Method and apparatus for acquiring timing advance information, storage medium and electronic device

Abstract

The application discloses a method and device for acquiring timing advance information, a storage medium and an electronic device. The method comprises the following steps: acquiring reference information obtained by positioning a UE in a target mode, wherein the reference information is used to determine target timing advance (TA) information; and determining the target TA information of a candidate transmission and reception point (TRP) for the UE according to the reference information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of computers, and more specifically, to a method and apparatus for acquiring advance timing information, a storage medium, and an electronic device. Background Technology

[0002] In current mobile scenarios, in order to reduce handover interruption latency, it is necessary to obtain and maintain the TA information (Timing Advance) of candidate cells in advance. In the traditional handover process, the initial TA information used for UL (Uplink) transmission between UE (User Equipment) and target cell is measured based on RACH (Random Access Channel).

[0003] However, RACH typically takes a long time. When there are many candidate cells, obtaining the TA information of the candidate cells by initiating RACH with them will incur significant latency overhead. Furthermore, due to UE movement, the obtained TA information is not always valid, requiring periodic maintenance and resulting in further latency overhead. Therefore, the methods for obtaining candidate cell TA information in related technologies suffer from significant latency overhead. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a method and apparatus for obtaining advance timing information, a storage medium, and an electronic device to at least solve the problem of large latency overhead in the methods for obtaining TA information of candidate cells in related technologies.

[0005] According to one aspect of the embodiments of this application, a method for obtaining timing advance information is provided, comprising: obtaining reference information obtained by locating a target mode of a UE, wherein the reference information is used to determine target timing advance (TA) information; and determining the target TA information of the UE for a candidate transmit receive node (TRP) based on the reference information.

[0006] According to another aspect of the embodiments of this application, a timing advance information acquisition device is also provided, comprising: a first acquisition unit, configured to acquire reference information obtained by locating a target mode for a UE, wherein the reference information is used to determine target timing advance (TA) information; and a first determination unit, configured to determine the target TA information of the UE for a candidate transmit receive node (TRP) based on the reference information.

[0007] According to another aspect of the embodiments of this application, a computer-readable storage medium is also provided, wherein a computer program is stored in the computer-readable storage medium, and the computer program is configured to execute the above-described method for obtaining timing advance information when it is run.

[0008] According to another aspect of the embodiments of this application, an electronic device is also provided, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the processor executes the aforementioned method for obtaining timing advance information through the computer program.

[0009] In this embodiment, a combination of positioning and TA acquisition is used. Based on the reference information obtained when positioning the UE, the TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined. There is no need to remeasure the TA based on RACH, which can reduce the technical effect of latency overhead. This solves the problem of large latency overhead in the acquisition method of timing advance information in related technologies. Attached Figure Description

[0010] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with this application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of this application.

[0011] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, for those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0012] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the hardware environment for a method of obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating an optional method for obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of an optional method for obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of an optional positioning method according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of another optional positioning method according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of another optional positioning method according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of a scenario for an optional method of obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of an optional method for obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of another optional method for obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of another optional method for obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of another optional method for obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of another optional method for obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 13 This is a structural block diagram of an optional timing advance information acquisition device according to an embodiment of this application; Figure 14 This is a structural block diagram of an optional electronic device according to an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0013] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present application, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort should fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0014] It should be noted that the terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data can be interchanged where appropriate so that the embodiments of this application described herein can be implemented in orders other than those illustrated or described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion; for example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that comprises a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or apparatus.

[0015] According to one aspect of the embodiments of this application, a method for obtaining timing advance information is provided. Optionally, in this embodiment, the above-described method for obtaining timing advance information can be applied to, for example... Figure 1 The hardware environment shown consists of terminal device 102, positioning server 104, and candidate cell 106.

[0016] The method for obtaining timing advance information in this embodiment can be executed by the positioning server 104 or by the terminal device 102. Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating an optional method for obtaining timing advance information according to an embodiment of this application, as shown below. Figure 2 As shown, the process of this method may include the following steps: Step S202: Obtain reference information obtained from the target mode positioning of the UE, wherein the reference information is used to determine the target timing advance TA information.

[0017] The method for obtaining timing advance information in this embodiment can be applied to scenarios where the UE obtains timing advance information for candidate cells. A candidate cell may have one or more candidate TRPs (Transmission-Reception Points). The TA of the UE for a candidate cell may include the TA of the UE for each candidate TRP within that candidate cell, and the TA of the UE for each candidate TRP may be different.

[0018] TA is used for UL (Uplink) transmission of User Equipment (UE). In order to ensure that the arrival time of signals from different UEs from the same subframe received by the base station is basically consistent, the UE needs to send uplink subframes before receiving downlink subframes. Since the distance and propagation delay from different UEs to the base station are different, the TA of each UE should also be different. Furthermore, the distance and propagation delay from the UE to different Transmission-Reception Points (TRPs) may be different, so the TA of the UE to different TRPs may also be different.

[0019] The 3rd Generation Partner Project (3GPP) proposed the goals of Release 18 at the Radio Access Network (RAN) plenary meeting. One of the goals was to study enhancements to Timing Advance (TA), acquire and maintain the TA of candidate cells, and reduce inter-cell movement interruption delays.

[0020] Following the RAN2#119-e meeting, an email discussion was initiated regarding inter-cell mobility timing diagrams based on L1 / L2, and the following model explaining traditional mobility latency was approved as a starting point for research on latency reduction, such as... Figure 3As shown, the current mobility process prior to Rel-18 enhancement can be divided into four stages: UE reconfiguration; DL (Downlink) synchronization; UL synchronization; T first-data (The time it takes for the UE to perform the first DL / UL reception / transmission on the indicator beam of the target cell after RAR (Request-Action-Response protocol, a simple mode communication protocol for Internet requests, actions, and feedback). Here, the interruption waiting time is the time from receiving the cell handover command to performing the first DL / UL reception / transmission on the indicator beam of the target cell, mainly including DL synchronization, UL synchronization, and T. first-data Three parts. Figure 3 In the middle, T RRC For the processing time of RRC (Radio Resource Control) reconfiguration carrying candidate configurations, T processing,1 and T processing,2 T represents the UE processing time before and after the cell handover command. meas To measure the delay (from the appearance of the target to the cell handover command), T search The time required to search for the target cell, T cmd For the time to process L1 / L2 commands, T Δ To precisely track and obtain complete timing information, T margin T is the post-processing time for SSB (Synchronization Signal / PBCH) or CSI-RS (Channel-State-Information Reference Signal). IU To address the interruption uncertainty of obtaining the first available PRACH opportunity in a new cell, T RAR This is the delay time for RAR.

[0021] In the RAN1#111 meeting, it was supported to obtain and maintain the TA of candidate cells before receiving the cell handover command, so as to reduce the interruption latency of inter-cell movement.

[0022] Technical Specification (TS) 38.305 (h30 version) defines positioning methods based on Multi-Round Trip Time (Multi-RTT), Downlink Angle-of-Departure (DL-AoD), Downlink Time Difference of Arrival (DL-TDOA), Uplink Time Difference of Arrival (UL-TDOA), and Uplink Angle-of-Arrival (UL-AoA).

[0023] When using uplink reference signals to locate the UE (e.g., UL-TDOA and UL-AoA positioning methods), the positioning process is as follows: Figure 4 As shown. When using downlink reference signals to locate the UE (e.g., DL-TDOA and DL-AoD positioning methods), the positioning process is as follows. Figure 5 As shown. When using DL RS and UL RS together to locate the UE (e.g., Multi-RTT positioning method), the positioning process is as follows. Figure 6 As shown, gNB (the next generation Node B) is a 5G base station. LPP (LTE Positioning Protocol, LTE (Long Term Evolution) positioning protocol) is a general positioning communication protocol whose main function is to exchange positioning assistance data and positioning information between the network and the terminal. NRPPa is NRPositioning Protocol A, i.e., NR (New Radio, 5G wireless network) positioning protocol A. SRS is Sounding Reference Signal. LMF is Location Management Function. DL PRS is Downlink Positioning Reference Signal.

[0024] In traditional handover processes, the initial TA (Target Acquisition Term) for UL (Ultimate Length) transmission between the UE and the target cell is measured based on the Random Access Channel (RACH). However, RACH takes a long time, and the number of candidate cells may be large. Obtaining the TA of candidate cells by initiating RACH for candidate cells would incur significant latency overhead. Furthermore, due to UE movement, the obtained TA of candidate cells is not always valid, so the TA needs to be maintained periodically, resulting in significant latency overhead at each interval.

[0025] LTE introduced the RACH-less mechanism. However, the RACH-less mechanism is only applicable to scenarios where the source cell and the target cell have the same TA or are small cells (TA=0). Although it can reduce handover latency, its application scenarios are limited and it can only be applied to specific scenarios.

[0026] The current discussion has not fully considered how 5G positioning is combined with candidate cell TA acquisition, which will lead to unnecessary signaling or latency overhead.

[0027] To at least partially address the aforementioned issues, this embodiment combines the positioning method with the TA process for obtaining candidate TRPs. Based on the reference information obtained from locating the UE using the target method, the TA information for the target timing of the candidate Transmitter Receiver Node (TRP) is determined, thereby avoiding the signaling overhead caused by repeatedly transmitting candidate TRP information. The target method here includes, but is not limited to, locating the UE using DL RS (Downlink Reference Signal), locating the UE using UL RS (Uplink Reference Signal), and locating the UE using a combination of DL RS and UL RS.

[0028] It should be noted that the target location method described above for the UE is not necessarily based on candidate TRPs. Different location methods may require different methods for determining the target TA information, and the reference information mentioned above may also differ depending on the method used to determine the target TA information.

[0029] Optionally, the executing entity for the aforementioned method of obtaining timing advance information can be different depending on the positioning technology used. For example, when locating the UE using an uplink (UL) reference signal (RS), since the UE's position is generally calculated at the LMF based on relevant positioning information, the executing entity for obtaining the corresponding target TA can be the LMF. Similarly, when locating the UE using a downlink (DL) reference signal (RS), since the UE's position is calculated both at the UE and at the LMF, the executing entity for obtaining the corresponding target TA can be either the UE (corresponding to the scenario where the UE's position is calculated based on relevant positioning information at the UE) or the LMF (corresponding to the scenario where the UE's position is calculated based on relevant positioning information at the LMF).

[0030] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the acquisition of timing advance information performed by the LMF as the execution subject can also be performed by the base station corresponding to the LMF as the execution subject.

[0031] In addition, when the timing advance information is obtained by the LMF as the execution subject, after the timing advance information is obtained, when the UE needs to use the TA (e.g., to perform cell handover), the LMF or the base station corresponding to the LMF can send the positioning advance information to the corresponding UE so that the UE can use the timing advance information normally.

[0032] Optionally, the aforementioned reference information may include at least one of the following: time difference of arrival, round-trip time difference, and UE location. The time difference of arrival and round-trip time difference may be the time difference between positioning reference signals transmitted or received in different positioning methods, and the corresponding positioning reference signals may include signals transmitted or received by the candidate TRP. The UE location may be determined using different positioning methods in conjunction with other TRPs before determining the TA information of the candidate TRP, or it may be determined using different positioning methods in conjunction with the candidate TRPs.

[0033] like Figure 7 As shown, this embodiment can be used in scenarios where M TRPs serve a UE and K TRPs are candidate TRPs for the UE. Here, M and K are both integers greater than or equal to 1.

[0034] Step S204: Based on the reference information, determine the target TA information of the candidate transmission receiving node (TRP) for the UE.

[0035] Based on the reference information, the target TA information for the candidate Transmitter Receiver Node (TRP) can be determined for the UE. This target TA information can be calculated based on the time difference of arrival (TDOA) or the round-trip time difference (RTD), or it can be estimated based on the UE's location and the location of the candidate TRP.

[0036] Through steps S202 to S204 above, reference information obtained by locating the target mode of the UE is acquired. The reference information is used to determine the target timing advance (TA) information. Based on the reference information, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate transmission and reception node (TRP) is determined. This solves the problem of large latency overhead in the acquisition method of timing advance information in related technologies and reduces latency overhead.

[0037] In one exemplary embodiment, determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate transport receiving node (TRP) based on reference information includes: S11, based on the TA information of the UE to the first serving TRP and the time difference of arrival (TDA) of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the UE's target mode positioning, determine the UE's target TA information to the candidate TRP. The reference information includes the TRA, the TRP used for the UE's target mode positioning includes the first serving TRP, and the TRA includes one of the following: downlink TRA, uplink TRA. The downlink TRA is the time difference between the arrival time of the first downlink positioning reference signal sent by the first serving TRP and the arrival time of the second downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP. The uplink TRA is the sum of the first and second TRAs. The first TRA is the time difference between the transmission time of the first uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE to the first serving TRP and the transmission time of the second uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE to the candidate TRP, and the second TRA is the time difference between the reception time of the first uplink positioning reference signal received by the first serving TRP and the reception time of the second uplink positioning reference signal received by the candidate TRP; or... S12, based on the round-trip time difference (RTD) of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the target positioning method for the UE, determine the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP. The reference information includes the RTD, which is the difference between a third time difference and a fourth time difference. The third time difference is the time difference between the time the UE receives the third downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP and the time the UE sends the third uplink positioning reference signal to the candidate TRP. The fourth time difference is the time difference between the time the candidate TRP receives the third uplink positioning reference signal and the time the candidate TRP sends the third downlink positioning reference signal. The third uplink positioning reference signal is the uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE when the UE receives the probe reference signal from the first serving TRP. The third downlink positioning reference signal is the downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP after receiving the received third uplink positioning reference signal when the candidate TRP receives a measurement request from the location management server (LMF). Alternatively... S13, Based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information, determine the UE's target TA information for the candidate TRP. The reference information includes the UE's location information, which is the location information obtained by locating the UE using the target method.

[0038] In this embodiment, the reference information may include the time difference of arrival (TDA). The target TA information for the candidate TRP can be determined based on the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the TDA of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the target mode positioning of the UE. Here, the TRP used for the target mode positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP. The round-trip time difference is the difference between a third time difference and a fourth time difference. The third time difference is the time difference between the time the UE receives the third downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP and the time the UE sends the third uplink positioning reference signal to the candidate TRP. The fourth time difference is the time difference between the time the candidate TRP receives the third uplink positioning reference signal and the time the candidate TRP sends the third downlink positioning reference signal. The third uplink positioning reference signal is the uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE when the UE receives the probe reference signal from the first serving TRP. The third downlink positioning reference signal is the downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP after receiving the received third uplink positioning reference signal when the candidate TRP receives a measurement request sent by the location management server (LMF).

[0039] Optionally, the above-mentioned determination of the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the round-trip time difference of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning mode of the UE, wherein the reference information includes the round-trip time difference, can be achieved in the following ways: When the target positioning method is downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) positioning, the TRP used for DL-TDOA positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP, the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the first serving TRP, and the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is to simultaneously locate and determine TA information, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined to be equal to the sum of the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the downlink time difference of arrival.

[0040] When the target positioning method is downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) positioning, based on the degree of UE participation in the positioning process, it can be divided into UE-based positioning and UE-assisted positioning. UE-based positioning includes tasks such as the UE completing measurements, estimating the UE's location, and reporting the estimated location results. UE-assisted positioning includes tasks such as the UE completing measurements and reporting the measurement results.

[0041] When using DL-TDOA positioning, if the TRP used for DL-TDOA positioning of the UE includes a first serving TRP, a candidate TRP synchronized with the first serving TRP, and the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is to simultaneously locate and determine TA information, then the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP can be determined as the sum of the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the downlink arrival time difference. Here, the aforementioned arrival time difference corresponding to the target method can include the downlink arrival time difference. The downlink arrival time difference is the time difference between the arrival time of the first downlink positioning reference signal sent by the first serving TRP and the arrival time of the second downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP. The downlink positioning reference signal sent by the first serving TRP is used for DL-TDOA positioning of the UE.

[0042] Optionally, considering that in DL-TDOA positioning, a candidate cell may be used only for positioning, only for obtaining TA, or both, to facilitate timely determination of the purpose of the candidate TRP within that candidate cell, each candidate cell can be identified by adding bits. Before determining the target TA information of the candidate TRP for the UE based on the TA information of the first serving TRP and the time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode, the above method further includes: When the target positioning method is DL-TDOA positioning, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is determined by the first set of bits corresponding to the candidate TRP in the candidate TRP list. The candidate TRP list is a list sent to the UE by the location management server LMF. When the first set of bits is the first value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for positioning. When the first set of bits is the second value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for determining TA information. When the first set of bits is the third value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for both positioning and determining TA information.

[0043] When using DL-TDOA positioning to locate the UE, the Location Management Function (LMF) sends a list of candidate cells to the UE. A first field can be added to the Information Element (IE) NR-DL-TDOA-Provide Assistance Data and NR-DL-AoD-Provide Assistance Data defined in protocol 37.355. The first field can be 2 bits long and can be used to indicate whether the candidate cell is used only for positioning, only for obtaining TA, or for both positioning and obtaining TA. The definition of each code point in this field is shown in Table 1.

[0044] Table 1

[0045] Optionally, for a candidate cell used for both positioning and TA acquisition, if the beam correspondence at the UE is valid, the UL transmission beam used to acquire the TA of the candidate cell can be determined based on the DL receive beam in the auxiliary data; otherwise, the UE's UL transmission beam may need to be indicated by the SRS-Config (Probe Reference Signal Configuration) of the Radio Resource Control IE in Protocol 38.331.

[0046] For candidate cells used only for obtaining TA, the UL transmission beam cannot be determined through the DL receive beam. If the UL transmission beam to be used exists in the spatial relationship information of the current SRS resources, the corresponding SRS resources are indicated to the UE; otherwise, the UE's UL transmission beam needs to be indicated through the SRS-Config of the Radio resource control IE in protocol 38.331.

[0047] For candidate cells used only for positioning, it is not necessary to obtain the TA of the candidate cell. Therefore, the UE does not need to perform ULSRS transmission, that is, it is not necessary to indicate the UL transmission beam to be used for the UE.

[0048] Compared to existing technologies that increase signaling overhead when acquiring the TA of candidate TRPs, the above method reduces signaling overhead. By setting the value of the newly added first field to 01 or 11, the candidate TRP can be flexibly configured to be used solely for location or for both location and TA acquisition. Candidate TRPs set to be used solely for TA acquisition can be excluded from location acquisition, and vice versa. This flexible setting of field values ​​reduces the signaling overhead added by acquiring the TA alone, while effectively avoiding the frequent transmission and reception of useless signals, thus achieving the goal of reducing signaling overhead.

[0049] Furthermore, when using DL-TDOA positioning, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined based on the sum of the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the downlink arrival time difference, as shown in the example below. Figure 8 As shown, when the TRP used for positioning includes the serving TRP, since the UE maintains its TA1 for the serving TRP, if a candidate TRP is used for both positioning and TA acquisition, and the TRP is time-synchronized with the serving TRP, the TA2 for the candidate TRP can be derived from the TA maintained by the UE for the serving TRP and the time difference of arrival (TDOA) of the DL. For UE-based positioning, this derivation process can be performed by the UE, while for UE-assisted positioning, this derivation process can be performed by the UE or the LMF. The derivation formula is shown in formula (1).

[0050] TA2 = TA1 + TDOA (1)

[0051] When the TRP used for DL-TDOA positioning does not contain a serving TRP, the TA of the candidate TRP cannot be derived using this method. When the TRP used for DL-TDOA positioning contains a serving TRP, but there are candidate TRPs used only for obtaining the TA, or the candidate TRPs are out of sync with the serving TRP, the TA of these candidate TRPs cannot be derived using this method.

[0052] Optionally, the determination of the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode can also be achieved in the following ways: When the target positioning method is uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) positioning, the TRP used for UL-TDOA positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP, and the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the first serving TRP, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined to be equal to the sum of the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the uplink time difference of arrival.

[0053] It should be noted that when using UL RS to locate the UE (such as UL-TDOA and UL-AoA positioning technologies), LMF will not send the candidate cell list to the UE. When determining the UL transmission beam, it is not necessary to specify the corresponding cell for the UE. It is only necessary to configure the corresponding UL beam for the UE in SRS-Config.

[0054] When using UL-TDOA positioning, if the TRP used for UL-TDOA positioning includes the serving TRP, and the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the serving TRP, the TA of the UE for the candidate TRP can be derived from the TA maintained by the UE for the serving TRP in TDOA and UE. This process can be performed by the LMF or by the serving TRP participating in the positioning measurement. Figure 9 As shown, TDOA can be determined according to formula (2), and then TA2 of UE for selected TRP can be determined according to formula (3).

[0055] TDOA=(t2-t1)+(t4-t3) (2)

[0056] TA2 = TA1 + TDOA (3)

[0057] If the candidate TRP and the serving TRP are not synchronized, the TA of the UE for the candidate TRP cannot be derived from the TA maintained by the TDOA and the UE for the serving TRP. When the TRP used for UL-TDOA positioning does not include the serving TRP, the TA of the candidate TRP cannot be derived using this method either.

[0058] In this embodiment, the reference information may also include round-trip time difference, and the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP can be determined based on the round-trip time difference corresponding to the target mode.

[0059] Optionally, the determination of the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the round-trip time difference of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning mode of the UE can be achieved in the following ways: When the target positioning method is Multi-RTT positioning, the TRP used for Multi-RTT positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP, and the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is to simultaneously locate and determine TA information, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined to be equal to half of the round-trip time difference.

[0060] The aforementioned Multi-RTT positioning can be achieved by using DL RS and UL RS together to locate the UE.

[0061] It should be noted that when using DL RS and UL RS together to locate the UE (e.g., Multi-RTT positioning technology), the LMF sends a list of candidate cells to the UE and instructs the UL transmission beam for the UE via SRS-Config. Therefore, the method is the same as using DL RS to locate the UE. IE NR-DL-TDOA-ProvideAssistanceData A new first field has been added to (IE, Information Element, ProvideAssistanceData) to indicate whether the candidate TRP is used only for location, only for obtaining TA, or for both location and TA.

[0062] For candidate cells used for both location and TA acquisition, if the beam correspondence at the UE is valid, the UL transmission beam used for acquiring the TA of that candidate cell can be determined based on the DL receive beam in the auxiliary data; otherwise, the UE's UL transmission beam needs to be indicated by the SRS-Config of the Radio Resource Control IE defined in Protocol 38.331. For candidate cells used only for TA acquisition, the UL transmission beam cannot be determined by the DL receive beam. If the UL transmission beam to be used exists in the spatial relationship information of the current SRS resources, the corresponding SRS resource is indicated to the UE; otherwise, the UE's UL transmission beam needs to be indicated by the SRS-Config of the Radio Resource Control IE defined in Protocol 38.331. For candidate cells used only for location, the UL transmission beam is indicated by the SRS-Config.

[0063] If a candidate TRP is used for both positioning and TA acquisition, the TA of the UE to the candidate TRP can be derived from the RTT (Round-Trip Time) between the UE and the candidate TRP. Figure 10 As shown, SRS is configured for the UE through the serving TRP. The LMF sends a measurement request to the candidate TRP, that is, it notifies the candidate TRP that it needs to measure the SRS sent by the UE. The RTT can be determined according to formula (4), and the TA2 of the UE to the selected TRP can be determined according to formula (5). This process can be performed by the LMF.

[0064] RTT=(t4-t1)+(t3-t2) (4)

[0065] TA2 = RTT / 2 (5)

[0066] Optionally, considering the use of DL RS and UL RS for joint UE positioning, similar to the aforementioned DL-TDOA positioning method, candidate cells may be used only for positioning, only for obtaining TA, or both. To facilitate timely determination of the purpose of candidate TRPs within a candidate cell, each candidate cell can be identified by adding a bit identifier. Before determining the target TA information of the candidate TRP for the UE based on the round-trip time difference of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the target positioning method for the UE, the above method further includes: When the target positioning method is Multi-RTT positioning, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is determined by the second set of bits corresponding to the candidate TRP in the candidate TRP list. The candidate TRP list is a list sent to the UE by the location management server (LMF). When the second set of bits is the fourth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is to allow it to be used for positioning. When the second set of bits is the fifth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is to allow it to be used to determine TA information. When the second set of bits is the sixth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is to allow it to be used for both positioning and determining TA information.

[0067] It should be noted that when using DL RS and UL RS together to locate the UE, the LMF will send a list of candidate cells to the UE. Therefore, similar to the aforementioned method of locating the UE using DL RS, the LMF will send a list of candidate cells to the UE. IE NR-DL-TDOA- ProvideAssistanceData A first field is added to indicate whether the candidate TRP is used only for location, only for TA acquisition, or for both. The new field and its length can be the same as those in the aforementioned DL-TDOA, and will not be elaborated on in this embodiment.

[0068] In this embodiment, the reference information may further include the UE's location information. Based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information, the UE's target TA information for the candidate TRP can be determined. Here, the UE's location information is the location information obtained by the UE performing target-based positioning.

[0069] In this embodiment, by combining positioning technology with the acquisition of the TA of the candidate TRP, the signaling overhead caused by repeated transmission of candidate TRP information can be avoided. When the UE maintains the TA, it may involve UL SRS transmission. By setting the value of the newly added first field, it is possible to flexibly configure whether the TA of the candidate TRP needs to be acquired.

[0070] In an exemplary embodiment, determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRP includes: S21, Based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information, determine the UE's estimated TA information for the candidate TRP; S22, determine the target TA information as equal to the estimated TA information, or correct the estimated TA information to obtain the UE's target TA information for the candidate TRP.

[0071] When the arrival time difference (TA) of a candidate TRP cannot be derived from the aforementioned arrival time difference or round-trip time difference (RTD), since the initial TA obtained by the UE for the candidate TRP does not need to be immediately used in the UL transmission of the candidate TRP, this initial TA can be a rough estimate and can be adjusted later. That is, the estimated TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRP. Here, the estimated TA information can be the estimated initial TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP.

[0072] In this embodiment, the target TA information can be determined to be equal to the estimated TA information; that is, the estimated TA information is determined as the target TA information of the current UE for the candidate TRP. Alternatively, the estimated TA information can be modified to obtain the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP; that is, the modified estimated TA information is used as the target TA information.

[0073] Optionally, the estimated TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP can be determined based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information. This can be achieved by determining the initial TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP using formula (6): (6) In the formula, the TA information is the initial TA information, the coordinates (x1, y1) represent the UE's location information, the coordinates (x2, y2) represent the candidate TRP's location information, and c represents the propagation speed of the radio signal.

[0074] like Figure 11 As shown, the initial TA can be estimated based on the UE location and the location of the candidate TRP.

[0075] DL-TDOA positioning can be divided into UE-based positioning and UE-assisted positioning. The above-mentioned determination of the UE's initial TA information for the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information can be achieved in the following ways: When the UE's location information is determined by the UE based on the location reference signals (PRS) of a set of TRPs received, the UE can determine the initial TA information for the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRPs. Conversely, when the UE's location information is determined by the location management server (LMF) based on measurement information sent by the UE, the LMF can determine the initial TA information for the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRPs. The measurement information is determined by the UE based on the downlink positioning reference signals (PRS) of a set of TRPs received, and includes the power of the received downlink positioning reference signals.

[0076] It should be noted that both UE-based positioning and UE-assisted positioning can calculate the estimated TA using the above formula (6), only the executing entity is different. When the UE determines the obtained location information based on the downlink positioning reference signals of a set of TRPs received, the UE estimates its own location information and then calculates the corresponding TA. However, when the location management server (LMF) determines the obtained location information based on the measurement information sent by the UE, the UE reports the measurement results, and the LMF estimates the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the location of the candidate TRPs.

[0077] For OTDOA positioning, since only the DLRS of the TP (Transmission Point) is measured on the UE side, there is no base station that is used for both positioning and TA acquisition. Therefore, the initial TA of the candidate TRP / RP (Reception Point) cannot be derived from the TA and TDOA of the serving TRP in the aforementioned DL-TDOA method. However, the initial TA can be estimated based on the estimated UE location and the location of the candidate RP / TRP.

[0078] It should be noted that the method for estimating the initial TA described above can be the same as that in formula (6) mentioned above, but if... Figure 12 As shown, the coordinates (x2, y2) can represent the location information of the candidate PR / TRP.

[0079] Optionally, for OTDOA positioning, the determination of the UE's initial TA information for the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information can be achieved in the following ways: The location management server (LMF) determines the initial TA information of the candidate TRP for the UE based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRP. The UE's location information is determined by the LMF based on the measurement information sent by the UE. The measurement information is determined by the UE based on a set of location reference signals (PRS) received from the TRPs. The measurement information includes the power of the received PRS.

[0080] It should be noted that since protocol 38.305 only supports UE-assisted positioning, i.e. OTDOA positioning, it is not possible to directly estimate the initial TA on the UE side based on the estimated UE location and the location of the candidate RP / TRP. Similar to UE-assisted positioning in DL-TDOA technology, the UE needs to report the measurement results, and the LMF estimates the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the location of the candidate TRP. That is, the entity that performs the TA acquisition is the LMF.

[0081] For downlink departure angle (DL-AoD) positioning, since different TRPs do not transmit DL RS simultaneously, it is impossible to derive the TA of other TRPs from the TA of the serving TRP and the DL-TDOA. However, the initial TA can be estimated based on the estimated UE location and the locations of candidate TRPs. Here, the UE location information is the location information obtained by performing DL-AoD positioning on the UE. The method for estimating the initial TA can be the same as the aforementioned formula (6), estimating the value of the initial TA through the coordinates of the UE, the coordinates of the candidate TRPs, and the propagation speed of the radio signal. For UE-based positioning, the UE or LMF can be used as the execution subject to estimate the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the locations of candidate TRPs. For UE-assisted positioning, the LMF can be used as the execution subject to estimate the initial TA.

[0082] Optionally, considering that acquiring the TA of a candidate TRP incurs some signaling overhead, and since the TA of a candidate TRP needs to be acquired once for each positioning, this could lead to significant signaling overhead if the positioning method is used frequently. Therefore, the same method as the DL-TDOA positioning method, which involves adding a new field, can be used to determine whether the candidate TRP is used solely for positioning or for both positioning and TA acquisition, as shown in Table 1. Correspondingly, the configuration indication method for the UL transmission beam can also be the same. When positioning is required, the TA of the candidate TRP is acquired only if it is determined that the candidate TRP can be used for positioning. This way, even if the positioning method is used frequently, signaling overhead will not be wasted due to acquiring useless TAs.

[0083] Optionally, the determination of the UE's initial TA information for the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information can be achieved in the following ways: When the UE's location information is determined by the UE based on a set of downlink positioning reference signals received from TRPs, the UE can determine the initial TA information for the candidate TRPs based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRPs. Conversely, when the UE's location information is determined by the LMF based on measurement information sent by the UE, the LMF can determine the initial TA information for the candidate TRPs based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRPs. The measurement information is determined by the UE based on the received downlink positioning reference signals, and includes the power of the received downlink positioning reference signals.

[0084] For uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) positioning, when the TA of the UE to the candidate TRP cannot be obtained through derivation, the initial TA of the UE to the candidate TRP can be estimated based on the UE location information estimated by positioning and the location information of the candidate TRP. The method for estimating the initial TA can be the same as the aforementioned formula (6), estimating the value of the initial TA by using the coordinates of the UE, the coordinates of the candidate TRP, and the propagation speed of the radio signal.

[0085] Optionally, for the UL-TDOA positioning method, the initial TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information, which can be achieved in the following ways: The LMF determines the initial TA information of the candidate TRP by the UE based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information. The UE's location information is determined by the LMF based on the measurement information sent by the UE. The measurement information is determined by the UE based on a set of location reference signals (PRS) received from the TRPs. The measurement information includes the power of the received PRS.

[0086] It should be noted that for the UL-TDOA positioning method, protocol 38.305 only supports positioning assisted by NG-RAN (NextGeneration Radio Access Network, i.e., 5G wireless network) nodes. That is, the UE sends UL RS, the NG-RAN node measures and sends the result to LMF. In other words, for UE positioning assisted by NG-RAN nodes, LMF can estimate the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the location of candidate TRPs. In other words, LMF is the main body that performs the estimation of initial TA.

[0087] For the uplink departure angle (UL-AoA) positioning method, since the time of TRPs may not be synchronized, it is impossible to derive the TA of other TRPs from the TA of the serving TRP and the UL-TDOA. However, the LMF can be used as the execution subject to estimate the initial TA based on the estimated UE position and the position of the candidate TRP. The method for estimating the initial TA can be the same as the aforementioned formula (6), estimating the value of the initial TA through the coordinates of the UE, the coordinates of the candidate TRP, and the propagation speed of the radio signal.

[0088] Optionally, for UL-AoA positioning, the initial TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information, which can be achieved in the following ways: The LMF determines the initial TA information of the candidate TRP by the UE based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information. The UE's location information is determined by the LMF based on the measurement information sent by the UE. The measurement information is determined by the UE based on a set of location reference signals (PRS) received from the TRPs. The measurement information includes the power of the received PRS.

[0089] For Multi-RTT positioning, when the candidate TRP is only used to obtain the TA, the TA cannot be obtained through the aforementioned derivation. In this case, the LMF can be used as the execution subject to estimate the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the candidate TRP location. The method for estimating the initial TA can be the same as the aforementioned formula (6), estimating the value of the initial TA through the coordinates of the UE, the coordinates of the candidate TRP, and the propagation speed of the radio signal.

[0090] Optionally, for the Multi-RTT positioning method, the determination of the UE's initial TA information for the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information can be achieved in the following way: The location management server (LMF) determines the initial TA information of the candidate TRP for the UE based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRP. The UE's location information is determined by the LMF based on the measurement information sent by the UE. The measurement information is determined by the UE based on a set of location reference signals (PRS) received from the TRPs. The measurement information includes the power of the received PRS.

[0091] For the Enhanced Cell Identifier (E-CID) positioning method, the UE location can also be roughly estimated. Combining the UE location estimated by this method with the location information of the candidate TRP, the initial TA from the UE to the candidate TRP can be estimated. The method for estimating the initial TA can be the same as the aforementioned formula (6), estimating the value of the initial TA by using the coordinates of the UE, the coordinates of the candidate TRP, and the propagation speed of the radio signal.

[0092] Optionally, the initial TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP can be determined based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information in the following ways: The location management server (LMF) determines the initial TA information of the candidate TRP for the UE based on the UE's location information and the location information of the candidate TRP. The UE's location information is determined by the LMF based on the measurement information sent by the UE. The measurement information is determined by the UE based on a set of location reference signals (PRS) received from the TRPs. The measurement information includes the power of the received PRS.

[0093] According to the above embodiments, the methods for obtaining the initial TA and the executing entities for different positioning methods are shown in Table 2. It should be noted that the measurement TRP in Table 2 refers to the aforementioned service TRP involved in the positioning measurement. The initial TA in Table 2 may include estimated TA information and derived target TA information.

[0094] Table 2

[0095] Table 2 shows that, based on the usage scenarios and characteristics of each positioning technology, the method for obtaining the initial TA of the candidate TRP can be determined. For DL-TDOA, UL-TDOA, and Multi-RTT positioning technologies, if both the serving TRP and the candidate TRP are used for positioning, and the candidate TRP is also used to obtain the TA, the accurate initial TA can be derived from TDOA or RTT. For other positioning technologies and other cases of these three technologies (DL-TDOA, UL-TDOA, and Multi-RTT), the initial TA of the UE for the candidate TRP can be estimated based on the positioning results. In addition, the initial TA of the UE for the candidate TRP can also be estimated by using the E-CID positioning result of the serving TRP and the location of the candidate TRP.

[0096] In an exemplary embodiment, the estimated TA information is corrected to obtain the UE's target TA information for the candidate TRP, including: S31, when the candidate TRP and the second serving TRP serving the UE are out of sync, the first signaling sent by the UE is obtained, wherein the first signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the transmission time of the uplink sounding reference signal UL SRS. The transmission time of UL SRS is the time when the UE sends UL SRS to the candidate TRP. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. S32, obtain the second signaling sent by the candidate TRP, wherein the second signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the reception time of the UL SRS, and the reception time of the UL SRS is the time when the candidate TRP receives the UL SRS sent by the UE; S33, the UE determines the target TA information for the candidate TRP as equal to the difference between the UL SRS reception time and the UL SRS transmission time.

[0097] It should be noted that the estimated TA information needs to be corrected before use (i.e., the initial TA information is updated to the accurate TA information).

[0098] For DL-TDOA positioning, the UE needs to send the UL SRS to the candidate TRP and transmit the transmission time to the LMF. The candidate TRP then receives the UL SRS and transmits the reception time to the LMF. This can be added to the Common IEs defined in protocol 37.355. ProvideTimingInformation As shown in Table 3, it can include Physical cell ID, Global cell ID, TP ID / TRP ID, and UL transmission time. The UE adds... ProvideTimingInformation Provide LMF with the UL sending time.

[0099] Table 3

[0100] Provide Timing Information can also be added to the Information Element definitions defined in Protocol 38.455, as shown in Table 4. This includes Physical cell ID, Global cell ID, TP ID / TRP ID, and the reception time of the UL SRS. Candidate TRPs receive the time from the LMF UL by adding Provide Timing Information.

[0101] Table 4

[0102] After receiving the UL transmission time and UL reception time, the LMF calculates the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP based on the difference between the two. If the LMF needs to maintain the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP, no additional signaling is required. If the LMF needs to maintain the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP, the LMF provides the TA information to the UE based on the newly added ProvideTAInformation. If the LMF needs to maintain the TA at the serving TRP, the LMF provides the TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added ProvideTAInformation.

[0103] For DL-AoD positioning, protocol 38.305 supports UE-based positioning and UE-assisted positioning. Since DL-AoD does not require time synchronization between the serving TRP and candidate TRPs, the TA of a candidate TRP cannot be derived from TDOA. For DL-AoD positioning, the UE needs to send UL SRS to the candidate TRP and add... ProvideTimingInformation The transmission time is sent to the LMF, and then the candidate TRP receives the UL SRS and sends the reception time to the LMF by adding Provide Timing Information. After receiving the UL transmission time and the UL reception time, the LMF calculates the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP based on the difference between the two.

[0104] For OTDOA positioning, protocol 38.305 only supports UE-assisted positioning. Since the TA (Target Aspect Ratio) of the UE to the candidate TRP cannot be derived, OTDOA positioning requires the UE to send a UL SRS (Ultra-Low Temperature Response) to the candidate TRP and transmit the transmission time to the LMF (Local Management Function) via a newly added Provide Timing Information. The candidate TRP then receives the UL SRS and transmits the reception time to the LMF via a newly added Provide Timing Information. After receiving the UL transmission time and UL reception time, the LMF calculates the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP based on the difference between the two.

[0105] For UL-TDOA positioning, protocol 38.305 only supports NG-RAN node-assisted positioning. If the TA of a candidate TRP can be derived from ULTDOA, the UE does not need to send UL SRS to the candidate TRP to obtain an accurate TA. However, if the TA of a candidate TRP cannot be derived from UL TDOA, the initial TA of the candidate TRP needs to be updated for UL-TDOA positioning. This requires the UE to send UL SRS to the candidate TRP. The UE can send the transmission time to the LMF by adding ProvideTimingInformation. The candidate TRP receives the UL SRS and sends the reception time to the LMF by adding ProvideTimingInformation. After receiving the UL transmission time and UL reception time, the LMF calculates the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP based on the difference between the two.

[0106] It should be noted that for the UL-TDOA positioning method, since the UE needs to transmit UL SRS when using UL RS to locate the UE, and the UE also needs to transmit UL SRS to obtain the accurate TA of the candidate TRP, the UE does not need to transmit UL SRS repeatedly for the candidate TRP when positioning the UE through UL RS if the candidate TRP is used for both positioning and obtaining TA.

[0107] For UL-AoA positioning, protocol 38.305 only supports NG-RAN node-assisted positioning. However, since the UE's TA (Target Acquisition Context) for candidate TRPs cannot be derived, UL-AoA positioning also requires the UE to send UL SRS (Ultra-Level Suppression) to the candidate TRP. The UE adds... ProvideTimingInformation The transmission time is sent to the LMF, and the candidate TRP receives the UL SRS and sends the reception time to the LMF through the added Provide Timing Information. After receiving the UL transmission time and UL reception time, the LMF calculates the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP based on the difference between the two. It should be noted that for UL-AoA positioning, since the UE needs to transmit the UL SRS when using UL RS to locate the UE, and the UE also needs to transmit the UL SRS to obtain the accurate TRP of the candidate TRP, when positioning the UE via UL RS, if the candidate TRP is used for both positioning and obtaining the TA, the UE does not need to repeatedly transmit the UL SRSA to that candidate TRP.

[0108] For Multi-RTT positioning, when TA information cannot be derived from RTT, the UE can send the UL SRS to the candidate TRP and send the transmission time to the LMF by adding ProvideTimingInformation. The candidate TRP then receives the UL SRS and sends the reception time to the LMF by adding ProvideTimingInformation. After receiving the UL transmission time and UL reception time, the LMF calculates the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP based on the difference between the two.

[0109] Optionally, considering that the UE does not need to send the UL transmission time to the LMF when the candidate TRP and the serving TRP are synchronized, the LMF can also know the UL transmission time. Therefore, the above-mentioned modification of the estimated TA information to obtain the UE's target TA information for the candidate TRP can also be achieved in the following ways: When the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the second serving TRP serving the UE, the transmission time of UL SRS is determined, wherein the transmission time of UL SRS is the time when the UE sends UL SRS to the candidate TRP. Obtain the second signaling sent by the candidate TRP, wherein the second signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the reception time of the UL SRS. The reception time of the UL SRS is the reception time when the candidate TRP receives the UL SRS sent by the UE. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. The UE determines the target TA information for the candidate TRP to be equal to the difference between the UL SRS reception time and the UL SRS transmission time.

[0110] For DL-TDOA, DL-AoD, OTDOA, UL-TDOA, UL-AoA, and Multi-RTT positioning methods, when the TA (Transmission Time) of the candidate TRP cannot be derived from DL TDOA, the LMF (Local Time Filter) needs to calculate the TA from the UE to the candidate TRP based on the difference between the UL transmission time and the UL reception time. When calculating the TA, if the candidate TRP and the serving TRP are time-synchronized, the UE does not need to send the UL transmission time to the LMF, but the candidate TRP still needs to send the UL reception time to the LMF via Provide Timing Information.

[0111] In this embodiment, the accuracy of the obtained TA can be improved by correcting the initial TA estimated based on the location information according to the transmission and reception time of the UL SRS.

[0112] In an exemplary embodiment, after determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate Transmission Receiver Node (TRP) based on reference information, the above method further includes: S41, when the UE determines the target TA information and the third service TRP that provides services to the UE maintains the target TA information, the third signaling sent by the UE is obtained, wherein the third signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. S42, based on the obtained third signaling, send fourth signaling to the third serving TRP, wherein the fourth signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information.

[0113] The TA information for candidate TRPs can be updated periodically, especially during cell handover, when the latest TA of the candidate TRP needs to be communicated to the UE. Before updating, the current TA information needs to be maintained. This maintenance can be performed on the UE, LMF, and serving TRP. It should be noted that the maintained TA information can be derived from the time difference of arrival or round-trip time difference, estimated from the UE's location information, or the updated TA information.

[0114] For TA maintenance, if the TA is maintained at the UE, no additional signaling is required to notify the accurate TA value; if the TA is maintained at the LMF, the LMF needs to notify the UE of the TA information of the candidate TRP to be handed over, or the LMF first notifies the serving TRP of the TA information of the candidate TRP to be handed over, and then the serving TRP notifies the UE of the TA of the candidate TRP to be handed over in the cell handover command; if the TA is maintained at the serving TRP, the serving TRP notifies the UE of the TA of the candidate TRP to be handed over in the cell handover command.

[0115] When the target TA information is determined by the UE and maintained by the third serving TRP providing services to the UE, the LMF can obtain the third signaling sent by the UE, and then the LMF can send a fourth signaling to the third serving TRP based on the obtained third signaling. Here, the third signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. The fourth signaling may include the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information.

[0116] Optionally, when the target TA information is determined by the LMF and maintained by the third serving TRP servicing the UE, a fourth signaling message is sent to the third serving TRP. This fourth signaling message includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. That is, when the target TA information is determined by the LMF and maintained by the third serving TRP servicing the UE, the fourth signaling message can be sent directly from the LMF to the third serving TRP.

[0117] As shown in Table 4 above, for the maintenance of the initial TA (TA information derived from the arrival time difference or round-trip time difference, and TA information estimated from the UE location information), if it is based on the UE's location, the initial TA of the UE to the candidate TRP can be estimated at the UE, maintained at the serving TRP, or maintained at the LMF.

[0118] For DL-TDOA positioning, if the TA is maintained at the UE and LMF, the UE does not need to report the initial TA value to the LMF, and therefore no additional signaling is required. If the TA is maintained at the TRP, the UE needs to report the initial TA value to the LMF, and then the LMF reports it to the TRP. This requires adding ProvideTA Information to the Information Element definitions in protocol 38.455, as shown in Table 5. This includes the Physical cell ID (IdentityDocument), Global cell ID, TP ID / TRP ID, and the estimated TA value. The LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP by adding the ProvideTA Information. If the initial TA is maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required.

[0119] Table 5

[0120] For UE-assisted localization, since the LMF reports the measurement results to the UE, it estimates the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the candidate TRP location. To maintain the initial TA at the UE, a new feature is added to Common IEs (Conmon Internet Enhanced Service) in protocol 37.355. ProvideTAInformation (Provide TA information), as shown in Table 6, including Physical cell ID, Global cell ID, TP ID / TRP ID, and estimated TA value, which is added by LMF based on the new information. ProvideTAInformation The LMF provides initial TA information to the UE. If the initial TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, a new "Provide TA Information" is added to the Information Element definitions in protocol 38.455. This information includes the Physical cell ID, Global cell ID, TP ID / TRP ID, and the estimated TA value. The LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP by adding this new "Provide TA Information." If the initial TA needs to be maintained by the LMF, no additional signaling is required. It should be noted that... ProvideTAInformation The "Provide TA Information" and "Provide TA Information" correspond to new content added in different protocols, and in this embodiment, they are distinguished by italic and non-italic fonts.

[0121] Table 6

[0122] For ORDOA positioning, if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the UE, then LMF should be added according to the above. ProvideTAInformation The LMF provides initial TA information to the UE. If the initial TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information. If the initial TA needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required.

[0123] For DL-AoD positioning, if it's UE-based positioning, the UE and LMF can estimate the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the candidate TRP location. Therefore, if TA needs to be maintained at the UE, no additional signaling is required. If TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP through the newly added Provide TA Information. If the LMF needs to maintain the initial TA, no additional signaling is required. For UE-assisted positioning, since the UE reports the measurement results, the LMF estimates the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the candidate TRP location. If the initial TA needs to be maintained at the UE, the LMF uses the newly added... ProvideTAInformation Provide initial TA information to the UE; if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information; if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required.

[0124] For UL-TDOA positioning, if initial TA needs to be maintained at the UE, then according to the above-mentioned additions... ProvideTAInformation The LMF provides initial TA information to the UE. If the initial TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information. If the initial TA needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required.

[0125] For UL-AoA positioning, if initial TA needs to be maintained at the UE, then according to the above-mentioned additions... ProvideTAInformation Provide initial TA information to the UE; if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information; if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required.

[0126] For Multi-RTT positioning, since the initial TA is estimated by the LMF based on the estimated UE location and the candidate TRP location, if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the UE, the LMF will do so based on the aforementioned newly added... ProvideTAInformation Provide initial TA information to the UE; if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information; if the initial TA needs to be maintained by the LMF, no additional signaling is required.

[0127] For the enhanced cell ID positioning method, the LMF estimates the initial TA based on the estimated UE location and the candidate TRP location. If the initial TA needs to be maintained at the UE, the LMF will then add the aforementioned parameters. ProvideTAInformation Provide initial TA information to the UE; if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides the initial TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information; if the initial TA needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required.

[0128] After obtaining the initial TA, updating and maintaining the TA can be divided into correcting the estimated TA information and updating the target TA. As shown in Table 7, different positioning technologies may update and maintain the new TA in different ways after determining the initial TA. It should be noted that the measurement TRP in Table 7 refers to the service TRP involved in the aforementioned positioning measurement.

[0129] Table 7

[0130] For example, for DL-TDOA positioning, protocol 38.305 supports UE-based positioning and UE-assisted positioning. If the TA of a candidate TRP can be derived from DL-TDOA, the UE does not need to send UL SRS to the candidate TRP to obtain the accurate TA. In this case, for UE-based DL-TDOA positioning, if the TA can be derived from DL-TDOA, the UE does not need to send UL SRS. If the TA is maintained at the UE, the UE updates the TA of the candidate TRP; if the TA is maintained at the LMF, the UE adds... ProvideTAInformation The updated candidate TRP TA is sent to the LMF; if the TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the UE adds a new TA. ProvideTAInformationAfter the updated candidate TRP TA is sent to the LMF, the LMF then sends the updated candidate TRP TA to the serving TRP by adding Provide TA Information. However, in UE-assisted DL-TDOA positioning, if the TA can be derived from DL-TDOA, the UE does not need to send a UL RSR. In this case, if the TA is maintained at the UE, the UE updates the candidate TRP TA; if the TA is maintained at the LMF, the LMF updates the candidate TRP TA; and if the TA is maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF sends the updated candidate TRP TA to the serving TRP by adding Provide TA Information.

[0131] It should be noted that for cases where the initial TA can be directly derived (i.e., the accurate initial TA is derived from TDOA or RTT), as shown in Table 7, updating the initial TA refers to updating and maintaining it in the way that the initial TA is determined.

[0132] For DL-AoD technology, if the UE needs to maintain the TA for the candidate TRP at the LMF, no additional signaling is required; if the UE needs to maintain the UE's TA for the candidate TRP, the LMF will adjust the signaling according to the newly added... ProvideTAInformation Provide TA information to the UE; if TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information.

[0133] For OTDOA positioning technology, if the UE's TA to the candidate TRP needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required; if the UE needs to maintain the UE's TA to the candidate TRP, the LMF will adjust the signaling based on the newly added signaling. ProvideTAInformation Provide TA information to the UE; if TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information.

[0134] For UL-TDOA technology, protocol 38.305 only supports NG-RAN node-assisted positioning. If the TA of a candidate TRP can be derived from UL TDOA, the UE does not need to send UL SRS to the candidate TRP to obtain the accurate TA. If the TA needs to be maintained at the LMF, the candidate TRP sends the updated candidate TRP TA to the LMF by adding Provide TA Information; if the TA needs to be maintained at the UE, the candidate TRP sends the updated candidate TRP TA to the LMF by adding Provide TA Information, and the LMF then adds... ProvideTAInformationThe updated candidate TRP TA is sent to the UE; if the TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the candidate TRP sends the updated candidate TRP TA to the LMF by adding Provide TA Information, and then the LMF sends the updated candidate TRP TA to the serving TRP by adding Provide TA Information.

[0135] For UL-TDOA technology, when the TA of a candidate TRP cannot be derived, if the TA of the UE to the candidate TRP needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required; if the TA of the UE to the candidate TRP needs to be maintained at the UE, the LMF will adjust the signaling based on the newly added signaling. ProvideTAInformation Provide TA information to the UE; if TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added ProvideTA Information.

[0136] For UL-AoA positioning technology, if the UE's TA to the candidate TRP needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required; if the UE needs to maintain the UE's TA to the candidate TRP, the LMF will adjust the signaling based on the newly added signaling. ProvideTAInformation Provide TA information to the UE; if TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information.

[0137] For positioning methods that use DL RS and UL RS jointly to locate the UE (such as Multi-RTT positioning technology), if the candidate TRP is used for both positioning and TA acquisition, the UE's TA to the candidate TRP can be derived from the RTT between the UE and the candidate TRP, and the UE's TA to the candidate TRP can be updated. If the UE's TA to the candidate TRP needs to be maintained at the LMF, no additional signaling is required; if the UE needs to maintain the UE's TA to the candidate TRP, the LMF will adjust the signaling based on the newly added... ProvideTAInformation Provide TA information to the UE; if TA needs to be maintained at the serving TRP, the LMF provides TA information to the serving TRP based on the newly added Provide TA Information.

[0138] This embodiment determines the method for acquiring and updating the TA of candidate TRPs based on the usage scenarios and characteristics of each positioning technology. Specifically, for DL-TDOA, UL-TDOA, and Multi-RTT positioning technologies, if both the serving TRP and the candidate TRP are used for positioning, and the candidate TRP is also used to acquire the TA, then the accurate TA can be derived from TDOA or RTT. For other positioning technologies and other cases of these three technologies, the UE can send SRS to the candidate TRP, the UE can send the UL transmission time to the LMF, and the candidate TRP can send the reception time to the LMF. The LMF calculates the TA of the candidate TRP for the UE based on the difference between the two. When using UL RS to position the UE, if the candidate TRP is used for both positioning and acquiring the TA, the UE does not need to repeatedly transmit UL SRS to that candidate TRP.

[0139] It should be noted that, for the sake of simplicity, the foregoing method embodiments are all described as a series of actions. However, those skilled in the art should understand that this application is not limited to the described order of actions, as some steps may be performed in other orders or simultaneously according to this application. Furthermore, those skilled in the art should also understand that the embodiments described in the specification are preferred embodiments, and the actions and modules involved are not necessarily essential to this application.

[0140] Through the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the methods according to the above embodiments can be implemented by means of software plus necessary general-purpose hardware platforms. Of course, they can also be implemented by hardware, but in many cases the former is a better implementation method. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM (Read-Only Memory) / RAM (Random Access Memory), magnetic disk, optical disk), and includes several instructions to cause a terminal device (which may be a mobile phone, computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods of the various embodiments of this application.

[0141] According to another aspect of the embodiments of this application, a timing advance information acquisition device is also provided for implementing the above-described timing advance information acquisition method, and the timing advance information acquisition device can be applied to a smart device. Figure 13 This is a structural block diagram of an optional timing advance information acquisition device according to an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 13 As shown, the device may include: The first acquisition unit 1302 is used to acquire reference information obtained by positioning the UE in a target mode, wherein the reference information is used to determine the target timing advance TA information; The first determining unit 1304, connected to the first obtaining unit 1302, is used to determine the target TA information of the UE for the candidate transmission receiving node (TRP) based on the reference information.

[0142] It should be noted that the first acquisition unit 1302 in this embodiment can be used to execute the above step S202, and the first determination unit 1304 in this embodiment can be used to execute the above step S204.

[0143] Through the above modules, reference information obtained from the target mode positioning of the UE is acquired. The reference information is used to determine the target timing advance (TA) information. Based on the reference information, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate transmit receiver node (TRP) is determined. This solves the problem of large latency overhead in the acquisition method of timing advance information in related technologies and reduces latency overhead.

[0144] In one exemplary embodiment, the first determining unit includes: The first determining module is configured to determine the target TA information of the UE for a candidate TRP based on the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the time difference of arrival (TDA) of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the UE's target mode positioning. The reference information includes the TDA, the TRP used for the UE's target mode positioning includes the first serving TRP, and the TDA includes one of the following: downlink TDA, uplink TDA. The downlink TDA is the time difference between the arrival time of the first downlink positioning reference signal sent by the first serving TRP and the arrival time of the second downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP. The uplink TDA is the sum of the first and second TDAs. The first TDA is the time difference between the transmission time of the first uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE to the first serving TRP and the transmission time of the second uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE to the candidate TRP, and the second TDA is the time difference between the reception time of the first uplink positioning reference signal received by the first serving TRP and the reception time of the second uplink positioning reference signal received by the candidate TRP; or... The second determining module is used to determine the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the round-trip time difference (RTD) of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the target positioning method of the UE. The reference information includes the RTD, which is the difference between a third time difference and a fourth time difference. The third time difference is the time difference between the time the UE receives the third downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP and the time the UE sends the third uplink positioning reference signal to the candidate TRP. The fourth time difference is the time difference between the time the candidate TRP receives the third uplink positioning reference signal and the time the candidate TRP sends the third downlink positioning reference signal. The third uplink positioning reference signal is the uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE when the UE receives the probe reference signal from the first serving TRP. The third downlink positioning reference signal is the downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP after receiving the received third uplink positioning reference signal when the candidate TRP receives a measurement request from the location management server (LMF). Alternatively... The third determining module is used to determine the target TA information of the UE to the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information. The reference information includes the UE's location information, which is the location information obtained by the UE in the target positioning method.

[0145] In one exemplary embodiment, the first determining module includes: The first determining submodule is used to determine the target TA information of the UE to the candidate TRP as equal to the sum of the TA information of the UE to the first service TRP and the downlink time difference when the target positioning method is downlink time difference DL-TDOA positioning, the TRP used for DL-TDOA positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP, the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the first serving TRP, and the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is to simultaneously locate and determine TA information.

[0146] In one exemplary embodiment, the above-described apparatus further includes: The second determining unit is configured to, before determining the target TA information of the candidate TRP for the UE based on the TA information of the first service TRP and the time difference of arrival corresponding to the target mode, determine the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP by using the first set of bits corresponding to the candidate TRP in the candidate TRP list when the target mode is DL-TDOA positioning, in the case where the positioning is DL-TDOA positioning. The candidate TRP list is a list sent to the UE by the location management server LMF. When the first set of bits is a first value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for positioning. When the first set of bits is a second value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for determining TA information. When the first set of bits is a third value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for both positioning and determining TA information.

[0147] In one exemplary embodiment, the first determining module includes: The second determining submodule is used to determine the target TA information of the UE to the candidate TRP as equal to the sum of the TA information of the UE to the first service TRP and the uplink time difference when the target positioning mode is uplink time difference UL-TDOA positioning, the TRP used for UL-TDOA positioning of the UE includes the first service TRP, and the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the first service TRP.

[0148] In one exemplary embodiment, the second determining module includes: The third determining submodule is used to determine the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP as equal to half of the round-trip time difference when the target positioning method is Multi-RTT positioning, the TRP used for Multi-RTT positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP, and the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is to simultaneously locate and determine TA information.

[0149] In one exemplary embodiment, the above-described apparatus further includes: The third determining unit is used to determine the auxiliary role of a candidate TRP by means of the second set of bits corresponding to the candidate TRP in the candidate TRP list before determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the round-trip time difference corresponding to the target mode, when the target mode is Multi-RTT positioning. The candidate TRP list is a list sent to the UE by the LMF. When the second set of bits is the fourth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for positioning. When the second set of bits is the fifth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for determining TA information. When the second set of bits is the sixth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for both positioning and determining TA information.

[0150] In one exemplary embodiment, the third determining module includes: The fourth determination submodule is used to determine the UE's estimated TA information for the candidate TRP based on the UE's location information and the candidate TRP's location information; The execution submodule is used to determine the target TA information as equal to the estimated TA information, or to correct the estimated TA information to obtain the UE's target TA information for the candidate TRP.

[0151] In one exemplary embodiment, the fourth determining submodule includes: The first determining subunit is used to determine the UE's estimated TA information for the candidate TRP using the following formula:

[0152] In the formula, the TA information is the estimated TA information, the coordinates (x1, y1) represent the UE's location information, the coordinates (x2, y2) represent the candidate TRP's location information, and c represents the propagation speed of the radio signal.

[0153] In one exemplary embodiment, the execution submodule includes: The first acquisition subunit is used to acquire the first signaling sent by the UE when the candidate TRP and the second serving TRP serving the UE are out of sync. The first signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the transmission time of the uplink sounding reference signal UL SRS. The transmission time of UL SRS is the time when the UE sends UL SRS to the candidate TRP. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. The second acquisition subunit is used to acquire the second signaling sent by the candidate TRP, wherein the second signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the reception time of the UL SRS, and the reception time of the UL SRS is the reception time when the candidate TRP receives the UL SRS sent by the UE. The second determining subunit is used to determine the target TA information of the candidate TRP by the UE as equal to the difference between the reception time of the UL SRS and the transmission time of the UL SRS.

[0154] In one exemplary embodiment, the execution submodule includes: The third determining subunit is used to determine the transmission time of UL SRS when the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the second serving TRP that serves the UE, wherein the transmission time of UL SRS is the transmission time when the UE sends UL SRS to the candidate TRP. The third acquisition subunit is used to acquire the second signaling sent by the candidate TRP, wherein the second signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the reception time of the UL SRS. The reception time of the UL SRS is the reception time when the candidate TRP receives the UL SRS sent by the UE. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. The fourth determining subunit is used to determine the target TA information of the candidate TRP by the UE as equal to the difference between the reception time and the transmission time of the UL SRS.

[0155] In one exemplary embodiment, the above-described apparatus further includes: The second acquisition unit is used to acquire the third signaling sent by the UE after determining the target TA information of the candidate transmission receiving node TRP according to the reference information, and under the condition that the target TA information is determined by the UE and maintained by the third serving TRP serving the UE. The third signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. The first sending unit is used to send a fourth signaling to the third serving TRP based on the acquired third signaling, wherein the fourth signaling includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information.

[0156] In one exemplary embodiment, the above-described apparatus further includes: The second sending unit is configured to, after determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate transmission receiving node TRP based on the reference information, send a fourth signaling to the third serving TRP when the target TA information is determined by the LMF and maintained by the third serving TRP serving the UE. The fourth signaling includes a target physical cell identifier, a target global cell identifier, a candidate TRP identifier, and target TA information. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP.

[0157] It should be noted that the examples and application scenarios implemented by the above modules and corresponding steps are the same, but are not limited to the content disclosed in the above embodiments. It should also be noted that the above modules, as part of a device, can operate in environments such as... Figure 1 The hardware environment shown can be implemented through software or hardware, and the hardware environment includes the network environment.

[0158] According to another aspect of the embodiments of this application, a storage medium is also provided, which can be located on a smart device. Optionally, in this embodiment, the storage medium can be used to execute program code for any of the timing advance information acquisition methods described above in the embodiments of this application.

[0159] Optionally, in this embodiment, the storage medium may be located on at least one of the network devices in the network shown in the above embodiment.

[0160] Optionally, in this embodiment, the storage medium is configured to store program code for performing the following steps: S1, obtain reference information obtained from the target mode positioning of the UE, wherein the reference information is used to determine the target timing advance TA information; S2, based on the reference information, determine the target TA information of the candidate transmission receiving node (TRP) for the UE.

[0161] Optionally, in this embodiment, the storage medium may include, but is not limited to, various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, ROMs, RAMs, portable hard drives, magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0162] According to another aspect of the embodiments of this application, an electronic device for implementing the above-described method for obtaining advance timing information is also provided. The electronic device may be a smart device, a server, a terminal, or a combination thereof.

[0163] Figure 14 This is a structural block diagram of an optional electronic device according to an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 14 As shown, it includes a processor 1402, a communication interface 1404, a memory 1406, and a communication bus 1408. The processor 1402, communication interface 1404, and memory 1406 communicate with each other via the communication bus 1408. Memory 1406 is used to store computer programs; Optionally, when the processor 1402 executes a computer program stored in the memory 1406, it performs the following steps: S1, obtain reference information obtained from the target mode positioning of the UE, wherein the reference information is used to determine the target timing advance TA information; S2, based on the reference information, determine the target TA information of the candidate transmission receiving node (TRP) for the UE.

[0164] Optionally, the communication bus can be a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) bus or an EISA (Extended Industry Standard Architecture) bus, etc. This communication bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, Figure 14 The symbol is represented by a single thick line, but this does not indicate that there is only one bus or one type of bus. The communication interface is used for communication between the aforementioned electronic device and other devices.

[0165] The memory may include RAM, or non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device. Optionally, the memory may also be at least one storage device located remotely from the aforementioned processor.

[0166] As an example, the memory 1406 described above may include, but is not limited to, the first acquisition unit 1302 and the first determination unit 1304 in the timing advance information acquisition device. Furthermore, it may include, but is not limited to, other module units in the timing advance information acquisition device, which will not be elaborated upon in this example.

[0167] The processor mentioned above can be a general-purpose processor, including but not limited to: CPU (Central Processing Unit), NP (Network Processor), etc.; it can also be DSP (Digital Signal Processor), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components.

[0168] Optionally, specific examples in this embodiment can refer to the examples described in the above embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0169] Those skilled in the art will understand that Figure 14 The structure shown is for illustrative purposes only. The device implementing the above method for obtaining advance timing information can be a terminal device, such as a smartphone (e.g., Android phone, iOS phone), tablet computer, PDA, mobile Internet Devices (MID), PAD, etc. Figure 14 This does not limit the structure of the aforementioned electronic device. For example, the electronic device may also include components that are more... Figure 14 The more or fewer components shown (such as network interfaces, display devices, etc.), or having the same Figure 14 The different configurations shown.

[0170] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the steps in the various methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by a program instructing the hardware related to the terminal device. The program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, which may include: flash drive, ROM, RAM, disk or optical disk, etc.

[0171] The sequence numbers of the embodiments in this application are for descriptive purposes only and do not represent the superiority or inferiority of the embodiments.

[0172] If the integrated units in the above embodiments are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in the aforementioned computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause one or more computer devices (which may be personal computers, servers, or network devices, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application.

[0173] In the above embodiments of this application, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments.

[0174] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed client can be implemented in other ways. The device embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for example, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection between units or modules, and may be electrical or other forms.

[0175] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of the solution provided in this embodiment, depending on actual needs.

[0176] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or at least two units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

[0177] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of this application. It should be noted that for those skilled in the art, several improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the principle of this application, and these improvements and modifications should also be considered within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A method for obtaining advance timing information, characterized in that, include: Obtain reference information obtained from the target mode positioning of the UE, wherein the reference information is used to determine the target timing advance TA information; Based on the reference information, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate transmit receive node (TRP) is determined; When the target TA information is determined by the UE and maintained by the third serving TRP serving the UE, a third signaling message sent by the UE is obtained. This third signaling message includes a target physical cell identifier, a target global cell identifier, a candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. Based on the obtained third signaling message, a fourth signaling message is sent to the third serving TRP. This fourth signaling message includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information. Alternatively, When the target TA information is determined by the location management server LMF and maintained by the third service TRP serving the UE, a fourth signaling is sent to the third service TRP. The fourth signaling includes a target physical cell identifier, a target global cell identifier, a candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP. The candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate transmit receive node (TRP) based on the reference information includes: Based on the TA information of the UE to the first serving TRP and the time difference of arrival (TDA) of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode, the target TA information of the UE to the candidate TRP is determined. The reference information includes the TDA, the TRP used for positioning the UE in the target mode includes the first serving TRP, and the TDA includes one of the following: downlink TDA and uplink TDA. The downlink TDA is the time difference between the arrival time of the first downlink positioning reference signal sent by the first serving TRP and the arrival time of the second downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP. The uplink TDA is the sum of the first and second time differences. The first time difference is the time difference between the transmission time of the first uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE to the first serving TRP and the transmission time of the second uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE to the candidate TRP, and the second time difference is the time difference between the reception time of the first uplink positioning reference signal received by the first serving TRP and the reception time of the second uplink positioning reference signal received by the candidate TRP. Alternatively... Based on the round-trip time difference (RTD) of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined. The reference information includes the RTD, which is the difference between a third time difference and a fourth time difference. The third time difference is the time difference between the time the UE receives the third downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP and the time the UE sends the third uplink positioning reference signal to the candidate TRP. The fourth time difference is the time difference between the time the candidate TRP receives the third uplink positioning reference signal and the time the candidate TRP sends the third downlink positioning reference signal. The third uplink positioning reference signal is the uplink positioning reference signal sent by the UE when the UE receives the probe reference signal from the first serving TRP. The third downlink positioning reference signal is the downlink positioning reference signal sent by the candidate TRP after receiving the received third uplink positioning reference signal when the candidate TRP receives a measurement request from the location management server (LMF). Alternatively... Based on the location information of the UE and the location information of the candidate TRP, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined, wherein the reference information includes the location information of the UE, which is the location information obtained by locating the UE using the target method.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode includes: In the case where the target positioning method is downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) positioning, the TRP used for the DL-TDOA positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP, the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the first serving TRP, and the auxiliary function of the candidate TRP is to simultaneously locate and determine TA information, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined to be equal to the sum of the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the downlink time difference of arrival.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, Before determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode, the method further includes: When the target positioning method is DL-TDOA positioning, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is determined by the first set of bits corresponding to the candidate TRP in the candidate TRP list. The candidate TRP list is a list sent to the UE by the location management server LMF. When the first set of bits is a first value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for positioning. When the first set of bits is a second value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for determining TA information. When the first set of bits is a third value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for both positioning and determining TA information.

5. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode includes: When the target positioning method is uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) positioning, the TRP used for UL-TDOA positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP, and the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the first serving TRP, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined to be equal to the sum of the TA information of the UE for the first serving TRP and the uplink time difference of arrival.

6. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the round-trip time difference of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode includes: When the target positioning method is Multi-RTT positioning, the TRP used for the Multi-RTT positioning of the UE includes the first serving TRP, and the auxiliary function of the candidate TRP is to simultaneously locate and determine TA information, the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined to be equal to half of the round-trip time difference.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, Before determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the round-trip time difference of the positioning reference signal corresponding to the positioning of the UE in the target mode, the method further includes: When the target positioning method is Multi-RTT positioning, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is determined by the second set of bits corresponding to the candidate TRP in the candidate TRP list. The candidate TRP list is a list sent by the LMF to the UE. When the second set of bits is the fourth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for positioning. When the second set of bits is the fifth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for determining TA information. When the second set of bits is the sixth value, the auxiliary role of the candidate TRP is for both positioning and determining TA information.

8. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of determining the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP based on the location information of the UE and the location information of the candidate TRP includes: Based on the location information of the UE and the location information of the candidate TRP, the estimated TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP is determined; The target TA information is determined to be equal to the estimated TA information, or the estimated TA information is modified to obtain the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The step of correcting the estimated TA information to obtain the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP includes: When the candidate TRP and the second serving TRP serving the UE are out of sync, the system acquires first signaling sent by the UE, wherein the first signaling includes a target physical cell identifier, a target global cell identifier, a candidate TRP identifier, and the transmission time of an uplink sounding reference signal (UL SRS). The transmission time of the UL SRS is the time when the UE sends the UL SRS to the candidate TRP. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. The system then acquires second signaling sent by the candidate TRP, wherein the second signaling includes a target physical cell identifier, a target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the reception time of the UL SRS. The reception time of the UL SRS is the time when the candidate TRP receives the UL SRS sent by the UE. The system then determines the target TA information of the UE for the candidate TRP as equal to the difference between the reception time of the UL SRS and the transmission time of the UL SRS; or... When the candidate TRP is time-synchronized with the second serving TRP serving the UE, the transmission time of the UL SRS is determined, wherein the transmission time of the UL SRS is the time when the UE sends the UL SRS to the candidate TRP; the second signaling sent by the candidate TRP is obtained, wherein the second signaling includes a target physical cell identifier, a target global cell identifier, a candidate TRP identifier, and a reception time of the UL SRS, wherein the reception time of the UL SRS is the time when the candidate TRP receives the UL SRS sent by the UE, the target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP; the target TA information of the UE to the candidate TRP is determined to be equal to the difference between the reception time of the UL SRS and the transmission time of the UL SRS.

10. A device for acquiring advance timing information, characterized in that, include: The first acquisition unit is used to acquire reference information obtained from the target mode positioning of the UE, wherein the reference information is used to determine the target timing advance TA information; The first determining unit is configured to determine the target TA information of the UE for the candidate transmit receiving node (TRP) based on the reference information. The second acquisition unit is configured to, when the target TA information is determined by the UE and maintained by a third serving TRP providing services to the UE, acquire a third signaling message sent by the UE, wherein the third signaling message includes a target physical cell identifier, a target global cell identifier, a candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information; the target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP; the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP; and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP. Based on the acquired third signaling message, the unit sends a fourth signaling message to the third serving TRP, wherein the fourth signaling message includes the target physical cell identifier, the target global cell identifier, the candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information; or... The second sending unit is configured to send a fourth signaling message to the third serving TRP when the target TA information is determined by the location management server LMF and the target TA information is maintained by the third serving TRP serving the UE. The fourth signaling message includes a target physical cell identifier, a target global cell identifier, a candidate TRP identifier, and the target TA information. The target physical cell identifier is the physical cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, the target global cell identifier is the global cell identifier of the cell corresponding to the candidate TRP, and the candidate TRP identifier is the identifier of the candidate TRP.

11. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium includes a stored program, wherein the program, when executed, performs the method of any one of claims 1 to 9.

12. An electronic device comprising a memory and a processor, characterized in that, The memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the method of any one of claims 1 to 9 through the computer program.

Images