Wilus portfolio
Enhancements for High-Efficiency Wireless LAN Specifications
About Wilus Portfolio
The Wi-Fi 6 (IEEE 802.11ax) standard, which was published in 2021, improves spectral efficiency, latency and fairness in high-density environments (such as airports, stadiums and outdoor/indoor public venues) by introducing features such as DL and UL OFDMA, uplink MU-MIMO and spatial reuse.
Wi-Fi 6E, which was defined by the Wi-Fi Alliance, extends Wi-Fi 6 operations into the 6 GHz band, thereby providing additional spectrum to reduce congestion and enabling high-throughput communications.
The Wi-Fi 7 (IEEE 802.11be) standard – ratified in late 2024 – specifically targets the need for extremely high throughput. It evolves the technology to meet the demands of next-generation applications such as 8K streaming, real-time collaboration, cloud gaming and AR/VR.
By introducing Multi-Link Operation (MLO), Wi-Fi 7 allows devices to connect over two or more bands simultaneously, improving overall capacity, reducing latency and boosting reliability.
Moreover, while 802.11ax supports channel bonding of up to 160 MHz, which is achieved by aggregating eight 20MHz channels, 802.11be expands this capability to 320MHz channels in the 6 GHz band.
OFDMA, introduced in 802.11ax, enables efficient utilisation of the frequency spectrum by dividing the RF channel where the network is operating into smaller sub-channels called Resource Units (RUs).
802.11be introduces multiple resource unit (MRU) support which, by allowing the AP to assign multiple RUs to a single STA, significantly improves spectrum utilisation and robustness in environments with high interference or variable channel conditions.
The evolution of certain technical features from Wi-Fi 4 to Wi-Fi 7, which has made this accommodation of modern-day wireless connectivity possible, is illustrated in the following table.
Features | Wi-Fi 4 | Wi-Fi 5 | Wi-Fi 6/Wi-Fi 6E | Wi-Fi 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
IEEE 802.11n (HT) – High Throughput | IEEE 802.11ac (VHT) – Very High Throughput | IEEE 802.11ax (HE) – High Efficiency | IEEE 802.11be (EHT)– Extremely High Throughput | |
Frequency bands [GHz] | 2.4, 5 | 5 | 2.4, 5 and 6 | 2.4, 5 and 6 |
Channel widths [MHz] | 20, 40 | 20, 40, 80, 160 (80+80) | 20, 40, 80, 160 (80+80) | Up to 320 MHz |
OFDM numerology | 64 tones/20 MHz | 64 tones/20 MHz | 256 tones/20 MHz | 256 tones/20 MHz |
OFDM symbol duration | 3.2 μs (GI = 0.4/0.8 μs) | 3.2 μs (GI = 0.4/0.8 μs) | 12.8 μs (GI = 0.8/1.6/3.2 μs) | 12.8 μs (GI = 0.8/1.6/3.2 μs) |
Modulations | BPSK, QPSK, 16/64-QAM | BPSK, QPSK, 16/64-QAM, 256-QAM | BPSK, QPSK, 16/64/256-QAM, 1024-QAM | BPSK, QPSK, 16/64/256-QAM, 1024-QAM, 4096-QAM |
Coding | BCC mandatory, LDPC optional | BCC mandatory, LDPC optional | BCC mandatory1, LDPC mandatory2 | BCC mandatory1, LDPC mandatory2 |
Multi-User transmissions | - | DL MU-MIMO | DL and UL MU-MIMO; DL and UL OFDMA | DL and UL MU-MIMO; DL and UL OFDMA |
OFDMA (RU sizes, subcarriers) | – | – | 26, 52, 106, 242, 484, 996, 2x996 | 26, 52, 106, 242, 484, 996, 2×996, 4×996 |
MU-MIMO stations | (SU-MIMO only, up to 4SS) | Up to 4 STAs (8 SS) | Up to 8 STAs (8 SS) | Up to 8 STAs (8 SS) |
Maximum throughput | 600 Mbps | 6.9Gbps | 9.6 Gbps | 23 Gbps |
Table 1: Evolution of Wi-Fi standards (the innovations introduced by the specific standard are underlined)
Wilus has been actively participating in and contributing its innovations to the Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 7 standardisation process since the very beginning of its development in 2014. It is among the top technical contributors to the standard.
The standard essential Wi-Fi Multimode patent portfolio covering these innovations comprises more than 600 individual patent assets and continues to grow.
1 Support for BCC coding is limited to less than or equal to four spatial streams and MCSs 0 to 9 (and MCS-15 for EHT STA) and is mandatory for RU (and MRU for EHT STAs) sizes less than or equal to a 242-tone RU.
2Mandatory for a HE/EHT STA that supports more than 4 spatial streams or a PPDU bandwidth greater than 20 MHz or at least one of MCS 10, MCS 11 (and MCS 12, MCS 13 , MCS 14 for EHT STAs).
Patents
Sisvel has the right to grant licences to all Wi-Fi 6 and 7 standard essential patents originated by Wilus. You can find an overview of the Wilus Wi-Fi 6 and 7 patent portfolio in our patent brochure.
The table in the Patent Brochure allows interested parties to understand how the SEPs offered under this licence offer are utilised by products complying with the 802.11ax and 802.11be standards and, to this end, indicates the relevant sections of the standard. This document is regularly updated.
Licence Terms
The royalty rates of this licence are offered on a per-product basis, applicable only for devices making use of the Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 7 technology, as per the below:
For Enterprise Access Points*
Compliant rate | Standard rate | |
|---|---|---|
Wi-Fi 6 | USD 0.28 | USD 0.36 |
Wi-Fi 7 | USD 0.34 | USD 0.44 |
*Access points with enterprise grade performance, which provide wireless connectivity for devices and are intended and marketed for professional, business or commercial use in high density environments. More details can be found in the template Sublicense Agreement linked below.
For all other products
Compliant rate | Standard rate | |
|---|---|---|
Wi-Fi 6 | USD 0.14 | USD 0.18 |
Wi-Fi 7 | USD 0.17 | USD 0.22 |
Provided a licensee is in full compliance with its obligations under its licence agreement, the royalty rate payable for each licensed product shall be the compliant rate.
A bank guarantee may be required.
The complete terms and conditions of our running royalty offering for the Wilus Portfolio can be found through the following link: