Frame aggregation

• US 8,396,064 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2009
• Issued: 03/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Agere Systems Incorporated (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Giesberts, Pieter-Paul S., vanLeeuwen, Richard M.
• Primary Examiner(s): PARK, JUNG H
• Application Number:
  US12/367,224
• Publication Number:
  US 20090141723A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,495 Days
• Field of Search: 370/218, 370/225, 370/229, 370/230, 370/235, 370/252, 370/328, 370/329, 370/338, 370/349, 370/389, 370/392, 370/466, 340/310.11, 340/538
• US Class Current: 370/392
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/26 Special purpose or proprietary protocols or architectures network applications for proprietary or special purpose networking environments H04L67/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/323 in the physical layer [OSI layer 1]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/324 in the data link layer [OSI layer 2], e.g. HDLC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/06 Optimizing the usage of the radio link, e.g. header compression, information sizing , discarding information system modifying transmission characteristic according to link quality by modifying frame length H04L1/0007; dynamic adaptation of the packet size for flow control or congestion control H04L47/365
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A packet network employs frame aggregation to reduce the number of physical-layer frames employed to transfer a given amount of user data. A packet network might employ physical (PHY) and medium access control (MAC) layers of a wireless local area network (WLAN) operating in accordance with one or more IEEE 802.11 standards. Frame aggregation combines several separate, higher-layer frames with user data into one PHY-layer frame, thus increasing the amount of user data per PHY-layer frame transmitted. Frame aggregation improves the efficiency by reducing both PHY-layer overhead and MAC-layer overhead.

Claims

1. A sending device-implemented method of generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) the sending device associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

(b) the sending device generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

(c) the sending device forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer;

step (a) includes the step of the sending device grouping the one or more user data frames into a dummy frame as the aggregated data; and

step (b) comprises the step of the sending device adding the header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer to generate a sub-frame.

2. The invention as recited in claim 1, wherein step (b) further comprises the step of the sending device adding error detection/correction information to the dummy frame.

3. The invention as recited in claim 1, wherein step (c) includes the step of the sending device adding at least one of a preamble and a third layer header to the sub-frame.

4. The invention as recited in claim 1, wherein step (a) comprises the sending device associating two or more user frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer.

5. A sending device-implemented method of generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) the sending device associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

(b) the sending device generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

(c) the sending device forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer; and

step (b) includes the steps of (b1) the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by appending a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames into a dummy frame, and (b3) the sending device adding a dummy header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer.

6. The invention as recited in claim 5, wherein step (b1) further comprises the step of the sending device adding error detection/correction information to each sub-frame.

7. The invention as recited in claim 5, wherein step (b) further comprises the step of the sending device adding error detection/correction information to the dummy frame.

8. A sending device-implemented method of generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) the sending device associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

(b) the sending device generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

(c) the sending device forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer;

step (b) includes the step of the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame; and

step (c) includes the steps of (c1) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order, and (c2) the sending device adding a header to each sub-frame in accordance with the third layer.

9. The invention as recited in claim 8, wherein step (b) further comprises the step of the sending device adding error detection/correction information to each sub-frame.

10. A sending device-implemented method of generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) the sending device associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

(b) the sending device generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

(c) the sending device forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer; and

step (b) comprises the steps of (b1) the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order based on a transmission characteristic, and (b3) the sending device adding a descriptor to the grouped sub-frames.

11. The invention as recited in claim 10, wherein, for step (b3), the descriptor is an aggregate frame descriptor comprising an aggregate frame header indicating a type of frame, a number of sub-frames, and at least one sub-frame descriptor for the sub-frames.

12. The invention as recited in claim 11, wherein, for step (b3), the aggregate frame header comprises a frame control field indicating the type of frame is an aggregate frame.

13. The invention as recited in claim 11, wherein, for step (b3), the aggregate frame descriptor further comprises an error control field having error detection/correction information for the aggregate frame descriptor.

14. The invention as recited in claim 11, wherein, for step (b3), each sub-frame descriptor comprises an address corresponding to a receiving device for the associated sub-frame, and position information identifying a position of the associated sub-frame.

15. The invention as recited in claim 11, wherein, for step (b3), each sub-frame descriptor comprises an error control field having error detection/correction information for the corresponding sub-frame.

16. The invention as recited in claim 10, wherein step (b1) further comprises the step of the sending device adding error detection/correction information to each sub-frame.

17. The invention as recited in claim 10, wherein, in step (b2), the sending device groups the two or more sub-frames into sub-groups, each sub-group corresponding to a user data rate.

18. The invention as recited in claim 10, wherein, for step (b2), the transmission characteristic is at least one of a user data rate and a destination address.

19. Apparatus for generating a frame of aggregated data, the apparatus comprising:

a first circuit module adapted to associate one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

a second circuit module adapted to generate two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

a third circuit module adapted to form an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer;

the first circuit module is adapted to group the one or more user data frames into a dummy frame as the aggregated data; and

the second circuit module is adapted to add the header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer to generate a sub-frame.

20. The invention as recited in claim 19, wherein the first circuit module is adapted to associate two or more user frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer.

21. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method for generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

(b) generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

(c) forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer;

step (a) includes the step of the sending device grouping the one or more user data frames into a dummy frame as the aggregated data; and

step (b) comprises the step of the sending device adding the header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer to generate a sub-frame.

22. The invention as recited in claim 21, wherein step (a) comprises associating two or more user frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer.

23. A sending device-implemented method of generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) the sending device associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

(b) the sending device generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

(c) the sending device forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames,

wherein;

step (c) is performed in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer;

step (a) includes the step of the sending device grouping the one or more user data frames into a dummy frame as the aggregated data; and

step (b) comprises the step of the sending device adding the header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer to generate a sub-frame.

24. The invention as recited in claim 23, wherein, in step (a), the sending device associates the one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with at least one of i) a receiver address and ii) a data rate for each of the one or more user data frames.

25. The invention as recited in claim 24, wherein, in step (a), the sending device associates with the aggregated data the one or more user data frames having the same receiver address, and the method further comprises the step of (d) the sending device transmitting the aggregated frame over an uplink channel.

26. The invention as recited in claim 24, wherein, in step (a), the sending device associates with the aggregated data two or more user data frames with at least two different receiver addresses, and the method further comprises the step of (d) the sending device transmitting the aggregated frame over a downlink channel.

27. The invention as recited in claim 24, wherein, step (a) includes the step of the sending device selecting the one or more user data frames having the same receiver address and the same data rate.

28. The invention as recited in claim 24, wherein step (a) includes the step of the sending device selecting the one or more user data frames, where each data frame has a corresponding one of two or more receiver addresses and a corresponding one of two or more data rates.

29. The invention as recited in claim 23, wherein step (a) comprises the sending device associating two or more user frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats.

30. Apparatus for generating a frame of aggregated data, the apparatus comprising:

a first circuit module adapted to associate one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

a second circuit module adapted to generate two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

a third circuit module adapted to form an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames, in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer,

wherein;

the first circuit module is adapted to group the one or more user data frames into a dummy frame as the aggregated data; and

the second circuit module is adapted to add the header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer to generate a sub-frame.

31. The invention as recited in claim 30, wherein the first circuit module associates the one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with at least one of i) a receiver address and ii) a data rate for each of the one or more user data frames.

32. The invention as recited in claim 31, wherein the first circuit module associates with the aggregated data the one or more user data frames having the same receiver address, and the apparatus further comprises a transmitter adapted to transmit the aggregated frame over an uplink channel.

33. The invention as recited in claim 32, wherein the first circuit module associates with the aggregated data two or more user data frames with at least two different receiver addresses, and the apparatus further comprises a transmitter adapted to transmit the aggregated frame over a downlink channel.

34. The invention as recited in claim 30, wherein the first circuit module is adapted to associate two or more user frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats.

35. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method for generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

(b) generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

(c) forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames, in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer,

wherein;

step (a) includes the step of the sending device grouping the one or more user data frames into a dummy frame as the aggregated data; and

step (b) comprises the step of the sending device adding the header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer to generate a sub-frame.

36. The invention as recited in claim 35, wherein step (a) comprises associating two or more user frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats.

37. Apparatus for generating a frame of aggregated data, the apparatus comprising:

a first circuit module adapted to associate one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

a second circuit module adapted to generate two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

a third circuit module adapted to form an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer; and

the second circuit module is adapted to (b1) form two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by appending a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) group the two or more sub-frames into a dummy frame, and (b3) add a dummy header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer.

38. Apparatus for generating a frame of aggregated data, the apparatus comprising:

a first circuit module adapted to associate one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

a second circuit module adapted to generate two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

a third circuit module adapted to form an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer;

the second circuit module is adapted to form two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame; and

the third circuit module is adapted to (c1) group the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order, and (c2) add a header to each sub-frame in accordance with the third layer.

39. Apparatus for generating a frame of aggregated data, the apparatus comprising:

a first circuit module adapted to associate one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

a second circuit module adapted to generate two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

a third circuit module adapted to form an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer; and

the second circuit module is adapted to (b1) form two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device group the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order based on a transmission characteristic, and (b3) the sending device add a descriptor to the grouped sub-frames.

40. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method for generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

(b) generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

(c) forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer; and

step (b) includes the steps of (b1) the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by appending a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames into a dummy frame, and (b3) the sending device adding a dummy header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer.

41. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method for generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

(b) generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

(c) forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer;

step (b) includes the step of the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame; and

step (c) includes the steps of (c1) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order, and (c2) the sending device adding a header to each sub-frame in accordance with the third layer.

42. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method for generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data in accordance with a first layer;

(b) generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data, each sub-frame having a format in accordance with a second layer; and

(c) forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames in accordance with a third layer,

wherein;

the third layer is an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer; and

step (b) comprises the steps of (b1) the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order based on a transmission characteristic, and (b3) the sending device adding a descriptor to the grouped sub-frames.

43. A sending device-implemented method of generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) the sending device associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

(b) the sending device generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

(c) the sending device forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames,

wherein;

step (c) is performed in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer; and

step (b) includes the steps of (b1) the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by appending a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames into a dummy frame, and (b3) the sending device adding a dummy header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer.

44. A sending device-implemented method of generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) the sending device associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

(b) the sending device generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

(c) the sending device forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames,

wherein;

step (c) is performed in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer;

step (b) includes the step of the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame; and

step (c) includes the steps of (c1) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order, and (c2) the sending device adding a header to each sub-frame in accordance with the third layer.

45. A sending device-implemented method of generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) the sending device associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

(b) the sending device generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

(c) the sending device forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames,

wherein;

step (c) is performed in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer; and

step (b) comprises the steps of (b1) the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order based on a transmission characteristic, and (b3) the sending device adding a descriptor to the grouped sub-frames.

46. Apparatus for generating a frame of aggregated data, the apparatus comprising:

a first circuit module adapted to associate one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

a second circuit module adapted to generate two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

a third circuit module adapted to form an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames, in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer,

wherein the second circuit module is adapted to (b1) form two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by appending a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) group the two or more sub-frames into a dummy frame, and (b3) add a dummy header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer.

47. Apparatus for generating a frame of aggregated data, the apparatus comprising:

a first circuit module adapted to associate one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

a second circuit module adapted to generate two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

a third circuit module adapted to form an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames, in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer,

wherein;

the second circuit module is adapted to form two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame; and

the third circuit module is adapted to (c1) group the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order, and (c2) add a header to each sub-frame in accordance with the third layer.

48. Apparatus for generating a frame of aggregated data, the apparatus comprising:

a first circuit module adapted to associate one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

a second circuit module adapted to generate two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

a third circuit module adapted to form an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames, in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer,

wherein the second circuit module is adapted to (b1) form two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device group the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order based on a transmission characteristic, and (b3) the sending device add a descriptor to the grouped sub-frames.

49. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method for generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

(b) generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

(c) forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames, in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer,

wherein step (b) includes the steps of (b1) the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by appending a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames into a dummy frame, and (b3) the sending device adding a dummy header to the dummy frame in accordance with the second layer.

50. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method for generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

(b) generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

(c) forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames, in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer,

wherein;

step (b) includes the step of the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame; and

step (c) includes the steps of (c1) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order, and (c2) the sending device adding a header to each sub-frame in accordance with the third layer.

51. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method for generating a frame of aggregated data, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) associating one or more user data frames into aggregated user data based on one of a plurality of aggregation formats;

(b) generating two or more sub-frames from the aggregated user data by adding a header to each sub-frame of the aggregated data; and

(c) forming an aggregated frame from the two or more sub-frames, in accordance with an intermediate aggregation layer disposed either (i) between a medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, or (ii) between a logical link control (LLC) layer and a MAC layer,

wherein step (b) comprises the steps of (b1) the sending device forming two or more sub-frames from the one or more user data frames by adding a sub-frame header in accordance with the second layer to each corresponding user data frame, (b2) the sending device grouping the two or more sub-frames with a predefined order based on a transmission characteristic, and (b3) the sending device adding a descriptor to the grouped sub-frames.