Wireless communication method, positioning entity, base station, and computer-readable medium

Abstract

Techniques for wireless communication are disclosed. In one aspect, a positioning entity receives a beam report from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a positioning reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams, and determining the location of the UE based at least on signal strength measurements of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape auxiliary information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The aspects of this disclosure generally relate to wireless communications. Background Technology

[0002] Wireless communication systems have evolved through multiple generations, including first-generation analog radiotelephone service (1G), second-generation (2G) digital radiotelephone service (including transitional 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third-generation (3G) high-speed data and internet-enabled wireless services, and fourth-generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). Currently, many different types of wireless communication systems are in use, including cellular and Personal Communication Services (PCS) systems. Known examples of cellular systems include Advanced Cellular System (AMPS) based on analog cellular communication, as well as digital cellular systems based on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), and so on.

[0003] The fifth-generation (5G) wireless standard, known as New Radio (NR), demands higher data transmission speeds, more connections, better coverage, and other improvements. According to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance (NGC), the 5G standard is designed to provide tens of megabits per second (Mbps) of data rate for each of tens of thousands of users, or 1 gigabit per second (Gbps) for dozens of employees on an office floor. It should support hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections to support large-scale sensor deployments. Therefore, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly improved compared to the current 4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiency should be enhanced, and latency should be substantially reduced compared to the current standard. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The following is a simplified overview relating to one or more aspects disclosed herein. Thus, this overview should not be considered an exhaustive overview relating to all aspects of the conception, nor should it be considered to identify key or decisive elements relating to all aspects of the conception or to depict the scope associated with any particular aspect. Accordingly, the following overview serves only to present, in a simplified form, certain concepts relating to one or more aspects of the mechanism disclosed herein before the detailed descriptions presented below.

[0005] In one aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a positioning entity includes: receiving a beam report from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape assistance information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a positioning reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape assistance information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; and determining the location of the UE based at least on signal strength measurements of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape assistance information.

[0006] In one aspect, a wireless communication method performed by a base station includes: transmitting a beam report to a positioning entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to positioning reference signal resources to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; and transmitting the positioning reference signal resources on the one or more downlink transmitted beams.

[0007] In one aspect, the positioning entity includes a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to receive a beam report from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station corresponding to a positioning reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams, and determining the location of the UE based at least on signal strength measurements of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape auxiliary information.

[0008] In one aspect, the base station includes a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a beam report to a positioning entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to positioning reference signal resources to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams, and causing the at least one transceiver to transmit the positioning reference signal resources on the one or more downlink transmitted beams.

[0009] In one aspect, the positioning entity includes components for receiving a beam report from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape assistance information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a positioning reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape assistance information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams, and components for determining the location of the UE based at least on signal strength measurements of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape assistance information.

[0010] In one aspect, the base station includes components for transmitting a beam report to a positioning entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to positioning reference signal resources to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams, and components for transmitting positioning reference signal resources on the one or more downlink transmitted beams.

[0011] In one aspect, the non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions includes: at least one instruction instructing a positioning entity to receive a beam report from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a positioning reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; and at least one instruction instructing the positioning entity to determine the location of the UE based at least on signal strength measurements of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape auxiliary information.

[0012] In one aspect, the non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions includes: at least one instruction instructing a base station to transmit a beam report to a positioning entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to positioning reference signal resources to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; and at least one instruction instructing the base station to transmit positioning reference signal resources on the one or more downlink transmitted beams.

[0013] Based on the accompanying drawings and detailed description, other objects and advantages associated with the aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Attached Figure Description

[0014] The accompanying drawings are provided to help describe various aspects of this disclosure and are intended to illustrate these aspects only and not to limit them.

[0015] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system according to aspects of this disclosure is shown.

[0016] Figure 2A and Figure 2B An example wireless network architecture according to aspects of this disclosure is shown.

[0017] Figures 3A to 3C It is a simplified block diagram of several example aspects of components that can be adopted in user equipment (UE), base stations, and network entities and configured to support communications as taught herein.

[0018] Figure 4 This is a diagram illustrating communication between an example base station and an example UE according to aspects of this disclosure.

[0019] Figure 5 This is a diagram illustrating the types of positioning errors associated with positioning methods based on downlink or uplink angles according to aspects of this disclosure.

[0020] Figure 6 This is a diagram illustrating the aspect of downlink origin angle (AoD) positioning according to aspects of this disclosure.

[0021] Figure 7 This is a diagram illustrating a base station transmitting first positioning reference signal (PRS) resources to the possible location of the UE in the azimuth domain according to aspects of this disclosure.

[0022] Figure 8 This illustrates aspects according to this disclosure. Figure 7 A graph showing the example beam response of the first PRS resource in the azimuth domain.

[0023] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating a base station transmitting second PRS resources to a possible location of the UE in the azimuth domain according to aspects of this disclosure.

[0024] Figure 10 This illustrates aspects according to this disclosure. Figure 9 The second PRS resource in the diagram is a sample beam response curve in the azimuth domain.

[0025] Figure 11 This is a diagram illustrating example beam responses of three different PRS resources in the azimuth domain according to aspects of this disclosure.

[0026] Figure 12 and Figure 13 This is a diagram illustrating an example scenario in which a base station transmits reference signals on six downlink transmission beams, according to aspects of this disclosure.

[0027] Figure 14 and Figure 15 An example method of wireless communication according to aspects of this disclosure is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0028] Aspects of this disclosure are provided in the following description and in the related figures for the various examples provided for illustrative purposes. Alternative aspects may be designed without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Furthermore, well-known elements of this disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of this disclosure.

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

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

[0031] Furthermore, many aspects are described with respect to the sequence of actions to be performed by elements of a computing device, for example. It will be understood that the various actions described herein can be performed by specific circuitry (e.g., an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), program instructions executed by one or more processors, or a combination of both. Moreover, the sequence of actions described herein can be considered entirely embodied in any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a corresponding set of computer instructions that, upon execution, will cause or instruct the associated processor of the device to perform the functionalities described herein. Therefore, various aspects of this disclosure can be embodied in many different forms, all of which are contemplated within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Additionally, for each aspect described herein, any corresponding form of such aspect can be described herein as, for example, "logic configured to perform the described actions."

[0032] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, the terms “User Equipment” (UE) and “Base Station” are not intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular Radio Access Technology (RAT). Generally, a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate via a wireless communication network (e.g., mobile phone, router, tablet, laptop, consumer asset tracking device, wearable device (e.g., smartwatch, glasses, augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), vehicle (e.g., car, motorcycle, bicycle, etc.), Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.). A UE can be mobile or can (e.g., at certain times) be stationary and can communicate with a Radio Access Network (RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” can be interchangeably referred to as “Access Terminal” or “AT”, “Client Equipment”, “Wireless Equipment”, “Subscriber Equipment”, “Subscriber Terminal”, “Subscriber Station”, “User Terminal” or “UT”, “Mobile Equipment”, “Mobile Terminal”, “Mobile Station”, or variations thereof. Generally, a UE can communicate with a core network via the RAN, and through the core network, a UE can connect to external networks (such as the Internet) and other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for connecting to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible for the UE, such as via wired access networks, wireless local area network (WLAN) networks (e.g., based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard, etc.).

[0033] A base station may operate under one of several RATs (Radio Access Points) used to communicate with the UE, depending on the network in which it is deployed, and may be alternatively referred to as an Access Point (AP), Network Node, NodeB, Evolved NodeB (eNB), Next Generation eNB (ng-eNB), New Radio (NR) NodeB (also referred to as gNB or gNodeB), etc. A base station may primarily be used to support the UE's radio access, including supporting the data, voice, and / or signaling connections of the supported UE. In some systems, a base station may provide purely edge node signaling functions, while in others it may provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link through which the UE can signal to the base station is referred to as an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse traffic channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). The communication link through which the base station can signal to the UE is referred to as a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., paging channel, control channel, broadcast channel, forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term Traffic Channel (TCH) may refer to an uplink / reverse or downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0034] The term "base station" can refer to a single physical transmit-receive point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, when the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP can be an antenna of the base station, corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. When the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP can be an antenna array of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where the base station employs beamforming). When the term "base station" refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRPs can be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a spatially separated network of antennas connected to a common source via a transmission medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, a non-co-located physical TRP can be a serving base station that receives measurement reports from the UE and neighboring base stations where the UE is measuring its reference radio frequency (RF) signal. Since the TRP is the point from which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, as used herein, references to transmission from or reception at a base station will be understood to refer to the specific TRP of the base station.

[0035] In some implementations that support UE positioning, the base station may not support the UE's radio access (e.g., it may not support the UE's data, voice, and / or signaling connections), but may instead transmit reference signals to the UE that will be measured by the UE, and / or receive and measure signals transmitted by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when transmitting signals to the UE) and / or as a location measurement unit (e.g., when receiving and measuring signals from the UE).

[0036] An “RF signal” comprises electromagnetic waves of a given frequency that transmit information across space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may send a single “RF signal” or multiple “RF signals” to a receiver. However, due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through multipath channels, a receiver may receive multiple “RF signals” corresponding to each transmitted RF signal. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between the transmitter and receiver can be referred to as a “multipath” RF signal.

[0037] Figure 1An example wireless communication system 100 is illustrated. The wireless communication system 100 (also referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 and various UEs 104. Base station 102 may include macro cell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one aspect, the macro cell base station may include an eNB and / or ng-eNB where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network, or a gNB where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network, or a combination of both, and the small cell base station may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0038] Base stations 102 can collectively form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) via a backhaul link 122, and reach one or more location servers 172 (which may be part of or outside the core network 170). Among other functions, base stations 102 can perform one or more of the following related functions: transmitting user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, non-access stratum (NAS) message distribution, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and device tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, location, and delivery of warning information. Base stations 102 can communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via EPC / 5GC) via a backhaul link 134, which can be wired or wireless.

[0039] Base station 102 can wirelessly communicate with UE 104. Each of base stations 102 can provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. In one aspect, one or more cells can be supported by base station 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A “cell” is a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., on a frequency resource (referred to as carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, frequency band, etc.)) and can be associated with an identifier (e.g., Physical Cell Identifier (PCI), Virtual Cell Identifier (VCI), Cell Global Identifier (CGI)) to distinguish cells operating via the same or different carrier frequencies. In some cases, different cells can be configured according to different protocol types that can provide access for different types of UEs (e.g., Machine Type Communication (MTC), Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), etc.). Because a cell is supported by a specific base station, the term “cell” can refer to one or both of the logical communication entity and the base station that supports it, depending on the context. In some cases, the term "cell" can also refer to the geographic coverage area of ​​a base station (e.g., a sector), provided that the carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within a portion of the geographic coverage area 110.

[0040] Although the geographic coverage areas 110 of adjacent macro cell base stations 102 may partially overlap (e.g., in handover areas), some of the geographic coverage areas 110 may substantially overlap with larger geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell (SC) base station 102' may have a geographic coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage areas 110 of one or more macro cell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell and macro cell base stations may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include home eNBs (HeNBs) that can provide service to restricted groups referred to as Closed Subscriber Groups (CSGs).

[0041] The communication link 120 between base station 102 and UE 104 may include uplink (also known as reverse link) transmission from UE 104 to base station 102 and / or downlink (also known as forward link) transmission from base station 102 to UE 104. The communication link 120 may use MIMO antenna techniques, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may use one or more carrier frequencies. Carrier allocation may be asymmetrical relative to the downlink and uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to the downlink than to the uplink).

[0042] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150, which communicates with a WLAN station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) or listen-before-speak (LBT) process to determine channel availability before communication.

[0043] Small cell base station 102' can operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in unlicensed spectrum, small cell base station 102' can employ LTE or NR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum as WLAN AP 150. Small cell base station 102' employing LTE / 5G in unlicensed spectrum can enhance coverage of the access network and / or increase the capacity of the access network. NR in unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as NR-U. LTE in unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as LTE-U, Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0044] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a millimeter-wave (mmW) base station 180, which can communicate with the UE 182 at mmW and / or near-mmW frequencies. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that contains radio frequency (RF). EHF ranges from 30 GHz to 300 GHz, with wavelengths between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in this band can be referred to as millimeter waves. Near-millimeter waves can extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz, with wavelengths of 100 mm. Ultra-high frequency (SHF) bands extend between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and are also referred to as centimeter waves. Communication using mmW / near-mmW radio bands has high path loss and relatively short range. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 can utilize beamforming (transmit and / or receive) on the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range. Furthermore, it should be understood that in alternative configurations, one or more base stations 102 may also transmit using mmW or near-mmW and beamforming. Therefore, it should be understood that the foregoing description is merely illustrative and should not be construed as limiting any aspect of the disclosure herein.

[0045] Transmit beamforming is a technique used to focus RF signals in a specific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectional). In the case of transmit beamforming, the network node determines the location of a given target device (e.g., a UE) (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thus providing the receiving device with a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal. To change the directivity of the RF signal during transmission, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of one or more transmitters broadcasting the RF signal. For example, the network node can use an antenna array (called a "phased array" or "antenna array") that creates the RF beam, which can be "steered" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, RF currents from the transmitters are fed to the individual antennas with the correct phase relationship so that the radio waves from the individual antennas are superimposed to increase radiation in the desired direction while canceling out radiation in undesired directions.

[0046] Transmit beams can be quasi-co-located, meaning they appear to have the same parameters to the receiver (e.g., UE), regardless of whether the transmit antennas of the network nodes are physically co-located. In NR, there are four types of quasi-co-location (QCL) relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters about the target reference RF signal on the target beam can be derived from information about the source reference RF signal on the source beam. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and average delay of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type D, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the spatial reception parameters of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0047] In receive beamforming, a receiver uses a receive beam to amplify an RF signal detected on a given channel. For example, a receiver may increase a gain setting and / or adjust the phase setting of an antenna array in a specific direction to amplify the RF signal received from that direction (e.g., increase its gain level). Therefore, when a receiver is said to be beamforming in a certain direction, it means that the beam gain in that direction is higher than the beam gain in other directions, or that the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gain in all other receive beams available to the receiver in that direction. This results in a stronger received signal strength (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), etc.) of the RF signal received from that direction.

[0048] The receive beam can be spatially correlated. Spatial correlation means that the parameters of the transmit beam used for the second reference signal can be derived from information about the receive beam of the first reference signal. For example, the UE can use a specific receive beam to receive one or more reference downlink reference signals (e.g., Position Reference Signal (PRS), Tracking Reference Signal (TRS), Phase Tracking Reference Signal (PTRS), Cell Specific Reference Signal (CRS), Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS), Primary Synchronization Signal (PSS), Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS), Synchronization Signal Block (SSB), etc.) from the base station. The UE can then form a transmit beam for transmitting one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., Uplink Position Reference Signal (UL-PRS), Sounding Reference Signal (SRS), Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), PTRS, etc.) to the base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0049] Note that a "downlink" beam can be either a transmit or receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a base station is forming a downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to a UE, then the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if a UE is forming a downlink beam, then it is a receive beam for receiving downlink reference signals. Similarly, an "uplink" beam can be either a transmit or receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a base station is forming an uplink beam, then it is an uplink receive beam, and if a UE is forming an uplink beam, then it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0050] In 5G, the spectrum in which radio nodes (e.g., base stations 102 / 180, UE 104 / 182) operate is divided into multiple frequency ranges: FR1 (from 450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (from 24250 to 52600 MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). In multi-carrier systems, such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies is referred to as the “primary carrier” or “anchor carrier” or “primary serving cell” or “PCell,” and the remaining carrier frequencies are referred to as “secondary carriers” or “secondary serving cells” or “SCells.” In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) used by UE 104 / 182 and the cell in which UE 104 / 182 performs the initial Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). A secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2). It can be configured once an RRC connection is established between UE 104 and the anchor carrier, and can be used to provide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carrier can be a carrier on an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier may contain only the necessary signaling information and signals; for example, those specific to the UE may not be present in the secondary carrier, since the primary uplink and downlink carriers are typically UE-specific. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 within a cell can have different downlink primary carriers. The same applies to the uplink primary carrier. The network can change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance the load on different carriers. Because a “serving cell” (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to the carrier frequency / component carrier that a base station is communicating on, the terms “cell,” “serving cell,” “component carrier,” “carrier frequency,” etc., are used interchangeably.

[0051] For example, still refer to Figure 1 One of the frequencies used by macro cell base station 102 can be an anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and the other frequencies used by macro cell base station 102 and / or mmW base station 180 can be secondary carriers ("SCell"). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception on multiple carriers enables UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rates. For example, two aggregated 20 MHz carriers in a multi-carrier system theoretically result in a data rate increase of twice (i.e., 40 MHz) compared to the data rate obtained by a single 20 MHz carrier.

[0052] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a UE 164, which can communicate with the macro cell base station 102 via communication link 120 and / or with the mmW base station 180 via mmW communication link 184. For example, the macro cell base station 102 may support PCells and one or more SCells for the UE 164, and the mmW base station 180 may support one or more SCells for the UE 164.

[0053] exist Figure 1 In the example, one or more Earth-orbiting Satellite Positioning System (SPS) spacecraft (SV) 112 (e.g., satellites) can be used as the UE shown (for simplicity, in Figure 1 An independent source of location information is represented by any one of the individual UEs 104. UE 104 may include one or more dedicated SPS receivers specifically designed to receive SPS signals 124 to derive geographic location information from SV 112. An SPS typically includes a system of transmitters (e.g., SV 112) positioned to enable receivers (e.g., UEs 104) to determine their location above or over the earth based at least in part on signals received from the transmitter (e.g., SPS signals 124). Such transmitters typically transmit signals of repeating pseudo-random noise (PN) codes labeled with a set of chips. While typically located in SV 112, transmitters may sometimes be located at ground-based control stations, base stations 102, and / or other UEs 104.

[0054] The use of SPS signal 124 can be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) that can be associated with or otherwise enabled for use with one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, SBAS may include augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential correction, etc., such as Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), European Geosynchronous Navigation Coverage Service (EGNOS), Multifunctional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), GPS-assisted Geo-Augmented Navigation, or GPS and Geo-Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN). Therefore, as used herein, SPS may include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems and / or augmentation systems, and SPS signal 124 may include SPS, SPS-like systems, and / or other signals associated with one or more such SPS.

[0055] The wireless communication system 100 may also include one or more UEs (such as UE 190) that are indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as "side links"). Figure 1In the example, UE 190 has D2D P2P links 192 and 194, where one of UEs 104 connects to one of base stations 102 via D2D P2P link 192 (e.g., UE 190 can indirectly obtain cellular connectivity through it), and WLAN STA 152 connects to WLAN AP 150 via D2D P2P link 194 (UE 190 can indirectly obtain WLAN-based internet connectivity through it). In the example, D2D P2P links 192 and 194 can be supported by any well-known D2DRAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Bluetooth®, etc.

[0056] Figure 2A An example wireless network architecture 200 is illustrated. For example, the 5GC 210 (also referred to as the Next Generation Core (NGC)) can functionally be considered as control plane functions 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and user plane functions 212 (e.g., UE gateway functions, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.), which cooperate to form the core network. A user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and a control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect the gNB 222 to the 5GC 210, and specifically to control plane functions 214 and user plane functions 212. In an additional configuration, the ng-eNB 224 can also connect to the 5GC 210 via the NG-C 215 to control plane function 214 and the NG-U 213 to user plane function 212. Furthermore, the ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with the gNB 222 via a backhaul connection 223. In some configurations, the new RAN 220 may have only one or more gNB 222s, while other configurations include one or more of ng-eNB 224 and gNB 222. The gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 can be used with UE 204 (e.g., Figure 1The UE 204 communicates with any of the UEs depicted in the diagram. Another optional aspect may include a location server 230, which can communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance to the UE 204. The location server 230 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively, each may correspond to a single server. The location server 230 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, which may be connected to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not shown). Furthermore, the location server 230 may be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively, may be external to the core network.

[0057] Figure 2B Another example wireless network architecture 250 is shown. For example, 5GC 260 can be functionally viewed as a control plane function provided by Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 264 and a user plane function provided by User Plane Function (UPF) 262, which cooperate to form the core network (i.e., 5GC 260). User plane interface 263 and control plane interface 265 connect ng-eNB 224 to 5GC 260 and specifically to UPF 262 and AMF 264, respectively. In an additional configuration, gNB 222 can also connect to 5GC 260 via control plane interface 265 to AMF 264 and user plane interface 263 to UPF 262. Furthermore, ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with gNB 222 via backhaul connection 223, with or without a direct gNB connection to 5GC 260. In some configurations, the new RAN 220 may have only one or more gNB 222s, while other configurations include one or more of ng-eNB 224 and gNB 222. The gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 can be used with UE 204 (e.g., Figure 1 The base station of the new RAN 220 communicates with the AMF 264 via the N2 interface and with the UPF 262 via the N3 interface.

[0058] The functions of AMF 264 include registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of Session Management (SM) messages between UE 204 and Session Management Function (SMF) 266, transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transmission of Short Message Service (SMS) messages between UE 204 and Short Message Service Function (SMSF) (not shown), and Security Anchoring Function (SEAF). AMF 264 also interacts with Authentication Server Function (AUSF) (not shown) and UE 204, and receives an intermediate key established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In the case of UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM)-based authentication, AMF 264 retrieves security material from AAUSF. The functions of AMF 264 also include Security Context Management (SCM). SCM receives a key from SEAF, which is used to derive an access network-specific key. The AMF 264 also includes functions for location service management for regulatory services, transmission of location service messages between UE 204 and Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (which acts as location server 230), transmission of location service messages between new RAN 220 and LMF 270, allocation of Evolved Packet System (EPS) bearer identifiers for interoperability with EPS, and UE 204 mobility event notification. Additionally, the AMF 264 supports functions for non-3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0059] The functions of UPF 262 include acting as an anchor point for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (where applicable), acting as an external Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session point for interconnection with a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic orientation), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, user plane Quality of Service (QoS) processing (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflected QoS marking in downlink), uplink traffic verification (Service Data Flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport-level packet marking in uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and sending and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. UPF 262 can also support the transmission of location service messages over the user plane between UE 204 and a location server (such as a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP) 272).

[0060] The functions of SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, service orientation configuration at UPF 262 for routing services to appropriate destinations, control over policy enforcement and QoS portions, and downlink data notification. The interface through which SMF 266 communicates with AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0061] Another optional aspect may include LMF 270, which can communicate with 5GC 260 to provide location assistance to UE 204. LMF 270 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively, each can correspond to a single server. LMF 270 can be configured to support one or more location services for UE 204, which can be connected to LMF 270 via the core network, 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not shown). SLP 272 can support similar functionality to LMF 270, but LMF 270 can communicate with AMF 264, the new RAN 220, and UE 204 via the control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols designed to transmit signaling messages rather than voice or data), while SLP 272 can communicate with UE 204 and external clients via the user plane. Figure 2B (not shown) to communicate (e.g., using protocols designed to carry voice and / or data, such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0062] Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C Several example components (represented by corresponding blocks) are shown that can be incorporated into UE 302 (which may correspond to any of the UEs described herein), base station 304 (which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein), and network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any of the network functions described herein, including location server 230 and LMF 270) to support file transfer operations as taught herein. It should be understood that these components can be implemented in different types of devices in different implementations (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system-on-a-chip (SoC), etc.). The components shown can also be incorporated into other devices in a communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include components similar to those described to provide similar functionality. Furthermore, a given device may contain one or more of the components. For example, a device may include multiple transceiver components that enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0063] UE 302 and base station 304 each include Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively, for providing communication components (e.g., transmission components, reception components, measurement components, tuning components, transmission avoidance components, etc.) via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown) (such as NR networks, LTE networks, GSM networks, etc.). WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes, such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNB, gNB, etc.), via at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.), through a wireless communication medium of interest (e.g., a set of time / frequency resources in a specific spectrum). WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be configured differently to transmit and encode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) respectively, and conversely, to receive and decode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.) respectively, according to a specified RAT. Specifically, WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358 respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358 respectively.

[0064] UE 302 and base station 304 also include, at least in some cases, one or more short-range radio transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range radio transceivers 320 and 360 may be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide components (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, components for measuring, components for tuning, components for avoiding transmission, etc.) for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Z-Wave®, PC5, Dedicated Short Range Communication (DSRC), Wireless Access in Vehicle Environments (WAVE), Near Field Communication (NFC), etc.) through a wireless communication medium of interest. Short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be configured differently to transmit and encode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) respectively, and conversely, to receive and decode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.) respectively, according to a specified RAT. Specifically, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 include one or more transmitters 324 and 364 for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368 respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362 for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368 respectively. As a specific example, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be WiFi transceivers, Bluetooth® transceivers, Zigbee® and / or Z-Wave® transceivers, NFC transceivers, or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceivers.

[0065] In some implementations, the transceiver circuitry including at least one transmitter and at least one receiver may comprise an integrated device (e.g., transmitter and receiver circuitry embodied as a single communication device), in some implementations may comprise separate transmitter and receiver devices, or may be embodied in other ways in other implementations. In one aspect, the transmitter may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the respective device to perform transmit “beamforming,” as described herein. Similarly, the receiver may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the respective device to perform receive beamforming, as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter and receiver may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the respective device may receive or transmit only at a given time, rather than simultaneously. The wireless communication equipment of UE 302 and / or base station 304 (e.g., one or both of transceivers 310 and 320 and / or 350 and 360) may also include network eavesdropping modules (NLMs) for performing various measurements.

[0066] UE 302 and base station 304 also include, at least in some cases, satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers 330 and 370. SPS receivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and may provide components for receiving and / or measuring SPS signals 338 and 378, such as Global Positioning System (GPS) signals, Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, BeiDou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. SPS receivers 330 and 370 may include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing SPS signals 338 and 378, respectively. SPS receivers 330 and 370 appropriately request information and operations from other systems and perform calculations required to determine the location of UE 302 and base station 304 using measurements obtained through any suitable SPS algorithm.

[0067] Base station 304 and network entity 306 each include at least one network interface 380 and 390 to provide components for communicating with other network entities (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, etc.). For example, network interfaces 380 and 390 (e.g., one or more network access ports) may be configured to communicate with one or more network entities via a wired or wireless backhaul connection. In some aspects, network interfaces 380 and 390 may be implemented as transceivers configured to support wired or wireless signal-based communication. This communication may involve, for example, sending and receiving messages, parameters, and / or other types of information.

[0068] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with the operations disclosed herein. UE 302 includes processor circuitry that implements processing system 332 for providing, for example, wireless positioning-related functions and for providing other processing functions. Base station 304 includes processing system 384 for providing, for example, wireless positioning-related functions disclosed herein, and for providing other processing functions. Network entity 306 includes processing system 394 for providing, for example, wireless positioning-related functions disclosed herein, and for providing other processing functions. Processing systems 332, 384, and 394 can therefore provide components for processing, such as components for determining, components for calculating, components for receiving, components for transmitting, components for indicating, etc. In one aspect, processing systems 332, 384, and 394 may include, for example, one or more processors, such as one or more general-purpose processors, multi-core processors, ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuitry, or various combinations thereof.

[0069] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 include memory circuitry that respectively implements memory components 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each includes a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Memory components 340, 386, and 396 can therefore provide components for storage, retrieval, maintenance, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may include positioning components 342, 388, and 398, respectively. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuitry that is part of or coupled to processing systems 332, 384, and 394, respectively, which, when executed, causes UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein. In other respects, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be external to processing systems 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be memory modules stored in memory components 340, 386, and 396, respectively, which enable UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein when executed by processing systems 332, 384, and 394 (or modem processing system, another processing system, etc.). Figure 3A Possible locations for the positioning component 342 are shown. It may be part of the WWAN transceiver 310, memory component 340, processing system 332, or any combination thereof, or it may be a standalone component. Figure 3B Possible locations for the positioning component 388 are shown. It may be part of the WWAN transceiver 350, memory component 386, processing system 384, or any combination thereof, or it may be a standalone component. Figure 3C Possible locations for the positioning component 398 are shown. It may be part of the network interface 390, memory component 396, processing system 394, or any combination thereof, or it may be a standalone component.

[0070] UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to processing system 332 to provide components for sensing or detecting motion and / or orientation information independent of motion data derived from signals received by WWAN transceiver 310, short-range wireless transceiver 320, and / or SPS receiver 330. For example, sensor 344 may include accelerometers (e.g., microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices), gyroscopes, geomagnetic sensors (e.g., compasses), altimeters (e.g., barometric altimeters), and / or any other type of motion detection sensor. Furthermore, sensor 344 may include various different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, sensor 344 may use a combination of multi-axis accelerometers and orientation sensors to provide the ability to calculate position in 2D and / or 3D coordinate systems.

[0071] Additionally, UE 302 includes a user interface 346, which provides components for providing instructions to the user (e.g., auditory and / or visual instructions) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., after user actuation of sensing devices such as keyboards, touchscreens, microphones, etc.). Although not shown, base station 304 and network entity 306 may also include user interfaces.

[0072] Referring more specifically to processing system 384, in the downlink, IP packets from network entity 306 can be provided to processing system 384. Processing system 384 can implement functions targeting the RRC layer, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and Media Access Control (MAC) layer. The processing system 384 can provide RRC layer functions associated with broadcasting system information (e.g., Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration of UE measurement reports; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functions associated with transmission of upper-layer PDUs, error correction via Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC Service Data Units (SDUs), resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority processing, and logical channel priority ordering.

[0073] Transmitter 354 and receiver 352 can implement Layer 1 (L1) functions associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1 (which includes the physical (PHY) layer) can include error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) decoding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. Transmitter 354 processes the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The decoded and modulated symbols can then be divided into parallel streams. Each stream can then be mapped to orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarriers, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and / or frequency domains, and then combined using inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially pre-decoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from the channel estimator can be used to determine the decoding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimates can be derived from a reference signal transmitted by UE 302 and / or channel condition feedback. Each spatial stream can then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. Transmitter 354 can modulate an RF carrier with the corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0074] At UE 302, receiver 312 receives signals via its corresponding antenna 316. Receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides this information to processing system 332. Transmitter 314 and receiver 312 implement Layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. Receiver 312 can perform spatial processing on this information to recover any spatial stream destined for UE 302. If multiple spatial streams are destined for UE 302, they can be combined by receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. Receiver 312 then uses a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to convert the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain. The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. Symbols on each subcarrier, along with a reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most probable signal constellation points transmitted by base station 304. These soft decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by a channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to the processing system 332 that implements the functions of layer 3 (L3) and layer 2 (L2).

[0075] In the uplink, processing system 332 provides demultiplexing, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing between the transport channel and the logical channel to recover IP packets from the core network. Processing system 332 is also responsible for error detection.

[0076] Similar to the functions described in conjunction with downlink transmissions performed by base station 304, processing system 332 provides RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connectivity, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions associated with transmission of upper-layer PDUs, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs to transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ), priority processing, and logical channel priority ordering.

[0077] The channel estimate derived from the reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 via the channel estimator can be used by the transmitter 314 to select an appropriate decoding and modulation scheme and facilitate spatial processing. The spatial stream generated by the transmitter 314 can be provided to different antennas 316. The transmitter 314 can modulate the RF carrier with the corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0078] Uplink transmissions are processed at base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver function at UE 302. Receiver 352 receives signals via its corresponding antenna 356. Receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to processing system 384.

[0079] In the uplink, processing system 384 provides demultiplexing, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing between the transport channel and the logical channel to recover IP packets from UE 302. IP packets from processing system 384 can be provided to the core network. Processing system 384 is also responsible for error detection.

[0080] For convenience, UE 302, base station 304 and / or network entity 306 are in Figures 3A to 3C The blocks shown are intended to include various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it should be understood that the blocks shown may have different functionalities in different designs.

[0081] Various components of UE 302, base station 304 and network entity 306 can communicate with each other via data buses 334, 382 and 392 respectively. Figures 3A to 3C Components can be implemented in various ways. In some implementations, Figures 3A to 3C The components can be implemented in one or more circuits, such as, for example, one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors). Here, each circuit may use and / or incorporate at least one memory component for storing information or executable code used by the circuit to provide the functionality. For example, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 310 to 346 can be implemented by the processor and memory components of UE 302 (e.g., through the execution of appropriate code and / or through the appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 350 to 388 can be implemented by the processor and memory components of base station 304 (e.g., through the execution of appropriate code and / or through the appropriate configuration of the processor components). Furthermore, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 390 to 398 can be implemented by the processor and memory components of network entity 306 (e.g., through the execution of appropriate code and / or through the appropriate configuration of the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, actions, and / or functions are described herein as being performed "by the UE", "by the base station", "by the network entity", etc. However, as will be understood, such operations, actions and / or functions can actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of the UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc., such as processing systems 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350 and 360, memory components 340, 386 and 396, positioning components 342, 388 and 398, etc.

[0082] NR supports various cellular network-based positioning technologies, including downlink-based, uplink-based, and downlink-and-uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, Downlink Time Difference of Arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and Downlink Angle of Departure (DL-AoD) in NR. During OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning, the UE measures the difference between the times of arrival (ToA) of a reference signal (e.g., PRS, TRS, CSI-RS, SSB, etc.) received from the base station, referred to as the Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD) or Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) measurement, and reports them to the positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives identifiers (IDs) of a reference base station (e.g., the serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in auxiliary data. The UE then measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each of the non-reference base stations. Based on the known locations of the relevant base stations and the RSTD measurement, the positioning entity can estimate the UE's location. For DL-AoD positioning, the base station measures the angle of the downlink transmit beam used to communicate with the UE and other channel characteristics (e.g., signal strength) to estimate the UE's location.

[0083] Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA is similar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) transmitted by the UE. For UL-AoA positioning, the base station measures the angle of the uplink received beam used to communicate with the UE and other channel characteristics (e.g., gain level) to estimate the UE's location.

[0084] Downlink and uplink-based positioning methods include Enhanced Cell ID (E-CID) positioning and Multiple Round-Trip Time (RTT) positioning (also known as "Multi-Cell RTT"). During RTT, the initiator (base station or UE) sends an RTT measurement signal (e.g., PRS or SRS) to the responder (UE or base station), which sends an RTT response signal (e.g., SRS or PRS) back to the initiator. The RTT response signal includes the difference between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response signal, referred to as the receive-to-transmit (Rx-Tx) measurement. The initiator calculates the difference between the transmission time of the RTT measurement signal and the ToA of the RTT response signal, referred to as the "Tx-Rx" measurement. The propagation time (also known as "time of flight") between the initiator and responder can be calculated from the Tx-Rx and Rx-Tx measurements. Based on the propagation time and the known speed of light, the distance between the initiator and responder can be determined. For multi-RTT positioning, the UE performs RTT procedures with multiple base stations so that its location can be triangulated based on the known locations of the base stations. RTT and multiple RTT methods can be combined with other positioning technologies, such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD, to improve location accuracy.

[0085] The E-CID positioning method is based on Radio Resource Management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, timing advance (TA), and identifiers, estimated timings, and signal strengths of detected neighboring base stations. The UE's location is then estimated based on this information and the known locations of the base stations.

[0086] To assist in the positioning operation, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) can provide auxiliary data to the UE. For example, auxiliary data may include the identifier of the base station (or the cell / TRP of the base station) from which the reference signal is measured, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., the number of consecutive positioning subframes, the periodicity of the positioning subframes, the silence sequence, the frequency hopping sequence, the reference signal identifier, the reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and / or other parameters applicable to a particular positioning method. Alternatively, auxiliary data may be derived directly from the base station itself (e.g., in periodically broadcast overhead messages, etc.). In some cases, the UE may be able to detect neighboring network nodes themselves without using auxiliary data.

[0087] In the case of OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedures, auxiliary data may also include the expected RSTD value and the associated uncertainty or search window around the expected RSTD. In some cases, the expected RSTD value may range from + / - 500 microseconds (µs). In some cases, when any of the resources used for positioning measurements is in FR1, the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may range from + / - 32 µs. In other cases, when all resources used for positioning measurements are in FR2, the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may range from + / - 8 µs.

[0088] Location estimates can be referred to by other names, such as location estimate, location, place, fixed location, etc. A location estimate can be geodetic and include coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possible altitude), or it can be municipal and include street addresses, postal addresses, or some other verbal description of the location. A location estimate can also be defined relative to some other known location or in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possible altitude). A location estimate can include anticipated errors or uncertainties (e.g., by including an area or volume within which the location is expected to include a specified or default confidence level).

[0089] Figure 4 Figure 400 illustrates communication between a base station (BS) 402 (which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein) and a UE 404 (which may correspond to any of the UEs described herein). Reference Figure 4 Base station 402 can transmit beamforming signals to UE 404 on one or more transmit beams 402a, 402b, 402c, 402d, 402e, 402f, 402g, 402h, each transmit beam having a beam identifier that can be used by UE 404 to identify the corresponding beam. Where base station 402 uses a single antenna array (e.g., a single TRP / cell) to perform beamforming toward UE 404, base station 402 can perform a “beam scan” by transmitting the first beam 402a, then beam 402b, and so on, until finally transmitting beam 402h. Alternatively, base station 402 can transmit beams 402a through 402h (such as beam 402a) in a certain pattern, then transmit beam 402h, then beam 402b, then beam 402g, and so on. In the case where base station 402 uses multiple antenna arrays (e.g., multiple TRPs / cells) to beamform toward UE 404, each antenna array can perform beam scanning of a subset of beams 402a to 402h. Alternatively, each of beams 402a to 402h can correspond to a single antenna or antenna array.

[0090] Figure 4 Paths 412c, 412d, 412e, 412f, and 412g are also shown, followed by beamforming signals transmitted on beams 402c, 402d, 402e, 402f, and 402g, respectively. Each path 412c, 412d, 412e, 412f, and 412g can correspond to a single "multipath," or, due to the propagation characteristics of radio frequency (RF) signals through the environment, can consist of multiple (clustered) "multipaths." Note that although only the paths of beams 402c to 402g are shown, this is for simplicity, and the signals transmitted on each of beams 402a to 402h will follow a certain path. In the example shown, paths 412c, 412d, 412e, and 412f are straight lines, while path 412g reflects from an obstacle 420 (e.g., a building, vehicle, terrain feature, etc.).

[0091] UE 404 can receive beamforming signals from base station 402 on one or more receive beams 404a, 404b, 404c, 404d. Note that, for simplicity, Figure 4 The beams shown represent either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on which of the base station 402 and the UE 404 is transmitting and which is receiving. Therefore, the UE 404 can also transmit beamforming signals to the base station 402 on one or more of beams 404a to 404d, and the base station 402 can receive beamforming signals from the UE 404 on one or more of beams 402a to 404h.

[0092] In one aspect, base station 402 and UE 404 can perform beam training to align their transmit and receive beams. For example, depending on environmental conditions and other factors, base station 402 and UE 404 can determine optimal transmit and receive beams as 402d and 404b, or beams 402e and 404c, respectively. The optimal transmit beam direction of base station 402 may or may not be the same as the optimal receive beam direction, and similarly, the optimal receive beam direction of UE 404 may or may not be the same as the optimal transmit beam direction. However, note that aligning the transmit and receive beams is not required when performing downlink angle of arrival (DL-AoD) or uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA) positioning procedures.

[0093] To perform the DL-AoD positioning process, base station 402 can transmit reference signals (e.g., PRS, CRS, TRS, CSI-RS, PSS, SSS, etc.) to UE 404 on one or more of beams 402a to 402h, where each beam has a different transmission angle. The different transmission angles of the beams will result in different received signal strengths (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, etc.) at UE 404. Specifically, the received signal strength of the transmitted beams 402a to 402h, which are farther from the line-of-sight (LOS) path 410 between base station 402 and UE 404, is lower than that of the transmitted beams 402a to 402h, which are closer to the LOS path 410.

[0094] exist Figure 4 In the example, if base station 402 transmits reference signals to UE 404 on beams 402c, 402d, 402e, 402f, and 402g, then transmit beam 402e is optimally aligned with LOS path 410, while transmit beams 402c, 402d, 402f, and 402g are not. Thus, beam 402e may have a higher received signal strength at UE 404 than beams 402c, 402d, 402f, and 402g. Note that reference signals transmitted on some beams (e.g., beams 402c and / or 402f) may not reach UE 404, or the energy reaching UE 404 from these beams may be too low to be detected or at least negligible.

[0095] UE 404 may report to base station 402 the received signal strength (and optionally, associated measurement quality) of each measured transmit beam 402c to 402g, or alternatively, the transmit beam with the highest received signal strength. Figure 4 The example beam 402e is identified. Alternatively or additionally, if UE 404 is also involved in a round-trip time (RTT) or time difference of arrival (TDOA) positioning session with at least one base station 402 or multiple base stations 402, UE 404 may report receive-to-transmit (Rx-Tx) or reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurements (and optionally, associated measurement quality) to the serving base station 402 or other positioning entity. In any case, the positioning entity (e.g., base station 402, location server, third-party client, UE 404, etc.) may estimate the angle from base station 402 to UE 404 as the AoD of the transmit beam (here, transmit beam 402e) with the highest received signal strength at UE 404.

[0096] In one aspect of DL-AoD-based positioning (where only one base station 402 is involved), base station 402 and UE 404 can perform a round-trip time (RTT) procedure to determine the distance between base station 402 and UE 404. Therefore, the positioning entity can determine the direction to UE 404 (using DL-AoD positioning) and the distance to UE 404 (using RTT positioning) to estimate the location of UE 404. Note that the AoD with the highest received signal strength is not necessarily along the LOS path 410, such as... Figure 4 As shown. However, for positioning purposes based on DL-AoD, it is assumed that this is done.

[0097] In another aspect of DL-AoD-based positioning (where multiple base stations 402 are involved), each base station 402 can report the AoD determined for UE 404 to the positioning entity. The positioning entity receives multiple such AoDs from the multiple base stations 402 (or other geographically separated transmission points) involved with UE 404. Using this information and knowledge of the geographic locations of the base stations 402, the positioning entity can estimate the location of UE 404 as the intersection of the received AoDs. For a two-dimensional (2D) positioning solution, at least two base stations 402 should be involved; however, it will be understood that the more base stations 402 involved in the positioning process, the more accurate the estimated location of UE 404 will be.

[0098] To perform the UL-AoA positioning procedure, UE 404 transmits uplink reference signals (e.g., UL-PRS, SRS, DMRS, etc.) to base station 402 on one or more of the uplink transmit beams 404a to 404d. Base station 402 receives the uplink reference signals on one or more of the uplink receive beams 402a to 402h. Base station 402 determines the angle of the optimal receive beams 402a to 402h for receiving one or more reference signals from UE 404 as the AoA from itself to UE 404. Specifically, each of the receive beams 402a to 402h will result in a different received signal strength (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, etc.) for one or more reference signals at base station 402. Furthermore, the channel impulse response of one or more reference signals from the receive beams 402a to 402h that are farther away from the actual LOS path between base station 402 and UE 404 is lower than that from the receive beams 402a to 402h that are closer to the LOS path. Similarly, the received signal strength of the received beams 402a to 402h farther from the LOS path is lower than that of the received beams 402a to 402h closer to the LOS path. Thus, base station 402 identifies the received beams 402a to 402h that result in the highest received signal strength (and optionally, the strongest channel impulse response), and estimates the AoA of that received beam 402a to 402h from its angle to UE 404. Note that, as with DL-AoD-based positioning, the AoA of the received beams 402a to 402h that result in the highest received signal strength (and, if measured, the strongest channel impulse response) is not necessarily along the LOS path 410. However, for UL-AoA-based positioning purposes, this is assumed.

[0099] Note that although UE 404 is shown to be capable of beamforming, this is not necessary for DL-AoD and UL-AoA positioning procedures. Instead, UE 404 can perform both reception and transmission on an omnidirectional antenna.

[0100] In the scenario where UE 404 is estimating its location (i.e., the UE is the location entity), it needs to obtain the geographic location of base station 402. UE 404 can obtain its location from, for example, base station 402 itself or a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF270, SLP 272). Using the distance to base station 402 (based on RTT or timing advance), the angle between base station 402 and UE 404 (based on the UL-AoA of the optimal receive beams 402a to 402h), and the known geographic location of base station 402, UE 404 can estimate its location.

[0101] Alternatively, in cases where a positioning entity, such as base station 402 or a location server, is estimating the location of UE 404, base station 402 reports the AOA of received beams 402a to 402h, which results in the highest received signal strength (and optionally, the strongest channel impulse response) of the reference signal received from UE 404, or all received signal strengths and channel impulse responses of all received beams 402 (which allows the positioning entity to determine the optimal received beams 402a to 402h). Furthermore, base station 402 may report the distance to UE 404. The positioning entity can then estimate the location of UE 404 based on the distance from UE 404 to base station 402, the AoA of the identified received beams 402a to 402h, and the known geographic location of base station 402.

[0102] There are various motivations for enhancing angle-based positioning methods (e.g., DL-AoD, UL-AoA). For example, the bandwidth of the measurement signal does not significantly affect the accuracy of angle-based methods. As another example, angle-based methods are insensitive to network synchronization errors. As yet another example, massive MIMO is available in both FR1 and FR2, enabling angle measurement. As yet another example, UE-based positioning supports DL-AoD, and UL-AoA can naturally complement RTT or uplink-based positioning methods without additional overhead.

[0103] Figure 5 This is a diagram illustrating the types of positioning errors associated with positioning methods based on downlink or uplink angles (e.g., DL-AoD, UL-AoA) according to aspects of this disclosure. Figure 5 In the example, base station 502 (e.g., any of the base stations described herein) performs beamforming toward UE 504 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). Base station 502 may transmit downlink reference signals (e.g., PRS) to UE 504 and / or receive uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) from UE 504 on multiple beams 510. In the former case, beam 510 may be a downlink transmit beam, and in the latter case, beam 510 may be an uplink receive beam.

[0104] like Figure 5As shown, the location of UE 504 lies on a circumference defined by the cell radius (i.e., the distance between base station 502 and UE 504) and the angle and width of the optimal beam 510 used for communication with UE 504. Therefore, the location of UE 504 can be estimated based on the location of base station 502, the cell radius, and the angle and width of the optimal beam 510. However, the estimated location of UE 504 is affected by different types of errors. Specifically, there are angle estimation errors (i.e., errors in estimating the angle of the optimal beam 510) and circumferential position errors (i.e., errors in the position of UE 504 on the circumference defined by the angle and width of the optimal beam 510).

[0105] The table below shows example location errors (along the circumference) based on different angle estimation errors. Specifically, the rows show the location errors for a given specific angle error (leftmost column) and cell radius. The last row shows the implied standard deviation (ISD) for each example cell radius.

[0106]

[0107] Table 1

[0108] As shown in Table 1 above, angular accuracy (or angular error) should be within a few degrees to have a significant impact on positioning accuracy. For example, as shown in Table 1, at a 200-meter ISD, the angular error should be within one to two degrees to keep the position error below 3 meters.

[0109] Figure 6 Figure 600 illustrates another aspect of DL-AoD positioning according to aspects of this disclosure. Figure 6 In the example, TRP 602 (e.g., the TRP of any of the base stations described herein) performs beamforming toward UE 604 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). TRP 602 may transmit downlink reference signals (e.g., PRS) to UE 604 on multiple downlink transmit beams labeled “1”, “2”, “3”, “4”, and “5”.

[0110] Each potential location of UE 604 around TRP 602 in the orientation domain can be represented as follows: For simplicity, Figure 6 Only four possible positions of UE 604 around TRP 602 are shown, which are represented as follows , , and For a DL-AoD positioning session, UE 604 measures the signal strength (e.g., RSRP) of each detectable downlink transmit beam from TRP 602. The circles on each line between TRP 602 and the indicated location of UE 604 indicate where on the measurable beam the signal strength measurement will occur. That is, the circle represents the relative signal strength that UE 604 will measure for each beam intersecting that line, with circles closer to UE 604 indicating higher signal strength.

[0111] For each potential location where UE 604 may be located And for each beam being transmitted TRP 602 calculates the expected signal strength / received power at UE 604. TRP602 will each normalized vector Export as:

[0112]

[0113] TRP 602 then transmits the PRS resource to UE 604 on the downlink transmit beam. Each beam may correspond to a different PRS resource, or the same PRS resource may be transmitted on each beam, or a combination thereof. UE 604 may report up to eight RSRPs, with one RSRP reported for each PRS resource. TRP 602 (or other positioning entity) represents the receive vector of the normalized RSRP as follows: And search for the cause near of .

[0114] To export vectors The base stations involved need to report vectors to the location server or UE (i.e., the location entity), or report the beam response for each PRS resource. Figure 7 Figure 700 shows a TRP 702 (e.g., the TRP of any of the base stations described herein) that sends a first PRS resource (labeled "PRS1") to a possible location of a UE 704 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) in the azimuth domain. Figure 8 It shows the source Figure 7 Figure 800 shows the beam response curve of PRS1 in the azimuth domain. The beam response is the shape of the beam transmitted by the base station (here, TRP 702). The horizontal axis of Figure 800 represents the azimuth angle (in degrees), and the vertical axis represents the beam response (normalized to '1').

[0115] Figure 9Figure 900 illustrates a TRP 902 (e.g., the TRP of any of the base stations described herein) sending a second PRS resource (labeled "PRS2") to a possible location of a UE 904 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) in the azimuth domain. Figure 10 It shows the source Figure 9 The beam response curve of PRS2 in the azimuth domain is shown in Figure 1000. The horizontal axis of Figure 1000 represents the azimuth angle (in degrees), and the vertical axis represents the beam response (normalized to '1').

[0116] Figure 11 This is a graph 1100 showing the beam response of three different PRS resources in the azimuth domain. Specifically, graph 1100 shows the beam shape of the three downlink beams on which the base station transmits DL-PRS. The horizontal axis of graph 1100 represents the azimuth angle (in degrees), and the vertical axis represents the beam response (normalized to '1'). For each azimuth angle, the relative beam response is information used for comparison with the reported relative RSRP. For example, a UE located at -20 degrees in the azimuth domain is expected to report RSRP values ​​for the three downlink transmitted beams, corresponding to the point on the beam response shown that intersects the vertical line at -20 degrees. Note that the UE may not report the exact expected RSRP values, but a series of reported RSRP values ​​should be able to match the location in the azimuth domain (here, -20 degrees) based on the beam response. That is, the UE can report a series of RSRP values, and the positioning entity can measure the beam response of the measured downlink transmitted beams based on the reported RSRP (e.g., ...). Figure 11 The position of the UE in the azimuth domain is determined by aligning the UE with the -20 degree (in the azimuth domain).

[0117] Therefore, the positioning entity needs to know the beam response of the downlink transmitted beam in order to determine the point on the beam response corresponding to the measured RSRP. Different options have been proposed to report the beam response of the downlink transmitted beam to the positioning entity (referred to as "beamform assist information"). As a first option, the base station can report for each possible angle. Where P is the expected received power (e.g., RSRP), N is the number of angles, and k is the angle exponent. Specifically, the base station may report a list of angles (AoD and / or AoA, or ZoD and / or ZoA, or a combination of AoD and / or AoA and ZoD and / or ZoA). For each angle, the base station may report a list of PRS resource identifiers and a list of radiated power (density) for that angle, each associated with a PRS resource identifier. As a second option, the base station may report the beam response for each PRS resource across AoD and / or ZoD. Specifically, the base station may report a list of PRS resource identifiers. For each PRS resource identifier, the base station may report a list of angles (AoD and / or AoA, or ZoD and / or ZoA, or a combination of AoD and / or AoA and ZoD and / or ZoA) and a list of radiated power (density) for the PRS resource, each associated with an angle.

[0118] This disclosure provides techniques for reducing the amount of signaling required for beam response / shape reporting (also referred to as "beam response report" or "beam shape report" or simply "beam report") that includes beam shape assistance information. For example, a base station may transmit eight PRS resources and need to report angular granularity every 0.5 degrees within a 120-degree range in the azimuth and zenith (elevation) domains. Each value of five bits (providing 1 dB granularity) results in a typical beam response / shape report size of 2.3 megabytes (MB) per TRP (i.e., 5 * 8 * 240 * 240 = 2.3 MB). This beam response report size may allow the base station to report to a location server (as in UE-assisted positioning), but is excessive for over-the-air (OTA) signaling to the UE (where the UE is the positioning entity, as in UE-based positioning).

[0119] Therefore, this disclosure recommends including only the most important parts of the beam response / shape in the beam report. This can significantly reduce signaling overhead with minimal impact on performance. For example, the base station could report only the angle of the beam response, where the gain is within 'X' dB of the dominant peak of the beam response (e.g., in...). Figure 10 In the example, anything with a normalized gain greater than 0.1, or approximately -3 to -15 degrees. The value of 'X' can be configurable. For example, the value of 'X' can be determined by the Operation, Administration and Maintenance (OAM) configuration and can be signaled to all involved entities (e.g., the involved base station / TRP, UE, and / or location server).

[0120] The truncated (or reduced) beam response / shape can be signaled / reported in different ways. As a first signaling format, beam reporting can represent the truncated beam response as a set of tuples (e.g., a table) indicating that the gain value at each azimuth and elevation angle has a gain value greater than or equal to 'X'. That is, for the portion of the beam response with a gain greater than 'X', the beam report will include a set of {azimuth, elevation, gain} tuples, where each tuple indicates the gain of the beam response at a specific azimuth and elevation increment (e.g., 0.5 degrees). Therefore, for example, if five bits are needed to represent the gain value, and there exists a situation where eight PRS resources need to be reported, with azimuth and elevation ranges of 10 degrees and angle reporting granularity (or quantization) of 0.5 degrees, then the report size for the gain value would be 16 kilobytes (kB) (i.e., 5 * 8 * 20 * 20 = 16 kB), plus the number of bits required to represent 80 angle values ​​(i.e., 20 azimuth and 20 elevation in 0.5-degree increments). This first signaling format has the added overhead of two additional fields (azimuth and elevation fields), but it is advantageous if the reported beamwidth is very small (e.g., a few degrees).

[0121] As a second signaling format, beam reporting can include minimum and maximum azimuth, minimum and maximum elevation, and beam gain matrices for those azimuth and elevation angles between the minimum and maximum angles. The minimum and maximum angles are the angles between which the beam response gain value is greater than or equal to 'X'. The matrix can be a two-dimensional (2D) matrix, with one axis representing the azimuth and the other representing the elevation. Each axis will represent the angle value from the minimum to the maximum angle. The axes can have a predefined granularity (or quantization), such as 0.5 degrees. Thus, for example, for an angle value range from -30 degrees to -20 degrees (i.e., 10 degrees), the matrix would have 20 rows and 20 columns (each representing 10 angles in 0.5-degree increments). This signaling format reduces overhead compared to the first signaling format by reporting only the minimum and maximum azimuth and elevation angle values ​​instead of the azimuth and elevation angles for each gain value. The UE will know the angle granularity through a certain configuration (e.g., specified by applicable standards, higher-layer signaling, etc.) and therefore knows how to interpret the gain value matrix. Thus, for example, if five bits are needed to represent the gain value, there are eight PRS resources that need to be reported, the difference between the minimum and maximum angle values ​​is 20 degrees, and the granularity is 0.5 degrees. Then, for the gain value, the report size will be 64kB (i.e., 5*8*40*40=64 kB), plus the number of bits required to represent four angle values ​​(i.e., two maximum angle values ​​and two minimum angle values).

[0122] As a third signaling format, beam reporting can use either the first or second signaling format for critical parts of the beam response, and then include several additional sparse {azimuth, elevation, gain} tuples to better capture the characteristics of the beam shape. For example, refer to... Figure 10 The beam report can use either the first or second signaling format for angle values ​​with a normalized gain greater than 0.1 (approximately -3 to -15 degrees). The beam report can then include several additional {azimuth, elevation, gain} tuples to capture smaller peaks at approximately -22 degrees, 5 degrees, 12 degrees, and 20 degrees.

[0123] As an alternative technique for quantizing beam response (or beam shape), as described above, basis functions can be used to report the beam response. A basis function is a function that can be used to approximate the beam response / shape given certain parameters. More specifically, a basis function takes certain parameters as input (e.g., beam peak, beamwidth, beam angle, number of antenna elements) and outputs an approximation of the beam response / shape for those parameters.

[0124] Figure 12 Figure 1200 shows an example scenario in which TRP 1202 (e.g., the TRP of any of the base stations described herein) transmits a reference signal (e.g., a PRS) on six downlink transmission beams labeled “1” to “6”. TRP 1202 can beamform the reference signal toward one or more UEs 1204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). Figure 12 In the examples, the structure (e.g., beam shape) of each beam is identical, only the beam orientation differs. Note that applying an antenna element pattern to the top of the beam will change the effective beam pattern. It should also be noted that the greater the distance from the line of sight of the antenna panel forming the beam, the greater the beamwidth relative to the line of sight, such as... Figure 5 As shown. Therefore, the beam shape will be more accurately represented as a cone rather than an ellipse.

[0125] Figure 13 Figure 1300 shows an example scenario where TRP 1302 (e.g., the TRP of any of the base stations described herein) transmits a reference signal (e.g., a PRS) on six downlink transmission beams labeled “1” to “6”. TRP 1302 can beamform the reference signal toward one or more UEs 1304 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). Figure 13 In the examples, there are different sets of beam shapes. Specifically, in Figure 13 In the example, beams “1”, “3”, “5” and “6” have the same shape, and beams “2” and “4” have the same shape.

[0126] The same basis functions can be used for every beam with the same structure / shape. Therefore, a single basis function can be used for Figure 12 The entire beam shown requires two basis functions for... Figure 13 The beams shown are (i.e., one basis function is used for beams “1”, “3”, “5” and “6”, and different basis functions are used for beams “2” and “4”).

[0127] The beam response report provided to the UE (by a base station or location server) may include beam basis functions for each beam set having the same shape, one or more parameters describing the beam shape (e.g., beam peak, beamwidth, beam angle, number of antenna elements) that will be input to each basis function, the antenna element style for each beam, and the mapping from beam index to beam shape and its associated parameters.

[0128] Basis functions can be predefined functions, such as sinc functions (used for Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) beamforming), Gaussian functions, wavelet functions, etc. The base station can send different basis functions to the location server via NR Positioning Protocol Type A (NRPPa) or LTE Positioning Protocol Type A (LPPa) signaling, and different basis functions to the UE via RRC or Positioning SIB (pos-SIB) signaling, or both. Alternatively, the location server can relay basis functions to the UE via LPP signaling. Basis functions are expected to be essentially static and do not change over time (because given the same input parameters, the beamform represented by the basis function should be the same). Therefore, the UE and / or location server only need to receive the basis function once during a positioning session.

[0129] If basis functions are used, all downlink transmit beams of a base station can be represented as a linear combination of basis functions. In one aspect, beam i can be represented as... In this way, the base station will only need to send the basis function (F) and the parameter set. (i=1 to N), if the base station is using predefined parameters, then only... (i=1 to N) are sent together with the basis function type (e.g., sinc, Gaussian, wavelet, etc.).

[0130] Figure 14 An example method 1400 for wireless communication according to an aspect of this disclosure is shown. In one aspect, method 1400 may be performed by a location entity (e.g., UE, location server, LMF in RAN, etc.).

[0131] At 1410, the positioning entity receives a beam report from a network entity (e.g., a base station, a location server, a UE). This beam report includes beam shape assistance information for one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, corresponding to a positioning reference signal resource (e.g., a PRS resource) to be measured by the UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). The beam shape assistance information indicates at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams, or a quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams. In one aspect, when the positioning entity is a UE, operation 1410 can be performed by a WWAN transceiver 310, a short-range radio transceiver 320, a processing system 332, a memory component 340, and a positioning component 342, any one or all of which can be considered as components for performing this operation. In one aspect, when the positioning entity is a network entity, operation 1410 can be performed by network interface 390, processing system 394, memory component 396 and positioning component 398, any one or all of which can be regarded as a component for performing the operation.

[0132] At 1420, the positioning entity determines the UE's location based at least on signal strength measurements of positioning reference signal resources (e.g., RSRP) and beamform auxiliary information. In one aspect, when the positioning entity is a UE, operation 1420 can be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, short-range radio transceiver 320, processing system 332, memory component 340, and positioning component 342, any one or all of which can be considered as components for performing the operation. In another aspect, when the positioning entity is a network entity, operation 1420 can be performed by the network interface 390, processing system 394, memory component 396, and positioning component 398, any one or all of which can be considered as components for performing the operation.

[0133] Figure 15 An example method 1500 for wireless communication according to an aspect of this disclosure is shown. In one aspect, method 1500 may be performed by a base station (e.g., any of the base stations described herein).

[0134] At 1510, the base station sends a beam report to the positioning entity. This beam report includes beam shape auxiliary information for one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, which correspond to a positioning reference signal resource (e.g., a PRS resource) to be measured by the UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). The beam shape auxiliary information indicates at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams, or a quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams. In one aspect, operation 1510 can be performed by a WWAN transceiver 350, a short-range radio transceiver 360, a processing system 384, a memory component 386, and a positioning component 388, any one or all of which can be considered as components for performing this operation.

[0135] At 1520, the base station transmits positioning reference signal resources on one or more downlink transmission beams. In one aspect, operation 1520 can be performed by WWAN transceiver 350, short-range radio transceiver 360, processing system 384, memory component 386, and positioning component 388, any one or all of which can be considered as components for performing the operation.

[0136] It should be understood that the technical advantages of methods 1400 and 1500 include reducing signaling overhead for beam reporting and increasing positioning accuracy through the use of beamform.

[0137] As can be seen in the detailed description above, different features are combined together in the examples. This manner of disclosure should not be construed as an intention to include more features in the example clauses than are expressly mentioned in each clause. Rather, aspects of this disclosure may include fewer features than those in any single example clause disclosed. Therefore, the following clauses should be considered incorporated herein by reference, with each clause serving as a separate example. Although each dependent clause may refer in the clause to a specific combination with one of the other clauses, the aspect of that dependent clause is not limited to that specific combination. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include combinations of aspects of a dependent clause with the subject matter of any other dependent or independent clause, or any feature combined with other dependent and independent clauses. These combinations are expressly included in the aspects disclosed herein unless expressly stated or readily inferred that a particular combination is not intended (e.g., contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as both an insulator and a conductor). Furthermore, it is intended that aspects of a clause be included in any other independent clause, even if that clause is not directly subordinate to that independent clause.

[0138] Examples of implementation methods are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0139] Clause 1. A method of wireless communication performed by a positioning entity, comprising: receiving a beam report from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape assistance information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a positioning reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape assistance information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; and determining the location of the UE based at least on signal strength measurements of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape assistance information.

[0140] Clause 2. The method according to Clause 1, wherein the beam shape auxiliary information indicates at least one basis function that represents the beam shape of each of one or more downlink transmit beams.

[0141] Clause 3. The method according to Clause 2 further includes: receiving at least one basis function from a network entity, wherein the beam shape auxiliary information includes an identifier of at least one basis function.

[0142] Clause 4. The method according to Clause 3, wherein receiving at least one basis function comprises: receiving at least one basis function once during a positioning session between the base station and the UE.

[0143] Clause 5. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 4 further comprises: receiving from a network entity one or more parameters as input to at least one basis function, antenna element patterns of one or more downlink transmit beams, and mapping from beam indices of one or more downlink transmit beams to beam shapes of one or more downlink transmit beams.

[0144] Clause 6. The method according to Clause 5, wherein one or more parameters include beam peak, beamwidth, beam angle, number of antenna elements, or any combination thereof for each of one or more downlink transmit beams.

[0145] Clause 7. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 6, wherein at least one basis function is a sine function, a Gaussian function, or a wavelet function.

[0146] Clause 8. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 7, wherein at least one basis function comprises a single basis function for each of one or more downlink transmit beams having the same beam shape.

[0147] Clause 9. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 8, wherein the beam shape auxiliary information includes at least one basis function.

[0148] Clause 10. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 7 and 9, wherein at least one basis function comprises a plurality of basis functions, and all or one downlink transmit beams are represented as a linear combination of the plurality of basis functions.

[0149] Clause 11. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 10, wherein beam i in one or more downlink transmit beams is represented as:

[0150]

[0151] Where N is the number of one or more parameters input to the at least one basis function, F is the at least one basis function, and a represents the one or more parameters.

[0152] Clause 12. The method according to Clause 1, wherein the beam shape auxiliary information indicates the quantization of the reduced portion of each beam in one or more downlink transmit beams.

[0153] Clause 13. The method according to Clause 12, wherein the quantization of the reduced portion includes a first beam gain value of one or more downlink transmit beams that is above a threshold.

[0154] Clause 14. The method according to Clause 13, wherein the quantization of the reduced portion further includes the azimuth and elevation angles of each of the first beam gain values.

[0155] Clause 15. The method according to any one of Clauses 13 to 14, wherein the first beam gain value is represented as a beam gain matrix from minimum azimuth to maximum azimuth and from minimum elevation to maximum azimuth.

[0156] Clause 16. The method according to any one of Clauses 13 to 15, wherein the quantization of the reduced portion further includes a second beam gain value below a threshold.

[0157] Clause 17. The method according to Clause 16, wherein the first granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the first beam gain value is finer than the second granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the second beam gain value.

[0158] Clause 18. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 17, wherein the positioning entity is a UE.

[0159] Clause 19. The method described in Clause 18 further includes: performing a signal strength measurement of the positioning reference signal resource.

[0160] Clause 20. The method according to any one of Clauses 18 to 19, wherein the determination comprises: sending a signal strength measurement to a location server so that the location server is able to determine the location of the UE.

[0161] Clause 21. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 20, wherein the network entity is a base station.

[0162] Clause 22. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 20, wherein the network entity is a location server.

[0163] Clause 23. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 22, wherein the positioning entity is a location server.

[0164] Clause 24. A method of wireless communication performed by a base station, comprising: transmitting a beam report to a positioning entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to positioning reference signal resources to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating at least one basis function representing the beam shape of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams or quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; and transmitting the positioning reference signal resources on the one or more downlink transmitted beams.

[0165] Clause 25. The method according to Clause 24, wherein the beam shape auxiliary information indicates at least one basis function that represents the beam shape of each of one or more downlink transmit beams.

[0166] Clause 26. The method according to Clause 25 further comprises: sending at least one basis function to the positioning entity, wherein the beam shape auxiliary information includes an identifier of at least one basis function.

[0167] Clause 27. The method according to Clause 26, wherein sending at least one basis function comprises: sending at least one basis function once during a positioning session between the base station and the UE.

[0168] Clause 28. The method according to any one of Clauses 25 to 27 further comprises: transmitting to the positioning entity one or more parameters as input to at least one basis function, antenna element patterns of one or more downlink transmit beams, and a mapping from beam indices of one or more downlink transmit beams to beam shapes of one or more downlink transmit beams.

[0169] Clause 29. The method according to Clause 28, wherein one or more parameters include beam peak, beamwidth, beam angle, number of antenna elements, or any combination thereof for each of one or more downlink transmit beams.

[0170] Clause 30. The method according to any one of Clauses 25 to 29, wherein at least one basis function is a sine function, a Gaussian function, or a wavelet function.

[0171] Clause 31. The method according to any one of Clauses 25 to 30, wherein at least one basis function comprises a single basis function for each of one or more downlink transmit beams having the same beam shape.

[0172] Clause 32. The method according to any one of Clauses 25 to 31, wherein the beam shape auxiliary information includes at least one basis function.

[0173] Clause 33. The method according to any one of Clauses 25 to 30 and 32, wherein at least one basis function comprises a plurality of basis functions, and all or one downlink transmit beams are represented as a linear combination of the plurality of basis functions.

[0174] Clause 34. The method according to any one of Clauses 25 to 33, wherein beam i in one or more downlink transmit beams is represented as:

[0175]

[0176] Where N is the number of one or more parameters input to at least one basis function, F is at least one basis function, and a represents one or more parameters.

[0177] Clause 35. The method according to Clause 24, wherein the beam shape auxiliary information indicates the quantization of the reduced portion of each beam in one or more downlink transmit beams.

[0178] Clause 36. The method according to Clause 35, wherein the quantization of the reduced portion includes a first beam gain value of one or more downlink transmit beams that is above a threshold.

[0179] Clause 37. The method according to Clause 36, wherein the quantization of the reduced portion further includes the azimuth and elevation angles of each of the first beam gain values.

[0180] Clause 38. The method according to any one of Clauses 36 to 37, wherein the first beam gain value is represented as a beam gain matrix from minimum azimuth to maximum azimuth and from minimum elevation to maximum azimuth.

[0181] Clause 39. The method according to any one of Clauses 36 to 38, wherein the quantization of the reduced portion further includes a second beam gain value below a threshold.

[0182] Clause 40. The method according to Clause 39, wherein the first granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the first beam gain value is finer than the second granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the second beam gain value.

[0183] Clause 41. The method according to any one of Clauses 24 to 40, wherein the positioning entity is a UE.

[0184] Clause 42. The method according to any one of Clauses 24 to 40, wherein the positioning entity is a location server.

[0185] Clause 43. An apparatus comprising a memory and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the memory and the at least one processor being configured to perform a method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 42.

[0186] Clause 44. An apparatus comprising components for performing the method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 42.

[0187] Clause 45. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions including at least one instruction for causing a computer or processor to perform a method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 42.

[0188] Those skilled in the art will understand that information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and skills. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the foregoing specification can be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, light fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0189] Furthermore, those skilled in the art will understand that the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithmic steps described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability between hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally according to their functionality. Whether this functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the system as a whole. Those skilled in the art can implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application; however, such implementation decisions should not be construed as departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[0190] The various illustrative logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented or executed using a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA, or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor can be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0191] The methods, sequences, and / or algorithms described in conjunction with the aspects disclosed herein can be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or a combination of both. The software module can reside in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROMs, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. Example storage media are coupled to a processor such that the processor can read information from and write information to the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium can be integrated with the processor. The processor and storage medium can reside in an ASIC. The ASIC can reside in a user terminal (e.g., a UE). Alternatively, the processor and storage medium can reside as discrete components in the user terminal.

[0192] In one or more example aspects, the described functionality can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functionality can be stored or transmitted thereon as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media, which include any medium that facilitates the transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Storage media can be any available medium accessible to a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disc storage devices, disk storage devices or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the required program code in the form of instructions or data structures, and is accessible to a computer. Furthermore, any connection is appropriately referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. As used herein, disks and optical discs include compact discs (CDs), laser discs, optical discs, digital multifunction discs (DVDs), floppy disks, and Blu-ray discs, where disks typically copy data magnetically, while optical discs copy data optically using lasers. Combinations of these should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0193] While the foregoing disclosure illustrates illustrative aspects of this disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications may be made herein without departing from the scope of this disclosure as defined by the appended claims. The functions, steps, and / or actions of the method claims according to the aspects of the disclosure described herein do not need to be performed in any particular order. Furthermore, although elements of this disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural form is contemplated unless expressly stated to be limited to the singular.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication performed by a positioning entity, comprising: A beam report is received from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape assistance information for one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a location reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape assistance information indicating the quantization of the reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; as well as The location of the UE is determined based at least on the signal strength measurement of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape auxiliary information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion includes a first beam gain value of the one or more downlink transmit beams that is above a threshold.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion also includes the azimuth and elevation angles of each of the first beam gain values.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein, The first beam gain value is represented as a beam gain matrix from minimum azimuth to maximum azimuth and from minimum elevation to maximum azimuth.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion also includes a second beam gain value below the threshold.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein, The first granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the first beam gain value is finer than the second granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the second beam gain value.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The location entity is the UE.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising: Perform the signal strength measurement of the positioning reference signal resource.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein, The determination includes: The signal strength measurement is sent to a location server so that the location server can determine the location of the UE.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The network entity is the base station.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The network entity is a location server.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The location entity is a location server.

13. A method for wireless communication performed by a base station, comprising: A beam report is sent to the positioning entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to positioning reference signal resources to be measured by user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating the quantization of the reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; as well as The positioning reference signal resources are transmitted on one or more downlink transmission beams.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion includes a first beam gain value of the one or more downlink transmit beams that is above a threshold.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion also includes the azimuth and elevation angles of each of the first beam gain values.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein, The first beam gain value is represented as a beam gain matrix from minimum azimuth to maximum azimuth and from minimum elevation to maximum azimuth.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion also includes a second beam gain value below the threshold.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein, The first granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the first beam gain value is finer than the second granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the second beam gain value.

19. The method according to claim 13, wherein, The location entity is the UE.

20. The method according to claim 13, wherein, The location entity is a location server.

21. A positioning entity, comprising: At least one memory including instructions; At least one transceiver; as well as At least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to execute the instructions to cause the positioning entity to: A beam report is received from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape assistance information for one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a location reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape assistance information indicating the quantization of the reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; as well as The location of the UE is determined based at least on the signal strength measurement of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape auxiliary information.

22. The positioning entity according to claim 21, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion includes a first beam gain value of the one or more downlink transmit beams that is above a threshold.

23. The positioning entity according to claim 22, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion also includes the azimuth and elevation angles of each of the first beam gain values.

24. The positioning entity according to claim 22, wherein, The first beam gain value is represented as a beam gain matrix from minimum azimuth to maximum azimuth and from minimum elevation to maximum azimuth.

25. The positioning entity according to claim 22, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion also includes a second beam gain value below the threshold.

26. The positioning entity according to claim 25, wherein, The first granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the first beam gain value is finer than the second granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the second beam gain value.

27. The positioning entity according to claim 21, wherein, The location entity is the UE.

28. The positioning entity according to claim 27, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to cause the positioning entity to: Perform the signal strength measurement of the positioning reference signal resource.

29. The positioning entity according to claim 27, wherein, The determination includes: The at least one transceiver sends the signal strength measurement to a location server so that the location server can determine the location of the UE.

30. The positioning entity according to claim 21, wherein, The network entity is the base station.

31. The positioning entity according to claim 21, wherein, The network entity is a location server.

32. The positioning entity according to claim 21, wherein, The location entity is a location server.

33. A base station, comprising: At least one memory including instructions; At least one transceiver; as well as At least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to execute the instructions to cause the base station to: The at least one transceiver is made to send a beam report to a positioning entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to positioning reference signal resources to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating the quantization of the reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; as well as The at least one transceiver transmits the positioning reference signal resource on one or more downlink transmit beams.

34. The base station according to claim 33, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion includes a first beam gain value of the one or more downlink transmit beams that is above a threshold.

35. The base station according to claim 34, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion also includes the azimuth and elevation angles of each of the first beam gain values.

36. The base station according to claim 34, wherein, The first beam gain value is represented as a beam gain matrix from minimum azimuth to maximum azimuth and from minimum elevation to maximum azimuth.

37. The base station according to claim 34, wherein, The quantization of the reduced portion also includes a second beam gain value below the threshold.

38. The base station according to claim 37, wherein, The first granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the first beam gain value is finer than the second granularity of the azimuth and elevation angles associated with the second beam gain value.

39. The base station according to claim 33, wherein, The location entity is the UE.

40. The base station according to claim 33, wherein, The location entity is a location server.

41. A positioning entity, comprising: Components for receiving beam reports from network entities, the beam reports including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to location reference signal resources to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating the quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; as well as A component for determining the location of the UE based at least on signal strength measurements of the positioning reference signal resources and the beam shape auxiliary information.

42. A base station, comprising: A component for sending a beam report to a location entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a location reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating the quantization of the reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; as well as A component for transmitting the positioning reference signal resource on one or more downlink transmission beams.

43. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions comprising: At least one instruction instructing a positioning entity to receive a beam report from a network entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of a base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to a positioning reference signal resource to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating the quantization of a reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; as well as At least one instruction instructing the positioning entity to determine the location of the UE based at least on the signal strength measurement of the positioning reference signal resource and the beam shape auxiliary information.

44. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions comprising: At least one instruction instructing a base station to send a beam report to a positioning entity, the beam report including beam shape auxiliary information of one or more downlink transmitted beams of the base station, the one or more downlink transmitted beams corresponding to positioning reference signal resources to be measured by a user equipment (UE), the beam shape auxiliary information indicating the quantization of the reduced portion of each of the one or more downlink transmitted beams; as well as The instruction instructs the base station to transmit the positioning reference signal resource on one or more downlink transmit beams.

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