WO2022108838A1

WO2022108838A1 - Access point (ap) multi-link device (ap mld) for signalling non-simultaneous transmit receive (nstr) capability information

Info

Publication number: WO2022108838A1
Application number: PCT/US2021/059130
Authority: WO
Inventors: Dmitry Akhmetov; Daniel F. BRAVO; Laurent Cariou; Dibakar Das; Ehud Reshef
Original assignee: Intel Corporation
Priority date: 2020-11-19
Filing date: 2021-11-12
Publication date: 2022-05-27
Also published as: EP4248708A1; CN116391375A

Abstract

An access point (AP) multi-link device (AP MLD) comprising a plurality of affiliated access point stations (AP STAs) configured for multi-link operation (MLO) sets up pairs of links between the AP STAs of the AP MLD and corresponding STAs of a non-AP MLD. The AP MLD may encode a management frame for transmission to the non-AP MLD requesting non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) / simultaneous transmit receive (STR) capability information from the non-AP MLD. A reporting frame received from the non-AP MLD may include the requested NSTR/STR capability information including a least a minimum separation for STR operation of a pair of links. In response to receipt of the reporting frame, the AP MLD may designate the pairs of links for operation in either STR mode or NSTR mode based on the minimum separation reported.

Description

ACCESS POINT (AP) MULTI-LINK DEVICE (AP MLD) FOR SIGNALLING NON-SIMULTANEOUS TRANSMIT RECEIVE (NSTR) CAPABILITY

INFORMATION

PRIORITY CLAIM

[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority to United States Provisional Patent .Application Serial No. 63/1 16,071, November 19, 2020 [reference number AD3870-Z] which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] Embodiments pertain to wireless communications. Some embodiments relate to IEEE P802.1 1 be and extremely-high throughput (EHT) networks. Some embodiments apply to multi-link device (MLD) operation.

BACKGROUND

[0003] One issue with multi-link device (MLD) operation is cross-link interference leakage between links of a pair that, are used simultaneously. Thus, there are general needs to mitigate such cross-link interference.

BRIEF DESCRIP LION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004] FIG. l is a block diagram of a radio architecture in accordance with some embodiments.

[0005] FIG. 2 illustrates a front-end module circuitry/ for use in the radio architecture of FIG. 1 in accordance with some embodiments.

[0006] FIG. 3 illustrates a radio IC circuitry for use in the radio architecture of FIG . 1 in accordance with some embodiments. [0007] FIG, 4 illustrates a baseband processing circuitry for use m the radio architecture of FIG.1 in accordance with some embodiments.

[0008] FIG. 5 illustrates a WLAN in accordance with some embodiments.

[0009] FIG. 6 illustrates a multi-link framework in accordance with some embodiments.

[0010] FIG. 7 illustrates example frame formats for a Measurement Request field for a non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) Capability Request in accordance with some embodiments.

[0011] FIG, 8 illustrates a wireless communication device in accordance with some embodiments.

[0012] FIG. 9 illustrates a process for multi-link operation (MLO) performed by an access point (AP) multi-link device (AP MLD) in accordance with some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0013] The following description and the drawings sufficiently illustrate specific embodiments to enable those skilled in the art to practice them. Other embodiments may incorporate structural, logical, electrical, process, and other changes. Portions and features of some embodiments may be included in, or substituted for, those of other embodiments. Embodiments set forth in the claims encompass all available equivalents of those claims.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a radio architecture 100 in accordance with some embodiments. Radio architecture 100 may include radio front-end module (FEM) circuitry 104, radio IC circuitry 106 and baseband processing circuitry 108. Radio architecture 100 as shown includes both Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) functionality and Bluetooth (BT) functionality although embodiments are not so limited. In this disclosure, “WLAN” and “Wi-Fi” are used interchangeably.

[0015] FEM circuitry 104 may include a WLAN or Wi-Fi FEM circuitry 104A and a Bluetooth (BT) FEM circuitry 104B. The WLAN FEM circuitry I04A may include a receive signal path comprising circuitry/ configured to operate on WLAN RF signals received from one or more antennas 101, to amplify the received signals and to provide the amplified versions of the received signals to the WLAN radio IC circuitry 106A for further processing. The BT FEM circuitry 104B may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry configured to operate on BT RF signals received from one or more antennas 101, to amplify the received signals and to provide the amplified versions of the received signals to the BT radio IC circuitry 106B for further processing. FEM circuitry 104A may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry configured to amplify WLAN signals provided by the radio IC circuitry 106 A for wireless transmission by one or more of the antennas 101. In addition, FEM circuitry' 104B may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry configured to amplify BT signals provided by the radio IC circuitry 106B for wireless transmission by the one or more antennas. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, although FEM 104A and FEM 104B are shown as being distinct from one another, embodiments are not so limited, and include within their scope the use of an FEM (not shown) that includes a transmit path and/or a receive path for both WLAN and BT signals, or the use of one or more FEM circuitries where at least some of the FEM circuitries share transmit and/or receive signal paths for both WLAN and BT signals.

[0016] Radio IC circuitry 106 as shown may include WLAN radio IC circuitry 106A and BT radio IC circuitry- 106B. The WLAN radio IC circuitry 106A may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry' to down- convert WLAN RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 104 A and provide baseband signals to WLAN baseband processing circuitry 108 A. BT radio IC circuitry 106B may in turn include a receive signal path which may include circuitry to down-convert BT RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 104B and provide baseband signals to BT baseband processing circuitry-' 108B.

WLAN radio IC circuitry 106A may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry to up-convert WLAN baseband signals provided by the WLAN baseband processing circuitry 108A and provide WLAN RF output signals to the FEM circuitry 104A for subsequent wireless transmission by the one or more antennas 101. BT radio IC circuitry 106B may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry to up-convert BT baseband signals provided by the BT baseband processing circuitry I08B and provide BT RF output signals to the FEM circuitry 104B for subsequent wireless transmission by the one or more antennas 101 . In the embodiment of FIG. 1, although radio IC circuitries 106A and 106B are shown as being distinct from one another, embodiments are not so limited, and include within their scope the use of a radio IC circuitry (not shown) that includes a transmit signal path and/or a receive signal path for both WLAN and BT signals, or the use of one or more radio IC circuitries where at least some of the radio IC circuitries share transmit and/or receive signal paths for both WLAN and BT signals.

[0017] Baseband processing circuity 108 may include a WLAN baseband processing circuitry' 108 A and a BT baseband processing circuitry' 108B. The WLAN baseband processing circuitry 108A may include a memory, such as, for example, a set of RAM arrays in a Fast Fourier Transform or Inverse Fast Fourier Transform block (not shown) of the WLAN baseband processing circuitry 108 A. Each of the WLAN baseband circuitry 108 A and the BT baseband circuitry 108B may further include one or more processors and control logic to process the signals received from the corresponding WLAN or BT receive signal path of the radio IC circuitry’ 106, and to also generate corresponding WLAN or BT baseband signals for the transmit signal path of the radio IC circuitry' 106. Each of the baseband processing circuitries 108 A and 108B may further include physical layer (PHY) and medium access control layer (MAC) circuitry', and may further interface with application processor 1 11 for generation and processing of the baseband signals and for controlling operations of the radio IC circuitry’ 106.

[0018] Referring still to FIG. 1, according to the shown embodiment, WLAN-BT coexistence circuitry 1 13 may include logic providing an interface between the WLAN baseband circuitry' 108 A and the BT baseband circuitry' 108B to enable use cases requiring WLAN and BT coexistence. In addition, a switch 103 may' be provided between the WLAN FEM circuitry 104A and the BT FEM circuitry' I04B to allow switching between the WLAN and BT radios according to application needs. In addition, although the antennas 101 are depicted as being respectively connected to the WLAN FEM circuitry 104 A and the BT FEM circuitry' 104B, embodiments include within their scope the sharing of one or more antennas as between the WLAN and BT FEMs, or the provision of more than one antenna connected to each of FEM 104 A or 104B.

[0019] In some embodiments, the front-end module circuitry 104, the radio IC circuitry 106, and baseband processing circuitry' 108 may be provided on a single radio card, such as wireless radio card 102. In some other embodiments, the one or more antennas 101, the FEM circuitry 104 and the radio IC circuitry 106 may be provided on a single radio card. In some other embodiments, the radio IC circuitry 106 and the baseband processing circuitry' 108 may be provided on a single chip or integrated circuit (IC), such as IC 112. [0020] In some embodiments, the wireless radio card 102 may include a WLAN radio card and may be configured for Wi-Fi communications, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some of these embodiments, the radio architecture 100 may be configured to receive and transmit orthogonal frequency division multiplexed (OFDM) or orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) communication signals over a multicarrier communication channel. The OFDM or OFDMA signals may comprise a plurality of orthogonal subcarriers.

[0021] In some of these multicarrier embodiments, radio architecture 100 may be part of a Wi-Fi communication station (STA) such as a wireless access point (AP), a base station or a mobile device including a Wi-Fi device. In some of these embodiments, radio architecture 100 may be configured to transmit and receive signals in accordance with specific communication standards and/or protocols, such as any of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standards including, IEEE 802.1 ln-2009, IEEE 802.11-2012, IEEE 802.11-2016, , IEEE 802.1 lac, and/or IEEE 802. 1 lax standards and/or proposed specifications for WLANs, although the scope of embodiments is not limited in this respect. Radio architecture 100 may also be suitable to transmit and/or receive communications in accordance with other techniques and standards. [0022] In some embodiments, the radio architecture 100 may be configured for high-efficiency (HE) Wi-Fi (HEW) communications in accordance with the IEEE 802.1 lax standard. In these embodiments, the radio architecture 100 may be configured to communicate in accordance with an OFDMA technique, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0023] In some other embodiments, the radio architecture 100 may be configured to transmit and receive signals transmitted using one or more other modulation techniques such as spread spectrum modulation (e.g., direct sequence code division multiple access (DS-CDMA) and/or frequency hopping code division multiple access (FH-CDMA)), time-division multiplexing (TDM) modulation, and/or frequency-division multiplexing (FDM) modulation, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0024] In some embodiments, as further shown in FIG. 1, the BT baseband circuitry 108B may be compliant with a Bluetooth (BT) connectivity standard such as Bluetooth, Bluetooth 4.0 or Bluetooth 5.0, or any other iteration of the Bluetooth Standard. In embodiments that include BT functionality as shown for example in Fig. 1, the radio architecture 100 may be configured to establish a BT synchronous connection oriented (SCO) link and/or a BT low energy (BT LE) link. In some of the embodiments that, include functionality, the radio architecture 100 may be configured to establish an extended SCO (eSCO) link for BT communications, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some of these embodiments that include a BT functionality, the radio architecture may be configured to engage in a BT Asynchronous Connection-Less (ACL) communications, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1, the functions of a BT radio card and WLAN radio card may be combined on a single wireless radio card, such as single wireless radio card 102, although embodiments are not so limited, and include within their scope discrete WLAN and BT radio cards

[0025] hi some embodiments, the radio-architecture 100 may include other radio cards, such as a cellular radio card configured for cellular (e.g., 3GPP such as LTE, LTE-Advanced or 5G communications).

[0026] In some IEEE 802.11 embodiments, the radio architecture 100 may be configured for communication over various channel bandwidths including bandwidths having center frequencies of about. 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and bandwidths of about 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 2.5 MHz, 4 MHz, 5MHz, 8 MHz, 10 MHz. 16 MHz, 20 MHz, 40MHz, 80 MHz (with contiguous bandwidths) or 80+80MHz (160MHz) (with non-contiguous bandwidths). In some embodiments, a 320 MHz channel bandwidth may be used. The scope of the embodiments is not limited with respect to the above center frequencies however.

[0027] FIG. 2 illustrates FEM circuitry 200 in accordance with some embodiments. The FEM circuitry 200 is one example of circuitry that may be suitable for use as the WLAN and/or BT FEM circuitry' 104A/104B (FIG. 1), although other circuitry' configurations may also be suitable.

[0028] In some embodiments, the FEM circuitry 200 may include a TX''RX switch 202 to switch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEM circuitry 200 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry 200 may include a low-noise amplifier (LNA) 206 to amplify received RF signals 203 and provide the amplified received RF signals 207 as an output (e.g., to the radio IC circuitry 106 (FIG. 1)). The transmit signal path of the circuitry 200 may include a power amplifier (PA) to amplify input RF signals 209 (e.g., provided by the radio IC circuitry' 106), and one or more filters 212, such as band-pass filters (BPFs), low-pass filters (LPFs) or other types of filters, to generate RF signals 215 for subsequent transmission (e.g., by one or more of the antennas 101 (FIG.

D).

[0029] In some dual-mode embodiments for Wi-Fi communication, the FEM circuitry 200 may be configured to operate in either the 2,4 GHz frequency spectrum or the 5 GHz frequency spectrum. In these embodiments, the receive signal path of the FEM circuitry' 200 may include a receive signal path duplexer 204 to separate the signals from each spectrum as wed as provide a separate LNA 206 for each spectrum as shown. In these embodiments, the transmit signal path of the FEM circuitry 200 may also include a power amplifier 210 and a filter 212, such as a BPF, a EPF or another type of filter for each frequency spectrum and a transmit signal path duplexer 214 to provide the signals of one of the different spectrums onto a single transmit path for subsequent transmission by the one or more of the antennas 101 (FIG. 1 ). In some embodiments, BT communications may utilize the 2.4 GHZ signal paths and may utilize the same FEM circuitry' 200 as the one used for WLAN communications.

[0030] FIG. 3 illustrates radio IC circuitry 300 in accordance with some embodiments. The radio IC circuitry 300 is one example of circuitry' that may be suitable for use as the WLAN or BT radio IC circuitry 106A/106B (FIG. 1), although other circuitry configurations may also be suitable.

[0031] In some embodiments, the radio IC circuitry 300 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the radio IC circuitry' 300 may include at least mixer circuitry' 302, such as, for example, down-conversion mixer circuitry', amplifier circuitry 306 and filter circuitry' 308. The transmit signal path of the radio IC circuitry' 300 may include at least filter circuitry' 312 and mixer circuitry 314, such as, for example, up- conversion mixer circuitry'. Radio IC circuitry 300 may also include synthesizer circuitry 304 for synthesizing a frequency 305 for use by the mixer circuitry' 302 and the mixer circuitry 314. The mixer circuitry' 302 and/or 314 may each, according to some embodiments, be configured to provide direct conversion functionality. The latter type of circuitry presents a much simpler architecture as compared with standard super-heterodyne mixer circuitries, and any flicker noise brought about by the same may be alleviated for example through the use of OFDM modulation. Fig. 3 illustrates only a simplified version of a radio IC circuitry, and may include, although not shown, embodiments where each of the depicted circuitries may include more than one component. For instance, mixer circuitry 320 and/or 314 may each include one or more mixers, and filter circuitries 308 and/or 312 may each include one or more filters, such as one or more BPFs and/or LPFs according to application needs. For example, when mixer circuitries are of the direct-conversion type, they may each include two or more mixers.

[0032] In some embodiments, mixer circuitry 302 may be configured to down-convert RF signals 207 received from the FEM circuitry' 104 (FIG. 1) based on the synthesized frequency 305 provided by synthesizer circuitry 304. The amplifier circuitry 306 may be configured to amplify the down-converted signals and the filter circuitry 308 may include a LPF configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signals to generate output baseband signals 307. Output baseband signals 307 may be provided to the baseband processing circuitry' 108 (FIG. 1) for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signals 307 may be zero-frequency baseband signals, although this is not a requirement. In some embodiments, mixer circuitry' 302 may comprise passive mixers, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0033] In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 314 may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals 311 based on the synthesized frequency 305 provided by the synthesizer circuitry' 304 to generate RF output signals 209 for the FEM: circuitry 104. The baseband signals 311 may be provided by the baseband processing circuitry' 108 and may be filtered by filter circuitry' 312. The filter circuitry'' 312 may include a LPF or a BPF, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0034] In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry? 302 and the mixer circuitry 314 may each include two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadrature down-conversion and/or up-conversion respectively with the help of synthesizer 304. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry' 302 and the mixer circuitry 314 may each include two or more mixers each configured for image rejection (e.g., Hartley image rejection). In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry' 302 and the mixer circuitry? 314 may be arranged for direct down- conversion and/or direct up-conversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry' 302 and the mixer circuitry 314 may? be configured for super- heterodyne operation, although this is not a requirement.

[0035] Mixer circuitry 302 may comprise, according to one embodiment: quadrature passive mixers (e.g., for the in-phase (I) and quadrature phase (Q) paths). In such an embodiment, RF input signal 207 from Fig. 3 may be down- converted to provide I and Q baseband output signals to be sent to the baseband processor

[0036] Quadrature passive mixers may be driven by zero and ninety- degree time-varying LO switching signals provided by a quadrature circuitry which may be configured to receive a LO frequency (fro) from a local oscillator or a synthesizer, such as LO frequency 305 of synthesizer 304 (FIG. 3). In some embodiments, the LO frequency may be the carrier frequency, while in other embodiments, the LO frequency may be a fraction of the earner frequency (e.g., one-half the carrier frequency, one-third the earner frequency). In some embodiments, the zero and ninety-degree time-varying switching signals may be generated by the synthesizer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0037] In some embodiments, the LO signals may differ in duty cycle (the percentage of one period in which the LO signal is high) and/or offset (the difference between start points of the period). In some embodiments, the LO signals may have a 25% duty cycle and a 50% offset. In some embodiments, each branch of the mixer circuitry (e.g., the in-phase (I) and quadrature phase (Q) path) may operate at a 25% duty cycle, which may result in a significant reduction is power consumption.

[0038] The RF input signal 207 (FIG. 2) may comprise a balanced signal, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. The I and Q baseband output signals may be provided to low-nose amplifier, such as amplifier circuitry 306 (FIG, 3) or to filter circuitry 308 (FIG. 3).

[0039] In some embodiments, the output baseband signals 307 and the input baseband signals 311 may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternate embodiments, the output baseband signals 307 and the input baseband signals 311 may be digital baseband signals. In these alternate embodiments, the radio IC circuitry may include anal og-to-digi tal converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry/.

[0040] In some dual-mode embodiments, a separate radio IC circuitry may be provided for processing signals for each spectrum, or for other spectrums not mentioned here, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0041] In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 304 may be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N/N+l synthesizer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other types of frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizer circuitry' 304 may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider. According to some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 304 may include digital synthesizer circuitry. An advantage of using a digital synthesizer circuitry' is that, although it may still include some analog components, its footprint may be scaled down much more than the footprint of an analog synthesizer circuitry/. In some embodiments, frequency input into synthesizer circuity 304 may be provided by a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), although that is not a requirement. A divider control input may further be provided by either the baseband processing circuitry 108 (FIG. 1) or the application processor 111 (FIG. 1) depending on the desired output frequency 305. In some embodiments, a divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a look-up table (e.g., within a Wi-Fi card) based on a channel number and a channel center frequency as determined or indicated by the application processor 111.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuitry 304 may be configured to generate a earner frequency as the output frequency 305, while in other embodiments, the output frequency 305 may be a fraction of the carrier frequency (e.g., one-half the carrier frequency, one-third the carrier frequency). In some embodiments, the output frequency 305 may be a LO frequency (f_LO). [0043] FIG. 4 illustrates a functional block diagram of baseband processing circuitry' 400 in accordance with some embodiments. The baseband processing circuitry' 400 is one example of circuitry' that may be suitable for use as the baseband processing circuitry 108 (FIG. 1), although other circuitry configurations may also be suitable. The baseband processing circuitry' 400 may include a receive baseband processor (RX BBP) 402 for processing receive baseband signals 309 provided by the radio IC circuitry 106 (FIG. 1) and a transmit baseband processor (TX BBP) 404 for generating transmit baseband signals 311 for the radio IC circuitry 106. The baseband processing circuitry' 400 may also include control logic 406 for coordinating the operations of the baseband processing circuitry/ 400.

[0044] In some embodiments (e.g., when analog baseband signals are exchanged between the baseband processing circuitry 400 and the radio IC circuitry' 106), the baseband processing circuitry' 400 may include ADC 410 to convert analog baseband signals received from the radio IC circuitry/ 106 to digital baseband signals for processing by the RX BBP 402. In these embodiments, the baseband processing circuitry 400 may also include DAC 412 to convert digital baseband signals from the TX BBP 404 to analog baseband signals.

[0045] In some embodiments that communicate OFDM signals or OFDMA signals, such as through baseband processor 108A,, the transmit, baseband processor 404 may be configured to generate OFDM: or OFDMA signals as appropriate for transmission by performing an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT). The receive baseband processor 402 may be configured to process received OFDM signals or OFDMA signals by performing an FFT. In some embodiments, the receive baseband processor 402 may be configured to detect the presence of an OFDM signal or OFDMA signal by performing an autocorrelation, to detect a preamble, such as a short preamble, and by performing a cross-correlation, to detect a long preamble. The preambles may be part of a predetermined frame structure for Wi-Fi communication.

[0046] Referring back to FIG. 1, in some embodiments, the antennas 101 (FIG. 1) may each comprise one or more directional or omnidirectional antennas, including, for example, dipole antennas, monopole antennas, patch antennas, loop antennas, microstrip antennas or other types of antennas suitable for transmission of RF signals. In some multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) embodiments, the antennas may be effectively separated to take advantage of spatial diversity and the different channel characteristics that may result. Antennas 101 may each include a set of phased-array antennas, although embodiments are not so limited,

[0047] Although the radio-architecture 100 is illustrated as having several separate functional elements, one or more of the functional elements maybe combined and may be implemented by combinations of software-configured elements, such as processing elements including digital signal processors (DSPs), and/or other hardware elements. For example, some elements may comprise one or more microprocessors, DSPs, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), radio-frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) and combinations of various hardware and logic circuitry for performing at least the functions described herein. In some embodiments, the functional elements may refer to one or more processes operating on one or more processing elements.

[0048] FIG. 5 illustrates a WLAN 500 in accordance with some embodiments. The WLAN 500 may comprise a basis service set (BSS) that may include a HE access point (AP) 502, which may be an AP, a plurality of high- efficiency wireless (e.g., IEEE 802.1 lax) (HE) stations 504, and a plurality of legacy (e.g., IEEE 802.1 In/ac) devices 506.

[0049] The HE AP 502 may be an AP using the IEEE 802.11 to transmit and receive. The HE AP 502 may be a base station. The HE AP 502 may use other communications protocols as well as the IEEE 802.1 1 protocol. The IEEE 802.11 protocol may be IEEE 802.11 ax. The IEEE 802. 11 protocol may include using orthogonal frequency division multiple-access (OFDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), and/or code division multiple access (CDMA). The IEEE 802, 11 protocol may include a multiple access technique. For example, the IEEE 802.1 1 protocol may include space-division multiple access (SDMA) and/or multiple-user multiple-input multiple-output (MU-MIMO). There may be more than one HE AP 502 that is part of an extended sendee set (ESS). A controller (not illustrated) may store information that is common to the more than one HE APs 502.

[0050] The legacy devices 506 may operate in accordance with one or more of IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ad/af/ah/aj/ay, or another legacy wireless communication standard. The legacy devices 506 may be STAs or IEEE STAs. The HE STAs 504 may be wireless transmit and receive devices such as cellular telephone, portable electronic wireless communication devices, smart telephone, handheld wireless device, wireless glasses, wireless watch, wireless personal device, tablet, or another device that may be transmitting and receiving using the IEEE 802. 11 protocol such as IEEE 802. 1 lax or another wireless protocol. In some embodiments, the HE STAs 504 may be termed high efficiency (HE) stations.

[0051] The HE AP 502 may communicate with legacy devices 506 in accordance with legacy IEEE 802.11 communication techniques. In example embodiments, the HE AP 502 may also be configured to communicate with HE STAs 504 in accordance with legacy IEEE 802.1 1 communication techniques. [0052] In some embodiments, a HE frame may be configurable to have the same bandwidth as a channel. The HE frame may be a physical Layer Convergence Procedure (PLCP) Protocol Data Unit (PPDU). In some embodiments, there may be different types of PPDUs that may have different fields and different physical layers and/or different media access control (MAC) layers.

[0053] The bandwidth of a channel may be 20MFIz, 40MHz, or 80MHz, 160MHz, 320MHz contiguous bandwidths or an 80+80MHz (160MHz) non- contiguous bandwidth. In some embodiments, the bandwidth of a channel may be 1 MHz, 1.25MHz, 2.03MHz, 2.5MHz, 4.06 MHz, 5MHz and 10MHz, or a combination thereof or another bandwidth that is less or equal to the available bandwidth may also be used. In some embodiments the bandwidth of the channels may be based on a number of active data subcarriers. In some embodiments the bandwidth of the channels is based on 26, 52, 106, 242, 484, 996, or 2x996 active data subcarriers or tones that are spaced by 20 MHz. In some embodiments the bandwidth of the channels is 256 tones spaced by 20 MHz. In some embodiments the channels are multiple of 26 tones or a multiple of 20 MHz. In some embodiments a 20 MHz channel may comprise 242 active data subcarriers or tones, which may determine the size of a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). An allocation of a bandwidth or a number of tones or sub- carriers may be termed a resource unit ( RU) allocation in accordance with some embodiments.

[0054] In some embodiments, the 26-subcamer RU and 52-subcamer RU are used in the 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz and 80+80 MHz OFDMA HE PPDU formats. In some embodiments, the 106-subcarrier RU is used in the 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz and 80+80 MHz OFDMA and MU-MIMO HE PPDU formats. In some embodiments, the 242-subcarrier RU is used in the 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz and 80+80 MHz OFDMA and MU- MIMO HE PPDU formats. In some embodiments, the 484-subcarrier RU is used in the 80 MHz, 160 MHz and 80-5-80 MHz. OFDMA and MU-M IMO HE PPDU formats. In some embodiments, the 996-sub carrier RET is used in the 160 MHz and 80+80 MHz OFDMA and MU-MIMO HE PPDU formats. [0055] A HE frame may be configured for transmitting a number of spatial streams, which may be in accordance with MU-MIMO and may be in accordance with OFDM A. In other embodiments, the HE AP 502, HE STA 504, and/or legacy device 506 may also implement different technologies such as code division multiple access (CDMA) 2000, CDMA 2000 1X, CDMA 2000 Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO), Interim Standard 2000 ( IS -2000 ), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), IEEE 802. 16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), BlueTooth®, or other technologies.

[0056] Some embodiments relate to HE communications. In accordance with some IEEE 802.11 embodiments, e.g, IEEE 802. 11 ax embodiments, a HE AP 502 may operate as a master station which may be arranged to contend for a wireless medium (e.g., during a contention period) to receive exclusive control of the medium for an HE control period. In some embodiments, the HE control period may be termed a transmission opportunity (TXOP). The HE AP 502 may transmit a HE master-sync transmission, which may be a trigger frame or HE control and schedule transmission, at the beginning of the HE control period. The HE AP 502 may transmit a time duration of the TXOP and sub-channel information. During the HE control period, FIE STAs 504 may communicate with the HE .Al⁵ 502 in accordance with a non-contention based multiple access technique such as OFDMA or MU-MIMO. This is unlike conventional WLAN communications in which devices communicate in accordance with a contention- based communication technique, rather than a multiple access technique. During the HE control period, the HE AP 502 may communicate with HE stations 504 using one or more HE frames. During the HE control period, the HE STAs 504 may operate on a sub-channel smaller than the operating range of the HE AP 502. During the HE control period, legacy stations refrain from communicating. The legacy stations may need to receive the communication from the HE AP 502 to defer from communicating.

[0057] In accordance with some embodiments, during the TXOP the HE STAs 504 may contend for the wireless medium with the legacy devices 506 being excluded from contending for the wireless medium during the master-sync transmission. In some embodiments the trigger frame may indicate an uplink (UL) UL-MU-MIMO and/or UL OFDMA TXOP. In some embodiments, the trigger frame may include a DL UL-MU-MIMO and/or DL OFDMA with a schedule indicated in a preamble portion of trigger frame.

[0058] In some embodiments, the multiple-access technique used during the HE TXOP may be a scheduled OFDMA technique, although this is not a requirement. In some embodiments, the multiple access technique may be a time-division multiple access (TDMA) technique or a frequency division multiple access (FDMA) technique. In some embodiments, the multiple access technique may be a space-division multiple access (SDMA) technique. In some embodiments, the multiple access technique may be a Code division multiple access (CDMA).

[0059] The HE AP 502 may also communicate with legacy stations 506 and/or HE stations 504 in accordance with legacy IEEE 802.11 communication techniques. In some embodiments, the HE AP 502 may also be configurable to communicate with HE stations 504 outside the HE TXOP in accordance with legacy IEEE 802. 11 communication techniques, although this is not a requirement.

[0060] In some embodiments the HE station 504 may be a ‘"group owner” (GO) for peer-to-peer modes of operation. A wireless device may be a HE station 502 or a HE AP 502.

[0061] In some embodiments, the HE station 504 and/or HE AP 502 may be configured to operate in accordance with IEEE 802. 1 Imc. In example embodiments, the radio architecture of FIG. 1 is configured to implement the HE station 504 and/or the HE AP 502. In example embodiments, the front-end module circuitry of FIG. 2 is configured to implement the HE station 504 and/or the HE AP 502. In example embodiments, the radio IC circuitry of FIG. 3 is configured to implement the HE station 504 and/or the HE AP 502. In example embodiments, the base-band processing circuitry of FIG. 4 is configured to implement the HE station 504 and/or the HE AP 502.

[0062] In example embodiments, the HE stations 504, HE AP 502, an apparatus of the HE stations 504, and/or an apparatus of the HE AP 502 may- include one or more of the following: the radio architecture of FIG , 1, the front- end module circuitry' of FIG. 2, the radio IC circuitry' of FIG. 3, and/or the base- band processing circuitry of FIG. 4.

[0063] In example embodiments, the radio architecture of FIG. 1, the front-end module circuitry of FIG. 2, the radio IC circuitry of FIG. 3, and/or the base-band processing circuitry of FIG. 4 may be configured to perform the methods and operations/functions herein.

[0064] In example embodiments, the HE station 504 and/or the HE AP 502 are configured to perform the methods and operations/functions described herein. In example embodiments, an apparatus of the HE station 504 and/or an apparatus of the HE AP 502 are configured to perform the methods and functions described herein. The term Wi-Fi may refer to one or more of the IEEE 802. 11 communication standards. AP and STA may refer to HE access point 502 and/or HE station 504 as well as legacy devices 506.

[0065] In some embodiments, a HE AP STA may refer to a HE AP 502 and a HE STAs 504 that is operating a HE APs 502. In some embodiments, when an HE SI' A 504 is not operating as a HE AP, it may be referred to as a HE non-AP STA or HE non-AP. In some embodiments, HE STA 504 mav be referred to as either a HE AP STA or a HE non-AP.

[0066] FIG. 6 illustrates a multi-link framework in accordance with some embodiments. The multi-link framework includes an access point (AP) multi- link device (AP MLD) comprising a plurality of affiliated access point stations (AP ST As) and a non-AP MLD comprising a plurality of affiliated non-AP STAs. The AP MLD and the non-AP MLD may perform a multi -link setup procedure to set up the pairs of links between the AP STAs of the AP MLD and corresponding non-AP STAs of the non-AP MED to allow frames to be communicated between the non-AP MLD and the AP MLD using a single medium access control (MAC) service access point (SAP).

[0067] Some embodiments are directed to an access point (AP) multi- link device (AP MLD) comprising a plurality of affiliated access point stations (AP STAs). In these embodiments, for multi-link operation (MLO), the AP MLD is configured to set up and establish pairs of links between the AP STAs of the AP MLD and corresponding STAs of a non-AP MLD. The AP MLD may also encode a management frame for transmission to the non-AP MLD. The management frame may request non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) / simultaneous transmit receive (STR) capability information from the non-AP MLD. The AP MLD may also decode a reporting frame received from the non- AP MLD. The reporting frame may include the requested NSTR/STR capability information. In these embodiments, the NSTR/STR capability information may include at least a minimum separation needed for STR operation of a pair of links. In response to receipt of the reporting frame, the AP MLD may designate the pairs of links that are set up with the non-AP MLD for operation in either STR mode or NSTR mode based on the minimum separation reported for each pair of links. These embodiments are described in more detail below.

[0068] In some embodiments, the minimum separation comprises a minimum separation between channels in each of the frequency bands of operation. In some embodiments, the minimum separation may be a separation between the frequency bands, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0069] In some embodiments, when the minimum separation is met for a pair of links, the AP MLD may designate the pair of links for operation in the STR mode. When the minimum separation is not met for a pair of links, the AP MLD may designate the pair of links for operation in the NSTR mode. In some embodiments, a pair of links may comprise an uplink and a downlink although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0070] In some embodiments, the management frame may be a unicast frame transmitted to the non-AP MLD on any one of the downlinks with the non-AP MLD. In some other embodiments, the management frame may be a broadcast frame transmitted to the non-AP STAs of the non-AP MLD in response to information received from the non-AP stations of the non-AP MLD indicating whether the non-AP STAs are capable of reporting the NSTR/STR capability information.

[0071] In some embodiments, the AP MLD may be configured to maximize a number of links operating in the STR mode. In some embodiments, the AP MLD may be configured to minimize a number of links operating in the NSTR mode. [0072] In some embodiments, the management frame requesting the NSTR / STR capability information from the non-AP MLD may include a measurement request field for a non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) capability request. In some embodiments, the management frame requesting the NSTR / STR capability information from the non-AP MLD may comprise a measurement request field indicating a measurement mode value of a plurality of measurement mode values, In these embodiments, the measurement mode value request that a non-AP STA of the non-AP MLD provide one of: a minimum frequency separation between any two STR links, a highest and lowest 20 MHz channel that constitute an STR pair of links, and/or one or more operating class - channel bandwidth pairs that constitute a STR pair of links.

[0073] In some embodiments, a multi-link setup procedure may be performed to set up the pairs of links between corresponding AP STAs of the AP MLD and non-AP STAs of the non-AP MLD to allow frames to be communicated between the non-AP MLD and the AP MLD using a single medium access control (MAC) service access point (SAP). In these embodiments, the management frame may include an element that includes a single MAC address of the AP MLD and the reporting frame includes a single MAC address of the non-AP MLD.

[0074] Some embodiments are directed to a non-transitory computer- readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by processing circuitry of an access point (AP) multi-link device (AP MLD) comprising a plurality of affiliated access point stations (AP STAs). In these embodiments, for multi-link operation (MLO), the processing circuitry may configure the AP MLD to set up pairs of links between the AP STAs of the AP MLD and corresponding STAs of a non-AP MLD. The AP MLD may encode a management frame for transmission to the non-AP MLD requesting non- simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) / simultaneous transmit receive (STR) capability information from the non-AP MLD and may decode a reporting frame received from the non-AP MLD. The reporting frame may include the requested NSTR/STR capability information which may include at least a minimum separation needed for STR operation of a pair of links. In response to receipt of the reporting frame, the processing circuitry may designate the pairs of links for operation m either STR mode or NSTR mode based on the minimum separation reported for each pair of links. These embodiments are described in more detail below.

[0075] Some embodiments are directed to non-access point (non-AP) multi-link device (non-AP MLD) comprising a plurality of affiliated non-AP stations (STAs). For multi-link operation (MLO), the non-AP MLD may set up pairs of links between AP ST As of an AP MLD and corresponding ST As of the non-AP MLD. In these embodiments, the non-AP MLD may encode a reporting frame for transmission to an AP MLD. The reporting frame including non- simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) / simultaneous transmit receive (STR) capability information. The NSTR/STR capability information may include at least a minimum separation needed for STR operation of a pair of links.

[0076] In some embodiments, the reporting frame is transmitted in response to a management frame received from the AP MLD soliciting the NSTR/STR capability information. In some embodiments, the reporting frame is unsolicited. These embodiments are described in more detail below.

[0077] The IEEE 802.11 be draft standard defines a multi-link operation (MLO) mechanism where multiple links can be used to exchange data frames simultaneously. However, due to cross-link interference leakage when a MLD is transmitting frames in one link, it may not be able to receive frames on the other link. Such pair of links are called NSTR pair. Otherwise, they are considered STR.

[0078] An AP MLD needs to be aware of whether a pair of links at an associated non-AP MLD is STR or not in order to schedule transmissions to that MLD in such a way as not to cause self-interference at the recipient. When operating on a pair of NSTR links the resulting scheduling restrictions results in lower performance compared with operation on STR links. In order to optimize overall network performance an AP MLD will attempt to configure the individual link channels and bandwidths in order to minimize NSTR pairs across all its associated non-AP MLDs. Since various non-AP MLDs are expected to have different cross-link filtering capabilities, in order to arrive at the optimal link configuration the AP MLD will need to be aware of all of the non-AP MLDs STR/NSTR restrictions across all supported operating bands.

[0079] There is a need to address how an AP and non-AP MLD can exchange such capability. Embodiments disclosed herein build on Operation mode indication (OMI) to allow the non-AP MLD to signal whether it can operate in STR mode or whether it can only work as NSTR mode - for the current con figu r ati on .

[0080] Other proposed mechanisms only allow the AP to be aware of the per-STA current status and does not provide a way for the AP to understand the overall set of constraints - this is potentially limiting a smart allocation of channels to MLD APs in a way that would maximize the potential for STR operation across associated non-AP MLD ST As.

[0081] Example embodiments of the present disclosure relate to systems, methods, and devices for Enhanced Mechanism to signal NSTR Range information.

[0082] In one embodiment, a range information signaling system may facilitate that an ,AP MLD requests a non-AP STA MLD for its STR/NSTR capability information in a Mgt frame. If the non-AP STA MLD can provide this information then it replies with the requested info to AP MLD.

[0083] In one or more embodiments, a range information signaling system may help the AP to optimize its channel plan while also reducing overhead of such signaling.

[0084] In one or more embodiments, a range information signaling system may facilitate that an AP MLD transmits a Mgt frame requesting detailed STR/NSTR capability at non-AP MLD(s). This frame could be a Measurement Request frame with a new Measurement type. It could be unicast or broadcast. [0085] hi one or more embodiments, a range information signaling system may facilitate that a non-AP MLD replies with a Mgt frame that contains information about the bands, channel configurations that are STR or NSTR. This frame could be a Measurement. Report frame with a new Measurement type.

[0086] NSTR Capability Request: [0087] In one embodiment the AP MLD specifies that it is requesting for minimum frequency separation required for STR operation between channels in each frequency band and/or between frequency bands.

[0088] In one embodiment the AP MLD specifies a particular frequencyband for which it is requesting minimum frequency separation (above and/or below) required for STR operation with channels in this band. For example, the AP MLD may specify that it is requesting information for the lower 5 GHz band, [0089] In one embodiment the AP MLD specifies a particular (band, channel ) combination for which it is soliciting information about the minimum frequency separation required (above and/or below) for STR operations. For example, the AP MLD may specify that it is requesting information for a specified channel in lower 5 GHz band with given BW.

[0090] In one embodiment the AP MLD specifies a set of (band, channel ) combination or just a set of channels so that the non-AP MLD can respond with required frequency separation (above and/or below) needed to have STR operations for each channel in the list.

[0091] In one embodiment the AP MLD may simply provide a list of operating class, channel combinations and request the non-AP STA MLD to identify which pair of links in that list are STR or NSTR.

[0092] In one embodiment, the AP MLD may request information as to the max supported channel in STR mode in one operating class and the min supported channel in STR mode in a second operating class, where the two operating classes represent adjacent frequency bands, and where if the non AP MLD is requested to operate in at least one channel outside of the STR mode - the non AP MLD will be restricted to operate in NSTR mode.

[0093] In one embodiment the AP MLD may request this information only if the non-AP MLD has indicated that it is capable of providing such information during Association.

[0094] NSTR Capability Response:

[0095] In one embodiment a non-AP MLD may respond by specifying the minimum separation between channels in each frequency band and/or between frequency bands needed for STR operation. For example, it can provide the highest 20 MHz channel in 5 GHz band and the lowest 20 MHz channel in the 6 GHz band for which STR operation is possible.

[0096] In one embodiment a non-AP MLD may respond by specifying for a given operating class and/or channel, the minimum frequency separation needed (above and/or below) for establishing an STR pair of links.

[0097] In one embodiment a non-AP MLD may respond by specifying for a set of operating class and/or channel combinations, the minimum frequency separation needed (above and/or below) for establishing an STR pair of links.

[0098] In one embodiment the non-AP MLD may simply provide a set of operating class, channel combinations corresponding to STR link pair.

[0099] In one embodiment the non-AP MLD may simply provide for each queried operational class pair the highest channel for which the operational class representing the lower frequency band can operate in STR mode with any channel in the operational class representing the higher frequency band, and the lowest channel for which the operational class representing the higher frequency band can operate in STR mode with any channel in the operational class representing the lower frequency band.

[00100] Table 1 Example Measurement Mode definition for NSTR Capability Request

[00101] FIG. 7 illustrates example frame formats for a Measurement Request field for a NSTR Capability Request in accordance with some embodiments. The example Measurement Request field format for NSTR Capability Request is illustrated for different Measurement Mode values.

[00102] Table 2 Example Measurement Mode definition for NSTR Capability Report

[00103] In one embodiment the AP MLD can request for this information in a Broadcast frame in response to which STAs that are capable of reporting this would reply with the requested information.

[00104] In one embodiment a non-STR AP MLD (e.g., a soft-AP) may provide this information in an unsolicited Measurement Response frame.

[00105] FIG. 8 illustrates a functional block diagram of a wireless communication device, in accordance with some embodiments. In one embodiment, FIG. 8 illustrates a functional block diagram of a communication device (STA) that may be suitable for use as an AP STA, a non-AP STA or other user device in accordance with some embodiments. The communication device 800 may also be suitable for use as a handheld device, a mobile device, a cellular telephone, a smartphone, a tablet, a netbook, a wireless terminal, a laptop computer, a wearable computer device, a femtocell, a high data rate (HDR) subscriber device, an access point, an access terminal, or other personal communication system (PCS) device.

[00106] The communication device 800 may include communications circuitry 802 and a transceiver 810 for transmitting and receiving signals to and from other communication devices using one or more antennas 801. The communications circuitry 802 may include circuitry that can operate the physical layer (PHY) communications and/or medium access control (MAC) communications for controlling access to the wireless medium, and/or any other communications layers for transmitting and receiving signals. The communication device 800 may also include processing circuitry 806 and memory 808 arranged to perform the operations described herein. In some embodiments, the communications circuitry 802 and the processing circuitry 806 may be configured to perform operations detailed in the above figures, diagrams, and flows.

[00107] In accordance with some embodiments, the communications circuitry- 802 may be arranged to contend for a wireless medium and configure frames or packets for communicating over the wireless medium. The communications circuitry' 802 may be arranged to transmit and receive signals. The communications circuitry 802 may also include circuitry-’ for modul ati on/ demodul ati on, upconver si on/downconversi on, fi Iteri ng, amplification, etc. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 806 of the communication device 800 may include one or more processors. In other embodiments, two or more antennas 801 may be coupled to the communications circuitry 802 arranged for sending and receiving signals. The memory' 808 may store information for configuring the processing circuitry 806 to perform operations for configuring and transmitting message frames and performing the various operations described herein. The memory' 808 may include any type of memory', including n on-transitory memory', for storing information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, the memory 808 may include a computer-readable storage device, read-only memory (ROM), random- access memory’ (RAM), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash-memory' devices and other storage devices and media.

[00108] In some embodiments, the communication device 800 may be part of a portable wireless communication device, such as a personal digital assistant (PDA), a laptop or portable computer with wireless communication capability, a web tablet, a wireless telephone, a smartphone, a wireless headset, a pager, an instant messaging device, a digital camera, an access point, a television, a medical device (e.g., a heart rate monitor, a blood pressure monitor, etc.), a wearable computer device, or another device that may receive and/or transmit information wirelessly . [00109] In some embodiments, the communication device 800 may include one or more antennas 801. The antennas 801 may include one or more directional or omnidirectional antennas, including, for example, dipole antennas, monopole antennas, patch antennas, loop antennas, microstrip antennas, or other types of antennas suitable for transmission of RF signals. In some embodiments, instead of two or more antennas, a single antenna with multiple apertures may be used. In these embodiments, each aperture may be considered a separate antenna. In some multiple-input multiple-output (MEMO) embodiments, the antennas may be effectively separated for spatial diversity and the different channel characteristics that may result between each of the antennas and the antennas of a transmitting device.

[00110] In some embodiments, the communication device 800 may include one or more of a keyboard, a display, a non-volatile memory port, multiple antennas, a graphics processor, an application processor, speakers, and other mobile device elements. The display may be an LCD screen including a touch screen.

[00111] Although the communication device 800 is illustrated as having several separate functional elements, two or more of the functional elements may be combined and may be implemented by combinations of software-configured elements, such as processing elements including digital signal processors (DSPs), and/or other hardware elements. For example, some elements may include one or more microprocessors, DSPs, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), radio-frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) and combinations of various hardware and logic circuitry’ for performing at least the functions described herein. In some embodiments, the functional elements of the communication device 800 may refer to one or more processes operating on one or more processing elements. [00112] FIG. 9 illustrates a process for multi-link operation (MLO) performed by an access point (AP) multi-link device (AP MLD) in accordance with some embodiments. In operation 902, the AP MLD may set up pairs of links between the AP STAs of the AP MLD and corresponding STAs of a non- AP MLD. In operation 904, the AP MLD may encode a management frame for transmission to the non-AP MLD, the management frame requesting non- simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) / simultaneous transmit receive (STR) capability information from the non-AP MLD. In operation 906, the AP MLD may decode a reporting frame received from the non-AP MLD. The reporting frame may include the NSTR/STR capability information which may comprise at least a minimum separation for STR operation of a pair of links. In operati on 908, in response to receipt of the reporting frame, the AP MLD may designate the pairs of links for operati on in either STR mode or NSTR mode based on the minimum separation reported for each pair of links.

[00113] Examples:

[00114] Example 1 may include a device comprising processing circuitry coupled to storage, the processing circuitry configured to: generate a management frame to be sent to a non-access point (AP) multi-link device (MLD); include in the management frame a request for simultaneous transmit receive (STR) or non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) capability; and cause to send the management frame to the non-AP MLD.

[00115] Example 2 may include the device of example 1 and/or some other example herein, wherein the management frame may be a Measurement Request frame.

[00116] Example 3 may include the device of example 1 and/or some other example herein, wherein the processing circuitry may be further configured to identify a response frame from the non-AP MLD, wherein the response frame comprises information associated with bands and channel configurations associated with STR or NSTR.

[00117] Example 4 may include the device of example 1 and/or some other example herein, further comprising a transceiver configured to transmit and receive wireless signals.

[00118] Example 5 may include the device of example 4 and/or some other example herein, further comprising an antenna coupled to the transceiver to cause to send the management, frame.

[00119] Example 6 may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions which when executed by one or more processors result in performing operations comprising: generating a management frame to be sent to a non-access point (AP) muiti-hnk device (MLD); including in the management frame a request for simultaneous transmit receive (STR) or non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) capability; and causing to send the management frame to the non-AP MLD.

[00120] Example 7 may include the non-transitory computer-readable medium of example 6 and/or some other example herein, wherein the management frame may be a Measurement Request frame.

[00121] Example 8 may include the non-transitory computer-readable medium of example 6 and/or some other example herein, wherein the operations further comprise identifying a response frame from the non-AP MLD, wherein the response frame comprises information associated with bands and channel configurations associated with STR or NSTR.

[00122] Example 9 may include a method comprising: generating, by one or more processors, a management frame to be sent to a non-access point (AP) multi-link device (MED); including in the management frame a request for simultaneous transmit receive (STR) or non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) capability; and causing to send the management frame to the non-AP MLD.

[00123] Example 10 may include the method of example 9 and/or some other example herein, wherein the management frame may be a Measurement Request frame.

[00124] Example 11 may include the method of example 9 and/or some other example herein, further comprising identifying a response frame from the non-AP MLD, wherein the response frame comprises information associated with bands and channel configurations associated with STR or NSTR.

[00125] Example 12 may include an apparatus comprising means for: generating a management frame to be sent to a non-access point (AP) multi-link device (MLD); including in the management frame a request for simultaneous transmit receive (STR) or non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) capability; and causing to send the management frame to the non-AP MLD.

[00126] Example 13 may include the apparatus of example 12 and/or some other example herein, wherein the management frame may be a Measurement Request frame. [00127] Example 14 may include the apparatus of example 12 and/or some other example herein, further comprising identifying a response frame from the non-AP MLD, wherein the response frame comprises information associated with bands and channel configurations associated with STR orNSTR. [00128] Example 15 may include one or more non-transitory computer- readable media comprising instructions to cause an electronic device, upon execution of the instructions by one or more processors of the electronic device, to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of examples 1-14, or any other method or process described herein.

[00129] Example 16 may include an apparatus comprising logic, modules, and/or circuitry to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of examples 1-14, or any other method or process described herein.

[00130] Example 17 may include a method, technique, or process as described in or related to any of examples 1-14, or portions or parts thereof. [00131] Example 18 may include an apparatus comprising: one or more processors and one or more computer readable media comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the method, techniques, or process as described in or related to any of examples 1-14, or portions thereof.

[00132] Example 19 may include a method of communicating in a wireless network as shown and described herein.

[00133] Example 20 may include a system for providing wireless communication as shown and described herein.

[00134] Example 21 may include a device for providing wireless communication as shown and described herein.

[00135] The Abstract is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R. Section

1.72(b) requiring an abstract that will allow the reader to ascertain the nature and gist of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to limit or interpret the scope or meaning of the claims. The following claims are hereby incorporated into the detailed description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment.

Claims

CLAIMS What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus of an access point (AP) multi-link device (AP MLD), the apparatus comprising: processing circuitry'; and memory, the AP MLD compri sing a plurality of affili ated access point stations (AP STAs), wherein for multi-link operation (MLO), the processing circuitry is configured to: set up pairs of links between the AP STAs of the AP MLD and corresponding non- AP STAs of a non-AP MLD; encode a management frame for transmission to the non-AP MLD, the management frame requesting non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) / simultaneous transmit receive (STR) capability information from the non-AP MLD; decode a reporting frame received from the non-AP MLD, the reporting frame including the NSTR/STR capability information, the NSTR/STR capability information comprising at least a minimum separation for STR operation of a pair of links; and in response to receipt of the reporting frame, the processing circuitry is configured to designate the pairs of links for operation in either STR mode or NSTR mode based on the minimum separation reported for each pair of links.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the minimum separation comprises at least one of: a minimum separation between channels in frequency bands of operation; and a minimum separation between the frequency bands.

3. The apparatus claim 2, wherein when the minimum separation is met for a pair of links, the processing circuitry is configured to designate the pair of links for operation in the STR mode, and when the minimum separation is not met for a pair ot links, the processing circuitry' is configured to designate the pair of links for operation in the NSTR mode.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the management frame is a unicast frame transmitted to the non-AP MLD.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the management frame is a broadcast frame transmitted to the non-AP STAs of the non-AP MLD in response to information received from the non-AP STAs of the non-AP MLD indicating whether the non-AP STAs are capable of reporting the NSTR/STR capability information.

6. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the AP MLD is configured to maximize a number of links operating in the STR mode.

7. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the management frame requesting the NSTR / STR capability information from the non-AP MLD comprises a measurement request field for a non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) capability request.

8. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the management frame requesting the NSTR / STR capability information from the non-AP MLD comprises a measurement request field indicating a measurement mode value of a plurality of measurement mode values, wherein the measurement mode value request that a non-AP STA of the non-AP MLD provide one of: a minimum frequency separation between any two STR links; a highest and lowest 20 MHz channel that constitute an STR pair of links; and one or more operating class - channel bandwidth pairs that constitute a STR pair of links.

9. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein for the MLO, a multi-link setup procedure is performed to set up the pairs of links between corresponding AP STAs of the AP MLD and non-AP STAs of the non-AP MLD to allow frames to be communicated between the non-AP MLD and the AP MLD using a single medium access control (MAC) service access point (SAP), wherein the management frame includes an element that includes a MAC address of the AP MLD and the reporting frame includes a MAC address of the non-AP MLD.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the processing circuitry comprises a baseband processor, and wherein the memory is configured to store the management frame.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by processing circuitry of an access point (AP) multi- link device (AP MLD) comprising a plurality of affiliated access point stations (AP STAs), wherein for multi-link operation (MLO), the processing circuitry' is configured to: set up pairs of links between the AP STAs of the AP MLD and corresponding non- AP STAs of a non-AP MLD; encode a management frame for transmission to the non-AP MID, the management frame requesting non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) / simultaneous transmit receive (STR) capability information from the non-AP MLD; decode a reporting frame received from the non-AP MLD, the reporting frame including the NSTR/STR capability information, the NSTR/STR capability information comprising at least a minimum separation for STR operation of a pair of links; and in response to receipt of the reporting frame, the processing circuitry is configured to designate the pairs of links for operation in either STR mode or NSTR mode based on the minimum separation reported for each pair of links.

12. The non -transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the minimum separation comprises at least one of: a minimum separation between channels in frequency bands of operation; and a minimum separation between the frequency bands.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium claim 12, wherein when the minimum separation is met for a pair of links, the processing circuitry is configured to designate the pair of links for operation in the STR mode, and when the minimum separation is not met for a pair of links, the processing circuitry is configured to designate the pair of links for operation in the NSTR mode.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the management frame is a unicast frame transmitted to the non-AP MLD.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the management frame is a broadcast frame transmitted to the non-AP STAs of the non-AP MLD in response to information received from the non-AP STAs of the non-AP MLD indicating whether the non-AP STAs are capable of reporting the NSTR/STR. capability information.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the AP MLD is configured to maximize a number of links operating in the STR mode and minimize a number of links operating in the NSTR mode.

17. An apparatus of a non-access point (non-AP) multi-link device (non- AP MLD), the apparatus comprising: processing circuitry; and memory, the non- AP MLD comprising a plurality of affiliated non-AP stations (STAs), wherein for multi-link operation (MIX')), the processing circuitry is configured to: set up pairs of links between AP STAs of an AP MLD and corresponding STAs of the non-AP MLD; and encode a reporting frame for transmission to an AP MLD, the reporting frame including non-simultaneous transmit receive (NSTR) / simultaneous transmit receive (STR) capability information, the NSTR/STR capability information comprising at least a minimum separation for STR operation of a pair of links.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the reporting frame is transmitted in response to a management frame received from the AP MLD soliciting the NSTR/STR capability information.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the reporting frame is unsolicited.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the minimum separation comprises at least one of: a minimum separation between channels in frequency bands of operation; and a minimum separation between the frequency bands.