Methods to enable efficient wideband operations in local area networks using OFDMA

• US 10,123,330 B2
• Filed: 06/24/2016
• Issued: 11/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Josiam, Kaushik M., Taori, Rakesh
• Primary Examiner(s): Siddiqui, Kashif
• Application Number:
  US15/192,974
• Publication Number:
  US 20170006608A1
• Time in Patent Office: 865 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0452 Multi-user MIMO systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2601 Multicarrier modulation systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2666 Acquisition of further OFDM parameters, e.g. bandwidth, subcarrier spacing, or guard interval length
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/00 Arrangements affording multiple use of the transmission path
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/001 the frequencies being arranged in component carriers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0023 Time-frequency-space
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0041 Frequency-non-contiguous
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0053 Allocation of signaling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0092 Indication of how the channel is divided
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices

Abstract

A method for operating an access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN). The method comprises identifying a bandwidth of an orthogonal frequency division multiple access physical protocol data unit (OFDMA PPDU) by at least one of a primary channel or at least one secondary channel, and nulling a plurality of tones of OFDMA PPDU for the at least one secondary channel sensed busy. The method further comprises transmitting, to a station (STA), a bandwidth signaling sub-field in high efficiency signal-A (HE-SIG-A) field included in a high efficiency multi-user PPDU (HE MU PPDU) indicating availability of at least one content channel, wherein the at least one content channel of high efficiency signal-B (HE-SIG-B) field on the downlink signal including a primary channel and one or more secondary channels that comprise a plurality of OFDMA PPDUs.

Claims

1. A station (STA) in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the STA comprising:

a transceiver configured to receive, from an access point (AP), a bandwidth signaling sub-field in a high efficiency signal-A (HE-SIG-A) field included in a high efficiency multi-user PPDU (HE MU PPDU) indicating availability of at least one content channel, wherein the at least one content channel of high efficiency signal-B (HE-SIG-B) field on a downlink signal includes a primary channel and one or more secondary channels that comprise a plurality of an orthogonal frequency division multiple access physical protocol data units (OFDMA PPDUs), and wherein the at least one content channel comprises a central 26 tone RU of at least one 80 MHz segment in a 160 MHz HE MU PPDU that is signaled using 1 bit, the 1 bit for each 80 MHz segment carried in different content channel of the at least one content channel and the central 26 tone RU corresponding to constituent 80 MHz segments; and

at least one processor configured to identify a bandwidth of OFDMA PPDU based on the HE MU PPDU.

2. The STA of claim 1, the at least one processor is further configured to determine a null allocation that is indicated in user-specific sub-fields using at least one of a null station identification (STA ID) or STA ID that is determined by the AP.

3. The STA of claim 1, wherein:

the at least one processor is further configured to indicate resource unit allocation signaling information in content channel information; and

the transceiver is further configured to receive, from the AP, the at least one content channel including resource allocation signaling information on the downlink signal.

4. The STA of claim 1, wherein at least one channel that is not occupied is indicated by the bandwidth signaling sub-field in the HE-SIG-A field and a null resource unit (RU) indication field in the at least one content channel of HE-SIG-B field.

5. The STA of claim 1, wherein:

RUs spanning at least one channel that is not occupied are nulled; and

The RUs in segments adjacent to each channel that is nulled are nulled to ensure compliance with spectral masks and out of band emissions, the RUs being nulled in units of a full RU.

6. The STA of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to determine bandwidth signaling information for the downlink signal in accordance with a non-contiguous channel bonding transmission.

7. The STA of claim 1, wherein the bandwidth signaling information is received from the AP on a different portion than content channel information in the downlink signal and before decoding the at least one content channel.

8. The STA of claim 1, wherein the at least one content channel comprises a central 26 tone resource unit (RU) in an 80 MHz HE MU PPDU that is signaled using a 1 bit, the 1 bit being signaled on different location than the at least one content channel.

9. An access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the AP comprising:

at least one processor configured to identify a bandwidth of an orthogonal frequency division multiple access physical protocol data unit (OFDMA PPDU) by at least one of a primary channel or at least one secondary channel, and nulling a plurality of tones of OFDMA PPDU for the at least one secondary channel sensed busy; and

a transceiver configured to transmit, to a station (STA), a bandwidth signaling sub-field in a high efficiency signal-A (HE-SIG-A) field included in a high efficiency multi-user PPDU (HE MU PPDU) indicating availability of at least one content channel, wherein the at least one content channel of high efficiency signal-B (HE-SIG-B) field on a downlink signal includes a primary channel and one or more secondary channels that comprise a plurality of OFDMA PPDUs, and wherein the at least one content channel comprises a central 26 tone RU of at least one 80 MHz segment in a 160 MHz HE MU PPDU that is signaled using 1 bit, the 1 bit for each 80 MHz segment carried in different content channel of the at least one channel and the central 26 tone RU corresponding to constituent 80 MHz segments.

10. The AP of claim 9, wherein:

the at least one processor is further configured to indicate a null allocation that is indicated in user-specific sub-fields using at least one of a null station identification (STA ID) or STA ID that is determined by the AP; and

the transceiver is further configured to transmit the at least one content channel on the primary channel and another content channel on the at least one of secondary channels.

11. The AP of claim 9, wherein:

the at least one processor is further configured to indicate resource unit allocation signaling information in content channel information; and

the transceiver is further configured to transmit, to the STA, the at least one content channel including the content channel information on the downlink signal.

12. The AP of claim 9, wherein at least one channel that is not occupied is indicated by the bandwidth signaling sub-field in HE-SIG-A field and a null resource unit (RU) indication field in the at least one content channel of HE-SIG-B field.

13. The AP of claim 9, wherein:

RUs spanning at least one channel that is not occupied are nulled; and

The RUs in segments adjacent to each channel that is nulled are nulled to ensure compliance with spectral masks and out of band emissions, the RUs being nulled in units of a full RU.

14. The AP of claim 9, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to determine bandwidth signaling information for the downlink signal in accordance with a non-contiguous channel bonding transmission.

15. The AP of claim 9, wherein the bandwidth signaling information is transmitted to the STA on a different portion than content channel information in the downlink signal and before decoding the at least one content channel.

16. The AP of claim 9, wherein the at least one content channel comprises a central 26 tone resource unit (RU) in an 80 MHz HE MU PPDU that is signaled using 1 bit, the 1 bit being signaled on different location than the at least one content channel.

17. A method for operating an access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the method comprising:

identifying a bandwidth of an orthogonal frequency division multiple access physical protocol data unit (OFDMA PPDU) by at least one of a primary channel or at least one secondary channel, and nulling a plurality of tones of OFDMA PPDU for the at least one secondary channel sensed busy; and

transmitting, to a station (STA), a bandwidth signaling sub-field in a high efficiency signal-A (HE-SIG-A) field included in a high efficiency multi-user PPDU (HE MU PPDU) indicating availability of at least one content channel, wherein the at least one content channel of high efficiency signal-B (HE-SIG-B) field on a downlink signal includes a primary channel and one or more secondary channels that comprise a plurality of OFDMA PPDUs, and wherein the at least one content channel comprises a central 26 tone RU of at least one 80 MHz segment in a 160 MHz HE MU PPDU that is signaled using 1 bit, the 1 bit for each 80 MHz segment carried in different content channel of the at least one channel and the central 26 tone RU corresponding to constituent 80 MHz segments.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprises:

indicating a null allocation that is indicated in user-specific sub-fields using at least one of a null station identification (STA ID) or STA ID that is determined by the AP; and

transmitting the at least one content channel on the primary channel and another content channel on the at least one of secondary channels.