Vision-based channel state information (vCSI) for enhanced resource allocation

Abstract

In an aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) is disclosed, the method comprising: obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) groups related to an environment of the UE; and determining an estimated location of the UE during a new radio (NR) location session based at least in part on at least one vCSI group of the plurality of vCSI groups.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 1. Technical Field

[0002] Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication.

[0003] 2. Description of Related Art

[0004] Wireless communication systems have evolved through many generations, including first-generation analog wireless telephone service (1G), second-generation (2G) digital wireless telephone service (including transitional 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third-generation (3G) high-speed data, Internet-capable wireless services, and fourth-generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). Currently, many different types of wireless communication systems are in use, including cellular systems and Personal Communication Service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include the cellular analog Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), etc.

[0005] The fifth-generation (5G) wireless standard, known as New Radio (NR), enables higher data transfer speeds, a greater number of connections, better coverage, and other improvements. According to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, the 5G standard is designed to provide higher data rates, more accurate positioning (e.g., based on reference signals for positioning (RS-P), such as downlink, uplink, or sidelink positioning reference signals (PRS)), and other technical enhancements compared to previous standards. These enhancements, along with the use of higher frequency bands, advancements in PRS processes and technologies, and high-density deployments of 5G, enable high-accuracy positioning based on 5G. SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0006] A simplified summary of one or more aspects related to the present disclosure is presented below. Accordingly, the following summary is not to be considered an exhaustive overview of all contemplated aspects, nor is it to be considered to identify key or critical elements of all contemplated aspects or to delineate the scope of any particular aspect. Thus, the sole purpose of the following summary is to present in a concise form certain concepts related to one or more aspects of the mechanisms disclosed herein prior to the detailed description that follows.

[0007] In one aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a User Equipment (UE) includes obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the UE's surrounding environment; and determining an estimated location of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0008] In one aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) includes obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the UE's surrounding environment; and sending an indication of one or more recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

[0009] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the UE's surrounding environment; and determine an estimated location of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0010] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the UE's surrounding environment; and means for determining an estimated location of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0011] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the UE's surrounding environment; and means for sending an indication of one or more recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

[0012] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the UE's surrounding environment; and determine an estimated location of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0013] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a UE, cause the UE to: obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the UE's surrounding environment; and send an indication of one or more recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

[0014] Based on the accompanying drawings and the specific embodiments, other objectives and advantages associated with the various aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] The accompanying drawings are presented to assist in describing the various aspects of the present disclosure, and the drawings are provided for illustration only and not to limit the aspects.

[0016] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0017] Figure 2A 、 Figure 2B and Figure 2C An example wireless network structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0018] Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C are simplified block diagrams of several example aspects of components that can be employed in a user equipment (UE), a base station, and a network entity, respectively, and are configured to support communication as taught herein.

[0019] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 5 Examples of various positioning methods supported in New Radio (NR) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0021] Figure 6 An example Long Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) reference source for positioning is illustrated.

[0022] Figure 7 An example Long Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) call flow for performing a positioning operation between a UE and a location server is illustrated.

[0023] Figure 8 Illustrates an example communication that can be exchanged between a UE and a base station in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure based on generating and reporting vision-based channel state information (vCSI) according to captured vision data.

[0024] Figure 9 Illustrates an example communication that can be exchanged between a base station and a location server in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure based on generating and reporting vCSI according to captured vision data.

[0025] Figure 10 An example positioning environment in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated in which vCSI can be used to allocate resources used in determining the location of a UE.

[0026] Figure 11 Illustrates a positioning environment in which vCSI can be used to allocate resources used in determining the location of a UE, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0027] Figure 12 Depicts a positioning environment in which communication resources between a base station and a UE can be mapped based on vCSI, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0028] Figure 13 Illustrates an example method of wireless communication performed by a network node, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0029] Figure 14 Illustrates an example method of wireless communication performed by a network node, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0030] Figure 15 Illustrates an example method of wireless communication performed by a network node, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0031] Figure 16 Illustrates an example method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0032] Figure 17 Illustrates an example method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Detailed Description

[0033] Aspects of the present disclosure are provided in the following description of various examples provided for illustrative purposes and the associated drawings. Alternative aspects may be devised without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of the present disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the present disclosure.

[0034] The words "exemplary" and / or "example" are used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" and / or "example" is not necessarily to be construed as superior or better than other aspects. Similarly, the term "aspects of the present disclosure" does not require that all aspects of the present disclosure include the discussed features, advantages, or operating modes.

[0035] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any of a variety of different technologies and methods may be used to represent the information and signals described below. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout the following description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the particular application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, etc.

[0036] Additionally, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It will be recognized that the various actions described herein can be performed by specific circuitry (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, the sequences of actions described herein can be considered to be fully embodied within any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a corresponding set of computer instructions that, when executed, will cause or direct a relevant processor of the device to perform the functionality described herein. Accordingly, the various aspects of the present disclosure can be embodied in many different forms, all of which are expected to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Additionally, for each of the aspects described herein, a corresponding form of any such aspect can be described herein as, for example, "logic configured to perform the described actions."

[0037] As used herein, unless otherwise specified, the terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not intended to be specific to or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT). In general, a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network (e.g., a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a consumer asset tracking device, a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch, glasses, an augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), a vehicle (e.g., a car, a motorcycle, a bicycle, etc.), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.). A UE can be mobile or can be stationary (e.g., at certain times) and can communicate with a radio access network (RAN). As used herein, the term "UE" can be interchangeably referred to as "access terminal" or "AT", "client device", "wireless device", "subscriber equipment", "subscriber terminal", "subscriber station", "user terminal" or "UT", "mobile device", "mobile terminal", "mobile station", or variants thereof. In general, a UE can communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the core network, the UE can connect to an external network such as the Internet and to other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for a UE to connect to the core network and / or the Internet are possible, such as via a wired access network, a wireless local area network (WLAN) network (e.g., based on Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 specifications, etc.).

[0038] A base station can operate according to one of several RATs to communicate with a UE depending on the network in which the base station is deployed, and alternatively can be referred to as an access point (AP), network node, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), New Radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as gNB or gNodeB), etc. The base station can be mainly used to support the wireless access of the UE, including supporting data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the supported UE. In some systems, the base station can only provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems, the base station can provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link by which the UE can transmit signals to the base station is called the uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse traffic channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). The communication link by which the base station can transmit signals to the UE is called the downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., paging channel, control channel, broadcast channel, forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term "traffic channel (TCH)" can refer to the uplink / reverse traffic channel or the downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0039] The term "base station" can refer to a single physical transmit receive point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, in the case where the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP can be the antenna of the base station corresponding to the cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. In the case where the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRPs can be an antenna array of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or in the case where the base station employs beamforming). In the case where the term "base station" refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRPs can be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transmission medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to the serving base station). Alternatively, the non-co-located physical TRPs can be the serving base station that receives measurement reports from the UE and an adjacent base station whose reference radio frequency (RF) signal the UE is measuring. Since, as used herein, the TRP is the point by which the base station transmits and receives wireless signals, a reference to transmission from or reception at the base station should be understood to refer to a specific TRP of the base station.

[0040] In some specific implementations that support UE positioning, the base station may not support the wireless access of the UE (e.g., may not support data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the UE), but can alternatively send reference signals to be measured by the UE and / or can receive and measure signals transmitted by the UE. Such a base station can be called a positioning beacon (e.g., in the case of sending signals to the UE) and / or be called a position measurement unit (e.g., in the case of receiving and measuring signals from the UE).

[0041] An "RF signal" includes an electromagnetic wave of a given frequency that transmits information through the space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may send a single "RF signal" or multiple "RF signals" to a receiver. However, due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through a multipath channel, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between the transmitter and the receiver may be referred to as a "multipath" RF signal. As used herein, when the context clearly indicates that the term "signal" refers to a wireless signal or an RF signal, the RF signal may also be referred to as a "wireless signal" or simply as a "signal".

[0042] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system 100 in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The wireless communication system 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled "BS") and various UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macrocell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one aspect, the macrocell base stations may include eNBs and / or ng-eNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network), or gNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network), or a combination of both, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0043] The base stations 102 may collectively form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) via a backhaul link 122, and interface with one or more location servers 172 (e.g., a location management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)) via the core network 170. The location server 172 may be part of the core network 170 or may be external to the core network 170. The location server 172 may be integrated with the base stations 102. The UE 104 may communicate with the location server 172 directly or indirectly. For example, the UE 104 may communicate with the location server 172 via the base station 102 currently serving the UE 104. The UE 104 may also communicate with the location server 172 via another path, such as via an application server (not shown), via another network, such as via a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) (e.g., the AP 150 described below), etc. For signaling purposes, the communication between the UE 104 and the location server 172 may be represented as an indirect connection (e.g., via the core network 170, etc.) or a direct connection (e.g., as shown via the direct connection 128), where intermediate nodes (if any) are omitted from the signaling diagram for clarity.

[0044] In addition to other functions, base station 102 may perform functions related to one or more of the following: delivering user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. Base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via the EPC / 5GC) on the backhaul link 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0045] Base station 102 may communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each base station in base station 102 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. In one aspect, one or more cells may be supported by the base stations 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity for communicating with a base station (e.g., via a certain frequency resource, which is referred to as a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, frequency band, etc.), and may be associated with an identifier for distinguishing cells operating via the same or different carrier frequencies (e.g., physical cell identifier (PCI), enhanced cell identifier (ECI), virtual cell identifier (VCI), cell global identifier (CGI), etc.). In some cases, different cells may be configured according to different protocol types that may provide access for different types of UEs (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other protocol types). Since a cell is supported by a specific base station, the term "cell" may, depending on the context, refer to either or both of the logical communication entity and the base station that supports the logical communication entity. In addition, since the TRP is typically the physical transmission point of a cell, the terms "cell" and "TRP" may be used interchangeably. In some cases, the term "cell" may also refer to the geographic coverage area (e.g., sector) of a base station, as long as the carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within a certain part of the geographic coverage area 110.

[0046] Although the geographical coverage areas 110 of adjacent macro cell base stations 102 may partially overlap (e.g., in a handover area), some areas within the geographical coverage area 110 may substantially overlap with the larger geographical coverage area 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' (labeled "SC" for "small cell") may have a geographical coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographical coverage areas 110 of one or more macro cell base stations 102. A network including both small cell base stations and macro cell base stations may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. The heterogeneous network may also include a home eNB (HeNB) that may provide services to a restricted group referred to as a closed subscriber group (CSG).

[0047] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 may include an uplink (also referred to as a reverse link) transmission from the UE 104 to the base station 102 and / or a downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmission from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 may use MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may be over one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric for the downlink and uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to the downlink compared to the uplink).

[0048] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a WLAN access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a wireless local area network (WLAN) station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in an unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) or listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure before communication to determine if the channel is available.

[0049] The small cell base station 102' may operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in the unlicensed spectrum, the small cell base station 102' may employ LTE or NR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum as that used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' adopting LTE / 5G in the unlicensed spectrum may enhance the coverage of the access network and / or increase the capacity of the access network. NR in the unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as NR-U. LTE in the unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as LTE-U, licensed-assisted access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0050] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a millimeter wave (mmW) base station 180, which may operate at mmW frequencies and / or near mmW frequencies to communicate with the UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a part of RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz, with wavelengths between 1 millimeter and 10 millimeters. Radio waves in this band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near mmW may extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz, with wavelengths of 100 millimeters. The super high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz, which is also referred to as centimeter waves. Communication using the mmW / near mmW radio frequency band has high path loss and relatively short distances. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 may utilize beamforming (transmitting and / or receiving) on the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short distances. Additionally, it should be understood that in an alternative configuration, one or more of the base stations 102 may also use mmW or near mmW and beamforming for transmission. Therefore, it should be understood that the foregoing illustrations are merely examples and should not be construed as limiting the various aspects disclosed herein.

[0051] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in a specific direction. Conventionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectionally). With transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing a faster and stronger RF signal (in terms of data rate) for the receiving device. To change the directivity of the RF signal during transmission, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of one or more transmitters that broadcast the RF signal. For example, the network node may use an array of antennas (referred to as a "phased array" or "antenna array"), which forms an RF beam that can be "manipulated" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, the RF currents from the transmitters are fed to the individual antennas with the correct phase relationship such that the radio waves from the individual antennas add together in the desired direction to increase radiation, while canceling in the undesired directions to suppress radiation.

[0052] The transmit beams can be quasi - co - located, which means that they appear to have the same parameters to the receiver (e.g., UE), regardless of whether the transmit antennas of the network node are physically co - located. In NR, there are four types of quasi - co - location (QCL) relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters of the second reference RF signal on the second beam can be derived based on information about the source reference RF signal on the source beam. Thus, if the source reference RF signal is of QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of the second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is of QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is of QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and average delay of the second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is of QCL type D, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the spatial reception parameters of the second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0053] In receive beamforming, the receiver uses receive beams to amplify the RF signals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver can increase the gain setting of the antenna array in a specific direction and / or adjust the phase setting of the antenna array in a specific direction to amplify the RF signal received from that direction (e.g., increase its gain level). Thus, when the receiver is described as beamforming in a certain direction, it means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gains in other directions, or the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gains of all other receive beams available to the receiver in that direction. This results in a stronger received signal strength for the RF signal received from that direction (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal - to - interference - plus - noise ratio (SINR), etc.).

[0054] The transmit beams and receive beams can be spatially related. The spatial relationship means that the parameters of the second beam (e.g., transmit beam or receive beam) for the second reference signal can be derived based on information about the first beam (e.g., receive beam or transmit beam) of the first reference signal. For example, a UE can use a specific receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., synchronization signal block (SSB)) from a base station. Then, the UE can form a transmit beam for transmitting an uplink reference signal (e.g., sounding reference signal (SRS)) to that base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0055] Note that depending on the entity forming the "downlink" beam, the beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming a downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to the UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE is forming a downlink beam, the downlink beam is a receive beam for receiving the downlink reference signal. Similarly, depending on the entity forming the "uplink" beam, the beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming an uplink beam, the uplink beam is an uplink receive beam, and if the UE is forming an uplink beam, the uplink beam is an uplink transmit beam.

[0056] The electromagnetic spectrum is typically subdivided into various categories, frequency bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, two initial operating frequency bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz – 7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz – 52.6 GHz). It should be understood that although part of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, in various documents and articles, FR1 is often (interchangeably) referred to as the "sub-6 GHz" band. Regarding FR2, a similar naming issue sometimes occurs, which is often (interchangeably) referred to as the "millimeter wave" band in documents and articles, although it is different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz - 300 GHz) identified by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) as the "millimeter wave" band.

[0057] The frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are generally referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified the operating frequency bands for these mid-band frequencies as frequency range designations FR3 (7.125 GHz - 24.25 GHz). The frequency bands falling within FR3 can inherit FR1 characteristics and / or FR2 characteristics, and thus can effectively extend the features of FR1 and / or FR2 to the mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operation beyond 52.6 GHz. For example, three higher operating frequency bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz – 71 GHz), FR4 (52.6 GHz – 114.25 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz – 300 GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands falls within the EHF band.

[0058] Taking into account the above aspects, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if used in this document, terms such as "below 6 GHz" can generally represent frequencies that can be less than 6 GHz, can be within FR1, or can include mid-band frequencies. In addition, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if terms such as "millimeter wave" are used in this document, they can generally represent frequencies that can include mid-band frequencies, can be within FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1 and / or FR5, or can be within the EHF band.

[0059] In a multi-carrier system such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies is referred to as the "primary carrier" or "anchor carrier" or "primary serving cell" or "PCell", and the remaining carrier frequencies are referred to as "secondary carriers" or "secondary serving cells" or "SCells". In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is a carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) used by the UE 104 / 182 and the cell, where the UE 104 / 182 performs the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment process or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment process in that cell. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). The secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2) that can be configured and used to provide additional radio resources once an RRC connection is established between the UE104 and the anchor carrier. In some cases, the secondary carrier can be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier can contain only the necessary signaling information and signals. For example, since the primary uplink carrier and the primary downlink carrier are usually UE-specific, those UE-specific signaling information and signals may not exist in the secondary carrier. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 in a cell can have different downlink primary carriers. The same holds for the primary uplink carrier. The network can change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance the load on different carriers. Since a "serving cell" (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to the carrier frequency / component carrier through which a certain base station communicates, terms such as "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier", "carrier frequency", etc. may be used interchangeably.

[0060] For example, still referring to Figure 1, one of the frequencies used by the macro cell base station 102 can be an anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and the other frequencies used by the macro cell base station 102 and / or the mmW base station 180 can be secondary carriers ("SCells"). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception of multiple carriers enables the UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rate. For example, compared to the data rate obtained with a single 20 MHz carrier, two aggregated 20 MHz carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically result in a doubling of the data rate (i.e., 40 MHz).

[0061] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a UE 164, which may communicate with the macro cell base station 102 via the communication link 120 and / or communicate with the mmW base station 180 via the mmW communication link 184. For example, the macro cell base station 102 may support a PCell and one or more SCells for the UE 164, and the mmW base station 180 may support one or more SCells for the UE 164.

[0062] In some cases, the UE 164 and the UE 182 are capable of sidelink communication. A UE with sidelink capabilities (SL-UE) may use the Uu interface (i.e., the air interface between the UE and the base station) to communicate with the base station 102 via the communication link 120. The SL-UEs (e.g., UE 164, UE 182) may also use the PC5 interface (i.e., the air interface between UEs with sidelink capabilities) to communicate directly with each other via the wireless sidelink 160. The wireless sidelink (or simply referred to as "sidelink") is an adaptation of the core cellular network (e.g., LTE, NR) standard that allows direct communication between two or more UEs without communicating through a base station. Sidelink communication can be unicast or multicast and can be used for device-to-device (D2D) media sharing, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication (e.g., cellular V2X (cV2X) communication, enhanced V2X (eV2X) communication, etc.), emergency rescue applications, etc. One or more SL-UEs in a group of SL-UEs that utilize sidelink communication may be located within the geographical coverage area 110 of the base station 102. Other SL-UEs in such a group may be outside the geographical coverage area 110 of the base station 102 or may not be able to receive transmissions from the base station 102 for other reasons. In some cases, each group of SL-UEs that communicate via sidelink communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, where each SL-UE transmits to every other SL-UE in the group. In some cases, the base station 102 facilitates the scheduling of resources for sidelink communication. In other cases, sidelink communication is performed between the SL-UEs without involving the base station 102.

[0063] In one aspect, the sidelink 160 may operate on a wireless communication medium of interest, which may be shared with other vehicles and / or infrastructure access points and other wireless communications between other RATs. The "medium" may include one or more time, frequency, and / or spatial communication resources associated with wireless communication between one or more transmitter / receiver pairs (e.g., covering one or more channels across one or more carriers). In one aspect, the medium of interest may correspond to at least a portion of an unlicensed band shared among various RATs. Although different licensed bands have been reserved for certain communication systems (e.g., by government entities such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States), these systems (especially those employing small cell access points) have recently extended their operations into unlicensed bands such as the unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (U-NII) bands used by wireless local area network (WLAN) technologies (most notably the IEEE 802.11x WLAN technologies commonly referred to as "Wi-Fi"). Example systems of this type include different variants of CDMA systems, TDMA systems, FDMA systems, orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) systems, etc.

[0064] It should be noted that although Figure 1 only two of these UEs are illustrated as SL-UEs (i.e., UE 164 and UE 182), any of the illustrated UEs can be an SL-UE. Additionally, although only UE 182 is described as being capable of beamforming, any of the illustrated UEs (including UE 164) are capable of beamforming. In cases where the SL-UEs are capable of beamforming, they may beamform towards each other (i.e., towards other SL-UEs), towards other UEs (e.g., UE 104), towards base stations (e.g., base station 102, base station 180, small cell 102', access point 150), etc. Thus, in some cases, UE 164 and UE 182 may utilize beamforming over the sidelink 160.

[0065] In Figure 1 the example of, the illustrated UEs (for simplicity, in Figure 1Any UE shown as a single UE 104 in the figure can receive signal 124 from one or more space vehicles (SVs) 112 in Earth orbit (e.g., satellites). In one aspect, the SV 112 can be part of a satellite positioning system where the UE 104 can use it as an independent source of position information. A satellite positioning system generally includes a system of transmitters (e.g., SV 112) that are positioned such that a receiver (e.g., UE 104) can determine its position on or above the Earth at least in part based on positioning signals received from the transmitters (e.g., signal 124). Such transmitters typically send signals marked with a repeating pseudo-random noise (PN) code with a set number of chips. Although typically located in the SV 112, the transmitter can sometimes be located on a ground-based control station, base station 102, and / or other UE 104. The UE 104 can include one or more dedicated receivers that are specifically designed to receive signal 124 in order to derive geographical location information from the SV 112.

[0066] In a satellite positioning system, the use of signal 124 can be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) that can be associated with or otherwise enable the use of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, SBAS can include augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential corrections, etc., such as the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), the Multi-functional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), the Global Positioning System (GPS)-aided Geo Augmented Navigation or GPS and Geo Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN), etc. Thus, as used herein, a satellite positioning system can include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellites associated with such one or more satellite positioning systems.

[0067] In one aspect, the SV 112 can additionally or alternatively be part of one or more non-terrestrial networks (NTN). In an NTN, the SV 112 is connected to an earth station (also referred to as a ground station, NTN gateway, or gateway) which in turn is connected to elements in a 5G network, such as a modified base station 102 (without a ground antenna) or a network node in the 5GC. This element then provides access to other elements in the 5G network and ultimately provides access to entities external to the 5G network, such as Internet web servers and other user devices. Thus, instead of or in addition to communication signals from the ground base station 102, the UE 104 can receive communication signals (e.g., signal 124) from the SV 112.

[0068] The wireless communication system 100 may also include one or more UEs, such as UE 190, which is indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as "sidelinks"). In Figure 1 In an example, UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 with a UE among UEs 104 connected to one of the base stations in base station 102 (e.g., UE 190 can indirectly obtain a cellular connection through this D2D P2P link), and has a D2D P2P link 194 with WLAN STA 152 connected to WLAN AP 150 (UE 190 can indirectly obtain a WLAN-based Internet connection through this D2D P2P link). In one example, D2D P2P links 192 and 194 can be supported by any well-known D2D RAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Bluetooth® etc.

[0069] Figure 2A An example wireless network structure 200 is illustrated. For example, 5GC 210 (also referred to as Next Generation Core (NGC)) can be functionally regarded as a control plane (C-plane) function 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and a user plane (U-plane) function 212 (e.g., UE gateway function, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.), which cooperate to form a core network. User plane interface (NG-U) 213 and control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect gNB 222 to 5GC 210, and specifically connect to the user plane function 212 and the control plane function 214 respectively. In an additional configuration, ng-eNB 224 can also be connected to 5GC 210 via NG-C 215 to the control plane function 214 and NG-U 213 to the user plane function 212. In addition, ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with gNB 222 via a backhaul connection 223. In some configurations, Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN) 220 can have one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of either ng-eNB 224 and gNB 222. Either (or both) of gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 can communicate with one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein).

[0070] Another optional aspect may include a location server 230 that may communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The location server 230 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively may each correspond to a single server. The location server 230 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204 that may be connected to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not illustrated). Additionally, the location server 230 may be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively may be external to the core network (e.g., a third-party server such as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or a service server).

[0071] Figure 2B Another example wireless network structure 240 is illustrated. The 5GC 260 (which may correspond to Figure 2AThe 5GC 210) can be functionally regarded as the control plane function provided by the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 264 and the user plane function provided by the User Plane Function (UPF) 262, which cooperate to form the core network (i.e., 5GC 260). The functions of the AMF 264 include: registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of session management (SM) messages between one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) and the Session Management Function (SMF) 266, transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transmission of Short Message Service (SMS) messages between the UE 204 and the Short Message Service Function (SMSF) (not shown), and Security Anchor Functionality (SEAF). The AMF 264 also interacts with the Authentication Server Function (AUSF) (not shown) and the UE 204, and receives the intermediate key established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In the case of authentication based on a UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM), the AMF 264 retrieves the security material from the AUSF. The functions of the AMF 264 also include Security Context Management (SCM). The SCM receives the key from the SEAF, and the SCM uses this key to derive the access network specific key. The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes location service management for regulatory services, transmission of location service messages between the UE 204 and the Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (which acts as the location server 230), transmission of location service messages between the NG-RAN 220 and the LMF 270, allocation of evolved packet system (EPS) bearer identifiers for EPS interoperability, and UE 204 mobility event notification. In addition, the AMF 264 also supports functionality for non-3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0072] The functions of UPF 262 include: acting as an anchor point for in-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), acting as an external protocol data unit (PDU) session point for the interconnection to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, quality of service (QoS) handling for the user plane (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflected QoS marking in the downlink), uplink traffic verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport-level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and transmitting and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. UPF 262 may also support the transfer of location service messages between UE 204 and a location server (such as SLP 272) on the user plane.

[0073] The functions of SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, traffic steering configuration for routing traffic to the correct destination at UPF 262, partial control of policy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface through which SMF 266 communicates with AMF 264 is referred to as the N11 interface.

[0074] Another optional aspect may include LMF 270, which may communicate with 5GC 260 to provide location assistance for UE 204. LMF 270 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively may each correspond to a single server. LMF 270 may be configured to support one or more location services for UE 204, which may be connected to LMF 270 via the core network, 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not illustrated). SLP 272 may support similar functions to LMF 270, but LMF 270 may communicate with AMF 264, NG-RAN 220, and UE 204 on the control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols designed to carry signaling messages rather than voice or data), and SLP 272 may communicate with UE 204 and an external client (e.g., third-party server 274) on the user plane (e.g., using protocols designed to carry voice and / or data, such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0075] Another optional aspect may include a third-party server 274 that may communicate with the LMF 270, the SLP 272, the 5GC 260 (e.g., via the AMF 264 and / or the UPF 262), the NG-RAN 220, and / or the UE 204 to obtain location information (e.g., a location estimate) of the UE 204. Thus, in some cases, the third-party server 274 may be referred to as a location service (LCS) client or an external client. The third-party server 274 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively may each correspond to a single server.

[0076] The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC 260, and specifically the UPF 262 and the AMF 264, to one or more gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220, respectively. The interface between the gNB 222 and / or the ng-eNB 224 and the AMF 264 is referred to as the "N2" interface, while the interface between the gNB 222 and / or the ng-eNB 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the "N3" interface. The gNBs 222 and / or the ng-eNBs 224 of the NG-RAN 220 may communicate directly with each other via a backhaul connection 223 referred to as the "Xn-C" interface. One or more of the gNB 222 and / or the ng-eNB 224 may communicate with one or more UEs 204 via a radio interface referred to as the "Uu" interface.

[0077] The functionality of gNB 222 is divided among a gNB central unit (gNB-CU) 226, one or more gNB distributed units (gNB-DU) 228, and one or more gNB radio units (gNB-RU) 229. The gNB-CU 226 is a logical node that includes base station functions other than those specifically allocated to the gNB-DU 228, including passing user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, etc. More specifically, the gNB-CU 226 typically hosts the radio resource control (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) protocols of gNB 222. The gNB-DU 228 is a logical node that typically hosts the radio link control (RLC) and media access control (MAC) layers of gNB 222. Its operation is controlled by the gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 can support one or more cells, and one cell is supported by only one gNB-DU 228. The interface 232 between the gNB-CU 226 and one or more gNB-DU 228 is referred to as the "F1" interface. The physical (PHY) layer functionality of gNB 222 is typically hosted by one or more independent gNB-RU 229, which perform functions such as power amplification and signal transmission / reception. The interface between the gNB-DU 228 and the gNB-RU 229 is referred to as the "Fx" interface. Thus, the UE 204 communicates with the gNB-CU 226 via the RRC layer, SDAP layer, and PDCP layer, communicates with the gNB-DU 228 via the RLC layer and MAC layer, and communicates with the gNB-RU 229 via the PHY layer.

[0078] The deployment of a communication system such as a 5G NR system can be arranged in various ways with various components or constituent parts. In a 5G NR system or network, network nodes, network entities, mobility elements of the network, RAN nodes, core network nodes, network elements, or network equipment (such as base stations or one or more units (or one or more components) that perform base station functionality) can be implemented in an aggregated or disaggregated architecture. For example, a base station (such as a Node B (NB), evolved NB (eNB), NR base station, 5G NB, access point (AP), transmit receive point (TRP), or cell, etc.) can be implemented as an aggregated base station (also referred to as a self-standing base station or a monolithic base station) or a disaggregated base station.

[0079] A centralized base station can be configured to utilize a radio protocol stack that is physically or logically integrated within a single RAN node. A split base station can be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically distributed among two or more units, such as one or more central or centralized units (CUs), one or more distributed units (DUs), or one or more radio units (RUs). In some aspects, a CU can be implemented within a RAN node, and one or more DUs can be co-located with the CU, or alternatively, can be geographically or virtually distributed among one or more other RAN nodes. A DU can be implemented to communicate with one or more RUs. Each of the CU, DU, and RU can also be implemented as a virtual unit, i.e., a virtual central unit (VCU), a virtual distributed unit (VDU), or a virtual radio unit (VRU).

[0080] Base station type operations or network designs can consider the aggregation characteristics of base station functionality. For example, split base stations can be used in integrated access backhaul (IAB) networks, open radio access networks (O-RANs, such as network configurations advocated by the O-RAN Alliance), or virtualized radio access networks (vRANs, also known as cloud radio access networks (C-RANs)). Splitting can include distributing functionality across two or more units at various physical locations, as well as virtually distributing the functionality of at least one unit, which can achieve flexibility in network design. The various units of a split base station or split RAN architecture can be configured for wired or wireless communication with at least one other unit.

[0081] Figure 2C An example split base station architecture 250 in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The split base station architecture 250 can include one or more central units (CUs) 280 (e.g., gNB-CU 226), which can communicate directly with a core network 267 (e.g., 5GC 210, 5GC 260) via a backhaul link, or indirectly with the core network 267 through one or more split base station units, such as a near real-time (near RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 259 via an E2 link or a non-real-time (non RT) RIC 257 associated with a service management and orchestration (SMO) framework 255 or both. The CU 280 can communicate with one or more distributed units (DUs) 285 (e.g., gNB-DU 228) via a respective midhaul link, such as an F1 interface. The DU 285 can communicate with one or more radio units (RUs) 287 (e.g., gNB-RU 229) via a respective fronthaul link. The RU 287 can communicate with a respective UE 204 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some embodiments, the UE 204 can be served simultaneously by multiple RUs 287.

[0082] Each of the units (i.e., CU 280, DU 285, RU 287, and the near RT RIC 259, non-RT RIC 257, and SMO framework 255) may include one or more interfaces or be coupled to one or more interfaces that are configured to receive or transmit signals, data, or information (collectively referred to as signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units or the associated processor or controller that provides instructions to the communication interfaces of these units may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via the transmission medium. For example, the units may include a wired interface that is configured to receive or transmit signals to one or more of the other units via a wired transmission medium. Additionally, the units may include a wireless interface that may include a receiver, transmitter, or transceiver (such as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver) that is configured to receive or transmit signals, or both, to one or more of the other units over a wireless transmission medium.

[0083] In some aspects, the CU 280 may host one or more higher layer control functions. Such control functions may include radio resource control (RRC), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), etc. Each control function may utilize an interface that is configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by the CU 280. The CU 280 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (i.e., Central Unit - User Plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (i.e., Central Unit - Control Plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some specific implementations, the CU 280 may be logically divided into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP units may communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP units via an interface (such as an E1 interface). As needed, the CU 280 may be implemented to communicate with the DU 285 for network control and signaling.

[0084] The DU 285 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 287. In some aspects, the DU 285 may host one or more of the radio link control (RLC) layer, the media access control (MAC) layer, and one or more high physical (PHY) layers (such as modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation, and demodulation, etc.) at least partially depending on a functional split (such as the functional split defined by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP)). In some aspects, the DU 285 may also host one or more low PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may be implemented using an interface that is configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 285 or with control functions hosted by the CU 280.

[0085] The lower layer functionality may be implemented by one or more RUs 287. In some deployments, the RUs 287 controlled by the DU 285 may correspond to logical nodes that host RF processing functions or low PHY layer functions (such as performing fast Fourier transform (FFT), inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming, physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc.) or both at least partially based on a functional split (such as a lower layer functional split). In such an architecture, the RUs 287 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communication with one or more UEs 204. In some embodiments, the real-time and non-real-time aspects of the control plane and user plane communication with the RUs 287 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 285. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable the implementation of the DU 285 and the CU 280 in a cloud-based RAN architecture (such as a vRAN architecture).

[0086] The SMO framework 255 can be configured to support the RAN deployment and provisioning of non-virtualized network elements and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 255 can be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, and these dedicated physical resources can be managed via an operation and maintenance interface (such as the O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 255 can be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as the Open Cloud (O-Cloud) 269) to perform network element lifecycle management (such as to instantiate virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as the O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements can include, but are not limited to, the CU 280, DU 285, RU 287, and near RT RIC 259. In some specific implementations, the SMO framework 255 can communicate with the hardware aspect of the 4G RAN (such as the Open eNB (O-eNB) 261) via the O1 interface. Additionally, in some specific implementations, the SMO framework 255 can communicate directly with one or more RUs 287 via the O1 interface. The SMO framework 255 can also include a non-RT RIC 257 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 255.

[0087] The non-RT RIC 257 can be configured to include logical functions that can enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) workflows including model training and update, or policy-based guidance of applications / features in the near RT RIC 259. The non-RT RIC 257 can be coupled to or communicate with the near RT RIC 259 (such as via the A1 interface). The near RT RIC 259 can be configured to include logical functions that enable near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources through an interface (such as via the E2 interface) via data collection and actions, and this interface connects one or more CUs 280, one or more DUs 285, or both, and the O-eNB to the near RT RIC 259.

[0088] In some specific implementations, to generate the AI / ML models to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 259, the non-RT RIC 257 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server. Such information can be utilized by the near-RT RIC 259 and can be received from non-network data sources or from network functions at the SMO framework 255 or the non-RT RIC 257. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 257 or the near-RT RIC 259 may be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 257 may monitor long-term trends and patterns of performance and employ an AI / ML model to perform corrective actions via the SMO framework 255 (such as reconfiguration via O1) or via creating RAN management policies (such as A1 policies).

[0089] Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C illustrate several example components (represented by the corresponding boxes) that can be incorporated into the UE 302 (which may correspond to any UE described herein), the base station 304 (which may correspond to any base station described herein), and the network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any network function described herein, including the location server 230 and the LMF 270, or alternatively may be independent of Figure 2A and Figure 2B the NG-RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260 infrastructure depicted in, such as a private network) to support the operations described herein. It should be understood that these components can be implemented in different specific implementations in different types of devices (e.g., in ASICs, in system-on-a-chip (SoC), etc.). The illustrated components can also be incorporated into other devices in the communication system. For example, other devices in the system can include components similar to those described as providing similar functionality. Additionally, a given device may include one or more of these components. For example, a device may include multiple transceiver components that enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0090] UE 302 and base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively. These wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers provide components (e.g., components for transmission, components for reception, components for measurement, components for tuning, components for blocking transmission, etc.) for communicating via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown) such as an NR network, an LTE network, a GSM network, etc. WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may each be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNBs, gNBs), etc.) via at least one specified RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over an interested wireless communication medium (e.g., a set of time / frequency resources in a specific spectrum). WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be configured in different ways to transmit and encode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) respectively according to the specified RAT, and conversely to receive and decode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.) respectively. Specifically, WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 each include: one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358 respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358 respectively.

[0091] In at least some cases, UE 302 and base station 304 each further include one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be respectively connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, and provide components (e.g., components for transmitting, receiving, measuring, tuning, blocking transmission, etc.) for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) over an interested wireless communication medium via at least one specified RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Z-Wave®, PC5, dedicated short-range communication (DSRC), wireless access for vehicle environments (WAVE), near-field communication (NFC), ultra-wideband (UWB), etc.). The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be configured in different ways to respectively transmit and encode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to the specified RAT, and conversely, to respectively receive and decode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 respectively include: one or more transmitters 324 and 364 for respectively transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, and one or more receivers 322 and 362 for respectively receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368. As a specific example, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be WiFi transceivers, Bluetooth® transceivers, Zigbee® and / or Z-Wave® transceivers, NFC transceivers, UWB transceivers, or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceivers.

[0092] In at least some cases, the UE 302 and the base station 304 also include satellite signal receivers 330 and 370. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can be respectively connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, and can provide components for respectively receiving and / or measuring satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378. In the case where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellite positioning system receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 can be Global Positioning System (GPS) signals, Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, Beidou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. In the case where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 can be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and / or user data) originating from a 5G network. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can include any suitable hardware and / or software for respectively receiving and processing the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can request information and operations from other systems as appropriate, and at least in some cases, perform calculations using measurements obtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithms to respectively determine the positions of the UE 302 and the base station 304.

[0093] The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each respectively include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, and the one or more network transceivers provide components (e.g., components for sending, components for receiving, etc.) for communicating with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, other network entities 306). For example, the base station 304 can employ one or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other base stations 304 or network entities 306 through one or more wired or wireless backhaul links. As another example, the network entity 306 can employ one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or more base stations 304 through one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, or communicate with other network entities 306 through one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.

[0094] The transceiver can be configured to communicate via a wired or wireless link. The transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver) includes a transmitter circuit (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) and a receiver circuit (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362). In some specific implementations, the transceiver can be an integrated device (e.g., implementing the transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit in a single device), in some specific implementations can include a separate transmitter circuit and a separate receiver circuit, or can be implemented in other ways in other specific implementations. The transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit of a wired transceiver (e.g., in some specific implementations, network transceivers 380 and 390) can be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. The wireless transmitter circuit (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) can include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmit "beamforming" as described herein. Similarly, the wireless receiver circuit (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362) can include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit can share the same plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the corresponding device can only receive or only transmit at a given time, rather than both receive and transmit at the same time. The wireless transceiver (e.g., WWAN transceivers 310 and 350, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) can also include a network listening module (NLM) and the like for performing various measurements.

[0095] As used herein, various wireless transceivers (e.g., in some specific implementations, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, and network transceivers 380 and 390) and wired transceivers (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some specific implementations) can generally be referred to as "transceiver", "at least one transceiver", or "one or more transceivers". Thus, it can be inferred whether a particular transceiver is a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver based on the type of communication being performed. For example, backhaul communication between network devices or servers typically involves signaling via a wired transceiver, while wireless communication between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) will typically involve signaling via a wireless transceiver.

[0096] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with the operations disclosed herein. UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 each include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, for providing functionality related to, for example, wireless communication and for providing other processing functionality. Thus, processors 332, 384, and 394 can provide components for processing, such as components for determining, for calculating, for receiving, for transmitting, for indicating, etc. In one aspect, processors 332, 384, and 394 can include, for example, one or more general-purpose processors, multi-core processors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuits, or various combinations thereof.

[0097] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 each include memory circuits implementing memories 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Thus, memories 340, 386, and 396 can provide components for storing, for retrieving, for maintaining, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 can each include positioning components 342, 388, and 398, respectively. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be hardware circuits that are part of or coupled to processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, which, when executed, cause UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. In other aspects, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be external to processors 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be memory modules stored in memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively, which, when executed by processors 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. Figure 3A Illustrates a possible location of positioning component 342, which can be part of, for example, one or more WWAN transceivers 310, memory 340, one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof, or can be an independent component. Figure 3BIllustrates possible locations of positioning component 388, which can be part of, for example, one or more WWAN transceivers 350, memory 386, one or more processors 384, or any combination thereof, or can be a stand-alone component. Figure 3C Illustrates possible locations of positioning component 398, which can be part of, for example, one or more network transceivers 390, memory 396, one or more processors 394, or any combination thereof, or can be a stand-alone component.

[0098] UE 302 can include one or more sensors 344 coupled to one or more processors 332 to provide components for sensing or detecting movement and / or orientation information unrelated to motion data derived from signals received by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and / or satellite signal receivers 330. By way of example, sensors 344 can include an accelerometer (e.g., a microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), an altimeter (e.g., a barometric altimeter), and / or any other type of motion detection sensor. Additionally, sensors 344 can include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, sensors 344 can use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and an orientation sensor to provide the ability to calculate positioning in a two-dimensional (2D) and / or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate system.

[0099] In addition, UE 302 includes a user interface 346 that provides components for providing an indication to a user (e.g., an audible and / or visual indication) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., when the user actuates a sensing device such as a keypad, touch screen, microphone, etc.). Although not shown, base station 304 and network entity 306 can also include a user interface.

[0100] Referring in more detail to one or more processors 384, in the downlink, IP packets from network entity 306 may be provided to processor 384. One or more processors 384 may implement functionality for the RRC layer, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, radio link control (RLC) layer, and medium access control (MAC) layer. One or more processors 384 may provide: RRC layer functionality associated with the broadcast of system information (e.g., master information block (MIB), system information block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction via automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with the mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0101] Transmitter 354 and receiver 352 may implement layer 1 (L1) functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, may include: error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. Transmitter 354 handles the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The encoded and modulated symbols may then be split into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to generate a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially pre-coded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from the channel estimator may be used to determine the encoding and modulation schemes and for spatial processing. The channel estimates may be derived from reference signals transmitted by UE 302 and / or channel condition status feedback. Each spatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. Transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with the respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0102] At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives signals via its respective antennas 316. The receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides this information to one or more processors 332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The receiver 312 may perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If there are multiple spatial streams destined for the UE 302, they may be combined by the receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The receiver 312 then uses the fast Fourier transform (FFT) to transform the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain. The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols and reference signals on each subcarrier are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation points transmitted by the base station 304. These soft decisions may be based on the channel estimates computed by the channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by the base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to one or more processors 332, which implement layer 3 (L3) and layer 2 (L2) functionality.

[0103] In the downlink, one or more processors 332 provide demultiplexing between the transport channel and the logical channel, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. One or more processors 332 are also responsible for error detection.

[0104] Similar to the functionality described in connection with downlink transmissions by the base station 304, one or more processors 332 provide: RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with the mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0105] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback sent by the base station 304 may be used by the transmitter 314 to select appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different antennas 316. The transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0106] The uplink transmissions are processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver functionality at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives the signal through its respective antenna 356. The receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 384.

[0107] In the uplink, one or more processors 384 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from UE 302. IP packets from one or more processors 384 may be provided to the core network. One or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.

[0108] For convenience, UE 302, base station 304 and / or network entity 306 may Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C , are shown as including various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it should be understood that the illustrated components may have different functionality in different designs. In particular, Figures 3A to 3C Various components in are optional in alternative configurations, and various aspects include configurations that may vary due to design choice, cost, use of the device, or other considerations. For example, in Figure 3A In the case of a wearable device or tablet or PC or laptop computer, a specific implementation of UE 302 may omit WWAN transceiver 310 (e.g., a wearable device or tablet or PC or laptop computer may have Wi-Fi and / or Bluetooth capabilities but no cellular capabilities), or may omit short-range wireless transceiver 320 (e.g., only cellular, etc.), or may omit satellite signal receiver 330, or may omit sensor 344, etc. In another example, in Figure 3B In the case of a wireless cellular network, a specific implementation of the base station 304 may omit the WWAN transceiver 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi "hotspot" access point without cellular capabilities), or may omit the short-range wireless transceiver 360 (e.g., cellular only, etc.), or may omit the satellite signal receiver 370, etc. For the sake of brevity, illustrations of various alternative configurations are not provided herein, but will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0109] The various components of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to each other via data buses 334, 382, and 392, respectively. In one aspect, the data buses 334, 382, and 392 may respectively form or be part of the communication interfaces of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306. For example, in a case where different logical entities are embodied in the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functionality incorporated into the same base station 304), the data buses 334, 382, and 392 may provide communication between the different logical entities.

[0110] Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C The components of may be implemented in various ways. In some specific implementations, Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C The components of may be implemented in one or more circuits, such as one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors). Here, each circuit may use and / or incorporate at least one memory component for storing information or executable code used by the circuit to provide the functionality. For example, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 310 to 346 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of the UE 302 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 350 to 388 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of the base station 304 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Moreover, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390 to 398 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of the network entity 306 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, actions, and / or functions are described herein as "performed by the UE", "performed by the base station", "performed by the network entity", etc. However, as will be understood, such operations, actions, and / or functions may actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of the UE 302, the base station 304, the network entity 306, etc., such as processors 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, memories 340, 386, and 396, location components 342, 388, and 398, etc.

[0111] In some designs, network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, network entity 306 may operate differently from a network operator or a cellular network infrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260). For example, network entity 306 may be a component of a private network that may be configured to communicate with UE 302 via base station 304 or independently of base station 304 (e.g., via a non-cellular communication link such as WiFi).

[0112] Various frame structures can be used to support downlink and uplink transmissions between network nodes (e.g., base stations and UEs). Figure 4 FIG. 400 is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The frame structure can be a downlink or an uplink frame structure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0113] LTE (and in some cases NR) utilizes orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) on the downlink and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. However, different from LTE, NR also has the option of using OFDM on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also often referred to as tones, frequency bins, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. Generally speaking, modulation symbols are transmitted using OFDM in the frequency domain and using SC-FDM in the time domain. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the subcarrier spacing can be 15 kilohertz (kHz), and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180 kHz). Thus, for system bandwidths of 1.25 megahertz (MHz), 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, the nominal fast Fourier transform (FFT) size can be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048, respectively. The system bandwidth can also be divided into subbands. For example, a subband can cover 1.08 MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks), and for system bandwidths of 1.25 MHz, 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, there can be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands, respectively.

[0114] LTE supports a single parameter set (subcarrier spacing (SCS), symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR can support multiple parameter sets (µ), for example, 15 kHz (µ = 0), 30 kHz (µ = 1), 60 kHz (µ = 2), 120 kHz (µ = 3), and 240 kHz (µ = 4) or larger subcarrier spacings may be available. In each subcarrier spacing, there are 14 symbols per time slot. For 15 kHz SCS (µ = 0), there is one time slot per subframe, 10 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 1 millisecond (ms), the symbol duration is 66.7 microseconds (µs), and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 50. For 30 kHz SCS (µ = 1), there are two time slots per subframe, 20 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 0.5 ms, the symbol duration is 33.3 µs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 100. For 60 kHz SCS (µ = 2), there are four time slots per subframe, 40 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 0.25 ms, the symbol duration is 16.7 µs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 200. For 120 kHz SCS (µ = 3), there are eight time slots per subframe, 80 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 0.125 ms, the symbol duration is 8.33 µs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 400. For 240 kHz SCS (µ = 4), there are 16 time slots per subframe, 160 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 0.0625 ms, the symbol duration is 4.17 µs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 800.

[0115] In Figure 4 's example, a parameter set of 15 kHz is used. Thus, in the time domain, a 10 ms frame is divided into 10 equal-sized subframes, each subframe being 1 ms, and each subframe includes one time slot. In Figure 4 , time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), where time increases from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), where frequency increases (or decreases) from bottom to top.

[0116] A resource grid can be used to represent a time slot, and each time slot includes one or more time-concurrent resource blocks (RBs) (also known as physical RBs (PRBs)) in the frequency domain. The resource grid is further divided into multiple resource elements (REs). An RE can correspond to one symbol length in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain. In Figure 4In the parameter set of , for the normal cyclic prefix, an RB can contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and seven consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 REs. For the extended cyclic prefix, an RB can contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and six consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 REs. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0117] Some of the REs can carry reference (pilot) signals (RS). These reference signals can include positioning reference signals (PRS), tracking reference signals (TRS), phase tracking reference signals (PTRS), cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS), demodulation reference signals (DMRS), primary synchronization signals (PSS), secondary synchronization signals (SSS), synchronization signal blocks (SSB), sounding reference signals (SRS), etc., depending on whether the illustrated frame structure is used for uplink communication or downlink communication. Figure 4 An example location of the REs carrying reference signals (marked as "R") is illustrated.

[0118] The set of resource elements (REs) used for the transmission of PRS is referred to as "PRS resource". The set of resource elements can span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and 'N' (such as one or more) consecutive symbols within a time slot in the time domain. In a given OFDM symbol in the time domain, the PRS resource occupies consecutive PRBs in the frequency domain.

[0119] The transmission of the PRS resource within a given PRB has a specific comb size (also referred to as "comb density"). The comb size 'N' represents the subcarrier spacing (or frequency / tone spacing) within each symbol of the PRS resource configuration. Specifically, for a comb size 'N', the PRS is transmitted in every Nth subcarrier of a symbol of the PRB. For example, for a comb-4, for each symbol of the PRS resource configuration, the REs corresponding to every fourth subcarrier (such as subcarriers 0, 4, 8) are used to transmit the PRS of the PRS resource. Currently, for DL-PRS, comb sizes of comb-2, comb-4, comb-6, and comb-12 are supported. Figure 4 An example PRS resource configuration for a comb-4 (which spans four symbols) is illustrated. That is, the location of the shaded REs (marked as "R") indicates the comb-4 PRS resource configuration.

[0120] Currently, DL-PRS resources use a full-frequency domain interleaving pattern that can span 2, 4, 6, or 12 consecutive symbols within a time slot. DL-PRS resources can be configured in any downlink or flexible (FL) symbols configured by the higher layer in a time slot. For all REs of a given DL-PRS resource, there may be a constant energy per resource element (EPRE). The following are the per-symbol frequency offsets for comb sizes 2, 4, 6, and 12 on 2, 4, 6, and 12 symbols. 2-symbol comb - 2: {0, 1}; 4-symbol comb - 2: {0, 1, 0, 1}; 6-symbol comb - 2: {0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1}; 12-symbol comb - 2: {0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1}; 4-symbol comb - 4: {0, 2, 1, 3} (as in the example of Figure 4 ); 12-symbol comb - 4: {0, 2, 1, 3, 0, 2, 1, 3, 0, 2, 1, 3}; 6-symbol comb - 6: {0, 3, 1, 4, 2, 5}; 12-symbol comb - 6: {0, 3, 1, 4, 2, 5, 0, 3, 1, 4, 2, 5}; and 12-symbol comb - 12: {0, 6, 3, 9, 1, 7, 4, 10, 2, 8, 5, 11}.

[0121] A "PRS resource set" is a set of PRS resources used to transmit PRS signals, where each PRS resource has a PRS resource ID. In addition, the PRS resources in a PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP. A PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource set ID and is associated with a specific TRP (identified by the TRP ID). In addition, the PRS resources in a PRS resource set have the same periodicity, common silent mode configuration, and the same repetition factor (such as "PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor") across time slots. Periodicity is the time from the first repetition of the first PRS resource of the first PRS instance to the same first repetition of the same first PRS resource of the next PRS instance. The periodicity can have a length selected from: 2^µ * {4, 5, 8, 10, 16, 20, 32, 40, 64, 80, 160, 320, 640, 1280, 2560, 5120, 10240} time slots, where µ = 0, 1, 2, 3. The repetition factor can have a length selected from {1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 16, 32} time slots.

[0122] The PRS resource ID in the PRS resource pool is associated with a single beam (or beam ID) sent from a single TRP (where one TRP can send one or more beams). That is, each PRS resource in the PRS resource pool can be sent on different beams, and thus, a "PRS resource" (or simply "resource") can also be referred to as a "beam". Note that this does not imply anything about whether the UE knows the TRP and beam on which the PRS is sent.

[0123] A "PRS instance" or "PRS occasion" is an instance of a periodically repeating time window (such as a group of one or more consecutive time slots) in which the PRS is expected to be sent. A PRS occasion can also be referred to as a "PRS positioning occasion", "PRS positioning instance", "positioning occasion", "positioning instance", "positioning repetition", or simply "occasion", "instance", or "repetition".

[0124] A "positioning frequency layer" (also simply referred to as "frequency layer") is a set of one or more PRS resource pools with the same values for certain parameters across one or more TRPs. Specifically, the set of PRS resource pools has the same subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix (CP) type (meaning that all parameter sets supported for the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) are also supported for the PRS), the same point A, the same value for the downlink PRS bandwidth, the same starting PRB (and center frequency), and the same comb size. The point A parameter takes the value of the parameter "ARFCN-ValueNR" (where "ARFCN" stands for "absolute radio frequency channel number") and is an identifier / code for a pair of physical radio channels specified for transmission and reception. The downlink PRS bandwidth can have a granularity of four PRBs, and the minimum value is 24 PRBs while the maximum value is 272 PRBs. Currently, up to four frequency layers have been defined, and up to two PRS resource pools can be configured per frequency layer per TRP.

[0125] The concept of a frequency layer is somewhat similar to the concepts of component carrier and bandwidth part (BWP), but the difference is that component carriers and BWPs are used by a base station (or macro cell base station and small cell base station) to send data channels, while frequency layers are used by several (usually three or more) base stations to send PRS. The UE can indicate the number of frequency layers that the UE can support when the UE conveys its positioning capabilities to the network (such as during an LTE positioning protocol (LPP) session). For example, the UE can indicate whether it can support one or four positioning frequency layers.

[0126] Note that the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" generally refer to specific reference signals for positioning in NR and LTE systems. However, as used herein, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may also refer to any type of reference signal that can be used for positioning, such as but not limited to: PRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, SRS, UL-PRS, etc. as defined in LTE and NR. Additionally, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" can refer to a downlink positioning reference signal, an uplink positioning reference signal, or a sidelink positioning reference signal, unless otherwise indicated by the context. If further differentiation of the type of PRS is needed, the downlink positioning reference signal can be referred to as "DL-PRS", the uplink positioning reference signal (e.g., SRS for positioning, i.e., PTRS) can be referred to as "UL-PRS", and the sidelink positioning reference signal can be referred to as "SL-PRS". Moreover, for signals that can be transmitted in the downlink, uplink, and / or sidelink (e.g., DMRS), these signals can be prefixed with "DL", "UL", or "SL" to distinguish the direction. For example, "UL-DMRS" can be different from "DL-DMRS".

[0127] NR supports multiple cellular network-based positioning techniques, including downlink-based positioning methods, uplink-based positioning methods, and downlink- and uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include: Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, Downlink Time Difference of Arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and Downlink Angle of Departure (DL-AoD) in NR. Figure 5 Examples of various positioning methods according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. In the OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning process illustrated in scenario 510, the UE measures the difference in the time of arrival (ToA) of reference signals (e.g., positioning reference signal (PRS)) received from paired base stations (referred to as reference signal time difference (RSTD) or time difference of arrival (TDOA) measurement), and reports these differences to the positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives the identifiers (IDs) of the reference base station (e.g., serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in the assistance data. Then, the UE measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each non-reference base station. Based on the known positions of the involved base stations and the RSTD measurements, the positioning entity (e.g., the UE for UE-based positioning or the location server for UE-assisted positioning) can estimate the position of the UE.

[0128] For the DL-AoD positioning illustrated in scenario 520, the positioning entity uses the measurement report of the received signal strength measurements of multiple downlink transmission beams from the UE to determine the angle between the UE and the transmitting base station. Then, the positioning entity can estimate the position of the UE based on the determined angle and the known position of the transmitting base station.

[0129] Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA is similar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., sounding reference signals (SRS)) transmitted by the UE to multiple base stations. Specifically, the UE transmits one or more uplink reference signals, which are measured by a reference base station and multiple non-reference base stations. Then, each base station reports the reception time of the reference signal (referred to as relative time of arrival (RTOA)) to a positioning entity (e.g., a location server) that knows the positions and relative timings of the base stations involved. Based on the received-to-received (Rx-Rx) time difference between the reported RTOA of the reference base station and the reported RTOA of each non-reference base station, the known positions of the base stations, and their known timing offsets, the positioning entity can use TDOA to estimate the position of the UE.

[0130] For UL-AoA positioning, one or more base stations measure the received signal strength of one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) received from the UE on one or more uplink reception beams. The positioning entity uses the signal strength measurements and the angles of the reception beams to determine the angle between the UE and the base station. Based on the determined angle and the known position of the base station, the positioning entity can then estimate the position of the UE.

[0131] Downlink- and uplink-based positioning methods include: enhanced cell ID (E-CID) positioning and multi-round-trip time (RTT) positioning (also known as "multi-cell RTT" and "multi-RTT"). During the RTT process, a first entity (e.g., a base station or a UE) sends a first RTT-related signal (e.g., a PRS or an SRS) to a second entity (e.g., a UE or a base station), and the second entity sends a second RTT-related signal (e.g., an SRS or a PRS) back to the first entity. Each entity measures the time difference between the arrival time (ToA) of the received RTT-related signal and the transmission time of the transmitted RTT-related signal. This time difference is referred to as the received-to-transmitted (Rx-Tx) time difference. The Rx-Tx time difference measurement can be made or adjusted to include only the time difference between the received signal and the nearest time slot boundary of the transmitted signal. Then, the two entities can transmit their Rx-Tx time difference measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 270), which calculates the round-trip propagation time (i.e., RTT) between the two entities based on these two Rx-Tx time difference measurements (e.g., calculated as the sum of the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements). Alternatively, one entity can transmit its Rx-Tx time difference measurement to the other entity, and then the other entity calculates the RTT. The distance between the two entities can be determined based on the RTT and a known signal speed (e.g., the speed of light). For multi-RTT positioning illustrated in scenario 530, a first entity (e.g., a UE or a base station) performs an RTT positioning process with multiple second entities (e.g., multiple base stations or UEs) so that the position of the first entity can be determined (e.g., using multilateration) based on the distances to the second entities and the known positions of the second entities. The RTT and multi-RTT methods can be combined with other positioning techniques (such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD) to improve position accuracy, as illustrated in scenario 540.

[0132] The E-CID positioning method is based on radio resource management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, timing advance (TA), and the identifiers of the detected neighboring base stations, the estimated timing, and the signal strength. Then, the position of the UE is estimated based on this information and the known positions of the base stations.

[0133] To assist in the positioning operation, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the UE. For example, the assistance data may include: the identifier of the base station (or the cell / TRP of the base station) from which the reference signal is measured, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., including the number of consecutive time slots including the PRS, the periodicity of the consecutive time slots including the PRS, the silence sequence, the frequency hopping sequence, the reference signal identifier, the reference signal bandwidth, etc.) and / or other parameters applicable to a specific positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may directly originate from the base station itself (e.g., in periodically broadcast overhead messages, etc.). In some cases, the UE itself may be able to detect adjacent network nodes without using assistance data.

[0134] In the case of the OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning process, the assistance data may further include the expected RSTD value and the associated uncertainty or search window around the expected RSTD. In some cases, the value range of the expected RSTD may be + / -500 microseconds (µs). In some cases, when any of the resources used for positioning measurements are in FR1, the value range of the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be + / -32 µs. In other cases, when all of the resources used for positioning measurements are in FR2, the value range of the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be + / -8 µs.

[0135] A position estimate may be referred to by other names, such as positioning estimate, location, positioning, position lock, lock, etc. A position estimate may be geodesic and include coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude), or may be civic and include a street address, postal address, or some other verbal description of the location. A position estimate may be further defined relative to some other known location or in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). A positioning estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including the area or volume within which the position is expected to be included with a certain specified or default confidence).

[0136] In LTE, and at least in some cases (NR), positioning measurements are reported via higher layer signaling, specifically LTE positioning protocol (LPP) signaling and / or RRC. LPP is used point-to-point between a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) and a UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) to locate the UE using position-related measurements obtained from one or more reference sources. Figure 6 FIG. 600 is a diagram illustrating an example LPP reference source for positioning. In Figure 6 the example, the target device, specifically UE 604 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) participates with a location server 630 (inFigure 6 In a particular example of which is labeled "E-SMLC / SLP"), an LPP session. UE 604 is also receiving / measuring wireless positioning signals from a first reference source, specifically one or more base stations 602 (which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein and, in Figure 6 a particular example of which is labeled "eNode B")), and a second reference source, specifically one or more SPS satellites 620 (which may correspond to Figure 1 SV 112 in)).

[0137] An LPP session is used between the location server 630 and the UE 604 to obtain location-related measurements or location estimates, or to transfer assistance data. A single LPP session is used to support a single location request (e.g., for a single mobile-terminated location request (MT-LR), mobile-originated location request (MO-LR), or network-initiated location request (NI-LR)). Multiple LPP sessions may be used between the same endpoints to support multiple different location requests. Each LPP session includes one or more LPP transactions, where each LPP transaction performs a single operation (e.g., capability exchange, assistance data transfer, or location information transfer). LPP transactions are referred to as LPP procedures. The initiator of the LPP session initiates the first LPP transaction, but subsequent transactions may be initiated by either endpoint. LPP transactions within a session may occur serially or in parallel. LPP transactions are indicated at the LPP protocol level by a transaction identifier to associate messages (e.g., requests and responses) with each other. Messages within a transaction are linked by a common transaction identifier.

[0138] The LPP positioning method and associated signaling content are defined in the 3GPP LPP standard (3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 36.355, which is publicly available and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). LPP signaling can be used to request and report measurements related to the following positioning methods: Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA), Downlink Time Difference of Arrival (DL-TDOA), Assisted Global Navigation Satellite System (A-GNSS), LTE Enhanced Cell ID (E-CID), NR E-CID, sensors, Terrestrial Beacon System (TBS), WLAN, Bluetooth, Downlink Angle of Departure (DL-AoD), Uplink Angle of Arrival (UL-AoA), and Multiple Round Trip Time (RTT). Currently, LPP measurement reports can contain the following measurements: (1) one or more Time of Arrival (ToA), Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA), Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD), or Received Transmit (Rx-Tx) measurements, (2) one or more AoA and / or AoD measurements (currently only used for the base station to report UL-AoA and DL-AoD to the location server 630), (3) one or more multipath measurements (ToA per path, Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP), AoA / AoD), (4) one or more motion states (e.g., walking, driving, etc.) and trajectories (currently only used for UE 604), and (5) one or more report quality indicators. In the present disclosure, positioning measurements (such as the example measurements just listed and regardless of the positioning technology) can be collectively referred to as Positioning State Information (PSI).

[0139] UE 604 and / or the location server 630 can derive location information from one or more reference sources (illustrated as SPS satellites 620 and base station 602 in the Figure 6 example). Each reference source can be used to calculate an independent estimate of the location of UE 604 using the associated positioning technology. In the Figure 6 example, UE 604 is measuring the characteristics of the positioning signal received from base station 602 (e.g., ToA, RSRP, RSTD, etc.) to calculate or assist the location server 630 in calculating an estimate of the location of UE 604 using one or more cellular network-based positioning methods (e.g., multiple RTT, OTDOA, DL-TDOA, DL-AoD, E-CID, etc.). Similarly, UE 604 is measuring the characteristics of the GNSS signal received from SPS satellites 620 (e.g., ToA) to triangulate its location in two or three dimensions based on the number of SPS satellites 620 measured. In some cases, UE604 or the location server 630 can combine the location solutions derived from each of the different positioning technologies to improve the accuracy of the final location estimate.

[0140] As noted above, the UE 604 uses LPP to report location-related measurements obtained from different reference sources (e.g., base station 602, Bluetooth beacon, SPS satellite 620, WLAN access point, motion sensor, etc.). As an example, for GNSS-based positioning, the UE 604 uses the LPP information element (IE) "A-GNSS-ProvideLocationInformation" to provide location measurements (e.g., pseudorange, location estimate, velocity, etc.) along with time information to the location server 630. It can also be used to provide GNSS positioning-specific error reasons. The "A-GNSS-ProvideLocationInformation" IE includes IEs such as "GNSS-SignalMeasurementInformation", "GNSS-LocationInformation", "GNSS-MeasurementList", and "GNSS-Error". When the UE 604 provides a location derived using GNSS or a combination of GNSS and other measurements and optionally velocity information to the location server 630, the UE includes the "GNSS-LocationInformation" IE. The UE 604 uses the "GNSS-SignalMeasurementInformation" IE to provide GNSS signal measurement information to the location server 630 and provide GNSS network time association (if requested by the location server 630). This information includes measurements of code phase, Doppler, C / No, and optionally accumulated carrier phase (also known as accumulated delta range (ADR)), which implements the UE-assisted GNSS method where the location is computed in the location server 630. The UE 604 uses the "GNSS-MeasurementList" IE to provide measurements of code phase, Doppler, C / No, and optionally accumulated carrier phase (or ADR).

[0141] As another example, for motion sensor-based positioning, the currently supported positioning methods use a barometric pressure sensor and motion sensors, as described in 3GPP TS 36.305 (which is publicly available and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). The UE 604 uses the LPP IE "Sensor-ProvideLocationInformation" to provide location information for sensor-based methods to the location server 630. It can also be used to provide sensor-specific error reasons. The UE 604 uses the "Sensor-MeasurementInformation" IE to provide sensor measurements (e.g., barometric pressure readings) to the location server 630. The UE 604 uses "Sensor-MotionInformation" to provide motion information to the location server 630. The motion information may include a series of ordered points. This information can be obtained by the UE 604 using one or more motion sensors (e.g., accelerometer, barometer, magnetometer, etc.).

[0142] As yet another example, for Bluetooth-based positioning, the UE 604 uses the "BT-ProvideLocationInformation" IE to provide measurements of one or more Bluetooth beacons to the location server 630. This IE can also be used to provide Bluetooth positioning-specific error reasons.

[0143] Location determination can be performed in UE-assisted mode, UE-based mode, or network-based mode. In UE-assisted mode, the UE provides positioning measurements to the location server for the location server to calculate a location estimate. The network can provide assistance data to the UE to enable positioning measurements. In UE-based mode, the UE performs both positioning measurements and the calculation of location estimates. Assistance data for one or both of these functions can be provided by the location server to the UE. In network-based mode, the serving Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) obtains positioning measurements of the signals sent by the UE and calculates a location estimate. The transmission of the signals of the UE for network-based mode can be transparent or non-transparent to the UE.

[0144] Figure 7 Illustrated is an example Long Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) procedure 700 for performing positioning operations between the UE 704 and a location server (illustrated as a Location Management Function (LMF) 770). As Figure 7As illustrated, the positioning of UE 704 is supported via the exchange of LPP messages between UE 704 and LMF 770. The LPP messages can be exchanged between UE 704 and LMF 770 via the serving base station of UE 704 (illustrated as serving gNB 702) and the core network (not shown). The LPP procedure 700 can be used to position UE 704 to support various location-related services, such as for UE 704 (or for the user of UE 704) or for routing or for providing an accurate location to a public safety answering point (PSAP) associated with an emergency call from UE 704 to the PSAP or for navigation for some other reason. The LPP procedure 700 can also be referred to as a positioning session, and there can be multiple positioning sessions for different types of positioning methods (e.g., downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA), round-trip time (RTT), enhanced cell identification (E-CID), etc.).

[0145] Initially, at stage 710, UE 704 may receive a request for the positioning capabilities of the UE (e.g., LPP request capabilities message) from LMF 770. At stage 720, UE 704 provides the positioning capabilities of the UE with respect to the LPP protocol to LMF 770 by transmitting an LPP provide capabilities message indicating the positioning methods supported by UE 704 and the characteristics of these positioning methods to LMF 770. In some aspects, the capabilities indicated in the LPP provide capabilities message may indicate the positioning types supported by UE 704 (e.g., DL-TDOA, RTT, E-CID, etc.) and may indicate the capabilities of UE 704 to support those positioning types.

[0146] After receiving the LPP provide capabilities message, at stage 720, LMF 770 determines to use a specific type of positioning method (e.g., DL-TDOA, RTT, E-CID, etc.) based on the indicated positioning types supported by UE 704, and determines a set of one or more transmit receive points (TRPs) from which UE 704 will measure the downlink positioning reference signal or to which UE 704 will transmit the uplink positioning reference signal. At stage 730, LMF 770 transmits an LPP provide assistance data message identifying the set of TRPs to UE 704.

[0147] In some embodiments, in response to an LPP request assistance data message (not shown in Figure 7 transmitted by UE 704 to LMF 770), the LPP provide assistance data message at stage 730 may be transmitted by LMF 770 to UE 704. The LPP request assistance data message may include an identifier of the serving TRP of UE 704 and a request for the positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for adjacent TRPs.

[0148] At stage 740, the LMF 770 transmits a request for location information to the UE 704. The request can be an LPP request location information message. This message typically includes information elements that define the type of location information, the desired location estimation accuracy, and the response time (i.e., the desired latency). Note that a low latency requirement allows for a longer response time, while a high latency requirement requires a shorter response time. However, a long response time is referred to as high latency, and a short response time is referred to as low latency.

[0149] Note that in some specific implementations, for example, if the UE 704 transmits a request for assistance data to the LMF 770 after receiving the request for location information at stage 740 (e.g., in an LPP request assistance data message ( Figure 7 not shown)), then the LPP provide assistance data message transmitted at stage 730 can be transmitted after the LPP request location information message at 740.

[0150] At stage 750, the UE 704 utilizes the assistance information received at stage 730 and any additional data received at stage 740 (e.g., desired location accuracy or maximum response time) to perform a positioning operation for a selected positioning method (e.g., measurement of DL-PRS, transmission of UL-PRS, etc.).

[0151] At stage 760, the UE 704 may transmit an LPP provide location information message to the LMF 770. The LPP provide location information message conveys the results of any measurements obtained at stage 750 and before or at the expiration of any maximum response time (e.g., the maximum response time provided by the LMF 770 at stage 740) (e.g., time of arrival (ToA), reference signal time difference (RSTD), received transmit (Rx-Tx), etc.). The LPP provide location information message at stage 760 may also include the one or more times at which the positioning measurements were obtained and the identity of the TRP from which the positioning measurements were obtained. Note that the time between the request for location information at 740 and the response at 760 is the "response time" and indicates the latency of the positioning session. The LMF 770 uses an appropriate positioning technique (e.g., DL-TDOA, RTT, E-CID, etc.) at least partially based on the measurements received in the LPP provide location information message at stage 760 to calculate the estimated location of the UE 704.

[0152] As discussed above, in the UE-based positioning mode, the UE can receive assistance data and determine its positioning estimate based at least in part on the resulting position measurements. For example, a location server (e.g., LMF) can configure the UE with PRS resources (e.g., PRS resource ID) for measurement, provide location information of one or more base stations, provide satellite ephemeris data in the case of GPS or GNSS, etc. In some UE-based positioning modes, the UE can perform positioning-related measurements without any positioning assistance data from the location server and can further calculate the position or position change without any positioning assistance. The UE can report its positioning to the location server in various ways. In one aspect, the UE can report its positioning periodically, aperiodically (e.g., when triggered by one or more events), or on demand when requested by the location server or other network nodes.

[0153] Many UEs include an imaging system (e.g., image sensor, imaging device, camera, image storage device, etc.) capable of capturing visual data (images and / or videos). According to some aspects of the present disclosure, such visual data can be used to determine characteristics of the UE's environment. In some aspects, such visual data can be used to detect and characterize the environment and objects captured in such visual data. According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the captured visual data can be converted into vision-based channel state information or vCSI, which can include a characterization of features and objects in the UE's environment (e.g., as indicated by tags or other annotations). The vCSI can be reported by the UE to a base station (e.g., gNodeB) or a location server (e.g., LMF). Such vCSI can be standardized and communicated between network nodes of 4G, 5G, and / or 6G radio systems. Objects in the video data can be characterized as moving or stationary, human or non-human, etc. Similarly, the vCSI can characterize the environment as indoor or outdoor. In some aspects, the approximate size of the indoor space can be estimated in the vCSI. In some aspects, the vCSI can indicate directions associated with different objects and features. Further, the vCSI can characterize objects, conditions, or features that change over time (e.g., moving objects, weather conditions, etc.) as well as objects, conditions, or features that are generally constant over time (e.g., buildings, trees, other fixed structures, etc.). In addition, the vCSI can identify features present throughout the environment (e.g., thick fog, heavy rain, etc.), rather than other weaker vCSI features that may no longer be present at a future time.

[0154] On a UE without power or size limitations (e.g., a V2X device), the imaging system can operate in a low-power, always-on operating mode. For a UE with power / battery constraints, the UE can reduce the operation of the imaging system to opportunistically obtain vCSI (e.g., before a call or call handover). The UE can also be in the form of a device dedicated to video surveillance or CSI sensing (e.g., an imaging system mounted on a building wall, street lamp, or similar structure).

[0155] According to aspects of the present disclosure, the base station can also include an imaging system. In one aspect, each beam associated with the base station can be configured with a dedicated imaging system. Additionally or alternatively, each base station operated by the base station can be associated with one or more imaging systems. Additionally or alternatively, each group of antenna elements can be equipped with one or more imaging systems. Images and / or videos captured at the base station antenna can be delivered to a distributed unit (DU) via a fronthaul link, where the DU abstracts vCSI from the captured images and / or videos. Based on the teachings of the present disclosure, it will be appreciated that visual data from imaging systems operated at the base station and imaging systems operated at the UE can be combined to generate vCSI.

[0156] Figure 8 An example communication 800 that can be exchanged between a UE 802 and a base station 804 according to aspects of the present disclosure based on generating and reporting vCSI from captured visual data is shown. The UE 802 can include an imaging system 806, which can include one or more imaging devices for capturing visual data (e.g., images and / or videos) and an image storage device for storing the captured visual data. The UE 802 can also include a transceiver 808. The transceiver 808 can allow the UE 802 to communicate with the base station 804 according to any suitable wireless communication protocol (such as 4G, 5G, WiFi communication protocol, ultra-wideband (UWB) communication protocol, etc.). In one aspect, the signaling between the transceiver 808 and the imaging system 806 can be based on modem interface commands.

[0157] Figure 8The message exchange shown in may be performed during RRC connection establishment / configuration, during a positioning session in an LPP exchange, or a combination thereof. In this example, an RRC connection is established at operation 810. After or during initial setup, UE 802 sends a vCSI capability report 812 to base station 804 indicating its capabilities for generating vCSI. The vCSI capability report 812 may indicate information such as the number of imaging devices available at UE 802, the amount of image storage available at UE 802, the power or battery constraints of UE 802 or the imaging system, the number of lenses available for CSI video / image acquisition, whether the UE supports base station direction tracking and / or whether the UE supports on-demand direction tuning. According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI capability report 812 may indicate the directions, elevation ranges, azimuth ranges, etc. on which the imaging devices may operate to capture images and / or video.

[0158] After reporting vCSI capabilities, UE 802 may receive reconfiguration information via one or more RRC reconfiguration messages 814. Such reconfiguration information may include configuration information for generating vCSI, such as a codebook associated with vCSI, one or more machine learning (ML) models used by UE 802 to generate vCSI based on the captured visual data, the identities of one or more ML models preconfigured at UE 802 for generating vCSI, etc. According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the RRC reconfiguration message 814 may indicate parameters to be used by UE 802 to perform an initial scan of the environment of UE 802 for storage in the image storage of imaging system 806. Based on the teachings of the present disclosure, it will be appreciated that various combinations of such RRC reconfiguration information, as well as additional types of configuration information, may be included in the RRC reconfiguration message 814.

[0159] According to some aspects of the present disclosure, base station 804 may submit a vCSI request to UE 802 in the RRC reconfiguration message 814 to generate a vCSI report. Additionally or alternatively, the vCSI request may be submitted as a separate message in an LPP exchange.

[0160] In one aspect, the vCSI request may include an indication of a direction, an elevation range, an azimuth range, and / or a focal length range of a visual image and / or video to be captured for generating vCSI by the imaging system 806. In one aspect, the UE 802 may store visual images and / or video in a direction, in an elevation range, in an azimuth range, in a focal length range, or a combination thereof before receiving the vCSI request. In one aspect, the vCSI request may include an indication of a direction, an elevation range, an azimuth range, and / or a focal length range of a visual image and / or video to be retrieved from the image storage device of the imaging system 806 for generating vCSI. In various aspects, the vCSI request may be submitted to the base station 804 periodically, asynchronously, in response to a trigger event, etc.

[0161] In response to the vCSI request, the UE 802 may submit a CSI visual data request 816, and the imaging system 806 obtains or retrieves the visual data indicated in the vCSI request. The imaging system 806 may return a CSI visual data response 818, which indicates that the imaging system 806 has been configured to obtain the visual data indicated, for example, in the vCSI request. Further, the UE 802 may indicate that the RRC reconfiguration 814 has been completed by returning an RRC reconfiguration complete message 820 to the base station.

[0162] The imaging system 806 may capture or retrieve, at operation 822, the visual data for generating vCSI indicated by the vCSI request, and at operation 824, use the captured / retrieved visual data to generate a vCSI report according to the parameters (using a codebook, an ML model, etc.) indicated in the RRC reconfiguration message 814. The generated vCSI may be compressed or abstracted, for example, according to the parameters indicated in the RRC reconfiguration message 814. According to some aspects, the vCSI may include tagged objects and / or conditions indicating the environmental fixtures and conditions existing between the UE 802 and the base station 804. At operation 826, the compressed or abstracted vCSI may be sent to the base station 804, for example, via a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) or a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH).

[0163] According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the base station 804 may transmit, at operation 828, the vCSI report sent to the base station 804, and the vCSI report may be used by the base station 804 for scheduling UL and DL transmissions. According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the information in the vCSI report may be transmitted to a location server associated with the base station 804 (not shown in Figure 8 for simplicity) for scheduling positioning resources. In one aspect, the UE 802 may provide the vCSI report to the location server via LPP messaging.

[0164] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the UE 802 may transmit visual data generated by the imaging system 806 to the base station 804 (or a location server associated with the base station 804), where the visual data is processed to generate a vCSI report. Such an operation may be useful if the UE 802 does not have the processing capabilities to generate the vCSI report on its own.

[0165] Figure 9 An example communication 900 that can be exchanged between the base station 804 and the location server 902 based on generating and reporting vCSI according to captured visual data is shown. In one aspect, the signaling between the base station 804 and the location server 902 may use the New Radio Positioning Protocol Type A (NRPPa).

[0166] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the base station 804 may be associated with one or more imaging systems 904. According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the imaging system 904 may be co-located with the base station 804, co-located with one or more TRPs of the base station 804, or a combination thereof. When one or more base stations are configured with imaging systems, the base station 804 may communicate with the imaging system 904 at each of the base stations. According to aspects of the present disclosure, each imaging system 904 may include at least one or more imaging devices for capturing visual data such as images and / or videos, and an image storage device for storing the captured visual data. Additionally, the base station 804 may include a transceiver 906. The transceiver 906 may allow the base station 804 to communicate with the location server 902 according to any suitable wireless communication protocol, such as 4G, 5G, WiFi communication protocol, Ultra-Wideband (UWB) communication protocol, etc.

[0167] After or during the initial setup, the base station 804 may send a vCSI capability report 908 to the location server 902 indicating its capabilities for generating vCSI. The vCSI capability report 908 may indicate information such as: the number of base stations having the imaging system 904, the locations of the base stations having the imaging system 904, the number of imaging devices available at the base station 804 and / or at each TRP, the amount of image storage available at the base station 804 and / or at each TRP, the ability of the imaging system 904 to visually track one or more UEs, etc. According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI capability report 908 may also indicate the directions, elevation angle ranges, azimuth angle ranges, etc. on which the imaging system 904 can operate to capture images and / or videos.

[0168] After reporting the vCSI capabilities, the base station 804 may receive vCSI configuration information 910 from the base station 804 to configure the imaging system 904 based on the reported vCSI capabilities. Such vCSI configuration information in 910 may include configuration information for generating vCSI, such as a codebook associated with the vCSI, one or more machine learning (ML) models to be used by the base station 804 to generate vCSI based on the captured visual data, the identification of one or more pre-configured ML models at the base station 804 for generating vCSI, etc. According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI configuration information 910 may indicate parameters to be used by the base station 804 for an initial scan of the environment of the base station and / or TRP to be stored in the image storage device of the imaging system 904. Based on the teachings of the present disclosure, it will be appreciated that various combinations of such vCSI configuration information and additional types of configuration information may be included in the vCSI configuration information 910.

[0169] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the location server 902 may submit a vCSI request 912 to the base station 804 to generate a vCSI report. In one aspect, the vCSI request in 912 may include an indication of the direction, elevation range, azimuth range, and / or focal length range of the visual images and / or videos to be captured for generating vCSI and for one or more of the imaging systems in the imaging system 904. In one aspect, the base station 804 and / or TRP may store visual images and / or videos in a specified direction, elevation range, azimuth range, focal length range, or a combination thereof prior to receiving the vCSI request 912. In one aspect, the vCSI request 912 may include an indication of the direction, elevation range, azimuth range, and / or focal length range of the visual images and / or videos to be retrieved from the image storage device of one or more of the imaging systems in the imaging system 904. In various aspects, the vCSI request 912 may be submitted to the base station 804 periodically, asynchronously, in response to a triggering event, etc.

[0170] In response to the vCSI request 912, the base station 804 may request the imaging system 904 to acquire or retrieve the visual data indicated in the vCSI request 912. In one aspect, the request may be in the form of a CSI image request 914 submitted to the imaging system 904. In some aspects, the transceiver 906 may facilitate communication between the base station 804 and the imaging system 904 located at the TRP of the base station 804. Further, the imaging system 904 may capture or retrieve the visual data indicated by the CSI image request 914 for generating vCSI. The base station 804 may participate in the CSI image capture and / or image retrieval operation 916 and generate a vCSI report at operation 918 using the captured / retrieved image information according to the parameters indicated in the vCSI configuration information 910 (using a codebook, an ML model, etc.). According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI report may also be based on the visual data and / or vCSI reports from one or more UEs served by the base station 804.

[0171] In some aspects, the positioning operation configured by the location server may be at least partially based on vCSI. In one aspect, vCSI may be used to allocate resources optimized for positioning a UE based on the vCSI associated with the environment existing between the UE and one or more base stations. In one aspect, a network node (e.g., a location server, a base station, a sidelink UE, etc.) may obtain the vCSI related to the UE to be positioned and multiple base stations. Based on the vCSI, the network node may determine which base station among the multiple base stations will be configured to determine the positioning of the UE.

[0172] Figure 10 An example positioning environment 1000 is illustrated in which vCSI may be used to allocate resources used in determining the positioning of UE 1002. In Figure 10In the example shown, the positioning environment 1000 includes multiple base stations, labeled BS A to BS D, each base station having a corresponding set of one or more antenna panels 1004a to 1004d. Additionally, each of BS A to BS D includes one or more imaging systems 1006a to 1006d. The imaging systems 1006a to 1006d may be co-located with base stations BS A to BS B. In some aspects, one or more of the base stations BS A to BS D may include one or more antenna sub-panels, each antenna sub-panel having a corresponding imaging system 1006 oriented, for example, along the line of sight of the corresponding antenna sub-panel to acquire visual images and / or video in the direction of the antenna sub-panel. Additionally, the UE 1002 may include an imaging system 1008 for obtaining images and / or video of the environment of the UE. According to aspects of the present disclosure, the imaging system 1008 of the UE 1004 and / or the imaging systems 1006a to 1006d of the base stations are used to acquire images and / or video of the environment existing between each of the base stations BS A to BS D and the UE 1002, from which vCSI may be generated to characterize the positioning environment. The base stations BS A to BS D may be associated with the same base station or different base stations served by the same location server (e.g., LMF).

[0173] According to some aspects of the present disclosure, vCSI may be used to determine a subset of base stations to be used in a positioning session in which an estimate of the position of the UE 1002 is obtained. The subset of base stations may be selected to obtain optimized positioning performance for positioning the UE 1002 in the positioning environment 1000. In one aspect, the set of base stations may be selected based on the geometric dilution of precision (GDOP) relationship between the UE 1002 and the multiple base stations BS A to BS D as determined according to vCSI. Additionally or alternatively, the set of base stations may be selected based on the line-of-sight (LOS) condition between the base stations (BS A to BS D) and the UE 1002 as determined according to vCSI. Additionally or alternatively, the set of base stations may be selected based on maintaining 1) a GDOP condition, 2) a LOS condition, or 3) a combination thereof between the set of base stations and the UE as the UE moves in the positioning environment 1000.

[0174] vCSI and / or the visual data used to generate vCSI may be obtained from multiple different sources. In this regard, vCSI and / or the visual data used to determine vCSI may be obtained from: 1) the UE 1002, 2) another UE in the same area as the UE 1002 (e.g., another UE associated with the same cell ID as the UE 1002), 3) one or more base stations associated with the multiple base stations BS A to BS D, or 4) any combination thereof.

[0175] In one aspect, at least a portion of the vCSI may be obtained from the UE, which may indicate the orientation of the UE's imaging system and / or image sensor used to obtain that portion of the vCSI at the UE. When such information is available, a set of base stations may be selected based on the orientation of the base station's antenna beams relative to the indicated orientation of the UE's imaging system and / or image sensor as determined from the vCSI.

[0176] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI is obtained by a location server (e.g., LMF) from other network nodes (e.g., base stations, UEs, etc.). In one aspect, the location server may obtain the vCSI and select which base stations will be used during a positioning session. Further, the location server may send assistance data to UE 1002 that indicates the set of base stations that the UE will use for the positioning session. The assistance data may also indicate that priorities are assigned to the base stations in the set. The indicated priorities may be used, for example, to determine the order in which UE 1002 measures the base stations (e.g., the order in which to measure the RSs transmitted by the set of base stations).

[0177] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI may provide directivity and orientation information. For example, UE 1002 may indicate to a network node (e.g., a base station, a location server, etc.) via the vCSI the expected directivity of an upcoming reference signal (e.g., UL SRS) transmission. Further, the network node may determine the set of antenna beams of UE 1002 that will be used to transmit the upcoming uplink RS. The determination of the set of antenna beams may be based on the directivity of the upcoming uplink RS as determined from the vCSI. In one aspect, the network node may send assistance data to UE 1002 that includes an indication of the set of antenna beams of UE 1002 that will be used to transmit the upcoming uplink RS. In one aspect, the assistance data may indicate the priorities of the set of antenna beams of the UE that will be used to transmit the upcoming uplink RS. Selecting the antenna beams of UE 1002 in this way may optimize the antenna beam scanning process by limiting the number of antenna beams to be scanned during the antenna beam scanning process to a subset of the available antenna beams (e.g., the limited number of beams scanned constitutes a reduced search space).

[0178] This method of reducing the antenna beam search space can also be applied to downlink RS (e.g., DL PRS). In such instances, vCSI can provide the directivity of the antenna beam that the base station will use to transmit the downlink RS. Given a reference frame, the directivity of a beam represents the azimuth and elevation angles of the corresponding beam. More generally, the directivity of a beam can be represented by certain values in a three-dimensional spherical coordinate system. Additionally, the orientation of the UE relative to the base station can optionally also be indicated by or determined from the vCSI. In one aspect, a network node (e.g., a location server) can select a base station (as indicated by or determined from the vCSI) having an antenna beam pointed at the UE as a subset of base stations to be used in a positioning session. In one aspect, a base station that uses an antenna beam that is generally aligned with the UE to transmit the downlink RS provides higher positioning accuracy. In one aspect, the set of base stations can be prioritized based on this alignment and indicated in the assistance data sent to the UE.

[0179] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, one or more base stations (BS A to BS D) can include a single antenna panel or one or more sub-panels of antennas. In such instances, the network node can determine the set of base stations to be used for positioning based on the orientation (e.g., the line-of-sight orientation of the antenna panel / sub-panel) of the panel / sub-panel of the antenna relative to the imaging system of the UE as determined from the vCSI (e.g., the axis orientation of an image sensor used to obtain visual information). To this end, a panel / sub-panel of an antenna of a base station having an orientation that is generally aligned with or otherwise intersects the orientation axis of the imaging system at a threshold angle is more likely to provide better positioning performance than a sub-panel of an antenna of a base station that is skewed or otherwise not aligned with the orientation of the imaging system. In one aspect, the set of base stations can be prioritized based on the orientation of their corresponding sub-panels, where a sub-panel having an orientation that is more aligned with the orientation of the imaging sensor of the UE is given a higher priority. In one aspect, the UE can receive assistance data (e.g., the order in which to measure the RS transmitted by the set of base stations and / or the corresponding antenna sub-panels) indicating the set of base stations to be measured during a positioning session and optionally the corresponding antenna sub-panels. In instances where the base station includes only a single antenna panel, the orientation of the single panel relative to the orientation of the imaging system can be used to determine whether the base station is included in the set of base stations to be measured by the UE.

[0180] The network node can obtain information about the orientation of the panel / sub-panel of the antenna in various ways. In one aspect, the orientation of the sub-panel can be determined from the vCSI. Additionally or alternatively, the orientation of the panel / sub-panel can be based on base station almanac information associated with multiple base stations.

[0181] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, a network node may provide vCSI to one or more UEs. In various aspects, the network node may provide vCSI in a point-to-point manner or by broadcast transmission. In one aspect, the vCSI may be included in the auxiliary data sent to the UE. Additionally or alternatively, the network node may include the vCSI in the unicast and / or multicast data sent by the network node. Additionally or alternatively, the network node may send the vCSI in an SIB (such as a positioning SIB (posSIB)).

[0182] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the network node may identify network locations from which one or more UEs may obtain vCSI. Additionally or alternatively, the network node may indicate a vCSI identifier that may be used to obtain the corresponding vCSI from a preconfigured network location. The network locations from which vCSI may be obtained and / or the vCSI identifier may be provided in auxiliary data, unicast data, multicast data, SIBs, or a combination thereof. Such aspects of the present disclosure may be used to reduce the data traffic used by the network node to provide vCSI to the UE.

[0183] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI may indicate the expected positioning uncertainty associated with using the vCSI. In one aspect, the vCSI uncertainty may be related to the directionality and / or positioning uncertainty associated with positioning using individual base stations in the usage area. In one aspect, if the vCSI is used in the absence of a base station, the vCSI data may indicate a first set of uncertainties associated with distance and / or direction, and if used in conjunction with a base station, it may indicate a second set of uncertainties.

[0184] According to various aspects of the present disclosure, the network node may group vCSI based on achieving a specific accuracy for directionality and / or ranging. In one example, if an accuracy of 1 degree in two-dimensional positioning is to be achieved, a first group of vCSI (e.g., group 1) may be indicated for use. A second group or group combination (e.g., group 1 + group 2) may be indicated for achieving an accuracy of 1 degree in three-dimensional positioning. A third group or group combination (e.g., group 1 + group 2 + group 3) may be indicated for achieving an accuracy of 0.5 degree in three-dimensional positioning.

[0185] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, a network node may obtain vCSI (e.g., crowdsource all nearby vCSI data) from all network devices (e.g., UEs and / or base stations) within a defined environment and associate the vCSI data with base stations in the defined environment. According to aspects of the present disclosure, the network node may also prioritize the vCSI data. In one aspect, general prioritization rules may be applied. Additionally or alternatively, the network node may prioritize the vCSI based on factors such as weather conditions, time of day, day of the week, day of the month, month of the year, etc. Additionally or alternatively, the network node may prioritize the vCSI data based on feedback from UEs in the positioning environment. In certain aspects, the network node only sends or otherwise identifies vCSI that meets specified prioritization criteria.

[0186] Figure 11 An example positioning environment 1100 is illustrated in which vCSI may be used to allocate resources used in determining the location of a UE, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. In Figure 11 the example shown, positioning environment 1100 includes a plurality of base stations, labeled BS A through BS D, each having a corresponding set of one or more antenna panels 1104a through 1104d. Additionally, each of BS A through BS D includes one or more imaging systems 1106a through 1106d. Imaging systems 1106a through 1106d may be collocated with base stations BS A through BS B. In certain aspects, one or more of base stations BS A through BS D may include one or more antenna sub-panels, each having a corresponding imaging system 1106 oriented, for example, along the line of sight axis of the corresponding antenna sub-panel to obtain visual images and / or video in the direction of the antenna sub-panel.

[0187] In Figure 11In [the figure], the positioning environment 1100 includes three UEs 1108, 1110, and 1112. Both UE 1108 and UE 1112 include respective imaging systems 1114 and 1116. However, UE 1110 is not configured with an imaging system. The imaging system 1114 can be used to obtain images and / or videos of the environment of UE 1108. The images and / or videos of the environment of UE 1108 can be used to generate vCSI for UE 1108. In one aspect, UE 1108 can generate vCSI based on the images and / or videos it obtains. Then, the vCSI of UE 1108 can be sent to a network node (e.g., a location server) and used in a positioning session to determine the location of UE 1108. Additionally or alternatively, UE 1108 can send its images and / or videos to a network node, where the images and / or videos are used to generate vCSI for UE 1108 and are used to allocate positioning resources during the positioning session to determine the location of UE 1108. Similarly, the imaging system 1116 can be used to obtain images and / or videos of the environment of UE 1112. The images and / or videos of the environment of UE 1112 can be used to generate vCSI for UE 1112. In one aspect, UE 1112 can generate vCSI based on the images and / or videos it obtains. The vCSI for UE 1112 can be sent to a network node (e.g., a location server) for use in a positioning session to determine the location of UE 1112. Additionally or alternatively, UE 1112 can send its images and / or videos to a network node, where the images and / or videos are used to generate vCSI for UE 1112 and are used in the positioning session to determine the location of UE 1112.

[0188] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, a network node (e.g., a location server, LMF, etc.) can provide vCSI for other UEs in the same positioning area to a UE. In Figure 11 the example positioning environment 1100 shown, UEs 1108, 1110, and 1112 are in the same positioning area. In one aspect, determining that UEs are in the same positioning area can be based on their association with the same serving cell ID. However, according to certain aspects of the present disclosure, other ways of determining that UEs 1108, 1110, and 1112 are in the same positioning area can be employed.

[0189] Since UEs 1108 and 1112 are in the same positioning area, the vCSI for UE 1108 may be relevant to determining the positioning of UE 1112. Similarly, the vCSI for UE 1112 may be relevant to determining the positioning of UE 1112. Thus, according to some aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI for UE 1108 may be shared with (e.g., sent to) UE 1112 for use in a positioning session to determine the positioning of UE 1112 therein. In one aspect, the vCSI for UE 1108 may be provided to UE 1112 as auxiliary data from a location server. Additionally or alternatively, the vCSI for UE 1112 may be shared with (e.g., sent to) UE 1108 for use in a positioning session to determine the positioning of UE 1108 therein. In one aspect, the vCSI for UE 1112 may be provided to UE 1108 as auxiliary data from a location server.

[0190] As noted, UE 1110 does not have an imaging system in the exemplary positioning environment 1100 shown. However, according to some aspects of the present disclosure, a location server may provide the vCSI for UE 1108 and / or the vCSI for UE 1112 to UE 1110. In this way, even a UE without an imaging system may benefit from receiving vCSI associated with other UEs in the same positioning area. Figure 11 As noted, UE 1110 does not have an imaging system in the exemplary positioning environment 1100 shown. However, according to some aspects of the present disclosure, a location server may provide the vCSI for UE 1108 and / or the vCSI for UE 1112 to UE 1110. In this way, even a UE without an imaging system may benefit from receiving vCSI associated with other UEs in the same positioning area.

[0191] Some aspects of the present disclosure are implemented in the understanding that the complete set of vCSI for a given UE may be irrelevant to determining the positioning of another UE in the same positioning area. For example, the complete set of vCSI for a given UE may be substantially omnidirectional as it includes vCSI for substantially all directions within the environment of the given UE. However, some aspects of the present disclosure recognize that a subset of the vCSI for a given UE that is filtered only for specific directions may be relevant to the positioning of another UE in the same positioning area. Thus, according to some aspects of the present disclosure, the vCSI for a given UE provided to other UEs in the same positioning area may be a filtered version of the complete set of vCSI that would otherwise be available for (or otherwise might have been generated for) the given UE. In this way, communication overhead may be reduced as only a subset of the vCSI data (as opposed to the complete set of vCSI data) that is relevant to another UE and the same positioning area is sent to the other UE for positioning.

[0192] The filtered version of the complete set of vCSI for a given UE can be obtained and used in different ways. In one aspect, the location server may request a subset of the entire vCSI that is filtered with respect to a given direction indicated by the location server to the given UE. In such instances, the filtered subset of vCSI may be sent by the given UE to the location server and subsequently provided as auxiliary data to other UEs in the same positioning area. In another aspect, the location server may obtain the complete set of vCSI from the given UE and filter the complete set of vCSI to provide a filtered subset of vCSI for the given direction. Similarly, the filtered subset of vCSI may be sent by the location server as auxiliary data to another UE in the same positioning area, such that only the vCSI relevant to determining the positioning of the other UE is sent to the other UE. In yet another aspect, the location server may request the given UE to generate vCSI with respect to a given direction, even if the given UE is capable of generating vCSI for other directions. Thus, the vCSI generated by the given UE may be considered a filtered subset of a larger set of vCSI that could be generated otherwise at the given UE.

[0193] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, communication resources between a UE and a base station may be allocated based on vCSI. In one aspect, a location server (e.g., LMF) may request vCSI reports from one or more base stations (e.g., gNBs) and a plurality of UEs within a positioning environment. Based on GDOP conditions, LOS conditions, or a combination thereof, a mapping or grouping between the base station / TRP and the UE may be determined to improve resource utilization.

[0194] Figure 12 A positioning environment 1200 is depicted in which communication resources between a base station and a UE may be mapped based on vCSI according to aspects of the present disclosure. In Figure 12 the example shown, the positioning environment 1200 includes a plurality of base stations, labeled BS A through BS D, each having a corresponding set of one or more antenna panels 1204a through 1204d. Additionally, each of BS A through BS D includes one or more imaging systems 1206a through 1206d. The imaging systems 1206a through 1206d may be collocated with the base stations BS A through BS B. In certain aspects, one or more of the base stations BS A through BS D may include one or more antenna sub-panels, each having a corresponding imaging system 1206 oriented, for example, along the line of sight of the corresponding antenna sub-panel to acquire visual images and / or video in the direction of the line of sight of the antenna sub-panel.

[0195] The positioning environment 1200 further includes a UE 1208 having an imaging system 1210 and a UE 1212 having an imaging system 1214. The UEs 1208 and 1212 are separated from each other by an object 1216. Based on the vCSI of the positioning environment 1200 obtained from the base stations and / or UEs in the positioning environment 1200, the location server may determine that the object 1216 blocks the line of sight between the UE 1208 and BS C and BS D. However, the vCSI may indicate that there is a LOS path between the UE 1208 and BS A and BS B. Therefore, the location server maps BS A and / or BS B to the UE 1208. Similarly, the location server may determine, based on the vCSI of the positioning environment 1200, that the object 1216 blocks the line of sight between the UE 1212 and BS A and BS B. However, the vCSI may indicate that there is a LOS path between the UE 1212 and BS C and BS D. Therefore, the location server maps BS C and / or BS D to the UE 1212. In one aspect, the location server may map communication resources such that BS A and BS B communicate with the UE 1208 using the same time-frequency resources as BS C and BS D use in communicating with the UE 1212. According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the mapping may specify directional information to allow the location server to improve the spatial reuse of resources and reduce interference at the UE (on DL communication) and at the base station / TRP (on UL communication).

[0196] According to some aspects of the present disclosure, a training method may be employed at the base station based on the vCSI. To this end, the location server may create a "visual map" of the environment using the objects and features identified in the vCSI with respect to a given base station near a given UE. Such vCSI reporting may include message exchanges between the UE, the base station, and the location server for the positioning environment. In an example, a "visual map" may be constructed at a given TRP based on a previous vCSI received as part of a training process based on previous vCSI measurements. The visual map may be used to assist a UE (e.g., currently in the positioning environment or new to the positioning environment) in subsequently obtaining the vCSI in the environment for comparison with the visual map. As an example, the UE may capture some vCSI in its vicinity (including the object 1216), which will be compared with the visual map. The visual map may be used to guide how current and / or new UEs communicate with each other. For example, referring to Figure 12 , the UE 1208 may transmit at different points of the object 1216 (identified via the vCSI) to determine how to locate other devices (such as the UE 1212) in the positioning environment 1200 / communicate with that device.

[0197] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, UEs may also directly exchange vCSI information with each other via sidelink communication. In out-of-coverage scenarios, there may be relay nodes or ad-hoc "hubs" (instead of location servers) that facilitate the exchange of vCSI information among a group of SL UEs.

[0198] Certain aspects of the present disclosure relate to the formation and use of vCSI groups from both a network server perspective and a UE perspective. According to one aspect, a UE may obtain a plurality of vCSI groups related to the UE's surrounding environment. The location of the UE may be determined at least in part based on at least one of the plurality of vCSI groups during an NR positioning session.

[0199] The different vCSI groups among the plurality of vCSI groups may be grouped based on their different characteristics. In one aspect, the vCSI groups may be grouped according to the type of visual features included in each vCSI group. Certain vCSI groups may be grouped based on the type of visual features included in the group. As an example, a plurality of vCSI groups may be associated with the same field of view but have different visual features. The visual features included in a vCSI group may be based on the visibility of various visual features in the same field of view under different surrounding environmental conditions. The various surrounding environmental conditions may contribute to the visibility of the visual features within the vCSI group. For example, based on different weather conditions, different lighting conditions, different times of day, etc., the visual features may have different visibility levels. Some visual features within the field of view (e.g., large buildings, large signs, large trees, and other large objects) may be visible under low light conditions (e.g., at night) or low visibility weather conditions (e.g., rain, snow, fog, etc.), while other visual features (e.g., lane markings, small vegetation, etc.) are not visible under the same conditions. Similarly, certain visual features may be more persistent in the environment than other visual features. In such instances, the vCSI groups may be grouped based on those visual features that meet a threshold visibility under a given set of surrounding environmental conditions. Thus, one vCSI group may include only visual features that are visible under low visibility surrounding environmental conditions, while another vCSI group may include all visual features that are visible under high visibility surrounding environmental conditions. In one aspect, certain vCSI groups may include visual features that are visible under clear weather and / or good lighting conditions, while other vCSI groups may include only those visual features that may be visible under foggy conditions, at night, etc. Certain vCSI groups may include an indication of the surrounding environmental conditions under which the vCSI group is most likely to be valuable for determining the location of the UE.

[0200] In one aspect, the vCSI groups may be grouped according to the number of visual features included in each vCSI group and / or the positioning resolution that can be obtained using each vCSI group. In one aspect, a vCSI group having a larger number of visual features may enable the UE to resolve its angular orientation and / or directionality with a higher accuracy (e.g., higher resolution, lower uncertainty, etc.) than another vCSI group having the same field of view but having fewer visual features. Similarly, a vCSI group having certain types of visual features may enable the UE to resolve its angular orientation and / or directionality with a higher accuracy than another vCSI group having the same field of view but having a different set of visual features. Additionally or alternatively, certain vCSI groups may be grouped according to the angular resolution and / or angular measurement uncertainty that can be obtained by the UE using the vCSI group for its angular positioning, directionality, and / or orientation. In such instances, the vCSI group may include an indication of the angular resolution and / or angular measurement uncertainty that can be obtained by the UE using the vCSI group.

[0201] Other criteria may be used to form the vCSI groups. For example, the plurality of vCSI groups may be grouped based on the directionality of the UE relative to one or more base stations. Additionally or alternatively, the plurality of vCSI groups may be grouped based on the orientation of the antenna beams of one or more base stations relative to the UE. Additionally or alternatively, the plurality of vCSI groups may be grouped based on the signal strength of the reference signals received by the UE from the antenna beams of one or more base stations. In each such instance, it will be appreciated that the vCSI groups may include the same, different, and / or overlapping fields of view. The vCSI groups may be at least partially based on an orientation in a global reference frame or a relative reference frame. Further, the vCSI groups may be at least partially based on a correspondence with one or more NR signals (e.g., SSB, PRS, etc.). Such grouping may also be in a global or relative reference frame. Based on the teachings of the present disclosure, it will be appreciated that other features and / or characteristics of the vCSI may be used as grouping criteria to form the vCSI groups, and all of the foregoing groupings constitute non-limiting examples.

[0202] The UE may obtain the plurality of vCSI groups in various ways. For example, the UE may receive information indicating the plurality of vCSI groups from a network server. In one aspect, the UE may obtain data of the vCSI groups or an indication of where the UE can retrieve data of the vCSI groups (e.g., a network location storing the vCSI groups) from the network server in an auxiliary data and / or system information block (SIB) transmission (e.g., in one or more positioning SIBs (posSIBs)).

[0203] Additionally or alternatively, the UE may receive a vCSI set from a network server and determine the plurality of vCSI groups based on the vCSI set using various grouping criteria. Similarly, the vCSI set may be included or indicated in the side information and / or SIB. Once the UE has formed the vCSI groups, the UE may send the vCSI groups to the network server, a sidelink UE, or a combination thereof.

[0204] According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the UE may obtain vCSI and autonomously form vCSI groups. To this end, the UE may obtain image data of the UE's surrounding environment (e.g., using an integrated UE camera, an imaging device communicating with the UE (e.g., smart glasses, in-vehicle imaging device), etc.). Then, the UE may generate a plurality of vCSI groups at the UE based on the image data. In various scenarios, the UE may send the plurality of vCSI groups it generates to the network server.

[0205] The vCSI groups may be used in an NR positioning session to obtain an estimate of the UE's location. To this end, one or more distance measurements for the positioning estimate may be obtained based at least in part on measurements of resource signals (RS) (e.g., SRS and / or PRS) transmitted between the UE and one or more transmit-receive points (TRP). In one aspect, the distance measurements may be based on TOA, TDOA, and / or OTDOA measurements.

[0206] Additionally, the positioning estimate may be based on one or more angle measurements (e.g., directionality, the angular orientation of the UE relative to one or more base stations / visual features, etc.). Such angle measurements may be based at least in part on the visual features and / or characteristics of one or more of the vCSI groups in the vCSI group. According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the angle measurement may be relative to the orientation of an image sensor associated with the UE relative to one or more of the vCSI groups. Additionally or alternatively, the UE may determine the angular resolution of one or more angle measurements based on one or more vCSI groups and / or determine the angle measurement uncertainty based on one or more vCSI groups. In one aspect, the visual features of two or more vCSI groups may be combined to obtain a desired angular resolution and / or angle measurement uncertainty.

[0207] The UE may use NR positioning techniques to obtain angle measurements (e.g., AoA, etc.). In such instances, the angle measurements obtained using the vCSI groups may be used to enhance the accuracy of the NR angle measurements, verify the NR angle measurements, or serve as an alternative to the NR angle measurements.

[0208] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, knowledge of the utility of certain vCSI sets in the UE's surrounding environment can be utilized to assist another UE that has recently entered or is about to enter the surrounding environment. In one aspect, the UE obtains a plurality of vCSI sets related to the UE's surrounding environment. The UE can develop a set of recommended vCSI sets based on its experience with the vCSI sets within the surrounding environment. For example, the recommended vCSI sets can be at least partially based on: 1) the visibility of visual features in one or more of the vCSI sets as determined at the UE, 2) positioning measurements (e.g., positioning accuracy) obtained by the UE based on one or more vCSI sets, 3) angular resolution obtained by the UE based on one or more vCSI sets, or 4) any combination thereof.

[0209] Once the UE has formed a set of recommended vCSI sets, the UE can send an indication of one or more of the recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

[0210] Figure 13 An example method 1300 of wireless communication performed by a network node (e.g., a UE, a base station, a location server, etc.) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. At operation 1302, the network node obtains vCSI related to the UE and a plurality of base stations. In one aspect, operation 1302 can be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, a memory 340, and / or a positioning component 342, any one or all of which can be considered components for performing the operation. In one aspect, operation 1302 can be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 350, one or more processors 384, a memory 386, and / or a positioning component 388, any one or all of which can be considered components for performing the operation. In one aspect, operation 1302 can be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, a memory 396, and / or a positioning component 398, any one or all of which can be considered components for performing the operation.

[0211] At operation 1304, the network node determines a set of base stations among multiple base stations for a positioning session between the UE and the set of base stations based on vCSI. In one aspect, operation 1304 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, and any one or all of these components may be considered as components for performing this operation. In one aspect, operation 1304 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 350, one or more processors 384, memory 386, and / or positioning component 388, and any one or all of these components may be considered as components for performing this operation. In one aspect, operation 1304 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, and any one or all of them may be considered as components for performing this operation.

[0212] As will be appreciated, the technical advantage of method 1300 is that it enhances the accuracy of positioning the UE by selecting base stations for the positioning session based on visual information (e.g., vCSI) obtained for the positioning environment. In one aspect, the visual information may be used to identify the LOS condition between the UE and each base station, thereby allowing selection of base stations that meet the desired LOS condition for the positioning session. Additionally or alternatively, the visual information may be used to select base stations that optimize the GDOP condition for positioning the UE. Additionally or alternatively, the link quality may be measured based on vCSI. In one aspect, the depth information from the image may be converted to how close / far the TRP is relative to the UE.

[0213] Figure 14 An example method 1400 of wireless communication performed by a network node in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. At operation 1402, the network node obtains vCSI from a first UE. In one aspect, operation 1402 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 350, one or more processors 384, memory 386, and / or positioning component 388, and any one or all of these components may be considered as components for performing this operation. In one aspect, operation 1402 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, and any one or all of them may be considered as components for performing this operation.

[0214] At operation 1404, the network node sends the vCSI obtained from the first UE to a second UE located in the same positioning area as the first UE. In one aspect, operation 1404 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 350, one or more processors 384, memory 386, and / or positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation. In one aspect, operation 1404 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation.

[0215] As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of method 1400 is that it allows the vCSI obtained by the first UE to be shared with a second UE in the same positioning area. Such vCSI can even be shared with the second UE in scenarios where the second UE does not have an imaging system for generating its own vCSI. Additionally or alternatively, vCSI information can be used to determine conditions between UEs (e.g., SL-UEs). In one aspect, UEs can use vCSI to point their beams at each other. The search space for the beams can also be reduced based on vCSI.

[0216] Figure 15 An example method 1500 of wireless communication performed by a network node in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. At operation 1502, the network node obtains vCSI from a plurality of UEs and a plurality of base stations. In one aspect, operation 1502 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation. In one aspect, operation 1502 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 350, one or more processors 384, memory 386, and / or positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation. In one aspect, operation 1502 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation.

[0217] At operation 1504, the network node allocates radio resources to one or more UE sets among multiple UEs based on vCSI. In one aspect, operation 1504 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation. In one aspect, operation 1504 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 350, one or more processors 384, memory 386, and / or positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation. In one aspect, operation 1504 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation.

[0218] As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of method 1500 is that it allows the network node to obtain vCSI from multiple devices in a positioning environment and allocate communication resources to UEs within the positioning environment based on the vCSI. In one aspect, the vCSI may be used to create a visual map that may be used to map resources between the base station and the UE to efficiently utilize available frequency and time resources.

[0219] Figure 16 An example method 1600 of wireless communication performed by a UE in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. At operation 1602, the UE obtains multiple sets of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) related to the UE's surrounding environment. In one aspect, operation 1602 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation.

[0220] At operation 1604, the UE determines an estimated location of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one vCSI set among the multiple vCSI sets. In one aspect, operation 1604 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation.

[0221] As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of method 1600 is that it provides vCSI sets that may be used in an NR positioning session to obtain an estimated location of the UE. For example, the vCSI sets may be used to provide estimated angle measurements associated with the location of the UE, which may be used to supplement, verify, or replace NR-based angle measurements.

[0222] Figure 17Illustrates an example method 1700 of wireless communication performed by a UE in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. At operation 1702, the UE obtains a plurality of vCSI sets related to the UE's surrounding environment. In one aspect, operation 1702 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any one or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation.

[0223] At operation 1704, the UE transmits an indication of one or more recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE to another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE. In one aspect, operation 1704 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any one or all of which may be considered components for performing this operation.

[0224] As will be appreciated, the technical advantage of method 1700 is based on the UE's experience with vCSI sets within the surrounding environment and utilizes the UE's knowledge of the utility of various vCSI sets. This knowledge can be used to identify a set of recommended vCSI sets that may be useful to another UE that is entering or has recently entered the surrounding environment.

[0225] In the above detailed description, it can be seen that different features are grouped together in the examples. This manner of disclosure should not be construed as intending that the example clauses have more features than those explicitly mentioned in each clause. Instead, various aspects of the present disclosure may include fewer than all the features of the disclosed individual example clauses. Accordingly, the following clauses are hereby incorporated into the description, where each clause may stand alone as a separate example. Although each dependent clause may refer in the clause to a particular combination with one of the other clauses, the aspect of the dependent clause is not limited to the particular combination. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include combinations of the aspects of the dependent clause with the subject matter of any other dependent clause or independent clause or any feature with other dependent and independent clauses. The various aspects disclosed herein explicitly include these combinations, unless explicitly stated or readily inferred not to be intended to use a particular combination (e.g., conflicting aspects such as defining an element as both an electrical insulator and an electrical conductor). Additionally, it is also contemplated that aspects of the clauses may be included in any other independent clause, even if the clause does not directly depend on the independent clause.

[0226] Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0227] Clause 1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and determining an estimated location of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0228] Clause 2. The method according to Clause 1, wherein: the plurality of vCSI sets are grouped according to the type of visual features included in each vCSI set, the number of visual features included in each vCSI set, the positioning resolution that can be obtained using each vCSI set, or any combination thereof.

[0229] Clause 3. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 2, wherein obtaining the vCSI set includes: receiving information indicating the plurality of vCSI sets from a network server.

[0230] Clause 4. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 3, wherein obtaining the vCSI set includes: receiving a vCSI collection from a network server; and determining the plurality of vCSI sets based on the vCSI collection received from the network server.

[0231] Clause 5. The method according to Clause 4, the method further comprising: sending the plurality of vCSI sets to a network server; sending the plurality of vCSI sets to a sidelink UE; or any combination thereof.

[0232] Clause 6. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 5, wherein obtaining the vCSI set includes: acquiring image data of the surrounding environment of the UE at the UE; generating the plurality of vCSI sets using the image data at the UE; and sending the plurality of vCSI sets to a network server.

[0233] Clause 7. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 6, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE is based on: one or more distance measurements, the one or more distance measurements being at least partially based on measurements of reference signals (RS) transmitted between the UE and one or more transmit-receive points (TRP); and one or more angle measurements, the one or more angle measurements being at least partially based on one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0234] Clause 8. The method according to Clause 7, wherein: the one or more angle measurements are relative to the orientation of an image sensor associated with the UE with respect to one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0235] Clause 9. The method according to claim 7, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE comprises: determining an angular resolution of the one or more angle measurements based on the one or more vCSI sets; determining angle measurement uncertainty based on the one or more vCSI sets; or any combination thereof.

[0236] Clause 10. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 9, wherein: one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets include an indication of an angular resolution of the orientation of the UE that can be obtained using each vCSI set.

[0237] Clause 11. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 10, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE comprises: at least partially combining the two or more vCSI sets based on an angular accuracy that can be obtained by at least partially combining two or more of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0238] Clause 12. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 11, wherein: the plurality of vCSI sets are grouped based on the directivity of the UE relative to one or more base stations.

[0239] Clause 13. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 12, wherein: the plurality of vCSI sets are grouped based on the orientation of the antenna beams of one or more base stations relative to the UE.

[0240] Clause 14. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 13, wherein: the plurality of vCSI sets are grouped based on the signal strength of reference signals received by the UE from the antenna beams of one or more base stations.

[0241] Clause 15. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 14, wherein obtaining the plurality of vCSI sets comprises: receiving one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets in a system information block (SIB) transmission.

[0242] Clause 16. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 15, wherein obtaining the plurality of vCSI sets comprises: receiving an indication in a system information block (SIB) transmission of a network location at which the UE can retrieve one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0243] Clause 17. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 16, wherein: at least two or more of the plurality of vCSI sets are grouped based on the visibility of visual features included in the at least two or more vCSI sets under different surrounding environmental conditions.

[0244] Clause 18. The method according to Clause 17, wherein: the different surrounding environmental conditions include different weather conditions; different environmental lighting conditions; different times of day; or any combination thereof.

[0245] Clause 19. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and sending an indication of one or more recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

[0246] Clause 20. The method according to Clause 19, the method further comprising: determining the recommended vCSI set at least in part based on the visibility of visual features in one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets as determined at the UE, positioning measurements obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI sets, angular resolution obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI sets, or any combination thereof.

[0247] Clause 21. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and determine an estimated position of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session at least in part based on at least one of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0248] Clause 22. The UE according to Clause 21, wherein: the plurality of vCSI sets are grouped according to the type of visual features included in each vCSI set, the number of visual features included in each vCSI set, the positioning resolution that can be obtained using each vCSI set, or any combination thereof.

[0249] Clause 23. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 22, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the vCSI set including the at least one processor being configured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, information indicating the plurality of vCSI sets from a network server.

[0250] Clause 24. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 23, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the vCSI group, including the at least one processor being configured to: receive a vCSI set from a network server via the at least one transceiver; and determine the plurality of vCSI groups based on the vCSI set received from the network server.

[0251] Clause 25. The UE according to Clause 24, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: send the plurality of vCSI groups to a network server via the at least one transceiver; send the plurality of vCSI groups to a sidelink UE via the at least one transceiver; or any combination thereof.

[0252] Clause 26. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 25, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the vCSI group, including the at least one processor being configured to: acquire image data of the surrounding environment of the UE at the UE; generate the plurality of vCSI groups using the image data at the UE; and send the plurality of vCSI groups to a network server via the at least one transceiver.

[0253] Clause 27. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 26, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE is based on: one or more distance measurements, the one or more distance measurements being at least partially based on measurements of reference signals (RS) transmitted between the UE and one or more transmit-receive points (TRP); and one or more angle measurements, the one or more angle measurements being at least partially based on one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0254] Clause 28. The UE according to Clause 27, wherein: the one or more angle measurements are relative to the orientation of an image sensor associated with the UE relative to one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0255] Clause 29. The UE according to any one of Clauses 27 to 28, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE includes: determining the angular resolution of the one or more angle measurements based on the one or more vCSI groups; determining angle measurement uncertainty based on the one or more vCSI groups; or any combination thereof.

[0256] Clause 30. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 29, wherein: one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups include an indication of the angular resolution of the orientation of the UE that can be obtained using each vCSI group.

[0257] Clause 31. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 30, wherein the at least one processor is configured to determine the estimated positioning of the UE includes the at least one processor being configured to: at least partially combine the two or more vCSI groups based on an angular accuracy that can be obtained by at least partially combining two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0258] Clause 32. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 31, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the directivity of the UE relative to one or more base stations.

[0259] Clause 33. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 32, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the orientation of the antenna beams of one or more base stations relative to the UE.

[0260] Clause 34. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 33, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the signal strength of the reference signals received by the UE from the antenna beams of one or more base stations.

[0261] Clause 35. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 34, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the plurality of vCSI groups includes the at least one processor being configured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups in a system information block (SIB) transmission.

[0262] Clause 36. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 35, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the plurality of vCSI groups includes the at least one processor being configured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of a network location at which the UE can retrieve one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups in a system information block (SIB) transmission.

[0263] Clause 37. The UE according to any one of Clauses 21 to 36, wherein: at least two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the visibility of visual features included in the at least two or more vCSI groups under different surrounding environmental conditions.

[0264] Clause 38. The UE according to Clause 37, wherein: the different surrounding environmental conditions include different weather conditions; different environmental lighting conditions; different times of day; or any combination thereof.

[0265] Clause 39. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and transmit, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of one or more recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

[0266] Clause 40. The UE according to Clause 39, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to determine the recommended vCSI set at least in part based on the visibility of visual features in one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets as determined at the UE, positioning measurements obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI sets, angular resolution obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI sets, or any combination thereof.

[0267] Clause 41. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: means for obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and means for determining an estimated position of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session at least in part based on at least one of the plurality of vCSI sets.

[0268] Clause 42. The UE according to Clause 41, wherein: the plurality of vCSI sets are grouped according to the type of visual features included in each vCSI set, the number of visual features included in each vCSI set, the positioning resolution that can be obtained using each vCSI set, or any combination thereof.

[0269] Clause 43. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 42, wherein the means for obtaining the vCSI set comprises: means for receiving information indicating the plurality of vCSI sets from a network server.

[0270] Clause 44. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 43, wherein the means for obtaining the vCSI set comprises: means for receiving a vCSI collection from a network server; and means for determining the plurality of vCSI sets based on the vCSI collection received from the network server.

[0271] Clause 45. The UE according to Clause 44, the UE further comprising: components for sending the plurality of vCSI groups to a network server; components for sending the plurality of vCSI groups to a sidelink UE; or any combination thereof.

[0272] Clause 46. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 45, wherein the components for obtaining the vCSI groups comprise: components for acquiring image data of the surrounding environment of the UE at the UE; and components for generating the plurality of vCSI groups using the image data at the UE; and components for sending the plurality of vCSI groups to a network server.

[0273] Clause 47. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 46, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE is based on: one or more distance measurements, the one or more distance measurements being at least partially based on measurements of reference signals (RS) transmitted between the UE and one or more transmission and reception points (TRP); and one or more angle measurements, the one or more angle measurements being at least partially based on one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0274] Clause 48. The UE according to Clause 47, wherein: the one or more angle measurements are relative to the orientation of an image sensor associated with the UE relative to one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0275] Clause 49. The UE according to any one of Clauses 47 to 48, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE comprises: components for determining the angular resolution of the one or more angle measurements based on the one or more vCSI groups; components for determining angle measurement uncertainty based on the one or more vCSI groups; or any combination thereof.

[0276] Clause 50. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 49, wherein: one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups include an indication of the angular resolution of the orientation of the UE that can be obtained using each vCSI group.

[0277] Clause 51. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 50, wherein the components for determining the estimated location of the UE comprise: components for at least partially combining two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups based on the angular accuracy that can be obtained by at least partially combining two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0278] Clause 52. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 51, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the directivity of the UE relative to one or more base stations.

[0279] Clause 53. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 52, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the orientation of the antenna beams of one or more base stations relative to the UE.

[0280] Clause 54. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 53, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the signal strength of the reference signals received by the UE from the antenna beams of one or more base stations.

[0281] Clause 55. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 54, wherein the components for obtaining the plurality of vCSI groups include: components for receiving, in a system information block (SIB) transmission, one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0282] Clause 56. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 55, wherein the components for obtaining the plurality of vCSI groups include: components for receiving, in a system information block (SIB) transmission, an indication of the network location at which the UE can retrieve one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0283] Clause 57. The UE according to any one of Clauses 41 to 56, wherein: at least two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the visibility of the visual features included in the at least two or more vCSI groups under different surrounding environmental conditions.

[0284] Clause 58. The UE according to Clause 57, wherein: the different surrounding environmental conditions include different weather conditions; different environmental lighting conditions; different times of day; or any combination thereof.

[0285] Clause 59. A user equipment (UE) comprising: components for obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) groups related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and components for sending an indication of one or more recommended vCSI groups for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

[0286] Clause 60. The UE according to Clause 59, the UE further comprising: components for determining the recommended vCSI group based at least in part on the visibility of visual features in one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups as determined at the UE, positioning measurements obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI groups, angular resolution obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI groups, or any combination thereof.

[0287] Clause 61. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) groups related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and determine an estimated position of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0288] Clause 62. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 61, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped according to the type of visual features included in each vCSI group, the number of visual features included in each vCSI group, the positioning resolution that can be obtained using each vCSI group, or any combination thereof.

[0289] Clause 63. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 62, wherein the computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to obtain the vCSI group include computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: receive information indicating the plurality of vCSI groups from a network server.

[0290] Clause 64. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 63, wherein the computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to obtain the vCSI group include computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: receive vCSI groups from a network server; and determine the plurality of vCSI groups based on the set of vCSI received from the network server.

[0291] Clause 65. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 64, the non-transitory computer-readable medium further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: send the plurality of vCSI groups to a network server; send the plurality of vCSI groups to a sidelink UE; or any combination thereof.

[0292] Clause 66. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 65, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to obtain the vCSI group, including computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: obtain image data of the surrounding environment of the UE at the UE; generate the plurality of vCSI groups using the image data at the UE; and send the plurality of vCSI groups to a network server.

[0293] Clause 67. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 66, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE is based on: one or more distance measurements that are at least partially based on measurements of reference signals (RS) transmitted between the UE and one or more transmit-receive points (TRP); and one or more angle measurements that are at least partially based on one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0294] Clause 68. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 67, wherein: the one or more angle measurements are relative to the orientation of an image sensor associated with the UE with respect to the one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0295] Clause 69. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 67 to 68, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE includes: determining the angular resolution of the one or more angle measurements based on the one or more vCSI groups; determining angle measurement uncertainty based on the one or more vCSI groups; or any combination thereof.

[0296] Clause 70. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 69, wherein: one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups include an indication of the angular resolution of the orientation of the UE that can be obtained using each vCSI group.

[0297] Clause 71. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 70, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to determine the estimated location of the UE, including computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: at least partially combine the two or more vCSI groups based on the angular accuracy that can be obtained by at least partially combining two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0298] Clause 72. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 71, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the directivity of the UE relative to one or more base stations.

[0299] Clause 73. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 72, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the orientation of the antenna beams of one or more base stations relative to the UE.

[0300] Clause 74. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 73, wherein: the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the signal strength of the reference signals received by the UE from the antenna beams of one or more base stations.

[0301] Clause 75. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 74, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to obtain the plurality of vCSI groups including computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: receive, in a system information block (SIB) transmission, one or more vCSI groups of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0302] Clause 76. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 75, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to obtain the plurality of vCSI groups including computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: receive, in a system information block (SIB) transmission, an indication of the network location where the UE can retrieve one or more vCSI groups of the plurality of vCSI groups.

[0303] Clause 77. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of Clauses 61 to 76, wherein: at least two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the visibility of the visual features included in the at least two or more vCSI groups under different surrounding environmental conditions.

[0304] Clause 78. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 77, wherein: the different surrounding environmental conditions include different weather conditions; different environmental lighting conditions; different times of day; or any combination thereof.

[0305] Clause 79. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the UE's surrounding environment; and send an indication of one or more recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

[0306] Clause 80. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 79, the non-transitory computer-readable medium further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to determine the recommended vCSI set at least in part based on the visibility of visual features in one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets as determined at the UE, positioning measurements obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI sets, angular resolution obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI sets, or any combination thereof.

[0307] Those skilled in the art will understand that information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0308] In addition, those skilled in the art will understand that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the particular application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in different ways for each particular application, but such specific implementation decisions should not be construed as causing a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0309] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0310] The methods, sequences, and / or algorithms described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software module may reside in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium is coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., a UE). In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in the user terminal.

[0311] In one or more example aspects, the described functionality may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functionality may be stored on or transmitted via a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or code. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. The storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. As used herein, disk and disc include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically using lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0312] Although the foregoing disclosure illustrates example aspects of the present disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications can be made herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. Additionally, the functions, steps, and / or acts of the method claims according to aspects of the present disclosure described herein need not be performed in any particular order. Moreover, although elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is also contemplated unless expressly stated to be limited to the singular.

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: Obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the surrounding environment of the UE; And Determining an estimated location of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one of the plurality of vCSI sets.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The plurality of vCSI sets are grouped according to: The type of visual features included in each vCSI set, The number of visual features included in each vCSI set, The positioning resolution that can be obtained using each vCSI set, or Any combination thereof.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the vCSI sets comprises: Receiving information indicating the plurality of vCSI sets from a network server.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the vCSI sets comprises: Receiving a vCSI collection from a network server; And Determining the plurality of vCSI sets based on the vCSI collection received from the network server.

5. The method according to claim 4, the method further comprising: Sending the plurality of vCSI sets to a network server; Sending the plurality of vCSI sets to a sidelink UE; Or Any combination thereof.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the vCSI sets comprises: Acquiring image data of the surrounding environment of the UE at the UE; And Generating the plurality of vCSI sets using the image data at the UE; And Sending the plurality of vCSI sets to a network server.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE is based on: One or more distance measurements, the one or more distance measurements being at least partially based on measurements of reference signals (RS) transmitted between the UE and one or more transmit-receive points (TRP); and one or more angle measurements, the one or more angle measurements being at least partially based on one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The one or more angle measurements are relative to the orientation of an image sensor associated with the UE with respect to the one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE comprises: Determining an angular resolution of the one or more angle measurements based on the one or more vCSI sets; Determining angle measurement uncertainty based on the one or more vCSI sets; or Any combination thereof.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein: One or more of the plurality of vCSI sets include an indication of the angular resolution of the orientation of the UE that can be obtained using each vCSI set.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the estimated location of the UE comprises: At least partially combine the two or more vCSI groups based on an angular accuracy that can be obtained by at least partially combining two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the directivity of the UE relative to one or more base stations.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the orientation of the antenna beams of one or more base stations relative to the UE.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the signal strength of reference signals received by the UE from the antenna beams of one or more base stations.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the plurality of vCSI groups includes: Receiving one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups in a system information block (SIB) transmission.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the plurality of vCSI groups includes: Receiving an indication in a system information block (SIB) transmission of a network location at which the UE can retrieve one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein: At least two or more of the plurality of vCSI groups are grouped based on the visibility of visual features included in the at least two or more vCSI groups under different surrounding environmental conditions.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein: The different surrounding conditions include: Different weather conditions; Different environmental lighting conditions; Different times of day; or Any combination thereof.

19. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: Obtaining a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) groups related to the surrounding environment of the UE; And Sending an indication of one or more recommended vCSI groups for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

20. The method according to claim 19, the method further comprising: Determining the recommended vCSI groups at least partially based on: The visibility of visual features in one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups as determined at the UE, Positioning measurements obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI groups, Angular resolution obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI groups, or Any combination thereof.

21. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: A memory; At least one transceiver; And At least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: Obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) groups related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and Determine an estimated location of the UE during a New Radio (NR) positioning session based at least in part on at least one of the plurality of vCSI groups.

22. The UE according to claim 21, wherein: The plurality of vCSI groups are grouped according to: The type of visual features included in each vCSI group, The number of visual features included in each vCSI group, The positioning resolution that can be obtained using each vCSI group, or Any combination thereof.

23. The UE according to claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the vCSI group, including that the at least one processor is configured to: Receive information indicating the plurality of vCSI groups from a network server via the at least one transceiver.

24. The UE according to claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the vCSI group, including that the at least one processor is configured to: Receive a vCSI set from a network server via the at least one transceiver; and Determine the plurality of vCSI groups based on the vCSI set received from the network server.

25. The UE according to claim 24, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: Send the plurality of vCSI groups to a network server via the at least one transceiver; Send the plurality of vCSI groups to a sidelink UE via the at least one transceiver; or Any combination thereof.

26. The UE according to claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the vCSI group, including that the at least one processor is configured to: Acquire image data of the surrounding environment of the UE at the UE; and Generate the plurality of vCSI groups using the image data at the UE; and Send the plurality of vCSI groups to a network server via the at least one transceiver.

27. The estimated location of the UE is determined based on: One or more distance measurements, the one or more distance measurements being at least partially based on measurements of reference signals (RS) transmitted between the UE and one or more transmit-receive points (TRP); and One or more angle measurements, the one or more angle measurements being at least partially based on one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups.

28. The UE according to claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is configured to obtain the plurality of vCSI groups, including that the at least one processor is configured to: Receive an indication of a network location at which the UE can retrieve one or more of the plurality of vCSI groups in a system information block (SIB) transmission via the at least one transceiver.

29. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: A memory; At least one transceiver; And At least one processor, the at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: Obtain a plurality of vision-based channel state information (vCSI) sets related to the surrounding environment of the UE; and Send, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of one or more recommended vCSI sets for use by another UE that has subsequently entered or will subsequently enter the surrounding environment after the UE.

30. The UE according to claim 29, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: Determine the recommended vCSI set at least in part based on: The visibility of visual features in one or more of the plurality of vCSI sets as determined at the UE, Positioning measurements obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI sets, The angular resolution obtained by the UE based on the one or more vCSI sets, or Any combination thereof.

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