CN112714496B

CN112714496B - Wireless local area network communication method, controller and access point

Info

Publication number: CN112714496B
Application number: CN201911025948.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 桑燃; 王云贵
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-10-25
Filing date: 2019-10-25
Publication date: 2023-04-07
Anticipated expiration: 2039-10-25
Also published as: WO2021078011A1; CN112714496A

Abstract

The application discloses a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) communication method, a controller and an Access Point (AP), which are used for realizing dynamic allocation of channel resources in the WLAN. The method comprises the following steps: the controller allocates each sub-channel in the group working channel corresponding to the AP device group according to the channel arrangement according to the channel access requirement of the AP device group, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate a sub-channel available to an AP in the AP device group in a first time period, and after the controller obtains the updated channel access requirement, the controller allocates the sub-channel in the group working channel to the AP device group according to the updated channel arrangement according to the updated channel access requirement, where the updated channel arrangement is used to indicate a channel available to an AP in the AP device group in a second time period, so that the controller dynamically allocates channel resources corresponding to the AP device group in the first time period and the second time period, that is, dynamically allocates channel resources in the WLAN by the controller.

Description

Wireless local area network communication method, controller and access point

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to the field of wireless local area networks, and in particular, to a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) communication method, a controller, and an Access Point (AP).

Background

In order to meet the requirement of the enterprise on the WLAN coverage, as shown in fig. 1, a network structure of the WLAN may be set as a wireless controller 101 and a plurality of Access Points (APs) 102 connected to the wireless controller 101. In addition, the network structure of the WLAN may also be set as shown in fig. 2, in which a Remote Radio Unit (RRU) 103 is connected to each central AP 102.

Bandwidths of 20 megahertz (MHz), 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, or more, for communication may generally be used in WLANs. The bandwidths of 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, etc. are obtained by combining a plurality of bandwidths of 20MHz.

Neighboring APs occupy different channels to reduce interference. E.g., neighboring APs occupy different 20MHz bandwidths. Due to the large number of channels in the 20MHz bandwidth, APs using the same channel are not neighbors. Therefore, the distance between the APs using the same channel is large, and mutual interference is small or is not mutually interfered. However, in the above deployment, each AP can only use 20MHz bandwidth resources, and the transmission rate is low. If an emergency with a large amount of transmitted data occurs, the AP takes a long time to complete the transmission.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides a WLAN communication method, a controller and an AP, which are used for realizing dynamic allocation of channel resources in a WLAN.

The first aspect of the present application provides a WLAN communication method, which may be applied to a controller in a WLAN, where one end of the controller is connected to a WLAN cloud network, and the other end of the controller is connected to an AP device group, so as to implement communication between a STA associated with each AP in the AP device group and the WLAN cloud network. The method comprises the steps that in the process of channel resource allocation of a WLAN (wireless local area network), a controller can obtain channel access requirements of an AP (access point) device group, the AP device group comprises at least two APs, the working channel of the AP with the largest working channel bandwidth in the AP device group is the group working channel of the AP device group, the bandwidth of the group working channel is at least 40MHz, the working channel of any one AP in the AP device group is the same as or in the group working channel, and main channels of the working channels of at least two APs in the AP device group are different; then, the controller allocates each sub-channel in the group working channel to at least one AP in the AP device group according to a channel arrangement according to the channel access requirement of the AP device group, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate the sub-channels available to the APs in the AP device group in the first time period, the channel arrangement may include allocation of the available sub-channels to one or more APs, and any two APs in the channel arrangement are allocated different sub-channels, and in addition, each AP in the channel arrangement is allocated a sub-channel including a main channel in the working channels corresponding to each AP, each AP in the AP device group is allocated a sub-channel within the working channels corresponding to each AP, and if the channel arrangement includes the arrangement of more than one AP, the main channels of the working channels of any two APs in the channel arrangement are different; after the controller obtains the channel access requirement of the AP device group, the controller obtains an updated channel access requirement of the AP device group, and then the controller allocates the sub-channels in the group working channel to at least one AP in the AP device group according to the updated channel access requirement, wherein the updated channel arrangement is used for indicating channels available to the APs in the AP device group in the second time period, and the working channels of the APs in the AP device group are kept unchanged in the first time period and the second time period.

Therefore, the controller allocates each sub-channel in the group working channel corresponding to the AP device group according to the channel arrangement according to the channel access requirement of the AP device group, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate a sub-channel available to an AP in the AP device group in the first time period, and after the controller obtains the updated channel access requirement, the controller allocates a sub-channel in the group working channel to the AP device group according to the updated channel arrangement according to the updated channel access requirement, where the updated channel arrangement is used to indicate a channel available to an AP in the AP device group in the second time period, so that the controller dynamically allocates channel resources corresponding to the AP device group in the first time period and the second time period, that is, dynamically allocates channel resources in the WLAN by the controller.

Based on the first aspect of the present application, in a first possible implementation manner of the first aspect of the present application, the number of APs in the AP device group is the same as the number of sub-channels included in the group working channel, and the main channels of the working channels of any two APs in the AP device group are different. Each sub-channel included in the group working channel corresponds to the main channel of the working channel of each AP in the AP device group, so that the main channels of the working channels of each AP in the AP device group are staggered, and can operate independently without interfering with each other, thereby improving the utilization efficiency of the group working channels. On the premise of ensuring that the main channels of the working channels of all the APs are staggered, the number of sub-channels included in the group working channel is the upper limit of the number of APs in the AP device group. Thus, the group of AP devices in an implementation can accommodate the maximum number of APs that can operate arbitrarily and independently.

Based on the first aspect of the present application or the first possible implementation manner of the first aspect, in a second possible implementation manner of the first aspect of the present application, the controller sends the channel arrangement or the portion corresponding to each AP in the channel arrangement to a corresponding AP in the AP device group, so that each AP in the AP device group can process a service using a channel resource corresponding to each AP in the first time period according to the channel arrangement. The controller may further send the updated channel arrangement or the portion of the updated channel arrangement corresponding to each AP to the corresponding AP in the AP device group, so that each AP in the AP device group may process the service using the channel resources corresponding to each AP in the second time period according to the updated channel arrangement, and implement processing in which each AP implements the service through dynamic allocation of the channel resources.

A second aspect of the present application provides a WLAN communication method applicable to an AP in a WLAN, wherein the AP receives a first indication from a controller, the first indication indicating a first channel arrangement, the first channel arrangement being a sub-channel available to the AP for a first time period, a bandwidth of an operating channel of the AP being at least 40mhz, a main channel of the operating channel of the AP being included in the first channel arrangement, and the sub-channel available to the AP for the first time period indicated by the first channel arrangement being within the operating channel of the AP; thereafter, the AP receives a second indication from the controller, the second indication indicating a second channel schedule, the second channel schedule being a sub-channel available to the AP for a second time period, a primary channel of an operating channel of the AP being included in the second channel schedule, and the sub-channel indicated by the second channel schedule that is available to the AP for the first time period is also within the operating channel of the AP, and further, the second channel schedule is different from the first channel schedule, but the operating channel of the AP remains unchanged for the first time period and the second time period. The working channel of the AP refers to the access capability of the AP, that is, the maximum channel resource that the AP can use, and the AP receives, from the first indication and the second indication sent by the controller, the first indication includes a subchannel that the AP can use in the first time period, the second indication includes a subchannel that the AP can use in the second time period, and the second channel arrangement is different from the first channel arrangement, so that the AP can determine the subchannels that can be used in the first time period and the second time period according to the indication of the controller, and dynamic allocation of the channel resource by the controller is achieved.

Based on the second aspect of the present application, in a first implementation manner of the second aspect of the present application, if the first channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable subchannel in the working channel of the AP, when the AP sends a WLAN signal in the first time period, the AP performs puncturing on the unavailable subchannel in the working channel of the AP, that is, when the AP determines that the available subchannel is not the working channel of the AP according to the first channel arrangement, and subsequently the AP sends the WLAN signal in the first time period to perform processing on traffic data, the unavailable subchannel in the working channel of the AP performs puncturing processing, so that APs with different available subchannels can transmit data in parallel in the first time period without interfering with each other, and at the same time, a channel puncturing mechanism is used to enable a channel with discontinuous bandwidth to also perform channel bonding and further transmit data; similarly, if the second channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, the AP performs puncturing on the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when transmitting the WLAN signal in the second time period, so that APs with different available sub-channels can transmit data in parallel without interfering with each other in the second time period.

Based on the second aspect of the present application or the first possible implementation manner of the second aspect, in a second possible implementation manner of the second aspect of the present application, if the first channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, when the AP sends a first trigger frame to a station STA associated with the AP within a first time period, a puncturing indication for the STA is set in the first trigger frame, where the puncturing indication is used to indicate that the STA performs puncturing processing on the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when sending an uplink signal based on the first trigger frame, so that the AP does not interfere with other APs when processing the uplink signal sent by the STA associated with the AP within the first time period. Similarly, if the second channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, when the AP transmits a second trigger frame to the STA associated with the AP within a second time period, a puncturing indication for the STA is set in the second trigger frame, where the puncturing indication is used to indicate that the STA performs puncturing on the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when transmitting an uplink signal based on the second trigger frame, so that the AP does not interfere with other APs when processing the uplink signal transmitted by the STA associated with the AP within the second time period.

Based on the second aspect of the present application, the first possible implementation manner of the second aspect of the present application, or the second possible implementation manner of the second aspect of the present application, in a third possible implementation manner of the second aspect of the present application, the AP sends a buffer status report or a summary of the buffer status reports of the STAs associated with the AP to the controller. The buffer status report or the summary of the buffer status report of the STA associated with the AP may be used as a basis or one of bases for the controller to determine the channel access requirement of the AP, so that the controller may implement dynamic allocation of channel resources according to the channel access requirement.

A third aspect of the present application provides a controller having functionality to implement the method of the first aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect. The function can be realized by hardware, and can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions, such as: the device comprises an acquisition unit, a distribution unit and a sending unit.

A fourth aspect of the present application provides an AP having functionality to implement the method of any one of the second or second possible implementations described above. The function can be realized by hardware, and can also be realized by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions, such as: the device comprises a receiving unit, a processing unit and a sending unit.

A fifth aspect of the present application provides a controller comprising a processor, a memory; the memory is used for storing programs; the processor is configured to execute a program to implement the method according to the first aspect or any one of the possible implementation manners of the first aspect.

A sixth aspect of the present application provides an AP comprising a processor, a memory; the memory is used for storing programs; the processor is configured to execute a program to implement the method according to the second aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the second aspect.

A seventh aspect of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium storing one or more computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, perform a method as described in the first aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect.

An eighth aspect of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium storing one or more computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, perform a method as described in the second aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the second aspect.

A ninth aspect of the present application provides a computer program product (or computer program) storing one or more computers, which when executed by the processor performs the method of the first aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect.

A tenth aspect of the present application provides a computer program product storing one or more computers which, when executed by a processor, performs the method of any one of the possible implementations of the second aspect or the second aspect.

An eleventh aspect of the present application provides a chip system, which includes a processor for enabling a controller to implement the functions recited in the first aspect or any one of the possible implementation manners of the first aspect. In one possible design, the system-on-chip may further include a memory, the memory being used to hold program instructions and data necessary for the controller. The chip system may be formed by a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

A twelfth aspect of the present application provides a chip system, which includes a processor, and is configured to enable an AP to implement the functions recited in the second aspect or any one of the possible implementations of the second aspect. In one possible design, the system-on-chip may further include a memory, the memory being configured to store program instructions and data necessary for the AP. The chip system may be constituted by a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

For technical effects brought by any one of the third, fifth, seventh, ninth and eleventh aspects or any one of the possible implementation manners, reference may be made to technical effects brought by different possible implementation manners of the first aspect or the first aspect, and details are not described herein again.

For example, the technical effect brought by the fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth aspects or any one of possible implementation manners of the fourth, sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth aspects may refer to the technical effect brought by the second aspect or different possible implementation manners of the second aspect, and details are not described here.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a network structure of a WLAN in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is another schematic diagram of a network structure of a WLAN in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 3 is another schematic diagram of a network structure of a WLAN in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a WLAN communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is another schematic diagram of a WLAN communication method in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is another schematic diagram of a WLAN communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is another schematic diagram of a WLAN communication method in the embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a controller in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an AP according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 10 is another schematic diagram of a controller in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is another diagram of an AP in the embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

Referring to fig. 1, in order to meet the requirement of an enterprise on the coverage of a WLAN, a network structure of the WLAN may be set as a wireless controller 101 and a plurality of APs 102 connected to the wireless controller 101, where the APs serve as access points of stations STA to implement network communication of the STA. In addition, based on the network architecture of fig. 1, the network structure of the WLAN may also be set as shown in fig. 2, in which each central AP102 is connected to an RRU103, and at this time, the RRU is used as an access point of a station STA to implement network communication of the STA. For example, in the specific implementation process of the network architecture in fig. 1 and fig. 2, reference may be made to fig. 3, where both an AP and an RRU may serve as a network access device 301 directly connected to an STA, and a plurality of network access devices 301 are in a continuous networking form in a geographic location, for example, in an enterprise network configuration, one network access device 301 is arranged every 10-20 meters (m) to implement network access of each STA.

Generally, a WLAN can communicate using a bandwidth of 20MHz, 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, or more. The large bandwidths such as 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, etc. are obtained by combining a plurality of 20MHz bandwidths. When there is more than one AP in the network structure of the WLAN and there is available channel resource with large bandwidth, the allocation of the channel bandwidth resource can be generally implemented by the controller, that is, the allocation of the large bandwidth resource is implemented by the pre-configuration of the controller.

For example, the controller may set a network among multiple APs to be deployed in a bandwidth monopolizing manner, that is, the controller configures each channel only to a certain AP as a working channel of the AP, that is, each AP occupies a different 20MHz bandwidth, so that data transmission of STAs (including STAs directly accessing the AP and STAs accessing the AP through the RRU) that access different APs does not interfere with each other. However, in the above deployment, each AP can only use 20MHz bandwidth resources, and the transmission rate is low. If an emergency with a large amount of data to be transmitted occurs, the AP takes a long time to complete the transmission. Therefore, the embodiment of the application provides a WLAN communication method, a controller and an AP, which are used for realizing dynamic allocation of channel resources in a WLAN. The WLAN communication method, controller, and AP in the present application will be described with specific embodiments.

Referring to fig. 4, an embodiment of a WLAN communication method in the embodiment of the present application includes:

401. the controller obtains channel access requirements for the group of AP devices.

In this embodiment, in the process of allocating channel resources by the WLAN, the controller may obtain channel access requirements of an AP device group, where the AP device group includes at least two APs, that is, the controller obtains the channel access requirements of each AP in the AP device group.

The method for the controller to obtain the channel access requirement of the AP device group may be that the controller actively obtains feature information of each AP in the AP device group as the channel access requirement of the AP device group, where the feature information may include historical traffic information of the AP, downlink queue information of the AP, priority identifier of the AP, and/or interaction information between the APs, or may be that each AP in the AP device group sends status information to the controller, and the controller determines the channel access requirement of each AP in the AP device group according to the status information, where the status information may include uplink queue information of the AP, resource request of the AP, and/or a buffer status report of an STA associated with the AP or a summary of the buffer status report.

The AP operating channel with the largest bandwidth of the operating channels in the AP device group is a group operating channel of the AP device group, where the bandwidth of the group operating channel is at least 40MHz, that is, the AP device group includes a large bandwidth resource, and the group operating channel of the AP device group may be 40MHz, 80MHz, 160MHz, or greater. The working channel of any one AP in the AP device group is the same as the group working channel or within the group working channel, and the main channels of the working channels of at least two APs in the AP device group are different.

It is here exemplified that the group of AP devices includes n APs (i.e., APs 1., apns) whose group operating channel is (m × 20) MHz (i.e., channel 1., channel m), and in the n APs, the operating channel of each AP includes one or more of channel 1 to channel n, i.e., the bandwidth of the operating channel of each AP is 20MHz.. Or (m × 20) MHz, and wherein the operating channel of at least one AP among the n APs is (m × 20) MHz. In addition, each AP depends on the main channel of each AP when operating, that is, the operating channel of each AP must include the main channel corresponding to each AP, so that in order to implement dynamic allocation of channel bandwidth among multiple APs, the main channels of the operating channels of at least two APs in the AP device group are different, thereby implementing dynamic allocation of the at least two APs in subsequent steps.

402. The controller allocates the sub-channels in the group operating channel to at least one AP in the AP device group in accordance with the channel scheduling according to the channel access requirements.

In this embodiment, the controller allocates each sub-channel in the group operating channel to at least one AP in the AP device group according to the channel arrangement according to the channel access requirement of the AP device group obtained in step 401, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate sub-channels available to the APs in the AP device group in the first time period, the channel arrangement may include allocation of available sub-channels to one or more APs, and sub-channels allocated to any two APs in the channel arrangement are different. Specifically, the channel access requirement may indicate a channel access requirement of each AP in the first time period, so that the channel arrangement in the first time period may be determined according to the channel access requirement.

As can be seen from the foregoing, the group operating channel is at least 40MHz, that is, the number of channels of the group operating channel is at least two, at this time, the channel is arranged to indicate the correspondence relationship between the sub-channels in the group operating channel and at least one AP, that is, the sub-channels in the group operating channel are only used by one AP in the first time period, and the other APs cannot use the sub-channels in the first time period, so that, in the channel arrangement, the sub-channels allocated to any two APs are different.

The AP depends on the main channel of each AP when operating, that is, the operating channel of each AP must include the main channel corresponding to each AP, so that the sub-channel allocated to each AP in the channel arrangement includes the main channel in the operating channels corresponding to each AP, and the sub-channel allocated to each AP in the AP device group is in the operating channel corresponding to each AP, that is, the sub-channel allocated to each AP is included in the operating channel of each AP.

Furthermore, since the main channel of the working channel of each AP is also included in the group of working channels, the main channel of the working channel of each AP can only be used by one AP during the first time period, that is, if there are two APs in the AP device group whose main channels of the working channels are the same, the channel schedule indicates that only one of the APs can use the main channel during the first time period, so that if the channel schedule includes a schedule for more than one AP, the main channels of the working channels of any two APs in the channel schedule are also different. Based on this, the AP in the AP device group that is not allocated an available sub-channel by the channel arrangement cannot transmit traffic data in the group of operating channels during the first time period.

403. The controller obtains updated channel access requirements for the group of AP devices.

In this embodiment, after the controller obtains the channel access requirement of the AP device group in step 401, the controller obtains an updated channel access requirement of the AP device group, where the updated channel access requirement may indicate the channel access requirement of each AP in the second time period.

As mentioned above, there are various ways for the controller to obtain the channel access requirement, for example, the controller may actively obtain the updated channel access requirement, or the controller may determine the updated channel access requirement by receiving data sent by each AP, which is not limited herein.

404. The controller allocates the sub-channels in the group operating channel to at least one AP in the AP device group according to the updated channel arrangement based on the updated channel access requirements.

In this embodiment, the controller allocates the sub-channels in the group working channel to at least one AP in the AP device group according to the updated channel arrangement obtained in step 403, where the updated channel arrangement is used to indicate channels available to the APs in the AP device group in the second time period, and the working channels of the APs in the AP device group remain unchanged in the first time period and the second time period.

Specifically, the first time period and the second time period may be the same time period, for example, after step 402, before the current time does not reach the starting time of the first time period, when the controller determines that the channel arrangement in step 402 needs to be adjusted according to the updated channel access requirement in the AP device group, step 404 is executed to update the available sub-channels of each AP in the AP device group in the first time period; in addition, the first time period and the second time period may also be different time periods, for example, the starting time of the second time period may be after the starting time of the first time period, after step 402, when the current time is after the starting time of the first time period and before the ending time of the first time period, and when the controller determines that the channel schedule in step 402 needs to be adjusted according to the updated channel access requirement in the AP device group, step 404 is performed to update available sub-channels of the APs in the AP device group in the second time period, where the first time period and the second time period may also be in other relationships, which is not limited herein.

As a preferable scheme, the first time period and the second time period may be different successive time periods in the period conversion process, for example, if the period is T (0.0001 second, 0.001 second, 0.02 second, or other time periods), the first time period may indicate a time period from time (n-1) T to time nT, and the second time period may indicate a time period from time nT to time (n + 1) T, so that the execution processes of step 401 and step 403 may also be that the controller periodically obtains the channel access requirement of each AP in the AP device group.

It should be noted that the working channel of each AP in the AP device group may be a working channel pre-allocated by the controller for each AP when the controller first accesses each AP, or the controller may further adjust the working channel according to the obtained control policy, in this embodiment of the application, for the purpose of implementing dynamic adjustment of channel resources, to reduce the influence on the STA in the channel resource adjustment process, a time interval between the first time period and the second time period may be a shorter time interval (for example, 100ms, 200ms, or another time interval), and therefore, the working channel of each AP in the AP device group is kept unchanged within the shorter time interval, that is, within the first time period and the second time period.

In this embodiment, the controller allocates each sub-channel in the group working channel corresponding to the AP device group according to the channel arrangement according to the channel access requirement of the AP device group, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate a sub-channel available to an AP in the AP device group in a first time period, and after the controller acquires an updated channel access requirement, the controller allocates a sub-channel in the group working channel to the AP device group according to the updated channel arrangement according to the updated channel access requirement, where the updated channel arrangement is used to indicate a channel available to an AP in the AP device group in a second time period, so that the controller dynamically allocates channel resources corresponding to the AP device group in the first time period and the second time period, that is, dynamic allocation of the controller to channel resources in the WLAN is implemented.

Based on the embodiment shown in fig. 4, in particular in the implementation process of the solution, the solution may be further optimally defined.

In a possible implementation manner, the number of APs in the AP device group is the same as the number of sub-channels included in the group operating channel of the AP device group, and the main channels of the operating channels of any two APs in the AP device group are different. On the premise of ensuring that the main channels of the working channels of all the APs are staggered, the number of sub-channels included in the group working channel is the upper limit of the number of APs in the AP device group. Thus, the group of AP devices in an implementation can accommodate the maximum number of APs that can operate arbitrarily and independently. Specifically, each sub-channel included in the group working channel is correspondingly set as a main channel of the working channel of each AP in the AP device, so that the main channels of the working channels of each AP in the AP device are staggered, the AP devices can operate independently without interfering with each other, and the utilization efficiency of the group working channels is improved.

As can be seen from the foregoing, each AP depends on the main channel of each AP when operating, that is, the operating channel of each AP must include the main channel corresponding to each AP, and because the channel arrangement in step 402 and the channel arrangement updated in step 404 allow the sub-channels of the group operating channel to be used by only one AP in the first time period or the second time period, in order to improve the resource utilization efficiency of the group operating channel by the AP device group, the number of APs in the AP device group may be set to be the same as the number of sub-channels included in the group operating channel of the AP device group, and the main channels of the operating channels of any two APs in the AP device group are different, so that, when each AP in the AP device group has important data to perform WLAN transmission processing, the controller may correspondingly allocate the sub-channels in the group operating channel to each AP, so that each AP in the AP device group may use the main channel, thereby avoiding a WLAN scenario in which a plurality of APs having the same main channel cannot use in a certain time period.

In addition, the number of APs in the AP device group and the group operating channel of the AP device group may also have other size relationships, for example, if the number of APs in the AP device group is smaller than the group operating channel of the AP device group, the main channels of the APs may also be staggered to avoid mutual influence; if the number of APs in the AP device group is greater than the group operating channel of the AP device group, it is necessary that the main channels of at least two APs are the same, and at this time, the channel arrangement and/or the updated channel arrangement only indicate that only one of the at least two APs having the same main channel can process traffic in the WLAN.

In one possible implementation, after step 402, the controller may send the channel arrangement or the portion of the channel arrangement corresponding to each AP to a corresponding AP in the AP device group, so that each AP in the AP device group may process traffic in the WLAN using the channel resources corresponding to each AP in a first time period according to the channel arrangement, and similarly, after step 404, the controller sends the updated channel arrangement or the portion of the updated channel arrangement corresponding to each AP to a corresponding AP in the AP device group, so that each AP in the AP device group may process traffic using the channel resources corresponding to each AP in a second time period according to the updated channel arrangement, so that each AP realizes the processing of traffic through the dynamic allocation of the channel resources. Furthermore, as a preferred embodiment, the controller may be implemented by multiple transmission manners, for example, if it indicates that there is an AP with a subchannel available in the AP device group in the first time period in the channel arrangement, at this time, the controller may transmit the entire channel arrangement or the content of the channel arrangement including the subchannel available in the corresponding AP to the corresponding AP, so that the AP knows that the AP uses the WLAN on the available channel in the first time period; if the channel arrangement indicates that there is an AP with no available sub-channel in the AP device group in the first time period, at this time, the controller may also send the channel arrangement to the AP, or send no channel arrangement to the AP in a preset time period in a preset manner, so that the AP knows that the AP cannot use the WLAN without an available channel in the first time period.

A WLAN communication method in the present application is described above from the perspective of a controller, and is described below from the perspective of an AP. Referring to fig. 5, another embodiment of a WLAN communication method in the embodiment of the present application includes:

501. the AP receives a first indication from the controller.

In this embodiment, the AP receives a first indication from the controller, where the first indication is used to indicate a first channel arrangement, the first channel arrangement is a sub-channel available to the AP in a first time period, a bandwidth of an operating channel of the AP is at least 40mhz, and a main channel of the operating channel of the AP is included in the first channel arrangement, that is, the first channel arrangement is included in the operating channel of the AP, that is, the operating channel of the AP or the operating channel of the AP, and the AP depends on the main channel of the AP when operating, so that the first channel arrangement also includes the main channel of the operating channel of the AP.

Specifically, referring to the implementation procedure of the controller in the embodiment shown in fig. 4, here, the controller may connect to an AP device group, where the AP device group includes at least two APs, and after the controller determines a channel arrangement according to channel access requirements of the AP device group, a sub-channel available to any one AP indicated in the channel arrangement may be sent to a corresponding AP as a first channel arrangement included in the first indication, so that the AP acquires the sub-channel available in the first time period.

502. The AP receives a second indication from the controller.

In this embodiment, after step 501, the AP receives a second indication from the controller, where the second indication is used to indicate a second channel schedule, the second channel schedule is a sub-channel available to the AP in a second time period, the second channel schedule includes a main channel of a working channel of the AP, and the sub-channel available to the AP in the first time period, which is indicated by the second channel schedule, is also in the working channel of the AP, that is, the second channel schedule is different from the first channel schedule, so that the AP may determine the sub-channel available in the first time period and the second time period according to the indication of the controller, and implement dynamic allocation of channel resources by the controller.

The working channel of the AP refers to the access capability of the AP, that is, the maximum channel resource that the AP can use, and the AP receives, from the first indication and the second indication sent by the controller, the first indication includes a subchannel that the AP can use in the first time period, the second indication includes a subchannel that the AP can use in the second time period, and the second channel arrangement is different from the first channel arrangement, so that the AP can determine the subchannels that can be used in the first time period and the second time period according to the indication of the controller, and dynamic allocation of the channel resource by the controller is achieved.

Specifically, the first time period and the second time period may be the same time period, for example, the AP receives the second indication before the current time does not reach the starting time of the first time period, so that the first indication may be updated using the second indication, that is, the sub-channels available in the first time period are updated; for example, when the AP receives the second indication after the current time is after the starting time of the first time period and before the current time is before the ending time of the first time period, the AP determines the sub-channels available in the second time period using the second indication, and the first time period and the second time period may have other relationships, which is not limited herein.

As a preferable scheme, the first time period and the second time period may be different successive time periods in the period conversion process, for example, if the period is T (0.0001 second, 0.001 second, 0.02 second, or other time periods), the first time period may indicate a time period from time (n-1) T to time nT, and the second time period may indicate a time period from time nT to time (n + 1) T. It should be noted that the working channel of the AP may be a working channel that is pre-allocated to the AP by the controller when the AP first accesses the controller, or the working channel may be further adjusted by the controller according to the obtained control policy, in this embodiment of the application, for the purpose of implementing dynamic adjustment of channel resources, in order to reduce an influence on an STA accessing the AP in the channel resource adjustment process, a time interval between the first time period and the second time period may be a shorter time interval (for example, 100ms, 200ms, or another time interval), and therefore, the working channel of each AP in the AP device group needs to be kept unchanged within the shorter time interval, that is, within the first time period and the second time period.

Based on the embodiment described in fig. 5, optimization can be further performed in the implementation process of the scheme.

In a possible implementation manner, if the first channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable subchannel in the working channel of the AP, when the AP sends a WLAN signal in the first time period, puncturing the unavailable subchannel in the working channel of the AP, that is, when the AP determines that the available subchannel is lower than the working channel of the AP according to the first channel arrangement, and subsequently the AP sends a WLAN signal in the first time period to perform processing on traffic data, puncturing the unavailable subchannel in the working channel of the AP is performed, so that APs with different available subchannels can transmit data in parallel in the first time period without mutual interference, and at the same time, a channel puncturing mechanism can be used to enable a channel with discontinuous bandwidth to also perform channel bonding to transmit data; similarly, if the second channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, the AP performs puncturing on the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when transmitting the WLAN signal in the second time period, so that APs with different available sub-channels can transmit data in parallel without interfering with each other in the second time period.

In a possible implementation manner, if the first channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, when the AP transmits a first trigger frame to a station STA associated with the AP within a first time period, a puncturing indication for the STA is set in the first trigger frame, where the puncturing indication is used for indicating that the STA performs puncturing processing on the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when transmitting an uplink signal based on the first trigger frame, so that the AP does not interfere with other APs when processing the uplink signal transmitted by the STA associated with the AP within the first time period. Similarly, if the second channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, when the AP transmits a second trigger frame to the STA associated with the AP within a second time period, a puncturing indication for the STA is set in the second trigger frame, where the puncturing indication is used to indicate that the STA performs puncturing on the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when transmitting an uplink signal based on the second trigger frame, so that the AP does not interfere with other APs when processing the uplink signal transmitted by the STA associated with the AP within the second time period.

In one possible implementation, the AP sends to the controller a buffer status report or a summary of buffer status reports for STAs associated with the AP. The buffer status report or the summary of the buffer status reports of the STAs associated with the AP may be used as one of the bases for the controller to determine the channel access requirement of the AP in step 401, so that the controller may implement dynamic allocation of channel resources according to the channel access requirement.

A specific implementation of the WLAN communication method will be described as follows. The description will be given by taking an example that the AP device group includes 4 APs (i.e., AP1, AP2, AP3, and AP 4), and the group operating channel is 80 MHz. The group operating channel for the group of AP devices is channel 155 (frequency range 5735MHz-5815 MHz). Channel 155 includes 4 subchannels of 20MHz bandwidth: channel 149 (frequency range 5735MHz to 5755 MHz), channel 153 (frequency range 5755MHz to 5775 MHz), channel 157 (frequency range 5775MHz to 5795 MHz), channel 161 (frequency range 5795MHz to 5815 MHz), and 2 subchannels with a bandwidth of 40 MHz: channel 151 (frequency range 5735MHz-5775 MHz), channel 159 (frequency range 5775MHz-5815 MHz).

As can be seen from the foregoing, the controller may set the operating channels of the 4 APs in various ways, and the operating channel of each AP may be the same as or within the group operating channel. That is, the operating channel of each AP may be channel 149, channel 151, channel 153, channel 155, channel 157, channel 159, or channel 161, and the operating channel of at least one of the APs is channel 155.

Taking the example that the working channels of the 4 APs are all the same as the group working channel, the working channels of the 4 APs are all the channel 155. As each AP depends on the main channel of each AP when operating, and the main channels of the operating channels of the 4 APs are preset to be staggered, specifically, referring to fig. 6, in the specific allocation of the main channels (primary channels) and the secondary channels (secondary channels) of the APs 1 to 4, the main channel of the AP1 is a channel 149 (the secondary channels are channels 153, 157, and 161), the main channel of the AP2 is a channel 153 (the secondary channels are channels 149, 157, and 161), the main channel of the AP3 is a channel 157 (the secondary channels are channels 149, 153, and 161), and the main channel of the AP4 is a channel 161 (the secondary channels are channels 149, 153, and 157).

In the process of dynamically allocating channel bandwidth resources by a specific controller, as described above, there are various ways for the controller to obtain channel access requirements of an AP device group, and here, the queue information reported by each AP to the controller is taken as the channel access requirements of each AP for example. Specifically, the AP reports queue information to the controller, where the queue information includes uplink and downlink queue information, and the queue information may include information such as a message size and a message delay of a queue. The controller calculates the priority of the AP packet transmission according to the queue information of each AP in the AP device group, and allocates channel arrangement to the AP packet transmission, where the channel arrangement is calculated according to the queue information of each AP, and the basic basis is: the higher the queue traffic, the higher the packet transmission priority; the greater the queue delay, the greater the packet transmission priority. Illustratively, the basis for controlling the AP bandwidth may be: if the priority of the packet sending of the AP is lower, the access bandwidth is 20MHz; if the packet sending priority of the AP is higher and other APs have no service, the access bandwidth is 80MHz; if the packet transmission priority of the AP is high and other APs have little traffic or are transmitting, the access bandwidth is 20-60MHz.

Referring to fig. 7, in three time periods, the controller schedules the APs as follows:

(1) If the controller determines that the traffic of the STA1 associated with the AP1 is large, the APs 2 and 4 have no traffic, and finds that the AP3 has little traffic in the first time period according to the queue information reported by each AP, the channel arrangement is obtained. In this channel arrangement, AP1 is configured to have an access bandwidth of 60MHz, i.e., channel 149, channel 153, channel 161 (or denoted as channel 151, channel 161), and AP3 is configured to have an access bandwidth of 20MHz, i.e., channel 157.

(2) If the controller determines that the AP1 and the AP3 have finished sending and have no service in the second time period according to the queue information reported by each AP, the AP2 has a little service, and the AP4 has a large amount of service, in order to ensure data transmission, an updated channel arrangement is obtained, and the updated channel arrangement is configured with an AP2 bandwidth of 20MHz, that is, a channel 153; AP4 is configured with a bandwidth of 60MHz, channel 149, channel 157, channel 161 (or alternatively denoted channel 149, channel 159).

(3) If the controller determines that the AP1, the AP2, and the AP3 have no service and the AP4 has a large amount of service in the third time period according to the queue information reported by each AP, in order to ensure data transmission, a re-updated channel arrangement is obtained, and the re-updated channel arrangement configures an AP4 bandwidth of 80MHz, that is, a channel 155.

Each time a channel arrangement is obtained, the controller sends the channel arrangement to the AP in a channel number, character, table, or other data format. The controller may send all or part of the channel schedule, the updated channel schedule, the re-updated channel schedule to each AP, for example, in scenario (1) corresponding to the first time period, the controller may send the entire channel schedule to 4 APs, and since only AP1, AP3 has a channel available in the first time period, the controller may also send the channel schedule or part of the channel schedule to only AP1, AP3 and not to AP2, AP4, or the controller may also send an indication message to AP2 and/or AP4, the indication message indicating that AP2 and/or AP4 has no channel available in the first time period, and the controller may also use a similar processing manner in the updated channel schedule and the re-updated channel schedule. In addition, the operating channel of each AP is not changed (all kept as the channel 155) and the primary channel of each AP is not changed in the first, second, and third periods, and thus, a channel switch notification (CSA) does not need to be transmitted to each AP in the process of the controller transmitting the channel schedule to the AP.

Thereafter, each AP may use the corresponding channel bandwidth resource to perform WLAN data transmission in a corresponding time period according to the channel arrangement or the part of the channel arrangement sent by the controller, so as to implement dynamic allocation of the WLAN channel resource by the controller, which is specifically described below for the implementation process of the AP:

for AP1, the available channels of AP1 during the first time period are channel 149, channel 153, channel 161, and thereafter, the operating channel of AP1 during the first time period is still channel 155. The AP1 performs puncturing on the channel 157 when the WLAN performs data traffic transmission. The AP1 has no available channel for the second and third periods, and thereafter, the operating channel of the AP1 in the second and third periods is still the preset 80MHz channel, i.e., the channel 155, but the AP1 does not use the channel to transmit data in the second and third periods.

For the AP2, the AP2 has no available channel for the first time period and the third time period, and thereafter, the operating channel of the AP2 in the first time period and the third time period is still the channel 155, but the AP2 does not use the channel to transmit data in the first time period and the third time period. The channel available to AP2 during the second time period is channel 153. The operating channel of AP2 during the second time period is still channel 155. When the WLAN transmits data traffic, the AP2 may puncture the channels 149, 157, and 161, and transmit data only on the channel 153. At this time, since data is transmitted using only the main channel, the process of puncturing the channels 149, 157, and 161 by the AP2 is an optional step and may or may not be performed.

For AP3, the channel available to AP3 during the first time period is channel 3. The operating channel of AP3 during the first time period is still channel 155. When the WLAN performs data traffic transmission, the AP3 performs puncturing on the channel 149, the channel 153, and the channel 161, and then transmits data only on the channel 157. Similarly, the puncturing process for channels 149, 153, and 161 is an optional step and may or may not be performed. The AP3 has no available channel for the second period and the third period. The operating channel of the AP3 in the second and third periods of time is still the channel 155, but the AP3 does not use the channel to transmit data in the second and third periods of time.

For AP4, AP4 has no available channel for the first time period. The operating channel of AP4 during the first time period is still channel 155. But the AP4 does not transmit data using the channel for the first period of time. The channels available to the AP4 in the second time period are channel 149, channel 157, channel 161. The operating channel of AP4 during the second time period is still channel 155. The AP4 performs puncturing on the channel 153 when the WLAN performs data traffic transmission. The channel available to the AP4 in the third time period is channel 155. The AP4 may use the full operating channel during the third time period.

In addition, if the AP determines that an unavailable subchannel exists in a certain time period in each working channel, when the AP transmits a trigger frame to an STA associated with the AP in a corresponding time period, a puncturing indication for the STA is set in the trigger frame, where the puncturing indication is used to instruct the STA to perform puncturing processing on the unavailable subchannel in the working channel of the AP when transmitting an uplink signal based on the trigger frame.

The above describes a WLAN communication method, and the controller and the AP provided in the embodiments of the present application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Referring to fig. 8, an embodiment of the present application provides a controller 800, where the controller 800 may include an obtaining unit 801, an allocating unit 802, and a sending unit 803;

an obtaining unit 801, configured to obtain channel access requirements of an AP device group, where the AP device group includes at least two APs, a working channel of an AP with a largest bandwidth of a working channel in the AP device group is a group working channel, a bandwidth of the group working channel is at least 40mhz, a working channel of any one AP in the AP device group is the same as the group working channel or within the group working channel, and main channels of the working channels of at least two APs in the AP device group are different;

an allocating unit 802, configured to allocate sub-channels in a group working channel to at least one AP in an AP device group according to channel arrangement according to channel access requirements, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate sub-channels available to the APs in the AP device group in a first time period, the channel arrangement includes allocation of available sub-channels to one or more APs, any two APs in the channel arrangement are allocated different sub-channels, the allocated sub-channel of each AP in the channel arrangement includes a main channel of the working channel of the corresponding AP, the allocated sub-channel of each AP in the AP device group is in the working channel of the corresponding AP, and if the channel arrangement includes allocation of more than one AP, the main channels of the working channels of any two APs in the channel arrangement are different;

an obtaining unit 801, further configured to obtain an updated channel access requirement of the AP device group;

the allocating unit 802 is further configured to allocate, according to the updated channel access requirement, a sub-channel in the group operating channel to at least one AP in the AP device group according to an updated channel schedule, where the updated channel schedule is used to indicate a channel available to the AP in the AP device group in the second time period, and the operating channel of each AP in the AP device group remains unchanged in the first time period and the second time period.

In this embodiment, the allocating unit 802 allocates each sub-channel in the group working channel corresponding to the AP device group according to channel arrangement according to the channel access requirement of the AP device group, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate a sub-channel available to an AP in the AP device group in a first time period, and after the acquiring unit 801 acquires the updated channel access requirement, the allocating unit 802 allocates a sub-channel in the group working channel to the AP device group according to the updated channel arrangement according to the updated channel access requirement, where the updated channel arrangement is used to indicate a channel available to an AP in the AP device group in a second time period, so that the controller dynamically allocates channel resources corresponding to the AP device group in the first time period and the second time period, that is, the controller dynamically allocates channel resources in the WLAN.

In a possible implementation manner, the number of APs in the AP device group is the same as the number of sub-channels included in the group operating channel, and the main channels of the operating channels of any two APs in the AP device group are different.

In one possible implementation, the controller further includes:

a sending unit 803, configured to send the channel arrangement or the portions corresponding to the APs in the channel arrangement to the corresponding APs in the AP device group;

the sending unit 803 may be further configured to send the updated channel arrangement or the portions corresponding to the APs in the updated channel arrangement to the corresponding APs in the AP device group.

It should be noted that, for details of the execution process of the WLAN communication method of the unit of the processor 800, reference may be specifically made to the description in the foregoing method embodiments of the present application, and details are not described herein again.

Referring to fig. 9, an embodiment of the present application further provides an AP900, where the AP includes a receiving unit 901, a processing unit 902:

a receiving unit 901, configured to receive a first indication from a controller, where the first indication is used to indicate a first channel schedule, the first channel schedule is a sub-channel available for the AP in a first time period, a bandwidth of an operating channel of the AP is at least 40mhz, the first channel schedule includes a main channel of the operating channel of the AP, and the first channel schedule is within the operating channel of the AP;

the receiving unit 901 is further configured to receive a second indication from the controller, where the second indication is used to indicate a second channel arrangement, the second channel arrangement is a sub-channel available for the AP in a second time period, the second channel arrangement includes a main channel of an operating channel of the AP, and the second channel is arranged in the operating channel of the AP, the second channel arrangement is different from the first channel arrangement, and the operating channel of the AP remains unchanged in the first time period and the second time period.

In one possible implementation, the AP900 further includes a processing unit 902;

if the first channel schedule indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, and the AP transmits a WLAN signal in the first time period, the processing unit 902 is configured to puncture the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP;

the processing unit 902 is further configured to puncture the unavailable sub-channel in the AP's working channel when the AP transmits the WLAN signal in the second time period if the second channel schedule indicates that the unavailable sub-channel exists in the AP's working channel.

In a possible implementation, if the first channel schedule indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, and the AP transmits a trigger frame to a station STA associated with the AP in a first time period, the processing unit 902 is further configured to set a puncturing indication for the STA in the trigger frame, where the puncturing indication is used to instruct the STA to puncture the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when sending the uplink signal based on the trigger frame.

In one possible implementation, the AP900 further includes:

a sending unit 903, configured to send the buffer status report or the summary of the buffer status report of the STA associated with the AP to the controller.

It should be noted that, for details of the execution process of the WLAN communication method of the unit of the AP900, reference may be specifically made to the description in the foregoing method embodiments of the present application, and details are not described here again.

Referring to fig. 10, a schematic diagram of a possible logic structure of the controller 1000 according to the above embodiments is provided for an embodiment of the present application, where the controller 1000 may include, but is not limited to, a memory 1001 and a processor 1002, and in the embodiment of the present application, the processor 1002 is configured to control an action of the controller 1000. Specifically, controller 1000 may act as a radio controller in a WLAN, similar to the architecture of fig. 1 and 2, for implementing dynamic allocation of channel resources in the WLAN.

The processor 1002 may be, among other things, a central processing unit, a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, transistor logic, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. Which may implement or perform the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the disclosure. The processor may also be a combination of computing functions, e.g., comprising one or more microprocessors, a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, or the like. It is clear to those skilled in the art that, for convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the above-described systems, apparatuses and units may refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and are not described herein again.

Referring to fig. 11, a schematic diagram of a possible logic structure of an AP1100 involved in the foregoing embodiments is provided for an embodiment of the present application, where the AP1100 may include, but is not limited to, a memory 1101 and a processor 1102, and in the embodiment of the present application, the processor 1102 is configured to control an action of the AP 1100. Specifically, the AP1100 may be implemented as an AP in a WLAN, similar to the structure described in fig. 1 and 2. For example, the AP1100 may further integrate other components, such as a power supply 1103, an interface 1104, a modulator 1105, a receiver 1106, a transmitter 1107, an antenna array 1108, and the like, or other components, which are not limited herein.

Further, the processor 1102 may be a central processing unit, a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, transistor logic, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. Which may implement or perform the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the disclosure. The processor may also be a combination of computing functions, e.g., comprising one or more microprocessors, a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, or the like. It is clear to those skilled in the art that, for convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the above-described systems, apparatuses and units may refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and are not described herein again.

Embodiments of the present application further provide a WLAN architecture, in which the controller and the AP in the foregoing embodiments are included.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a computer-readable storage medium storing one or more computers, which when executed by a processor performs the method implemented by the controller or the AP.

Embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product (or computer program) storing one or more computers, and when the computer program product is executed by the processor, the processor executes the method implemented by the controller or the AP.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a chip system, where the chip system includes a processor, and is configured to support a controller to implement the function implementation related to the above controller or the AP. In one possible design, the system-on-chip may further include a memory, which stores program instructions and data necessary for the controller. The chip system may be constituted by a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, apparatus and method may be implemented in other ways. For example, the above-described apparatus embodiments are merely illustrative, and for example, the division of the units is only one logical division, and other divisions may be realized in practice, for example, a plurality of units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted, or not executed. In addition, the shown or discussed mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection may be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, and may be in an electrical, mechanical or other form.

The units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed on a plurality of network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of the embodiment.

In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units are integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be realized in a form of hardware, and can also be realized in a form of a software functional unit.

The integrated unit, if implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as a stand-alone product, may be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solution of the present application may be substantially implemented or contributed to by the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution may be embodied in a software product, which is stored in a storage medium and includes instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device) to execute all or part of the steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present application. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: a U-disk, a removable hard disk, a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and other various media capable of storing program codes.

Claims

1.A wireless local area network, WLAN, communication method, the method comprising:

the method comprises the steps that a controller obtains channel access requirements of an access point AP equipment group, the AP equipment group comprises at least two APs, a working channel of an AP with the largest working channel bandwidth in the AP equipment group is a group working channel, the bandwidth of the group working channel is at least 40 megahertz, the working channel of any one AP in the AP equipment group is the same as the group working channel or is in the group working channel, and main channels of the working channels of the at least two APs in the AP equipment group are different;

the controller allocates sub-channels in the group of working channels to at least one AP in the AP device group according to the channel access requirement, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate sub-channels available to APs in the AP device group in a first time period, the channel arrangement includes allocation of available sub-channels to one or more APs, any two APs in the channel arrangement are allocated with different sub-channels, the allocated sub-channels of each AP in the channel arrangement include a main channel of a working channel of a corresponding AP, the allocated sub-channels of each AP in the AP device group are in the working channel of the corresponding AP, and if the channel arrangement includes allocation of more than one AP, the main channels of the working channels of any two APs in the channel arrangement are different;

the controller acquires the updated channel access requirement of the AP equipment group;

the controller allocates the sub-channels in the group of working channels to at least one AP in the AP device group according to an updated channel arrangement according to the updated channel access requirement, where the updated channel arrangement is used to indicate channels available to the APs in the AP device group in a second time period, and the working channels of the APs in the AP device group remain unchanged in the first time period and the second time period.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the number of APs in the AP device group is the same as the number of subchannels included in the group operating channel, and wherein the main channels of the operating channels of any two APs in the AP device group are different.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the method further comprises:

the controller transmits the channel arrangement or the portions of the channel arrangement corresponding to the respective APs to the corresponding APs in the group of AP devices.

4. A method of wireless local area network, WLAN, communication, the method comprising:

an Access Point (AP) receives a first indication from a controller, wherein the first indication is used for indicating a first channel arrangement, the first channel arrangement is a sub-channel which is available for the AP in a first time period, the bandwidth of an operating channel of the AP is at least 40 megahertz, the first channel arrangement comprises a main channel of the operating channel of the AP, and the first channel arrangement is arranged in the operating channel of the AP;

the AP receives a second indication from the controller, wherein the second indication indicates a second channel schedule, the second channel schedule is a sub-channel available to the AP for a second time period, the second channel schedule includes a main channel of an operating channel of the AP, and the second channel schedule is within the operating channel of the AP, the second channel schedule is different from the first channel schedule, and the operating channel of the AP remains unchanged for the first time period and the second time period.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

if the first channel arrangement indicates that an unavailable sub-channel exists in the working channel of the AP, the AP performs puncturing on the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when transmitting a WLAN signal in the first time period;

and if the second channel arrangement indicates that the sub-channel which is unavailable exists in the working channel of the AP, the AP performs puncturing on the sub-channel which is unavailable in the working channel of the AP when transmitting the WLAN signal in the second time period.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the method further comprises:

if the first channel arrangement indicates that an unavailable sub-channel exists in a working channel of the AP, when the AP sends a first trigger frame to a Station (STA) associated with the AP in the first time period, setting a puncturing indication for the STA in the first trigger frame, wherein the puncturing indication is used for indicating the STA to puncture the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when sending an uplink signal based on the first trigger frame;

if the second channel arrangement indicates that an unavailable sub-channel exists in the working channel of the AP, when the AP sends a second trigger frame to the STA associated with the AP within the second time period, setting a puncturing indication for the STA in the second trigger frame, where the puncturing indication is used to indicate the STA to puncture the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when sending an uplink signal based on the second trigger frame.

7. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the method further comprises:

the AP sends a buffer status report or a summary of the buffer status report of the STA associated with the AP to the controller.

8. A controller, characterized in that the controller comprises:

an obtaining unit, configured to obtain channel access requirements of an AP device group of an access point, where the AP device group includes at least two APs, a working channel of an AP with a largest working channel bandwidth in the AP device group is a group working channel, a bandwidth of the group working channel is at least 40mhz, a working channel of any one AP in the AP device group is the same as the group working channel or within the group working channel, and main channels of the working channels of at least two APs in the AP device group are different;

an allocating unit, configured to allocate sub-channels in the group of working channels to at least one AP in the AP device group according to channel arrangement according to the channel access requirement, where the channel arrangement is used to indicate sub-channels available to the APs in the AP device group in a first time period, the channel arrangement includes allocation of available sub-channels to one or more APs, any two APs in the channel arrangement are allocated with different sub-channels, the allocated sub-channels of each AP in the channel arrangement include a main channel of a working channel of a corresponding AP, the allocated sub-channels of each AP in the AP device group are in the working channel of the corresponding AP, and if the channel arrangement includes arrangement of more than one AP, the main channels of the working channels of any two APs in the channel arrangement are different;

the obtaining unit is further configured to obtain an updated channel access requirement of the AP device group;

the allocating unit is further configured to allocate, according to the updated channel access requirement, a sub-channel in the group working channel to at least one AP in the AP device group according to an updated channel arrangement, where the updated channel arrangement is used to indicate a channel available to an AP in the AP device group in a second time period, and the working channel of each AP in the AP device group remains unchanged in the first time period and the second time period.

9. The controller according to claim 8, wherein the number of APs in the AP device group is the same as the number of sub-channels included in the group operating channel, and the main channels of the operating channels of any two APs in the AP device group are different.

10. The controller according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that the controller further comprises:

a sending unit, configured to send the channel arrangement or the portion corresponding to each AP in the channel arrangement to a corresponding AP in an AP device group.

11. An access point, AP, comprising:

a receiving unit, configured to receive a first indication from a controller, where the first indication is used to indicate a first channel schedule, the first channel schedule is a sub-channel available for the AP in a first time period, an operating channel of the AP has a bandwidth of at least 40mhz, the first channel schedule includes a main channel of the operating channel of the AP, and the first channel schedule is within the operating channel of the AP;

the receiving unit is further configured to receive a second indication from the controller, where the second indication is used to indicate a second channel arrangement, the second channel arrangement is a sub-channel available to the AP in a second time period, the second channel arrangement includes a main channel of an operating channel of the AP, and the second channel arrangement is in the operating channel of the AP, the second channel arrangement is different from the first channel arrangement, and the operating channel of the AP remains unchanged in the first time period and the second time period.

12. The AP of claim 11, wherein the AP further comprises a processing unit;

if the first channel arrangement indicates that there is an unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP, the processing unit is configured to puncture the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when the AP transmits a WLAN signal in the first time period;

the processing unit is further configured to puncture the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP if the second channel schedule indicates that the unavailable sub-channel exists in the working channel of the AP and the AP transmits the WLAN signal in the second time period.

13. The AP of claim 12, wherein if the first channel schedule indicates that there are unavailable subchannels in the operating channel of the AP, the AP is further configured to, when transmitting a trigger frame to a station STA associated with the AP during the first time period, set a puncturing indication for the STA in the trigger frame, the puncturing indication being used to indicate that the STA punctures unavailable subchannels in the operating channel of the AP when transmitting an uplink signal based on the trigger frame.

14. The AP of claim 11, wherein the AP further comprises a processing unit;

if the first channel arrangement indicates that an unavailable sub-channel exists in the working channel of the AP, and the AP sends a trigger frame to a station STA associated with the AP within the first time period, the processing unit is further configured to set a puncturing indication for the STA in the trigger frame, where the puncturing indication is used to indicate the STA to puncture the unavailable sub-channel in the working channel of the AP when sending the uplink signal based on the trigger frame.

15. The AP of any one of claims 11 to 14, further comprising:

a sending unit, configured to send, to the controller, a buffer status report of an STA associated with the AP or a summary of the buffer status report.

16. A controller, comprising:

a processor, a memory;

the memory is used for storing programs;

the processor is configured to execute the program to implement the method of any one of claims 1 to 3.

17. An access point, AP, comprising:

a processor, a memory;

the memory is used for storing programs;

the processor is configured to execute the program to implement the method of any one of claims 4 to 7.

18. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 3 or cause the computer to perform the method of any of claims 4 to 7.