Uplink-based and downlink-based positioning

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to UL-based and DL-based positioning in a wireless communication network. A method includes: determining, by a first device, an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second device; determining, based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, a target time period within a symbol on which at least a portion of the first reference signal is sent; and performing positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period. In this way, the receiver is able to apply an adaptive and adjustable window to receive different positioning reference signals (PRS) according to various conditions and situations. In this way, PRS measurement performance and positioning accuracy can be greatly improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to the field of telecommunications, and in particular to methods, devices, systems, apparatuses, and computer-readable storage media for uplink (UL)-based and downlink (DL)-based positioning. Background Art

[0002] With the development of communication technology, the carrier frequency has exceeded 52.6 GHz and even reached 71 GHz. Such a higher carrier frequency is attractive to positioning devices in wireless communication networks because higher bandwidth can be used for the transmission of signals (e.g., positioning reference signals (PRS)). Higher bandwidth leads to better achievable timing estimates, which in turn may lead to higher positioning accuracy.

[0003] For the fifth generation new radio communication network (also known as 5G NR), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) technology is likely to be reused on these carrier frequencies and a higher subcarrier spacing (SCS) may be introduced. The high SCS may increase from 240kHz to 960kHz or even higher SCS. As the SCS increases, the OFDM symbol length and cyclic prefix (CP) length will become shorter. From the perspective of the terminal device (e.g., UE), this may disrupt the symbol alignment of the PRS received from a neighbor gNB far away from the terminal device. Therefore, there is a need for an enhanced UL-based and / or DL-based positioning scheme that is adaptive to different system digital technologies. Summary of the invention

[0004] In general, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method, device, system, apparatus, and computer-readable storage medium for UL-based and DL-based positioning.

[0005] In a first aspect, a first device is provided. The first device includes at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the first device to: determine an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second device; determine a target time period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is sent based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay; and perform positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period.

[0006] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided. The method includes: determining, by a first device, an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second device; determining, based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, a target time period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is sent; and performing positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period.

[0007] In a third aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising a first device according to the first aspect.

[0008] In a fourth aspect, a first apparatus for communication is provided. The first apparatus includes: means for determining an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second apparatus; means for determining a target time period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is sent based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay; and means for performing positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period.

[0009] In a fifth aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided, the non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to execute the method according to the above-mentioned first aspect.

[0010] It should be understood that the invention summary is not intended to identify the key or essential features of the embodiments of the present disclosure, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become readily understood through the following description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Some example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0012] Figure 1 An example communication system is shown in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

[0013] Figure 2 A schematic diagram showing an example comb structure of a PRS in the frequency domain according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0014] Figure 3 A schematic diagram showing an original period of a conventional window for receiving a PRS and a target period of an adaptive window according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0015] Figure 4 A flow chart illustrating a communication method according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0016] Figure 5 shows a signaling flow for DL-based positioning according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0017] Figure 6 A signaling flow for UL-based positioning according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0018] Figure 7 A simplified block diagram showing an apparatus suitable for implementing an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0019] Figure 8 A block diagram illustrating an example computer-readable medium according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0020] Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numbers refer to the same or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are described only for illustrative purposes and to help those skilled in the art understand and implement the present disclosure without any limitation to the scope of the present disclosure. The disclosure described herein can be implemented in various ways different from the ways described below.

[0022] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0023] References in this disclosure to "one embodiment," "some example embodiments," "example embodiments," etc. indicate that the described embodiments may include certain features, structures, or characteristics, but not every embodiment must include the certain features, structures, or characteristics. Moreover, such phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiments. Furthermore, when certain features, structures, or characteristics are described in conjunction with some example embodiments, it is considered to be within the knowledge of those skilled in the art to affect such features, structures, or characteristics in conjunction with other embodiments, whether or not explicitly described.

[0024] It should be understood that although the terms "first", "second", "third", "fourth", etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. For example, without departing from the scope of the example embodiments, the first element may be referred to as the second element, and similarly, the second element may be referred to as the first element. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

[0025] The terms used herein are only used for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the exemplary embodiments. As used herein, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular form is also intended to include the plural form. It will be further understood that the terms "include", "including ...", "have", "having ...", "include" and / or "include ..." when used herein specify the presence of the described features, elements and / or components, etc., but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components and / or combinations thereof.

[0026] As used in this application, the term "circuitry" may refer to one or more or all of the following:

[0027] (a) hardware circuit implementation only (such as implementation only in analog and / or digital circuitry) and

[0028] (b) a combination of hardware circuitry and software such as (where applicable):

[0029] (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware, and

[0030] (ii) any portion of hardware processor(s) (including digital signal processor(s)) with software, software and memory(s) that work together to enable a device (such as a mobile phone or server) to perform various functions), and

[0031] (c) Hardware circuit(s) and / or processor(s), such as microprocessor(s) or portion(s) of microprocessor(s), which requires software (e.g., firmware)

[0032] To operate, but when the software is not needed to operate, the software may not exist.

[0033] This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of the term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of only a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its accompanying software and / or firmware. For example, if applicable to a particular claim element, the term circuitry also covers a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device, or a similar integrated circuit in a server, cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0034] As used herein, the term "communication network" refers to a network that complies with any suitable communication standard, such as New Radio (NR), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Advanced LTE (LTE-A), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), Non-terrestrial Network (NTN), Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), etc. In addition, the communication between the terminal equipment and the network equipment in the communication network can be performed according to any suitable intergenerational communication protocol, including but not limited to the first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, future fifth generation (5G) communication protocol, and / or any other protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. The embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to various communication systems, including but not limited to terrestrial communication systems, non-terrestrial communication systems, or combinations thereof. In view of the rapid development of communication, there will certainly be communication technologies and systems of future types that can implement the present disclosure. It should not be regarded as limiting the scope of the present disclosure to the above-mentioned systems.

[0035] As used herein, the term "network device" refers to a node in a communication network, via which a terminal device accesses the network and receives services therefrom. A network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP), for example, a NodeB (NodeB or NB), an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), a NR NB (also known as a gNB), a remote radio unit (RRU), a radio head (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), a relay, a low power node (such as a femto, a pico), a non-terrestrial network (NTN) or a non-grounded network device (such as a satellite network device, a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite, and a geosynchronous orbit (GEO) satellite), an aircraft network device, etc., depending on the terminology and technology applied.

[0036] The term "terminal device" refers to any terminal device capable of wireless communication. As an example and not limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, a user equipment (UE), a subscriber station (SS), a portable subscriber station, a mobile station (MS), or an access terminal (AT). The terminal device may include, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a wireless local loop phone, a tablet computer, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable computer, a desktop computer, an image capture terminal device (such as a digital camera), a game terminal device, a music storage and playback device, a vehicle-mounted wireless terminal device, a wireless endpoint, a mobile station, a laptop embedded device (LEE), a laptop mounted device (LME), a USB dongle, a smart device, a wireless customer terminal device (CPE), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a watch or other wearable device, a head mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, medical equipment and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial equipment and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in industrial and / or automated processing chain scenarios), consumer electronic devices, equipment operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, etc. In the following description, the terms "terminal device", "communication device", "terminal", "user equipment" and "UE" may be used interchangeably.

[0037] In a wireless communication network, a variety of positioning technologies can be used to locate the terminal device, such as DL-based and UL-based time difference of arrival (TDOA), DL-based angle of departure (AoD), UL-based angle of arrival (AoA), multi-round trip time (Multi-RTT), etc. Taking the DL-based positioning technology as an example, the position of the terminal device can be determined based on the DL measurement of multiple PRSs sent from the serving cell and at least one neighboring cell of the terminal device. The time-frequency resources in the DL are allocated to different reference signals from different network devices based on a comb structure. Specifically, according to the comb structure, different comb offsets are allocated to different base stations to orthogonalize the signals sent from these base stations in the frequency domain. There are various comb sizes that can be selected from the set {2, 4, 6, 12} through higher layer configuration. When measuring more than one PRS from multiple base stations, the terminal device applies a single window to receive the PRS on each OFDM symbol in the time domain. Typically, the window for receiving the PRS can be an original receiving window based on the timing of the serving cell of the terminal device.

[0038] In the case of transmitting signals at higher carrier frequencies (e.g., up to 52.6 GHz or even higher), the SCS will increase, which in turn leads to shorter symbol lengths and CP lengths. From the UE's perspective, the symbols used to send PRS from neighboring base stations far away from the UE may not be aligned with the symbols used to send PRS from its serving cell. This is mainly because the propagation delay is no longer negligible, that is, at higher carrier frequencies, the propagation delay is no longer much smaller than the CP length. In this case, PRS received from different base stations on the same symbol using the original reception window may cause additional interference to adjacent symbols.

[0039] For LTE / NR systems, there are two modes for CP configuration of OFDM symbols, i.e., normal CP length and extended CP length. The length of the extended CP is longer than the normal CP, and therefore the total symbol length is also longer. If inter-symbol interference from long propagation delay is expected, the digital technology of the communication system can configure the extended CP to capture the long propagation delay. However, the switching of the CP mode can be challenging and has several limitations. For example, the extended CP mode is only supported by networks such as single frequency networks (SFN). The change of the CP mode affects the symbol-level time slot format and reduces the transmission efficiency. In addition, if these two modes are mixed between cells, the cells may interfere with each other.

[0040] To address the above and other potential problems, embodiments of the present disclosure provide an enhanced DL-based and / or UL-based positioning solution with an adaptive and flexible period for receiving PRS. More specifically, a receiver (UE in the DL case and base station in the UL case) is able to apply different window widths to receive corresponding PRS from different transmitters. Several factors may be considered when determining the receive window, such as an estimated propagation delay associated with the transmitter, the distance between the transmitter and the receiver, the quality of the PRS, the PRS configuration, etc.

[0041] Through the adaptive and adjustable receiving window, the UL-based and DL-based positioning solutions provided in the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are suitable for various network conditions and situations. In this way, the PRS measurement performance and positioning accuracy can be greatly improved while introducing less interference at the frequency band (especially for higher frequency bands).

[0042] The principles and embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 , Figure 1 An example communication system 100 is shown in which example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.

[0043] like Figure 1As shown, a communication system 100 (which may be part of a communication network) includes a terminal device 110, a network device 120 providing a neighbor cell 102 of the terminal device 110, a network device 130 providing a service cell 104 of the terminal device 110, and a location management (LM) device 140. Although the network device 110 is shown as a UE, and the network devices 120 and 130 are shown as base stations, it should be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure are also applicable to any other suitable implementations.

[0044] Terminal device 110 may communicate with network devices 120 and 130 via a DL channel and a UL channel. In the context of the example embodiments of the present disclosure, network device 120 is described as a neighbor base station, and network device 130 is described as a base station serving terminal device 110. Terminal device 110 may receive and measure corresponding reference signals (e.g., PRS) from network devices 120 and 130. Terminal device 110 may then send the measurement results to LM device 140 for positioning. As previously described, reference signals from different network devices may be sent on a set of PRS resources allocated based on a comb structure. The comb structure has a predetermined comb size and a comb offset, which will be described below in conjunction with Figure 2 Have a discussion.

[0045] The LM device 140 may be, for example, a location server or any other device that implements a location management function and is deployed in the RAN, the core network, or on the cloud. The LM device 140 may collect and store PRS configuration and positioning assistance data from the core network and the radio access network (RAN). In addition, the LM device 140 may determine the location of the terminal device 110 based on measurements received from the terminal device 110 and / or the network device 120.

[0046] The PRS configuration may include, but is not limited to, comb size and offset for PRS in the frequency domain, muting patterns of network devices 120 and 130, transmitter (Tx) beam patterns, receiver beam patterns, quasi co-location of PRS, etc. The positioning assistance data may include, for example, the location of network device 120, the location of network device 130, the distance between network device 120 and network device 130, the diameter of serving cell 104 or expected RSTD and uncertainty information, etc.

[0047] As an implementation of the present disclosure, for example, in a DL-based positioning solution, the terminal device 110 acts as a receiver, and the network devices 120 and 130 act as transmitters. In this case, the terminal device 110 may be referred to as a first device, the network device 120 may be referred to as a second device, and the network device 130 may be referred to as a third device.

[0048] As another implementation of the present disclosure, for example, in a UL-based positioning solution, the terminal device 110 acts as a transmitter, and the network device 120 acts as a receiver. In this case, the network device 120 may be referred to as a first device, and the terminal device 110 may be referred to as a second device.

[0049] It should be understood that the communication system 100 may include any suitable number of network devices and / or terminal devices, as well as additional elements not shown that are suitable for implementation of the present disclosure, without imposing any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure.

[0050] The communication in the communication system 100 can be implemented according to any appropriate (multiple) communication protocols, including but not limited to cellular communication protocols of the first generation (1G), second generation (2G), third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G) and fifth generation (5G), wireless local area network communication protocols (such as Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11), and / or any other protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. In addition, the communication can utilize any appropriate wireless communication technology, including but not limited to: code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division duplex (FDD), time division duplex (TDD), multiple input multiple output (MIMO), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM), and / or any other technology currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0051] Reference now Figure 2 , Figure 2 Schematic diagram showing an example comb structure 200 for PRS in DL according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be understood that such a comb structure is also applicable to signal transmission in UL, and for the sake of brevity, the implementation in UL is omitted here. For the purpose of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1 A comb structure 200 is described.

[0052] According to the comb structure, the comb size in the time domain can be selected from the set {2, 4, 6, 12} by a higher layer configuration, and different comb offsets are assigned to different base stations to orthogonalize the PRS in the frequency domain. Specifically, Figure 2As shown, the PRS resources for DL ​​PRS are mapped based on comb 6 and 2 base stations, where the blocks in the diamond pattern (e.g., block 230-1) represent PRS resources allocated for sending the first reference signal from the network device 120, and the blocks in the grid pattern (e.g., block 230-1) represent PRS resources allocated for sending the second reference signal from the network device 130. The first reference signal and the second reference signal may be collectively referred to as PRS. It should be understood that the first reference signal and the second reference signal may be any other signals suitable for positioning. The scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0053] From the perspective of the terminal device, a receive window of fixed duration (e.g., one symbol) is applied to measure the corresponding PRS sent from different network devices in the traditional communication system. The duration and starting point of such a receive window are usually determined based on the timing of the serving cell of the terminal device. In the example embodiment of the present disclosure, the duration and starting point of the receive window can be adaptive and adjustable based on several factors and situations in the communication system 100.

[0054] Figure 3 Schematic diagram showing an original period 301 of a conventional window for receiving a PRS and a target period 302 of an adaptive window according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1 and Figure 2 Describes example durations for traditional and adaptive windows.

[0055] The SCS may increase as the carrier frequency increases. As the SCS increases, the length of the OFDM symbol and the length of the CP become shorter. In this case, the symbol alignment of the PRS resources allocated to the neighboring base station (e.g., the network device 120) far away from the terminal device 110 may be disrupted, such as Figure 3 As shown. This is mainly due to the fact that the propagation delay of the transmission of the reference signal from the remote network device cannot be ignored. The propagation delay of the transmission of the first reference signal from the network device 120 at a high carrier frequency may exceed the length of the CP. If the terminal device 110 still uses the original period 301 of the traditional window corresponding to the serving cell 104 to receive the first reference signal and the second reference signal on the same symbol, additional interference is introduced into adjacent symbols, which may degrade the positioning performance of the communication system 100.

[0056] In a conventional communication system, such as an LTE system or an NR system, there are two modes for the CP configuration of OFDM symbols, namely, a normal CP length and an extended CP. The length of the extended CP is longer than the normal CP, and therefore the total symbol length becomes longer. If inter-symbol interference due to long propagation delay is expected, the system digital technology can configure an extended CP to capture the long propagation delay. On the other hand, the use case of the extended CP mode is limited, such as a single frequency network (SFN). In addition, the change of the CP mode affects the symbol-level time slot format, and the extended CP length may reduce the transmission efficiency of the reference signal. In addition, if these two modes are mixed between multiple cells, the cells will interfere with each other.

[0057] Continue to refer Figure 3 , a first reference signal sent on a PRS resource having a comb structure in the frequency domain includes multiple repetitions 322 to 325 in the time domain. Each of the repetitions 322 to 325 contains all the information carried in the first reference signal. Similarly, the second reference signal includes multiple repetitions 332 to 335 in the time domain. Each of the repetitions 332 to 335 contains all the information of the second reference signal. From the perspective of the receiver, receiving only some repetitions may cause SNR degradation, while receiving too many repetitions may introduce additional interference. Therefore, an adaptive window for receiving PRS is needed.

[0058] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, an adaptive window for PRS reception is proposed. The target period of the adaptive window can vary according to different situations of PRS reception. Specifically, the target period 302 of the adaptive reception window can be determined based on various factors, which will be discussed in detail below.

[0059] The following will refer to Figures 4 to 6 The principles and embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail. In order to achieve enhanced DL-based and UL-based positioning in a wireless communication network, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an adaptive window for receiving and measuring positioning signals. Figure 4 4 is a flow chart showing a communication method 400 according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The method 400 may be implemented at a first device acting as a receiver, for example, Figure 1 The terminal device 110 or the network device 120 shown in the figure is implemented. For the purpose of discussion, Figure 1 Method 400 is described.

[0060] At block 410, the first device determines an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from the second device. In the case where the first device is the terminal device 110 and the second device is the network device 120 providing a neighbor cell 102 of the terminal device 110, the estimate of the propagation delay may be a time offset of a first reception time of the first reference signal relative to a second reception time of a second reference signal from the neighbor cell 102 of the terminal device 110.

[0061] In some example embodiments, the estimate of the propagation delay may be determined based on the distance between the first device and the second device. In the above case where the first device is the terminal device 110, the second device is the network device 120, and the third device is the network device 130 providing the service cell 104 of the terminal device 110, the distance between the first device and the second device may be determined based on at least one of a previous position of the first device and positioning assistance data, which may be obtained from the LM device 140 or any other suitable device. The positioning assistance data may include, but is not limited to, the position of the second device, the position of the third device, the distance between the second device and the third device, the diameter of the service cell 104 or the expected RSTD and uncertainty information, etc.

[0062] In the case where the first device is the network device 120, the third device is the network device 130 providing the neighboring cell 102 of the first device, and the second device is the terminal device 110 served by the network device 130, the distance between the first device and the second device may be determined based on one or more of the comb structure of the PRS including the first reference signal in the frequency domain, the previous position of the second device, and the positioning assistance data. In this case, the positioning assistance data may include, but is not limited to, one or more of the position of the first device, the position of the third device, the distance between the first device and the third device, and the like.

[0063] In some example embodiments, the estimate of the propagation delay may be determined based on the reception timing of an additional reference signal (e.g., a synchronization signal block (SSB)) from the second device. In such an embodiment, the first device is a terminal device 110, and the second device is a network device 120 providing a neighbor cell 102 of the terminal device 110.

[0064] At block 420, the first device determines whether the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay. In some example embodiments, the threshold delay may be determined based on one of a length or a predefined duration of a cyclic prefix of a symbol.

[0065] If the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds the threshold delay, then the first device determines a target period within the symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is transmitted, at block 430. In some example embodiments, the target period may be determined based on one or more of the estimate of the propagation delay, a quality of the first reference signal, and a comb structure of a PRS in the frequency domain that includes the first reference signal.

[0066] In some other example embodiments, the first device may first determine a candidate time period within a symbol based on an estimate of the propagation delay and a comb structure of the PRS in the frequency domain. Then, the first device may determine a target time period based on the quality of the candidate time period and the first reference signal. In the context of embodiments of the present disclosure, the PRS includes a first reference signal and optionally includes a second reference signal.

[0067] In order to determine the candidate time period, the first device may determine a valid portion of the first reference signal based on an estimate of the propagation delay and the comb structure. In some example embodiments, the valid portion may be an inter-symbol interference (ISI)-free portion of the first reference signal within the symbol, the ISI portion including at least one of the repetitions in the first reference signal, and each repetition contains all the information carried in the first reference signal. It should be understood that the use of the terms "inter-symbol interference-free portion" and "ISI-free" in the embodiments of the present disclosure is not intended to limit the reference signals described in the embodiments to being completely free of any ISI or having an ISI-free level of up to 100%. On the contrary, such terms indicate that the reference signal can be considered to have very little ISI.

[0068] In some example embodiments, the quality of the first reference signal may be determined based on a PRS configuration, which may include but is not limited to a muting pattern and a transmitter beam pattern of the second device, a receiver beam pattern of the first device, or first reference signal quasi-co-location information, etc.

[0069] In some other example embodiments, the quality of the first reference signal may be determined based on one or more parameters related to signal quality. Parameters related to signal quality may include, but are not limited to, RSRP, RSRQ, RSSI, SNR of the first reference signal, and any other parameters indicating the quality of the PRS. The scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0070] In some example embodiments, the first device may determine that the quality of the first reference signal indicates whether the first reference signal is dominated by noise or interference. If the quality of the first reference signal indicates that the noise level is dominant in the first reference signal, the first device may determine the target period by extending the candidate period. For example, the target period may be determined by including more repetitions than the candidate period, and the target period may or may not correspond to an integer multiple of repetitions (e.g., 1.8 times repetitions), as long as all information carried by the first reference signal is included.

[0071] In other words, the first device may increase the candidate period to improve the SNR of the first reference signal received from the second device. Otherwise, if the quality of the first reference signal indicates that the interference level is dominant in the first reference signal, the first device may determine that the candidate period does not need to be extended. In this case, the first device may determine the target period by including at least a portion of the candidate period.

[0072] In some example embodiments, the first device may determine whether the quality of the first device is below a threshold quality. If the quality of the first device is below the threshold quality, the first device may determine the target period by extending the candidate period so as to receive more repetitions within the target period. Otherwise, if the quality of the first reference signal exceeds the threshold quality, the first device may determine that the candidate period does not need to be extended. In this case, the first device may determine the target period by including at least a portion of the candidate period.

[0073] At block 440, the first device performs positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target period. In some example embodiments, the first device may receive a portion of the first reference signal instead of the entire first reference signal based on the target period. For example, the first device may filter the received signal samples based on the target period (i.e., the adaptive receive window). In these embodiments, the first device may perform positioning measurements on a portion of the first reference signal.

[0074] In some other example embodiments, the first device may receive a complete first reference signal from the second device.The first device may then determine a portion of the first reference signal based on the target period and perform positioning measurements on the portion of the first reference signal.

[0075] In some example embodiments, the first device may determine an updated size of the time-frequency transform size based on the target period. The time-frequency transform size may be an FFT size. For example, the FFT size may be switched from 2048 to 512. In this case, the first device may perform positioning measurements based on the updated size of the time-frequency transform.

[0076] In some example embodiments, the first device may send positioning measurements to the LM device 140 for locating the position of the first device. According to example embodiments, the first device may be one of the terminal device 110 (e.g., UE) and the network device 120 (e.g., gNB), and the second device may be the other of the terminal device 110 (e.g., UE) and the network device 120 (e.g., gNB).

[0077] It should be understood that a portion of all steps in steps 410 to 430 may be repeatedly performed more than once in a symbol-to-symbol manner within a single PRS opportunity. Alternatively, the above steps 410 to 430 may be repeatedly performed in a subframe-to-subframe manner between PRS opportunities, either individually or in combination.

[0078] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, an adaptive window for receiving PRS suitable for both UL-based and DL-based positioning is provided. The solution implements an adaptive receiving window by considering channel characteristics, PRS muting patterns, beam management, etc. without increasing the complexity of the system. The receiving window can be adjustable to adapt to different network conditions (e.g., various carrier frequencies) and different combinations of base stations. Therefore, PRS measurement performance and positioning accuracy can be significantly improved while introducing less interference to the frequency band.

[0079] Figure 5 A signaling flow 500 for DL-based positioning according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. The process 500 is provided as Figure 4 Thus, in the description of process 500, the first device is a terminal device that receives and measures a reference signal, and the second device is a network device that provides a neighbor cell of the terminal device. For the purpose of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1 Process 500 is described, wherein terminal device 110 acts as a first device, network device 120 acts as a second device, and network device 130 acts as a third device. Process 500 may further involve Figure 1 LM device 140 in.

[0080] Terminal device 110 may obtain 405 a previous position of terminal device 110 and positioning assistance data from LM device 140. In some example embodiments, the positioning assistance data may include one or more of the position of network device 120 acting as a transmitter of the first reference signal, the position of network device 130 providing a serving cell 104 of terminal device 110, a distance between network device 120 and network device 130, a serving cell 104 diameter, and expected RSTD and uncertainty information. The expected RSTD and uncertainty information may be indicated by LM device 140 based on prior knowledge about geographic information (e.g., cell-to-cell distance).

[0081] The terminal device 110 determines 510 an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from the network device 120. The estimate of the propagation delay may be determined based on a coarse distance between the terminal device 110 and the transmitter of the first reference signal (i.e., the network device 120). In some example embodiments, the coarse distance may be determined based on a previous position of the terminal device 110, for example, when the terminal device 110 is stationary or in low mobility. Additionally or alternatively, the coarse distance may be determined based on positioning assistance data acquired from the LM device 140.

[0082] In some example embodiments, the estimate of the propagation delay in 510 may be determined based on the reception timing of an additional reference signal from the network device 120 (eg, a synchronization signal block (SSB) configured as a QCL source).

[0083] In some example embodiments, the estimate of the propagation delay in 510 may be a time offset of a first reception time of the first reference signal from network device 120 relative to a second reception time of the second reference signal from network device 130 .

[0084] Terminal device 110 determines 515 whether the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay. The threshold delay is configured to determine whether the estimate of the propagation delay is so large that it may cause a misalignment of the symbol on which the first reference signal is received with the original receive window 301 of terminal device 110. In other words, the threshold delay indicates a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the receiver (i.e., the first device) and the transmitter (i.e., the second device). In some example embodiments, the threshold delay may be determined based on the length or predefined duration of the CP of the symbol.

[0085] If the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds the threshold delay, this may indicate that the network device 120 is far away from the terminal device 110 and symbol alignment of the PRB resources for the first reference signal cannot be achieved. In this case, performing measurements (e.g., ToA, etc.) on the original receive window 301 may result in degradation of the SNR and reduced positioning accuracy. In some embodiments, if the terminal device 110 determines in 515 that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds the threshold delay, the terminal device 110 determines 530 a target time period within the symbol on which at least a portion of the first reference signal is transmitted. In the context of the present disclosure, the target time period may also be referred to as a target receive window.

[0086] Alternatively, where the estimate of the propagation delay is indicated by a time offset, the terminal device 110 may receive 520 a first reference signal from the network device 120 at a first reception time and receive 525 a second reference signal from the network device 130 at a second reception time. The terminal device 110 may then determine the time offset based on the difference between the first reception time and the second reception time.

[0087] In some example embodiments, terminal device 110 may determine the target period based on one or more of the following factors: an estimate of propagation delay, a quality of the first reference signal, and a comb structure of a PRS including the first reference signal in the frequency domain, among others.

[0088] Additionally or alternatively, to determine the target period in 525, the terminal device 110 may first determine a candidate period within the symbol based on an estimate of the propagation delay and a comb structure of the PRS in the frequency domain. For example, the candidate period may be determined by comparing the estimate of the propagation delay and the slot / symbol structure of the serving cell 104. The candidate period corresponds to an effective portion of the first reference signal within the OFDM symbol.

[0089] In some example embodiments, based on the comb structure of the PRS and the estimation of the propagation delay, the effective part can be the inter-symbol interference-free part of the first reference signal within the symbol. The inter-symbol interference-free part of the first reference signal includes at least one time-frequency repetition in the time-frequency repetition in the first reference signal, and each repetition contains all the information carried in the first reference signal. In some other example embodiments, the terminal device 110 can use multiple fast Fourier transforms (FFTs) with different repetitions to compare the interference level. It should be understood that the candidate time period may or may not correspond to an integer multiple of repetitions (e.g., 1.5 times repetitions), as long as all the information carried by the first reference signal is included.

[0090] After determining the candidate time period, the terminal device 110 may determine the target time period based on the candidate time period and the quality of the first reference signal. The quality of the first reference signal may be indicated by the fact that the first reference signal is dominated by noise or interference. In some example embodiments, this may be determined based on an estimate of propagation delay. For example, if the estimate of propagation delay indicates that the network device 120 is far away from the terminal device 110, the first reference signal is likely to be dominated by noise. Otherwise, if the estimate of propagation delay indicates that the network device 120 is near the terminal device 110, the first reference signal may be dominated by interference.

[0091] In some other example embodiments, the quality of the first reference signal may be determined based on a PRS configuration including, but not limited to, a muting pattern and a transmitter beam pattern of network device 120, a receiver beam pattern of terminal device 110, and quasi-co-location information of the first reference signal. For example, if network device 120 close to terminal device 110 is muted, the first reference signal may be considered to be dominated by noise; otherwise, the first reference signal may be considered to be dominated by interference. For example, a receiver beam selected by terminal device 110 may improve a link to network device 120 while degrading a link to another network device (e.g., terminal device 130).

[0092] In other example embodiments, the quality of the first reference signal may be determined based on parameters related to signal quality. Such parameters may include, for example, a reference signal received power (RSRP) of the PRS, a reference signal received quality (RSRQ) of the PRS, a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) of the PRS, and a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the PRS. For example, the terminal device 110 is configured with a Tx power of the PRS, and therefore it may determine whether the PRS is dominated by noise or interference based on the RSRP of the PRS.

[0093] Still reference Figure 5 , if the quality of the first reference signal indicates that the noise level is dominant in the first reference signal, then in 530, the terminal device 110 may determine the target period by extending the candidate period. In this way, the SNR of the first reference signal is improved. Otherwise, if the quality of the first reference signal indicates that the interference level is dominant in the first reference signal, the terminal device 110 may regard the candidate period as the target period. In other words, the candidate period is determined as the target period without any adjustment. It should be understood that the various ways of adjusting the candidate period to determine the target period are applicable to the example embodiments, and therefore the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0094] Alternatively, in some other examples, if the quality of the first reference signal is below the threshold quality, the terminal device 110 may determine the target period by extending the candidate period to receive more repetitions in the symbol. Otherwise, if the quality of the first reference signal exceeds the threshold quality, the terminal device 110 may determine the target period by including at least a portion of the candidate period.

[0095] The terminal device 110 may receive 535 at least a portion of the first reference signal from the network device 120 within the target period. After receiving the first reference signal, the terminal device 110 performs 540 positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target period. In some example embodiments, in 535, the terminal device 110 may receive only a portion of the first reference signal determined corresponding to the target period, rather than the entire first reference signal.

[0096] In some other example embodiments, in 535, the terminal device 110 may receive the entire first reference signal and then determine a portion of the first reference signal based on the target period.

[0097] Once the target period is determined, the terminal device 110 performs 540 positioning measurements (eg, ToA / RSTD estimation) on the first reference signal within the target period.

[0098] To perform positioning measurements for the target period, the terminal device 110 may determine an updated size of the time-frequency transform size based on the target period. For example, the terminal device 110 may determine a new FFT size based on the target period, for example, by switching from 2048 to 512. The terminal device 110 may then perform positioning measurements based on the updated size of the time-frequency transform.

[0099] The terminal device 110 may send 545 the positioning measurement to the LM device 140 for positioning. In practice, all or part of the above operations 505 to 540 may be repeatedly performed in one PRS opportunity (e.g., in a symbol-to-symbol manner) or between more than one PRS opportunity (e.g., in a subframe-to-subframe manner).

[0100] According to the DL positioning solution provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the terminal device can receive reference signals from different base stations or base station combinations with an adaptive receiving window. Compared with the fixed period of the original receiving window, the period of the adaptive receiving window can be adjusted based on multiple factors, such as channel characteristics, PRS muting pattern, beam management, etc. In this way, the impact of inter-symbol interference at the carrier frequency can be minimized, and the positioning performance can be improved without a significant increase in system complexity.

[0101] Figure 6 A signaling flow 600 for UL-based positioning according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. The process 600 is provided as Figure 4 Thus, in the description of process 600, the first device is a network device that receives and measures the reference signal, and the second device is a terminal device that sends the reference signal. For the purpose of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1Process 600 is described, wherein network device 120 acts as a first device and terminal device 110 acts as a second device. Process 600 may further involve Figure 1 LM device 140 in.

[0102] like Figure 6 As shown, the network device 120 may obtain 605 positioning assistance data from the LM device 140. The positioning assistance data may include, but is not limited to, the location of the network device 120, the location of the network device 130, and the distance between the network device 120 and the network device 130.

[0103] Network device 120 determines 610 an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from terminal device 110. The estimate of the propagation delay may be determined based on a coarse distance between network device 120 and a transmitter of the first reference signal (i.e., terminal device 110). In some example embodiments, the coarse distance may be determined based on a previous position of terminal device 110, for example, if terminal device 110 is stationary or in low mobility. Additionally or alternatively, the coarse distance may be determined based on positioning assistance data.

[0104] Network device 120 determines 615 whether the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay. The threshold delay is configured to determine whether the estimate of the propagation delay is so large that it may cause a misalignment of the symbol on which the first reference signal is received with the original receive window 301 of terminal device 110. In other words, the threshold delay indicates a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the receiver (i.e., the first device) and the transmitter (i.e., the second device). In some example embodiments, the threshold delay may be determined based on the length or predefined duration of the CP of the symbol.

[0105] If the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds the threshold delay, this may indicate that the terminal device 110 is far away from the network device 120 and symbol alignment of the PRB resources for the first reference signal cannot be achieved. In this case, performing measurements (e.g., ToA, etc.) on the original receive window may result in degradation of the SNR and reduced positioning accuracy. In some embodiments, if the network device 120 determines in 615 that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds the threshold delay, the network device 120 determines 620 a target time period within the symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is received. In the context of the present disclosure, the target time period may also be referred to as a target receive window.

[0106] In some example embodiments, network device 120 may determine the target period based on one or more of the following factors: an estimate of propagation delay, a quality of the first reference signal, and a comb structure of a PRS including the first reference signal in the frequency domain, among others.

[0107] Additionally or alternatively, to determine the target period in 620, the network device 120 may first determine a candidate period within the symbol based on an estimate of the propagation delay and a comb structure of the PRS in the frequency domain. For example, the candidate period may be determined by comparing the estimate of the propagation delay and the slot / symbol structure of the serving cell 104. The candidate period corresponds to an active portion of the first reference signal within the OFDM symbol.

[0108] In some example embodiments, based on the comb structure of the PRS and the estimation of the propagation delay, the effective portion may be the inter-symbol interference-free portion of the first reference signal within the symbol. The inter-symbol interference-free portion of the first reference signal includes at least one of the time-frequency repetitions in the first reference signal, and each repetition contains all the information carried in the first reference signal. In some other example embodiments, the network device 120 may use multiple fast Fourier transforms (FFTs) with different repetitions to compare interference levels. It should be understood that the candidate time period may or may not correspond to an integer multiple of repetitions (e.g., 1.5 times repetitions), as long as all the information carried by the first reference signal is included.

[0109] After determining the candidate time period, the network device 120 may determine the target time period based on the candidate time period and the quality of the first reference signal. The quality of the first reference signal may be indicated by the fact that the first reference signal is dominated by noise or interference. In some example embodiments, this may be determined based on an estimate of propagation delay. For example, if the estimate of propagation delay indicates that the terminal device 110 is far away from the network device 120, the first reference signal is likely to be dominated by noise. Otherwise, if the estimate of propagation delay indicates that the terminal device 110 is near the network device 120, the first reference signal may be dominated by interference.

[0110] In some other example embodiments, the quality of the first reference signal may be determined based on parameters related to signal quality. Such parameters may include, for example, reference signal received power (RSRP) of the PRS, reference signal received quality (RSRQ) of the PRS, received signal strength indicator (RSSI) of the PRS, and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the PRS.

[0111] Still reference Figure 6, if the quality of the first reference signal indicates that the noise level is dominant in the first reference signal, then in 620, the network device 120 may determine the target period by extending the candidate period. In this way, the SNR of the first reference signal is improved. Otherwise, if the quality of the first reference signal indicates that the interference level is dominant in the first reference signal, the network device 120 may regard the candidate period as the target period. In other words, the candidate period is determined as the target period without any adjustment. It should be understood that the various ways of adjusting the candidate period to determine the target period are applicable to the example embodiments, and therefore the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0112] Alternatively, in some other examples, if the quality of the first reference signal is lower than the threshold quality, the network device 120 may determine the target period by extending the candidate period to receive more repetitions in the symbol. Otherwise, if the quality of the first reference signal exceeds the threshold quality, the network device 120 may determine the candidate period as the target period.

[0113] The network device 120 may receive 625 at least a portion of the first reference signal from the terminal device 110 within the target period. After receiving the first reference signal, the network device 120 performs 630 positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target period. In some example embodiments, in 625, the network device 120 may receive only a portion of the first reference signal determined corresponding to the target period, rather than the entire first reference signal.

[0114] In some other example embodiments, in 625 , the network device 120 may receive the entire first reference signal and then determine a portion of the first reference signal based on the target period.

[0115] To perform positioning measurements for the target period, network device 120 may determine an updated size of the time-frequency transform size based on the target period. For example, network device 120 may determine a new FFT size based on the target period, for example, by switching from 2048 FFT to 512 FFT. Network device 120 may then perform positioning measurements based on the updated size of the time-frequency transform.

[0116] In practice, all or part of the above operations 605 to 625 may be repeatedly performed in one PRS opportunity (eg, in a symbol-to-symbol manner) or between more than one PRS opportunities (eg, in a subframe-to-subframe manner).

[0117] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a solution for UL-based positioning is provided. In this solution, the target period of the adaptive reception window can be adjusted based on several factors, such as channel characteristics, PRS muting pattern, beam management, etc. Through such a solution, the impact of inter-symbol interference at high carrier frequencies can be minimized, and positioning performance can be improved.

[0118] In some example embodiments, a first device capable of executing method 400 may include a component for executing the corresponding steps of method 400. The component may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the component may be implemented in a circuit system or a software module.

[0119] In some example embodiments, the first device includes: means for determining an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from the second device; means for determining a target time period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is sent based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, the threshold delay indicating a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the first device and the second device; and means for performing positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period.

[0120] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network device providing a neighbor cell of the first apparatus, and the estimate of the propagation delay comprises a time offset of a first reception time of a first reference signal relative to a second reception time of a second reference signal from a serving cell of the first apparatus.

[0121] In some example embodiments, the estimate of the propagation delay is determined based on a distance between the first apparatus and the second apparatus.

[0122] In some example embodiments, the first device includes a terminal device, the second device includes a network device that provides a neighbor cell for the first device, and the third device includes another network device that provides a service cell for the first device, and the distance between the first device and the second device is determined based on at least one of: a previous position of the first device; or positioning assistance data, the positioning assistance data including at least one of: the position of the second device, the position of the third device, the distance between the second device and the third device, the diameter of the service cell or the expected RSTD and uncertainty information.

[0123] In some example embodiments, the first device includes a network device, the third device includes another network device that provides a neighbor cell of the first device, and the second device includes a terminal device served by the third device, and the distance between the first device and the second device is determined based on at least one of the following: a comb structure of a positioning reference signal PRS in the frequency domain, the PRS including at least a first reference signal; a previous position of the second device; or positioning assistance data, the positioning assistance data including at least one of the following: the position of the first device, the position of the third device, and the distance between the first device and the third device.

[0124] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network device providing a neighbor cell of the first apparatus, and the estimate of the propagation delay is determined based on reception timing of a further reference signal from the second apparatus.

[0125] In some example embodiments, the threshold delay is determined based on one of: a length or a predefined duration of a cyclic prefix of a symbol.

[0126] In some example embodiments, the target period is determined based on at least one of: an estimate of a propagation delay, a quality of the first reference signal, and a comb structure of a positioning reference signal PRS in the frequency domain, the PRS comprising at least the first reference signal.

[0127] In some example embodiments, the component for determining the target time period within the symbol includes: a component for determining a candidate time period within the symbol based on an estimate of the propagation delay and a comb structure of a positioning reference signal PRS in the frequency domain, the PRS including at least a first reference signal; and a component for determining the target time period based on the quality of the candidate time period and the first reference signal.

[0128] In some example embodiments, the component for determining the candidate time period includes: a component for determining a valid portion of a first reference signal within a symbol based on an estimate of a propagation delay and a comb structure, the valid portion including at least one of the repetitions in the first reference signal, each of the repetitions containing all information carried in the first reference signal; and a component for determining a first time period of the symbol as a candidate time period, the first time period of the symbol corresponding to the valid portion.

[0129] In some example embodiments, the quality of the first reference signal is determined based on at least one of: parameters related to signal quality, including one or more of: reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, received signal strength indicator, and signal-to-noise ratio of the first reference signal; or a PRS configuration, including a muting pattern and a transmitter beam pattern of the second device, a receiver beam pattern of the first device, or one or more of quasi-co-site information of the first reference signal.

[0130] In some example embodiments, the means for determining the target time period within the symbol includes: means for determining the target time period by extending a candidate time period based on determining that a quality indication noise level of the first reference signal is dominant in the first reference signal; and means for determining the candidate time period as the target time period based on determining that a quality indication interference level of the first reference signal is dominant in the first reference signal.

[0131] In some example embodiments, the means for determining the target period within the symbol includes: means for determining the target period by extending the candidate period based on determining that the quality of the first reference signal is below a threshold quality; and means for determining the candidate period as the target period based on determining that the quality of the first reference signal exceeds the threshold quality.

[0132] In some example embodiments, means for performing positioning measurements within the target period includes means for receiving a portion of the first reference signal instead of the entire first reference signal based on the target period; and means for performing positioning measurements on the portion of the first reference signal.

[0133] In some example embodiments, means for performing positioning measurements within a target period includes: means for receiving a first reference signal from a second device; means for determining a portion of the first reference signal based on the target period; and means for performing positioning measurements on a portion of the first reference signal.

[0134] In some example embodiments, means for performing positioning measurements for the target period includes means for determining an updated size of the time-frequency transform size based on the target period; and means for determining the updated size of the time-frequency transform size based on the target period.

[0135] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus is one of a terminal device and a network device, and the second apparatus is the other of the terminal device and the network device.

[0136] Figure 7 700 is a simplified block diagram of a device 700 suitable for implementing an embodiment of the present disclosure. The device 700 may be provided to implement a communication device, such as a terminal device 110, a network device 120, a network device 130, and a LM device 140. Figure 1 As shown in the figure, the device 700 includes one or more processors 710 , one or more memories 720 coupled to the processors 710 , and one or more communication modules 740 coupled to the processors 710 .

[0137] The communication module 740 is used for two-way communication. The communication module 740 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication. The communication interface may represent any interface necessary for communication with other network elements.

[0138] Processor 710 may be of any type suitable for the local technology network, and may include one or more of the following: as non-limiting examples, a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 700 may have multiple processors, such as application specific integrated circuit chips that are time-dependent to a clock that synchronizes a main processor.

[0139] The memory 720 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM) 724, electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory, hard disks, compact disks (CDs), digital video disks (DVDs), and other magnetic storage devices and / or optical storage devices. Examples of volatile memories include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM) 722 and other volatile memories that will not persist for the duration of a power outage.

[0140] Computer program 730 includes computer executable instructions executed by associated processor 710. Program 730 may be stored in ROM 720. Processor 710 may perform any suitable actions and processes by loading program 730 into RAM 720.

[0141] The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by a program 730, so that the device 700 may execute the reference Figures 4 to 6 Any process of the present disclosure discussed. The embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented by hardware or by a combination of software and hardware.

[0142] In some embodiments, a computer program is provided, such as Figure 7 The computer program 730 shown. The computer program includes instructions for causing the apparatus to at least perform the following operations: determine an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second device; determine a target time period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is sent based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, the threshold delay indicating a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the apparatus and the second device; and perform positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period.

[0143] In some embodiments, the program 730 may be tangibly embodied in a computer-readable medium, which may be included in the device 700 (such as included in the memory 720) or in other storage devices accessible to the device 700. The device 700 may load the program 730 from the computer-readable medium to the RAM 722 for execution. The computer-readable medium may include any type of tangible non-volatile memory, such as ROM, EPROM, flash memory, hard disk, CD, DVD, etc. Figure 8 An example of a computer readable medium 800 is shown in the form of a CD or DVD. The computer readable medium has a program 730 stored thereon.

[0144] In some embodiments, a computer readable medium is provided, such as Figure 8 The computer-readable medium 800 shown. The computer-readable medium includes program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least perform the following operations: determine an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second device; determine a target time period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is sent based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, the threshold delay indicating a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the apparatus and the second device; and perform positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period.

[0145] In some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided, the non-transitory computer-readable medium including program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least perform the following operations: determine an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be transmitted from a second device; determine a target time period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is transmitted based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, the threshold delay indicating a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the apparatus and the second device; and perform positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period

[0146] In general, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or dedicated circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software, which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Although various aspects of the embodiments of the present disclosure are shown and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other illustrations, it should be understood that, as non-limiting examples, the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuits or logic, general hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0147] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer executable instructions, such as computer executable instructions included in a program module, which are executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor to perform the above reference Figure 4 The method 400 described. Typically, a program module includes a routine, program, library, object, class, component, data structure, etc. that performs a specific task or implements a specific abstract data type. In various embodiments, the functions of the program modules can be combined or split between program modules as needed. Machine executable instructions for program modules can be executed in a local device or a distributed device. In a distributed device, the program module can be located in both a local storage medium and a remote storage medium.

[0148] The program code for executing the method of the present disclosure can be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes can be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer or other programmable data processing device so that the program code, when executed by the processor or controller, enables the function / operation specified in the flow chart and / or block diagram to be realized. The program code can be executed completely on the machine, partially on the machine as an independent software package, partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or completely on a remote computer or server.

[0149] In the context of the present disclosure, computer program codes or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier to enable a device, apparatus or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of carriers include signals, computer readable media, etc.

[0150] Computer readable medium can be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. Computer readable medium can include but is not limited to electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared or semiconductor systems, devices or equipment or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of computer readable storage medium will include electrical connections with one or more wires, portable computer floppy disks, hard disks, random access memories (RAM), read-only memories (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memories (EPROM or flash memory), optical fibers, portable compact disk read-only memories (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0151] In addition, although the operation is described in a specific order, this should not be understood as requiring to perform such operations in the specific order shown or in order, or requiring to perform all the operations shown to obtain the desired result. In some cases, multi-tasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Equally, although several specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these details should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as a description of the features that can be specific to a particular embodiment. Some features described in the context of a separate embodiment may also be combined in a single embodiment. On the contrary, the various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented individually or in any suitable sub-combination in multiple embodiments.

[0152] Although the present disclosure is described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological actions, it should be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or actions described above. Instead, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. A first device for communication, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code, The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the first device to: determining an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second device; determining a target period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is transmitted based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, the threshold delay indicating a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the first device and the second device; as well as performing positioning measurement on the first reference signal within the target time period; wherein the first device is caused to determine the target time period within the symbol by: determining a candidate time period within the symbol based on the estimate of the propagation delay and a comb structure of a positioning reference signal in the frequency domain, the positioning reference signal comprising at least the first reference signal; as well as The target time period is determined based on the candidate time period and a quality of the first reference signal.

2. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the first device comprises a terminal device and the second device comprises a network device providing a neighbor cell of the first device, and wherein the estimation of the propagation delay comprises: A first reception time of the first reference signal is time offset relative to a second reception time of a second reference signal from a serving cell of the first device. 3 . The first device of claim 1 , wherein the estimate of the propagation delay is determined based on a distance between the first device and the second device.

4. The first device according to claim 3, wherein the first device comprises a terminal device, the second device comprises a network device providing a neighbor cell of the first device, and the third device comprises another network device providing a serving cell of the first device, and wherein the distance between the first device and the second device is determined based on at least one of the following: the previous location of the first device, or Positioning assistance data, the positioning assistance data comprising at least one of the following: the position of the second device, the position of the third device, the distance between the second device and the third device, the diameter of the serving cell or the expected RSTD and uncertainty information.

5. The first device according to claim 3, wherein the first device comprises a network device, the third device comprises another network device providing a neighbor cell of the first device, and the second device comprises a terminal device served by the third device, and wherein the distance between the first device and the second device is determined based on at least one of the following: the previous location of the second device, or Positioning assistance data, the positioning assistance data comprising at least one of the following: the position of the first device, the position of the third device, and the distance between the first device and the third device.

6. A first device according to claim 1, wherein the first device comprises a terminal device and the second device comprises a network device providing a neighbor cell of the first device, and wherein the estimate of the propagation delay is determined based on the reception timing of an additional reference signal from the second device.

7. The first device of claim 1, wherein the threshold delay is determined based on one of: a length or a predefined duration of a cyclic prefix of the symbol.

8. The first device of claim 1 , wherein the first device is caused to determine the candidate time period by: determining a valid portion of the first reference signal within the symbol based on the estimate of the propagation delay and the comb structure, the valid portion comprising at least one of the repetitions in the first reference signal, each of the repetitions containing all of the information carried in the first reference signal; and A first time period of the symbol is determined as the candidate time period, the first time period of the symbol corresponding to the valid part.

9. The first device of claim 1 , wherein the quality of the first reference signal is determined based on at least one of: Parameters related to signal quality include one or more of the following: reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, received signal strength indicator and signal-to-noise ratio of the first reference signal, or The positioning reference signal configuration includes one or more of the following: a muting pattern and a transmitter beam pattern of the second device, a receiver beam pattern of the first device, or quasi co-location information of the first reference signal.

10. The first device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the first device is caused to determine the target period within the symbol by: determining the target time period by extending the candidate time period in response to determining that the quality indication noise level of the first reference signal is dominant in the first reference signal; and The target time period is determined by including at least a portion of the candidate time period based on determining that the quality of the first reference signal indicates that an interference level is dominant in the first reference signal.

11. A first device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the first device is caused to determine the target period within the symbol by: determining the target period by extending the candidate period in response to determining that the quality of the first reference signal is below a threshold quality; and Based on determining that the quality of the first reference signal exceeds the threshold quality, the target period is determined by including at least a portion of a candidate period.

12. The first device of claim 1 , wherein the first device is caused to perform positioning measurements within the target period by: receiving the portion of the first reference signal instead of the entire first reference signal based on the target period; and The positioning measurements are performed on the portion of the first reference signal.

13. The first device of claim 1 , wherein the first device is caused to perform positioning measurements within the target period by: receiving the first reference signal from the second device; determining the portion of the first reference signal based on the target time period; as well as The positioning measurements are performed on the portion of the first reference signal.

14. The first device of claim 1 , wherein the first device is caused to perform positioning measurements for the target period by: determining an updated size of the time-frequency transform size based on the target time period; and The positioning measurement is performed based on the updated magnitude of the time-frequency transform. 15 . The first device according to claim 1 , wherein the first device is one of a terminal device and a network device, and the second device is the other of the terminal device and the network device.

16. A communication method, comprising: determining, by the first device, an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from the second device; determining a target period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is transmitted based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, the threshold delay indicating a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the first device and the second device; as well as performing positioning measurement on the first reference signal within the target time period; Wherein determining the target time period within the symbol comprises: determining a candidate time period within the symbol based on the estimate of the propagation delay and a comb structure of a positioning reference signal positioning reference signal in the frequency domain, the positioning reference signal including at least the first reference signal; as well as The target time period is determined based on the candidate time period and a quality of the first reference signal.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the first device comprises a terminal device and the second device comprises a network device providing a neighbor cell of the first device, and wherein the estimation of the propagation delay comprises: A first reception time of the first reference signal is time offset relative to a second reception time of a second reference signal from a serving cell of the first device.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the estimate of the propagation delay is determined based on a distance between the first device and the second device.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the first device comprises a terminal device, the second device comprises a network device providing a neighbor cell of the first device, and the third device comprises another network device providing a serving cell of the first device, and wherein the distance between the first device and the second device is determined based on at least one of the following: the previous location of the first device, or Positioning assistance data, the positioning assistance data comprising at least one of the following: the position of the second device, the position of the third device, the distance between the second device and the third device, the diameter of the serving cell or the expected RSTD and uncertainty information.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the first device comprises a network device, the third device comprises another network device providing a neighbor cell of the first device, and the second device comprises a terminal device served by the third device, and wherein the distance between the first device and the second device is determined based on at least one of the following: the previous location of the second device, or Positioning assistance data, the positioning assistance data comprising at least one of the following: the position of the first device, the position of the third device, and the distance between the first device and the third device.

21. A method according to claim 16, wherein the first device comprises a terminal device and the second device comprises a network device providing a neighbor cell of the first device, and wherein the estimate of the propagation delay is determined based on the reception timing of a further reference signal from the second device.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the threshold delay is determined based on one of: a length or a predefined duration of a cyclic prefix of the symbol.

23. The method of claim 16, wherein determining the candidate time period comprises: determining a valid portion of the first reference signal within the symbol based on the estimate of the propagation delay and the comb structure, the valid portion comprising at least one of the repetitions in the first reference signal, each of the repetitions containing all of the information carried in the first reference signal; as well as A first time period of the symbol is determined as the candidate time period, the first time period of the symbol corresponding to the valid part.

24. The method of claim 16, wherein the quality of the first reference signal is determined based on at least one of: Parameters related to signal quality include one or more of the following: reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, received signal strength indicator and signal-to-noise ratio of the first reference signal, or The positioning reference signal configuration includes one or more of the following: a muting pattern and a transmitter beam pattern of the second device, a receiver beam pattern of the first device, or quasi co-location information of the first reference signal.

25. The method of any one of claims 16 to 24, wherein determining the target period within the symbol comprises: determining the target time period by extending the candidate time period based on determining that the quality indication noise level of the first reference signal is dominant in the first reference signal; as well as The target time period is determined by including at least a portion of the candidate time period based on determining that the quality of the first reference signal indicates that an interference level is dominant in the first reference signal.

26. The method of any one of claims 16 to 24, wherein determining the target period within the symbol comprises: determining the target time period by extending the candidate time period in response to determining that the quality of the first reference signal is lower than a threshold quality; as well as Based on determining that the quality of the first reference signal exceeds the threshold quality, the target time period is determined by including at least a portion of the candidate time period.

27. The method of claim 16, wherein performing positioning measurements within the target period comprises: receiving the portion of the first reference signal instead of the entire first reference signal based on the target time period; as well as The positioning measurements are performed on the portion of the first reference signal.

28. The method of claim 16, wherein performing positioning measurements within the target period comprises: receiving the first reference signal from the second device; determining the portion of the first reference signal based on the target time period; as well as The positioning measurements are performed on the portion of the first reference signal.

29. The method of claim 16, wherein performing positioning measurements for the target period comprises: determining an updated size of the time-frequency transform size based on the target time period; as well as The positioning measurement is performed based on the updated magnitude of the time-frequency transform.

30. The method of claim 16, wherein the first device is one of a terminal device and a network device, and the second device is the other of the terminal device and the network device.

31. A first device for communication, comprising: means for determining an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be transmitted from a second device; means for determining a target time period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is transmitted based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay; as well as means for performing positioning measurements on the first reference signal within the target time period; The component for determining the target time period within the symbol comprises: means for determining candidate time periods within said symbol based on said estimate of said propagation delay and a comb structure of a positioning reference signal positioning reference signal in the frequency domain, said positioning reference signal comprising at least said first reference signal; as well as Means for determining the target time period based on the candidate time period and a quality of the first reference signal.

32. A communication system comprising a first device, wherein the first device is configured to: determining an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second device; determining a target period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is transmitted based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, the threshold delay indicating a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the first device and the second device; as well as performing positioning measurement on the first reference signal within the target time period; The first device is configured to determine the target time period within the symbol by: determining a candidate time period within the symbol based on the estimate of the propagation delay and a comb structure of a positioning reference signal positioning reference signal in the frequency domain, the positioning reference signal including at least the first reference signal; as well as The target time period is determined based on the candidate time period and a quality of the first reference signal.

33. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions for causing a first device to perform at least the following: determining an estimate of a propagation delay for a first reference signal to be sent from a second device; determining a target period within a symbol over which at least a portion of the first reference signal is transmitted based on determining that the estimate of the propagation delay exceeds a threshold delay, the threshold delay indicating a tolerance for timing synchronization misalignment between the first device and the second device; as well as performing positioning measurement on the first reference signal within the target time period; Wherein determining the target time period within the symbol comprises: determining a candidate time period within the symbol based on the estimate of the propagation delay and a comb structure of a positioning reference signal in the frequency domain, the positioning reference signal comprising at least the first reference signal; as well as The target time period is determined based on the candidate time period and a quality of the first reference signal.

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