Systems and methods for selecting positioning based on user equipment considerations

Abstract

Methods and techniques for supporting location services for a user equipment (UE) are described, wherein the UE evaluates available positioning methods based on one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method and provides an indication of the prioritized positioning method to a location server. The UE may additionally provide an indication of the criteria on which the prioritized positioning method is based. The UE may send the indication of the prioritized positioning method before performing positioning measurements, and the location server may accept or reject the prioritized positioning method. Alternatively, the UE may send the indication of the prioritized positioning method and the criteria used in priority determination after performing positioning measurements. The location server may use the prioritized positioning method and the criteria used in priority determination, for example, in subsequent positioning requests to the UE.

Description

[0001] Priority Statement

[0002] This application claims priority to Indian application No. 202041039944 entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR SELECTIONOF POSITIONING BASED ON USER EQUIPMENT CONSIDERATIONS”, filed on September 15, 2020, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Technical Field

[0003] This disclosure generally relates to communications, and more specifically to technologies for supporting location services for user equipment (UE) served by a wireless network. Background Technology

[0004] It is often desirable to know the location of user equipment (UE), such as a cellular phone. For example, a location services (LCS) client may want to know the location of the terminal in the event of an emergency service call, or to provide the terminal's user with services such as navigation assistance or direction finding. The terms "location" and "position" are synonymous and are used interchangeably herein.

[0005] The location of a mobile device can be estimated based on information collected from various systems. In cellular networks implemented according to 4G (also known as fourth generation) Long Term Evolution (LTE) radio access or 5G (also known as fifth generation) “New Radio” (NR), for example, the base station can transmit reference signals (such as positioning reference signals (PRS)) that can be received and measured by the mobile device. For example, the UE can generate positioning measurements from downlink (DL) reference signals, such as Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD), Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP), and Receive and Transmit (Rx-Tx) time difference measurements that can be used in downlink positioning methods, such as DL-Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) and DL-Angle of Departure (AOD). Similarly, the mobile device can transmit reference signals (e.g., Sounding Reference Signals (SRS)) that are received and measured by the base station. The base station can generate positioning measurements from uplink (UL) SRS such as RSTD and Rx-Tx, which can be used in uplink positioning methods such as UL-TDOA and UL-AOA. Additionally, combined measurements using PRS and SRS (such as Rx-Tx) can be used for DL- and UL-based positioning, including combinations such as round-trip time (RTT), which can be used with one or more neighboring base stations (multi-RTT). The choice of which positioning measurement and positioning method to use for mobile device location determination can impact the performance of both the mobile device and the wireless network. Summary of the Invention

[0006] Methods and techniques for supporting location services for a user equipment (UE) are described, wherein the UE evaluates available positioning methods based on one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method and provides an indication of the prioritized positioning method to a location server. The UE may additionally provide an indication of the criteria on which the prioritized positioning method is based. The UE may send the indication of the prioritized positioning method before performing positioning measurements, and the location server may accept or reject the prioritized positioning method. Alternatively, the UE may send the indication of the prioritized positioning method and the criteria used in priority determination after performing positioning measurements. The location server may use the prioritized positioning method and the criteria used in priority determination, for example, in subsequent positioning requests to the UE.

[0007] In one implementation, a method for supporting location services for a user equipment (UE) performed by the user equipment (UE) includes: receiving auxiliary data from a location server, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods; evaluating one or more criteria using the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods and internal UE factors to determine a preferred positioning method; performing a positioning measurement for the preferred positioning method; and sending a message identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the preferred positioning method to the location server.

[0008] In one implementation, a user equipment (UE) configured to support location services includes: at least one radio transceiver configured to wirelessly communicate with at least one wireless network; at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one radio transceiver and the at least one memory, and configured to: receive auxiliary data from a location server, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods; evaluate one or more criteria using the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods and internal UE factors to determine a prioritized positioning method; perform positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and send a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of the one or more criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method to the location server.

[0009] In one implementation, a user equipment (UE) configured to support location services for the UE includes: components for receiving auxiliary data from a location server, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods; components for evaluating one or more criteria using the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods and internal UE factors to determine a preferred positioning method; components for performing positioning measurements for the preferred positioning method; and components for sending a message identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the preferred positioning method to the location server.

[0010] In one implementation, a non-transitory storage medium includes program code stored thereon, operable to configure at least one processor in a user equipment (UE) to support location services for the UE. The program code includes instructions for: receiving auxiliary data from a location server, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods; evaluating one or more criteria using the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods and internal UE factors to determine a prioritized positioning method; performing positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and sending a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and instructions to the location server for the one or more criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method.

[0011] In one implementation, a method for supporting location services for a user equipment (UE) executed by a location server includes: sending auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and receiving from the UE a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the prioritized positioning method.

[0012] In one implementation, a location server configured to support location services for a user equipment (UE) includes: a communication interface configured to communicate with the UE in a wireless network; at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to at least the communication interface and at least one memory, and configured to: send auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and receive from the UE a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method.

[0013] In one implementation, a location server configured to support location services for a user equipment (UE) includes: components for sending auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and components for receiving from the UE a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the prioritized positioning method.

[0014] In one implementation, a non-transitory storage medium includes program code stored thereon, operable to configure at least one processor in a location server to support location services for a user equipment (UE), the program code including instructions for: sending auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and receiving from the UE a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the prioritized positioning method. Attached Figure Description

[0015] The features and advantages of various embodiments can be understood by referring to the following figures.

[0016] Figure 1 The architecture of a system capable of providing location services to user devices is shown.

[0017] Figure 2A This is a block diagram illustrating a non-roaming reference architecture for UE location determination using time- and angle-based silence based on PRS transmitted by the base station.

[0018] Figure 2B The diagram shows the architecture of an NG-RAN node, which includes a gNB central unit, gNB distributed units, and gNB remote units.

[0019] Figure 3 A block diagram showing the design of the base station and UE is provided.

[0020] Figure 4 The structure of an exemplary subframe sequence with positioning reference signal (PRS) timing is shown.

[0021] Figure 5 It shows the message flow between the location server, base station, and UE for the location process that uses the positioning method prioritized by the UE.

[0022] Figure 6 This is another message flow illustrating the message passing between the location server, base station, and UE for the location process using the positioning method prioritized by the UE.

[0023] Figure 7 A schematic block diagram illustrating some exemplary features of a UE that can support the prioritization of positioning methods by the UE during the positioning process is shown.

[0024] Figure 8 A schematic block diagram illustrating certain exemplary features of a location server that can support the prioritization of location methods by a UE in the location process is shown.

[0025] Figure 9 A flowchart is shown of an exemplary method executed by the UE to support location services for the UE in a wireless network.

[0026] Figure 10 A flowchart is shown of an exemplary method performed by a location server to support location services for a UE in a wireless network.

[0027] According to some example implementations, the same reference numerals and symbols in various figures indicate the same elements. Additionally, multiple instances of an element can be indicated by adding a letter or hyphen after the first digit of the element followed by a second digit. For example, multiple instances of element 110 can be represented as 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, etc. When only the first digit is used to refer to such an element, it should be understood that any instances of the element (e.g., element 110 in the previous example can refer to elements 110-1, 110-2, and 110-3). Detailed Implementation

[0028] Various aspects of this disclosure are provided in the following description and accompanying drawings, which are provided for illustrative purposes. Alternative aspects may be designed without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Furthermore, well-known elements of this disclosure will not be described in detail, or will be omitted, to avoid obscuring relevant details of this disclosure.

[0029] The terms “exemplary” and / or “example” are used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described herein as “exemplary” and / or “example” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Similarly, the term “aspects of this disclosure” does not require that all aspects of this disclosure include the features, advantages, or modes of operation discussed.

[0030] Those skilled in the art will understand that the information and signals described below can be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout this specification can be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, light fields or particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the specific application, in part on the desired design, and in part on the appropriate technology, etc.

[0031] Furthermore, many aspects are described according to sequences of actions to be performed by elements of, for example, computing devices. It will be appreciated that the various actions described herein can be performed by specific circuitry (e.g., application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), program instructions executed by at least one processor, or a combination of both. Additionally, the sequences of actions described herein can be considered fully embodied in any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a corresponding set of computer instructions that, when executed, will cause or instruct the relevant processor of the device to perform the functions described herein. Therefore, various aspects of this disclosure can be embodied in several different forms, all of which are contemplated to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Furthermore, for any of the aspects described herein, corresponding forms of these aspects can be described herein as, for example, "logic" "configured" to perform the described actions.

[0032] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, the terms “User Equipment” (UE) and “Base Station” are not intended to be specific to or otherwise limited to any particular Radio Access Technology (RAT). Generally, a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network (e.g., mobile phone, router, tablet computer, laptop computer, consumer tracking device for tracking consumer goods, packages, assets, or entities such as individuals and pets, wearable devices (e.g., smartwatches, glasses, augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headsets, etc.), vehicles (e.g., cars, motorcycles, bicycles, etc.), Internet of Things (IoT) devices, etc.). A UE can be mobile or can (e.g., at certain times) be stationary and can communicate with a Radio Access Network (RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” is interchangeably referred to as “Access Terminal” or “AT,” “Client Equipment,” “Wireless Equipment,” “Subscriber Equipment,” “Subscriber Terminal,” “Subscriber Station,” “User Terminal” or “UT,” “Mobile Terminal,” “Mobile Station,” “Mobile Equipment,” or variations thereof. Generally, a UE can communicate with a core network via the RAN, and through the core network, a UE can connect to external networks such as the Internet and to other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for connecting to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible for the UE, such as via a wired access network, a wireless local area network (WLAN) (e.g., based on IEEE 802.11, etc.), and so on. As discussed herein, the UE's positioning is performed using consumer-based positioning technologies, including terrestrial wireless positioning and / or satellite-based positioning.

[0033] A base station, or transmission point, or transmit / receive point (TRP) may operate according to one of several RATs communicating with the UE, depending on the network in which it is deployed, and may be alternatively referred to as an access point (AP), network node, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), New Radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as gNB or gNodeB), etc. Additionally, in some systems, the base station may provide purely edge node signaling functions, while in others, it may provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link through which the UE sends signals to the base station is referred to as an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse traffic channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). The communication link through which the base station sends signals to the UE is referred to as a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., paging channel, control channel, broadcast channel, forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term traffic channel (TCH) may refer to either a UL / reverse or DL / forward traffic channel.

[0034] The term "base station" can refer to a single physical transmit and receive point (TRP), or it can refer to multiple physical TRPs that may be co-located or disco-located. For example, when the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be the antenna of a base station corresponding to a cell of the base station. When the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be the antenna array of a base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where beamforming is employed at the base station). When the term "base station" refers to multiple disco-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transmission medium) or a remote radio headend (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, disco-located physical TRPs may be the serving base station from which the UE receives measurement reports and neighboring base stations where the UE is measuring its reference radio frequency (RF) signal.

[0035] To support UE positioning, two main categories of positioning solutions have been defined: control plane and user plane. Using control plane (CP) positioning, signaling related to positioning and positioning support can be carried over existing network (and UE) interfaces using existing protocols dedicated to signaling transmission. Using user plane (UP) positioning, protocols such as Internet Protocol (IP), Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) can be used to carry positioning and positioning support-related signaling as part of other data.

[0036] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has defined control plane location solutions for UEs using radio access based on GSM (2G), UMTS (3G), LTE (4G), and New Radio (NR) for 5G. These solutions are defined in 3GPP Technical Specifications (TS) 23.271 and 23.273 (common parts), 43.059 (GSM access), 25.305 (UMTS access), 36.305 (LTE access), and 38.305 (NR access). The Open Mobility Alliance (OMA) has similarly defined an up-plane location solution called Secure User Plane Location (SUPL), which can be used to locate UEs with access to any of the multiple radio interfaces supporting IP packet access, such as GPRS using GSM, GPRS using UMTS, or IP access using LTE or NR.

[0037] Both CP and UP location solutions can employ location servers to support positioning. A location server can be part of or accessible from the UE's serving or home network, or simply accessible via the Internet or local intranet. If positioning of the UE is required, the location server can initiate a session with the UE (e.g., a location session or SUPL session) and coordinate the UE's location measurements and the determination of the UE's estimated location. During a location session, the location server can request positioning capabilities from the UE (or the UE can provide them without request), can provide auxiliary data to the UE (e.g., if requested by the UE or without request), and can request from the UE location estimation or location measurements for various positioning techniques (e.g., for Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA), Angle of Departure (AOD), Round Trip Time (RTT), or Multi-RTT, and / or Enhanced Cell ID (ECID) positioning methods). The UE can use the auxiliary data to acquire and measure GNSS and / or PRS signals (e.g., by providing information such as frequency, expected time of arrival, signal coding, and expected characteristics of the signal Doppler). Additionally or alternatively, the UE may be provided with SRS configuration information and instructed to send SRS for positioning. One or more base stations may receive and process the sent SRS based on the configuration information and perform various positioning measurements of the SRS, which may be provided to network entities such as a location server or the UE for location estimation (e.g., using UL-TDOA, RTT, or Multi-RTT).

[0038] In UE-based operating modes, the UE may also or alternatively use auxiliary data to help determine the location estimate from the obtained location measurements (e.g., if the auxiliary data provides satellite ephemeris data in the case of GNSS positioning, or provides base station location and other base station characteristics, such as PRS timing, in the case of terrestrial positioning using, such as TDOA, AOD, Multi-RTT, etc).

[0039] In UE-assisted operation mode, the UE can return location measurements to the location server, which can determine the UE's estimated location based on these measurements and possibly other known or configured data (e.g., satellite ephemeris data for GNSS location, or base station characteristics including base station location and possible PRS timing in the case of ground positioning such as TDOA, AOD, Multi-RTT, etc.).

[0040] In another standalone operating mode, the UE can perform location-related measurements without any positioning assistance data from the location server, and can further calculate the location or changes in location without any positioning assistance data from the location server. Positioning methods that can be used in standalone mode include GPS and GNSS (e.g., if the UE obtains satellite orbit data from data broadcast by the GPS and GNSS satellites themselves) and sensors.

[0041] In the case of a 3GPP CP location, the location server can be an Enhanced Serving Mobile Location Center (E-SMLC) for LTE access, a Standalone SMLC (SAS) for UMTS access, a Serving Mobile Location Center (SMLC) for GSM access, or a Location Management Function (LMF) for 5G NR access. In the case of an OMA SUPL location, the location server can be a SUPL Location Platform (SLP), which can act as any of the following: (i) a Home SLP (H-SLP), if in or associated with the UE's home network, or if a permanent subscription for location services is provided to the UE; (ii) a Discovered SLP (D-SLP), if in or associated with another (non-home) network, or if not associated with any network; (iii) an Emergency SLP (E-SLP), if supporting locations for emergency calls initiated by the UE; or (iv) an Accessed SLP (V-SLP), if in or associated with the UE's serving network or current local area.

[0042] During a location session, the location server and the UE can exchange messages defined according to several location protocols to coordinate the determination of estimated location. Possible location protocols may include, for example, the LTE Location Protocol (LPP) defined by 3GPP in 3GPP TS 36.355 and the LPP Extensions (LPPe) protocol defined by OMA in OMA TS OMA-TS-LPPe-V1_0, OMA-TS-LPPe-V1_1, and OMA-TS-LPPe-V2_0. LPP and LPPe protocols can be used in combination, where an LPP message contains an embedded LPPe message. The combined LPP and LPPe protocols can be referred to as LPP / LPPe. LPP and LPP / LPPe can be used to help support 3GPP control plane solutions for LTE or NR access, in which case LPP or LPP / LPPe messages are exchanged between the UE and the E-SMLC or between the UE and the LMF. LPP or LPPe messages can be exchanged between the UE and the E-SMLC via the Serving Mobility Management Entity (MME) for the UE and the serving eNodeB. LPP or LPP / LPPe messages can also be exchanged between the UE and the LMF via the Serving Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) for the UE and the Serving NR Node B (gNB). LPP and LPP / LPPe can also be used to help support OMA SUPL solutions for many types of radio access (such as LTE, NR, and WiFi) that support IP messaging, where LPP or LPP / LPPe messages are exchanged between the SUPL-enabled terminal (SET) (SET is the term for a UE with SUPL) and the SLP, and can be transmitted within SUPL messages such as SUPL POS or SUPL POS INIT messages.

[0043] Location servers and base stations (e.g., eNodeBs for LTE access) can exchange messages to enable the location server to (i) obtain location measurements of a specific UE from the base station, or (ii) obtain location information unrelated to a specific UE from the base station, such as the location coordinates of the base station's antennas, the cells supported by the base station (e.g., cell identity), cell timing for the base station, and / or parameters of signals transmitted by the base station (such as PRS signals). In the case of LTE access, the LPP A (LPPa) protocol can be used to transmit such messages between the base station acting as an eNodeB and the location server acting as an E-SMLC. In the case of NR access, the NRPPA protocol can be used to transmit such messages between the base station acting as a gNodeB and the location server acting as an LMF. Note that the terms "parameters" and "information element" (IE) are synonymous and can be used interchangeably herein.

[0044] Several different positioning methods can be used during UE positioning (e.g., UE-assisted positioning or UE-based positioning). For example, positioning based on downlink (DL) reference signals (RS) can be used. In DL RS-based positioning, the UE can receive DL RS such as PRS from one or more base stations and can generate positioning measurements such as reference signal time difference (RSTD), reference signal received power (RSRP), and receive-to-transmit (Rx-Tx) time difference measurements, which can be used in DL positioning methods such as DL-time difference of arrival (TDOA) and DL-angle of departure (AOD).

[0045] Another example of a positioning method that can be used is uplink (UL) RS-based positioning. In UL RS-based positioning, the UE can transmit RS (such as SRS) that is received and measured by the base station. For example, the base station can generate positioning measurements from UL RS such as RSTD and Rx-Tx, which can be used in UL positioning methods such as UL-TDOA and UL-AOA.

[0046] Another example of a positioning method that can be used is positioning based on combined DL and UL RS. In positioning based on combined DL and UL RS, the UE can receive and measure DL RS such as PRS from one or more base stations, and can transmit UL RS such as SRS received and measured by the base stations. For example, the UE and the base station can generate Rx-Tx measurements from the received DL and UL RS respectively, which can be used to generate a single round-trip time (RTT) measurement for one base station or an RTT measurement for multiple base stations (multi-cell RTT).

[0047] Different positioning methods (e.g., positioning methods based on DL, UL, or DL+UL reference signals) can affect the UE in different ways. Many UE-specific considerations exist, under which using one positioning method over another may be preferred. However, in current systems, if the location server and network support multiple different types of positioning methods, the decision to use one method over another does not take into account UE-based preferences. For example, current positioning protocols do not provide a way for the UE to indicate a preference for one positioning method over others based on its specific considerations.

[0048] In the implementation discussed herein, the UE can evaluate available positioning methods based on one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method and provide an indication of that prioritized positioning method to a network entity such as a location server or base station. The UE may additionally provide an indication of the criteria on which the prioritized positioning method was determined. In one implementation, as an example, the UE may send an indication of the prioritized positioning method before performing positioning measurements. For example, the network entity may accept or reject the prioritized positioning method. In another implementation, the UE may send an indication of the prioritized positioning method and the criteria used in prioritization after performing positioning measurements. For example, the network entity may use the prioritized positioning method and the criteria used in prioritization, for example, in subsequent positioning requests to the UE.

[0049] Figure 1 An architecture of system 100 capable of supporting location services for UE 105 is illustrated, wherein location of UE 105 can be considered and used (or rejected) using location methods prioritized by UE 105. For example, location services may include the transmission of location-aided data, including configuration parameters for various location methods, between UE 105 and server 152 using messages such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) Location Protocol (LPP) or LPP Extensions (LPPe) messages. In some cases, UE 105 and server 152 may take the form of a location server such as an LMF or another network entity, referred to herein as a location server. The transmission of location information may occur at a rate suitable for both UE 105 and location server 152. LPP is well known and described in various publicly available technical specifications from 3GPP. LPPe has been defined by the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) and can be used in combination with LPP such that each combined LPP / LPPe message will be an LPP message including an embedded LPPe message.

[0050] For simplicity, Figure 1 Only one UE 105 and location server 152 are shown. Typically, system 100 may include multiple cells indicated by 145-k (0 ≤ k ≤ N cells, where N cells is the number of cells), having one or more networks 115, external clients 130, UE 105, base station 110 with antennas, and spacecraft (SV) 188. System 100 may also include a mixture of cells in a manner consistent with the embodiments disclosed herein, including macrocells such as cells 145-1, 145-3, and 145-4, and femtocells such as cell 145-2.

[0051] UE 105 may be able to wirelessly communicate with location server 152 via network 115 (or multiple networks 115) that support positioning and location services. For example, location services (LCS) may be performed on behalf of LCS client 130 (sometimes referred to as external client 130), which accesses location server 152 and / or network 115 and issues a request for the location of UE 105. Location server 152 or network 115 can then respond to LCS client 130 with a location estimate of UE 105. For example, LCS client 130 may also be referred to as a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) agent when the location solution used by location server 152 and UE 105 is a SUPL solution defined by OMA. In some embodiments, UE 105 may also include an LCS client or SUPL agent that can issue location requests to some positioning-enabled function within UE 105 and subsequently receive a location estimate of UE 105. The LCS client or SUPL agent within UE 105 can perform location services for users of UE 105—for example, providing navigation directions or identifying points of interest near UE 105.

[0052] like Figure 1 As shown, UE 105 can communicate with location server 152 via network 115 and base station 110, which can be associated with network 115. UE 105 can receive and measure signals from the antennas of base station 110, which can be used for location determination. For example, UE 105 can receive and measure signals from the antennas of one or more of base stations 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, and / or 110-4, which can be associated with cells 145-1, 145-2, 145-3, and 145-4, respectively. In some embodiments, base station 110 can form part of a wireless communication network, which can be a wireless wide area network (WWAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network (WPAN), etc. The terms "network" and "system" are often used interchangeably. WWAN can be Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) network, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) network, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) network, Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) network, Long Term Evolution (LTE), WiMax, etc.

[0053] UE 105 can also receive signals from one or more Earth-orbiting spacecraft (SV) 188-1 or 188-2 (collectively, SV188), which may be part of a satellite positioning system (SPS). For example, SV 188 may be in a constellation of a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) such as the US Global Positioning System (GPS), the European Galileo system, the Russian GLONASS system, or the Chinese BeiDou system. According to certain aspects, the techniques presented herein are not limited to global systems (e.g., GNSS) for SPS. For example, the techniques provided herein can be applied to or otherwise enabled for various regional systems such as the Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) over Japan, the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) over India, and / or various augmentation systems (e.g., satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS)) that can be associated with or otherwise enabled for one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. By way of example and not limitation, SBAS can include augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential correction, etc., such as Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), European Geostationary Navigation Coverage Service (EGNOS), Multifunctional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), GPS-Assisted Geo-Augmented Navigation, or GPS and Geo-Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN). Therefore, as used herein, SPS can include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems and / or augmentation systems, and SPS signals can include SPS, SPS-like signals, and / or other signals associated with one or more such SPS.

[0054] Figure 2A This is a simplified block diagram illustrating a communication system 200 for non-roaming support of the location of UE 105 for prioritizing the location of UE 105 as discussed herein. The communication system 200 may be... Figure 1An example of system 100, with similarly named components being the same. The non-roaming communication system 200 includes components of a UE 105 and a fifth-generation (5G) network, which includes a next-generation radio access network (NG-RAN) 112, comprising base stations (BSs) sometimes referred to as New Radio (NR) Node Bs or gNBs 110-1, 110-2, and 110-3 (collectively and generally referred to herein as gNB 110), and a 5G core network (5GC) 150 communicating with external clients 130. The 5G network may also be referred to as a New Radio (NR) network; NG-RAN 112 may be referred to as NR RAN or 5G RAN; and 5GC 150 may be referred to as a next-generation (NG) core network (NGC). As an example, NG-RAN 112 may include one or more next-generation eNBs (ng-eNBs) 114 providing LTE radio access to UE 105. Standardization of NG-RAN and 5GC has been performed by 3GPP. The communication system 200 can also use information from the satellite launch vehicle (SV) 188 for Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) such as GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, or BeiDou, or some other local or regional satellite positioning systems (SPS) (such as IRNSS, EGNOS, or WAAS). Additional components of the communication system 200 are described below. The communication system 200 may include additional or alternative components.

[0055] It should be noted that Figure 2A Only a general description of the various components is provided, any or all of which may be used as appropriate, and each component may be copied or omitted as necessary. Specifically, although only one UE 105 is shown, it should be understood that many UEs (e.g., hundreds, thousands, millions, etc.) may use the communication system 200. Similarly, the communication system 200 may include a larger or smaller number of SV 188, gNB 110, ng-eNB 114, external clients 130, and / or other components. The connections shown linking the various components in the communication system 200 include data and signaling connections, which may include additional (intermediate) components, direct or indirect physical and / or wireless connections, and / or additional networks. Furthermore, components may be rearranged, combined, separated, replaced, and / or omitted depending on the required functionality.

[0056] Although Figure 2A The example shown is a 5G-based network, but similar network implementations and configurations can be used for other communication technologies such as 3G, LTE, IEEE 802.11 WiFi, etc.

[0057] As used herein, UE 105 can be any electronic device and can be referred to as a device, mobile device, wireless device, mobile terminal, terminal, mobile station (MS), terminal (SET) supporting Secure User Plane Location (SUPL), or some other name. Furthermore, UE 105 can correspond to a smartwatch, digital glasses, fitness monitor, smart car, smart appliance, mobile phone, smartphone, laptop, tablet, PDA, consumer tracking device for tracking consumer goods, packages, assets, or entities such as individuals and pets, control device, or some other portable or mobile device. UE 105 can include a single entity or can include multiple entities, such as in a personal area network where the user can use audio, video, and / or data I / O devices and / or body sensors, as well as separate wired or wireless modems. Typically, while not mandatory, UE 105 can support technologies such as GSM, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), LTE, High-Speed ​​Packet Data (HRPD), IEEE 802.11 WiFi (also known as Wi-Fi). Wireless communication using one or more radio access technologies such as BT, WiMAX, and 5G New Radio (NR) (e.g., using NG-RAN 112 and 5GC150). UE 105 may also support wireless communication using a wireless local area network (WLAN), which can connect to other networks (e.g., the Internet) using, for example, digital subscriber line (DSL) or packet cable. Using one or more of these RATs allows UE 105 to communicate with external client 130 (e.g., via...). Figure 2A The elements of 5GC 150 not shown, or possibly via Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC) 155) and / or allow external client 130 to receive location information about UE 105 (e.g., via GMLC 155).

[0058] UE 105 can enter a connected state with a wireless communication network that may include NG-RAN 112. In one example, UE 105 can communicate with the cellular communication network by sending or receiving radio signals from a cellular transceiver in NG-RAN 112, such as gNB 110 or ng-eNB 114. The transceiver provides user plane and control plane protocol terminals to UE 105 and may be referred to as a base station, base transceiver station, radio base station, radio transceiver, radio network controller, transceiver function, base station subsystem (BSS), extended service set (ESS), or by some other suitable terminology.

[0059] In a particular implementation, UE 105 may have circuitry and processing resources capable of acquiring location-related measurements. The location-related measurements acquired by UE 105 may include measurements of signals received from satellites 188 belonging to SPS or Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) such as GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, or BeiDou, and / or may include measurements of signals received from ground transmitters (e.g., gNB 110 or ng-eNB 114) fixed at known locations. UE 105 or a separate location server (e.g., LMF 152) to which UE 105 sends measurements can then use any of several positioning methods, such as, for example, GNSS, Auxiliary GNSS (A-GNSS), Advanced Forward Link Trilateral Measurement (AFLT), Observation Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA), WLAN (also known as WiFi) positioning, or Enhanced Cell ID (ECID), or combinations thereof, to obtain a location estimate for UE 105 based on these location-related measurements. In some of these technologies (e.g., A-GNSS, AFLT, and OTDOA), UE 105 may measure pseudo-range or timing differences, at least in part, based on pilots, reference signals (RS) such as positioning reference signals (PRS), or other reference signals transmitted by a transmitter or satellite and received at UE 105, relative to three or more ground transmitters (e.g., gNB 110) fixed at known locations, or relative to four or more satellites 188 or combinations thereof with precisely known orbit data. Here, a location server such as LMF 152 may be able to provide UE 105 with positioning assistance data, including, for example, information about the signal to be measured (e.g., expected signal timing, signal encoding, signal frequency, signal Doppler, silence configuration), the location and identity of the ground transmitter (e.g., gNB 110), and / or the signal, timing, and orbit information of the GNSS satellites 188, to facilitate positioning methods (e.g., DL RS-based positioning methods, UL RS-based positioning methods, and positioning methods based on a combination of DL and UL RS). This enhancement may include improving the signal acquisition and measurement accuracy of UE 105, and in some cases, enabling UE 105 to calculate its estimated location based on location measurements. For example, the location server may include a calendar indicating the location and identity of cellular transceivers and / or local transceivers in one or more specific areas, such as a specific site, and may provide information (such as transmission power and signal timing) describing signals transmitted by cellular base stations or access points (APs) (e.g., gNB 110).

[0060] UE 105 can measure RSTD, RSRP, Rx-Tx, or other positioning measurements for DL ​​RS-based positioning methods (such as DL-TDOA and DL-AOD). UE 105 can transmit UL RS, and one or more gNBs 110 can measure, for example, RSTD and Rx-Tx for UL RS-based positioning methods (such as UL-TDOA and UL-AOA). Additionally, both UE 105 and gNB 110 can measure, for example, the Rx-Tx of received DL RS and UL RS for positioning methods based on combined DL and UL RS (such as RTT and multi-cell RTT). UE 105 and gNB 110 can transmit these measurements to a location server such as LMF 152 to determine the location of UE 105. Alternatively, in some implementations, UE 105 can use these measurements in conjunction with auxiliary data (e.g., ground calendar data or GNSS satellite data such as GNSS calendar and / or GNSS ephemeris information) received from a location server (e.g., LMF 152) or broadcast by base stations in NG-RAN 112 (e.g., gNB 110 or ng-eNB 114) to determine the location of UE 105.

[0061] An estimate of the location of UE 105 may be referred to as location, location estimate, location orientation, orientation, positioning, location estimate, or location orientation and may be geographic, thus providing location coordinates (e.g., latitude and longitude) for UE 105, which may or may not include an elevation component (e.g., height above sea level, height above ground, floor, or basement, or depth below ground, floor, or basement). Alternatively, the location of UE 105 may be represented as a city location (e.g., as a postal address or designation of a point or small area within a building, such as a specific room or floor). The location of UE 105 may also be represented as an area or volume in which UE 105 is expected to be located with a certain probability or confidence level (e.g., 67%, 95%, etc.) (defined geographically or in city terms). The location of UE 105 may also be a relative location, including, for example, distance and direction defined relative to an origin at a known location, or relative to X, Y (and Z) coordinates, which may be geographically defined, in city terms, or by reference to a point, area, or volume indicated on a map, floor plan, or building plan. In the description contained herein, unless otherwise indicated, the use of the term location may include any of these variations. When calculating the location of a UE, local x, y, and possibly z coordinates are typically solved, and then, if necessary, the local coordinates are converted to absolute coordinates (e.g., for latitude, longitude, and altitude above or below mean sea level).

[0062] like Figure 2AAs shown, the gNB 110 pairs in NG-RAN 112 can be connected to each other, for example, as Figure 2A The connection shown is either a direct connection or an indirect connection via other gNBs 110. Access to the 5G network is provided to the UE 105 via wireless communication between the UE 105 and one or more gNBs 110. The gNBs 110 can use 5G (e.g., NR) to provide wireless communication access to the 5GC 150 on behalf of the UE 105. Figure 2A In this context, the serving gNB for UE 105 is assumed to be gNB 110-1, although if UE 105 moves to another location, other gNBs (such as gNB 110-2 and / or gNB 110-3) may act as serving gNBs or as secondary gNBs to provide additional throughput and bandwidth to UE 105. Figure 2A Some gNB 110s (e.g., gNB 110-2 or gNB110-3) can be configured to act as location-only beacons, which can send signals (e.g., directional PRS) to assist the UE 105 in positioning, but may not receive signals from the UE 105 or other UEs.

[0063] As mentioned earlier, although Figure 2A Nodes configured to communicate according to 5G communication protocols are depicted, but nodes configured to communicate according to other communication protocols, such as LTE, can be used. Such nodes configured to communicate using different protocols can be controlled at least partially by the 5GC 150. Therefore, the NG-RAN 112 can include any combination of gNBs, eNBs, or other types of base stations or access points. As an example, the NG-RAN 112 can include one or more next-generation eNBs (ng-eNBs) 114 that provide LTE radio access to the UE 105 and can connect to entities in the 5GC 150, such as the AMF 154.

[0064] The gNB 110 and / or ng-eNB 114 can communicate with the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 154, which in turn communicates with the Location Management Function (LMF) 152 for location functions. The AMF 154 can support the mobility of UE 105, including cell changes and handovers, and can participate in supporting signaling connections to UE 105, and may assist in establishing and releasing Protocol Data Unit (PDU) sessions for UE 105. Other functions of the AMF 154 may include: termination of the control plane (CP) interface from the NG-RAN 112; termination of non-access stratum (NAS) signaling connections from UEs such as UE 105, NAS encryption and integrity protection; registration management; connection management; reachability management; mobility management; access authentication and authorization.

[0065] When UE 105 accesses NG-RAN 112, LMF 152 can support the positioning of UE 105 and can support positioning processes / methods such as Auxiliary GNSS (A-GNSS), DL-TDOA, DL-AOD, UL-TDOA, UL-AOA, RTT, multi-cell RTT, Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA), Real-Time Kinematics (RTK), Precise Point Positioning (PPP), Differential GNSS (DGNSS), Enhanced Cell ID (ECID), WLAN positioning, and / or other positioning methods. LMF 152 can also process, for example, location service requests for UE 105 received from AMF 154. In some embodiments, nodes / systems implementing LMF 152 may additionally or alternatively implement other types of location support modules, such as Enhanced Serving Mobility Location Center (E-SMLC) or Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP). It should be noted that in some embodiments, at least a portion of the positioning function (including the derivation of the location of UE 105) can be performed at UE 105 (e.g., using measurements of signals transmitted by the wireless node and auxiliary data provided to UE 105). LMF 152 may be referred to by other names, such as Location Manager (LM), Location Function (LF), Commercial LMF (CLMF), or Value-Added LMF (VLMF).

[0066] GMLC 155 can support location requests for UE 105 received from external client 130 and can forward such location requests to AMF 154, which in turn can forward the location request to LMF 152. A location response from LMF 152 (e.g., containing a location estimate for UE 105) can similarly be returned to GMLC 155 via AMF 154, and GMLC 155 can then return the location response (e.g., containing a location estimate) to external client 130. GMLC 155 can contain subscription information from external client 130 and can authenticate and authorize location requests for UE 105 from external client 130. GMLC 155 can also initiate a location session for UE 105 by sending a location request for UE 105 to AMF 154, and can include the identity of UE 105 and the type of location requested (e.g., such as current location or a sequence of periodic or triggered locations) in the location request.

[0067] like Figure 2AAs further illustrated, the LMF 152 and gNB 110 can communicate using the new Radio Positioning Protocol A (which may be referred to as NPPa or NRPPa). NRPPa is defined in 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 38.455, where NRPPa messages are transmitted between gNB 110 and LMF 152 via AMF 154. Figure 2A As further illustrated, LMF 152 and UE 105 can communicate using the LTE Location Protocol (LPP) defined in 3GPP TS 36.355, where LPP messages are transmitted between UE 105 and LMF 152 via the serving gNB 110-1 of AMF 154 and UE 105. For example, LPP messages can be transmitted between LMF 152 and AMF 154 using service-based operations, and between AMF 154 and UE 105 using 5G Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocols. The LPP protocol can be used to support the location of UE 105 using UE-assisted and / or UE-based location methods such as A-GNSS, RTK, WLAN, OTDOA, DL-TDOA, DL-AOD, UL-TDOA, UL-AOA, RTT, multi-cell RTT, and / or ECID. The NRPPa protocol can be used to support the positioning of UE105 using network-based positioning methods such as ECID (when used with measurements obtained by gNB 110), and / or can be used by LMF 152 to obtain location-related information from gNB 110, such as defining parameters (such as PRS) from DL RS transmissions from gNB 110 to support positioning, and receiving UL measurements from gNBs for positioning methods such as UL-TDOA, UL-AOA, RTT, and multi-cell RTT.

[0068] Using a UE-assisted positioning method, UE 105 can obtain location measurements (e.g., measurements of RSSI, RSTD, Rx-Tx, AOA, RSRP, and / or RSRQ from gNB 110, ng-eNB 114, or a WLAN AP, or measurements of GNSS pseudorange, code phase, and / or carrier phase for SV 188) and send these measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 152) for calculating a location estimate for UE 105. Using a UE-based positioning method, UE 105 can obtain location measurements (e.g., which may be the same as or similar to the location measurements used in the UE-assisted positioning method and may include UL measurements performed by gNB 110) and calculate the location of UE 105 (e.g., using auxiliary data received from a location server such as LMF 152 or auxiliary data broadcast by gNB 110, ng-eNB 114, or other base stations or APs). Using a network-based positioning method, one or more base stations (e.g., gNB 110 and / or ng-eNB 114) or APs can obtain location measurements (e.g., measurements of RSSI, Rx-Tx, RSRP, RSRQ, or TOA of signals transmitted by UE 105) and / or can receive measurements obtained by UE 105 and send such measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 152) for calculating the location estimate of UE 105.

[0069] The information provided to LMF 152 by gNB 110 using NRPPa may include timing and configuration information for PRS transmission, as well as the location coordinates of gNB 110. LMF 152 may then provide some or all of this information to UE 105 as auxiliary data in an LPP message via NG-RAN 112 and 5GC 150.

[0070] The LPP message sent from LMF 152 to UE 105 can instruct UE 105 to perform any of a variety of actions according to the required functionality. For example, the LPP message may contain instructions for UE 105 to obtain measurements for GNSS (or A-GNSS), WLAN, DLRS-based positioning methods, ULRS-based positioning methods, combined DL and UL RS-based positioning methods (or some other positioning methods). The LPP message may provide UE 105 with configuration parameters for one or more measurements required to obtain the positioning method. UE 105 may send positioning information (e.g., measurements or location estimates) back to LMF 152 via serving gNB 110-1 and AMF 154 in the LPP message (e.g., within a 5G NAS message).

[0071] In some embodiments, LPP may be enhanced or replaced by NR or NG positioning protocols (NPP or NRPP) that support positioning methods such as OTDOA and ECID for NR radio access. For example, an LPP message may contain an embedded NPP message, or may be replaced by an NPP message.

[0072] When NG-RAN 112 includes one or more ng-eNBs 114, the ng-eNB 114 can communicate with LMF 152 using NRPPa to support the positioning of UE 105 (e.g., using a network-based positioning method) and / or enable the transmission of LPP and / or NPP messages between UE 105 and LMF 152 via ng-eNB 114 and AMF 154. The ng-eNB 114 and / or gNB 110 in NG-RAN 112 can also broadcast positioning assistance data to UEs such as UE 105.

[0073] As shown in the figure, Unified Data Management (UDM) 156 can be connected to GMLC 155. UDM 156 is similar to a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) for LTE access, and UDM 156 can be combined with HSS if needed. UDM 156 is a central database containing user-related and subscription-related information for UE 105, and can perform the following functions: UE authentication, UE identification, access authorization, registration and mobility management, subscription management, and short message service management. Additionally, GMLC 155 is connected to Location Retrieval Function (LRF) 157, which processes the retrieval of UE 105's location information and can be used, for example, to provide UE 105's location information to an external client 130 acting as a public safety answering point after an emergency call from UE 105 to PSAP.

[0074] To support services including location services for Internet of Things (IoT) UEs from external client 130, a Network Exposure Function (NEF) 159 may be included. For example, NEF 159 may be used to obtain the current or last known location of UE 105, to obtain indications of changes in UE 105's location, or to indicate when UE 105 becomes available (or reachable). External client 130 (e.g., external client 130 as an application function) may access NEF 159 to obtain the location information of UE 105. NEF 159 may connect to GMLC 155 to support the last known location, current location, and / or delayed periodicity and triggering location of UE 105. If needed, NEF 159 may include GMLC 155, or may be combined with GMLC 155, and then the location information of UE 105 may be obtained from LMF 152 via AMF 154.

[0075] As described above, while communication systems 100 and 200 are described in relation to 5G technology, this communication system can be implemented to support other communication technologies (such as GSM, WCDMA, LTE, WiFi IEEE 802.11, etc.) for supporting and interacting with mobile devices such as UE 105 (e.g., for implementing voice, data, positioning, and other functions). For example, in some implementations, 5GC 150 can connect to a WLAN using a non-3GPP interoperability function (N3IWF, not shown) in 5GC 150. For example, the WLAN can support IEEE 802.11 WiFi access for UE 105. Here, N3IWF can connect to the WLAN and other components in 5GC 150 (such as AMF 154).

[0076] In other embodiments, the 5GC core 150 can be configured to control different air interfaces, such as an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN) including one or more evolved Node Bs (eNBs) replacing gNB 110 and ng-eNB 114. In some other embodiments, both NG-RAN 112 and 5GC 150 can be replaced by other RANs and other core networks. For example, in an evolved packet system (EPS) defined by 3GPP to support LTE access: UE 105 can access EPS instead of NG-RAN 112 and 5GC 150; NG-RAN 112 can be replaced by an E-UTRAN including eNBs replacing gNB 110 and ng-eNB 114; and 5GC 150 can be replaced by an evolved packet core (EPC) including a Mobility Management Entity (MME) replacing AMF 154, an Enhanced Serving Mobility Location Center (E-SMLC) replacing LMF 152, and a GMLC that can be similar to or the same as VGMLC 155. In such EPS, E-SMLC can use LTE Positioning Protocol A (LPPa) instead of NRPPa to send and receive location information from eNBs in E-UTRAN, and LPP can be used to support the positioning of UE 105. Additionally, in some implementations, the base station (e.g., similar to or based on gNB 110 or ng-eNB 114) can act as a positioning beacon only and send signals (e.g., PRS) to assist the positioning of UE 105, but does not receive signals.

[0077] Figure 2B It shows that it can be used Figure 2AAn architectural diagram of NG-RAN node 190 within NG-RAN 112 (e.g., as a separate entity or as part of another gNB). Depending on one implementation, NG-RAN node 190 may be gNB 110. For example, Figure 2B The architecture shown can be applied to Figure 2A Any gNB 110.

[0078] As shown in the figure, gNB 110 may include a gNB Central Unit (gNB-CU) 192, a gNB Distributed Unit (gNB-DU) 194, and a gNB Remote Unit (gNB-RU) 196, which may be physically located together in gNB 110 or physically separated. gNB-CU 192 is a logical or physical node that hosts support for and controls the operation of one or more gNB-DUs and / or gNB-RUs using the gNB 110 on the NR Uu air interface. gNB-CU 192 terminates the F1 interface connected to the gNB-DU and, in some implementations, terminates the F1 interface connected to the gNB-RU. As shown in the figure, gNB-CU 192 can communicate with the AMF via the NG interface. gNB-CU 192 can also communicate with one or more other gNB 110s via the Xn interface. gNB-DU 194 is a logical or physical node that hosts support for the Radio Link Control (RLC), Medium Access Control (MAC), and Physical (PHY) protocol layers used on the NR Uu air interface of gNB110, and its operation is partially controlled by gNB-CU 192. gNB-DU terminates the F1 interface connected to gNB-CU 192 and can also terminate the lower-layer split-point interface Fx of gNB-RU. gNB-RU 196 can be split based on lower-layer functions and is a logical or physical node that hosts support for lower-layer functions, such as the PHY and Radio Frequency (RF) protocol layers used on the NR Uu air interface of gNB 110, and its operation is partially controlled by gNB-CU192 and / or gNB-DU 194. gNB-RU 196 terminates the Fx interface connected to gNB-DU 194 and, in some implementations, can terminate the F1 interface connected to gNB-CU 192.

[0079] gNB-CU 192 requests positioning measurements (e.g., E-CID) from gNB-DU 194 and / or gNB-RU 196. gNB-DU 194 and / or gNB-RU 196 can report the measurements back to gNB-CU 192. gNB-DU 194 or gNB-RU 196 may include positioning measurement functionality. It should be understood that individual measurement nodes are not excluded.

[0080] Additionally, such as Figure 2B As shown, gNB 110 may include a transmit point (TP) 111 and a receive point (RP) 113, which are combined to form a transmit-receive point (TRP) 112, and may be physically or logically located within gNB 110. gNB-CU 192 may be configured to communicate with TP 111 and RP 113, for example, via an F1 interface. Therefore, gNB-CU 192 controls one or more TP 111 and RP 113 that can be accessed from gNB-CU 192 via the F1 interface.

[0081] In some embodiments, NG-RAN node 190 (or gNB 110) may include Figure 2B A subset of the components shown. For example, NG-RAN node 190 may include gNB-CU 192, but may not include gNB-DU 194 and one or more of gNB-RU 196, RP113, or TP 111. Alternatively, NG-RAN node 190 may include gNB-DU 194 and one or more of RP 113 or TP 111, but may not include gNB-RU 196. Furthermore, Figure 2B The components shown can be logically separated but physically co-located, or they can be physically partially or completely separated. For example, one or more of gNB-DU 194 and / or gNB-RU196, RP 113, or TP 111 can be physically separated from or physically coupled to gNB-CU 192. In the case of physical separation, the F1 or Fx interface can define signaling on the physical link or connection between the two separated components. In some implementations, gNB-CU 192 can be split into a control plane portion (referred to as CU-CP or gNB-CU-CP) and a user plane portion (referred to as CU-UP or gNB-CU-UP). In this case, both gNB-CU-CP and gNB-CU-UP can interact with gNB-DU 194 and / or gNB-RU 196 to support NR Uu air interface signaling for the control plane and user plane, respectively. However, only gNB-CU-CP can interact with TP 111 and RP 113 to support and control location-related communications.

[0082] The protocol layering between gNB-CU 192 and TP 111 and RP 113 can be based on F1 C as defined in 3GPP TS 38.470, which uses the top-level F1 Application Protocol (F1AP) specified in 3GPP TS 38.473. New location-supporting messages can be added directly to F1AP, or they can be introduced into new location-specific protocols that use F1AP for transmission.

[0083] The positioning process with gNB-CU 192 can include all positioning-related procedures on the NG, Xn, and NR-Uu interfaces. For example, the positioning process between AMF 115 and NG-RAN node 190 can use NGAP. The positioning process between NG-RAN node 190 and other NG-RAN nodes (such as gNB 110) can use XnAP or protocols above XnAP, such as the Extended NR Positioning Protocol A (NRPPa) as defined in 3GPP TS38.455. The positioning process between NG-RAN node 190 and UE 105 can use RRC and / or LPP.

[0084] Location-related messages can be carried within a transparent F1AP message transmission container. For example, the transmission of NGAP location reporting control and NAS transmission messages can be carried within UL / DL NGAP message transmissions. The transmission of location-related XnAP messages can be carried within UL / DL XnAP message transmissions. The transmission of location-related RRC (LPP) messages can be carried within UL / DL RRC (LPP) message transmissions.

[0085] Figure 3 A block diagram of a design 300 for a base station 110 and a UE 105 is shown. The base station and the UE can be... Figure 1 One of the base stations and one of the UEs. The base station 110 may be equipped with T antennas 334a to 334t, and the UE 105 may be equipped with R antennas 352a to 352r, wherein typically T≥1 and R≥1.

[0086] At base station 110, transmitting processor 320 can receive data from data source 312 for one or more UEs, select one or more modulation and decoding schemes (MCS) for each UE based at least in part on channel quality indicators (CQI) received from the UE, process (e.g., encode and modulate) the data for each UE based at least in part on the MCS selected for the UE, and provide data symbols for all UEs. Transmitting processor 320 can also process system information (e.g., for semi-static resource partitioning information (SRPI), etc.) and control information (e.g., CQI requests, authorizations, upper-layer signaling, etc.), and provide overhead symbols and control symbols. Transmitting processor 320 can also generate reference symbols for reference signals (e.g., cell-specific reference signals (CRS)) and synchronization signals (e.g., primary synchronization signal (PSS) and secondary synchronization signal (SSS)). If applicable, the transmit (TX) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) processor 330 can perform spatial processing (e.g., pre-decoding) on ​​data symbols, control symbols, overhead symbols, and / or reference symbols, and can provide T output symbol streams to T modulators (MODs) 332a to 332t. Each modulator 332 can process its own output symbol stream (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modulator 332 can further process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and up-convert) the output sample stream to obtain a downlink signal. The T downlink signals from modulators 332a to 332t can be transmitted separately via T antennas 334a to 334t. Position coding can be used to generate synchronization signals to convey additional information, according to various aspects described in more detail below.

[0087] At UE 105, antennas 352a to 352r can receive downlink signals from base station 110 and / or other base stations, and can provide the received signals to demodulators (DEMODs) 354a to 354r respectively. Each demodulator 354 can adjust (e.g., filter, amplify, down-convert, and digitize) the received signal to obtain an input sample. Each demodulator 354 can further process the input sample (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain the received symbols. MIMO detector 356 can obtain the received symbols from all R demodulators 354a to 354r, perform MIMO detection on the received symbols (if applicable), and provide the detected symbols. Receiver processor 358 can process (e.g., demodulate and decode) the detected symbols, provide the decoded data for UE 105 to data sink 360, and provide the decoded control information and system information to controller / processor 380. The channel processor can determine the Received Reference Signal Power (RSRP), Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), Received Reference Signal Quality (RSRQ), Channel Quality Indicator (CQI), etc. In some respects, one or more components of UE 105 may be included in the housing.

[0088] On the uplink, at UE 105, the transmitting processor 364 can receive and process data from data source 362 and control information from controller / processor 380 (e.g., for reports including RSRP, RSSI, RSRQ, CQI, etc.). The transmitting processor 364 can also generate reference symbols for one or more reference signals. Symbols from the transmitting processor 364 can be pre-decoded (if applicable) by the TX MIMO processor 366, further processed by modulators 354a to 354r (e.g., for DFT-s-OFDM, CP-OFDM, etc.), and transmitted to base station 110. At base station 110, uplink signals from UE 105 and other UEs can be received by antenna 334, processed by demodulator 332, detected by MIMO detector 336 (if applicable), and further processed by receiving processor 338 to obtain decoded data and control information transmitted by UE 105. The receiver processor 338 can provide decoded data to the data sink 339 and decoded control information to the controller / processor 340. The base station 110 may include a communication unit 344 and communicates with the location server 152 via the communication unit 344. The location server 152 may include a communication unit 394, a controller / processor 390, and a memory 392.

[0089] The controller / processor 340 of base station 110, the controller / processor 380 of UE 105, the controller / processor 390 of location server 152 and / or Figure 3Any other component may perform one or more techniques associated with broadcast location assistance data in a differential manner, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. For example, the controller / processor 380 of UE 105, the controller / processor 340 of base station 110, the controller / processor 390 of location server 152, and / or Figure 3 Any other component can execute or direct, for example Figure 9 and Figure 10 The operation of processes 900 and 1000 and / or other processes described herein. Memory 342, 382, ​​and 392 may store data and program code for base station 110, UE 105, and location server 152, respectively. In some aspects, memory 342 and / or memory 382 and / or memory 392 may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing one or more instructions for wireless communication. For example, when run by one or more processors of base station 105, base station 110, and / or location server 152, these one or more instructions may execute or direct, for example... Figure 9 and Figure 10 The operation of processes 900 and 1000 and / or other processes as described herein. Scheduler 346 may schedule the UE for data transmission on the downlink and / or uplink.

[0090] As mentioned above, providing Figure 3 As an example. Other examples can be related to... Figure 3 The descriptions differ.

[0091] Figure 4 The structure of an exemplary subframe sequence 400 with a Positioning Reference Signal (PRS) timing according to various aspects of this disclosure is shown. Subframe sequence 400 can be adapted for broadcasting PRS signals from a base station (e.g., any base station described herein) or other network nodes. Subframe sequence 400 can be used in LTE systems, and the same or similar subframe sequences can be used in other communication technologies / protocols (such as 5G and NR). Figure 4 In this model, time is represented horizontally (e.g., on the X-axis), increasing from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (e.g., on the Y-axis), increasing (or decreasing) from bottom to top. Figure 4 As shown, downlink and uplink radio frames 410 can each have a duration of 10 milliseconds (ms). For downlink frequency division duplex (FDD) mode, in the example shown, radio frames 410 are organized into ten subframes 412, each with a duration of 1 ms. Each subframe 412 includes two time slots 414, each with a duration of, for example, 0.5 ms.

[0092] In the frequency domain, the available bandwidth can be divided into evenly spaced orthogonal subcarriers 416 (also called “tone” or “bin”). For example, for a regular-length cyclic prefix (CP) using, for example, a 15 kHz interval, the subcarriers 416 can be grouped into groups of twelve (12) subcarriers. A resource of one OFDM symbol length in the time domain and one subcarrier (represented as a block of subframe 412) in the frequency domain is called a resource element (RE). Each group of 12 subcarriers 416 and 14 OFDM symbols is called a resource block (RB), and in the example above, the number of subcarriers in a resource block can be written as For a given channel bandwidth, the number of available resource blocks on each channel 422, also known as the transmission bandwidth configuration 422, is indicated as follows: For example, for a 3MHz channel bandwidth in the example above, the number of available resource blocks on each channel 422 is determined by... Given. Note that the frequency components of a resource block (e.g., 12 subcarriers) are called a physical resource block (PRB).

[0093] Base stations can be based on and Figure 4 The frame configurations shown herein are similar or identical to those used to transmit radio frames (e.g., radio frame 410) or other physical layer signaling sequences that support PRS signals (i.e., downlink (DL) PRS), which can be measured and used for UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) location estimation. Other types of wireless nodes in the wireless communication network (e.g., distributed antenna systems (DAS), remote radio heads (RRHs), UEs, APs, etc.) can also be configured to transmit to interact with... Figure 4 The PRS signal is configured in a manner similar to (or identical to) the one described in the text.

[0094] A set of resource elements used for PRS signal transmission is called a “PRS resource”. The set of resource elements can span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and N (e.g., one or more) consecutive symbols within time slot 414 in the time domain. For example, a cross-shading resource element in time slot 414 can be an example of two PRS resources. A “PRS resource set” is a set of PRS resources used for PRS signal transmission, where each PRS resource has a PRS resource identifier (ID). Furthermore, PRS resources in a PRS resource set are associated with the same transmit-receive point (TRP). The PRS resource ID in the PRS resource set is associated with a single beam transmitted from a single TRP (where a TRP can transmit one or more beams). Note that this has no effect on whether the UE knows the TRP and beam from which it transmits signals.

[0095] PRS can be transmitted in dedicated positioning subframes grouped into positioning opportunities. A PRS opportunity is an instance of a periodically repeating time window (e.g., consecutive time slots) in which a PRS is expected to be transmitted. Each periodically repeating time window may include a set of one or more consecutive PRS opportunities. Each PRS opportunity may include a number of consecutive positioning subframes (NPRS). PRS positioning opportunities for a cell supported by a base station can occur periodically at intervals, expressed in milliseconds or the number of subframes (TPRS). As an example, Figure 4 The periodicity of positioning opportunities is shown, where NPRS equals 4,418 and TPRS is greater than or equal to 20,420. In some respects, TPRS can be measured according to the number of subframes between the start of consecutive positioning opportunities. Multiple PRS opportunities can be associated with the same PRS resource configuration, in which case each such opportunity is referred to as an "opportunity of PRS resource," etc.

[0096] PRS can be transmitted at constant power. It can also be transmitted at zero power (i.e., silent). Silencing periodically scheduled PRS transmissions can be useful when PRS signals from different cells overlap by occurring at the same or nearly the same time. In this case, PRS signals from some cells can be silenced, while PRS signals from other cells are transmitted (e.g., at constant power). Silencing can assist the UE in acquiring signals and measuring Time of Arrival (TOA) and Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD) of unsilenced PRS signals (by avoiding interference from silenced PRS signals). Silencing can be considered as the non-transmission of PRS for a given positioning time for a specific cell. A silence pattern (also known as a silence sequence) can be signaled to the UE using a bit string (e.g., using the LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP)). For example, in a bit string signaling a silence pattern, if the bit at position j is set to "0", the UE can infer that the PRS was silenced at the j-th positioning time.

[0097] To further improve the audibility of the PRS, the positioning subframe can be a low-interference subframe transmitted in the absence of a user data channel. As a result, in an ideal synchronization network, the PRS may be interfered with by PRSs from other cells with the same PRS pattern index (i.e., the same frequency offset), rather than by interference from data transmission. The frequency offset can be defined as a function of the PRS ID used for the cell or other transport point (TP) (denoted as...). If no PRSID is assigned, it is defined as a function of the Physical Cell Identifier (PCI) (represented as...). This results in an effective frequency reuse factor of six (6).

[0098] To further improve the audibility of the PRS (e.g., when PRS bandwidth is limited, such as only six resource blocks corresponding to a 1.4 MHz bandwidth), the frequency band used for consecutive PRS positioning timings (or consecutive PRS subframes) can be changed in a known and predictable manner via frequency hopping. Additionally, a cell supported by a base station can support more than one PRS configuration, where each PRS configuration may include different frequency shifts (vshifts), different carrier frequencies, different bandwidths, different code sequences, and / or different PRS positioning timing sequences with a specific number of subframes (NPRS) and a specific period (TPRS) for each positioning timing. In some implementations, one or more of the PRS configurations supported in the cell can be used for directional PRS and can then have additional different characteristics, such as different transmission directions, different horizontal angle ranges, and / or different vertical angle ranges.

[0099] As described above, the PRS configuration, including PRS transmission / silent scheduling, is signaled to the UE to enable the UE to perform PRS positioning measurements. The UE is not expected to blindly perform PRS configuration detection.

[0100] Note that the terms “positioning reference signal” and “PRS” can sometimes refer to specific reference signals used for positioning in LTE / NR systems. However, as used herein, unless otherwise indicated, the terms “positioning reference signal” and “PRS” refer to any type of reference signal that can be used for positioning, such as, but not limited to, PRS signals, navigation reference signals (NRS), transmitter reference signals (TRS), cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS), primary synchronization signals (PSS), secondary synchronization signals (SSS), etc. in LTE / NR.

[0101] Similar to the DL PRS transmitted by the base station discussed above, the UE can transmit UL PRS for positioning. UL PRS can be, for example, a sounding reference signal (SRS) for positioning. Using the DL PRS received from the base station, the UE can perform various positioning measurements such as RSTD, RSRP, and Rx-Tx measurements, which can be used in DL positioning methods such as DL-TDOA and DL AOD, as well as combined DL and UL positioning methods such as RTT and multi-cell RTT. Using the UL PRS (e.g., SRS) received from the UE, the base station can perform various positioning measurements such as RSTD and Rx-Tx, which can be used in UL positioning methods such as UL-TDOA and UL-AOA, as well as combined DL and UL positioning methods such as RTT and multi-cell RTT.

[0102] There are UE-specific considerations under which using one positioning method instead of another may be preferred. For example, UE 105 may use one or more criteria to evaluate the most suitable positioning method, which can be prioritized by UE 105. For example, the criteria may be based on configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods received by UE 105 in auxiliary data. UE 105 may provide an indication of the prioritized positioning method to a network entity such as location server 152 or base station 110 before or after performing a positioning measurement. If the prioritized positioning method is provided to the network entity before performing the positioning measurement, the network entity responds by accepting or rejecting the UE's prioritized positioning method. UE 150 may additionally send an indication to the network entity of the criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method.

[0103] The auxiliary data provided to UE 105 includes configuration parameters for the positioning method, such as time and frequency resources for DL ​​and UL reference signals (e.g., DL PRS and UL SRS) used for positioning, configuration parameters for various base stations / TRPs to be measured and associated frequency bands and frequency layers, or time and frequency resources for UL reference signals to be transmitted (e.g., SRS) used for the positioning method. UE 105 can use the configuration parameters received in the auxiliary data, along with internal UE factors such as battery power and group delay, to evaluate one or more criteria for each possible positioning method to determine the most suitable positioning method for UE 105, which UE 105 can prioritize over other positioning methods.

[0104] As an example, the criteria that UE 105 can use to evaluate DL RS-based positioning methods such as DL-TDOA and DL AOD may include impacts related to throughput and user experience, RF considerations, and synchronization requirements. For example, the throughput impact can be evaluated based on auxiliary data and whether UE 105 can determine whether one or more TRPs to be measured exist outside the current tuning bandwidth of UE 105. For example, the presence of multiple TRPs outside the current bandwidth of UE 105 will require measurement gaps for measurement, which will increase overhead and reduce the throughput of UE 105. Therefore, for example, if the number of TRPs outside the current bandwidth of UE 105 that require measurement gaps exceeds a predetermined threshold, UE 105 may reduce the priority of the DL RS-based positioning method.

[0105] The impact on user experience can be assessed based on the current active use cases, applications, and requirements to maintain a good user experience. For example, UE 105 can determine if any currently running applications require heavy use of downlink or uplink channels. If a running application requires intensive use of a channel (e.g., DL or UL), allowing continued use of that channel is a key requirement for meeting user experience needs. Therefore, appropriate localization methods that do not negatively impact user experience can be determined based on the currently running applications and their requirements. For example, if UE 105's current use case or application requires one channel instead of another (e.g., a downlink channel) to maintain user experience, UE 105 can de-prioritize localization methods that use the required channel, for example, de-prioritizing the DL RS-based localization method in the current example.

[0106] Radio frequency (RF) considerations can also be evaluated. For example, UE 105 can operate with multiple radios during a positioning session, such as with E-UTRAN New Radio-Dual Connectivity (ENDC) Non-Standalone (NSA) in a single SIM / subscription mode, or with multiple radios across different subscriptions. Based on the RF design of UE 105, some inter-frequency measurements may be highly susceptible to harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion (IMD) interference. Furthermore, some requested positioning measurements on certain bands or frequencies may be impossible due to limitations in the RF signal path. If multiple TRPs in the ancillary data are affected by RF constraints, UE 105 can reduce the priority of DL RS-based positioning methods.

[0107] Synchronization requirements can also be assessed. For example, DL RS-based positioning methods typically require synchronization between all measured TRPs. Therefore, UE 105 can assess whether synchronization problems exist. For example, the UE can use known techniques to determine whether a remote radio head end (RRH) suffering from a lack of synchronization can be used. If a synchronization problem is detected, for example, based on the presence of an RRH in multiple TRPs in the auxiliary data, UE 105 can reduce the priority of the DL RS-based positioning method.

[0108] UE 105 can evaluate one or more criteria accordingly to determine whether a DL RS-based positioning method is preferred. For example, any one of the criteria can cause UE 105 to lower the priority of a DL RS-based positioning method. For example, based on various criteria and considerations, UE 105 can generate a ranking of DL RS-based positioning methods.

[0109] Additionally, UE 105 can also evaluate criteria for UL RS-based positioning methods such as UL-TDOA and UL-AOA. Criteria that can be used to evaluate UL RS-based positioning can include, for example, power limitations, battery considerations, and radio frequency considerations. For instance, power limitations can be evaluated. One key consideration for UL RS-based positioning is the transmit power of UE 105. Specifically, when positioning in ENDC mode, due to Dynamic Power Sharing (DPS), UE 105's NR radio is allowed to transmit only at power not used by the LTE radio. Therefore, due to DPS, the NR radio may not be allowed to transmit with sufficient power. Therefore, UE 105 can determine whether the maximum power limit of the NR radio due to DPS is lower than the calculated SRS power level exceeding a pre-configured threshold, and if so, UE 105 can reduce the priority of the UL RS-based positioning method because UL RS may not be detectable on the network side.

[0110] Battery considerations can also be evaluated. For example, UL RS-based positioning methods typically require significant battery power, especially when the calculated required transmit power exceeds approximately 10 dBm and the operating bandwidth is high. Therefore, UE 105 can determine whether the available battery power is sufficient based on UL resource allocation in SRS and calculated path loss, for example, exceeding a threshold for transmit power requirements. If the available battery power is insufficient, UE 105 can reduce the priority of the UL RS positioning method.

[0111] For UL RS-based positioning methods, radio frequency (RF) considerations can also be evaluated. For example, UL RS-based positioning methods may include RF considerations similar to those for DL-based positioning methods. For instance, similar to DL-based positioning methods, UL RS-based positioning methods include synchronization requirements across the TRP. Furthermore, UL RS may interfere with one of the active GNSS receivers due to harmonic or IMD interference. Therefore, if UE 105 is actively receiving GNSS and UL RS may cause interference, the UL RS-based positioning method can be de-prioritized. UE 105 can further determine the availability of RF transmission signal paths and, if unavailable, reduce the priority of UL RS-based positioning.

[0112] UE 105 may evaluate one or more criteria accordingly to determine whether a UL RS-based positioning method is preferred. For example, any one of the criteria may cause UE 105 to lower the priority of a UL RS-based positioning method. For example, based on various criteria and considerations, UE 105 may generate a ranking of UL RS-based positioning methods.

[0113] Additionally, UE 105 can also evaluate criteria for positioning methods based on combined DL and UL RS (e.g., RTT and multi-cell RTT). For example, in RTT and multi-cell RTT positioning, the UE or location server measures the RTT from the UE and the UL and DL RS to the UE. No time reference is required, therefore synchronization across TRPs is necessary. However, other criteria can be used to evaluate positioning methods based on combined DL and UL RS, such as digital and group latency at the UE.

[0114] One of the key factors contributing to inaccurate RTT and multi-cell RTT is the digital and group delays at UE 105, caused by the time delay of signal generation at the baseband relative to signal transmission and reception at the antenna. Furthermore, for multi-cell RTT, the group delay used across different TRPs needs to be the same. Therefore, when UE 105 performs multi-cell RTT across multiple different TRPs with significantly different bandwidths, different transceivers will be used for transmission and reception for these different TRPs (e.g., due to UE support capabilities). UE 105 may de-prioritize positioning methods based on combined DL and UL RS (e.g., positioning methods based on RTT and multi-cell RTT).

[0115] UE 105 may evaluate one or more criteria accordingly to determine whether a positioning method based on a combination of DL and UL RS is preferred. For example, any one of the criteria may cause UE 105 to lower the priority of a positioning method based on a combination of DL and UL RS. For example, based on various criteria and considerations, UE 105 may generate a ranking of positioning methods based on DL and UL RS.

[0116] Standards within and across different positioning methods can be assigned the same or different weights. For example, a standard related to power limitations for a UL RS-based positioning method can be given more weight than a standard related to the impact on user experience for a DL RS-based positioning method. The weights assigned to different standards can be predetermined. Furthermore, the weights applied to different standards can be dynamically selected. For instance, the weights applied to different standards can change based on the type of positioning session; for example, an emergency positioning session might use different standard weights (or typically different standards) than a commercial positioning session.

[0117] Therefore, UE 105 can evaluate one or more criteria for each of various positioning methods (e.g., positioning methods based on DL, UL, and combinations of DL and UL RS) to determine a preferred type of positioning method. For example, after evaluating the criteria for each type of positioning method and generating a ranking for each type of positioning method, UE 105 can compare the rankings and determine the type of positioning method that best suits the user, thereby determining the type of positioning method preferred by UE 105. Therefore, UE 105 can prioritize the preferred positioning methods.

[0118] As discussed above, UE 105 can provide network entities such as location server 152 or base station 110 with a prioritized location method determined by UE 105 based on different criteria. UE 105 can provide the prioritized location method as part of a negotiation, for example, where the network entity can accept or reject the prioritized location method, or can provide the prioritized location method for informational purposes.

[0119] As part of the process of providing auxiliary data to UE 105, location server 152 can specify multiple configuration parameters associated with each of a variety of positioning methods. The auxiliary data specifying the multiple configuration parameters associated with each of the various positioning methods can be provided via, for example, LPP transmission or broadcast. Based on one or more criteria and the configuration parameters received in the auxiliary data, as well as internal UE factors, UE 105 can determine a preferred positioning method, i.e., a prioritized positioning method.

[0120] In one implementation, UE 105 can perform location measurements based on a prioritized location method. As part of a location information response message provided by UE 105 to location server 150, which provides accumulated location measurements (for UE-assisted positioning) and / or location estimates (for UE-based positioning), UE 105 may include a location method (e.g., a DL, UL, or a combination of DL and UL RS-based positioning method) for generating the location measurements and / or location estimates, and the reason for using that positioning method (e.g., by indicating the criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method). Location server 152 may use the criteria used by UE 105, for example, in future positioning sessions with UE 105 or other UEs. For example, an indication that a DL RS-based positioning method was used because UE 105's battery power is insufficient for a UL RS-based positioning method may instruct location server 152 to configure a DL RS-based positioning method only for UE 105 in subsequent location requests. In another example, because the synchronization problem reduces the priority of the DL RS-based positioning method and the UL RS-based positioning method, the indication to use the combined DL and UL RS-based positioning method can notify the location server 152 that other UEs near the same location as UE 105 will also face the synchronization problem and should therefore be configured to use the combined DL and UL RS-based positioning method.

[0121] In another implementation, a prioritized positioning method determined by UE 105 can be provided to a network entity such as location server 152 or base station 110 before performing positioning measurements. For example, UE 105 may provide the prioritized positioning method after receiving auxiliary data but before performing positioning measurements. UE 105 may additionally provide a reason for prioritizing the positioning method, for example, by indicating the criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method. The network entity (e.g., location server 152 or base station 110) may accept the prioritized positioning method, and UE 105 may then use the prioritized positioning method. Alternatively, the network entity (e.g., location server 152 or base station 110) may reject the prioritized positioning method and specify the positioning method to be used, and UE 105 may then use the specified positioning method. Location server 152 may provide UE 105 with acceptance or rejection of the prioritized positioning method in an LLP request location information message, specifying the positioning method to be used, and UE 105 will perform the required measurements according to the negotiated positioning method.

[0122] Figure 5This is a message flow 500 illustrating the message passing between location server 152, base station 110, and UE 105 for a location process that uses a location method prioritized by UE 105. Serving gNB 110-1 and multiple neighboring base stations 110-2 and 110-3 may sometimes be collectively referred to as base station 110. Figure 5 The process shown is illustrated as a UE-assisted positioning process, but UE-based positioning processes can be performed similarly, as will be clear to those skilled in the art and as discussed below. More, different, or fewer messages than those shown in message flow 500 can be used for positioning. For example, additional messages can be used to initiate and terminate a positioning session, such as in a Mobile Terminal Location Request (MT-LR) or Mobile Origin Location Request (MO-LR), or in a periodic or triggered positioning process.

[0123] exist Figure 5 In phase 1, LMF 152 receives a location request for UE 105 from AMF 154. For example, in communication system 100, client 130 may send a location request for UE 105 to GMLC 155, which forwards the request to AMF 154. Figure 5 (Not shown in the image), AMF 154 then sends the request to LMF 152 at stage 1.

[0124] exist Figure 5 In phase 2, LMF 152 sends an LPP request capability message to UE 105 via serving AMF 154 and serving gNB 110 to request location capability from UE 105. The request capability message can indicate the type of capability required.

[0125] At phase 3, UE 105 returns an LPP provisioning capability message to LMF 152, including UE 105's positioning capabilities. For example, UE 105 may include its ability to support one or more positioning methods based on DL, UL, or a combination of DL and UL RS. In some implementations, UE 105 may further indicate its ability to prioritize positioning methods based on one or more criteria, configuration information received in auxiliary data, and internal UE factors, as discussed above.

[0126] At Phase 4, LMF 152 can determine one or more positioning methods for obtaining the location estimate of UE 105. The positioning method can be determined based on the positioning capabilities of UE 105 received at Phase 3 and the capabilities of LMF 152. For example, the positioning methods determined at Phase 4 include a variety of methods, including DL RS-based positioning methods such as DL-TDOA and DL-AOD, UL RS-based positioning methods such as UL-TDOA and UL-AOA, and combined DL and UL RS-based positioning methods such as RTT and multi-cell RTT.

[0127] At stage 5, LMF 152 may optionally send an information request to gNB 110. For example, the information request may request gNB 110 to provide DL RS-related configuration information for one or more cells of gNB 110.

[0128] At phase 6, gNB 110 may return an information response to LMF 152 providing the requested information, including DL RS-related information for one or more cells of gNB 110. This information response may, for example, include frequency layer, resource set, and resource information for each base station. The information request in phase 5 and the information response in phase 6 may be, for example, a Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol A (LPPa) or New Radio Positioning Protocol A (NRPPa) message.

[0129] At stage 7, LMF 152 can generate location assistance data (AD) for various positioning methods for UE 105, such as using information received in the information response from gNB 110 at stage 6 or configuration information for gNB 110 obtained elsewhere. The assistance data may include assistance data for serving gNB 110-1 and neighboring gNBs 110-2 and 110-3. The assistance data includes configuration information for various positioning methods, including, for example, two or more of the following: DL RS-based positioning methods, UL RS-based positioning methods, and positioning methods based on a combination of DL and UL RS.

[0130] At phase 8, LMF 152 provides auxiliary data to UE 105, for example, by sending the auxiliary data as part of the LPP Provide Auxiliary Data message.

[0131] At stage 9, UE 105 determines the prioritized positioning method based on configuration parameters received in the auxiliary data during stage 8, one or more criteria, and internal UE factors, as discussed above. As mentioned above, the criteria used to evaluate each positioning method can be related to the configuration information of the gNBs 110, their frequency layers, possible interference between gNBs, synchronization requirements, and internal factors such as power limitations, battery power, interference with GNSS reception, and group delay. The one or more criteria used to evaluate the positioning methods can be unweighted or assigned predetermined or dynamic weights, for example, based on the type of positioning session (e.g., emergency positioning session or commercial positioning session). UE 105 can evaluate each type of positioning method, for example, by reducing the priority of positioning methods based on various criteria to generate a ranking of each type of positioning method. The rankings of the various positioning methods can be compared to determine the preferred, i.e., the prioritized positioning method.

[0132] At phase 10, UE 105 can, for example, send a message to the network entity in an LPP message or RRC message (in... Figure 5 The image shows an LMF 152 sending a message indicating a preferred positioning method. In some implementations, the UE 105 may send the message indicating a preferred positioning method to the serving gNB 110-1 or another network entity (such as a RAN-based location server). In some implementations, the message indicating a preferred positioning method may also include, for example, the reason for prioritizing the positioning method by indicating one or more criteria for prioritizing the positioning method.

[0133] At stage 11, LMF 152 sends an LPP request location information message to UE 105 to request location information. For example, Figure 10 In the implementation shown where UE 105 provides a prioritized positioning method to LMF 152, the request location information message at stage 11 can be used, for example, to accept (or reject) the prioritized positioning method by identifying the positioning method to be used to obtain positioning information. In some implementations, acceptance (or rejection) of the prioritized positioning method can be sent to UE 105 in a separate message from the request location information message, for example, if UE 105 sends an indication of the prioritized positioning method to serving gNB 110-1 or another network entity in stage 10, or if it is in a periodic or triggered positioning session in which request location information may not be sent. This message may include, for example, the type of location measurement, the desired accuracy, the response time, etc.

[0134] At phase 12, prioritized positioning measurements are performed by UE 105 (for DL ​​RS-based positioning methods), gNB 110 (for UL RS-based positioning methods), or both UE 105 and gNB 110 (for positioning methods based on combined DL and UL RS). For example, for DL ​​RS-based positioning methods, gNB 110 may transmit DLRS (such as PRS) received and measured by UE 105 for DL-TDOA, DL-AOD, or any other desired DL RS-based positioning method (e.g., RSTD, RSRP, Rx-Tx, etc.). For UL RS-based positioning methods, UE 105 may transmit UL RS (such as SRS) received and measured by gNB 110 for UL-TDOA, UL-AOA, or any other desired UL RS-based positioning method (e.g., RSTD, Rx-Tx, etc.). For a positioning method based on combined DL and UL RS, both gNB 110 and UE 105 can respectively transmit DL RS (such as PRS) and UL RS (such as SRS) received and measured by UE 105 and gNB 110 for RTT or multi-cell RTT, or any other desired positioning method based on combined DL and UL RS.

[0135] At stage 13, gNB 110 may send position measurements to LMF 152, for example, if the prioritized positioning method performed in stage 12 is a UL RS-based positioning method or a positioning method based on a combination of DL and UL RS. In some implementations, for example, during UE-based positioning, gNB 110 may send position measurements to UE 105.

[0136] At stage 14, if the priority positioning method performed in stage 12 is a DL RS-based positioning method or a combined DL and UL RS-based positioning method, then UE 105 sends an LPP location information message to LMF 152, which may include the location measurements obtained at stage 12. If determined by the UE during UE-based positioning, the message in stage 14 may further or alternatively include a location estimate. For example, UE 105 may determine the location estimate of UE 105 at stage 14 using measurements obtained at stage 12 (e.g., using information provided in the auxiliary data at stage 8, such as the location coordinates of gNB 110 and other gNBs 110, and transmission timing-related information (e.g., the real-time difference between gNB 110 pairs and / or the synchronization level of the transmission timing of different gNBs 110), and location measurements received from gNB 110 (e.g., stage 13)).

[0137] At phase 15, LMF 152 can use the location information received from phases 13 and 14 to determine (or verify) the UE location.

[0138] At stage 16, LMF 152 returns the UE location to AMF 154, which in turn can transmit the location to GMLC 155. Figure 5 (Not shown in the image) This location is returned to the external client 130.

[0139] Figure 6 This illustrates message flow 600 between location server 152, base station 110, and UE 105 for message passing during a positioning process that prioritizes the positioning method by UE 105. Message flow 600 is similar to message flow 500 discussed above, but occurs after positioning measurements are performed, rather than after the execution of other methods. Figure 5 Prior to the positioning measurement shown, the prioritized positioning method is sent to LMF 152. The serving gNB 110-1 and multiple neighboring base stations 110-2 and 110-3 may sometimes be collectively referred to as base station 110. Figure 6 The process shown is illustrated as a UE-assisted positioning process, but UE-based positioning processes can be performed similarly, as will be clear to those skilled in the art and as discussed below. More, different, or fewer messages than those shown in message flow 600 can be used for positioning. For example, additional messages can be used to initiate and terminate a positioning session, for example, in MT-LR or MO-LR, or in periodic or triggered positioning processes.

[0140] Figure 6 Phases 1-9 can be combined with Figure 5 The stages 1-9 discussed in the text are the same. However, as... Figure 6 As shown, in message flow 600, the UE does not send an indication of the priority positioning method before performing positioning measurements.

[0141] exist Figure 6 At stage 10, LMF 152 sends an LPP request location information message to UE 105 to request location information. This message may include, for example, the type of location measurement, the expected accuracy, and the response time.

[0142] exist Figure 6At stage 11, prioritized positioning measurements are performed by UE 105 (for DL ​​RS-based positioning methods), gNB 110 (for UL RS-based positioning methods), or both UE 105 and gNB 110 (for positioning methods based on combined DL and UL RS). For example, for DL ​​RS-based positioning methods, gNB 110 may transmit DL RS (such as PRS) received and measured by UE 105 for DL-TDOA, DL-AOD, or any other desired DL RS-based positioning method (e.g., RSTD, RSRP, Rx-Tx, etc.). For UL RS-based positioning methods, UE 105 may transmit UL RS (such as SRS) received and measured by gNB 110 for UL-TDOA, UL-AOA, or any other desired UL RS-based positioning method (e.g., RSTD, Rx-Tx, etc.). For a positioning method based on combined DL and UL RS, both gNB 110 and UE 105 can respectively transmit DL RS (such as PRS) and UL RS (such as SRS) received and measured by UE 105 and gNB 110 for RTT or multi-cell RTT, or any other desired positioning method based on combined DL and UL RS.

[0143] At stage 12, gNB 110 may send position measurements to LMF 152, for example, if the prioritized positioning method performed in stage 12 is a UL RS-based positioning method or a combined DL and UL RS-based positioning method. In some implementations, for example, during UE-based positioning, gNB 110 may send position measurements to UE 105.

[0144] At stage 13, UE 105 sends an LPP-provided location information message to LMF 152 indicating the preferred positioning method used in positioning measurements. This message may include reasons for prioritizing the positioning method, for example, by indicating one or more criteria for prioritizing the positioning method. For example, LMF 152 may consider indications of reasons for prioritizing the positioning method when determining the positioning method in a future positioning session with UE 105 or for other UEs at the same approximate location as UE 105 (e.g., at stage 4). If the prioritized positioning method performed in stage 11 is a DLRS-based positioning method or a combined DL and UL RS-based positioning method, the message in stage 13 may also include location measurements obtained in stage 11. If determined by the UE during a UE-based positioning process, the message in stage 13 may further or alternatively include location estimates. For example, UE 105 may determine the location estimate of UE 105 at stage 13 before sending a message, using measurements obtained at stage 11 (e.g., using information provided in the auxiliary data at stage 8, such as the location coordinates of gNB 110 and other gNB 110s and information related to transmission timing (e.g., such as the real-time difference between gNB 110 pairs and / or the synchronization level of the transmission timing of different gNB 110s), and location measurements received from gNB 110 (e.g., stage 12)).

[0145] At phase 14, LMF 152 can use the location information received from phases 12 and 13 to determine (or verify) the UE location.

[0146] At stage 15, LMF 152 returns the UE location to AMF 154, which in turn can transmit the location to GMLC 155. Figure 6 (Not shown in the image) This location is returned to the external client 130.

[0147] Figure 7 A schematic block diagram illustrating some exemplary features of the UE 700 is shown. For example, the UE 700 may be... Figures 1-3 , Figure 5 and Figure 6 The UE 105 shown herein is capable of supporting a positioning process that prioritizes positioning methods by the UE, as described herein (e.g., in...). Figure 5 and Figure 6 (in Chinese). UE 700 can be configured to perform... Figure 9The processing flow is shown in the diagram. UE 700 may include, for example, a processor 702, memory 704, an SPS receiver 705, and an external interface such as transceiver 710 (e.g., a wireless network interface), which may be operatively coupled to non-transitory computer-readable medium 720 and memory 704 via one or more connections 706 (e.g., bus, line, fiber optic, link, etc.). UE 700 may also include additional items not shown, such as a user interface, which may include, for example, a display, keyboard, or other input device (e.g., a virtual keyboard on the display), through which a user can interact with the UE. In some example implementations, all or part of UE 700 may take the form of a chipset, etc. Transceiver 710 may include, for example, a transmitter 712 and a receiver 714, wherein the transmitter 712 is capable of transmitting one or more signals via one or more types of wireless communication networks, and the receiver 714 receives one or more signals transmitted via the one or more types of wireless communication networks.

[0148] In some embodiments, UE 700 may include an antenna 711, which may be internal or external. The UE antenna 711 may be used to transmit and / or receive signals processed by transceiver 710. In some embodiments, the UE antenna 711 may be coupled to transceiver 710. In some embodiments, measurements of signals received (transmitted) by UE 700 may be performed at the connection point between UE antenna 711 and transceiver 710. For example, a reference measurement point for measuring received (transmitted) RF signals may be an input (output) terminal of receiver 714 (transmitter 712) and an output (input) terminal of UE antenna 711. In a UE 700 having multiple UE antennas 711 or an antenna array, the antenna connector may be considered as a virtual point representing the aggregated output (input) of multiple UE antennas. In some embodiments, UE 700 may measure received signals including signal strength and TOA measurements, and the raw measurements may be processed by at least one processor 702.

[0149] At least one processor 702 can be implemented using a combination of hardware, firmware, and software. For example, at least one processor 702 can be configured to perform the functions discussed herein by implementing one or more instructions or program code 708 on a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as medium 720 and / or memory 704. In some embodiments, at least one processor 702 may represent one or more circuits configured to perform at least a portion of a data signal calculation process or processing associated with the operation of UE 700.

[0150] Medium 720 and / or memory 704 may store instructions or program code 708 containing executable code or software instructions that, when executed by at least one processor 702, cause that at least one processor 702 to operate as a dedicated computer programmed to perform the techniques disclosed herein. As shown in UE 700, medium 720 and / or memory 704 may include one or more components or modules that may be implemented by at least one processor 702 to perform the methods described herein. While such components or modules are shown as software in medium 720 executable by at least one processor 702, it should be understood that such components or modules may be stored in memory 704 or may be dedicated hardware in or outside of at least one processor 702. Multiple software modules and data tables may reside in medium 720 and / or memory 704 and be utilized by at least one processor 702 to manage both the communications and functions described herein. It should be understood that the organization of the contents of the medium 720 and / or memory 704 as shown in UE 700 is merely exemplary, and therefore the functionality of modules and / or data structures may be combined, separated and / or structured in different ways depending on the implementation of UE 700.

[0151] The medium 720 and / or memory 704 may include a positioning session module 722, which, when implemented by at least one processor 702, configures the at least one processor 702 to send and receive messages with the location server via transceiver 710 to participate in a positioning session. The at least one processor 702 may be configured to receive and respond to capability request messages to receive auxiliary data including configuration information for various positioning methods, to perform positioning measurements, including receiving and measuring DL RS such as PRS from the base station and / or sending UL RS such as SRS to the base station to determine location estimates (e.g., for a UE-based positioning process), and to send location information to the location server.

[0152] The medium 720 and / or memory 704 may include a priority module 724, which, when implemented by at least one processor 702, configures at least one processor 702 to evaluate positioning methods based on different criteria, such as configuration information received in auxiliary data and internal UE factors, as described herein. Figure 5 and Figure 6As discussed herein, the criteria used to evaluate each positioning method can be related to the base station configuration information, their frequency layers, possible interference between base stations, synchronization requirements, and internal factors such as power limitations, battery power, interference with GNSS reception, and group delay. As discussed herein, at least one processor 702 can be configured to evaluate the criteria based on configuration information and internal UE factors, including, where appropriate, weighted criteria, to rank and prioritize each positioning method.

[0153] The methods described herein can be implemented in various ways depending on the application. For example, these methods can be implemented in hardware, firmware, software, or any combination thereof. For hardware implementation, at least one processor 702 can be implemented within one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other electronic units designed to perform the functions described herein, or combinations thereof.

[0154] For firmware and / or software implementations, the methods can be implemented using modules (e.g., procedures, functions, etc.) that perform the functions described herein. Any machine-readable medium that tangibly embodies the instructions can be used to implement the methods described herein. For example, software code can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium 720 or memory 704 connected to or run by at least one processor 702. The memory can be implemented within or outside the at least one processor. As used herein, the term "memory" refers to any type of long-term, short-term, volatile, non-volatile, or other memory, and is not limited to any particular type or quantity of memory, or the type of medium on which the memory is stored.

[0155] If implemented in firmware and / or software, the functionality can be stored as one or more instructions or program code 708 on a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as medium 720 and / or memory 704. Examples include computer-readable media encoded with data structures and computer-readable media encoded with computer program code 708. For example, a non-transitory computer-readable medium including program code 708 stored thereon may include program code 708 to support the use of a positioning process prioritized by the UE in a manner consistent with the disclosed embodiments. The non-transitory computer-readable medium 720 includes a physical computer storage medium. The storage medium can be any available medium accessible by a computer. For example, and not as a limitation, such non-transitory computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disc storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that may be used to store the desired program code 708 in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer; as used herein, disks and optical discs include compact discs (CDs), laser discs, optical discs, digital universal discs (DVDs), floppy disks, and Blu-ray discs, wherein disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while optical discs reproduce data optically using lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0156] In addition to storage on the computer-readable medium 720, instructions and / or data may be provided as signals on a transmission medium included in the communication apparatus. For example, the communication apparatus may include a transceiver 710 having signals indicating instructions and data. These instructions and data are configured to cause at least one processor to perform the functions outlined in the claims. That is, the communication apparatus includes a transmission medium having signals indicating information indicating the performance of the disclosed functions.

[0157] Memory 704 can represent any data storage mechanism. Memory 704 may include, for example, main memory and / or secondary memory. Main memory may include, for example, random access memory, read-only memory, etc. Although shown separately from at least one processor 702 in this example, it should be understood that all or part of the main memory may be provided within or otherwise co-located / coupled with at least one processor 702. Secondary memory may include, for example, memory of the same or similar type as the main memory and / or one or more data storage devices or systems, such as disk drives, optical disk drives, magnetic tape drives, solid-state memory drives, etc.

[0158] In some implementations, secondary storage is operatively received or otherwise configured to be coupled to non-transitory computer-readable medium 720. Similarly, in some exemplary implementations, the methods and / or apparatuses described herein may take the form of all or part of computer-readable medium 720, which may include computer-implementable program code 708 stored thereon, which is operatively capable of performing all or part of the exemplary operations as described herein when executed by at least one processor 702. Computer-readable medium 720 may be part of memory 704.

[0159] Figure 8 A schematic block diagram illustrating some exemplary features of the location server 800 is shown. For example, the location server 800 may be... Figures 1-3 , Figure 5 and Figure 6 The LMF 152 shown herein supports a positioning process that prioritizes positioning methods by the UE, as described herein. The location server 800 can be, for example, the LMF 152, or another network entity such as an E-SMLC or SLP. The location server 800 can perform... Figure 10 The processing flow is shown in the diagram. Location server 800 may include, for example, at least one processor 802, memory 804, and a communication interface 810 (e.g., a wired or wireless network interface to other network entities such as core network entities and base stations), which is operatively coupled to non-transitory computer-readable medium 820 and memory 804 via one or more connections 806 (e.g., bus, line, fiber optic, link, etc.). Location server 800 may also include additional items not shown, such as a user interface, which may include, for example, a display, keyboard, or other input device (such as a virtual keyboard on a display), through which a user can interact with the location server. In some example implementations, all or part of location server 800 may take the form of a chipset, etc. Communication interface 810 may be a wired or wireless interface capable of connecting to base stations or network entities (such as AMFs or MMEs) in the RAN.

[0160] At least one processor 802 can be implemented using a combination of hardware, firmware, and software. For example, at least one processor 802 can be configured to perform the functions discussed herein by implementing one or more instructions or program code 808 on a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as medium 820 and / or memory 804. In some embodiments, at least one processor 802 may represent one or more circuits configurable to perform at least a portion of a data signal calculation process or processing associated with the operation of location server 800.

[0161] Medium 820 and / or memory 804 may store instructions or program code 808 containing executable code or software instructions that, when executed by at least one processor 802, cause that at least one processor 802 to operate as a dedicated computer programmed to perform the techniques disclosed herein. As shown in location server 800, medium 820 and / or memory 804 may include one or more components or modules that may be implemented by at least one processor 802 to perform the methods described herein. While such components or modules are shown as software in medium 820 executable by at least one processor 802, it should be understood that such components or modules may be stored in memory 804 or may be dedicated hardware in or outside of at least one processor 802. Multiple software modules and data tables may reside in medium 820 and / or memory 804 and be utilized by at least one processor 802 to manage both the communications and functions described herein. It should be understood that the organization of the contents of the medium 820 and / or memory 804 as shown in the location server 800 is merely exemplary, and therefore the functionality of modules and / or data structures may be combined, separated, and / or structured in different ways depending on the implementation of the location server 800.

[0162] The medium 820 and / or memory 804 may include a positioning session module 822, which, when implemented by at least one processor 802, configures at least one processor 802 to participate in a positioning session of the UE. For example, at least one processor 802 may be configured to participate in a positioning session by requesting and receiving positioning capabilities from the UE via communication interface 810. At least one processor 802 may be configured to generate positioning assistance data via communication interface 810 and transmit it to the UE and / or serving base station. At least one processor 802 may also be configured to receive measurement information reports from the UE via communication interface 810. At least one processor 802 may also be configured to determine the UE's location based on positioning measurements received in the measurement information reports.

[0163] The medium 820 and / or memory 804 may include a priority module 824, which, when implemented by at least one processor 802, configures at least one processor 802 to enable the location server to receive a prioritized positioning method and a reason for prioritization from the UE via the communication interface 810 (e.g., in a message before the UE performs a positioning measurement). At least one processor 802 may be configured to evaluate the prioritized positioning measurement and the reason for prioritization, and send a message to the UE accepting or rejecting the prioritized positioning measurement. In some implementations, at least one processor 802 may be configured to receive the prioritized positioning method and the reason for prioritization from the UE via the communication interface 810, for example, after performing a positioning measurement. At least one processor 802 may be configured to evaluate the prioritized positioning measurement and the reason for prioritization, and use the UE's prioritized positioning measurement in future positioning sessions or in positioning sessions with other UEs located in the same general area.

[0164] The methods described herein can be implemented in various ways depending on the application. For example, these methods can be implemented in hardware, firmware, software, or any combination thereof. For hardware implementation, at least one processor 802 can be implemented within one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other electronic units designed to perform the functions described herein, or combinations thereof.

[0165] For firmware and / or software implementations, the methods can be implemented using modules (e.g., procedures, functions, etc.) that perform the functions described herein. Any machine-readable medium that tangibly embodies the instructions can be used to implement the methods described herein. For example, software code can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium 820 or memory 804 connected to or run by at least one processor 802. The memory can be implemented within or outside the at least one processor. As used herein, the term "memory" refers to any type of long-term, short-term, volatile, non-volatile, or other memory, and is not limited to any particular type or quantity of memory, or the type of medium on which the memory is stored.

[0166] If implemented in firmware and / or software, the functionality can be stored as one or more instructions or program code 808 on a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as medium 820 and / or memory 804. Examples include computer-readable media encoded with data structures and computer-readable media encoded with computer program code 808. For example, a non-transitory computer-readable medium including program code 808 stored thereon may include program code 808 to support the use of a positioning process prioritized by the UE in a manner consistent with the disclosed embodiments. The non-transitory computer-readable medium 820 includes a physical computer storage medium. The storage medium can be any available medium accessible by a computer. For example, and not as a limitation, such non-transitory computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disc storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store desired program code 808 in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer; as used herein, disks and optical discs include compact discs (CDs), laser discs, optical discs, DVDs, floppy disks, and Blu-ray discs, wherein disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while optical discs reproduce data optically using lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0167] In addition to storage on computer-readable medium 820, instructions and / or data may be provided as signals on a transmission medium included in the communication apparatus. For example, the communication apparatus may include a communication interface 810 having signals indicating instructions and data. These instructions and data are configured to cause at least one processor to perform the functions outlined in the claims. That is, the communication apparatus includes a transmission medium having signals indicating information for performing the disclosed functions.

[0168] Memory 804 can represent any data storage mechanism. Memory 804 may include, for example, main memory and / or secondary memory. Main memory may include, for example, random access memory, read-only memory, etc. Although shown separately from at least one processor 802 in this example, it should be understood that all or part of the main memory may be provided within or otherwise co-located / coupled with at least one processor 802. Secondary memory may include, for example, memory of the same or similar type as the main memory and / or one or more data storage devices or systems, such as disk drives, optical disk drives, magnetic tape drives, solid-state memory drives, etc.

[0169] In some implementations, secondary storage is operatively received or otherwise configured to be coupled to non-transitory computer-readable medium 820. Similarly, in some exemplary implementations, the methods and / or apparatuses described herein may take the form of all or part of computer-readable medium 820, which may include computer-implementable program code 808 stored thereon, which is operatively capable of performing all or part of the exemplary operations as described herein when executed by at least one processor 802. Computer-readable medium 820 may be part of memory 804.

[0170] Figure 9 A flowchart is shown of an exemplary process 900 performed by a UE, such as UE 105, to support location services for a user equipment (UE) in a wireless network, in a manner consistent with the disclosed implementation.

[0171] At block 902, the UE receives auxiliary data from the location server, which includes configuration parameters for various positioning methods, such as... Figure 5 and Figure 6 This is discussed in stage 8. For example, various positioning methods may include at least two of the following: positioning based on downlink reference signals, positioning based on uplink reference signals, and positioning based on a combination of downlink and uplink reference signals, such as... Figure 5 and Figure 6 The components discussed in phases 7 and 8. The components for receiving auxiliary data from a location server, including configuration parameters for various positioning methods, may include a wireless transceiver 710 and at least one processor 702 having dedicated hardware or executable code or software instructions in memory 704 and / or medium 720. These components include, for example... Figure 7 The location session module 722 in the UE 700 shown in the figure.

[0172] At block 904, the UE uses configuration parameters and internal UE factors for each of the various positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine the preferred positioning method, such as... Figure 5 and Figure 6 As discussed in Phase 9. The components used to evaluate one or more criteria using configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to determine a prioritized positioning method may include a wireless transceiver 710 and at least one processor 702 having dedicated hardware or executable code or software instructions in memory 704 or medium 720, such as... Figure 7 Prioritization module 724 in UE 700 shown in the figure.

[0173] At block 906, the UE can perform positioning measurements for a prioritized positioning method, such as... Figure 5 and Figure 6 The components discussed in stage 8 of the text. The components for performing positioning measurements for the priority positioning method may include a wireless transceiver 710 and at least one processor 702 having executable code or software instructions in dedicated hardware or implementation memory 704 and / or medium 720, such as... Figure 7 The location session module 722 in the UE 700 shown in the figure.

[0174] At block 908, the UE may send a message to the location server identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria used to determine the preferred positioning method, such as... Figure 5 Phase 10 or Figure 6 The components discussed in stage 13 of the document include a wireless transceiver 710 and at least one processor 702 having dedicated hardware or executable code or software instructions in memory 704 and / or medium 720. The components may include a wireless transceiver 710 and at least one processor 702 having dedicated hardware or implementing memory 704 and / or medium 720. Figure 7 The prioritization module 724 and the location session module 722 in the UE 700 are shown in the figure.

[0175] In one implementation, before performing location measurements, a message indicating the priority of the location method is sent to the location server, for example, as shown below. Figure 5 As discussed in stage 10. The UE can receive a second message from the location server to accept or reject a prioritized positioning method, wherein a positioning measurement for the prioritized positioning method is performed in response to the second message to accept the prioritized positioning method. The component for receiving the second message to accept or reject a prioritized positioning method from the location server, wherein a positioning measurement for the prioritized positioning method is performed in response to the second message to accept the prioritized positioning method, may include a wireless transceiver 710 and at least one processor 702 having dedicated hardware or executable code or software instructions in memory 704 and / or medium 720, such as... Figure 7 Prioritization module 724 in UE 700 shown in the figure.

[0176] In one implementation, after performing location measurements, a message indicating the priority of the location method is sent to the location server, for example, as follows: Figure 6 The message to the location server may be, for example, a location information message, and may include at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0177] In one implementation, configuration parameters for various positioning methods may include frequency, bandwidth, and transmit / receive point (TRP) identification, and internal UE factors may include power limitations, battery power, interference with satellite positioning system reception, and group delay. For example, one or more criteria may include those related to downlink reference signal-based positioning methods and may include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires downlink or uplink channels for activating applications; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements. For example, one or more standards may include standards related to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals, and may include one or more of the following: power constraint based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is lower than a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraint based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss, and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs. For example, one or more standards may include standards related to positioning methods based on uplink and downlink reference signals, and may include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to transmission and reception at different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0178] Figure 10 A flowchart is shown of an exemplary process 1000 for supporting location services for user equipment (UE) in a wireless network, performed by a location server such as LMF 152 in a manner consistent with the disclosed implementation.

[0179] At block 1002, the location server can send auxiliary data to the UE, which includes configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods. The UE uses these configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for that prioritized method, such as... Figure 5 Phases 8, 9, and 12 in the middle and Figure 6As discussed in stages 8, 9, and 11. For example, various positioning methods may include at least two of the following: positioning based on downlink reference signals, positioning based on uplink reference signals, and positioning based on a combination of downlink and uplink reference signals, such as... Figure 5 and Figure 6 The components discussed in phases 7 and 8. The components for transmitting auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method. These components may include a communication interface 810 and at least one processor 802 having dedicated hardware or implementing executable code or software instructions in memory 804 and / or medium 820. These components include, for example... Figure 8 The location session module 822 in the location server 800 shown in the figure.

[0180] At block 1004, the location server can receive from the UE a message identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria used to determine the preferred positioning method, such as... Figure 5 Phase 10 and Figure 6 The components discussed in stage 13 of the document. The components for receiving messages identifying the prioritization positioning method from the UE and indications of one or more criteria for determining the prioritization positioning method may include a communication interface 810 and at least one processor 802 having dedicated hardware or implementing executable code or software instructions in memory 804 and / or medium 820. These components include... Figure 8 The location session module 822 in the location server 800 shown in the figure.

[0181] In one implementation, before the UE performs location measurements, a message indicating the location method prioritized by the UE is received, for example... Figure 5 This is discussed in stage 10. The UE can send a second message to the UE to accept or reject the prioritized positioning method, wherein the UE performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method in response to the second message accepting the prioritized positioning method, for example, as... Figure 5 The component discussed at stage 11. A component for sending a second message to the UE to accept or reject a prioritized positioning method, wherein the UE performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method in response to the second message accepting the prioritized positioning method, may include a communication interface 810 and at least one processor 802 having dedicated hardware or executable code or software instructions in memory 804 and / or medium 820, such as... Figure 8 Prioritization module 824 in location server 800 shown in the figure.

[0182] In one implementation, after the UE performs a location measurement, a message from the UE indicating a priority location method is received, for example, such as... Figure 6 As discussed in stage 13. Messages from the UE may be, for example, location information messages, and may include at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0183] In one implementation, configuration parameters for various positioning methods may include frequency, bandwidth, and transmit / receive point (TRP) identification, and internal UE factors may include power limitations, battery power, interference with satellite positioning system reception, and group delay. For example, one or more criteria may include those related to downlink reference signal-based positioning methods and may include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires downlink or uplink channels for activating applications; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements. For example, one or more standards may include standards related to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals, and may include one or more of the following: power constraint based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is lower than a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraint based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss, and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs. For example, one or more standards may include standards related to positioning methods based on uplink and downlink reference signals, and may include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to transmission and reception at different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0184] Throughout this specification, references to “an example,” “example,” “some examples,” or “exemplary implementation” mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with a feature and / or example may be included in at least one feature and / or example of the claimed subject matter. Therefore, the phrases “in an example,” “example,” “in some examples,” or “in some implementations” appearing throughout this specification, or other similar phrases in different places, do not necessarily refer to the same feature, example, and / or limitation. Furthermore, a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be combined in one or more examples and / or features.

[0185] Certain portions of the detailed description included herein are presented in accordance with an algorithmic or symbolic representation of the operation of binary digital signals stored in the memory of a particular device or dedicated computing device or platform. In the context of this particular specification, the terms "particular device," etc., include a general-purpose computer that, once programmed, performs specific operations according to instructions from program software. Algorithm descriptions or symbolic representations are technical examples used by those skilled in the art of signal processing or related fields to convey the essence of their work to others skilled in the art. An algorithm herein is generally considered to be a self-consistent sequence of operations or similar signal processing that leads to a desired result. In this context, the operation or processing involves physical manipulation of physical quantities. Typically, though not always, these quantities may take the form of electrical or magnetic signals that can be stored, transmitted, combined, compared, or otherwise controlled. For general reasons, it has sometimes proven convenient to refer to such signals as bits, data, values, elements, symbols, characters, items, numbers, numerals, etc. However, it should be understood that all such or similar terms will be associated with appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient notations. Unless otherwise specified, as is apparent from the discussion herein, it should be understood that throughout this specification, the use of terms such as “processing,” “calculating,” “operating,” and “determining” refers to the action or process of a specific device, such as a dedicated computer, dedicated computing device, or similar dedicated electronic computing device. Therefore, in the context of this specification, a dedicated computer or similar dedicated electronic computing device is capable of controlling or transforming signals, which are generally represented as physical electronic or magnetic quantities within the memory, registers, or other information storage devices, transmission devices, or display devices of the dedicated computer or similar dedicated electronic computing device.

[0186] In the foregoing detailed description, numerous specific details have been set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the claimed subject matter. However, those skilled in the art will understand that the claimed subject matter can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, methods and apparatus known to those skilled in the art have not been described in detail to avoid obscuring the claimed subject matter.

[0187] The terms “and,” “or,” and “and / or” as used herein can have a variety of meanings, which are expected to depend at least in part on the context in which they are used. Typically, when used with a list of related terms (such as A, B, or C), “or” is intended to mean A, B, and C in an inclusive sense, and A, B, or C in an exclusive sense. Additionally, the term “one or more” as used herein can be used to describe any feature, structure, or property in the singular, or can be used to describe multiple or certain other combinations of features, structures, or properties. However, it should be noted that this is merely an illustrative example, and the claimed subject matter is not limited to this example.

[0188] While features currently considered exemplary have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will understand that various other modifications and equivalents can be made without departing from the claimed subject matter. Furthermore, numerous modifications can be made to suit specific circumstances and the teachings of the claimed subject matter without departing from the central concepts described herein.

[0189] Given that the described embodiments may include different combinations of features, the following numbered clauses describe implementation examples:

[0190] Clause 1. A method for supporting location services for a user equipment (UE) performed by: receiving auxiliary data from a location server, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods; evaluating one or more criteria using the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods and internal UE factors to determine a preferred positioning method; performing a positioning measurement for the preferred positioning method; and sending a message identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the preferred positioning method to the location server.

[0191] Clause 2. The method according to Clause 1, wherein, prior to performing the positioning measurement, a message identifying the positioning method prioritization is sent to the location server.

[0192] Clause 3. The method according to Clause 2 further includes receiving a second message from the location server to accept or reject the priority positioning method, wherein, in response to the second message to accept the priority positioning method, positioning measurements for the priority positioning method are performed.

[0193] Clause 4. The method according to Clause 1, wherein, after performing the positioning measurement, a message identifying the positioning method priority is sent to the location server.

[0194] Clause 5. The method according to Clause 4, wherein the message to the location server is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0195] Clause 6. The method according to any one of Clauses 1-5, wherein the multiple positioning methods include at least two of the following: positioning based on downlink reference signals, positioning based on uplink reference signals, and positioning based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

[0196] Clause 7. The method according to any one of Clauses 1-6, wherein the configuration parameters for the various positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth and identifier of the Transmit / Receive Point (TRP), and internal UE factors include power limitation, battery power, interference to satellite positioning system reception and group delay.

[0197] Clause 8. According to the method of Clause 7, one or more criteria include those related to the positioning method based on downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE in the measurement gap required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires downlink or uplink channels for activating applications; impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements.

[0198] Clause 9. According to the method of Clause 7, one or more criteria include criteria related to the positioning method based on the uplink reference signal, which include one or more of the following: power limit constraints based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is lower than a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraints based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs.

[0199] Clause 10. According to the method of Clause 7, one or more standards include standards related to the positioning method based on uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to the transmission and reception of different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0200] Clause 11. A user equipment (UE) configured to support location services for the UE, the UE comprising: at least one radio transceiver configured to wirelessly communicate with at least one wireless network; at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one radio transceiver and the at least one memory, and configured to: receive auxiliary data from a location server via the at least one radio transceiver, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for a plurality of positioning methods; evaluate one or more criteria using the configuration parameters for each of the plurality of positioning methods and internal UE factors to determine a preferred positioning method; perform positioning measurements for the preferred positioning method; and transmit to the location server via the at least one radio transceiver a message identifying the preferred positioning method and indication information for the one or more criteria used to determine the preferred positioning method.

[0201] Clause 12. The UE according to Clause 11, wherein at least one processor is configured to send a message identifying the preferred positioning method to the location server before performing positioning measurements.

[0202] Clause 13. The UE according to Clause 12, wherein at least one processor is further configured to receive a second message from a location server via at least one radio transceiver to accept or reject a priority positioning method, wherein at least one processor is configured to perform a positioning measurement for the priority positioning method in response to the second message to accept the priority positioning method.

[0203] Clause 14. The UE according to Clause 11, wherein at least one processor is configured to send a message identifying the priority of the positioning method to the location server after performing positioning measurements.

[0204] Clause 15. The UE according to Clause 14, wherein the message to the location server is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0205] Clause 16. A UE pursuant to any one of Clauses 11-15, wherein the plurality of positioning methods includes at least two of the following: positioning based on a downlink reference signal, positioning based on an uplink reference signal, and positioning based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

[0206] Clause 17. A UE pursuant to any one of Clauses 11-16, wherein the configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth and identifier of the Transmit / Receive Point (TRP), and internal UE factors include power limitation, battery power, interference with satellite positioning system reception and group delay.

[0207] Clause 18. For the UE pursuant to Clause 17, one or more criteria include those related to the positioning method based on downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE for which the measurement gap is required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires a downlink or uplink channel for activating an application; impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements.

[0208] Clause 19. For the UE pursuant to Clause 17, one or more criteria include criteria related to the positioning method based on the uplink reference signal, which include one or more of the following: power limit constraints based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is lower than a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraints based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss, and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs.

[0209] Clause 20. For a UE pursuant to Clause 17, one or more standards include standards related to a positioning method based on uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to the transmission and reception of different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0210] Clause 21. A user equipment (UE) configured to support location services for the UE, comprising: means for receiving auxiliary data from a location server, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods; means for evaluating one or more criteria using the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods and internal UE factors to determine a preferred positioning method; means for performing positioning measurements for the preferred positioning method; and means for sending a message identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the preferred positioning method to the location server.

[0211] Clause 22. The UE according to Clause 21, wherein the component for sending a message identifying the preferred positioning method to the location server sends the message before performing the positioning measurement.

[0212] Clause 23. The UE pursuant to Clause 22 further includes a component for receiving a second message from a location server for accepting or rejecting a priority positioning method, wherein the component for performing positioning measurements for the priority positioning method performs positioning measurements in response to the second message for accepting the priority positioning method.

[0213] Clause 24. The UE according to Clause 21, wherein the component for sending a message identifying the location method prioritization to the location server sends the message after the location measurement is performed.

[0214] Clause 25. The UE pursuant to Clause 24, wherein the message to the location server is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0215] Clause 26. A UE pursuant to any one of Clauses 21-25, wherein the plurality of positioning methods includes at least two of the following: positioning based on a downlink reference signal, positioning based on an uplink reference signal, and positioning based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

[0216] Clause 27. A UE pursuant to any one of Clauses 21-26, wherein the configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth and identifier of the Transmit / Receive Point (TRP), and internal UE factors include power limitation, battery power, interference with satellite positioning system reception and group delay.

[0217] Clause 28. For the UE pursuant to Clause 27, one or more criteria include those relating to the positioning method based on downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE for which the measurement gap is required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires a downlink or uplink channel for activating an application; impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements.

[0218] Clause 29. For the UE pursuant to Clause 27, one or more criteria include criteria related to the positioning method based on the uplink reference signal, which include one or more of the following: power limit constraints based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is lower than a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraints based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss, and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs.

[0219] Clause 30. For the UE pursuant to Clause 27, one or more standards include standards related to the positioning method based on uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to the transmission and reception of different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0220] Clause 31. A non-transitory storage medium including program code stored thereon, the program code being operable to configure at least one processor in a user equipment (UE) to support location services for the UE, the program code including instructions for: receiving auxiliary data from a location server, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for a plurality of positioning methods; evaluating one or more criteria using the configuration parameters for each of the plurality of positioning methods and internal UE factors to determine a preferred positioning method; performing a positioning measurement for the preferred positioning method; and sending to the location server a message identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the preferred positioning method.

[0221] Clause 32. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 31, wherein the program code includes instructions for sending a message identifying a prioritized positioning method to the location server prior to performing positioning measurements.

[0222] Clause 33. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 32, wherein the program code further includes instructions for receiving a second message from the location server for accepting or rejecting a prioritized positioning method, wherein the program code includes instructions for performing positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method in response to the second message for accepting the prioritized positioning method.

[0223] Clause 34. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 31, wherein the program code includes instructions for sending a message identifying the priority of the positioning method to the location server after performing positioning measurements.

[0224] Clause 35. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 34, wherein the message to the location server is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0225] Clause 36. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to any one of Clauses 31-35, wherein the plurality of positioning methods includes at least two of positioning based on a downlink reference signal, positioning based on an uplink reference signal, and positioning based on a combination of a downlink reference signal and an uplink reference signal.

[0226] Clause 37. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to any one of Clauses 31-36, wherein configuration parameters for various positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth, and identifier of the Transmit / Receive Point (TRP), and internal UE factors include power limitations, battery power, interference with satellite positioning system reception, and group delay.

[0227] Clause 38. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 37 may include one or more standards relating to the positioning method based on the downlink reference signal, which may include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE for which the measurement gap is required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires a downlink or uplink channel for activating the application; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements.

[0228] Clause 39. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 37 includes one or more standards relating to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals, comprising one or more of the following: power limitation constraints based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is below a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraints based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss, and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more Satellite Positioning System (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs.

[0229] Clause 40. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 37, one or more standards include standards related to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to the transmission and reception of different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0230] Clause 41. A method for supporting location services for a user equipment (UE) performed by a location server, comprising: sending auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for a plurality of positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the plurality of positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a preferred positioning method, and performing a positioning measurement for the preferred positioning method; and receiving from the UE a message identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the preferred positioning method.

[0231] Clause 42. The method according to Clause 41, wherein a message of the identification-prioritized positioning method from the UE is received before the UE performs positioning measurements.

[0232] Clause 43. The method according to Clause 42 further includes sending a second message to the UE to accept or reject the priority positioning method, wherein the UE performs positioning measurements for the priority positioning method in response to the second message to accept the priority positioning method.

[0233] Clause 44. The method according to Clause 41, wherein a message of the identification-prioritized positioning method from the UE is received after the UE performs positioning measurements.

[0234] Clause 45. The method according to Clause 44, wherein the message from the UE is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0235] Clause 46. The method according to any one of Clauses 41-45, wherein the plurality of positioning methods includes at least two of the following: positioning based on a downlink reference signal, positioning based on an uplink reference signal, and positioning based on a combination of a downlink reference signal and an uplink reference signal.

[0236] Clause 47. The method according to any one of Clauses 41-46, wherein the configuration parameters for the various positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth and identification of TRP.

[0237] Clause 48. According to the method of Clause 47, one or more criteria include criteria related to the positioning method based on downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE in the measurement gap required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires downlink or uplink channels for activating applications; impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements.

[0238] Clause 49. According to the method of Clause 47, one or more criteria include criteria related to the positioning method based on uplink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: power limit constraints based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is lower than a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraints based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs.

[0239] Clause 50. The method pursuant to Clause 47, one or more standards include standards related to the positioning method based on uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to the transmission and reception of different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0240] Clause 51. A location server configured to support location services for a user equipment (UE), comprising: a communication interface configured to communicate with the UE in a wireless network; at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the communication interface and the at least one memory, and configured to: transmit auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and receive from the UE a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the prioritized positioning method.

[0241] Clause 52. A location server pursuant to Clause 51, wherein a message from the UE prioritizing the location method is received before the UE performs location measurements.

[0242] Clause 53. The location server pursuant to Clause 52, wherein at least one processor is further configured to send a second message to the UE accepting or rejecting a prioritized location method, wherein the UE performs a location measurement for the prioritized location method in response to the second message accepting the prioritized location method.

[0243] Clause 54. A location server pursuant to Clause 51, wherein a message of an identifier-prioritized location method from the UE is received after the UE performs a location measurement.

[0244] Clause 55. A location server pursuant to Clause 54, wherein the message from the UE is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0245] Clause 56. A location server pursuant to any one of Clauses 51-55, wherein the multiple location methods include at least two of the following: location based on downlink reference signals, location based on uplink reference signals, and location based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

[0246] Clause 57. A location server pursuant to any of Clauses 51-56, wherein configuration parameters for various location methods include frequency, bandwidth, and identification of the TRP.

[0247] Clause 58. Location servers pursuant to Clause 57, one or more criteria include those relating to positioning methods based on downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE for which the measurement gap is required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires a downlink or uplink channel for activating an application; impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements.

[0248] Clause 59. Location servers pursuant to Clause 57, one or more criteria include those relating to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: power constraint based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is below a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraint based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss, and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs.

[0249] Clause 60. Location server pursuant to Clause 57, one or more standards include standards related to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to the transmission and reception of different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0250] Clause 61. A location server configured to support location services for a user equipment (UE), comprising: means for transmitting auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for a plurality of positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the plurality of positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and means for receiving from the UE a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the prioritized positioning method.

[0251] Clause 62. A location server pursuant to Clause 61, wherein a message from the UE prioritizing the location method is received before the UE performs location measurements.

[0252] Clause 63. The location server pursuant to Clause 62 further includes a component for sending a second message to the UE to accept or reject a prioritized positioning method, wherein the UE performs a positioning measurement for the prioritized positioning method in response to the second message accepting the prioritized positioning method.

[0253] Clause 64. A location server pursuant to Clause 61, wherein a message indicating a location method prioritized by the UE is received after the UE performs a location measurement.

[0254] Clause 65. A location server pursuant to Clause 64, wherein a message from the UE is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0255] Clause 66. A location server pursuant to any one of Clauses 61-65, wherein the multiple location methods include at least two of the following: location based on downlink reference signals, location based on uplink reference signals, and location based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

[0256] Clause 67. A location server pursuant to any of Clauses 61-66, wherein configuration parameters for various location methods include frequency, bandwidth, and identification of the TRP.

[0257] Clause 68. Location servers pursuant to Clause 67, one or more criteria include those relating to positioning methods based on downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE for which positioning measurements are required; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires downlink or uplink channels for activating applications; impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements.

[0258] Clause 69. Location servers pursuant to Clause 67, one or more criteria include criteria related to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: power limit constraints based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is lower than a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraints based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss, and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs.

[0259] Clause 70. Location server pursuant to Clause 67, one or more standards include standards related to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to the transmission and reception of different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0260] Clause 71. A non-transitory storage medium including program code stored thereon, the program code being operable to configure at least one processor in a location server to support location services for a user equipment (UE), the program code including instructions for: sending auxiliary data to the UE, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for a plurality of positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the plurality of positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a preferred positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for the preferred positioning method; and receiving from the UE a message identifying the preferred positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria for determining the preferred positioning method.

[0261] Clause 72. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 71, wherein a message of an identifier-prioritized positioning method from the UE is received before the UE performs positioning measurements.

[0262] Clause 73. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 72, wherein the program code further includes instructions for sending a second message to the UE to accept or reject a prioritized positioning method, wherein the UE performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method in response to the second message accepting the prioritized positioning method.

[0263] Clause 74. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 71, wherein a message of an identifier-prioritized positioning method from the UE is received after the UE performs positioning measurements.

[0264] Clause 75. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 74, wherein a message from the UE is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

[0265] Clause 76. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to any one of Clauses 71-75, wherein the plurality of positioning methods includes at least two of positioning based on a downlink reference signal, positioning based on an uplink reference signal, and positioning based on a combination of a downlink reference signal and an uplink reference signal.

[0266] Clause 77. A non-transitory storage medium pursuant to any of Clauses 71-76, wherein configuration parameters for various positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth, and identification of the TRP.

[0267] Clause 78. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 77 may include one or more standards relating to the positioning method based on the downlink reference signal, which may include one or more of the following: throughput impact based on whether the TRP is located at a frequency outside the current tuning bandwidth of the UE for which the measurement gap is required for positioning measurements; user experience impact based on whether the UE requires a downlink or uplink channel for activating the application; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on inter-frequency measurements; radio frequency signal path limitations; and synchronization requirements.

[0268] Clause 79. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 77 includes one or more criteria relating to a positioning method based on an uplink reference signal, comprising one or more of the following: power limitation constraints based on whether the maximum power limit due to dynamic power sharing is below a threshold configured for the uplink reference signal power level; battery constraints based on whether there is uplink resource allocation for the uplink signal, calculated path loss, and current battery threshold; the impact of harmonic interference or intermodulation distortion interference on one or more Satellite Positioning System (SPS) receivers; RF transmit signal path availability; and synchronization requirements across TRPs.

[0269] Clause 80. The non-transitory storage medium pursuant to Clause 77, one or more standards include standards related to positioning methods based on uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals, which include one or more of the following: a first group delay characteristic at the UE due to the time delay between signal generation at the baseband modem and signal transmission and reception at the antenna; and a second group delay characteristic at the UE due to the transmission and reception of different TRPs occurring at different transceivers at the UE.

[0270] Therefore, the subject matter to be protected is not limited to the specific examples disclosed, but may also include all aspects falling within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A method performed by a user equipment (UE) to support location services for the UE, comprising: Receive auxiliary data from a location server, the auxiliary data including configuration parameters for various positioning methods; The configuration parameters and internal UE factors for each of the multiple positioning methods are used to evaluate one or more criteria to determine the preferred positioning method; Perform positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; as well as Send a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of the one or more criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method to the location server.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Before performing the positioning measurement, the message identifying the prioritized positioning method is sent to the location server.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving a second message from the location server accepting or rejecting the prioritized location method, wherein, In response to the second message accepting the prioritized positioning method, the positioning measurement for the prioritized positioning method is performed.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein, After the location measurement is performed, the message identifying the prioritized location method is sent to the location server.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein, The message to the location server is a location information message, and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The various positioning methods include at least two of the following: positioning based on downlink reference signals, positioning based on uplink reference signals, and positioning based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The configuration parameters for the various positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth, and the identifier of the Transmitter-Receiver Point (TRP), and the internal UE factors include power limitations, battery power, interference with satellite positioning system reception, and group delay.

8. A user equipment (UE) configured to support location services of the UE, the UE comprising: At least one wireless transceiver configured to communicate wirelessly with at least one wireless network; At least one memory; as well as At least one processor, coupled to the at least one wireless transceiver and the at least one memory, is configured to: Assistance data is received from a location server via the at least one wireless transceiver, the assistance data including configuration parameters for various positioning methods; The configuration parameters and internal UE factors for each of the multiple positioning methods are used to evaluate one or more criteria to determine the preferred positioning method; Perform positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; as well as The location server is sent a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of the one or more criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method via the at least one wireless transceiver.

9. The UE according to claim 8, wherein, The at least one processor is configured to send a message identifying the prioritized positioning method to the location server before performing the positioning measurement.

10. The UE according to claim 9, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to receive a second message from the location server via the at least one wireless transceiver, indicating acceptance or rejection of the prioritized positioning method, wherein the at least one processor is configured to perform the positioning measurement for the prioritized positioning method in response to the second message indicating acceptance of the prioritized positioning method.

11. The UE according to claim 8, wherein, The at least one processor is configured to send a message identifying the prioritized positioning method to the location server after performing the positioning measurement.

12. The UE according to claim 11, wherein, The message to the location server is a location information message, and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

13. The UE according to claim 8, wherein, The various positioning methods include at least two of the following: positioning based on downlink reference signals, positioning based on uplink reference signals, and positioning based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

14. The UE according to claim 8, wherein, The configuration parameters for the various positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth, and the identifier of the Transmitter-Receiver Point (TRP), and the internal UE factors include power limitations, battery power, interference with satellite positioning system reception, and group delay.

15. A method for supporting location services for a user equipment (UE) performed by a location server, comprising: The UE sends auxiliary data, which includes configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method; and The UE receives a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein, The message from the UE identifying the prioritized positioning method is received before the UE performs the positioning measurement.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising sending a second message to the UE accepting or rejecting the prioritized positioning method, wherein, The UE performs the positioning measurement for the prioritized positioning method in response to the second message accepting the prioritized positioning method.

18. The method according to claim 15, wherein, The message from the UE identifying the prioritized positioning method is received after the UE performs the positioning measurement.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein, The message from the UE is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein, The various positioning methods include at least two of the following: positioning based on downlink reference signals, positioning based on uplink reference signals, and positioning based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

21. The method according to claim 15, wherein, The configuration parameters used for the various positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth, and TRP identifier.

22. A location server configured to support location services for user equipment (UE), comprising: A communication interface configured to communicate with the UE in a wireless network; At least one memory; as well as At least one processor, coupled to the communication interface and the at least one memory, is configured to: The UE sends auxiliary data, which includes configuration parameters for multiple positioning methods, wherein the UE uses the configuration parameters for each of the multiple positioning methods to evaluate one or more criteria to determine a prioritized positioning method, and performs positioning measurements for the prioritized positioning method. as well as The UE receives a message identifying the prioritized positioning method and an indication of one or more criteria used to determine the prioritized positioning method.

23. The location server according to claim 22, wherein, The message from the UE identifying the prioritized positioning method is received before the UE performs the positioning measurement.

24. The location server according to claim 23, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to send a second message to the UE to accept or reject the prioritized positioning method, wherein the UE performs the positioning measurement for the prioritized positioning method in response to the second message accepting the prioritized positioning method.

25. The location server according to claim 22, wherein, The message from the UE identifying the prioritized positioning method is received after the UE performs the positioning measurement.

26. The location server according to claim 25, wherein, The message from the UE is a location information message and includes at least one or a combination of location measurement results and a location estimated by the UE based on the location measurement results.

27. The location server according to claim 22, wherein, The various positioning methods include at least two of the following: positioning based on downlink reference signals, positioning based on uplink reference signals, and positioning based on a combination of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

28. The location server according to claim 22, wherein, The configuration parameters used for the various positioning methods include frequency, bandwidth, and TRP identifier.

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