Positioning signal prioritization

Abstract

The UE includes a processor configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, the priority reference comprising a second reference signal and / or a priority reference channel. The first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal. To determine whether to prioritize processing, the processor is at least one of: configured to determine whether to measure the first reference signal (a first downlink reference signal) instead of the second reference signal in the absence of a measurement gap; or to determine whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of a downlink channel in the absence of the measurement gap; or to determine whether to send the first reference signal comprising a first uplink reference signal instead of the second uplink reference signal; or to determine whether to send the first uplink reference signal instead of sending on the priority reference channel.

Description

Background Art

[0001] Wireless communication systems have evolved over generations, including first-generation analog wireless telephone service (1G), second-generation (2G) digital wireless telephone service (including temporary 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third-generation (3G) high-speed data, Internet-enabled wireless services, fourth-generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax), fifth-generation (5G) services, and the like. Currently, many different types of wireless communication systems are used, including cellular and personal communications service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include the cellular analog Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) and digital cellular systems based on code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), and global system for mobile access (GSM) variants of TDMA.

[0002] The fifth-generation (5G) mobile standard calls for higher data transmission speeds, a greater number of connections, and better coverage, among other improvements. The 5G standard, developed by the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, is designed to provide data rates of tens of megabits per second to tens of thousands of users and 1 gigabit per second to dozens of workers on an office floor. To support large-scale sensor deployments, hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections should be supported. Consequently, the spectrum efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly improved compared to the current 4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiency should be improved, and latency should be significantly reduced compared to current standards.

[0003] Obtaining the location of a mobile device accessing a wireless network can be useful for many applications, including, for example, emergency calling, personal navigation, asset tracking, locating friends or family members, and the like. Existing positioning methods include those based on measuring radio signals transmitted from various devices or entities, including satellites (SVs) and terrestrial radio resources in wireless networks, such as base stations and access points. It is expected that standardization for 5G wireless networks will include support for various positioning methods that can utilize reference signals transmitted by base stations in a manner similar to how LTE wireless networks currently utilize positioning reference signals (PRS) and / or cell-specific reference signals (CRS) for position determination. Summary of the Invention

[0004] An example user equipment (UE) includes: a transceiver comprising a receiver configured to wirelessly receive inbound communication signals from a network entity and a transmitter configured to wirelessly transmit outbound communication signals to the network entity; a memory; and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver, the processor configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal or a priority reference channel or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal, and wherein to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor is at least one of: configured to determine whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal without a measurement gap; two reference signals, the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal, and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal different from the first downlink reference signal; or being configured to determine whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel in the absence of the measurement gap, wherein the priority reference channel comprises a downlink channel; or being configured to determine whether to send the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal, the first reference signal comprising a first uplink reference signal, and the second reference signal comprising a second uplink reference signal different from the first uplink reference signal; or being configured to determine whether to send the first uplink reference signal instead of sending on the priority reference channel, wherein the priority reference channel comprises an uplink channel. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0005] Figure 1 is a simplified diagram of an example wireless communication system.

[0006] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A block diagram of components of an example user device is shown in FIG.

[0007] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A block diagram of the components of an example send / receive point is shown in .

[0008] Figure 4 yes Figure 1 A block diagram of the components of the example server is shown in .

[0009] Figure 5 is a block diagram of an example user device.

[0010] Figure 6 It is the signaling and process flow of positioning reference signal prioritization.

[0011] Figure 7A is a simplified diagram of a control message with an indication of processing priority.

[0012] Figure 7B is a simplified diagram of another control message with a processing priority indication.

[0013] Figure 8 It is a timing diagram of positioning reference signals, search windows used for positioning reference signals, and other signaling.

[0014] Figure 9 is a timing diagram of a positioning reference signal, another reference signal, and another signal on another channel.

[0015] Figure 10 is a block flow diagram of a positioning reference signal prioritization method.

[0016] Figure 11 is a block flow diagram of another positioning reference signal prioritization method. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] This article discusses techniques for prioritizing positioning reference signals. One or more factors may be considered to determine whether to give a higher priority to downlink and / or uplink positioning reference signals relative to other signals or channels. For example, explicit and / or implicit indications of priority may be analyzed. The positioning process (technique) to be implemented using the positioning reference signal may affect the priority of processing the positioning reference signal. The structure of the positioning reference signal (e.g., the number of symbols per time slot, the number of repetitions, or the gap between consecutive repetitions) may affect the priority of processing (e.g., measuring) the positioning reference signal. For the search window used to search for positioning signals, the positioning signal may be given priority relative to the channel. When a positioning signal has priority and collides with a symbol of another reference signal or channel information, the non-colliding portion of the other signal or channel may be processed (e.g., measured), or the other signal or channel information may not be processed at all. These are examples, and other examples may be implemented.

[0018] The items and / or techniques described herein may provide one or more of the following capabilities, as well as other capabilities not mentioned. The reliability of position determination may be improved. The processing of positioning reference signals may appropriately preempt the processing of conflicting information. Other capabilities may be provided, and not every embodiment according to the present disclosure necessarily provides any, let alone all, of the capabilities discussed.

[0019] The description may refer to, for example, a sequence of actions to be performed by elements of a computing device. The various actions described herein may be performed by specific circuits (e.g., application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. The sequences of actions described herein may be embodied in a non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a corresponding set of computer instructions that, when executed, will cause an associated processor to perform the functionality described herein. Accordingly, the various aspects described herein may be embodied in many different forms, all of which are within the scope of the present disclosure including the claimed subject matter.

[0020] As used herein, unless otherwise specified, the terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not specific to or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT). In general, such a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate on a wireless communication network (e.g., a mobile phone, router, tablet computer, laptop computer, consumer asset tracking device, Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.). The UE can be mobile or can be stationary (e.g., at certain times) and can communicate with a radio access network (RAN). As used herein, the term "UE" can be interchangeably referred to as an "access terminal" or "AT," "client device," "wireless device," "subscriber device," "subscriber terminal," "subscriber station," "user terminal" or UT, "mobile terminal," "mobile station," or variations thereof. In general, a UE can communicate with a core network via the RAN, and through the core network, the UE can connect to external networks such as the Internet and to other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for connecting to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible for the UE, such as through a wired access network, a WiFi network (e.g., based on IEEE 802.11, etc.), etc.

[0021] A base station may operate according to one of several RATs for communicating with UEs, depending on the network in which it is deployed, and may be alternatively referred to as an access point (AP), a network node, a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNB), a generalized NodeB (gNodeB, gNB), etc. Furthermore, in some systems, a base station may purely provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems it may provide additional control and / or network management functions.

[0022] The UE may be embodied by any of a variety of types of devices, including but not limited to a printed circuit (PC) card, a compact flash device, an external or internal modem, a wireless or wired phone, a smartphone, a tablet computer, a consumer asset tracking device, an asset tag, and the like. The communication link over which the UE may signal to the RAN is referred to as an uplink channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel, etc.). The communication link over which the RAN may signal to the UE is referred to as a downlink 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.

[0023] As used herein, depending on the context, the term "cell" or "sector" may correspond to one of multiple cells of a base station, or to the base station itself. The term "cell" may refer to a logical communication entity used for communication with a base station (e.g., via a carrier), and may be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCID), a virtual cell identifier (VCID)) for distinguishing adjacent cells operating via the same or different carriers. In some examples, a carrier may support multiple cells, and different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other) that can provide access to different types of devices. In some examples, the term "cell" may refer to a portion of a geographic coverage area (e.g., a sector) on which the logical entity operates.

[0024] refer to Figure 1, an example wireless communication system 110 includes user equipment (UE) 112, UE 113, UE 114, base transceiver stations (BTS) 120, 121, 122, 123, a network 130, a core network 140, and an external client 150. The core network 140 (e.g., a 5G core network (5GC)) may include backend equipment including an access and mobility management function (AMF) 141, a session management function (SMF) 142, a server 143, and a gateway mobile location center (GMLC) 144. The AMF 141, the SMF 142, the server 143, and the GMLC 144 are communicatively coupled to each other. The server 143 may be, for example, a location management function (LMF) that supports positioning of the UEs 112 to 114 (e.g., using techniques such as Assisted Global Navigation Satellite System (A-GNSS), OTDOA (Observed Time Difference of Arrival, e.g., Downlink (DL) OTDOA and / or Uplink (UL) OTDOA), Round Trip Time (RTT), Multi-cell RTT, RTK (Real Time Kinematic), PPP (Precise Point Positioning), DGNSS (Differential GNSS), E-CID (Enhanced Cell ID), AoA (Angle of Arrival), AoD (Angle of Departure), etc.).

[0025] The LMF may also be referred to as a location manager (LM), location function (LF), commercial LMF (CLMF), or value-added LMF (VLMF). Server 143 (e.g., LMF) and / or one or more other devices of system 110 (e.g., one or more of UEs 112 to 114) may be configured to determine the location of UEs 112 to 114. Server 143 may communicate directly with BTS 121 (e.g., gNB) and / or one or more other BTSs, or may be integrated with BTS 121 and / or one or more other BTSs. SMF 142 may serve as the initial contact point for a service control function (SCF) (not shown) to create, control, and delete media sessions. Server 143 (e.g., LMF) may be co-located or integrated with a gNB or TRP (transmit / receive point), or may be located remotely from the gNB and / or TRP and configured to communicate directly or indirectly with the gNB and / or TRP. The server 143 (eg, LMF) may be part of the core network 140 as shown, or may be independent of (not part of) the core network 140 .

[0026] The AMF 141 may serve as a control node for processing signaling between the UEs 112 to 114 and the core network 140, and may provide QoS (Quality of Service) flow and session management. The AMF 141 may support the mobility of the UEs 112 to 114 (including cell changes and handovers), and may participate in supporting signaling connections to the UEs 112 to 114.

[0027] System 110 is capable of wireless communication, in that components of system 110 can communicate with each other directly or indirectly (at least sometimes using wireless connections), for example, via BTSs 120-123 and / or network 130 (and / or one or more other devices (not shown), such as one or more other base transceiver stations). For indirect communication, the communication may be modified during transmission from one entity to another, for example, to change header information of a data packet, change the format, etc. UEs 112-114 are shown as smartphones, tablet computers, and vehicle-based devices, but these are merely examples, as UEs 112-114 are not required to be in any of these configurations, and other UE configurations may be used. UEs 112 and 113 are shown as mobile wireless communication devices, including mobile phones (including smartphones) and tablet computers (although they can communicate wirelessly as well as via wired connections). UE 114 is shown as a vehicle-based mobile wireless communication device (although UE 114 can communicate wirelessly as well as via wired connections). Other UEs may include wearable devices (e.g., smart watches, smart jewelry, smart glasses, or headphones). Other UEs, whether currently existing or developed in the future, may also be used. In addition, other wireless devices (whether mobile or not) may be implemented within system 110 and may communicate with each other and / or with UEs 112 to 114, BTSs 120 to 123, network 130, core network 140, and / or external clients 150. For example, such other devices may include Internet of Things (IoT) devices, medical devices, home entertainment and / or automation devices, etc. Core network 140 may communicate with external clients 150 (e.g., computer systems), for example, to allow external clients 150 (e.g., via GMLC 144) to request and / or receive location information about UEs 112 to 114.

[0028] The UEs 112 to 114 or other devices may be configured to communicate in various networks and / or for various purposes and / or using various technologies (e.g., 5G, Wi-Fi communication, multiple frequencies of Wi-Fi communication, satellite positioning, one or more types of communication (e.g., GSM (Global System for Mobile), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution), V2X (Vehicle to Everything, e.g., V2P (Vehicle to Pedestrian), V2I (Vehicle to Infrastructure), V2V (Vehicle to Vehicle), etc.), IEEE 802.11p, etc.). V2X communications can be cellular (Cellular-V2X (C-V2X)) and / or WiFi (e.g., DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Connectivity)). System 110 can support operation on multiple carriers (waveform signals of different frequencies). A multi-carrier transmitter can simultaneously transmit modulated signals on multiple carriers. Each modulated signal can be a code division multiple access (CDMA) signal, a time division multiple access (TDMA) signal, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) signal, a single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) signal, etc. Each modulated signal can be transmitted on a different carrier and can carry pilots, overhead information, data, etc.

[0029] The BTSs 120 to 123 may wirelessly communicate with the UEs 112 to 114 in the system 110 via one or more antennas. A BTS may also be referred to as a base station, an access point, a gNode B (gNB), an access node (AN), a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), etc. For example, each of the BTSs 120 and 121 may be a gNB or a transmission point gNB, the BTS 122 may be a macro cell (e.g., a high-power cellular base station) and / or a small cell (e.g., a low-power cellular base station), and the BTS 123 may be an access point (e.g., a short-range base station configured to utilize a network such as WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), The BTSs 120 to 123 may communicate with the UEs 112 to 114 via multiple carriers. Each of the BTSs 120 and 121 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic area (e.g., a cell). Each cell may be divided into multiple sectors based on the base station antennas.

[0030] BTSs 120 to 123 each include one or more transmit / receive points (TRPs). For example, each sector within a cell of a BTS may include a TRP, although multiple TRPs may share one or more components (e.g., a shared processor but with separate antennas). System 110 may include only macro TRPs, or system 110 may have different types of TRPs (e.g., macro TRPs, pico TRPs, and / or femto TRPs, etc.). A macro TRP may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., a radius of several thousand meters) and may allow unrestricted access to terminals with service subscriptions. A pico TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a pico cell) and may allow unrestricted access to terminals with service subscriptions. A femto TRP or home TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a femto cell) and may allow restricted access to terminals associated with a femto cell (e.g., terminals for users in a home).

[0031] UEs 112 to 114 may be referred to as terminals, access terminals (ATs), mobile stations, mobile devices, subscriber units, etc. UEs 112 to 114 may include various devices as listed above and / or other devices. UEs 112 to 114 may be configured to indirectly connect to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links. The D2D P2P links may be supported using any suitable D2D radio access technology (RAT), such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Etc. One or more of the group of UEs 112 to 114 utilizing D2D communication may be within the geographic coverage area of ​​a TRP (such as one or more of BTSs 120 to 123). Other UEs in such a group may be outside such geographic coverage area or otherwise unable to receive transmissions from the base station. The group of UEs 112 to 114 communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, where each UE may transmit to other UEs in the group. The TRPs of BTSs 120 to 123 may facilitate the scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In other cases, D2D communication may be performed between UEs without the involvement of a TRP.

[0032] Also refer to Figure 2UE 200 is an example of one of UEs 112 to 114 and includes a computing platform including a processor 210, a memory 211 including software (SW) 212, one or more sensors 213, a transceiver interface 214 for a transceiver 215 (which includes a wireless transceiver 240 and a wired transceiver 250), a user interface 216, a satellite positioning system (SPS) receiver 217, a camera 218, and a positioning device (PD) 219. The processor 210, the memory 211, the sensor 213, the transceiver interface 214, the user interface 216, the SPS receiver 217, the camera 218, and the positioning device 219 can be communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 220 (e.g., which can be configured for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the illustrated devices (e.g., one or more of the camera 218, the positioning device 219, and / or the sensors 213) can be omitted from the UE 200. Processor 210 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and the like. Processor 210 may include multiple processors, including a general / application processor 230, a digital signal processor (DSP) 231, a modem processor 232, a video processor 233, and / or a sensor processor 234. One or more of processors 230 to 234 may include multiple devices (e.g., multiple processors). For example, sensor processor 234 may include a processor for RF (radio frequency) sensing (utilizing one or more transmitted cellular radio signals and reflections for identifying, mapping, and / or tracking objects) and / or ultrasound, for example. Modem processor 232 may support dual SIM cards / dual connectivity (or even more SIM cards). For example, one SIM card (Subscriber Identity Module or Subscriber Identity Module) may be used by an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), and another SIM card may be used by the end user of UE 200 for connectivity. The memory 211 is a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, optical disk memory and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. The memory 211 stores software 212, which may be a processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause the processor 210 to perform the various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, the software 212 may not be directly executable by the processor 210, but may be configured to cause the processor 210 to perform functions, for example, when compiled and executed. The specification may only refer to the processor 210 performing functions, but this includes other embodiments, such as the processor 210 executing software and / or firmware. The specification may refer to one or more of the functions performed by the processors 230 to 234 as the processor 210 performing functions.The specification may refer to one or more appropriate components of UE 200 performing a function simply as UE 200 performing the function. Processor 210 may include a memory with stored instructions in addition to or in lieu of memory 211. The functionality of processor 210 is discussed more fully below.

[0033] Figure 2 The configuration of UE 200 shown in the figure is an example and is not a limitation of the present disclosure, including the claims, and other configurations may be used. For example, an example configuration of the UE includes one or more of the processors 230 to 234 in the processor 210, a memory 211, and a wireless transceiver 240. Other example configurations include one or more of the processors 230 to 234 in the processor 210, a memory 211, a wireless transceiver and one or more of the sensors 213, a user interface 216, an SPS receiver 217, a camera 218, a PD 219, and / or a wired transceiver.

[0034] UE 200 may include a modem processor 232 that may be capable of performing baseband processing of signals received and down-converted by transceiver 215 and / or SPS receiver 217. Modem processor 232 may perform baseband processing of signals to be up-converted for transmission by transceiver 215. Additionally or alternatively, baseband processing may be performed by processor 230 and / or DSP 231. However, other configurations may be used to perform baseband processing.

[0035] UE 200 may include sensors 213, which may include, for example, one or more of various types of sensors, such as one or more inertial sensors, one or more magnetometers, one or more environmental sensors, one or more optical sensors, one or more weight sensors, and / or one or more radio frequency (RF) sensors. An inertial measurement unit (IMU) may include, for example, one or more accelerometers (e.g., collectively responsive to acceleration of UE 200 in three dimensions) and / or one or more gyroscopes (e.g., three-dimensional gyroscopes). Sensors 213 may include one or more magnetometers (e.g., three-dimensional magnetometers) to determine orientation (e.g., relative to magnetic north and / or true north), which may be used for any of a variety of purposes, such as to support one or more compass applications. Environmental sensors may include, for example, one or more temperature sensors, one or more barometric pressure sensors, one or more ambient light sensors, one or more camera imagers, and / or one or more microphones. Sensors 213 may generate analog and / or digital signals indicative of the information that may be stored in memory 211 and processed by DSP 231 and / or processor 230 to support one or more applications, such as, for example, applications for positioning and / or navigation operations.

[0036] The sensor 213 can be used for relative position measurement, relative position determination, motion determination, etc. The information detected by the sensor 213 can be used for motion detection, relative displacement, dead reckoning, sensor-based position determination, and / or sensor-assisted position determination. The sensor 213 can be used to determine whether the UE 200 is fixed (stationary) or moving and / or whether to report certain useful information about the mobility of the UE 200 to the server 143. For example, based on the information obtained / measured by the sensor 213, the UE 200 can notify / report to the server 143 that the UE 200 has detected movement or that the UE 200 has moved, and report the relative displacement / distance (e.g., via dead reckoning or sensor-based position determination or sensor-assisted position determination enabled by the sensor 213). In another example, for relative positioning information, the sensor / IMU can be used to determine the angle and / or orientation of another device relative to the UE 200.

[0037] The IMU can be configured to provide measurements of the direction of motion and / or speed of motion of the UE 200, which can be used for relative position determination. For example, one or more accelerometers and / or one or more gyroscopes of the IMU can detect the linear acceleration and rotational speed of the UE 200, respectively. The linear acceleration and rotational speed measurements of the UE 200 can be integrated over time to determine the instantaneous direction of motion and displacement of the UE 200. The instantaneous direction of motion and displacement can be integrated to track the position of the UE 200. For example, a reference position of the UE 200 at a certain moment can be determined, for example, using the SPS receiver 217 (and / or by some other means), and measurements from the accelerometers and gyroscopes taken after that moment can be used for dead reckoning to determine the current position of the UE 200 based on the movement (direction and distance) of the UE 200 relative to the reference position.

[0038] The magnetometer can determine the magnetic field strength in different directions, which can be used to determine the orientation of the UE 200. For example, the orientation can be used to provide a digital compass for the UE 200. The magnetometer may include a two-dimensional magnetometer configured to detect and provide an indication of the magnetic field strength in two orthogonal dimensions. The magnetometer may include a three-dimensional magnetometer configured to detect and provide an indication of the magnetic field strength in three orthogonal dimensions. The magnetometer may provide a component for sensing a magnetic field and providing an indication of the magnetic field, for example, to the processor 210.

[0039] The transceiver 215 may include a wireless transceiver 240 and a wired transceiver 250 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 240 may include a wireless transmitter 242 and a wireless receiver 244 coupled to one or more antennas 246 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) wireless signals 248 and converting signals from wireless signals 248 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to wireless signals 248. Thus, the wireless transmitter 242 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 244 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 240 may be configured to communicate signals (e.g., with the TRP and / or one or more other devices) in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs), such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc. New radios may use mmWave frequencies and / or frequencies below 6 GHz. The wired transceiver 250 may include a wired transmitter 252 and a wired receiver 254 configured for wired communication, for example, a network interface that may be used to communicate with the network 130 to send communications to the network 130 and receive communications from the network 130. The wired transmitter 252 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wired receiver 254 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 250 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication. The transceiver 215 may be communicatively coupled to the transceiver interface 214, for example, via an optical and / or electrical connection. The transceiver interface 214 may be at least partially integrated with the transceiver 215.

[0040] The user interface 216 may include one or more of several devices, such as, for example, a speaker, a microphone, a display device, a vibration device, a keyboard, a touch screen, and the like. The user interface 216 may include more than one of any of these devices. The user interface 216 may be configured to enable a user to interact with one or more applications hosted by the UE 200. For example, the user interface 216 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 for processing by the DSP 231 and / or the general processor 230 in response to actions from the user. Similarly, applications hosted on the UE 200 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 to present output signals to the user. The user interface 216 may include audio input / output (I / O) devices, including, for example, a speaker, a microphone, digital-to-analog circuitry, analog-to-digital circuitry, an amplifier, and / or a gain control circuit (including more than one of any of these devices). Other configurations of audio I / O devices may be used. Additionally or alternatively, the user interface 216 may include one or more touch sensors that respond to touch and / or pressure on, for example, the keyboard and / or touch screen of the user interface 216.

[0041] The SPS receiver 217 (e.g., a global positioning system (GPS) receiver) may be capable of receiving and acquiring SPS signals 260 via an SPS antenna 262. Antenna 262 is configured to convert wireless SPS signals 260 into wired signals (e.g., electrical or optical) and may be integrated with antenna 246. The SPS receiver 217 may be configured to process, in whole or in part, the acquired SPS signals 260 for use in estimating the location of the UE 200. For example, the SPS receiver 217 may be configured to use the SPS signals 260 to determine the location of the UE 200 through trilateration. The general-purpose processor 230, memory 211, DSP 231, and / or one or more dedicated processors (not shown) may be used in conjunction with the SPS receiver 217 to process, in whole or in part, the acquired SPS signals and / or calculate the estimated location of the UE 200. The memory 211 may store indications (e.g., measurements) of the SPS signals 260 and / or other signals (e.g., signals acquired from the wireless transceiver 240) for use in performing positioning operations. The general-purpose processor 230 , the DSP 231 , and / or one or more dedicated processors and / or the memory 211 may provide or support a location engine for processing measurements to estimate the location of the UE 200 .

[0042] The UE 200 may include a camera 218 for capturing still or moving images. The camera 218 may include, for example, an imaging sensor (e.g., a charge-coupled device or a CMOS imager), a lens, analog-to-digital circuitry, a frame buffer, etc. Additional processing, conditioning, encoding, and / or compression of signals representing the captured images may be performed by the general processor 230 and / or the DSP 231. Additionally or alternatively, a video processor 233 may perform conditioning, encoding, compression, and / or manipulation of signals representing the captured images. The video processor 233 may decode / decompress stored image data for presentation on a display device (not shown), such as the user interface 216.

[0043] Positioning device (PD) 219 may be configured to determine the location of UE 200, the motion of UE 200, and / or the relative position and / or time of UE 200. For example, PD 219 may communicate with SPS receiver 217 and / or include some or all of SPS receiver 217. Although the description herein may relate solely to PD 219 being configured to perform according to a positioning method, PD 219 may work in conjunction with processor 210 and memory 211 as appropriate to perform at least a portion of one or more positioning methods. PD 219 may also or alternatively be configured to determine the location of UE 200 using ground-based signals (e.g., at least some of signals 248) for trilateration, for assisting in obtaining and using SPS signals 260, or both. PD 219 may be configured to use one or more other techniques (e.g., relying on the UE's self-reported location (e.g., a portion of the UE's location beacon)) for determining the location of UE 200, and may use a combination of techniques (e.g., SPS and ground-based positioning signals) to determine the location of UE 200. The PD 219 may include one or more sensors from the sensors 213 (e.g., a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a magnetometer, etc.) that can sense the orientation and / or motion of the UE 200 and provide an indication thereof, and the processor 210 (e.g., the processor 230 and / or the DSP 231) may be configured to use the indication to determine the motion (e.g., a velocity vector and / or an acceleration vector) of the UE 200. The PD 219 may be configured to provide an indication of uncertainty and / or error in the determined position and / or motion. The functionality of the PD 219 may be provided in various manners and / or configurations, for example, by the general / application processor 230, the transceiver 215, the SPS receiver 217, and / or another component of the UE 200, and may be provided by hardware, software, firmware, or various combinations thereof.

[0044] Also refer to Figure 3, an example of a TRP 300 for BTSs 120 to 123 includes a computing platform including a processor 310, a memory 311 including software (SW) 312, and a transceiver 315. The processor 310, the memory 311, and the transceiver 315 may be communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 320 (which may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the illustrated devices (e.g., a wireless interface) may be omitted from the TRP 300. The processor 310 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The processor 310 may include multiple processors (e.g., including, for example, Figure 2 ). The memory 311 is a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, optical disk memory, and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. The memory 311 stores software 312, which may be processor-readable and processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause the processor 310 to perform the various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, the software 312 may not be directly executable by the processor 310, but may be configured to cause the processor 310 to perform functions, for example, when compiled and executed.

[0045] The specification may refer only to processor 310 performing functions, but this includes other embodiments, such as processor 310 executing software and / or firmware. The specification may refer to one or more functions performed by the processor included in processor 310 as simply referring to processor 310 performing functions. The specification may refer to one or more appropriate components (e.g., processor 310 and memory 311) of TRP 300 (and therefore one of BTSs 120 to 123) performing functions as simply referring to TRP 300 performing functions. In addition to or in lieu of memory 311, processor 310 may include a memory having stored instructions. The functionality of processor 310 is discussed more fully below.

[0046] The transceiver 315 may include a wireless transceiver 340 and / or a wired transceiver 350 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 340 may include a wireless transmitter 342 and a wireless receiver 344 coupled to one or more antennas 346 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more downlink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more uplink channels) wireless signals 348 and converting the signals from the wireless signals 348 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and vice versa. Thus, the wireless transmitter 342 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 344 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 340 may be configured to communicate signals (e.g., with the UE 200, one or more UEs, and / or one or more other devices) in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs), such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc. Wired transceiver 350 may include a wired transmitter 352 and a wired receiver 354 configured for wired communication, for example, a network interface that can be used to communicate with network 130 to send and receive communications to, for example, server 143 and / or one or more other network entities. Wired transmitter 352 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or wired receiver 354 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. Wired transceiver 350 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0047] Figure 3The configuration of the TRP 300 shown in the is an example and is not a limitation of the present disclosure, including the claims, and other configurations may be used. For example, the description herein discusses the TRP 300 being configured to perform several functions or the TRP performing several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by the server 143 and / or the UE 200 (i.e., the server 143 and / or the UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).

[0048] Also refer to Figure 4 , server 400 (which is an example of server 143) includes a computing platform including a processor 410, a memory 411 including software (SW) 412, and a transceiver 415. The processor 410, the memory 411, and the transceiver 415 can be communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 420 (which can be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the devices shown (e.g., a wireless interface) can be omitted from the server 400. The processor 410 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The processor 410 may include multiple processors (e.g., including Figure 2 ). The memory 411 is a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, optical disk memory and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. The memory 411 stores software 412, which may be a processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause the processor 410 to perform the various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, the software 412 may not be directly executable by the processor 410, but may be configured to cause the processor 410 to perform functions, for example, when compiled and executed. The specification may only refer to the processor 410 performing functions, but this includes other embodiments, such as the processor 410 executing software and / or firmware. The specification may refer to one or more execution functions of the processor included in the processor 410 as simply the processor 410 performing functions. The specification may refer to one or more appropriate components of the server 400 performing functions as simply the server 400 performing functions. Processor 410 may include memory with stored instructions in addition to or in lieu of memory 411. The functionality of processor 410 is discussed more fully below.

[0049] The transceiver 415 may include a wireless transceiver 440 and / or a wired transceiver 450 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 440 may include a wireless transmitter 442 and a wireless receiver 444 coupled to one or more antennas 446 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more downlink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more uplink channels) wireless signals 448 and converting signals from wireless signals 448 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and vice versa. Thus, the wireless transmitter 442 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 444 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 440 may be configured to communicate signals (e.g., with the UE 200, one or more UEs, and / or one or more other devices) in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs), such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc. Wired transceiver 450 may include a wired transmitter 452 and a wired receiver 454 configured for wired communication, for example, a network interface that can be used to communicate with network 130 to send and receive communications to, for example, TRP 300 and / or one or more other network entities. Wired transmitter 452 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or wired receiver 454 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. Wired transceiver 450 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0050] The description herein may refer only to the processor 410 executing a function, but this includes other embodiments, such as the processor 410 executing software (stored in the memory 411) and / or firmware. The description herein may simply refer to one or more appropriate components of the server 400 (e.g., the processor 410 and the memory 411) executing a function as the server 400 executing the function.

[0051] Positioning technology

[0052] For terrestrial positioning of UEs in cellular networks, techniques such as Advanced Forward Link Trilateration (AFLT) and Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) typically operate in a "UE-assisted" mode, in which measurements of reference signals (e.g., PRS, CRS, etc.) transmitted by base stations are taken by the UE and then provided to a location server. The location server then calculates the UE's position based on the measurements and the known positions of the base stations. Because these techniques use a location server rather than the UE itself to calculate the UE's position, these positioning techniques are not often used in applications such as car or mobile phone navigation (which instead typically rely on satellite-based positioning).

[0053] UEs can use a satellite positioning system (SPS) (Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)) for high-accuracy positioning using Precise Point Positioning (PPP) or Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) techniques. These techniques use assistance data, such as measurements from ground-based stations. LTE Release 15 allows data to be encrypted so that only UEs that subscribe to the service can read the information. Such assistance data changes over time. Therefore, a UE that subscribes to the service cannot easily "break the encryption" for other UEs by passing the data to other UEs that have not yet paid the subscription fee. This will need to be repeated every time the assistance data changes.

[0054] In UE-assisted positioning, the UE sends measurements (e.g., TDOA, Angle of Arrival (AoA), etc.) to a positioning server (e.g., LMF / eSMLC). The positioning server maintains a base station almanac (BSA) containing multiple 'entries' or 'records', one per cell, where each record contains the geographic cell location but may also include other data. An identifier for a 'record' within the BSA can be referenced. The BSA and the measurements from the UE can be used to calculate the UE's position.

[0055] In conventional UE-based positioning, the UE calculates its own position, thus avoiding sending measurements to the network (e.g., a location server), which in turn improves latency and scalability. The UE uses relevant BSA recorded information from the network (e.g., the location of the gNB (and more broadly, base stations)). The BSA information can be encrypted. However, because BSA information varies much less than, for example, the PPP or RTK assistance data described previously, it may be easier to make BSA information available to UEs that do not subscribe to and pay for decryption keys (compared to PPP or RTK information). The transmission of reference signals by the gNB makes BSA information available for crowdsourcing or war-driving, essentially enabling BSA information to be generated based on field and / or over-the-top observations.

[0056] Positioning technologies can be characterized and / or evaluated based on one or more criteria, such as location determination accuracy and / or latency. Latency is the time that elapses between an event that triggers the determination of location-related data and the availability of that data at a positioning system interface (e.g., an LMF interface). Upon initialization of the positioning system, the latency for the availability of location-related data is called the time to first determination (TTFF) and is greater than the latency after the TTFF. The inverse of the time that elapses between the availability of two consecutive location-related data is called the update rate, i.e., the rate at which location-related data is generated after the first determination. Latency can depend, for example, on the processing capabilities of the UE. For example, the UE can report its processing capabilities as the duration of a DL PRS symbol in time units (e.g., milliseconds) that the UE can process per T amount of time (e.g., T ms) assuming a 272 PRB (physical resource block) allocation. Other examples of capabilities that may affect latency are the number of TRPs from which the UE can process PRSs, the number of PRSs that the UE can process, and the UE's bandwidth.

[0057] One or more of a number of different positioning techniques (also referred to as positioning methods) can be used to determine the location of an entity (such as one of UEs 112 to 114). For example, known positioning techniques include RTT, multi-RTT, OTDOA (also known as TDOA and including UL-TDOA and DL-TDOA), enhanced cell identification (E-CID), DL-AoD, UL-AoA, and the like. RTT uses the time it takes for a signal to travel from one entity to another and back to determine the range between two entities. The range, combined with the known position of the first of the entities and the angle (e.g., azimuth) between the two entities, can be used to determine the location of the second entity. In multi-RTT (also known as multi-cell RTT), multiple ranges from one entity (e.g., a UE) to other entities (e.g., TRPs) along with the known positions of the other entities can be used to determine the location of the one entity. In TDOA techniques, the difference in travel time between one entity and the other entities can be used to determine the relative range to the other entities, and those relative ranges, combined with the known positions of the other entities, can be used to determine the location of the one entity. The angle of arrival and / or angle of departure can be used to help determine the location of the entity. For example, the angle of arrival or departure of a signal combined with the range between the devices (determined using the signal (e.g., the travel time of the signal, the received power of the signal, etc.)) and the known position of one of the devices can be used to determine the position of the other device. The angle of arrival or departure can be an azimuth relative to a reference direction (such as true north). The angle of arrival or departure can be a zenith angle relative to directly upward from a physical object (i.e., relative to radially outward from the center of the earth). E-CID uses the identity of the serving cell, the timing advance (i.e., the difference between the receive time and the transmit time at the UE), the estimated timing and power of the detected neighboring cell signals, and possible angles of arrival (e.g., the angle of arrival of the signal from the base station at the UE and vice versa) to determine the position of the UE. In TDOA, the difference in arrival time of signals from different sources at a receiving device, together with the known position of the source and the known offset from the transmit time of the source, is used to determine the position of the receiving device.

[0058] In network-centric RTT estimation, the serving base station instructs the UE to scan / receive RTT measurement signals (e.g., PRS) on the serving cells of two or more neighboring base stations (and typically the serving base station, as at least three base stations are required). One or more base stations transmit RTT measurement signals on low reuse resources (e.g., resources used by the base station to transmit system information) allocated by the network (e.g., a location server such as an LMF). The UE records the arrival time (also referred to as receive time, reception time, received time, or time of arrival (ToA)) of each RTT measurement signal relative to the UE's current downlink timing (e.g., derived by the UE based on the DL signal received from its serving base station), and transmits a common or separate RTT response message (e.g., SRS (sounding reference signal) for positioning, i.e., UL-PRS) to one or more base stations (e.g., when instructed by its serving base station), and may use the time difference T between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response message as the time difference T between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response message. Rx-Tx (i.e., UE T Rx-Tx or UE Rx-Tx ) is included in the payload of each RTT response message. The RTT response message will include a reference signal from which the base station can infer the ToA of the RTT response. The difference between the RTT measurement signal from the base station's transmission time and the ToA of the RTT response at the base station is calculated by Tx→Rx Time difference T with UE report Rx→Tx By comparison, the base station can infer the propagation time between the base station and the UE, and the base station can determine the distance between the UE and the base station based on the propagation time by assuming the speed of light during the propagation time.

[0059] UE-centric RTT estimation is similar to the network-based approach, except that the UE sends an uplink RTT measurement signal (e.g., when instructed by a serving base station), which is received by multiple base stations in the vicinity of the UE. Each involved base station responds with a downlink RTT response message that may include in the RTT response message payload the time difference between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal at the base station and the time the RTT response message was sent from the base station.

[0060] For both network-centric and UE-centric processes, the side performing the RTT calculation (the network or the UE) typically (although not always) sends a first message or signal (e.g., an RTT measurement signal), and the other side responds with one or more RTT response messages or signals, which may include the difference between the ToA of the first message or signal and the sending time of the RTT response message or signal.

[0061] Multi-RTT techniques can be used to determine location. For example, a first entity (e.g., a UE) can send one or more signals (e.g., unicast, multicast, or broadcast from a base station), and multiple second entities (e.g., other TSPs such as base stations and / or UEs) can receive the signals from the first entity and respond to the received signals. The first entity receives responses from the multiple second entities. The first entity (or another entity such as an LMF) can use the responses from the second entities to determine the range to the second entity, and can use the multiple ranges and the known positions of the second entities to determine the location of the first entity through trilateration.

[0062] In some instances, additional information may be obtained in the form of an angle of arrival (AoA) or angle of departure (AoD) that defines a straight line direction (e.g., which may be in the horizontal plane or in three dimensions) or a range of possible directions (e.g., for a UE, from the location of a base station). The intersection of the two directions may provide another estimate of the UE's location.

[0063] For positioning techniques (e.g., TDOA and RTT) that use PRS (Positioning Reference Signal) signals, the PRS signals sent by multiple TRPs are measured, and the arrival time of the signals, the known transmission time, and the known location of the TRPs are used to determine the range from the UE to the TRPs. For example, RSTD (Reference Signal Time Difference) can be determined for PRS signals received from multiple TRPs, and the RSTD can be used in TDOA techniques to determine the position (location) of the UE. Positioning reference signals can be referred to as PRS or PRS signals. PRS signals are typically transmitted using the same power, and PRS signals with the same signal characteristics (e.g., the same frequency offset) may interfere with each other, so that PRS signals from farther TRPs may be drowned out by PRS signals from closer TRPs, so that signals from farther TRPs may not be detected. PRS muting can be used to help reduce interference by muting some PRS signals (e.g., reducing the power of the PRS signal to zero, and thus not sending the PRS signal). In this way, the UE can more easily detect the weaker (at the UE) PRS signal without the stronger PRS signal interfering with the weaker PRS signal.The term RS and its variants (eg, PRS, SRS) may refer to one reference signal or more than one reference signals.

[0064] Positioning Reference Signals (PRS) include downlink PRS (DL PRS) and uplink PRS (UL PRS) (which may be referred to as SRS (Sounding Reference Signal) for positioning). PRS may include PRS resources or PRS resource sets of a frequency layer. A DLPRS positioning frequency layer (or simply a frequency layer) is a collection of DL PRS resource sets from one or more TRPs, whose PRS resources have common parameters configured by higher layer parameters DL-PRS-PositioningFrequencyLayer, DL-PRS-ResourceSet, and DL-PRS-Resource. Each frequency layer has a DL PRS subcarrier spacing (SCS) for the DL PRS resource set and DL PRS resources in that frequency layer. Each frequency layer has a DL PRS cyclic prefix (CP) for the DL PRS resource set and DLPRS resources in that frequency layer. In 5G, a resource block occupies 12 consecutive subcarriers and a specified number of symbols. In addition, the DL PRS Point A parameter defines the frequency of the reference resource block (and the lowest subcarrier of the resource block), where DL PRS resources belonging to the same DL PRS resource have the same Point A, and all DL PRS resources belonging to the same frequency layer have the same Point A. The frequency layers also have the same DL PRS bandwidth, the same starting PRB (and center frequency), and the same frequency comb size value (i.e., the frequency of PRS resource elements per symbol, so that for frequency comb N, every Nth resource element is a PRS resource element). A PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource ID and can be associated with a specific TRP (identified by a cell ID) transmitted by the antenna panel of the base station. The PRS resource ID in a PRS resource set can be associated with an omnidirectional signal and / or with a single beam (and / or beam ID) transmitted from a single base station (where a base station can transmit one or more beams). Each PRS resource in a PRS resource set can be transmitted on a different beam, and thus, a PRS resource, or simply a resource, can also be referred to as a beam. This has no effect on whether the UE knows the base station and beam on which the PRS is transmitted.

[0065] The TRP may be configured to send out DL PRS per schedule, for example, by instructions received from a server and / or by software in the TRP. According to the schedule, the TRP may send out DL PRS intermittently (e.g., periodically at consistent intervals starting from the initial transmission). The TRP may be configured to send out one or more PRS resource sets. A resource set is a collection of PRS resources across one TRP, where the resources have the same period, a common muting pattern configuration (if any), and the same repetition factor across the time slot. One of the PRS resource sets includes multiple PRS resources, where each PRS resource includes multiple resource elements (REs) in multiple resource blocks (RBs) that can be within N (one or more) consecutive symbols within the time slot. An RB is a set of REs that span a certain number of one or more consecutive symbols in the time domain and a certain number (12 for 5G RBs) of consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. Each PRS resource is configured with an RE offset, a time slot offset, a symbol offset within the time slot, and the number of consecutive symbols that the PRS resource can occupy within the time slot. The RE offset defines the starting RE offset of the first symbol within the DL PRS resource in frequency. The relative RE offsets of the remaining symbols within the DL PRS resource are defined based on the initial offset. The slot offset is the starting slot of the DL PRS resource relative to the corresponding resource set slot offset. The symbol offset determines the starting symbol of the DL PRS resource within the starting slot. The transmitted REs may be repeated across slots, where each transmission is called a repetition, so that multiple repetitions may exist in a PRS resource. The DL PRS resources in a DL PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP, and each DL PRS resource has a DL PRS resource ID. The DL PRS resource ID in a DL PRS resource set is associated with a single beam transmitted from a single TRP (although a TRP may transmit one or more beams).

[0066] PRS resources can also be defined by quasi co-location and starting PRB parameters. The quasi co-location (QCL) parameter can define any quasi co-location information of the DL PRS resource with other reference signals. The DL PRS can be configured to be QCL type D with the DL PRS or SS / PBCH (synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel) block from the serving cell or non-serving cell. The DL PRS can be configured to be QCL type C with the SS / PBCH block from the serving cell or non-serving cell. The starting PRB parameter defines the starting PRB index of the DL PRS resource relative to the reference point A. The starting PRB index has a granularity of one PRB and can have a minimum value of 0 and a maximum value of 2176 PRBs.

[0067] A PRS resource set is a collection of PRS resources with the same periodicity, the same muting pattern configuration (if any), and the same repetition factor across time slots. When all repetitions of all PRS resources in each PRS resource set are configured to be transmitted, it is referred to as an "instance." Thus, an "instance" of a PRS resource set is a specified number of repetitions for each PRS resource and a specified number of PRS resources within the PRS resource set, such that the instance is complete once the specified number of repetitions has been transmitted for each of the specified number of PRS resources. An instance may also be referred to as an "occasion." A DL PRS configuration including a DL PRS transmission schedule may be provided to a UE to facilitate (or even enable) the UE to measure DL PRS.

[0068] Multiple frequency layers of a PRS may be aggregated to provide an effective bandwidth that is larger than any of the bandwidths of the layers individually. Multiple frequency layers (which may be contiguous and / or separate) of a component carrier that meet criteria (such as being quasi-co-located (QCLed) and having the same antenna port) may be stitched together to provide a larger effective PRS bandwidth (for DL ​​PRS and UL PRS), resulting in improved time of arrival measurement accuracy. As they are QCLed, the different frequency layers behave similarly, enabling stitching of the PRS to produce a larger effective bandwidth. The larger effective bandwidth (which may be referred to as the bandwidth of the aggregated PRS or the frequency bandwidth of the aggregated PRS) provides better time domain resolution (e.g., TDOA). The aggregated PRS comprises a collection of PRS resources, and each PRS resource of the aggregated PRS may be referred to as a PRS component, and each PRS component may be transmitted on a different component carrier, frequency band, or frequency layer, or on a different portion of the same frequency band.

[0069] RTT positioning is an active positioning technology in that RTT uses positioning signals sent by the TRP to the UE and positioning signals sent by the UE (which is participating in RTT positioning) to the TRP. The TRP can send a DL PRS signal received by the UE, and the UE can send an SRS (sounding reference signal) signal received by multiple TRPs. The sounding reference signal can be referred to as an SRS or an SRS signal. In 5G multi-RTT, coordinated positioning can be used where the UE sends a single UL-SRS for positioning received by multiple TRPs instead of sending a separate UL-SRS for positioning for each TRP. A TRP participating in multi-RTT will typically search for UEs currently residing on the TRP (served UEs, where the TRP is the serving TRP) and also search for UEs residing on neighboring TRPs (neighboring UEs). A neighboring TRP can be the TRP of a single BTS (e.g., a gNB), or it can be the TRP of one BTS and the TRP of a separate BTS. For RTT positioning (including multi-RTT positioning), the DL-PRS signal and the UL-SRS for the positioning signal in the PRS / SRS of the positioning signal pair used to determine the RTT (and therefore for determining the range between the UE and the TRP) can occur close to each other in time so that errors due to UE motion and / or UE clock drift and / or TRP clock drift are within acceptable limits. For example, the signals in the PRS / SRS of the positioning signal pair can be sent from the TRP and the UE, respectively, within approximately 10 ms of each other. In the case where the SRS for the positioning signal is sent by the UE, and in the case where the PRS and SRS for the positioning signal are communicated close to each other in time, it has been found that radio frequency (RF) signal congestion (which may result in excessive noise, etc.) may result, especially when multiple UEs attempt to locate simultaneously and / or may result in computational congestion at the TRPs attempting to measure multiple UEs simultaneously.

[0070] RTT positioning can be UE-based or UE-assisted. In UE-based RTT, UE 200 determines the RTT and corresponding range to each of TRPs 300 and the location of UE 200 based on the range to TRP 300 and the known location of TRP 300. In UE-assisted RTT, UE 200 measures positioning signals and provides measurement information to TRP 300, and TRP 300 determines RTT and range. TRP 300 provides the range to a location server (e.g., server 400), and the server determines the location of UE 200 based on, for example, the range to different TRPs 300. RTT and / or range can be determined by the TRP 300 receiving the signal from UE 200, by the TRP 300 in conjunction with one or more other devices (e.g., one or more other TRPs 300 and / or server 400), or by one or more devices different from the TRP 300 receiving the signal from UE 200.

[0071] 5G NR supports various positioning technologies. NR native positioning methods supported in 5G NR include DL-only positioning methods, UL-only positioning methods, and DL+UL positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include DL-TDOA and DL-AoD. Uplink-based positioning methods include UL-TDOA and UL-AoA. Combined DL+UL-based positioning methods include RTT with one base station and RTT with multiple base stations (multi-RTT).

[0072] A position estimate (e.g., for a UE) may be referred to by other names, such as position estimate, location, position, position determination, determination, etc. A position estimate may be geographic 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 a location. A position estimate may be further defined relative to some other known location, or defined in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). A position estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volume within which the location is expected to be included with some specified or default confidence level).

[0073] Prioritization of Positioning Reference Signals

[0074] In the past, in LTE and NR, the UE did not process a DL PRS that collided with another DL signal or channel sent to the UE in the absence of a measurement gap (where a measurement gap is a time when the UE is to receive and measure PRS instead of other signals or channels). Each channel is a logical connection between entities (such as a TRP and a UE). The term "channel" herein may also refer to information conveyed on a channel. The discussion herein provides techniques for prioritizing PRS processing over other DL signals and channels even in the absence of a measurement gap, so that a PRS that collides with another signal or channel (e.g., an expected conflict or an actual conflict) can be processed.

[0075] refer to Figure 5 , and further reference Figures 1 to 4 UE 500 includes a processor 510, an interface 520, and a memory 530 communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 540. UE 500 may include Figure 5 components shown, and may include one or more other components (such as Figure 2 530 ). The description may refer only to the processor 510 performing a function, but this includes other embodiments, such as the processor 510 executing software (stored in the memory 530) and / or firmware. The description may refer to one or more appropriate components of the UE 500 (e.g., the processor 510 and the memory 530) performing a function as simply referring to the UE 500 performing a function. The processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530 and the interface 520 as appropriate) includes a PRS prioritization unit 550 that is configured to determine and implement prioritization of PRSs as discussed herein. The PRS prioritization unit 550 is discussed further below, and the specification may refer to the processor 510 generally, or the UE 500 generally, as performing any of the functions of the PRS prioritization unit 550. The operation of the PRS prioritization unit 550 is referred to herein as Figure 6 discussed, Figure 6 Shown is a signaling and process flow 600 for determining and implementing prioritization of PRSs. Flow 600 includes the stages shown, but is merely an example, as stages may be added, rearranged, and / or removed.

[0076] The PRS prioritization unit 550 is configured to determine whether a PRS (DL PRS or UL PRS (also known as an SRS for positioning)) will have a higher priority than another reference signal and / or another channel (i.e., a channel other than the channel on which the PRS is conveyed). The PRS prioritization unit 550 may determine whether the PRS will have a higher priority based on one or more factors, and may determine whether the PRS will have a higher priority than a combination of other reference signals, a combination of other channels, or a combination of one or more other reference signals and one or more other channels. Examples of other reference signals are DMRS (demodulation RS) for PDSCH (physical downlink shared channel), DMRS for PDCCH (physical downlink control channel), DMRS for PBCH (physical broadcast channel), PTRS (phase tracking RS) for PDSCH, CSI-RS (channel state information-reference signal), and RIM (radio access network (RAN) information management) RS. Examples of channels include PDSCH, PDCCH, and PBCH. The PRS prioritization unit 550 may determine the priority of a PRS associated with a PRS resource, a PRS resource set, a frequency layer, and / or a TRP.

[0077] The UE 500 is configured to provide processing priority based on the priority indicated by the prioritization unit 550. If a PRS has a higher processing priority (also referred to herein as having a higher priority), the UE 500 will process (e.g., measure and possibly report) the PRS instead of a corresponding reference signal and / or channel of lower priority that collides with the PRS outside of a measurement gap. A lower priority reference signal or channel that collides with a higher priority PRS will not be processed, e.g., may be discarded or ignored by the processor 510, or not provided to the processor 510. Similarly, a lower priority PRS that collides with a higher priority reference signal or channel will not be processed, e.g., may be discarded or ignored by the processor 510, or not provided to the processor 510. The processor 510 may include a portion of the interface 520, e.g., to the extent that the interface 520 makes decisions regarding whether to process or forward information for further processing. Thus, the processor 510 is a logical name and not necessarily a physical name, and the processor 510 includes components for processing regardless of the physical location within the UE 500.

[0078] The UE 500 may prioritize PRS resources more highly. For example, a beam corresponding to a resource in a resource set of multiple resources may be more important to PRS than data, and thus the UE 500 may prioritize PRS resources more highly than data for that beam. The UE 500 may prioritize different PRS resources within a PRS resource set differently.

[0079] The UE 500 may provide a higher priority at the PRS resource set level. For example, if a resource set has a low periodicity (such that the resource set occurs infrequently), any collision may be more significant than with a resource set of a higher periodicity, and therefore, the UE 500 may provide a higher priority to the low-periodicity resource set to help ensure that the resource set is processed. Alternatively, a high-periodicity resource set may have a high periodicity because the content of the resource set is important and should be processed frequently, and therefore, the UE 500 may provide a high priority (e.g., a higher priority than data) to the high-periodicity resource set. The UE 500 may provide a higher priority than data to some resource sets in a frequency layer and a lower priority than data to some resource sets in a frequency layer.

[0080] UE 500 may prioritize frequency layers based on frequency layers, for example, by prioritizing frequency layers corresponding to frequency ranges. For example, a first frequency layer (FL1) may correspond to FR1 (frequency range 1 from 410 MHz to 7.125 GHz), and a second frequency layer (FL2) may correspond to FR2 (frequency range 2 of the mmWave band from 24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz). The second frequency layer FL2 may be opportunistic, with less data and therefore a lower likelihood of collision. Therefore, due to the lower likelihood of collision in FL2, UE 500 may prioritize the second frequency layer lower and prioritize the first frequency layer higher. As another example, one FL may be configured for data and another FL may be configured for PRS, for example, with one FL having a higher priority for data than for PRS, and the other FL having a higher priority for PRS than for data.

[0081] The UE 500 may prioritize a particular TRP, for example, for RSTD positioning. The UE 500 may prioritize a PRS used for a reference TRP (e.g., higher than another signal (e.g., a reference signal, a data signal) and / or another channel) to help ensure that the reference signal used for the reference TRP is received, thereby helping to ensure that the reference signal (whose timing is to be compared with other signal timings to determine a time difference) is received and processed. Otherwise, the time difference may be incorrectly determined or may not even be determined.

[0082] The prioritization unit 550 may be configured to determine priorities (e.g., of resources, resource sets, frequency layers, TRPs) in any of a variety of ways, for example, based on one or more of a variety of factors. For example, the prioritization unit 550 may be configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of location reference signals based on explicit or implicit indications, based on the timing behavior of PRSs (DL-PRS and / or UL-PRS), based on the positioning technology to be implemented, and / or based on the structure of the PRSs. The UE 500 may provide the prioritization capabilities of the UE 500 to the server 400 in a UE prioritization capability message 612 in stage 610 of the process 600. The UE 500 may directly (e.g., Figure 6 6 (shown in FIG. 6 ) or indirectly via one or more intermediaries (such as TRP 300) to server 400. Message 612 may indicate the UE 500's ability to support prioritization of PRS processing. Capabilities may be reported in a band-specific or FR-specific manner, for example, corresponding capabilities for corresponding frequency bands / frequency ranges. UE prioritization capability message 612 may be provided before and / or after stage 620 discussed below, and may be provided multiple times, for example, intermittently (e.g., periodically, semi-persistently, or on-demand).

[0083] One or more factors based on which the UE 500 can determine PRS prioritization can be indicated by PRS configuration information received by the UE 500. For example, at stage 620 of the process 600, the server 400 issues a PRS configuration message 622 to the UE 500. Although the description herein refers to PRS, the term includes various forms of positioning signals, and thus the PRS configuration message 622 provides positioning signal configuration. The PRS configuration message 622 can be sent from the server 400 to the UE 500 directly or via one or more intermediaries (such as the TRP 300). The PRS configuration message 622 may include, for example, the scheduling timing of the periodic PRS, the period, the slot offset, the bandwidth offset, the number of ports, the repetition factor, the number of PRS symbols within a slot, the information element type, one or more explicit priority indicators, search window information (e.g., duration, start time, end time), and / or whether an aperiodic PRS and / or an aperiodic PRS measurement report request is desired. For example, the UE 500 may prioritize PRS resources configured with a specific type of IE (e.g., a 3GPP Release 17 type IE) over other channels with symbols that collide with the PRS. At stage 630, the UE 500 may determine the priority of the PRS relative to one or more other reference signals and / or one or more channels, as discussed herein, inter alia, below. At stage 640, the UE 500 may process the PRS according to the determined priority, e.g., perform measurements, determine positioning information (e.g., one or more ranges, locations, etc.), generate and / or transmit an SRS for positioning, etc., and appropriately provide positioning information 642 directly or indirectly to the server 400.

[0084] The PRS prioritization unit 550 may be configured to determine the priority of PRS processing based on one or more explicit indications of priority, such as those contained in a PRS configuration message 622 received by the UE 500. For example, the PRS configuration message 622 may provide an indication, such as a single field or a single bit, that the PRS is to receive a higher priority than one or more other reference signals and / or one or more channels. For example, the PRS configuration message 622 may include a high / low priority bit that indicates whether the UE 500 is to give the corresponding PRS a high priority or a low priority relative to the one or more indicated other reference signals and / or one or more channels. The single bit may be known (e.g., programmed into the UE 500 according to an industry standard) to apply to the one or more other reference signals and / or one or more channels. The meaning of the single bit may be fixed or dynamically configurable via control signaling (e.g., via MAC-CE (Medium Access Control - Control Element) or DCI (Downlink Control Information) signaling, or via higher layer signaling such as LPP (LTE Positioning Protocol) or RRC (Radio Resource Control) signaling). Updates to the meaning of a single bit can be given via MAC-CE signaling, which is faster than LPP or RRC signaling. As two examples of dynamic meanings for a single bit, signaling can be received by UE 500 such that a single bit value of 1 means that PDSCH has a higher processing priority than PRS, or that PRS has a higher processing priority than PDSCH and PDCCH. For example, control signaling can be received to instruct UE 500 about the meaning of a single bit (e.g., valid upon receipt of the control signaling and until further notification or until a specified time or until a specified future time), and control signaling that changes the meaning of the single bit can be received later.

[0085] The explicit indication of priority may include multiple indications of priority, each indication corresponding to a respective reference signal or channel or a combination of reference signals or a combination of channels or a combination of one or more reference signals and one or more channels. Figure 7AAs shown in FIG, control signal 700 includes nine fields: a DMRS field 711 for PDSCH, a DMRS field 712 for PDCCH, a DMRS field 713 for PBCH, a PTRS field 714 for PDSCH, a CSI-RS field 715, a RIM RS field 716, a PDSCH field 717, a PDCCH field 718, and a PBCH field 719. Control signal 700 is merely an example and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, including the claims. A bit in each of fields 711 to 719 indicates whether the DL PRS has a higher priority than the corresponding reference signal and channel or the corresponding channel. Here, a value of 1 indicates that the DL PRS has a higher priority than the corresponding reference signal and / or channel, and a value of 0 indicates that the DL PRS has a lower priority than the corresponding reference signal and / or channel. An indication of a higher priority for a channel (e.g., a PBCH as indicated in field 719) may override an indication of a signal on that channel (e.g., a DMRS for the PBCH in field 713). Thus, even though the value of the DMRS field 713 for PBCH in this example is 0 (indicating that the PRS has a lower priority than the DMRS for PBCH), because the value of the PBCH field 719 is 1, in this example, the PRS has priority over all PBCH signaling, and therefore, in the event that the PRS collides with the DMRS for PBCH, the PRS, rather than the DMRS for PBCH, will be processed by the UE 500. In the example control signal 700 shown, all of the fields 711 to 719 correspond to a single reference signal and channel or a single channel, but a reference signal, a channel, or a combination of one or more reference signals and one or more channels may be implemented.

[0086] Multiple explicit indications may be provided to indicate the priority of processing the SRS for positioning, for example relative to one or more other reference signals and / or one or more channels. Figure 7BAs shown in , the control signal 750 includes four fields: a traditional SRS field 751, an SRS field 752 for communication, a PUSCH (physical uplink shared channel) field 753, and a PUCCH (physical uplink control channel) field 754. The control signal 750 is merely an example and is not a limitation of the present disclosure, including the claims. The bit in each of fields 751 to 754 indicates whether the SRS used for positioning has a higher priority processing than the corresponding reference signal or channel. Here, a value of 1 indicates that the SRS used for positioning has a higher processing priority than the corresponding reference signal or channel, and a value of 0 indicates that the SRS used for positioning has a lower processing priority than the corresponding reference signal or channel. In the example control signal 750 shown, all fields in fields 751 to 754 correspond to a single reference signal or a single channel, but a reference signal, a channel, or a combination of one or more reference signals and one or more channels may be implemented.

[0087] The UE 500 may determine a processing priority for an SRS used for positioning based on, for example, one or more explicit indications in the PRS configuration message 622. The processing priority for an SRS used for positioning includes a priority for generating an SRS used for positioning and / or transmitting it to the TRP 300. For example, prioritizing the transmission of an SRS used for positioning may include generating an SRS used for positioning and a legacy SRS and / or an SRS used for communication and transmitting only the SRS used for positioning, or generating only the SRS used for positioning and transmitting the SRS used for positioning. The message 622 may include one or more explicit indications that one or more SRS resources used for positioning and / or one or more SRS resource sets used for positioning are to be processed at a higher (or lower) priority than a legacy SRS or an SRS used for communication. A legacy SRS is an SRS used for positioning, but has a different definition (e.g., previously defined, i.e., before the current SRS used for positioning) and is given a lower priority than the (current) SRS used for positioning. The SRS used for communication is an SRS configured for one or more of various communication purposes (eg, beam management, UL codebook-based communication, UL non-codebook-based communication, antenna switching / DLCSI acquisition).

[0088] The prioritization unit 550 may be configured to determine a priority for PRS processing based on, for example, one or more implicit indications of priority contained in a PRS configuration message 622 received by the UE 500. For example, the UE 500 may be configured to analyze one or more information segments from the PRS configuration message 622 according to one or more rules (e.g., according to an industry standard) to determine a PRS processing priority. The UE 500 may be configured to locate one or more information segments from the PRS configuration message 622 in a lookup table of configuration information and PRS priorities to determine the PRS priority. For example, the UE 500 may be configured to use an indication of the type of information element in the PRS configuration message 622 to determine a processing priority for the PRS. The UE 500 may be configured to determine that PRS resources configured with information elements of a particular version (e.g., release) of an industry standard will have processing priority, e.g., over other channels (i.e., channels that do not carry PRS resources) that conflict with PRS resources of the particular version of the industry standard. The implicit indication of PRS priority may or may not be configurable, eg, permanently programmed into the UE 500 when the UE 500 is manufactured based on industry standards.

[0089] The prioritization unit 550 may be configured to prioritize PRS processing based on the timing behavior of the PRS. For example, the DL PRS may be transmitted by the TRP 300, and / or the UL PRS may be transmitted by the UE 500 aperiodically (e.g., on demand), semi-persistently, or periodically, and such timing behavior may be indicated in the PRS configuration message 622. The UE 500 may be configured to prioritize processing of the DL PRS (e.g., over data, CSI-RS, or control signaling) in response to the DL PRS being transmitted aperiodically (i.e., the DL PRS being configured as an aperiodic DL PRS). The UE 500 may be configured to prioritize the DL PRS over data, CSI-RS, or control signaling in the case where the DL PRS is transmitted semi-persistently or periodically (i.e., prioritize data, CSI-RS, and control signaling in the case where the DL PRS is transmitted semi-persistently or periodically). Similarly, the UE 500 may be configured to give a higher priority to a non-periodically transmitted UL PRS than to data and / or another type of signaling, and to give a lower priority to a semi-persistently or periodically transmitted UL PRS than to data and / or another type of signaling. The timing behavior may be related to the positioning technology to be implemented by the UE 500 using the PRS.

[0090] The prioritization unit 550 may be configured to prioritize PRS processing based on the positioning method to be used. For example, the UE 500 may be configured to determine the PRS processing priority based on what positioning method will be used to process the DL PRS and / or generate and / or transmit the SRS for positioning (e.g., the current positioning session type, and therefore, what type of positioning method the PRS and / or the SRS for positioning measurement will be used in). The UE 500 may be configured to determine the PRS processing priority based on whether the SRS for positioning is configured. The UE 500 may be configured to prioritize the PRS over other reference signals and / or channels in response to the SRS for positioning being configured and thus generated and transmitted as part of the selected positioning method. The UE 500 may be configured such that, for multi-RTT, whether the UE 500 gives higher priority to the PRS depends on whether the SRS for positioning has a higher priority than the legacy SRS, where the SRS for positioning and the legacy SRS have the same time domain behavior. Thus, the UE 500 may be configured to give the DL PRS a higher (lower) processing priority in response to the SRS for positioning having a higher (lower) priority (for processing and transmission) than the legacy SRS (where the SRS for positioning and the legacy SRS have the same time domain behavior (e.g., aperiodic, semi-persistent, or periodic).

[0091] The prioritization unit 550 may be configured to prioritize PRS processing based on the structure of the DL PRS. For example, the UE 500 may be configured to prioritize DL PRS and / or SRS used for positioning over one or more other signals and / or over one or more channels based on the structure of the positioning signal. For example, the UE 500 may be configured to limit the amount of PRS processing based on a threshold amount of processing of other reference signals, data, and / or control signaling. The UE 500 may be configured to limit PRS processing based on one or more threshold limits, for example, to help prevent PRS from dominating processing to the potential exclusion of other reference signals, data, and / or control information. For example, if a PRS resource spans 12 symbols within a slot and has a repetition of 32 and has a higher priority than PDSCH / PDCCH / CSI-RS, then for a sequence of 32 slots, the UE 500 may not be able to process any PDSCH / PDCCH / CSI-RS, which may be unacceptable. The UE 500 may, for example, be configured to provide an upper limit on the number of symbols per time slot that a PRS resource may contain and that has a processing priority (e.g., a higher priority than PDSCH / PDCCH / CSI-RS). The UE 500 may limit the number of symbols per time slot for PRS resources with processing priority to a threshold number of symbols per time slot. As another example, the UE 500 may limit the number of repetitions of PRS resources with processing priority to a threshold number of repetitions per instance. As another example, the UE 500 may require a threshold interval (e.g., a threshold minimum number of symbols) between consecutive repetitions of PRS resources with processing priority (e.g., a higher priority than PDSCH / PDCCH / CSI-RS). As another example, the UE 500 may prioritize the processing of PRS in response to the structure allowing the UE 500 to receive a threshold rate of other signaling (e.g., at least a threshold rate of data signaling and / or signals on one or more channels other than the channel used for PRS).

[0092] The prioritization unit 550 may be configured to determine the priority of DL PRS processing based on the search window for DL ​​PRS. Figure 8, the PRS configuration message 622 may include one or more parameters (e.g., higher layer parameters) defining the expected reception duration 810 of the DL PRS and a search window 820 around the expected reception duration 810. The search window 820 is a scheduled duration that exceeds (is longer than) the expected reception duration 810 of the DL PRS and includes reception time uncertainty. For example, the search window 820 may be defined by a DL-PRS-expectedRSTD-uncertainty parameter and an expectedRSTD parameter. The prioritization unit 550 may be configured to give the DL PRS a higher processing priority, e.g., higher than one or more other channels (i.e., not carrying the DL PRS) (such as the PDSCH) when the transmission time 830 overlaps with the expected reception duration 810 and the search window 820. The prioritization unit 550 may be configured to determine whether to give the DL PRS a higher priority over the entire search window 820 or over a subset of the search window 820 corresponding to the expected reception duration 810 of the DL PRS. Whether the UE 500 will give higher priority to the DL PRS over the entire search window 820 or only over its expected reception duration 810 is configurable, e.g., changeable based on control information received by the UE 500 via the interface 520 (e.g., received in MAC-CE or DCI signaling).

[0093] Reference again Figure 6 , and further reference Figures 1 to 5 At stage 640, UE 500 may process the PRS and other information in one or more ways according to the PRS priority determined at stage 630. For example, see also Figure 9, the UE 500 may be configured to skip (e.g., discard and / or ignore) processing of all information corresponding to a lower priority reference signal 910 or a lower priority channel communication 920 if such reference signal 910 or any portion of such communication 920 collides with a higher priority PRS 930 (e.g., a symbol of a higher priority PRS). For example, the UE 500 may skip processing of any information of an affected time slot (i.e., a time slot in which at least one symbol collides (e.g., an expected collision or an actual collision) with a higher priority PRS) of a PDSCH communication or processing of any portion of an affected resource set (i.e., a resource or resource set in which at least one symbol collides with a higher priority PRS) of an affected PRS resource or reference signal (such as a CSI-RS) . Additionally or alternatively, the UE 500 may be configured to not process (e.g., discard and / or ignore) only the portion 912 of the lower priority reference signal that collides with the higher priority PRS 930, or only the portion 922 of the lower priority channel communication that collides with the higher priority PRS 930, and process any non-colliding portion of the lower priority reference signal or lower priority channel communication. These alternatives may apply to multiple reference signals, multiple channels, or a combination of one or more reference signals and one or more channels. If the UE 500 is configured to process non-PRS according to any of these alternatives, the UE 500 may determine which alternative to implement based on control information received by the UE 500 via the interface 520 (e.g., included in MAC-CE or DCI signaling).

[0094] operate

[0095] refer to Figure 10 , and further reference Figures 1 to 9 , positioning reference signal prioritization method 1000 includes the stages shown. However, method 1000 is merely illustrative and not limiting. Method 1000 may be modified, for example, by adding, removing, rearranging, combining, performing stages simultaneously, and / or splitting a single stage into multiple stages.

[0096] At stage 1010, method 1000 includes determining whether to prioritize, by the UE, processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal or a priority reference channel, or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal. For example, UE 500 may be configured to determine whether to give a higher processing priority to a DLPRS signal and / or an SRS for positioning signals relative to another reference signal and / or relative to a channel, for example, by performing at least one of stages 1020, 1030, 1040, or 1050. That is, processor 510 may be configured to perform stage 1020, or stage 1030, or stage 1040, or stage 1050, or any combination thereof (e.g., configured to perform stage 1020 and stage 1040, or configured to perform stage 1030 and stage 1040 and stage 1050, etc.). Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530) may include means for determining whether to prioritize the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

[0097] At stage 1020, method 1000 may include determining whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal in the absence of a measurement gap, the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal, and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal different from the first downlink reference signal. For example, prioritization unit 550 may determine whether to give a DL PRS signal a higher or lower processing priority relative to another DL reference signal (which may or may not be a positioning reference signal) such as a DMRS, PTRS, CIS-RS, or RIM RS. Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530) may include means for determining whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0098] At stage 1030, method 1000 may include determining whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel in the absence of the measurement gap, wherein the priority reference channel comprises a downlink channel. For example, prioritization unit 550 may determine whether to process the DL PRS signal instead of processing signaling (e.g., measuring one or more signals) on a downlink channel (such as PDSCH, PDCCH, or PBCH). A priority reference channel is a channel relative to (with reference to) which a processing priority of the first reference signal may be determined and may convey various types of signals, such as reference signals, data signals, etc. Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530) may include means for determining whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0099] At stage 1040, method 1000 may include determining whether to transmit the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal, the first reference signal comprising a first uplink reference signal, the second reference signal comprising a second uplink reference signal different from the first uplink reference signal. For example, prioritization unit 550 may determine whether to give a higher or lower processing priority to an SRS used for positioning relative to another UL reference signal (which may or may not be a positioning reference signal), such as a legacy SRS or an SRS used for communication. Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530) may include means for determining whether to transmit the first uplink reference signal instead of the second reference signal.

[0100] At stage 1050, the method may include determining whether to transmit the first uplink reference signal instead of transmitting on the priority reference channel, wherein the priority reference channel comprises an uplink channel. For example, the prioritization unit 550 may determine whether to process an SRS for positioning signals instead of processing signaling (e.g., transmitting one or more signals) on an uplink channel (such as a PUSCH or PUCCH). The processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530) may include means for determining whether to transmit the first uplink reference signal instead of transmitting on the priority reference channel.

[0101] Implementations of method 1000 may include one or more of the following features. In an example embodiment, determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal may include determining whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference based on the timing behavior of the first reference signal. For example, the UE 500 may determine whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority based on whether the first reference signal is aperiodic, periodic, or semi-persistent. The first reference signal is a PRS and may be a UL PRS or a DL PRS. The processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530 and / or the interface 520) may include a component for determining whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority based on the timing behavior of the first reference signal. In another example embodiment, the method 1000 includes giving the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being aperiodic. For example, the UE 500 may give a higher processing priority to the first reference signal in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being aperiodic (e.g., instructing to process and / or process the first reference signal instead of another reference signal or (designated) channel, or instructing to process and / or process the first reference signal before another reference signal or (designated) channel). In another example embodiment, determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference may include at least one of the following: determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a first control communication received by the UE in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being semi-persistent; or determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a second control communication received by the UE in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being periodic. Thus, for example, if the timing behavior of the DL PRS is semi-persistent or periodic, the UE 500 may analyze one or more control signals to determine whether to give a higher priority to the DL PRS signal or the SRS used for positioning signals. Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530 , possibly in combination with interface 520 (eg, wireless receiver 244 and antenna 246 )) may include components for responding to the timing behavior of the first reference signal.

[0102] Additionally or alternatively, embodiments of method 1000 may include one or more of the following features. In an example embodiment, determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference includes determining, in response to the first reference signal being transmitted from a particular network entity, whether to prioritize processing of at least one of the following: a resource of the first reference signal, a resource set corresponding to the first reference signal, a frequency layer corresponding to the first reference signal, or any of the first reference signal. For example, processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with memory 530) may determine (and include means for determining) whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal at the resource, resource set, frequency layer, or network entity (e.g., TRP) level. In another example embodiment, method 1000 may include analyzing instructions in configuration information scheduling the first reference signal to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference. For example, UE 500 may analyze PRS configuration message 622 for one or more explicit or implicit indications of whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to one or more explicitly or implicitly indicated other reference signals or one or more channels. For example, the UE 500 may analyze one or more indications in the control signal 700 and / or the control signal 750 to determine a processing priority. The processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530) may include a component for analyzing the instruction. In another example embodiment, the instruction may include a plurality of priority instructions corresponding to a plurality of priority references, and analyzing the instruction may include a component for analyzing each of the plurality of priority instructions to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a corresponding one of the plurality of priority references, wherein each of the plurality of priority references includes at least one corresponding second reference signal different from the first reference signal, or at least one corresponding priority reference channel, or a combination thereof (e.g., another reference signal and a channel). For example, the UE 500 may analyze two or more indications in the control signal 700 and / or the control signal 750 to determine a processing priority. The processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530) may include a component for analyzing each of the plurality of priority instructions.

[0103] Additionally or alternatively, embodiments of method 1000 may include one or more of the following features. In an example embodiment, determining whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference may include determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a type of an information element of the first reference signal. For example, UE 500 may analyze PRS configuration message 622 to determine an information element type (e.g., 3GPP Release 17) and, based on the information element type (e.g., using a lookup table of information element type and prioritization), determine what priority (higher or lower) to give to the first reference signal and relative to what other reference signals and / or channels. Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530) may include means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on the type of the information element. In another example embodiment, determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference may be based on a timing configuration associated with a positioning procedure to be performed by the UE corresponding to the first reference signal. For example, the UE 500 may use the currently selected positioning method (e.g., as explicitly or implicitly selected by the server 400 or as selected by the processor 510) to determine processing prioritization. The server 400 may implicitly select a positioning method by, for example, indicating criteria such as location accuracy and / or timing of location determination, and the processor 510 may select a positioning method that meets the indicated criteria. The server 400 may implicitly select a positioning method by, for example, scheduling a particular type of DL PRS, and the processor 510 may select a positioning method based on the type of DL PRS. The timing configuration associated with the positioning method (e.g., periodic, semi-persistent, aperiodic) may be used by the UE 500 to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference. The processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with the memory 530) may include means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal based on the timing configuration associated with the positioning process to be performed. In another example embodiment, determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference may be based on whether the UE has received an instruction to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning. For example, UE 500 may give higher priority to PRS processing in response to having received an instruction to provide an SRS for positioning (e.g., such that UE 500 will prioritize PRS processing during the time when UE 500 will provide an SRS for positioning). Processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with memory 530) may include means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal based on whether the UE has received an instruction to provide an SRS for positioning.In another example embodiment, the method 1000 may include prioritizing processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference in response to an instruction instructing the UE to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning with a higher priority than a sounding reference signal for communication. For example, if the instruction instructs to process an SRS signal for positioning with a higher priority than an SRS signal for communication, the UE 500 may prioritize (e.g., instruct to process or process) the first reference signal (e.g., the SRS signal for positioning). The processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with the memory 530) may include means for prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to an instruction instructing the UE to provide a higher priority to the SRS signal for positioning than to the SRS signal for communication.

[0104] Additionally or alternatively, embodiments of method 1000 may include one or more of the following features. For example, determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference may be based on the structure of the first reference signal. For example, the UE 500 may determine whether to prioritize the first reference signal based on whether prioritizing the first reference signal would unacceptably prevent other signals from being processed given its structure. The processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530) may include means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal based on its structure. In another example embodiment, method 1000 may include prioritizing processing of the first reference signal in response to a threshold rate of other signaling permitted by the UE for reception by the UE. The threshold rate of other signaling may be, for example, the signaling content of one or more lower priority signals and / or one or more (lower priority) channels. The processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530) may include means for prioritizing processing of the first reference signal. In another example embodiment, the method 1000 may include prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference in response to the structure having fewer than a threshold number of symbols per time slot, or having fewer than a threshold number of repetitions per instance, or having at least a threshold gap (e.g., a minimum number of symbols) between consecutive repetitions. Thus, for example, if the structure of the first reference signal has fewer than a threshold number of symbols per time slot, or has fewer than a threshold number of repetitions per instance, or has at least a threshold gap between consecutive repetitions, the UE 500 may process the first reference signal instead of or before other signaling (e.g., determine a measurement value based on the first reference signal, derive a range based on the first reference signal, generate and / or transmit the first reference signal (for SRS used for positioning)).

[0105] Additionally or alternatively, embodiments of method 1000 may include one or more of the following features. In an example embodiment, the specific positioning reference signal may be a first downlink positioning reference signal, and method 1000 may include prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference within a search window spanning a first duration, the first duration exceeding a second duration scheduled for the first reference signal. For example, UE 500 may prioritize DL PRS for processing within search window 820, rather than only within expected reception duration 810. Processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with memory 530) may include means for prioritizing processing of the first reference signal. In another example embodiment, determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference within the first duration may be based on control information received by the UE. For example, the UE may prioritize processing of the DL PRS only within expected reception duration 810 or search window 820 based on instructions received by the UE. Processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with memory 530) may include means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal.

[0106] Additionally or alternatively, embodiments of method 1000 may include one or more of the following features. In an example embodiment, method 1000 may include reporting to a network entity the UE's ability to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference. For example, UE 500 may report to server 400 (or another network entity, such as TRP 300), for example, in a UE prioritization capability message 612, whether UE 500 supports PRS prioritization, and possibly how UE 500 supports PRS prioritization. Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530 and / or interface 520 (e.g., wireless transmitter 242 and antenna 246)) may include means for reporting the UE's ability to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference. In another example embodiment, method 1000 may include prioritizing processing of the first reference signal by skipping processing of any symbols of the second reference signal that conflict with a particular positioning reference signal or any symbols of the radio signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that conflict with the particular positioning reference signal, and processing any symbols of the second reference signal that do not conflict with the first reference signal or any symbols of the radio signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that do not conflict with the first reference signal. For example, processor 510 may discard or ignore any conflicting symbols of a signal of a lower priority reference signal or (lower priority) channel and process other (non-conflicting) symbols of the signal of the lower priority reference signal or (lower priority) channel (unless processing is not desired for another reason). Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530) may include means for skipping processing of the second reference signal and / or the radio signal corresponding to the priority reference channel and means for processing the second reference signal and / or the radio signal corresponding to the priority reference channel. In another example embodiment, method 1000 may include skipping processing of resources of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resources of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or skipping processing of a resource set of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resource set of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or skipping processing of a specific time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel in response to any symbol of the specific time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel colliding with any portion of the first reference signal. For example, processor 510 may skip processing (e.g., measuring or transmitting) of any portion of a resource or resource set of another (DL or UL) reference signal if the resource or resource set collides with a higher priority positioning reference signal, or skipping processing of any portion of a time slot of a signal corresponding to the priority reference channel if the resource or resource set collides with a higher priority positioning reference signal.Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530) may include components for skipping processing of resources for a second reference signal, components for skipping processing of a set of resources for a second reference signal, and / or components for processing a specific time slot of a wireless signal corresponding to a priority reference channel.

[0107] refer to Figure 11 , and further reference Figures 1 to 10 , positioning reference signal prioritization method 1100 includes the stages shown. However, method 1100 is merely an example and not limiting. Method 1100 can be modified, for example, by adding, removing, rearranging, combining, performing stages simultaneously, and / or splitting a single stage into multiple stages.

[0108] At stage 1110, method 1100 includes determining, at a server (e.g., LMF), whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference. For example, server 400 may determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference, for example, according to method 1000. As with method 1000, the first reference signal comprises a PRS, and the priority reference comprises a second reference signal and / or a priority reference channel. The priority reference channel may convey reference signals, data signals, communication signals, etc., and is therefore not limited to conveying or required to convey reference signals. Processor 410 (possibly in conjunction with memory 411, possibly in conjunction with transceiver 415 (e.g., wireless receiver 444 and antenna 446, and / or wired receiver 454) to obtain relevant information) may include components for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference (e.g., determining a processing priority of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference).

[0109] At stage 1120, method 1100 includes sending a priority indication from the server to the UE indicating whether processing of the first reference signal is prioritized relative to the priority reference. For example, processor 410 may send one or more messages to UE 500 via a transceiver (e.g., wireless transmitter 442 and antenna 446 and / or wired transmitter 452) indicating whether processing of the first reference signal is prioritized relative to the priority reference, as determined at stage 1110. The priority indication may indicate prioritization of the first reference signal or the priority reference and may indicate the conditions under which this is done. The priority indication may indicate different prioritizations corresponding to different conditions (e.g., different timing behaviors, different priority reference channels, different combinations of such conditions, etc.). Processor 410 may send one or more messages to UE 500 via a transceiver (which may include means for sending the priority indication to the UE) (e.g., wireless transmitter 442 and antenna 446 and / or wired transmitter 452).

[0110] Implementation Example

[0111] Examples of implementation are provided in the following numbered clauses:

[0112] 1. A user equipment (UE), comprising:

[0113] a transceiver comprising a receiver configured to wirelessly receive inbound communication signals from a network entity and a transmitter configured to wirelessly transmit outbound communication signals to the network entity;

[0114] Memory; and

[0115] a processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver, the processor configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal or a priority reference channel, or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal, and wherein to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor is at least one of:

[0116] configured to determine whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal without a measurement gap, the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal, and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal different from the first downlink reference signal; or

[0117] configured to determine whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel in the absence of the measurement gap, wherein the priority reference channel comprises a downlink channel; or

[0118] configured to determine whether to transmit the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal, the first reference signal comprising a first uplink reference signal, the second reference signal comprising a second uplink reference signal different from the first uplink reference signal; or

[0119] The method is configured to determine whether to transmit the first uplink reference signal instead of transmitting on the priority reference channel, wherein the priority reference channel comprises an uplink channel.

[0120] 2. A UE according to clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference based on a timing behavior of the first reference signal.

[0121] 3. A UE according to clause 2, wherein the processor is configured to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being aperiodic.

[0122] 4. A UE as described in clause 2, wherein the processor is at least one of:

[0123] configured to respond to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being semi-persistent by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a first control communication received via the transceiver; or

[0124] The timing behavior configured to respond to the first reference signal by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a second control communication received via the transceiver is periodic.

[0125] 5. A UE according to clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of at least one of the following in response to the first reference signal being transmitted from a specific network entity: resources of the first reference signal, or a resource set corresponding to the first reference signal, or a frequency layer corresponding to the first reference signal, or any of the first reference signal.

[0126] 6. The UE of clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to analyze instructions in configuration information scheduling the first reference signal to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

[0127] 7. A UE according to clause 6, wherein the instructions include a plurality of priority instructions corresponding to a plurality of priority references, and the processor is configured to analyze each of the plurality of priority instructions to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a corresponding one of the plurality of priority references, each of the plurality of priority references including at least one corresponding second reference signal different from the first reference signal, or at least one corresponding priority reference channel, or a combination thereof.

[0128] 8. A UE as recited in clause 1 , wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a type of information element of the first reference signal.

[0129] 9. A UE according to clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a timing configuration related to a positioning procedure corresponding to the first reference signal to be implemented by the processor.

[0130] 10. A UE as recited in clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on whether the processor has received an instruction to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning.

[0131] 11. A UE according to clause 10, wherein the processor is configured to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to an instruction instructing the processor to send a sounding reference signal for positioning with a higher priority than a sounding reference signal for communication.

[0132] 12. A UE as recited in clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a structure of the first reference signal.

[0133] 13. A UE as recited in clause 12, wherein the processor is configured to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure allowing a threshold rate of reception of other signaling by the UE.

[0134] 14. A UE as recited in clause 12, wherein the processor is configured to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure having fewer than a threshold number of symbols per slot.

[0135] 15. The UE of clause 12, wherein the processor is configured to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure having less than a threshold number of repetitions per instance.

[0136] 16. A UE as recited in clause 12, wherein the processor is configured to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure having at least a threshold gap between consecutive repetitions.

[0137] 17. A UE according to clause 1, wherein the first reference signal is a first downlink reference signal, and wherein the processor is configured to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference within a search window spanning a first duration, the first duration exceeding a second duration scheduled for the first reference signal.

[0138] 18. A UE as recited in clause 17, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference for the first duration based on control information received by the transceiver.

[0139] 19. A UE as recited in clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to report, via the transceiver, the UE's ability to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference.

[0140] 20. A UE according to clause 1, wherein, in order to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor is configured to skip processing of any symbol of the second reference signal that conflicts with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that conflicts with the first reference signal, and process any symbol of the second reference signal that does not conflict with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that does not conflict with the first reference signal.

[0141] 21. The UE of clause 1, wherein to prioritize processing of the first reference signal, the processor is at least one of:

[0142] configured to skip processing of the resources of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resources of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or

[0143] configured to skip processing of the set of resources for the second reference signal in response to any portion of the set of resources for the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or

[0144] The method is configured to skip processing of a specific time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel in response to any symbol of the specific time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel colliding with any portion of the first reference signal.

[0145] 22. A user equipment (UE), comprising:

[0146] a transceiver comprising a receiver configured to wirelessly receive inbound communication signals from a network entity and a transmitter configured to wirelessly transmit outbound communication signals to the network entity;

[0147] means for determining whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal or a priority reference channel, or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal, and wherein the means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference comprises at least one of:

[0148] means for determining whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal in the absence of a measurement gap, the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal, and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal different from the first downlink reference signal; or

[0149] means for determining whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel in the absence of the measurement gap, wherein the priority reference channel comprises a downlink channel; or

[0150] means for determining whether to transmit the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal, the first reference signal comprising a first uplink reference signal, the second reference signal comprising a second uplink reference signal different from the first uplink reference signal; or

[0151] Means for determining whether to transmit the first uplink reference signal instead of transmitting on the priority reference channel, wherein the priority reference channel comprises an uplink channel.

[0152] 23. A UE according to clause 22, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference based on a timing behavior of the first reference signal.

[0153] 24. A UE as recited in clause 23, wherein the UE comprises means for giving the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being aperiodic.

[0154] 25. A UE as described in clause 23, wherein the UE comprises at least one of:

[0155] means for responding to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being semi-persistent by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a first control communication received via the transceiver; or

[0156] Means for responding to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being periodic by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a second control communication received via the transceiver.

[0157] 26. A UE according to clause 22, wherein the UE includes a component for determining whether to prioritize processing of at least one of the following in response to the first reference signal being transmitted from a specific network entity: resources of the first reference signal, or a resource set corresponding to the first reference signal, or a frequency layer corresponding to the first reference signal, or any of the first reference signal.

[0158] 27. A UE as recited in clause 22, wherein the UE comprises means for analyzing instructions in configuration information scheduling the first reference signal to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

[0159] 28. A UE according to clause 27, wherein the instructions include multiple priority instructions corresponding to multiple priority references, and the UE includes a component for analyzing each of the multiple priority instructions to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a corresponding one of the multiple priority references, each of the multiple priority references including at least one corresponding second reference signal different from the first reference signal, or at least one corresponding priority reference channel, or a combination thereof.

[0160] 29. A UE as recited in clause 22, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a type of information element of the first reference signal.

[0161] 30. A UE according to clause 22, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a timing configuration associated with a positioning procedure corresponding to the first reference signal to be performed by positioning means of the UE.

[0162] 31. A UE as recited in clause 22, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on whether the UE has received an instruction to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning.

[0163] 32. A UE as described in clause 31, wherein the UE comprises means for prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to an instruction instructing the UE to send sounding reference signals for positioning with higher priority than sounding reference signals for communication.

[0164] 33. A UE as recited in clause 22, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a structure of the first reference signal.

[0165] 34. A UE as set forth in clause 33, wherein the UE comprises means for prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure allowing a threshold rate of reception of other signaling by the UE.

[0166] 35. A UE as recited in clause 33, wherein the UE comprises means for prioritizing processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference in response to a structure having fewer than a threshold number of symbols per slot.

[0167] 36. The UE of clause 33, wherein the UE comprises means for prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure having less than a threshold number of repetitions per instance.

[0168] 37. A UE as recited in clause 33, wherein the UE comprises means for prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure having at least a threshold gap between consecutive repetitions.

[0169] 38. A UE according to clause 22, wherein the first reference signal is a first downlink reference signal, and wherein the UE comprises means for prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference within a search window spanning a first duration, the first duration exceeding a second duration scheduled for the first reference signal.

[0170] 39. A UE as recited in clause 38, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference for the first duration based on control information received by the transceiver.

[0171] 40. A UE as recited in clause 22, wherein the UE comprises means for reporting, via a transceiver, an ability of the UE to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference.

[0172] 41. A UE according to clause 22, wherein the UE includes a component for skipping processing of any symbol of the second reference signal that conflicts with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that conflicts with the first reference signal, and a component for processing any symbol of the second reference signal that does not conflict with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that does not conflict with the first reference signal.

[0173] 42. A UE as described in clause 22, wherein the UE comprises at least one of:

[0174] means for skipping processing of the resources of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resources of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or

[0175] means for skipping processing of the resource set of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resource set of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or

[0176] Means for skipping processing of a particular time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel in response to any symbol of the particular time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel colliding with any portion of the first reference signal.

[0177] 43. A method comprising:

[0178] Determining whether to prioritize, by a UE (user equipment), processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal or a priority reference channel or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal, and wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference comprises at least one of:

[0179] determining whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal without a measurement gap, the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal, and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal different from the first downlink reference signal; or

[0180] determining whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel in the absence of the measurement gap, wherein the priority reference channel comprises a downlink channel; or

[0181] determining whether to transmit the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal, the first reference signal comprising a first uplink reference signal, the second reference signal comprising a second uplink reference signal different from the first uplink reference signal; or

[0182] A determination is made whether to transmit the first uplink reference signal instead of transmitting on the priority reference channel, wherein the priority reference channel comprises an uplink channel.

[0183] 44. The method of clause 43, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal comprises determining whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference based on a timing behavior of the first reference signal.

[0184] 45. The method of clause 44, wherein the method comprises giving the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being aperiodic.

[0185] 46. ​​The method of clause 44, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference comprises at least one of:

[0186] in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being semi-persistent by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a first control communication received by the UE; or

[0187] The timing behavior in response to the first reference signal is periodic by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a second control communication received by the UE.

[0188] 47. A method according to clause 43, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference includes determining whether to prioritize processing of at least one of the following in response to the first reference signal being transmitted from a particular network entity: resources of the first reference signal, or a set of resources corresponding to the first reference signal, or a frequency layer corresponding to the first reference signal, or any of the first reference signal.

[0189] 48. A method according to clause 43, wherein the method comprises analyzing instructions in configuration information scheduling the first reference signal to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

[0190] 49. A method according to clause 48, wherein the instructions include multiple priority instructions corresponding to multiple priority references, and analyzing the instructions includes analyzing each of the multiple priority instructions to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a corresponding one of the multiple priority references, each of the multiple priority references including at least one corresponding second reference signal different from the first reference signal, or at least one corresponding priority reference channel, or a combination thereof.

[0191] 50. The method of clause 43, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference comprises determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a type of information element of the first reference signal.

[0192] 51. A method according to clause 43, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference comprises determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a timing configuration associated with a positioning procedure corresponding to the first reference signal to be implemented by the UE.

[0193] 52. A method according to clause 43, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference includes determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on whether the UE has received an instruction to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning.

[0194] 53. The method of clause 52, further comprising prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the instruction instructing the UE to transmit a sounding reference signal for positioning at a higher priority than a sounding reference signal for communication.

[0195] 54. The method of clause 43, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference comprises determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a structure of the first reference signal.

[0196] 55. A method as recited in clause 54, further comprising prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure allowing a threshold rate of reception of other signaling by the UE.

[0197] 56. The method of clause 54, further comprising prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure having fewer than a threshold number of symbols per time slot.

[0198] 57. The method of clause 54, further comprising prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure having fewer than a threshold number of repetitions per instance.

[0199] 58. The method of clause 54, further comprising prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the structure having at least a threshold gap between consecutive repetitions.

[0200] 59. A method according to clause 43, wherein the first reference signal is a first downlink reference signal, the method further comprising prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference within a search window spanning a first duration, the first duration exceeding a second duration scheduled for the first reference signal.

[0201] 60. A method as described in clause 59, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference comprises determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference for the first time duration based on control information received by the UE.

[0202] 61. A method as described in clause 43, further comprising reporting to a network entity the ability of the UE to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

[0203] 62. The method according to clause 43 also includes prioritizing processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference by skipping processing of any symbol of the second reference signal that conflicts with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that conflicts with the first reference signal, and processing any symbol of the second reference signal that does not conflict with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that does not conflict with the first reference signal.

[0204] 63. The method according to clause 43, further comprising:

[0205] skipping processing of the resources of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resources of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or

[0206] skipping processing of the resource set of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resource set of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or

[0207] Processing of a particular time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel is skipped in response to any symbol of the particular time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel colliding with any portion of the first reference signal.

[0208] 64. A non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions, the processor-readable instructions causing a processor of a user equipment (UE) to:

[0209] determining whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal or a priority reference channel or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal, and wherein to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor-readable instructions comprise at least one of:

[0210] processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal without a measurement gap, the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal, and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal different from the first downlink reference signal; or

[0211] processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel in the absence of the measurement gap, wherein the priority reference channel comprises a downlink channel; or

[0212] processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to transmit the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal, the first reference signal comprising a first uplink reference signal, the second reference signal comprising a second uplink reference signal different from the first uplink reference signal; or

[0213] Processor-readable instructions cause the processor to determine whether to transmit the first uplink reference signal instead of transmitting on the priority reference channel, wherein the priority reference channel comprises an uplink channel.

[0214] 65. A storage medium according to clause 64, wherein, in order to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal, the processor-readable instructions include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference based on the timing behavior of the first reference signal.

[0215] 66. The storage medium of clause 65, wherein the storage medium comprises processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being aperiodic.

[0216] 67. The storage medium of clause 65, wherein to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor-readable medium comprises at least one of:

[0217] processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to respond to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being semi-persistent by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a first control communication received by the UE; or

[0218] Processor-readable instructions cause the processor to respond to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being periodic by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a first control communication received by the UE.

[0219] 68. A storage medium according to clause 64, wherein, in order to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor-readable instructions include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine, in response to the first reference signal being transmitted from a particular network entity, whether to prioritize processing of at least one of the following: resources of the first reference signal, or a set of resources corresponding to the first reference signal, or a frequency layer corresponding to the first reference signal, or any of the first reference signal.

[0220] 69. The storage medium of clause 64, wherein the processor-readable instructions comprise processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to analyze instructions in configuration information scheduling the first reference signal to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

[0221] 70. A storage medium according to clause 69, wherein the priority instructions include a plurality of priority instructions corresponding to a plurality of priority references, and the processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to analyze the priority instructions include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to analyze each of the plurality of priority instructions to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a corresponding one of the plurality of priority references, each of the plurality of priority references including at least one corresponding second reference signal that is different from the first reference signal, or at least one corresponding priority reference channel, or a combination thereof.

[0222] 71. A storage medium according to clause 64, wherein, in order to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor-readable instructions include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on the type of information element of the first reference signal.

[0223] 72. A storage medium according to clause 64, wherein, in order to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor-readable instructions include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a timing configuration associated with a positioning process corresponding to the first reference signal to be implemented by the UE.

[0224] 73. A storage medium according to clause 64, wherein, in order to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor-readable instructions include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on whether the UE has received positioning instructions to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning.

[0225] 74. A storage medium according to clause 73, wherein the storage medium includes processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to the positioning instruction instructing the UE to send a sounding reference signal for positioning with a higher priority than a sounding reference signal for communication.

[0226] 75. A storage medium according to clause 64, wherein, in order to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor-readable instructions include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on the structure of the first reference signal.

[0227] 76. The storage medium of clause 75, wherein the storage medium comprises processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference in response to a threshold rate of reception of other signaling by the UE being structured to be permitted.

[0228] 77. The storage medium of clause 75, wherein the storage medium comprises processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference in response to a structure having fewer than a threshold number of symbols per time slot.

[0229] 78. The storage medium of clause 75, wherein the storage medium comprises processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference in response to a structure having fewer than a threshold number of repetitions per time slot.

[0230] 79. The storage medium of clause 75, wherein the storage medium comprises processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference in response to a structure having at least a threshold gap between consecutive repetitions.

[0231] 80. A storage medium according to clause 64, wherein the first reference signal is a first downlink reference signal, and wherein the storage medium includes processor-readable instructions for causing the processor to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a priority reference within a search window spanning a first duration, the first duration exceeding a second duration scheduled for the first reference signal.

[0232] 81. A storage medium according to clause 80, wherein, in order to determine whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, the processor-readable instructions include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to determine whether to prioritize processing of a specific first signal relative to a priority reference within a first duration based on control information received by the UE.

[0233] 82. The storage medium of clause 64, wherein the storage medium comprises processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to report to a network entity an ability of the UE to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference.

[0234] 83. A storage medium according to clause 64, wherein the storage medium includes processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference by skipping processing of any symbols of the second reference signal that conflict with the first reference signal, or any symbols of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that conflict with the first reference signal, and processing any symbols of the second reference signal that do not conflict with the first reference signal, or any symbols of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that do not conflict with the first reference signal.

[0235] 84. The storage medium of clause 64, wherein the storage medium comprises at least one of:

[0236] processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to skip processing of any portion of the resource of the second reference signal in response to the resource colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or

[0237] processor-readable instructions that cause the processor to skip processing of the set of resources of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the set of resources of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or

[0238] Processor-readable instructions causing the processor to skip processing of a particular time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel in response to any symbol of the particular time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel colliding with any portion of the first reference signal.

[0239] Other considerations

[0240] Other examples and implementations are within the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software and computers, the functions described above may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or any combination thereof. Features implementing the functions may also be physically located in a variety of locations, including being distributed so that portions of the functions are implemented at different physical locations.

[0241] As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. As used herein, the terms "comprises," "comprising," "includes," and / or "including" specify the presence of recited features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0242] As used herein, the term RS (reference signal) may refer to one or more reference signals and may be applied to any form of RS, such as PRS, SRS, CSI-RS, etc., where appropriate.

[0243] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, a statement that a function or operation is "based on" an item or condition means that the function or operation is based on the stated item or condition, and may be based on one or more items and / or conditions in addition to the stated item or condition.

[0244] Furthermore, as used herein, “or” as used in a list of items (which may end with “at least one of” or with “one or more of”) indicates a delimited list, so that, for example, a list of “at least one of A, B, or C” or a list of “one or more of A, B, or C” or a list of “A or B or C” means A, or B, or C, or AB (A and B), or AC (A and C), or BC (B and C), or ABC (i.e., A and B and C), or a combination of more than one feature (e.g., AA, AAB, ABBC, etc.). Thus, a statement that an item (e.g., a processor) is configured to perform a function with respect to at least one of A or B, or a statement that an item is configured to perform function A or function B means that the item can be configured to perform the function with respect to A, or can be configured to perform the function with respect to B, or can be configured to perform the functions with respect to both A and B. For example, the phrase “the processor is configured to measure at least one of A or B” or “the processor is configured to measure A or measure B” means that the processor may be configured to measure A (and may or may not be configured to measure B), or may be configured to measure B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or may be configured to measure A and measure B (and may be configured to select which one or both of A and B to measure). Similarly, a statement about a component for measuring at least one of A or B includes a component for measuring A (which may or may not be able to measure B), or a component for measuring B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or a component for measuring A and B (which may be able to select which one or both of A and B to measure). As another example, a statement about an item (e.g., a processor) being configured to perform at least one of function X or function Y means that the item may be configured to perform function X, or may be configured to perform function Y, or may be configured to perform function X and function Y. For example, the phrase “the processor is configured to perform at least one of measurement X or measurement Y” means that the processor may be configured to measure X (and may or may not be configured to measure Y), or may be configured to measure Y (and may or may not be configured to measure X), or may be configured to measure both X and Y (and may be configured to select which one or both of X and Y to measure).

[0245] Substantial changes can be made according to specific needs. For example, customized hardware can also be used, and / or specific elements can be implemented in hardware, software (including portable software, such as applets) or both executed by a processor. In addition, connections with other computing devices such as network input / output devices can be adopted. Unless otherwise stated, functional or other components shown in the drawings and / or discussed in this article as being connected or communicating with each other can be communicatively coupled. That is, they can be connected directly or indirectly to achieve communication between them.

[0246] The systems and devices discussed above are examples. Various configurations may omit, substitute, or add various programs or components as appropriate. For example, features described with respect to certain configurations may be combined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elements of the configurations may be combined in similar ways. Furthermore, technology is constantly evolving, and therefore many of the elements are examples and do not limit the scope of this disclosure or the claims.

[0247] A wireless communication system is a system in which communications are conveyed wirelessly (i.e., by electromagnetic and / or acoustic waves propagating through airspace, rather than through wires or other physical connections). A wireless communication network may not cause all communications to be sent wirelessly, but is configured to cause at least some communications to be sent wirelessly. Furthermore, the term "wireless communication device" or similar terms does not require that the functionality of the device be dedicated to communication or uniformly used primarily for communication, or that the device be a mobile device, but rather indicates that the device includes wireless communication capabilities (unidirectional or bidirectional), for example, including at least one radio unit for wireless communication (each radio unit is part of a transmitter, receiver, or transceiver).

[0248] Specific details are given in the description to provide a thorough understanding of the exemplary configurations including the embodiments. However, the configurations can be practiced without these specific details. For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques have been shown without unnecessary detail to avoid obscuring the configurations. This description provides only exemplary configurations and does not limit the scope, practicality, or configurations of the claims. Rather, the previous description of the configurations provides a description for implementing the described techniques. Various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements.

[0249] As used herein, the terms "processor-readable medium," "machine-readable medium," and "computer-readable medium" refer to any medium that participates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in a particular manner. Using a computing platform, various processor-readable media can participate in providing instructions / code for execution to a processor, and / or can be used to store and / or carry such instructions / code (e.g., as signals). In many embodiments, a processor-readable medium is a physical and / or tangible storage medium. Such media can take many forms, including but not limited to non-volatile media and volatile media. For example, non-volatile media include optical disks and / or magnetic disks. Volatile media include but are not limited to dynamic memory.

[0250] Having described several exemplary configurations, various modifications, alternative configurations, and equivalents may be used. For example, the above elements may be components of a larger system, wherein other rules may take precedence over or otherwise modify the application of the present invention. Furthermore, several operations may be performed before, during, or after consideration of the above elements. Therefore, the above description does not limit the scope of the claims.

[0251] A statement that a value exceeds (is greater than or higher than) a first threshold is equivalent to a statement that the value meets or exceeds a second threshold that is slightly greater than the first threshold, e.g., at the resolution of the computing system, the second threshold is a value that is higher than the first threshold. A statement that a value is less than (or within or below) a first threshold is equivalent to a statement that the value is less than or equal to a second threshold that is slightly lower than the first threshold, e.g., at the resolution of the computing system, the second threshold is a value that is lower than the first threshold.

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE), comprising: a transceiver comprising a receiver configured to wirelessly receive inbound communication signals from a network entity and a transmitter configured to wirelessly transmit outbound communication signals to the network entity; Memory; as well as a processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver, the processor configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal, a priority reference channel, or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal, and the processor configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on at least one of: determining whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal outside a measurement gap based on the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal that is different from the first downlink reference signal and has a different priority than the first downlink reference signal; or determining whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel outside the measurement gap based on the priority reference channel including a downlink channel having a different priority than the first downlink reference signal; as well as The processor is configured to indicate, by the UE, a capability of the UE to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference. 2 . The UE of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference based on a timing behavior of the first reference signal. 3 . The UE of claim 2 , wherein the processor is configured to give a higher processing priority to the first reference signal than to the priority reference in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being aperiodic.

4. The UE according to claim 2, wherein the processor is at least one of the following: configured to respond to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being semi-persistent by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a first control communication received via the transceiver; or The timing behavior configured to respond to the first reference signal by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a second control communication received via the transceiver is periodic.

5. The UE of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of at least one of the following in response to the first reference signal being sent from a specific network entity: a resource of the first reference signal, or a resource set corresponding to the first reference signal, or a frequency layer corresponding to the first reference signal, or any of the first reference signal. 6 . The UE of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to analyze instructions in configuration information scheduling the first reference signal to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

7. The UE of claim 6 , wherein the instructions include a plurality of priority instructions corresponding to a plurality of priority references, and the processor is configured to analyze each of the plurality of priority instructions to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a corresponding one of the plurality of priority references, each of the plurality of priority references including at least one corresponding second reference signal different from the first reference signal, or at least one corresponding priority reference channel, or a combination thereof.

8. The UE of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a timing configuration associated with a positioning procedure corresponding to the first reference signal to be implemented by the processor.

9. The UE of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on whether the processor has received an instruction to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning.

10. The UE of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a structure of the first reference signal.

11. The UE of claim 1 , wherein, in order to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference, the processor is configured to skip processing of any symbol of the second reference signal that conflicts with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that conflicts with the first reference signal, and to process any symbol of the second reference signal that does not conflict with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that does not conflict with the first reference signal.

12. The UE of claim 1 , wherein to prioritize processing of the first reference signal, the processor is at least one of: configured to skip processing of the resources of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resources of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or configured to skip processing of the set of resources of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the set of resources of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or The method is configured to skip processing of a specific time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel in response to any symbol of the specific time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel colliding with any portion of the first reference signal.

13. The UE according to claim 1, wherein: The processor is configured to indicate to the network entity a capability of the UE to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

14. A user equipment (UE), comprising: a transceiver comprising a receiver configured to wirelessly receive inbound communication signals from a network entity and a transmitter configured to wirelessly transmit outbound communication signals to the network entity; means for determining whether to prioritize processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal, a priority reference channel, or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal, the determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference being based on at least one of: determining whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal outside a measurement gap based on the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal that is different from the first downlink reference signal and has a different priority than the first downlink reference signal; or determining whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel outside the measurement gap based on the priority reference channel including a downlink channel having a different priority than the first downlink reference signal; as well as means for indicating, by the UE, an ability of the UE to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

15. The UE of claim 14, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference based on a timing behavior of the first reference signal.

16. The UE of claim 15, wherein the UE comprises means for giving the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference in response to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being aperiodic.

17. The UE according to claim 15, wherein the UE comprises at least one of the following: means for responding to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being semi-persistent by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a first control communication received via the transceiver; or Means for responding to the timing behavior of the first reference signal being periodic by determining whether to give processing priority to the first reference signal based on a second control communication received via the transceiver.

18. The UE according to claim 14, wherein the UE includes a component for determining whether to prioritize processing of at least one of the following in response to the first reference signal being sent from a specific network entity: resources of the first reference signal, or a resource set corresponding to the first reference signal, or a frequency layer corresponding to the first reference signal, or any of the first reference signal.

19. The UE of claim 14, wherein the UE comprises means for analyzing instructions in configuration information scheduling the first reference signal to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

20. The UE of claim 19, wherein the instructions include a plurality of priority instructions corresponding to a plurality of priority references, and the UE includes a component for analyzing each of the plurality of priority instructions to determine whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to a corresponding one of the plurality of priority references, each of the plurality of priority references including at least one corresponding second reference signal different from the first reference signal, or at least one corresponding priority reference channel, or a combination thereof.

21. The UE of claim 14, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a timing configuration associated with a positioning procedure corresponding to the first reference signal to be implemented by a positioning means of the UE.

22. The UE of claim 14, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on whether the UE has received an instruction to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning.

23. The UE of claim 14, wherein the UE comprises means for determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on a structure of the first reference signal.

24. The UE according to claim 14, wherein the UE includes a component for skipping processing of any symbol of the second reference signal that conflicts with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that conflicts with the first reference signal, and a component for processing any symbol of the second reference signal that does not conflict with the first reference signal, or any symbol of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel that does not conflict with the first reference signal.

25. The UE according to claim 14, wherein the UE comprises at least one of the following: means for skipping processing of the resources of the second reference signal in response to any portion of the resources of the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or means for skipping processing of the set of resources for the second reference signal in response to any portion of the set of resources for the second reference signal colliding with any portion of the first reference signal; or Means for skipping processing of a particular time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel in response to any symbol of the particular time slot of the wireless signal corresponding to the priority reference channel colliding with any portion of the first reference signal.

26. The UE according to claim 14, wherein: The UE comprises means for indicating to the network entity a capability of the UE to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

27. A method at a user equipment (UE), comprising: and determining whether to prioritize, by the UE, processing of a first reference signal relative to a priority reference, wherein the priority reference comprises a second reference signal, a priority reference channel, or a combination thereof, wherein the first reference signal comprises a positioning reference signal, the determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference being based on at least one of: determining whether to measure the first reference signal instead of the second reference signal outside a measurement gap based on the first reference signal comprising a first downlink reference signal and the second reference signal comprising a second downlink reference signal that is different from the first downlink reference signal and has a different priority than the first downlink reference signal; or determining whether to measure the first downlink reference signal instead of the priority reference channel outside the measurement gap based on the priority reference channel including a downlink channel having a different priority than the first downlink reference signal; as well as An ability of the UE to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference is indicated by the UE.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal comprises determining whether to give the first reference signal a higher processing priority than the priority reference based on a timing behavior of the first reference signal.

29. A method according to claim 27, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference includes determining whether to prioritize processing of at least one of the following in response to the first reference signal being transmitted from a particular network entity: resources of the first reference signal, or a resource set corresponding to the first reference signal, or a frequency layer corresponding to the first reference signal, or any of the first reference signal.

30. The method of claim 27, wherein determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference comprises determining whether to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference based on whether the UE has received an instruction to provide a sounding reference signal for positioning.

31. The method of claim 27, wherein: The method also includes indicating to a network entity a capability of the UE to prioritize processing of the first reference signal relative to the priority reference.

32. A non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions, the processor-readable instructions causing a processor of a user equipment (UE) to execute the method according to any one of claims 27 to 31.

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