System and method for sidelink positioning

Abstract

Systems and methods for a wireless communication system are disclosed herein. In one aspect, a method of wireless communication includes determining, by a first wireless communication device in sidelink communication, a location of the first wireless communication device based on location-related information. The positioning related information includes at least one of control information, a second wireless communication device in sidelink communication, or a plurality of reference signals.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications, including but not limited to systems and methods for improving sidelink positioning accuracy. Background Art

[0002] The Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), a standardization organization, is currently developing a new radio interface called 5G New Radio (5G NR) and the next-generation packet core network (NG-CN or NGC). 5G NR will have three main components: 5G Access Network (5G-AN), 5G Core Network (5G GC) and User Equipment (UE). In order to facilitate the implementation of different data services and requirements, the network elements (also known as Network Function (NF)) of 5GC have been simplified, some of which are software-based, allowing them to be adjusted as needed. Summary of the invention

[0003] One aspect is a wireless communication method, comprising: determining, by a first wireless communication device in sidelink communication, a position of the first wireless communication device based on positioning-related information. The positioning-related information includes at least one of: control information, a second wireless communication device in sidelink communication, or a plurality of reference signals.

[0004] In some examples, the method further includes: the first wireless communication device receives control information from the second wireless communication device. The control information includes at least two sets, each set indicating a corresponding broadcast type and a corresponding destination identifier, and wherein one of the sets is associated with the data signal, and another of the sets is associated with a first reference signal in the reference signal.

[0005] In some examples, the two sets are configured independently of each other.

[0006] In some examples, the method further includes determining, by the first wireless communication device, whether to receive the first reference signal when the destination identification associated with the first reference signal is identified.

[0007] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device selecting the second wireless communication device from a plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication based on a position uncertainty associated with the second wireless communication device.

[0008] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device sends a first message including a capability request to each of a plurality of wireless communication devices; and the first wireless communication device receives a second message from a second wireless communication device, the second message responding to the first message and indicating that the second wireless communication device has positioning capability in order to select the second wireless communication device.

[0009] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device sends a first message to each of a plurality of wireless communication devices to request location information and location uncertainty information; the first wireless communication device receives a second message from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices, the second message responding to the first message and indicating a corresponding location and a corresponding location uncertainty of each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; and in response to determining that the location uncertainty of the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold, the first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device.

[0010] In some examples, the location uncertainty is related to a distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device.

[0011] In some examples, the location uncertainty is related to a path loss parameter.

[0012] In some examples, the location uncertainty is related to the transmission power.

[0013] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device selecting a second wireless communication device from a plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication based on a Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) measurement associated with the second wireless communication device.

[0014] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device sends a first message including a second reference signal among the reference signals to each of a plurality of wireless communication devices; the first wireless communication device sends a second message to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices to request measurement of the RSRP of the corresponding second reference signal; the first wireless communication device receives a third message from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices, the third message responding to the second message and including an RSRP measurement report of the second reference signal; and in response to determining that the RSRP measurement report associated with the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold, the first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device.

[0015] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device receiving a first message including a second reference signal from each of a plurality of wireless communication devices; the first wireless communication device measuring the RSRP of the second reference signal received from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; and in response to determining that the measured RSRP associated with the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold, the first wireless communication device selecting the second wireless communication device.

[0016] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device receives a first message including a second reference signal in the reference signal from each of a plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication; the first wireless communication device measures the RSRP of the second reference signal received from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices within a time window; and in response to determining that the measured RSRP associated with the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold, the first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device from the plurality of wireless communication devices.

[0017] In some examples, the time window is configured before a timing at which the first wireless communication device sends a location request to the second wireless communication device.

[0018] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device determining a first distance from the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device; the first wireless communication device determining a second distance from the wireless communication node to the first wireless communication device; and the first wireless communication device determining a position based on the first distance and the second distance.

[0019] In some examples, the first distance is determined based on a first timing when the first wireless communication device sends a first reference signal in a reference signal to the second wireless communication device, a second timing when the second wireless communication device receives the first reference signal, a third timing when the second wireless communication device sends a second reference signal in a reference signal to the first wireless communication device, and a fourth timing when the first wireless communication device receives the second reference signal.

[0020] In some examples, the second distance is determined based on the first timing, the second timing, a fifth timing when the wireless communication node transmits a third reference signal among the reference signals, and a sixth timing when the first wireless communication device receives the third reference signal.

[0021] In some examples, the method also includes: the first wireless communication device receiving a location measurement request from the second wireless communication device, wherein the second wireless communication device receives the location measurement request from a location server; and the first wireless communication device sending a location measurement report to the second wireless communication device, wherein the second wireless communication device is configured to send the location measurement report to the location server.

[0022] Another aspect is a wireless communication device, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the processor is configured to read code from the memory and execute the method according to any one of the above arrangements.

[0023] Another aspect is a computer program product comprising a computer readable program medium code stored therein, which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform the method according to any one of the arrangements described above. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system in which the techniques disclosed herein may be implemented is shown in accordance with some arrangements of the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 2 A block diagram of an example wireless communication system for sending and receiving wireless communication signals (e.g., Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) signals or Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) signals) according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown.

[0026] Figure 3 and Figure 4 An example process of finding surrounding UEs with positioning capabilities according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown.

[0027] Figure 5 An example process of sending position and position uncertainty requests and receiving responses is shown in accordance with some arrangements of the present disclosure.

[0028] Figure 6 An example process is shown in which a target UE sends a location request to an anchor node and receives a response according to some arrangements of the present disclosure.

[0029] Figure 7 An example process is shown in which a target UE sends an assistance data request and receives a response according to some arrangements of the present disclosure.

[0030] Figure 8 and Fig. 9 An example process of a Location Management Function (LMF) interacting with an anchor node and a target UE according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown.

[0031] Fig.10 An example process of RSRP measurement request and response is shown in accordance with some arrangements of the present disclosure.

[0032] Fig.11 Measurement time windows according to some arrangements of the present disclosure are shown.

[0033] Fig.12 A Sidelink Positioning Reference Signal (SL-PRS) and SL-PRS transmission according to some arrangements of the present disclosure are shown.

[0034] Fig.13 An example process for LMF-based position measurement according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown.

[0035] Fig.14 , Fig.15 , Fig.16 , Fig.17 and Fig.18 A flow chart illustrating an example wireless communication process in accordance with some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] Various example arrangements of the present solution are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to develop and use the present solution. It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that, after reading this disclosure, various changes or modifications may be made to the examples described herein without departing from the scope of the present solution. Therefore, the present solution is not limited to the example arrangements and applications described and illustrated herein. In addition, the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the methods disclosed herein are merely example methods. The specific order or hierarchy of steps of the disclosed methods or processes may be rearranged based on design preferences without departing from the scope of the present solution. Therefore, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the methods and techniques disclosed herein present various steps or actions in an example order, and unless otherwise expressly stated, the present solution is not limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0037] Figure 1An example wireless communication system 100 is shown that can implement the techniques disclosed herein in accordance with some arrangements of the present disclosure. In the following discussion, the wireless communication system 100 can implement any wireless network, such as a cellular network or a narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) network. Such an example system 100 includes: a base station (BS) 102 (also known as a wireless communication node) and a UE 104 (also known as a wireless communication device), which can communicate with each other via a communication link 110 (e.g., a wireless communication channel); and a cluster of cells 126, 130, 132, 134, 136, 138 and 140 covering a geographic area 101. In some examples, the network refers to one or more BSs (e.g., BS 102) that communicate with the UE 104, as well as backend entities and functions (e.g., LMF). In other words, the network refers to components of the system 100 other than the UE 104. In Figure 1 1, BS 102 and UE 104 are included within the respective geographic boundaries of cell 126. Each of the other cells 130, 132, 134, 136, 138, and 140 may include at least one base station that operates with its allocated bandwidth to provide adequate wireless coverage to its intended users.

[0038] For example, BS 102 may operate on an allocated channel transmission bandwidth to provide adequate coverage to UE 104. BS 102 and UE 104 may communicate via downlink radio frames 118 and uplink radio frames 124, respectively. Each radio frame 118 / 124 may be further divided into subframes 120 / 127 that may include data symbols 122 / 128. In the present disclosure, BS 102 and UE 104 are generally described herein as non-limiting examples of "communication nodes" that may practice the methods disclosed herein. According to various arrangements of the present solution, such communication nodes may be capable of wireless and / or wired communications.

[0039] Figure 2 A block diagram of an example wireless communication system 200 for sending and receiving wireless communication signals (e.g., OFDM or OFDMA signals) according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown. The system 200 may include components and elements configured to support known or conventional operating features that need not be described in detail herein. In one illustrative arrangement, the system 200 may be used in applications such as Figure 1 The system 100 communicates (eg, sends and receives) data symbols in a wireless communication environment as described above.

[0040] System 200 generally includes a base station 202 (hereinafter referred to as "BS 202") and a user equipment device 204 (hereinafter referred to as "UE 204"). BS 202 includes a BS transceiver module 210, a BS antenna 212, a BS processor module 214, a BS memory module 216, and a network communication module 218, each of which is coupled and interconnected to each other via a data communication bus 220 as necessary. UE 204 includes a UE transceiver module 230, a UE antenna 232, a UE memory module 234, and a UE processor module 236, each of which is coupled and interconnected to each other via a data communication bus 240 as necessary. BS 202 communicates with UE 204 via a communication channel 250, which can be any wireless channel or other medium suitable for data transmission as described herein.

[0041] As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the system 200 may also include Figure 2 , any number of modules outside the modules shown in . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the various illustrative blocks, modules, circuits, and processing logic described in conjunction with the arrangements disclosed herein can be implemented with hardware, computer-readable software, firmware, or any actual combination thereof. In order to clearly illustrate this interchangeability and compatibility of hardware, firmware, and software, it is usually described according to the functionality of various illustrative components, frames, modules, circuits, and steps. Whether this functionality is implemented as hardware, firmware, or software can depend on the specific application and design constraints imposed on the entire system. Personnel familiar with the concepts described herein can implement such functionality in a suitable manner for each specific application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the present disclosure.

[0042] According to some arrangements, the UE transceiver 230 may be referred to herein as an "uplink" transceiver 230, which includes a Radio Frequency (RF) transmitter and an RF receiver, each of which includes a circuit system coupled to an antenna 232. A duplex switch (not shown) may alternatively couple the uplink transmitter or receiver to the uplink antenna in a time duplex manner. Similarly, according to some arrangements, the BS transceiver 210 may be referred to herein as a "downlink" transceiver 210, which includes an RF transmitter and an RF receiver, each of which includes a circuit system coupled to an antenna 212. The downlink duplex switch may alternatively couple the downlink transmitter or receiver to the downlink antenna 212 in a time duplex manner. The operation of the two transceiver modules 210 and 230 may be coordinated in time so that while the downlink transmitter is coupled to the downlink antenna 212, the uplink receiver circuit system is coupled to the uplink antenna 232 to receive transmissions over the wireless transmission link 250. Conversely, the operations of the two transceivers 210 and 230 can be coordinated in time such that while the uplink transmitter is coupled to the uplink antenna 232, the downlink receiver is coupled to the downlink antenna 212 to receive transmissions via the wireless transmission link 250. In some examples, strict time synchronization with a minimum guard time exists between duplex direction changes.

[0043] The UE transceiver 230 and the base station transceiver 210 are configured to communicate via a wireless data communication link 250 and cooperate with an appropriately configured RF antenna arrangement 212 / 232 that can support a specific wireless communication protocol and modulation scheme. In some illustrative arrangements, the UE transceiver 210 and the base station transceiver 210 are configured to support industry standards such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) and emerging 5G standards. However, it should be understood that the present disclosure is not necessarily limited to the application of specific standards and related protocols. Instead, the UE transceiver 230 and the base station transceiver 210 can be configured to support alternative or additional wireless data communication protocols, including future standards or variations thereof.

[0044] According to various arrangements, BS 202 may be, for example, an evolved Node B (eNB), a serving eNB, a target eNB, a femtocell or a microcell. In some examples, UE 204 may be implemented in various types of user devices (such as mobile phones, smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), tablet computers, laptop computers, wearable computing devices, etc.). Processor modules 214 and 236 may be implemented or implemented using a general purpose processor, a content addressable memory, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array, any suitable programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. In this way, the processor may be implemented as a microprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, a state machine, etc. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in combination with a digital signal processor core, or any other such configuration.

[0045] In addition, the steps of the methods or algorithms described in conjunction with the arrangements disclosed herein may be directly implemented in hardware, firmware, software modules executed by the processor modules 214 and 236, respectively, or any practical combination thereof. The memory modules 216 and 234 may be implemented as RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, removable disk, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. In this regard, the memory modules 216 and 234 may be coupled to the processor modules 210 and 230, respectively, so that the processor modules 210 and 230 can read information from and write information to the memory modules 216 and 234, respectively. The memory modules 216 and 234 may also be integrated into their respective processor modules 210 and 230. In some examples, the memory modules 216 and 234 may each include a cache memory for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during the execution of instructions to be executed by the processor modules 210 and 230, respectively. Memory modules 216 and 234 may also each include non-volatile memory for storing instructions to be executed by processor modules 210 and 230, respectively.

[0046] The network communication module 218 generally represents the hardware, software, firmware, processing logic and / or other components of the base station 202 that implements bidirectional communication between the base station transceiver 210 and other network components and the communication nodes configured to communicate with the base station 202. For example, the network communication module 218 can be configured to support Internet or WiMAX services. In a non-restrictive typical deployment, the network communication module 218 provides an 802.3 Ethernet interface so that the base station transceiver 210 can communicate with a conventional Ethernet-based computer network. In this way, the network communication module 218 can include a physical interface for connecting to a computer network (e.g., a mobile switching center (MSC)). The terms "configured for", "configured to" and variations thereof used herein for a specific operation or function refer to a device, component, circuit, structure, machine, signal, etc. that is physically constructed, programmed, formatted and / or arranged to perform a specified operation or function.

[0047] The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model (referred to herein as the "OSI model") is a concept and logical layout that defines network communications used by systems (e.g., wireless communication devices, wireless communication nodes) that are open to interconnection and communication with other systems. The model is divided into seven subcomponents or layers, each of which represents a conceptual set of services provided to its upper and lower layers. The OSI model also defines a logical network and effectively describes computer packet transmission by using different layer protocols. The OSI model may also be referred to as a seven-layer OSI model or a seven-layer model. In some examples, the first layer may be a physical layer. In some examples, the second layer may be a medium access control (MAC) layer. In some examples, the third layer may be a radio link control (RLC) layer. In some examples, the fourth layer may be a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer. In some examples, the fifth layer may be a radio resource control (RRC) layer. In some examples, the sixth layer may be a Non Access Stratum (NSA) layer or an Internet Protocol (IP) layer, and the seventh layer is another layer.

[0048] Improved accuracy of sidelink positioning

[0049] Positioning can be performed by a variety of methods, including using a Uu interface based on a downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) and a sounding reference signal (SRS). In sidelink positioning, the SL-PRS can be sent by an anchor node to a target UE via a PC5 interface. However, how to design and configure the parameters of the SL-PRS and how to select anchor nodes for absolute positioning and relative positioning, as well as configure signaling interactions for sidelink positioning, is challenging. Some embodiments of the present disclosure relate to parameter design, selection of anchor nodes, and signaling interactions for sidelink positioning, which can advantageously improve the accuracy of sidelink positioning.

[0050] Configure the destination indicators for PSSCH and SL-PRS separately

[0051] In sidelink positioning, the target UE to be positioned can send a location request to the surrounding UEs. The surrounding UEs with positioning capability (referred to as anchor UEs) can send SL-PRS to the target UE when receiving a location request from the target UE. In order to flexibly send the Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH) and SL-PRS, some embodiments may include destination indicators that configure PSSCH and SL-PRS respectively. In the Sidelink Control Information (SCI), the anchor node can configure at least two sets. Each set includes a broadcast type indicator and a destination ID. One set is associated with a data signal, and the other set can be configured to indicate the target UE receiving the SL-PRS.

[0052] The configuration of the SL-PRS type indicator may be independent of the broadcast type indicator of the PSSCH. The SL-PRS broadcast type indicator may be configured as 1 bit, which indicates unicast and multicast of the SL-PRS. The SL-PRS destination ID may be independent of the destination ID of the PSSCH. If both the PSSCH and the SL-PRS are transmitted in unicast, both the SL-PRS broadcast type indicator and the broadcast type indicator of the PSSCH may indicate unicast. Then, the SL-PRS destination ID may be the same as the destination ID of the PSSCH. If the PSSCH is transmitted in unicast and the SL-PRS is transmitted in multicast, the SL-PRS broadcast type indicator and the broadcast type indicator of the PSSCH may be different. Then, the SL-PRS destination ID may be different from the destination ID of the PSSCH. If both the PSSCH and the SL-PRS are transmitted in multicast, both the SL-PRS broadcast type indicator and the broadcast type indicator of the PSSCH may indicate multicast. Then, the SL-PRS destination ID may be the same as the destination ID of the PSSCH. If the PSSCH is transmitted in broadcast, the SL-PRS destination ID can be configured to be the same as the destination ID of the PSSCH.

[0053] When the target UE receives the SCI, the target UE may decode the SCI. Then, based on the identified SL-PRS destination ID carried in the SCI, the target UE may determine whether to receive the SL-PRS. If indicated by the SL-PRS destination ID, the target UE may receive the SL-PRS and take measurements to obtain a position measurement. If not indicated by the SL-PRS destination ID, the target UE may not receive the SL-PRS and take measurements.

[0054] Using position uncertainty to facilitate sidelink absolute positioning

[0055] In partial coverage of sidelink positioning, the target UE can estimate its absolute position information based on the anchor UE. The position information of the anchor UE can be obtained based on other anchor UEs or base stations with position uncertainty. Position uncertainty can be a measure to evaluate the quality of position information. In order to improve positioning accuracy, position uncertainty can be used to facilitate sidelink absolute positioning.

[0056] In the absolute positioning with partial coverage, the target UE can search for surrounding UEs with positioning capability. When the surrounding UEs with positioning capability are found, the target UE can send a capability request to the surrounding UEs. If the surrounding UEs have positioning capability, they can send a capability response to the target UE. Otherwise, the surrounding UEs may not respond to the target UE.

[0057] Figure 3 and Figure 4Example processes 300 and 400 of finding surrounding UEs with positioning capabilities are shown, respectively, according to some arrangements of the present disclosure. Figure 3 A successful operation of sending a capability request from the target UE to the surrounding UEs and sending a capability response from the surrounding UEs to the target UE is shown. Figure 4 A failed operation is shown in which a capability request is sent from the target UE to the surrounding UEs but the surrounding UEs do not send a capability response.

[0058] Figure 5 An example process 500 of transmitting a position and position uncertainty request and receiving a response according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown. Additionally, the target UE may send a position and position uncertainty request to surrounding UEs with positioning capabilities to obtain the positions and position uncertainties of the surrounding UEs. When the surrounding UEs receive the position and position uncertainty request, the surrounding UEs may send a position and position uncertainty response to the target UE to provide their position information and position uncertainty.

[0059] Based on these received positions and position uncertainties, the target UE may select surrounding UEs that meet certain conditions as anchor nodes. For example, surrounding UEs with smaller position uncertainties may be selected as anchor nodes. For example, the target UE may preconfigure a position uncertainty threshold. Surrounding UEs with position uncertainties less than the position uncertainty threshold may be selected as anchor nodes.

[0060] Figure 6 An example process 600 is shown in which a target UE sends a location request to an anchor node and receives a response according to some arrangements of the present disclosure. The anchor node may send a location response and a SL-PRS to the target UE. Based on the SL-PRS, the target UE may obtain a location measurement by, for example, RSRP, Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD), Angle of Arrival (AOA), or Angle of Departure (AOD).

[0061] Figure 7 An example process 700 is shown in which a target UE sends an assistance data request and receives a response according to some arrangements of the present disclosure. If the target UE is capable of computing, the target UE can compute its own position estimate and position uncertainty. Therefore, the target UE can request the associated assistance data of the anchor node. In the process of obtaining the assistance data, the target UE sends an assistance data request to the anchor node. The anchor node can then send an assistance data response when it receives the assistance data request.

[0062] Figure 8 and 9Example processes 800 and 900 of an LMF interacting with an anchor node and a target UE according to some arrangements of the present disclosure are respectively shown. If the LMF calculates a position estimate of the target UE, the LMF can request a position measurement and auxiliary data. In the process of obtaining auxiliary data in the example process 800, the LMF sends an auxiliary data request to the anchor UE. And when the anchor UE receives the auxiliary data request, it sends an auxiliary data response to the LMF. In the process of obtaining position measurement in the example process 900, the LMF sends a position measurement request to the anchor node. When the anchor node receives the position measurement request from the LMF, it sends a position measurement request to the target UE. Then, the target UE sends a position measurement report to the anchor node, and the anchor node sends a position measurement report to the LMF.

[0063] Use the distance between the anchor node and the target UE

[0064] The location uncertainty may be related to the distance between the anchor node and the target UE. For the target UE, if it is assumed that the location information and location uncertainty of its anchor node are known, the target UE can obtain the transmission time τ between the i-th anchor node and the target UE by receiving and measuring the SL-PRS sent from the i-th anchor node. i The i-th transmission time τ i Corresponding to the transmission time uncertainty Transmission time uncertainty It can be defined as Where T s =1 / (15000×2048) is the scaling factor, m i It is related to the distance between the i-th anchor node and the target UE. The larger the distance between the i-th anchor node and the target UE, the greater the m i For example, m i The values ​​of can be given by the following table:

[0065] The distance between the i-th anchor node and the target UE <![CDATA[m i ]]> <＝10m 1 >10m,<=20m 2 >20m,<=30m 3 >30m,<=40m 4 >40m,<=50m 5 >50m,<=60m 6 >60m,<=70m 7 >70m 8

[0066] Then, the position estimation uncertainty u of the target UE caused by the i-th anchor node is i It can be defined as where c is the speed of light. Therefore, the position estimation uncertainty u of the target UE caused by all anchor nodes can be defined as u i The weighted sum of 1 u 1 +w 2 u 2 +Λ, where (w 1 ,w 2 ,Λ) is the corresponding (u 1 ,u 2 ,Λ) weight. (w 1 ,w2 ,Λ) is related to the position uncertainty of the anchor node. The larger the position uncertainty of the i-th anchor node, the larger the i For example, when all weights are equal, (u 1 ,u 2 ,Λ) is simplified to (u 1 ,u 2 ,Λ), that is, u=mean(u 1 ,u 2 ,Λ).

[0067] Then, after the target UE obtains its position estimate and position estimate uncertainty, it can be an anchor node for other neighbor target UEs, and it can provide its position estimate and position estimate uncertainty as the position information and position uncertainty of the anchor node to other neighbor target UEs.

[0068] Alternatively, the location uncertainty may also be related to the path loss. The greater the path loss, the greater the location uncertainty.

[0069] Alternatively, the position uncertainty may also be related to the transmission power. The greater the transmission power, the smaller the position uncertainty.

[0070] Select surrounding UEs as anchor nodes

[0071] In the relative positioning of the sidelink positioning, in order to improve the relative positioning accuracy, the surrounding UEs within the range of X meters of the target UE can be selected as anchor nodes. In order to select the anchor nodes, RSRP can be measured.

[0072] Fig.10 An example process of RSRP measurement request and response according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown. The target UE may send a reference signal (e.g., a demodulation reference signal (DMRS)), a sidelink synchronization signal / physical sidelink broadcast channel (Sidelink-Synchronization Signal / Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel, S-SS / PSBCH) to surrounding UEs. The RSRP measurement request may be transmitted from the target UE to the surrounding UEs. When the surrounding UEs receive the RSRP measurement request, the surrounding UEs may measure the RSRP of the reference signal received from the target UE. The surrounding UEs may then send an RSRP measurement report to the target UE.

[0073] The target UE may preconfigure an RSRP threshold, where the RSRP threshold is related to the distance between the target UE and the surrounding UEs. When the target UE receives RSRP measurements from the surrounding UEs, the target UE may compare the RSRP measurements with the RSRP threshold. The surrounding UEs with RSRP measurements greater than the RSRP threshold may be selected as anchor nodes.

[0074] In some embodiments, the surrounding UEs may communicate with the target UE. The target UE then measures the RSRP of the reference signal sent from the surrounding UE to the target UE. The RSRP measured by the target UE may be compared with an RSRP threshold that may be preconfigured by the target UE. The surrounding UEs whose RSRP measurement is greater than the RSRP threshold may be selected as anchor nodes.

[0075] In some embodiments, the broadcast signal may be sent by surrounding UEs and its RSRP may be measured by the target UE. The RSRP measurement value may then be compared with an RSRP threshold preconfigured for the target UE. A surrounding UE with an RSRP measurement greater than the RSRP threshold may be selected as an anchor node.

[0076] Set the time window and measure RSRP

[0077] For relative positioning of anchor nodes, a time window can be set and RSRP can be measured. The target UE can send a location request to the anchor node at time t. The time window can be set from time tt s,1 To time tt s,2 , where t s,1 and t s,2 is a positive integer. Fig.11 The measurement time window according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown. In the measurement time window, the target UE can measure the RSRP of the signals (e.g., S-SS / PSBCH, DMRS) sent from the surrounding UEs. The target UE can preconfigure the RSRP threshold. Then, the RSRP measured in the measurement time window can be compared with the RSRP threshold. The surrounding UEs whose RSRP is greater than the RSRP threshold can be selected as anchor nodes. The target UE can send a location request to these selected anchor nodes at time t.

[0078] If there are multiple signals from one surrounding UE in the measurement time window, the average value of the RSRPs of the multiple signals may be calculated as the RSRP.

[0079] In some embodiments, if there are multiple signals from one surrounding UE in the measurement time window, a maximum RSRP value of the RSRPs of the multiple signals may be obtained as the RSRP.

[0080] In some embodiments, if there is no signal from any surrounding UE in the measurement time window, the target UE may s,2 Send reference signals, such as DMRS, S-SS / PSBCH, to surrounding UEs. s,2 An RSRP measurement request is sent from the target UE to the surrounding UEs. When the surrounding UE receives the RSRP measurement request, it can measure the RSRP of the reference signal received from the target UE. Then, the surrounding UE can send an RSRP measurement report to the target UE. When the target UE receives the RSRP measurement value from the surrounding UE, the target UE can compare the RSRP measurement value with the RSRP threshold. The surrounding UE whose RSRP measurement value is greater than the RSRP threshold can be selected as the anchor node.

[0081] Use LMF to estimate the location of the target UE

[0082] In some sidelink scenarios where the target UE is uplink (UL) limited and DL is in coverage, the target UE can receive DL-PRS, but SRS may be limited. In this scenario, the BS can be an anchor node to assist in estimating the location information of the target UE. In order to calculate the location estimate of the target UE, an indirect round trip time (RTT) technique is used.

[0083] Fig.12 SL-PRS and SL-PRS transmission according to some arrangements of the present disclosure are shown. To estimate the distance between the target UE and the BS, the target UE may send a location request to the BS, and the BS may send a DL-PRS to the target UE at time t1. The target UE may receive the DL-PRS at time t2 and send the SL-PRS to the anchor UE at time t3. The anchor UE may receive the SL-PRS from the target UE at time t4 and send the SL-PRS to the target UE at time t5. The target UE may receive the SL-PRS from the anchor UE at time t6.

[0084] Then, the RTT algorithm can be used to calculate the distance between the target UE and the anchor UE, that is, The distance between the base station and the target UE can be calculated as follows: DL =[(t 4 -t 1 )-(t 3 -t 2 )]·cr SL .

[0085] Therefore, the position estimate of the target UE may be calculated by combining at least two base stations and one anchor UE. Alternatively, the position estimate of the target UE may be calculated by combining at least one BS and two anchor UEs. In the process of estimating the distance between the target UE and the BS, the BS and the anchor UE may be synchronized. A synchronization technique may be used to synchronize the BS and the anchor UE.

[0086] In the UE-based case, the position estimate of the target UE can be calculated by the target UE. In this case, the auxiliary data of the BS can be sent to the LMF via the NR Positioning Protocol A (NR Positioning Protocol A, NRPPa) Packet Data Unit (PDU), and then the LMF can send the auxiliary data of the BS to the target UE via the LTE Positioning Protocol (LTE Positioning Protocol, LPP) PDU. If the auxiliary data of the anchor UE is configured by the anchor UE, the auxiliary data can be transmitted to the target UE via the PC5 interface. If the auxiliary data of the anchor UE is configured by the LMF, the auxiliary data can be transmitted to the target UE based on the LPP PDU. Then, based on the DL and SL position measurements and the auxiliary data, the target UE can calculate its own position estimate.

[0087] Fig.13 An example process 1400 for LMF-based location measurement according to some arrangements of the present disclosure is shown. In the LMF-based case, the location estimate of the target UE can be calculated by the LMF. In this case, the BS's assistance data can be transmitted to the LMF via NRPPa PDU. If the assistance data of the anchor UE is configured by the anchor UE, the assistance data is transmitted to the LMF via LPP PDU. For the location measurement measured by the target UE, the LMF can send a location measurement request to the anchor UE. The anchor UE can then send a location measurement request to the target UE. When the target UE receives the location measurement request, the target UE can send a location measurement report to the anchor UE. The anchor UE can then send a location measurement report to the LMF.

[0088] In some embodiments, at least two broadcast type indicators and destination IDs may be configured in the SCI, and indicate PSSCH and SL-PRS respectively, so that they can be flexibly used for PSSCH and SL-PRS transmission.

[0089] In some embodiments, the location uncertainty is used to facilitate improved positioning accuracy in the case of absolute positioning with partial coverage. Based on the received location and location uncertainty, the target UE can select surrounding UEs that meet some conditions as anchor nodes. The selected anchor nodes can then be used to send SL-PRS.

[0090] In some embodiments, location uncertainty may be defined. Location uncertainty may be defined as being related to the distance between the anchor node and the target UE. Alternatively, location uncertainty may be related to path loss. Alternatively, location uncertainty may be related to transmission power.

[0091] In some embodiments, an anchor node may be selected for relative positioning based on RSRP. The RSRP of the reference signal may be measured by the target UE or surrounding UEs and may be compared with a preconfigured RSRP threshold. Surrounding UEs with RSRP greater than the RSRP threshold may be selected as anchor nodes.

[0092] In some embodiments, a measurement time window may be set, and the RSRP of the reference signal in the measurement time window may be measured. A surrounding UE whose RSRP is greater than an RSRP threshold may be selected as an anchor node for relative positioning.

[0093] In some embodiments, signaling interaction may be introduced in the scenario where the target UE is UL limited and DL is in coverage.

[0094] Fig.14 A flow chart of an example wireless communication process 1400 according to some arrangements is shown. Process 1400 is performed by a UE (e.g., a target UE). Process 1400 includes determining a location of a first wireless communication device based on positioning-related information in a sidelink communication (1402). The positioning-related information includes at least one of: control information, a second wireless communication device in the sidelink communication, or a plurality of reference signals. Process 1400 may include: receiving control information from a second wireless communication device (1404). The control information includes at least two sets, each of the sets indicating a corresponding broadcast type and a corresponding destination identifier, and one of the sets is associated with a data signal, and another of the sets is associated with a first reference signal in the reference signal.

[0095] Fig.15 A flow chart of an example wireless communication process 1500 according to some arrangements is shown. The process 1500 is performed by a UE (e.g., a target UE). The process 1500 includes determining a position of a first wireless communication device based on positioning-related information in a sidelink communication (1502). The positioning-related information includes at least one of: control information, a second wireless communication device in the sidelink communication, or a plurality of reference signals. The process 1500 may include selecting a second wireless communication device from a plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication based on a position uncertainty associated with the second wireless communication device (1504).

[0096] Fig.16A flow chart of an example wireless communication process 1600 according to some arrangements is shown. The process 1600 is performed by a UE (e.g., a target UE). The process 1600 includes determining a position of a first wireless communication device based on positioning-related information in a sidelink communication (1602). The positioning-related information includes at least one of: control information, a second wireless communication device in the sidelink communication, or a plurality of reference signals. The process 1600 may include selecting a second wireless communication device from a plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication based on an RSRP measurement associated with the second wireless communication device (1604).

[0097] Fig.17 A flow chart of an example wireless communication process 1700 according to some arrangements is shown. Process 1700 is performed by a UE (e.g., a target UE). Process 1700 includes: determining a position of a first wireless communication device based on positioning-related information in a sidelink communication (1702). The positioning-related information includes at least one of the following: control information, a second wireless communication device in the sidelink communication, or a plurality of reference signals. Process 1700 may include receiving a first message including a second reference signal in a reference signal from each of a plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication (1704). Process 1700 may include measuring the RSRP of the second reference signal received from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices within a time window (1706). Process 1700 may include selecting a second wireless communication device from a plurality of wireless communication devices in response to determining that the measured RSRP associated with the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold (1708).

[0098] Fig.18 A flow chart of an example wireless communication process 1800 according to some arrangements is shown. Process 1800 is performed by a UE (e.g., a target UE). Process 1800 includes: determining a location of a first wireless communication device based on positioning-related information in a sidelink communication (1802). The positioning-related information includes at least one of: control information, a second wireless communication device in the sidelink communication, or a plurality of reference signals. Process 1800 may include receiving a location measurement request from a second wireless communication device, the second wireless communication device receiving the location measurement request from a location server (1804). Process 1800 may include sending a location measurement report to a second wireless communication device, the second wireless communication device being configured to send the location measurement report to the location server (1806).

[0099] Although various arrangements of the present solution have been described above, it should be understood that these arrangements are presented only as examples rather than as limitations. Similarly, various figures may depict example architectures or configurations, and these figures are provided to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to understand the example features and functions of the present solution. However, these technicians will understand that the present solution is not limited to the example architectures or configurations shown, but may be implemented using various alternative architectures and configurations. Additionally, as will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art, one or more features of an arrangement may be combined with one or more features of another arrangement described herein. Therefore, the breadth and scope of the present disclosure should not be limited by any one of the above-described illustrative embodiments.

[0100] It should also be understood that any reference to an element using designations such as "first," "second," etc. herein generally does not limit the number or order of these elements. Rather, these designations may be used herein as a convenient means of distinguishing between two or more elements or instances of elements. Thus, a reference to a first element and a second element does not mean that only two elements can be used, or that the first element must precede the second element in some manner.

[0101] Additionally, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, and symbols (e.g., as may be referenced in the above description) may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0102] It will be further understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that any of the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, processors, devices, circuits, methods, and functions described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be implemented by electronic hardware (e.g., digital implementation, analog implementation, or a combination of the two), firmware, various forms of programs or design codes in conjunction with instructions (which, for convenience, may be referred to herein as "software" or "software modules"), or any combination of these technologies. In order to clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware, firmware, and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above in their entirety in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware, firmware, or software, or a combination of these technologies, depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the entire system. Those of ordinary skill in the art may implement the described functionality in various ways for each specific application, but such implementation decisions will not result in a departure from the scope of this disclosure.

[0103] In addition, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, devices, components and circuits described herein may be implemented in or performed by an integrated circuit (IC), which may include a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device or any combination thereof. The logic blocks, modules and circuits may also include antennas and / or transceivers to communicate with various components within a network or within a device. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a combination of multiple microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors and a digital signal processor core, or any other suitable configuration to perform the functions described herein.

[0104] If implemented in software, the functions may be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Therefore, the steps of the method or algorithm disclosed herein may be implemented as software stored on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media, and communication media include any media that can realize the transfer of computer programs or codes from one place to another. The storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. As an example and not limitation, such a computer-readable medium may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage device, magnetic disk storage device or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to store the desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer.

[0105] In this document, the term "module" as used herein refers to software, firmware, hardware, and any combination of these elements for performing the associated functions described herein. Additionally, for the purpose of discussion, various modules are described as discrete modules; however, as is apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, depending on the arrangement of the present solution, two or more modules may be combined to form a single module that performs the associated functions.

[0106] Additionally, in the arrangement of the present solution, a memory or other storage device and a communication component may be used. It should be understood that, for the sake of clarity, the above description has described the arrangement of the present solution with reference to different functional units and processors. However, it is apparent that any suitable functional distribution between different functional units, processing logic elements or domains may be used without departing from the present solution. For example, a function shown as being performed by a separate processing logic element or controller may be performed by the same processing logic element or controller. Therefore, reference to a specific functional unit is merely a reference to a suitable means for providing the described functionality, rather than indicating a strict logical or physical structure or organization.

[0107] Various modifications to the arrangements described in this disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other arrangements without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the arrangements shown herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the novel features and principles disclosed herein, as set forth in the above claims.

Claims

1. A wireless communication method, comprising: A first wireless communication device in sidelink communication determines the position of the first wireless communication device based on positioning related information; The positioning-related information includes at least one of the following: control information, a second wireless communication device in the sidelink communication, or multiple reference signals.

2. The wireless communication method according to claim 1, further comprising: The first wireless communication device receives the control information from the second wireless communication device; wherein the control information includes at least two sets; wherein each of the sets indicates a corresponding broadcast type and a corresponding destination identifier; One of the sets is associated with a data signal, and another of the sets is associated with a first reference signal of the reference signals. The wireless communication method according to claim 2 , wherein the two sets are configured independently of each other.

4. The wireless communication method according to claim 2, further comprising: Upon identifying the destination identification associated with the first reference signal, the first wireless communication device determines whether to receive the first reference signal.

5. The wireless communication method according to claim 1, further comprising: The first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device from a plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication based on a position uncertainty associated with the second wireless communication device.

6. The wireless communication method according to claim 5, further comprising: The first wireless communication device sends a first message including a capability request to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; as well as The first wireless communication device receives a second message from the second wireless communication device, the second message being in response to the first message, the second message indicating that the second wireless communication device has positioning capability in order to select the second wireless communication device.

7. The wireless communication method according to claim 5, further comprising: The first wireless communication device sends a first message to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices to request location information and location uncertainty information; receiving, by the first wireless communication device, a second message from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices, the second message being responsive to the first message and indicating a respective position and a respective position uncertainty of each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; as well as In response to determining that the location uncertainty of the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold, the first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device.

8. The wireless communication method of claim 5, wherein the location uncertainty is related to a distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device.

9. The wireless communication method of claim 5, wherein the location uncertainty is related to a path loss parameter.

10. The wireless communication method of claim 5, wherein the location uncertainty is related to transmission power.

11. The wireless communication method according to claim 1, further comprising: The first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device from a plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication based on a reference signal received power (RSRP) measurement associated with the second wireless communication device.

12. The wireless communication method according to claim 11, further comprising: The first wireless communication device sends a first message including a second reference signal among the reference signals to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; The first wireless communication device sends a second message to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices to request measurement of the RSRP of the corresponding second reference signal; receiving, by the first wireless communication device, a third message from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices, the third message being responsive to the second message and comprising an RSRP measurement report of the second reference signal; as well as In response to determining that the RSRP measurement report associated with the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold, the first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device.

13. The wireless communication method according to claim 11, further comprising: receiving, by the first wireless communication device, a first message including a second reference signal from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; The first wireless communication device measures the RSRP of the second reference signal received from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; as well as In response to determining that the measured RSRP associated with the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold, the first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device.

14. The wireless communication method according to claim 1, further comprising: The first wireless communication device receives a first message including a second reference signal among the reference signals from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices in the sidelink communication; The first wireless communication device measures, within a time window, the RSRP of the second reference signal received from each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; as well as In response to determining that the measured RSRP associated with the second wireless communication device satisfies a threshold, the first wireless communication device selects the second wireless communication device from among the plurality of wireless communication devices. 15 . The wireless communication method according to claim 14 , wherein the time window is configured before a timing at which the first wireless communication device sends a location request to the second wireless communication device.

16. The wireless communication method according to claim 1, further comprising: The first wireless communication device determines a first distance from the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device; The first wireless communication device determines a second distance from a wireless communication node to the first wireless communication device; as well as The first wireless communication device determines the location based on the first distance and the second distance.

17. The wireless communication method according to claim 16, wherein the first distance is determined based on a first timing when the first wireless communication device sends a first reference signal among the reference signals to the second wireless communication device, a second timing when the second wireless communication device receives the first reference signal, a third timing when the second wireless communication device sends a second reference signal among the reference signals to the first wireless communication device, and a fourth timing when the first wireless communication device receives the second reference signal.

18. The wireless communication method according to claim 17, wherein the second distance is determined based on the first timing, the second timing, a fifth timing when the wireless communication node sends a third reference signal among the reference signals, and a sixth timing when the first wireless communication device receives the third reference signal.

19. The wireless communication method according to claim 1, further comprising: The first wireless communication device receives a location measurement request from a second wireless communication device, wherein the second wireless communication device receives the location measurement request from a location server; as well as The first wireless communication device sends a location measurement report to the second wireless communication device, and the second wireless communication device is configured to send the location measurement report to the location server.

20. A wireless communication device comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the processor is configured to read a code from the memory and execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 19.

21. A computer program product comprising a computer readable program medium code stored therein, which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 19.

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