Lower layer positioning measurement report

Abstract

A method of transmitting measurement information from a user equipment includes measuring a reference signal, generating a measurement report payload based on the measurement of the reference signal, encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) encoding and according to a lower layer protocol to generate an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol, and transmitting a lower layer message from the user equipment to a network entity based on the encoded payload.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims the benefit of Indian Patent Application No. 202041038019, filed on September 3, 2020, entitled “LOW-LAYER POSITIONING MEASUREMENT REPORTING,” which application is assigned to the assignee of this application, and the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.

[0003] background

[0004] Wireless communication systems have evolved over several generations, including first-generation analog wireless telephone service (1G), second-generation (2G) digital wireless telephone service (including transitional 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third-generation (3G) high-speed data wireless service with Internet capabilities, fourth-generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax), fifth-generation (5G) services, and the like. Currently, there are many different types of wireless communication systems in use, including cellular and personal communications service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include the cellular analog Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Access (GSM) TDMA variants, and the like.

[0005] The fifth generation (5G) mobile standard requires higher data transmission speeds, a greater number of connections and better coverage, among other improvements. According to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, the 5G standard is designed to provide data rates of tens of megabits per second to each of thousands of users and 1 gigabit per second to dozens of employees on an office floor. Hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections should be supported to support large sensor deployments. Therefore, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly improved compared to the current 4G standard. In addition, signaling efficiency should be improved and latency should be significantly reduced compared to the current standard. These advances, as well as the use of higher frequency bands, advances in positioning reference signal procedures and technologies, and high-density deployment of 5G, make highly accurate 5G-based position estimates possible.

[0006] Overview

[0007] An example user equipment includes: a transceiver; a memory; and a processor communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory, the processor configured to: measure a reference signal received by the transceiver; generate a measurement report payload based on the measurement of the reference signal; encode the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) and according to a lower layer protocol to generate an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol; and send a lower layer message to a network entity via the transceiver based on the encoded payload.

[0008] Another example user equipment includes: a device for measuring a reference signal; a device for generating a measurement report payload based on a measurement of the reference signal; a device for encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) and according to a lower layer protocol to generate an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol; and a device for sending a lower layer message to a network entity based on the encoded payload.

[0009] An example method for sending measurement information from a user equipment includes: measuring a reference signal; generating a measurement report payload based on measurement of the reference signal; encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) encoding and according to a lower layer protocol to generate an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol; and sending a lower layer message from the user equipment to a network entity based on the encoded payload.

[0010] An example non-transitory processor-readable storage medium including processor-readable instructions configured to cause a processor of a user equipment to perform the following operations for sending measurement information: measuring a reference signal; generating a measurement report payload based on the measurement of the reference signal; encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) and according to a lower layer protocol to generate an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol; and sending a lower layer message from the user equipment to a network entity based on the encoded payload. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] Figure 1 is a simplified diagram of an example wireless communication system.

[0013] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A block diagram of components of an example user equipment is shown in FIG.

[0014] Figure 3is a block diagram of components of an example transmit / receive point.

[0015] Figure 4 is a block diagram of the components of an example server, various embodiments of which are described in Figure 1 Shown in.

[0016] Figure 5 is a block diagram of an example user equipment.

[0017] Figure 6 It is a diagram of the protocol stack of user equipment and base station.

[0018] Figure 7 yes Figure 5 Block diagram of the inputs and outputs of the measurement reporting unit shown in .

[0019] Figure 8 is an illustration of a two-part measurement report.

[0020] Figure 9 is a block diagram of the measurement payload divided between two messages.

[0021] Figure 10 is a block diagram of a measurement message with a payload stripped of some measurement information.

[0022] Figure 11 A block diagram of a message payload having separate portions corresponding to separate messages.

[0023] Figure 12 is a block diagram of messages that are separated in time to avoid collisions.

[0024] Figure 13 is a block diagram of a message having a jointly encoded payload portion.

[0025] Figure 14 is a block diagram of a lower layer message containing some measurement information and an upper layer message containing other measurement information corresponding to the lower layer message.

[0026] Figure 15 It is the processing and signal flow used to determine positioning information.

[0027] Figure 16 is a flow chart of a method for sending measurement information from a user equipment.

[0028] Detailed description

[0029] This document discusses techniques for transmitting measurement reports regarding measured reference signals. For example, reference signals (such as positioning reference signals) can be measured to determine measurement information. The measurement information can be encoded by an ASN.1 encoder into the payload of a lower-layer message (e.g., a physical layer message or a MAC layer message). Various implementations can be used to facilitate or implement the sending and receiving of the payload. For example, a fixed-length portion of a message can indicate the length of a variable-length payload and possibly the fields of data contained in the payload. As another example, the payload can be divided among multiple messages and / or some information can be removed to meet size constraints. As another example, to avoid conflicts with another message, a lower-layer message can be concatenated with the other message, the transmission timing of one or both messages can be adjusted, or the measurement information and information from the other message can be jointly encoded into the lower-layer message. As another example, some measurement information can be provided in a lower-layer message, while other information can be provided in an upper-layer (e.g., RRC layer) message. However, other examples are possible.

[0030] The items and / or techniques described herein may provide one or more of the following capabilities, as well as other capabilities not mentioned. Latency based on measurement reports may be reduced, for example, by avoiding processing of measurement reports by one or more higher protocol stack layers (above the MAC layer). Greater flexibility may be provided for lower layer measurement report messages than previously available for lower layer messages. Lower layer message payloads of variable length may be accommodated. Other capabilities may be provided, and not every implementation according to the present disclosure necessarily provides any of the capabilities discussed, let alone all of them.

[0031] Obtaining the location of a mobile device accessing a wireless network can be useful for many applications, including, for example, emergency calling, personal navigation, consumer asset tracking, locating friends or family members, and the like. Existing positioning methods include those based on measuring radio signals transmitted from various devices or entities, including satellite vehicles (SVs) and terrestrial radio sources in wireless networks, such as base stations and access points. It is expected that standardization for 5G wireless networks will include support for various positioning methods that can utilize reference signals transmitted by base stations for positioning determination in a manner similar to how LTE wireless networks currently utilize positioning reference signals (PRS) and / or cell-specific reference signals (CRS).

[0032] The description may recite a sequence of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. Each action described herein can be performed by a dedicated circuit (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions being executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of the two. The sequence of actions described herein may be implemented 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. Thus, the various aspects described herein may be implemented in a number of different forms, all of which fall within the scope of the present disclosure, including the claimed subject matter.

[0033] As used herein, the terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not dedicated to or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT), unless otherwise specified. In general, such a UE can be any wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a consumer asset tracking device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.) used by a user to communicate on a wireless communication network. A 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," "mobile device," 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 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 (eg, based on IEEE 802.11, etc.), and the like.

[0034] Depending on the network in which the base station is deployed, the base station may operate according to one of several RATs when communicating with a UE. Examples of base stations include an access point (AP), a network node, a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNB), or a generalized NodeB (gNodeB, gNB). Additionally, in some systems, a base station may provide pure edge node signaling functionality, while in other systems, a base station may provide additional control and / or network management functionality.

[0035] The UE may be implemented by any of several 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 device, a consumer asset tracking device, an asset tag, etc. The communication link by which the UE can send signals 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 by which the RAN can send signals 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 either an uplink / reverse traffic channel or a downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0036] 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 to communicate with a base station (e.g., on a carrier) and may be associated with an identifier to distinguish between adjacent cells operating via the same or different carriers (e.g., physical cell identifier (PCID), virtual cell identifier (VCID)). In some examples, a carrier may support multiple cells, and different cells may be configured according to different protocol types that may provide access to different types of devices (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other protocol types). 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.

[0037] Reference Figure 1, an example of a communication system 100 includes UE 105, UE 106, a radio access network (RAN) 135 (here, a fifth generation (5G) next generation (NG) RAN (NG-RAN)), and a 5G core network (5GC) 140. UE 105 and / or UE 106 may be, for example, an IoT device, a location tracker device, a cellular phone, a vehicle (e.g., a car, truck, bus, boat, etc.), or other device. A 5G network may also be referred to as a new radio (NR) network; NG-RAN 135 may be referred to as a 5G RAN or NR RAN; and 5GC 140 may be referred to as an NG core network (NGC). Standardization of NG-RAN and 5GC is underway in the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Accordingly, NG-RAN 135 and 5GC 140 may comply with current or future standards from 3GPP for 5G support. NG-RAN 135 may be another type of RAN, such as a 3G RAN, a 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) RAN, or the like. UE 106 may be similarly configured and coupled to UE 105 to send and / or receive signals to and / or from similar other entities in system 100, but for simplicity of the drawing, the UE 106 is shown in FIG. Figure 1 105. Similarly, for simplicity, the discussion focuses on the UE 105. The communication system 100 can utilize information from a constellation 185 of space vehicles (SVs) 190, 191, 192, 193 of a satellite positioning system (SPS), such as a global navigation satellite system (GNSS), such as the Global Positioning System (GPS), the Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), Galileo, or BeiDou, or some other local or regional SPS, such as the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), or the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS). Additional components of the communication system 100 are described below. The communication system 100 may include additional or alternative components.

[0038] like Figure 1As shown in FIG, NG-RAN 135 includes NR Node Bs (gNBs) 110a and 110b and a next-generation evolved Node B (ng-eNB) 114, and 5GC 140 includes an access and mobility management function (AMF) 115, a session management function (SMF) 117, a location management function (LMF) 120, and a gateway mobile location center (GMLC) 125. gNBs 110a and 110b, and ng-eNB 114 are communicatively coupled to each other and are each configured for bidirectional wireless communication with UE 105. They are also communicatively coupled to AMF 115 and are configured for bidirectional communication with AMF 115. gNBs 110a and 110b, and ng-eNB 114 may be referred to as base stations (BSs). AMF 115, SMF 117, LMF 120, and GMLC 125 are communicatively coupled to each other, and the GMLC is communicatively coupled to external clients 130. The SMF 117 may serve as the initial contact point for a service control function (SCF) (not shown) to create, control, and delete media sessions. A base station (such as gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114) may be a macro cell (e.g., a high-power cellular base station), a small cell (e.g., a low-power cellular base station), or an access point (e.g., a short-range base station configured to communicate with a short-range technology such as WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), One or more BSs (e.g., one or more of gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114) may be configured to communicate with UE 105 via multiple carriers. Each of gNBs 110a, 110b, and ng-eNB 114 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic area (e.g., a cell). Each cell may be divided into multiple sectors based on base station antennas.

[0039] Figure 1A generalized description of the various components is provided, wherein any or all components may be utilized as appropriate, and each component may be repeated or omitted as needed. Specifically, although a single UE 105 is illustrated, many UEs (e.g., hundreds, thousands, millions, etc.) may be utilized in the communication system 100. Similarly, the communication system 100 may include a greater (or smaller) number of SVs (i.e., more or less than the four SVs 190-193 shown), gNBs 110a, 110b, ng-eNBs 114, AMFs 115, external clients 130, and / or other components. The illustrated connections connecting the various components in the communication system 100 include data and signaling connections, which may include additional (intermediate) components, direct or indirect physical and / or wireless connections, and / or additional networks. Furthermore, various components may be rearranged, combined, separated, replaced, and / or omitted depending on the desired functionality.

[0040] Although Figure 1 A 5G-based network is illustrated, but similar network implementations and configurations may be used for other communication technologies, such as 3G, Long Term Evolution (LTE), etc. Implementations described herein (which may be for 5G technologies and / or for one or more other communication technologies and / or protocols) may be used to transmit (or broadcast) directional synchronization signals, receive and measure the directional signals at a UE (e.g., UE 105), and / or provide location assistance to the UE 105 (via the GMLC 125 or other location server), and / or calculate the position of the UE 105 at a location-capable device (such as the UE 105, gNB 110a, 110b, or LMF 120) based on measurements received at the UE 105 for such directionally transmitted signals. The Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC) 125, Location Management Function (LMF) 120, Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 115, SMF 117, ng-eNB (evolved Node B) 114 and gNB (g Node B) 110a, 110b are examples and may be replaced by or include various other location server functionalities and / or base station functionalities, respectively, in various embodiments.

[0041] System 100 is capable of wireless communication because the various components of system 100 can communicate with each other directly or indirectly (at least sometimes using wireless connections), for example, via gNBs 110a, 110b, ng-eNBs 114, and / or 5GCs 140 (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, such as by changing header information of a data packet, changing the format, etc. UE 105 may include multiple UEs and may be a mobile wireless communication device, but may communicate both wirelessly and via wired connections. UE 105 may be any of a variety of devices, such as a smartphone, tablet, or vehicle-based device, but these are merely examples, as UE 105 need not be in any of these configurations, and other configurations of UEs may be used. Other UEs may include wearable devices (e.g., smart watches, smart jewelry, smart glasses, or head-mounted devices). 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 the system 100 and may communicate with each other and / or with the UE 105, gNBs 110a, 110b, ng-eNBs 114, 5GCs 140, and / or external clients 130. For example, such other devices may include Internet of Things (IoT) devices, medical devices, home entertainment and / or automation devices, etc. The 5GC 140 may communicate with the external client 130 (e.g., a computer system), for example, to allow the external client 130 (e.g., via the GMLC 125) to request and / or receive location information about the UE 105.

[0042] The UE 105 or other device may be configured to communicate in various networks and / or for various purposes and / or using various technologies (e.g., 5G, Wi-Fi communication, multi-frequency Wi-Fi communication, satellite positioning, one or more types of communication (e.g., GSM (Global System for Mobile), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution), V2X (Vehicle to Vehicle, e.g., V2P (vehicle to pedestrian), V2I (vehicle to infrastructure), V2V (vehicle to vehicle), etc.), IEEE 802.11p, etc.). V2X communication can be cellular (Cellular-V2X (C-V2X)) and / or WiFi (e.g., DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Connection)). The system 100 can support operation on multiple carriers (waveform signals of different frequencies). A multi-carrier transmitter can transmit modulated signals on multiple carriers simultaneously. Each modulated signal can be a code division multiple access (CDMA) signal, a time division multiple access (TDMA) signal, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) signal, a single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) signal, etc. Each modulated signal can be sent on a different carrier and can carry a pilot, overhead information, data, etc. UEs 105 and 106 can communicate with each other through UE-to-UE sidelink (SL) communication by transmitting on one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink synchronization channel (PSSCH), a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), or a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH).

[0043] UE 105 may include and / or may be referred to as a device, a mobile device, a wireless device, a mobile terminal, a terminal, a mobile station (MS), a secure user plane location (SUPL) enabled terminal (SET), or some other name. In addition, UE 105 may correspond to a cellular phone, a smart phone, a laptop, a tablet, a PDA, a consumer asset tracking device, a navigation device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a health monitor, a security system, a smart city sensor, a smart meter, a wearable tracker, or some other portable or mobile device. Typically, although not necessarily, UE 105 may support the use of one or more radio access technologies (RATs) such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), LTE, High Rate Packet Data (HRPD), IEEE 802.11 WiFi (also known as Wi-Fi), (BT), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), 5G New Radio (NR) (e.g., using NG-RAN 135 and 5GC 140), etc.) for wireless communication. UE 105 may support wireless communication using a wireless local area network (WLAN), which may use, for example, a digital subscriber line (DSL) or packet cable to connect to other networks (e.g., the Internet). Using one or more of these RATs may allow UE 105 (e.g., via elements of 5GC 140 ( Figure 1 125), or possibly via the GMLC 125) and / or allow the external client 130 to receive location information about the UE 105 (eg, via the GMLC 125).

[0044] UE 105 may comprise a single entity or may comprise multiple entities, such as in a personal area network where a user may employ audio, video, and / or data I / O (input / output) devices, and / or body sensors and separate wired or wireless modems. The estimate of the location of UE 105 may be referred to as a location, location estimate, location fix, fix, position fix, position estimate, or position fix and may be geographic, providing location coordinates (e.g., latitude and longitude) for UE 105, which may or may not include an altitude component (e.g., height above sea level; height above or depth below ground level, floor level, or basement level). Alternatively, the location of UE 105 may be expressed as a municipal location (e.g., as a postal address or as a designation of a point or smaller area in a building (such as a specific room or floor)). The location of UE 105 may be expressed as an area or volume (geographically or municipally defined) within which UE 105 is expected to be located with a certain probability or confidence level (e.g., 67%, 95%, etc.). The location of the UE 105 can be expressed as a relative location, which includes, for example, a distance and direction from a known location. The relative location can be expressed as relative coordinates (e.g., X, Y (and Z) coordinates) defined relative to some origin at a known location, which can be, for example, defined geographically, in a municipal form, or with reference to a point, area, or volume indicated on a map, floor plan, or building plan. In the description contained herein, the use of the term location may include any of these variations unless otherwise indicated. When calculating the location of the UE, local x, y, and possibly z coordinates are typically solved for, and then (if necessary) the local coordinates are converted to absolute coordinates (e.g., in terms of latitude, longitude, and altitude above or below mean sea level).

[0045] The UE 105 may be configured to communicate with other entities using one or more of a variety of technologies. The UE 105 may be configured to connect indirectly to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links. The D2D P2P links may use any appropriate D2D radio access technology (RAT) such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), etc.). One or more UEs in a group of UEs utilizing D2D communication may be within the geographic coverage area of ​​a transmit / receive point (TRP), such as one or more of gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114. Other UEs in the group may be outside such geographic coverage area or may be unable to receive transmissions from the base station for other reasons. A group of UEs communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, in which each UE may transmit to other UEs in the group. The TRP may facilitate the scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In other scenarios, D2D communication may be performed between UEs without involving a TRP. One or more UEs in a group of UEs utilizing D2D communication may be within the geographic coverage area of ​​a TRP. Other UEs in the group may be outside such geographic coverage area or may be unable to receive transmissions from the base station for other reasons. A group of UEs communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, in which each UE may transmit to other UEs in the group. The TRP may facilitate the scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In other cases, D2D communication may be performed between UEs without involving a TRP.

[0046] Figure 1 The base stations (BSs) in the NG-RAN 135 shown in FIG. 1 include NR B nodes (referred to as gNBs 110a and 110b). Each pair of gNBs 110a, 110b in the NG-RAN 135 may be connected to each other via one or more other gNBs. Access to the 5G network is provided to the UE 105 via wireless communications between the UE 105 and one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b. The gNBs 110a, 110b may provide wireless communications access to the 5GC 140 on behalf of the UE 105 using 5G. Figure 1 , it is assumed that the serving gNB for UE 105 is gNB 110a, but another gNB (e.g., gNB 110b) may serve as the serving gNB if UE 105 moves to another location, or may serve as a secondary gNB to provide additional throughput and bandwidth to UE 105.

[0047] Figure 1The base stations (BSs) in the NG-RAN 135 shown in FIG may include an ng-eNB 114 (also referred to as a next generation evolved Node B). The ng-eNB 114 may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b in the NG-RAN 135 (possibly via one or more other gNBs and / or one or more other ng-eNBs). The ng-eNB 114 may provide LTE radio access and / or evolved LTE (eLTE) radio access to the UE 105. One or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114 may be configured to function as a positioning-only beacon, which may transmit signals to assist in determining the positioning of the UE 105 but may not be able to receive signals from the UE 105 or other UEs.

[0048] gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114 may each include one or more TRPs. For example, each sector within a cell of a BS may include a TRP, but multiple TRPs may share one or more components (e.g., a shared processor but with separate antennas). System 100 may include exclusively macro TRPs, or system 100 may have different types of TRPs, such as macro, pico, and / or femto TRPs. A macro TRP may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., several kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access by terminals with service subscriptions. A pico TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a pico cell) and may allow unrestricted access by terminals with service subscriptions. A femto or home TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a femto cell) and may allow restricted access by terminals associated with the femto cell (e.g., terminals of users in a residence).

[0049] As mentioned, although Figure 1 Nodes configured to communicate according to a 5G communication protocol are depicted, but nodes configured to communicate according to other communication protocols, such as, for example, an LTE protocol or an IEEE 802.11x protocol, may also be used. For example, in an Evolved Packet System (EPS) that provides LTE radio access to a UE 105, the RAN may include an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), which may include base stations including evolved Node Bs (eNBs). The core network for the EPS may include an Evolved Packet Core (EPC). The EPS may include the E-UTRAN plus the EPC, where the E-UTRAN corresponds to Figure 1 NG-RAN 135 in and EPC corresponds to Figure 1 5GC 140 in.

[0050] The gNBs 110a, 110b, and ng-eNB 114 may communicate with the AMF 115; for positioning functionality, the AMF 115 communicates with the LMF 120. The AMF 115 may support mobility of the UE 105, including cell changes and handovers, and may participate in supporting signaling connections to the UE 105 and possibly data and voice bearers for the UE 105. The LMF 120 may communicate directly with the UE 105, or directly with the gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114, for example, via wireless communications. The LMF 120 may support positioning of the UE 105 when the UE 105 accesses the NG-RAN 135 and may support various positioning procedures / methods, such as Assisted GNSS (A-GNSS), Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) (e.g., downlink (DL) OTDOA or uplink (UL) OTDOA), Round Trip Time (RTT), multi-cell RTT, Real-Time Kinematics (RTK), Precise Point Positioning (PPP), Differential GNSS (DGNSS), Enhanced Cell ID (E-CID), Angle of Arrival (AOA), Angle of Departure (AOD), and / or other positioning methods. The LMF 120 may process location service requests for the UE 105, for example, received from the AMF 115 or the GMLC 125. The LMF 120 may be connected to the AMF 115 and / or the GMLC 125. The LMF 120 may be referred to by other names, such as a Location Manager (LM), a Location Function (LF), a Commercial LMF (CLMF), or a Value-Added LMF (VLMF). A node / system implementing LMF 120 may additionally or alternatively implement other types of location support modules, such as an enhanced serving mobile location center (E-SMLC) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP). At least a portion of the positioning functionality (including the derivation of the location of UE 105) may be performed at UE 105 (e.g., using signal measurements obtained by UE 105 for signals transmitted by wireless nodes (such as gNB 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114), and / or assistance data provided to UE 105 by LMF 120, for example). AMF 115 may serve as a control node for handling signaling between UE 105 and 5GC 140, and may provide QoS (Quality of Service) flow and session management. AMF 115 may support mobility of UE 105 (including cell changes and handovers), and may participate in supporting signaling connections to UE 105.

[0051] The GMLC 125 may support location requests for the UE 105 received from the external client 130 and may forward the location requests to the AMF 115 for forwarding by the AMF 115 to the LMF 120, or may forward the location requests directly to the LMF 120. A location response (e.g., containing a location estimate for the UE 105) from the LMF 120 may be returned to the GMLC 125 directly or via the AMF 115, and the GMLC 125 may then return the location response (e.g., containing the location estimate) to the external client 130. The GMLC 125 is shown as being connected to both the AMF 115 and the LMF 120, but may not be connected to either the AMF 115 or the LMF 120 in some implementations.

[0052] like Figure 1 As further explained in

[15] , LMF 120 may communicate with gNB 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114 using a new radio positioning protocol A (which may be referred to as NPPa or NRPPa), which may be defined in 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 38.455. NRPPa may be the same as, similar to, or an extension of LTE Positioning Protocol A (LPPa) defined in 3GPP TS 36.455, wherein NRPPa messages are passed between gNB 110a (or gNB 110b) and LMF 120, and / or between ng-eNB 114 and LMF 120 via AMF 115. Figure 1As further explained in 3GPP TS 36.355, the LMF 120 and the UE 105 may communicate using the LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP), which may be defined in 3GPP TS 36.355. The LMF 120 and the UE 105 may additionally or alternatively communicate using a new radio positioning protocol (which may be referred to as NPP or NRPP), which may be the same as, similar to, or an extension of the LPP. Here, LPP and / or NPP messages may be communicated between the UE 105 and the LMF 120 via the AMF 115 and the UE 105's serving gNB 110a, 110b or serving ng-eNB 114. For example, the LPP and / or NPP messages may be communicated between the LMF 120 and the AMF 115 using the 5G Location Services Application Protocol (LCS AP), and may be communicated between the AMF 115 and the UE 105 using the 5G Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocol. The LPP and / or NPP protocols may be used to support positioning of the UE 105 using UE-assisted and / or UE-based positioning methods, such as A-GNSS, RTK, OTDOA, and / or E-CID. The NRPPa protocol may be used to support positioning of the UE 105 using network-based positioning methods, such as E-CID (e.g., in conjunction with measurements obtained by the gNB 110a, 110b, or ng-eNB 114) and / or may be used by the LMF 120 to obtain location-related information from the gNB 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114, such as parameters defining directional SS transmissions from the gNB 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114. The LMF 120 may be co-located or integrated with the gNB or TRP, or may be located remotely from the gNB and / or TRP and configured to communicate directly or indirectly with the gNB and / or TRP.

[0053] Using UE-assisted positioning methods, UE 105 may obtain location measurements and send these measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 120) for use in calculating a location estimate for UE 105. For example, the location measurements may include one or more of: received signal strength indication (RSSI), round-trip signal propagation time (RTT), reference signal time difference (RSTD), reference signal received power (RSRP), and / or reference signal received quality (RSRQ) of gNB 110a, 110b, ng-eNB 114, and / or WLAN AP. The location measurements may additionally or alternatively include measurements of GNSS pseudoranges, code phases, and / or carrier phases of SVs 190-193.

[0054] Using the UE-based positioning method, UE 105 can obtain position measurements (e.g., which can be the same or similar to position measurements for UE-assisted positioning methods) and can calculate the position of UE 105 (e.g., with the help of assistance data received from a location server (such as LMF 120) or broadcast by gNB 110a, 110b, ng-eNB114 or other base station or AP).

[0055] With network-based positioning methods, one or more base stations (e.g., gNBs 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114) or APs may obtain location measurements (e.g., measurements of RSSI, RTT, RSRP, RSRQ, or time of arrival (ToA) of signals transmitted by UE 105) and / or may receive measurements obtained by UE 105. The one or more base stations or APs may send these measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 120) for use in computing a position estimate for UE 105.

[0056] The information provided by gNB 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114 to LMF 120 using NRPPa may include timing and configuration information for directional SS transmissions and location coordinates. LMF 120 may provide some or all of this information as assistance data to UE 105 in LPP and / or NPP messages via NG-RAN 135 and 5GC 140.

[0057] The LPP or NPP message sent from LMF 120 to UE 105 may instruct UE 105 to do any of a variety of things, depending on the desired functionality. For example, the LPP or NPP message may include instructions for UE 105 to obtain measurements for GNSS (or A-GNSS), WLAN, E-CID, and / or OTDOA (or some other positioning method). In the case of E-CID, the LPP or NPP message may instruct UE 105 to obtain one or more measurement parameters (e.g., beam ID, beam width, average angle, RSRP, RSRQ measurements) of directional signals transmitted within a particular cell supported by one or more of gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114 (or supported by some other type of base station, such as an eNB or WiFi AP). The UE 105 may send these measurement parameters back to the LMF 120 in an LPP or NPP message (e.g., within a 5G NAS message) via the serving gNB 110a (or serving ng-eNB 114) and the AMF 115.

[0058] As mentioned, although the communication system 100 is described with respect to 5G technology, the communication system 100 can be implemented to support other communication technologies (such as GSM, WCDMA, LTE, etc.) used to support and interact with mobile devices (such as UE 105) (e.g., to implement voice, data, positioning, and other functionalities). In some such embodiments, the 5GC 140 can be configured to control different air interfaces. For example, the Non-3GPP Interworking Function (N3IWF) in the 5GC 150 can be used. Figure 1 115). In these other embodiments, positioning of UE 105 using directional PRS may be supported in a manner similar to that described herein for 5G networks, with the difference that the functions and procedures described herein for gNB 110a, 110b, ng-eNB 114, AMF 115, and LMF 120 may, in some cases, be applied alternatively to other network elements, such as eNBs, WiFi APs, MMEs, and E-SMLCs.

[0059] As mentioned, in some embodiments, positioning functionality may be implemented, at least in part, using directional SS beams transmitted by base stations (such as gNBs 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114) that are located at the UE (e.g., Figure 1 In some instances, a UE may use directional SS beams from multiple base stations (such as gNBs 110a, 110b, ng-eNB 114, etc.) to calculate the UE's positioning.

[0060] Also refer to Figure 2UE 200 is an example of one of UEs 105 and 106 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(s) 213, the transceiver interface 214, the user interface 216, the SPS receiver 217, the camera 218, and the positioning device 219 are communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 220 (which may be configured, for example, for optical and / or electrical communication). One or more of the illustrated devices (e.g., the camera 218, the positioning device 219, and / or the one or more sensors 213, etc.) may be omitted from the UE 200. Processor 210 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.). Processor 210 may include multiple processors, including a general / application processor 230, a digital signal processor (DSP) 231, a modem processor 232, a video processor 233, and / or a sensor processor 234. One or more of processors 230-234 may include multiple devices (e.g., multiple processors). For example, sensor processor 234 may include processors for RF (radio frequency) sensing (where one or more transmitted (cellular) wireless signals and reflections are used to identify, map, and / or track objects), ultrasound, etc. Modem processor 232 may support dual SIM cards / dual connectivity (or even more SIM cards). For example, one SIM card (Subscriber Identity Module or Subscriber Identity Module) may be used by an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), and another SIM card may be used by an end user of UE 200 to obtain connectivity. Memory 211 is a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, disk storage, and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. Memory 211 stores software 212, which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that, when executed, are configured to cause processor 210 to perform the various functions described herein. Alternatively, software 212 may not be directly executable by processor 210, but may be configured (e.g., when compiled and executed) to cause processor 210 to perform functions. This specification may refer to processor 210 performing a function, but this includes other implementations, such as implementations in which processor 210 executes software and / or firmware. This specification may refer to processor 210 performing a function as shorthand for one or more of processors 230-234 performing that function.This description may refer to UE 200 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of UE 200 performing that function. Processor 210 may include memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 211. The functionality of processor 210 is discussed more fully below.

[0061] Figure 2 The configuration of UE 200 shown in the figure is an example and does not limit the present disclosure (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, the example configuration of UE includes one or more of the processors 230-234 in the processor 210, the memory 211, and the wireless transceiver 240. Other example configurations include one or more of the processors 230-234 in the processor 210, the memory 211, the wireless transceiver, and one or more of the following: sensor(s) 213, user interface 216, SPS receiver 217, camera 218, PD 219, and / or wired transceiver.

[0062] The UE 200 may include a modem processor 232 that may be capable of performing baseband processing on signals received and down-converted by the transceiver 215 and / or the SPS receiver 217. The modem processor 232 may perform baseband processing on signals to be up-converted for transmission by the transceiver 215. Additionally or alternatively, the baseband processing may be performed by the processor 230 and / or the DSP 231. However, other configurations may be used to perform the baseband processing.

[0063] UE 200 may include sensor(s) 213, which may include, for example, one or more of various types of sensors, such as one or more inertial sensors, one or more magnetometers, one or more environmental sensors, one or more optical sensors, one or more weight sensors, and / or one or more radio frequency (RF) sensors. An inertial measurement unit (IMU) may include, for example, one or more accelerometers (e.g., collectively responsive to acceleration of UE 200 in three dimensions) and / or one or more gyroscopes (e.g., three-dimensional gyroscope(s)). Sensor(s) 213 may include one or more magnetometers (e.g., three-dimensional magnetometer(s)) to determine orientation (e.g., relative to magnetic north and / or true north), which may be used for any of a variety of purposes (e.g., to support one or more compass applications). Environmental sensor(s) may include, for example, one or more temperature sensors, one or more barometric pressure sensors, one or more ambient light sensors, one or more camera imagers, and / or one or more microphones. Sensor(s) 213 may generate analog and / or digital signals, indications of which may be stored in memory 211 and processed by DSP 231 and / or processor 230 to support one or more applications (such as, for example, applications involving positioning and / or navigation operations).

[0064] The sensor(s) 213 may be used for relative position measurement, relative position determination, motion determination, and the like. The information detected by the sensor(s) 213 may be used for motion detection, relative displacement, dead reckoning, sensor-based position determination, and / or sensor-assisted position determination. The sensor(s) 213 may be used to determine whether the UE 200 is stationary (stationary) or mobile and / or whether to report certain useful information related to the mobility of the UE 200 to the LMF 120. For example, based on the information obtained / measured by the sensor(s) 213, the UE 200 may notify / report to the LMF 120 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, sensor-based position determination, or sensor-assisted position determination implemented by the sensor(s) 213). In another example, for relative positioning information, the sensor / IMU may be used to determine the angle and / or orientation of another device relative to the UE 200.

[0065] The IMU can be configured to provide measurements of the direction and / or speed of motion of the UE 200, which can be used for relative position determination. For example, one or more accelerometers and / or one or more gyroscopes of the IMU can detect the linear acceleration and rotational speed of the UE 200, respectively. The linear acceleration measurements and rotational speed measurements of the UE 200 can be integrated over time to determine the instantaneous direction of motion and displacement of the UE 200. The instantaneous direction of motion and displacement can be integrated to track the position of the UE 200. For example, a reference position of the UE 200 at a certain moment can be determined, for example, using the SPS receiver 217 (and / or by some other means), and measurements obtained from the accelerometer(s) and gyroscope(s) after that moment can be used for dead reckoning to determine the current position of the UE 200 based on the movement (direction and distance) of the UE 200 relative to the reference position.

[0066] The magnetometer(s) may determine magnetic field strengths in different directions, which may be used to determine the orientation of the UE 200. For example, the orientation may be used to provide a digital compass for the UE 200. The magnetometer(s) may include a two-dimensional magnetometer configured to detect and provide an indication of magnetic field strength in two orthogonal dimensions. The magnetometer(s) may include a three-dimensional magnetometer configured to detect and provide an indication of magnetic field strength in three orthogonal dimensions. The magnetometer(s) may provide a means for sensing a magnetic field and providing an indication of the magnetic field, for example, to the processor 210.

[0067] The transceiver 215 may include a wireless transceiver 240 and a wired transceiver 250 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 240 may include a wireless transmitter 242 and a wireless receiver 244 coupled to one or more antennas 246 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) wireless signals 248 and converting signals from wireless signals 248 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to wireless signals 248. Thus, the wireless transmitter 242 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 244 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 240 may be configured to communicate signals (e.g., with the TRP and / or one or more other devices) according to various radio access technologies (RATs), such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc. New radios may utilize millimeter wave frequencies and / or sub-6 GHz frequencies. The wired transceiver 250 may include a wired transmitter 252 and a wired receiver 254 configured for wired communication, for example, a network interface that may be used to communicate with the NG-RAN 135 to send and receive communications to and from the NG-RAN 135. 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 and / or electrical communication. The transceiver 215 may be communicatively coupled to the transceiver interface 214 (e.g., via an optical and / or electrical connection). The transceiver interface 214 may be at least partially integrated with the transceiver 215. Wireless transmitter 242, wireless receiver 244, and / or antenna 246 may include multiple transmitters, multiple receivers, and / or multiple antennas, respectively, for transmitting and / or receiving appropriate signals, respectively.

[0068] The user interface 216 may include one or more of a number of devices (such as, for example, a speaker, a microphone, a display device, a vibration device, a keyboard, a touch screen, etc.). The user interface 216 may include more than one of any of these devices. The user interface 216 may be configured to enable a user to interact with one or more applications hosted by the UE 200. For example, the user interface 216 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 in response to actions from the user for processing by the DSP 231 and / or the general processor 230. Similarly, an application hosted on the UE 200 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 to present output signals to the user. The user interface 216 may include an audio input / output (I / O) device, which may include, for example, a speaker, a microphone, digital-to-analog circuitry, analog-to-digital circuitry, an amplifier, and / or gain control circuitry (including more than one of these devices). Other configurations of audio I / O devices may be used. Additionally or alternatively, the user interface 216 may include one or more touch sensors that respond to touch and / or pressure on, for example, a keyboard and / or a touch screen of the user interface 216 .

[0069] 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. The SPS antenna 262 is configured to convert the SPS signals 260 from wireless signals to wired signals (e.g., electrical signals or optical signals) and may be integrated with the antenna 246. The SPS receiver 217 may be configured to process the acquired SPS signals 260 in whole or in part to estimate the position of the UE 200. For example, the SPS receiver 217 may be configured to determine the position of the UE 200 by performing trilateration using the SPS signals 260. The general-purpose processor 230, the memory 211, the DSP 231, and / or one or more dedicated processors (not shown) may be utilized in conjunction with the SPS receiver 217 to process the acquired SPS signals in whole or in part and / or calculate the estimated position of the UE 200. The memory 211 may store indications (e.g., measurements) of the SPS signal 260 and / or other signals (e.g., signals obtained from the wireless transceiver 240) for use in performing positioning operations. The general-purpose processor 230, the DSP 231, and / or one or more dedicated processors, and / or the memory 211 may provide or support a location engine for processing the measurements to estimate the location of the UE 200.

[0070] The UE 200 may include a camera 218 for capturing still or moving images. The camera 218 may include, for example, an imaging sensor (e.g., a charge-coupled device or CMOS imager), a lens, analog-to-digital circuitry, a frame buffer, etc. Additional processing, conditioning, encoding, and / or compression of signals representing the captured images may be performed by the general processor 230 and / or the DSP 231. Additionally or alternatively, 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) (e.g., of the user interface 216).

[0071] Positioning device (PD) 219 may be configured to determine the location of UE 200, the motion of UE 200, and / or the relative location of UE 200, and / or time. For example, PD 219 may communicate with SPS receiver 217 and / or include some or all of SPS receiver 217. PD 219 may appropriately cooperate with processor 210 and memory 211 to perform at least a portion of one or more positioning methods, although the description herein may only refer to PD 219 being configured to perform or performing according to a positioning method. PD 219 may additionally or alternatively be configured to: perform trilateration using ground-based signals (e.g., at least some signals 248), assist in obtaining and using SPS signals 260, or both to determine the position of UE 200. The PD 219 may be configured to determine the location of the UE 200 using one or more other techniques (e.g., relying on the UE's self-reported location (e.g., as part of the UE's location beacon)), and may use a combination of techniques (e.g., SPS and terrestrial positioning signals) to determine the location of the UE 200. The PD 219 may include one or more sensors 213 (e.g., gyroscopes, accelerometers, magnetometers, etc.) that may sense the orientation and / or motion of the UE 200 and provide an indication of the orientation and / or motion, which the processor 210 (e.g., processor 230 and / or DSP 231) may use to determine the motion of the UE 200 (e.g., velocity vector and / or acceleration vector). The PD 219 may be configured to provide an indication of uncertainty and / or error in the determined position and / or motion. The functionality of PD 219 may be provided in a variety of ways and / or configurations, such as by general / application processor 230 , transceiver 215 , SPS receiver 217 , and / or another component of UE 200 , and may be provided by hardware, software, firmware, or various combinations thereof.

[0072] Also refer to Figure 3, an example of a TRP 300 for gNB 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114 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 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.). The processor 310 may include multiple processors (e.g., including, for example, Figure 2 ). The memory 311 is a non-volatile storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, disk storage, and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. The memory 311 stores software 312, which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause the processor 310 to perform the various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, the software 312 may not be directly executable by the processor 310, but may be configured (for example, when compiled and executed) to cause the processor 310 to perform various functions.

[0073] This description may refer to processor 310 performing a function, but this includes other implementations, such as implementations in which processor 310 executes software and / or firmware. This description may refer to processor 310 performing a function as shorthand for one or more processors included in processor 310 performing that function. This description may refer to TRP 300 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components (e.g., processor 310 and memory 311) of TRP 300 (and thereby one of gNB 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114) performing that function. Processor 310 may include memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 311. The functionality of processor 310 is discussed more fully below.

[0074] The transceiver 315 may include a wireless transceiver 340 and / or a wired transceiver 350 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 340 may include a wireless transmitter 342 and a wireless receiver 344 coupled to one or more antennas 346 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more downlink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more uplink channels) wireless signals 348 and converting signals from the wireless signals 348 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to the wireless signals 348. Thus, the wireless transmitter 342 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 344 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 340 may be configured to operate in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc.) to communicate signals (e.g., with UE 200, one or more other UEs, and / or one or more other devices). The wired transceiver 350 may include a wired transmitter 352 and a wired receiver 354 configured for wired communication, for example, a network interface that may be used to communicate with the NG-RAN 135 to send communications to and receive communications from the LMF 120 (e.g., and / or one or more other network entities). The wired transmitter 352 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wired receiver 354 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 350 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0075] Figure 3 The configuration of the TRP 300 shown in the specification is an example and is not intended to limit the present disclosure (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, the description herein discusses that the TRP 300 is configured to perform several functions or that the TRP 300 performs several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by the LMF 120 and / or the UE 200 (i.e., the LMF 120 and / or the UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).

[0076] Also refer to Figure 4 , the server 400 (of which the LMF 120 is an example) includes a computing platform including a processor 410, a memory 411 including software (SW) 412, and a transceiver 415. The processor 410, the memory 411, and the transceiver 415 may be communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 420 (which may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the illustrated devices (e.g., a wireless interface) may be omitted from the server 400. The processor 410 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.). The processor 410 may include multiple processors (e.g., including, for example, Figure 2 ). Memory 411 is a non-volatile storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, disk storage, and / or read-only memory (ROM), among others. Memory 411 stores software 412, which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause processor 410 to perform the various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, software 412 may not be directly executable by processor 410, but may be configured (e.g., when compiled and executed) to cause processor 410 to perform functions. This specification may refer to processor 410 performing functions, but this includes other implementations, such as implementations in which processor 410 executes software and / or firmware. This specification may refer to processor 410 performing functions as shorthand for one or more processors included in processor 410 performing the functions. This specification may refer to server 400 performing functions as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of server 400 performing the functions. Processor 410 may include memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 411. The functionality of processor 410 is discussed more fully below.

[0077] The transceiver 415 may include a wireless transceiver 440 and / or a wired transceiver 450 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 440 may include a wireless transmitter 442 and a wireless receiver 444 coupled to one or more antennas 446 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more downlink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more uplink channels) wireless signals 448 and converting signals from wireless signals 448 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to wireless signals 448. Thus, the wireless transmitter 442 may include multiple transmitters, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 444 may include multiple receivers, which may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 440 may be configured to operate in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc.) to communicate signals (e.g., with UE 200, one or more other UEs, and / or one or more other devices). The 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 the NG-RAN 135 to send communications to the TRP 300 (e.g., and / or one or more other entities) and receive communications from the TRP 300 (e.g., and / or one or more other entities). The wired transmitter 452 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wired receiver 454 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 450 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0078] Descriptions herein may refer to processor 410 performing a function, but this includes other implementations, such as implementations in which processor 410 executes software and / or firmware (stored in memory 411). Descriptions herein may refer to server 400 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of server 400 (e.g., processor 410 and memory 411) performing that function.

[0079] Figure 4The configuration of server 400 shown in the figures is an example and does not limit the present disclosure (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, wireless transceiver 440 may be omitted. Additionally or alternatively, the description herein discusses that server 400 is configured to perform several functions or that server 400 performs several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by TRP 300 and / or UE 200 (i.e., TRP 300 and / or UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).

[0080] Positioning technology

[0081] 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, where measurements of reference signals (e.g., PRS, CRS, etc.) transmitted by base stations are acquired by the UE and then provided to a location server. The location server then calculates the UE's position based on these 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 frequently used in applications such as car or cell phone navigation, which instead typically rely on satellite-based positioning.

[0082] UEs can use a satellite positioning system (SPS) (Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)) to perform high-accuracy positioning using Precise Point Positioning (PPP) or Real-Time Kinematics (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 subscribed to the service can read the information. This assistance data changes over time. As a result, a UE subscribed to the service may not be able to easily "break the encryption" for other UEs by passing the data to other UEs that have not paid for the subscription. This transfer needs to be repeated every time the assistance data changes.

[0083] 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 has a base station almanac (BSA), which contains 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" among the multiple "records" in the BSA can be referenced. The BSA and the measurements from the UE can be used to calculate the UE's position.

[0084] In conventional UE-based positioning, the UE calculates its own position, avoiding sending measurements to the network (e.g., a location server), which in turn improves latency and scalability. The UE uses the associated BSA record 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 changes much less frequently than, for example, the PPP or RTK assistance data described above, it may be easier to make BSA information available to UEs that do not subscribe and pay for decryption keys (compared to PPP or RTK information). The gNB's transmission of reference signals makes BSA information potentially accessible to crowdsourcing or driving attacks, essentially enabling BSA information to be generated based on in-the-field and / or over-the-top observations.

[0085] Positioning techniques can be characterized and / or evaluated based on one or more criteria, such as positioning accuracy and / or latency. Latency is the time elapsed between an event triggering the determination of positioning-related data and the availability of that data at a positioning system interface (e.g., the interface of LMF 120). Upon initialization of the positioning system, the latency for the availability of positioning-related data is called the Time to First Fix (TTFF) and is greater than the latency after TTFF. The inverse of the time elapsed between the availability of two consecutive positioning-related data is called the update rate, i.e., the rate at which positioning-related data is generated after first fix. Latency may depend on the processing capability (e.g., of the UE). For example, assuming a 272 PRB (Physical Resource Block) allocation, a UE may report its processing capability as the duration (in time units (e.g., milliseconds)) of DL PRS symbols that the UE can process per T amount of time (e.g., T ms). 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.

[0086] One or more of a number of different positioning techniques (also known as positioning methods) can be used to determine the location of an entity (such as one of UEs 105 and 106). For example, known positioning determination techniques include RTT, multi-RTT, OTDOA (also known as TDOA, and including UL-TDOA and DL-TDOA), enhanced cell identification (E-CID), DL-AoD, UL-AoA, 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 the two entities. This range, combined with the known position of a first one of the entities and the angle (e.g., azimuth) between the two entities, can be used to determine the position of a second one of the entities. In multi-RTT (also known as multi-cell RTT), multiple ranges from one entity (e.g., a UE) to other entities (e.g., TRPs) and the known positions of these other entities can be used to determine the position of the one entity. In TDOA techniques, the travel time differences between one entity and other entities can be used to determine the relative ranges to these other entities, and these relative ranges, combined with the known positions of these other entities, can be used to determine the position of the one entity. The angle of arrival and / or angle of departure can be used to help determine the location of an entity. For example, the angle of arrival or angle of departure of a signal, combined with the range between devices (range determined using the signal (e.g., signal travel time, signal received power, etc.)) and the known location of one of the devices, can be used to determine the location of the other device. The angle of arrival or angle of departure can be an azimuth relative to a reference direction (such as true north). The angle of arrival or angle of departure can be a zenith angle relative to directly upward from the entity (i.e., radially outward from the center of the Earth). E-CID uses the identity of the serving cell, timing advance (i.e., the difference between the receive and transmit times at the UE), the estimated timing and power of the detected neighbor cell signals, and possible angles of arrival (e.g., the angle of arrival of the signal from the base station at the UE, or vice versa) to determine the location of the UE. In TDOA, the difference in the arrival times of signals from different sources at the receiving device, together with the known locations of those sources and the known offsets in the transmission times from those sources, are used to determine the location of the receiving device.

[0087] In network-centric RTT estimation, a serving base station instructs a UE to scan / receive RTT measurement signals (e.g., PRS) on serving cells of two or more neighboring base stations (and typically a serving base station, since at least three base stations are required). The 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 LMF 120). The UE records the arrival time (also known as reception time, received time, received time, or time of arrival (ToA)) of each RTT measurement signal relative to the current downlink timing of the UE (e.g., as derived by the UE from the DL signal received from its serving base station), and (e.g., when instructed by its serving base station) transmits a common or individual RTT response message (e.g., an SRS (sounding reference signal) for positioning, i.e., UL-PRS) to the one or more base stations, and may calculate the time difference (i.e., UE T) between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response message. 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. By comparing the difference between the transmission time of the RTT measurement signal from the base station and the ToA of the RTT response at the base station with the time difference reported by the UE, the base station can infer the propagation time between the base station and the UE. From this propagation time, the base station can determine the distance between the UE and the base station by assuming the speed of light during this propagation time.

[0088] UE-centric RTT estimation is similar to the network-based approach, except that the UE transmits uplink RTT measurement signals (e.g., when instructed by the serving base station), which are received by multiple base stations in the vicinity of the UE. Each involved base station responds with a downlink RTT response message, which 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 transmission time of the RTT response message from the base station.

[0089] For both network-centric and UE-centric procedures, the side performing the RTT calculation (the network or the UE) typically (but not always) transmits 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 transmission time of the RTT response message or signal.

[0090] Multi-RTT technology can be used to determine positioning. 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 position of the first entity through trilateration.

[0091] In some instances, additional information in the form of an angle of arrival (AoA) or angle of departure (AoD) may be obtained, which defines a linear direction (e.g., which may be in the horizontal plane or in three dimensions) or a range of possible directions (e.g., of the UE as seen from the base station's position). The intersection of the two directions can provide another estimate of the UE's position.

[0092] For positioning techniques that use PRS (positioning reference signal) signals (e.g., TDOA and RTT), PRS signals sent by multiple TRPs are measured, and the arrival times of these signals, the known transmission times, and the known locations of the TRPs are used to determine the range from the UE to the TRPs. For example, RSTD (reference signal time difference) can be determined for PRS signals received from multiple TRPs, and these RSTDs can be used in TDOA techniques to determine the location (position) of the UE. Positioning reference signals may 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 shift) may interfere with each other, so that PRS signals from farther TRPs may be drowned out by PRS signals from closer TRPs, and signals from farther TRPs may not be detected. PRS muting can be used to help reduce interference by muting some PRS signals (reducing the power of the PRS signal, e.g., to zero and thereby not transmitting the PRS signal). In this way, the UE can more easily detect (at the UE) a weaker PRS signal without a 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 signal.

[0093] Positioning Reference Signals (PRS) include downlink PRS (DL PRS, often referred to as PRS for short) and uplink PRS (UL PRS) (which may be referred to as SRS (Sounding Reference Signal) for positioning). PRS may include a PN code (pseudo-random number) or be generated using a PN code (e.g., scrambling the PN code with another signal) so that the source of the PRS can be used as a pseudolite. The PN code may be unique to the PRS source (at least unique within a specified area so that the same PRS from different PRS sources does not overlap). PRS may include PRS resources or PRS resource sets of a frequency layer. A DL PRS positioning frequency layer (or simply 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 sets and DL PRS resources in that frequency layer. Each frequency layer has a DL PRS cyclic prefix (CP) for the DL PRS resource sets and DL PRS resources in that frequency layer. In 5G, a resource block occupies 12 consecutive subcarriers and a specified number of symbols. Furthermore, the DL PRS point A parameter defines the frequency of the reference resource block (and the lowest subcarrier of the resource block), where DL PRS resources belonging to the same DL PRS resource set have the same point A, and all DL PRS resource sets belonging to the same frequency layer have the same point A. Frequency layers also have the same DL PRS bandwidth, the same starting PRB (and center frequency), and the same comb size value (i.e., the frequency of PRS resource elements per symbol such that for comb tooth N, every Nth resource element is a PRS resource element). A PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource set ID and can be associated with a specific TRP (identified by a cell ID) transmitted by the antenna panel of a base station. The PRS resource ID in a PRS resource set can be associated with an omnidirectional signal and / or associated 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 as such, a PRS resource (or simply a resource) can also be referred to as a beam. This does not imply that the UE is aware of the base station and beam transmitting the PRS.

[0094] The TRP can be configured, for example, by instructions received from a server and / or by software in the TRP, to send DL PRS on a schedule. According to the schedule, the TRP can intermittently (e.g., periodically at consistent intervals starting from the initial transmission) send DL PRS. The TRP can be configured to send one or more PRS resource sets. A resource set is a collection of PRS resources across a TRP, where these resources have the same periodicity, a common muting pattern configuration (if any), and the same repetition factor across time slots. Each PRS resource set includes multiple PRS resources, where each PRS resource includes multiple resource elements (REs), which can be in multiple resource blocks (RBs) within N (one or more) consecutive symbols within a time slot. An RB is a set of REs that spans one or more consecutive symbols in the time domain and a consecutive number of subcarriers in the frequency domain (12 for 5G RBs). Each PRS resource is configured with an RE offset, a time slot offset, a symbol offset within a time slot, and the number of consecutive symbols that the PRS resource can occupy within a time slot. The RE offset defines the starting RE offset in frequency for the first symbol within the DL PRS resource. The relative RE offsets of the remaining symbols within the DL PRS resource are defined based on the initial offset. The slot offset is the starting slot of the DL PRS resource relative to the corresponding resource set slot offset. The symbol offset determines the starting symbol of the DL PRS resource within the starting slot. The transmitted REs may be repeated across slots, with each transmission being referred to as a repetition, so that there may be multiple repetitions in a PRS resource. The DL PRS resources in a DL PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP, and each DL PRS resource has a DL PRS resource ID. The DL PRS resource ID in a DL PRS resource set is associated with a single beam transmitted from a single TRP (although a TRP may transmit one or more beams).

[0095] 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 granularity of the starting PRB index is one PRB, and the minimum value can be 0 and the maximum value is 2176 PRBs.

[0096] A PRS resource set is a collection of PRS resources with the same periodicity, the same muting pattern configuration (if any), and the same cross-slot repetition factor. Each time all repetitions of all PRS resources in a PRS resource set are configured for transmission is referred to as an "instance." Thus, an "instance" of a PRS resource set is a specified number of repetitions for each PRS resource and a specified number of PRS resources within the PRS resource set, such that the instance is complete once the specified number of repetitions for each of the specified number of PRS resources has been transmitted. An instance may also be referred to as an "occasion." A DL PRS configuration including a DL PRS transmission schedule may be provided to a UE to facilitate (or even enable) the UE to measure DL PRS.

[0097] Multiple frequency layers of a PRS can be aggregated to provide an effective bandwidth that is greater than any bandwidth of each layer individually. Multiple frequency layers belonging to component carriers (which can be contiguous and / or separate) and meeting criteria such as quasi-co-location (QCL) and having the same antenna port can be spliced ​​to provide a larger effective PRS bandwidth (for DL ​​PRS and UL PRS), thereby improving the accuracy of arrival time measurements. Splicing involves combining PRS measurements on various bandwidth segments into a unified segment so that the spliced ​​PRS can be considered as being taken from a single measurement. In the case of QCL, different frequency layers behave similarly, so that splicing of PRSs results in a larger effective bandwidth. The larger effective bandwidth (which can 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 resolution). The aggregated PRS comprises a collection of PRS resources, and each PRS resource in the aggregated PRS can be referred to as a PRS component, and each PRS component can be transmitted on a different component carrier, frequency band, or frequency layer, or on a different portion of the same frequency band.

[0098] RTT positioning is an active positioning technology because RTT uses positioning signals sent by the TRP to the UE and by the UE (participating in RTT positioning) to the TRP. The TRP can send a DL-PRS signal received by the UE, and the UE can send an SRS (sounding reference signal) signal received by multiple TRPs. The sounding reference signal may be referred to as an SRS or an SRS signal. In 5G multi-RTT, coordinated positioning can be used, in which the UE sends a single UL-SRS for positioning received by multiple TRPs, instead of sending a separate UL-SRS for positioning for each TRP. A TRP participating in multi-RTT will typically search for UEs currently residing on that TRP (served UEs, where the TRP is the serving TRP) and also search for UEs residing on adjacent TRPs (neighbor UEs). A neighbor TRP can be the TRP of a single BTS (e.g., a gNB), or it can be the TRP of one BTS and the TRP of a separate BTS. For RTT positioning (including multi-RTT positioning), the DL-PRS signal and the UL-SRS positioning signal in the PRS / SRS positioning signal pair used to determine the RTT (and thereby the range between the UE and the TRP) may occur close in time to each other so that errors due to UE motion and / or UE clock drift and / or TRP clock drift are within acceptable limits. For example, the signals in the PRS / SRS positioning signal pair may be transmitted from the TRP and the UE, respectively, within approximately 10 ms of each other. Where the SRS positioning signal is being transmitted by the UE and the PRS and SRS positioning signals are communicated close in time to each other, it has been found that radio frequency (RF) signal congestion may result (which may result in excessive noise, etc.), particularly if many UEs are attempting to locate concurrently, and / or computational congestion may result at the TRP where many UEs are attempting to measure concurrently.

[0099] RTT positioning can be UE-based or UE-assisted. In UE-based RTT, UE 200 determines the RTT and corresponding range to each of TRPs 300 and determines the position of UE 200 based on the range to the TRPs 300 and the known location of the TRPs 300. In UE-assisted RTT, UE 200 measures positioning signals and provides measurement information to the TRPs 300, which then determine the RTT and range. The TRPs 300 provide the ranges to a location server (e.g., server 400), which determines the position of UE 200 based on, for example, the ranges to different TRPs 300. The RTT and / or range can be determined by the TRP 300 receiving signals 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 other than the TRP 300 receiving signals from UE 200.

[0100] 5G NR supports various positioning technologies. NR-native positioning methods supported in 5G NR include DL-only positioning, UL-only positioning, and DL+UL positioning. Downlink-based positioning methods include DL-TDOA and DL-AoD. Uplink-based positioning methods include UL-TDOA and UL-AoA. Combined DL+UL-based positioning methods include RTT with one base station and RTT with multiple base stations (multi-RTT).

[0101] A position estimate (e.g., for a UE) may be referred to by other names, such as a position estimate, a position, a fix, a position fix, a fix, etc. A position estimate may be geodetic and include coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude), or may be municipal and include a street address, a postal address, or some other verbal description of the location. A position estimate may further be defined relative to some other known location or 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 position is expected to be contained with some specified or default confidence level).

[0102] Positioning measurement report

[0103] Reference Figure 5 , see further Figure 1-4 UE 500 includes a processor 510, an interface 520, and a memory 530, which are communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 540. UE 500 may include Figure 5 Some or all of the components shown, and may include one or more other components, such as Figure 25. The UE 200 may be an example of a UE 500, such that any of those components shown may be included. The processor 510 may include one or more components of the processor 210. The interface 520 may include one or more components of the transceiver 215, such as the wireless transmitter 242 and the antenna 246, or the wireless receiver 244 and the antenna 246, or the wireless transmitter 242, the wireless receiver 244, and the antenna 246. Additionally or alternatively, the interface 520 may include the wired transmitter 252 and / or the wired receiver 254. The interface 520 may include the SPS receiver 217 and the SPS antenna 262. The memory 530 may be configured similarly to the memory 211, for example, including software having processor-readable instructions configured to cause the processor 510 to perform functions.

[0104] The description herein may refer only to the processor 510 performing a function, but this includes other implementations, such as an implementation in which the processor 510 executes software and / or firmware (stored in the memory 530). The description herein may refer to the UE 500 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of the UE 500 (e.g., the processor 510 and the memory 530) performing that function. The processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with the memory 530 and, where appropriate, the interface 520) includes a measurement reporting unit 550. The measurement reporting unit 550 may be configured to encode a measurement report payload into a UCI (Uplink Control Information) message and / or a MAC-CE (Media Access Control - Control Element) message. The measurement reporting unit 550 includes an ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) encoder 560. The configuration and functionality of the measurement reporting unit 550 are further discussed herein.

[0105] Also refer to Figure 6 Historically, measurement reports have been communicated from the UE to a network entity (such as a gNB or LMF) using RRC (Radio Resource Control) messages generated in the RRC layer 610 of the control plane protocol stack 600. In this case, the measurement report is further processed by the PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol) layer 620, the RLC (Radio Link Control) layer 630, the MAC layer 640, and the physical layer (Layer 1 (L1)) 650 for transmission to a network entity (such as a gNB) over the air interface 660. If the measurement information contained in the measurement report (such as Positioning Status Information (PSI)) can be sent from the UE 500 to the TRP 300 as a MAC-CE message or UCI message, latency can be reduced relative to using RRC messages for PSI. The discussion herein uses PSI and positioning measurements as examples, but the discussion can be applied to other types of measurements and measurement reports.

[0106] Measurement reports are often complex and have multiple optional and / or conditionally optional fields. To accommodate these fields, a complex combination of defined fixed fields, priority rules, payload compression mechanisms, collision avoidance rules, etc. may be developed and implemented. Different combinations may be developed and implemented for different transmissions (e.g., PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel) transmissions, PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel) transmissions, and / or MAC-CE transmissions).

[0107] Also refer to Figure 7 The measurement reporting unit 550 of the UE 500 includes an ASN.1 encoder 560 configured to encode measurement information (such as the illustrated PSI 710) into an encoded payload of an output message 720, which is a lower layer message, such as a UCI message or a MAC-CE message. The UCI message and the MAC-CE message are discussed as examples, but the discussion is applicable to other similar physical layer messages and / or other similar MAC layer messages. The measurement reporting unit 550 may receive one or more indications from the TRP 300 via the interface 520 and may configure the output message 720 (e.g., determine a reporting configuration) based on the one or more indications. For example, the one or more indications may instruct the UE 500 whether to use one or more fields of a reference report (e.g., an RRC measurement report). The indication(s) may indicate that one or more of the reference report fields are not to be provided. Additionally or alternatively, the indication(s) may instruct the UE 500 to include one or more optional fields in the measurement report provided by the UE 500. The measurement reporting unit 550 may therefore provide measurement reporting with more flexibility compared to previous UCI or MAC-CE messages, eg, where the measurement report has one or more optional fields and does not have a detailed set of rules specified for lower layer measurement reporting.

[0108] Also refer to Figure 8The measurement reporting unit 550 may be configured to facilitate decoding of the measurement report by the TRP 300 by providing auxiliary information in the measurement report 800. The measurement report 800 is a lower-layer measurement report that includes a physical layer message or a MAC layer message. The TRP 300 may be aware of the payload structure of the measurement report, but may not be aware of the fields that the measurement report will include (e.g., whether the measurement report may include optional fields) because the payload size may vary, for example, because the UE 500 may determine whether to include each optional field. The measurement report 800 includes a first part 810 and a second part 820. The first part 810 may have a fixed size, i.e., a known, unchanging number of bits. The first part 810 may include a size indicator 830 indicating the size of the second part 820. The size indicator 830 may indicate the number of bits in the second part 820 to facilitate decoding of the measurement report 800 by the TRP 300. The first part 810 may include a field indicator 840 that indicates which fields the second part 820 includes data for. In this example, the second portion 820 includes data for fields 2, 3, 4, and 6 of the eight fields, and the field indicator 840 includes the bit string 01110100. Each bit in the bit string corresponds to a corresponding field in numerical order, where a "0" indicates that the data for the corresponding field is not included in the second portion 820, and where a "1" indicates that the data for the corresponding field is included in the second portion 820. Thus, for the bit string of 01110100, the second, third, fourth, and sixth bits are "1," thereby indicating that the second, third, fourth, and sixth fields are included in the second portion 820. The first portion 810 may not be ASN.1 encoded, while the second portion 820 may be ASN.1 encoded by the ASN.1 encoder 560.

[0109] refer to Figure 9 and 10 And further reference Figure 5 and 8 The measurement reporting unit 550 may be configured to facilitate the decoding of the measurement report by the TRP 300 by implementing a limit on the size of the measurement report payload. The TRP 300 and the UE 500 may be aware of the limit in a variety of ways, such as by the TRP 300 indicating it to the UE 500, by being pre-programmed into the TRP 300 and the UE 500, etc. Figure 9 As shown in , the measurement reporting unit 550 may be configured to respond to determining that the encoded payload size exceeds the payload limit by splitting the measurement report among multiple messages so that payload information can be transmitted. Figure 9In the example shown in , the measurement reporting unit 550 has divided the payload between message 910 and message 920 (e.g., between each PUSCH instance). In this example, the measurement payload of the second portion 820 including fields 2, 3, 4, and 6 exceeds the payload size limit, and the measurement reporting unit 550 generates message 910 including fields 2, 3, and 4 and message 920 including field 6 so that neither message 910 or 920 exceeds the payload size limit. Additionally or alternatively, as shown in FIG. Figure 10 As shown in , the measurement reporting unit 550 can be configured to respond to a determination that the encoded payload size exceeds the payload limit by omitting information from the measurement report payload so that some payload can be transmitted. For example, the measurement reporting unit 550 can omit (e.g., discard, ignore) one or more optional fields from the payload, such as by redefining the payload without including the omitted information. Figure 10 In the example shown, field 4 of second portion 820 has been omitted from message 1010 so that message 1010 does not exceed the payload limit. Other examples are possible, such as splitting the payload and omitting some payload information. For example, if fields 2, 3, and 6 combined still exceed the payload limit, one or more fields can be omitted from message 910. Messages 910, 920, and 1010 are lower-layer messages, each comprising a physical layer message or a MAC layer message.

[0110] The measurement reporting unit 550 may be configured to take one or more actions to avoid collisions between physical layer messages to be transmitted. The measurement reporting unit 550 may be configured to take one or more actions based on one or more instructions (e.g., DCI (Downlink Control Information)) from the TRP 300 (e.g., gNB) on how to respond to a determination that a collision is about to occur. For example, referring to Figure 5 and Figure 11 , the measurement reporting unit 550 may be configured to respond to a determination that a collision will occur between physical layer messages (e.g., a UCI message and another UCI message including PSI) by generating a UCI message having a UCI message payload 1100 including a first portion 1110 dedicated to non-PSI UCI and a second portion 1120 dedicated to PSI. The UCI message payload 1100 actually has two separate messages in the same payload, where the first portion 1110 is based on a fixed format and the second portion is encoded by the ASN.1 encoder 560. As another example, referring also to Figure 12, the measurement reporting unit 550 may schedule non-PSI UCI payloads and PSI UCI payloads at different times, for example, by delaying one of these UCI payloads. The measurement reporting unit 550 may determine the scheduling of payloads based on one or more priority rules (e.g., always giving priority to non-PSI over PSI UCI, or determining priority based on a priority indication from the TRP 300 (e.g., in a DCI message), etc.). Figure 12 In the example of , the measurement reporting unit 550 schedules a non-PSI-UCI message 1210 including a non-PSI payload and a PSI-UCI message 1220 including PSI so that the non-PSI-UCI message 1210 is transmitted before the PSI-UCI message 1220 is transmitted. The non-PSI-UCI message 1210 may not be ASN.1 encoded, while the PSI-UCI message 1220 is ASN.1 encoded by the ASN.1 encoder 560. As another example, refer also to Figure 13 The ASN.1 encoder 560 jointly encodes the non-PSI-UCI payload information and the PSI-UCI payload information into the UCI message payload 1300, for example by concatenating the two payloads and then encoding the concatenated payload. The concatenated payload is part of a larger UCI message (not shown). Collision avoidance techniques help ensure that the desired information is successfully transmitted and received, even though successful transmission and reception is unlikely due to collisions that are likely to occur if one or more techniques are not implemented.

[0111] refer to Figure 5 and Figure 14 The measurement reporting unit 550 may also be configured, in addition or alternatively, to provide some positioning information in a lower layer message 1410 (e.g., a physical layer message (such as a UCI message), or a MAC layer message (such as a MAC-CE message)) and provide other positioning information in an upper layer message 1420 (e.g., an RRC message). For example, the lower layer message 1410 may include basic information (e.g., coarse position information) from which a coarse position of the UE 500 can be determined (such as a reference TRP ID, RSTD, one or more timestamps, etc.). The upper layer message 1420 may include detailed information (such as multipath information, SINR (signal to interference plus noise ratio), one or more RSRPs, etc.) from which a finer resolution position of the UE 500 can be determined. The measurement reporting unit 550 may divide the payload information between the lower layer message 1410 and the upper layer message 1420 based on the payload information exceeding a threshold size.

[0112] Also refer to Figure 15, a processing and signal flow 1500 for determining positioning information includes the stages shown. The flow 1500 is an example, and stages may be added, removed, and / or rearranged within the flow 1500.

[0113] At stage 1510, UE 500 sends a capabilities message 1512 to TRP 300. Capabilities message 1512 provides one or more indications to TRP 300 of the UE 500's ability to send lower layer measurement report messages. For example, capabilities message 1512 may indicate the UE 500's ability to encode measurement information encoded using ASN.1 into lower layer messages, and / or one or more formats of messages that may be provided by UE 500 (e.g., two-part messages such as measurement report 800). Capabilities message 1512 may indicate how UE 500 will respond to a measurement payload exceeding a payload limit (e.g., indicated by TRP 300), for example, by responding as in Figure 9 The payload is split between the messages as shown in and / or by Figure 10 The capability message 1512 may indicate how the UE 500 will respond to a potential conflict between a lower layer measurement report message and another lower layer message.

[0114] At stage 1520, the TRP 300 sends an RS and report configuration message 1522 to the UE 500. The RS and report configuration message 1522 may indicate resource configuration parameters for a reference signal (RS) (such as a PRS) to be sent to the UE 500. The resource configuration parameters may include, for example, comb number, time and / or frequency offset(s), repetition factor, etc. The RS and report configuration message 1522 may include configuration parameters for the UE 500 to send measurement reports, such as the number of resources, scheduling of resources, etc. The RS and report configuration message 1522 may include one or more instructions regarding how the UE 500 should respond to potential conflicts between lower layer messages and / or payload size limitations for measurement information.

[0115] At stage 1530, TRP 300 sends one or more RS 1532 to UE 500 and at sub-stage 1534, UE 500 determines measurement information of RS 1532. For example, TRP 300 may send PRS to UE 500 and UE 500 may measure the PRS to determine measurement information (e.g., RSRP, ToA, SINR, etc.).

[0116] At stage 1540, the UE 500 encodes the measurement information determined in sub-stage 1534 into a lower layer message. For example, the ASN.1 encoder 560 encodes some or all of the measurement information into the UCI payload or the MAC-CE payload. Some measurement information may be appropriately not included in the payload (e.g., not encoded or discarded after encoding), for example, to meet payload size constraints. The payload may be divided among multiple messages, included in the payload of another message, or jointly encoded with information from another message.

[0117] At stage 1550, UE 500 sends lower layer message(s) 1552 to TRP 300. For example, UE 500 sends the lower layer message(s) 1552 to TRP 300. Figure 8-14 Send(s) lower level message(s) 1552 based on one or more of the discussions.

[0118] At stage 1560, UE 500 may send RRC message 1562 to TRP 300. For example, if lower layer message(s) 1552 include lower layer message 1410, UE 500 may send upper layer message 1420 to supplement or complement lower layer message 1410.

[0119] At stage 1570, the TRP 300 may determine positioning information. The TRP 300 may determine a range and / or positioning estimate for the UE 500, for example, based on the messages 1552, 1565 and possibly one or more other messages with other measurement information. Additionally or alternatively, another network entity, such as the server 400 (e.g., LMF), may determine positioning information based on the measurement information provided by the TRP 300.

[0120] operate

[0121] Reference Figure 16 , and further refer to Figure 1-15 Method 1600 for transmitting measurement information from a user equipment includes the stages shown. However, method 1600 is merely an example and is not limiting. Method 1600 may be modified, for example, by adding, removing, rearranging, combining, performing concurrently, and / or splitting a single stage into multiple stages.

[0122] At stage 1610, method 1600 includes measuring a reference signal. For example, processor 510 measures RS (e.g., PRS) received via interface 520 to determine measurement information (e.g., one or more measurements such as RSRP, RSTD, SINR, etc.). Processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with memory 530 and interface 520 (e.g., wireless receiver 244 and antenna 246)) may include means for measuring a reference signal.

[0123] At stage 1620, method 1600 includes generating a measurement report payload based on the measurement of the reference signal. For example, measurement reporting unit 550 obtains measurement information to be sent in the measurement report according to a measurement reporting protocol and arranges the measurement information, for example, in a desired order. Processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with memory 530) may include means for generating the measurement report payload.

[0124] At stage 1630, method 1600 includes encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) encoding and according to a lower layer protocol to produce an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control) layer protocol. For example, ASN.1 encoder 560 encodes the measurement report information as a payload of a UCI message or a MAC-CE message. Processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with memory 530) may include means for encoding the measurement report payload.

[0125] At stage 1640, method 1600 includes sending a lower layer message from the user equipment to a network entity based on the encoded payload. For example, measurement reporting unit 550 may send one or more lower layer messages including the encoded payload. Processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with memory 530 and interface 520 (e.g., wireless transmitter 242 and antenna 246)) may include means for sending the lower layer message based on the encoded payload.

[0126] Implementations of method 1600 may include one or more of the following features. In one implementation, the encoded payload includes an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data for the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload. For example, the ASN.1 encoder 560 may encode bits to indicate whether data for the corresponding field follows the indicator bit. In another example implementation, method 1600 includes generating the lower-layer message having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a fixed number of bits and indicating the number of bits in the second portion. For example, the measurement reporting unit 550 may generate a measurement report 800, wherein the first portion 810 includes a size indicator 830 indicating a size of the second portion 820. The processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with the memory 530) may include means for generating the lower-layer message. In a further example implementation, generating the lower-layer message includes generating the lower-layer message such that the first portion further indicates whether data for each of the plurality of optional fields is included in the second portion. For example, the measurement reporting unit 550 may generate a measurement report 800 in which the field indicator 840 indicates one or more fields whose data is included in the second portion 820 .

[0127] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of method 1600 may include one or more of the following features. In an example implementation, the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and in response to the encoded payload exceeding a threshold size, method 1600 further includes: dividing the encoded payload between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message separate from the first lower layer message; and / or omitting at least a portion of the encoded payload from any lower layer messages sent to the network entity. For example, the measurement reporting unit 550 may send multiple messages (e.g., messages 910, 920) if the payload in one message is too large, and / or the measurement reporting unit may exclude measurement information to be included in a message (e.g., message 1010) to reduce the payload size to an acceptable size. The processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with the memory 530) may include means for dividing the encoded payload and / or means for omitting at least a portion of the encoded payload from the first lower layer message. In another example implementation, the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and the method 1600 includes avoiding a potential conflict between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message to be sent by the user equipment by: generating the first lower layer message according to an instruction from the network entity; and / or sending the first lower layer message according to the instruction from the network entity. For example, the measurement reporting unit 550 may determine that a conflict will occur if there is no change in the message content or scheduling of one or more messages. To prevent the conflict, the measurement reporting unit 550 may format one or more messages to include the content of both messages, or may send the content of both messages in a manner that avoids the conflict. The processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530) may include means for generating the first lower layer message according to the instruction, and the processor 510 (possibly in combination with the memory 530 and the interface 520 (e.g., the wireless transmitter 242 and the antenna 246)) may include means for sending the first lower layer message according to the instruction. In a further example implementation, avoiding the potential collision includes: generating a first lower layer message having the encoded payload including a first part and a second part, the first part including the payload of the first lower layer message, and the second part including the payload of the second lower layer message; and / or adjusting a transmission time of at least one of the first lower layer message or the second lower layer message based on the instruction to avoid a collision between the first lower layer message and the second lower layer message; and / or to generate the encoded payload, encoding the payload of the second lower layer message together with the measurement report payload according to the ASN.1 encoding to generate the encoded payload.For example, the measurement reporting unit 550 may include the contents of the two messages in separate payload portions of a single message payload (e.g., payload 1100), and / or send the contents of the two messages in temporally separate messages (e.g., by delaying one or both of these messages) (e.g., like messages 1210, 1220), and / or encode the contents of the two messages together into a jointly encoded payload, such as payload 1300. The processor 510 (possibly in conjunction with the memory 530) may include means for generating a first lower layer message having an encoded payload comprising a first portion and a second portion, and / or means for adjusting transmission timing, and / or means for encoding the measurement report payload and the payload of the second lower layer message together.

[0128] Additionally or alternatively, an implementation of method 1600 may include one or more of the following features. In an example implementation, the lower layer message includes a first portion of an encoded payload, and method 1600 includes sending a radio resource control message with a second portion of the encoded payload. For example, measurement reporting unit 550 may send lower layer message 1410 with coarse location information and send upper layer message 1420 with fine tuning location information. Processor 510 (possibly in combination with memory 530, and with interface 520 (e.g., wireless transmitter 242 and antenna 246)) may include means for sending the radio resource control message with the second portion of the encoded payload.

[0129] Implementation Example

[0130] Implementation examples are provided in the following numbered clauses.

[0131] Clause 1. A user equipment comprising:

[0132] transceiver;

[0133] Memory; and

[0134] a processor communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory, the processor configured to:

[0135] measuring a reference signal received by the transceiver;

[0136] generating a measurement report payload based on measurements of the reference signal;

[0137] encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) encoding and according to a lower layer protocol to produce an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol; and

[0138] A lower layer message is sent to a network entity via the transceiver based on the encoded payload.

[0139] Clause 2. The user equipment of clause 1, wherein the encoded payload includes an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data of the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload.

[0140] Clause 3. The user equipment of clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to generate the lower layer message having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a fixed number of bits and indicating a number of bits of the second portion.

[0141] Clause 4. The user equipment of clause 3, wherein the processor is configured to generate the lower layer message such that the first portion further indicates whether data for each of a plurality of optional fields is included in the second portion.

[0142] Clause 5. The user equipment of clause 1, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein the processor is further configured to perform at least one of the following in response to the encoded payload exceeding a threshold size:

[0143] dividing the encoded payload between a first lower layer message and a second lower layer message separate from the first lower layer message; or

[0144] At least a portion of the encoded payload is omitted from the first lower layer message.

[0145] Clause 6. A user equipment as described in clause 1, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein the processor is configured to generate the first lower layer message or transmit at least one of the first lower layer message in response to a potential conflict between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message to be sent by the user equipment in accordance with an instruction from the network entity.

[0146] Clause 7. The user equipment of clause 6, wherein the processor is further configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0147] generating a first lower layer message having the encoded payload comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion comprising the payload of the first lower layer message and the second portion comprising the payload of the second lower layer message; or

[0148] adjusting a transmission time of at least one of the first lower layer message or the second lower layer message based on the instruction to avoid a conflict between the first lower layer message and the second lower layer message; or

[0149] To generate the encoded payload, the payload of the second lower layer message is encoded together with the measurement report payload according to the ASN.1 encoding.

[0150] Clause 8. The user equipment of clause 1, wherein the processor is configured to send the lower layer message and to send the radio resource control message with the second portion of the encoded payload, the lower layer message including the first portion of the encoded payload in the lower layer message.

[0151] Clause 9. A user equipment comprising:

[0152] means for measuring a reference signal;

[0153] means for generating a measurement report payload based on measurements of the reference signal;

[0154] means for encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) encoding and according to a lower layer protocol to produce an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol; and

[0155] Means for sending a lower layer message to a network entity based on the encoded payload.

[0156] Clause 10. The user equipment of clause 9, wherein the encoded payload includes an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data of the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload.

[0157] Clause 11. The user equipment of clause 9, further comprising means for generating a lower layer message having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a fixed number of bits and indicating a number of bits of the second portion.

[0158] Clause 12. The user equipment of clause 11, wherein the means for generating the lower layer information comprises means for generating the lower layer message such that the first portion further indicates whether data for each of a plurality of optional fields is included in the second portion.

[0159] Clause 13. The user equipment of clause 9, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein in response to the encoded payload exceeding a threshold size, the user equipment further comprises at least one of:

[0160] means for dividing the encoded payload between a first lower layer message and a second lower layer message separate from the first lower layer message; or

[0161] Means for omitting at least a portion of the encoded payload from the first lower layer message.

[0162] Clause 14. A user equipment as described in Clause 9, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein the user equipment includes a conflict device for performing the following operations: in response to a potential conflict between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message to be sent by the user equipment, generating the first lower layer message or transmitting at least one of the first lower layer messages according to an instruction from the network entity; and sending the first lower layer message according to an instruction from the network entity in response to the potential conflict.

[0163] Clause 15. The user equipment of clause 14, wherein the conflicting device further comprises at least one of the following:

[0164] means for generating a first lower layer message having the encoded payload comprising a first portion comprising the payload of the first lower layer message and a second portion comprising the payload of the second lower layer message; or

[0165] means for adjusting a transmission time of at least one of the first lower layer message or the second lower layer message based on the instruction to avoid a collision of the first lower layer message with the second lower layer message; or

[0166] To generate the encoded payload, means for encoding the payload of the second lower layer message together with the measurement report payload using said ASN.1 encoding.

[0167] Clause 16. User equipment as described in Clause 9, wherein the means for sending the lower layer message includes means for sending the lower layer message including the first portion of the encoded payload in the lower layer message, and wherein the user equipment includes means for sending a radio resource control message having the second portion of the encoded payload.

[0168] Clause 17. A method of sending measurement information from a user equipment, the method comprising:

[0169] Measuring reference signals;

[0170] generating a measurement report payload based on measurements of the reference signal;

[0171] encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) encoding and according to a lower layer protocol to produce an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol; and

[0172] A lower layer message is sent from the user equipment to a network entity based on the encoded payload.

[0173] Clause 18. The method of Clause 17, wherein the encoded payload includes an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data of the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload.

[0174] Clause 19. The method of Clause 17, further comprising generating the lower layer message having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a fixed number of bits and indicating a number of bits of the second portion.

[0175] Clause 20. The method of Clause 19, wherein generating the lower-layer information comprises generating the lower-layer message such that the first portion further indicates whether data for each of a plurality of optional fields is included in the second portion.

[0176] Clause 21. The method of clause 17, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein in response to the encoded payload exceeding a threshold size, the method further comprises at least one of:

[0177] dividing the encoded payload between a first lower layer message and a second lower layer message separate from the first lower layer message; or

[0178] At least a portion of the encoded payload is omitted from the first lower layer message.

[0179] Clause 22. The method of clause 17, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, the method further comprising avoiding a potential conflict between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message to be sent by the user equipment by at least one of the following operations:

[0180] generating a first lower layer message according to an instruction from the network entity; or

[0181] A first lower layer message is sent according to the instruction from the network entity.

[0182] Clause 23. The method of Clause 22, wherein avoiding the potential conflict further comprises at least one of:

[0183] generating a first lower layer message having the encoded payload comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion comprising the payload of the first lower layer message and the second portion comprising the payload of the second lower layer message; or

[0184] adjusting a transmission time of at least one of the first lower layer message or the second lower layer message based on the instruction to avoid a conflict between the first lower layer message and the second lower layer message; or

[0185] To generate the encoded payload, the payload of the second lower layer message is encoded together with the measurement report payload according to the ASN.1 encoding.

[0186] Clause 24. The method of clause 17, wherein the lower layer message includes a first portion of the encoded payload, the method further comprising sending a radio resource control message with a second portion of the encoded payload.

[0187] Clause 25. A non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions that cause a processor of user equipment to:

[0188] Measuring reference signals;

[0189] generating a measurement report payload based on measurements of the reference signal;

[0190] encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 (Abstract Syntax Notation One) encoding and according to a lower layer protocol to produce an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer (Media Access Control layer) protocol; and

[0191] A lower layer message is sent from the user equipment to a network entity based on the encoded payload.

[0192] Clause 26. The storage medium of Clause 25, wherein the encoded payload includes an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data of the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload.

[0193] Clause 27. The storage medium of clause 25, further comprising processor-readable instructions for causing the processor of the user equipment to generate the lower layer message having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a fixed number of bits and indicating a number of bits of the second portion.

[0194] Clause 28. The storage medium of clause 27, wherein the processor-readable instructions that cause the processor of the user equipment to generate the lower-layer information include processor-readable instructions that cause the processor of the user equipment to generate the lower-layer message so that the first part further indicates whether data of each optional field of a plurality of optional fields is included in the second part.

[0195] Clause 29. The storage medium of clause 25, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein the storage medium further causes the processor of the user equipment to perform processor-readable instructions, in response to the encoded payload exceeding a threshold size, to at least one of:

[0196] dividing the encoded payload between a first lower layer message and a second lower layer message separate from the first lower layer message; or

[0197] At least a portion of the encoded payload is omitted from the first lower layer message.

[0198] Clause 30. The storage medium of clause 25, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein the storage medium further comprises collision avoidance instructions, the collision avoidance instructions comprising processor-readable instructions that cause the processor of the user equipment to at least one of:

[0199] generating a first lower layer message according to an instruction from the network entity; or

[0200] A first lower layer message is sent according to the instruction from the network entity.

[0201] Clause 31. The storage medium of clause 30, wherein the conflict avoidance instructions further comprise processor-readable instructions that cause the processor of the user equipment to execute a payload:

[0202] generating a first lower layer message having the encoded payload comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion comprising the payload of the first lower layer message and the second portion comprising the payload of the second lower layer message; or

[0203] adjusting a transmission time of at least one of the first lower layer message or the second lower layer message based on the instruction to avoid a conflict between the first lower layer message and the second lower layer message; or

[0204] To generate the encoded payload, the payload of the second lower layer message is encoded together with the measurement report payload according to the ASN.1 encoding.

[0205] Clause 32. The storage medium of clause 25, wherein the lower layer message includes a first portion of the encoded payload, and wherein the storage medium further includes processor-readable instructions that cause the processor of the user equipment to send a radio resource control message having a second portion of the encoded payload.

[0206] Other considerations

[0207] Other examples and implementations are within the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software and computers, the functions described above may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or any combination thereof. Features that implement the functions may also be physically located in various locations, including being distributed so that parts of the functions are implemented at different physical locations.

[0208] As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" also include the plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. As used herein, the terms "comprises," "has," "includes," and / or "contains" specify the presence of recited features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0209] As used herein, the term RS (reference signal) may refer to one or more reference signals and may be appropriately applied to any form of the term RS, for example, PRS, SRS, CSI-RS, etc.

[0210] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, a recitation of a function or operation "based on" an item or condition means that the function or operation is based on the recited item or condition, and may be based on one or more items and / or conditions other than the recited item or condition.

[0211] Likewise, as used herein, “or” used in a list of items (possibly followed by “at least one of” or “one or more of”) indicates a disjunctive 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 having 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 may be configured to perform the function with respect to A, or may be configured to perform the function with respect to B, or may be configured to perform the 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 can be configured to measure A (and may or may not be configured to measure B), or can be configured to measure B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or can 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, the phrase "means for measuring at least one of A or B" includes: means for measuring A (which may or may not be able to measure B), or means for measuring B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or means for measuring A and B (which may be able to select which one or both of A and B to measure). As another example, the phrase "an item (e.g., a processor) is configured to perform at least one of function X or perform function Y" means that the item can be configured to perform function X, or can be configured to perform function Y, or can be configured to perform function X and function Y. For example, the phrase the processor is configured to measure “at least one of X or 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 X and measure Y (and may be configured to select which or both of X and Y to measure).

[0212] Substantial variations may be made depending on specific requirements. For example, customized hardware may also be used, and / or specific elements may be implemented in hardware, in software executed by a processor (including portable software, such as applets, etc.), or in both. Further, connections to other computing devices (such as network input / output devices) may be employed. Unless otherwise indicated, components shown in the figures and / or discussed herein as interconnected or communicating (functionally or otherwise) are communicatively coupled. That is, they may be connected directly or indirectly to enable communication therebetween.

[0213] The systems and devices discussed above are examples. Various configurations may omit, replace, or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For example, features described with reference to certain configurations may be combined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elements of the configurations may be combined in similar ways. Furthermore, technology will evolve, and thus, many elements are examples and do not limit the scope of this disclosure or the claims.

[0214] A wireless communication system is a system in which communications are transmitted wirelessly, that is, by electromagnetic waves and / or sound waves propagating through air space rather than through wires or other physical connections. A wireless communication network may not have all communications transmitted wirelessly, but may be configured so that at least some communications are transmitted wirelessly. Furthermore, the term "wireless communication device" or similar terms does not require that the functionality of the device be exclusively or uniformly primarily used for communication, or that the device be a mobile device, but rather indicates that the device includes wireless communication capabilities (unidirectional or bidirectional), for example, including at least one radio (each radio being part of a transmitter, receiver, or transceiver) for wireless communication.

[0215] Specific details are given in this specification to provide a thorough understanding of example configurations (including implementations). However, these configurations can be practiced without these specific details. For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques have been shown without unnecessary details to avoid confusing these configurations. This specification only provides example configurations and does not limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the claims. On the contrary, the previous description of the configuration provides a description for implementing the technology. Various changes can be made to the function and arrangement of the elements.

[0216] As used herein, the terms "processor-readable medium," "machine-readable medium," and "computer-readable medium" refer to any medium that participates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in a particular manner. Using a computing platform, various processor-readable media may be involved in providing instructions / code for execution to the processor(s), and / or may be used to store and / or carry such instructions / code (e.g., as signals). In many implementations, processor-readable media are physical and / or tangible storage media. Such media may take many forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media and volatile media. Non-volatile media include, for example, optical and / or magnetic disks. Volatile media include, but are not limited to, dynamic memory.

[0217] After describing several example configurations, various modifications, alternative configurations, and equivalents can be used. For example, the above elements can be components of a larger system, wherein other rules can take precedence over the application of the present invention or otherwise modify the application of the present invention. In addition, several operations can be taken before, during, or after considering the above elements. Accordingly, the above description does not limit the scope of the claims.

[0218] A statement that a value exceeds (or is greater than or higher than) a first threshold is equivalent to a statement that the value meets or exceeds a second threshold that is slightly greater than the first threshold, e.g., the second threshold is one value higher than the first threshold at the resolution of the computing system. A statement that a value is less than (or within or below) the first threshold is equivalent to a statement that the value is less than or equal to a second threshold that is slightly lower than the first threshold, e.g., the second threshold is one value lower than the first threshold at the resolution of the computing system.

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE), comprising: transceiver; Memory; as well as a processor communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory, the processor configured to: measuring a reference signal received by the transceiver; generating a measurement report payload based on measurements of the reference signal; encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 abstract syntax notation-coding and according to a lower layer protocol to generate an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer media access control layer protocol; as well as sending a lower layer message to a network entity via the transceiver based on the encoded payload; wherein the lower layer message comprises a first portion of the encoded payload, the first portion comprising information from which a coarse location of the UE can be determined, and the processor is further configured to send a radio resource control message having a second portion of the encoded payload, the second portion comprising information from which a finer resolution location of the UE can be determined. 2 . The user equipment of claim 1 , wherein the encoded payload comprises an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data of the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload.

3. The user equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The processor is configured to generate the lower layer message having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a fixed number of bits and indicating a number of bits of the second portion.

4. The user equipment according to claim 3, wherein: The processor is configured to generate the lower layer message such that the first portion further indicates whether data of each optional field of a plurality of optional fields is included in the second portion.

5. The user equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein the processor is further configured to perform at least one of the following in response to the encoded payload exceeding a threshold size: dividing the encoded payload between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message separate from the first lower layer message; or At least a portion of the encoded payload is omitted from the first lower layer message.

6. The user equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein the processor is configured to at least one of generate the first lower layer message or transmit the first lower layer message according to an instruction from the network entity in response to a potential conflict between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message to be sent by the user equipment.

7. The user equipment according to claim 6, wherein: The processor is further configured to perform at least one of the following: generating the first lower layer message having the encoded payload comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion comprising the payload of the first lower layer message and the second portion comprising the payload of the second lower layer message; or adjusting a transmission time of at least one of the first lower layer message or the second lower layer message based on the instruction to avoid a conflict between the first lower layer message and the second lower layer message; or To generate the encoded payload, the payload of the second lower layer message is encoded together with the measurement report payload according to the ASN.1 encoding.

8. A user equipment (UE), comprising: means for measuring a reference signal; means for generating a measurement report payload based on measurements of said reference signal; means for encoding the measurement report payload according to an ASN.1 abstract syntax notation-coding and according to a lower layer protocol to produce an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer media access control layer protocol; as well as Means for sending a lower layer message to a network entity based on the encoded payload, wherein the lower layer message includes a first portion of the encoded payload, the first portion including information from which a coarse location of the UE can be determined, the UE further comprising means for sending a radio resource control message with a second portion of the encoded payload, the second portion including information from which a finer resolution location of the UE can be determined.

9. The user equipment of claim 8, wherein the encoded payload comprises an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data of the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload.

10. The user equipment of claim 8, further comprising means for generating the lower layer message having a first part and a second part, the first part having a fixed number of bits and indicating a number of bits of the second part.

11. The user equipment of claim 10, wherein the means for generating the lower layer message comprises means for generating the lower layer message so that the first part further indicates whether data of each optional field of a plurality of optional fields is included in the second part.

12. The user equipment of claim 8, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein in response to the encoded payload exceeding a threshold size, the user equipment further comprises at least one of: means for dividing the encoded payload between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message separate from the first lower layer message; or Means for omitting at least a portion of the encoded payload from the first lower layer message.

13. The user equipment of claim 8, wherein: The lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein the user equipment includes a conflict device for performing the following operations: in response to a potential conflict between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message to be sent by the user equipment, generating the first lower layer message or transmitting the first lower layer message according to an instruction from the network entity; or in response to the potential conflict, sending the first lower layer message according to an instruction from the network entity.

14. The user equipment of claim 13, wherein: The conflict device further includes at least one of the following: means for generating the first lower layer message having the encoded payload comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion comprising the payload of the first lower layer message and the second portion comprising the payload of the second lower layer message; or means for adjusting a transmission time of at least one of the first lower layer message or the second lower layer message based on the instruction to avoid a collision of the first lower layer message with the second lower layer message; or To generate the encoded payload, means for encoding a payload of the second lower layer message together with the measurement report payload according to the ASN.1 encoding.

15. A method for transmitting measurement information from a user equipment (UE) based on a radio reference signal received at the UE, the method comprising: Measuring reference signals; generating a measurement report payload based on measurements of the reference signal; encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 abstract syntax notation-coding and according to a lower layer protocol to generate an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer media access control layer protocol; as well as sending a lower layer message from the UE to a network entity based on the encoded payload; Wherein the lower layer message comprises a first portion of the encoded payload, the first portion comprising information from which a coarse position of the UE can be determined, the method further comprising sending a radio resource control message having a second portion of the encoded payload, the second portion comprising information from which a finer resolution position of the UE can be determined. 16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the encoded payload includes an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data of the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising generating the lower layer message having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a fixed number of bits and indicating a number of bits of the second portion.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein generating the lower layer message comprises generating the lower layer message such that the first portion further indicates whether data of each of a plurality of optional fields is included in the second portion.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the lower layer message is a first lower layer message, and wherein in response to the encoded payload exceeding a threshold size, the method further comprises at least one of: dividing the encoded payload between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message separate from the first lower layer message; or At least a portion of the encoded payload is omitted from the first lower layer message.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein: The lower layer message is a first lower layer message, the method further comprising avoiding a potential conflict between the first lower layer message and a second lower layer message to be sent by the user equipment by at least one of the following operations: generating the first lower layer message according to an instruction from the network entity; or The first lower layer message is sent according to the instruction from the network entity.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein avoiding the potential conflict further comprises at least one of: generating the first lower layer message having the encoded payload comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion comprising the payload of the first lower layer message and the second portion comprising the payload of the second lower layer message; or adjusting a transmission time of at least one of the first lower layer message or the second lower layer message based on the instruction to avoid a conflict between the first lower layer message and the second lower layer message; or To generate the encoded payload, the payload of the second lower layer message is encoded together with the measurement report payload according to the ASN.1 encoding.

22. A non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions, the processor-readable instructions causing a processor of a user equipment (UE) to transmit measurement information from the UE based on a wireless reference signal received at the UE: Measuring reference signals; generating a measurement report payload based on measurements of the reference signal; encoding the measurement report payload according to ASN.1 Abstract Syntax Notation-Encoding and according to a lower layer protocol to generate an encoded payload, the lower layer protocol being a physical layer protocol or a MAC layer media access control layer protocol; and sending a lower layer message from the user equipment to a network entity based on the encoded payload; wherein the lower layer message includes a first portion of the encoded payload, the first portion including information from which a coarse location of the UE can be determined, and the instructions further cause the processor to send a radio resource control message having a second portion of the encoded payload, the second portion including information from which a finer resolution location of the UE can be determined.

23. The storage medium of claim 22, wherein the encoded payload includes an inclusion indicator for each optional field of the encoded payload, the inclusion indicator indicating whether data of the corresponding optional field is included in the encoded payload.

24. The storage medium of claim 22, further comprising processor-readable instructions that cause the processor of the user equipment to generate the lower layer message having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a fixed number of bits and indicating a number of bits of the second portion.

Images