Positioning signal silence in the time slot

Abstract

A method for selectively transmitting a positioning signal from a TRP, comprising: non-silently transmitting a positioning signal resource segment within a first time slot in a first time slot of a transmission schedule according to a silence configuration, wherein the transmission schedule indicates which one or more resource elements are to be sounded to transmit at least a portion of the positioning signal, and the silence configuration indicates whether the positioning signal resource segment within the time slot is to be silenced; and silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment within a second time slot by the TRP in the first time slot of the transmission schedule according to the silence configuration.

Description

[0001] background

[0002] Wireless communication systems have evolved over several generations, including first-generation analog wireless telephone service (1G), second-generation (2G) digital wireless telephone service (including transitional 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third-generation (3G) high-speed data wireless service with Internet capabilities, fourth-generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax), fifth-generation (5G) services, and the like. Currently, there are many different types of wireless communication systems in use, including cellular and personal communications service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include the cellular analog Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Access (GSM) TDMA variants, and the like.

[0003] The fifth generation (5G) mobile standard calls for higher data transmission speeds, a greater number of connections, and better coverage, among other improvements. According to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, the 5G standard is designed to provide data rates of tens of megabits per second to each of tens of thousands of users, and 1 gigabit per second to dozens of employees on an office floor. Hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections should be supported to support large sensor deployments. Therefore, the spectrum efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly improved compared to the current 4G standard. In addition, signaling efficiency should be improved and latency should be significantly reduced compared to the current standard.

[0004] Obtaining the location of a mobile device accessing a wireless network can be useful for many applications, including, for example, emergency calling, personal navigation, asset tracking, locating friends or family members, and the like. Existing positioning methods include those based on measuring radio signals transmitted from various devices or entities, including satellite vehicles (SVs) and terrestrial radio sources in wireless networks, such as base stations and access points. It is expected that standardization for 5G wireless networks will include support for various positioning methods that can utilize reference signals transmitted by base stations for positioning determination in a manner similar to how LTE wireless networks currently utilize positioning reference signals (PRS) and / or cell-specific reference signals (CRS).

[0005] Overview

[0006] In one embodiment, a method for selectively transmitting a positioning signal from a TRP (transmission / reception point) includes: non-silently transmitting a first time slot positioning signal resource segment from the TRP in a first time slot of a transmission schedule according to a silence configuration, the transmission schedule indicating which one or more resource elements in each of a plurality of consecutive code elements are to be sounded to transmit at least a portion of the positioning signal in the time slot of the transmission schedule, the silence configuration indicating whether each of the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments is to be silenced; and silencing the transmission of a second time slot positioning signal resource segment by the TRP in the first time slot of the transmission schedule according to the silence configuration; wherein the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments include a first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and a second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot, each of the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments including at least one code element and being a separate part of the corresponding time slot.

[0007] Implementations of such methods may include one or more of the following features: the transmission schedule includes a first integer number G of intraslot groups for a first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intraslot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration includes a second integer number M of intraslot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M = G. Each of the intraslot groups includes the same portion of the transmission schedule, thereby having the same resource element pattern to be sounded.

[0008] Alternatively, implementations of such methods may include one or more of the following features: the transmission schedule includes a first integer number G of intraslot groups for a first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intraslot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration includes a second integer number M of intraslot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M > G. The second integer number M is equal to the number of symbols configured for the positioning signal resources in the first time slot.

[0009] Additionally or alternatively, implementations of such methods may include one or more of the following features: a second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in a first time slot is a second portion of an intra-slot symbol group, the intra-slot symbol group including the first portion and the second portion, the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group indicating that less than all subcarriers of the transmission schedule are to be sounded, the method further comprising: determining, as a condition for muting transmission of the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment, that a user equipment that is to receive the positioning signal is configured with a search window that resolves an aliased channel energy response peak corresponding to the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group. The method further comprises: determining a muting configuration such that all indications of non-muted transmission of corresponding intra-slot positioning signal resource segments in the time slot are coherent. The method includes: silencing transmission of a positioning signal resource segment within a first time slot in a second time slot of the transmission schedule; or non-silently transmitting a positioning signal resource segment within a second time slot of the transmission schedule; or a combination thereof; wherein, according to the transmission schedule, the first time slot positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot is scheduled at a first time relative to the second time slot that is the same as the time at which the first time slot positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot, and the second time slot positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot is scheduled at a second time relative to the second time slot that is the same as the time at which the second time slot positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot. Non-silently transmitting the first time slot positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot and silencing transmission of the second time slot positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot are performed in response to determining that the first time slot of the transmission schedule includes at least three intraslot groups, each of the at least three intraslot groups indicating that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded. The method includes: transmitting the positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot non-silently in the first time slot and silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot in the first time slot in response to determining that a positioning signal trigger based on a MAC-CE (Media Access Control-Control Element) or a positioning signal trigger based on a DCI (Downlink Control Information) or a combination thereof is used. The method includes determining the muting configuration based on a comb type and a resource length of the transmission schedule.

[0010] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of such a method may include one or more of the following features. The silence configuration is an intra-time slot silence configuration, and the method includes: obtaining the silence configuration by determining a logical combination of the intra-time slot silence configuration and at least one of an inter-instance silence configuration or an intra-instance silence configuration. Determining the logical combination includes determining the following: intra-time slot silence configuration AND inter-instance silence configuration, where AND is a logical operator; or intra-time slot silence configuration AND intra-instance silence configuration; or intra-time slot silence configuration AND inter-instance silence configuration AND intra-instance silence configuration. The silence configuration is a first silence configuration, the first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment corresponds to a first positioning signal resource, the TRP is a first TRP, and the method includes: non-silently transmitting a third intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment from a second TRP according to a second silence configuration different from the first silence configuration, the third intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment corresponding to a second positioning signal resource different from the first positioning signal resource.

[0011] In one embodiment, a TRP (transmission / reception point) includes: a transmitter; a memory; and a processor, which is communicatively coupled to the transmitter and the memory and is configured to: non-silently transmit a first time slot positioning signal resource segment via the transmitter in a first time slot of a transmission schedule according to a silence configuration, the transmission schedule indicating which one or more resource elements in each of a plurality of consecutive code elements are to be sounded to transmit at least a portion of a positioning signal in the time slot of the transmission schedule, the silence configuration indicating whether each of the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments is to be silenced; and silence the transmission of a second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot of the transmission schedule according to the silence configuration; wherein the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments include a first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and a second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot, each of the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments including at least one code element and being a separate portion of the corresponding time slot.

[0012] Implementations of such a TRP may include one or more of the following features: the transmission schedule includes a first integer number G of intraslot groups for a first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intraslot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration includes a second integer number M of intraslot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M = G. Each of the intraslot groups includes the same portion of the transmission schedule, and thus has the same resource element pattern to be sounded.

[0013] Alternatively, an implementation of such a TRP may include one or more of the following features: the transmission schedule includes a first integer number G of intraslot groups for a first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intraslot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration includes a second integer number M of intraslot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M > G. The second integer number M is equal to the number of symbols configured for the positioning signal resources in the first time slot.

[0014] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of such a TRP may include one or more of the following features: a second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in a first time slot is a second portion of an intra-slot symbol group, the intra-slot symbol group including the first portion and the second portion, the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group indicating that less than all subcarriers of the transmission schedule are to be sounded, and the processor is configured to: mute transmission of the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in response to determining that a user equipment that will receive the positioning signal is configured with a search window that resolves an aliased channel energy response peak corresponding to the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group. The processor is configured to: determine a muting configuration such that all indications of non-silent transmission of corresponding intra-slot positioning signal resource segments in the time slot are coherent. The processor is configured to: silence transmission of the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in a second time slot of the transmission schedule; or non-silently transmit the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot of the transmission schedule; or a combination thereof, wherein, according to the transmission schedule, the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled at a first time relative to the second time slot that is the same as the time at which the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot, and the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled at a second time relative to the second time slot that is the same as the time at which the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot. The processor is configured to: non-silently transmit the first time slot positioning signal resource segment via the transmitter in the first time slot and silence transmission of the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot in response to determining that the first time slot of the transmission schedule includes at least three intra-slot groups that each indicate that all subcarriers on a corresponding set of symbols of the transmission schedule are to be sounded. The processor is configured to: transmit, via the transmitter, in the first time slot, a positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot without silencing, and to silence transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot in the first time slot in response to: determining that a MAC-CE (Media Access Control-Control Element)-based positioning signal trigger is being used; or determining that a DCI (Downlink Control Information-based positioning signal trigger is being used; or a combination thereof. The processor is configured to: determine a muting configuration based on a comb type and a resource length of the transmission schedule.

[0015] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of such a TRP may include one or more of the following features. The silence configuration is an intra-time slot silence configuration, and the processor is configured to obtain the silence configuration by determining a logical combination of the intra-time slot silence configuration and at least one of the inter-instance silence configuration or the intra-instance silence configuration. To determine the logical combination, the processor is configured to: determine the intra-time slot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration, where AND is a logical operator; or determine the intra-time slot silence configuration AND the intra-instance silence configuration; or determine the intra-time slot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration AND the intra-instance silence configuration.

[0016] In one embodiment, a TRP includes: a device for non-silently transmitting a first time slot positioning signal resource segment in a first time slot of a transmission schedule according to a silence configuration, the transmission schedule indicating which one or more resource elements are to be sounded in each of a plurality of consecutive code elements to transmit at least a portion of a positioning signal in the time slot of the transmission schedule, the silence configuration indicating whether each of the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments is to be silenced; and a device for silencing the transmission of a second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot of the transmission schedule according to the silence configuration; wherein the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments include a first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and a second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot, each of the plurality of time slot positioning signal resource segments including at least one code element and being a separate part of the corresponding time slot.

[0017] Implementations of such a TRP may include one or more of the following features: the transmission schedule includes a first integer number G of intraslot groups for a first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intraslot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration includes a second integer number M of intraslot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M = G. Each of the intraslot groups includes the same portion of the transmission schedule, and thus has the same resource element pattern to be sounded.

[0018] Alternatively, an implementation of such a TRP may include one or more of the following features: the transmission schedule includes a first integer number G of intraslot groups for a first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intraslot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration includes a second integer number M of intraslot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M > G. The second integer number M is equal to the number of symbols configured for the positioning signal resources in the first time slot.

[0019] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of such a TRP may include one or more of the following features. A second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in a first time slot is a second portion of an intra-slot symbol group, the intra-slot symbol group including the first portion and the second portion, the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group indicating that less than all subcarriers of the transmission schedule are to be sounded, and means for silencing transmission of the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment includes means for silencing transmission of the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in response to determining that a user equipment that will receive the positioning signal is configured with a search window that can resolve an aliased channel energy response peak corresponding to the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group. The TRP includes means for determining a muting configuration such that all indications of non-silent transmission of corresponding intra-slot positioning signal resource segments in a time slot are coherent. The TRP includes: a device for silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot in the second time slot of the transmission schedule; or a device for non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot in the second time slot of the transmission schedule; or a combination thereof; wherein, according to the transmission schedule, the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled relative to the second time slot at the same first time as the time at which the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot, and the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled relative to the second time slot at the same second time as the time at which the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot. The device for non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot in the first time slot and the device for silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot in the first time slot include: a device for non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot in the first time slot, and silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot in the first time slot in response to determining that the first time slot of the transmission schedule includes at least three time slot groups that each indicate that all subcarriers on the corresponding codeword set of the transmission schedule are to be sounded. The apparatus for non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot in the first time slot and the apparatus for silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot in the first time slot include: an apparatus for non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot in the first time slot and silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot in the first time slot in response to determining that a MAC-CE (Media Access Control - Control Element)-based positioning signal trigger is used; or an apparatus for non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot in the first time slot and silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot in the first time slot in response to determining that a DCI (Downlink Control Information)-based positioning signal trigger is used; or a combination thereof.The TRP includes means for determining a muting configuration based on a comb type and a resource length of the transmission schedule.

[0020] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of such a TRP may include one or more of the following features. The silence configuration is an intra-slot silence configuration, and the TRP includes: means for obtaining the silence configuration by determining a logical combination of the intra-slot silence configuration and at least one of an inter-instance silence configuration or an intra-instance silence configuration. The means for determining the logical combination includes: means for determining the intra-slot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration, where AND is a logical operator; or means for determining the intra-slot silence configuration AND the intra-instance silence configuration; or means for determining the intra-slot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration AND the intra-instance silence configuration.

[0021] An example non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions that cause a processor of a TRP to: non-silently transmit a first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in a first time slot of a transmission schedule according to a muting configuration, the transmission schedule indicating which one or more resource elements are to be sounded in each of a plurality of consecutive codewords to transmit at least a portion of a positioning signal in the time slot of the transmission schedule, the muting configuration indicating whether each of the plurality of intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments is to be muted; and muting transmission of a second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot of the transmission schedule according to the muting configuration; wherein the plurality of intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments include a first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and a second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot, each of the plurality of intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments including at least one codeword and being a separate portion of the corresponding time slot.

[0022] Implementations of such a storage medium may include one or more of the following features: the transmission schedule includes a first integer number G of intraslot groups for a first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intraslot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration includes a second integer number M of intraslot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M = G. Each of the intraslot groups includes the same portion of the transmission schedule, thereby having the same resource element pattern to be sounded.

[0023] Alternatively, an implementation of such a storage medium may include one or more of the following features: the transmission schedule includes a first integer number G of intraslot groups for a first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intraslot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration includes a second integer number M of intraslot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M > G. The second integer number M is equal to the number of symbols configured for the positioning signal resources in the first time slot.

[0024] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of such a storage medium may include one or more of the following features: a second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in a first time slot is a second portion of an intra-slot symbol group, the intra-slot symbol group including the first portion and the second portion, the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group indicating that less than all subcarriers of the transmission schedule are to be sounded, and the instructions include instructions for causing the processor to perform operations such as muting transmission of the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in response to determining that a user equipment that is to receive the positioning signal is configured with a search window that resolves an aliased channel energy response peak corresponding to the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group. The instructions include instructions for causing the processor to perform operations such as determining a muting configuration such that all indications of non-muted transmission of corresponding intra-slot positioning signal resource segments in the time slot are coherent. The instructions include instructions for causing the processor to: silence transmission of the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in a second time slot of the transmission schedule; or transmit the second time slot positioning signal resource segment non-silently in the second time slot of the transmission schedule; or a combination thereof, wherein, according to the transmission schedule, the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled at a first time relative to the second time slot that is the same as the time at which the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot, and the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled at a second time relative to the second time slot that is the same as the time at which the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot. The instructions include instructions for causing the processor to: transmit the first time slot positioning signal resource segment non-silently in the first time slot, and, in response to determining that the first time slot of the transmission schedule includes at least three intraslot groups that each indicate that all subcarriers on a corresponding symbol set of the transmission schedule are to be sounded, silence transmission of the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot. The instructions include instructions for causing the processor to perform the following operations: transmitting the positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot non-silently in the first time slot and silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot in the first time slot in response to: determining that a MAC-CE (Media Access Control-Control Element)-based positioning signal trigger is being used; or determining that a DCI (Downlink Control Information-based)-based positioning signal trigger is being used; or a combination thereof. The instructions include instructions for causing the processor to perform the following operations: determining a muting configuration based on the comb type and resource length of the transmission schedule.

[0025] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of such a storage medium may include one or more of the following features. The silence configuration is an intra-slot silence configuration, and to obtain the silence configuration, the instructions include instructions for causing the processor to: determine a logical combination of the intra-slot silence configuration and at least one of an inter-instance silence configuration or an intra-instance silence configuration. To determine the logical combination, the instructions include instructions for causing the processor to: determine the intra-slot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration, where AND is a logical operator; or determine the intra-slot silence configuration AND the intra-instance silence configuration; or determine the intra-slot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration AND the intra-instance silence configuration. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] Figure 1 is a simplified diagram of an example wireless communication system.

[0028] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A block diagram of components of an example user equipment is shown in FIG.

[0029] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A block diagram of components of an example transmit / receive point is shown in FIG.

[0030] Figure 4 yes Figure 1 A block diagram of the components of the example server is shown in .

[0031] Figure 5 is a simplified timing diagram of a resource set.

[0032] Figure 6A It is a simplified comb-2, 2-symbol transmission scheduling.

[0033] Figure 6B It is a simplified comb-4, 4-symbol transmission scheduling.

[0034] Figure 6C It is a simplified comb-tooth-6, 6-code element transmission scheduling.

[0035] Figure 6D It is a simplified comb-12, 12-code symbol transmission scheduling.

[0036] Figure 6E It is a simplified comb-2, 12-symbol transmission scheduling.

[0037] Figure 6F It is a simplified comb-tooth-4, 12 code element transmission scheduling.

[0038] Figure 7 In such Figure 1 1 is a timing diagram of silent timing signals and unsilenced timing signals communicated between components of a wireless communication system shown in FIG.

[0039] Figure 8 It is used in Figure 1 1 is a timing diagram illustrating example transmission and silence configurations of timing signals communicated between components of a wireless communication system as shown in FIG.

[0040] Figure 9 It is used in Figure 1 1 shows a timing diagram of transmission and silence configurations within an example of timing signals communicated between components of a wireless communication system.

[0041] Figure 10 It is used in Figure 1 A timing diagram illustrating transmission and silence configurations within time slots of timing signals communicated between components of a wireless communication system is shown in FIG.

[0042] Figure 11 It is used in Figure 1 Another timing diagram of transmission and silence configurations within time slots of timing signals communicated between components of a wireless communication system is shown in FIG.

[0043] Figure 12 Graph showing the channel energy response for a comb-4, 4-symbol transmission schedule with three symbols muted.

[0044] Figure 13 It is used in Figure 1 A timing diagram of intra-slot transmission and muting configurations of timing signals communicated between components of a wireless communication system shown in , illustrating different muting configurations for different time slots.

[0045] Figure 14 The present invention provides an explanation of inter-instance, intra-instance, and intra-slot muting using bitmaps to determine the muting configuration within another slot.

[0046] Figure 15 Flowchart of the signal and process for silencing within the time slot of the positioning signal.

[0047] Figure 16 This section describes the use of bitmaps for inter-instance and intra-instance muting, and the optional use of intra-slot muting.

[0048] Figure 17 It is a flowchart of a method for transmitting a positioning signal.

[0049] Figure 18 is Figure 17 Flow chart of the optional stages preceding the method shown in .

[0050] Detailed description

[0051] This document discusses techniques for providing intra-slot muting of one or more positioning signals. For example, a device (such as a server) may provide a muting configuration to a transmit / receive point (TRP) to indicate that one or more segments of a time slot for which transmission is scheduled are to be muted. The muting configuration may be generated or selected, for example, by the server to satisfy one or more criteria (such as having temporally contiguous, unmuted segments of the time slot). The TRP may perform intra-slot muting based on one or more conditions being satisfied (such as being triggered by a low-latency positioning signal, or the user equipment being able to resolve aliased time-domain peaks in light of the muting indicated by the muting configuration in conjunction with the transmission scheduling of symbols for conveying positioning signals). However, other configurations may be used.

[0052] The items and / or techniques described herein may provide one or more of the following capabilities, as well as other capabilities not mentioned. Positioning signal collisions may be reduced. Positioning signal transmission and reception may be regulated to meet one or more performance criteria. Other capabilities may be provided, and not every implementation according to the present disclosure necessarily provides any, let alone all, of the capabilities discussed.

[0053] Reference Figure 1 , an example wireless communication system 110 includes user equipment (UE) 112, UE 113, UE 114, base transceiver stations (BTS) 120, 121, 122, 123, a network 130, a core network 140, and an external client 150. The core network 140 (e.g., a 5G core network (5GC)) may include backend equipment, including, among other things, an access and mobility management function (AMF) 141, a session management function (SMF) 142, a server 143, and a gateway mobile location center (GMLC) 144. The AMF 141, the SMF 142, the server 143, and the GMLC 144 are communicatively coupled to each other. The server 143 may be, for example, a location management function (LMF) that supports positioning of the UEs 112-114 (e.g., using techniques such as Assisted Global Navigation Satellite System (A-GNSS), OTDOA (Observed Time Difference of Arrival, such as downlink (DL) OTDOA and / or uplink (UL) OTDOA), round trip time (RTT), multi-cell RTT, RTK (Real Time Kinematics), PPP (Precise Point Positioning), DGNSS (Differential GNSS), E-CID (Enhanced Cell ID), AoA (Angle of Arrival), AoD (Angle of Departure), etc.).

[0054] The LMF may also be referred to as a location manager (LM), location function (LF), commercial LMF (CLMF), or value-added LMF (VLMF). Server 143 (e.g., LMF) and / or one or more other devices of system 110 (e.g., one or more of UEs 112-114) may be configured to determine the location of UEs 112-114. Server 143 may communicate directly with BTS 121 (e.g., gNB) and / or one or more other BTSs, or may be integrated with BTS 121 and / or one or more other BTSs. SMF 142 may serve as the initial point of contact for a service control function (SCF) (not shown) to create, control, and delete media sessions. Server 143 (e.g., LMF) may be co-located or integrated with a gNB or TRP (transmit / receive point), or may be located remotely from the gNB and / or TRP and configured to communicate directly or indirectly with the gNB and / or TRP.

[0055] AMF 141 may serve as a control node for handling signaling between UEs 112-114 and core network 140 and provide QoS (Quality of Service) flow and session management. AMF 141 may support the mobility of UEs 112-114 (including cell changes and handovers) and may participate in supporting signaling connections to UEs 112-114.

[0056] System 110 is capable of wireless communication because components of system 110 can communicate with each other (at least sometimes using wireless connections) directly or indirectly (e.g., via BTSs 120-123 and / or network 130 (and / or one or more other devices not shown, such as one or more other base transceiver stations)). For indirect communication, the communication may be modified during transmission from one entity to another, e.g., to change header information of a data packet, change the format, etc. UEs 112-114 are shown as smartphones, tablet computers, and vehicle-based devices, but these are merely examples, as UEs 112-114 need not be in any of these configurations, and other configurations of UEs may be used. UEs 112, 113 are shown as mobile wireless communication devices (although they can communicate wirelessly as well as via wired connections), including mobile phones (including smartphones) and tablet computers. UE 114 is shown as a vehicle-based mobile wireless communication device (although UE 114 can communicate wirelessly as well as via wired connections). Other UEs may include wearable devices (e.g., smart watches, smart jewelry, smart glasses or head-mounted devices, etc.). Other UEs may also be used, whether currently existing or developed in the future. In addition, other wireless devices (whether mobile or not) may be implemented within the system 110 and may communicate with each other and / or with the UEs 112-114, the BTSs 120-123, the network 130, the core network 140, and / or external clients 150. For example, such other devices may include Internet of Things (IoT) devices, medical devices, home entertainment and / or automation devices, etc. The core network 140 may communicate with the external clients 150 (e.g., computer systems), for example, to allow the external clients 150 to request and / or receive location information about the UEs 112-114 (e.g., via the GMLC 144).

[0057] The UEs 112-114 or other devices may be configured to communicate in various networks and / or for various purposes and / or using various technologies (e.g., 5G, Wi-Fi communication, multi-frequency Wi-Fi communication, satellite positioning, one or more types of communication (e.g., GSM (Global System for Mobile), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution), V2X (e.g., V2P (vehicle to pedestrian), V2I (vehicle to infrastructure), V2V (vehicle to vehicle), etc.), IEEE 802.11p, etc.) for communication. V2X communication can be cellular (Cellular-V2X (C-V2X)) and / or WiFi (e.g., DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Connectivity)). System 110 can support operation on multiple carriers (waveform signals of different frequencies). A multi-carrier transmitter can transmit modulated signals on multiple carriers simultaneously. Each modulated signal can be a code division multiple access (CDMA) signal, a time division multiple access (TDMA) signal, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) signal, a single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) signal, etc. Each modulated signal can be sent on a different carrier and can carry pilots, overhead information, data, etc.

[0058] The BTSs 120-123 may communicate wirelessly with the UEs 112-114 in the system 110 via one or more antennas. A BTS may also be referred to as a base station, an access point, a gNode B (gNB), an access node (AN), a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), etc. For example, each of the BTSs 120 and 121 may be a gNB or a transmission point gNB, the BTS 122 may be a macro cell (e.g., a high-power cellular base station) and / or a small cell (e.g., a low-power cellular base station), and the BTS 123 may be an access point (e.g., a short-range base station configured to communicate using a short-range technology, such as WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), - Low Energy (BLE), Zigbee, etc.). One or more of BTSs 120-123 may be configured to communicate with UEs 112-114 via multiple carriers. Each of BTSs 120, 121 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic area (e.g., a cell). Each cell may be divided into multiple sectors based on base station antennas.

[0059] Each of the BTSs 120-123 includes one or more transmit / receive points (TRPs). For example, each sector within a cell of the BTS may include a TRP, although multiple TRPs may share one or more components (e.g., a shared processor but with separate antennas). The system 110 may include only macro TRPs, or the system 110 may have different types of TRPs, such as macro, pico, and / or femto TRPs. A macro TRP may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., several kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access by terminals with service subscriptions. A pico TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a pico cell) and may allow unrestricted access by terminals with service subscriptions. A femto or home TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a femto cell) and may allow restricted access by terminals associated with the femto cell (e.g., terminals of users in a residence).

[0060] UEs 112-114 may be referred to as terminals, access terminals (ATs), mobile stations, mobile devices, subscriber units, etc. UEs 112-114 may include various devices as listed above and / or other devices. UEs 112-114 may be configured to connect indirectly to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links. The D2D P2P links may use any appropriate D2D radio access technology (RAT) such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), One or more UEs in a group of UEs 112-114 utilizing D2D communication may be within the geographic coverage area of a TRP (such as one or more of BTSs 120-123). Other UEs in the group may be outside such geographic coverage area or otherwise unable to receive transmissions from the base station. A group of UEs 112-114 communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, where each UE may transmit to other UEs in the group. The TRPs of BTSs 120-123 may facilitate resource scheduling for D2D communication. In other scenarios, D2D communication may be performed between UEs without involving a TRP.

[0061] Also refer to Figure 2UE 200 is an example of one of UEs 112-114 and includes a computing platform including a processor 210, a memory 211 including software (SW) 212, one or more sensors 213, a transceiver interface 214 for a transceiver 215, a user interface 216, a satellite positioning system (SPS) receiver 217, a camera 218, and a positioning device (PD) 219. The processor 210, the memory 211, the sensor(s) 213, the transceiver interface 214, the user interface 216, the SPS receiver 217, the camera 218, and the positioning device 219 are communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 220 (which may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the illustrated devices (e.g., camera 218, positioning device 219, and / or one or more sensors 213, etc.) may be omitted from UE 200. Processor 210 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.). Processor 210 may include multiple processors, including a general / application processor 230, a digital signal processor (DSP) 231, a modem processor 232, a video processor 233, and / or a sensor processor 234. One or more of processors 230-234 may include multiple devices (e.g., multiple processors). For example, sensor processor 234 may include a processor for radar, ultrasonic wave, and / or lidar, etc. Modem processor 232 may support dual SIM cards / dual connectivity (or even more SIM cards). For example, one SIM card (Subscriber Identity Module or Subscriber Identity Module) may be used by an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), and another SIM card may be used by an end user of UE 200 to obtain connectivity. Memory 211 is a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, disk storage, and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. Memory 211 stores software 212, which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that, when executed, are configured to cause processor 210 to perform the various functions described herein. Alternatively, software 212 may not be directly executable by processor 210, but may be configured (e.g., when compiled and executed) to cause processor 210 to perform the functions. This description may refer only to processor 210 performing a function, but this includes other implementations, such as implementations in which processor 210 executes software and / or firmware. This description may refer to processor 210 performing a function as shorthand for one or more of processors 230-234 performing the function. This description may refer to UE 200 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of UE 200 performing the function. Processor 210 may include a memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 211.The functionality of processor 210 is discussed more fully below.

[0062] Figure 2 The configuration of UE 200 shown in the figure is an example and not a limitation of the present invention (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, an example configuration of the UE includes one or more of the processors 230-234 in the processor 210, the memory 211, and the wireless transceiver 240. Other example configurations include one or more of the processors 230-234 in the processor 210, the memory 211, the wireless transceiver 240, and one or more of the following: sensor 213, user interface 216, SPS receiver 217, camera 218, PD 219 and / or wired transceiver 250.

[0063] The UE 200 may include a modem processor 232 that may be capable of performing baseband processing on signals received and downconverted by the transceiver 215 and / or the SPS receiver 217. The modem processor 232 may perform baseband processing on signals to be upconverted for transmission by the transceiver 215. Additionally or alternatively, the baseband processing may be performed by the processor 230 and / or the DSP 231. However, other configurations may be used to perform the baseband processing.

[0064] The UE 200 may include sensor(s) 213, which may include, for example, one or more of various types of sensors, such as one or more inertial sensors, one or more magnetometers, one or more environmental sensors, one or more optical sensors, one or more weight sensors, and / or one or more radio frequency (RF) sensors. An inertial measurement unit (IMU) may include, for example, one or more accelerometers (e.g., collectively responsive to acceleration of the UE 200 in three dimensions) and / or one or more gyroscopes (e.g., three-dimensional gyroscope(s)). The sensor(s) 213 may include one or more magnetometers (e.g., three-dimensional magnetometer(s)) to determine orientation (e.g., relative to magnetic north and / or true north), which may be used for any of a variety of purposes (e.g., to support one or more compass applications). The environmental sensor(s) may include, for example, one or more temperature sensors, one or more barometric pressure sensors, one or more ambient light sensors, one or more camera imagers, and / or one or more microphones. Sensor(s) 213 may generate analog and / or digital signals, indications of which may be stored in memory 211 and processed by DSP 231 and / or processor 230 to support one or more applications (such as, for example, applications involving positioning and / or navigation operations).

[0065] The sensor(s) 100 may be used for relative position measurement, relative position determination, motion determination, and the like. The information detected by the sensor(s) 100 may be used for motion detection, relative displacement, dead reckoning, sensor-based position determination, and / or sensor-assisted position determination. The sensor(s) 100 may be used to determine whether the UE 200 is stationary (stationary) or mobile and / or whether to report certain useful information related to the mobility of the UE 200 to the server 143. For example, based on the information obtained / measured by the sensor(s), the UE 200 may notify / report to the server 143 that the UE 200 has detected movement or that the UE 200 has moved, and report the relative displacement / distance (e.g., via dead reckoning implemented by the sensor(s) 100, or sensor-based position determination, or sensor-assisted position determination). In another example, for relative positioning information, the sensor / IMU may be used to determine the angle and / or orientation of another device relative to the UE 200.

[0066] The IMU can be configured to provide measurements of the direction and / or speed of motion of the UE 200, which can be used for relative position determination. For example, one or more accelerometers and / or one or more gyroscopes of the IMU can detect the linear acceleration and rotational speed of the UE 200, respectively. The linear acceleration measurements and rotational speed measurements of the UE 200 can be integrated over time to determine the instantaneous direction of motion and displacement of the UE 200. The instantaneous direction of motion and displacement can be integrated to track the position of the UE 200. For example, a reference position of the UE 200 at a certain moment can be determined, for example, using the SPS receiver 217 (and / or by some other means), and measurements obtained from the accelerometer(s) and gyroscope(s) after that moment can be used for dead reckoning to determine the current position of the UE 200 based on the movement (direction and distance) of the UE 200 relative to the reference position.

[0067] The magnetometer(s) can determine the magnetic field strength in different directions, which can be used to determine the orientation of the UE 200. For example, the orientation can be used to provide a digital compass for the UE 200. The magnetometer can be a two-dimensional magnetometer, which is configured to detect and provide an indication of the magnetic field strength in two orthogonal dimensions. Alternatively, the magnetometer can be a three-dimensional magnetometer, which is configured to detect and provide an indication of the magnetic field strength in three orthogonal dimensions. The magnetometer can provide a means for sensing a magnetic field and providing an indication of the magnetic field, for example, to the processor 210.

[0068] The transceiver 215 may include a wireless transceiver 240 and a wired transceiver 250 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 240 may include a wireless transmitter 242 and a wireless receiver 244 coupled to one or more antennas 246 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) wireless signals 248 and converting signals from wireless signals 248 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to wireless signals 248. Thus, the wireless transmitter 242 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 244 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 240 may be configured to communicate signals (e.g., with the TRP and / or one or more other devices) according to various radio access technologies (RATs), such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc. The new radio may use millimeter wave frequencies and / or sub-6 GHz frequencies. The wired transceiver 250 may include a wired transmitter 252 and a wired receiver 254 configured for wired communication (e.g., with the network 130) to, for example, send communications to the UE 200 and receive communications from the UE 200. The wired transmitter 252 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wired receiver 254 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 250 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication. The transceiver 215 may be communicatively coupled to the transceiver interface 214 (e.g., via an optical connection and / or an electrical connection). The transceiver interface 214 may be at least partially integrated with the transceiver 215.

[0069] The user interface 216 may include one or more of a number of devices (such as, for example, a speaker, a microphone, a display device, a vibration device, a keyboard, a touch screen, etc.). The user interface 216 may include more than one of any of these devices. The user interface 216 may be configured to enable a user to interact with one or more applications hosted by the UE 200. For example, the user interface 216 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 in response to actions from the user for processing by the DSP 231 and / or the general processor 230. Similarly, an application hosted on the UE 200 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 to present output signals to the user. The user interface 216 may include an audio input / output (I / O) device, which may include, for example, a speaker, a microphone, digital-to-analog circuitry, analog-to-digital circuitry, an amplifier, and / or gain control circuitry (including more than one of these devices). Other configurations of audio I / O devices may be used. Additionally or alternatively, the user interface 216 may include one or more touch sensors that respond to touch and / or pressure on, for example, a keypad and / or a touch screen of the user interface 216 .

[0070] The SPS receiver 217 (e.g., a global positioning system (GPS) receiver) may be capable of receiving and acquiring SPS signals 260 via an SPS antenna 262. Antenna 262 is configured to convert the SPS signals 260 into wired signals (e.g., electrical or optical signals) and may be integrated with antenna 246. The SPS receiver 217 may be configured to process the SPS signals 260 in whole or in part to estimate the position of the UE 200. For example, the SPS receiver 217 may be configured to determine the position of the UE 200 by performing trilateration using the SPS signals 260. The general-purpose processor 230, the memory 211, the DSP 231, and / or one or more dedicated processors (not shown) may be utilized in conjunction with the SPS receiver 217 to process the acquired SPS signals in whole or in part and / or calculate the estimated position of the UE 200. The memory 211 may store indications (e.g., measurements) of the SPS signal 260 and / or other signals (e.g., signals obtained from the wireless transceiver 240) for use in performing positioning operations. The general-purpose processor 230, the DSP 231, and / or one or more dedicated processors, and / or the memory 211 may provide or support a location engine for processing the measurements to estimate the location of the UE 200.

[0071] The UE 200 may include a camera 218 for capturing still or moving images. The camera 218 may include, for example, an imaging sensor (e.g., a charge-coupled device or CMOS imager), a lens, analog-to-digital circuitry, a frame buffer, etc. Additional processing, conditioning, encoding, and / or compression of signals representing the captured images may be performed by the general processor 230 and / or the DSP 231. Additionally or alternatively, the video processor 233 may perform conditioning, encoding, compression, and / or manipulation of signals representing the captured images. The video processor 233 may decode / decompress stored image data for presentation on a display device (not shown) (e.g., of the user interface 216).

[0072] Positioning device (PD) 219 may be configured to determine the location of UE 200, the motion of UE 200, and / or the relative location of UE 200, and / or time. For example, PD 219 may communicate with SPS receiver 217 and / or include some or all of SPS receiver 217. PD 219 may appropriately cooperate with processor 210 and memory 211 to perform at least a portion of one or more positioning methods, although the description herein may only refer to PD 219 being configured to perform or performing according to a positioning method. PD 219 may additionally or alternatively be configured to: perform trilateration using ground-based signals (e.g., at least some signals 248), assist in obtaining and using SPS signals 260, or both to determine the position of UE 200. The PD 219 may be configured to determine the location of the UE 200 using one or more other techniques (e.g., relying on the UE's self-reported location (e.g., as part of the UE's location beacon)), and may use a combination of techniques (e.g., SPS and terrestrial positioning signals) to determine the location of the UE 200. The PD 219 may include one or more sensors 213 (e.g., gyroscopes, accelerometers, magnetometers, etc.) that may sense the orientation and / or motion of the UE 200 and provide an indication of the orientation and / or motion, which the processor 210 (e.g., processor 230 and / or DSP 231) may use to determine the motion of the UE 200 (e.g., velocity vector and / or acceleration vector). The PD 219 may be configured to provide an indication of uncertainty and / or error in the determined position and / or motion.

[0073] Also refer to Figure 3, an example of a TRP 300 for BTSs 120-123 includes a computing platform including a processor 310, a memory 311 including software (SW) 312, and a transceiver 315. The processor 310, the memory 311, and the transceiver 315 may be communicatively coupled to one another via a bus 320 (which may be configured, for example, for optical and / or electrical communication). One or more of the illustrated devices (e.g., a wireless interface) may be omitted from the TRP 300. The processor 310 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.). The processor 310 may include multiple processors (e.g., including, for example, Figure 2 ). Memory 311 is a non-volatile storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, disk storage, and / or read-only memory (ROM), among others. Memory 311 stores software 312, which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause the processor 310 to perform the various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, the software 312 may not be directly executable by the processor 310, but may be configured (for example, when compiled and executed) to cause the processor 310 to perform various functions. This description may refer only to the processor 310 performing a function, but this includes other implementations, such as implementations in which the processor 310 executes software and / or firmware. This description may refer to the processor 310 performing a function as shorthand for one or more processors included in the processor 310 performing that function. This description may refer to TRP 300 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of TRP 300 (and thereby one of BSs 120-123) performing that function. Processor 310 may include a memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 311. The functionality of processor 310 is discussed more fully below.

[0074] The transceiver 315 may include a wireless transceiver 340 and / or a wired transceiver 350 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 340 may include a wireless transmitter 342 and a wireless receiver 344 coupled to one or more antennas 346 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more downlink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more uplink channels) wireless signals 348 and converting signals from the wireless signals 348 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to the wireless signals 348. Thus, the wireless transmitter 342 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 344 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 340 may be configured to operate in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc.) to communicate signals (e.g., with UE 200, one or more other UEs, and / or one or more other devices). The wired transceiver 350 may include a wired transmitter 352 configured for wired communication (e.g., with network 130) and a wired receiver 354 to, for example, send communications to and receive communications from server 143. The wired transmitter 352 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wired receiver 354 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 350 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0075] Figure 3 The configuration of TRP 300 shown in the specification is an example and does not limit the present invention (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, the description herein discusses that TRP 300 is configured to perform or that TRP 300 performs several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by server 143 and / or UE 200 (i.e., server 143 and / or UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).

[0076] Also refer to Figure 4, server 400 (which is an example of server 143) includes a computing platform including a processor 410, a memory 411 including software (SW) 412, and a transceiver 415. The processor 410, the memory 411, and the transceiver 415 may be communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 420 (which may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the devices shown (e.g., a wireless interface) may be omitted from the server 400. The processor 410 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.). The processor 410 may include multiple processors (e.g., including Figure 2 ). Memory 411 is a non-volatile storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, disk storage, and / or read-only memory (ROM), among others. Memory 411 stores software 412, which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause processor 410 to perform the various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, software 412 may not be directly executable by processor 410, but may be configured (e.g., when compiled and executed) to cause processor 410 to perform the functions. This description may refer only to processor 410 performing a function, but this includes other implementations, such as implementations in which processor 410 executes software and / or firmware. This description may refer to processor 410 performing a function as shorthand for one or more processors included in processor 410 performing the function. This description may refer to server 400 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of server 400 performing the function. Processor 410 may include memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 411. The functionality of processor 410 is discussed more fully below.

[0077] The transceiver 415 may include a wireless transceiver 440 and / or a wired transceiver 450 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 440 may include a wireless transmitter 442 and a wireless receiver 444 coupled to one or more antennas 446 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more downlink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more uplink channels) wireless signals 448 and converting signals from wireless signals 448 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to wireless signals 448. Thus, the wireless transmitter 442 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 444 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 440 may be configured to operate in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc.) to communicate signals (e.g., with UE 200, one or more other UEs, and / or one or more other devices). Wired transceiver 450 may include a wired transmitter 452 and a wired receiver 454 configured for wired communication (e.g., with network 130) to, for example, send communications to and receive communications from TRP 300. Wired transmitter 452 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or wired receiver 454 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. Wired transceiver 450 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0078] Figure 4 The configuration of server 400 shown in the figures is an example and not a limitation of the present invention (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, wireless transceiver 440 may be omitted. Additionally or alternatively, the description herein discusses that server 400 is configured to perform several functions or that server 400 performs several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by TRP 300 and / or UE 200 (i.e., TRP 300 and / or UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).

[0079] Positioning technology

[0080] One or more of a number of different positioning techniques (also known as positioning methods) can be used to determine the location of an entity (such as one of UEs 112-114). For example, known positioning determination techniques include RTT, multi-RTT, OTDOA (also known as TDOA, and including UL-TDOA and DL-TDOA), enhanced cell identification (E-CID), DL-AoD, UL-AoA, etc. RTT uses the time it takes for a signal to travel from one entity to another and back to determine the range between the two entities. This range, combined with the known position of a first one of the entities and the angle (e.g., azimuth) between the two entities, can be used to determine the position of a second one of the entities. In multi-RTT (also known as multi-cell RTT), multiple ranges from one entity (e.g., a UE) to other entities (e.g., TRPs) and the known positions of these other entities can be used to determine the location of the one entity. In TDOA techniques, the travel time differences between one entity and other entities can be used to determine the relative ranges to these other entities, and those relative ranges, combined with the known positions of these other entities, can be used to determine the location of the one entity. The angle of arrival and / or angle of departure can be used to help determine the location of an entity. For example, the angle of arrival or angle of departure of a signal, combined with the range between devices (range determined using the signal (e.g., signal travel time, signal received power, etc.)) and the known location of one of the devices, can be used to determine the location of the other device. The angle of arrival or angle of departure can be an azimuth relative to a reference direction (such as true north). The angle of arrival or angle of departure can be a zenith angle relative to directly upward from the entity (i.e., radially outward from the center of the Earth). E-CID uses the identity of the serving cell, timing advance (i.e., the difference between the receive and transmit times at the UE), the estimated timing and power of the detected neighbor cell signals, and possible angles of arrival (e.g., the angle of arrival of the signal from the base station at the UE, or vice versa) to determine the location of the UE. In TDOA, the difference in the arrival times of signals from different sources at the receiving device, together with the known locations of those sources and the known offsets in the transmission times from those sources, are used to determine the location of the receiving device.

[0081] For positioning techniques that use PRS (Positioning Reference Signal) signals (e.g., TDOA and RTT), PRS signals transmitted by multiple TRPs are measured, and the arrival times of these signals, the known transmission times, and the known locations of the TRPs are used to determine the range from the UE to the TRPs. For example, RSTD (Reference Signal Time Difference) can be determined for PRS signals received from multiple TRPs, and these RSTDs can be used in TDOA techniques to determine the location (position) of the UE. PRS signals are typically transmitted using the same power, and PRS signals with the same signal characteristics (e.g., the same frequency shift) may interfere with each other, so that PRS signals from farther TRPs may be drowned out by PRS signals from closer TRPs, and signals from farther TRPs may not be detected. PRS muting can be used to help reduce interference by muting some PRS signals (reducing the power of the PRS signals, e.g., to zero and thereby not transmitting the PRS signals). In this way, the UE can more easily detect weaker PRS signals (at the UE) without stronger PRS signals interfering with the weaker PRS signals.

[0082] Positioning Reference Signals (PRS) include downlink PRS (DL PRS) and uplink PRS (UL PRS) (which may be referred to as SRS (Sounding Reference Signal) for positioning). PRS may include PRS resources or PRS resource sets of a frequency layer. A DL PRS positioning frequency layer (or simply a frequency layer) is a collection of DL PRS resource sets from one or more TRPs, which has common parameters configured by higher-layer parameters DL-PRS-PositioningFrequencyLayer (DL-PRS-positioning frequency layer), DL-PRS-ResourceSet (DL-PRS-resource set), and DL-PRS-Resource (DL-PRS-resource). Each frequency layer has a DL PRS subcarrier spacing (SCS) for the DL PRS resource set and DL PRS resources in that frequency layer. Each frequency layer has a DL PRS cyclic prefix (CP) for the DL PRS resource set and DL PRS resources in that frequency layer. Furthermore, the DL PRS Point A parameter defines the frequency of the reference resource block (and the lowest subcarrier of the resource block), where DL PRS resources belonging to the same DL PRS resource set have the same Point A, and all DL PRS resource sets belonging to the same frequency layer have the same Point A. The frequency layers also have the same DL PRS bandwidth, the same starting PRB (and center frequency), and the same comb size value.

[0083] The TRP can be configured, for example, by instructions received from a server and / or by software in the TRP, to send DL PRS on a schedule. According to the schedule, the TRP can intermittently (e.g., periodically at consistent intervals starting from the initial transmission) send DL PRS. The TRP can be configured to send one or more PRS resource sets. A resource set is a collection of PRS resources across a TRP, where these resources have the same periodicity, a common muting pattern configuration (if any), and the same repetition factor across time slots. Each PRS resource set includes multiple PRS resources, where each PRS resource includes multiple resource elements (REs), which can be in multiple resource blocks (RBs) within N (one or more) consecutive symbols within a time slot. An RB is a set of REs that spans one or more consecutive symbols in the time domain and a consecutive number of subcarriers in the frequency domain (e.g., 12 for 5G RBs). Each PRS resource is configured with an RE offset, a time slot offset, a symbol offset within a time slot, and the number of consecutive symbols that the PRS resource can occupy within a time slot. The RE offset defines the starting RE offset in frequency for the first symbol within the DL PRS resource. The relative RE offsets of the remaining symbols within the DL PRS resource are defined based on the initial offset. The slot offset is the starting slot of the DL PRS resource relative to the corresponding resource set slot offset. The symbol offset determines the starting symbol of the DL PRS resource within the starting slot. The transmitted REs may be repeated across slots, with each transmission being referred to as a repetition, so that there may be multiple repetitions in a PRS resource. The DL PRS resources in a DL PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP, and each DL PRS resource has a DL PRS resource ID. The DL PRS resource ID in a DL PRS resource set is associated with a single beam transmitted from a single TRP (although a TRP may transmit one or more beams).

[0084] PRS resources can also be defined by quasi co-location and starting PRB parameters. The quasi co-location (QCL) parameter can define any quasi co-location information of the DLPRS resource with other reference signals. The DL PRS can be configured to be QCL type D with the DL PRS or SS / PBCH (synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel) block from the serving cell or non-serving cell. The DL PRS can be configured to be QCL type C with the SS / PBCH block from the serving cell or non-serving cell. The starting PRB parameter defines the starting PRB index of the DLPRS resource relative to the reference point A. The granularity of the starting PRB index is one PRB, and the minimum value can be 0 and the maximum value is 2176 PRBs.

[0085] A PRS resource set is a collection of PRS resources with the same periodicity, the same muting pattern configuration (if any), and the same cross-slot repetition factor. Each time all repetitions of all PRS resources in a PRS resource set are configured for transmission is referred to as an "instance." Thus, an "instance" of a PRS resource set is a specified number of repetitions for each PRS resource and a specified number of PRS resources within the PRS resource set, such that the instance is complete once the specified number of repetitions for each of the specified number of PRS resources has been transmitted. An instance may also be referred to as an "occasion." A DL PRS configuration including a DL PRS transmission schedule may be provided to a UE to facilitate (or even enable) the UE to measure DL PRS.

[0086] RTT positioning is an active positioning technology because RTT uses positioning signals sent by the TRP to the UE and by the UE (participating in RTT positioning) to the TRP. The TRP can send a DL-PRS signal received by the UE, and the UE can send an SRS (sounding reference signal) signal received by multiple TRPs. The sounding reference signal may be referred to as an SRS or an SRS signal. In 5G multi-RTT, coordinated positioning can be used, in which the UE sends a single UL-SRS for positioning received by multiple TRPs, instead of sending a separate UL-SRS for positioning for each TRP. A TRP participating in multi-RTT will typically search for UEs currently residing on that TRP (served UEs, where the TRP is the serving TRP) and also search for UEs residing on adjacent TRPs (neighbor UEs). A neighbor TRP can be the TRP of a single BTS (e.g., a gNB), or it can be the TRP of one BTS and the TRP of a separate BTS. For RTT positioning (including multi-RTT positioning), the DL-PRS signal and the UL-SRS positioning signal in the PRS / SRS positioning signal pair used to determine the RTT (and thereby the range between the UE and the TRP) may occur close in time to each other so that errors due to UE motion and / or UE clock drift and / or TRP clock drift are within acceptable limits. For example, the signals in the PRS / SRS positioning signal pair may be transmitted from the TRP and the UE, respectively, within approximately 10 ms of each other. When the SRS used for positioning is being transmitted by the UE and the PRS and SRS used for positioning are communicated close in time to each other, it has been found that radio frequency (RF) signal congestion may result (which may result in excessive noise, etc.) (especially if many UEs are attempting positioning concurrently) and / or computational congestion may result at the TRP where many UEs are attempting to measure concurrently.

[0087] RTT positioning can be UE-based or UE-assisted. In UE-based RTT, UE 200 determines the RTT and corresponding range to each of TRPs 300, and determines the position of UE 200 based on the range to TRPs 300 and the known location of TRPs 300. In UE-assisted RTT, UE 200 measures positioning signals and provides measurement information to TRPs 300, which then determine the RTT and range. TRPs 300 provide the ranges to a location server (e.g., server 400), which determines the position of UE 200 based on, for example, the ranges to the different TRPs 300. The RTT and / or range may be determined by the TRP 300 receiving the signal(s) from the UE 200, by the TRP 300 in combination with one or more other devices (e.g., one or more other TRPs 300 and / or a server 400), or by one or more devices other than the TRP 300 receiving the signal(s) from the UE 200.

[0088] 5G NR supports various positioning technologies. NR-native positioning methods supported in 5G NR include DL-only positioning, UL-only positioning, and DL+UL positioning. Downlink-based positioning methods include DL-TDOA and DL-AoD. Uplink-based positioning methods include UL-TDOA and UL-AoA. Combined DL+UL-based positioning methods include RTT with one base station and RTT with multiple base stations (multi-RTT).

[0089] PRS silent configuration

[0090] The TRP 300 may be configured (e.g., via instructions received from the server 400 and / or via software 312) to transmit a downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) on a schedule. Based on the schedule, the TRP 300 may intermittently (e.g., periodically at consistent intervals starting from an initial transmission) transmit the DL PRS. The TRP 300 may be configured to transmit one or more PRS resource sets. Each of these resource sets includes multiple resources, where each resource is a beam transmitted by the TRP 300, and each resource is configured with a slot offset, a symbol offset within a slot, and the number of consecutive symbols that the resource may occupy. Each PRS resource is associated with an antenna port or beam, transmits a DL-PRS signal, and the transmission may be repeated across slots, where each transmission is referred to as a repetition, such that multiple repetitions may exist within a resource. Each PRS resource set is associated with a periodicity. Each time all repetitions of all PRS resources in a PRS resource set are configured for transmission is referred to as an "instance." Thus, an "instance" of a PRS resource set is a specified number of repetitions for each resource and a specified number of resources within the resource set, such that the instance is complete once the specified number of repetitions are transmitted for each of the specified number of resources. An instance may also be referred to as an "opportunity." See also Figure 5 , shows an example instance of a PRS resource set 500 and a portion of another instance. The PRS resource set 500 includes four resources R1, R2, R3, and R4 (each comb-2 or comb-4), with a repetition of 4, a time gap of 1, and a resource set slot offset 502. Each resource has four repetitions in each instance, for example, four repetitions 511, 512, 513, and 514 for the fourth resource R4.

[0091] A positioning signal muting configuration, such as a PRS muting configuration (also known as a PRS muting pattern), is a time schedule of when a transmission schedule is muted and when it is not muted. A transmission schedule is a time and subcarrier schedule of when and which resource elements are sounded (modulated with a signal) to convey a signal, such as a positioning signal. See also Figures 6A-6F , showing examples of transmission scheduling of resources for various combinations of comb types and number of codewords. Figure 6A A transmission schedule 602 for comb-2, 2-symbol resources is shown with a symbol offset 603 of three symbols in a slot containing 14 symbols (each with 12 subcarriers). In the transmission schedule shown, columns represent different symbols, rows represent different subcarriers, and dark boxes represent sounded resource elements (symbol-subcarrier combinations) for a TRP. Unsounded resource elements may be sounded by one or more other TRPs. Figure 6B A transmission schedule 604 is shown for comb-4, 4-symbol resources. Figure 6CA transmission schedule 606 is shown for comb-6, 6-symbol resources. Figure 6D A transmission schedule 612 is shown for comb-12, 12-symbol resources. Figure 6E A transmission schedule 614 is shown for comb-2, 12-symbol resources. Figure 6F A transmission schedule 616 is shown for comb-4, 12-symbol resources.

[0092] A PRS muting configuration can be represented by a bitmap (i.e., a string of bits) that indicates when the PRS is to be muted and when it is not, and thus the terms bitmap and muting configuration are used interchangeably herein. For example, a bit value of "1" can indicate that the corresponding PRS signal transmission is not to be muted, while a bit value of "0" can indicate that the corresponding PRS signal transmission is to be muted. A muting configuration can be inter-instance (in which case each bit in the bitmap indicates whether the PRS repetitions for all PRS resources in a corresponding configurable number of instances are to be muted), intra-instance (in which case each bit in the bitmap indicates whether the corresponding PRS repetitions for all PRS resources in an instance are to be muted), or intra-slot (in which case each bit in the bitmap indicates whether the corresponding symbol or set of symbols for one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources are to be muted). Thus, for the example of inter-instance muting with a bitmap of 1010, transmissions for instances 0 and 2 are not muted, while transmissions for instances 1 and 3 are muted. For the same bitmap 1010 but with intra-instance muting, the transmission of the 0th and 2nd repetitions within each instance is not muted, while the transmission of the 1st and 3rd repetitions within each instance is muted. For the same bitmap 1010 but with intra-slot muting, the transmission of the 0th and 2nd symbols (or symbol groups) in the corresponding slot is not muted, while the transmission of the 1st and 3rd symbols (or symbol groups) in the corresponding slot is muted. As discussed further below, different slots can have different intra-slot muting configurations.

[0093] Reference Figure 7Different muting configurations can be applied to different (e.g., adjacent) TRPs 300 to help reduce interference between PRS signals from adjacent TRPs. In this example, a PRS muting bitmap of 1010 is applied to TRP1 and TRP2, and a PRS muting bitmap of 0101 is applied to TRP3 and TRP4. Thus, in this example, PRS transmissions 711 and 713 from TRP1 are not muted, while PRS transmissions 712 and 714 are muted. Similarly, PRS transmissions 721 and 723 from TRP2 are not muted, while PRS transmissions 722 and 724 are muted. Furthermore, PRS transmissions 731, 733, 741, and 743 from TRP3 and TRP4, respectively, are muted, while PRS transmissions 732, 734, 742, and 744 are not muted. Each PRS transmission may be a specific repetition (eg, the first transmission in a batch of 4 repetitions) of a resource within an instance (for inter-instance muting) or a repetition (for intra-instance muting).

[0094] Silent configuration between instances

[0095] Numerous muting configurations can be used in conjunction with various scenarios for number of repetitions, symbols per repetition, comb types, and TRPs per repetition. Figure 8 , shows an example of an inter-instance PRS muting configuration for a Comb-2 transmission scenario with two symbols per repetition and two repetitions per instance, with a 2-bit muting bitmap, but Comb-2 details are not shown. The number of instances (e.g., consecutive instances) can be configurable and is shown as one in this example to simplify the illustration. Comb-K indicates that in each symbol, the scheduled transmission is for each TRP to transmit on every Kth subcarrier, with each TRP using a different subcarrier for transmission in each symbol. Thus, different TRPs are frequency-division multiplexed to transmit PRS signals using different subcarriers, so that the concurrently transmitted PRS signals from different TRPs are frequency-orthogonal, helping to prevent collisions between PRS signals. Furthermore, TRPs may switch subcarriers for different symbols within a repetition (referred to as interleaving) to help fill holes in the frequency domain, thereby helping to eliminate aliasing in the time domain. For example, repetition 810, which includes PRS signals sent from TRP1 and TRP2, includes symbol 812 and symbol 814. In symbol 812, TRP1 may use odd-numbered subcarriers to transmit its PRS signal, and TRP2 may use even-numbered subcarriers to transmit its PRS signal. In symbol 814, TRP1 may use even-numbered subcarriers to transmit its PRS signal, and TRP2 may use odd-numbered subcarriers to transmit its PRS signal. In this example, the two repetitions per instance are transmitted in consecutive time slots (time slot 0 and time slot 1), but this is not required.

[0096] Figure 8 The muting configuration shown in includes a 2-bit muting bitmap for each pair of TRPs. In this example, a value of "1" in the bitmap corresponds to transmitting (all) PRS signals without muting, and a value of "0" in the bitmap corresponds to muting (all) PRS signals. Figure 8 , muted PRS signals are shown with dashed lines, while unmuted PRS signals are shown with solid lines. In this example, the TRP1 and TRP2 pair has a bitmap muting configuration of "10," and the TRP3 and TRP4 pair has a bitmap muting configuration of "01." Although only one instance corresponding to each bit in each bitmap is shown, more than one instance may correspond to a bit in the bitmap, where the number of instances corresponding to a bit is configurable. Thus, the bits in the bitmap may correspond to a configurable number of (consecutive) instances of a DL-PRS resource set in a periodic DL-PRS resource set transmission. In the illustrated inter-instance muting, all DL-PRS resources within a DL-PRS resource set instance are muted for the DL-PRS resource set instance indicated by the bitmap to be muted.

[0097] Using the bitmap shown, TRPs TRP1 and TRP2 transmit PRS signals without silencing during two repetitions (repetition 810 and repetition 816) during the first instance and silence the PRS signals during the second instance, while TRPs TRP3 and TRP4 silence the PRS signals during the first instance and transmit PRS signals without silencing during two repetitions (repetitions 818 and 820) during the second instance. The start of the first and second instances are separated in time by a periodicity 822, the value of which depends on parameters such as the number of repetitions per instance and the number of resources. The value of periodicity 822 can be, for example, approximately 160 ms. UE 200 measures PRS signals during the first and second instances to receive PRS signals from all four TRPs TRP1, TRP2, TRP3, and TRP4. UE 200 may acquire PRS signals from all four TRPs - TRP1, TRP2, TRP3, TRP4 - using measurements on repetitions 810, 816, and at least repetition 818 (which spans a time window 824 equal to the time of periodicity 822 plus repetition 818).

[0098] Silent configuration within the instance

[0099] Also refer to Figure 9 , shows an example of an intra-instance PRS muting configuration for a scenario with comb-2 transmission, two symbols per repetition, two repetitions per instance, and with a 2-bit muting bitmap, but does not show the comb-2 details. Similar to Figure 8In the example between instances shown in , there are four TRPs transmitting corresponding comb-2 PRS signals (each repetition is two symbols in length). Each TRP is given a 2-bit bit-mapped muting configuration, where each bit corresponds to a corresponding repetition in the corresponding instance. In this scenario, the PRS signals from TRP1 and TRP2 are not muted during the first repetition 912 during the first instance, and are muted during the second repetition 914 during the first instance. In contrast, the PRS signals from TRP3 and TRP4 are muted during the first repetition 916 during the first instance, and are not muted during the second repetition 918 during the first instance. A similar schedule is followed for the second instance as for the first instance. In this scenario, the UE 200 can measure the PRS signals from all four TRPs in the time window 920 spanning the first instance.

[0100] Figure 8 and Figure 9 The scenarios shown in are examples only, and many other scenarios can be used. For example, bitmaps of other sizes can be used (e.g., 4 bits, 8 bits, 16 bits, 32 bits, etc.). Figure 9 In a similar intra-instance scenario, but with a 4-bit bitmap, each bit may correspond to each of the four repetitions in an instance. Numerous muting configurations for intra-instance repetitions may be used for different TRPs or TRP sets for intra-instance PRS muting scenarios. As another example, more than four TRPs may be transmitting PRS signals.

[0101] Silence configuration within a time slot

[0102] Also refer to Figure 10 , shows an example of intra-slot PRS muting for a scenario of comb-2 transmission, six symbols per repetition, two repetitions per instance, and with a 3-bit muting bitmap. Figure 10A transmission schedule 1000 for two time slots is shown, which is part of a larger transmission schedule for transmitting signals (including positioning signals). Here, the transmission schedule indicates four portions of positioning signals from two TRPs (TRP1 and TRP2) to be carried by symbols 3-8 of each of the first time slot 1001 and the second time slot 1002. A muting configuration 1020 is represented by bitmap portions 1021 and 1022 for time slots 1001 and 1002, respectively. Each bit of the bitmap representing the muting configuration 1020 corresponds to a corresponding segment of the respective time slot 1001 and 1002. In this example, each segment is equal in size and corresponds to a group of symbols within the time slot, where each group indicates that all resource elements on the corresponding set of symbols for that transmission schedule are to be sounded. Different intraslot groups can be identical (i.e., have the same intraslot repetition of the sounding resource element pattern) or different (i.e., have different resource element patterns on the symbols used, even if they sound all the same subcarriers). In this example, the number of intraslot groups G is equal to N / K, where N is the length (in symbols) of the PRS resource in the slot (here, six symbols) and K is the comb type (i.e., the comb number), and the number of slot segments M is equal to G (M=G). Thus, as shown, with a PRS resource length (i.e., resource length in symbols) of six symbols and a comb type of 2, there are three intraslot groups (G=3), each consisting of two symbols, and each bitmap portion has three bits (M=3), one bit per intraslot group; i.e., each segment corresponding to a bit in the bitmap also corresponds to one intraslot group in this example.

[0103] The muting configuration 1020 is an example of both bit-to-symbol mapping and bit pattern shown, and other examples may be used. Figure 11 For a transmission schedule 1120 that is identical to transmission schedule 1000, a muting configuration 1130 has each slot segment corresponding to a bit in bitmap portions 1131, 1132 representing the muting configuration 1130. Each slot segment corresponds to a single symbol in the respective slot 1101, 1102 (rather than to a group of symbols within a slot, as with muting configuration 1020). In this example, the number of slot segments, M, is greater than the number of groups within a slot, G (M>G) and is equal to N (the length of the PRS in the slot in number of symbols). Thus, in this example, bitmap portions 1131, 1132 each have N bits, where N is the length of the PRS in the slot in number of symbols.

[0104] One or more constraints may be imposed on the use of single symbol muting granularity. For example, transmission muting with single symbol slot segment granularity may be enabled only if the remaining symbols of the PRS resource (i.e., the set of symbols in the slot used to convey the PRS signal) produce aliasing peaks in the time domain that can be resolved by the expected RSTD (reference signal time difference) uncertainty window. That is, the UE that will receive the PRS signal may be required to have a search window below a threshold amount of time such that the aliasing peaks of the PRS signal can be resolved (i.e., only one aliasing peak will be included). In general, this means that the search window used by the UE will be lower than T*1000 / (14K) nanoseconds, where T is the slot size in milliseconds and K is the comb type (number of combs). Reference Figure 12 , an example channel energy response (CER) 1200 corresponds to a comb-4, 4-symbol transmission schedule in which three of the four symbols are muted. CER 1200 has four peaks 1211, 1212, 1213, 1214, where peak 1213 is a true peak and peak 1211 is the strongest (highest power) peak.

[0105] As another example, the muting configuration may vary with different time slots and / or resources. Figure 13 , an intra-slot muting configuration (which may be referred to as an intra-resource muting configuration) may have different muting configurations for different slots and / or resources. Transmission schedule 1300 has a comb-2, two symbols per intra-slot group, but four symbols per repetition and eight repetitions per instance. As shown, muting configuration 1320 is represented by bitmap portions 1311, 1312, and 1318 for the illustrated slots, respectively (i.e., the first slot 1301, the second slot 1302, and the eighth slot 1308). Bitmap portion 1311 is different from bitmap portions 1312 and 1318, which are identical. In this example, with four bits per repetition and eight repetitions per instance, the bitmap has 32 bits. Intra-slot muting can be different for different resources. For example, one muting configuration may apply to one or more resources and another muting configuration may apply to one or more other resources, even within the same slot. For example, a quiesce configuration 1320 may apply to resources from TRP1 and TRP2, or may apply to resources from TRP1 while another quiesce configuration 1330 may apply to resources from TRP2. Figure 13 The configuration shown in is merely an example, and other muting configurations with different muting configurations for different time slots may be used.

[0106] The bitmap for intra-slot silence configuration is different from that for other silence configuration types (e.g., Figure 8 and Figure 9The bitmap for the discussed inter-instance muting and intra-instance muting may contain more bits. For example, for intra-slot muting where each segment corresponds to a group of symbols within a slot (i.e., indicating that all subcarriers are to be sounded), B bits are used, where B = N / K, where N is the length of the PRS in the slot (in number of symbols) and K is the comb type (i.e., comb number). For intra-slot muting where each segment corresponds to a symbol, N bits are used for each slot muting configuration, where N is the length of the PRS in the slot (in number of symbols).

[0107] PRS silent configuration confirmed

[0108] Server 400 may be configured to determine (e.g., generate and / or select) a PRS muting configuration. TRP 300 may be configured to determine the PRS muting configuration alone or in conjunction with server 400, although the discussion herein may refer solely to the server determining the PRS muting configuration. Server 400 may be configured to determine the PRS muting configuration in various ways. For example, server 400 may be configured to select one or more predefined bitmap schedules (e.g., stored in memory 411). As another example, server 400 may be configured to randomly generate values for the muting configuration. As another example, server 400 may be configured to generate a muting configuration that satisfies one or more criteria, such as symbols sufficient to resolve aliasing peaks, or consecutive unmuted symbols. Server 400 may be configured to generate a PRS muting configuration by concatenating multiple bitmaps. For example, server 400 may be configured to add a bitmap to another bitmap to extend the PRS muting configuration. Server 400 may be configured to select a predefined starting bitmap that provides a good balance between muting indications and non-muting indications. Thus, as an example, server 400 may be configured to start with a four-bit bitmap having two muting indications and two unmuting indications, then add another bitmap that meets specified criteria (such as a randomly generated 16-bit bitmap), and then add one or more other bitmaps as appropriate.

[0109] The server 400 may be configured to perform a logical or mathematical operation on one or more bitmaps to generate another bitmap for the silence configuration. For example, the server 400 may be configured to perform a logical or mathematical operation on the first bitmap portion 1021, 1022 or the bitmap portion 1131, 1132 to obtain a silence configuration that is different from the silence configuration 1020 or the silence configuration 1130. The server 400 may perform different logical or mathematical operations on different bitmap portions 1021, 1022 or different bitmap portions 1131, 1132. As another example, the server 400 may be configured to perform a logical operation on a combination of bitmaps. For example, referring to Figure 14 , showing inter-instance silence (referred to as option 1) ( Figure 8An example of which is shown in ), in-instance silence (referred to as option 2) ( Figure 9 An example of which is shown in ) and intra-slot silence (referred to as option 3) ( Figure 10 、 11 , 13 and 14 (examples of which are shown in ). The server 400 can be configured to calculate logical and / or mathematical combinations of option 1, option 2 and / or option 3 to produce a combined bitmap 1404 corresponding to the silence configuration within the time slot. For example, the server 400 can be configured to calculate a logical sum (AND), a logical sum (OR), a logical exclusive OR (XOR), etc. of two or more of the bitmaps 1401, 1402, 1403. The server 400 can be configured to calculate multiple logical combinations (e.g., the OR of bitmaps 1402 and 1403, and the XOR of the result with the bitmap 1403). Figure 14 In the example shown in , the server 400 computes the logical OR of all three bitmaps 1401, 1402, 1403 to obtain a combined bitmap 1404. Other non-exhaustive examples include the logical AND of option 1 and option 3, the logical AND of option 2 and option 3, or the logical AND of option 1 and option 2 and option 3 (i.e., option 1 AND option 2 AND option 3).

[0110] The bitmap generated by server 400 for the silent configuration may be repeated by the appropriate TRP(s). Server 400 may be configured to provide the complete bitmap to each TRP 300. Server 400 may be configured to continue adding to the bitmap indefinitely, but typically stops the bitmap at some finite length and provides the complete bitmap to TRP 300. However, server 400 may be configured to modify the bitmap over time, for example, by sending a new bitmap or instructions to modify an existing bitmap to TRP 300.

[0111] The server 400 may be configured to consider one or more criteria (e.g., key performance indicators) to be satisfied by the PRS muting configuration among various criteria for positioning signal transmission and / or reception. For example, the server 400 may be configured to analyze any selected or generated bitmap to determine whether all non-muted symbols in a time slot are contiguous, and to discard or otherwise ignore (and not use) any bitmap in which not all non-muted symbols in a time slot are contiguous. This may aid the operation of the TRP 300 by avoiding the need for the TRP 300 to rapidly transition back and forth between muting and not muting. As another example, the server 400 may be configured to not use a muting configuration that would result in the UE not having a search window small enough to resolve aliasing in the time domain due to partially interleaved positioning signal resources. Partially interleaved positioning signal resources are not fully interleaved because not all subcarriers will be sounded through the resource. As another example, the server 400 may not use any muting configuration of positioning signal resources (eg, PRS resources) that does not have at least one complete interlace (ie, all subcarriers of a time slot will be sounded).

[0112] As another example, the server 400 can be configured to attempt to maintain a balance between muting and not muting the PRS signal (e.g., a balance between 1s and 0s in the bitmap) to help ensure that the PRS signal is measured without excessive delay (e.g., due to waiting for the next transmission). The server 400 can be configured to provide one or more criteria for the muting configuration (e.g., a randomly generated pattern) such that a number of bits have a specific value (e.g., eight bits of a 16-bit bitmap must be 1, or five bits of an 8-bit bitmap must be 0), a threshold number of bits have a specific value (e.g., at least three bits of an 8-bit bitmap must be 1), a ratio of bits having one value to bits having another value, etc.

[0113] The server 400 may be configured to take into account a desire to train receive antenna patterns and / or a desire to assist with signal integration when generating a PRS muting configuration. The server 400 may have a criterion for having a bitmap with a number of bits of the same value (e.g., indicating an unmuted PR signal), which may facilitate or enable training of one or more receive schedules and / or assist with integration of PRS signals (e.g., weakly received PRS signals). For example, the criterion may be that the muting configuration has a threshold number of unmuted positioning signal indications to enable receive antenna pattern training. As another example, the criterion may be that the muting configuration has a threshold number of unmuted positioning signal indications to enable a threshold level of signal integration (e.g., a threshold level of total power). As another example, the criterion may be a maximum distance between on bits (unmuted indications) (e.g., a maximum number of time slots). The UE 200 may be configured to observe unmuted signals over multiple time slots using the same antenna pattern and integrate the received signals, for example, to assist with receiving PRS signals with poor SNR (signal-to-noise ratio). UE 200 can be configured to observe the unmuted signal at different time slots using different antenna modes to determine which antenna mode yields the strongest received signal. This information can be used to train one or more antenna modes, for example, to improve PRS signal reception.

[0114] The server 400 is appropriately configured to obtain information related to the one or more criteria for silence configuration. For example, the server 400 may be configured to obtain relevant information by receiving measurement information (e.g., raw measurements and / or processed measurements) from one or more UEs 200, one or more TRPs 300, and / or from taking measurements. As another example, the server 400 may be configured to obtain relevant information by being programmed with or otherwise storing information related to the one or more criteria (e.g., whether the TRP 300 is in a high mobility area or in a low mobility area (i.e., whether the UE expected to be in the coverage area of the TRP 300 has high mobility or low mobility)). The server 400 may be configured to generate relevant information (such as RSTD uncertainty (search window)), which the server 400 provides to the UE 200 and uses to determine whether the RSTD uncertainty is small enough to enable the UE 200 to resolve the aliasing peak caused by the silence in the time slot. The server 400 may be configured to use the obtained information to determine one or more criteria for silence configuration.

[0115] The server 400 may be configured to implement on-demand intra-slot muting based on the type of positioning signal trigger, for example. For example, the server 400 may be configured to cause the TRP 300 to perform intra-slot muting only when a MAC-CE (Media Access Control - Control Element)-based DL PRS (Downlink PRS) trigger is used and / or a DCI (Downlink Control Information)-based DL PRS trigger is used (e.g., only sending an intra-slot muting configuration to the TRP 300). The server 400 may be configured to determine that a MAC-CE-based DL PRS and / or a DCI-based DL PRS has been triggered (e.g., by a serving TRP) and respond by enabling intra-slot positioning signal (e.g., PRS) muting (e.g., by sending an intra-slot muting configuration to the TRP 300 or by sending an instruction to the TRP 300 (e.g., in a MAC-CE or DCI communication) to use the intra-slot muting configuration (e.g., previously sent to or generated by the TRP 300)). Such on-demand triggering of intra-slot muting can help ensure high-quality performance because intra-slot muting can use fast muting changes (muted to non-muted and vice versa) and is thus a low-latency technique, and MAC-CE-based and DCI-based DL PRS are also low-latency techniques.

[0116] Also refer to Figure 15 Signal and processing flow 1500 illustrates the communication between UE 200, server 400, and two TRPs 300-1 and 300-2, as well as the processing performed by server 400 to implement the intra-time slot muting configuration. Signal and processing flow 1500 includes the illustrated messages and phases and is provided for illustrative purposes only and not limiting. Flow 1500 may be modified, for example, by having messages and / or phases added, removed, rearranged, combined, executed concurrently, and / or having one or more messages and / or phases split into multiple messages and / or phases.

[0117] The TRPs 300-1 and 300-2 may provide one or more messages 1511 and 1512 to the server 400, which may affect the determination (e.g., generation or selection) of one or more intra-slot muting configurations and / or whether intra-slot muting is to be implemented. For example, one or more of the messages 1511 and 1512 may indicate whether MAC-CE-based DL PRS and / or DCI-based DL PRS are being used. As another example, one or more of the messages 1511 and 1512 may indicate a search window for the UE 200 to receive PRS. As another example, one or more of the messages 1511 and 1512 may indicate one or more intra-slot muting configurations stored by the TRPs 300-1 and 300-2 and / or PRS transmission parameters used by the TRPs 300-1 and 300-2 (such as comb type and PRS length (in slots)). As another example, one or more of the messages 1511 and 1512 may include information that the server 400 may use to determine the muting configuration within a time slot. For example, one or more of the messages 1511 and 1512 may include configuration information for the positioning signal resources (e.g., comb type, number of consecutive symbols in a corresponding time slot, number of repetitions, etc.).

[0118] UE 200 may provide information in message 1514 that the server may use to determine one or more intra-slot muting configurations and / or whether to implement intra-slot muting. For example, UE 200 may provide information about a search window that UE 200 may use to receive positioning signals. Additionally or alternatively, UE 200 may indicate whether the UE has requested a MAC-CE-based and / or DCI-based DL PRS.

[0119] At stage 1516, the server 400 determines an intra-slot muting configuration (e.g., a bitmap) with appropriate characteristics. The server 400 may determine the muting configuration as discussed above, for example, by selecting a stored schedule or by generating a schedule. The server 400 may generate the schedule using one or more techniques discussed herein and / or one or more other techniques for generating an intra-slot muting configuration (e.g., a bitmap corresponding to a schedule). The server 400 may only use muting configurations that meet one or more criteria (such as those discussed above), for example, to make the unmuted segments within the slot coherent. The one or more criteria may include one or more criteria related to: performance indication, facilitating antenna pattern training, balancing muted and unmuted segments, having one or more designated slot segments with specified bitmap values, helping to ensure orthogonality (e.g., reducing the likelihood of collision with another signal to below a threshold likelihood), and / or facilitating positioning in high mobility environments, among other things. The one or more criteria may include that there must be at least three intra-slot groups (i.e., sets of fully interleaved symbols) before the server 400 will determine the intra-slot muting configuration (or at least provide the intra-slot muting configuration to the TRP 300). Figure 16 , if only Figure 5 In the resource set 500 shown in FIG, the fourth resource R4 has at least three intra-slot groups (here, groups 1611, 1612, 1613), then intra-slot silence (option 3 silence) may be applied only to the fourth resource R4. Figure 16 Only the first repetition of the fourth resource R4 is extended, but intra-slot muting may also be applied to other repetitions. The fourth resource R4 may only apply intra-slot muting as indicated by bitmap 1603, or may apply intra-slot muting in combination with inter-instance (option 1) muting (as indicated by bitmap 1601) and / or intra-instance (option 2) muting (as indicated by bitmap 1602). For example, a logical combination of bitmap 1603 with bitmap 1601 and / or bitmap 1602 may result in an applicable intra-slot muting configuration. Inter-instance and / or intra-instance muting may be applied to other resources R1, R2, and R3. The one or more criteria may be used to influence how the bitmap is generated (e.g., specifying to a random number generator (e.g., implemented by processor 410) that only values 1 or 0 are to be generated, and a specified number of 1s in the total number of bits). Additionally or alternatively, server 400 may generate the bitmap and then determine whether the bitmap meets the one or more criteria. The server 400 may discard the bitmap that does not satisfy the one or more criteria, or modify the bitmap so that the modified bitmap satisfies the one or more criteria.

[0120] The server 400 may provide the appropriate PRS muting configuration to each of the TRPs 300-1 and 300-2 in messages 1518 and 1520, respectively. The server 400 may send a bitmap for the corresponding PRS muting configuration to the TRPs 300-1 and 300-2 in the message(s). Each of the TRPs 300-1 and 300-2 will use the corresponding PRS muting configuration to determine when to send a PRS signal (transmitting an unmuted PRS signal) and when not to send a PRS signal (to mute the transmission of the PRS signal). The TRPs 300-1 and 300-2 may repeat the corresponding muting configuration, for example, until otherwise instructed by the server 400. TRPs 300-1, 300-2 may determine the PRS muting configuration by reading messages 1518, 1520, or TRPs 300-1, 300-2 may determine the respective PRS muting configurations (e.g., as discussed with respect to stage 1516), or one of TRPs 300-1, 300-2 may determine the PRS muting configurations (e.g., as discussed with respect to stage 1516).

[0121] UE 200 may request location services from server 400 in message 1522. Message 1522 may be sent directly to server 400 (as shown) or may be sent indirectly to server 400 via one or more of TRPs 300-1, 300-2 (and / or via one or more other TRPs). Although request 1522 is shown as occurring after stage 1516 and after the silence configuration(s) are sent to TRPs 300-1, 300-2, UE 200 may send request 1522 at any time.

[0122] The server 400 may respond to the location service request 1522 from the UE 200 by sending an appropriate muting configuration to the UE 200 in a message 1524. The server 400 may send the muting configuration for the TRPs 300-1, 300-2 near the UE 200 (e.g., the serving TRP and neighboring TRPs, or TRPs within a radius of the location estimate for the UE 200, etc.). The UE 200 may use the muting configuration(s) to save energy (e.g., by avoiding wasting power searching for signals during time windows where no signals will be transmitted and / or avoiding narrowing the search time window to the time window indicated in the PRS muting configuration where the corresponding PRS signal will be transmitted non-silently). The message 1524 may include a search window to be used by the UE 200 to acquire and receive positioning signals. Server 400 may send message 1524 directly to UE 200 (as shown), or indirectly to UE 200 via one or more of TRPs 300 - 1 , 300 - 2 and / or via one or more other TRPs 300 .

[0123] Reference Figure 17 , and further refer to Figure 1-15 , the method 1700 for transmitting a positioning signal includes the stages shown. However, the method 1700 is merely an example and not limiting. The method 1700 may be modified, for example, by having stages added, removed, rearranged, combined, performed concurrently, and / or having a single stage split into multiple stages. For example, one or more stages may occur during Figure 17 Prior to the stages shown in , and / or one or more stages may occur Figure 10 For example, stage 1714 discussed below may be removed from method 1700 and Figure 18 One or more of the stages shown in and discussed below may be added. As another example, the stage of receiving a silence configuration at the TRP (e.g., from a server) may be performed before stage 1710, where the processor 310 (possibly in combination with the memory 311, in combination with the transceiver 315 (e.g., the wireless receiver 344 and antenna 346, or the wired receiver 354)) includes means for receiving the silence configuration. Still other examples are possible, including other functions discussed below and / or functions in addition to those discussed below. Method 1700 is implemented by the TRP 300 (which may be a gNB). For example, method 1700 may be implemented by a gNB co-located with or integrated with the LMF. However, method 1700 may be implemented by the server 400, for example, the server 400 may cause the TRP 300 to perform the stages shown (and / or other stages). Still other implementations are possible.

[0124] At stage 1710, method 1700 includes non-silently transmitting a first time slot intra-positioning signal resource segment from a TRP in a first time slot of a transmission schedule according to a muting configuration. For example, TRP 300 may non-silently transmit a signal resource segment comprising Figure 10, wherein the bitmap value 1 corresponding to these symbols of the muting configuration 1020 indicates that the transmission of these symbols is not to be muted. Thus, "first time slot positioning signal resource segment" is a label, and the segment does not need to be the first symbol in the time slot used to transmit the positioning signal according to the transmission schedule. Similarly, "first time slot" is a label, and the time slot does not need to be the first time slot of the transmission schedule. Server 400 can cause TRP 300 to transmit the first segment, for example, by transmitting the transmission schedule and the muting configuration to TRP 300, and TRP 300 can use the transmission schedule to transmit the positioning signal, thereby muting the time slot segment indicated by the muting configuration. Causing the TRP to transmit the first time slot positioning signal resource segment non-silently can include sending the transmission schedule and the muting configuration to the TRP for execution. Non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot may include: the TRP performing a transmission schedule in view of the muting configuration, wherein the transmission and muting configuration are stored and / or generated by the TRP. The processor 310 (possibly in combination with the memory 311 (e.g., software 312) and the transceiver 315 (e.g., the wireless receiver 344)) may include means for non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot. Additionally or alternatively, the processor 410 (possibly in combination with the memory 411 (e.g., software 412) and possibly in combination with the transceiver 415 (e.g., the wireless transmitter 442 and antenna 446, and / or the wired transmitter 452)) may include means for causing the TRP to non-silently transmit the positioning signal resource segment within the first time slot.

[0125] The TRP may transmit a first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in a first slot, wherein the first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment has various possible sizes. For example, the first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment may be equal in size to each intra-slot group of the first slot, wherein each intra-slot group is fully interleaved to indicate that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule are to be sounded on the corresponding set of symbols in the intra-slot group. Each of these intra-slot groups may include the same portion of the transmission schedule, wherein each intra-slot group has the same pattern of sounding resource elements on the symbols of the intra-slot group. As another example, the first segment may be smaller in size than each intra-slot group of the first slot, wherein each intra-slot group is fully interleaved. For example, the first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment may be a single symbol, while each intra-slot group is at least two symbols in length. In this case, the number of positioning signal resource segments within a time slot may be equal to the number of positioning signal symbols in the first time slot (ie, the number of symbols in the first time slot designated by the transmission schedule for conveying the positioning signal).

[0126] At stage 1712, method 1700 includes muting the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot of the first time slot of the transmission schedule by the TRP according to the muting configuration. For example, TRP 300 may mute the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot according to the transmission schedule and the muting configuration (e.g., as provided by server 400). For example, TRP Figure 10 1001, wherein the bitmap value 0 corresponding to these symbols of the muting configuration 1020 indicates that the transmission of these symbols is to be muted. The first and second intra-slot positioning signal resource segments of the first time slot each include one or more subcarriers within one or more symbols of the time slot and are separate parts of the time slot. In this example, the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment corresponds to an intra-slot group. However, other segment sizes can be used. For example, Figure 11 Each segment shown in corresponds to a symbol, which is smaller than Figure 11 Thus, for example, the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot may correspond to Figure 11 , symbol number 3 of the first time slot 1101 shown in , is part of an intra-slot group of the first time slot 1101 that includes time slot 3 and time slot 4. Thus, the intra-slot group that includes time slot 3 and time slot 4 becomes non-interleaved when the transmission of time slot 3 is muted. Causing the TRP to mute transmissions of the positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot may include sending a transmission configuration and a muting configuration to the TRP for execution. Muting transmissions of the positioning signal resource segment within the second time slot may include executing, by the TRP, a transmission schedule in view of the muting configuration, wherein the transmission and muting configurations are stored and / or generated by the TRP. The processor 310 (possibly in combination with the memory 311 (e.g., software 312)) may include means for muting transmissions of the second segment. Additionally or alternatively, the processor 410 (possibly in combination with the memory 411 (e.g., software 412), in combination with the transceiver 415 (e.g., wireless transmitter 442 and antenna 446, and / or wired transmitter 452)) may include means for causing the TRP to silence transmissions of the second segment.

[0127] Method 1700 may include one or more other features. For example, method 1700 may include stage 1714 comprising: silencing the transmission of a first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment of a second time slot of the transmission schedule, or non-silently transmitting a second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment of the second time slot, or both, wherein the first and second segments of each of the first and second time slots are in the same relative time slot position. For example, the first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment of time slots 1301 and 1302 may each correspond to symbol 0 of time slots 1301 and 1302, respectively, and the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment of time slots 1301 and 1302 may each correspond to symbol 1 of time slots 1301 and 1302, respectively. The processor 310 (possibly in combination with the memory 311 (e.g., software 312) and possibly in combination with the transceiver 315 (e.g., wireless transmitter 342 and antenna 346)) may include means for muting the transmission of the positioning signal in the first time slot for the second time slot, or non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot, or a combination thereof. The processor 410 (possibly in combination with the memory 411 (e.g., software 412) and the transceiver 415 (e.g., wireless transmitter 442 and antenna 446, and / or wired transmitter 452)) may include means for causing the TRP to mute the transmission of the positioning signal in the first time slot for the second time slot, or non-silently transmit the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot, or a combination thereof. As another example, the method 1700 may include stage 1716 of non-silently transmitting the positioning signal resource segment in the third time slot from another TRP according to another muting configuration. Thus, different resources may cause different muting configurations (e.g., muting configurations 1320, 1330) to be applied, and thus may cause segments to be transmitted non-silently according to different muting configurations and / or for transmissions to be muted differently according to different muting configurations. Processor 310 (possibly in combination with memory 311, in combination with transceiver 315 (e.g., wireless receiver 342 and antenna 346, and / or wired transmitter 352) of another TRP) may include means for non-silently transmitting positioning signal resource segments within the third time slot according to the other muting configuration. Processor 410 (possibly in combination with memory 411 (e.g., software 412), in combination with transceiver 415 (e.g., wireless transmitter 442 and antenna 446, and / or wired transmitter 452)) may include means for causing the TRP to non-silently transmit positioning signal resource segments within the third time slot according to the other muting configuration.

[0128] One or more other stages may be included as part of method 1700, before method 1700, and / or after method 1700. For example, referring to Figure 18, illustrates several optional stages of method 1800 that may be performed prior to stage 1710 of method 1700. Each of the stages of method 1800 illustrated is optional. One or more additional stages may be included in method 1800. While the discussion of method 1800 focuses on server 400 being configured to perform and execute functions, TRP 300 may be configured to perform and execute some or all of these functions.

[0129] At stage 1808, method 1800 includes obtaining information for obtaining a silence configuration. For example, server 400 or TRP 300 may obtain configuration information for transmitting one or more positioning signal (e.g., PRS) resources by one or more TRPs 300. For example, server 400 may obtain the configuration information from one or more TRPs 300-1 and 300-2 via one or more of messages 1511 and 1512. The configuration information may include, for example, comb type, resource length, number of repetitions, etc. Additionally or alternatively, server 400 may be configured to read configuration information (e.g., silence configuration) from memory 411 and / or generate configuration information (which may include silence configuration) and send it to TRPs 300-1 and 300-2, for example, in messages 1518 and 1520. TRP 300 may receive the configuration information and use it appropriately (e.g., derive the silence configuration from the configuration information or read the silence configuration from the configuration information). The processor 410 (possibly in combination with the memory 411 (e.g., software 412) and / or the transceiver 415) may include means for obtaining information for obtaining a silence configuration. Additionally or alternatively, the processor 310 (possibly in combination with the memory 311 (e.g., software 312) and / or the transceiver 315) may include means for obtaining information for obtaining a silence configuration.

[0130] At stage 1810, method 1800 may include obtaining a silence configuration, for example, based on positioning signal resource configuration information (such as comb type, resource length, number of repetitions, etc.) and / or based on a combination of silence configurations. For example, server 400 or TRP 300 may determine a segment size for a bitmap representing the silence configuration based on the comb type and resource length. For example, server 400 may be configured to obtain the silence configuration using one or more of a variety of techniques. For example, server 400 may be configured to derive a silence pattern based on such parameters, and / or may be configured to select a stored silence pattern based on such parameters, and / or may be configured to obtain the silence configuration using one or more other techniques. The silence configuration may be different for different time slots and / or for non-positioning signal resources. For example, server 400 may set the segment size to be equal to the number of symbols used to transmit the positioning signal in the time slot divided by the comb number. Server 400 may determine the silence configuration based on the combination of silence configurations. For example, server 400 may logically combine the intra-slot silence configuration with one or more other silence configurations (e.g., using a logical AND). For example, server 400 may be configured to determine option 1 AND option 3, or option 2 AND option 3, or option 1 AND option 2 AND option 3. Thus, for example, the resulting silence configuration will only indicate a non-silent transmission if all ANDed silence configurations indicate a non-silent transmission. Processor 410 (possibly in conjunction with memory 411 (e.g., software 412)) may include means for determining a silence configuration. Processor 310 (possibly in conjunction with memory 311 (e.g., software 312)) may include means for determining a silence configuration.

[0131] At stage 1812, method 1800 may include obtaining a silence configuration such that all indications of non-silently transmitting corresponding segments in a time slot are coherent. For example, processor 410 may not use (e.g., discard, ignore, or not select) any potential silence configuration (e.g., generated by processor 410 or stored by memory 411 and selected by processor 410) that has multiple indications of non-silently transmitting corresponding time slot segments (where these indications are incoherent) (e.g., to ignore silence configuration 1011 but allow silence configuration 0111). Processor 410 (possibly in combination with memory 411 (e.g., software 412)) may include means for determining a silence configuration. Additionally or alternatively, processor 310 (possibly in combination with memory 311 (e.g., software 312)) may include means for determining a silence configuration.

[0132] At stage 1814, method 1800 may include determining whether the transmission schedule includes at least three intraslot groups. For example, server 400 may determine whether the length of the resource divided by the number of symbols in the intraslot group is at least 3. If there are not at least three intraslot groups per slot, server 400 may not implement intraslot muting (e.g., server 400 may not determine such an intraslot muting configuration, or at least not send such an intraslot muting configuration to TRP 300, or not send instructions to TRP 300 to use such an intraslot muting configuration generated by or stored by TRP 300). If there are not at least three intraslot groups, method 1800 may end at stage 1816 without proceeding to method 1700. Processor 410 (possibly in combination with memory 411 (e.g., software 412)) may include means for determining that the muting configuration includes at least three intraslot groups. Additionally or alternatively, the processor 310 (possibly in combination with the memory 311 (eg, the software 312)) may include means for determining that the muting configuration includes at least three intra-slot groups.

[0133] At stage 1818, method 1800 may include determining whether low-latency positioning signal triggering is in use. For example, server 400 may be configured to determine whether MAC-CE-based DL PRS triggering is in use (e.g., requested) and / or configured to determine whether DCI-based DL PRS triggering is in use. If low-latency positioning signal triggering is not in use, method 1800 may end at stage 1816 without proceeding to method 1700. Processor 410 (possibly in combination with memory 411 (e.g., software 412)) may include means for determining whether low-latency positioning signal triggering is in use. Additionally or alternatively, processor 310 (possibly in combination with memory 311 (e.g., software 312)) may include means for determining whether low-latency positioning signal triggering is in use.

[0134] At stage 1820, method 1800 may include determining whether the UE can resolve the aliasing peak. For example, if the muting configuration will result in a partial interlace (less than all subcarriers are sounded) for transmitting the positioning signal, the server 400 may determine whether the UE has a search window that is small enough to resolve the aliasing peak (e.g., RSTD uncertainty is below an acceptable threshold). For example, the server 400 may obtain information about the search window from the UE 200, or may have already sent the search window to the UE 200 and thus may have the search window stored. The server 400 may proceed to method 1700 in response to determining (and only if the server 400 determines) that the UE 200 has a search window that is small enough to resolve the aliasing peak, otherwise it may end at stage 1816.

[0135] Other considerations

[0136] Other examples and implementations are within the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software and computers, the functions described above may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or any combination thereof. Features that implement functions may also be physically located in various locations, including being distributed so that portions of the functions are implemented at different physical locations. For example, one or more functions discussed above that occur in the server 400 (e.g., for determining and implementing a PRS muting configuration) or one or more portions thereof may be performed external to the server 400 (such as by the TRP 300). A recitation that a feature can implement a function includes that the feature can be configured to implement that function (e.g., a recitation that the server 400 can perform function X includes that the server 400 can be configured to perform function X).

[0137] As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" also include the plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. As used herein, the terms "comprises," "has," "includes," and / or "contains" specify the presence of recited features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0138] As used herein, the term RS (reference signal) may refer to one or more reference signals and may be appropriately applied to any form of the term RS, for example, PRS, SRS, CSI-RS, etc.

[0139] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, a recitation of a function or operation "based on" an item or condition means that the function or operation is based on the recited item or condition, and may be based on one or more items and / or conditions other than the recited item or condition.

[0140] Likewise, as used herein, “or” used in a list of items followed by “at least one of” or followed by “one or more of” indicates a disjunctive list, such that, for example, a list of “at least one of A, B, or C” or a list of “one or more of A, B, or C” means A or B or C or AB (A and B) or AC (A and C) or BC (B and C) or ABC (i.e., A and B and C), or a combination having more than one feature (e.g., AA, AAB, ABBC, etc.). Thus, a reference to an item (e.g., a processor) being configured to perform a function with respect to at least one of A or B means that the item may be configured to perform the function with respect to A, or may be configured to perform the function with respect to B, or may be configured to perform the function with respect to both A and B. For example, the phrase “the processor is configured to measure “at least one of A or B” means that the processor may be configured to measure A (and may or may not be configured to measure B), or may be configured to measure B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or may be configured to measure A and measure B (and may be configured to select which or both of A and B to measure). Similarly, a statement that an item (e.g., a processor) is configured to perform at least one of function X or function Y indicates that the item may be configured to perform function X, or may be configured to perform function Y, or may be configured to perform both function X and function Y. For example, the phrase "the processor is configured to measure "at least one of X or Y" indicates that the processor may be configured to measure X (and may or may not be configured to measure Y), or may be configured to measure Y (and may or may not be configured to measure X), or may be configured to measure X and measure Y (and may be configured to select which one or both of X and Y to measure).

[0141] Substantial variations may be made according to specific requirements. For example, customized hardware may also be used, and / or specific elements may be implemented in hardware, in software executed by a processor (including portable software, such as applets, etc.), or in both. In addition, connections to other computing devices (such as network input / output devices) may be employed. Unless otherwise indicated, components (functional or otherwise) shown in the figures and / or discussed herein as interconnected or communicating are communicatively coupled. That is, they may be connected directly or indirectly to enable communication therebetween.

[0142] The systems and devices discussed above are examples. Various configurations may omit, replace, or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For example, features described with reference to certain configurations may be combined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elements of the configurations may be combined in similar ways. Furthermore, technology will evolve, and thus, many elements are examples and do not limit the scope of this disclosure or the claims.

[0143] A wireless communication system is a system in which communications are transmitted wirelessly, that is, by electromagnetic waves and / or sound waves propagating through air space rather than through wires or other physical connections. A wireless communication network may not have all communications transmitted wirelessly, but may be configured so that at least some communications are transmitted wirelessly. Furthermore, the term "wireless communication device" or similar terms does not require that the functionality of the device be exclusively or uniformly primarily used for communication, or that the device be a mobile device, but rather indicates that the device includes wireless communication capabilities (unidirectional or bidirectional), for example, including at least one radio (each radio being part of a transmitter, receiver, or transceiver) for wireless communication.

[0144] Specific details are given in this description to provide a thorough understanding of example configurations (including implementations). However, these configurations can be practiced without these specific details. For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques have been shown without unnecessary details to avoid confusing these configurations. This description only provides example configurations and does not limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the claims. On the contrary, the previous description of the configuration provides a description for implementing the technology. Various changes can be made to the function and arrangement of the elements.

[0145] As used herein, the terms "processor-readable medium," "machine-readable medium," and "computer-readable medium" refer to any medium that participates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in a particular manner. Using a computing platform, various processor-readable media may be involved in providing instructions / code for execution to the processor(s), and / or may be used to store and / or carry such instructions / code (e.g., as signals). In many implementations, processor-readable media are physical and / or tangible storage media. Such media may take many forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media and volatile media. Non-volatile media include, for example, optical and / or magnetic disks. Volatile media include, but are not limited to, dynamic memory.

[0146] After describing several example configurations, various modifications, alternative configurations, and equivalents can be used. For example, the above elements can be components of a larger system, wherein other rules can take precedence over the application of the present invention or otherwise modify the application of the present invention. In addition, several operations can be taken before, during, or after considering the above elements. Accordingly, the above description does not limit the scope of the claims.

[0147] A statement that a value exceeds (or is greater than or higher than) a first threshold is equivalent to a statement that the value meets or exceeds a second threshold that is slightly greater than the first threshold, e.g., the second threshold is one value higher than the first threshold at the resolution of the computing system. A statement that a value is less than (or within or below) the first threshold is equivalent to a statement that the value is less than or equal to a second threshold that is slightly lower than the first threshold, e.g., the second threshold is one value lower than the first threshold at the resolution of the computing system.

Claims

1. A method for selectively transmitting a positioning signal from a TRP (transmit / receive point), the method comprising: transmitting, non-silently, a first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment from the TRP in a first slot of a transmission schedule according to a muting configuration, the transmission schedule indicating which one or more resource elements are to be sounded in each of a plurality of consecutive symbols to transmit at least a portion of the positioning signal in the slot of the transmission schedule, the muting configuration indicating whether each of the plurality of intra-slot positioning signal resource segments is to be muted; as well as muting, by the TRP in the first time slot of the transmission schedule, the transmission of a positioning signal resource segment in a second time slot according to the muting configuration; The multiple intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments include the first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and the second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot, each of the multiple intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments includes at least one codeword and is a separate part of the corresponding time slot.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the transmission schedule comprises a first integer number G of intra-slot groups for the first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intra-slot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the silence configuration comprises a second integer number M of intra-slot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M = G.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein each of the intraslot groups comprises the same portion of the transmission schedule and thus has the same pattern of resource elements to be sounded.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the transmission schedule comprises a first integer number G of intra-slot groups for the first time slot, where G ≥ 2; wherein each of the intra-slot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded; wherein the muting configuration comprises a second integer number M of intra-slot positioning signal resource segments in the first time slot; and wherein M > G. 5 . The method according to claim 4 , wherein the second integer M is equal to the number of symbols configured for the resources of the positioning signal in the first time slot.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is a second portion of an intra-slot symbol group, the intra-slot symbol group comprising a first portion and the second portion, the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group indicating that less than all subcarriers of the transmission schedule are to be sounded, the method further comprising: As a condition for silencing transmission of positioning signal resource segments in the second time slot, user equipment determined to receive the positioning signal is configured with a search window that can resolve aliased channel energy response peaks corresponding to the first part of the code group in the time slot.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising: The muting configuration is determined so that all indications of non-silently transmitting positioning signal resource segments in a time slot corresponding to the time slot are coherent.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot in the second time slot of the transmission schedule; or transmitting a second time slot positioning signal resource segment non-silently in the second time slot of the transmission schedule; or its combination; According to the transmission schedule, the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled at the same first time relative to the second time slot as the time at which the first time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot, and the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled at the same second time relative to the second time slot as the time at which the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein non-silently transmitting the first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and silencing transmission of the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is performed in response to determining that the first time slot of the transmission schedule includes at least three intra-slot groups that each indicate that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on a corresponding set of symbols are to be sounded.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting the first time slot positioning signal resource segment non-silently in the first time slot and silencing transmission of the second time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is performed in response to determining whether to use a MAC-CE (Media Access Control-Control Element)-based positioning signal trigger or a DCI (Downlink Control Information)-based positioning signal trigger, or a combination thereof.

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising: The muting configuration is determined based on a comb type and a resource length of the transmission schedule.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the silence configuration is an intra-slot silence configuration, the method further comprising: The silence configuration is obtained by determining a logical combination of the intra-slot silence configuration and at least one of the inter-instance silence configuration or the intra-instance silence configuration.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein determining the logical combination comprises determining: the intra-slot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration, where AND is a logical operator; or The silent configuration within the time slot AND the silent configuration within the instance; or The intra-time-slot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration AND the intra-instance silence configuration.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the muting configuration is a first muting configuration, the positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot corresponds to a first positioning signal resource, and the TRP is a first TRP, the method further comprising: A third time slot positioning signal resource segment is non-silently transmitted from a second TRP according to a second silence configuration different from the first silence configuration, and the third time slot positioning signal resource segment corresponds to a second positioning signal resource different from the first positioning signal resource.

15. A TRP (transmission / reception point), comprising: transmitter; Memory; as well as a processor communicatively coupled to the transmitter and the memory and configured to: transmitting, via the transmitter, non-silently a first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in a first slot of a transmission schedule according to a muting configuration, the transmission schedule indicating which one or more resource elements are to be sounded in each of a plurality of consecutive symbols to transmit at least a portion of a positioning signal in the slot of the transmission schedule, the muting configuration indicating whether each of the plurality of intra-slot positioning signal resource segments is to be muted; as well as muting the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot in the first time slot of the transmission schedule according to the muting configuration; The multiple intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments include the first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and the second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot, each of the multiple intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments includes at least one codeword and is a separate part of the corresponding time slot.

16. A TRP as claimed in claim 15, wherein the transmission schedule includes a first integer G time slot groups for the first time slot, where G≥2; wherein each time slot group in the time slot groups indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on the corresponding code element set are to be sounded; wherein the silence configuration includes a second integer M time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot; and wherein M=G.

17. A TRP as claimed in claim 16, wherein each of the intra-slot groups includes the same part of the transmission schedule and thus has the same resource element pattern to be sounded.

18. A TRP as described in claim 15, wherein the transmission schedule includes a first integer G time slot groups for the first time slot, where G≥2; wherein each time slot group indicates that all subcarriers of the transmission schedule on the corresponding code element set are to be sounded; wherein the silence configuration includes a second integer M time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot; and wherein M>G.

19. The TRP of claim 18, wherein the second integer M is equal to the number of code elements configured for the resources of the positioning signal in the first time slot.

20. The TRP of claim 15 , wherein the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is a second portion of an intra-slot symbol group, the intra-slot symbol group comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group indicating that less than all subcarriers of the transmission schedule are to be sounded, and wherein the processor is further configured to silence transmission of the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in response to determining that a user equipment that will receive the positioning signal is configured with a search window that can resolve an aliased channel energy response peak corresponding to the first portion of the intra-slot symbol group.

21. The TRP of claim 15, wherein the processor is configured to determine the silence configuration so that all indications of non-silently transmitting positioning signal resource segments within the corresponding time slot in the time slot are coherent.

22. The TRP of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to: Silencing the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot in the second time slot of the transmission schedule; or transmitting, via the transmitter, non-silently, a second time slot intra-positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot of the transmission schedule; or its combination; in, According to the transmission schedule, the first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled at the same first time relative to the second time slot as the time at which the first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot, and the second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot is scheduled at the same second time relative to the second time slot as the time at which the second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot is scheduled relative to the first time slot.

23. The TRP of claim 15 , wherein the processor is configured to: in response to determining that the first time slot of the transmission schedule includes at least three intra-slot groups each indicating that all subcarriers on a corresponding set of codewords of the transmission schedule are to be sounded, transmit the first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment via the transmitter non-silently in the first time slot, and silence transmission of the second intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot.

24. The TRP of claim 15 , wherein the processor is configured to: transmit the first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment via the transmitter non-silently in the first time slot and silence transmission of the second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot in response to: Determine that a positioning signal trigger based on MAC-CE (Media Access Control-Control Element) is being used; or Determine that a positioning signal trigger based on DCI (downlink control information) is being used; or Its combination.

25. The TRP of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to determine the silence configuration based on a comb type and a resource length of the transmission schedule.

26. The TRP of claim 15, wherein the silence configuration is an intra-time slot silence configuration, and wherein the processor is configured to obtain the silence configuration by determining a logical combination of the intra-time slot silence configuration and at least one of an inter-instance silence configuration or an intra-instance silence configuration.

27. The TRP of claim 26, wherein to determine the logical combination, the processor is configured to: Determine the intra-timeslot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration, where AND is a logical operator; or Determine the silence configuration within the timeslot AND the silence configuration within the instance; or The intra-timeslot silence configuration AND the inter-instance silence configuration AND the intra-instance silence configuration are determined.

28. A TRP (transmission / reception point), comprising: means for non-silently transmitting, in a first time slot of a transmission schedule, a first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in accordance with a muting configuration, the transmission schedule indicating which one or more resource elements are to be sounded in each of a plurality of consecutive symbols to transmit at least a portion of a positioning signal in a time slot of the transmission schedule, the muting configuration indicating whether each of the plurality of intra-slot positioning signal resource segments is to be muted; as well as means for muting transmission of a positioning signal resource segment in a second time slot in the first time slot of the transmission schedule according to the muting configuration; The multiple intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments include the first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and the second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot, each of the multiple intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments includes at least one codeword and is a separate part of the corresponding time slot.

29. The TRP of claim 28, further comprising: Means for determining the muting configuration such that all indications of non-silently transmitting positioning signal resource segments within a time slot corresponding to the time slot are coherent.

30. The TRP of claim 28, wherein the silence configuration is an intra-slot silence configuration, the TRP further comprising: Means for obtaining the muting configuration by determining a logical combination of the intra-slot muting configuration and at least one of an inter-instance muting configuration or an intra-instance muting configuration.

31. A non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions for causing a processor of a TRP (transmit / receive point) to: transmitting non-silently a first intra-slot positioning signal resource segment in a first slot of a transmission schedule according to a muting configuration, the transmission schedule indicating which one or more resource elements are to be sounded in each of a plurality of consecutive symbols to transmit at least a portion of a positioning signal in the slot of the transmission schedule, the muting configuration indicating whether each of the plurality of intra-slot positioning signal resource segments is to be muted; and muting the transmission of the positioning signal resource segment in the second time slot in the first time slot of the transmission schedule according to the muting configuration; The multiple intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments include the first intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot and the second intra-time slot positioning signal resource segment in the first time slot, each of the multiple intra-time slot positioning signal resource segments includes at least one codeword and is a separate part of the corresponding time slot.

Images