Location signaling in wireless communication systems

Abstract

A user equipment UE for a wireless communication system is described. The wireless communication system includes multiple user equipment UEs. The UE will communicate with one or more other UEs using a side link SL. One or more location information elements describe the location or positioning of the UE, wherein the location information element includes a first part and a second part, wherein, for the location or positioning within a specific area, the first part of the location information element is one of a first fixed part set, and the second part of the location information element varies depending on the actual or precise location or positioning of the UE. When the UE is located in a specific area, the UE will receive location information of the other UE from the other UE, for example using side link control information SCI, the location information including some or all of the second part of the location information element of the other UE, and obtain the location or positioning of the other UE by combining one of the first fixed part set with the location information received from the other UE, wherein, in the case where the first fixed part set includes more than one first fixed part, the UE will use the location information received from the other UE to select one of the first fixed part set.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of wireless communication systems or networks, and more particularly, to enhancements or improvements to signaling regarding the position or location of a user equipment communicating with one or more other user equipments using a side link (SL). Embodiments of the present invention relate to signaling regarding the position or location of a user equipment that is a member of a group of UEs communicating via a side link. Background Art

[0002] Figures 1(a) and 1(b) are schematic representations of an example terrestrial wireless network 100. As shown in Figure 1(a), terrestrial wireless network 100 includes a core network 102 and one or more radio access networks RAN1, RAN2, ..., RANN. Figure 1(b) is a schematic representation of an example radio access network RANn, which includes one or more base stations gNB1 through gNB5. Each base station serves a specific area surrounding the base station, schematically represented by cells 1061 through 1065. A base station is provided to serve users within a cell. One or more base stations can provide services to users in licensed and / or unlicensed frequency bands. The term base station (BS) refers to a gNB in ​​5G networks, an eNB in ​​UMTS / LTE / LTE-A / LTE-A Pro, or simply a BS in other mobile communication standards. Users can be fixed or mobile devices. The wireless communication system can also be accessed by mobile or fixed IoT devices connected to a base station or user. Mobile devices, or IoT devices, can include: physical devices; ground vehicles, such as robots or cars; aerial vehicles, such as manned or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones; buildings; and other items and devices with embedded electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network connectivity that enables these devices to collect and exchange data across existing network infrastructure. Figure 1(b) shows a schematic diagram of five cells; however, a RANn can include more or fewer such cells, and a RANn can also include only one base station. Figure 1(b) shows two users, UE1 and UE2, also known as user equipment (UEs), located in cell 1062 and served by base station eNB2. Another user, UE3, is shown in cell 1064, served by base station eNB4. Arrows 1081, 1082, and 1083 schematically represent uplink / downlink connections for transmitting data from users UE1, UE2, and UE3 to base stations eNB2 and eNB4, or for transmitting data from base stations eNB2 and eNB4 to users UE1, UE2, and UE3. This can be achieved in licensed or unlicensed frequency bands. Furthermore, Figure 1(b) shows two IoT devices 1101 and 1102 in cell 1064, which can be fixed or mobile devices. IoT device 1101 accesses the wireless communication system via base station eNB4 to receive and transmit data, as schematically represented by arrow 1121. IoT device 1102 accesses the wireless communication system via user UE3, as schematically represented by arrow 1123. Each base station gNB1 to gNB5 can be connected to the core network 102, for example, via an S1 interface, via respective backhaul links 1141 to 1145, schematically represented in Figure 1(b) by arrows pointing to "Core." The core network 102 can be connected to one or more external networks.Furthermore, some or all of the various base stations gNB1 through gNB5 may be connected to each other via respective backhaul links 1161 through 1165 via the S1, X2, or XN interfaces in NR, schematically represented in Figure 1(b) by arrows pointing to "gNBs." Sidelink channels allow direct communication between UEs, also known as device-to-device (D2D) communication. The sidelink interface in 3GPP is named PC5.

[0003] For data transmission, a physical resource grid (PRG) can be used. The PRG can include a set of resource elements to which various physical channels and physical signals are mapped. For example, physical channels can include: physical downlink, uplink, and sidelink shared channels (PDSCH, PUSCH, PSSCH), which carry user-specific data, also known as downlink, uplink, and sidelink payload data; physical broadcast channel (PBCH), which carries, for example, the master information block (MIB) and one or more system information blocks (SIBs); and physical downlink, uplink, and sidelink control channels (PDCCH, PUCCH, PSSCH), which carry, for example, downlink control information (DCI), uplink control information (UCI), and sidelink control information (SCI). Note that the sidelink interface can support two levels of SCI. This refers to a first control region containing some portion of the SCI and, optionally, a second control region containing a second portion of the control information.

[0004] For the uplink, the physical channels may also include a physical random access channel (PRACH or RACH) used by the UE to access the network after synchronization and acquisition of the MIB and SIB. Physical signals may include reference signals or symbols (RS), synchronization signals, etc. The resource grid may include a frame or radio frame having a certain duration in the time domain and a given bandwidth in the frequency domain. The frame may have a certain number of subframes of a predetermined length (e.g., 1 millisecond). Each subframe may include one or more slots having 12 or 14 OFDM symbols, depending on the cyclic prefix (CP) length. A frame may also consist of a smaller number of OFDM symbols, for example when using a shortened transmission time interval (sTTI) or a mini-slot / non-slot-based frame structure that includes only a few OFDM symbols.

[0005] The wireless communication system may be any single-frequency or multi-carrier system using frequency division multiplexing, such as an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) system, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) system, or any other IFFT-based signal with or without CP, such as DFT-S-OFDM. Other waveforms such as non-orthogonal waveforms for multiple access may be used, for example, filter bank multi-carrier (FBMC), generalized frequency division multiplexing (GFDM), or universal filtered multi-carrier (UFMC). The wireless communication system may operate, for example, according to the LTE-Advanced pro standard, or the 5G or NR (New Radio) standard, or the NR-U (Unlicensed New Radio) standard.

[0006] The wireless network or communication system shown in Figures 1(a) and 1(b) may be a heterogeneous network having different overlapping networks, such as a macrocell network in which each macrocell includes a macro base station such as base stations gNB1 to gNB5, and a network of small cell base stations (not shown in Figures 1(a) and 1(b)) such as femto or pico base stations.

[0007] In addition to the terrestrial wireless networks described above, there are also non-terrestrial wireless communication networks (NTNs) that include spaceborne transceivers, such as satellites, and / or airborne transceivers, such as unmanned aerial vehicle systems. Non-terrestrial wireless communication networks or systems can operate, for example, according to the LTE-Advanced Pro standard or the 5G or NR (New Radio) standard, in a manner similar to the terrestrial systems described above with reference to Figures 1(a) and 1(b).

[0008] Note that the information in the above section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

[0009] Starting from the prior art as described above, it may be necessary to enhance or improve the signaling of the position or location of the user equipment. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Now, embodiments of the present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings:

[0011] Figures 1(a) and 1(b) show schematic representations of examples of wireless communication systems;

[0012] Figure 2 shows the location information field in RRC in LTE as described in 3GPP TS 36.331 (see reference [1]);

[0013] Figure 3 shows a point defined by two coordinates according to 3GPP TS 23.032 (see reference [2]);

[0014] Figure 4describes the uncertainty circle according to reference [2];

[0015] Figure 5 The uncertainty ellipse according to reference [2] is described;

[0016] Figure 6 describes the ellipsoid points with altitude according to reference [2];

[0017] Figure 7 describes the ellipsoid points with altitude and uncertainty ellipsoid according to reference [2];

[0018] Figure 8 shows the information element EllipsoidArc describing a geographical location as an ellipsoid point according to 3GPP TS 36.355 (see reference [3]);

[0019] Figure 9 is a schematic representation of a cell, such as the cell in the network of Figures 1(a) and 1(b), having a coverage area divided into a plurality of regions;

[0020] Figure 10 is a schematic representation of a wireless communication system comprising a transmitter (e.g., a base station) and one or more receivers (e.g., user equipment UE);

[0021] Figure 11 Schematically shows a location information element comprising M bits;

[0022] Figure 12 An embodiment is shown according to which the directional IE of the receiving UE and the received portion of the directional IE of the TX UE are used to infer the directional IE of the transmitting UE;

[0023] Figure 13 An embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention is shown as being employed at a street intersection where two roads intersect;

[0024] FIG14( a ) and FIG14 ( b ) show another embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention for queue applications;

[0025] Figures 15(a)-(c) illustrate an embodiment for determining whether communication between a transmitting UE and a receiving UE satisfies a minimum required communication range;

[0026] FIG. 16 ( a ) and FIG. 16 ( b ) illustrate an embodiment of the present invention in which the concept of area is adopted to obtain the location of a transmitting UE; and

[0027] Figure 17 An example of a computer system on which the units or modules and steps of the method described according to the present invention can be executed is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar elements are designated with the same reference numerals.

[0029] In a wireless communication system or network (such as the wireless communication system or network described above with reference to FIG. 1 (a) and FIG. 1 (b)), as described, for example, in 3GPP TS 36.331 (see reference [1]), for LTE, location information of a user equipment UE may be sent as a measurement information element within a radio resource control (RRC) measurement report. FIG2 shows the location information field in the RRC as described in reference [1]. The location is described as an ellipsoid point coordinate, and according to 3GPP TS 23.032 (see reference [2]), the description of an ellipsoid point is a description of a point on the surface of the ellipsoid, and the location includes latitude and longitude. In practice, such a description may be used to refer to a point on or near the surface of the Earth having the same latitude and longitude.

[0030] Figure 3 shows a point defined by two coordinates as defined in reference [2]. More specifically, Figure 3 Shown is a point P on the surface of the ellipsoid, or Earth E, and its coordinates. Latitude is the angle between the equatorial plane A and a plane perpendicular to a tangent line T on the surface of the ellipsoid at point P. Positive latitudes correspond to the Northern Hemisphere, while negative latitudes correspond to the Southern Hemisphere. Longitude is the angle, measured eastward, between the half-plane G defined by the Greenwich meridian and the half-plane defined by point P and the polar axis A.

[0031] In Figure 2, according to reference [2], the following additional elements can be defined as follows:

[0032] - As described in reference [2], the uncertainty circle Figure 4 As shown in , the “ellipsoid point with uncertainty circle” is defined by the coordinates of the ellipsoid point P, the origin and the distance r,

[0033] - As described in reference [2], the uncertainty ellipse Figure 5 As shown in Figure 2, the “ellipsoid point with uncertainty ellipse” is defined by the coordinates of the ellipsoid point P, the origin, the distances r1 and r2, and the direction angle A.

[0034] - "High Precision Ellipsoid Point with Uncertainty Ellipsoid" - Compared to "Ellipsoid Point P with Uncertainty Ellipsoid", "High Precision Ellipsoid Point with Uncertainty Ellipsoid" provides finer coordinate resolution, as well as distances r1 and r2.

[0035] - An "ellipsoid point with altitude" is defined as a point on the surface of the Earth at a specified distance above or below a point P; this is defined by an ellipsoid point with a given longitude and latitude and an altitude above or below the ellipsoid point, as described in reference [2] Figure 6 As shown,

[0036] - As described in reference [2] with altitude and uncertainty ellipsoid Figure 7 As shown, an “ellipsoid point with altitude and uncertainty” is defined by the coordinates of the ellipsoid point P with altitude, the distances r1 (“semi-primary uncertainty”), r2 (“semi-secondary uncertainty”) and r3 (“vertical uncertainty”), and the direction angle A (“major axis angle”),

[0037] High Precision Ellipsoid Point with Altitude and Uncertainty Ellipsoid - High Precision Ellipsoid Point with Altitude and Uncertainty Ellipsoid provides finer resolution of coordinates, and distances r1, r2, and r3 than Ellipsoid Point with Altitude and Uncertainty Ellipsoid.

[0038] Figure 8 The information element (IE) EllipsoidArc is shown, which describes the geographic location as an ellipsoid point according to reference [3]. In addition, the above elements, namely, the ellipsoid point with uncertainty circle, the ellipsoid point with uncertainty ellipse, the high-precision ellipsoid point with inverse ellipse, the ellipsoid point with altitude, the ellipsoid point with altitude and uncertainty ellipsoid, and the high-precision ellipsoid point with altitude and uncertainty ellipsoid, can be used. For these elements, the number of bits required is greater than the number of bits of the information element EllipsoidArc.

[0039] In the following, the number of bits required for each information element IE is described according to reference [2]. According to reference [2], the coordinates of the ellipsoid points are encoded with an uncertainty of less than 3 meters. The latitude is encoded with 24 bits, i.e. a 1-bit sign and a value from 0 to 2 23 Numbers between -1 are encoded in binary on 23 bits. The relationship between the encoded number N and the range of the absolute latitude X it encodes is as follows, where X is in degrees:

[0040]

[0041] Except N=2 23 -1, its range is extended to include N+1.

[0042] Longitude, expressed in the range -180° to +180°, is encoded as a number between:

[0043] - 2 23 and +2 23-1, which is encoded in 2's complement binary on 24 bits. The relationship between the range of the encoded number N and the longitude X it encodes, where X is in degrees, is as follows:

[0044]

[0045] According to reference [2], the coordinates of the high-precision ellipsoid points are encoded with a resolution of less than 5 mm in latitude and less than 10 mm in longitude.

[0046] The latitude of a high-precision point in the range -90° to +90° is encoded as -2 23 with +2 23 -1, which is encoded in 2's complement binary on 32 bits. The relationship between the latitude X in the range [-90°, 90°] and the encoded number N is as follows:

[0047]

[0048] in Represents the largest integer less than or equal to x (floor operator).

[0049] The longitude of a high-precision point in the range -180° to +180° is encoded as -2 31 with +2 31 -1, which is encoded in 2's complement binary on 32 bits. The relationship between the longitude X in the range [-180°, 180°] and the encoded number N is as follows:

[0050]

[0051] According to equation (5), the uncertainty r expressed in meters is mapped to the number K as follows:

[0052]

[0053] where C = 10 and x = 0.1. When choosing 0≤K≤127, a useful range between 0 and 1800 km can be achieved for the uncertainty, while still allowing encoding to values ​​as small as 1 meter. The uncertainty can then be encoded in 7 bits as a binary encoding of K.

[0054] In a wireless communication system or network, such as that described above with reference to FIG1(a) and FIG1(b), user equipment may communicate via a sidelink using, for example, a PC5 interface. Use cases for such sidelink communication include, for example, V2V, V2X, and D2D communication, and for such sidelink communication, user equipment may be grouped into one or more corresponding groups. For example, according to reference [4], in V2X multicast, it may be desirable to send the location of a transmitting UE (TX UE) to one or more receiving UEs (RX UE). The location of the TX UE may be indicated via sidelink control information (SCI). SCI signaling is a method at the physical layer, while RRC signaling is sent at the MAC layer. SCI signaling is more frequent and faster, but also requires more bits because it is very robustly coded. On the other hand, RRC signaling can be scheduled into a data channel (e.g., a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH)) and may not have to be sent in every radio frame. In addition, it can be sent at a higher MCS and therefore in a more efficient manner.

[0055] Since the SCI is sent frequently, for example, it can be included in every sidelink radio frame, the overall size of the SCI is crucial, and the number of bits used for the SCI is designed to be as small as possible. In contrast, as described above, the positioning information that can be sent in the measurement report according to references [3] and [2] requires a large number of bits, for example, at least 2×24 bits for the ellipsoid point. Therefore, when indicating the positioning of the transmitting UE to one or more receiving UEs that communicate via the sidelink and are, for example, members of a V2X group, signaling the above-mentioned reference position information requires a large number of bits to be included in the SCI. This signaling overhead may be undesirable, for example, because the amount of resources that can be used for physical layer control signaling is limited. This is because the SCI is a broadcast transmission, which is meant to be received by all nearby UEs. Therefore, a very low modulation order and coding rate (MCS) is used to encode the SCI. The large overhead in the SCI may significantly reduce the overall system efficiency.

[0056] Another method for signaling the location of a user equipment employs the concept of area ID, according to which a specific area is subdivided into a plurality of areas, each area having an area ID associated therewith. Figure 9 is a schematic representation of a cell, such as the cell in the network described above with reference to Figures 1(a) and 1(b). The cell is defined by the coverage area 200 of the base station gNB. The coverage area 200 is divided into a plurality of regions, each region having a corresponding region ID associated therewith. The coverage area 200 is further subdivided into eight regions, each having region identifiers region ID0 to region ID7 assigned thereto. Note that Figure 9This is merely an example of how coverage area 200 may be divided into zones, and in other examples, more or fewer zones or zones of other shapes may be defined. The zones may be defined with respect to respective longitude and latitude coordinates, and in scenarios where V2X communication is to be implemented, these zones may also be referred to as V2X zones.

[0057] According to other examples, a region may be defined for an area other than the coverage area of ​​a base station. For example, the following area may be divided into multiple regions:

[0058] - the coverage areas of multiple base stations of a wireless communication network or system,

[0059] - part or all of the area covered by a wireless communication network or system,

[0060] - a specific geographical area on Earth, e.g. independent of a wireless communication network or system,

[0061] - The entire surface of the Earth.

[0062] An area ID can be represented by a relatively small number of bits, so that signaling the area in which the transmitting UE is located does not incur significant signaling overhead on the sidelink. In other words, it can be signaled using a small number of bits. However, while this reduces signaling overhead on the sidelink or in the SCI, it suffers from lower accuracy, depending on the actual area covered by the area associated with a particular ID. Therefore, for certain scenarios, the position or location signaled using the area ID may not be sufficient. For example, in V2X scenarios, positioning uncertainty can lead to the following issues. In certain scenarios, such as intersections, where V2X UEs meet at an intersection and V2X communication is used to coordinate their movements, accurate positioning of the UEs is crucial to avoiding collisions during intersection crossings. In another example, some V2X UEs may be moving in a queue, and insufficient accuracy may result in an inability to track the movements of other V2X UEs in the queue. For example, if a V2X UE unexpectedly switches from a parallel road to a highway, it may not realize it has strayed from its path.

[0063] The present invention provides improvements and enhancements in wireless communication systems or networks that address the aforementioned issues, wherein information about the location or positioning of a user equipment is signaled to one or more other user equipment via a sidelink. More specifically, embodiments of the present invention avoid the signaling overhead for providing location or positioning information while still providing an actual position / position with desired accuracy. Embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in the wireless communication system shown in Figures 1(a) and 1(b), which includes a base station and a user, such as a mobile terminal or IoT device. Figure 10306a, 306b, 308 (e.g., radio links). The transmitter 300 may include one or more antennas ANT coupled to each other. T Or an antenna array having multiple antenna elements, a signal processor 300a and a transceiver 300b. The receiver includes one or more antennas ANT coupled to each other. UE Or an antenna array with multiple antennas, signal processors 302a, 304a, and transceivers 302b, 304b. The base station 300 and the UEs 302, 304 can communicate via respective first wireless communication links 306a and 306b, such as radio links, using a Uu interface, while the UEs 302, 304 can communicate with each other via a second wireless communication link 308, such as a radio link, using a PC5 / sidelink (SL) interface. When the UEs are not being served by the base station or are not connected to the base station (e.g., they are not in an RRC connected state), or more generally, when the base station does not provide SL resource allocation configuration or assistance, the UEs can communicate with each other via the sidelink (SL). Figure 3 The system or network, one or more UEs 302, 304 and base station 300 may operate according to the teachings of the present invention as described herein.

[0064] User Equipment

[0065] The present invention provides a user equipment UE for a wireless communication system, wherein the wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments UE.

[0066] The UE will use the side link SL to communicate with one or more other UEs.

[0067] wherein one or more location information elements describe a location or position of the UE, wherein the location information element comprises a first part and a second part, wherein, for a location or position within a specific area, the first part of the location information element is one of a first set of fixed parts, and the second part of the location information element varies depending on the actual or precise location or position of the UE, and

[0068] When the UE is located in the specific area, the UE will

[0069] - receiving, from the further UE, positioning information for the further UE, e.g. using sidelink control information SCI, the positioning information comprising some or all of the second part of the location information element of the further UE, and

[0070] - obtaining the position or location of the further UE by combining one of the first fixed part sets with positioning information received from the further UE, wherein, in case the first fixed part set includes more than one first fixed part, the UE will use the positioning information received from the further UE to select one of the first fixed part sets.

[0071] According to an embodiment, in case the first fixed part set comprises only one fixed or common first part, the UE will obtain the position or location of the further UE by replacing the second part in the location information element of the UE with the positioning information received from the further UE.

[0072] According to an embodiment, in case the first fixed part set comprises more than one first part, the UE selects a first part from the first part set based on an association mapping different subsets of positioning information that can be received to different first parts in the first part set.

[0073] According to an embodiment, the user equipment is configured with an association by the network, another UE or an application, or is preconfigured with an association, said association explicitly indicating said subset and their respective associated first part in said first set of parts.

[0074] According to an embodiment, the association may be determined by the UE, eg the UE combines the positioning information received from the further UE with all different first parts in the first set of parts and selects the first part that results in a positioning closest to its own positioning.

[0075] According to an embodiment, for example in case of a queue, said first fixed set of parts will be updated dynamically.

[0076] According to an embodiment, the UE will use the position of the UE and the position of the further UE to determine the distance to the further UE.

[0077] According to an embodiment, depending on the minimum required communication range, the UE will decide whether to perform a specific operation, eg whether to send HARQ feedback to the further UE.

[0078] According to an embodiment, the UE will

[0079] - determining an area of ​​minimum required communication range around the UE,

[0080] - estimating an uncertainty area around the further UE depending on the number of received second parts of location information elements, and

[0081] - using an uncertainty area around the further UE and the area of ​​the minimum required communication range to determine whether the further UE is within the minimum required communication range.

[0082] According to an embodiment, the UE will

[0083] - determining an area of ​​minimum required communication range around the UE,

[0084] - determining whether the further UE is within the minimum required communication range.

[0085] According to an embodiment, the UE will determine that the further UE is within the minimum required communication range if one of the following criteria is met:

[0086] - the entire uncertainty region is within the minimum required communication range,

[0087] - at least a certain portion of the uncertainty region is within the region of the minimum required communication range,

[0088] - The uncertainty region and the minimum required communication range region intersect at least at one point.

[0089] According to an embodiment, in order to determine that the further UE is within the minimum required communication range, in the case where at least a portion of the uncertainty area is within the minimum required communication range, the UE will decide whether the portion of the uncertainty area located within the area of ​​the minimum required communication range satisfies a specific condition, for example, a preconfigured or configured threshold indicating the absolute size of the portion or the size of the portion relative to the uncertainty area such as a percentage.

[0090] The present invention provides a user equipment UE for a wireless communication system, wherein the wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments UE.

[0091] The UE will use the side link SL to communicate with one or more other UEs.

[0092] wherein one or more location information elements describe a location or position of the UE, wherein the location information element comprises a first part and a second part, wherein, for a location or position within a specific area, the first part of the location information element is one of a first set of fixed parts, and the second part of the location information element varies depending on the actual or precise location or position of the UE, and

[0093] When the UE is located in the specific area, the UE will, for example, use sidelink control information SCI to send positioning information of the UE to the other UE, where the positioning information includes some or all of the second part of the location information element of the UE.

[0094] According to an embodiment, the UE is a receiving UE or a sending UE in the SL communication.

[0095] According to an embodiment,

[0096] - the UE is configured with the specific area, for example by signalling during group establishment or from a network entity such as an RSU, or by an application, or over the top (OTT), or

[0097] - wherein the UE is pre-configured with the specific area, for example, hard-wired under the assumption that the UE does not leave the specific area, such as a UE in a factory.

[0098] According to an embodiment, the specific area is a defined geographical area or an area around a specific mobile point such as a mobile UE, within which the first part of the information element changes as the UE moves, but it is one of the first fixed part sets of all UEs in the specific area.

[0099] According to an embodiment, the one or more location information elements describe the global position or global positioning of the UE.

[0100] According to an embodiment,

[0101] - the location information element comprises M bits,

[0102] - for a location or position within the specific area, the first part of the location information element comprises n most significant bits of the location information element, and the second part of the location information element comprises M-n+i least significant bits, where i=0, 1...n-1, n.

[0103] According to an embodiment, the positioning information comprises a number of p bits partially representing the second part of the position information.

[0104] According to an embodiment, the positioning information comprises the most significant p bits of the second part of the position information element, where 1<=p<=k and k=M-n+i, where i=0, 1...n-1, n.

[0105] According to an embodiment, p depends on one or more criteria, eg the required accuracy for indicating the position and / or eg the available bits in the SCI.

[0106] According to an embodiment, one or more of M, n, k, and p may be selected depending on the application or use case.

[0107] According to an embodiment, the one or more criteria of p are pre-configured or configured for different use cases or applications.

[0108] According to an embodiment, the parameter k is selected based on one or more criteria, such as the range that needs to be supported and / or the available bits in the SCI.

[0109] According to an embodiment, the position or location is described as ellipsoid point coordinates and the one or more position information elements indicate one or more of latitude, longitude, altitude with or without an uncertainty range.

[0110] According to an embodiment, the specific area includes a predefined area, such as a specific area of ​​the coverage area of ​​a cell, or a specific area of ​​part or all of the coverage area of ​​the wireless communication system, or a specific area of ​​a geographical area covering part or all of the global area.

[0111] According to an embodiment,

[0112] - said region is associated with a region ID,

[0113] - the first part of the location information element comprises the area ID, and

[0114] - The second part of the location information element comprises the location of the further UE within the area.

[0115] According to an embodiment, the second part of the location information element defines an offset of the further UE from a reference point or position in the area, eg an offset from an origin in each area that is known in the system.

[0116] The present invention provides a user equipment UE for a wireless communication system, wherein the wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments UE.

[0117] The UE will use the side link SL to communicate with one or more other UEs.

[0118] When the UE is located in a specific area, the UE will

[0119] - receiving, for example, using sidelink control information SCI, an area ID and location information of another UE located in the same area or a different area, the location information indicating the location of the other UE within the area where the other UE is located, and

[0120] - obtaining the position or location of the further UE using the position of the UE and the received area ID and location information of the further UE.

[0121] The present invention provides a user equipment UE for a wireless communication system, wherein the wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments UE.

[0122] The UE will use the side link SL to communicate with one or more other UEs.

[0123] When the UE is located in a specific area, for example, using side link control information SCI, the UE will send the area ID and location information of the UE to another UE located in the same area or a different area, and the location information indicates the positioning of the UE in the specific area.

[0124] According to an embodiment, the specific area includes

[0125] - a specific area of ​​the cell's coverage area, or

[0126] - a specific area within the coverage area of ​​the wireless communication system, in part or in whole, or

[0127] - A specific area within a geographic region covering part or all of the global region.

[0128] According to an embodiment, the second part of the location information element defines an offset of the further UE from a reference point or position in the area, eg an offset from an origin in each area that is known in the system.

[0129] According to an embodiment, the UE knows the reference points or locations of various areas.

[0130] The present invention provides a user equipment UE for a wireless communication system, wherein the wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments UE.

[0131] The UE will communicate with one or more other UEs using a side link,

[0132] Among them, one or more location information elements describe the location or position of the UE.

[0133] When the UE is located in a specific area, the UE will

[0134] - receiving one or more location information elements comprising location information of the further UE from the further UE at a specific time, e.g. when establishing the SL communication, and

[0135] - receiving, at one or more times after the specific time, from the further UE further location information indicating a difference between a current location of the further UE and the location signaled at the specific time.

[0136] The present invention provides a user equipment UE for a wireless communication system, wherein the wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments UE.

[0137] The UE will communicate with one or more other UEs using a side link,

[0138] Among them, one or more location information elements describe the location or position of the UE.

[0139] When the UE is located in a specific area, the UE will

[0140] - sending one or more location information elements including location information of the UE to the further UE at a specific time, for example when establishing the SL communication, and

[0141] - receiving, at one or more times after the specific time, to the further UE further location information indicating a difference between a current location of the UE and the location signaled at the specific time.

[0142] According to an embodiment, the UE is a receiving UE or a sending UE in the SL communication.

[0143] According to an embodiment, the one or more location information elements are provided via RRC or over-the-top (OTT) or another type of semi-static signaling, and / or the further location information is provided in or as part of the sidelink control information SCI.

[0144] According to an embodiment, the one or more location information elements are provided using a unicast RRC message, a multicast RRC message or a group RRC message.

[0145] According to an embodiment, the UE and one or more of the further UEs form a group, and wherein the UE

[0146] - sending the one or more location information elements to the group UEs using a corresponding unicast RRC message or a group RRC message, and

[0147] - sending said further location information to the group UEs using, for example, an SCI multicast message comprising only said location changes, such as positioning deltas.

[0148] According to an embodiment, in case said one or more location information elements are sent to said group of UEs using a corresponding unicast RRC message, said further location information is selected so as to minimize a certain error metric, eg a minimum mean square error, MMSE.

[0149] According to an embodiment, the one or more location information elements further include one or more of the following:

[0150] - the current height or altitude of the UE, e.g. for flying UEs such as UAVs, drones, helicopters, airplanes, and

[0151] - The motion vector or motion direction of the UE, for example, used to refine the positioning information.

[0152] According to an embodiment, the UE includes one or more of the following: a mobile terminal, or a fixed terminal, or a cellular IoT-UE, or a vehicle-mounted UE, or a vehicle-mounted leader (GL) UE, or an IoT, or a narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) device, or a ground vehicle, or an aircraft, or a drone, or a mobile base station, or a roadside unit (RSU), or a building, or any other item or device (e.g., a sensor or actuator) provided with a network connection that enables the item / device to communicate using a wireless communication network, or any other item or device (e.g., a sensor or actuator) provided with a network connection that enables the item / device to communicate using a side link in a wireless communication network, or any network entity supporting a side link.

[0153] system

[0154] The present invention provides a wireless communication system comprising a plurality of user equipments UE of the present invention, which are configured for sidelink communication using resources, for example, from a sidelink resource set of the wireless communication system.

[0155] According to an embodiment, the wireless communication includes one or more base stations, wherein the base station includes one or more of the following: a macro cell base station, or a small cell base station, or a central unit of a base station, or a distributed unit of a base station, or a road side unit (RSU), or a UE, or a leader (GL), or a relay, or a remote radio head, or an AMF, or an SMF, or a core network entity, or a mobile edge computing (MEC) entity, or a network slice in an NR or 5G core context, or any transmission / reception point (TRP) that enables an item or device to communicate using the wireless communication network, and the item or device is provided with a network connection for communicating using the wireless communication network.

[0156] method

[0157] The present invention provides a method for obtaining a position or location of a user equipment (UE) in wireless communication. The wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments (UE). The method includes:

[0158] Communication is performed between a UE and one or more further UEs using a side link SL, wherein one or more location information elements describe a location or position of the UE, wherein the location information element comprises a first part and a second part, wherein the first part of the location information element is one of a first set of fixed parts for a location or position within a specific area, and the second part of the location information element varies depending on an actual or precise location or position of the UE,

[0159] - receiving, from the further UE, positioning information for the further UE, e.g. using sidelink control information SCI, the positioning information comprising some or all of the second part of the location information element of the further UE, and

[0160] - obtaining the position or location of the further UE by combining one of the first fixed part sets with positioning information received from the further UE, wherein, in case the first fixed part set includes more than one first fixed part, the UE will use the positioning information received from the further UE to select one of the first fixed part sets.

[0161] The present invention provides a method for providing a position or location of a user equipment (UE) in wireless communication. The wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments (UE). The method includes:

[0162] performing communication between a UE and one or more further UEs using a side link SL, wherein one or more location information elements describe a location or position of the UE, wherein the location information element comprises a first part and a second part, wherein the first part of the location information element is one of a first set of fixed parts for a location or position within a specific area, and the second part of the location information element varies depending on the actual or precise location or position of the UE, and

[0163] - sending positioning information of the UE from the UE to the further UE, e.g. using sidelink control information SCI, the positioning information comprising some or all of the second part of the location information element of the UE, and

[0164] The present invention provides a method for obtaining a position or location of a user equipment (UE) in wireless communication. The wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments (UE). The method includes:

[0165] Communication is performed between the UE and one or more further UEs using a side link SL,

[0166] - receiving, for example, using sidelink control information SCI, an area ID and location information of another UE located in the same area or a different area, the location information indicating the location of the other UE within the area where the other UE is located, and

[0167] - obtaining the position or location of the further UE using the position of the UE and the received area ID and location information of the further UE.

[0168] The present invention provides a method for providing a position or location of a user equipment (UE) in wireless communication. The wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments (UE). The method includes:

[0169] Communication is performed between the UE and one or more further UEs using a side link SL,

[0170] When the UE is located in a specific area, for example, using side link control information SCI, the area ID and location information of the UE are sent from the UE to another UE located in the same area or a different area, and the location information indicates the positioning of the UE in the specific area.

[0171] The present invention provides a method for providing a position or location of a user equipment (UE) in wireless communication. The wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments (UE). The method includes:

[0172] Communication is performed between the UE and one or more further UEs using a side link SL, wherein one or more location information elements describe the location or position of the UE,

[0173] - receiving one or more location information elements comprising location information of the further UE from the further UE at a specific time, e.g. when establishing the SL communication, and

[0174] - receiving, at one or more times after the specific time, from the further UE further location information indicating a difference between a current location of the further UE and the location signaled at the specific time.

[0175] The present invention provides a method for providing a position or location of a user equipment (UE) in wireless communication. The wireless communication system includes a plurality of user equipments (UE). The method includes:

[0176] performing communication between the UE and one or more further UEs using a side link SL, wherein one or more location information elements describe the location or position of the UE, and

[0177] - sending one or more location information elements including location information of the UE to the further UE at a specific time, for example when establishing the SL communication, and

[0178] - receiving, at one or more times after the specific time, to the further UE further location information indicating a difference between a current location of the UE and the location signaled at the specific time.

[0179] Computer program product

[0180] An embodiment of the present invention provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform one or more methods according to the present invention.

[0181] Therefore, embodiments of the present invention solve the above-mentioned problems found in the prior art methods. The present invention provides various aspects for solving the above-mentioned problems, and according to a first aspect, an efficient method is provided so that the position of a user equipment can be described with fewer bits in such a way that a receiving UE connected to the transmitting UE via a side link can still extract and / or understand the position / positioning of the transmitting UE with the desired accuracy. According to an embodiment of the first aspect, this allows the receiving UE to accurately calculate the distance to the transmitting UE. According to a second aspect of the present invention, precise position information is sent at a certain point in time of the transmission (for example, when the connection is established), and after the initial transmission of the precise position, signaling overhead is reduced by only sending information about the difference between the initial position and the current position at a later point in time (for example, when the position of the transmitting UE changes), thereby reducing signaling overhead.

[0182] Aspect 1

[0183] According to an embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention, a user equipment communicating with one or more other user equipments via a side link can provide compressed or reduced location information that avoids signaling overhead on the SCI. The UE communicating via the side link can be located within a specific area, so that when considering the location information element, its first part can be the same for all UEs in the specific area, that is, the first part of the location information can be one of a first fixed part set, and the second part of the location information can vary depending on the actual positioning of the corresponding UE. Therefore, for UEs located in a specific area, according to an embodiment of the first aspect, instead of sending the entire location information, only the second part of the location information, that is, the part that varies depending on the actual positioning of the UE, can be sent, thereby reducing the amount of information to be sent and thereby reducing the signaling overhead.

[0184] For example, at a receiving UE, the actual position or location of the other UE may be determined by combining one of the first fixed part sets with the positioning information of the second part received from the other UE and comprising in whole or in part the location information element.

[0185] The first fixed partial set is known to the UEs in the area. Note that being fixed does not prevent the set from being changed, e.g., dynamically updated. According to an embodiment, the first fixed partial set may be dynamically updated, e.g., in the case of a mobile UE, such as in a queue, as described in more detail below.

[0186] Depending on the embodiment, the first fixed part set may include only one or a single first fixed part, i.e., the first part of the location information is common to all locations within a specific area. Then, in the location information associated with the receiving UE, its second part may be replaced with the second part received from the transmitting UE, thereby obtaining the actual location or positioning of other UEs. For example, the information element may include multiple bits, the first part of which (e.g., n bits) is common or remains fixed for UEs located within a specific area, while the second part of multiple bits (e.g., k bits) changes or varies depending on the actual location of the UE.

[0187] According to other embodiments, the first set of fixed parts may include more than one first fixed part, such as two, and the first part of the location information may vary slightly for locations within a particular area. An example of this is the variation in longitude or latitude that can occur at nearby locations: despite two locations being in close proximity, one location may "belong" to a higher or lower longitude or latitude, depending on its absolute position in the Earth's coordinate system. A UE can then use the positioning information received from another UE to select one of the first fixed parts from the set and combine this selected first fixed part with the second part received from the transmitting UE to obtain the actual position or location of the other UE. For example, when considering a binary representation of location, the first fixed part to be used can be selected based on the second part in the following manner: when the received second part includes only 1s and the receiving UE's second part includes only 0s, or vice versa, this indicates that the first part of the transmitting UE is to be used. On the other hand, if the received second part increases or decreases by a fraction of the bit positions when compared to the receiving UE's second part, this indicates that the first part of the receiving UE is to be used. Thus, the UE may select one of the first fixed part sets depending on pre-configured / network configured criteria, eg selecting the one of the first fixed part sets having the smallest distance to the UE.

[0188] For example, when considering an area where positioning is represented by four bits, the location of some UEs may be represented by binary as follows: 0001 0010 0011 0100 0101 0110 0111 1000 1001 1010 1011 1100 1101 1110

[0191] In this example, the most significant bit can be considered the first fixed portion, and the first fixed portion set includes "0" as the first fixed portion and "1" as another first fixed portion. The second portion is the three least significant bits. Considering an RX UE with bit positions 0111 and a TX UE with bit positions 1000, the RX UE receives, for example, "000" as the second portion from the TX UE. When compared to the RX UE's second portion being "111," the RX UE notices this change and recognizes that another first fixed portion of "1" will be used to determine the TX UE's position. On the other hand, when considering a TX UE with bit positions "0011" incrementing or decrementing a portion of these bit positions, compared to the RX UE's second portion being "111," the RX UE only notices the change (increment or decrement by 1) in some bits and recognizes that one first fixed portion of "0" will be used to determine the TX UE's position.

[0192] According to other embodiments of the first aspect, the first part of the information element may include an area identifier indicating a specific area where the sending UE is actually located, and the second part sent indicates the offset of the UE within the area, for example with reference to a reference position in the area (for example, a well-known origin of the area).

[0193] Therefore, according to embodiments of the first aspect, signaling overhead is reduced because, for a UE within a specific area, the first part of the location information is from a known first fixed part set and does not need to be sent, but it is sufficient to send only the second part in full or in part. According to an embodiment, the UE is configured with a specific area, for example, by:

[0194] - Signalling during group establishment, and / or

[0195] - Signaling from network entities (such as RSU or BS), and / or

[0196] - Application, and / or

[0197] - Higher layer entities or elements, such as those associated with the UE, in other words, the configuration may not be entirely from the application, but may be some layer 2 or layer 3 configuration, and / or

[0198] - Over the Top (OTT).

[0199] According to other embodiments, the UE is pre-configured with a specific area, eg hard-wired under the assumption that the UE does not leave the specific area, such as a UE in a factory.

[0200] Depending on the embodiment, the specific area may be a defined geographic area, such as an intersection or factory area, while according to other embodiments, the specific area may be the area surrounding a specific mobile point (e.g., a mobile UE). Within this area, the first part of the information element may change as the UE moves, but it is part of the set of first fixed parts for all UEs within the specific area. In this scenario, for example, if the mobile UE moves a considerable distance, some first fixed parts may become invalid as the UE moves, but new first fixed parts may become valid. In other words, in this scenario, dynamic updating of the set of first fixed parts occurs. The set of first fixed parts can be dynamically updated by replacing one or more invalid first fixed parts with valid first fixed parts.

[0201] Only part or all of the changing part of the information, i.e. the above-mentioned second part, needs to be sent, thereby reducing signaling overhead while allowing the receiving UE to estimate or determine the actual location of the sending UE with the desired accuracy by combining one of the first fixed part sets of location information already available at the receiving UE with the second part of the received information.

[0202] When considering the aforementioned location information elements (IEs), for example, describing latitude, longitude, and / or altitude, each IE is represented by multiple bits. In general, the number of bits required for different location IEs may vary, for example, depending on the positioning system and / or coordinates used. Embodiments according to the first aspect of the present invention employing the aforementioned information elements describing location via its latitude, longitude, altitude, etc., provide the aforementioned specific area within which multiple UEs communicate via sidelink. For example, a group of UEs (e.g., a V2X group) may be defined when establishing the group for sidelink communication, or it may be provided as a default by the system (e.g., an application) or by the RSU. Below, embodiments of the first aspect are described with reference to the transmission of a single information element (IE) describing the global location of the UE, and the IE may include both latitude and longitude information. According to other embodiments, different IEs may be transmitted for each coordinate. Furthermore, the method of the present invention is not limited to signaling the global location of the UE; rather, it may also be applied to signaling the relative location of the UE within a specific predefined geographic area, such as the entire coverage area of ​​a wireless communication system or any other arbitrarily selected geographic area.

[0203] Figure 11 The position information element is schematically shown to include M bits. For example, when considering Figure 11When a UE is transmitting an IE, to define the global location of the transmitting UE, the n most significant bits of the IE are the same, common, or inferable for locations or points within a predefined area, and only the Mn least significant bits vary and / or are not inferable. The predefined area may also be referred to as a restricted area, which may be a default area or may be set when establishing communication. The representation of the IE may be binary and may vary cyclically. Figure 11 k bits are shown, where k is defined as follows: k = M - n + i, where "i" varies between 0 and n. This allows bits from the first part to be included in the second part. In other words, the second part can overlap with the first part by "i" bits. By considering larger values ​​for "i", a larger minimum communication range and / or area can be considered or maintained. That is, when the distance between UEs increases beyond the initially planned distance up to some larger distance limit, the receiving UE can still calculate the position of the transmitting UE. The so-called larger distance limit depends on the value of "i".

[0204] In order to reduce the signaling overhead for signaling the location of the transmitting UE to receiving UEs located within a predefined area (e.g., a predefined area around the transmitting UE), the k least significant bits of the IE may be employed, and only some or all of the k least significant bits may be signaled using the SCI, thereby significantly reducing the number of bits to be signaled in the SCI. For example, according to an embodiment, only p significant bits of the k bit portion may be selected, e.g., 1≤p≤k, based on the desired precision / accuracy and / or based on the availability of bits, e.g., in the SCI. The p bit portion is the portion of the IE that is sent to one or more receiving UEs. In Figure 11 Where the IE shown includes only one coordinate, the same process may be applied to the other coordinates of the locations in the other location IEs.

[0205] According to an embodiment, the required accuracy and / or required area parameter p of the group can be as low as 3 to 4 bits. For example, when considering the distance between two points on the Earth, calculated based on their positioning, in a typical V2X application, the area parameter R of the group is around 50 meters R min To 500 meters R max between.

[0206]

[0207] When assuming that the two points have the same latitude and the only difference between the two locations is longitude, 50 meters (R min ) is equivalent to a difference of almost 0.000472 degrees in longitude, which, according to Equation 1 above, yields the following result:

[0208] 2 23 / 90x0.000472=43.99->N=43->6 bits

[0209] Thus, when the 50-meter area is considered as a predefined area or a specific area where the UE is located, for example, when sending an area of ​​50 meters around the UE or around a specific location, the 6 least significant bits of the 23 bits of the longitude IE vary, while the remaining bits are common among the UEs within the area, or the remaining bits are fixed.

[0210] When assuming that the two points have the same latitude and the only difference between the two locations is longitude, a distance of 500 meters (R max ) is equivalent to a difference of almost 0.004722 degrees in dimension, which, according to Equation 1 above, yields the following:

[0211] 2 23 / 90x0.000472=439.93->N=439->9 bits

[0212] Thus, when considering a 500 meter area in which the UE is located, for example, when a 500 meter area around the transmitting UE or around a specific location, the 9 least significant bits of the 23 bits of the longitude IE vary, while the remaining bits are common among UEs within the area, or the remaining bits are fixed.

[0213] For example, when considering a group of UEs where the receiving UE will be within 500 meters of the transmitting UE or within 500 meters around a particular place or location, if the transmitting UE sends 3 or 4 most significant bits of the 9 least significant bits of the longitude IE, the receiving UE can Figure 12 The position of the TX UE is constructed in the manner shown. Figure 12 An embodiment is shown according to which the location IE of the transmitting UE is inferred using the portion (e.g., p bits) of the location IE of the receiving UE and the received location IE of the TX UE. More specifically, when the above-mentioned p bits are received from the transmitting UE, the receiving UE infers the location IE of the transmitting UE, i.e., the location or positioning of the transmitting UE, by combining the p bits received from the TX UE with the n bits of the first portion of the location information element of the receiving UE. Therefore, as Figure 12 As shown, the transmitting UE's Position IE inferred by the receiving UE includes the n most significant bits from the RX UE Position IE and the p bits received from the TX UE.

[0214] According to the above example for signaling location information, m can be 23 bits, k can be 9 bits, and p can be 3 or 4 bits, depending on the required accuracy. For example, depending on the region and / or the required accuracy and / or the available bits in the SCI, the parameters p and k can be defined or adjusted. Figure 12 In , only a portion of the k bits are used, i.e. kp bits carry no information about the position. For higher precision, the number of p bits is higher and can be up to k bits, while for lower precision, less than the p bits shown can be signaled.

[0215] Therefore, according to an embodiment of the first aspect, UEs communicating via a side link, such as UEs of a specific group (such as a V2X group) or UEs communicating with other network entities supporting the side link (such as an RSU), may be configured or pre-configured with a specific area. The information may be a location information element describing a specific area around a specific UE in the group (such as a leader UE) or an area in which the UE is located. For the area, the location information element may be common or fixed, and the UE may obtain the location of the transmitting UE by combining the configured or pre-configured location IE with the received portion of the positioning information received from the transmitting UE, as described above with reference to Figure 12 In other embodiments, if a specific area is defined and known to all UEs in the group, for example, an area in which the UE will be located, such as a factory, the area can be pre-configured, for example, hard-wired in the UE. To obtain the position or location of the transmitting UE, the area information pre-configured in the receiving UE (e.g., n bits defining the coordinates of the area) can be combined with the positioning information received from the other UEs.

[0216] Depending on the embodiment, parameters k and / or p can be adjusted based on the application or use case. For example, different use cases may have different requirements for parameters such as area or accuracy. For example, a group around a traffic intersection may not need to support an area larger than the size of the intersection itself, but accuracy is more important for collision avoidance. Another example of a use case is a platooning use case, where a larger area needs to be supported to cover all mobile UEs within the area, such as the leader UE. In this scenario, providing a larger area is more important, and accuracy requirements may not be as stringent as in an intersection scenario. Therefore, the application can decide on the parameters k and p to use based on specific constraints associated with the scenario (e.g., a maximum number of common or fixed bits and a variable number of bits used to signal positioning in the SCI). This information can be forwarded to lower layers, which then choose which bits to send in the SCI at the transmitter or how to interpret the received bits at the receiver. The application can implicitly know the required range and accuracy for the application through the use case, and therefore parameters p and k can be fixed for that application. At both ends of the communication link, the application layer can inform the lower layers of the parameter selection. In another example, applications running at both ends of a communication link can negotiate parameters and subsequently notify lower layers. Until the negotiation process is complete, lower layers can assume default values ​​for p and k. In another example, an application at one end of a communication link can determine and dictate all or some of the parameters and notify its lower layers, for example through signaling from the first end of the communication link. The parameters can then be used to configure the other end of the communication link.

[0217] Figure 13 FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention at a street intersection where two roads intersect. Figure 13 As shown, and as described above, substantially covers the size of the intersection. The location information elements defining the position or location within the region R have the same or a common most significant bit, and the k bits differ depending on the actual location within the region R. For example, when approaching an intersection, such as by Figure 13 The RSU shown adds UEs approaching or entering the area to a group and includes, for example, an area indication in the group information, which can inform the individual UEs accordingly. For example, the number n of common bits in the location information element can be included so that the UE can combine the n most significant bits from its location information element with the p bits received from the transmitting UE. Therefore, when entering area R, the positioning of the transmitting UE can be determined in the manner described above. Figure 13In the example shown, UE1 to UE5 are within region R, and UE2 is assumed to be the transmitting UE. UE1 and UE3 to UE5 can use partial information received from UE2 via a sidelink channel (e.g., via SCI) to determine UE2's location. This SCI, for example, allows each UE to recognize that UE2 is located at an intersection, thereby notifying them that it is impossible to enter the intersection within a specific time period or that evasive action can be taken, such as interruption or stopping of UE1 and UE4. UE5 and UE3 can recognize that no evasive action is required because there is no possibility of a collision.

[0218] Therefore, in Figure 13 In the embodiment, each UE1 to UE5 determines the location of the transmitting UE within the region R. On the other hand, UE6 is not within the region R, so that even when receiving the second part of the location information element from the TX UE, it cannot determine the location of the TX UE as described herein.

[0219] According to an embodiment, based on the inferred location IE of the TX UE, the receiving UE can determine its distance from the transmitting UE in order to find out whether it is within a certain communication range. Figure 13 In the embodiment, UE1 and UE3 to UE5 can determine whether UE2 is within a predetermined distance D1, D3 to D5. Depending on the distance, each UE can decide whether to perform a specific operation. For example, when all UEs within the region R are considered as members of the group, HARQ feedback based on TX-RX distance for multicast can be implemented. For example, as described in reference [4], the range of group communication can be used for sidelink physical layer procedures. In the case of HARQ feedback based on TX-RX distance for multicast, if the TX-RX distance is less than or equal to the communication range requirement, the UE sends HARQ feedback for PSSCH. Otherwise, the UE does not send HARQ feedback for PSSCH. The position of the TX UE is indicated by the SCI associated with the PSSCH, as described in this article. The TX-RX distance is estimated by the RX UE based on its own position and the TX UE position. After decoding the SCI associated with the PSSCH, the communication range requirement of the PSSCH used is known.

[0220] Therefore, when the TX-RX distance is less than or equal to the communication range requirement, the UE can send HARQ feedback for PSSCH, otherwise, the UE does not send HARQ feedback for PSSCH. As mentioned above, the position of the TX UE, i.e. Figure 13The position of UE2 in the example is indicated by the SCI associated with the PSSCH, more specifically, some or all of the second part of the information element transmitting UE2. Based on this information, in the manner described above, UE1 and UE3 to UE5 determine the position of UE2 and, based on their own positions UE1 and UE3 to UE5, obtain or calculate the TX-RX distances D1, D3 to D5 in order to determine whether to send HARQ feedback to UE2 in response to the transmission on the PSSCH. Figure 11 In the illustrated embodiment, UE2 is within distance D1 of UE1 and distance D4 of UE4, respectively, such that UE1 and / or UE4 provide feedback to UE2 in response to transmissions from UE2. On the other hand, UE2 is outside distance D3 of UE3 and distance D5 of UE5, respectively, such that they do not provide HARQ feedback when receiving transmissions from UE2. For example, multicast transmissions do not require HARQ feedback because the distance D increases as the required quality of service requirements cannot be met at the distance. In this scenario, although quality of service cannot be provided at such large distances, the long-distance UE may frequently request retransmissions from the transmitter UE due to the high path loss caused by the long distance. This can reduce transmission efficiency.

[0221] Figures 14(a) and 14(b) illustrate another embodiment in the context of a queue. Figure 14(a) shows a queue consisting of UE1 through UE3 moving along a road. Along the road are located various RSUs, namely, RSU1, RSU2, and RSU3. Each RSU covers a specific region R1, R2, and R3 around it, and each region R1, R2, and R3 may span or cover a specific geographic area. In the illustrated embodiment, the queues and UEs in region R1 are aware of region R1. The first portion of the information element for each UE within region R1 is the same, while the second portion varies depending on the location within R1. Therefore, when considering the transmitting UE (e.g., the queue leader UE1), all UEs within region R1, namely the queue members and UE6 and UE7, which are not part of the queue, can determine the location of UE1 using the above method. As the queue moves along the road, it eventually leaves region R1 and enters region R2. The UE may receive information about region R2, such as information about a common portion of their information elements, from RSU2, so that the receiving UE can determine the location of the transmitting UE as described above as the queue moves along the road. According to other embodiments, information about the individual regions may be signaled during group establishment, for example, based on knowledge of the route, all region information may be provided to the UE, or may be provided via an application or over-the-top (OTT).

[0222] According to other embodiments, rather than having information about individual regions R1, R2, and R3 as shown in Figure 14(a), a UE in a queue can consider the region surrounding one of the multiple UEs in the group (e.g., queue leader UE1), as shown in Figure 14(b). More specifically, the region R surrounding queue leader UE1 can be known to all UEs, i.e., UE1 through UE3. Therefore, the first part of the location element for UEs located within this region R is common to all UEs in the queue. For example, for a particular region, all UEs in the queue know that n bits in the location element are common, although these bits may change as the queue moves. In other words, the particular region can be the area surrounding a particular mobile point (e.g., a mobile UE), and within this region, the first part of the information element may change as the UE moves, but remain common, or be assumed to remain common for all UEs within the particular region. Note that this applies not only to UE groups, but also to UEs that are not members of the group.

[0223] As further shown in Figure 14(b), communication ranges D2 to D5 can be defined around receiving UEs (e.g., UE2 to UE5), and if the receiving UE determines that UE1 is within the communication range, the UE can provide corresponding operations, such as the HARQ feedback described above, in the manner described above. For example, when receiving a transmission from UE1, all members of the queue provide feedback because UE1 is within the communication range D2 to D3. In addition, UE4, traveling in the opposite direction and with UE1 within range D4, can provide feedback to UE1. On the other hand, UE5, which has passed through the queue and can see that UE1 is outside range D5 while still being located in the manner described above, does not provide feedback to UE1.

[0224] Note that the method of the present invention is not limited to the above reference Figure 13 14(a) and 14(b), but can be used in any scenario where a UE communicates via a SL and needs to determine its location or position, for example, a scenario where a UE (such as a robot) is located in or moves within a factory.

[0225] As mentioned above, reference Figure 13As shown in Figures 14(a) and 14(b), according to an embodiment of the first aspect, a minimum required communication range D can be determined around a receiving UE. The embodiment provides a method for handling reduced precision, which may be experienced because the number of bits p is significantly smaller than the number of bits k. The embodiment allows handling reduced precision to determine the minimum required communication range D, for example, to decide whether to send HARQ feedback. Based on the accuracy requirement, such as kp, the UE can estimate the position of the transmitting UE or the uncertainty area of ​​the positioning. In addition, for example, the UE can define the area of ​​its minimum required communication range D by a circle around the UE's positioning, with the minimum required communication range D as the diameter. Figures 15(a)-(c) illustrate an embodiment for determining whether communication between a transmitting UE and a receiving UE meets the minimum required communication range. In Figure 15(a), a transmitting UE (TX UE) and a receiving UE (RX UE) are shown. Assuming that the RX UE obtains position information from the TX UE in the manner described above, it determines an uncertainty range U around the TX UE depending on the accuracy requirement, i.e., an area around the TX UE within which the TX UE can be actually located given the accuracy of the received second part of the information element.

[0226] Figure 15(a) also shows the minimum required communication range D around the RX UE, and the RX UE determines that the TX UE is within the minimum required communication range because the entire uncertainty region U is within the minimum required communication range D. Figure 15(b) shows another embodiment, according to which the TX UE is considered to be within the minimum required communication range because the portion of the uncertainty region U that overlaps with the area defined by distance D exceeds a certain threshold. For example, at least one-third of area U must be within area D. In other words, a threshold can be provided to define a certain percentage of the uncertainty region that must be within area D in order to determine that the TX UE is within the minimum required communication range. Instead of a percentage, an absolute value of the area can also be defined. This threshold can be configured or pre-configured within the RX UE. Figure 15(c) shows another embodiment, according to which the TX UE is determined to be within the minimum required communication range if the area defined by the minimum required communication range D and the uncertainty region U intersect at least at one point. Otherwise, the TX UE is determined to be outside the minimum required communication range D.

[0227] According to other embodiments, the minimum required communication range D can be determined around the receiving UE without using the uncertainty region. In such embodiments, the position of the TX UE obtained through reception is used, and a determination is made as to whether the position is within the minimum required communication range D. For example, when considering Figures 15(a)-(c), in Figure 15(a), the TX UE is considered to be within the minimum required communication range D, while in Figures 15(b) and 15(c), the TX UE is considered to be outside the minimum required communication range D.

[0228] According to other embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, the above-mentioned area concept may also be adopted instead of using coordinates, such as the above-mentioned ellipsoidal coordinates. Figures 16(a) and 16(b) illustrate embodiments of the present invention that adopt the area concept to obtain the position of the transmitting UE. Figure 16(a) schematically shows an area or coverage area A. The area or coverage area A may be the coverage area of ​​one or more base stations among a plurality of base stations of a wireless communication network or system, may be some or all of the areas covered by the wireless communication network or system, or may be a specific geographical area on the earth, for example, independent of the wireless communication network or system, or may be the entire surface of the earth. The area A is divided into a plurality of areas, and Figure 16(a) shows some of the areas z1 to z6. Naturally, there may be more or fewer areas. Each area has an area ID and a reference point or origin X. For example, when considering Figure 13 In the illustrated case, the area in which the intersection is located may be within area z1 associated with area ID 1, and each UE within area z1 is aware of the area ID. Figure 16(a) assumes that the TX UE and RX UE are within the same area, namely, area z1. For example, upon entering a particular area, the UE may receive information about the area ID from a base station, for example, via a Uu interface, or from an RSU, for example, via a Uu interface or via a PC5 interface. According to other examples, the UE may be aware of a map of areas and area IDs. All UEs are aware of the origin in each area, so that according to another embodiment of the first aspect, the location information transmitted within the area only includes the TX UE's offset or distance O from the area origin X. For example, in Figure 16(a), the TX UE only transmits information about its distance O from the origin X to the RX UE within area z1, for example, via the SCI. This reduces the amount of information that the UE needs to transmit in the SCI to indicate its location, as only the offset needs to be signaled.

[0229] According to other embodiments of the first aspect using the area ID, the TX UE and the RX UE are located in different areas. Figure 16(b) illustrates an embodiment in which the TX UE is located in area z6 and the RX UE is located in area z1. The RX UE in area z1 receives the area ID and the TX UE's location information from the TX UE located in area z6, for example using sidelink control information (SCI). The location information indicates the TX UE's position within area z6. The UE uses its location (the RX UE's location in area z1) and the received area ID and the TX UE's location information to determine the TX UE's position or location. The location information indicates an offset O of the TX UE from a reference point X in area z6, such as an offset O from a system-known origin in the area. According to other embodiments, if the TX UE and the RX UE are located in the same area, the TX UE may also signal the area ID and its offset.

[0230] In a manner similar to that shown in Figures 16(a) and 16(b), the amount of information required by the UE in the SCI to indicate its location is reduced, as only the region ID and offset need to be signaled, and the amount of information required is significantly less than signaling the UE coordinates. For example, three bits can be allocated to indicate eight possible regions. For an example square region of 500 meters by 500 meters, if three bits are allocated to each of the vertical X and Y coordinates, the UE's location can be inferred with an accuracy of + / - 32 meters for each of the X and Y coordinates. In this example, in addition to the three bits required for each of the X and Y coordinates within the region, the total number of bits required is nine, or three bits for the region. Increasing the number of bits used to indicate the X and Y coordinates improves accuracy.

[0231] For example, in the above-described embodiment, the region ID can be signaled via SCI, and the more precise location within that region (i.e., the offset described above) can be signaled via RRC in the PSSCH. Alternatively, the region ID can be signaled via RRC, while the offset can be signaled via SCI. In either case, according to this embodiment, the amount of information or bits to be transmitted within the SCI is reduced. When the signaling concept is configured at different layers, via SCI on the physical layer (PHY) and RRC on the media access layer (MAC), the UE is aware of this cross-layer signaling method and is (pre-)configured to assemble the relevant information elements received via two or more different control messages. Furthermore, if level 2 SCI is used, portions of the location information can be sent in the first part of the SCI and / or the second part of the SCI, and / or in higher-layer signaling, such as via RRC signaling. In one example, for TX-RX distance-based HARQ feedback for multicast, the TX UE's location information can be indicated in the level 2 SCI payload.

[0232] When the position of the TX UE is determined in the above manner using the area ID and the offset, according to the embodiment, the position of the TX UE is determined in the same manner as in the above reference. Figure 13 14(a) and 14(b) or FIG. 15(a)-(c), based on the inferred position of the TX UE, the receiving UE can determine its distance from the transmitting UE in order to find out whether it is within a specific communication range.

[0233] Note that the above embodiments are described in detail with reference to a scenario in which all location elements of UEs in a particular area include the same first part. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, but the above-mentioned use of a fixed set of first components may also be employed in these embodiments, for example, the use of two slightly different first fixed parts.

[0234] Aspect 2

[0235] According to an embodiment of the second aspect, a hybrid control signaling protocol is provided. A location (e.g., precise location information of a transmitting UE) can be transmitted via RRC, for example, at a specific time (e.g., when communication is established with one or more receiving UEs via a sidelink). To signal this location at a later time, rather than retransmitting the entire information, the transmitting UE only transmits the difference or delta between the location initially transmitted (e.g., via RRC) and the current location in the SCI. This reduces the amount of information transmitted in the SCI to signal the transmitting UE's location.

[0236] The RRC transmission of the precise location can be a unicast transmission to each receiving UE, or a multicast or groupcast transmission to all receiving UEs in a group, where the group can include one or more UEs. The SCI can also be unicast to each receiving UE, or sent as a multicast or groupcast message to all UEs. When separate unicast RRC messages are signaled independently for each member of the group, each message includes the same location information for the receiving UE. During groupcast communications or during communications with a single receiving UE, only changes in location, such as the delta or difference in position from the current time when the precise location was signaled, are transmitted in the multicast or unicast SCI.

[0237] When using multiple unicast RRC messages to signal individual RX UEs, precise location information (e.g., for mobile TX UEs and / or mobile RX UEs) may not guarantee consistency across group members. Consequently, according to embodiments, the position change (i.e., positioning delta) sent in the SCI may be determined differently for different UEs with different knowledge of the TX UE's location. According to embodiments, this issue can be addressed by selecting delta values ​​that minimize a specific error metric, such as minimum mean square error (MMSE). When the differences between group members are below a certain threshold, the TX UE can ensure that group members estimate distances with an accuracy within predefined limits. For example, let X1, X2, ..., Xn be the locations signaled to different UEs in the group, with slight differences due to UEs' constant movement. The delta d signaled in the SCI for groupcast transmission is selected to minimize the error metric E(d). For example, let Z be the true current location, then the individual errors are given by E1 = Z – (X1 + d) ... En = Z – (Xn + d). An error metric can be used to minimize the mean error to select d so that it minimizes the mean error. For example, MMSE is given by E(d) = (Z – (X1 + d)) 2 +…+(Z–(Xn+d)) 2 Given. Now choose d so that d minimizes E(d), that is, d=argmin_d E(d).

[0238] When determining the position of the TX UE according to the second aspect, according to an embodiment, the position of the TX UE is determined in the same manner as above. Figure 13 14(a) and 14(b) or FIG. 15(a)-(c), based on the inferred position of the TX UE, the receiving UE can determine its distance from the transmitting UE in order to find out whether it is within a specific communication range.

[0239] overall

[0240] In the above embodiments, reference is primarily made to an RX UE that receives location information from a TX UE according to the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to an RX UE; the UE described above may also be a TX UE, which provides location information from the TX UE to the RX UE according to the present invention. For example, the UE described herein may be a receiving UE or a transmitting UE in SL communication.

[0241] In the above embodiments, reference was made to an information element comprising an X-coordinate and a Y-coordinate. According to all embodiments described herein, the location information may also include information about the current height or altitude of the UE, for example for a flying UE such as a UAV, drone, helicopter, or airplane. Furthermore, according to other embodiments, the information element may include a motion vector or a direction of motion to allow for refinement of the positioning information. Additional information about the altitude or height and / or additional information about the motion vector or direction of motion may be combined with any of the above embodiments, for example, the positioning increment according to the second aspect may be sent via SCI and linked to the altitude information that may be sent via RRC.

[0242] The embodiments of the present invention have been described above in detail, and each embodiment and aspect may be implemented independently, or two or more embodiments or aspects may be implemented in combination.

[0243] Regarding the above-described embodiments of various aspects of the present invention, it is noted that they have been described in the context of a V2X scenario, where communication occurs between a transmitter, such as a TX UE, and a receiver, such as an RX UE. However, the present invention is not limited to such communication; rather, the above-described principles can be equally applied to any device-to-device communication via a sidelink, such as D2D and V2V communication.

[0244] Depending on the embodiment, the wireless communication system may include a terrestrial network, or a non-terrestrial network, or a network or network segment using an airborne vehicle or a spaceborne vehicle or a combination thereof as a receiver.

[0245] According to an embodiment, the user equipment UE may be one or more of the following: a mobile terminal, a fixed terminal, a cellular IoT-UE, a vehicle-mounted UE, a vehicle-mounted leader (GL) UE, an IoT, a narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) device, a WiFi non-access point base station (non-AP STA) (e.g., 802.11ax or 802.11be), a ground vehicle, an aircraft, a drone, a mobile base station, a roadside unit, a building, or any other item or device (e.g., a sensor or actuator) provided with a network connection that enables an item / device to communicate using a wireless communication network, or any other item or device (e.g., a sensor or actuator) provided with a network connection that enables an item / device to communicate using a side link in a wireless communication network, or any network entity supporting a side link. The base station BS can be implemented as a mobile base station or a non-mobile base station, and can be one or more of the following: a macro cell base station, or a small cell base station, or a central unit of a base station, or a distributed unit of a base station, or a roadside unit, or a UE, or a leader GL, or a relay, or a remote radio head, or an AMF, or an SMF, or a core network entity, or a mobile edge computing entity, or a network slice in the context of NR or 5G core, or a WiFi AP STA (for example, 802.11ax or 802.11be), or any transmission / reception point (TRP) that enables an item or device to communicate using a wireless communication network, and the item or device is provided with a network connection for communicating using the wireless communication network.

[0246] Although some aspects of the described concepts have been described in the context of an apparatus, it is clear that these aspects also represent a description of a corresponding method, where a block or device corresponds to a method step or a feature of a method step. Similarly, aspects described in the context of a method step also represent a description of a corresponding block or item or a feature of a corresponding apparatus.

[0247] The various elements and features of the present invention can be implemented in hardware, software using analog and / or digital circuits, by executing instructions through one or more general or special purpose processors, or as a combination of hardware and software. For example, embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in the environment of a computer system or another processing system. Figure 17An example of a computer system 500 is shown. These units or modules, and the steps of the methods performed by these units, can be executed on one or more computer systems 500. Computer system 500 includes one or more processors 502, such as special-purpose or general-purpose digital signal processors. Processor 502 is connected to a communication infrastructure 504, such as a bus or network. Computer system 500 includes a main memory 506, such as random access memory (RAM), and a secondary memory 508, such as a hard drive and / or a removable storage drive. Secondary memory 508 allows computer programs or other instructions to be loaded into computer system 500. Computer system 500 may also include a communication interface 510 to allow software and data to be transmitted between computer system 500 and external devices. Communication can be in the form of electrical, electromagnetic, optical, or other signals capable of being processed by the communication interface. Communication can use wire or cable, fiber optics, telephone lines, cellular phone links, RF links, and other communication channels 512.

[0248] The terms "computer program medium" and "computer-readable medium" are generally used to refer to tangible storage media, such as a removable storage unit or a hard disk installed in a hard drive. These computer program products are means for providing software to computer system 500. Computer programs, also known as computer control logic, are stored in main memory 506 and / or secondary memory 508. Computer programs can also be received via communication interface 510. When executed, the computer program enables computer system 500 to implement the present invention. In particular, when executed, the computer program enables processor 502 to implement the processes of the present invention, such as any of the methods described herein. Therefore, such a computer program can represent a controller of computer system 500. In the case of implementing the present disclosure using software, the software can be stored in a computer program product and loaded into computer system 500 using a removable storage drive or an interface such as communication interface 510.

[0249] The implementation in hardware or software can be performed using a digital storage medium, such as cloud storage, floppy disk, DVD, Blu-ray, CD, ROM, PROM, EPROM, EEPROM, or FLASH memory, on which electronically readable control signals are stored that cooperate (or are capable of cooperating) with a programmable computer system to perform the corresponding method. Therefore, the digital storage medium can be computer-readable.

[0250] Some embodiments according to the invention comprise a data carrier having electronically readable control signals, which are capable of cooperating with a programmable computer system, such that one of the methods described herein is performed.

[0251] Generally, embodiments of the present invention can be implemented as a computer program product with a program code, the program code being operative for performing one of the methods when the computer program product runs on a computer.The program code may, for example, be stored on a machine-readable carrier.

[0252] Further embodiments comprise a computer program stored on a machine-readable carrier for performing one of the methods described herein. In other words, an embodiment of the inventive method is therefore a computer program having a program code for performing one of the methods described herein, when the computer program runs on a computer.

[0253] Therefore, another embodiment of the method according to the present invention is a data carrier (or a digital storage medium or a computer-readable medium) having recorded thereon a computer program for performing one of the methods described herein. Therefore, another embodiment of the method according to the present invention is a data stream or a signal sequence representing the computer program for performing one of the methods described herein. The data stream or signal sequence can, for example, be configured to be transmitted via a data communication connection (e.g., via the Internet). Another embodiment comprises a processing device, such as a computer or a programmable logic device, configured or adapted to perform one of the methods described herein. Another embodiment comprises a computer having installed thereon a computer program for performing one of the methods described herein.

[0254] In some embodiments, a programmable logic device (e.g., a field programmable gate array) can be used to perform some or all of the functions of the methods described herein. In some embodiments, the field programmable gate array can cooperate with a microprocessor to perform one of the methods described herein. Generally, these methods are preferably performed by any hardware device.

[0255] The above embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles of the present invention. It should be understood that modifications and variations of the arrangements and details described herein will be apparent to others skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended that the present invention be limited solely by the scope of the appended patent claims and not by the specific details provided by way of description and explanation of the embodiments herein.

[0256] List of acronyms and symbols

[0257]

[0258] References

[0259] [1]3GPP TS 36.331 Radio Resource Control (RRC); Protocol specification

[0260] [2]3GPP TS 23.032 Universal Geographical Area Description (GAD)

[0261] [3]3GPP TS 36.355 LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP)

[0262] [4]3GPP RAN1 #97 Chairman notes。

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE) for a wireless communication system, wherein the wireless communication system comprises a plurality of user equipments (UEs), in, The UE will communicate with one or more other UEs using a side link SL, and wherein a location information element describes a position or location of a UE, wherein the location information element comprises a first part and a second part, wherein, for a position or location within a specific area, the first part of the location information element is a common first part for UEs located within the specific area, and the second part of the location information element varies depending on the actual or precise position or location of the UE, and When located in the specific area, the UE will - receiving positioning information of the further UE from the further UE, the positioning information comprising some or all of the second part of the location information element of the further UE, and - obtaining a position or location of the further UE by combining the common first part with positioning information received from the further UE.

2. The user equipment UE according to claim 1, wherein The common first portion will be dynamically updated.

3. The user equipment (UE) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The UE will use the position of the UE and the position of the further UE to determine the distance to the further UE.

4. The user equipment (UE) according to claim 1, wherein: Depending on the minimum required communication range, the UE will decide whether to perform a specific operation.

5. The user equipment UE according to claim 4, wherein: The UE will - determining an area of ​​minimum required communication range around the UE, - estimating an uncertainty area around the further UE depending on the number of received second parts of location information elements, and - using an uncertainty area around the further UE and the area of ​​the minimum required communication range to determine whether the further UE is within the minimum required communication range.

6. The user equipment UE according to claim 4, wherein: The UE will - determining an area of ​​minimum required communication range around the UE, - determining whether the further UE is within the minimum required communication range.

7. The user equipment (UE) according to claim 5, wherein: The UE will determine that the other UE is within the minimum required communication range if one of the following criteria is met: - the entire uncertainty region is within the region of the minimum required communication range, - at least a certain portion of the uncertainty region is within the region of the minimum required communication range, - The uncertainty region and the minimum required communication range region intersect at least at one point.

8. The user equipment (UE) according to claim 7, wherein: In order to determine that the further UE is within the minimum required communication range, if at least a portion of the uncertainty area is within the area of ​​the minimum required communication range, the UE will decide whether the portion of the uncertainty area located within the area of ​​the minimum required communication range meets a specific condition.

9. The user equipment (UE) according to claim 1, wherein: The UE is a receiving UE or a sending UE in the SL communication.

10. The user equipment (UE) according to claim 1, wherein - the UE is configured with the specific area via signalling during group establishment or from a network entity, or via an application, or over-the-top OTT, or - in, The UE is pre-configured with the specific area.

11. The user equipment (UE) according to claim 1, wherein: The specific area is a defined geographical area.

12. The user equipment (UE) according to claim 1, wherein: The UE is a mobile UE, and wherein the specific area is an area around the mobile UE, within which the second part of the information element changes as the UE moves, but the first part is common to all UEs within the specific area.

13. A wireless communication system comprising a plurality of user equipments (UE) according to any one of the preceding claims and configured for sidelink communication using resources from a sidelink resource set of the wireless communication system.

14. A method for obtaining a position or location of a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system, the wireless communication system comprising a plurality of user equipments (UE), the method comprising: performing communication between a UE and one or more further UEs using a side link SL, wherein a location information element describes a location or position of the UE, wherein the location information element comprises a first part and a second part, wherein, for a location or position within a specific area, the first part of the location information element is a common first part for UEs located within the specific area, and the second part of the location information element varies depending on the actual or precise location or position of the UE, and The method comprises: - receiving positioning information of the further UE from the further UE, the positioning information comprising some or all of the second part of the location information element of the further UE, and - obtaining a position or location of the further UE by combining the common first part with positioning information received from the further UE.

15. A computer-readable medium storing instructions which, when executed on a computer, perform the method according to claim 14.

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