Common Measurement and Transmission Windows for Downlink and Uplink Positioning Reference Signal Processing and Transmission

Abstract

Techniques for wireless communication are disclosed. In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) participating in a positioning session with multiple transmit receive points (TRPs) receives a downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets for a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets for the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and receives an uplink PRS (UL-PRS) configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets, where all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window. The UE may perform measurements of DL-PRS transmissions on one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets during the time window, and transmit at least one UL-PRS on the one or more UL-PRS resources during the time window.

Description

[0001] Cross - Reference to Related Applications

[0002] This patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 932,323, filed on November 7, 2019, titled "COMMON MEASUREMENT AND TRANSMISSION WINDOW FOR DOWNLINK AND UPLINK POSITIONING REFERENCE SIGNAL PROCESSING AND TRANSMISSION", and U.S. Non - Provisional Application No. 17 / 065,142, filed on October 7, 2020, titled "COMMON MEASUREMENT AND TRANSMISSION WINDOW FOR DOWNLINK AND UPLINK POSITIONING REFERENCE SIGNAL PROCESSING AND TRANSMISSION", both of which are assigned to the assignee hereof and are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. Technical Field

[0003] Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication. Background Art

[0004] Wireless communication systems have evolved through different generations, including the first - generation analog wireless telephone service (1G), second - generation (2G) digital wireless telephone service (including interim 2.5G networks), third - generation (3G) high - speed data, Internet - enabled wireless services, and fourth - generation (4G) services (e.g., LTE or WiMax). Currently, there are many different types of wireless communication systems in use, including cellular 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, more connections, and better coverage, among other improvements. The 5G standard according to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance aims to provide a data rate of tens of megabits per second to each of tens of thousands of users and a data rate of 1 gigabit per second to dozens of employees in an office. To support large - scale wireless sensor deployments, hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections should be supported. Therefore, compared with the current 4G standard, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobile communication should be significantly improved. In addition, compared with the current standard, the signaling efficiency should be improved, and the latency should be significantly reduced. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] A simplified summary related to one or more aspects disclosed herein is presented below. Accordingly, the following summary should not be considered as an extensive overview related to all contemplated aspects, nor should the following summary be considered as identifying key or critical elements related to all contemplated aspects, or depicting the scope related to any particular aspect. Thus, the sole purpose of the following summary is to present certain concepts related to one or more aspects of the mechanisms disclosed herein in a simplified form prior to the detailed description presented below.

[0007] In one aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) participating in a positioning session with a plurality of transmit receive points (TRPs) includes receiving a downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of a DL-PRS instance, wherein each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the plurality of TRPs and is configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, wherein each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, wherein one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to the DL-PRS instance, wherein all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and wherein the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and

[0008] In one aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a positioning entity includes sending, to a UE participating in a positioning session with multiple TRPs, a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of DL-PRS instances, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and sending, to the UE, a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and scheduling all of the one or more UL-PRS within the time window.

[0009] In one aspect, a 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: receive, via the at least one transceiver during a positioning session with multiple TRPs, a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and receive, via the at least one transceiver, a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and scheduling one or more UL-PRS resources within the time window.

[0010] In one aspect, a positioning entity includes: a memory; at least one network interface; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one network interface, the at least one processor being configured to: cause the at least one network interface to send a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of a DL-PRS instance to a UE participating in a positioning session with a plurality of TRPs, wherein each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the plurality of TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, wherein each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, wherein one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, wherein all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and wherein the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and cause the at least one network interface to send a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets to the UE, wherein each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

[0011] In one aspect, a UE includes: means for receiving a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets during a positioning session with a plurality of TRPs, wherein each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the plurality of TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, wherein each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, wherein one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, wherein all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and wherein the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and means for receiving a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets, wherein each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

[0012] In one aspect, a positioning entity includes: means for sending a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets to a UE participating in a positioning session with multiple TRPs, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of one or more DL-PRS resources of one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of one or more DL-PRS resource sets specifying the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and means for sending a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets to the UE, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

[0013] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions includes computer-executable instructions, including: at least one instruction that directs a UE participating in a positioning session with multiple TRPs to receive a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of one or more DL-PRS resources of one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of one or more DL-PRS resource sets specifying the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and at least one instruction that directs the UE to receive a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

[0014] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions includes computer-executable instructions, including: at least one instruction that directs a positioning entity to send a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of a specified DL-PRS instance to a UE participating in a positioning session with multiple TRPs, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to the DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets specifying the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and at least one instruction that directs the positioning entity to send a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets to the UE, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

[0015] Based on the figures and the detailed description, other objectives and advantages associated with the aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] The drawings are presented to assist in describing various aspects of the present disclosure, and the drawings are provided only to illustrate these aspects and not to limit these aspects.

[0017] Figure 1 An exemplary wireless communication system is shown in accordance with various aspects.

[0018] Figure 2A and 2B An example wireless network structure is shown in accordance with various aspects.

[0019] Figures 3A to 3C are simplified block diagrams of several example aspects of components that may be employed in a user equipment (UE), a base station, and a network entity, respectively.

[0020] Figures 4A to 4D is a diagram showing an example of a frame structure and channels within the frame structure in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 5 An exemplary positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration of a cell supported by a wireless node is shown.

[0022] Figure 6 FIG. is a diagram of downlink PRS transmission and uplink PRS transmission between a base station and two UEs according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 7 FIG. is a diagram of a common measurement / transmission window during which downlink PRS resources and uplink PRS resources are scheduled for a given UE according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 8 FIG. is a diagram of multiple measurement / transmission windows during which downlink PRS resources and uplink PRS resources are scheduled for a given UE according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 9 and Figure 10 illustrates a method of wireless communication according to aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] Aspects of the present disclosure are provided in the following description and related drawings, which refer to various examples provided for illustrative purposes. Alternative aspects may be designed 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 relevant details of the present disclosure.

[0027] 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 preferred or superior to other aspects. Similarly, the term “aspects of the present disclosure” does not require that all aspects of the present disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage, or mode of operation.

[0028] Those skilled in the art will understand that any of a variety of different technologies and techniques may be used to represent the information and signals described below. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips referred to throughout the following description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the particular application, in part on the required design, in part on the corresponding technology, etc.

[0029] In addition, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It should 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. Further, the sequence of actions described herein can be considered to be embodied entirely in 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 associated processor of the device to perform the functions described herein. Accordingly, the various aspects of the present disclosure can be embodied in many different forms, all of which are contemplated to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Additionally, for each aspect of the various aspects described herein, any such aspect can be described herein as, for example, “logic configured to” perform the described action.

[0030] 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 that a user uses to communicate over a wireless communication network (e.g., a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a 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. Generally, a UE can communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the core network a UE can connect to an external network such as the Internet and 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 IEEE 802.11, etc.), and so on.

[0031] A base station can operate according to one of several RATs for communicating with a UE, depending on the network in which it is deployed, and can alternatively be referred to as an access point (AP), network node, NodeB, evolved NodeB (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), New Radio (NR) NodeB (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 the data, voice, and / or signaling connections of the supported UE. In some systems, the base station can provide a pure edge node signaling function, while in other systems, the base station can provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link through which the UE sends signals to the base station can be referred to as an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse traffic channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). The communication link through which the base station sends signals to the UE can be referred to as a 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 an uplink / reverse or downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0032] 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., 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 a 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 RF signal (or simply "reference signal") the UE is measuring. Since the TRP is the point at which the base station transmits and receives wireless signals, as used herein, a reference to a transmission from the base station or a reception at the base station should be understood to refer to a specific TRP of the base station.

[0033] In some embodiments that support UE positioning, the base station may not support the wireless access of the UE (e.g., may not support the data, voice, and / or signaling connections of the UE), but may instead send a reference signal to the UE for the UE to measure, and / or may receive and measure the signals sent by the UE. Such a base station can be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when sending signals to the UE) and / or as a position measurement unit (e.g., when receiving and measuring signals from the UE).

[0034] 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, an RF signal may also be referred to as a "wireless signal" or simply a "signal", where it is clear from the context that the term "signal" refers to a wireless signal or an RF signal.

[0035] According to various aspects, Figure 1 An exemplary wireless communication system 100 is shown. The wireless communication system 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 and various UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macro cell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one aspect, the macro cell base stations may include an eNB and / or an ng-eNB where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network, or a gNB where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network, or a combination of both, and the small cell base stations may include femto cells, pico cells, micro cells, etc.

[0036] The base stations 102 may together 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 (which may be part of the core network 170 or may be external to the core network 170) via the core network 170. Among other functions, the base stations 102 may perform functions related to one or more of the following: transmitting 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 device tracking, radio access network information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via the EPC / 5GC) via a backhaul link 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0037] Base station 102 can communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each of the base stations 102 can provide communication coverage for its respective geographic coverage area 110. In one aspect, one or more cells can be supported by the base station 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., via certain frequency resources, referred to as carrier frequencies, component carriers, carriers, frequency bands, etc.), and can be associated with an identifier used to distinguish cells operating via the same or different carrier frequencies (e.g., physical cell identifier (PCI), virtual cell identifier (VCI), cell global identifier (CGI)). In some cases, different cells can be configured according to different protocol types that can provide access for different types of UEs (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or others). Since a cell is supported by a specific base station, depending on the context, the term "cell" can refer to one or both of the logical communication entity and the base station that supports it. Additionally, since a TRP is typically the physical transmission point of a cell, the terms "cell" and "TRP" can be used interchangeably. In some cases, as long as the carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within some parts of the geographic coverage area 110, the term "cell" can also refer to the geographic coverage area (e.g., sector) of a base station.

[0038] Although the geographic coverage areas 110 of adjacent macro cell base stations 102 can partially overlap (e.g., in a handover area), some geographic coverage areas 110 can be substantially overlapped by a larger geographic coverage area 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' can have a geographic coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage areas 110 of one or more macro cell base stations 102. A network including both small cells and macro cell base stations can be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network can also include a home eNB (HeNB), which can provide services to a restricted group called a closed subscriber group (CSG).

[0039] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 can include an uplink (also referred to as a reverse link) transmission from the UE 104 to the base station 102 and / or a downlink (also referred to as a forward link) transmission from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 can use MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 can be via one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers can be asymmetric with respect to the downlink and the uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers can be allocated for the downlink than for the uplink).

[0040] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a WLAN station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in an unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in an 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 whether the channel is available.

[0041] The small cell base station 102' may operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in an unlicensed spectrum, the small cell base station 102' may employ LTE or NR technologies and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum as that used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' that employs LTE / 5G in an unlicensed spectrum may enhance the coverage of the access network and / or increase its capacity. NR in an unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as NR-U. LTE in an unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as LTE-U, licensed-assisted access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0042] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a millimeter wave (mmW) base station 180 that may operate at millimeter wave frequencies and / or near millimeter wave frequencies when communicating with a UE 182. The extremely high frequency (EHF) is a part of the radio frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum. The frequency of the EHF ranges from 30 GHz to 300 GHz, and the wavelength ranges from 1 millimeter to 10 millimeters. The radio waves in this frequency band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near millimeter waves may extend down to a frequency of 3 GHz with a wavelength of 100 millimeters. The super high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and is also referred to as centimeter waves. Communications using millimeter wave / near millimeter wave radio frequency bands have high path loss and relatively short distances. The millimeter wave base station 180 and the UE 182 may utilize beamforming (transmission and / or reception) on the millimeter wave communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short distances. In addition, it should be understood that in an alternative configuration, one or more of the base stations 102 may also use millimeter waves or near millimeter waves and beamforming for transmission. Therefore, it should be understood that the foregoing diagrams are merely examples and should not be construed as limiting the various aspects disclosed herein.

[0043] Transmit beamforming is a technique used to focus RF signals in a specific direction. Traditionally, 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 the location of a given target device (e.g., a UE) relative to the transmitting network node and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thus providing a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal to 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 can use an antenna array (referred to as a "phased array" or "antenna array") that generates a beam of RF waves that can be "steered" to point in different directions without physically moving the antennas. Specifically, RF currents from the transmitters are fed to the individual antennas with the correct phase relationships such that the radio waves from the individual antennas add up to increase the radiation in the desired direction while canceling out to suppress the radiation in the undesired directions.

[0044] Transmit beams can be quasi - collocated, meaning they appear to have the same parameters at the receiver (e.g., a UE) regardless of whether the transmit antennas of the network node itself are physically collocated. In NR, there are four types of quasi - collocation relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters regarding a second reference RF signal on a second beam can be derived from information regarding a source reference RF signal on a 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.

[0045] 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 in a specific direction and / or adjust the phase setting of the antenna array to amplify (e.g., increase the gain level of the RF signal) the RF signal received from that direction. Thus, when it is said that the receiver beamforms in a certain direction, it means that the beam gain in that direction is higher than the beam gains in other directions, or that the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gains in that direction for all other receive beams available to the receiver. 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.).

[0046] Receive beams can be spatially related. The spatial relationship means that the parameters of the transmit beam for a second reference signal can be derived from the information about the receive beam for the first reference signal. For example, a UE can use a specific receive beam to receive one or more reference downlink reference signals (e.g., positioning reference signal (PRS), navigation reference signal (NRS), tracking reference signal (NRS), phase tracking reference signal (PTRS), cell-specific reference signal (CRS), channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), primary synchronization signal (PSS), secondary synchronization signal (SSS), synchronization signal block (SSB), etc.) from a base station. Then, the UE can form a transmit beam for transmitting one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., uplink positioning reference signal (UL-PRS), sounding reference signal (SRS), demodulation reference signal (DMRS), etc.) to that base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0047] Note that a "downlink" beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. 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, it is a receive beam for receiving the downlink reference signal. Similarly, an "uplink" beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if the base station is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, and if the UE is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0048] In 5G, the spectrum in which wireless nodes (e.g., base stations 102 / 180, UEs 104 / 182) operate is divided into multiple frequency ranges, FR1 (from 450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (from 24250 to 52600 MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). 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 the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) used by the cell in which the UE 104 / 182 and the UE 104 / 182 perform the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment process or initiate the RRC connection re-establishment process. 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 once an RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier, and the secondary carrier can be used to provide additional radio resources. 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 and downlink carriers are usually UE-specific, UE-specific signaling information and signals may not be present in the secondary carrier. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 in a cell can have different downlink primary carriers. The same applies to the uplink primary carrier. The network is able to change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. For example, this is done to balance the load on different carriers. Since a "serving cell" (whether it is a PCell or an SCell) corresponds to the carrier frequency / component carrier on which a certain base station is communicating, the terms "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier", "carrier frequency", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0049] For example, still referring to Figure 1 , one of the frequencies used by the macro cell base station 102 can be the anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and the other frequencies used by the macro cell base station 102 and / or the millimeter wave base station 180 can be secondary carriers ("SCells"). The 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 rate achieved by a single 20 MHz carrier, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically result in a two-fold increase in data rate (i.e., 40 MHz).

[0050] 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. In Figure 1 the example, UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 where one of the UEs 104 is connected to one of the base stations 102 (e.g., UE 190 can indirectly obtain a cellular connection through it), and a D2D P2P link 194 where the WLAN STA 152 is connected to the WLAN AP 150 (UE 190 can indirectly obtain a WLAN-based Internet connection through it). In one example, the D2D P2P links 192 and 194 can be supported by any well-known D2D RAT (e.g., LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), etc.).

[0051] The wireless communication system 100 may also include UE 164, which can communicate with the macro cell base station 102 via the communication link 120 and / or with the millimeter wave base station 180 via the millimeter wave communication link 184. For example, the macro cell base station 102 may support a PCell and one or more SCell for UE 164, and the millimeter wave base station 180 may support one or more SCell for UE 164.

[0052] According to various aspects, Figure 2A an example wireless network structure 200 is shown. For example, the 5GC 210 (also referred to as the Next Generation Core (NGC)) can be functionally regarded as a control plane function 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and a user plane function 212 (e.g., UE gateway function, data network access, IP routing, etc.), which cooperate to form the core network. The user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and the control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect the gNB 222 to the 5GC 210, and specifically to the control plane function 214 and the user plane function 212. In an additional configuration, the eNB 224 can also be connected to the 5GC 210 via the NG-C 215 to the control plane function 214 and the NG-U 213 to the user plane function 212. In addition, the ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with the gNB 222 via the backhaul connection 223. In some configurations, the new RAN 220 can have only one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of both the ng-eNB 224 and the gNB 222. The gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224 can communicate with the UE 204 (e.g., Figure 1Communication with any UE depicted therein. Another optional aspect may include a location server 230, which may communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance to 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 each server may correspond to a single server. The location server 230 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, and the UE 204 may be connected to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not shown). Additionally, the location server 230 may be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively may be external to the core network.

[0053] According to various aspects, Figure 2B Another example wireless network structure 250 is shown. For example, the 5GC 260 may be functionally regarded as including a control plane function provided by an access and mobility management function (AMF) 264 and a user plane function provided by a user plane function (UPF) 262, which cooperate to form the core network (i.e., the 5GC 260). The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the eNB 224 to the 5GC 260 and specifically to the UPF 262 and the AMF 264, respectively. In an additional configuration, the gNB 222 may also be connected to the 5GC 260 via the control plane interface 265 to the AMF 264 and the user plane interface 263 to the UPF 262. Additionally, the eNB 224 may communicate directly with the gNB 222 via the backhaul connection 223, with or without a direct gNB connection to the 5GC 260. In some configurations, the new RAN 220 may have only one or more gNB 222s, while other configurations include one or more of both the ng-eNB 224 and the gNB 222s. The gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224 may communicate with the UE 204 (e.g., Figure 1 any UE depicted therein). The base stations of the new RAN 220 communicate with the AMF 264 via the N2 interface and with the UPF 262 via the N3 interface.

[0054] The functions of the AMF 264 include registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of session management (SM) messages between the UE 204 and the Session Management Function (SMF), 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 Function (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) User Identity Module (USIM), the AMF 264 retrieves security material from the AUSF. The functions of the AMF 264 also include Security Context Management (SCM). SCM receives a key from the SEAF, which is used to derive access network-specific keys. The functions of the AMF 264 also include 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 a location server 230), transmission of location service messages between the new RAN 220 and the LMF 270, allocation of evolved packet system (EPS) bearer identifiers for EPS interworking, and UE 204 mobility event notification. In addition, the AMF 264 also supports functions for non-3GPP access networks.

[0055] The functions of the UPF 262 include: acting as an anchor point for intra-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 control), 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), transmission-level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and sending and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support the transmission of location service messages in the user plane between the UE 204 and a location server (e.g., Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP) 272).

[0056] The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, configuration of traffic control at the UPF 262 to route traffic to appropriate destinations, partial policy enforcement and QoS control, and downlink data notification. The interface through which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0057] Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270, which may communicate with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance to the UE 204. The 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 each server may correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, and the UE 204 may be connected to the LMF 270 via the core network, the 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not shown). The SLP 272 may support functions similar to those of the LMF 270, but while the LMF 270 may communicate with the AMF 264, the new RAN 220, and the UE 204 on the control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols designed to carry signaling messages rather than voice or data), the SLP 272 may communicate with the UE 204 and external clients ( Figure 2B not shown in the figure) on the user plane (e.g., using protocols designed to carry voice and / or data, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0058] Figure 3A 、 3B Figures 3A and 3C illustrate several exemplary components (represented by corresponding blocks) that may be incorporated into a UE 302 (which may correspond to any UE described herein), a base station 304 (which may correspond to any base station described herein), and a network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any network function described herein, including the location server 230, the LMF 270, and the SLP 272) to support the file transfer operations taught herein. It should be understood that these components may be implemented in different types of devices in different embodiments (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system-on-chip (SoC), etc.). The components shown may also be incorporated into other devices in the communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include components similar to those described to provide similar functions. Additionally, a given device may contain one or more 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.

[0059] UE 302 and base station 304 each include a wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceiver 310 and 350 respectively, which are configured to communicate via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown) such as an NR network, an LTE network, a GSM network, etc. The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be respectively connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356 for communicating with other network nodes such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., ng-eNB, gNB) etc. on an interested wireless communication medium (e.g., a certain set of time / frequency resources in a specific spectrum) via at least one specified RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be differently configured according to the specified RAT for respectively transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.), and conversely for respectively receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for respectively transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for respectively receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358.

[0060] UE 302 and base station 304 also each include a wireless local area network (WLAN) transceiver 320 and 360 at least in some cases. The WLAN transceivers 320 and 360 can be respectively connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366 for communicating with other network nodes such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc. on an interested wireless communication medium via at least one specified RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, etc.). The WLAN transceivers 320 and 360 can be differently configured according to the specified RAT for respectively transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.), and conversely for respectively receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the transceivers 320 and 360 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.

[0061] A transceiver circuit including at least one transmitter and at least one receiver may include, in some embodiments, an integrated device (e.g., a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit embodied as a single communication device), may include separate transmitter devices and separate receiver devices in some embodiments, or may be embodied in other ways in other embodiments. In one aspect, the transmitter may 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 apparatus to perform transmission “beamforming” as described herein. Similarly, the receiver may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), e.g., an antenna array, which allows the corresponding device to perform receive beamforming as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter and the receiver may share the same plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the corresponding apparatus can only receive or transmit at a given time, rather than receive and transmit both simultaneously. The wireless communication devices of UE 302 and / or base station 304 (e.g., one or both of transceivers 310 and 320 and / or 350 and 360) may also include a network listening module (NLM) and the like for performing various measurements.

[0062] UE 302 and base station 304 also include satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers 330 and 370 at least in some cases. SPS receivers 330 and 370 may be respectively connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376 for receiving SPS signals 338 and 378, such as 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. SPS receivers 330 and 370 may include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing SPS signals 338 and 378 respectively. SPS receivers 330 and 370 request appropriate information and operations from other systems and perform the calculations required to determine the positions of UE 302 and base station 304 using measurements obtained through any appropriate SPS algorithm.

[0063] Base station 304 and network entity 306 each include at least one network interface 380 and 390 for communicating with other network entities. For example, network interfaces 380 and 390 (e.g., one or more network access ports) may be configured to communicate with one or more network entities via a wired or wireless backhaul connection. In some aspects, network interfaces 380 and 390 may be implemented as transceivers configured to support communication based on wired or wireless signals. For example, such communication may involve sending and receiving: messages, parameters, and / or other types of information.

[0064] 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 includes a processor circuit that implements processing system 332, which is used to provide functions related to, for example, positioning operations and to provide other processing functions. Base station 304 includes a processing system 384, which is used to provide functions related to, for example, the positioning operations disclosed herein and to provide other processing functions. Network entity 306 includes a processing system 394, which is used to provide functions related to, for example, the positioning operations disclosed herein and to provide other processing functions. In one aspect, processing systems 332, 384, and 394 can include, for example, one or more general-purpose processors, multi-core processors, ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices or processing circuits.

[0065] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 include memory circuits that respectively implement memory components 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 can respectively include positioning components 342, 388, and 398. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be part of processing systems 332, 384, and 394 respectively or hardware circuits coupled to processing systems 332, 384, and 394, which, when executed, cause UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein. In other aspects, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be located external to processing systems 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 (as shown in Figure 3A -C) respectively stored in memory components 340, 386, and 396, which, when executed by processing systems 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 functions described herein.

[0066] The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to the processing system 332 to provide motion and / or orientation information independent of motion data derived from signals received from the WWAN transceiver 310, the WLAN transceiver 320, and / or the SPS receiver 330. As an example, the sensors 344 may include accelerometers (e.g., microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices), gyroscopes, geomagnetic sensors (e.g., compasses), altimeters (e.g., barometric altimeters), and / or any other type of motion detection sensor. Additionally, the sensors 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, the sensors 344 may use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and an orientation sensor to provide the ability to calculate the position in a 2D and / or 3D coordinate system.

[0067] In addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 for providing indications to the user (e.g., audible and / or visual indications) and / or receiving user input (e.g., when the user actuates a sensing device such as a keyboard, touch screen, microphone, etc.). Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 may also include a user interface.

[0068] Referring more specifically to the processing system 384, in the downlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to the processing system 384. The processing system 384 may implement functions for the RRC layer, the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and the Medium Access Control (MAC) layer. The processing system 384 may provide RRC layer functions 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 functions associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functions associated with the transmission of upper layer protocol data units (PDUs), error correction by automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and re-ordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with the mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0069] The transmitter 354 and the receiver 352 may implement Layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, which includes the Physical (PHY) layer, may include error correction 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. The transmitter 354 processes 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)). Then, the decoded symbols and the modulated symbols may be split into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarriers, multiplexed with reference signals (e.g., pilots) in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and then combined using the inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to generate a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially precoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from the channel estimator may be used to determine the encoding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimates may be derived from reference signals transmitted by the UE 302 and / or channel condition feedback. Each spatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with the respective spatial streams for transmission.

[0070] 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 the information to the processing system 332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement Layer 1 functions 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 multiple spatial streams are 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 convert 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 calculated 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 the processing system 332, which implements Layer 3 and Layer 2 functions.

[0071] In the uplink, the processing system 332 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. The processing system 332 is also responsible for error detection.

[0072] Similar to the functions described in connection with the downlink transmission of base station 304, processing system 332 provides RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions associated with the transmission of upper layer PDUs, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions 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.

[0073] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from reference signals or feedback sent by base station 304 can be used by transmitter 314 to select appropriate decoding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by transmitter 314 can be provided to different antennas 316. Transmitter 314 can modulate RF carriers with the respective spatial streams for transmission.

[0074] Uplink transmissions are processed at base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in connection with the receiver function at UE 302. Receiver 352 receives signals via its respective antennas 356. Receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carriers and provides this information to processing system 384.

[0075] In the uplink, processing system 384 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from UE 302. The IP packets from processing system 384 can be provided to the core network. Processing system 384 is also responsible for error detection.

[0076] For convenience, in Figure 3A -C, UE 302, base station 304, and / or network entity 306 are shown as including various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it should be understood that the boxes shown can have different functions in different designs.

[0077] The various components of UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 can communicate with each other via data buses 334, 382, and 392, respectively. Figure 3A -C's components can be implemented in various ways. In some embodiments, Figure 3AThe components of -C may be implemented in one or more circuits (e.g., 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 that 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 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 base station 304 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Additionally, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390 to 398 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of 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 being "performed by the UE", "performed by the base station", "performed by the positioning 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, base station, positioning entity, etc. (e.g., processing system 332, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, memory components 340, 386, and 396, positioning components 342, 388, and 398, etc.).

[0078] Various frame structures can be used to support downlink and uplink transmissions between network nodes (e.g., base stations and UEs). Figure 4A FIG. 400 is a diagram illustrating an example of a downlink frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 4B FIG. 430 is a diagram illustrating an example of channels within a downlink frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 4C FIG. 450 is a diagram illustrating an example of an uplink frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 4D FIG. 480 is a diagram illustrating an example of channels within an uplink frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0079] LTE, and in some cases NR, utilizes OFDM on the downlink and single - carrier frequency - division multiplexing (SC - FDM) on the uplink. However, different from LTE, NR can also choose to use OFDM on the uplink. OFDM and SC - FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal sub - carriers, which are usually also referred to as tones, bins, etc. Each sub - carrier can be modulated with data. Generally, modulation symbols are sent using OFDM in the frequency domain and SC - FDM in the time domain. The spacing between adjacent sub - carriers can be fixed, and the total number of sub - carriers (K) can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the sub - carrier spacing can be 15 KHz, and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) can be 12 sub - carriers (or 180 KHz). Thus, for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 megahertz (MHz), the nominal FFT sizes can be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048 respectively. The system bandwidth can also be divided into sub - bands. For example, a sub - band can cover 1.08 MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks), and for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 MHz, there can be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 sub - bands respectively.

[0080] LTE supports a single parameter set (sub - carrier spacing, symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR can support multiple parameter sets (μ), for example, sub - carrier spacings of 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, 120 kHz, and 240 kHz or larger can be used. Table 1 provided below lists some different parameters for different NR parameter sets.

[0081]

[0082]

[0083] Table 1

[0084] In Figures 4A to 4D the example, a parameter set of 15 kHz is used. Thus, in the time domain, a frame (e.g., 10 ms) is divided into 10 equally - sized sub - frames, each sub - frame being 1 ms, and each sub - frame includes a time slot. In Figures 4A to 4D it, time is represented horizontally (e.g., on the X - axis) with time increasing from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (e.g., on the Y - axis) with frequency increasing (or decreasing) from bottom to top.

[0085] 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 a symbol length in the time domain and a sub - carrier in the frequency domain. InFigures 4A to 4D In the parameter set of , for the normal cyclic prefix, an RB can contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 7 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 6 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.

[0086] Some REs carry downlink reference (pilot) signals (DL-RS). DL-RS can include PRS in LTE, NRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, etc. in 5G. Figure 4A An exemplary location of an RE carrying PRS (labeled "R") is shown.

[0087] The set of resource elements (REs) used to transmit PRS is called the "PRS resource". The set of resource elements can span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and N (e.g., 1 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.

[0088] The transmission of the PRS resource within a given PRB has a specific comb size (also called "comb density"). The comb size 'N' represents the subcarrier spacing (or frequency / tone spacing) within each symbol of the PRS resource configuration. Specifically, for comb size 'N', the PRS is transmitted in every Nth subcarrier of the symbols of the PRB. For example, for comb-4, for each of the four symbols of the PRS resource configuration, the REs corresponding to every fourth subcarrier (e.g., subcarriers 0, 4, 8) are used to transmit the PRS of the PRS resource. Currently, DL-PRS supports comb sizes of comb-2, comb-4, comb-6, and comb-12. Figure 4A An exemplary PRS resource configuration for comb-6 (which spans six symbols) is shown. That is, the positions of the shaded REs (labeled "R") indicate the comb-6 PRS resource configuration.

[0089] A "set of PRS resources" is a set of PRS resources used to transmit PRS signals, where each PRS resource has a PRS resource ID. Additionally, the PRS resources in the PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP. The PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource set ID and is associated with a specific TRP (identified by a cell ID). Additionally, the PRS resources in the PRS resource set have the same period, a common mute mode configuration, and the same repetition factor across time slots. The period can have a value selected from 2 m· The length of {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.

[0090] The PRS resource ID in the PRS resource set is associated with a single beam (and / or beam ID) transmitted from a single TRP (where the TRP can transmit one or more beams). That is, each PRS resource in the PRS resource set can be transmitted on a different beam. Therefore, a "PRS resource" or simply a "resource" can also be referred to as a "beam". Note that this has no impact on whether the UE knows the TRP and the beam transmitting the PRS.

[0091] A "PRS instance" or "PRS occasion" is an instance of a periodically repeating time window (e.g., a group of one or more consecutive time slots) in which a PRS is expected to be transmitted. A PRS occasion can also be referred to as a "PRS positioning occasion", "PRS positioning instance", "positioning occasion", "positioning instance", or simply an "occasion" or "instance".

[0092] Figure 4B Examples of various channels within the downlink time slots of a radio frame are shown. In NR, the channel bandwidth or system bandwidth is divided into multiple bandwidth parts (BWPs). A BWP is a continuous set of PRBs selected from a continuous subset of common RBs with a given parameter set on a given carrier. Generally, up to four BWPs can be specified in the downlink and uplink. That is, a UE can be configured with up to four BWPs on the downlink and up to four BWPs on the uplink. At a given time, only one BWP (either uplink or downlink) can be active, which means the UE can only receive or transmit through one BWP at a time. On the downlink, the bandwidth of each BWP should be equal to or greater than the bandwidth of the SSB, but it may or may not contain the SSB.

[0093] Refer to Figure 4B, the UE uses the Primary Synchronization Signal (PSS) to determine subframe / symbol timing and the physical layer identity. The UE uses the Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS) to determine the physical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identity group number, the UE can determine the PCI. Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the positions of the above-mentioned DL-RS. The Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) carrying the MIB can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form the SSB (also known as SS / PBCH). The MIB provides the number of RBs in the downlink system bandwidth and the System Frame Number (SFN). The Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) carries user data and broadcast system information not sent via the PBCH (such as System Information Blocks (SIBs) and paging messages).

[0094] The Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) carries downlink control information (DCI) within one or more Control Channel Elements (CCEs). Each CCE includes one or more groups of Resource Element Groups (REGs) (which can span multiple symbols in the time domain). Each REG group includes one or more REGs, and each REG corresponds to 12 resource elements (one resource block) in the frequency domain and one OFDM symbol in the time domain. The physical resource set used to carry the PDCCH / DCI is called the Control Resource Set (CORESET) in NR. In NR, the PDCCH is restricted to a single CORESET and is transmitted together with its own DMRS. This enables UE-specific beamforming for the PDCCH.

[0095] In Figure 4B the example, each BWP has one CORESET, and the CORESET spans three symbols in the time domain. Different from the LTE control channel that occupies the entire system bandwidth, in NR, the PDCCH channel is localized to a specific region in the frequency domain (i.e., the CORESET). Therefore, Figure 4B the frequency components of the PDCCH shown in

[0096] are shown as being less than a single BWP in the frequency domain. Note that although the shown CORESET is continuous in the frequency domain, it does not have to be. Additionally, the CORESET can span less than three symbols in the time domain. The DCI within the PDCCH carries information about uplink resource allocation (persistent and non-persistent) and a description of the downlink data sent to the UE. Multiple (e.g., up to 8) DCIs can be configured in the PDCCH, and these DCIs can have one of multiple formats. For example, there are different DCI formats for uplink scheduling, non-MIMO downlink scheduling, MIMO downlink scheduling, and uplink power control. The PDCCH can be transmitted by 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs to accommodate different DCI payload sizes or coding rates.

[0097] As Figure 4C shown, some REs carry DMRS for channel estimation at the base station. The UE can additionally transmit SRS, for example, in the last symbol of a subframe. The SRS can have a comb structure, and the UE can transmit the SRS on one of the comb structures. The comb structure (also referred to as "comb size") indicates the number of subcarriers carrying the reference signal (here, the SRS) in each symbol period. For example, a comb size of comb-4 means that every fourth subcarrier of a given symbol carries the reference signal, while a comb size of comb-2 means that every second subcarrier of a given symbol carries the reference signal. In the Figure 4C example shown, all the SRSs shown are comb-2. The base station can use the SRS to obtain the channel state information (CSI) of each UE. The CSI describes how the RF signal propagates from the UE to the base station and represents the combined effects of scattering, fading, and power attenuation with distance. The system utilizes the SRS for resource scheduling, link adaptation, massive MIMO, beam management, etc.

[0098] Figure 4D An example of various channels within an uplink subframe of a frame according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The random access channel (RACH), also referred to as the physical random access channel (PRACH), can be within one or more subframes of a frame based on the PRACH configuration. The PRACH can include six consecutive RB pairs within a subframe. The PRACH allows the UE to perform initial system access and achieve uplink synchronization. The physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) can be located at the edge of the uplink system bandwidth. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as a scheduling request, CSI report, channel quality indicator (CQI), precoding matrix indicator (PMI), rank indicator (RI), and HARQ ACK / NACK feedback. The physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) carries data and can additionally be used to carry a buffer status report (BSR), power headroom report (PHR), and / or UCI.

[0099] A set of resource elements for transmitting the SRS is referred to as an "SRS resource" and can be identified by the parameter SRS-ResourceId. The set of resource elements can span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and N (e.g., one or more) consecutive symbols within a time slot in the time domain. In a given OFDM symbol, the SRS resource occupies consecutive PRBs. An "SRS resource set" is a set of SRS resources for transmitting the SRS signal, identified by the SRS resource set ID (SRS-ResourceSetId).

[0100] Typically, the UE transmits SRS to enable the receiving base station (serving base station or neighboring base station) to measure the channel quality between the UE and the base station. However, the SRS can also be used as an uplink positioning reference signal for an uplink positioning process, such as uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA), multi-round-trip time (multi-RTT), downlink angle of arrival (DL-AoA), etc.

[0101] For SRS used for positioning (also referred to as "UL-PRS"), several enhancements to the previously defined SRS have been proposed, such as new interleaving patterns within the SRS resource (in addition to single-symbol / comb-2), new comb types for the SRS, new sequences for the SRS, a larger number of SRS resource sets per component carrier, and a larger number of SRS resources per component carrier. Additionally, the parameters SpatialRelationInfo and PathLossReference will be configured based on the downlink reference signal or SSB from neighboring TRPs. Furthermore, an SRS resource can be transmitted outside the active BWP, and an SRS resource can span multiple component carriers. Also, the SRS can be configured in the RRC connected state and transmitted only within the active BWP. Additionally, there can be no frequency hopping, no repetition factor, a single antenna port, and a new length for the SRS (e.g., 8 and 12 symbols). There can also be open-loop power control instead of closed-loop power control, and comb-8 can be used (i.e., one SRS is transmitted per eight subcarriers in the same symbol). Finally, the UE can transmit for UL-AoA from multiple SRS resources using the same transmit beam. All of these are additional features of the current SRS framework, which is configured via RRC higher layer signaling (and potentially triggered or activated via MAC control element (CE) or DCI).

[0102] Note that the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may sometimes refer to specific reference signals used for positioning in an LTE system. However, as used herein, unless otherwise indicated, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" refer to any type of reference signal that can be used for positioning, such as but not limited to PRS in LTE, NRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, SRS, UL-PRS, etc. in 5G. In addition, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" refer to downlink or uplink positioning reference signals, unless otherwise indicated. A downlink positioning reference signal may be referred to as "DL-PRS", and an uplink positioning reference signal (e.g., SRS, PTRS used for positioning) may be referred to as "UL-PRS". In addition, for signals that can be transmitted in both the uplink and downlink (e.g., DMRS, PTRS), "UL" or "DL" may be prefixed to the signal to distinguish the direction. For example, "UL-DMRS" can be distinguished from "DL-DMRS".

[0103] The following parameters are used to configure DL-PRS resources and DL-PRS resource sets. The parameter "DL-PRS-Periodicity" defines the DL-PRS resource period and takes values, where for μ = 0, the value 20480 is not supported. All DL-PRS resources in a resource set are configured with the same period. The parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor" defines how many times each DL-PRS resource is repeated for a single instance of the DL-PRS resource set and takes values. All DL-PRS resources in a resource set have the same "ResourceRepetitionFactor". The parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceTimeGap" defines the slot number offset between two repeated instances of DL-PRS resources with the same DL-PRS-ResourceID in a single instance of the DL-PRS resource set and takes Value. If "DL-PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor" is configured with a value greater than 1, the UE only expects to be configured with "DL-PRS-ResourceTimeGap". The duration spanned by an instance of "DL-PRS-ResourceSet" is not expected to exceed the configured value of "DL-PRS-Periodicity". All DL-PRS resources in a resource set have the same "DL-PRS-ResourceTimeGap". The parameter "DL-PRS-SFN0-Offset" defines the time offset of the SFN 0 time slot 0 of the transmitting cell relative to the SFN 0 time slot 0. The parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset" defines the time slot offset relative to the SFN 0 time slot 0 and takes values

[0104] The PRS resources are defined by the following parameters. The parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceList" determines the DL-PRS resources included in a DL-PRS resource set. The parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceId" identifies a specific DL-PRS resource. All DL-PRS resource identifiers are locally defined within the DL-PRS resource set. The parameter "DL-PRS-SequenceId" is used to initialize the c used in the pseudo-random generator initValues are used to generate DL-PRS sequences for a given DL-PRS resource. The parameter "DL-PRS-ReOffset" defines the starting RE offset of the first symbol within the DL-PRS resource in the frequency domain. The relative RE offsets of the remaining symbols within the DL-PRS resource are defined based on the initial offset and one or more rules. The parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceSlotOffset" determines the starting time slot of the DL-PRS resource relative to the corresponding "DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset". The parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceSymbolOffset" determines the starting symbol of the DL-PRS resource within the starting time slot. The parameter "DL-PRS-NumSymbols" defines the number of symbols of the DL-PRS resource within a time slot. The parameter "DL-PRS-QCL-Info" defines any quasi-co-location information of the DL-PRS resource with other reference signals. The DL-PRS can be configured to have 'QCL-Type-D' from the serving cell or non-serving cell's DL-PRS or SS / PBCH block. The DL-PRS can be configured to have 'QCL-Type-C' from the serving cell or non-serving cell's SS / PBCH block. The parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceBandwidth" defines the number of resource blocks configured for PRS transmission. This parameter has a granularity of four PRBs, with a minimum of 24 PRBs and a maximum of 272 PRBs. All DL-PRS resources within a DL-PRS resource set have the same value of "DL-PRS-ResourceBandwidth". The parameter "DL-PRS-StartPRB" defines the starting PRB index of the DL PRS resource relative to reference point A. The granularity of the starting PRB index is one PRB, with a minimum value of 0 PRBs and a maximum value of 2176 PRBs.

[0105] Figure 5 is a diagram of an exemplary PRS configuration 500 for PRS transmission for a given base station according to aspects of the present disclosure. In Figure 5 , the time level represents an increasing order from left to right. Each long rectangle represents a time slot, and each short (shaded) rectangle represents an OFDM symbol. The PRS configuration 500 identifies the PRS resources 512 and 514 of the PRS resource set 510 during which the base station transmits PRS. The PRS resource set 510 has an occasion length N of two (2) time slots PRS and a period T PRS (e.g., 160 subframes or 160 milliseconds). Thus, both PRS resources 512 and 514 are two consecutive time slots in length and repeat every T PRS subframes starting from the time slot in which the first symbol of the corresponding PRS resource appears.

[0106] In Figure 5 the example of, the PRS resource set 510 includes two PRS resources, the first PRS resource 512 (labeled as "PRS Resource 1" in Figure 5 ), and the second PRS resource 514 (labeled as "PRS Resource 2" in Figure 5 ). The PRS resource 512 and the PRS resource 514 can be transmitted on separate beams of the same base station. The PRS resource 512 has a symbol length N of two (2) symbols symb , and the PRS resource 514 has a symbol length N of four (4) symbols symb .

[0107] Each instance of the PRS resource set 510 as shown in instances 520a, 520b, and 520c includes an occasion of length '2' (i.e., N PRS = 2) for each PRS resource 512, 514 of the PRS resource set. Every T PRS sub - frames repeat the PRS resources 512 and 514 until the silence sequence period T REP . Therefore, a bitmap of length T REP will be required to indicate which occasions of instances 520A, 520b, and 520c are silent.

[0108] PRS and other types of positioning reference signals are used in many cellular network - based positioning technologies. Such positioning technologies include downlink - based, uplink - based, 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. During the OTDOA or DL - TDOA positioning process, the UE measures the difference between the time of arrival (ToA) of the reference signals (e.g., PRS, TRS, NRS, PTRS, CSI - RS, SSB, etc.) received from the base stations, which is called the Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD) or Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) measurement, and reports them to the positioning entity (e.g., UE, location server, serving base station, or other network components). More specifically, the UE receives in the assistance data the identifiers of the reference base station (e.g., serving base station) and multiple non - reference base stations. 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 can estimate the location of the UE. For DL - AoD positioning, the base station measures the angle of the downlink transmission beam used for communicating with the UE and other channel attributes (e.g., signal strength) to estimate the location of the UE.

[0109] 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 (such as SRS) transmitted by the UE. For UL-AoA positioning, the base station measures the angle of the uplink reception beam used to communicate with the UE and other channel attributes (e.g., gain level) to estimate the UE's position.

[0110] 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"). During the RTT process, the initiator (base station or UE) sends an RTT measurement signal (e.g., PRS or SRS) to the responder (UE or base station), and the responder sends an RTT response signal (e.g., SRS or PRS) back to the initiator. The RTT response signal includes the difference between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response signal, called the received-to-transmit (Rx-Tx) measurement. The initiator calculates the difference between the transmission time of the RTT measurement signal and the ToA of the RTT response signal, called the "Tx-Rx" measurement. From the Tx-Rx and Rx-Tx measurements, the propagation time (also known as "time of flight") between the initiator and the responder can be calculated. Based on the propagation time and the known speed of light, the distance between the initiator and the responder can be determined. For multi-RTT positioning, the UE performs the RTT process with multiple base stations so that its position can be triangulated based on the known positions of the base stations. The RTT and multi-RTT methods can be combined with other positioning techniques such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD to improve position accuracy.

[0111] 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, estimated timing, and signal strength of the detected neighboring base stations. Then the UE's position is estimated based on this information and the known positions of the base stations.

[0112] To assist positioning operations, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) can provide the UE with assistance data. For example, the assistance data can include the identifier of the base station (or the cell / TRP of the base station) from which it measures the reference signal, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., the number of consecutive positioning subframes, the period of the positioning subframe, the mute sequence, the hopping sequence, the reference signal identifier (ID), the reference signal bandwidth, etc.) and / or other parameters applicable to a specific positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data can come directly from the base station itself (e.g., in a periodically broadcast overhead message, etc.). In some cases, the UE may be able to detect neighboring network nodes by itself without using assistance data.

[0113] Location estimation may be referred to by other names, such as positioning estimation, position, orientation, position fixing, fixing, etc. Location estimation may be geodetic 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 a location. Location estimation may be further defined relative to some other known location or in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). Location estimation may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including a region or volume within which the location is expected to be included at a specified or default confidence level).

[0114] It has been agreed to limit the maximum number of DL-PRS resources configured for a UE across all TRPs within a defined measurement window. That is, the TRPs involved in a positioning session with a particular UE will configure PRS resources for the UE (under the guidance of a location server, such as location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272), such that all configured PRS resources are scheduled within a given measurement window. The length (i.e., duration) of the measurement window and the maximum number of PRS resources may be UE capabilities notified to the location server via, for example, LTE positioning protocol (LPP) signaling.

[0115] Each TRP may configure one or more PRS resource sets in each configured PRS instance (or PRS occasion), and each PRS instance may start at a certain slot offset from the start of the SFN and occur with a PRS period (i.e., T PRS ) occur. The measurement window occurs with the same period as the PRS period and starts at the same slot offset. The slot offset of the DL-PRS resource set can be configured to the UE using the DL-PRS resource set offset parameter. The DL-PRS resource set offset parameter (i.e., "DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset") defines the slot offset relative to the first slot (i.e., slot "0") of the SFN of the TRP that configures the DL-PRS resource set. That is, the DL-PRS resource set slot offset parameter indicates the slot in which the first DL-PRS resource of the first DL-PRS resource set of the PRS instance appears. The DL-PRS resource set offset parameter may have a value from 0 to the maximum resource offset value parameter (less than the period T PRS )).

[0116] The PRS period parameter indicates the period of DL-PRS resource allocation in each slot configured for a DL-PRS resource set. That is, all DL-PRS resources of a given PRS resource set have the same period. In one aspect, the value of the PRS period parameter can be selected from the set {4, 5, 8, 10, 16, 20, 32, 40, 64, 80, 160, 320, 640, 1280, 2560, 5120, 10240, 20480}. Note that a period of 20480 is not supported for a subcarrier spacing (SCS) of 15 kHz.

[0117] The UE can also be configured with one or more SRS resource sets. The SRS resources can be defined by a resource type parameter as well as period and offset parameters. The resource type parameter specifies the type of the SRS resource as periodic, semi-persistent, or aperiodic. The period and offset parameters specify the period and offset of semi-persistent and periodic SRS resources. All values can be provided in the form of "number of slots". Thus, for example, a value of "sl1" corresponds to a period of one slot, a value of "sl2" corresponds to a period of two slots, etc. For each period, the corresponding offset is given in number of slots. For example, for a period of "sl1", the offset is 0 slots.

[0118] Figure 6 FIG. 600 is a diagram of DL-PRS transmissions and UL-PRS transmissions between a TRP (labeled "TRP 1") and two UEs (labeled "UE 1" and "UE2") in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 6 Each epoch (e.g., "epoch 0", "epoch 1", etc.) shown in FIG. corresponds to a downlink or uplink PRS instance (PRS occasion) during which a transmitter (TRP 1, UE 1, or UE 2) transmits a PRS on the PRS resources of one or more PRS resource sets.

[0119] The time between the start of the SFN (labeled "SFN 0") and the first PRS transmission epoch (labeled "epoch 0") at TRP 1 is specified by the DL-PRS resource set slot offset parameter "DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset". The time between each PRS transmission epoch (e.g., "epoch 0" and "epoch 1") is specified by the DL-PRS period parameter "DL-PRS-Periodicity".

[0120] At the first UE (i.e., UE 1), the time between the start of the SFN (i.e., "SFN 0") and the first SRS transmission period ("Period 1") is specified by the uplink SRS slot offset parameter "UL-SRS-SlotOffset". The time between each SRS transmission period (e.g., "Period 1" and "Period 3") is specified by the uplink SRS period parameter "UL-SRS-Periodicity". The time between each SRS transmission period is also referred to as the measurement period.

[0121] At the second UE (i.e., UE 2), the time between the start of the SFN (i.e., "SFN 0") and the first SRS transmission period ("Period 0") is specified by the uplink SRS slot offset parameter "UL-SRS-SlotOffset". The time between each SRS transmission period (e.g., "Period 0" and "Period 2") is specified by the uplink SRS period parameter "UL-SRS-Periodicity". The time between each SRS transmission period is also referred to as the measurement period.

[0122] In Figure 6 the example of, TRP 1 can support multiple UEs (UE 1 and UE 2) using the time division multiplexing (TDM) method. That is, as shown in the figure, UE 1 sends SRS in "Period 1" and "Period 3", and UE 2 sends SRS in "Period 0" and "Period 2". Period pairs such as Period 3 of TRP 1 and Period 3 of UE 1 form an RTT pair (i.e., an RTT measurement signal and an RTT response signal).

[0123] Note that the maximum number of periods ("N") per SFN is based on the QoS of position estimation. The more periods, the higher the positioning accuracy.

[0124] Ideally, all measurements for generating a position location should be performed simultaneously. If measurements from different time points are used to generate a position location, UE movement and changes in the UE and base station clocks (referred to as "clock drift") may cause measurement errors, which may ultimately result in position errors. For example, if two measurements are taken with a 1-second interval, driving at a highway speed of 30 meters per second (m / s) may result in a measurement error of 30 meters (m) (i.e., 1s * 30m / s = 30m). Similarly, for two measurements taken with a 1-second interval, a UE clock drift of ten parts per billion may result in 10 nanoseconds (ns) (i.e., 1s * 10ns / s = 10ns), which is approximately a 3-meter measurement error. For commercial use cases in NR, accuracy targets of 3 meters to 10 meters are more stringent, and it is very important to minimize controllable error sources (different from multipath).

[0125] For multi-cell RTT, it is beneficial to perform and correlate the Rx-Tx offset measurements generated by the UE and the Tx-Rx offset measurements generated by the corresponding TRP as close as possible in time (where the TRP transmits the RTT measurement signal and the UE transmits the RTT response signal). Return reference Figure 6 , which shows an example of an RTT pair, where the scheduling of the DL-PRS transmission from TRP 1 and the SRS transmission from UE 1 are close in time, i.e., in period 5 (reporting / positioning cycle).

[0126] Continue Figure 6 In the example of [], the DL-PRS transmission is scheduled in various instances (periods) according to the parameters "DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset" and "DL-PRS-Periodicity". Similarly, the SRS can be scheduled in instances (periods) according to the parameters "SRS-Slot-Offset" and "SRS-Periodicity". However, in line with the on-demand nature of NR, there may be a start instance specified during the session when the SRS will be transmitted for the first time by a given UE (e.g., UE 1 or UE 2). The start of the SRS transmission for positioning can be given, for example, by an SRS activation command. Similarly, the session may be limited in time by the transmission of a given QoS or SRS deactivation command.

[0127] For simplicity, the SRS instances (periods) are numbered according to the closest DL-PRS instance (period). Note that in an RTT pair, the corresponding SRS instance can occur before or after the DL-PRS instance. In Figure 6 , this is referred to as the DL to UL offset. Additionally, different UEs can utilize different sets of SRS instances. Large-scale (inter-instance) and small-scale (intra-instance) TDM provide the opportunity to support more UEs while minimizing signal congestion / interference on the radio link and reducing the peak processing load requirements on the base station (e.g., gNB).

[0128] Currently, as described above, all DL-PRS resources configured for the UE across all TRPs are scheduled within the measurement window. The present disclosure proposes that for a given UE involved in a positioning session (e.g., multi-RTT), all DL-PRS resources and all UL-PRS (or SRS) resources on all involved TRPs are configured to be within the same measurement / transmission window. In this way, the UE expects the "SRS-Slot-offset" and "SRS-Periodicity" parameters to be configured in the SRS resources for positioning such that any SRS transmission is within [-X, X] milliseconds of at least one DL-PRS resource from each TRP. For example, X can be 25 milliseconds. This RS configuration can achieve measurements that are close enough in time at both the UE and the TRP.

[0129] In one aspect, a limit on the maximum number of UL-PRS resources configured for the UE across all TRPs within the measurement / transmission window can be defined. This limit can be signaled by the UE as UE capability (e.g., signaled to the location server via LPP signaling). In one aspect, the UE can report different maximum lengths based on the frequency range in which the UE is operating (e.g., FR1, Fr2) or the frequency band in which the UE is operating, etc.

[0130] Figure 7 FIG. 700 is a diagram of a common measurement / transmission window 710 according to an aspect of the present disclosure, during which DL-PRS resources 720 and UL-PRS resources 730 are scheduled for a given UE. In Figure 7 the example, the length of the measurement / transmission window 710 is 16 milliseconds and it occurs every 160 milliseconds. However, as will be understood, this is merely an example and many other configurations of the measurement / transmission window 710 are possible.

[0131] DL-PRS transmissions on the DL-PRS resources 720 and UL-PRS transmissions on the UL-PRS resources 730 within the measurement / transmission window 710 are not necessarily related to each other. That is, while the UL-PRS resources 730 can be used to send UL-PRS in response to DL-PRS measured on the DL-PRS resources 720, this may not always be the case. For example, at least some of the DL-PRS resources 720 and UL-PRS resources 730 can be used for different positioning sessions. For example, the DL-PRS resources 720 can be used for one type of positioning session (e.g., DL-TDOA), while the UL-PRS resources 730 can be used for a different type of positioning session (e.g., UL-TDOA).

[0132] In addition, while Figure 7The UL-PRS resource 730 is shown after the DL-PRS resource 720, but since they are not necessarily related to each other, they can appear in any order and can even be interspersed with each other. In addition, although Figure 7 three DL-PRS resources 720 and three UL-PRS resources 730 are shown, it will be understood that each can be more or less than three, and there can be different numbers of DL-PRS resources 720 and UL-PRS resources 730.

[0133] The length / duration and period of the measurement / transmission window 710 may not be signaled explicitly to the UE. Instead, it is implicit based on the configuration of the DL-PRS resource 720 and the UL-PRS resource 730. More specifically, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may configure the DL-PRS resource 720 for the UE within the measurement / transmission window 710 and configure the UL-PRS resource 730 for the UE within the same measurement / transmission window 710. Therefore, the length / duration of the measurement / transmission window 710 is from the first DL-PRS resource 720 or UL-PRS resource 730 of the PRS instance (here the DL-PRS resource 720, labeled "DL-PRS1") to the last DL-PRS resource 720 or UL-PRS resource 730 of the PRS instance (here the UL-PRS resource 730, labeled "UL-PRS 3"). As described above, the first downlink or uplink PRS resource of the PRS instance starts at a slot offset (as specified in the DL-PRS resource set slot offset of the UL-PRS slot offset parameter). The last downlink or uplink PRS resource of the PRS instance appears before the end of the PRS period, at which point a new PRS instance and measurement / transmission window 710 start and can correspond to the maximum resource offset value. Therefore, the measurement / transmission window 710 can be roughly commensurate with the downlink or uplink PRS instance, except that it includes downlink and uplink PRS resources during the same time period, which means that the downlink and uplink PRS instances both have the same period. That is, all DL-PRS resources and all UL-PRS resources on all TRPs are scheduled within the same window for each DL-PRS period equal to the UL-PRS period.

[0134] In one aspect, the duration of the measurement / transmission window 710 can always be part of a period (i.e., T PRS ). For example, the duration can correspond to the range ["DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset", "DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset" + T PRS / 10] or the range ["DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset" - T PRS / 10, "DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset" + T PRS / 10]. The selected / computed duration can be rounded up to the next time slot / subframe boundary. For example, if T PRS = 5 ms, then T PRS / 10 = 0.5 ms, so the duration can be rounded up to the range ["DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset" - 1, "DL-PRS-ResourceSetSlotOffset" + 1] ms.

[0135] In one aspect, for small periodicities (i.e., less than a threshold), the duration of the measurement / transmission window 710 can be equal to the periodicity, but for larger periodicities (i.e., greater than the threshold), the duration of the measurement / transmission window 710 can be less than the periodicity. For example, the threshold can be a period of 32 time slots or 32 milliseconds.

[0136] In one aspect, the measurement / transmission window 710 can correspond to the DL-PRS measurement window, the parameters of which have been described above. In this case, the location server can simply schedule all UL-PRS resources for the UE within the DL-PRS measurement window.

[0137] In one aspect, although the length of the measurement / transmission window 710 may not be signaled to the UE, the UE can signal the length of the measurement / transmission window 710 as a UE capability (signaled to the location server via LPP signaling), and similarly it can signal the length of the DL-PRS measurement window. Then, the location server can schedule the DL-PRS resources 720 and UL-PRS resources 730 within the signaled measurement / transmission window 710.

[0138] As described above, all UL-PRS (or SRS for positioning) resources can be sent within a common measurement / transmission window, which can correspond to the currently defined DL-PRS measurement window. However, multiple DL-PRS measurement windows may be defined, and UL-PRS needs to be sent within these measurement windows. For example, instead of one DL-PRS measurement window that is expected to receive all DL-PRS resource sets, each DL-PRS resource set can have a DL-PRS measurement window. In this case, the UL-PRS resources can be scheduled within those DL-PRS measurement windows, making them also measurement / transmission windows.

[0139] Figure 8FIG. 800 is a diagram of a plurality of measurement / transmission windows 810 in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, during which DL-PRS resources 820 and UL-PRS resources 830 are scheduled for a given UE. In Figure 8 the example of, the first measurement / transmission window 810A includes a single DL-PRS resource 820 (meaning that there is only one DL-PRS resource 820 in the DL-PRS resource set and no UL-PRS resources 830). The second measurement / transmission window 810b also includes a single DL-PRS resource 820, but also includes UL-PRS resources 830. As will be appreciated, this is merely an example, and there may be more or fewer DL and UL-PRS resources in the measurement / transmission window 810.

[0140] There are several benefits to sending downlink and uplink PRS in the same measurement / transmission window. For example, a UE may experience a certain amount of clock drift, so if the downlink and uplink PRS transmissions for a given positioning session are too far apart in time (e.g., outside the measurement / transmission window), the clock may have drifted enough to affect measurement accuracy. As another example, if the UE is in motion, then if the downlink and uplink PRS transmissions are outside the same measurement / transmission window, the change in the UE's position between the downlink and uplink PRS transmissions for a given positioning session may affect accuracy.

[0141] Figure 9 FIG. 900 illustrates an exemplary method 900 of wireless communication in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Method 900 may be performed by a UE (e.g., any UE described herein) participating in a positioning session with a plurality of TRPs.

[0142] At 910, the UE receives DL-PRS configuration for one or more DL-PRS resource sets specifying DL-PRS instances, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among a plurality of TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of one or more DL-PRS resources of one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets. In one aspect, operation 910 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, the processing system 332, the memory component 340, and / or the positioning component 342, any one or all of which may be considered a component for performing the operation.

[0143] At 920, the UE receives a UL-PRS configuration that specifies one or more UL-PRS resource sets, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where one or more UL-PRSs are scheduled within a time window. In one aspect, operation 920 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, the processing system 332, the memory component 340, and / or the positioning component 342, any one or all of which may be considered a component for performing this operation.

[0144] At 930, the UE optionally performs measurements of DL-PRS transmissions on one or more DL-PRS resources of one or more DL-PRS resource sets during the time window and reports the measurements of the DL-PRS transmissions to a location server. In one aspect, operation 930 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, the processing system 332, the memory component 340, and / or the positioning component 342, any one or all of which may be considered a component for performing this operation.

[0145] At 940, the UE optionally transmits at least one UL-PRS on one or more UL-PRS resources during the time window. In one aspect, operation 940 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, the processing system 332, the memory component 340, and / or the positioning component 342, any one or all of which may be considered a component for performing this operation.

[0146] Figure 10 An exemplary method 1000 of wireless communication in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. Method 1000 may be performed by a positioning entity, such as a location server 230, an LMF 270, or an SLP 272.

[0147] At 1010, a positioning entity sends a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of a DL-PRS instance to a UE (e.g., any UE described herein) participating in a positioning session with multiple TRPs, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to the DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets. In one aspect, operation 1010 may be performed by network interface 390, processing system 394, memory component 396, and / or positioning module 398, any one or all of which may be considered a component for performing the operation.

[0148] At 1020, the positioning entity sends a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets to the UE, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where the one or more UL-PRS are scheduled within a time window. In one aspect, operation 1020 may be performed by network interface 390, processing system 394, memory component 396, and / or positioning module 398, any one or all of which may be considered a component for performing the operation.

[0149] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any of a variety of different technologies and techniques may be used to represent information and signals. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the above description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0150] In addition, those skilled in the art will appreciate 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 combinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, the various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0151] Various illustrative logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented or performed using a general-purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an 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. The 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, e.g., a DSP and a microprocessor, a combination of multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0152] 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 both. 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. The exemplary 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 integrated into 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.

[0153] In one or more exemplary aspects, the described functionality may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions 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 the desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Further, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if 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. Disk and optical disks as used herein include compact disk (CD), laser disk, optical disk, digital versatile disk (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disk where disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while optical disks reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0154] Although the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative aspects of the present disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications may be made herein without departing from the scope of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims. The functions, steps, and / or acts of the method claims according to the aspects of the disclosure described herein need not be performed in any particular order. Further, although the elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless expressly stated to the contrary.

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) participating in a positioning session with a plurality of transmit-receive points (TRPs), comprising: receiving a downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets, wherein each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP of the plurality of TRPs, configured with a transmission period, comprising one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, wherein each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, wherein one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, wherein all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and wherein the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and receiving an uplink PRS (UL-PRS) configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets, wherein each UL-PRS resource set comprises one or more UL-PRS resources, and wherein the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: performing measurements of DL-PRS transmissions on one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets during the time window.

3. The method according to claim 2, further comprising: reporting one or more of the measurements of the DL-PRS transmissions to a location server.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: transmitting at least one UL-PRS on the one or more UL-PRS resources during the time window.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the maximum duration of the time window is a UE capability, and the method further comprises: sending the maximum duration of the time window to a location server.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the maximum duration of the time window is based on a frequency range or frequency band to which the UE can tune.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the duration of the time window is a part of the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein all of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets have the same transmission period.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the duration of the time window is rounded up to a time slot or subframe boundary.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein based on the duration defined by the configured transmission period being greater than a threshold, the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein The time window corresponds to a DL-PRS measurement window, and the method further includes: receiving a time slot offset parameter that specifies a start time slot for the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and receiving a maximum resource offset value parameter that specifies a maximum number of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance.

12. The method according to claim 1, further including: receiving a time slot offset parameter that specifies a start time slot for the one or more DL-PRS resource sets or the one or more UL-PRS resources; and receiving a maximum resource offset value parameter that specifies a maximum number of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets or a maximum number of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the time window is configured based on the UE being configured to report UE Rx-Tx measurements received by the UE.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein each of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance is associated with at least one of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least some of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance are not associated with any of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance are configured across all the plurality of TRPs.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein all the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

18. The method according to claim 1, wherein: not all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window, and based on not all of the one or more UL-PRS resources being scheduled within the time window, the positioning session has a lower accuracy requirement than the positioning session when all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

19. A method of wireless communication performed by a positioning entity, including: Send a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of DL-PRS instances to a user equipment (UE) participating in a positioning session with multiple transmit-receive points (TRPs), where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, and includes one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets for scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; And Send a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more uplink PRS, i.e., UL-PRS resource sets, to the UE, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

20. The method according to claim 19, further comprising: Receive, from the UE, one or more measurements of DL-PRS transmissions on one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets.

21. The method according to claim 19, wherein, the maximum duration of the time window is a UE capability, and the method further comprises: Receive, from the UE, the maximum duration of the time window.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein, the maximum duration of the time window is based on the frequency range or frequency band to which the UE can tune.

23. The method according to claim 19, wherein, the duration of the time window is a part of the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets.

24. The method according to claim 19, wherein, all of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets have the same transmission period.

25. The method according to claim 19, wherein, the duration of the time window is rounded up to a time slot or subframe boundary.

26. The method according to claim 19, wherein, based on the duration defined by the configured transmission period being greater than a threshold, the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period.

27. The method according to claim 19, wherein, the time window corresponds to a DL-PRS measurement window, and the method further comprises: Send to the UE a time slot offset parameter specifying a start time slot for the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and Send a maximum resource offset value parameter specifying the maximum number of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the PRS instance to the UE.

28. The method according to claim 19, further comprises: Send a time slot offset parameter specifying a start time slot for the one or more DL-PRS resource sets or the one or more UL-PRS resources to the UE; and Send a maximum resource offset value parameter specifying the maximum number of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets or the maximum number of the one or more UL-PRS resources to the UE.

29. The method according to claim 19, further comprises: Send the DL-PRS configuration to the plurality of TRPs.

30. The method according to claim 19, wherein The time window is configured based on the UE being configured to report UE received transmission UE Rx-Tx measurements.

31. The method according to claim 19, wherein Each of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance is associated with at least one of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

32. The method according to claim 19, wherein At least some of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance are not associated with any of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

33. The method according to claim 19, wherein The one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance are configured across all the plurality of TRPs.

34. The method according to claim 19, wherein All the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

35. The method according to claim 19, wherein: Not all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window, and Based on not all of the one or more UL-PRS resources being scheduled within the time window, the positioning session accuracy requirement is lower than the positioning session accuracy requirement when all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

36. A 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: During a positioning session with multiple transmit-receive points (TRPs), receive, via the at least one transceiver, a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) resource sets, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets for scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and Receive, via the at least one transceiver, a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more uplink PRS (UL-PRS) resource sets, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

37. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the at least one processor is further configured to: During the time window, perform measurements of DL-PRS transmissions on one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets.

38. The UE according to claim 37, wherein, the at least one processor is further configured to: Report one or more of the measurements of the DL-PRS transmissions to a location server.

39. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the at least one processor is further configured to: Cause the at least one transceiver to transmit at least one UL-PRS on the one or more UL-PRS resources during the time window.

40. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the maximum duration of the time window is a UE capability, and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: Cause the at least one transceiver to send the maximum duration of the time window to a location server.

41. The UE according to claim 40, wherein, the maximum duration of the time window is based on the frequency range or frequency band to which the UE can tune.

42. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the duration of the time window is a part of the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets.

43. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, all of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets have the same transmission period.

44. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the duration of the time window is rounded up to a time slot or subframe boundary.

45. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, based on the duration defined by the configured transmission period being greater than a threshold, the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period.

46. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the time window corresponds to a DL-PRS measurement window, and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, a time slot offset parameter specifying a start time slot for the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and receive, via the at least one transceiver, a maximum resource offset value parameter specifying a maximum number of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets for the DL-PRS instance.

47. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the at least one processor is further configured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, a time slot offset parameter specifying a start time slot for the one or more DL-PRS resource sets or the one or more UL-PRS resources; and receive, via the at least one transceiver, a maximum resource offset value parameter specifying a maximum number of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets or a maximum number of the UL-PRS resources of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

48. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the time window is configured based on the UE being configured to report UE received transmit UE Rx-Tx measurements.

49. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, each of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance is associated with at least one of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

50. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, at least some of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance are not associated with any of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

51. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance are configured across all the plurality of TRPs.

52. The UE according to claim 36, wherein, all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

53. The UE according to claim 36, wherein: not all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window, and based on not all of the one or more UL-PRS resources being scheduled within the time window, the positioning session has a lower accuracy requirement than the positioning session when all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

54. A positioning entity, comprising: a memory; at least one network interface; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one processor, the at least one processor being configured to: Cause the at least one network interface to send a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of DL-PRS instances to a user equipment (UE) participating in a positioning session with a plurality of transmit receive points (TRPs), wherein each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the plurality of TRPs, configured with a transmission period, and includes one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, wherein each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, wherein one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, wherein all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets for scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and wherein the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and Cause the at least one network interface to send a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more uplink PRS (UL-PRS) resource sets to the UE, wherein each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and wherein all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

55. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, the at least one processor is further configured to: Receive, via the at least one network interface, one or more measurements of DL-PRS transmissions on one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets from the UE.

56. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, the maximum duration of the time window is a UE capability, and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: Receive, via the at least one network interface, the maximum duration of the time window from the UE.

57. The positioning entity according to claim 56, wherein, the maximum duration of the time window is based on a frequency range or frequency band to which the UE can tune.

58. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, the duration of the time window is part of the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets.

59. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, all of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets have the same transmission period.

60. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, the duration of the time window is rounded up to a time slot or subframe boundary.

61. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, based on the duration defined by the configured transmission period being greater than a threshold, the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period.

62. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, The time window corresponds to a DL-PRS measurement window, and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: Cause the at least one network interface to send to the UE a time slot offset parameter specifying a start time slot for the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; and Cause the at least one network interface to send to the UE a maximum resource offset value parameter specifying a maximum number of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the PRS instance.

63. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to: Cause the at least one network interface to send to the UE a time slot offset parameter specifying a start time slot for the one or more DL-PRS resource sets or the one or more UL-PRS resource sets; and Cause the at least one network interface to send to the UE a maximum resource offset value parameter specifying a maximum number of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets or a maximum number of the UL-PRS resources of the one or more UL-PRS resource sets.

64. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to: Cause the at least one network interface to send the DL-PRS configuration to the plurality of TRPs.

65. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein the time window is configured based on the UE being configured to report UE received transmission UERx-Tx measurement.

66. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, Each of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance is associated with at least one of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

67. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, At least some of the DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance are not associated with any of the one or more UL-PRS resources.

68. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, The one or more DL-PRS resource sets of the DL-PRS instance are configured across all the plurality of TRPs.

69. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein, All the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

70. The positioning entity according to claim 54, wherein: Not all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window, and Based on not all of the one or more UL-PRS resources being scheduled within the time window, the accuracy requirement of the positioning session is lower than the accuracy requirement of the positioning session when all of the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

71. A user equipment UE, comprising: A component for receiving a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) resource sets during a positioning session with multiple transmit-receive points (TRPs), where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; And A component for receiving a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more uplink PRS (UL-PRS) resource sets, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

72. A positioning entity, Comprising: A component for sending a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of a downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) instance to a user equipment (UE) participating in a positioning session with multiple transmit-receive points (TRPs), where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; And A component for sending a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more uplink PRS (UL-PRS) resource sets to the UE, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

73. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions Comprising: At least one instruction to direct a user equipment (UE) participating in a positioning session with multiple transmit-receive points (TRPs) to receive a downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets, where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; And At least one instruction to direct the UE to receive an uplink PRS (UL-PRS) configuration specifying one or more UL-PRS resource sets, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

74. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions comprising: At least one instruction to direct a positioning entity to send a DL-PRS configuration specifying one or more DL-PRS resource sets of a DL-PRS instance to a user equipment (UE) participating in a positioning session with multiple transmit-receive (TRPs), where each DL-PRS resource set is associated with a TRP among the multiple TRPs, configured with a transmission period, including one or more DL-PRS resources transmitted according to the configured transmission period of the DL-PRS resource set, where each DL-PRS resource is scheduled to repeat on one or more consecutive time slots, where one transmission instance of the repetition of the one or more DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets corresponds to a DL-PRS instance, where all DL-PRS resources of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets scheduling the DL-PRS instance are scheduled within a time window, and where the duration of the time window is less than the duration defined by the configured transmission period of one of the one or more DL-PRS resource sets; And At least one instruction to direct the positioning entity to send a UL-PRS configuration specifying one or more uplink PRS (UL-PRS) resource sets to the UE, where each UL-PRS resource set includes one or more UL-PRS resources, and where the one or more UL-PRS resources are scheduled within the time window.

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