IP Library › Granted Patent US 12690025
Granted Patent B2
US 12690025 · App. 17/956,932 · Granted Jul 21, 2026

Apparatus, system, and method of time-sensitive communication via a multi user (MU) multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) (MU-MIMO) transmission

Inventors: Juan Fang (Portland, OR); Qinghua Li (San Ramon, CA); Dmitry Akhmetov (Hillsboro, OR); Minyoung Park (San Ramon, CA); Thomas J. Kenney (Portland, OR)
Assignee: INTEL CORPORATION
H04W72/1263H04B7/0452
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12690025
App. No.
17/956,932
Granted
Jul 21, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

An apparatus may be configured to perform a time-sensitive communication via a Multi User (MU) Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO) (MU-MIMO) transmission. For example, an Access Point (AP) may be configured to transmit MU-MIMO schedule information to schedule an MU-MIMO transmission including a plurality of spatial streams, the plurality of spatial streams including a first spatial stream allocated to a scheduled data transmission of a scheduled wireless communication station (STA), and a second spatial stream allocated as a reserved spatial stream, which is reserved for an unscheduled time-sensitive communication with a time-sensitive STA; and to communicate the scheduled data transmission with the scheduled STA over the first spatial stream.

Claims (31)

1 . An apparatus comprising logic and circuitry configured to cause an Access Point (AP) to:

transmit Multi User (MU) Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO) (MU-MIMO) schedule information to schedule an MU-MIMO transmission comprising a plurality of spatial streams, the plurality of spatial streams comprising a first spatial stream allocated to a scheduled data transmission of a scheduled wireless communication station (STA), the plurality of spatial streams comprising a second spatial stream allocated as a reserved spatial stream, which is reserved for an unscheduled time-sensitive communication with a time-sensitive STA, wherein allocation of the reserved spatial stream to the time-sensitive STA is based on a determination that there is currently no time-sensitive data transmission available for communication with the time-sensitive STA; and

communicate the scheduled data transmission with the scheduled STA over the first spatial stream.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 configured to cause the AP to schedule an MU Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) (MU-OFDMA) transmission, the MU-OFDMA transmission comprising a first Resource Unit (RU) allocated to the MU-MIMO transmission, wherein the first spatial stream of the MU-MIMO transmission is allocated to a first scheduled STA, wherein the MU-OFDMA transmission comprises a second RU allocated to a second scheduled STA.

3 . The apparatus of claim 2 configured to cause the AP to transmit an RU allocation field to assign a plurality of RUs for the MU-OFDMA transmission, the RU allocation field configured to assign an MU-RU to a plurality of users, the plurality of users comprising the first scheduled STA and the time-sensitive STA.

4 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the MU-OFDMA transmission comprises a plurality of RUs allocated to a respective plurality of second scheduled STAs.

5 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the first RU is allocated to a plurality of first scheduled STAs, wherein the MU-MIMO transmission comprises a plurality of first spatial streams allocated to the plurality of first scheduled STAs, respectively.

6 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the first RU comprises an RU of at least 52 tones.

7 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the first RU comprises an RU of at least 106 tones.

8 . The apparatus of claim 1 configured to cause the AP to schedule a Downlink (DL) MU-MIMO transmission, and to transmit the scheduled data transmission to the scheduled STA over the first spatial stream.

9 . The apparatus of claim 8 configured to cause the AP to, based on a determination that DL time-sensitive data is available for transmission to the time-sensitive STA, transmit the DL time-sensitive data to the time-sensitive STA over the second spatial stream.

10 . The apparatus of claim 8 configured to cause the AP to transmit padding fields over the second spatial stream when time-sensitive data is not available for transmission to the time-sensitive STA.

11 . The apparatus of claim 8 configured to cause the AP to transmit a signaling field of the DL MU-MIMO transmission comprising the MU-MIMO schedule information, the signaling field to indicate allocation of the second spatial stream as the reserved spatial stream.

12 . The apparatus of claim 1 configured to cause the AP to transmit a trigger frame to schedule an Uplink (UL) MU-MIMO transmission, the trigger frame comprising allocation information configured to allocate the first spatial stream to a scheduled UL data transmission from the scheduled STA, and to allocate the second spatial stream as the reserved spatial stream for UL time-sensitive data from the time-sensitive STA.

13 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the MU-MIMO transmission comprises a plurality of first spatial streams allocated to a plurality of scheduled STAs, respectively.

14 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the MU-MIMO transmission comprises a plurality of second spatial streams allocated to a plurality of time-sensitive STAs, respectively.

15 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the time-sensitive STA comprises an Ultra-Low-Latency (ULL) STA.

16 . The apparatus of claim 1 comprising a radio to communicate the MU-MIMO transmission.

17 . The apparatus of claim 16 comprising one or more antennas connected to the radio, and a processor to execute instructions of an operating system of the AP.

18 . An apparatus comprising logic and circuitry configured to cause a time-sensitive wireless communication station (STA) to:

process Multi User (MU) Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO) (MU-MIMO) schedule information from an Access Point (AP), the MU-MIMO schedule information to schedule an MU-MIMO transmission comprising a plurality of spatial streams, the plurality of spatial streams comprising a first spatial stream allocated to a scheduled data transmission of a scheduled STA, the plurality of spatial streams comprising a second spatial stream allocated as a reserved spatial stream, which is reserved for an unscheduled time-sensitive communication between the time-sensitive STA and the AP; and

based on availability of time-sensitive data for communication between the time-sensitive STA and the AP during the MU-MIMO transmission, communicate the unscheduled time-sensitive communication with the AP over the second spatial stream.

19 . The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the MU-MIMO schedule information is to schedule the MU-MIMO transmission as part of an MU Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) (MU-OFDMA) transmission, the MU-OFDMA transmission comprising a first Resource Unit (RU) allocated to the MU-MIMO transmission, wherein the first spatial stream of the MU-MIMO transmission is allocated to a first scheduled STA, the MU-OFDMA transmission comprising a second RU allocated to a second scheduled STA.

20 . The apparatus of claim 18 configured to cause the time-sensitive STA to identify a Downlink (DL) MU-MIMO transmission scheduled by the MU-MIMO schedule information, and to process an unscheduled DL time-sensitive transmission received from the AP over the second spatial stream.

21 . The apparatus of claim 18 configured to cause the time-sensitive STA to identify an Uplink (UL) MU-MIMO transmission scheduled by the MU-MIMO schedule information in a trigger frame from the AP, the trigger frame comprising allocation information configured to allocate the first spatial stream to a scheduled UL data transmission from the scheduled STA, and to allocate the second spatial stream as the reserved spatial stream for UL time-sensitive data from the time-sensitive STA.

22 . The apparatus of claim 21 configured to cause the time-sensitive STA to transmit padding fields over the second spatial stream when UL time-sensitive data is not available for transmission to the AP.

23 . The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the reserved spatial stream is reserved for the unscheduled time-sensitive communication which is not yet available for communication between the time-sensitive STA and the AP.

24 . A product comprising one or more tangible computer-readable non-transitory storage media comprising computer-executable instructions operable to, when executed by at least one processor, enable the at least one processor to cause an Access Point (AP) to:

transmit Multi User (MU) Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO) (MU-MIMO) schedule information to schedule an MU-MIMO transmission comprising a plurality of spatial streams, the plurality of spatial streams comprising a first spatial stream allocated to a scheduled data transmission of a scheduled wireless communication station (STA), the plurality of spatial streams comprising a second spatial stream allocated as a reserved spatial stream, which is reserved for an unscheduled time-sensitive communication with a time-sensitive STA, wherein allocation of the reserved spatial stream to the time-sensitive STA is based on a determination that there is currently no time-sensitive data transmission available for communication with the time-sensitive STA; and

communicate the scheduled data transmission with the scheduled STA over the first spatial stream.

25 . The product of claim 24 , wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the AP to schedule an MU Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) (MU-OFDMA) transmission, the MU-OFDMA transmission comprising a first Resource Unit (RU) allocated to the MU-MIMO transmission, wherein the first spatial stream of the MU-MIMO transmission is allocated to a first scheduled STA, wherein the MU-OFDMA transmission comprises a second RU allocated to a second scheduled STA.