US-20260129556-A1 - SIGNALING FOR TRANSMISSION MODES AMONG ACCESS POINTS

Abstract

This disclosure provides methods, components, devices and systems for signaling for transmission modes among access points (APs). Some aspects more specifically relate to signaling and physical layer protocol date unit (PPDU) formats for implementing coordinated communications among multiple APs, such as for one or more transmission modes, which may include a coordinated beamforming (COBF), a coordinated spatial reuse (C-SR), an interference mitigation (IM), or a vendor specific (VS) transmission mode. In some examples, a first AP may transmit first information in a first subset of bits of a universal signal (U-SIG) field, that indicates a transmission mode of the multiple transmission modes associated with a shared transmission opportunity (TXOP). Different subsets of bits within the U-SIG field may indicate the transmission mode of the shared TXOP and one or more associated parameters of one or both of the APs.

Inventors

• Jialing Li Chen
• Sameer Vermani
• Eugene Baik
• Bin Tian
• Youhan Kim

Assignees

• QUALCOMM INCORPORATED

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20251103

Claims (20)

1. 1 . A method for wireless communications at a first access point, comprising: identifying a first transmission mode of a plurality of transmission modes associated with a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission, the plurality of transmission modes comprising a coordinated beamforming transmission mode and a coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode; and transmitting first information in at least one of a first set of bits of a universal signal (U-SIG) field or one or more bits of a common field of an ultra-high reliability signal (UHR-SIG) of the PPDU, the first information indicating the first transmission mode of the plurality of transmission modes.
2. 2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises a first bit, and different combinations of bit values of the first bit and bit values of two bits of a PPDU Type And Compression Mode field jointly indicate the first transmission mode is the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode.
3. 3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein: the U-SIG field comprises a U-SIG-1 field and a U-SIG-2 field, and the first bit is bit B2 of the U-SIG-2 field.
4. 4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein: when an uplink/downlink bit in the U-SIG field has a first value and the PPDU Type And Compression Mode field has a first value, the first bit indicates either a single user transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode.
5. 5 . The method of claim 3 , wherein: when an uplink/downlink bit in the U-SIG field has a first value and the PPDU Type And Compression Mode field has a second value, the first bit indicates either a non-orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) multi-user (MU) multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) transmission mode or the coordinated beamforming transmission mode.
6. 6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the first set of bits of the U-SIG field, or two bits of the common field of the UHR-SIG, comprises a two bit subfield that indicates the first transmission mode is the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, and wherein a second set of bits of the U-SIG field or the common field of the UHR-SIG indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
7. 7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises a first bit that indicates whether one of the plurality of transmission modes is enabled, and a second set of bits in the common field of the UHR-SIG indicates the first transmission mode is the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, and a third set of bits of the U-SIG field or the common field of the UHR-SIG indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
8. 8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises first bit that indicates whether a coordinated transmission scheme is used and second bit that indicates whether coordinated beamforming or coordinated spatial reuse is used when the first bit indicates the coordinated transmission scheme, and a second set of bits of the U-SIG field indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming or coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or the second set of bits of the U-SIG field are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
9. 9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein: the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises a first bit that indicates whether a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) type and compression mode field is to be interpreted to indicate a transmission mode for the PPDU, where a first value of the first bit indicates that the PPDU type and compression mode field is to be interpreted according to a first interpretation that indicates an enhanced long range (ELR) transmission mode, and a second value of the first bit indicates that the PPDU type and compression mode field is to be interpreted to indicate one or more of a non-orthogonal frequency division multiple access coordinated beamforming transmission mode, a single user transmission mode with coordinated spatial reuse, or a single user transmission mode with interference mitigation, and a second set of bits of the U-SIG field indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or one or more interference mitigation parameters for an interference mitigation transmission mode, or are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
10. 10 . A method for wireless communications at a first access point, comprising: identifying a first transmission mode of a plurality of transmission modes associated with a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission, the plurality of transmission modes comprising a coordinated beamforming transmission mode and a coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode; and transmitting a transmission mode indicator in the PPDU, the transmission mode indicator including a first bit and a second bit of a universal signal (U-SIG) field and transmission mode information in a subfield of the U-SIG field, wherein: the transmission mode indicator indicates the first transmission mode, and the transmission mode information indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode.
11. 11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein: the first bit of the U-SIG field indicates whether the coordinated beamforming transmission mode is enabled or disabled for non-orthogonal frequency division multiple access (non-OFDMA) multi-user (MU) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communications or OFDMA communications, or whether the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode is enabled or disabled for single-user (SU) communications.
12. 12 . The method of claim 10 , wherein: at least one of the second bit of the U-SIG field, or one bit within a first portion of the U-SIG field (U-SIG-1) indicates whether an interference mitigation transmission mode is enabled or disabled, and when the interference mitigation transmission mode is enabled, one or more interference mitigation parameters are indicated in the U-SIG-1 using one or more disregard bits or validate bits, using one or more repurposed bits of a second portion of the U-SIG field (U-SIG-2), or using one or more disregard bits or repurposed bits of a common field of an ultra-high reliability signal (UHR-SIG).
13. 13 . An apparatus for wireless communication at a first access point, comprising: a processing system that includes processor circuitry and memory circuitry that stores code, the processing system configured to cause the first access point to: identify a first transmission mode of a plurality of transmission modes associated with a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission, the plurality of transmission modes comprising a coordinated beamforming transmission mode and a coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode; and transmit first information in at least one of a first set of bits of a universal signal (U-SIG) field or one or more bits of a common field of an ultra-high reliability signal (UHR-SIG) of the PPDU, the first information indicating the first transmission mode of the plurality of transmission modes.
14. 14 . The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises a one bit subfield that indicates whether the first transmission mode is the coordinated beamforming transmission mode in accordance with an uplink/downlink bit and a PPDU Type And Compression Mode field that jointly indicate a non-orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) multi-user (MU) multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) transmission or an OFDMA transmission, and wherein a second set of bits of the U-SIG field indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode, or reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
15. 15 . The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises a first bit, and different combinations of bit values of the first bit and a second bit in the U-SIG field or in the common field of the UHR-SIG indicates the first transmission mode is the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, and a second set of bits of the U-SIG field, or one or more bits of the common field of the UHR-SIG, indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
16. 16 . The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the first set of bits of the U-SIG field, or two bits of the common field of the UHR-SIG, comprises a two bit subfield that indicates the first transmission mode is the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, and wherein a second set of bits of the U-SIG field or the common field of the UHR-SIG indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
17. 17 . The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises a first bit that indicates whether one of the plurality of transmission modes is enabled, and a second set of bits in the common field of the UHR-SIG indicates the first transmission mode is the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, and a third set of bits of the U-SIG field or the common field of the UHR-SIG indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
18. 18 . The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises a two bit subfield that indicates the first transmission mode is the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, and a second set of bits of the common field of the UHR-SIG indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
19. 19 . The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises first bit that indicates whether a coordinated transmission scheme is used and second bit that indicates whether coordinated beamforming or coordinated spatial reuse is used when the first bit indicates the coordinated transmission scheme, and a second set of bits of the U-SIG field indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming or coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or the second set of bits of the U-SIG field are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.
20. 20 . The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the first set of bits of the U-SIG field comprises a first bit that indicates whether a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) type and compression mode field is to be interpreted to indicate a transmission mode for the PPDU, where a first value of the first bit indicates that the PPDU type and compression mode field is to be interpreted according to a first interpretation that indicates an enhanced long range (ELR) transmission mode, and a second value of the first bit indicates that the PPDU type and compression mode field is to be interpreted to indicate one or more of a non-orthogonal frequency division multiple access coordinated beamforming transmission mode, a single user transmission mode with coordinated spatial reuse, or a single user transmission mode with interference mitigation, and a second set of bits of the U-SIG field indicates either a first basic service set color of the first access point or a second basic service set color of a second access point for the coordinated beamforming transmission mode or the coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or are reserved bits defined as disregard bits or validate bits.

Description

CROSS REFERENCES The present Application for Patent claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Ser. No. 63/716,240 by CHEN et al., entitled “SIGNALING FOR TRANSMISSION MODES AMONG ACCESS POINTS,” filed Nov. 4, 2024, assigned to the assignee hereof, and expressly incorporated herein. TECHNICAL FIELD This disclosure relates generally to wireless communication and, more specifically, to signaling for transmission modes among access points. DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED TECHNOLOGY Wireless communication networks may include various types of wireless communication devices including network entities (such as wireless access points (AP) or base stations (BS)), client devices (such as wireless stations (STAs) or user equipment (UEs)), and other wireless nodes. These wireless communication devices may communicate with one another via a variety of technologies and wireless communication protocols, including wireless local area network (WLAN) or Wi-Fi-based protocols or cellular (such as 4G, 5G, or 6G)-based protocols. The wireless communication networks may be capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing the available system resources (such as time, frequency, and spatial resources). To enable features or provide improved performance, the wireless communication devices may employ technologies such as orthogonal frequency divisional multiple access (OFDMA), multi-user Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MU-MIMO), spatial multiplexing, and beamforming. For greater inter-operability, the wireless communication networks may support backwards compatibility (such as supporting legacy wireless communication devices) as well as forward compatibility (such as supporting communication with wireless communication devices compatible with next-generation wireless communication standards). SUMMARY The systems, methods, and devices of this disclosure each have several innovative aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible for the desirable attributes disclosed herein. One innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented in a method for wireless communications by a first access point. The method may include identifying a first transmission mode of a set of multiple transmission modes associated with a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission, the set of multiple transmission modes including two or more of a coordinated beamforming transmission mode, a coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or an interference mitigation transmission mode and transmitting first information in at least one of a first set of bits of a universal signal (U-SIG) field or one or more bits of a common field of an ultra-high reliability signal (UHR-SIG) of the PPDU, the first information indicating the first transmission mode of the set of multiple transmission modes. Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented in a first access point for wireless communications. The first access point may include a processing system that includes processor circuitry and memory circuitry that stores code. The processing system may be configured to cause the first access point to identify a first transmission mode of a set of multiple transmission modes associated with a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission, the set of multiple transmission modes including two or more of a coordinated beamforming transmission mode, a coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or an interference mitigation transmission mode and transmit first information in at least one of a first set of bits of a universal signal (U-SIG) field or one or more bits of a common field of an ultra-high reliability signal (UHR-SIG) of the PPDU, the first information indicating the first transmission mode of the set of multiple transmission modes. Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented in a first access point for wireless communications. The first access point may include means for identifying a first transmission mode of a set of multiple transmission modes associated with a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) transmission, the set of multiple transmission modes including two or more of a coordinated beamforming transmission mode, a coordinated spatial reuse transmission mode, or an interference mitigation transmission mode and means for transmitting first information in at least one of a first set of bits of a universal signal (U-SIG) field or one or more bits of a common field of an ultra-high reliability signal (UHR-SIG) of the PPDU, the first information indicating the first transmission mode of the set of multiple transmission modes. Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented in a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communications. The code may include instructions executable by one or more processors to identify a first tran