Patent Description:
Due to the need of higher traffic capacity wireless networks in the millimeter wavelength (mm-wave or mmW) regime are becoming increasingly important. Toward meeting this need for higher traffic capacity, network operators have begun to embrace the idea of densification. Current sub-<NUM> wireless technology is not sufficient to cope with the high demand for data. One easy alternative is utilizing more spectrum in the <NUM> - <NUM> band which is referred to as the millimeter wave band (mmW),.

Enabling mmW wireless systems in general requires properly dealing with the channel impairments and propagation characteristics of the high frequency bands. High free-space path loss, high penetration, reflection and diffraction losses reduce the available diversity and limit non-line-of-sight (NLOS) communications.

The small wavelength of mmW enables the use of high-gain electronically steerable directional antennas of practical dimensions. This technology can provide enough array gain to overcome path loss and ensure high Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) at the receiver. Using directional mesh networks in dense deployment environments and the mmW band provides an efficient way to achieve reliable communication between nodes and overcome line-of-sight channel restrictions.

A new communication node (station) starting up in an area will be searching for neighboring nodes to discover and a network to join. The process of initial access of a node to a network comprises scanning for neighboring nodes and discovering all active local nodes. This can be performed either through the new node searching for a specific network/list of networks to join or the new node sends a broadcast request to join any already established network that will accept the new node.

A node connecting to a mesh network needs to discover all neighboring nodes to decide on the best way to reach a gateway/portal mesh node and the capabilities of each of these neighboring nodes. The new node examines every channel for possible neighboring nodes for a specific period of time. If no active node is detected after that specific time, the node moves to the next channel.

When a node is detected, the new node needs to collect sufficient available information to configure itself (its PHY layer) for operation in the regulatory domain. This task is further challenging in mmWave communications due to directional transmissions. The challenges in this process can be summarized as: (a) obtaining a knowledge of surrounding node's IDs; (b) obtaining a knowledge of best transmission pattern for beamforming; (c) keeping the whole network in synchronization over an extended period of time; (d) overcoming channel access issues which arise due to collisions and deafness; and (e) channel impairments due to blockage and reflections.

Thus, improved neighborhood discovery methods are sought to overcome some or all of the above issues to enable pervasiveness of mmWave device-to-device (D2D) and mesh technologies. However, existing technologies for mesh networking address mesh discovery solutions for networks operating in broadcast mode but are largely not targeted to networks having directional wireless communications.

Accordingly, a need exists for enhanced synchronization and beamforming mechanisms within wireless communication networks. The present disclosure fulfills that need and provides additional benefits over previous technologies. Relevant background prior art <CIT> discloses the joining protocol of dual-band mesh stations within a mesh network, where the protocol includes the transmission of transmit schedules to enable reduced interference in transmission scheduling and a Sector Level Sweep.

A wireless communication circuit (station, node) with associated programming configured for wirelessly communicating with other wireless communication stations (nodes) comprising directional millimeter-wave (mmW) communications having a plurality of antenna pattern sectors each having different transmission directions. Various forms of beacon frames are transmitted which incorporate an activity indicator that signals communication directions which have active data transmissions. In at least one embodiment these activity indicators comprise a flag (or field) for each respective direction of communication, to indicate whether that direction is subject to active transmission or reception.

The stations utilize the activity indicator for making improved selections of prospective connections so as to obtain connections that are subject to less interference, and/or that create less interference to other stations. The activity indicator can also, or alternatively, be utilized when selecting a communication connection to an access point (AP) or station (STA) or mesh station (MSTA), toward obtaining less interference in the network. The activity indicator can also, or alternatively, be utilized when selecting a communication beam from a given access point (AP) or station (STA) or mesh station (MSTA), toward obtaining less interference in the network. In addition, the activity indicator can also, or alternatively, be utilized as a basis for performing a distributed interference and resource coordination by exchanging messages in a direction of potential high interference to optimize overall communications and create less interference between nodes in the mesh network. Still further, the activity indicator can be utilized as a basis for rerouting data through other nodes or communication beams whenever alternative communication routes exist which are less spectrally congested or that are subject to less interference.

A number of terms are utilized in the disclosure whose meanings are generally described below.

A-BFT: Association-Beamforming Training period; a period announced in the beacons that is used for association and BF training of new stations (STAs) joining the network.

AP: Access Point; an entity that contains one station (STA) and provides access to the distribution services, through the wireless medium (WM) for associated STAs.

Beamforming (BF): a directional transmission that does not use an Omni-directional antenna pattern or quasi-omni directional antenna pattern. Beamforming is used at a transmitter to improve received signal power or signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) at an intended receiver.

BI: The Beacon Interval is a cyclic super frame period that represents the time between beacon transmission times.

BRP: BF refinement protocol; A BF protocol that enables receiver training and iteratively trains the transmitter and receiver sides to achieve the best possible directional communications.

BSS: Basic Service Set; a set of stations (STAs) that have successfully synchronized with an AP in the network,.

BSSID: Basic Service Set Identification.

BHI: Beacon Header interval which contains a beacon transmission interval (BTI) and association-beamforming training period (A-BFT).

BTI: Beacon Transmission interval, is the interval between successive beacon transmissions.

CHAP: Contention-Based Access Period; the time period within the data transfer interval (DTI) of a directional multi-gigabit (DMG) BSS where contention-based enhanced distributed channel access (EDCA) is used.

D2D: device-to-device communication that is a direct communication between two wireless nodes without the need to traverse an access point.

DTI: Data Transfer interval; the period whereby full BF training is permitted followed by actual data transfer. The DTI can include one or more service periods (SPs) and contention-based access periods (CBAPs).

MAC address: a Medium Access Control (MAC) address,.

MBSS: Mesh Basic Service Set; a basic service set (BSS) that forms a self-contained network of Mesh Stations (MSTAs), and which may be used as a distribution system (DS).

MCS: Modulation and coding scheme; an index that can be translated into the PHY layer data rate.

MSTA: Mesh station (MSTA); is a station (STA) that implements the Mesh facility. An MSTA that operates in the Mesh BSS may provide the distribution services for other MSTAs.

Omni-directional: a non-directional antenna mode of transmission.

Quasi-Omni directional: a directional multi-gigabit (DMG) antenna operating mode with the widest beamwidth attainable.

Receive sector sweep (RXSS): Reception of Sector Sweep (SSW) frames via different sectors, in which a sweep is performed between consecutive receptions,.

SLS: Sector-level Sweep phase: a BF training phase that can include as many as four components: an initiator Sector Sweep (ISS) to train the initiator, a Responder Sector Sweep (RSS) to train the responder link, such as using SSW Feedback and an SSW ACK.

SNR: received Signal-to-Noise Ratio in dB.

SP: Service Period; the SP that is scheduled by the access point (AP). Scheduled SPs start at fixed intervals of time,.

Spectral efficiency: the information rate that can be transmitted over a given bandwidth in a specific communication system, usually expressed in bits/sec/Hz.

STA: Station; a logical entity that is a singly addressable instance of a medium access control (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) interface to the wireless medium (WM).

Sweep: a sequence of transmissions, separated by a short beamforming interframe space (SBIFS) interval, in which the antenna configuration at the transmitter or receiver is changed between transmissions.

SSW: Sector Sweep, is an operation in which transmissions are performed in different sectors (directions) and information collected on received signals, strengths and so forth.

Transmit Sector Sweep (TXSS): transmission of multiple Sector Sweep (SSW) or Directional Multi-gigabit (DMG) Beacon frames via different sectors, in which a sweep is performed between consecutive transmissions.

Further aspects of the technology described herein will be brought out in the following portions of the specification, wherein the detailed description is for the purpose of fully disclosing preferred embodiments of the technology without placing limitations thereon. In the following, the invention is best understood in view of <FIG> and <FIG>. The remaining embodiments, aspects, or examples are included in order to help the reader better understand the invention.

The technology described herein will be more fully understood by reference to the following drawings which are for illustrative purposes only:.

In WLAN systems, <NUM> defines two modes of scanning; passive and active scanning. The following are the characteristics of passive scanning. (a) A new station (STA), attempting to join a network, examines each channel and waits for beacon frames for up to MaxChannelTime. (b) If no beacon is received, then the new STA moves to another channel, thus saving battery power since the new STA does not transmit any signal in scanning mode. The STA should wait enough time at each channel so that it does not miss the beacons. If a beacon is lost, the STA should wait for another beacon transmission interval (BTI).

The following are the characteristics of active scanning, (a) A new STA wanting to join a local network sends probe request frames on each channel, according to the following. (a)(<NUM>) STA moves to a channel, waits for incoming frames or a probe delay timer to expire. (a)(<NUM>) If no frame is detected after the timer expires, the channel is considered to be not in use. (a)(<NUM>) If a channel is not in use, the STA moves to a new channel (a)(<NUM>) If a channel is in use, the STA gains access to the medium using regular DCF and sends a probe request frame. (a)(<NUM>) The STA waits for a desired period of time (e.g., Minimum Channel Time) to receive a response to the probe request if the channel was never busy. The STA waits for more time (e.g., Maximum Channel Time) if the channel was busy and a probe response was received.

(b) A Probe Request can use a unique service set identifier (SSID), list of SSIDs or a broadcast SSID. (c) Active scanning is prohibited in some frequency bands. (d) Active scanning can be a source of interference and collision, especially if many new STAs arrive at the same time and are attempting to access the network. (e) Active scanning is a faster way (more rapid) for STAs to gain access to the network compared to the use of passive scanning, since STAs do not need to wait for beacons. (f) In infrastructure basic service set (BSS) and IBSS, at least one STA is awake to receive and respond to probes. (g) STAs in mesh basic service set (MBSS) might not be awake at any point of time to respond. (h) When radio measurement campaigns are active, nodes might not answer the probe requests. (i) Collision of probe responses can arise. STAs might coordinate the transmission of probe responses by allowing the STA that transmitted the last beacon to transmit the first Probe Response. Other nodes can follow and use back-off times and regular distributed coordination function (DCF) channel access to avoid collision.

<FIG> depicts the use of active scanning in an IEEE <NUM> WLAN, depicting a scanning station sending a probe and two responding stations which receive and respond to the probe. The figure also shows the minimum and maximum probe response timing. The values G1 is shown set to SIFS which is the interframe spacing prior to transmission of an acknowledgment, while G3 is DIFS which is DCF interframe spacing, represented the time delay for which a sender waits after completing a backoff period before sending an RTS package.

The IEEE <NUM> (hereafter <NUM>) is a standard that adds wireless mesh networking capabilities to the <NUM> standard. In <NUM><NUM> new types of radio stations are defined as well as new signaling to enable mesh network discovery, establishing peer-to-peer connection, and routing of data through the mesh network.

<FIG> illustrates one example of a mesh network where a mix of non-mesh STA connect to Mesh-STA/AP (solid lines) and Mesh STAs connect to other mesh STA (dotted lines) including a mesh portal. Nodes in mesh networks use the same scanning techniques defined in the <NUM> standard for discovering neighbors. The identification of the mesh network is given by the Mesh ID element contained in the Beacon and the Probe Response frames. In one mesh network, all mesh STAs use the same mesh profile. Mesh profiles are considered the same if all parameters in the mesh profiles match. The mesh profile is included in the Beacon and Probe Response frames, so that the mesh profile can be obtained by its neighbor mesh STAs through the scan.

When a mesh STA discovers a neighbor mesh STA through the scanning process, the discovered mesh STA is considered a candidate peer mesh STA. It may become a member of the mesh network, of which the discovered mesh STA is a member, and establish a mesh peering with the neighbor mesh STA. The discovered neighbor mesh STA may be considered a candidate peer mesh STA when the mesh STA uses the same mesh profile as the received Beacon or Probe Response frame indicates for the neighbor mesh STA.

The mesh STA attempts to maintain the discovered neighbor's information in a Mesh Neighbors Table which includes: (a) neighbor MAC address; (b) operating channel number; and (c) the most recently observed link status and quality information. If no neighbors are detected, the mesh STA adopts the Mesh ID for its highest priority profile and remains active. All the previous signaling to discover neighbor mesh STAs are performed in broadcast mode. It should be appreciated that <NUM> was not targeted for networks with directional wireless communications.

<FIG> depicts a Mesh identification element (Mesh ID element) which is used to advertise the identification of a Mesh Network. Mesh ID is transmitted in a Probe request, by a new STA willing to join a mesh network, and in beacon and signals, by existing mesh network STAs. A Mesh ID field of length <NUM> indicates the wildcard Mesh ID, which is used within a Probe Request frame. A wildcard Mesh ID is a specific ID that prevents a non-mesh STA from joining a mesh network. It should be recognized that a mesh station is a STA that has more features than a non-mesh station, for example, it is like having the STA running as a module in additional to some other modules to serve the mesh functionality. If the STA does not have this mesh module it should not be allowed to connect to a mesh network.

<FIG> depicts a Mesh configuration element as contained in Beacon frames and Probe Response frames transmitted by mesh STAs, and it is used to advertise mesh services. The main contents of the Mesh Configuration elements are: (a) a path selection protocol identifier; (b) a path selection metric identifier; (c) a congestion control mode identifier; (d) a synchronization method identifier; and (e) an authentication protocol identifier. The contents of the Mesh Configuration Element together with the Mesh ID form a mesh profile.

The standard <NUM>. 11a defines many procedures and mesh functionalities including: mesh discovery, mesh peering management, mesh security, mesh beaconing and synchronization, mesh coordination function, mesh power management, mesh channel switching, three address, four address, and extended address frame formats, mesh path selection and forwarding, interworking with external networks, intra-mesh congestion control and emergency service support in mesh BSS.

WLANs in millimeter wave bands generally require the use of directional antennas for transmission, reception or both, to account for the high path loss and to provide sufficient SNR for communication. Using directional antennas in transmission or reception makes the scanning process directional as well. IEEE <NUM>. 11ad and the new standard <NUM>. 11ay define procedures for scanning and beamforming for directional transmission and reception over the millimeter wave band.

An example of a mmWave WLAN state-of-the-art system is the <NUM>. 11ad standard.

A new STA operates on passive or active scanning modes to scan for a specific SSID, a list of SSIDs, or all discovered SSIDs. To passively scan, a STA scans for DMG beacon frames containing the SSID. To actively scan: a DMG STA transmit Probe Request frames containing the desired SSID or one or more SSID List elements. The DMG STA might also have to transmit DMG Beacon frames or perform beamforming training prior to the transmission of Probe Request frames.

BF training is a bidirectional sequence of BF training frame transmissions that uses a sector sweep and provides the necessary signaling to allow each STA to determine appropriate antenna system settings for both transmission and reception.

11ad BF training process can be performed in three phases. (<NUM>) A sector level sweep phase is performed whereby directional transmission with low gain (quasi-Omni) reception is performed for link acquisition. (<NUM>) A refinement stage is performed that adds receive gain and final adjustment for combined transmit and receive. (<NUM>) Tracking is then performed during data transmission to adjust for channel changes.

This focuses on the sector level sweep (SLS) mandatory phase of the <NUM>. 11ad standard. During SLS, a pair of STAs exchange a series of sector sweep (SSW) frames (or beacons in case of transmit sector training at the PCP/AP) over different antenna sectors to find the one providing highest signal quality. The station that transmits first is called the initiator; the station that transmits second is referred to as the responder.

During a transmit sector sweep (TXSS), SSW frames are transmitted on different sectors while the pairing node (the responder) receives utilizing a quasi-Omni directional pattern. The responder determines the antenna array sector from the initiator which provided the best link quality (e.g., SNR).

<FIG> depicts the concept of sector sweep (SSW) in <NUM>. In this figure, an example is given in which STA <NUM> is an initiator of the SLS and STA <NUM> is the responder. STA <NUM> sweeps through all of the transmit antenna pattern fine sectors while STA <NUM> receives in a quasi-Omni pattern. STA <NUM> feeds back to STA <NUM> the best sector it received from STA <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates the signaling of the sector-level sweep (SLS) protocol as implemented in <NUM>. 11ad specifications. Each frame in the transmit sector sweep includes information on sector countdown indication (CDOWN), a Sector ID, and an Antenna ID. The best Sector ID and Antenna ID information are fed back with the Sector Sweep Feedback and Sector Sweep ACK frames.

<FIG> depicts the fields for the sector sweep frame (an SSW frame) as utilized in the <NUM>. <NUM> ad standard, with the fields outlined below. The Duration field is set to the time until the end of the SSW frame transmission. The RA field contains the MAC address of the STA that is the intended receiver of the sector sweep. The TA field contains the MAC address of the transmitter STA of the sector sweep frame,.

<FIG> illustrates data elements within the SSW field. The principle information conveyed in the SSW field is as follows. The Direction field is set to <NUM> to indicate that the frame is transmitted by the beamforming initiator and set to <NUM> to indicate that the frame is transmitted by the beamforming responder. The CDOWN field is a down-counter indicating the number of remaining DMG Beacon frame transmissions to the end of the TXSS. The sector ID field is set to indicate sector number through which the frame containing this SSW field is transmitted. The DN4G Antenna ID field indicates which DMG antenna the transmitter is currently using for this transmission. The RXSS Length field is valid only when transmitted in a CBAP and is reserved otherwise. This RXSS Length field specifies the length of a receive sector sweep as required by the transmitting STA, and is defined in units of a SSW frame. The SSW Feedback field is defined below.

<FIG> depict SSW feedback fields. The format shown in <FIG> is utilized when transmitted as part of an Internal Sublayer Service (ISS), while the format of <FIG> is used when not transmitted as part of an ISS. The Total Sectors in the ISS field indicate the total number of sectors that the initiator uses in the ISS. The Number of RX DMG Antennas subfield indicates the number of receive DMG antennas the initiator uses during a subsequent Receive Sector Sweep (RSS). The Sector Select field contains the value of the Sector ID subfield of the SSW field within the frame that was received with best quality in the immediately preceding sector sweep. The DMG Antenna Select field indicates the value of the DMG Antenna ID subfield of the SSW field within the frame that was received with best quality in the immediately preceding sector sweep. The SNR Report field is set to the value of the SNR from the frame that was received with best quality during the immediately preceding sector sweep, and which is indicated in the sector select field. The poll required field is set to <NUM> by a non-PCP / non-AP STA to indicate that it requires the PCP / AP to initiate communication with the non-PCP / non-AP. The Poll Required field is set to <NUM> to indicate that the non-PCP / non-AP has no preference about whether the PCP/AP initiates the communication.

Wireless local area network (WLAN) station transmit beacons for network announcement, resource management and synchronization purposes. In millimeter wave (mm-wave) communications the transmission of these beacons is directional which provides higher antenna gain toward overcoming path-loss and the near specular channel characteristics. The station nodes can receive multiple usable beams from the same transmitter through line of sight and reflected paths. In addition, nodes might receive multiple beams from multiple transmitters in the area it is scanning. A station node sending or receiving data through a specific directional beam might create interference to the active reception of other stations, or itself suffer from interference from transmission by other stations.

Nodes typically rely on Omni-directional sensing to access the channel, if a listen-before-talk protocol is required. However, using listen before talk does not provide information about spatial channel usage. Knowing the status of ongoing activity in a specific direction can improve node decisions when the node forms new connections, or in avoiding a specific communication direction. It can be an important benefit when the node receives information about usage of this beam direction (e.g., how much this direction is occupied) before making a decision of which directional beam to use or avoid.

In cases where a central controller is not available to manage node connectivity and interference, a distributed system is needed to manage node connectivity and avoid directional interference.

A method and apparatus is described for signaling and receiving information between nodes in the same network, or across different networks, regarding the spatial occupancy of each transmission direction. Nodes can transmit information to other neighboring nodes that indicate which spectral direction is occupied with transmissions and which directions are occupied with reception. In the present disclosure, nodes utilize this information to route their data, to form connections with other nodes, to avoid spectrally congested beams and/or to coordinate their transmissions with one another.

<FIG> illustrates and example embodiment <NUM> of multiple BSSs having multiple access points (APs) serving multiple stations (STAs). The stations scan for beacons in the surrounding area and attempt to establish connection to the one found to have the highest received power. This usually represents the station which is closest in distance, or the station with the shortest line of sight to that receiving station, In the figure, stations are seen as STA1 <NUM>, STA2 <NUM>, STA3 <NUM>, STA4 <NUM>, STA5 <NUM>, STA6 <NUM>, as well as AP1 <NUM>, AP2 <NUM>, and AP3 <NUM>, between which are shown communication paths (TX/RX) by the double headed arrows.

However, these communications could result in serious directional interference or spectrum access problems. Consider for example, how STA2 <NUM> and STA3 <NUM> share the same directional beam from AP3. In addition, it can be seen that STA1 <NUM>, STA3 <NUM> and STA4 <NUM> will also experience interference whenever the channel is used by both APs (AP2 <NUM> and AP3 <NUM>) in a distributed manner.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> configured for avoiding the above interference situations. In this example STA3 <NUM> and STA4 <NUM> avoid using the common direction seen in <FIG>, and instead establish connection to a further away AP (AP1 <NUM>), whereby both of these stations then enjoy an interference free direction of communication, The same situation is shown for STA6 <NUM> and STA <NUM><NUM>,.

In order to achieve the above directional transmission selections in a distributed network setup, the station operating protocols (software, firmware, and/or hardware) of the present disclosure utilize beacons configured for carrying information about directional usage, providing announcements that can aid other network stations toward further coordinating their directional transmission decisions.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> of the hardware configuration for a node (wireless station in the network). In this example a computer processor (CPU) <NUM> and memory (RAM) <NUM> are coupled to a bus <NUM>, which is coupled to an I/O path <NUM> giving the node external I/O, such as to sensors, actuators and so forth. Instructions from memory are executed on processor <NUM> to execute a program which implements the communication protocols. This host machine is shown configured with a mmW modem <NUM> coupled to radio-frequency (RF) circuitry 62a, 62b, 62c to a plurality of antennas 64a, 64b, 64c through 64n, 66a, 66b, 66c through 66n, and 68a, 68b, 68c through 68n to transmit and receive frames with neighboring nodes. In addition, the host machine is also seen with a sub-<NUM> modem <NUM> coupled to radio-frequency (RF) circuitry <NUM> to antenna(s) <NUM>.

Thus, this host machine is shown in a preferred embodiment as configured with two modems (multi-band) and their associated RF circuitry for providing communication on two different bands. The millimeter wave (mmW) band modem and its associated RF circuitries are configured for transmitting and receiving data in the mmW band. The sub-<NUM> modem and its associated RF circuitry are configured for transmitting and receiving data in the sub-<NUM> band. It should be appreciated that the present disclosure can be implemented in situations which only have the directional transmission at the mmW band and do not provide the sub-<NUM> band.

The two modems and their associated RF circuitry are meant to communicate on two different bands. The mmW band modem and its associated RF circuitries are transmitting and receiving data in the mmW band. The Sub-<NUM> modem and its associated RF circuitry are transmitting and receiving data in the sub-<NUM> band.

Although <NUM> RF circuitries are shown coupled to the mmW modem in this example, it should be appreciated that an arbitrary number of RF circuits can be coupled to the mmW modem. In general, larger numbers of RF circuitry will result in broader coverage of the antenna beam direction.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment of mmW beam patterns <NUM>, showing antenna directions which can be utilized by a node to generate thirty-six (<NUM>) antenna sector patterns. The node in this example is depicted as implementing three (<NUM>) mmW RF circuits and connected antennas, and each mmW RF circuitry and connected antenna generates twelve (<NUM>) beamforming patterns, which is termed as the node having thirty-six (<NUM>) antenna sectors. But for the sake of simplicity of illustration, the following descriptions will exemplify nodes communicating across a smaller number of antenna sectors. It should be appreciated that any arbitrary beam pattern can be mapped to an antenna sector. Typically, the beam pattern is formed to generate a sharp beam, but it is possible that the beam pattern is generated to transmit or receive signals from multiple angles,.

The number of RF circuits and antennas being utilized is typically determined by hardware constraints of a specific device. It should be noted that some of the RF circuits and antennas may be disabled when the node determines it does not need to be utilized for communicating with neighboring nodes,.

In at least one embodiment, the mmW RF circuitry includes frequency converter, array antenna controller, and so forth, and is connected to multiple antennas which are controlled to perform beamforming for transmission and reception. In this way the node can transmit signals using multiple sets of beam patterns, each beam pattern direction being considered as an antenna sector.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> of an antenna pattern for the sub-<NUM> modem assumed in this example to use a Quasi-Omni antenna <NUM> attached to its RF circuitry <NUM>. It should be appreciated that other antenna pattern variations can be utilized without departing from the present teachings.

Station nodes are configured according to the present disclosure, that when transmitting beacons they keep track of average statistics of its channel usage, transmission, and reception in each beam direction. The time window over which these statistics are collected and maintained can be defined and adjusted according to each use case and application,.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> in which nodes according to the present disclosure maintain directional statistics as per direction and per peer statistic, to allow updating usage information if a peer is turned off or departs from one direction to use another direction. In the figure a STA1 <NUM> and STA2 <NUM> are seen communicating with a node <NUM> which can transmit beacons <NUM> in all directions. In this example, one direction (Beam <NUM>) <NUM> serves both peer nodes (STA1 <NUM> and STA2 <NUM>) from which statistics are collected for each peer, STA1 and STA2, and the accumulated statistics are calculated as well In the figure it is seen that Beam <NUM> has a <NUM>% utilization with STAT <NUM> accounting for <NUM>% of utilizing and STA2 <NUM> accounting for the remaining <NUM>% of utilization.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> of nodes maintaining directional statistics, which is similar to the previous figure. In this example, STA1 <NUM> and STA2 <NUM> are seen communicating with node <NUM>. Node <NUM> can communicate (mmW) in all directions <NUM>, and is seen communicating with STA1 <NUM> in with Beam <NUM> in direction <NUM>, and communicating with STA2 <NUM> with Beam <NUM> in direction <NUM>. In comparison to <FIG> shows that one peer, STA2 <NUM>, has been moved to utilize a new direction with the associated serving beam updated to be Beam <NUM><NUM>. Thus, the statistics for STA2 <NUM> are moved to the new serving beam, Beam <NUM>. Beam <NUM> usage statistics are updated to reflect STA1 usage only. In the Example, Beam <NUM> is seen to have <NUM>% usage, while Beam <NUM> has <NUM>% usage.

<FIG> and <FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> of beacon transmission with usage-aware indicators. The present disclosure considers that these frames having usage-aware indicators, can be various types of frames, including beacon frames, beamforming frames, SSW frames, BRP frames, and so forth. In <FIG>, when a node commences its operation <NUM>, all statistics are preferably reset <NUM> for already setup links if it has predefined links. If the node has no links already setup, then the database for the directional beams is empty. At the appropriate time the node transmits mmW beacons <NUM> in all directions using directional beams. The beacons are configured to contain an indicator for relaying information about the use of the channel directions or the specific direction of that beam.

A determination <NUM> is made of when to transmit a new beacon. At the time of the next beacon transmission interval, before beacon transmission, the node checks <NUM> for new connectivity (any nodes joining). If a new communication connection is established, execution moves to block <NUM> with new usage statistics collected for this directional transmission. Then in block <NUM> in <FIG>, statistics commence to be collected for link usage for established links. Then in block <NUM> a check is made as to how active link usage compares to thresholds, such as pre-defined thresholds. If the active link usage exceeds the change threshold, then in block <NUM> the node sends the beacons with this new usage indicator and returns to block <NUM> in <FIG>.

The node transmitting the beacons can also choose to attach two indications, one for transmission and one for reception, to the transmitted beacon in the direction of the transmission and/or reception. Also in regards transmitting the beacons, the system can also choose to attach the collected statistics about the link usage in the transmission, reception, or both the transmission and reception, to the transmitted beacon in the direction of the transmission and/or reception.

<FIG> and <FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> for utilizing channel usage-aware directional beacons. The process commences <NUM> in <FIG> and nodes listen (look, attempt to detect) <NUM> for beacons in order to determine channel usage in each direction. A check is made <NUM> if the received beacon indicates active transmission is taking place. The received beacon should contain an indication of active transmission and/or reception (flag bits). It also can have information about the usage statistics. If it is not active transmission, then a return to block <NUM> is made, otherwise block <NUM> is reached which determines whether the information received from the beacon indicates a contradiction exists with a current communication connection or will exist with a future communication connection. Whenever a beacon is received that indicates a contradiction, the node reacts upon the contradiction. The contradiction might represent a concurrent transmission or reception in the same direction where the node is using the channel. This represents a possible interference imposed by the node on other transmissions occurring on the network or a possible interference affecting the node from the other concurrent transmissions in the network where the beacon is detected,.

Once a contradiction is detected, a node can decide to take either a proactive or a passive approach to solving this contradiction. When a contradiction is detected, then block <NUM> is reached in <FIG> which checks for proactive versus passive contradiction resolution. If block <NUM> indicates passive contradiction resolution, then block <NUM> is reached and the node marks this direction as busy and searches for other directions that are available, for example for which no beacon received in that direction has usage indicator bits set, before returning to searching for beacons at block <NUM>. The node continues scanning until it finds a suitable direction that is not used by other connection.

If it is determined at block <NUM> that proactive contradiction resolution is to be performed, then block <NUM> is reached. In proactive contradiction resolution, the node reaches out to the node which is indicating channel activity to request contradiction resolution. This resolution can be in the form of spectral sharing, coordination or acquiring the channel by one of the two transmission. The node continues listening for (attempting to receive) beacons to monitor activity in the channel. Specifically, these resolutions are exemplified at block <NUM> with performing a quick beam forming with the beacon source and at block <NUM> by indicating the contradiction, prior to returning to searching for beacons at block <NUM>.

information is added to the beacon frame to indicate to other wireless nodes in the surrounding area about the transmission and reception activity of the node transmitting the beacon.

Two options for sending the directional activity information with the beacon frame are stated below. These option can be performed through broadcasting a directional transmission and reception activity map in all directions, or by sending directional activity bits associated with each beacon transmission.

This activity map can be in the form of an indicator of activity in the specific direction where the beacon is transmitted or inclusive to all directions the node is covering. The collected statistics (transmission, reception, and/or transmission-and-reception (channel usage)) in the specific direction where the beacon is transmitted or inclusive to all directions the node is covering, can also be added to the activity map. In the next sections, the activity map can refer to the simple indication of transmission, reception, or transmission-and-reception and can also refers to the collected statistics (transmission, reception, and/or transmission-and-reception (channel usage)). The activity map can be a collection of all described information as well.

<FIG> and <FIG> illustrate an example embodiment <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> of directional activity mapping. In <FIG> beacons carry a map of the transmitting <NUM> and receiving <NUM> beams of that node. In the example shown each field (bit in this case) indicates information for that direction, Using a single flag bit for each, a direction is either active <NUM>, or not active <NUM> (although the reverse binary states can be utilized). In the maps shown, Beam <NUM><NUM> is inactive, along with all the other directions, except for Beam <NUM><NUM> which indicates it is active. In the lower portion of <FIG> an embodiment <NUM> is seen with beacon frame <NUM> having an appended transmit (TX) map <NUM> and receive (RX) map <NUM>.

This map is broadcasted by all beacons transmitted in all directions. Once a node receives this map, it can compare the beacon transmitting beam ID to the corresponding bit in the map to decide if this direction is in active mode of transmission or reception,.

In <FIG>, an illustration <NUM> is seen with a node <NUM> transmitting beacons from all beams in all directions <NUM> carrying the TX and RX map. In the example shown node <NUM> is shown in relation to node <NUM>, which has active transmission and reception through Beam <NUM><NUM>. The TX and RX activity map of <FIG> indicated the activity of Beam <NUM> by setting the bit associated to it in the TX and RX activity map. All other bits are set to zero since no active transmission or reception is occurring in these directions. It will be noted that any receiver receiving one of these transmitted beacons can find out the beacon transmitting beam ID and the corresponding bit in the map. Nodes can obtain information about other activity in the surrounding area from the transmission and reception of the activity map even if the active direction beacon is not received. In the example, information can be obtained about Beam <NUM><NUM>, Beam <NUM><NUM>, or that Beam <NUM><NUM> is inactive.

The TX map <NUM> can carry information more than <NUM> or zero to indicate multiple levels of occupancy or the exact collected statistic of each direction The RX map <NUM> can carry information more than <NUM> or zero to indicate multiple levels of occupancy or the exact collected statistic of each direction. The TX map and the RX map can be combined to one map if it is required to represent TX/RX map. The TX/RX map can carry information more than <NUM> or zero to indicate multiple levels of activity or the exact collected statistic of each direction.

As was shown in the example in the upper portion of <FIG>, each beacon frame can contain two additional bits for each communication direction to indicate transmission and reception activity. The transmission and reception activity indicators represent the activity in the same direction where the beacon is being transmitted.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> comparing use of coarse data beacons with fine data beacons. It should be appreciated that data might be transmitted with finer beams compared to the beams beacon are transmitted from. That is to say that a beacon transmitted from a coarse beam should indicate transmission from any of the fine beams that lay in its foot print or coverage area. This understanding applies here and to the previous section <NUM>. A first node <NUM> is shown in relation to a second node <NUM> which is shown having fine beams 258a through 258f, with beam 258c being active. A coarse beam <NUM> is shown in relation to the fine beams, and it is also active. As shown in the figure, if the beacon is transmitted using coarse beams compared to the data transmission or reception beams, the activity indicator in the transmitted beacon represents activity of any of the beams that can be covered by the beacon transmission beam. So the directions indicated by the activity indicators need not have the same resolution as the actual communication directions of the beams. If the direction of the beacon has no activity or the threshold for setting the activity indicator is not met, the beacon directionality activity indicator is reset to zero.

<FIG> illustrate an example embodiment <NUM> of setting the activity indicator <NUM>, If the direction of the beacon has some activity and the threshold for setting the activity indicator is met, the beacon directionality activity indicator is set to one. In <FIG> a beacon frame <NUM> is shown for the inactive direction, with bits <NUM> for TX and RX being set to a state, in this case binary "<NUM>" to indicate inactivity, while in beacon frame <NUM> these TX/RX bits are set to "<NUM>" indicating activity.

In <FIG> it is seen that node <NUM> is receiving the beacons from node <NUM>, which is transmitting <NUM> in all directions. Node <NUM> receives the beacon from direction <NUM> of node <NUM> and can directly determine if that specific direction has ongoing transmission or reception, or not.

The TX activity indicator <NUM> can carry information of more than <NUM> or zero to indicate multiple levels of occupancy or the exact collected statistic of each direction. The RX activity indicator <NUM> can carry information more than <NUM> or zero to indicate multiple levels of occupancy or the exact collected statistic of each direction. The TX activity indicator and the RX activity indicator can be combined to one activity indicator if it is required to represent TX/RX activity indicator. The TX/RX activity indicator can carry information more than <NUM> or zero to indicate multiple levels of activity or the exact collected statistic of each direction.

Knowing information about the directional transmission and reception of the surrounding area around a wireless node can be of great value. The wireless node can use this information to select a better direction for node connectivity or to avoid interfering or being interfered by other nodes in the surrounding area. This information might be a trigger to commence in a coordination process between nodes sharing the same direction for better spectral sharing or directional access management.

It should be noted that although the examples reflect a simple binary activity/non-activity indicator, the present disclosure also contemplates the use of additional bits per direction in certain situations, if more information is desired. For example with <NUM> bits per direction a level of activity can be conveyed: <NUM>b= none, <NUM>b = ~ <NUM>%, <NUM>b = ~ <NUM>%, and <NUM>b > <NUM>%,.

A node might avoid the best line-of-sight (LOS) beam, for example, with its peer node once other transmission or reception is detected in the direction of the LOS beam of interest. The node once it senses an on-going activity in the direction where its link is of highest power might react to this in a passive or proactive way. The node might decide to avoid the LOS and highest power beam with its peer node for example and look for other alternatives,.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> comparing LOS with non-line-of-sight (NLOS) beam selection. Shown at the right portion of the figure, in an LOS beam selection, node <NUM> selects LOS beam direction <NUM> from node <NUM> which is transmitting in all directions <NUM>. However, at the left portion of the figure node <NUM>' forms a link with its peer node <NUM>' through a NLOS beam <NUM> that is reflecting from a nearby wall <NUM>. So although ongoing transmissions may be along path <NUM> between the nodes, the nodes can select this NLOS direction for this period of time, The node might decide to communicate with the other node where the beacon with activity indicator was discovered. The communication can be through a quick beamforming and requesting channel coordination. The coordination might result in freeing this direction for the requesting node or denying the use of this direction.

<FIG> and <FIG> illustrate an example embodiment <NUM>, <NUM> in comparing an unoptimized mesh network, with one optimized with a directional beam activity indicator. In <FIG> a distributed network or mesh scenario is seen in which nodes are forming links to multiple peers in the network. In particular the nodes shown comprise M1 <NUM>, M2 <NUM>, M3 <NUM>, M4 <NUM>, M5 <NUM>, M6 <NUM>, M7 <NUM>, M8 <NUM> and M9 <NUM>. Links are shown with solid lines showing communication interconnections between nearby stations. However, these highly directive beams and dense deployments are expected to create a lot of interference between stations in the mesh network,.

Utilizing the directional beacon activity indicator whose use is shown in <FIG> can be of great value to distributedly optimize network connectivity. Nodes can optimize their connectivity upon node setup or introduction in the network or throughout their operation due to the dynamic change of the node location or the environment around it. Nodes are configured to thus avoid forming connectivity with other peer nodes that will result in interfering with ongoing transmission or reception in that direction. Nodes are configured to avoid forming connectivity with other peer nodes that will suffer from interference with ongoing transmission or reception in that direction. Using the directional beacon activity indicator some connections will be optimized or removed to avoid interference. As an example, in <FIG> STA M7 <NUM> transmit beacons in all directions <NUM> and sets the activity indicator in directions of M1 <NUM>, M5 <NUM>, M6 <NUM> and M8 <NUM>. Other nodes in the network, in this example M2 <NUM>, M3 <NUM> and M9 <NUM> can detect the beacons from M7 and thus recognize the communication occupancy of these directions. M2, M3 and M8 according to the present disclosure can decide to reroute their data away from these directions or start some spectral sharing coordination procedure, this is why the links <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> from M2, M3 and M9, respectively, as directed in a direction to/from M7 <NUM> are shown as a dashed line, because a different direction/path may be selected for the communication based on receiving the disclosed activity indicator.

Different WLAN networks and architectures might coexist and share the same spectrum, whereas the present disclosure is applicable to multi-network coordination.

<FIG> illustrates an example embodiment <NUM> in which three networks <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> are in close proximity and using the same spectrum. Nodes can "hear" (receive) beacons from other networks and figure out (determine) the direction of activity based on the disclosed activity indicator. In the example shown information <NUM> is received <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> between the networks which allow the nodes in the network to determine possible interference and be able to make different direction selections toward optimizing communications within their own network. If a node finds that its direction of communication, or its potential direction of communication, is already occupied by other ongoing transmission through receiving a beacon indicating activity in this direction, the node might consider passive or proactive approaches to remediating the interference. For example, the node might try to search for other directions to/from a link with its intended peer node or reroute its data through other nodes. The node can be configured to commence a coordination procedure with the other nodes where the directional beacon with activity indicator was received.

Once a node discovers on-going activity in the direction of interest to this node it might decide to reach out to this node. Although this node might not be part of the network of the node where the beacon with activity indication has been received, the node might decide to tell the other nodes about its existence. An exchange of beamforming frames (SSW or BRP frames) can be performed to beamform with the new node. The exchanged beamforming frames can include an indication field (e.g., one bit) to indicate that the purpose of communication is coordination not joining the network. The coordination can comprise any type of spectral sharing, or rerouting data of one of the links to other routes.

If the wireless device is equipped with multi-band operation (mmW band and sub-<NUM> band for example), the node can send the mmW band spectral usage information over the sub-<NUM> band in situations where interference is likely to arise. A directional activity map like the one defined in <NUM>. can be transmitted over the sub-<NUM> map to indicate the directional spectral usage on the mmW band. This information can be broadcasted with the sub-<NUM> beacon with an indication that this is related to other bands and channel and indicating the band and channel of concern. The mmW directional spectral usage can also be requested over sub-<NUM> communication and the node receiving this request can respond by a directional activity map for the band and channel requested.

This is a frame that is similar to the regular <NUM> DMG beacons frames but has some elements to allow some extra features. These frames are transmitted by an AP, STA or mesh AP node in all directions. This frame is contains specific details for new nodes, current nodes in the network and nodes outside the transmitter network to indicate current transmission and reception in the directions the node is transmitting beacons. Each beacon transmits the same information about the directional transmission map of all supported directions. The beacon frame of should contain this information in addition to the typical information in the regular beacon frame.

The beacon frame with directional activity indicator in broadcast mode is a beacon frame which also comprises the following fields.

Directional transmission activity indication map: Nxq bits, in which "N" is the number of directions that beacons are transmitted in and q is the number of bits to represent the activity in one direction. Each beacon transmitted contains a directional transmission activity map of all directions supported.

Directional reception activity indication map: Nxq bits where N is the number of directions that beacons are received from and q is the number of bits to represent the activity in one direction. Each beacon Received contains a directional reception activity map of all directions supported.

This is a frame that is similar to the regular <NUM> DMG beacons frames but has some elements to allow some extra features. These frames are transmitted by an AP or mesh AP node in all directions. This frame contains specific details for new nodes, current nodes in the network and nodes outside the transmitter network to indicate current transmission and reception in the directions the node is transmitting beacons. Each beacon transmits unique information about the activity of transmission and reception in the direction it is covering. The beacon frame contain this information in addition to the typical information in the regular beacon frame. The beacon frame with directional activity indicator in bit indicator mode is a beacon frame which also comprises the following fields.

Beacon direction transmission activity indicator, q bits to indicate if there is a data transmission activity in the same direction the beacon is being transmitted. The data transmission activity can be represented by <NUM> bit or more depending on the required resolution to be indicated.

Beacon direction reception activity indicator: q bits to indicate if there is a data reception activity in the same direction the beacon is being transmitted. The data reception activity can be represented by <NUM> bit or more depending on the required resolution to be indicated.

This is a frame that is similar to the regular <NUM> SWW or BRP frames used for beam forming. These frames are sent by the STA in response to receiving a beacon from a node with transmission or reception activity indication. The frame contains information to indicate the existence of a new node trying to use the same direction of the received beacon and requesting coordination. The beacon frame of contain this information in addition to the typical information in the regular beacon frame.

The SSW/BRP frames additionally can comprise the following field.

Coordination request: <NUM>-bit to inform the node of possible interference in that direction and request coordination if possible.

Directional transmission activity indication map: Nxq bits, in which "N" is the number of directions that frame are transmitted in and q is the number of bits to represent the activity in one direction. Each frame transmitted contains a directional transmission activity map of all directions supported.

Directional reception activity indication map: Nxq bits where N is the number of directions that frame are received from and q is the number of bits to represent the activity in one direction. Each frame Received contains a directional reception activity map of all directions supported.

Direction transmission activity indicator: q bits to indicate if there is a data transmission activity in the same direction the frame is being transmitted. The data transmission activity can be represented by <NUM> bit or more depending on the required resolution to be indicated.

Directional reception activity indicator: q bits to indicate if there is a data reception activity in the same direction the frame is being transmitted. The data reception activity can be represented by <NUM> bit or more depending on the required resolution to be indicated.

The following is a partial summary of aspects associated with the present disclosure.

Beacons are sent with an indication of directions with active data transmission. The indication can be a flag that represents whether the beacon direction is occupied with active transmission/ reception or not. The indication can be a broadcast of a map of the transmission activity in all directions.

Stations and new nodes in the network can use this direction information to select a better through connection, for example to decide on which AP/STA/MSTA to connect to, and/or to decide on which beam from the same AP/STA/MSTA to connect to.

Stations and new nodes in the network can use this direction information to initiate a distributed interference and resource coordination by exchanging messages in the direction of potential high interference.

Stations and new nodes in the network can use this direction information to reroute data through other nodes/beams whenever there are alternative routes which are less spectrally congested, or that are suffering from lowered levels of interference.

The enhancements described in the presented technology can be readily implemented within various wireless (e.g., mmWave) transmitters, receivers and transceivers. It should also be appreciated that modern wireless transmitters, receivers and transceivers are preferably implemented to include one or more computer processor devices (e.g., CPU, microprocessor, microcontroller, computer enabled ASIC, etc.) and associated memory storing instructions (e.g., RAM, DRAM, NVRAM, FLASH, computer readable media, etc.) whereby programming (instructions) stored in the memory are executed on the processor to perform the steps of the various process methods described herein.

The computer and memory devices were not depicted in the diagrams for the sake of simplicity of illustration, as one of ordinary skill in the art recognizes the use of computer devices for carrying out steps involved with various modern wireless communication devices. The presented technology is non-limiting with regard to memory and computer-readable media, insofar as these are non-transitory, and thus not constituting a transitory electronic signal.

It will also be appreciated that the computer readable media (memory storing instructions) in these computational systems is "non-transitory", which comprises any and all forms of computer-readable media, with the sole exception being a transitory, propagating signal. Accordingly, the disclosed technology may comprise any form of computer-readable media, including those which are random access (e.g., RAM), require periodic refreshing (e.g., DRAM), those that degrade over time (e.g., EEPROMS, disk media), or that store data for only short periods of time and/or only in the presence of power, with the only limitation being that the term "computer readable media" is not applicable to an electronic signal which is transitory.

Embodiments of the present technology may be described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations of methods and systems according to embodiments of the technology, and/or procedures, algorithms, steps, operations, formulae, or other computational depictions, which may also be implemented as computer program products. In this regard, each block or step of a flowchart, and combinations of blocks (and/or steps) in a flowchart, as well as any procedure, algorithm, step, operation, formula, or computational depiction can be implemented by various means, such as hardware, firmware, and/or software including one or more computer program instructions embodied in computer-readable program code. As will be appreciated, any such computer program instructions may be executed by one or more computer processors, including without limitation a general purpose computer or special purpose computer, or other programmable processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the computer program instructions which execute on the computer processor(s) or other programmable processing apparatus create means for implementing the function(s) specified.

Accordingly, blocks of the flowcharts, and procedures, algorithms, steps, operations, formulae, or computational depictions described herein support combinations of means for performing the specified function(s), combinations of steps for performing the specified function(s), and computer program instructions, such as embodied in computer-readable program code logic means, for performing the specified function(s). It will also be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations, as well as any procedures, algorithms, steps, operations, formulae, or computational depictions and combinations thereof described herein, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-based computer systems which perform the specified function(s) or step(s), or combinations of special purpose hardware and computer-readable program code.

It will further be appreciated that as used herein, that the terms processor, hardware processor, computer processor, central processing unit (CPU), and computer are used synonymously to denote a device capable of executing the instructions and communicating with input/output interfaces and/or peripheral devices, and that the terms processor, hardware processor, computer processor, CPU, and computer are intended to encompass single or multiple devices, single core and multicore devices, and variations thereof.

As used herein, the singular terms "a," "an," and "the" may include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise, Reference to an object in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only one" unless explicitly so stated, but rather "one or more.

As used herein, the term "set" refers to a collection of one or more objects. Thus, for example, a set of objects can include a single object or multiple objects.

As used herein, the terms "substantially" and "about" are used to describe and account for small variations. When used in conjunction with an event or circumstance, the terms can refer to instances in which the event or circumstance occurs precisely as well as instances in which the event or circumstance occurs to a close approximation. When used in conjunction with a numerical value, the terms can refer to a range of variation of less than or equal to ± <NUM>% of that numerical value, such as less than or equal to ±<NUM>%, less than or equal to ±<NUM>%, less than or equal to ±<NUM>%, less than or equal to ±<NUM>%, less than or equal to ±<NUM> %, less than or equal to ±<NUM>%, less than or equal to ±<NUM> %, or less than or equal to ±<NUM>%. For example, "substantially" aligned can refer to a range of angular variation of less than or equal to ±<NUM>°, such as less than or equal to ±<NUM>° less than or equal to ±<NUM>°, less than or equal to ±<NUM>°, less than or equal to ±<NUM>°, less than or equal to ±<NUM>°, less than or equal to ±<NUM>°. less than or equal to ±<NUM>°, or less than or equal to ±<NUM>°.

Additionally, amounts, ratios, and other numerical values may sometimes be presented herein in a range format. It is to be understood that such range format is used for convenience and brevity and should be understood flexibly to include numerical values explicitly specified as limits of a range, but also to include all individual numerical values or sub-ranges encompassed within that range as if each numerical value and sub-range is explicitly specified. For example, a ratio in the range of about <NUM> to about <NUM> should be understood to include the explicitly recited limits of about <NUM> and about <NUM>, but also to include individual ratios such as about <NUM>, about <NUM>, and about <NUM>, and sub-ranges such as about <NUM> to about <NUM>, about <NUM> to about <NUM>, and so forth.

Although the description herein contains many details, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the disclosure but as merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments. Therefore, it will be appreciated that the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims.

Claim 1:
An apparatus (<NUM>) for wireless communication in a mesh network, comprising:
(a) a wireless communication circuit (<NUM>) configured for wirelessly communicating with other wireless communication stations utilizing directional millimeter-wave, mmW, communications having a plurality of antenna pattern sectors (64a-n, 66a-n, 68a-n) each having different transmission directions;
(b) a processor (<NUM>) coupled to said wireless communication circuit within a station configured for operating on the mesh network;
(c) a non-transitory memory (<NUM>) storing instructions executable by the processor; and
(d) wherein said instructions, when executed by the processor, perform steps comprising:
(i) transmitting frames in all, or select directions, to other nodes in the network for broadcasting network information, beamforming or other purpose;
(ii) incorporating an activity indicator (<NUM>) into the transmitted frames, wherein said activity indicator provides an indication of which communication directions have active data activity in transmission, reception or transmission and/or receptions; and
(iii) broadcasting said activity indicator (<NUM>) as a map of activity for each direction in which a node is configured to communicate