A positioning method and a communication device

Abstract

The present application discloses a positioning method and a communication device, relating to the field of communication technologies. After receiving a first message from a network device, a positioning terminal sends access request information to the network device based on the first message. The network device receives the first request information and sends the access request information to a positioning management network element, i.e., the LMF. The LMF determines positioning resource allocation information required by the positioning terminal according to the access request information and sends the positioning resource allocation information to the network device. The network device sends the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, so that the positioning terminal determines positioning pulses according to the positioning resource allocation information and sends the positioning pulses to network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood. The network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood obtain the time of arrival (TOA) and send the TOA to the LMF to determine the location information of the positioning terminal. In this way, the interaction information between the positioning terminal and the LMF is reduced, thus reducing the power consumption loss of the positioning terminal.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to a positioning method and a communication device. Background Art

[0002] With the development of the fifth generation (5G) technology, more and more fields have put forward the demand for high-precision positioning. For example, there are a large number of devices in an industrial park. Determining the positions of the devices helps to more reasonably allocate the resources of the park.

[0003] Although the positioning of terminal devices can be achieved based on positioning methods such as uplink time difference of arrival (UTDOA) and observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) in the 5G - the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) standard, which can meet the requirements of high-precision positioning, the terminal device needs to maintain a real-time radio resource control (RRC) connection with the network device during the positioning process, resulting in a relatively large power consumption of the terminal device. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a positioning method and a communication device to ensure the positioning accuracy of the device while reducing the power consumption of the device.

[0005] In a first aspect, an embodiment of this application provides a positioning method. This positioning method requires interaction among a positioning terminal, at least three network devices (for example, a first network device, a second network device, and a third network device), and a location management function (LMF) to achieve the positioning of the positioning terminal.

[0006] Suppose any network device sends a first message to the positioning terminal. Then the positioning terminal receives the first message from the network device. The first message includes: clock synchronization information and access network resource allocation information. After that, the positioning terminal sends an access request message to the network device based on the first message. The network device receives the first request message and sends the access request message to the LMF. The LMF determines the positioning resource allocation information required by the positioning terminal according to the access request message and sends the positioning resource allocation information to the network device. The network device sends the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal so that the positioning terminal can receive the positioning resource allocation information from the network device. The positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information and sends the positioning pulse to network devices (such as the first network device, the second network device, and the third network device) within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood, so that the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood can obtain the time of arrival (TOA) and send the TOA to the LMF. The number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3. The LMF determines the location information of the positioning terminal according to the TOA.

[0007] It should be noted that after the positioning terminal obtains the clock synchronization information, it can ensure the time synchronization between the positioning terminal and the network device, so that the LMF can determine the location information of the positioning terminal at different times when performing the positioning service. After the positioning terminal obtains the access network resource allocation information, it can determine the method of accessing the network. After the positioning terminal accesses the network, it can obtain the resource information of relevant services. For example, for the positioning service of this application, the positioning terminal can obtain the positioning resource allocation information after accessing the network.

[0008] By positioning the positioning terminal in this way, compared with the prior art, there is no need to perform an RRC connection, the interaction information between the positioning terminal and the LMF is reduced, and the reduction of the interaction information can reduce the power consumption loss of the positioning terminal. In addition, the positioning pulses of the positioning terminal are sent periodically, and the positioning terminal enters the sleep state after the positioning pulse is sent, which can further reduce the power consumption loss of the positioning terminal.

[0009] In an alternative embodiment, the first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; the session reconfiguration flag information is used to resend the access request message when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

[0010] It should be noted that since the positioning symbol resources change, the positioning terminal needs to re-create a session. Therefore, the first message also includes session reconfiguration flag information, so that the positioning terminal can resend the access request message when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

[0011] In an alternative embodiment, the access network resource allocation information includes: an access location number, an access period, and an access location interval period; the access location number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network; the access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after a failed access; and the access location interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access location numbers.

[0012] Among them, the access location number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network, that is, when the positioning terminal initially initiates an access request, the access symbol position. For example, the access location number includes multiple access symbol positions, and the positioning terminal can select one access symbol position to send access request information to the network device. If the network device determines that the positioning terminal accesses the network at the access symbol provided by the access location number, it will transmit service information with the positioning terminal.

[0013] The access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after a failed access. It should be noted that the positions of the access symbols may be limited. At the same time, there may be multiple positioning terminals trying to access the network, and the access location numbers obtained by multiple positioning terminals may be the same, so the situation of failed access by the positioning terminal may occur. After the positioning terminal fails to access, it will access again according to the access period. For example, the setting rule of the access period is that as the number of failed accesses increases, the value of the access period increases exponentially. After the positioning terminal fails to access for the first time, it will initiate an access request information again after a 2-second interval. After the second failed access, it will initiate an access request information again after a 4-second interval. In addition, the setting rule of the access period is not specifically limited here, and the access period can also be set according to a fixed value. This application does not make specific limitations here. Accessing again after an interval of the access period after a failed access can, on the one hand, avoid power consumption waste caused by continuously attempting to access the network, and on the other hand, reduce the number of conflicts with other positioning terminals accessing the network.

[0014] The access location interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access location numbers. It should be noted that the access symbol positions of the same access location number are limited. By determining the new access symbol positions that can initiate access according to the access location interval period, the optional access symbol positions for the positioning terminal when accessing the network can be increased. For example, if the access symbol position that can initiate access is determined to be position 1 according to the access location number, and assuming the access location interval period is 5, position 6 can be determined after an interval of 5 positions. Then the positioning terminal can initiate access request information at position 6.

[0015] It should be noted that, to avoid conflicts in the access of positioning terminals to the network, the positioning terminal can randomly select initial access symbol resources and send an initial access request message. At the same time, the positioning terminal starts a timer and waits for the positioning resource allocation information. If the timer times out and the positioning terminal still has not obtained the positioning resource allocation information, it refers to the configuration information of the access period and re-sends the access request message.

[0016] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: the positioning symbol position number and the positioning pulse transmission period; the positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends the positioning pulse; the positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period at which the positioning terminal sends the positioning pulse.

[0017] In an alternative embodiment, after determining the positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information, the positioning terminal starts a timer; and sends the positioning pulse according to the positioning pulse transmission period.

[0018] It should be noted that after the positioning terminal obtains the positioning resource allocation information, it can start a timer and send positioning pulses according to the positioning pulse transmission period, so that the LMF can regularly determine the location information of the positioning terminal.

[0019] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning terminal determines the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse; if the time interval is greater than a preset time threshold, the positioning terminal enters the sleep state; if the time interval is less than or equal to the preset time threshold, the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

[0020] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning terminal needs to re-receive the positioning resource allocation information in the following cases: the positioning terminal initially accesses the network; the positioning terminal moves to the jurisdiction area of an LMF other than the jurisdiction area of the LMF.

[0021] In an alternative embodiment, after the LMF sends the positioning resource allocation information to the network device, it sets the positioning symbol resources as allocated.

[0022] It should be noted that after the LMF allocates the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, it sets the positioning symbol resources in the positioning resource allocation information as allocated to prevent other positioning terminals from occupying the positioning symbol resources.

[0023] In an alternative embodiment, after the LMF sends the positioning resource allocation information to the network device, it starts a timer; if the TOA sent by the network device within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is not received when the timer expires, the positioning symbol resources are released.

[0024] It should be noted that after the LMF sets that the positioning symbol resources have been allocated, it starts a timer to wait for the TOA measurement result related to the positioning terminal. If the TOA measurement result related to this positioning terminal is still not received when the timer expires (if the LMF timer expires and the TOA measurement result is not received, it is considered that the positioning terminal does not send a positioning pulse under this positioning symbol resource, or this positioning symbol resource is unavailable), then this positioning symbol resource is released.

[0025] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including: a transceiver unit and a processing unit; the transceiver unit is used to receive a first message from a network device, and the first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; based on the first message, send access request information to the network device; receive positioning resource allocation information from the network device; the positioning resource allocation information is determined by the network device after receiving the access request information sent by the positioning terminal and sending the access request information to the positioning management function (LMF); the processing unit is used to determine a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information; send the positioning pulse to the network device within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood; the number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3.

[0026] In an alternative embodiment, the first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; the session reconfiguration flag information is used to resend the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

[0027] In an alternative embodiment, the access network resource allocation information includes: access position number, access period, and access position interval period; the access position number is used to indicate the symbol resource for the positioning terminal to access the network; the access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after the access fails; the access position interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access position numbers.

[0028] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal are carried in the positioning resource allocation information; the positioning symbol resources include: positioning symbol position number, positioning pulse transmission period; the positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse; the positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse.

[0029] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit is further configured to: send the positioning pulse according to the positioning pulse sending period.

[0030] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit is further configured to: determine the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse; if the time interval is greater than a preset time threshold, the positioning terminal enters the sleep state; if the time interval is less than or equal to the preset time threshold, the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

[0031] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning terminal needs to re-receive the positioning resource allocation information in the following cases: the positioning terminal initially accesses the network; the positioning terminal moves to the jurisdiction area of an LMF other than the jurisdiction area of the LMF.

[0032] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including: a transceiver unit and a processing unit; the transceiver unit is configured to receive access request information from a network device; the access request information is sent after the positioning terminal receives a first message from the network device; the first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; the processing unit is configured to determine, according to the access request information, the positioning resource allocation information required by the positioning terminal; send the positioning resource allocation information to the network device, so that the network device sends the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, and after the positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information, send the positioning pulse to network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood; the number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3; receive the time of arrival (TOA) sent by the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood; the TOA is determined after the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood receive the positioning pulse; determine the position information of the positioning terminal according to the TOA.

[0033] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: positioning symbol position number, positioning pulse sending period; the positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends the positioning pulse; the positioning pulse sending period is used to indicate the period for the positioning terminal to send the positioning pulse.

[0034] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit is further configured to: set the positioning symbol resources as allocated.

[0035] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit is further configured to: start a timer; and release the positioning symbol resource if no TOA is received from a network device within the range of the neighborhood of the positioning terminal when the timer times out.

[0036] In an alternative embodiment, the first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; the session reconfiguration flag information is used to resend the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

[0037] In an alternative embodiment, the access network resource allocation information includes: an access position number, an access period, and an access position interval period; the access position number is used to indicate the symbol resource for the positioning terminal to access the network; the access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after a failed access; the access position interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access position numbers.

[0038] Fourthly, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including: a transceiver unit and a processing unit; the transceiver unit is configured to send a first message to a positioning terminal; the first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; receive an access request information sent by the positioning terminal after receiving the first message; the processing unit is configured to send the access request information to a positioning management network element LMF, so that the LMF feeds back positioning resource allocation information; and send the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, so that the positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information.

[0039] In an alternative embodiment, the first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; the session reconfiguration flag information is used to resend the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

[0040] In an alternative embodiment, the access network resource allocation information includes: an access position number, an access period, and an access position interval period; the access position number is used to indicate the symbol resource for the positioning terminal to access the network; the access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after a failed access; the access position interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access position numbers.

[0041] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: a positioning symbol position number and a positioning pulse transmission period; the positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse; the positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period at which the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

[0042] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, including a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store a computer program, and when the device runs, the processor executes the computer program stored in the memory, so that the communication device executes the method according to the first aspect or each embodiment of the first aspect as described above.

[0043] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer-readable instructions are stored. When the computer-readable instructions run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method as described in the first aspect or any possible design in the first aspect.

[0044] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a computer program product containing instructions, which when running on a computer, causes the computer to execute the method according to the first aspect or each embodiment of the first aspect as described above.

[0045] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip system, which includes a processor and may further include a memory, and is used to implement the method as described in the first aspect or any possible design in the first aspect. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0046] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes a positioning terminal, a network device, and an LMF, and the communication system is used to execute the method as described in the first aspect or any possible design in the first aspect.

[0047] For the technical effects that can be achieved by the second to ninth aspects above, please refer to the technical effects that can be achieved by the corresponding possible design solutions in the first aspect above. The present application will not repeat them here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0048] Figure 1 The schematic diagram of the system architecture provided by the embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0049] Figure 2 The schematic diagram of the execution process of the positioning method provided by the embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0050] Figure 3Shows a schematic flow diagram of the session establishment method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0051] Figure 4 Shows a schematic flow diagram of the positioning service provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0052] Figure 5 Shows a schematic diagram of the working state of the positioning terminal provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0053] Figure 6 Shows a schematic flow diagram of the working process of the positioning terminal provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0054] Figure 7A Shows a schematic timing diagram of the working process of the positioning terminal provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0055] Figure 7B Shows a schematic timing diagram of the working process of the positioning terminal provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0056] Figure 8 Shows a schematic flow diagram of the positioning method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0057] Figure 9 Shows a comparison schematic diagram between the positioning method provided by the embodiments of the present application and the UTDOA positioning method;

[0058] Figure 10 Shows a schematic structural diagram of the communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0059] Figure 11 Shows a schematic structural diagram of the communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0060] Figure 12 Shows a schematic structural diagram of the communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0061] Figure 13 Shows a schematic structural diagram of the communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application. Detailed implementation manners

[0062] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the present application clearer, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The specific operation methods in the method embodiments can also be applied to the device embodiments or system embodiments. Among them, in the description of the present application, unless otherwise specified, the meaning of "a plurality" is two or more.

[0063] Figure 1The architecture schematic diagram of a communication system applicable to the positioning scenario provided in this application is shown. In this system architecture, it includes: a core network, multiple network devices, and multiple positioning terminals. The network elements related to the core network of this application include: gateway mobile location center (GMLC), LMF, and access and mobility management function (AMF).

[0064] It should be noted that the positioning terminal mentioned in this application can be a positioning tag, a positioning bracelet, or an intelligent device that can be attached to an object to be positioned. This positioning terminal does not support paging, will not be awakened by network devices, and has the characteristics of strong portability and mobility. To save energy consumption, this positioning terminal can only support positioning services, but in actual applications, the services specifically supported by the positioning terminal are not specifically limited. In addition, the positioning terminal can be used in cooperation with other objects. For example, the positioning terminal can be attached to a loader at a port, the positioning terminal can be attached to the anti-corrosion clothing of workers in a chemical plant, and the positioning terminal can also be attached to mobile terminal devices (such as mobile phones, computers, etc.). This application does not specifically limit the form of cooperation between the positioning terminal and other objects here.

[0065] Exemplarily, the network device can provide access services for the positioning terminal. The network device can include a base station (BS), or include a base station and a radio resource management device for controlling the base station, etc. Here, the base station can be a relay station, an access point, a base station in a 5G network, or a base station in a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN) network, etc. For example, an NR base station is not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0066] Exemplarily, GMLC, LMF, and AMF can be 3GPP standard network elements, or simplified versions of 3GPP standard network elements, and only need to support low-power positioning requirements. Among them, AMF can be docked with both the network device and LMF, and can forward positioning-related information to the network device or LMF. LMF can be used to allocate the resources required for the positioning service of the positioning terminal, and can also be used to calculate the position of the positioning terminal, so as to determine the position information of the positioning terminal. GMLC can feedback the position information of the positioning terminal to relevant software applications, so that the relevant software applications can display the position information of the positioning terminal or use the position information of the positioning terminal for other service processing.

[0067] In addition, it should be noted that when the positioning terminal of the present application performs a positioning service, it needs to send a positioning pulse to the network device. After receiving the positioning pulse, the network device will obtain the TOA and feedback the TOA measurement report to the LMF. The LMF determines the distance between the positioning terminal and the network device based on the TOA measurement report. However, the position of the positioning terminal cannot be determined based on the TOA measurement report fed back by one network device. At least 3 network devices need to feedback the TOA measurement report so that the LMF can accurately calculate the position information of the positioning terminal. Therefore, the number of network devices mentioned in the present application is greater than or equal to 3, which will not be elaborated further below.

[0068] To implement the positioning method of the present application, the positioning terminal needs to establish a session with the LMF. After establishing the session, the LMF will allocate positioning resources to the positioning terminal. The positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse to the network device according to the positioning resources, and the network device feeds back the TOA of the positioning pulse to the LMF so that the LMF can calculate the position information of the positioning terminal based on the TOA. Figure 2 It shows that after the positioning terminal and the LMF execute the session establishment process, the positioning service process can be executed. The positioning terminal enters the sleep state after executing a positioning service, and will not execute the positioning service process until it is awakened again. The positioning terminal enters the sleep state after executing a positioning service and will not be awakened until the next positioning service needs to be executed, which can reduce the power consumption loss of the positioning terminal.

[0069] Next, refer to Figure 3 This introduces the schematic diagram of the session establishment process provided by the embodiment of the present application. This session establishment requires information interaction among the positioning terminal, the network device, and the LMF to achieve. In actual application, the network device needs to forward messages to the LMF through the AMF, so the LMF is also shown in the figure. When establishing a session, the following steps can be referred to for execution:

[0070] Step 301: The network device sends a first message to the positioning terminal. The first message includes: clock synchronization information and access network resource allocation information.

[0071] Step 302: The positioning terminal receives the first message from the network device and determines the access request information according to the first message.

[0072] It should be noted that after the positioning terminal obtains the clock synchronization information, it can ensure the time synchronization between the positioning terminal and the network device, so that when performing a positioning service, the LMF can determine the position information of the positioning terminal at different times. After the positioning terminal obtains the access network resource allocation information, it can determine the method of accessing the network. After the positioning terminal accesses the network, it can obtain the resource information of relevant services. For example, for the positioning service of the present application, the positioning terminal can obtain the positioning resource allocation information after accessing the network.

[0073] Exemplary description, the access network resource allocation information includes: access location number (access symbol identity document), access period (initial access period), and access location interval period (access resource cycle).

[0074] Among them, the access location number is used to indicate the symbol resource for the positioning terminal to access the network, that is, when the positioning terminal initially initiates an access request, the access symbol position. For example, the access location number includes multiple access symbol positions, and the positioning terminal can select one access symbol position to send access request information to the network device. If the network device determines that the positioning terminal accesses the network at the access symbol provided by the access location number, it will transmit service information with the positioning terminal.

[0075] The access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after an access failure. It should be noted that the positions of the access symbols may be limited. At the same time, there may be multiple positioning terminals that need to access the network, and the access location numbers obtained by multiple positioning terminals may be the same. Then, there may be a situation where the positioning terminal accesses the network fails. After the positioning terminal accesses the network fails, it accesses again according to the access period. For example, the setting rule of the access period is that as the number of access failures increases, the value of the access period increases exponentially. After the positioning terminal fails to access for the first time, it initiates an access request information again after an interval of 2 seconds. After the second access failure, it initiates an access request information again after an interval of 4 seconds. In addition, the setting rule of the access period is not specifically limited here, and the access period can also be set according to a fixed value. This application does not make specific limitations here. Accessing again after an interval of the access period after an access failure can avoid power consumption waste caused by continuously attempting to access the network on the one hand, and reduce the number of access network conflicts with other positioning terminals on the other hand.

[0076] The access location interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access location numbers. It should be noted that the access symbol positions of the same access location number are limited. According to the access location interval period, new access symbol positions that can initiate access can be determined, which can increase the optional access symbol positions when the positioning terminal accesses the network. For example, if the access symbol position that can initiate access is determined to be position 1 according to the access location number, and assuming that the access location interval period is 5, position 6 can be determined after an interval of 5 positions. Then, the positioning terminal can initiate access request information at position 6.

[0077] It should be noted that to avoid conflicts in the access of positioning terminals to the network, the positioning terminal can randomly select the initial access symbol resources and send the initial access request information. At the same time, the positioning terminal starts a timer and waits for the positioning resource allocation information. If the timer times out and the positioning terminal still does not obtain the positioning resource allocation information, it refers to the configuration information of the access period and reinitiates the access request information.

[0078] Step 303: The positioning terminal sends an access request information to the network device.

[0079] Step 304: The network device forwards the access request information to the AMF.

[0080] Step 305: The AMF forwards the access request information to the LMF.

[0081] Step 306: The LMF determines the positioning resource allocation information required by the positioning terminal according to the access request information.

[0082] It should be noted that the LMF can determine the positioning resource allocation information for multiple positioning terminals, and the positioning resource allocation information corresponding to different positioning terminals is different. The positioning resource allocation information may carry the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal. The positioning symbol resources include: the positioning symbol position number (resource symbol index) and the positioning pulse transmission period (resource duration). Among them, the positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends the positioning pulse, that is, at which resource position the positioning pulse is sent in the resources allocated by the LMF; the positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period at which the positioning terminal sends the positioning pulse.

[0083] Step 307: The LMF sends the positioning resource allocation information to the AMF.

[0084] Step 308: The AMF forwards the positioning resource allocation information to the network device.

[0085] Step 309: The network device forwards the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal.

[0086] Step 310: The positioning terminal saves the resource allocation information.

[0087] It should be noted that since the positioning symbol resources change, the positioning terminal needs to re-create a session. Therefore, the first message also includes session reconfiguration flag information, so that when the positioning resource allocation information changes, the positioning terminal can re-send the access request information.

[0088] In addition, it should also be noted that the positioning terminal needs to re-obtain the positioning resource allocation information when one or more of the following situations occur:

[0089] Scenario 1: After the positioning terminal is powered on and registered to access the network, when initially accessing the network, it needs to initiate a session establishment process to obtain the positioning resource allocation information required for the positioning service.

[0090] Scenario 2: When the positioning terminal moves to the jurisdiction area of an LMF other than the jurisdiction area of the original LMF, it needs to re-initiate a session establishment process to re-obtain the positioning resource allocation information required for the positioning service. For example, if the positioning terminal has established a session connection with the first LMF and obtained the positioning resource allocation information, and then the positioning terminal moves to the area under the jurisdiction of the second LMF, it needs to re-create a session connection with the second LMF.

[0091] Scenario 3: When the positioning terminal leaves the jurisdiction area of the serving LMF for a long time and then accesses the network again, it needs to re-initiate a session establishment process to re-obtain the positioning resource allocation information required for the positioning service. For example, the positioning terminal has created a session connection with the first LMF and obtained the positioning resource allocation information assigned by the first LMF to the positioning terminal. After that, when the positioning terminal leaves the jurisdiction area of the first LMF for a period of time and then returns to the jurisdiction area of the first LMF, it needs to re-create a session with the first LMF to determine the positioning resource allocation information.

[0092] In the session establishment solution between the positioning terminal and the LMF provided by the embodiments of the present application, the amount of information exchanged between the positioning terminal and the LMF is small. The positioning terminal only needs to obtain the first message, initiate an access request message according to the first message, and then obtain the positioning resource allocation information determined by the LMF for the positioning terminal. Compared with the existing technology for session establishment, which requires creating an RRC connection and waiting for the allocation of sounding reference signal (SRS) resources, the number of information exchanges is significantly reduced. When the number of information exchanges of the positioning terminal is reduced, the working duration of the positioning terminal will also be relatively less, thus reducing the power consumption loss of the positioning terminal.

[0093] Next, refer to Figure 4 Describe the schematic flow diagram of the positioning service provided by the embodiments of the present application. This positioning service requires information interaction among the positioning terminal, the first network device, the second network device, the third network device, and the LMF to be realized. In actual application, the network device needs to forward the message to the LMF through the AMF. Therefore, the AMF is also shown in the figure. It should be noted that the first network device, the second network device, and the third network device are within the range of the neighborhood of the positioning terminal, that is, the positioning terminal can send data to the network devices in this area, and the network devices in this area can receive the data.

[0094] Figure 4In the figure, only the first network device, the second network device, and the third network device are used for illustration. However, in actual applications, the number of network devices is not limited, and any one of the first network device, the second network device, and the third network device can be the network device that sends the first message to the positioning terminal or a network device within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood (a network device that can receive the information sent by the positioning terminal). The network devices in the positioning terminal's neighborhood can be network devices located near the positioning terminal, such as neighboring base stations of the base station connected to the positioning terminal. When positioning the positioning terminal, the following steps can be followed:

[0095] Step 401: The positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse to the first network device.

[0096] Step 402: The positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse to the second network device.

[0097] Step 403: The positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse to the third network device.

[0098] Step 404: The first network device measures the TOA of the positioning pulse.

[0099] Step 405: The second network device measures the TOA of the positioning pulse.

[0100] Step 406: The third network device measures the TOA of the positioning pulse.

[0101] Step 407: The first network device feeds back the TOA measurement result to the AMF.

[0102] Step 408: The second network device feeds back the TOA measurement result to the AMF.

[0103] Step 409: The third network device feeds back the TOA measurement result to the AMF.

[0104] Step 410: The AMF sends the TOA measurement results of each network device to the LMF.

[0105] Step 411: The LMF performs position calculation on the TOA measurement results fed back by the first network device, the second network device, and the third network device to determine the position information of the positioning terminal.

[0106] It should be noted that the execution order of steps 401 - 403 is not sequential, the execution order of steps 404 - 406 is not sequential, and the execution order of steps 407 - 409 is not sequential. In addition, it should also be noted that after the positioning terminal obtains the positioning resource allocation information, it can start a timer and send positioning pulses according to the positioning pulse sending period, so that the LMF can regularly determine the position information of the positioning terminal.

[0107] In addition, it should be noted that after the LMF allocates positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, it sets the positioning symbol resource in the positioning resource allocation information as allocated to prevent other positioning terminals from occupying this positioning symbol resource. After the LMF sets the positioning symbol resource as allocated, it starts a timer to wait for the TOA measurement result related to the positioning terminal. If the timer times out and the TOA measurement result related to this positioning terminal is still not received (if the LMF timer times out and the TOA measurement result is not received, it is considered that the positioning terminal does not send a positioning pulse under this positioning symbol resource, or this positioning symbol resource is unavailable), then this positioning symbol resource is released.

[0108] It should be noted that when the positioning terminal executes the positioning method of this application, it mainly includes 4 working states: initial state, access state, active state, and sleep state. These 4 working states can be transformed into each other as Figure 5 shown. Among them, when the positioning terminal has states such as power-on, restart, or long-term network disconnection, it will enter the initial state. In the initial state, the positioning terminal conducts a network search, attempts to capture the first message, and obtains network parameters after reading the first message. If the search fails, it lengthens the retry period to retry the network search to avoid excessive power consumption caused by long-term network searching.

[0109] After the positioning terminal obtains valid network parameters and accesses the network, it enters the access state from the initial state. In the access state, the positioning terminal sends an access request message and receives the positioning resource allocation information sent by the LMF, calculates the next wake-up time and the time to send a positioning pulse, and enters the sleep state. When the positioning terminal is in the sleep state, only the wake-up module is kept in the working state, and the rest of the modules are all turned off. When the wake-up time or the time to send a positioning pulse arrives, the positioning terminal is activated through the wake-up module and enters the active state.

[0110] If the positioning terminal enters the active state when the wake-up time arrives, it first reads the clock synchronization information in the first message, and determines whether it is necessary to re-create a session according to the system message. If it is necessary to re-create a session, it enters the access state; otherwise, it calculates the next wake-up time and the next time to send a positioning pulse, and enters the sleep state. If the positioning terminal is woken up because the time to send a positioning pulse arrives, it directly sends a positioning pulse on the positioning symbol resource and enters the sleep state.

[0111] The working process of the positioning terminal can refer to Figure 6When performing positioning, the positioning terminal is in a sleep state when not performing the positioning service. When the wake-up time arrives, it wakes up periodically, receives the first message to synchronize the clock information for clock synchronization. The positioning terminal determines the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse; if the time interval is greater than the preset time threshold, the positioning terminal first enters the sleep state, wakes up when it is time to send the positioning pulse, and sends the positioning pulse; if the time interval is less than or equal to the preset time threshold, the positioning terminal directly sends the positioning pulse. After the positioning terminal sends the positioning pulse, it continues to enter the sleep state.

[0112] Figure 7A It shows the working timing diagram of the positioning terminal when the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse is less than the preset time threshold. In the figure, the standby current required when the positioning terminal is in the sleep state is determined to be 1 μA. Since the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse is small when the positioning terminal is in the wake-up time period, the positioning terminal is always in the active state.

[0113] Figure 7B It shows the working timing diagram of the positioning terminal when the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse is greater than or equal to the preset time threshold. In the figure, the standby current required when the positioning terminal is in the sleep state is determined to be 1 μA. Since the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse is large when the positioning terminal is in the wake-up time period, in order to save the power consumption of the positioning terminal, the positioning terminal first enters the sleep state after receiving the first message. After sending the positioning pulse, it enters the sleep state again.

[0114] It should be noted that when performing this positioning service, the positioning terminal can ensure long-term standby by switching between its four working states. After sending the positioning pulse, it enters the sleep state, which can also reduce the power consumption loss of the positioning terminal.

[0115] Figure 8 It shows the schematic flowchart of the positioning method of this application. Figure 8 It shows that in actual application, the network devices such as the positioning terminal, the first network device, the second network device, the third network device, and the LMF need to forward messages to the LMF through the AMF, so the AMF is also shown in the figure. Figure 8 Taking the first network device sending the first message to the positioning terminal as an example for illustration, in actual application, the network device sending the first message is not limited. In addition Figure 8 Taking the positioning terminal sending the positioning pulse to the first network device, the second network device, and the third network device as an example for illustration, but in actual application, it is not limited to which network device the positioning terminal sends the positioning pulse to. As long as the network device is within the range of the neighborhood of the positioning terminal, that is, the signal sent by the positioning terminal can be received by the network device.

[0116] Step 801: The first network device sends a first message to the positioning terminal.

[0117] Step 802: The positioning terminal receives the first message from the first network device and determines access request information based on the first message.

[0118] Step 803: The positioning terminal sends the access request information to the first network device.

[0119] Step 804: The first network device forwards the access request information to the AMF.

[0120] Step 805: The AMF forwards the access request information to the LMF.

[0121] Step 806: The LMF determines the positioning resource allocation information required by the positioning terminal according to the access request information.

[0122] Step 807: The LMF sends the positioning resource allocation information to the AMF.

[0123] Step 808: The AMF forwards the positioning resource allocation information to the first network device.

[0124] Step 809: The first network device forwards the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal.

[0125] Step 810: The positioning terminal saves the resource allocation information and determines positioning pulses according to the positioning resource allocation information.

[0126] Step 811a: The positioning terminal sends the positioning pulses to the first network device.

[0127] Step 811b: The positioning terminal sends the positioning pulses to the second network device.

[0128] Step 811c: The positioning terminal sends the positioning pulses to the third network device.

[0129] Step 812a: The first network device measures the TOA of the positioning pulses.

[0130] Step 812b: The second network device measures the TOA of the positioning pulses.

[0131] Step 812c: The third network device measures the TOA of the positioning pulses.

[0132] Step 813a: The first network device feeds back the TOA measurement result to the AMF.

[0133] Step 813b: The second network device feeds back the TOA measurement result to the AMF.

[0134] Step 813c: The third network device feeds back the TOA measurement result to the AMF.

[0135] Step 814: The AMF feeds back the TOA measurement results of each network device to the LMF.

[0136] Step 815: The LMF performs position calculation on the TOA measurement results fed back by the first network device, the second network device, and the third network device to determine the position information of the positioning terminal.

[0137] It should be noted that for the positioning method provided in this application, before the positioning terminal executes the positioning service, it only needs to obtain the first message and the positioning resource allocation information, without creating an RRC connection and waiting for SRS resource allocation, which significantly reduces the number of information interactions compared to UTDOA. When the number of information interactions of the positioning terminal is reduced, the working duration of the positioning terminal will also be relatively less, thus reducing the power consumption loss of the positioning terminal.

[0138] In addition, when the positioning pulses of the positioning terminal are sent periodically and the positioning terminal enters the sleep state after sending the positioning pulses, the power consumption loss of the terminal device can be further reduced. Additionally, when executing the positioning solution of this application, in addition to sending positioning pulses to the network device, the positioning terminal can also report its battery power information, as well as the data information of the barometric pressure sensor of the positioning terminal, etc. After obtaining the battery power information of the positioning terminal, the LMF can accurately determine the power consumption situation of the positioning terminal. For example, if the power information of the positioning terminal shows that the power of the positioning terminal is low, the LMF notifies the relevant staff to replace the battery of the positioning terminal in a timely manner. After obtaining the data information of the barometric pressure sensor sent by the positioning terminal, the LMF can determine the height information where the positioning terminal is located. For example, the LMF can determine the floor information where the positioning terminal is located based on the data information of the barometric pressure sensor.

[0139] Figure 9 Shows a comparison schematic diagram between UTDOA and the positioning method of this application. When UTDOA executes the positioning method, the terminal receives system messages (including multiple messages such as MIB and SIB), and then the terminal initiates random access to create an RRC connection. After the terminal creates an RRC connection, it waits for SRS resources and periodically sends SRS to the network device. The network device obtains the TOA of the received SRS and feeds back the TOA measurement result to the LMF so that the LMF can determine the position information of the terminal based on the TOA measurement result. When the positioning method of this application is executed, the positioning terminal accesses the network after receiving the first message, determines the positioning resource allocation information, and then the positioning terminal periodically sends positioning pulses to the network device. The network device obtains the TOA of the received positioning pulses and feeds back the TOA measurement result to the LMF. The LMF determines the position information of the terminal based on the TOA measurement result. Through Figure 9It can be seen that the positioning method of the present application is simpler than the UTDOA positioning process, eliminating processes such as establishing an RRC connection, SRS resource allocation, and measurement requests, and the number of information interactions in the positioning method of the present application is less.

[0140] In addition, the positioning terminal of the present application wakes up actively periodically, and the positioning terminal is in a dormant state for a long time, with low power consumption of the positioning terminal. Table 1 shows the comparison of the power consumption of the positioning terminal of the positioning method of the present application and the UTDOA positioning method terminal.

[0141] Table 1

[0142]

[0143]

[0144] It can be seen from Table 1 that under the condition of the same battery capacity, when applying the positioning method of the present application, the positioning terminal can work for 517 days, which can meet the requirement of using the positioning terminal for more than 1 year. In the UTDOA solution, the terminal can only work for 7 days. Therefore, the positioning method provided by the present application is more conducive to saving the power consumption of the positioning terminal.

[0145] Based on the same concept, as Figure 10 shown, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including: a transceiver unit 101 and a processing unit 102; the transceiver unit 101 is configured to receive a first message from a network device, where the first message includes: clock synchronization information and access network resource allocation information; based on the first message, send access request information to the network device; receive positioning resource allocation information from the network device; the positioning resource allocation information is determined by the network device after receiving the access request information sent by the positioning terminal and sending the access request information to the LMF; the processing unit 102 is configured to determine a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information; send the positioning pulse to network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood; the number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3.

[0146] In an optional implementation manner, the first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; the session reconfiguration flag information is used to re-send the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

[0147] In an alternative embodiment, the access network resource allocation information includes: an access location number, an access period, and an access location interval period; the access location number is used to indicate the symbol resource for the positioning terminal to access the network; the access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after a failed access; the access location interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access location numbers.

[0148] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resource allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resource includes: a positioning symbol position number and a positioning pulse transmission period; the positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse; the positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse.

[0149] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit 102 is further configured to: send the positioning pulse according to the positioning pulse transmission period.

[0150] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit 102 is further configured to: determine the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse; if the time interval is greater than a preset time threshold, the positioning terminal enters a sleep state; if the time interval is less than or equal to the preset time threshold, the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

[0151] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning terminal needs to re-receive the positioning resource allocation information in the following cases: the positioning terminal initially accesses the network; the positioning terminal moves to the jurisdiction area of an LMF other than the jurisdiction area of the LMF.

[0152] Such as Figure 11As shown in the figure, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including: a transceiver unit 111 and a processing unit 112; the transceiver unit 111 is configured to receive access request information from a network device; the access request information is sent after a positioning terminal receives a first message from the network device; the first message includes: clock synchronization information and access network resource allocation information; the processing unit 112 is configured to determine positioning resource allocation information required by the positioning terminal according to the access request information; send the positioning resource allocation information to the network device, so that the network device sends the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, and after the positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information, send the positioning pulse to network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood; the number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3; receive the time of arrival (TOA) sent by the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood; the TOA is determined after the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood receive the positioning pulse; determine the location information of the positioning terminal according to the TOA.

[0153] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: positioning symbol position number and positioning pulse transmission period; the positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends the positioning pulse; the positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period for the positioning terminal to send the positioning pulse.

[0154] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit 112 is further configured to: set the positioning symbol resources as allocated.

[0155] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit 112 is further configured to: start a timer; if the TOA sent by the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is not received when the timer expires, release the positioning symbol resources.

[0156] In an alternative embodiment, the first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; the session reconfiguration flag information is used to resend the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

[0157] In an alternative embodiment, the access network resource allocation information includes: an access location number, an access period, and an access location interval period; the access location number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network; the access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after a failed access; the access location interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access location numbers.

[0158] As Figure 12 shown, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including: a transceiver unit 121 and a processing unit 122; the transceiver unit 121 is configured to send a first message to the positioning terminal; the first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; receive the access request information sent by the positioning terminal after receiving the first message; the processing unit 122 is configured to send the access request information to a positioning management network element LMF, so that the LMF feeds back positioning resource allocation information; send the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, so that the positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information.

[0159] In an alternative embodiment, the first message further includes: a session reconfiguration flag information; the session reconfiguration flag information is used to re-send the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

[0160] In an alternative embodiment, the access network resource allocation information includes: an access location number, an access period, and an access location interval period; the access location number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network; the access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after a failed access; the access location interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access location numbers.

[0161] In an alternative embodiment, the positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: a positioning symbol position number, a positioning pulse transmission period; the positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse; the positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse.

[0162] Based on the same concept, as Figure 13 shown, a communication device 1300 provided by the present application is shown. Exemplarily, the communication device 1300 may be a chip or a chip system. Optionally, in the embodiment of the present application, the chip system may be composed of chips, or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0163] The communication device 1300 may include at least one processor 1310. The communication device 1300 may further include at least one memory 1320 for storing computer programs, program instructions, and / or data. The memory 1320 and the processor 1310 are coupled. The coupling in the embodiments of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units, or modules, which may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms for information interaction between devices, units, or modules. The processor 1310 may cooperate with the memory 1320. The processor 1310 may execute the computer program stored in the memory 1320. Optionally, the at least one memory 1320 may be integrated into the processor 1310.

[0164] The communication device 1300 may further include a transceiver 1330. The communication device 1300 may interact with other devices through the transceiver 1330. The transceiver 1330 may be a circuit, a bus, a transceiver, or any other device that can be used for information interaction.

[0165] In a possible implementation, the communication device 1300 may be applied to the aforementioned positioning terminal, or may be the aforementioned network device, or may also be the aforementioned LMF. The memory 1320 stores the necessary computer programs, program instructions, and / or data for implementing the functions of the network device in any of the above embodiments. The processor 1310 may execute the computer program stored in the memory 1320 to complete the method in any of the above embodiments.

[0166] In the embodiments of the present application, the specific connection medium between the transceiver 1330, the processor 1310, and the memory 1320 is not limited. In the embodiments of the present application Figure 13 it is shown that the memory 1320, the processor 1310, and the transceiver 1330 are connected through a bus. The bus is represented by a thick line in Figure 13 The connection manners between other components are only for illustrative purposes and are not to be construed as limiting. The bus may be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For the sake of simplicity of representation, Figure 13 only one thick line is used to represent it in

[0167] In the embodiments of the present application, the processor may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field-programmable gate array, or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, and may implement or execute the various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in combination with the embodiments of the present application may be directly implemented by a hardware processor, or may be implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor.

[0168] In the embodiments of the present application, the memory may be a non-volatile memory, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD), etc., or may also be a volatile memory, such as a random access memory (RAM). The memory may also be any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory in the embodiments of the present application may also be a circuit or any other device capable of implementing a storage function, for storing computer programs, program instructions, and / or data.

[0169] Based on the above embodiments, the embodiments of the present application further provide a readable storage medium storing instructions, which when executed, cause the method executed by the communication device in any of the above embodiments to be implemented. The readable storage medium may include various media that can store program code, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory, a random access memory, a magnetic disk, or an optical disc.

[0170] Those skilled in the art should understand that the embodiments of the present application may be provided as a method, a system, or a computer program product. Therefore, the present application may take the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Moreover, the present application may take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk memories, CD-ROMs, optical memories, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0171] The present application is described with reference to the flowcharts and / or block diagrams of methods, devices (systems), and computer program products according to the present application. It should be understood that each flow and / or block in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams, and the combination of flows and / or blocks in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to the processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing devices to generate a machine, such that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing devices generate means for implementing the functions specified in Figure 1 one flow or multiple flows and / or blocks Figure 1 one block or multiple blocks.

[0172] These computer program instructions can also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to operate in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce a manufacture including an instruction device that implements the functions specified in one or more of the processes and / or blocks Figure 1 one or more of the processes and / or blocks Figure 1 specified in the block or blocks.

[0173] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process, whereby the instructions executed on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in one or more of the processes and / or blocks Figure 1 one or more of the processes and / or blocks Figure 1 specified in the block or blocks.

[0174] Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications to this application without departing from the scope of protection of this application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of this application fall within the scope of the claims of this application and their equivalent technologies, this application is also intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A positioning method, applied to a positioning terminal, characterized in that, Including: Receiving a first message from a network device, the first message including: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; Sending access request information to the network device based on the first message; Receiving positioning resource allocation information from the network device; the positioning resource allocation information is determined by the network device after receiving the access request information sent by the positioning terminal and sending the access request information to a positioning management network element LMF; Determining a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information; Sending the positioning pulse to network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood; the number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; The session reconfiguration flag information is used to resend the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The access network resource allocation information includes: access location number, access period, and access location interval period; The access location number is used to indicate the symbol resource for the positioning terminal to access the network; The access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after an access failure; The access location interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access location numbers.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: positioning symbol position number, positioning pulse transmission period; The positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse; The positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, After determining the positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information, it further includes: Starting a timer; Sending the positioning pulse according to the positioning pulse transmission period.

6. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, It further includes: Determining the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse; If the time interval is greater than a preset time threshold, the positioning terminal enters a sleep state; If the time interval is less than or equal to the preset time threshold, the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

7. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The positioning terminal needs to re-receive the positioning resource allocation information in the following situations: The positioning terminal initially accesses the network; The positioning terminal moves to the jurisdiction area of an LMF other than the jurisdiction area of the LMF.

8. A positioning method, applied to a positioning management network element LMF, characterized in that, Including: Receiving access request information from a network device; The access request information is sent by the positioning terminal after receiving the first message from the network device; The first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; Determining the positioning resource allocation information required by the positioning terminal according to the access request information; Send the positioning resource allocation information to the network device, so that the network device sends the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, and after the positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information, send the positioning pulse to the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood; the number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3; Receive the time of arrival (TOA) sent by the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood; the TOA is determined after the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood receive the positioning pulse; Determine the location information of the positioning terminal according to the TOA.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: positioning symbol position number, positioning pulse transmission period; The positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse; The positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period at which the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein, After sending the positioning resource allocation information to the network device, it further includes: Set the positioning symbol resources as allocated.

11. The method according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that, It further includes: Start a timer; If the TOA sent by the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is not received when the timer times out, release the positioning symbol resources.

12. The method according to any one of claims 8-10, characterized in that, The first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; The session reconfiguration flag information is used to re-send the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

13. The method according to any one of claims 8-10, characterized in that, The access network resource allocation information includes: access position number, access period, and access position interval period; The access position number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network; The access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after an access failure; The access position interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access position numbers.

14. A positioning method, applied to a network device, characterized in that It includes: Send a first message to the positioning terminal; The first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; Receive the access request information sent by the positioning terminal after receiving the first message; Send the access request information to the positioning management function (LMF) so that the LMF feeds back the positioning resource allocation information; Send the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal so that the positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information.

15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; The session reconfiguration flag information is used to re-send the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

16. The method according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that The access network resource allocation information includes: access position number, access period, and access position interval period; The access position number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network; The access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after an access failure; The access position interval period is used to indicate the interval period at which the positioning terminal accesses at different access position numbers.

17. The method according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that, The positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: positioning symbol position number, positioning pulse transmission period; The positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse; The positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period at which the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

18. A communication device, characterized in that, Including: A transceiver unit and a processing unit; The transceiver unit is configured to receive a first message from a network device, the first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; send access request information to the network device based on the first message; receive positioning resource allocation information from the network device; the positioning resource allocation information is determined by the network device after receiving the access request information sent by the positioning terminal and sending the access request information to the positioning management function (LMF). The processing unit is configured to: determine a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information; send the positioning pulse to network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood; the number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3.

19. The device according to claim 18, characterized in that, The first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; The session reconfiguration flag information is used to re-send the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

20. The device according to claim 18 or 19, characterized in that, The access network resource allocation information includes: access position number, access period, and access position interval period; The access position number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network; The access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after an access failure; The access position interval period is used to indicate the interval period at which the positioning terminal accesses at different access position numbers.

21. The device according to claim 18 or 19, characterized in that, The positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: positioning symbol position number, positioning pulse transmission period; The positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse; The positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period at which the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

22. The device according to claim 21, wherein The processing unit is further configured to: Send the positioning pulse according to the positioning pulse transmission period.

23. The device according to claim 18 or 19, characterized in that, The processing unit is further configured to: Determine the time interval between receiving the first message and sending the positioning pulse; If the time interval is greater than a preset time threshold, the positioning terminal enters a sleep state; If the time interval is less than or equal to the preset time threshold, the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse.

24. The device according to claim 18 or 19, characterized in that, The positioning terminal needs to re-receive the positioning resource allocation information in the following cases: The positioning terminal initially accesses the network; The positioning terminal moves to the jurisdiction area of an LMF other than the jurisdiction area of the LMF.

25. A communication device, characterized in that, Including: A transceiver unit and a processing unit; The transceiver unit is configured to receive access request information from a network device; The access request information is sent after the positioning terminal receives a first message from the network device; The first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; The processing unit is configured to determine, according to the access request information, positioning resource allocation information required by the positioning terminal; send the positioning resource allocation information to the network device, so that the network device sends the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal, and when the positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information, send the positioning pulse to network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood; the number of network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood is greater than or equal to 3; receive the time of arrival (TOA) sent by network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood; the TOA is determined after the network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood receive the positioning pulse; determine the location information of the positioning terminal according to the TOA.

26. The device according to claim 25, wherein The positioning resource allocation information carries positioning symbol resources allocated by a positioning management function (LMF) for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: positioning symbol position number, positioning pulse transmission period; The positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse; The positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse.

27. The device according to claim 26, characterized in that, The processing unit is further configured to: Set the positioning symbol resources as allocated.

28. The device according to claim 26 or 27, characterized in that, The processing unit is further configured to: Start a timer; If the TOA sent by network devices within the range of the positioning terminal's neighborhood is not received when the timer times out, release the positioning symbol resources.

29. The device according to any one of claims 25-27, characterized in that, The first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; The session reconfiguration flag information is used to resend the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

30. The device according to any one of claims 25 - 27, characterized in that, The access network resource allocation information includes: access position number, access period, and access position interval period; The access position number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network; The access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after an access failure; The access position interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access position numbers.

31. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes: A transceiver unit and a processing unit; The transceiver unit is configured to send a first message to the positioning terminal; The first message includes: clock synchronization information, access network resource allocation information; receive the access request information sent by the positioning terminal after receiving the first message; The processing unit is configured to send the access request information to a positioning management function (LMF) so that the LMF feeds back positioning resource allocation information; send the positioning resource allocation information to the positioning terminal so that the positioning terminal determines a positioning pulse according to the positioning resource allocation information.

32. The device according to claim 31, characterized in that, The first message further includes: session reconfiguration flag information; The session reconfiguration flag information is used to resend the access request information when the positioning resource allocation information changes.

33. The device according to claim 31 or 32, characterized in that The access network resource allocation information includes: an access location number, an access period, and an access location interval period; The access location number is used to indicate the symbol resources for the positioning terminal to access the network; The access period is used to indicate the interval time required for the positioning terminal to access the network again after a failed access; The access location interval period is used to indicate the interval period for the positioning terminal to access at different access location numbers.

34. The device according to claim 31 or 32, characterized in that, The positioning resource allocation information carries the positioning symbol resources allocated by the LMF for the positioning terminal; the positioning symbol resources include: a positioning symbol position number and a positioning pulse transmission period; The positioning symbol position number is used to indicate the resource position where the positioning terminal sends a positioning pulse; The positioning pulse transmission period is used to indicate the period for the positioning terminal to send a positioning pulse.

35. A communication device, characterized in that, Comprising: A processor and a memory; The memory is used to store computer programs; The processor is used to execute the computer programs stored in the memory, so that the communication device executes the method described in any one of claims 1-7 or any one of claims 8-13 or any one of claims 14-17.

36. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores instructions, which when executed, cause a computer to execute the method described in any one of claims 1-7 or 8-13 or 14-17.

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