Multi-user parallel channel access in WLAN systems

• US 10,542,555 B2
• Filed: 03/11/2019
• Issued: 01/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: InterDigital Patent Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: InterDigital Patent Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Inventors: Wang, Xiaofei, Lou, Hanqing, Ghosh, Monisha, Shah, Nirav B, Zhang, Guodong, Murias, Ronald
• Primary Examiner(s): Shivers, Ashley
• Application Number:
  US16/298,712
• Publication Number:
  US 20190261385A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0025 Transmission of mode-switching indication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/007 Unequal error protection for format H04L1/0078; for codes per se H03M13/35
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1664 the supervisory signal being transmitted together with payload signals; piggybacking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1685 the supervisory signal being transmitted in response to a specific request, e.g. to a polling signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1861 Physical mapping arrangements for ACK signaling see also H04L5/0053
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/04 Wireless resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/121 for groups of terminals or users
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/21 in the uplink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/004 in the uplink, i.e. towards network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/006 in the downlink, i.e. towards the terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/04 Scheduled access hybrid access H04W74/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/06 using polling
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/0816 with collision avoidance
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

Methods and apparatuses are related to multi-user parallel channel access (MU-PCA). For example, a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) is provided that is one of a plurality of WTRUs operable to simultaneously communicate via a plurality of channels managed by an access point (AP). The WTRU includes a receiver configured to receive, from the AP, over at least one channel of the plurality of channels, a group poll (G-Poll) message that includes a resource allocation that indicates at least one allocated channel of the plurality of channels for the WTRU; and a transmitter configured to transmit an uplink request message, to the AP in response to the G-Poll message, over the at least one allocated channel of the plurality of channels, the uplink request message corresponding to uplink data the WTRU has for transmission to the AP.

Claims

1. A wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) comprising:

a receiver configured to receive, from an access point (AP), a downlink (DL) frame that solicits uplink (UL) frames from a plurality of WTRUs, including the WTRU, and that includes a resource allocation which allocates at least one channel of a plurality of channels for an UL frame from the WTRU; and

a transmitter configured to transmit an UL frame to the AP in response to the DL frame, over the at least one allocated channel of the plurality of channels, a short inter-frame space (SIFS) after receiving the DL frame;

the receiver configured to receive an acknowledgement (ACK) frame from the AP in response to the UL frame, wherein the ACK frame includes acknowledgements of UL frames from others of the plurality of WTRUs.

2. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the DL frame includes an identifier corresponding to the WTRU.

3. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the DL frame comprises a clear-to-send (CTS) frame.

4. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the DL frame comprises a group clear-to-send (G-CTS) frame.

5. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the AP is in communication with at least one station (STA) that is part of a multi-user group, wherein the WTRU is not part of the multi-user group.

6. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the UL frame indicates an amount of uplink data the WTRU has for transmission to the AP.

7. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the UL frame indicates a quality of service (QoS) priority for uplink data.

8. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the UL frame includes an indication of an amount of uplink data and a modulation coding scheme (MCS) that will be used to transmit the uplink data.

9. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the at least one allocated channel includes two or more of the plurality of channels.

10. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the DL frame indicates that the AP is ready to receive on the at least one allocated channel.

11. A method for use in a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU), the method comprising:

receiving, from an access point (AP), a downlink (DL) frame that solicits uplink (UL) frames from a plurality of WTRUs, including the WTRU, and that includes a resource allocation which allocates at least one channel of a plurality of channels for an UL frame from the WTRU;

transmitting an UL frame to the AP in response to the DL frame, over the at least one allocated channel of the plurality of channels, a short inter-frame space (SIFS) after receiving the DL frame; and

receiving an acknowledgement (ACK) frame from the AP in response to the transmitted UL frame, wherein the ACK frame includes acknowledgements of UL frames from others of the plurality of WTRUs.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the DL frame includes an identifier corresponding to the WTRU.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the DL frame comprises a clear-to-send (CTS) frame.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the DL frame comprises a group clear-to-send (G-CTS) frame.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the AP is in communication with at least one station (STA) that is part of a multi-user group, wherein the WTRU is not part of the multi-user group.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the UL frame indicates an amount of uplink data the WTRU has for transmission to the AP.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the UL frame indicates a quality of service (QoS) priority for uplink data.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the UL frame includes an indication of an amount of uplink data and a modulation coding scheme (MCS) that will be used to transmit uplink data.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein the at least one allocated channel includes two or more of the plurality of channels.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein the DL frame indicates that the AP is ready to receive on the at least one allocated channel.