Unlicensed range signaling

Abstract

The present disclosure provides systems, methods, and apparatus for wireless communications, which may allow a user equipment (UE) to determine its relative position and distance to other UEs more accurately than allowed by standard vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications. In some implementations, a UE (or another wireless communication device) participating in a positioning operation may send and receive positioning signals on an unlicensed radio band, and may send and receive non-positioning signals on a V2X channel of a radio access network (RAN) (or on another suitable channel). The positioning signal may include a positioning reference signal (PRS) associated with an observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) positioning operation, a ranging signal associated with a round-trip time (RTT) positioning operation, or other suitable signals from which the position of the UE may be determined.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications and, more particularly, to positioning operations in wireless communication systems. Background Art

[0002] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content, such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, and the like. These systems may be able to support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources, such as time, frequency, and power. Examples of such multiple access systems include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, and orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems (such as long term evolution (LTE) systems or fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) systems). A wireless multiple access communication system may include multiple base stations or access network nodes, each of which simultaneously supports communication for multiple communication devices, which may be further referred to as user equipment (UE).

[0003] The wireless communication system may include or support a network for vehicle-based communications (also referred to as vehicle-to-everything (V2X), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) networks, and cellular V2X (C-V2X) networks). The vehicle-based communication network may provide always-on telematics for which UEs, such as vehicle UEs (v-UEs), may communicate directly with the network (V2N), pedestrian UEs (V2P), infrastructure equipment (V2I), and other v-UEs. Summary of the invention

[0004] The systems, methods and devices of the present disclosure each have several innovative aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible for the desirable attributes disclosed herein.

[0005] An innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. The method may be performed by a device of a user equipment (UE) and may include: receiving location assistance data, the location assistance data including a list of candidate transmit reception points (TRPs) for positioning operations; and receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) from each of a plurality of candidate TRPs on an unlicensed fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) radio band. In some implementations, the method may also include: determining a reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurement result based at least in part on the PRS received on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band; and sending the determined RSTD measurement result to a location server.

[0006] In some implementations, the location assistance data may include a PRS configuration indicating the transmission time of the PRS from each candidate TRP or one or more of the unlicensed 5G NR radio bands on which each of the PRSs is received. In some instances, the PRS configuration may indicate the bandwidth, subframe offset, periodicity, duration, silence mode, and silence sequence periodicity of the corresponding TRP. The location assistance data may also include one or more of identification information of the candidate TRP, timing information of the candidate TRP, PRS configuration of the candidate TRP, and location information of the candidate TRP. In some instances, the identification information of the corresponding candidate TRP may be one or more of a physical cell ID (PID), a global cell ID (GCI), or a UE ID.

[0007] In some implementations, the method may further include receiving a location measurement request on a channel of the 5G NR access network before receiving the location assistance data. In some instances, the channel may be a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) frequency sub-band of the 5G NR access network, an unlicensed 5G NR radio band, or a licensed 5G NR radio band. In some other instances, the channel may be or include one or more unlicensed national information infrastructure (UNII) radio bands, such as a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band.

[0008] In some other implementations, the method may also include: sending one or more PRSs to at least one of a plurality of candidate TRPs on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band; and performing a round-trip time (RTT) ranging operation using at least one candidate TRP based at least in part on the received PRS and the one or more transmitted PRSs.

[0009] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented in a wireless communication device. The wireless communication device may include: a memory, at least one network interface, and a processing system communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one network interface. In some implementations, the processing system may be configured to: receive location assistance data, the location assistance data including a list of candidate transmit-receive points (TRPs) for positioning operations; and receive a PRS from each of a plurality of candidate TRPs on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band. The processing system may also be configured to determine an RSTD measurement result based at least in part on the PRS received on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band; and send the determined RSTD measurement result to a location server.

[0010] In some implementations, the location assistance data may include a PRS configuration indicating the transmission time of the PRS from each candidate TRP or one or more of the unlicensed 5G NR radio bands on which each of the PRSs is received. In some instances, the PRS configuration may indicate the bandwidth, subframe offset, periodicity, duration, silence mode, and silence sequence periodicity of the corresponding TRP. The location assistance data may also include one or more of identification information of the candidate TRP, timing information of the candidate TRP, PRS configuration of the candidate TRP, and location information of the candidate TRP. In some instances, the identification information of the corresponding candidate TRP may be one or more of a PID, a GCI, or a UE ID.

[0011] In some implementations, the processing system may also be configured to receive a location measurement request on a channel of the 5G NR access network before receiving the location assistance data. In some instances, the channel may be a V2X frequency sub-band of the 5G NR access network, an unlicensed 5G NR radio band, or a licensed 5G NR radio band. In some other instances, the channel may be or include one or more UNII radio bands, such as a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band.

[0012] In some other implementations, the processing system may also be configured to send one or more PRSs to at least one of a plurality of candidate TRPs on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band; and perform an RTT ranging operation using at least one candidate TRP based at least in part on the received PRS and the one or more transmitted PRSs.

[0013] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by a device of a UE and may include: receiving a PRS configuration; and sending a PRS sequence on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band based on the received PRS configuration. In some instances, the PRS configuration may be received on a channel including a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, a licensed radio band of a 5G NR access network, or one of the unlicensed 5G NR radio bands. The received PRS configuration may identify the unlicensed 5G NR radio band on which the UE will send the PRS sequence.

[0014] In some implementations, the UE may transmit a PRS sequence on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band using short control signaling without medium sensing. In some instances, the received PRS configuration may allocate a first CET window for PRS transmissions from the UE in each of a plurality of time periods, and may allocate one or more other CET windows for PRS transmissions from one or more wireless nodes in each of a plurality of time periods. The time period may correspond to an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on an unlicensed radio band, and each of the CET windows may correspond to a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on an unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0015] In some implementations, sending the PRS sequence may include: contending for channel access on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band using a Class 2 LBT channel access mechanism; obtaining access to the unlicensed 5G NR radio band for a duration based on the contention; and sending the PRS sequence on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during at least a portion of the duration. In some instances, the received PRS configuration may allocate a first PRS window to the UE for PRS transmission during the time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission during the time period. The time period may correspond to an observation period defined for short control signaling transmission on the unlicensed radio band, and each of the PRS windows may correspond to a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0016] In some other implementations, sending the PRS sequence may include: contending for channel access on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism for the highest priority traffic class; obtaining access to the unlicensed 5G NR radio band within a channel occupation time (COT) based on the contention; and sending the PRS sequence on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during at least a portion of the COT. In some instances, the received PRS configuration may allocate a first PRS window to the UE for PRS transmission within a time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission within the time period. The time period may be independent of an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on the unlicensed radio band, and each of the CET windows may be independent of the total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0017] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented in a wireless communication device. The wireless communication device may include: a memory, at least one network interface, and a processing system communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one network interface. In some implementations, the processing system may be configured to: receive a PRS configuration; and send a PRS sequence on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band based on the received PRS configuration. In some instances, the PRS configuration may be received on a channel including a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, a licensed radio band of a 5G NR access network, or one of the unlicensed 5G NR radio bands. The received PRS configuration may identify the unlicensed 5G NR radio band on which the wireless communication device will send the PRS sequence.

[0018] In some implementations, the wireless communication device may transmit a PRS sequence on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band using short control signaling without medium sensing. In some instances, the received PRS configuration may allocate a first CET window for PRS transmissions from the wireless communication device in each of a plurality of time periods, and may allocate one or more other CET windows for PRS transmissions from one or more wireless nodes in each of a plurality of time periods. The time period may correspond to an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on an unlicensed radio band, and each of the CET windows may correspond to a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on an unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0019] In some implementations, the processing system may be configured to send a PRS sequence by: contending for channel access on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band using a Class 2 LBT channel access mechanism; obtaining access to the unlicensed 5G NR radio band for a duration based on the contention; and sending the PRS sequence on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during at least a portion of the duration. In some instances, the received PRS configuration may allocate a first PRS window to a wireless communication device for PRS transmission during a time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission during the time period. The time period may correspond to an observation period defined for short control signaling transmission on the unlicensed radio band, and each of the PRS windows may correspond to a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0020] In some other implementations, the processing system may be configured to send a PRS sequence by: contending for channel access on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism for a highest priority traffic class; obtaining access to the unlicensed 5G NR radio band within a COT based on the contention; and sending the PRS sequence on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during at least a portion of the COT. In some instances, the received PRS configuration may allocate a first PRS window to a wireless communication device for PRS transmission during a time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission during the time period. The time period may be independent of an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on the unlicensed radio band, and each of the CET windows may be independent of a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0021] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by a device of a UE and may include: receiving location assistance data on a channel of a radio access network (RAN), the location assistance data including a list of candidate transmit reception points (TRPs) for positioning operations; receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) from each of a plurality of candidate TRPs on an unlicensed frequency band; and determining positioning information of the UE based at least in part on the received PRS. The channel may be a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) frequency subband of a fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) access network. The unlicensed frequency band may be one or more unlicensed national information infrastructure (UNII) radio bands (such as one or more of a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band). In some implementations, determining the positioning information may include determining a reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurement result based at least in part on the received PRS. The method may also include determining a location of the UE based at least in part on the determined RSTD measurement, sending the determined RSTD measurement to a location server, or both.

[0022] The location assistance data may also include one or more of identification information of the candidate TRP, timing information of the candidate TRP, PRS configuration of the candidate TRP, and location information of the candidate TRP. In some implementations, the location assistance data may also include the transmission time of the PRS from each of the multiple candidate TRPs, and may identify the unlicensed frequency band on which each of the PRSs is transmitted. The identification information of the corresponding candidate TRP may include one or more of a physical cell ID (PID), a global cell ID (GCI), or a UEID. The PRS configuration may include the bandwidth, subframe offset, periodicity, duration, silence mode, and silence sequence periodicity of the corresponding TRP. In some implementations, the PRS configuration may also identify the unlicensed frequency band on which the corresponding TRP transmits the PRS.

[0023] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by an apparatus of a UE and may include: receiving a PRS configuration on a channel of a RAN; and sending a PRS sequence on an unlicensed frequency band based on the received PRS configuration. The channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, and the unlicensed frequency band may be one or more UNII radio bands.

[0024] In some implementations, a PRS sequence may be sent on an unlicensed frequency band using short control signaling without medium sensing. The received PRS configuration may allocate a first CET window for PRS transmissions from a UE in each of a plurality of time periods, and may allocate one or more other CET windows for PRS transmissions from one or more wireless nodes in each of a plurality of time periods. The received PRS configuration may also include CET window allocations. In some implementations, the time period may correspond to an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on an unlicensed frequency band, and each of the CET windows may correspond to a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on an unlicensed frequency band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0025] In other implementations, sending the PRS sequence may include: contending for medium access on the unlicensed frequency band using a Class 2 LBT protocol; obtaining access to the unlicensed frequency band for a duration based on the contention; and sending the PRS sequence on the unlicensed frequency band during at least a portion of the duration. The received PRS configuration may allocate a first PRS window to the UE for PRS transmission during the time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission during the time period. In some implementations, the time period may correspond to an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on the unlicensed frequency band, and each of the CET windows may correspond to a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed frequency band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0026] In some other implementations, sending the PRS sequence may include: contending for medium access on the unlicensed frequency band using a Class 4 LBT media access protocol for the highest priority traffic class; obtaining access to the unlicensed frequency band within the COT based on the contention; and sending the PRS sequence on the unlicensed frequency band during at least a portion of the duration. The received PRS configuration may allocate a first PRS window to the UE for PRS transmission during the time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission during the time period. In some implementations, the time period may be independent of an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on the unlicensed frequency band, and each of the CET windows may be independent of the total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed frequency band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0027] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by a device of a UE and may include: determining a schedule for sending a PRS; sending the determined schedule to one or more wireless nodes on a channel of a RAN; and sending a PRS sequence on an unlicensed frequency band based on the determined schedule. In some implementations, the channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network. In some instances, sending a PRS sequence includes contending for channel access on an unlicensed radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism. In some other implementations, the channel may be a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) of a RAN. The unlicensed frequency band may be one or more UNII radio bands. In some instances, the determined schedule may include identification information of one or more wireless nodes.

[0028] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by a device of a UE and may include: receiving a request to send a PRS sequence on a channel of a radio access network RAN; and sending the PRS sequence on an unlicensed frequency band based on the request. The channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, and the unlicensed frequency band may be one or more UNII radio bands. In some implementations, sending the PRS sequence may include contending for media access on an unlicensed frequency band using an LBT media access protocol. In some instances, the PRS sequence may be sent using short control signaling. In some other instances, the PRS sequence may be sent during a CET window assigned to the UE. The CET window corresponds to the total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on an unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during an observation period.

[0029] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by a device of a UE and may include: sending a request for sending a PRS sequence for multiple other UEs on a channel of a RAN; and receiving the requested PRS sequence from at least one of the multiple other UEs on an unlicensed radio band. The channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, and the unlicensed frequency band may be one or more UNII radio bands. In some implementations, the request may be a unicast message identifying each of the multiple other UEs for sending the PRS sequence. In some other implementations, the request may be a multicast message identifying a group of other UEs for sending the PRS sequence. In some other implementations, the request may identify a group of other UEs located within a specified area. Additionally or alternatively, the requested PRS may be a sidelink PRS.

[0030] In some instances, the request is a unicast message identifying each of a plurality of other UEs for transmitting a PRS sequence. In other instances, the request is a multicast message identifying a group of other UEs for transmitting a PRS sequence. In some other instances, the request identifies a group of other UEs located within a specified area. In some other instances, the request identifies a group of other UEs located within a specified area. In some other instances, the requested PRS is a sidelink PRS.

[0031] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by a device of a UE and may include: contending for channel access on an unlicensed frequency band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism; obtaining access to the unlicensed radio band within a COT based on the contention; sending a message including a request to send a PRS sequence for multiple other UEs on a channel of the RAN; and receiving the requested PRS sequence from at least one of the multiple other UEs on the unlicensed radio band during a portion of the COT. In some implementations, the Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism may be an eCCA mechanism without exponential backoff. In some instances, the message allocates a unique portion of the COT to each of the multiple other UEs for sending the PRS sequence. The channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, and the unlicensed frequency band may be one or more UNII radio bands. In some instances, the one or more UNII radio bands may include one or more of a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band.

[0032] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented as a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method may be performed by a device of a UE and may include: contending for channel access on an unlicensed radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism; obtaining access to the unlicensed radio band within a COT; sending a PRS sequence to multiple other UEs on the unlicensed radio band during the COT; determining whether any of the multiple other UEs received the PRS sequence; and selectively adjusting a contention window size for a next channel access contention operation based on the determination. In some instances, the determination may include receiving a feedback message indicating a signal strength of the PRS from at least one of the multiple other UEs; and selectively adjusting the contention window size based on the indicated signal strength.

[0033] The channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, and the unlicensed frequency band may be one or more UNII radio bands. The method may also include: increasing a contention window size based on the indicated signal strength being less than a value; and maintaining the contention window size based on the indicated signal strength being greater than the value. In some implementations, the Class 4 LBT media access protocol may be an eCCA procedure without exponential backoff.

[0034] Details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in the present invention are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the following description. Other features, aspects, and advantages will become apparent from the description, drawings, and claims. It should be noted that the relative dimensions of the following schematic diagrams may not be drawn to scale. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] Figure 1 A schematic diagram illustrating an example wireless communication system is shown.

[0036] Figure 2A An example of the first 5G NR frame is shown.

[0037] Figure 2B Example downlink (DL) channels within a 5G NR timeslot are shown.

[0038] Figure 2C An example of a second 5G NR frame is shown.

[0039] Figure 2D An example uplink (UL) channel within a 5G NR timeslot is shown.

[0040] Figure 3 A schematic diagram illustrating an example base station and user equipment (UE) is shown.

[0041] Figure 4 An example vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication system is shown.

[0042] Figure 5 A spectrum for an example 5 GHz frequency band is shown.

[0043] Fig. 6A A sequence diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some implementations.

[0044] Figure 6B A sequence diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0045] Figure 6C A sequence diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0046] Fig.6D A sequence diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0047] Fig. 6E A sequence diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0048] Figure 7 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some implementations.

[0049] Fig. 8A A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some implementations.

[0050] Figure 8B A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some implementations.

[0051] Figure 8C A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some implementations.

[0052] Fig. 9 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0053] Fig. 10A A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0054] Fig. 10B A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0055] Fig. 10C A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0056] Fig.11 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0057] Fig.12 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0058] Fig.13 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0059] Fig.14 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0060] Fig.15 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0061] Fig.16 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0062] Fig.17 A flow diagram depicting example operations for wireless communications in support of positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations.

[0063] Like reference numbers and designations in the various drawings indicate like elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0064] For the purpose of describing the innovative aspects of the present disclosure, the following description is directed to certain implementations. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that the teachings herein can be applied in a variety of different ways. The described implementations can be implemented in any device, system, and network (such as a system utilizing 3G, 4G, or 5G or further implementations or technologies thereof) capable of sending and receiving RF signals in accordance with any of the following: any of the IEEE 16.11 standards or any of the IEEE 802.11 standards, Standard, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), GSM / General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA), Wideband CDMA (W-CDMA), Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO), 1xEV-DO, EV-DO Rev A, EV-DO Rev B, High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), High Speed ​​Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High Speed ​​Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), Evolved High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA+), Long Term Evolution (LTE), AMPS, or other known signals used to communicate within a wireless, cellular or Internet of Things (IOT) network.

[0065] Vehicle-based communications (V2X), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) networks, and cellular V2X (C-V2X) networks can provide persistent connectivity so that vehicle UEs (v-UEs) can communicate directly with the network (V2N), pedestrian UEs (V2P), infrastructure equipment (V2I), and other v-UEs. These vehicle-based communications networks can support a safe, always-connected driving experience by providing intelligent connectivity through which traffic signal timing information, real-time traffic and routing information, safety alerts to pedestrians, collision avoidance information, and other messages are exchanged between vehicles via the UEs. The ability of a vehicle UE to accurately determine not only its absolute position but also its position relative to other vehicles or obstacles and the distance between the vehicle UE and nearby vehicles or obstacles (such as a fast-approaching car) is of particular interest.

[0066] Implementations of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be used by a UE (such as a vehicle UE) to determine its position and to determine the distance to other UEs with higher accuracy than conventional V2X communications. According to various aspects of the present disclosure, a UE participating in a positioning operation may send or receive a non-positioning signal on a V2X channel, a licensed radio band, or other suitable channels of a radio access network (RAN), and may send or receive a positioning signal on an unlicensed radio band. The positioning signal may include a positioning reference signal (PRS) associated with an observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) positioning operation, a ranging signal associated with a round trip time (RTT) positioning operation, or other suitable signals from which the position of the UE may be determined. In some implementations, the positioning signal may be sent on one or more unlicensed national information infrastructure (UNII) radio bands (including, for example, one or more of a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band). In some other implementations, the positioning signal may be sent along with one or more of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) of the RAN. In some instances, the RAN may be a 5G NR access network, the V2X channel may be or may occupy a frequency subband of the 5G NR access network, and the unlicensed radio band may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band.

[0067] The non-positioning signals may include location requests, location information, location assistance data, PRS configurations, requests to send PRS sequences, requests to initiate ranging operations, and other suitable management messages, control messages, or configurations (such as radio resource control (RRC) configurations). In some instances, the non-positioning signals may be sent on a V2X channel of a 5G NR access network. In some other instances, one or more of the non-positioning signals may be sent on one or more unlicensed radio bands (such as unlicensed 5G NR radio bands).

[0068] In some implementations, a UE may transmit a PRS sequence on one or more unlicensed radio bands using short control signaling transmission (SCST) without medium sensing. In some instances, a PRS configuration received by a UE may allocate a first clear channel assessment (CCA) exemption transmission (CET) window for PRS transmission from the UE in each of a plurality of time periods, and may allocate one or more other CET windows for PRS transmission from one or more wireless nodes in each of the plurality of time periods. The time period may correspond to an observation period defined for SCST on an unlicensed radio band, and each of the CET windows may correspond to the total duration of SCST allowed on an unlicensed radio band from a given load-based equipment (LBE) during the observation period. In some instances, the observation period may be between approximately 25 and 100 milliseconds (ms), and the total duration may not exceed approximately 2.5 milliseconds. In some other instances, the observation period and the total duration may be specified by one or more standards or versions published by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI).

[0069] In some implementations, the UE may contend for channel access on an unlicensed radio band using a Type 2 listen-before-talk or listen-before-send (LBT) channel access mechanism, may obtain access to the unlicensed radio band for a duration based on contention, and may transmit a PRS sequence on the unlicensed radio band during at least a portion of the duration. In some instances, a PRS configuration received by the UE may allocate a first PRS window to the UE for PRS transmission during a time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission during the time period.

[0070] In some other implementations, the UE may contend for channel access on the unlicensed radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism for the highest priority traffic class, may obtain access to the unlicensed radio band within a channel occupancy time (COT) based on contention, and may transmit a PRS sequence on the unlicensed radio band during at least a portion of the COT. In some instances, the PRS configuration received by the UE may allocate a first PRS window to the UE for PRS transmission within a time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission within the time period. The time period may be independent of an observation period defined for SCST on the unlicensed radio band, and each of the CET windows may be independent of a total duration of SCST allowed on the unlicensed radio band from a given load-based equipment (LBE) during the observation period.

[0071] In some other implementations, the UE may receive a request to send a PRS sequence on a channel of a RAN (such as a 5G NR access network), and may send the PRS sequence on one or more unlicensed radio bands (such as an unlicensed 5G NR radio band) based on the request. In some instances, the UE may contend for channel access on an unlicensed radio band using an LBT channel access mechanism, and may send the PRS sequence on the unlicensed radio band when channel access to the unlicensed radio band is obtained. Additionally or alternatively, the UE may send a request on a channel of the RAN for multiple other UEs to send a PRS sequence, and may receive the requested PRS sequence from at least one of the multiple other UEs on an unlicensed radio band (such as an unlicensed 5G NR radio band).

[0072] Specific implementations of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented to achieve one or more of the following potential advantages. The accuracy of positioning operations between wireless communication devices, whether based on observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) technology or round trip time (RTT) technology, can be proportional to the frequency bandwidth over which positioning signals are exchanged between the wireless communication devices. For example, an OTDOA positioning operation that sends a positioning reference signal (PRS) over a relatively large frequency bandwidth can be more accurate than an OTDOA positioning operation that sends a PRS over a relatively small frequency bandwidth. Similarly, a ranging operation that sends a ranging frame or signal over a relatively large frequency bandwidth can be more accurate than a ranging operation that sends a ranging frame or signal over a relatively small frequency bandwidth.

[0073] Thus, by allowing a UE to transmit or receive a positioning signal or ranging signal on an unlicensed radio band having a channel width greater than the channel width of a V2X frequency subband, aspects of the present disclosure may improve the accuracy with which an OTDOA-based positioning operation may determine the position of the UE (such as compared to conventional techniques that transmit PRS sequences on a V2X frequency subband). For example, while the channel width of a V2X frequency subband is 40 MHz, the UNII-1 and UNII-2A radio bands each have a channel width of 100 MHz, the UNII-2C radio band has a channel width of 255 MHz, and the UNII-3 radio band has a channel width of 125 MHz. Thus, the accuracy of an OTDOA-based positioning operation may be improved by transmitting a positioning signal on one (or more) of the UNII radio bands (rather than on a V2X frequency subband). Similarly, by allowing a UE to exchange ranging signals on an unlicensed radio band having a channel width in excess of 100 MHz (rather than on a 40 MHz V2X frequency sub-band), aspects of the present disclosure may improve the accuracy with which an RTT-based positioning operation may determine the position of the UE (such as compared to conventional techniques that exchange ranging signals on a V2X frequency sub-band).

[0074] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an example wireless communication system 100 is shown. The wireless communication system 100 includes a base station 102, a UE 104, an evolved packet core (EPC) 160, and another core network 190 (such as a 5G core (5GC)). The base station 102 may include a macro cell (a high-power cellular base station) or a small cell (a low-power cellular base station). A macro cell includes a base station. A small cell includes a femto cell, a pico cell, and a micro cell.

[0075] A base station 102 configured for 4G LTE (collectively referred to as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) may interface with the EPC 160 via a backhaul link 132 (such as an S1 interface). A base station 102 configured for 5G NR (collectively referred to as Next Generation RAN (NG RAN)) may interface with the core network 190 via a backhaul link 184. The base station 102 may perform one or more of the following functions, among other functions: delivery of user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (such as handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, radio access network (RAN) sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. Base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (such as through EPC 160 or core network 190) over backhaul links 134 (such as an X2 interface). Backhaul links 134 may be wired or wireless.

[0076] Base station 102 can communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each of base stations 102 can provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. There may be overlapping geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell 102' may have a coverage area 110' that overlaps with the coverage area 110 of one or more macro base stations 102. A network including both small cells and macro cells may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a home evolved Node B (eNB) (HeNB), which may provide services to a restricted group referred to as a closed subscriber group (CSG). A communication link 120 between base station 102 and UE 104 may include an uplink (UL) (also referred to as a reverse link) transmission from UE 104 to base station 102 or a downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmission from base station 102 to UE 104. The communication link 120 may use multiple input and multiple output (MIMO) antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, or transmit diversity. The communication link may be through one or more carriers. Base station 102 / UE 104 may use spectrum with up to Y MHz bandwidth per carrier (such as 5 MHz, 10 MHz, 15 MHz, 20 MHz, 100 MHz, 400 MHz, etc.), each carrier being allocated in carrier aggregation for transmission in each direction up to a total of Yx MHz (x component carriers). Carriers may or may not be adjacent to each other. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (such as more or fewer carriers may be allocated for DL ​​compared to UL). Component carriers may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. A primary component carrier may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell), and a secondary component carrier may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell).

[0077] Some UEs 104 may communicate with each other using a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use DL / UL WWAN spectrum. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). The D2D communication may be through various wireless D2D communication systems, such as, for example, FlashLinQ, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi based on IEEE 802.11 standards, LTE, or NR.

[0078] The wireless communication system may also include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 in the 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum via a communication link 154. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the STA 152 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) prior to communication to determine whether the channel is available.

[0079] The small cell 102' may operate in a licensed or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in an unlicensed spectrum, the small cell 102' may employ NR and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum used by the Wi-Fi AP 150. The small cell 102' employing NR in the unlicensed spectrum may improve coverage of the access network or increase capacity of the access network.

[0080] The base station 102, whether a small cell 102' or a large cell (such as a macro base station), may include an eNB, a gNodeB (gNB), or another type of base station. Some base stations, such as gNB 180, may operate in the traditional sub-6 GHz spectrum, in millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies, or in near mmW frequencies for communicating with UE 104. When the gNB 180 operates in mmW frequencies or near mmW frequencies, the gNB 180 may be referred to as a millimeter wave or mmW base station. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is part of the RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in the band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near mmW may extend down to 3 GHz frequencies with a wavelength of 100 mm. The super high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and is also referred to as centimeter waves. Communications using mmW / near mmW radio frequency bands (such as between 3 GHz and 300 GHz) have extremely high path loss and short range. The mmW base station 180 may utilize beamforming 182 with the UE 104 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range.

[0081] The base station 180 may send beamformed signals in one or more transmit directions 182' to the UE 104. The UE 104 may receive beamformed signals from the base station 180 in one or more receive directions 182". The UE 104 may also send beamformed signals to the base station 180 in one or more transmit directions. The base station 180 may receive beamformed signals from the UE 104 in one or more receive directions. The base station 180 and the UE 104 may perform beam training to determine the best receive and transmit directions for each of the base station 180 / UE 104. The transmit and receive directions of the base station 180 may be the same or may not be the same. The transmit and receive directions of the UE 104 may be the same or may not be the same.

[0082] The EPC 160 may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a serving gateway 166, a multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS) gateway 168, a broadcast multicast service center (BM-SC) 170, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway 172. The MME 162 may communicate with a home subscriber server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the EPC 160. Typically, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are delivered through the serving gateway 166, which itself is connected to the PDN gateway 172. The PDN gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The PDN gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to IP services 176. The IP services 176 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), a PS streaming service, or other IP services. The BM-SC 170 may provide functions for MBMS user service deployment and delivery. The BM-SC 170 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS delivery, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS bearer services within a public land mobile network (PLMN), and may be used to schedule MBMS delivery. The MBMS Gateway 168 may be used to distribute MBMS services to base stations 102 belonging to a multicast broadcast single frequency network (MBSFN) area of ​​a broadcast specific service, and may be responsible for session management (start / stop) and for collecting MBMS related charging information.

[0083] The core network 190 may include an access and mobility management function (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, a session management function (SMF) 194, and a user plane function (UPF) 195. The AMF 192 may communicate with a unified data management (UDM) 196. The AMF 192 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the core network 190. In general, the AMF 192 provides QoS procedures and session management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are delivered through the UPF 195. The UPF 195 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The UPF 195 is connected to an IP service 197. The IP service 197 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), a PS streaming service, or other IP services.

[0084] A base station may also be referred to as a gNB, a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), an access point, a base transceiver station, a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a transmit receive point (TRP), or some other suitable term. The base station 102 provides an access point to the EPC 160 or the core network 190 for the UE 104. Examples of UE 104 include a cellular phone, a smart phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (such as an MP3 player), a camera, a game console, a tablet computer, a smart device, a wearable device, a vehicle, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small kitchen appliance, a healthcare device, an implant, a sensor / actuator, a display, or any other similarly functional device. Some of the UEs 104 may be referred to as IoT devices (such as parking meters, gas pumps, ovens, vehicles, heart rate monitors, etc.). UE 104 may also be referred to as a station, a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile subscriber station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other suitable terminology.

[0085] The wireless communication system 100 can utilize both licensed radio spectrum bands and unlicensed radio spectrum bands. For example, the wireless communication system 100 can adopt LTE licensed assisted access (LTE-LAA), LTE unlicensed (LTE U) radio access technology or 5G NR technology in unlicensed radio bands (such as 5GHz industrial, scientific and medical (ISM) bands or 6GHz UNII bands). When operating in an unlicensed radio band, wireless communication devices (such as base stations 102 and UEs 104) can adopt a listen-before-talk (LBT) channel access mechanism to ensure that the channel is idle before sending data. In some instances, operations in unlicensed radio bands can be based on a carrier aggregation (CA) configuration combined with a component carrier (CC) operating in a licensed band. Operations in unlicensed radio bands can include downlink transmissions, uplink transmissions, or both. Duplexing in unlicensed radio bands can be based on frequency division duplexing (FDD), time division duplexing (TDD), or a combination of both.

[0086] The wireless communication system 100 may also include or support vehicle-based communications. A vehicle-based communication network may provide always-on telematics, where a UE 104 (referred to herein as a v-UE) communicates directly (such as via a network) with a V2N, a pedestrian UE (V2P), an infrastructure device (V21), and other v-UEs. A vehicle-based communication network may support a safe, always-connected driving experience by providing intelligent connectivity, where traffic signals / timing, real-time traffic and route selection, safety alerts for pedestrians / cyclists, collision avoidance information, etc. are exchanged.

[0087] Figure 2A An example of a first time slot 200 within a 5G / NR frame structure is shown. Figure 2B An example of a DL channel 230 within a 5G / NR timeslot is shown. Figure 2C An example of a second time slot 250 within a 5G / NR frame structure is shown. Figure 2D An example of a UL channel 280 within a 5G / NR time slot is shown. In some cases, the 5G / NR frame structure may be FDD, where for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), the time slots within the set of subcarriers are dedicated to either DL or UL transmissions. In other cases, the 5G / NR frame structure may be TDD, where for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), the time slots within the set of subcarriers are dedicated to both DL and UL transmissions. Figure 2A and 2C In the example shown, the 5G / NR frame structure is based on TDD, where slot 4 is configured with slot format 28 (mostly DL), where D indicates DL, U indicates UL, and X indicates that the slot is flexibly used between DL and UL, and slot 3 is configured with slot format 34 (mostly UL). Although slots 3 and 4 are shown in slot formats 34 and 28, respectively, any particular slot can be configured with any of the various available slot formats 0 to 61. Slot formats 0 and 1 are full DL and full UL, respectively. Other slot formats 2 to 61 include a mix of DL, UL, and flexible symbols. The UE can dynamically configure the slot format through downlink control information (DCI) or semi-statically through radio resource control (RRC) signaled by a slot format indicator (SFI). The configured slot format can also be applied to a 5G / NR frame structure based on FDD.

[0088] Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures or different channels. A frame may be divided into multiple subframes of the same size. For example, a frame with a duration of 10 microseconds (μs) may be divided into 10 subframes of the same size, each subframe having a duration of 1 μs. Each subframe may include one or more time slots. A subframe may also include a mini-time slot, which may include 7, 4 or 2 symbols. Each time slot may include 7 or 14 symbols, depending on the time slot configuration. For time slot configuration 0, each time slot may include 14 symbols, and for time slot configuration 1, each time slot may include 7 symbols. The symbol on the DL may be a cyclic prefix (CP) OFDM (CP-OFDM) symbol. The symbol on the UL may be a CP-OFDM symbol (such as for high throughput scenarios) or a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) symbol (also known as a single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) symbol) (such as for power-limited scenarios).

[0089] The number of slots in a subframe is based on the slot configuration and the digital parameter. For slot configuration 0, different digital parameters (μ) 0 to 5 allow 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 and 32 slots per subframe, respectively. For slot configuration 1, different digital parameters 0 to 2 allow 2, 4 and 8 slots per subframe, respectively. Therefore, for slot configuration 0 and digital parameter μ, there are 14 symbols per slot and 2^μ slots per subframe. The subcarrier spacing and symbol length / duration are functions of the digital parameters. The subcarrier spacing can be equal to 2^μ*15kHz, where μ is a digital parameter from 0 to 5. Thus, digital parameter μ=0 has a subcarrier spacing of 15kHz, while digital parameter μ=5 has a subcarrier spacing of 480kHz. The symbol length / duration is inversely related to the subcarrier spacing. FIG. 2A to FIG. 2D An example is provided for slot configuration 0, with 14 symbols per slot and a numerical parameter μ = 0, with 1 slot per subframe. The subcarrier spacing is 15 kHz and the symbol duration is approximately 66.7 microseconds (μs).

[0090] A resource grid can be used to represent the frame structure. Each time slot consists of a resource block (RB), also called a physical RB (PRB), which spans 12 consecutive subcarriers and extends across multiple symbols. The intersection of subcarriers and spans 14 symbols. The intersection of subcarriers and the intersection of RBs define multiple resource elements (REs). The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0091] like Figure 2AAs shown, some of the REs carry reference signals (RS) for the UE. In some configurations, one or more REs may carry a demodulation reference signal (DM-RS) (indicated as Rx for a specific configuration, where 100x is the port number, but other DM-RS configurations are also possible). In some configurations, one or more REs may carry a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) for channel measurement at the UE. REs may also include a beam measurement reference signal (BRS), a beam refinement reference signal (BRRS), and a phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS).

[0092] Figure 2B Examples of various DL channels within a subframe of a frame are shown. The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries DCI within one or more control channel elements (CCEs), each CCE including nine RE groups (REGs), each REG including four consecutive REs in an OFDM symbol. The primary synchronization signal (PSS) may be within symbol 2 of a particular subframe of a frame. The PSS is used by UE 104 to determine subframe or symbol timing and physical layer identification. The secondary synchronization signal (SSS) may be within symbol 4 of a particular subframe of a frame. The SSS is used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identification group number and radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identification and the physical layer cell identification group number, the UE may determine the physical cell identifier (PCI). Based on the PCI, the UE may determine the location of the above-mentioned DM-RS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH) carrying the master information block (MIB) may be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form a synchronization signal (SS) / PBCH block. The MIB provides a number of RBs in the system bandwidth and a system frame number (SFN). The Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information not sent through the PBCH (such as System Information Blocks (SIBs)), and paging messages.

[0093] like Figure 2C As shown, some of the REs carry DM-RS (indicated as R for a specific configuration, but other DM-RS configurations are also possible) for channel estimation at the base station. The UE can send DM-RS for the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) and DM-RS for the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). The PUSCH DM-RS can be sent in the first one or two symbols of the PUSCH. The PUCCH DM-RS can be sent in different configurations, depending on whether a short PUCCH or a long PUCCH is sent and on the specific PUCCH format used. Although not shown, the UE can send a sounding reference signal (SRS). The SRS can be used by the base station for channel quality estimation to enable frequency-dependent scheduling on the UL.

[0094] Figure 2D Examples of various UL channels within a subframe of a frame are shown. The PUCCH may be located as indicated in one configuration. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI) such as scheduling requests, channel quality indicator (CQI), precoding matrix indicator (PMI), rank indicator (RI), and HARQ ACK / NACK feedback. The PUSCH carries data and may additionally be used to carry a buffer status report (BSR), a power headroom report (PHR), or UCI.

[0095] Figure 3 A block diagram of an example base station 310 and UE 350 in an access network is shown. In the DL, IP packets from the EPC 160 may be provided to a controller / processor 375. The controller / processor 375 implements layer 3 and layer 2 functionality. Layer 3 includes a radio resource control (RRC) layer, while layer 2 includes a service data protocol (SDAP) layer, a packet data aggregation protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. The controller / processor 375 provides RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information (such as MIB and SIB), RRC connection control (such as RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-radio access technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with delivery of upper layer packet data units (PDUs), error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs to transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0096] The transmit (TX) processor 316 and receive (RX) processor 370 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1 (which includes the physical (PHY) layer) may include error detection on the transmission channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transmission channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to physical channels, modulation / demodulation of physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. The TX processor 316 processes the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (such as binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols can then be segmented into parallel streams. Each stream can then be mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (such as a pilot) in the time domain or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. The channel estimate from the channel estimator 374 may be used to determine the coding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate may be derived from a reference signal or channel condition feedback sent by the UE 350. Each spatial stream may then be provided to a different antenna 320 via a separate transmitter 318TX. Each transmitter 318TX may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0097] At the UE 350, each receiver 354RX receives a signal through its corresponding antenna 352. Each receiver 354RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to a receive (RX) processor 356. The TX processor 368 and the RX processor 356 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The RX processor 356 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial stream destined for the UE 350. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 350, they can be combined into a single OFDM symbol stream by the RX processor 356. The RX processor 356 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. By determining the most likely signal constellation point sent by the base station 310, the symbol on each subcarrier and the reference signal are recovered and demodulated. These soft decisions can be based on the channel estimate calculated by the channel estimator 358. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally sent on the physical channel by the base station 310. The data and control signals are then provided to a controller / processor 359, which implements layer 3 and layer 2 functionality.

[0098] The controller / processor 359 may be associated with a memory 360 that stores program codes and data. The memory 360 may be referred to as a computer readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 359 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the EPC 160. The controller / processor 359 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0099] Similar to the functionality described in conjunction with DL transmissions performed by the base station 310, the controller / processor 359 provides RRC layer functionality associated with system information (such as MIB and SIB) acquisition, RRC connection and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with transmission of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs to TBs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0100] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator 358 from a reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 310 may be used by the TX processor 368 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 368 may be provided to different antennas 352 via separate transmitters 354TX. Each transmitter 354TX may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0101] UL transmissions are processed at the base station 310 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver functionality at the UE 350. Each receiver 318RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 320. Each receiver 318RX recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to a RX processor 370.

[0102] The controller / processor 375 may be associated with a memory 376 that stores program codes and data. The memory 376 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 375 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 350. The IP packets from the controller / processor 375 may be provided to the EPC 160. The controller / processor 375 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations. Information to be wirelessly communicated (such as for communications based on LTE or NR) is encoded at the PHY layer and mapped to one or more radio channels for transmission.

[0103] exist Figure 3 In the example of , each antenna 352 of UE 350 is coupled to a corresponding transmitter 354TX. However, in actual implementations, many UEs have fewer transmitters (or transmit chains) than receive (Rx) antennas. Although not shown for simplicity, each transmitter can be coupled to a corresponding power amplifier (PA) that amplifies the signal to be transmitted. The combination of a transmitter and a PA may be referred to as a "transmit chain" or "TX chain" in this article. In order to save cost or die area, the same PA can be reused to send signals on multiple RX antennas. In other words, one or more TX chains of a UE can be switchably coupled to multiple RX antenna ports.

[0104] Figure 4 An example vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication system 400 is shown. The V2X communication system 400 (in which at least some of the various aspects of the present disclosure may be implemented) may be configured to operate in the 5.9 GHz spectrum. In some implementations, the V2X communication system 400 may include two configurations 410 and 420. In the first configuration 410, UEs embedded in or associated with vehicles 411-412, personnel 413, and traffic signals 414 may communicate directly with each other (such as without requiring a wireless communication device) using peer-to-peer (P2P) communication. Figure 1 Base station 102). More specifically, each of vehicles 411 to 412 can establish vehicle-to-person (V2P) communication with personnel 413 through the PC5 interface, and can establish vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication with each other through the PC5 interface. Each of vehicles 411 to 412 can also establish vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication with traffic signal 414 through the PC5 interface. In some implementations, the first configuration 410 can be a self-managed system that does not require a subscription to a radio access network (RAN). Thus, for example, the first configuration 410 can have lower costs and increased reliability compared to the second configuration 420.

[0105] In the second configuration 420, UEs embedded in or associated with vehicles 411 to 412 and other devices or personnel (not shown for simplicity) communicate with each other using, for example, vehicle-to-network (V2N) communications facilitated by a radio access network (RAN) associated with multiple base stations 421 (only one base station 421 is shown for simplicity). More specifically, the base station 421 (which can be any suitable base station, such as a gNB or an eNB) manages communications between the vehicles 411 to 412 and other devices or personnel within the service area of ​​the base station 421.

[0106] The V2X communication system 400 may have several advantages over conventional IEEE 802.11p networks. For example, conventional IEEE 802.11p networks have limited scalability and may suffer from channel access delays, while V2X communications may be performed on the V2X frequency sub-bands of the 5G NR access network without contention for channel access. Furthermore, just as 5G NR is designed to meet new requirements associated with latency, reliability, security, and scalability, communications on the V2X frequency sub-bands are also designed to meet new requirements associated with latency, reliability, security, and scalability, which are necessary, for example, to facilitate reliable communications between moving vehicles.

[0107] Timing information, real-time traffic information, collision avoidance information, and some other features provided by the RAN's V2X channel and V2X communications may depend, at least in part, on the ability of a UE (such as a v-UE) to accurately determine its position relative to other vehicles or obstacles and to accurately determine the distance between the UE and nearby vehicles or obstacles. Since the accuracy of positioning operations (such as OTDOA-based or RTT-based ranging) may be proportional to the frequency bandwidth used to send and receive positioning signals, positioning and ranging accuracy may be improved by using a wider channel to send and receive positioning signals. Thus, while the 40 MHz V2X channel of a 5G NR access network may allow contention-free transmission of positioning signals to, from, or between UEs, positioning and ranging accuracy may be improved by sending positioning signals over a wider channel.

[0108] According to some aspects of the present disclosure, positioning signals (such as PRS and ranging signals) may be transmitted on one or more unlicensed radio bands having channels wider than V2X frequency sub-bands, which may improve the accuracy of positioning and ranging operations that may be performed. In some implementations, positioning signals may be transmitted on one or more of the Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (UNII) radio bands having channel widths ranging from 100 MHz up to 255 MHz, thereby improving positioning and ranging accuracy (such as compared to transmitting positioning signals on 40 MHz V2X frequency sub-bands).

[0109] Figure 5 A spectrum diagram 500 depicting an example 5 GHz frequency band is shown. The 5 GHz frequency band may range from 5.15 GHz to 5.85 GHz and may be subdivided into a plurality of UNII radio subbands. More specifically, the available subbands in the 5 GHz frequency band may include a UNII-1 subband (such as between 5.15 GHz and 5.25 GHz), a UNII-2A subband (such as between 5.25 GHz and 5.35 GHz), a UNII-2C subband (such as between 5.470 GHz and 5.725 GHz), and a UNII-3 subband (such as between 5.725 GHz and 5.850 GHz).

[0110] Each of the sub-bands includes a plurality of 20 MHz channels (such as channels 36 to 64 and channels 100 to 177). The 20 MHz channels can be combined or paired with each other to form a 40 MHz channel. The 40 MHz channels can also be combined or paired with each other to form an 80 MHz channel, and the 80 MHz channels can be further combined or paired with each other to form a 160 MHz channel. There is a 120 MHz wide frequency band or gap between the UNII-2A sub-band and the UNII-2C sub-band (such as between 5.35 GHz and 5.47 GHz), dividing the 5 GHz frequency band into a lower frequency range 410 (such as between 5.17 GHz and 5.35 GHz) and a higher frequency range 520 (such as between 5.47 GHz and 5.85 GHz). Wireless communication can be limited to a 120 MHz wide area. The UNII-1 sub-band can allow a channel width of up to 100 MHz with a maximum transmit power of 50 milliwatts (mW). The UNII-2A sub-band may allow channel widths up to 100 MHz with a maximum transmit power of 250 mW. The UNII-2C sub-band may allow channel widths up to 255 MHz with a maximum transmit power of 250 mW. The UNII-3 sub-band may allow channel widths up to 125 MHz with an unspecified maximum transmit power.

[0111] The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) EN 301-893 standard defines a channel access mechanism used by a wireless device or node for transmission on UNII-1 and UNII-2 radio bands. For example, the ETSI EN 301-893 standard defines an LBT channel access protocol used by a wireless device or node (including wireless devices compatible with IEEE 802.11 and wireless devices compatible with LAA) to obtain channel access on UNII-1 and UNII-2 radio bands. The channel access mechanism (which may be referred to as a Class 2 LBT channel access protocol) includes a mechanism for a wireless device to perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) to ensure that a wireless channel is clear before sending data on the wireless channel.

[0112] The ETSI EN 301-893 standard also defines priority class dependent channel access parameters that prioritize channel access for high priority class services relative to low priority class services by using different contention window (CW) parameters for different classes of services or data. This channel access mechanism (which may be referred to as a Class 4 LBT channel access protocol) prioritizes the CW for high priority class services relative to low priority class services. min and CW max The parameter is set to a lower value than that of lower priority class traffic. For example, a wireless device or node associated with Class 4 traffic (which is the highest priority class traffic) uses CW min =3 and CW max =7, wireless devices or nodes associated with Class 3 services use CW min =7 and CW max = 15, wireless devices or nodes associated with Class 2 services use CW min =15 and CW max =63, while wireless devices or nodes associated with Class 1 traffic (which is the lowest priority class traffic) use CW min =15 and CW max =1023.

[0113] In addition to the LBT channel access protocol, the ETSI EN 301-893 standard also allows FBE devices and LBE devices (such as UE or gNB or other wireless nodes) to perform short control signaling. Short control signaling is typically used by FBE and LBE devices to send management and control frames without sensing the channel for the presence of other signals. The use of short control signaling is subject to the following restrictions: within a 50ms observation period, the number of short control signaling transmissions performed by a given FBE or LBE device should be less than or equal to 50ms; and within each observation period, the total duration of short control signaling transmissions from a given FBE or LBE device should be less than 2.5ms. The 2.5ms time period can be distributed across multiple transmissions or across multiple FBE or LBE devices.

[0114] In some implementations, a UE (and other suitable wireless nodes) may use short control signaling transmission (SCST) on one or more UNII radio bands to transmit positioning signals for long term evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) operations or RTT-based ranging operations, for example, to avoid contention for channel access. In some other implementations, a UE (and other suitable wireless nodes) that is to transmit positioning signals for LPP operations or RTT-based ranging operations may use a Class 2 LBT channel access mechanism to obtain access to one or more unlicensed radio bands, and may transmit positioning signals on one or more unlicensed radio bands during a TXOP, for example, to avoid interference associated with multiple devices attempting to transmit data simultaneously on a shared wireless medium. In some other implementations, a UE (and other suitable wireless nodes) that is to transmit positioning signals for LPP operations or RTT-based ranging operations may use a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism to obtain access to one or more unlicensed radio bands, and may transmit positioning signals on one or more unlicensed radio bands during a COT.

[0115] Fig. 6A A sequence diagram depicting example operations 600 for wireless communications to support positioning operations according to some implementations is shown. Operations 600 are described with reference to a receiving device 601, a first transmitting device 602, and a second transmitting device 603. In some examples, operations 600 may correspond to OTDOA positioning operations performed using the LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP). Receiving device 601 may be Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, Figure 3 In some examples, the first transmitting device 602 may be an example of a base station 310 or UE 350 or another suitable wireless node. In some examples, the first transmitting device 602 may be a location server (such as an E-SMLC). In some other examples, the first transmitting device 602 may be an example of a base station 102, UE 104, base station 310, or UE 350 configured to perform at least some of the functions of a location server. In some examples, the second transmitting device 603 may be Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, or Figure 3 An example of a base station 310 or UE 350. In some other examples, the second transmitting device 603 may be a transmitting receiving point (TRP), or another suitable wireless node.

[0116] In some implementations, the receiving device 601 may be a first vehicle UE (v-UE) or a UE carried by a person in a first vehicle, the first transmitting device 602 may be a second v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a second vehicle, and the second transmitting device 603 may be a third v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a third vehicle. Operation 600 may begin with the receiving device 601 and the first transmitting device 602 exchanging capabilities with each other. In some instances, the receiving device 601 may send a message including information such as supported OTDOA modes, supported frequency bands, and support for inter-frequency RSTD measurements. In some other instances, the receiving device 601 and the first transmitting device 602 may not exchange capabilities, or may already have capability information about each other.

[0117] The receiving device 601 may receive location assistance data from a first transmitting device 602 on a channel of a radio access network (RAN). In some instances, the channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network. In some other instances, the channel may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band. In some other instances, the channel may be a licensed 5G NR radio band. The location assistance data may include a list of candidate transmit reception points (TRPs) for positioning operations. For example, the location assistance data may include information for a reference cell and multiple neighboring cells (such as a second transmitting device 603). The location assistance data may also include one or more of identification information of the candidate TRPs, timing information of the candidate TRPs, PRS configurations of the candidate TRPs, and location information of the candidate TRPs. Each of the TRPs may be an eNB, a gNB, a UE, or any other suitable wireless device or node.

[0118] The receiving device 601 may receive a location measurement request from the first transmitting device 602, the location measurement request instructing the receiving device 601 to determine a time difference measurement result based on a positioning reference signal (PRS) to be sent from a plurality of candidate TRPs (such as the second transmitting device 603). The location measurement request may include a location information type, a desired accuracy of the location estimate, and a response time. In some instances, the receiving device 601 may receive the location measurement request before receiving the location assistance data.

[0119] The receiving device 601 may receive a PRS (or a PRS sequence) from a second transmitting device 603 (and from one or more of the other candidate TRPs) on an unlicensed radio band, and may determine a plurality of reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurements based at least in part on the received PRS. In some instances, the unlicensed radio band may be one or more of the UNII radio bands. In some other instances, the unlicensed radio band may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band.

[0120] The receiving device 601 may send location information to the first transmitting device 602. The location information received by the first transmitting device 602, which may include RSTD measurements, may be used to determine the location of the receiving device 601 relative to the TRP that transmits the PRS to the receiving device 601. In some instances, the first transmitting device 602 may use RSTD measurements and the known location of the transmitted TRP to determine the absolute location of the receiving device 601. In some other instances, the receiving device 601 may use RSTD measurements to determine its relative location, or may use trilateration techniques to determine its absolute location based on RSTD measurements and the known location of the TRP that transmits the PRS.

[0121] Figure 6B A sequence diagram depicting example operations 610 for wireless communications to support positioning operations in accordance with some implementations is shown. Operations 610 are described with reference to a transmitting device 611 and one or more receiving devices 612. The transmitting device 611 may be Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, Figure 3 In some examples, the receiving device 612 may be a base station 310 or a UE 350, or another suitable wireless node. Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, or Figure 3 An example of a base station 310 or UE 350. In some other instances, the second sending device 612 can be a TRP, or another suitable wireless node.

[0122] In some implementations, the transmitting device 611 may be a first v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a first vehicle, and the receiving device 612 may be a corresponding second v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a corresponding second vehicle. The transmitting device 611 may receive a PRS configuration from one of the receiving devices 612 on a channel of the RAN. In some instances, the channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network. In some other instances, the channel may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band, or may be a licensed 5G NR radio band. Based on the received PRS configuration, the transmitting device 611 may send a PRS sequence to the receiving device 612 on an unlicensed radio band. In some instances, the unlicensed radio band may be one or more of the UNII radio bands. In some other instances, the unlicensed radio band may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band.

[0123] In some implementations, the transmitting device 611 may use short control signaling to transmit the PRS sequence without sensing the wireless channel. In some other implementations, the transmitting device 611 may use a Class 2 LBT channel access mechanism to contend for channel access on an unlicensed radio band. In some other implementations, the transmitting device 611 may use a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism to contend for channel access on an unlicensed radio band.

[0124] Figure 6C A sequence diagram depicting example operations 620 for wireless communications to support positioning operations according to some implementations is shown. Operations 620 are described with reference to a transmitting device 621 and one or more receiving devices 622. The transmitting device 621 may be Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, Figure 3 In some examples, each of the receiving devices 622 may be a base station 310 or a UE 350, or another suitable wireless node. Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, or Figure 3 An example of a base station 310 or UE 350. In some other instances, each of the receiving devices 622 can be a TRP, or another suitable wireless node.

[0125] In some implementations, the transmitting device 621 may be a first v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a first vehicle, and the receiving device 622 may be a corresponding second v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a corresponding second vehicle. The transmitting device 621 may determine a schedule for sending a positioning reference signal (PRS), and may send the schedule to one or more receiving devices 622 on a channel of the RAN. In some instances, the channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network. In some other instances, the channel may be a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) of the RAN.

[0126] The transmitting device 621 may transmit the PRS sequence on the unlicensed radio band based on the determined schedule. In some instances, the unlicensed radio band may be one or more of the UNII radio bands. In some other instances, the unlicensed radio band may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band. Additionally or alternatively, the transmitting device 621 may contend for channel access on the unlicensed radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism.

[0127] Fig.6DA sequence diagram depicting example operations 630 for wireless communications to support positioning operations according to some implementations is shown. Operations 630 are described with reference to a transmitting device 631 and one or more receiving devices 632. The transmitting device 631 may be Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, Figure 3 In some examples, each of the receiving devices 632 may be a base station 310 or a UE 350, or another suitable wireless node. Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, or Figure 3 An example of a base station 310 or UE 350. In some instances, each of the receiving devices 632 can be a TRP, or another suitable wireless node.

[0128] In some implementations, the transmitting device 631 may be a first v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a first vehicle, and the receiving device 632 may be a corresponding second v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a corresponding second vehicle. The transmitting device 631 may receive a request to transmit a positioning reference signal (PRS) sequence on a channel of a radio access network (RAN). In some instances, the channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network. In some other instances, the channel may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band or a licensed 5G NR radio band. Based on the request, the transmitting device 631 may transmit a PRS sequence on an unlicensed radio band. In some instances, the unlicensed radio band may be one or more of the UNII radio bands. In some other instances, the unlicensed radio band may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band.

[0129] In some implementations, the transmitting device 631 may use the LBT channel access mechanism to contend for channel access on the unlicensed radio band. In some other implementations, the transmitting device 631 may use short control signaling to send the PRS sequence. In some other implementations, the PRS sequence may be sent during the CET window.

[0130] Fig. 6E A sequence diagram depicting example operations 640 for wireless communications to support positioning operations according to some implementations is shown. Operations 640 are described with reference to a receiving device 641 and one or more transmitting devices 642. The receiving device 641 may be Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, Figure 3 In some examples, each of the transmitting devices 642 may be a base station 310 or a UE 350, or another suitable wireless node. Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, or Figure 3In some other examples, each of the transmitting devices 642 may be a TRP, or another suitable wireless node. In some examples, the channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network.

[0131] In some implementations, the receiving device 641 may be a first v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a first vehicle, and the transmitting device 642 receiving device 612 may be a corresponding second v-UE or a UE carried by a person in a corresponding second vehicle. The receiving device 641 may send a request for one or more transmitting devices 642 to send a PRS sequence on a channel of the RAN. The receiving device 641 may receive the requested PRS sequence from at least one of the transmitting devices 642 on an unlicensed radio band. In some instances, the unlicensed radio band may be one or more of the UNII radio bands. In some other instances, the unlicensed radio band may be an unlicensed 5G NR radio band.

[0132] Figure 7 A flow chart depicting example operations for wireless communications to support positioning operations in accordance with some implementations is shown. Operation 700 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Fig. 6A The method is performed by a device of a receiving device 601 of the UE. At box 702, the UE receives location assistance data, which includes a list of candidate transmit reception points (TRPs) for positioning operations. At box 704, the UE receives a positioning reference signal (PRS) from each of the multiple candidate TRPs on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band.

[0133] In some implementations, the location assistance data may also include one or more of identification information of the candidate TRP, timing information of the candidate TRP, PRS configuration of the candidate TRP, or location information of the candidate TRP. In some other implementations, the location assistance data may also include the transmission time of the PRS from each candidate TRP, and may identify the unlicensed 5G NR radio band on which each of the PRSs is received. The identification information of the corresponding candidate TRP may include one or more of a physical cell ID (PID), a global cell ID (GCI), or a UE ID. The PRS configuration may include the bandwidth, subframe offset, periodicity, duration, silence mode, and silence sequence periodicity of the corresponding TRP.

[0134] Fig. 8A A flow chart depicting example operations 800 for wireless communications to support positioning operations in accordance with some implementations is shown. Operations 800 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Fig. 6A In some implementations, the receiving device 601 may be executed. Figure 7 Operation 800 is performed before receiving the location assistance data in block 702 of . For example, at block 802, the UE receives a location measurement request on a channel of the 5G NR access network before receiving the location assistance data. In some implementations, the location measurement request may be received from a location server associated with the 5G NR access network. In some instances, the location server may be an Evolved Serving Mobile Location Center (E-SMLC).

[0135] In some implementations, the location assistance data may be received on a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) frequency subband of a 5G NR access network. In some other implementations, the location assistance data may be received on another suitable channel of a 5G NR access network or on a channel of another suitable wireless communication network.

[0136] In some implementations, the PRS may be received on one or more unlicensed national information infrastructure (UNII) radio bands. In some instances, the one or more UNII radio bands may include one or more of a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band.

[0137] Figure 8B A flow chart depicting example operations 810 for wireless communications to support positioning operations in accordance with some implementations is shown. Operation 810 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Fig. 6A In some implementations, the receiving device 601 may be executed. Figure 7 Operation 810 is performed after receiving the PRS from the candidate TRP in block 704 of . At block 812, the UE determines a reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurement result based at least in part on the PRS received on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band. At block 814, the UE sends the determined RSTD measurement result to the location server.

[0138] In some other implementations, the UE may determine its location based at least in part on the determined RSTD measurement results. In some instances, the determined RSTD measurement results may be used to determine multiple observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) values ​​based at least in part on the received PRS. In some other instances, the OTDOA values ​​may be used to determine the relative location of the UE with respect to the TRP. In some other instances, the OTDOA values ​​and the known location of the TRP may be used to determine the absolute location of the UE using any suitable trilateration technique.

[0139] Figure 8C A flow chart depicting example operations 820 for wireless communications to support positioning operations is shown in accordance with some implementations. Operation 820 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Fig. 6A In some implementations, the receiving device 601 may be executed. Figure 7 Operation 820 is performed after receiving the PRS from the candidate TRP in block 704 of . For example, at block 822, the UE sends one or more PRSs to at least one of the plurality of candidate TRPs on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band. At block 824, the UE performs a round trip time (RTT) ranging operation using the at least one candidate TRP based at least in part on the received PRS and the one or more transmitted PRSs.

[0140] Fig. 9 A flowchart depicting example operations for wireless communications to support positioning operations according to other implementations is shown. Operation 900 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Figure 6B At block 902, the UE receives a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration. At block 904, the UE sends a PRS sequence on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band based on the received PRS configuration.

[0141] The PRS configuration may identify an unlicensed 5G NR radio band on which the UE will send a PRS sequence. In some implementations, the PRS configuration may be received on a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, a licensed radio band of a 5G NR access network, or an unlicensed 5G NR radio band. In some other implementations, the PRS configuration may be received on another suitable channel of the 5G NR access network, or on a channel of another suitable wireless communication network. In some instances, the PRS may be received on one or more unlicensed national information infrastructure (UNII) radio bands. One or more UNII radio bands may include one or more of a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band.

[0142] Fig. 10A A flow chart depicting example operations 1000 for wireless communications to support positioning operations according to other implementations is shown. Operations 1000 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Figure 6B In some implementations, operation 1000 may be performed at Fig. 9 An example of sending a PRS sequence in block 904 of . At block 1002, the UE sends a PRS sequence on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band using short control signaling without medium sensing. In some implementations, the received PRS configuration allocates a first clear channel assessment (CCA) exempt transmission (CET) window for PRS transmission from the UE in each of a plurality of time periods, and allocates one or more other CET windows for PRS transmission from one or more wireless nodes in each time period. The received PRS configuration may also indicate a CET window allocation.

[0143] The time period may correspond to an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on an unlicensed radio band, such as a UNII radio band, and each of the CET windows may correspond to a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed radio band from a given load-based equipment (LBE) during the observation period. For example, in some instances, the observation period may be approximately 50 milliseconds, and the total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed radio band from a given LBE may be approximately 2.5 milliseconds.

[0144] Fig. 10B A flow chart depicting example operations 1010 for wireless communications to support positioning operations according to other implementations is shown. Operation 1010 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Figure 6B In some implementations, operation 1010 may be performed by: Fig. 9 904 of . At block 1012, the UE contends for channel access on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band using a Type 2 LBT channel access mechanism. At block 1014, the UE obtains access to the unlicensed 5G NR radio band for a duration based on the contention. At block 1016, the UE sends the PRS sequence on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during at least a portion of the duration.

[0145] In some implementations, the received PRS configuration allocates a first PRS window to the UE for PRS transmission within a time period, and allocates one or more other PRS windows to one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission within the time period. The time period may correspond to an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on an unlicensed radio band, and each of the PRS windows may correspond to a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on an unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during the observation period. In some instances, the observation period may be approximately 50 milliseconds, and the total duration may not exceed 2.5 milliseconds. In some other instances, the observation period may be other suitable durations.

[0146] Fig. 10C A flow chart depicting example operations 1020 for wireless communications to support positioning operations according to other implementations is shown. Operation 1020 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Figure 6B In some implementations, the PRS configuration may be received on a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network, a licensed radio band of a 5G NR access network, or an unlicensed 5G NR radio band. In some implementations, operation 1020 may be performed at Fig. 9 904 of the present invention. At block 1022, the UE contends for channel access on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism for the highest priority traffic class. At block 1024, the UE obtains access to the unlicensed 5G NR radio band within a channel occupancy time (COT) based on the contention. At block 1026, the UE sends the PRS sequence on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during at least a portion of the COT.

[0147] In some implementations, the received PRS configuration may allocate a first PRS window to the UE for PRS transmission during a time period, and may allocate one or more other PRS windows to the one or more wireless nodes for PRS transmission during the time period. The time period may be independent of an observation period defined for short control signaling transmissions on an unlicensed radio band, such as a UNII radio band, and each of the PRS windows may be independent of a total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on an unlicensed radio band, such as a UNII radio band, from a given LBE during the observation period. In some instances, each of the one or more wireless nodes includes one of an nr-gNB, a gNB, an eNB, a UE, an LBE, or a TRP.

[0148] Fig.11 A flow chart depicting example operations 1100 for wireless communications to support positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations. Operations 1100 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Figure 6C The method is performed by a transmitting device 621 of the present invention. At block 1102, the UE determines a schedule for sending a positioning reference signal (PRS). At block 1104, the UE sends the determined schedule to one or more wireless nodes on a channel of a radio access network (RAN). At block 1106, the UE sends a PRS sequence on an unlicensed radio band (such as an unlicensed 5G NR radio band) based on the determined schedule.

[0149] In some instances, the channel may be a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network. In some other instances, the channel may be one of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) of a RAN. In some instances, the unlicensed radio band may be one or more unlicensed national information infrastructure (UNII) radio bands. The one or more UNII radio bands may be one or more of a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band.

[0150] In some implementations, the determined schedule may also include identification information of one or more wireless nodes. In some instances, each of the one or more wireless nodes may be one of an nr-gNB, a gNB, an eNB, a UE, or a TRP configured to operate in LBE mode or FBE mode.

[0151] Fig.12A flow chart depicting example operations 1200 for wireless communications to support positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations. Operations 1200 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Fig.6D At block 1202, the UE receives a request to send a positioning reference signal (PRS) sequence on a channel of a 5G NR access network. At block 1204, the UE sends the PRS sequence on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band based on the request.

[0152] In some implementations, the UE may contend for channel access on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band using the LBT channel access mechanism and may transmit a PRS sequence on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band using short control signaling. In some instances, the PRS sequence may be transmitted on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during a CET window assigned to the UE. The CET window may correspond to the total duration of short control signaling transmissions allowed on the unlicensed radio band from a given LBE during the observation period.

[0153] Fig.13 A flow chart depicting example operations 1300 for wireless communications to support positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations. Operations 1300 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350 or Fig. 6E At block 1302, the UE sends a request for sending a positioning reference signal (PRS) sequence for multiple other UEs on a channel of a 5G NR access network. At block 1304, the UE receives the requested PRS sequence from at least one of the multiple other UEs on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band.

[0154] In some implementations, the request may be a unicast message identifying each of a plurality of other UEs for transmitting the PRS sequence. In some other implementations, the request may be a multicast message identifying a group of other UEs for transmitting the PRS sequence. In some other implementations, the request may identify a group of other UEs located within a specified area.

[0155] Fig.14 A flow chart depicting example operations 1400 for wireless communications to support positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations. Operations 1400 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, Figure 3 Base station 310 or UE 350, or FIG. 6A to FIG. 6EAt box 1402, the UE contends for channel access on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism. At box 1404, the UE obtains access to the unlicensed 5G NR radio band within a channel occupancy time (COT) based on the contention. At box 1406, the UE sends a message including a request to send a positioning reference signal (PRS) sequence for multiple other UEs on a channel of the 5G NR access network. At box 1408, the UE receives the requested PRS sequence from at least one of the multiple other UEs on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during a portion of the COT.

[0156] Fig.15 A flow chart depicting example operations 1500 for wireless communications to support positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations. Operations 1500 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 Base station 102 or UE 104, Figure 3 Base station 310 or UE 350, or FIG. 6A to FIG. 6E At box 1502, the UE contends for channel access on an unlicensed 5G NR radio band using a Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism. At box 1504, the UE obtains access to the unlicensed 5G NR radio band within a channel occupation time (COT) based on contention. At box 1506, the UE sends a positioning reference signal (PRS) sequence to multiple other UEs on the unlicensed 5G NR radio band during the COT. At box 1508, the UE determines whether any of the multiple other UEs received the PRS sequence. At box 1510, the UE selectively adjusts the contention window size for the next channel access procedure based on the determination.

[0157] In some implementations, the Class 4 LBT channel access mechanism may be (or may be based on) an Enhanced Clear Channel Access (ECCA) mechanism without exponential backoff, and the COT may be based on rules associated with one or more unlicensed radio bands. The PRS sequence (which may be used by one or more of the other UEs for positioning operations (such as OTDOA positioning)) may be sent on one or more unlicensed radio bands (such as (but not limited to) an unlicensed national information infrastructure (UNII) radio band). In some instances, the one or more UNII radio bands may be one or more of a UNII-1 radio band, a UNII-2A radio band, a UNII-2B radio band, or a UNII-3 radio band.

[0158] Fig.16A flow chart depicting example operations 1600 for wireless communications to support positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations. Operations 1600 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350, or respectively Fig. 6A , Figure 6B or Figure 6C In some implementations, operation 1600 may be performed at any one or more of the sending devices 611, 621, or 631. Fig.15 An example of determining whether any of the plurality of other UEs received the PRS sequence in block 1508 of .

[0159] At block 1602, the UE receives a feedback message indicating a signal strength of a PRS from at least one of a plurality of other UEs. At block 1604, the UE selectively adjusts a contention window size based on the indicated signal strength. In some instances, one or more of the feedback messages may be received on a V2X frequency subband of a 5G NR access network and may include an RSSI value of a PRS received by a corresponding one of the other UEs. In some other instances, the feedback message may be received on another suitable channel of the RAN. In some other implementations, the feedback message may be received on one or more unlicensed radio bands.

[0160] Fig.17 A flow chart depicting example operations 1700 for wireless communications to support positioning operations is shown in accordance with some other implementations. Operations 1700 may be performed by a wireless communication device such as Figure 1 UE 104, Figure 3 UE 350, or respectively Figure 6B , Figure 6C or Fig.6D In some implementations, operation 1700 may be performed at any one or more of the sending devices 611, 621, or 631. Fig.16 1704. At block 1702, the UE determines whether the indicated signal strength is less than a value. If the indicated signal strength is less than the value as determined at block 1704, then at block 1706, the UE increases the contention window size. If the indicated signal strength is not less than the value as determined at block 1704, then at block 1708, the UE maintains the contention window size. In some instances, the value may correspond to a minimum RSSI value of the positioning signal to achieve a specified accuracy.

[0161] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one" of a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including single members. For example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, and abc.

[0162] The various illustrative logics, logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithmic processes described in conjunction with the implementations disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. The interchangeability of hardware and software has been generally described in terms of functionality and illustrated in the various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and processes described above. Whether such functionality is implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0163] The hardware and data processing apparatus for implementing the various illustrative logics, logic blocks, modules and circuits described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein can be implemented or executed with the following: a general purpose single-chip or multi-chip processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor can be a microprocessor, or any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller or state machine. The processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor), multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. In some implementations, specific processes and methods can be performed by circuit systems specific to a given function.

[0164] In one or more aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, digital electronic circuitry, computer software, firmware (including the structures disclosed in this specification and their structural equivalents), or in any combination thereof. Implementations of the subject matter described in this specification may also be implemented as one or more computer programs (such as one or more modules of computer program instructions) encoded on computer storage media for execution by data processing apparatus or to control the operation of the data processing apparatus.

[0165] If implemented in software, the function can be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium or sent on the computer-readable medium. The process of the method or algorithm disclosed herein can be implemented in a processor executable software module, which can reside on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media (including any medium that can be enabled to transfer a computer program from one place to another). The storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such a computer-readable medium may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store the desired program code in the form of an instruction or data structure and can be accessed by a computer. Moreover, any connection can be appropriately referred to as a computer-readable medium. Disks and optical disks as used herein include compact disks (CDs), laser optical disks, optical optical disks, digital versatile disks (DVDs), floppy disks and blue-ray disks, wherein disks usually reproduce data magnetically, and optical disks reproduce data optically by means of lasers. The above combination should also be included in the scope of computer-readable media. Additionally, the operations of a method or algorithm may reside as one or any combination or set of codes and / or instructions on a machine-readable medium and computer-readable media, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

[0166] Various modifications to the implementations described in this disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other implementations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the implementations shown herein, but should be given the broadest scope consistent with the disclosure, the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method performed by a device of a user equipment UE, comprising: receiving position assistance data, the position assistance data comprising a list of candidate transmit / receive points (TRPs) for positioning operations; Receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) from each of the plurality of candidate TRPs over an unlicensed fifth generation (5G) New Radio (NR) radio band; Sending one or more PRSs to at least one candidate TRP of the plurality of candidate TRPs over the unlicensed 5G NR radio band; as well as A round trip time (RTT) ranging operation is performed using the at least one candidate TRP based at least in part on the received PRS and the one or more transmitted PRSs.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Prior to receiving the position assistance data, a position measurement request is received on a channel of the 5G NR access network.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The channel includes a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) frequency sub-band of the 5G NR access network, the unlicensed 5G NR radio band, or a licensed 5G NR radio band.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The channels include one or more unlicensed National Information Infrastructure UNII radio bands.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The location assistance data includes a PRS configuration, which indicates a transmission time of the PRS from each of the multiple candidate TRPs or one or more of the unlicensed 5G NR radio bands on which each of the PRSs is received.

6. A wireless communication device, comprising: Memory; At least one network interface; and a processing system communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one network interface, wherein the processing system is configured to: receiving position assistance data, the position assistance data comprising a list of candidate transmit / receive points (TRPs) for positioning operations; Receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) from each of the plurality of candidate TRPs over an unlicensed fifth generation (5G) New Radio (NR) band; Sending one or more PRSs to at least one candidate TRP of the plurality of candidate TRPs over the unlicensed 5G NR radio band; and A round trip time (RTT) ranging operation is performed using the at least one candidate TRP based at least in part on the received PRS and the one or more transmitted PRSs.

7. The wireless communication device according to claim 6, wherein: The processing system is also configured to: Prior to receiving the position assistance data, a position measurement request is received on a channel of the 5G NR access network.

8. A wireless communication device, comprising: Means for performing the method according to any one of claims 1-5.

9. A non-transitory computer readable medium having program code stored thereon, wherein the program code can be executed by one or more processors to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-5.

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