3. Description of the MAC layer of the HaLow Wi-Fi protocol

The MAC layer provides encapsulation and addressing functions, media access control, association and authentication of stations to the network. It inherits most of the features and mechanisms of 802.11. Modifications have been made to optimize M2M communications, support larger numbers of stations and improve the energy balance of communications. To achieve this, four mechanisms have been created or enhanced from 802.11:

• AID (Association ID);

• TIM (Target Indication Map) ;

• RAW (Restricted Access Window);

• TWT (Target Wake Time).