Access Point AP, Station STA, Communications System, and Data Transmission Method

• US 20170346608A1
• Filed: 08/11/2017
• Published: 11/30/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Li, Bo, Zuo, Xiaoya, Kong, Xueli
• Granted Patent: US 10,367,615 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0452 Multi-user MIMO systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/003 Arrangements for allocating sub-channels of the transmission path
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/04 Wireless resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0446 Resources in time domain, e.g. slots or frames
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/08 Non-scheduled access, e.g. ALOHA hybrid access H04W74/02

Abstract

A data transmission method includes sending, by a master station (STA), a request to send (RTX) to an access point (AP) in a same basic service set (BSS), which includes the AP and multiple STAs, and the master STA is a STA that is the first to obtain a channel by contention in the multiple STAs, instructing a surrounding STA to determine, according to conditions, whether to follow the master STA to send an RTX, where a STA following the master STA to send the RTX satisfies conditions that the STA has buffer data to be transmitted, the STA is in the same BSS as the master STA, and a power of a signal received from the master STA is greater than a preset threshold, and receiving response information from the AP to transmit uplink data on a specified sub-channel.

Claims

1. A station (STA), comprising:

a transmitter configured to;

send a first request to send (RTX) when the STA obtains at least one channel by contention; and

send a third RTX when the STA obtains, by listening, a second RTX from another STA obtaining at least one channel by contention,

wherein the other STA satisfies following conditions, and

wherein the following conditions comprise;

the STA has buffer data to be transmitted;

the STA is in a same basic service set (BSS) as the STA obtaining the at least one channel by contention; and

a power of a signal received from the STA obtaining the at least one channel by contention is greater than a preset threshold; and

a receiver coupled to the transmitter and configured to receive response information from an access point (AP), and wherein the response information can be used to schedule the STA to transmit data on a specified sub-channel.

2. The STA according to claim 1, wherein the first RTX, the second RTX, or the third RTX comprises buffer data information and information about the BSS to which the STA sending the first RTX, the second RTX, or the third RTX belongs, wherein the BSS information identifies, by another receiving node, whether a receiving node is in the same BSS as the STA sending the first RTX or the second RTX, and wherein the buffer data information comprises a length and a type of data needing to be sent by the STA sending the first RTX, the second RTX, or the third RTX.

3. The STA according to claim 1, wherein the first RTX or the second RTX comprises a STA number and a sub-channel number, wherein the STA number specifies a corresponding follower STA to access a sub-channel, wherein the sub-channel number specifies a sub-channel that the corresponding follower STA accesses, wherein the STA number is in one-to-one correspondence with the sub-channel number, and wherein the follower STA is a STA satisfying the following conditions.

4. The STA according to claim 1, wherein the first RTX, the second RTX, or the third RTX is sent in a manner of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing access (OFDMA) or multi user multiple-input multiple-output (MU-MIMO).

5. The STA according to claim 1, wherein the first RTX or the second RTX further comprises access manner indication information, wherein the access manner indication information instructs a follower STA to perform access in a manner of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing access (OFDMA) or uplink multi user multiple-input multiple-output (UL MU-MIMO), and wherein the follower STA is a STA satisfying the following conditions.

6. The STA according to claim 1, wherein the STA further comprises a processor coupled to the receiver and the transmitter, wherein the first RTX, the second RTX, or the third RTX uses an RTX frame structure, wherein the processor is configured to:

determine whether a frame length of the first RTX or the third RTX is the same as a preset frame length; and

enable, in a manner of bit stuffing, the frame length of the first RTX or the third RTX to reach the preset frame length when the frame length of the first RTX or the third RTX is less than the preset frame length.

7. The STA according to claim 6, wherein the processor is further configured to select a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) according to the preset frame length.

8. The STA according to claim 1, wherein when the STA obtains the second RTX from the other STA and when the other STA satisfies the following conditions, the transmitter is further configured to randomly selects a sub-channel to transmit the third RTX.

9. An access point (AP), comprising:

a receiver configured to;

receive a request to send (RTX) from a master station (STA) in a same basic service set (BSS) as the AP,

wherein the master STA is a STA obtaining at least one channel by contention in the BSS; and

receive an RTX from a follower STA of the master STA,

wherein the follower STA satisfies conditions as follows;

the follower STA has buffer data to be transmitted;

the follower STA is in the same BSS as the master STA; and

a power of a signal received from the master STA is greater than a preset threshold; and

a transmitter coupled to the receiver and configured to send response information after RTXs from the master STA and the follower STA of the master STA are received.

10. The AP according to claim 9, wherein the response information uses a clear to send (CTX) frame structure, wherein the response information comprises a STA number and a sub-channel number, wherein the STA number specifies a corresponding STA to access a sub-channel, wherein the sub-channel number specifies a sub-channel that the corresponding STA accesses, and wherein the STA number is in one-to-one correspondence with the sub-channel number.

11. The AP according to claim 9, further comprising a processor coupled to the receiver and the transmitter, wherein the RTXs from the master STA and the follower STA comprise buffer data information, wherein the processor is configured to:

allocate sub-channels to the master STA and the follower STA according to the buffer data information of the master STA and the follower STA;

or

allocate sub-channels to the follower STA and the master STA according to a number of a sub-channel on which the follower STA sends the RTX.

12. The AP according to claim 9, wherein the receiver is further configured to receive data from the master STA and the follower STA of the master STA on specified sub-channels, and wherein the transmitter is further configured to send acknowledgement messages to the master STA and the follower STA of the master STA after the data from the master STA and the follower STA of the master STA is received.

13. A data transmission method, comprising:

sending, by a station (STA) obtaining at least one channel by contention in a basic service set (BSS), a request to send (RTX);

or

sending the RTX when the STA obtains, by listening, an RTX from another STA obtaining at least one channel by contention and the other STA satisfies following conditions,

wherein the BSS comprises an access point (AP) and a plurality of STAs,

wherein the following conditions comprise;

the STA has buffer data to be transmitted;

the STA is in a same BSS as a master STA; and

a power of a signal received from the master STA is greater than a preset threshold; and

receiving, by the STA sending the RTX, response information from the AP to transmit data on a sub-channel specified in the response information.

14. The data transmission method according to claim 13, wherein the RTX from the STA comprises buffer data information and information about the BSS to which the STA belongs, wherein the BSS information identifies, by another receiving node, whether a receiving node is in the same BSS as the STA, and wherein the buffer data information comprises a length and a type of data needing to be sent by the STA.

15. The data transmission method according to claim 13, wherein the RTX from the STA comprises a STA number and a sub-channel number, wherein the STA number specifies a corresponding follower STA to access a sub-channel, wherein the sub-channel number specifies a sub-channel that the corresponding follower STA accesses, wherein the STA number is in one-to-one correspondence with the sub-channel number, and wherein the follower STA is a STA satisfying the following conditions.

16. The data transmission method according to claim 13, wherein the RTX is sent in a manner of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing access (OFDMA) or multi user multiple-input multiple-output (MU-MIMO).

17. The data transmission method according to claim 13, wherein the RTX from the STA further comprises access manner indication information, and wherein the access manner indication information is used to instruct the STA to perform access in a manner of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing access (OFDMA) or uplink multi user multiple-input multiple-output (UL MU-MIMO).

18. A data transmission method, comprising:

receiving a request to send (RTX) from a master station (STA) in a same basic service set (BSS) as an access point (AP),

wherein the master STA is a STA obtaining at least one channel by contention in the BSS;

receiving another RTX from a follower STA of the master STA,

wherein the follower STA satisfies conditions as follows;

the follower STA has buffer data to be transmitted;

the follower STA is in the same BSS as the master STA; and

a power of a signal received from the master STA is greater than a preset threshold; and

sending response information after RTXs from the master STA and the follower STA of the master STA are received.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the response information uses a clear to send (CTX) frame structure, wherein the response information comprises a STA number and a sub-channel number, wherein the STA number specifies a corresponding STA to access a sub-channel, wherein the sub-channel number specifies a sub-channel that the corresponding STA accesses, and wherein the STA number is in one-to-one correspondence with the sub-channel number.

20. The method according to claim 18, further comprising:

receiving data from the master STA and the follower STA of the master STA on specified sub-channels; and

sending acknowledgement messages to the master STA and the follower STA of the master STA after the data from the master STA and the follower STA of the master STA is received.