Measurement period formulation for Positioning Reference Signal (PRS) processing

Abstract

Technologies for wireless communications are disclosed. In one aspect, a user equipment (UE): receives a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration comprising one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the TRP (910); beam scans one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement (920); and beam scans one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the TRP based on the number of the one or more repetitions being less than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement (930).

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 007,864, filed on April 9, 2020, entitled “MEASUREMENT PERIOD FORMULATION FOR POSITIONING REFERENCE SIGNAL (PRS) PROCESSING,” and U.S. Non-Provisional Application No. 17 / 205,838, filed on March 18, 2021, entitled “MEASUREMENT PERIOD FORMULATION FOR POSITIONING REFERENCE SIGNAL (PRS) PROCESSING,” both of which are assigned to the assignee of this application and are expressly incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. Technical Field

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

[0004] 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 services with Internet capabilities, and fourth generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). There are many different types of wireless communication systems currently in use, including cellular and personal communications service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include cellular analog Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) and digital cellular systems based on code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), etc.

[0005] The fifth generation (5G) wireless standard, known as New Radio (NR), 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 workers in an office building. To support large-scale sensor deployments, hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections should be supported. Therefore, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly enhanced compared to the current 4G standard. In addition, signaling efficiency should be enhanced, and latency should be significantly reduced compared to the current standard. Summary of the invention

[0006] A brief summary of one or more aspects disclosed herein is provided below. Therefore, the following summary should not be considered a broad overview related to all expected aspects, nor should the following summary be considered to identify key or important elements related to all expected aspects or to delineate the scope associated with any particular aspect. Therefore, the sole purpose of the following summary is to provide certain concepts about one or more aspects related to the mechanisms disclosed herein in a simplified form before the detailed description given below.

[0007] In one aspect, a wireless communication method performed by a user equipment (UE) includes: receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration including one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the first TRP; beam scanning one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement for a positioning measurement estimate of the UE; and beam scanning the one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being not greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement.

[0008] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes: a memory; a communication interface; and at least one processor, which is communicatively coupled to the memory and the communication interface, and the at least one processor is configured to: receive a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP) via the communication interface, the PRS configuration including one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the first TRP; based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement of the UE's positioning measurement estimation, beam scan one or more receive beams within the PRS instance; and based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being not greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement, beam scan the one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP.

[0009] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes: a component for receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration including one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the first TRP; a component for beam scanning one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement for a positioning measurement estimate of the UE; and a component for beam scanning the one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being not greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement.

[0010] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: receive a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration comprising one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the first TRP; beam scan one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement for a positioning measurement estimate of the UE; and beam scan the one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being not greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement.

[0011] Other objects and advantages associated with the various aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the accompanying drawings and detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The accompanying drawings are provided to aid in describing the various aspects of the disclosure and are provided solely for illustration of these aspects and not limitation thereof.

[0013] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0014] Figure 2A and Figure 2B Example wireless network structures are shown in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0015] FIG. 3A to FIG. 3C is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be used in a user equipment (UE), a base station, and a network entity, respectively, and configured to support communications as taught herein.

[0016] Figure 4A and Figure 4B is a diagram illustrating example frame structures and channels within the frame structures in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0017] Figure 5A and Figure 5B Various comb patterns supported for a downlink positioning reference signal (PRS) within a resource block are shown.

[0018] Figure 6 is a diagram of example PRS configurations for PRS transmission for a given base station in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 7 is a diagram of example PRS resource sets with different time gaps in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 8 is a diagram of several DL-PRS resources spanning a given duration in milliseconds in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Fig. 9 An example method of wireless communication according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] Various aspects of the present disclosure are provided in the following description of various examples provided for illustrative purposes and in the related drawings. Alternative aspects can be thought of without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In addition, well-known elements of the present disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted to avoid obscuring the relevant details of the present disclosure.

[0023] The terms "exemplary" and / or "example" are used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" and / or "example" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term "aspects of the disclosure" does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage, or mode of operation.

[0024] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the information and signals described below may be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and technologies. For example, depending in part on the specific application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, etc., data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout this description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0025] In addition, many aspects are described in terms of a sequence of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It should be appreciated that the various actions described herein may be performed by a dedicated circuit (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of the two. In addition, the sequence of actions described herein may be viewed as fully embodied in any form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having a set of corresponding computer instructions stored therein, which, when executed, will cause or instruct the processor of the associated device to perform the functions described herein. Therefore, various aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in many different forms, all of which are contemplated to fall within the scope of the subject matter claimed. In addition, for each of the various aspects described herein, the corresponding form of any of these aspects may be described herein as, for example, a "logic unit" that is "configured to" perform the described actions.

[0026] As used herein, unless otherwise indicated, the terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not intended to be dedicated to or limited to any specific radio access technology (RAT). In general, a UE may be any wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a tracking device, a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch, glasses, augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headsets, etc.), a vehicle (e.g., a car, a motorcycle, a bicycle, etc.), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.) used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network. A UE may be mobile or may be fixed (e.g., at a particular time) and may communicate with a radio access network (RAN). As used herein, the term "UE" may be interchangeably referred to as an "access terminal" or "AT", "client device", "wireless device", "subscriber equipment", "subscriber terminal", "subscriber station", "user terminal" or "UT", "mobile device", "mobile terminal", "mobile station" or variations thereof. In general, a UE may communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the core network, the UE may be connected to an external network such as the Internet and to other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for the UE to connect to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible, such as through a wired access network, a wireless local area network (WLAN) network (eg, based on Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11, etc.), etc.

[0027] Depending on the network in which it is deployed, the base station may operate according to one of several RATs when communicating with the UE, and may be alternatively referred to as an access point (AP), a network node, a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), a new radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as a gNB or gNode B), etc. The base station may be primarily used to support wireless access for the UE, including supporting data, voice and / or signaling connections for the supported UE. In some systems, the base station may simply provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems, it may provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link through which the UE may send a signal to the base station is referred to as an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel, etc.). The communication link through which the base station may send a signal to the UE is referred to as a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., a paging channel, a control channel, a broadcast channel, a forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term traffic channel (TCH) may refer to an uplink / reverse or downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0028] The term "base station" may refer to a single physical transmit receive point (TRP), or to multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, where the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna of the base station corresponding to a cell (or multiple cell sectors) of the base station. Where the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be an antenna array of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where the base station employs beamforming). Where the term "base station" refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common resource via a transmission medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-co-located physical TRP may be a serving base station that receives measurement reports from the UE and a neighboring base station whose reference radio frequency (RF) signal the UE is measuring. Because as used herein, a TRP is the point from which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, references to transmissions from a base station or receptions at a base station should be understood to refer to the specific TRP of the base station.

[0029] In some embodiments of supporting UE positioning, the base station may not support wireless access of the UE (e.g., may not support data, voice and / or signaling connections of the UE), but may instead send a reference signal to the UE for measurement by the UE, and / or may receive and measure a signal sent by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when sending a signal to the UE) and / or as a position measurement unit (e.g., when receiving and measuring a signal from the UE).

[0030] An "RF signal" includes an electromagnetic wave of a given frequency that transmits information through space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may transmit a single RF signal or multiple RF signals to a receiver. However, due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through multipath channels, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between a transmitter and a receiver may be referred to as a "multipath" RF signal.

[0031] Figure 1An example wireless communication system 100 is shown in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communication system 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled as "BS") and various UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macrocell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one aspect, the macrocell base stations may include eNBs and / or ng-eNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network) or gNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network) or a combination of both, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0032] The base stations 102 may collectively form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) via a backhaul link 122, and interface with one or more positioning servers 172 (e.g., a positioning management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)) via the core network 170. The positioning server 172 may be part of the core network 170 or may be external to the core network 170. The base stations 102 may perform, among other functions, functions related to one or more of: transmitting user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and device tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and transmission of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (eg, via EPC / 5GC) via a backhaul link 134 (which may be wired or wireless).

[0033] The base station 102 can communicate with the UE 104 wirelessly. Each of the base stations 102 can provide communication coverage for a respective geographic coverage area 110. In one aspect, one or more cells can be supported by the base station 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., on a frequency resource called a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, frequency band, etc.), and can be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCI), a virtual cell identifier (VCI), a cell global identifier (CGI)) used to distinguish cells operating via the same or different carrier frequencies. In some cases, different cells can be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) or other protocol types) that can be provided for different types of UE access. Because a cell is supported by a specific base station, the term "cell" can refer to either or both of a logical communication entity and a base station supporting the logical communication entity, depending on the context. In some cases, the term “cell” may also refer to a geographic coverage area (eg, a sector) of a base station within which a carrier frequency may be detected and used for communications within some portion of the geographic coverage area 110 .

[0034] Although the geographic coverage areas 110 of adjacent macrocell base stations 102 may partially overlap (e.g., in a handover region), some of the geographic coverage areas 110 may substantially overlap with a larger geographic coverage area 110. For example, a small cell (SC) base station 102' may have a geographic coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage areas 110 of one or more macrocell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell base stations and macrocell base stations may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a home eNB (HeNB), which may provide services to a restricted group referred to as a closed subscriber group (CSG).

[0035] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 may include an uplink (also referred to as a reverse link) transmission from the UE 104 to the base station 102 and / or a downlink (also referred to as a forward link) transmission from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 may use MIMO antenna technology, which includes spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may be over one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to the uplink and downlink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for the downlink than for the uplink).

[0036] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a WLAN station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in an unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) or a listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure before communicating to determine whether a channel is available.

[0037] The small cell base station 102' can operate in a licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in an unlicensed spectrum, the small cell base station 102' can adopt LTE or NR technology and use the same 5GHz unlicensed spectrum used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' adopting LTE / 5G in the unlicensed spectrum can improve the coverage of the access network and / or increase the capacity of the access network. NR in the unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as NR-U. LTE in the unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as LTE-U, License Assisted Access (LAA) or MulteFire.

[0038] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a millimeter wave (mmW) base station 180 that communicates with the UE 182, which may operate in mmW frequencies and / or near mmW frequencies. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and has a wavelength between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in this band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near mmW can be extended downward to a frequency of 3 GHz with a wavelength of 100 mm. The super high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and is also referred to as centimeter waves. Communications using mmW / near mmW radio frequency bands have high path loss and relatively short distances. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 may utilize beamforming (sending and / or receiving) on ​​the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for extremely high path loss and short distances. In addition, it will be appreciated that in alternative configurations, one or more base stations 102 may also use mmW or near mmW and beamforming for transmission. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the foregoing description is merely exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the various aspects disclosed herein.

[0039] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing RF signals in a specific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectionally). With transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal to the receiving device. In order to change the direction of the RF signal when transmitting, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of the one or more transmitters that broadcast the RF signal. For example, the network node can use an array of antennas (referred to as a "phased array" or "antenna array") that creates a beam of RF waves that can be "guided" to points in different directions without actually moving the antenna. Specifically, the RF current from the transmitter is fed to individual antennas with the correct phase relationship so that the radio waves from the individual antennas are added together to increase radiation in the desired direction and destructively in the undesired direction to suppress radiation.

[0040] The transmit beams can be quasi-co-located, meaning that they appear to the receiver (e.g., UE) to have the same parameters, regardless of whether the transmit antennas of the network nodes themselves are physically co-located. In NR, there are four types of quasi-co-location (QCL) relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters about the target reference RF signal on the target beam can be derived from information about the source reference RF signal on the source beam. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of the target reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the target reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and average delay of the target reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type D, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the spatial reception parameters of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0041] In receive beamforming, a receiver uses a receive beam to amplify an RF signal detected on a given channel. For example, a receiver may increase a gain setting and / or adjust a phase setting of an antenna array in a particular direction to amplify (e.g., to increase its gain level) an RF signal received from that direction. Thus, when a receiver is said to be beamforming in a certain direction, it means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gain along other directions, or that the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gain in that direction of all other receive beams available to the receiver. This results in a stronger received signal strength (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR), etc.) of the RF signal received from that direction.

[0042] The receive beams may be spatially correlated. Spatial correlation means that the parameters for the transmit beam for the second reference signal may be derived from information about the receive beam for the first reference signal. For example, the UE may use a specific receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., positioning reference signal (PRS), tracking reference signal (TRS), phase tracking reference signal (PTRS), cell-specific reference signal (CRS), channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), primary synchronization signal (PSS), secondary synchronization signal (SSS), synchronization signal block (SSB), etc.) from a base station. The UE may then form a transmit beam for sending an uplink reference signal (e.g., uplink positioning reference signal (UL-PRS), sounding reference signal (SRS), demodulation reference signal (DMRS), PTRS, etc.) to the base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0043] Note that a "downlink" beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity that forms it. For example, if the base station is forming a downlink beam for sending a reference signal to the UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE is forming a downlink beam, it is a receive beam for receiving a downlink reference signal. Similarly, an "uplink" beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity that forms it. For example, if the base station is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, and if the UE is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0044] In 5G, the spectrum in which wireless nodes (e.g., base stations 102 / 180, UEs 104 / 182) operate is divided into multiple frequency ranges: FR1 (from 450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (from 24250 to 52600 MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). In a multi-carrier system (such as 5G), one of the carrier frequencies is called the "primary carrier" or "anchor carrier" or "primary serving cell" or "PCell", and the remaining carrier frequencies are called "secondary carriers" or "secondary serving cells" or "SCells". In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is a carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by the UE 104 / 182 and the cell in which the UE 104 / 182 performs an initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates an RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). A secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2), where the second frequency may be configured once an RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier, and may be used to provide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carrier may be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier may contain only necessary signaling information and signals, for example, there may be no UE-specific signaling information and signals in the secondary carrier, because both the primary uplink carrier and the primary downlink carrier are usually UE-specific. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 in a cell may have different downlink primary carriers. This is also true for the uplink primary carrier. The network is able to change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done to, for example, balance the load on different carriers. Since a "serving cell" (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to a carrier frequency / component carrier on which a base station is communicating, the terms "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier", "carrier frequency", etc. may be used interchangeably.

[0045] For example, still refer to Figure 1 , one of the frequencies utilized by the macrocell base station 102 may be an anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and the other frequencies utilized by the macrocell base station 102 and / or the mmW base station 180 may be secondary carriers ("SCells"). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception of multiple carriers enables the UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rate. For example, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically result in a two-fold increase in data rate (i.e., 40 MHz) compared to the data rate achieved with a single 20 MHz carrier.

[0046] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a UE 164, which may communicate with the macrocell base station 102 via a communication link 120 and / or communicate with the mmW base station 180 via a mmW communication link 184. For example, the macrocell base station 102 may support a PCell and one or more SCells for the UE 164, and the mmW base station 180 may support one or more SCells for the UE 164.

[0047] exist Figure 1 In the example of FIG. 1 , one or more Earth-orbiting satellite positioning system (SPS) spacecraft (SV) 112 (eg, satellites) may be used as any of the illustrated UEs (for simplicity, in FIG. 1 ). Figure 1 104). UE 104 may include one or more dedicated SPS receivers specifically designed to receive SPS signals 124 from SV 112 for deriving geographic location information. SPS generally includes a system of transmitters (e.g., SV 112) that are positioned to enable receivers (e.g., UE 104) to determine their positions on or above the earth based at least in part on signals received from the transmitters (e.g., SPS signals 124). Such transmitters generally transmit signals marked with a repeating pseudo-random noise (PN) code of a set number of chips. Although the transmitter is typically located in SV 112, the transmitter may sometimes be located on a ground-based control station, base station 102, and / or other UE 104.

[0048] The use of the SPS signal 124 may be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS), which may be associated with or otherwise enabled for use with one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, an SBAS may include (multiple) augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential corrections, etc., such as the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), the European Geosynchronous Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), the Multifunctional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), the Global Positioning System (GPS) Assisted Geographic Augmentation Navigation, or the GPS and Geographic Augmentation Navigation System (GAGAN), etc. Thus, as used herein, an SPS may include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems and / or augmentation systems, and the SPS signal 124 may include an SPS, a quasi-SPS, and / or other signals associated with the one or more SPS.

[0049] The wireless communication system 100 may also include one or more UEs (such as UE 190) indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as “side links”). Figure 1In the example of FIG. 1 , UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 with one of UEs 104 connected to one of base stations 102 (e.g., through D2D P2P link 192, UE 190 can indirectly obtain cellular connectivity) and a D2D P2P link 194 with WLAN STA 152 connected to WLAN AP 150 (through D2D P2P link 194, UE 190 can indirectly obtain WLAN-based Internet connectivity). In the example, any well-known D2D RAT (such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), etc.) to support D2D P2P links 192 and 194.

[0050] Figure 2A An example wireless network architecture 200 is shown. For example, the 5GC 210 (also referred to as the Next Generation Core (NGC)) can be viewed functionally as a control plane function 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and a user plane function 212 (e.g., UE gateway function, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.), which operate in conjunction to form a core network. A user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and a control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect the gNB 222 to the 5GC 210, and specifically, to the control plane function 214 and the user plane function 212. In additional configurations, the ng-eNB 224 can also be connected to the 5GC 210 via the NG-C 215 to the control plane function 214 and the NG-U 213 to the user plane function 212. In addition, the ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with the gNB 222 via the backhaul connection 223. In some configurations, a new generation RAN (NG-RAN) 220 may have only one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of both ng-eNBs 224 and gNBs 222. A gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 may communicate with a UE 204 (e.g., Figure 1204). Another optional aspect may include a positioning server 230 that can communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide positioning assistance to the UE 204. The positioning server 230 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed on multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively, each can correspond to a single server. The positioning server 230 can be configured to support one or more positioning services for the UE 204 that can be connected to the positioning server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not shown). In addition, the positioning server 230 can be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively, can be external to the core network.

[0051] Figure 2B Another example wireless network structure 250 is shown. 5GC 260 (which corresponds to Figure 2A The 5GC 210 in the 5GC 210 can be functionally viewed as a control plane function provided by an access and mobility management function (AMF) 264, and a user plane function provided by a user plane function (UPF) 262, which operate in conjunction to form a core network (i.e., 5GC 260). The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the ng-eNB 224 to the 5GC 260, and specifically to the UPF 262 and AMF 264, respectively. In additional configurations, the gNB 222 may also be connected to the 5GC 260 via a control plane interface 265 to the AMF 264 and a user plane interface 263 to the UPF 262. In addition, the ng-eNB 224 may communicate directly with the gNB 222 via a backhaul connection 223, with or without a gNB direct connection to the 5GC 260. In some configurations, the NG-RAN 220 may have only one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of both ng-eNB 224 and gNB 222. The gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224 may communicate with the UE 204 (e.g., Figure 1 The base station of NG-RAN 220 communicates with AMF 264 on the N2 interface and communicates with UPF 262 on the N3 interface.

[0052] The functions of AMF 264 include registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of session management (SM) messages between UE 204 and session management function (SMF) 266, transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transmission of short message service (SMS) messages between UE 204 and short message service function (SMSF) (not shown), and security anchor function (SEAF). AMF 264 also interacts with authentication server function (AUSF) (not shown) and UE 204, and receives intermediate keys established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In the case of authentication based on UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM), AMF 264 obtains security materials from AUSF. The functions of AMF 264 also include security context management (SCM). SCM receives keys from SEAF, where SCM uses the keys to derive access network specific keys. The functions of AMF 264 also include location service management for management services, transmission of location service messages between UE 204 and Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (which serves as location server 230), transmission of location service messages between NG-RAN 220 and LMF 270, allocation of EPS bearer identifiers for interworking with Evolved Packet System (EPS), and notification of mobility events of UE 204. In addition, AMF 264 also supports functions for non-3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0053] The functions of UPF 262 include: acting as an anchor point for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), acting as an external protocol data unit (PDU) session point for interconnection to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic utilization reporting, quality of service (QoS) processing for the user plane (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in the downlink), uplink traffic verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transmission level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and sending and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. UPF 262 can also support the transmission of positioning service messages over the user plane between UE 204 and a positioning server (such as SLP 272).

[0054] The functions of SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, configuring traffic steering at UPF 262 to route traffic to the correct destination, controlling part of QoS and policy enforcement, and downlink data notification. The interface through which SMF 266 communicates with AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0055] Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270 that can communicate with the 5GC 260 to provide positioning assistance for the UE 204. The LMF 270 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively, the LMFs 270 can each correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 can be configured to support one or more positioning services for the UE 204, and the UE 204 can be connected to the LMF 270 via the core network, the 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not shown). The SLP 272 can support similar functionality to the LMF 270, but the LMF 270 can communicate with the AMF 264, the NG-RAN 220, and the UE 204 on the control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to transmit signaling messages rather than voice or data), and the SLP 272 can communicate with the UE 204 and external clients ( Figure 2B ) communications (e.g., using protocols designed to carry voice and / or data, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0056] Figure 3A , 3B 3C show multiple example components (represented by corresponding boxes) that can be incorporated into UE 302 (which can correspond to any UE described herein), base station 304 (which can correspond to any base station described herein), and network entity 306 (which can correspond to or embody any network function described herein, including positioning server 230 and LMF 270) to support file transfer operations as taught herein. It will be appreciated that these components can be implemented in different types of devices (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system on a chip (SoC), etc.) in different embodiments. The components shown can also be incorporated into other devices in the communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include components similar to the described components to provide similar functions. In addition, a given device may include one or more components. For example, a device may include multiple transceiver components, which enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0057] UE 302 and base station 304 each include a wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceiver 310 and 350, respectively, providing means (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means for avoiding transmitting, etc.) for communicating via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown), such as NR networks, LTE networks, GSM networks, etc. WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes (e.g., other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNBs, gNBs), etc., via at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) of interest. WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be configured differently for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.), respectively, according to the designated RAT, and conversely, for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.), respectively. Specifically, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively.

[0058] UE 302 and base station 304 also include, at least in some cases, at least one short-range wireless transceiver 320 and 360, respectively. Short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide for communicating via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 are components (e.g., components for sending, components for receiving, components for measuring, components for tuning, components for avoiding sending, etc.) for communicating with other network nodes (e.g., other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) such as PC5, dedicated short-range communication (DSRC), wireless access for vehicular environments (WAVE), near field communication (NFC), etc.). The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be configured differently to send and encode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to a specified RAT, and conversely, to receive and decode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.), respectively. Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 include one or more transmitters 324 and 364 for sending and encoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362 for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively. As a specific example, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be WiFi transceivers, Transceiver, and / or transceiver, NFC transceiver or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceiver.

[0059] The transceiver circuitry including at least one transmitter and at least one receiver may include an integrated device (e.g., a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit embodied as a single communication device) in some embodiments, may include a separate transmitter device and a separate receiver device in some embodiments, or may be embodied in other ways in other embodiments. In one aspect, the transmitter may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the corresponding device to perform transmit "beamforming" as described herein. Similarly, the receiver may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the corresponding device to perform receive beamforming as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter and receiver may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366) so that the corresponding device only receives or transmits at a given time, rather than receiving or transmitting at the same time. The wireless communication devices of UE 302 and / or base station 304 (eg, one or both of transceivers 310 and 320 and / or transceivers 350 and 360) may also include a network listening module (NLM) or the like for performing various measurements.

[0060] UE 302 and base station 304 also include, at least in some cases, satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers 330 and 370. SPS receivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, for receiving and / or measuring SPS signals 338 and 378, respectively (such as global positioning system (GPS) signals, global navigation satellite system (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, Beidou signals, Indian regional navigation satellite system (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc.). SPS receivers 330 and 370 may include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing SPS signals 338 and 378, respectively. SPS receivers 330 and 370 appropriately request information and operations from other systems, and use measurements obtained by any suitable SPS algorithm to perform calculations necessary to determine the location of UE 302 and base station 304.

[0061] The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include at least one network interface 380 and 390, respectively, providing components for communicating with other network entities (e.g., components for sending, components for receiving, etc.). For example, the network interfaces 380 and 390 (e.g., one or more network access ports) can be configured to communicate with one or more network entities via a wired or wireless backhaul connection. In some aspects, the network interfaces 380 and 390 can be implemented as transceivers, which are configured to support wired or wireless signal communications. Such communications can involve, for example, sending and receiving messages, parameters, and / or other types of information.

[0062] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with the operations disclosed herein. UE 302 includes processor circuitry implementing at least one processor 332 for providing functions related to, for example, wireless positioning and for providing other processing functions. Base station 304 includes at least one processor 384 for providing functions related to, for example, wireless positioning disclosed herein and for providing other processing functions. Network entity 306 includes at least one processor 394 for providing functions related to, for example, wireless positioning disclosed herein and for providing other processing functions. Processors 332, 384, and 394 can therefore provide components for processing, such as components for determining, components for calculating, components for receiving, components for sending, components for indicating, and the like. In one aspect, processors 332, 384, and 394 can include, for example, one or more processors, such as one or more general purpose processors, multi-core processors, ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices or processing circuits, or a combination thereof.

[0063] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 include memory circuitry implementing memory components 340, 386, and 396, respectively (e.g., each including a memory device), for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Thus, memory components 340, 386, and 396 may provide means for storing, means for retrieving, means for maintaining, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may include positioning components 342, 388, and 398, respectively. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuitry that is part of or coupled to processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, which when executed causes UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein. In other aspects, the positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be external to the processors 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., as part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be memory modules stored in the memory components 340, 386, and 396, respectively, which when executed by the processors 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein. Figure 3A Possible locations for the positioning component 342 are shown, and the positioning component 342 can be part of the at least one WWAN transceiver 310, the memory component 340, the at least one processor 332, or any combination thereof, or can be a stand-alone component. Figure 3B Possible locations for the positioning component 388 are shown, and the positioning component 388 can be part of the at least one WWAN transceiver 350, the memory component 386, the at least one processor 384, or any combination thereof, or can be a stand-alone component. Figure 3C Possible locations for the positioning component 398 are shown, which can be part of the network interface 390, the memory component 396, the at least one processor 394, or any combination thereof, or can be a stand-alone component.

[0064] UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to at least one processor 332 to provide means for sensing and detecting motion and / or orientation information that is independent of motion data derived from signals received by at least one WWAN transceiver 310, at least one short-range wireless transceiver 320, and / or SPS receiver 330. For example, sensor(s) 344 may include an accelerometer (e.g., a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), an altimeter (e.g., a barometric altimeter), and / or any other type of motion detection sensor. In addition, sensor(s) 344 may include a variety of different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, sensor(s) 344 may use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and an orientation sensor to provide the ability to calculate a position in a 2D and / or 3D coordinate system.

[0065] In addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 that provides means for providing indications to the user (e.g., audible and / or visual indications) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., when the user activates a sensing device such as a keyboard, touch screen, microphone, etc.). Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 may also include a user interface.

[0066] Referring to the at least one processor 384 in more detail, in a downlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to the at least one processor 384. The at least one processor 384 may implement functions for an RRC layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. At least one processor 384 may provide RRC layer functions associated with broadcasting system information (e.g., master information block (MIB), system information block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and switching support functions; RLC layer functions associated with transmission of upper layer PDUs, error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0067] The transmitter 354 and the receiver 352 may implement layer 1 (L1) functions associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on the transmission channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transmission channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to physical channels, modulation / demodulation of physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 processes the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be divided into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. The channel estimate from the channel estimator may be used to determine the coding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate may be derived from a reference signal and / or channel condition feedback sent by the UE 302. Each spatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0068] At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives the signal through its corresponding (multiple) antennas 316. The receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to at least one processor 332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement layer 1 functions related to various signal processing functions. The receiver 312 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial stream destined for the UE 302. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 302, they can be combined into a single OFDM symbol stream by the receiver 312. The receiver 312 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols and reference signals on each subcarrier are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point sent by the base station 304. These soft decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by the channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally sent by the base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to at least one processor 332, which implements Layer 3 (L3) and Layer 2 (L2) functions.

[0069] In the uplink, at least one processor 332 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. At least one processor 332 is also responsible for error detection.

[0070] Similar to the functions described in conjunction with downlink transmissions performed by the base station 304, at least one processor 332 provides RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions associated with transmission of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing MAC SDUs from transport blocks, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority processing, and logical channel prioritization.

[0071] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback sent by the base station 304 may be used by the transmitter 314 to select appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams produced by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different (multiple) antennas 316. The transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0072] The uplink transmission is processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver functionality at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives the signal through its corresponding antenna(s) 356. The receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to at least one processor 384.

[0073] In the uplink, at least one processor 384 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from UE 302. IP packets from at least one processor 384 may be provided to the core network. At least one processor 384 is also responsible for error detection.

[0074] For convenience, UE 302, base station 304 and / or network entity 306 may FIG. 3A to FIG. 3C 1 and 2. The block diagram of FIG. 1 is shown as including various components that can be configured according to various examples described herein. However, it should be understood that the blocks shown may have different functions in different designs.

[0075] The various components of UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may communicate with each other via data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392, respectively. FIG. 3A to FIG. 3C The components of can be implemented in various ways. In some embodiments, FIG. 3A to FIG. 3C The components of may be implemented in one or more circuits (e.g., one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors)). Here, each circuit may use and / or combine at least one memory component to store information or executable code used by the circuit to provide the function. For example, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 310 to 346 may be implemented by (multiple) processors and memory components of UE 302 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriately configuring processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 350 to 388 may be implemented by (multiple) processors and (multiple) memory components of base station 304 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriately configuring processor components). In addition, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 390 to 398 may be implemented by (multiple) processors and (multiple) memory components of network entity 306 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriately configuring processor components). For simplicity, various operations, actions and / or functions are described herein as being performed by "UE", "by base station", "by network entity", etc. However, as will be appreciated, these operations, actions and / or functions may actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of the UE, base station, network entity, etc. (e.g., processors 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350 and 360, memory components 340, 386 and 396, positioning components 342, 388 and 398, etc.).

[0076] NR supports a variety of cellular network-based positioning technologies, including downlink-based, uplink-based, and downlink and uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and downlink angle of departure (DL-AoD) in NR. In the OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning process, the UE measures the difference between the arrival time (ToA) of the reference signals (e.g., PRS, TRS, CSI-RS, SSB, etc.) received from the base station, called the reference signal time difference (RSTD) or arrival time difference (TDOA) measurement, and reports them to the positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives identifiers (IDs) of a reference base station (e.g., a serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in the positioning assistance data. The UE then measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each non-reference base station. Based on the known positions of the base stations involved and the RSTD measurements, the positioning entity can estimate the position of the UE.

[0077] For DL-AoD positioning, the positioning entity uses beam reports of received signal strength measurements of multiple downlink transmission beams from the UE to determine the angles between the UE and the base station (s). The positioning entity can then estimate the position of the UE based on the determined angles and the known positions of the base stations (s).

[0078] Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA is similar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) sent by the UE. For UL-AoA positioning, one or more base stations measure the received signal strength of one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) received from the UE on one or more uplink receive beams. The positioning entity uses the signal strength measurement and the (multiple) angles of the (multiple) receive beams to determine the (multiple) angles between the UE and the (multiple) base stations. Based on the determined (multiple) angles and the (multiple) known positions of the (multiple) base stations, the positioning entity can then estimate the position of the UE.

[0079] Downlink and uplink-based positioning methods include enhanced cell ID (E-CID) positioning and multi-round trip time (RTT) positioning (also known as "multi-cell RTT"). During the RTT process, the initiator (base station or UE) sends an RTT measurement signal (e.g., PRS or SRS) to the responder (UE or base station), and the responder sends an RTT response signal (e.g., SRS or PRS) back to the initiator. The RTT response signal includes the difference between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response signal, which is called the received to sent (Rx-Tx) time difference. The initiator calculates the difference between the transmission time of the RTT measurement signal and the ToA of the RTT response signal, which is called the sent to received (Tx-Rx) time difference. The propagation time (also known as "flight time") between the initiator and the responder can be calculated from the (Tx-Rx) and (Rx-Tx) time differences. Based on the propagation time and the known speed of light, the distance between the initiator and the responder can be determined. For multi-RTT positioning, the UE performs RTT procedures with multiple base stations so that its position can be triangulated based on the known positions of the base stations. RTT and multi-RTT methods can be combined with other positioning techniques such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD to improve position accuracy.

[0080] The E-CID positioning method is based on radio resource management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, timing advance (TA), and the identifiers, estimated timing and signal strength of the detected neighboring base stations. The UE's position is then estimated based on this information and the known locations of (multiple) base stations.

[0081] To assist the positioning operation, the positioning server (e.g., positioning server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the UE. For example, the assistance data may include an identifier of the base station (or cell / TRP of the base station) from which the reference signal is measured, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., number of consecutive positioning subframes, period of positioning subframes, muting sequence, frequency hopping sequence, reference signal identifier, reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and / or other parameters applicable to a particular positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may come directly from the base station itself (e.g., in a periodically broadcast overhead message, etc.). In some cases, the UE may be able to detect neighboring network nodes itself without using assistance data.

[0082] In the case of OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning process, the auxiliary data may also include the expected RSTD value and the associated uncertainty or the search window around the expected RSTD. In some cases, the value range of the expected RSTD may be + / -500 microseconds (μs). In some cases, when any resource used for positioning measurement is in FR1, the value range of the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be + / -32μs. In other cases, when all resources used for positioning measurement are in FR2, the value range of the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be + / -8μs.

[0083] The position estimate may be referred to by other names, such as position estimate, position, fix, fix point, fixed point, etc. The position estimate may be geodetic and include coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude), or may be urban and include a street address, postal address, or some other verbal description of the location. The position estimate may also be defined relative to some other known location, or in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). The position estimate may include expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volume within which the position is expected to be included with some specified or default confidence level).

[0084] Various frame structures may be used to support downlink and uplink transmissions between network nodes (eg, base stations and UEs). Figure 4A is an example 400 illustrating a downlink frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 4B4 is an example 430 showing channels within a downlink frame structure according to aspects of the present disclosure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0085] LTE, and in some cases NR, uses OFDM on the downlink and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. However, unlike LTE, NR can also choose to use OFDM on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also commonly referred to as tones, intervals, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. In general, modulation symbols are sent in the frequency domain using OFDM and in the time domain using SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the spacing of the subcarriers can be 15 kilohertz (kHz) and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180kHz). Finally, for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 megahertz (MHz), the nominal FFT size can be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048, respectively. The system bandwidth can also be divided into subbands. For example, one subband may cover 1.08 MHz (ie, 6 resource blocks), and for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 MHz, there may be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands, respectively.

[0086] LTE supports a single parameter set (subcarrier spacing (SCS), symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR can support multiple parameter sets (μ), for example, subcarrier spacings of 15kHz (μ=0), 30kHz (μ=1), 60kHz (μ=2), 120kHz (μ=3), and 240kHz (μ=4) or larger values ​​may be available. In each subcarrier spacing, there are 14 symbols per time slot. For 15kHz SCS (μ=0), there is one time slot per subframe, 10 time slots per frame, a time slot duration of 1 millisecond (ms), a symbol duration of 66.7 microseconds (μs), and a maximum nominal system bandwidth of 50 (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size. For 30kHz SCS (μ=1), there are two time slots per subframe, 20 time slots per frame, a time slot duration of 0.5ms, a symbol duration of 33.3μs, and a maximum nominal system bandwidth of 100 (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size. For 60kHz SCS (μ=2), there are four slots per subframe, 40 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.25ms, the symbol duration is 16.7μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth with 4K FFT size is 200 (in MHz). For 120kHz SCS (μ=3), there are 8 slots per subframe, 80 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.125ms, the symbol duration is 8.33μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth with 4K FFT size is 400 (in MHz). For 240kHz SCS (μ=4), there are 16 slots per subframe, 160 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.0625ms, the symbol duration is 4.17μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth with 4K FFT size is 800 (in MHz).

[0087] exist Figure 4A and Figure 4B In the example of , a 15kHz parameter set is used. Therefore, in the time domain, a 10ms frame is divided into 10 equally sized subframes, each of which is 1ms, and each subframe includes one time slot. Figure 4A and Figure 4B In the example of , time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis) with time increasing from left to right, and frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis) with frequency increasing (or decreasing) from bottom to top.

[0088] A resource grid may be used to represent a time slot, each of which includes one or more time-concurrent resource blocks (RBs) (also called physical RBs (PRBs)) in the frequency domain. The resource grid is further divided into a number of resource elements (REs). An RE may correspond to a symbol length in the time domain and to a subcarrier in the frequency domain. Figure 4A and Figure 4B In the parameter set of , for a normal cyclic prefix, an RB can contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 7 consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 REs. For an extended cyclic prefix, an RB can contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 6 consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 REs. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0089] Some REs carry downlink reference (pilot) signals (DL-RS). DL-RS may include PRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, etc. Figure 4A Example locations of REs carrying PRS (labeled "R") are shown.

[0090] The set of resource elements (REs) used to transmit PRS is called a "PRS resource". The set of resource elements can span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and "N" (e.g., 1 or more) consecutive symbols in a time slot in the time domain. In a given OFDM symbol in the time domain, the PRS resource occupies consecutive PRBs in the frequency domain.

[0091] The transmission of PRS resources within a given PRB has a specific comb size (also called "comb density"). The comb size 'N' represents the subcarrier spacing (or frequency / tone spacing) within each symbol of the PRS resource configuration. Specifically, for comb size 'N', the PRS is transmitted in every Nth subcarrier of a symbol of the PRB. For example, for comb-4, for each symbol of the PRS resource configuration, the PRS of the PRS resource is transmitted using REs corresponding to every fourth subcarrier (e.g., subcarriers 0, 4, 8). Currently, comb sizes of comb-2, comb-4, comb-6, and comb-12 are supported for DL-PRS. Figure 4A An example PRS resource configuration for Comb-6 (which spans six symbols) is shown. That is, the positions of the shaded REs (labeled "R") represent the Comb-6 PRS resource configuration.

[0092] Currently, DL-PRS resources can span 2, 4, 6, or 12 consecutive symbols within a slot with a full frequency domain staggered pattern. DL-PRS resources can be configured in flexible (FL) symbols of any higher layer configured downlink or slot. Each resource element (EPRE) can have a constant energy for all REs of a given DL-PRS resource. The following is the frequency offset from symbol to symbol for comb sizes 2, 4, 6, and 12 on 2, 4, 6, and 12 symbols. Comb-2 of 2 symbols: {0,1}; Comb-2 of 4 symbols: {0,1,0,1}; Comb-2 of 6 symbols: {0,1,0,1,0,1}; Comb-2 of 12 symbols: {0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1}; Comb-4 of 4 symbols: {0,2,1,3}; Comb-4 of 12 symbols: {0,2,1,3,0,2,1,3,0,2,1,3}; Comb-6 of 6 symbols: {0,3,1,4,2,5}; Comb-6 of 12 symbols: {0,3,1,4,2,5,0,3,1,4,2,5}; and Comb-12 of 12 symbols: {0,6,3,9,1,7,4,10,2,8,5,11}.

[0093] A "PRS resource set" is a set of PRS resources used to transmit a PRS signal, where each PRS resource has a PRS resource ID. In addition, the PRS resources in the PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP. The PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource set ID and is associated with a specific TRP (identified by the TRP ID). In addition, the PRS resources in the PRS resource set have the same period, a common muting mode configuration, and the same cross-slot repetition factor (e.g., "PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor"). The period is the time from the first repetition of the first PRS resource of the first PRS instance to the same first repetition of the same first PRS resource of the next PRS instance. The period can have a length selected from 2^μ*{4,5,8,10,16,20,32,40,64,80,160,320,640,1280,2560,5120,10240} time slots, where μ=0,1,2,3. The repetition factor may have a length selected from {1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 16, 32} slots.

[0094] The PRS resource ID in a PRS resource set is associated with a single beam (or beam ID) transmitted from a single TRP (where a TRP can transmit one or more beams). That is, each PRS resource of a PRS resource set can be transmitted on a different beam, and therefore, a "PRS resource", or simply "resource", may also be referred to as a "beam". Note that this does not imply anything about whether the UE is aware of the TRP and on which beam the PRS is transmitted.

[0095] A "PRS instance" or "PRS opportunity" is an instance of a periodically repeating time window (e.g., a group of one or more consecutive time slots) during which a PRS is expected to be sent. A PRS opportunity may also be referred to as a "PRS positioning opportunity", "PRS positioning instance", "positioning opportunity", "positioning instance", "positioning repetition" or simply "opportunity", "instance" or "repetition".

[0096] A "positioning frequency layer" (also referred to as a "frequency layer") is a set of one or more PRS resource sets across one or more TRPs that have the same values ​​for certain parameters. Specifically, the set of PRS resource sets has the same subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix (CP) type (meaning that all parameter sets supported for PDSCH are also supported for PRS), the same A point, the same downlink PRS bandwidth value, the same starting PRB (and center frequency), and the same comb size. The A point parameter takes the value of the parameter "ARFCN-ValueNR" (where "ARFCN" stands for "Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number") and is an identifier / code that specifies a pair of physical radio channels for transmission and reception. The downlink PRS bandwidth can have a granularity of four PRBs, with a minimum of 24 PRBs and a maximum of 272 PRBs. Currently, a maximum of four frequency layers have been defined, and a maximum of two PRS resource sets can be configured per frequency layer per TRP.

[0097] The concept of frequency layer is a bit like the concept of component carrier and bandwidth part (BWP), but the difference is that component carrier and BWP are used by one base station (or macro cell base station and small cell base station) to send data channels, while frequency layer is used by several (usually three or more) base stations to send PRS. When the UE sends its positioning capabilities to the network, such as during an LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP) session, the UE can indicate the number of frequency layers it can support. For example, the UE can indicate whether it can support one or four positioning frequency layers.

[0098] Figure 4BAn example of various channels within a downlink timeslot of a radio frame is shown. In NR, the channel bandwidth or system bandwidth is divided into multiple BWPs. For a given set of parameters on a given carrier, a BWP is a set of contiguous PRBs selected from a subset of contiguous common RBs. Typically, up to 4 BWPs can be specified in the downlink and uplink. That is, a UE can be configured with up to four BWPs in the downlink configuration and up to four BWPs in the uplink. Only one BWP (uplink or downlink) may be active at a given time, which means that the UE can only receive or transmit through one BWP at a time. On the downlink, the bandwidth of each BWP should be equal to or greater than the bandwidth of the SSB, but it may or may not contain the SSB.

[0099] refer to Figure 4B , the UE uses the primary synchronization signal (PSS) to determine the subframe / symbol timing and physical layer identification. The UE uses the secondary synchronization signal (SSS) to determine the physical layer cell identification group number and the radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identification and the physical layer cell identification group number, the UE can determine the PCI. Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the above-mentioned DL-RS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH) carrying the MIB can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form an SSB (also called SS / PBCH). The MIB provides the number of RBs and the system frame number (SFN) in the downlink system bandwidth. The physical downlink traffic shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information that is not sent through the PBCH (such as system information blocks (SIBs)), and paging messages.

[0100] The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries downlink control information (DCI) in one or more control channel elements (CCEs), each CCE includes one or more RE group (REG) bundles (which may span multiple symbols in the time domain), each REG bundle includes one or more REGs, each REG corresponds to 12 resource elements (a resource block) in the frequency domain and one OFDM symbol in the time domain. The set of physical resources used to carry PDCCH / DCI is called a control resource set (CORESET) in NR. In NR, PDCCH is confined to a single CORESET and is transmitted with its own DMRS. This enables UE-specific beamforming for PDCCH.

[0101] exist Figure 4B In the example of NR, each BWP has one CORESET, and the CORESET spans three symbols in the time domain (although it may be only one or two symbols). Unlike LTE control channels that occupy the entire system bandwidth, in NR, the PDCCH channel is located in a specific area in the frequency domain (i.e., the CORESET). Therefore, Figure 4B The frequency components of the PDCCH shown are shown as being less than a single BWP in the frequency domain. Note that although the CORESETs shown are contiguous in the frequency domain, this is not necessarily the case. Furthermore, a CORESET may span less than three symbols in the time domain.

[0102] The DCI within the PDCCH carries information about uplink resource allocations (persistent and non-persistent) and a description of downlink data sent to the UE, referred to as uplink grants and downlink grants, respectively. More specifically, the DCI indicates resources scheduled for downlink data channels (e.g., PDSCH) and uplink data channels (e.g., PUSCH). Multiple (e.g., up to eight) DCIs can be configured in the PDCCH, and these DCIs can have one of a variety of formats. For example, there are different DCI formats for uplink scheduling, for downlink scheduling, for uplink transmit power control (TPC), etc. The PDCCH can be transmitted by 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs to accommodate different DCI payload sizes or coding rates.

[0103] Note that the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" generally refer to specific reference signals used for positioning in NR and LTE systems. However, as used herein, unless otherwise indicated (explicitly or by context), the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may also refer to any type of reference signal that can be used for positioning, such as, but not limited to, PRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, SRS, UL-PRS, etc. defined in LTE and NR. In addition, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may refer to downlink or uplink positioning reference signals, unless otherwise indicated by context. If further distinction is needed between the types of PRS, the downlink positioning reference signal may be referred to as "DL-PRS," and the uplink positioning reference signal (e.g., SRS, PTRS used for positioning) may be referred to as "UL-PRS." In addition, for signals (e.g., DMRS, PTRS) that may be sent in both uplink and downlink, "UL" or "DL" may be prefixed to the signal to distinguish the direction. For example, "UL-DMRS" may be different from "DL-DMRS."

[0104] Figure 5A and Figure 5B Various comb patterns supported for DL-PRS within a resource block are shown. Figure 5A and Figure 5B In the graph, time is represented horizontally and frequency is represented vertically. Figure 5A and Figure 5BEach large block in represents a resource block, and each small block represents a resource element. As mentioned above, a resource element consists of one symbol in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain. Figure 5A and Figure 5B In the example of , each resource block includes 14 symbols in the time domain and 12 subcarriers in the frequency domain. The shaded resource elements carry or are scheduled to carry DL-PRS. Therefore, the shaded resource elements in each resource block correspond to PRS resources within one resource block or a portion of the PRS resources (because PRS resources can span multiple resource blocks in the frequency domain).

[0105] The comb patterns shown correspond to the various DL-PRS comb patterns described above. Specifically, Figure 5A A DL-PRS comb pattern 510 for comb-2 with two symbols, a DL-PRS comb pattern 520 for comb-4 with four symbols, a DL-PRS comb pattern 530 for comb-6 with six symbols, and a DL-PRS comb pattern 540 for comb-12 with 12 symbols are shown. Figure 5B A DL-PRS comb pattern 550 for comb-2 with 12 symbols, a DL-PRS comb pattern 560 for comb-4 with 12 symbols, a DL-PRS comb pattern 570 for comb-2 with six symbols, and a DL-PRS comb pattern 580 for comb-6 with 12 symbols are shown.

[0106] Note that Figure 5A In the example comb pattern of , the resource elements on which the DL-PRS is transmitted are interleaved in the frequency domain so that there is only one such resource element per subcarrier over the configured number of symbols. For example, for the DL-PRS comb pattern 520, there is only one resource element per subcarrier over four symbols. This is called "frequency domain interleaving."

[0107] In addition, there is some DL-PRS resource symbol offset from the first symbol of the resource block to the first symbol of the DL-PRS resource (given by the parameter "dl-prs-resourceSymbolOffset"). In the example of DL-PRS comb pattern 510, the offset is three symbols. In the example of DL-PRS comb pattern 520, the offset is eight symbols. In the examples of DL-PRS comb patterns 530 and 540, the offset is two symbols. In the examples of DL-PRS comb patterns 550 to 580, the offset is two symbols.

[0108] It can be appreciated that the UE will need to have a higher capability to measure DL-PRS comb pattern 510 than DL-PRS comb pattern 520 because for DL-PRS comb pattern 510, the UE will have to measure resource elements on subcarriers per symbol twice as many as for DL-PRS comb pattern 520. In addition, the UE will need to have a higher capability to measure DL-PRS comb pattern 530 than DL-PRS comb pattern 540 because for DL-PRS comb pattern 530, the UE will have to measure resource elements on subcarriers per symbol twice as many as for DL-PRS comb pattern 540. Furthermore, the UE will need to have a higher capability to measure DL-PRS comb patterns 510 and 520 than DL-PRS comb patterns 530 and 540 because the resource elements of DL-PRS comb patterns 510 and 520 are denser than the resource elements of DL-PRS comb patterns 530 and 540.

[0109] Figure 6 is a diagram of an example PRS configuration 600 for PRS transmission for a given base station in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 6 In , time is represented horizontally, increasing from left to right. Each long rectangle represents a time slot, and each short (shaded) rectangle represents an OFDM symbol. Figure 6 In the example of FIG. 5 , a PRS resource set 610 (labeled as “PRS resource set 1”) includes two PRS resources, a first PRS resource 612 (labeled as “PRS resource 1”) and a second PRS resource 514 (labeled as “PRS resource 2”). The base station transmits PRS on the PRS resources 612 and 614 of the PRS resource set 610 .

[0110] PRS resource set 610 has an opportunity length (N_PRS) of two slots and a period (T_PRS) of, for example, 160 slots or 160 milliseconds (ms) (for a 15 kHz subcarrier spacing). Thus, both PRS resources 612 and 614 are two consecutive slots in length and repeat every T_PRS slots, starting with the slot in which the first symbol of the corresponding PRS resource appears. Figure 6 In the example of , PRS resource 612 has a symbol length (N_symb) of two symbols, and PRS resource 614 has a symbol length (N_symb) of four symbols. PRS resource 612 and PRS resource 614 may be transmitted on separate beams of the same base station.

[0111] Each instance of the PRS resource set 610 (shown as instances 620a, 620b, and 620c) includes a length of '2' (i.e., N_PRS=2) opportunities for each PRS resource 612, 614 of the PRS resource set. The PRS resources 612 and 614 are repeated every T_PRS time slots until the muting sequence period T_REP. Therefore, a bitmap of length T_REP will be needed to indicate which opportunities in the instances 620a, 620b, and 620c of the PRS resource set 610 are muted (i.e., not transmitted).

[0112] In one aspect, there may be additional constraints on the PRS configuration 600. For example, for all PRS resources (e.g., PRS resources 612, 614) in a PRS resource set (e.g., PRS resource set 610), the base station may configure the following parameters to be the same: (a) opportunity length (T_PRS), (b) number of symbols (N_symb), (c) comb type, and / or (d) bandwidth. In addition, for all PRS resources of all PRS resource sets, the subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix may be configured to be the same for one base station or for all base stations. Whether it is for one base station or all base stations may depend on the ability of the UE to support the first option and / or the second option.

[0113] With further reference to DL-PRS, DL-PRS has been defined for NR positioning to enable UEs to detect and measure more neighboring TRPs. Several configurations are supported to enable various deployments (e.g., indoor, outdoor, sub-6GHz, mmW). In addition, beam scanning is supported for PRS to support PRS beam operation.

[0114] The following table shows various types of reference signals that can be used for various positioning methods supported in NR.

[0115]

[0116]

[0117] Table 1

[0118] As mentioned above, NR supports various DL-PRS resource repetition and beam scanning options. There are several purposes for the repetition of DL-PRS resources, including (1) receive beam scanning across repetitions, (2) combining gain for coverage extension, and (3) intra-instance muting. The following table shows the parameters for configuring PRS repetition.

[0119]

[0120] Table 2

[0121] Figure 7is a diagram of example PRS resource sets with different time gaps according to aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 7 In the example of , time is represented horizontally and frequency is represented vertically. Each block represents a time slot in the time domain and some bandwidth in the frequency domain.

[0122] Figure 7 Two DL-PRS resource set configurations are shown, a first DL-PRS resource set configuration 710 and a second DL-PRS resource set configuration 750. Each DL-PRS resource set configuration 710 and 750 includes four PRS resources (labeled as "resource 1", "resource 2", "resource 3", and "resource 4") and has a repetition factor of 4. A repetition factor of 4 means that each of the four PRS resources is repeated four times (i.e., transmitted four times) within the DL-PRS resource set. That is, there are four repetitions of each of the four PRS resources within the DL-PRS resource set.

[0123] The DL-PRS resource set configuration 710 has a time interval of one slot, which means that each repetition of a PRS resource (e.g., "resource 1") starts on the first slot after the previous repetition of the PRS resource. Therefore, as shown in the DL-PRS resource set configuration 710, four repetitions of each of the four PRS resources are grouped together. Specifically, the four repetitions of the PRS resource "resource 1" occupy the first four slots of the DL-PRS resource set configuration 710 (i.e., slots n to n+3), the four repetitions of the PRS resource "resource 2" occupy the second four slots (i.e., slots n+4 to n+7), the four repetitions of the PRS resource "resource 3" occupy the third four slots (i.e., slots n+8 to n+11), and the four repetitions of the PRS resource "resource 4" occupy the last four slots (i.e., slots n+12 to n+15).

[0124] In contrast, DL-PRS resource set configuration 750 has a time interval of four time slots, which means that each repetition of a PRS resource (e.g., "Resource 2") starts on the fourth time slot after the previous repetition of the PRS resource. Thus, as shown in DL-PRS resource set configuration 750, four repetitions of each of the four PRS resources are scheduled every fourth time slot. For example, the four repetitions of PRS resource "Resource 1" occupy the first, fifth, ninth, and thirteenth time slots (i.e., time slots N, N+4, N+8, and N+12) of DL-PRS resource set configuration 750.

[0125] Note that Figure 7As shown, the duration spanned by one DL-PRS resource set containing repeated DL-PRS resources should not exceed the PRS period. In addition, UE receive beam scanning for receiving / measuring DL-PRS resource sets is not specified, but rather depends on the UE implementation.

[0126] UEs have various DL-PRS processing and buffering capabilities that need to be accommodated. For example, a limit may be defined on the maximum number of DL-PRS resources configured for a UE for all TRPs within a measurement window. Additionally, the duration of a DL-PRS symbol in milliseconds (ms) that a UE may process per T ms assuming a certain maximum PRS bandwidth may be defined. The following table shows various parameters that indicate the capabilities of a UE.

[0127]

[0128]

[0129] Table 3

[0130] The following table shows the various differences between PRS in LTE and NR.

[0131]

[0132] Table 4

[0133] As shown in the table above, PRS processing has two independent capabilities, one related to the number of PRS resources and one related to the number of PRS symbols. These two capabilities can be referred to as (1) the maximum number of DL-PRS resources N that a UE is expected to measure across all TRPs and frequency layers within a measurement window of T1 ms. 1 The restrictions are reported as a two-tuple {N 1 , T 1}, and (2) the expected UE at T 2 The maximum number of symbols N in milliseconds for a PRS resource containing the maximum bandwidth measured within a measurement window of ms 2 The restrictions are reported as a two-tuple {N 2 , T 2}.

[0134] Assuming that 272 PRB allocation in the frequency domain is the capability of the UE, the duration of the DL-PRS symbol that the UE can process per T ms is given in milliseconds. In addition, a limit on the maximum number of DL-PRS resources configured for the UE for all TRPs within the measurement window is defined. This limit can be signaled as a UE capability.

[0135] The time required for PRS processing for the configured PRS resources is a two-tuple {N 1 , T 1} function. Figure 8 8 is an example 800 of several DL-PRS resources spanning a given duration in milliseconds in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 8 In the example of , time is represented horizontally and frequency is represented vertically. Each block represents a time slot in the time domain and a certain amount of bandwidth in the frequency domain.

[0136] exist Figure 8 In the example of , there are three DL-PRS resources (distinguished by different hashes) with a repetition factor of 4. These DL-PRS resources can be part of the same or different DL-PRS resource sets. The repetition factor of 4 means that each of the three PRS resources is repeated four times (i.e., transmitted three times) within the DL-PRS resource set. That is, there are three repetitions of each of the four PRS resources within the DL-PRS resource set. Similar to the DL-PRS resources of the DL-PRS resource set configuration 710, the DL-PRS resources have a time gap of one time slot, which means that each repetition of a PRS resource starts on the first time slot after the previous repetition of the PRS resource. Therefore, as Figure 8 As shown, three repetitions of each of the four PRS resources are grouped together.

[0137] exist Figure 8 In the example of , the first two groups of DL-PRS resources correspond to one PRS opportunity or instance. Figure 8 As shown, the PRS period (i.e., the time from the first repetition of the first DL-PRS resource of the first PRS instance to the same first repetition of the same first DL-PRS resource of the next PRS instance) is denoted as T PRS (labeled as "T_PRS"). Therefore, Figure 8 In the example, the PRS opportunities are shown to span T PRS time slots, that is, from time slot "0" to time slot "T PRS -1" (labeled "T_PRS-1").

[0138] From the PRS timing (with period T PRS ) to the last symbol of the last DL-PRS resource of the PRS opportunity is denoted as L PRS (labeled as "L_PRS"). Therefore, in Figure 8 In the example, L PRS Cross L PRS time slots, that is, from time slot "0" to time slot "LPRS -1" (labeled "L_PRS-1").

[0139] According to the two-tuple {N 1 , T1} consumes (i.e., processes) N total The time required for a DL-PRS resource is T proc yes:

[0140]

[0141] However, this is affected by the existence of periodic DL-PRS resources in the time slot. PRS The length of the appearance L PRS , used for DL-PRS processing with T PRS The total number of time periods (or PRS instances) in units of N proc It can be expressed as:

[0142]

[0143] Similarly, the time required for DL-PRS buffering for the configured DL-PRS resources is the two-tuple {N2, T 2}. According to the two-tuple {N 2 , T 2} Consume (i.e., buffer) N total,symbols The time required for a DL-PRS symbol of ms value is T mem yes:

[0144]

[0145] Among them, N total,symbols Corresponding to N total The total number of DL-PRS symbols for each DL-PRS resource. This number depends on the PRS configuration (e.g., comb pattern, DL-PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor, etc.). PRS The total number of PRS periods (or PRS instances) in units of N mem It can be expressed as:

[0146]

[0147] The intention of introducing a larger value of the repetition factor (e.g., L-prs-ResourceRepetitionFactor) is to enable the UE to perform receive beam scanning within a PRS instance (or opportunity) of the PRS. However, it should be noted that a portion of the repeated time slots may need to be used by the UE to meet the accuracy requirements of the positioning session. If the DL-PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor is configured to be larger than the (multiple) repetitions required to meet the accuracy requirements, and if the repeated time slots are available to the UE (i.e., not muted), the UE may perform receive beam scanning.

[0148] More specifically, the UE receive beam scanning factor for FR2 can be expressed as:

[0149]

[0150] Among them, R PRS,accuracy is the number of replicates required to meet the accuracy requirement, and R PRS,min is the minimum number of available (i.e., unmuted) repetition slots among all configured DL-PRS resources, assuming R PRS,min ≥R PRS,accuracy (Otherwise, the accuracy requirement cannot be met.) Note that in the above equation, the constant "8" represents the number of receive beams that the UE can form. Therefore, this number can be replaced by the number of receive beams that a particular UE can form (and the particular UE can signal this number as part of higher layer signaling or capability reporting).

[0151] The present disclosure provides techniques to enable a UE to scan its receive beam within a PRS instance (or opportunity) if the number of repetitions (e.g., DL-PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor) is greater than the number required to meet the accuracy requirement. If not, the UE scans its receive beam across PRS instances (opportunities). That is, the UE uses one receive beam for the first PRS instance, then a different receive beam for the next PRS instance, and so on. In this case, the processing time formula will need to scale by the number of receive beams that the UE is able to form (e.g., 8), rather than by N. Rx,beam to zoom.

[0152] Finally, the measurement period (i.e., measurement window) formula for a frequency layer can be expressed as:

[0153] T PRS,meas =N Rx,beam .{max(N proc ,N mem ).T PRS,max +max(T 1 ,T2 )}

[0154] This takes into account both the processing and buffering capabilities of the UE. If only one capability is reported, e.g., the processing capability, it can be assumed that it also includes the buffering capability, and in this case the aforementioned equation would be:

[0155] T PRS,meas =N Rx,beam {N proc ·T PRS,max +T 1}

[0156] For each frequency layer configured to be measured, the measurement period is summed. Note that many parameters (e.g., N Rx,beam , T PRS,max , T proc ,T mem ) depends on the PRS configuration in the frequency layer, so the measurement period cannot be simply scaled by the number of frequency layers. Therefore, for each frequency layer configured to be measured, the measurement period can be added. That is, if the measurement period for frequency layer i is T PRS,meas,i , then the total measurement period will be T PRS,meas,total =∑ i T PRS,meas,i .

[0157] Fig. 9 An example method 900 of wireless communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure is shown. In one aspect, the method 900 may be performed by a UE (e.g., any UE described herein). In various aspects, a technical advantage of the method 900 is that it enables the UE to perform receive beam scanning within a PRS instance (or opportunity).

[0158] At 910, the UE receives (from a location server or a base station) a PRS configuration for at least a first TRP, the PRS configuration comprising one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set for a PRS instance associated with the first TRP. In one aspect, operation 910 may be performed by at least one WWAN transceiver 310, at least one processor 332, a memory component 340, and / or a positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operation.

[0159] At 920, the UE beam scans one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement of the positioning measurement estimate of the UE. In an aspect, operation 930 may be performed by at least one WWAN transceiver 310, at least one processor 332, memory component 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operation.

[0160] At 930, the UE beam scans the one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being no greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement. In an aspect, operation 940 may be performed by at least one WWAN transceiver 310, at least one processor 332, memory component 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operation.

[0161] In the above detailed description, it can be seen that different features are grouped together in the embodiments. This disclosure should not be understood as an intention that the example clauses have more features than the features explicitly mentioned in each clause. On the contrary, various aspects of the present disclosure may include fewer features than all the features of the disclosed single example clauses. Therefore, the following clauses should be considered as being incorporated into the specification, where each clause itself can be used as a separate example. Although each subordinate clause may refer to a specific combination with one of the other clauses in the clause, the (each) aspect of the subordinate clause is not limited to the specific combination. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include a combination of (each) subordinate clause aspect with the subject matter of any other subordinate clause or independent clause, or any feature with other subordinate and independent clauses. Various aspects disclosed herein explicitly include these combinations, unless it is explicitly expressed or it can be easily inferred that a specific combination is not intended (for example, contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as both an insulator and a conductor). In addition, it is also intended that various aspects of the clause can be included in any other independent clause, even if the clause is not directly subordinate to the independent clause.

[0162] Examples of implementations are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0163] Clause 1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration comprising multiple repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the TRP; determining whether the number of the multiple repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set is greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement for a positioning measurement estimate of the UE; beam scanning multiple receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the multiple repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement; and beam scanning the multiple receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the TRP based on the number of the multiple repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being not greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement.

[0164] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the multiple repetitions of the one or more PRS resources are selected from at least one non-muted repetition of all PRS resources of a PRS resource set.

[0165] Clause 3. The method of any one of clauses 1 to 2, wherein the number of the plurality of receive beams is:

[0166]

[0167] Among them, N Rx represents the maximum number of the multiple receive beam PRSs, R PRS,accuracy represents the number of non-silent repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement, and R PRS,min Indicates the number of non-silent repetitions of each PRS resource in the PRS resource set.

[0168] Clause 4. The method of clause 3, wherein a maximum number of the plurality of receive beams is 8.

[0169] Clause 5. The method as described in any of Clauses 1 to 4 further includes: reporting the maximum number of PRS resources that the UE can measure across multiple TRPs of each frequency layer within the measurement window, or reporting the maximum number of PRS symbols in milliseconds that the UE can measure across multiple TRPs of each frequency layer within the measurement window, or both.

[0170] Clause 6. The method of clause 5, wherein a measurement window for a frequency layer in the plurality of frequency layers is defined as:

[0171] N Rx,beam.{max(N proc ,N mem ).T PRS,max +max(T 1 ,T 2 )}

[0172] Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the multiple receiving beams, N proc Represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS processing, N mem represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS buffering, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period across all PRS resource sets of this frequency layer, T 1 represents the time length required for the UE to measure the N1 PRS resources of the maximum bandwidth across the multiple TRPs of the frequency layer, and T 2 It represents the length of time in milliseconds required for the UE to measure N2 symbols of the PRS resource containing the maximum bandwidth.

[0173] Clause 7. The method of clause 5, wherein a measurement window for a frequency layer in the plurality of frequency layers is defined as:

[0174] T PRS,meas =N Rx,beam {N proc ·T PRS,max +T 1}

[0175] Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the multiple receiving beams, N proc represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS processing, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period across all PRS resource sets of this frequency layer, T 1 Represents the length of time required for the UE to measure the N1 PRS resources of the maximum bandwidth across the multiple TRPs of the frequency layer.

[0176] Clause 8. The method of clause 5, wherein a measurement window for a frequency layer in the plurality of frequency layers is defined as:

[0177] T PRS,meas =N Rx,beam {N mem ·T PRS,max +T 2}

[0178] Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the multiple receiving beams, N mem represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS buffering, T PRS,maxrepresents the maximum PRS period of all PRS resource sets across frequency layers, and T 2 It represents the length of time in milliseconds required for the UE to measure N2 symbols of the PRS resource containing the maximum bandwidth.

[0179] Clause 9. The method of any one of clauses 5 to 8, wherein the measurement window is the length of the sum of the measurement windows for each frequency layer of the plurality of frequency layers.

[0180] Clause 10. An apparatus comprising at least one processor and a memory coupled to the at least one processor, the at least one processor and the memory configured to perform the method of any one of clauses 1 to 9.

[0181] Clause 11. An apparatus comprising means for performing the method according to any one of clauses 1 to 9.

[0182] Clause 12. A computer-readable medium comprising at least one instruction for causing a computer or a processor to perform the method according to any one of clauses 1 to 9.

[0183] Additional implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0184] Clause 1. A wireless communication method performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration comprising one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the TRP; beam scanning one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement for a positioning measurement estimate of the UE; and beam scanning the one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the TRP based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being not greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement.

[0185] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources are selected from at least one non-muted repetition of all PRS resources of a PRS resource set.

[0186] Clause 3. A method as described in any one of clauses 1 to 2, wherein the number of the one or more receive beams is:

[0187]

[0188] Among them, N Rx represents the maximum number of the one or more receive beams, R PRS,accuracy represents the number of non-silent repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement, and R PRS,min Indicates the number of non-silent repetitions of each PRS resource in the PRS resource set.

[0189] Clause 4. The method of clause 3, wherein the maximum number of the one or more receive beams is 8.

[0190] Clause 5. The method as described in any of clauses 1 to 4 also includes: reporting the maximum number of PRS resources that the UE can measure across multiple TRPs of each frequency layer within the measurement window.

[0191] Clause 6. The method of clause 5, wherein the measurement window is a length of a sum of measurement windows for each frequency layer in the plurality of frequency layers.

[0192] Clause 7. The method of any one of clauses 5 to 6, wherein the measurement window comprises a time slot.

[0193] Clause 8. The method of any one of clauses 1 to 7, further comprising: reporting a maximum number of PRS symbols in milliseconds that the UE is able to measure across multiple TRPs per frequency layer within a measurement window.

[0194] Clause 9. The method of Clause 8, wherein the measurement window is a length of a sum of measurement windows for each frequency layer in the plurality of frequency layers.

[0195] Clause 10. The method of any one of clauses 8 to 9, wherein the measurement window is greater than or equal to 8 milliseconds.

[0196] Clause 11. A method as described in any of clauses 1 to 10, wherein the measurement period for one frequency layer among the multiple frequency layers is based on the number of the one or more receive beams multiplied by the amount of time required for each of the one or more receive beams for the one frequency layer among the multiple frequency layers to meet the accuracy requirement.

[0197] Clause 12. The method of clause 11, wherein the amount of time is defined as:

[0198] {max(N proc ,N mem ).T PRS,max +max(T 1 ,T 2 )}

[0199] Among them, N proc Represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS processing, Nmem represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS buffering, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period of all PRS resource sets across the frequency layer, T 1 N represents the maximum bandwidth that the UE measures across multiple TRPs of this frequency layer 1 The length of time required for each PRS resource, and T 2 It represents the length of time in milliseconds required for the UE to measure N2 symbols of the PRS resource containing the maximum bandwidth.

[0200] Clause 13. A method as described in any of clauses 11 to 12, wherein the amount of time is defined as:

[0201] {N proc ·T PRS,max +T 1}

[0202] Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the one or more receiving beams, N proc represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS processing, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period across all PRS resource sets of this frequency layer, T 1 N represents the maximum bandwidth that the UE measures across multiple TRPs of this frequency layer 1 The length of time required for each PRS resource.

[0203] Clause 14. The method of any one of clauses 11 to 13, wherein the amount of time is defined as:

[0204] {N mem ·T PRS,max +T 2}

[0205] Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the one or more receiving beams, N mem represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS buffering, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period across all PRS resource sets of this frequency layer, and T 2 Indicates the time in milliseconds that the UE measures the PRS resource containing the maximum bandwidth. 2 The length of time required for a symbol.

[0206] Clause 15. An apparatus comprising a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to perform the method of any one of clauses 1 to 14.

[0207] Clause 16. An apparatus comprising means for performing the method according to any one of clauses 1 to 14.

[0208] Clause 17. A computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions comprising at least one instruction for causing an apparatus to perform the method of any one of clauses 1 to 14.

[0209] Those skilled in the art will recognize that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and technologies. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout this description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0210] Moreover, those skilled in the art will recognize that the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in conjunction with various aspects of the present disclosure can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of the two. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps are generally described above with respect to their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system. The technician can implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing departure from the scope of the present invention.

[0211] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a combination of multiple microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration).

[0212] The methods, sequences and / or algorithms described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be implemented directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software module may reside in a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), a register, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium is coupled to a processor so that the processor can read information from / write information to the storage medium. In an alternative, the storage medium may be integrated into the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., a UE). In an alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside in a user terminal as discrete components.

[0213] In one or more example aspects, the functions described can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, these functions can be stored on or sent through a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or codes. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media, which include any media that facilitates the transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Storage media can be any available media that a computer can access. As an example, and not a limitation, the computer-readable medium may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM, or other optical disk storage, disk storage, or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer. And, any connection is also properly referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is sent from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwaves, the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwaves are included in the definition of the medium. Disk and disc as used herein include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc, where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0214] Although the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative aspects of the present disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications may be made herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. The functions, steps, and / or actions of the method claims according to the various aspects of the disclosure described herein do not need to be performed in any particular order. In addition, although elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in singular form, plural forms are contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated.

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment UE, comprising: receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration comprising one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the first TRP; beam scanning one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement of a positioning measurement estimate of the UE; as well as Based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources in the PRS resource set being no greater than the one or more required to meet the accuracy requirement The number of repetitions of the PRS resource is used to beam scan the one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein: The one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources are selected from at least one non-muted repetition of all PRS resources of the PRS resource set.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein: The number of the one or more receive beams is: Among them, N Rx represents the maximum number of the one or more receive beams, R PRS,accuracy represents the number of non-silent repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement, and R PRS,min Indicates the number of non-muted repetitions of each PRS resource in the PRS resource set.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein: The maximum number of the one or more receive beams is eight.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising: Reports the maximum number of PRS resources that the UE can measure across multiple TRPs on each frequency layer within the measurement window.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein: The measurement window is a length of a sum of measurement windows for each frequency layer in a plurality of frequency layers.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein: The measurement window comprises a time slot.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: Reports the maximum number of PRS symbols in milliseconds that the UE can measure across multiple TRPs on each frequency layer within the measurement window.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein: The measurement window is a length of a sum of measurement windows for each frequency layer in a plurality of frequency layers.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein: The measurement window is greater than or equal to 8 milliseconds.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein: A measurement period for one of the plurality of frequency layers is based on the number of the one or more receive beams multiplied by an amount of time required for each of the one or more receive beams for the one of the plurality of frequency layers to meet the accuracy requirement.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein: The amount of time is defined as: {max(N proc ,N mem ).T PRS,max +max(T1,T2)} Among them, N proc Represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS processing, N mem represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS buffering, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period of all PRS resource sets across the frequency layer, T1 represents the time length required for the UE to measure N1 PRS resources of the maximum bandwidth across multiple TRPs of the frequency layer, and T2 represents the time length in milliseconds required for the UE to measure N2 symbols of the PRS resources containing the maximum bandwidth.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein: The amount of time is defined as: {N proc ·T PRS,max +T1} Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the one or more receiving beams, N proc represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS processing, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period of all PRS resource sets across the frequency layer, and T1 represents the time length required for the UE to measure N1 PRS resources of the maximum bandwidth across multiple TRPs of the frequency layer.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein: The amount of time is defined as: {N mem ·T PRS,max +T2} Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the one or more receiving beams, N mem represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS buffering, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS periodicity of all PRS resource sets across the frequency layer, and T2 represents the length of time in milliseconds required for the UE to measure N2 symbols of the PRS resources containing the maximum bandwidth.

15. A user equipment UE, comprising: Memory; Communication interface; as well as at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the communication interface, the at least one processor configured to: receiving, via the communication interface, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration comprising one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the first TRP; beam scanning one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement of a positioning measurement estimate of the UE; as well as Based on the fact that the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set is not greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement, the one or more receive beams are beam scanned across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP.

16. The UE according to claim 15, wherein: The one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources are selected from at least one non-muted repetition of all PRS resources of the PRS resource set.

17. The UE according to claim 15, wherein: The number of the one or more receive beams is: Among them, N Rx represents the maximum number of the one or more receive beams, R PRS,accuracy represents the number of non-silent repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement, and R PRS,min Indicates the number of non-silent repetitions of each PRS resource in the PRS resource set.

18. The UE according to claim 17, wherein: The maximum number of the one or more receive beams is eight.

19. The UE according to claim 15, wherein: The at least one processor is further configured to: Reports the maximum number of PRS resources that the UE can measure across multiple TRPs on each frequency layer within the measurement window.

20. The UE according to claim 19, wherein: The measurement window is a length of a sum of measurement windows for each frequency layer in a plurality of frequency layers.

21. The UE according to claim 19, wherein: The measurement window comprises a time slot.

22. The UE according to claim 15, wherein: The at least one processor is further configured to: Reports the maximum number of PRS symbols in milliseconds that the UE can measure across multiple TRPs on each frequency layer within the measurement window.

23. The UE according to claim 22, wherein: The measurement window is a length of a sum of measurement windows for each frequency layer in a plurality of frequency layers.

24. The UE according to claim 22, wherein: The measurement window is greater than or equal to 8 milliseconds.

25. The UE according to claim 15, wherein: A measurement period for one of the plurality of frequency layers is based on the number of the one or more receive beams multiplied by an amount of time required for each of the one or more receive beams for the one of the plurality of frequency layers to meet the accuracy requirement.

26. The UE according to claim 25, wherein: The amount of time is defined as: {max(N proc ,N mem ).T PRS,max +max(T1,T2)} Among them, N proc Represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS processing, N mem represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS buffering, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period of all PRS resource sets across the frequency layer, T1 represents the time length required for the UE to measure N1 PRS resources of the maximum bandwidth across multiple TRPs of the frequency layer, and T2 represents the time length in milliseconds required for the UE to measure N2 symbols of the PRS resources containing the maximum bandwidth.

27. The UE according to claim 25, wherein: The amount of time is defined as: {N proc ·T PRS,max +T1} Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the one or more receiving beams, N proc represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS processing, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS period of all PRS resource sets across the frequency layer, and T1 represents the time length required for the UE to measure N1 PRS resources of the maximum bandwidth across multiple TRPs of the frequency layer.

28. The UE according to claim 25, wherein: The amount of time is defined as: {N mem ·T PRS,max +T2} Among them, N Rx,beam represents the number of the one or more receiving beams, N mem represents the total number of PRS instances required for PRS buffering, T PRS,max represents the maximum PRS periodicity of all PRS resource sets across the frequency layer, and T2 represents the length of time in milliseconds required for the UE to measure N2 symbols of the PRS resources containing the maximum bandwidth.

29. A user equipment UE comprises: means for receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration comprising one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the first TRP; means for beam scanning one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement of a positioning measurement estimate of a UE; as well as A component for beam scanning the one or more receive beams across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being no greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement.

30. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions which, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for at least a first transmit-receive point (TRP), the PRS configuration comprising one or more repetitions of one or more PRS resources within a PRS resource set of a PRS instance associated with the first TRP; beam scanning one or more receive beams within the PRS instance based on the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set being greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet an accuracy requirement of a positioning measurement estimate of the UE; as well as Based on the fact that the number of the one or more repetitions of the one or more PRS resources within the PRS resource set is not greater than the number of repetitions of the one or more PRS resources required to meet the accuracy requirement, the one or more receive beams are beam scanned across multiple PRS instances associated with the first TRP.

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