-parallel operation) on only one channel at a time, each group TR1, TR2, etc. would each contain only one channel (e.g., there would be eight sets, one channel per set).

Network Allocation Vector (NAV) may refer to a virtual carrier sensing mechanism used with wireless network protocols such as IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi) and IEEE 802.16 (WiMax). Virtual carrier sensing may be a logical abstraction that limits the need for physical carrier sensing at the air interface of the listening device performing CCA in order to save power and allow determination of a busy channel in which occupied transmissions may not be detected by the listening device due to the topological relationship between the transmitting device and the listening device. The MAC layer frame header contains a duration field that specifies the transmission time required to transmit one or more frames of the frame exchange during which the media will be busy. In some embodiments, a STA listening on a wireless medium reads the duration field and sets its NAV, which is an indicator for a station as to how long the station must defer from accessing the medium.

In some embodiments, the NAV uses a counter that counts down to zero at a uniform rate. When the counter is zero, the virtual carrier sensing indicates that the media is idle; when the counter is non-zero, the indication is busy. When a STA is transmitting, the medium or channel is typically determined to be busy. In IEEE 802.11, the NAV represents the number of microseconds (a maximum of 32,767 microseconds) that a sending STA intends to busy media with its transmissions and any response transmissions by its intended recipient STA, and optionally additional such exchanges. When the sender sends a Request To Send (RTS), the receiver waits for a short interframe space (SIFS) before sending a CTS. The sender will wait for SIFS again before sending a data bearer or management frame. Again, the receiver will wait for SIFS before sending an ACK or preventing an ACK or no response. In some embodiments, the NAV is the duration from the first SIFS to the end of the ACK or block the ACK. Additional exchanges of such exchanges may occur within the SIFS where the ACK or the ACK is blocked from ending. During this time, the media is considered busy. In some embodiments, SIFS may refer to the amount of time in microseconds required for a wireless interface to process a received frame and initiate a response transmission with a response frame.

The second non-primary channel utilization operation uses a common understanding between transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 that the primary 20MHz channel is occupied by OBSS and that any other channels are not available. In some embodiments, the transmitting and receiving device 408 attempts to detect the same OBSS on the primary 20MHz channel and then moves to the next set of channels. The signal strength from the OBSS is compared to a threshold to detect the OBSS. In some embodiments, the threshold is set to increase the probability that both transmitting device 404 and receiving device 408 detect OBSS. In some embodiments, the threshold is set to less than-62 dBm or-72 dBm. Similarly, in some embodiments, whether other channels are busy or idle may be determined by comparing the signal strength on the channel to a threshold value, e.g., greater than or less than-62 dBm (or-72 dBm), respectively. In some embodiments, transmitting device 404 and/or receiving device 408 detect OBSS or other busy activity by detecting whether there is an indication transmitted over the control link. If a control link is present and an indication to switch to another channel is transmitted on the control link, the transmitting device 404 moves to another channel in the set of channels. In some embodiments, transmitting device 404 and/or receiving device 408 detect OBSS or other busy activity in response to identifying information within the preamble and/or MAC portion of the frame. In some embodiments, this detection scheme is used in a coordination system.

Referring to fig. 5, in some embodiments, a flow 500 may be performed in system 200 for a transmitting device non-primary channel utilization setup operation. The flow 500 is for a transmitting device and includes an operation 502. At operation 502, the transmitting device determines whether non-primary channel transmission is supported. If not, then flow 500 ends. If so, the transmission apparatus proceeds to operation 503.

At operation 503, the transmitting device determines the number of channels (e.g., 1,2, 3, 4, 8, etc.) that may support CCA operation in some embodiments. In some embodiments, if the transmitting device may only support one channel for CCA operation, then in operation 504 the transmitting device determines an order in which CCA operations are supported on the channel. In some embodiments, if the transmitting device may support more than one channel for CCA operation, the transmitting device determines channels for supporting CCA operation in parallel in operation 508. In some embodiments, if all channels do not support CCA operation, then in operation 508, an order in which CCA operations are supported on the multiple sets of channels is determined.

Referring to fig. 6, in some embodiments, a flow 600 may be performed in system 200 for a receiving device 408 non-primary channel utilization setting operation. Flow 600 is for receiving device 408 and includes operation 602. At operation 602, receiving device 408 determines whether non-primary channel reception is supported. If not, then flow 600 ends. If so, the receiving apparatus 408 proceeds to operation 603.

At operation 603, receiving device 408 determines a number of channels (e.g., 1,2,3,4, 8, etc.) that may support preamble decoding operations in parallel in some embodiments. If the receiving device 408 can support only one channel for CCA operation, then in operation 604, the receiving device 408 determines an order in which preamble decoding operations are supported on the channel. In operation 606, the delay (e.g., SAMESETDELAY parameters) required to move from one channel to the next may be determined. In some embodiments, if receiving device 408 may support more than one channel for a preamble decoding operation, then receiving device 408 determines channels for the preamble decoding operation in parallel in operation 608. In some embodiments, if all channels do not support preamble decoding operations, then in operation 608, an order in which preamble decoding operations are supported on the multiple sets of channels is determined. In some embodiments, in operation 608, receiving device 408 determines whether simultaneous preamble decoding is supported on multiple channels even though multiple channels are supporting preamble decoding in parallel. In some embodiments, if not, then in operation 610, the delay required to complete preamble decoding on one channel corresponding to the non-self packet is determined. The delay may be determined based on device capabilities and operating parameters.

In some embodiments, the capability negotiations in flows 500 and 600 allow transmitting device and receiving device 408 to determine, negotiate, and/or agree on a number of parameters for non-primary channel utilization operations. For example, the parameters may include an indication of whether a non-primary channel exchange is to be performed, a parallel/sequential order in which the non-primary channel exchange is to be performed, a time gap (e.g., SAMESETDELAY parameters) parameter required between preambles on two different channels in the same set at receiving device 408 for successful decoding of the preambles, a time gap (e.g., otherSetDelay parameters) required between preambles on two channels in two different sets at receiving device 408 for successful decoding of the preambles, and so on.

Examples of parallel/sequential order of performing non-primary channel exchanges include set 1: channels 1, k+1, 2k+1, … (TR 1); set 2: channel 2, k+2, 2k+2, (TR 2); etc. Examples of SAMESETDELAY parameters include 0 microseconds (us), 50us, 100us, 200us, and the like. Examples of OtherSetDelay parameters include 0us, 50us, 100us, 200us, and the like.

In some embodiments, during transmission on one channel, blindness on all other channels is assumed. During reception on one channel, blindness on any other channel is determined. If the blind view on the channel is not aligned with the known virtual current sense (NAV), then a media synchronization process is used. When the blind view ends at the end of transmission or reception, a synchronization process timer is started, wherein the timer duration is set to achieve a conservative behavior after returning from the channel. In some embodiments, a lower Energy Detection (ED) threshold may be used to make the return device more sensitive to detecting an ongoing transmission when the timer is running.

Transmitting on any subset of channels of the link may make the transmission device blind to the channels that are missing from the perspective of preamble detection. In some embodiments, whenever a transmitting device is left out of view of a set of channels for the purpose of CCA operation, the transmitting device performs conservative access measures upon returning to the set of channels to avoid penalizing the transmitted device. In some embodiments, whenever a transmitting device is left out of view of a set of channels for CCA operation, the transmitting device performs conservative access measures upon returning to the set of channels so that other transmitting devices are not penalized.

In some embodiments, several implementations of the flows 500 and 600 may operate concurrently in the communication system 200. The flows 500 and 600 may be performed in firmware executing on hardware of the STAs 202, 204, and 206 and the APs 212, 214, and 216. The firmware may operate in the protocol stack layer or MAC layer of the STAs 202, 204, and 206 and/or APs 212, 214, and 216.

It should be noted that particular paragraphs of this disclosure may refer to terms (e.g., "first" and "second") in conjunction with subsets of frames, responses and devices for the purpose of identifying or distinguishing one from another or from others. These terms are not intended to relate entities (e.g., first device and second device) in time or according to order, although in some cases these entities may include such a relationship. Nor do these terms limit the number of possible entities (e.g., STAs, APs, beamformers, and/or beamformed receivers (beam formee)) that may operate within a system or environment. It should be understood that the system described above may provide multiple components in any or each of those components and that these components may be provided on separate machines or, in some embodiments, on multiple machines in a distributed system. Further, the bit field positions may be changed and multi-bit words may be used. Additionally, the systems and methods described above may be provided as one or more computer readable programs or executable instructions embodied on or in one or more articles of manufacture (e.g., a floppy disk, hard disk, CD-ROM, flash memory card, PROM, RAM, ROM, or magnetic tape). The program may be implemented in any programming language (e.g., LISP, PERL, C, C ++, c#) or in any byte code language (e.g., JAVA). The software programs or executable instructions may be stored as object code on or in one or more articles of manufacture. Circuitry may refer to any electronic circuit or circuitry.

While the foregoing written description of the methods and systems enables one of ordinary skill to make and use embodiments thereof, those of ordinary skill will understand and appreciate the existence of variations, combinations, and equivalents of the specific embodiments, methods, and examples herein. For example, the particular values of bandwidth, channel, and sub-band discussed above are exemplary. Thus, the present methods and systems should not be limited by the embodiments, methods, and examples described above, but rather by all embodiments and methods within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

While the foregoing written description of the methods and systems enables one of ordinary skill to make and use embodiments thereof, those of ordinary skill will understand and appreciate the existence of variations, combinations, and equivalents of the specific embodiments, methods, and examples herein. Thus, the present methods and systems should not be limited by the embodiments, methods, and examples described above, but rather by all embodiments and methods within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A first apparatus for communicating with a second apparatus, the first apparatus comprising:

circuitry configured to:

communicating with the second device using a primary channel;

detecting occupancy of the primary channel by a third device; and

Communicating with the second device using an auxiliary channel responsive to the occupancy of the third device, the auxiliary channel selected from a set of channels determined at least in part responsive to information exchanged during association of the first device with the second device.

2. The first device of claim 1, the circuitry further configured to

When the occupancy of the third device is completed, communicating with the second device using the primary channel.

3. The first device of claim 1, wherein the first device comprises a station STA device that communicates via a protocol employing 20MHz beacon signals.

4. The first device of claim 1, wherein the information comprises a first capability of the first device and a second capability of the second device.

5. The first apparatus of claim 4, wherein the first capability comprises a capability to perform preamble decoding operations on multiple channels in parallel.

6. The first device of claim 5, wherein a number of the channels in the set of channels is less than or equal to a number of the plurality of channels on which the preamble decoding operation is performed in parallel.

7. The first apparatus of claim 4, wherein the second capability comprises a capability to perform idle channel assessment operations on multiple channels in parallel.

8. The first device of claim 7, wherein the clear channel assessment operation comprises a virtual clear channel assessment operation.

9. The first apparatus of claim 4, wherein the second capability comprises a capability that does not include a capability to perform idle channel assessment operations on multiple channels in parallel.

10. The first device of claim 4, wherein the second capability comprises a capability to perform clear channel assessment operations on a single channel, wherein the clear channel assessment operations comprise an energy detection operation and a virtual clear channel assessment operation.

11. The first device of claim 1, wherein the set of channels is channels for data transmission.

12. The first device of claim 4, wherein the set of channels is channels for data transfer, and wherein the first capability comprises a capability to not perform preamble decoding operations in parallel on multiple channels.

13. A first apparatus for communicating over a network, the first apparatus comprising:

circuitry configured to:

Communication using a secondary channel after association on a primary channel is completed, wherein the secondary channel is selected at least in part in response to parameters exchanged during the association, wherein the parameters indicate an ability to perform preamble decoding operations in parallel on a plurality of channels, an ability to perform idle channel assessment operations in parallel on a plurality of channels, an idle channel assessment ability to not perform the idle channel assessment operations in parallel on a plurality of channels, or a preamble decoding operation ability to not perform the preamble decoding operations in parallel on a plurality of channels.

14. The first device of claim 13, wherein the first device comprises a station STA device that communicates via a protocol employing 20MHz beacon signals.

15. The first device of claim 13, wherein the parameter comprises a delay time.

16. The first apparatus of claim 15, wherein the delay time is used to allow a receiver to re-tune for preamble detection on a channel.

17. The first device of claim 15, wherein the auxiliary channel is a 20MHz channel.

18. The first apparatus of claim 13, wherein the supplemental channel is selected from a list of anchor channels determined at least in part in response to the parameter.

19. A method of switching from a primary channel to a secondary channel, the method comprising:

associating with a first device using the primary channel;

detecting occupancy of the primary channel by a second device;

communicating with the first device using the secondary channel at least in response to the occupancy of the second device, the secondary channel being selected in response to a parameter exchanged during association using the primary channel, wherein the parameter indicates a capability of performing a preamble decoding operation on a plurality of channels in parallel, a capability of performing a clear channel assessment operation on a plurality of channels in parallel, a clear channel assessment capability of not performing the clear channel assessment operation on a plurality of channels in parallel, or a preamble decoding operation capability of not performing the preamble decoding operation on a plurality of channels in parallel.

20. The method as recited in claim 19, further comprising:

A preamble decoding operation or a clear channel assessment operation is performed on the secondary channel prior to communicating with the second device on the secondary channel.