U.S. patent application number 16/168454 was filed with the patent office on 2019-02-21 for availability indication for uplink location measurement report feedback.
The applicant listed for this patent is Intel IP Corporation. Invention is credited to Chittabrata Ghosh, Feng Jiang, Qinghua Li, Jonathan Segev, Ganesh Venkatesan.
Application Number | 20190059101 16/168454 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 65360081 |
Filed Date | 2019-02-21 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20190059101 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Jiang; Feng ; et
al. |
February 21, 2019 |
AVAILABILITY INDICATION FOR UPLINK LOCATION MEASUREMENT REPORT
FEEDBACK
Abstract
This disclosure describes systems, methods, and devices related
to uplink location measurement report (LMR) feedback. A device may
perform availability window negotiation during a negotiation phase
of a location determination associated with a first initiating
device of one or more initiating devices. The device may determine
a status of a first LMR associated with the first initiating
device. The device may cause to send a polling request to one more
initiating devices during a first availability window. The device
may identify a polling response from at least one of the one or
more initiating devices. The device may perform one or more
sounding measurements with the at least one of the one or more
initiating devices during a measurement phase. The device may cause
to send a trigger frame to the at least one of the one or more
initiating devices.
Inventors: |
Jiang; Feng; (Santa Clara,
CA) ; Ghosh; Chittabrata; (Fremont, CA) ; Li;
Qinghua; (San Ramon, CA) ; Segev; Jonathan;
(Tel Mond, IL) ; Venkatesan; Ganesh; (Hillsboro,
OR) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Intel IP Corporation |
Santa Clara |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
65360081 |
Appl. No.: |
16/168454 |
Filed: |
October 23, 2018 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
62575923 |
Oct 23, 2017 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04W 64/00 20130101;
H04W 74/06 20130101; H04W 72/0446 20130101; H04W 4/025 20130101;
G01S 5/0205 20130101; H04W 24/10 20130101; G01S 13/765
20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04W 74/06 20060101
H04W074/06; H04W 24/10 20060101 H04W024/10; H04W 4/02 20060101
H04W004/02; H04W 72/04 20060101 H04W072/04 |
Claims
1. A responding device, the device comprising processing circuitry
coupled to storage, the processing circuitry configured to: perform
availability window negotiation during a negotiation phase of a
location determination associated with a first initiating device of
one or more initiating devices; determine a status of a first
location measurement report (LMR) associated with the first
initiating device; cause to send a polling request to one more
initiating devices during a first availability window; identify a
polling response from at least one of the one or more initiating
devices; perform one or more sounding measurements with the at
least one of the one or more initiating devices during a
measurement phase; and cause to send a trigger frame to the at
least one of the one or more initiating devices.
2. The responding device of claim 1, wherein the status of the
first LMR is a delayed LMR or an immediate LMR.
3. The responding device of claim 1, wherein a delayed LMR is an
LMR sent in a next availability window, and wherein an immediate
LMR is an LMR sent in a same availability window of the measurement
availability window.
4. The responding device of claim 1, wherein to cause to send the
trigger frame to the at least one of the one or more imitating
devices further comprises determining that at least one of the one
or more initiating devices are ready to send a corresponding
LMR.
5. The responding device of claim 1, wherein to perform the
availability window negotiation comprises the processing circuitry
to be further configured to exchange fine timing measurement (FTM)
frames, the FTM frames comprising an initiating FTM request.
6. The responding device of claim 5, wherein the initiating FTM
request comprises timing information associated with when the first
LMR associated with the first initiating LMR.
7. The responding device of claim 6, wherein the timing information
includes a time offset of when the first LMR will be sent and a
time duration of how long the first LMR will be valid.
8. The responding device of claim 6, wherein the initiating FTM
request comprises a ranging parameters field, wherein the ranging
parameter field indicates a willingness to report the first
LMR.
9. The responding device of claim 8, wherein the ranging parameters
field is set to 1 to indicate the first initiating device is
willing to report the first LMR to the responding device.
10. The responding device of claim 8, wherein the ranging
parameters field is set to 0 to indicate the first initiating
device is not ready to report the first LMR to the responding
device.
11. The responding device of claim 1, further comprising a
transceiver configured to transmit and receive wireless
signals.
12. The responding device of claim 11, further comprising an
antenna coupled to the transceiver.
13. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing
computer-executable instructions which when executed by one or more
processors result in performing operations comprising: performing
availability window negotiation with a responding device, wherein
the availability window negotiation is associated with a location
determination measurements; identifying a first trigger frame from
a responding device, wherein the first trigger frame solicits a
poll response for location measurements; causing to send a poll
response to the responding device, wherein the poll response
indicates a willingness to participate in the location
measurements; performing one or more sounding measurements with the
responding device during a measurement phase; and identifying a
second trigger frame from the responding device.
14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13,
wherein the second trigger frame allocates resources for one or
more devices to send their corresponding uplink location
measurement report (LMR) to the responding device.
15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13,
wherein identifying the second trigger frame is based on a
negotiation phase of the availability window negotiation.
16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13,
wherein the operations further comprise causing to send an
initiating fine timing measurement request (iFTMR) frame during a
negotiation phase, wherein the iFTMR comprises a ranging parameters
field that indicates an immediate location measurement report (LMR)
or a delayed LMR.
17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13,
wherein the operations further comprise causing to send an
initiating fine timing measurement request (iFTMR) frame during a
negotiation phase, wherein the iFTMR comprises a feedback bit that
indicates a willingness to report a location measurement report
(LMR).
18. A method comprising: performing, by one or more processors of a
responding device, availability window negotiation during a
negotiation phase of a location determination associated with a
first initiating device of one or more initiating devices;
determine a status of a first location measurement report (LMR)
associated with the initiating device; cause to send a polling
request to one more initiating devices during a first availability
window; identify a polling response from at least one of the one or
more initiating devices; perform one or more sounding measurements
with the at least one of the one or more initiating devices during
a measurement phase; and cause to send a trigger frame to the at
least one of the one or more initiating devices.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein the status of the first LMR is
a delayed LMR or an immediate LMR.
20. The method of claim 18, wherein a delayed LMR is an LMR sent in
a next availability window, and wherein an immediate LMR is an LMR
sent in a same availability window of the measurement availability
window.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No. 62/575,923, filed Oct. 23, 2017, the disclosure of
which is incorporated herein by reference as if set forth in
full.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] This disclosure generally relates to systems, methods, and
devices for wireless communications and, more particularly,
availability indication for uplink location measurement report
(LMR) feedback.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Wireless devices are becoming widely prevalent and are
increasingly requesting access to wireless channels. The Institute
of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is developing one or
more standards that utilize Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple
Access (OFDMA) in channel allocation.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0004] FIG. 1 depicts a diagram illustrating an example network
environment of illustrative uplink location measurement report
(LMR) feedback system, in accordance with one or more example
embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0005] FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram for
recurring availability windows.
[0006] FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram for a
polling phase and a measurement sequence.
[0007] FIGS. 4A-4B depict illustrative schematic diagrams for
measurement report feedback.
[0008] FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram for uplink
LMR feedback, in accordance with one or more example embodiments of
the present disclosure.
[0009] FIG. 6 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram for uplink
LMR feedback, in accordance with one or more example embodiments of
the present disclosure.
[0010] FIG. 7A depicts a flow diagram of an illustrative process
for an uplink LMR feedback system, in accordance with one or more
embodiments of the disclosure.
[0011] FIG. 7B depicts a flow diagram of an illustrative process
for an uplink LMR feedback system, in accordance with one or more
embodiments of the disclosure.
[0012] FIG. 8 depicts a functional diagram of an example
communication station, in accordance with one or more example
embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0013] FIG. 9 depicts a block diagram of an example machine upon
which any of one or more techniques (e.g., methods) may be
performed, in accordance with one or more example embodiments of
the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] Example embodiments described herein provide certain
systems, methods, and devices, for Signaling Schedule for Location
Measurement Feedback Report in WLAN.
[0015] The following description and the drawings sufficiently
illustrate specific embodiments to enable those skilled in the art
to practice them. Other embodiments may incorporate structural,
logical, electrical, process, and other changes. Portions and
features of some embodiments may be included in or substituted for,
those of other embodiments. Embodiments set forth in the claims
encompass all available equivalents of those claims.
[0016] In the development of IEEE 802.11az, the IEEE task group
(TGaz) agreed that the multi-user (MU) measurement and measurement
report feedback are scheduled based on the availability window. In
each availability window, the station device (STA) and access point
(AP) can perform polling, measurement or measurement feedback, and
a single availability window can include multiple transmit
opportunities (TXOPs). The AP and STA can decide the availability
windows in the negotiation phase.
[0017] For the AP-to-STA LMR feedback, based on the AP's time of
arrival (ToA) computation capability and the number of STAs
involved in the measurement, the AP can use trigger frame or null
data packet announcement (NDPA) to indicate whether the LMR packet
is in the same availability window as the measurement, such that
the STA may decide whether to stay awake in the availability window
to wait for the LMR feedback or to switch to the doze state for
power save and wake up again in the next availability window. But
for the STA-to-AP LMR feedback, the AP needs to use a trigger frame
to request multiple STAs to send the LMR at the same time. Since
the STAs may have different computation capability and need a
different amount of time for ToA calculation, the AP may only
trigger the STAs whose ToA is ready to send the uplink LMR
feedback, such that the medium usage efficiency can be guaranteed.
To achieve this goal, the AP should clearly know when each STA's
ToA or LMR is ready.
[0018] Example embodiments of the present disclosure relate to
systems, methods, and devices for uplink location measurement
report (LMR) feedback.
[0019] In one embodiment, an uplink LMR feedback system may
facilitate a mechanism for MU fine timing measurement (FTM) ranging
protocol (e.g., HEz), to enable the AP to allocate uplink (UL)
resources to the STA only when the results for the STA-to-AP LMR
are available once an allocation is made (preventing needless
medium waste), while avoiding the AP from the need to manage
different STA implementations with different processing latency.
This may be true to both single user (SU) and MU sequences.
[0020] In one embodiment, an 802.11az ranging mechanism requires
that the initiator and the responder perform a negotiation during a
negotiation phase before starting a measurement phase and then
reporting the results. In the negotiation phase of 802.11az, the
initiator sends an initiator FTM request (iFTMR) frame to the FTM
responder to request the establishment of the ranging protocol
instance. The iFTMR frame may include the necessary parameter
elements that will be used in the ranging protocol, and FTM
responder may response with an initiator FTM (iFTM) frame to
indicate whether the parameter in the iFTMR frame can be supported
or a modified set of parameters. It should be understood that
although the FTM responder uses an initiator frame (e.g., iFTM),
this is because the responder is initiating the FTM frame.
[0021] In one or more embodiments, for the MU scenario, the
initiator is STA and AP is the responder. Ranging parameters field
of the iFTMR frame includes the periodic availability window
schedule request, and the ranging parameters of iFTM frame may
include the responder's periodic availability window schedule
assignment and the downlink LMR types (e.g., immediate or delayed),
which indicates to the initiator when it can expect to receive the
downlink LMR frame from the responder (e.g., AP-to-STA LMR frame).
For the uplink LMR feedback, the responder needs to send the
trigger frame to multiple initiators to solicit the LMR. Therefore,
before sending the trigger frame, the responder would know which
initiators' LMRs are ready.
[0022] In this case, the initiator may include a status of the LMR
(e.g., STA-to-AP LMR frame) in a ranging parameters field of the
iFTMR frame, which is sent from the initiator to the responder
during negotiation. That is the initiator may include the ranging
parameters field to indicate whether the uplink LMR frame,
comprising the LMR results, is ready in the current availability
window or in a future availability window. Also, the ranging
parameters field may also include information associated with
whether the initiator is willing to report the LMR to the
responder. The ranging parameters field may assist the responder to
determine when to send the trigger frame to pull the LMR frame from
the initiator before this expiration time of the LMR results (e.g.,
a computed ToA value).
[0023] In one embodiment, an uplink LMR feedback system may provide
that in the ranging parameters field, a single bit may be defined
to indicate whether the responder will request the uplink LMR from
the initiator. This single bit may also be used by the initiator to
indicate whether it intends to share or is willing to share the LMR
with the responder. For example, if the initiator refuses to share
the LMR information with the responder, the responder may choose
not to provide the ranging service to the initiator. This LMR
sharing bit may be applied to either HEz or VHTz.
[0024] In one embodiment, after the negotiation, the AP knows
exactly when each STA's uplink LMR will be ready, such that the AP
can schedule the trigger frame for LMR feedback into different
availability window to request the STA to transmit the LMR frame.
If an STA knows when the AP will request it to send the LMR
feedback, the STA can decide to remain active in this availability
window or switch to doze state to save power or move to another
channel.
[0025] In one or more embodiments, the iFTMR frame may include the
STA's preferred availability windows, and for the uplink LMR
feedback, for simplicity, the STA may only need to report the
uplink LMR feedback type to the AP. For example, the immediate
feedback means the LMR is ready within the same availability window
as the measurement and the delayed LMR feedback indicates the LMR
will be ready in the next availability window following the
measurements. In other words, for immediate feedback, the LMR
carries measurement results of a current round, while for delayed
feedback the LMR carries measurement results of a previous
round.
[0026] In one or more embodiments, in the ranging parameters field
of the iFTMR, an LMR type field may be added and when the STA sends
the iFTMR frame, it can set this field accordingly. For example, if
this field equals to 1, it indicates the STA can send the LMR
feedback in the same availability window as measurement (immediate
feedback), and if this field is 0, it means that the STA will send
the LMR feedback in the next availability window following the
measurement sequence (delayed feedback). Similarly, for the SU
scenario, in the ranging parameters field of the iFTMR, a LMR type
field may be added, and if this field is set to 1, it means the
initiator (STA) may send immediate feedback to responder (AP),
which is in the same TxOP as the measurement sequence. If this
field is set to 0, it indicates the STA may send delayed feedback
to AP, which is in a different TxOP as the measurement
sequence.
[0027] In one embodiment, an uplink LMR feedback system may improve
the AP's scheduling efficiency for uplink LMR feedback and enable
the STAs to save more power as the scheduling for STA-to-AP LMR
does not require a separate availability window. It avoids the need
for the AP to manage a separate timer for each STA due to different
latencies. It creates single sounding sequences for MU and SU. As
sounding sequences are RRT critical processes implemented many
times in hardware or hardware/firmware combinations, it simplifies
the std. implementation.
[0028] The above descriptions are for purposes of illustration and
are not meant to be limiting. Numerous other examples,
configurations, processes, etc., may exist, some of which are
described in detail below. Example embodiments will now be
described with reference to the accompanying figures.
[0029] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example network
environment, in accordance with one or more example embodiments of
the present disclosure. Wireless network 100 may include one or
more user devices 120 and one or more access point(s) (AP) 102,
which may communicate in accordance with IEEE 802.11 communication
standards. The user device(s) 120 may be mobile devices that are
non-stationary (e.g., not having fixed locations) or may be
stationary devices.
[0030] In some embodiments, the user devices 120, and the AP(s) 102
may include one or more computer systems similar to that of the
functional diagram of FIG. 8 and/or the example machine/system of
FIG. 9.
[0031] One or more illustrative user device(s) 120 and/or AP(s) 102
may be operable by one or more user(s) 110. It should be noted that
any addressable unit may be a station (STA). An STA may take on
multiple distinct characteristics, each of which shapes its
function. For example, a single addressable unit might
simultaneously be a portable STA, a quality-of-service (QoS) STA, a
dependent STA, and a hidden STA. The one or more illustrative user
device(s) 120 and the AP(s) 102 may be STAs. The one or more
illustrative user device(s) 120 and/or AP(s) 102 may operate as a
personal basic service set (PBSS) control point/access point
(PCP/AP). The user device(s) 120 (e.g., 124, 126, or 128) and/or
AP(s) 102 may include any suitable processor-driven device
including, but not limited to, a mobile device or a non-mobile,
e.g., a static, device. For example, user device(s) 120 and/or
AP(s) 102 may include, a user equipment (UE), a station (STA), an
access point (AP), a software enabled AP (SoftAP), a personal
computer (PC), a wearable wireless device (e.g., bracelet, watch,
glasses, ring, etc.), a desktop computer, a mobile computer, a
laptop computer, an ultrabook.TM. computer, a notebook computer, a
tablet computer, a server computer, a handheld computer, a handheld
device, an internet of things (IoT) device, a sensor device, a PDA
device, a handheld PDA device, an on-board device, an off-board
device, a hybrid device (e.g., combining cellular phone
functionalities with PDA device functionalities), a consumer
device, a vehicular device, a non-vehicular device, a mobile or
portable device, a non-mobile or non-portable device, a mobile
phone, a cellular telephone, a PCS device, a PDA device which
incorporates a wireless communication device, a mobile or portable
GPS device, a DVB device, a relatively small computing device, a
non-desktop computer, a "carry small live large" (CSLL) device, an
ultra mobile device (UMD), an ultra mobile PC (UMPC), a mobile
internet device (MID), an "origami" device or computing device, a
device that supports dynamically composable computing (DCC), a
context-aware device, a video device, an audio device, an A/V
device, a set-top-box (STB), a blu-ray disc (BD) player, a BD
recorder, a digital video disc (DVD) player, a high definition (HD)
DVD player, a DVD recorder, a HD DVD recorder, a personal video
recorder (PVR), a broadcast HD receiver, a video source, an audio
source, a video sink, an audio sink, a stereo tuner, a broadcast
radio receiver, a flat panel display, a personal media player
(PMP), a digital video camera (DVC), a digital audio player, a
speaker, an audio receiver, an audio amplifier, a gaming device, a
data source, a data sink, a digital still camera (DSC), a media
player, a smartphone, a television, a music player, or the like.
Other devices, including smart devices such as lamps, climate
control, car components, household components, appliances, etc. may
also be included in this list.
[0032] As used herein, the term "Internet of Things (IoT) device"
is used to refer to any object (e.g., an appliance, a sensor, etc.)
that has an addressable interface (e.g., an Internet protocol (IP)
address, a Bluetooth identifier (ID), a near-field communication
(NFC) ID, etc.) and can transmit information to one or more other
devices over a wired or wireless connection. An IoT device may have
a passive communication interface, such as a quick response (QR)
code, a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag, an NFC tag, or
the like, or an active communication interface, such as a modem, a
transceiver, a transmitter-receiver, or the like. An IoT device can
have a particular set of attributes (e.g., a device state or
status, such as whether the IoT device is on or off, open or
closed, idle or active, available for task execution or busy, and
so on, a cooling or heating function, an environmental monitoring
or recording function, a light-emitting function, a sound-emitting
function, etc.) that can be embedded in and/or controlled/monitored
by a central processing unit (CPU), microprocessor, ASIC, or the
like, and configured for connection to an IoT network such as a
local ad-hoc network or the Internet. For example, IoT devices may
include, but are not limited to, refrigerators, toasters, ovens,
microwaves, freezers, dishwashers, dishes, hand tools, clothes
washers, clothes dryers, furnaces, air conditioners, thermostats,
televisions, light fixtures, vacuum cleaners, sprinklers,
electricity meters, gas meters, etc., so long as the devices are
equipped with an addressable communications interface for
communicating with the IoT network. IoT devices may also include
cell phones, desktop computers, laptop computers, tablet computers,
personal digital assistants (PDAs), etc. Accordingly, the IoT
network may be comprised of a combination of "legacy"
Internet-accessible devices (e.g., laptop or desktop computers,
cell phones, etc.) in addition to devices that do not typically
have Internet-connectivity (e.g., dishwashers, etc.).
[0033] The user device(s) 120 and/or AP(s) 102 may also include
mesh stations in, for example, a mesh network, in accordance with
one or more IEEE 802.11 standards and/or 3GPP standards.
[0034] Any of the user device(s) 120 (e.g., user devices 124, 126,
128), and AP(s) 102 may be configured to communicate with each
other via one or more communications networks 130 and/or 135
wirelessly or wired. The user device(s) 120 may also communicate
peer-to-peer or directly with each other with or without the AP(s)
102. Any of the communications networks 130 and/or 135 may include,
but not limited to, any one of a combination of different types of
suitable communications networks such as, for example, broadcasting
networks, cable networks, public networks (e.g., the Internet),
private networks, wireless networks, cellular networks, or any
other suitable private and/or public networks. Further, any of the
communications networks 130 and/or 135 may have any suitable
communication range associated therewith and may include, for
example, global networks (e.g., the Internet), metropolitan area
networks (MANs), wide area networks (WANs), local area networks
(LANs), or personal area networks (PANs). In addition, any of the
communications networks 130 and/or 135 may include any type of
medium over which network traffic may be carried including, but not
limited to, coaxial cable, twisted-pair wire, optical fiber, a
hybrid fiber coaxial (HFC) medium, microwave terrestrial
transceivers, radio frequency communication mediums, white space
communication mediums, ultra-high frequency communication mediums,
satellite communication mediums, or any combination thereof.
[0035] Any of the user device(s) 120 (e.g., user devices 124, 126,
128) and AP(s) 102 may include one or more communications antennas.
The one or more communications antennas may be any suitable type of
antennas corresponding to the communications protocols used by the
user device(s) 120 (e.g., user devices 124, 126 and 128), and AP(s)
102. Some non-limiting examples of suitable communications antennas
include Wi-Fi antennas, Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 family of standards compatible antennas,
directional antennas, non-directional antennas, dipole antennas,
folded dipole antennas, patch antennas, multiple-input
multiple-output (MIMO) antennas, omnidirectional antennas,
quasi-omnidirectional antennas, or the like. The one or more
communications antennas may be communicatively coupled to a radio
component to transmit and/or receive signals, such as
communications signals to and/or from the user devices 120 and/or
AP(s) 102.
[0036] Any of the user device(s) 120 (e.g., user devices 124, 126,
128), and AP(s) 102 may be configured to perform directional
transmission and/or directional reception in conjunction with
wirelessly communicating in a wireless network. Any of the user
device(s) 120 (e.g., user devices 124, 126, 128), and AP(s) 102 may
be configured to perform such directional transmission and/or
reception using a set of multiple antenna arrays (e.g., DMG antenna
arrays or the like). Each of the multiple antenna arrays may be
used for transmission and/or reception in a particular respective
direction or range of directions. Any of the user device(s) 120
(e.g., user devices 124, 126, 128), and AP(s) 102 may be configured
to perform any given directional transmission towards one or more
defined transmit sectors. Any of the user device(s) 120 (e.g., user
devices 124, 126, 128), and AP(s) 102 may be configured to perform
any given directional reception from one or more defined receive
sectors.
[0037] MIMO beamforming in a wireless network may be accomplished
using RF beamforming and/or digital beamforming. In some
embodiments, in performing a given MIMO transmission, user devices
120 and/or AP(s) 102 may be configured to use all or a subset of
its one or more communications antennas to perform MIMO
beamforming.
[0038] Any of the user devices 120 (e.g., user devices 124, 126,
128), and AP(s) 102 may include any suitable radio and/or
transceiver for transmitting and/or receiving radio frequency (RF)
signals in the bandwidth and/or channels corresponding to the
communications protocols utilized by any of the user device(s) 120
and AP(s) 102 to communicate with each other. The radio components
may include hardware and/or software to modulate and/or demodulate
communications signals according to pre-established transmission
protocols. The radio components may further have hardware and/or
software instructions to communicate via one or more Wi-Fi and/or
Wi-Fi direct protocols, as standardized by the Institute of
Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards.
[0039] Some embodiments may be used in conjunction with devices
and/or networks operating in accordance with existing. Wireless
Fidelity (Wi-Fi) Alliance (WFA) Specifications, including Wi-Fi
Neighbor Awareness Networking (NAN) Technical Specification (e.g.,
NAN and NAN2) and/or future versions and/or derivatives thereof,
devices and/or networks operating in accordance with existing WFA
Peer-to-Peer (P2P) specifications and/or future versions and/or
derivatives thereof, devices and/or networks operating in
accordance with existing Wireless-Gigabit-Alliance (WGA)
specifications (Wireless Gigabit Alliance, Inc. WiGig MAC and PHY
Specification) and/or future versions and/or derivatives thereof,
devices and/or networks operating in accordance with existing IEEE
802.11 standards and/or amendments (e.g., 802.11b, 802.11g,
802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11az,
etc.).
[0040] In certain example embodiments, the radio component, in
cooperation with the communications antennas, may be configured to
communicate via 2.4 GHz channels (e.g., 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n,
802.11ax), 5 GHz channels (e.g., 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax), or
60 GHz channels (e.g., 802.11ad). In some embodiments, non-Wi-Fi
protocols may be used for communications between devices, such as
Bluetooth, dedicated short-range communication (DSRC), Ultra-High
Frequency (UHF) (e.g., IEEE 802.11af, IEEE 802.22), white band
frequency (e.g., white spaces), or other packetized radio
communications. The radio component may include any known receiver
and baseband suitable for communicating via the communications
protocols. The radio component may further include a low noise
amplifier (LNA), additional signal amplifiers, an analog-to-digital
(A/D) converter, one or more buffers, and digital baseband.
[0041] In one embodiment, and with reference to FIG. 1, a user
device 120 may be in communication with one or more APs 102.
[0042] For example, an AP 102 may perform sounding measurements
with one or more user devices 120 by implementing an uplink LMR
feedback 140, in accordance with one or more example embodiments of
the present disclosure. It is understood that the above
descriptions are for purposes of illustration and are not meant to
be limiting.
[0043] FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram 200 for
recurring availability windows.
[0044] In the development of IEEE 802.11az, the IEEE task group
(TGaz) agreed that the multi-user (MU) measurement and measurement
report feedbacks are scheduled based on the availability window. In
each availability window, the station device (STA) and access point
(AP) can perform polling, measurement or measurement feedback, and
a single availability window can include multiple transmit
opportunities (TXOPs). The AP and STA can decide the availability
windows in the negotiation phase.
[0045] Referring to FIG. 2, there is shown a ranging mechanism that
may comprise a negotiation phase 201 and a measurement phase 202.
The negotiation phase 201 may comprise location negotiation and
assignment of identification such as a ranging ID (RID). During the
negotiation phase 201, one or more FTM frames (not shown here) may
be exchanged between the initiator device and the responder device.
The measurement phase 202 comprises one or more rounds of
measurements that include one or more parts associated with a round
of measurement. For example, during a round N of measurement which
may be performed during an availability window 205, the initiator
and the responder may perform one or more of a polling part 205a, a
sounding part 205b, and/or a location measurement results part
205c. An is an integer and represents the N.sup.th round of
measurements within the measurement phase 202. In the example of
FIG. 2, there is also shown a next availability window 206, which
is a time frame within which the N+1 round of measurement is
performed within the measurement of a steel tube. It should be
understood that there may be a fixed interval between each of the
availability windows (e.g., between availability window 205 and
availability window 206, etc.). During the availability window 206,
similar to availability window 205, the initiator and the responder
may perform one or more of a polling part 206a, a sounding part
206b, and/or a location measurement results part 206c.
[0046] FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram 300 for a
polling phase and a measurement sequence.
[0047] Referring to FIG. 3, there is shown an example of the
polling phase 301 and measurement sequence 306. In the polling
phase 301, only the STAs that are ready for measurement will send a
positive response and in the measurement sequence 306, the AP will
only exchange the UL and DL NDPs with the STAs whose response is
positive in the polling phase.
[0048] In the polling phase 301, the AP sends a trigger frame 302
to one or more STAs (e.g., STA #1, STA #2, STA #3, . . . STA #n-1,
STA #n). The STAs that would want to perform measurements may
respond by sending their respective responses 303. In this example,
STA #1, STA #2, and STA #n are shown to have response frames sent
to the poll request. Therefore, during the measurement phase, the
AP and the STAs that responded during the polling phase 301, may
continue to perform the measurements. For example, as shown in FIG.
3, the AP may send a different trigger frame than the one sent in
the polling phase 301. The trigger frame in the measurement
sequence 306 is shown as trigger frame 308 which is meant to
allocate resources to the STAs that responded in the polling phase
301. The STAs would then send their UL NDPs in order to perform the
location measurements. AP would then send an NDPA which then is
followed by an NDPA from the AP to the STAs. At the end of the
measurement sequence 306, the AP and/or the STAs would exchange LMR
reports.
[0049] FIGS. 4A-4B depict illustrative schematic diagrams for
measurement report feedback.
[0050] Referring to FIG. 4A, there is shown that the measurement
report feedback could be in the same availability window 401 as the
measurement.
[0051] Referring to FIG. 4B, there is shown that the measurement
report feedback could be in a following availability window 412
compared to the availability window 411 where the measurement was
performed.
[0052] In FIG. 4A, there is shown the polling phase 402, which is
followed by the measurement phase 404, and then the AP would send
its LMR feedback to the STAs (e.g., AP-to-STA LMR), and then the
STAs would send their respective LMR feedbacks to the AP (e.g.,
STA-to-AP LMR).
[0053] In FIG. 4A, negotiation is performed during availability
window 410, the polling phase and the measurement phase(s) are
performed during availability window 411, and the LMR frames are
exchanged between the AP and the STAs during availability 412.
[0054] For the AP-to-STA LMR feedback, based on the AP's time of
arrival (ToA) computation capability and the number of STAs
involved in the measurement, the AP can use trigger frame or null
data packet announcement (NDPA) to indicate whether the LMR packet
is in the same availability window as the measurement, such that
the STA may decide whether to stay awake in the availability window
to wait for the LMR feedback or to switch to the doze state for
power save and wake up again in the next availability window. But
for the STA-to-AP LMR feedback, the AP needs to use a trigger frame
to request multiple STAs to send the LMR at the same time. Since
the STAs may have different computation capability and need a
different amount of time for ToA calculation, the AP may only
trigger the STAs whose ToA is ready to send the uplink LMR
feedback, such that the medium usage efficiency can be guaranteed.
To achieve this goal, the AP should clearly know when each STA's
ToA or LMR is ready.
[0055] FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram 500 for
uplink LMR feedback, in accordance with one or more example
embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0056] Referring to FIG. 5, there is shown a current SU ranging
sounding sequence 501.
[0057] At 2.4 or 5 GHz, the 802.11az supports three ranging
sequences: FTM (REVmc) for legacy purposes, VHTz (SU scenario), and
HEz (MU scenario). In the negotiation phase of 802.11az, the FTM
initiator sends the iFTMR frame to the FTM responder to request the
establishment of the ranging protocol instance. The iFTMR frame may
include the necessary parameter elements that will be used in the
ranging protocol, and FTM responder may respond with an iFTM frame
to indicate whether the parameter in the iFTMR frame can be
supported or a modified set of parameters.
[0058] In the current design of 802.11az, for the MU scenario, the
initiator is STA and AP is the responder. The HEz-specific
subelement of iFTMR frame includes the periodic availability window
schedule request, and the ranging parameters field of the iFTM
frame includes the responder's periodic availability window
schedule assignment and the downlink LMR types: immediate or
delayed, which indicates to the initiator when it can expect to
receive the downlink LMR frame from the responder. For the uplink
LMR feedback, since the responder needs to send the trigger frame
to multiple initiators to solicit the LMR; and therefore before
sending the trigger frame, the responder should know which
initiators' LMRs are ready.
[0059] The example of FIG. 5 shows a method to enable the uplink
LMR feedback from the STA to AP. The concept of transmitting the
STA-to-AP LMR in the same TxOP as that of the sounding also carries
over to SU operation, which is shown in FIG. 6.
[0060] It is understood that the above descriptions are for
purposes of illustration and are not meant to be limiting.
[0061] FIG. 6 depicts an illustrative schematic diagram for uplink
LMR feedback, in accordance with one or more example embodiments of
the present disclosure.
[0062] Referring to FIG. 6, there is shown an SU ranging sounding
sequence 601 with STA-to-AP reporting of round N-i.
[0063] In one embodiment, as the iSTA (normally the non-AP STA) is
the initiating entity of each sounding instance in SU, the iSTA is
merely required to initiate a new measurement instant N only once
the result of round N-i are completed.
[0064] In one embodiment, an initiator (e.g., an STA) may report
the LMR ready to the responder (e.g., an AP). In this case, the
initiator may include a status of the LMR (e.g., STA-to-AP LMR) in
a ranging parameters field of the iFTMR frame. That is the
initiator may include the ranging parameters field to indicate
whether the uplink LMR frame, comprising the LMR results, is ready
in the current availability window or in a future availability
window. Also, the ranging parameters field may also include
information associated with whether the initiator is willing to
report the LMR to the responder. The ranging parameters field may
assist the responder to determine when to send the trigger frame to
pull the LMR frame from the initiator before this expiration time
of the LMR results (e.g., a computed ToA value).
[0065] In one embodiment, an uplink LMR feedback system may provide
that in the ranging parameter field, a single bit may be defined to
indicate whether the responder will request the uplink LMR from the
initiator. This single bit may also be used by the initiator to
indicate whether it intends to share or is willing to share the LMR
with the responder. For example, the reserved bit in the ranging
parameters field may be used for this purpose. If the initiator
refuses to share the LMR information with the responder, the
responder may choose not to provide the ranging service to the
initiator. This LMR sharing bit may be applied to either HEz or
VHTz. It is understood that the above descriptions are for purposes
of illustration and are not meant to be limiting.
[0066] In one embodiment, after the negotiation, the AP knows
exactly when each STA's uplink LMR will be ready, such that the AP
can schedule the trigger frame for LMR feedback into different
availability window to request the STA to transmit the LMR frame.
If an STA knows when the AP will request it to send the LMR
feedback, the STA can decide to remain active in this availability
window or switch to doze state to save power or move to another
channel.
[0067] Another consideration for the design of the availability
window is that the AP may set the availability window long enough,
such that the AP may always finish the receiving of the uplink LMR
feedback from STAs in the same window as the measurement sequence,
and in this way, the latency between the measurement sequence and
the LMR feedback may be minimized.
[0068] In one embodiment, an STA (e.g., an initiator) may report
the LMR feedback type (immediate or delayed) to AP (e.g., a
responder). For immediate feedback, the LMR carries measurement
results of a current round, while for delayed feedback the LMR
carries measurement results of a previous round.
[0069] In one or more embodiments, the iFTMR frame may include the
STA's preferred availability windows, and for the uplink LMR
feedback, for simplicity, the STA may only need to report the
uplink LMR feedback type to the AP. For example, the immediate
feedback means the LMR is ready within the same availability window
as the measurement and the delayed LMR feedback indicates the LMR
will be ready in the next availability window following the
measurements. In other words, for immediate feedback, the LMR
carries measurement results of a current round, while for delayed
feedback the LMR carries measurement results of a previous
round.
[0070] In the ranging parameters field of the iFTMR, an LMR type
field may be added and when the STA sends the iFTMR frame, it can
set this field accordingly. For example, if this field equals to 1,
it indicates the STA can send the LMR feedback in the same
availability window as measurement (immediate feedback), and if
this field is 0, it means that the STA will send the LMR feedback
in the next availability window following the measurement sequence
(delayed feedback). Similarly, for the SU scenario, in the ranging
parameters field of the iFTMR, a LMR type field may be added, and
if this field is set to 1, it means the initiator (STA) may send
immediate feedback to responder (AP), which is in the same TxOP as
the measurement sequence. If this field is set to 0, it indicates
the STA may send delayed feedback to AP, which is in a different
TxOP as the measurement sequence, and for this case the STA also
indicates the MinToAReady and MaxToAAvailable parameters to AP,
which denotes when the STA's LMR is ready and how long the STA will
store the LMR respectively.
[0071] In one or more embodiments, for the MU scenario, in the
availability window, if the STA's LMR feedback is immediate, after
the short inter-frame space (SIFS) of sending out the DL NDP of
measurement sequence, the AP may send trigger frame to solicit the
LMR from STA, and if the STA's LMR feedback is delayed, in the next
availability window following the measurement sequence, the AP may
first perform the polling phase to check whether the STAs are ready
for measurement or LMR feedback. If the STA's response is positive,
then the AP can send the trigger frame to solicit the uplink LMR
from STA within this availability window. The AP may request the
uplink LMR either before or after the measurement sequence in this
availability window. After the STA sending out the LMR frame, the
STA can flush out the memory.
[0072] It is understood that the above descriptions are for
purposes of illustration and are not meant to be limiting.
[0073] FIG. 7 illustrates a flow diagram of illustrative process
700 for an illustrative uplink LMR feedback system, in accordance
with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0074] At block 702, a responding device (e.g., the AP 102 of FIG.
1) may perform availability window negotiation during a negotiation
phase of a location determination associated with a first
initiating device of one or more initiating devices (e.g., the user
device(s) 120 of FIG. 1).
[0075] At block 704, the device may determine a status of a first
location measurement report (LMR) associated with the first
initiating device.
[0076] At block 706, the device may cause to send a polling request
to one more initiating devices during a first availability
window.
[0077] At block 708, the device may identify a polling response
from at least one of the one or more initiating devices.
[0078] At block 710, the device may perform one or more sounding
measurements with the at least one of the one or more initiating
devices during a measurement phase.
[0079] At block 712, the device may cause to send a trigger frame
to the at least one of the one or more initiating devices.
[0080] It is understood that the above descriptions are for
purposes of illustration and are not meant to be limiting.
[0081] FIG. 7 illustrates a flow diagram of illustrative process
750 for an illustrative uplink LMR feedback system, in accordance
with one or more example embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0082] At block 752, a device (e.g., the user device(s) 120) may
perform availability window negotiation with a responding device,
wherein the availability window negotiation is associated with a
location determination measurements
[0083] At block 754, the device may identify a first trigger frame
from a responding device, wherein the first trigger frame solicits
a poll response for location measurements.
[0084] At block 756, the device may cause to send a poll response
to the responding device, wherein the poll response indicates a
willingness to participate in the location measurements.
[0085] At block 758, the device may perform one or more sounding
measurements with the responding device during a measurement
phase.
[0086] At block 760, the device may identify a second trigger frame
from the responding device.
[0087] It is understood that the above descriptions are for
purposes of illustration and are not meant to be limiting.
[0088] FIG. 8 shows a functional diagram of an exemplary
communication station 800 in accordance with some embodiments. In
one embodiment, FIG. 8 illustrates a functional block diagram of a
communication station that may be suitable for use as an AP 102
(FIG. 1) or a user device 120 (FIG. 1) in accordance with some
embodiments. The communication station 800 may also be suitable for
use as a handheld device, a mobile device, a cellular telephone, a
smartphone, a tablet, a netbook, a wireless terminal, a laptop
computer, a wearable computer device, a femtocell, a high data rate
(HDR) subscriber station, an access point, an access terminal, or
other personal communication system (PCS) device.
[0089] The communication station 800 may include communications
circuitry 802 and a transceiver 810 for transmitting and receiving
signals to and from other communication stations using one or more
antennas 801. The transceiver 810 may be a device comprising both a
transmitter and a receiver that are combined and share common
circuitry (e.g., communication circuitry 802). The communication
circuitry 802 may include amplifiers, filters, mixers, analog to
digital and/or digital to analog converters. The transceiver 810
may transmit and receive analog or digital signals. The transceiver
810 may allow reception of signals during transmission periods.
This mode is known as full-duplex and may require the transmitter
and receiver to operate on different frequencies to minimize
interference between the transmitted signal and the received
signal. The transceiver 810 may operate in a half-duplex mode,
where the transceiver 810 may transmit or receive signals in one
direction at a time.
[0090] The communications circuitry 802 may include circuitry that
can operate the physical layer (PHY) communications and/or medium
access control (MAC) communications for controlling access to the
wireless medium, and/or any other communications layers for
transmitting and receiving signals. The communication station 800
may also include processing circuitry 806 and memory 808 arranged
to perform the operations described herein. In some embodiments,
the communications circuitry 802 and the processing circuitry 806
may be configured to perform operations detailed in FIGS. 1, 2, 3,
4A, 4B, 5, 6, 7A, and 7B.
[0091] In accordance with some embodiments, the communications
circuitry 802 may be arranged to contend for a wireless medium and
configure frames or packets for communicating over the wireless
medium. The communications circuitry 802 may be arranged to
transmit and receive signals. The communications circuitry 802 may
also include circuitry for modulation/demodulation,
upconversion/downconversion, filtering, amplification, etc. In some
embodiments, the processing circuitry 806 of the communication
station 800 may include one or more processors. In other
embodiments, two or more antennas 801 may be coupled to the
communications circuitry 802 arranged for sending and receiving
signals. The memory 808 may store information for configuring the
processing circuitry 806 to perform operations for configuring and
transmitting message frames and performing the various operations
described herein. The memory 808 may include any type of memory,
including non-transitory memory, for storing information in a form
readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, the memory
808 may include a computer-readable storage device, read-only
memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), magnetic disk storage
media, optical storage media, flash memory devices and other
storage devices and media.
[0092] In some embodiments, the communication station 800 may be
part of a portable wireless communication device, such as a
personal digital assistant (PDA), a laptop or portable computer
with wireless communication capability, a web tablet, a wireless
telephone, a smartphone, a wireless headset, a pager, an instant
messaging device, a digital camera, an access point, a television,
a medical device (e.g., a heart rate monitor, a blood pressure
monitor, etc.), a wearable computer device, or another device that
may receive and/or transmit information wirelessly.
[0093] In some embodiments, the communication station 800 may
include one or more antennas 801. The antennas 801 may include one
or more directional or omnidirectional antennas, including, for
example, dipole antennas, monopole antennas, patch antennas, loop
antennas, microstrip antennas, or other types of antennas suitable
for transmission of RF signals. In some embodiments, instead of two
or more antennas, a single antenna with multiple apertures may be
used. In these embodiments, each aperture may be considered a
separate antenna. In some multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO)
embodiments, the antennas may be effectively separated for spatial
diversity and the different channel characteristics that may result
between each of the antennas and the antennas of a transmitting
station.
[0094] In some embodiments, the communication station 800 may
include one or more of a keyboard, a display, a non-volatile memory
port, multiple antennas, a graphics processor, an application
processor, speakers, and other mobile device elements. The display
may be an LCD screen including a touchscreen.
[0095] Although the communication station 800 is illustrated as
having several separate functional elements, two or more of the
functional elements may be combined and may be implemented by
combinations of software-configured elements, such as processing
elements including digital signal processors (DSPs), and/or other
hardware elements. For example, some elements may include one or
more microprocessors, DSPs, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs),
application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), radio-frequency
integrated circuits (RFICs) and combinations of various hardware
and logic circuitry for performing at least the functions described
herein. In some embodiments, the functional elements of the
communication station 800 may refer to one or more processes
operating on one or more processing elements.
[0096] Certain embodiments may be implemented in one or a
combination of hardware, firmware, and software. Other embodiments
may also be implemented as instructions stored on a
computer-readable storage device, which may be read and executed by
at least one processor to perform the operations described herein.
A computer-readable storage device may include any non-transitory
memory mechanism for storing information in a form readable by a
machine (e.g., a computer). For example, a computer-readable
storage device may include read-only memory (ROM), random-access
memory (RAM), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media,
flash-memory devices, and other storage devices and media. In some
embodiments, the communication station 800 may include one or more
processors and may be configured with instructions stored on a
computer-readable storage device memory.
[0097] FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of an example of a
machine 900 or system upon which any one or more of the techniques
(e.g., methodologies) discussed herein may be performed. In other
embodiments, the machine 900 may operate as a standalone device or
may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a
networked deployment, the machine 900 may operate in the capacity
of a server machine, a client machine, or both in server-client
network environments. In an example, the machine 900 may act as a
peer machine in peer-to-peer (P2P) (or other distributed) network
environments. The machine 900 may be a personal computer (PC), a
tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA),
a mobile telephone, a wearable computer device, a web appliance, a
network router, a switch or bridge, or any machine capable of
executing instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify
actions to be taken by that machine, such as a base station.
Further, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term
"machine" shall also be taken to include any collection of machines
that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of
instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies
discussed herein, such as cloud computing, software as a service
(SaaS), or other computer cluster configurations.
[0098] Examples, as described herein, may include or may operate on
logic or a number of components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules
are tangible entities (e.g., hardware) capable of performing
specified operations when operating. A module includes hardware. In
an example, the hardware may be specifically configured to carry
out a specific operation (e.g., hardwired). In another example, the
hardware may include configurable execution units (e.g.,
transistors, circuits, etc.) and a computer-readable medium
containing instructions where the instructions configure the
execution units to carry out a specific operation when in
operation. The configuring may occur under the direction of the
executions units or a loading mechanism. Accordingly, the execution
units are communicatively coupled to the computer-readable medium
when the device is operating. In this example, the execution units
may be a member of more than one module. For example, under
operation, the execution units may be configured by a first set of
instructions to implement a first module at one point in time and
reconfigured by a second set of instructions to implement a second
module at a second point in time.
[0099] The machine (e.g., computer system) 900 may include a
hardware processor 902 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a
graphics processing unit (GPU), a hardware processor core, or any
combination thereof), a main memory 904 and a static memory 906,
some or all of which may communicate with each other via an
interlink (e.g., bus) 908. The machine 900 may further include a
power management device 932, a graphics display device 910, an
alphanumeric input device 912 (e.g., a keyboard), and a user
interface (UI) navigation device 914 (e.g., a mouse). In an
example, the graphics display device 910, alphanumeric input device
912, and UI navigation device 914 may be a touchscreen display. The
machine 900 may additionally include a storage device (i.e., drive
unit) 916, a signal generation device 918 (e.g., a speaker), a
uplink LMR feedback device 919, a network interface
device/transceiver 920 coupled to antenna(s) 930, and one or more
sensors 928, such as a global positioning system (GPS) sensor, a
compass, an accelerometer, or other sensor. The machine 900 may
include an output controller 934, such as a serial (e.g., universal
serial bus (USB), parallel, or other wired or wireless (e.g.,
infrared (IR), near field communication (NFC), etc.) connection to
communicate with or control one or more peripheral devices (e.g., a
printer, a card reader, etc.)).
[0100] The storage device 916 may include a machine-readable medium
922 on which is stored one or more sets of data structures or
instructions 924 (e.g., software) embodying or utilized by any one
or more of the techniques or functions described herein. The
instructions 924 may also reside, completely or at least partially,
within the main memory 904, within the static memory 906, or within
the hardware processor 902 during execution thereof by the machine
900. In an example, one or any combination of the hardware
processor 902, the main memory 904, the static memory 906, or the
storage device 916 may constitute machine-readable media.
[0101] The uplink LMR feedback device 919 may carry out or perform
any of the operations and processes (e.g., processes 700 and 750)
described and shown above.
[0102] It is understood that the above are only a subset of what
the uplink LMR feedback device 919 may be configured to perform and
that other functions included throughout this disclosure may also
be performed by the uplink LMR feedback device 919.
[0103] While the machine-readable medium 922 is illustrated as a
single medium, the term "machine-readable medium" may include a
single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed
database, and/or associated caches and servers) configured to store
the one or more instructions 924.
[0104] Various embodiments may be implemented fully or partially in
software and/or firmware. This software and/or firmware may take
the form of instructions contained in or on a non-transitory
computer-readable storage medium. Those instructions may then be
read and executed by one or more processors to enable performance
of the operations described herein. The instructions may be in any
suitable form, such as but not limited to source code, compiled
code, interpreted code, executable code, static code, dynamic code,
and the like. Such a computer-readable medium may include any
tangible non-transitory medium for storing information in a form
readable by one or more computers, such as but not limited to read
only memory (ROM); random access memory (RAM); magnetic disk
storage media; optical storage media; a flash memory, etc.
[0105] The term "machine-readable medium" may include any medium
that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions for
execution by the machine 900 and that cause the machine 900 to
perform any one or more of the techniques of the present
disclosure, or that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying
data structures used by or associated with such instructions.
Non-limiting machine-readable medium examples may include
solid-state memories and optical and magnetic media. In an example,
a massed machine-readable medium includes a machine-readable medium
with a plurality of particles having resting mass. Specific
examples of massed machine-readable media may include non-volatile
memory, such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., electrically
programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or electrically erasable
programmable read-only memory (EEPROM)) and flash memory devices;
magnetic disks, such as internal hard disks and removable disks;
magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks.
[0106] The instructions 924 may further be transmitted or received
over a communications network 926 using a transmission medium via
the network interface device/transceiver 920 utilizing any one of a
number of transfer protocols (e.g., frame relay, internet protocol
(IP), transmission control protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol
(UDP), hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), etc.). Example
communications networks may include a local area network (LAN), a
wide area network (WAN), a packet data network (e.g., the
Internet), mobile telephone networks (e.g., cellular networks),
plain old telephone (POTS) networks, wireless data networks (e.g.,
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11
family of standards known as Wi-Fi.RTM., IEEE 802.16 family of
standards known as WiMax.RTM.), IEEE 802.15.4 family of standards,
and peer-to-peer (P2P) networks, among others. In an example, the
network interface device/transceiver 920 may include one or more
physical jacks (e.g., Ethernet, coaxial, or phone jacks) or one or
more antennas to connect to the communications network 926. In an
example, the network interface device/transceiver 920 may include a
plurality of antennas to wirelessly communicate using at least one
of single-input multiple-output (SIMO), multiple-input
multiple-output (MIMO), or multiple-input single-output (MISO)
techniques. The term "transmission medium" shall be taken to
include any intangible medium that is capable of storing, encoding,
or carrying instructions for execution by the machine 900 and
includes digital or analog communications signals or other
intangible media to facilitate communication of such software. The
operations and processes described and shown above may be carried
out or performed in any suitable order as desired in various
implementations. Additionally, in certain implementations, at least
a portion of the operations may be carried out in parallel.
Furthermore, in certain implementations, less than or more than the
operations described may be performed.
[0107] The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an
example, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment described
herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as
preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. The terms
"computing device," "user device," "communication station,"
"station," "handheld device," "mobile device," "wireless device"
and "user equipment" (UE) as used herein refers to a wireless
communication device such as a cellular telephone, a smartphone, a
tablet, a netbook, a wireless terminal, a laptop computer, a
femtocell, a high data rate (HDR) subscriber station, an access
point, a printer, a point of sale device, an access terminal, or
other personal communication system (PCS) device. The device may be
either mobile or stationary.
[0108] As used within this document, the term "communicate" is
intended to include transmitting, or receiving, or both
transmitting and receiving. This may be particularly useful in
claims when describing the organization of data that is being
transmitted by one device and received by another, but only the
functionality of one of those devices is required to infringe the
claim. Similarly, the bidirectional exchange of data between two
devices (both devices transmit and receive during the exchange) may
be described as "communicating," when only the functionality of one
of those devices is being claimed. The term "communicating" as used
herein with respect to a wireless communication signal includes
transmitting the wireless communication signal and/or receiving the
wireless communication signal. For example, a wireless
communication unit, which is capable of communicating a wireless
communication signal, may include a wireless transmitter to
transmit the wireless communication signal to at least one other
wireless communication unit, and/or a wireless communication
receiver to receive the wireless communication signal from at least
one other wireless communication unit.
[0109] As used herein, unless otherwise specified, the use of the
ordinal adjectives "first," "second," "third," etc., to describe a
common object, merely indicates that different instances of like
objects are being referred to and are not intended to imply that
the objects so described must be in a given sequence, either
temporally, spatially, in ranking, or in any other manner.
[0110] The term "access point" (AP) as used herein may be a fixed
station. An access point may also be referred to as an access node,
a base station, an evolved node B (eNodeB), or some other similar
terminology known in the art. An access terminal may also be called
a mobile station, user equipment (UE), a wireless communication
device, or some other similar terminology known in the art.
Embodiments disclosed herein generally pertain to wireless
networks. Some embodiments may relate to wireless networks that
operate in accordance with one of the IEEE 802.11 standards.
[0111] Some embodiments may be used in conjunction with various
devices and systems, for example, a personal computer (PC), a
desktop computer, a mobile computer, a laptop computer, a notebook
computer, a tablet computer, a server computer, a handheld
computer, a handheld device, a personal digital assistant (PDA)
device, a handheld PDA device, an on-board device, an off-board
device, a hybrid device, a vehicular device, a non-vehicular
device, a mobile or portable device, a consumer device, a
non-mobile or non-portable device, a wireless communication
station, a wireless communication device, a wireless access point
(AP), a wired or wireless router, a wired or wireless modem, a
video device, an audio device, an audio-video (A/V) device, a wired
or wireless network, a wireless area network, a wireless video area
network (WVAN), a local area network (LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN),
a personal area network (PAN), a wireless PAN (WPAN), and the
like.
[0112] Some embodiments may be used in conjunction with one way
and/or two-way radio communication systems, cellular
radio-telephone communication systems, a mobile phone, a cellular
telephone, a wireless telephone, a personal communication system
(PCS) device, a PDA device which incorporates a wireless
communication device, a mobile or portable global positioning
system (GPS) device, a device which incorporates a GPS receiver or
transceiver or chip, a device which incorporates an RFID element or
chip, a multiple input multiple output (MIMO) transceiver or
device, a single input multiple output (SIMO) transceiver or
device, a multiple input single output (MISO) transceiver or
device, a device having one or more internal antennas and/or
external antennas, digital video broadcast (DVB) devices or
systems, multi-standard radio devices or systems, a wired or
wireless handheld device, e.g., a smartphone, a wireless
application protocol (WAP) device, or the like.
[0113] Some embodiments may be used in conjunction with one or more
types of wireless communication signals and/or systems following
one or more wireless communication protocols, for example, radio
frequency (RF), infrared (IR), frequency-division multiplexing
(FDM), orthogonal FDM (OFDM), time-division multiplexing (TDM),
time-division multiple access (TDMA), extended TDMA (E-TDMA),
general packet radio service (GPRS), extended GPRS, code-division
multiple access (CDMA), wideband CDMA (WCDMA), CDMA 2000,
single-carrier CDMA, multi-carrier CDMA, multi-carrier modulation
(MDM), discrete multi-tone (DMT), Bluetooth.RTM., global
positioning system (GPS), Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, ZigBee, ultra-wideband
(UWB), global system for mobile communications (GSM), 2G, 2.5G, 3G,
3.5G, 4G, fifth generation (5G) mobile networks, 3GPP, long term
evolution (LTE), LTE advanced, enhanced data rates for GSM
Evolution (EDGE), or the like. Other embodiments may be used in
various other devices, systems, and/or networks.
[0114] The following examples pertain to further embodiments.
[0115] Example 1 may include a responding device comprising
processing circuitry coupled to storage, the processing circuitry
configured to: perform availability window negotiation during a
negotiation phase of a location determination associated with a
first initiating device of one or more initiating devices;
determine a status of a first location measurement report (LMR)
associated with the first initiating device; cause to send a
polling request to one more initiating devices during a first
availability window; identify a polling response from at least one
of the one or more initiating devices; perform one or more sounding
measurements with the at least one of the one or more initiating
devices during a measurement phase; and cause to send a trigger
frame to the at least one of the one or more initiating
devices.
[0116] Example 2 may include the device of example 1 and/or some
other example herein, wherein the status of the first LMR may be a
delayed LMR or an immediate LMR.
[0117] Example 3 may include the device of example 1 and/or some
other example herein, wherein a delayed LMR may be an LMR sent in a
next availability window, and wherein an immediate LMR may be an
LMR sent in a same availability window of the measurement
availability window.
[0118] Example 4 may include the device of example 1 and/or some
other example herein, wherein to cause to send the trigger frame to
the at least one of the one or more imitating devices further
comprises determining that at least one of the one or more
initiating devices are ready to send a corresponding LMR.
[0119] Example 5 may include the device of example 1 and/or some
other example herein, wherein to perform the availability window
negotiation comprises the processing circuitry to be further
configured to exchange fine timing measurement (FTM) frames, the
FTM frames comprising an initiating FTM request.
[0120] Example 6 may include the device of example 5 and/or some
other example herein, wherein the initiating FTM request comprises
timing information associated with when the first LMR associated
with the first initiating LMR.
[0121] Example 7 may include the device of example 6 and/or some
other example herein, wherein the timing information includes a
time offset of when the first LMR will be sent and a time duration
of how long the first LMR will be valid.
[0122] Example 8 may include the device of example 6 and/or some
other example herein, wherein the initiating FTM request comprises
a ranging parameters field, wherein the ranging parameter field
indicates a willingness to report the first LMR.
[0123] Example 9 may include the device of example 8 and/or some
other example herein, wherein the ranging parameters field may be
set to 1 to indicate the first initiating device may be willing to
report the first LMR to the responding device.
[0124] Example 10 may include the device of example 8 and/or some
other example herein, wherein the ranging parameters field may be
set to 0 to indicate the first initiating device may be not ready
to report the first LMR to the responding device.
[0125] Example 11 may include the device of example 1 and/or some
other example herein, further comprising a transceiver configured
to transmit and receive wireless signals.
[0126] Example 12 may include the device of example 11 and/or some
other example herein, further comprising an antenna coupled to the
transceiver.
[0127] Example 13 may include a non-transitory computer-readable
medium storing computer-executable instructions which when executed
by one or more processors result in performing operations
comprising: performing availability window negotiation with a
responding device, wherein the availability window negotiation may
be associated with a location determination measurements;
identifying a first trigger frame from a responding device, wherein
the first trigger frame solicits a poll response for location
measurements; causing to send a poll response to the responding
device, wherein the poll response indicates a willingness to
participate in the location measurements; performing one or more
sounding measurements with the responding device during a
measurement phase; and identifying a second trigger frame from the
responding device.
[0128] Example 14 may include the non-transitory computer-readable
medium of example 13 and/or some other example herein, wherein the
second trigger frame allocates resources for one or more devices to
send their corresponding uplink location measurement report (LMR)
to the responding device.
[0129] Example 15 may include the non-transitory computer-readable
medium of example 13 and/or some other example herein, wherein
identifying the second trigger frame may be based on a negotiation
phase of the availability window negotiation.
[0130] Example 16 may include the non-transitory computer-readable
medium of example 13 and/or some other example herein, wherein the
operations further comprise causing to send an initiating fine
timing measurement request (iFTMR) frame during a negotiation
phase, wherein the iFTMR comprises a ranging parameters field that
indicates an immediate location measurement report (LMR) or a
delayed LMR.
[0131] Example 17 may include the non-transitory computer-readable
medium of example 13 and/or some other example herein, wherein the
operations further comprise causing to send an initiating fine
timing measurement request (iFTMR) frame during a negotiation
phase, wherein the iFTMR comprises a feedback bit that indicates a
willingness to report a location measurement report (LMR).
[0132] Example 18 may include a method comprising: performing, by
one or more processors of a responding device, availability window
negotiation during a negotiation phase of a location determination
associated with a first initiating device of one or more initiating
devices; determine a status of a first location measurement report
(LMR) associated with the initiating device; cause to send a
polling request to one more initiating devices during a first
availability window; identify a polling response from at least one
of the one or more initiating devices; perform one or more sounding
measurements with the at least one of the one or more initiating
devices during a measurement phase; and cause to send a trigger
frame to the at least one of the one or more initiating
devices.
[0133] Example 19 may include the method of example 18 and/or some
other example herein, wherein the status of the first LMR may be a
delayed LMR or an immediate LMR.
[0134] Example 20 may include the method of example 18 and/or some
other example herein, wherein a delayed LMR may be an LMR sent in a
next availability window, and wherein an immediate LMR may be an
LMR sent in a same availability window of the measurement
availability window.
[0135] Example 21 may include an apparatus comprising means for:
performing availability window negotiation during a negotiation
phase of a location determination associated with a first
initiating device of one or more initiating devices; determining a
status of a first location measurement report (LMR) associated with
the first initiating device; causing to send a polling request to
one more initiating devices during a first availability window;
identifying a polling response from at least one of the one or more
initiating devices; performing one or more sounding measurements
with the at least one of the one or more initiating devices during
a measurement phase; and causing to send a trigger frame to the at
least one of the one or more initiating devices.
[0136] Example 22 may include the apparatus of example 21 and/or
some other example herein, wherein the status of the first LMR may
be a delayed LMR or an immediate LMR.
[0137] Example 23 may include the apparatus of example 21 and/or
some other example herein, wherein a delayed LMR may be an LMR sent
in a next availability window, and wherein an immediate LMR may be
an LMR sent in a same availability window of the measurement
availability window.
[0138] Example 24 may include the apparatus of example 21 and/or
some other example herein, wherein to cause to send the trigger
frame to the at least one of the one or more imitating devices
further comprises determining that at least one of the one or more
initiating devices are ready to send a corresponding LMR.
[0139] Example 25 may include the apparatus of example 21 and/or
some other example herein, wherein the means for performing the
availability window negotiation comprises means for exchanging fine
timing measurement (FTM) frames, the FTM frames comprising an
initiating FTM request.
[0140] Example 26 may include the apparatus of example 25 and/or
some other example herein, wherein the initiating FTM request
comprises timing information associated with when the first LMR
associated with the first initiating LMR.
[0141] Example 27 may include one or more non-transitory
computer-readable media comprising instructions to cause an
electronic device, upon execution of the instructions by one or
more processors of the electronic device, to perform one or more
elements of a method described in or related to any of examples
1-26, or any other method or process described herein.
[0142] Example 28 may include an apparatus comprising logic,
modules, and/or circuitry to perform one or more elements of a
method described in or related to any of examples 1-26, or any
other method or process described herein.
[0143] Example 29 may include a method, technique, or process as
described in or related to any of examples 1-26, or portions or
parts thereof.
[0144] Example 30 may include an apparatus comprising: one or more
processors and one or more computer-readable media comprising
instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors,
cause the one or more processors to perform the method, techniques,
or process as described in or related to any of examples 1-26, or
portions thereof.
[0145] Example 31 may include a method of communicating in a
wireless network as shown and described herein.
[0146] Example 32 may include a system for providing wireless
communication as shown and described herein.
[0147] Example 33 may include a device for providing wireless
communication as shown and described herein.
[0148] Embodiments according to the disclosure are in particular
disclosed in the attached claims directed to a method, a storage
medium, a device, and a computer program product, wherein any
feature mentioned in one claim category, e.g., method, can be
claimed in another claim category, e.g., system, as well. The
dependencies or references back in the attached claims are chosen
for formal reasons only. However, any subject matter resulting from
a deliberate reference back to any previous claims (in particular
multiple dependencies) can be claimed as well, so that any
combination of claims and the features thereof are disclosed and
can be claimed regardless of the dependencies chosen in the
attached claims. The subject-matter which can be claimed comprises
not only the combinations of features as set out in the attached
claims but also any other combination of features in the claims,
wherein each feature mentioned in the claims can be combined with
any other feature or combination of other features in the claims.
Furthermore, any of the embodiments and features described or
depicted herein can be claimed in a separate claim and/or in any
combination with any embodiment or feature described or depicted
herein or with any of the features of the attached claims.
[0149] The foregoing description of one or more implementations
provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be
exhaustive or to limit the scope of embodiments to the precise form
disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of
the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of various
embodiments.
[0150] Certain aspects of the disclosure are described above with
reference to block and flow diagrams of systems, methods,
apparatuses, and/or computer program products according to various
implementations. It will be understood that one or more blocks of
the block diagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations of blocks in
the block diagrams and the flow diagrams, respectively, may be
implemented by computer-executable program instructions. Likewise,
some blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams may not
necessarily need to be performed in the order presented, or may not
necessarily need to be performed at all, according to some
implementations.
[0151] These computer-executable program instructions may be loaded
onto a special-purpose computer or other particular machine, a
processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to
produce a particular machine, such that the instructions that
execute on the computer, processor, or other programmable data
processing apparatus create means for implementing one or more
functions specified in the flow diagram block or blocks. These
computer program instructions may also be stored in a
computer-readable storage media or memory that may direct a
computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to
function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored
in the computer-readable storage media produce an article of
manufacture including instruction means that implement one or more
functions specified in the flow diagram block or blocks. As an
example, certain implementations may provide for a computer program
product, comprising a computer-readable storage medium having a
computer-readable program code or program instructions implemented
therein, said computer-readable program code adapted to be executed
to implement one or more functions specified in the flow diagram
block or blocks. The computer program instructions may also be
loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing
apparatus to cause a series of operational elements or steps to be
performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to
produce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions
that execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus
provide elements or steps for implementing the functions specified
in the flow diagram block or blocks.
[0152] Accordingly, blocks of the block diagrams and flow diagrams
support combinations of means for performing the specified
functions, combinations of elements or steps for performing the
specified functions and program instruction means for performing
the specified functions. It will also be understood that each block
of the block diagrams and flow diagrams, and combinations of blocks
in the block diagrams and flow diagrams, may be implemented by
special-purpose, hardware-based computer systems that perform the
specified functions, elements or steps, or combinations of
special-purpose hardware and computer instructions.
[0153] Conditional language, such as, among others, "can," "could,"
"might," or "may," unless specifically stated otherwise, or
otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally
intended to convey that certain implementations could include,
while other implementations do not include, certain features,
elements, and/or operations. Thus, such conditional language is not
generally intended to imply that features, elements, and/or
operations are in any way required for one or more implementations
or that one or more implementations necessarily include logic for
deciding, with or without user input or prompting, whether these
features, elements, and/or operations are included or are to be
performed in any particular implementation.
[0154] Many modifications and other implementations of the
disclosure set forth herein will be apparent having the benefit of
the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the
associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the
disclosure is not to be limited to the specific implementations
disclosed and that modifications and other implementations are
intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.
Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a
generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of
limitation.
* * * * *