Abstract: Some aspects of this disclosure include apparatuses and methods for implementing backup link establishment and operation for multi-link wireless communication networks such as a wireless local area network (WLAN). Some aspects relate to an electronic device including a transceiver configured to communicate over a wireless network and a processor communicatively coupled to the transceiver. The processor receives a message including information associated with a backup link from a second electronic device. The processor further receives data associated with data traffic from the second electronic device on a primary link of the wireless network. In response to a quality of the primary link being below a threshold, the processor receives a notification frame from the second electronic device on the backup link and receives additional data associated with the data traffic from the second electronic device on the backup link or on an other link informed by the notification frame.

Abstract: An electronic device may receive a frame associated with a second electronic device. This frame may include a MAC header with information specifying a request for a trigger or a trigger frame, and the information may include a suggested time interval during which the trigger or the trigger frame is to be provided and a requested resource allocation. For example, the MAC header may include an A-control field, and the A-control field may include the information or may include multiple A-MPDUs and one or more of the A-MPDUs (such as a last A-MPDU or all of the A-MPDUs) may include the information. Moreover, the time interval may begin at a previous transmission associated with the second electronic device, and the requested resource allocation may include a capacity. In response to the request, the electronic device may provide the trigger or the trigger frame addressed to the second electronic device.

Abstract: An electronic device may transmit beacons associated with multiple access points that are cohosted by the electronic device, and that provide concurrent links in different bands of frequencies. The electronic device may include an access-point multi-link device (AP MLD). Moreover, the beacons may include: a basic service set identifier (BSSID) associated with the access points in the AP MLD, a service set identifier (SSID) associated with the access points in the AP MLD, and a MLD media access control (MAC) address associated with the access points in the AP MLD. Furthermore, a given beacon may be associated with a given access point and may include: information specifying a channel of a given link, a reduced neighbor report (RNR) providing information about at least the access points in the AP MLD, and a field that indicates when the given access point is included in the AP MLD.

Abstract: A communication device determines, in connection with a prior uplink multi-user (UL MU) communication in which the communication device participated, whether the communication device is to use one or more first channel access parameters, or one or more second channel access parameters for accessing a communication medium for a single user (SU) transmission by the communication device, where using the one or more first channel access parameters is associated with a greater probability of obtaining access to the communication medium as compared to using the one or more second channel access parameters. Depending on the determination made, the communication device uses the one or more first channel access parameters, or the one or more second channel access parameters to attempt to access the communication medium. In response to accessing the communication medium, the communication device transmits the SU transmission via the communication medium.

Abstract: Some aspects of this disclosure include apparatuses and methods for implementing a hibernation mode for multi-link wireless communication networks such as a wireless local area network (WLAN). For example, some aspects relate to a multi-link device (MLD) including a first station (STA) associated with a first link of a wireless network and configured to communicate with a second MLD over the first link. The MLD also includes a second STA associated with a second link of the wireless network. The second STA is in a hibernation mode. The MLD also includes one or more processors communicatively coupled to the first and second STAs and configured to control operations of the first and second STAs.

Abstract: A method for allocating a plurality of resource units among a plurality of client stations in a wireless local area network is disclosed herein. An access point (AP) estimates a channel quality indicator for each of the respective channels between the AP and the plurality of client stations, obtains queue information corresponding to each of the plurality of client stations, and computes a utility function for each of the plurality of client stations based on the channel quality indicator and the obtained queue information. The AP then allocates each resource unit to a client station of the plurality of client stations having a highest value output by the respective utility function.

Abstract: Some embodiments include an apparatus, method, and computer program product for Extremely High Throughput (EHT) medium reservation. Some embodiments include a first station configured to exchange EHT-Request to Send (RTS) and/or EHT-Clear to Send (CTS) capabilities with a second station, and determine CTS response mode (e.g., rules) for the first station based at least on the RTS and CTS capabilities of the first and the second stations. Some embodiments include transmitting RTS frames and receiving CTS frames in the presence of punctured channels, implementing a flexible channel reservation scheme, reserving punctured bandwidths, and receiving CTS frames even when a primary channel is busy. Some embodiments include an RTS or an CTS frame that includes an EHT bandwidth puncture (BnP) signaling address and/or a modified scrambler seed that enable channel reservations for an EHT bandwidth.

Abstract: Some aspects of this disclosure include apparatuses and methods for implementing request to send (RTS) and clear to transmit (CTS) frames and transmission rules for the RTS and CTS frame. For example, some aspects relate to an electronic device including a transceiver and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the transceiver. The one or more processors receive, using the transceiver, a request to send (RTS) frame from the second electronic device and determine, using the received RTS frame, a format for a clear to send (CTS) frame to use in response to the RTS frame. The one or more processors further transmit, using the transceiver, the CTS frame based on the determined format on at least one sub-channel on which the RTS frame was received and that the at least one sub-channel is idle.

Abstract: A network device includes a first medium access control entity and a second medium access control entity. The first medium access control entity is configured to transmit and receive in a first frequency band. The second medium access control entity is configured to transmit and receive in a second frequency band, wherein the second frequency band is higher than and non-contiguous with the first frequency band. The first medium access control entity is configured to receive a control frame and operate as a pass-through to pass at least a portion of the control frame from the first medium access control entity to the second medium access control entity as opposed to forwarding the control frame to a physical layer entity or a processor of the network device. The second medium access control entity is configured to transmit the at least the portion of the control frame in the second frequency band.

Abstract: A multilink access point may communicate with a legacy device. The multilink access point identifies an attempt, by at least one legacy station, to connect to the access point, determines that the at least one legacy station does not support multilink communications, broadcasts a beacon identifying information for a basic communication link that can be used by the at least one legacy station and associates with the at least one legacy station based at least on information included in the beacon, wherein the at least one legacy station communicates exclusively on the basic communication link with the access point.

Abstract: A first multilink device (MLD) is configured to communicate with a second MLD using at least two communication links. The first MLD selects a first link of the at least two communication links for communications between the first MLD and the second MLD, detects that the first link is unavailable for communications, switches a radio of the first MLD to a second link of the at least two communication links, transmits an alert to the second MLD regarding the switching from the first one of the at least two communication links to the second one of the at least two communication links and communicates with the second MLD via the second link.

Abstract: An electronic device (such as an access point) that receives one or more block acknowledgments is described. This electronic device may transmit an extremely high-throughput (EHT) physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data unit (PPDU) to a recipient electronic device, where the EHT PPDU is transmitted in multiple non-contiguous sub-bands that are separated by a punctured sub-band. Moreover, the electronic may receive the one or more block acknowledgments from the recipient electronic device, where the one or more block acknowledgments exclude the punctured sub-band. Note that the EHT PPDU may exclude transmitted energy in the punctured sub-band. Moreover, the punctured sub-band may have a bandwidth of at least 20 MHz and may be different from a primary sub-band.

Abstract: An electronic device (such as an access point) is described. This electronic device transmits an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) frame to a recipient electronic device (such as a client or a station). The OFDMA frame includes multiple predefined resource units (RUs) allocated to the recipient electronic device in a set of predefined RUs having associated frequency bandwidths. Moreover, the multiple predefined RUs include two or more first predefined RUs having a first number of tones less than a predefined amount, or two or more second predefined RUs having a second number of tones greater than or equal to the predefined amount. For example, the predefined amount may include 242 tones. Note that the multiple predefined RUs may have the same or different numbers of tones. Moreover, the electronic may receive an acknowledgment or a block acknowledgment from the recipient electronic device.

Abstract: A first communication device receives an aggregated data unit from a second communication device. The aggregated data unit aggregates (i) one or more sets of multiple data units, each set of multiple data units to be acknowledged by a respective block acknowledgement and (ii) one or more single data units, each single data unit to be acknowledged by a respective single acknowledgement. The first communication device generates a block acknowledgment frame that includes (i) block acknowledgement information to acknowledge the one or more sets of multiple data units, and (ii) single acknowledgment information to acknowledge the one or more single data units, where the block acknowledgement frame omits an indication that the block acknowledgement frame includes the single acknowledgement information. The first communication device causes the block acknowledgement frame to be transmitted to the second communication device.

Abstract: An electronic device (such as an access point) that performs a remedial action is described. This electronic device may transmit, using a first radio in the electronic device, a physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data unit (PPDU) to a recipient electronic device on a first link between the electronic device and the recipient electronic device, where the PPDU includes a PPDU preamble and a set of media access control (MAC) protocol data units (MPDUs). Then, the electronic device may receive, using a second radio in the electronic device, feedback from the recipient electronic device on a second link between the electronic device and the recipient electronic device. Next, the electronic device may perform the remedial action based at least in part on the feedback. For example, the electronic device may abort the PPDU transmission and/or retransmit one or more of the set of MPDUs.

Abstract: A first communication device allocates respective portions of a communication channel, that includes at least one primary component channel and one or more non-primary component channels, to a plurality of second communication devices, including a bandwidth-limited second communication device configured to operate with a maximum bandwidth that is less than a full bandwidth of the communication channel. The bandwidth-limited second communication device is operating in a particular component channel, and allocation of a frequency portion to the bandwidth-limited second communication device is restricted to the particular component channel.

Abstract: This disclosure relates to methods for conducting multilink communications between wireless devices over a wireless local area network (WLAN). A wireless device determines link availability for multiple wireless links of the wireless device. The wireless device transmits link availability information for the multiple wireless links of the wireless device using a first wireless link of the wireless device.

Abstract: Systems and techniques relating to wireless networking systems and techniques, namely employing acknowledgement mechanisms utilized with trigger frames, include: transmitting, by a first wireless device, a first frame, wherein the first frame comprises a field indicating a response frame type associated with reception of the first frame; receiving, by the first wireless device from a second wireless device, an acknowledgement (ACK) frame associated with the field in the first frame via an established wireless communication channel, the ACK frame having a frame type corresponding to the response frame type indicated in the first frame; and receiving, by the first wireless device from the second wireless device, additional frames associated with the ACK frame.

Abstract: An electronic device that communicates frames is described. During operation, the electronic device may transmit the frames addressed to a recipient electronic device and associated with multiple links between the electronic device and the recipient electronic device. Then, the electronic device may receive block acknowledgments for at least a subset of the frames, where a given block acknowledgment is associated with the recipient electronic device and indicates received frames on a given link in the links. Moreover, the electronic device may control an amount of traffic conveyed on the links based at least in part on the block acknowledgments. Next, the electronic device may store a remainder of the frames based at least in part on the block acknowledgments, where the frames include the subset of the frames and the remainder of the frames. Note that the frames may have a common traffic identifier.

Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure provide an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus includes a transceiver and a processing circuit. The transceiver is configured to transmit and receive wireless signals. The processing circuit is configured to configure a field within a data unit for buffer information report, determine a first scale factor for scaling a first value indicative of buffered traffic of a first category, and a second scale factor for scaling a second value indicative of buffered traffic of a category, configure the field to include the first scale factor with the first value and the second scale factor with the second value, and provide the data unit to the transceiver for transmitting to another apparatus that allocates resources for transmission between the two apparatuses.