Inter-cluster coordination configuration for ultra wide band (UWB) wireless positioning

Abstract

In some implementations, a method of cross-cluster coordination in ultra wide band (UWB) wireless positioning performed by an initiator of a first cluster includes receiving, from controllers of a plurality of clusters including the first cluster, a request for a channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange among the plurality of clusters; generating an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during a ranging block in the UWB positioning session; determining the CSR based on the interference profile of the first cluster; and sending the CSR to the controller for scheduling the exchange of information between the plurality of clusters.

Description

[0001] Related Applications

[0002] This application claims the benefit of Greek application No. 20220100552, filed on July 12, 2022, entitled “INTER-CLUSTER COORDINATION CONFIGURATION FOR ULTRA-WIDEBAND (UWB) WIRELESS POSITIONING”, which is assigned to the assignee of this application and is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. background 1. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure generally relates to the field of radio frequency (RF) based position determination (or positioning) of electronic wireless devices. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to ultra-wideband (UWB) based positioning.

[0004] 2. Related technologies

[0005] The positioning of devices can have a wide range of consumer, industrial, commercial, military and other applications. Compared to other RF-based positioning technologies for wireless electronic devices, UWB-based positioning provides a high-accuracy, low-power positioning solution. Summary of the invention

[0006] An example method for cross-cluster coordination in ultra-wideband (UWB) wireless positioning performed by an initiator of a first cluster, the method comprising: receiving a request for a channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster from a controller of multiple clusters including the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the multiple clusters; generating an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during a ranging block in a UWB positioning session; determining the CSR based on the interference profile of the first cluster; and sending the CSR to the controller for scheduling information exchange between the multiple clusters.

[0007] An example method for cross-cluster coordination in ultra-wideband (UWB) positioning performed by controllers of multiple clusters, the method comprising: configuring an initiator of a first cluster of the multiple clusters to determine a channel scan report (CSR), the channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the multiple clusters, and wherein the CSR is determined by generating an interference profile of the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during ranging blocks in a UWB positioning session; receiving the CSR from the initiator; and scheduling information exchange between the multiple clusters based on the CSR.

[0008] An example transmitting device in a wireless communication network, the transmitting device comprising: a wireless communication interface; and one or more processing units, the one or more processing units being communicatively coupled to the wireless communication interface and the memory, the one or more processing units being configured to: receive a request for a channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster from a controller of a plurality of clusters including the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the plurality of clusters; determine the CSR by generating an interference profile of the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during a ranging block in a UWB positioning session; and send the CSR to the controller for scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters.

[0009] An example server comprising: a transceiver; a memory; and one or more processing units communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory, the one or more processing units being configured to: configure an initiator of a first cluster of the plurality of clusters to determine a channel scan report (CSR), the channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the plurality of clusters, and wherein the CSR is determined by generating an interference profile of the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during a ranging block in a UWB positioning session; receive the CSR from the initiator; and schedule information exchange between the plurality of clusters based on the CSR.

[0010] This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used alone to determine the scope of the claimed subject matter. The subject matter should be understood by reference to appropriate portions of the entire specification of the disclosure, any or all of the drawings, and each claim. The foregoing and other features and examples will be described in more detail in the following description, claims, and drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Figure 1is a simplified illustration of a positioning system according to one embodiment.

[0012] Figure 2A is a diagram illustrating a scenario in which ultra-wideband (UWB) technology may be used to locate a target device.

[0013] Figure 2B is a simplified diagram illustrating how UWB positioning of a target device may be performed based on time difference of arrival (TDoA) according to some embodiments.

[0014] Figure 3A and Figure 3B is a flow chart illustrating the roles that different devices may play with respect to a UWB ranging session.

[0015] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example multi-cluster deployment and associated terminology.

[0016] Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of a frame structure and associated terms for a UWB session.

[0017] Figure 6 is a flow chart illustrating how a controller may configure an initiator to optimize information exchange in a UWB session according to some embodiments.

[0018] Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of generating a channel scan report (CSR) based on scanning of ranging blocks according to some embodiments.

[0019] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of information exchange between multiple anchor clusters based on CSR scheduling according to some embodiments.

[0020] Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of information exchange between multiple anchor clusters based on CSR scheduling according to some embodiments.

[0021] Fig. 10A and Fig. 10B is a flow chart of a method for cross-cluster coordination in UWB wireless positioning according to an embodiment.

[0022] Fig.11 is a block diagram of an implementation of a mobile UWB device according to an implementation.

[0023] Fig.12 is a block diagram of an implementation of a stationary UWB device in accordance with an implementation.

[0024] According to certain example implementations, similar reference numerals in various figures indicate similar elements. In addition, multiple instances of an element may be indicated by adding a letter or hyphen and a second numeral after the first numeral of the element. For example, multiple instances of element 110 may be indicated as 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, etc. or 110a, 110b, 110c, etc. When only the first numeral is used to refer to such an element, any instance of the element should be understood (e.g., element 110 in the previous example will refer to elements 110-1, 110-2, and 110-3 or to elements 110a, 110b, and 110c). DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The following description is directed to certain specific implementations for describing the innovative aspects of various embodiments. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that the teachings herein can be applied in a variety of different ways. The described specific implementations can be implemented in any device, system, or network capable of sending and receiving radio frequency (RF) signals according to any communication standard, such as any of the following: the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) IEEE 802.15.4 standard for ultra-wideband (UWB), the IEEE 802.11 standard (including those identified as Technical standards), Standard, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), GSM / General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA), Wideband CDMA (W-CDMA), Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO), 1xEV-DO, EV-DO Revision A, EV-DO Revision B, High Rate Packet Data (HRPD), High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), High Speed ​​Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High Speed ​​Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), Evolved High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA+), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS), or other known signals for communicating within a wireless, cellular, or Internet of Things (IoT) network, such as a system utilizing 3G, 4G, 5G, 6G or further implementations thereof.

[0026] As used herein, an "RF signal" includes electromagnetic waves that transmit information through the space between a transmitter (or transmitting device) and a receiver (or receiving device). As used herein, a transmitter may transmit a single "RF signal" or multiple "RF signals" to a receiver. However, due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through multiple channels or paths, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal.

[0027] Additionally, unless otherwise specified, references to "reference signals", "positioning reference signals", "reference signals for positioning", etc. may be used to refer to signals used for positioning user equipment (UE) in 5G New Radio (NR) networks. As described in more detail herein, such signals may include any of a variety of signal types, but may not necessarily be limited to positioning reference signals (PRS) as defined in relevant wireless standards.

[0028] In addition, unless otherwise specified, the term "positioning" as used herein (including, for example, UWB-based positioning, cellular-based positioning, and hybrid cellular / UWB positioning) may include absolute position determination, relative position determination, ranging, or a combination thereof. For the purpose of location or sensing services, such positioning may include and / or be based on timing, angle, phase, or power measurements, or a combination thereof (which may include RF sensing measurements).

[0029] As previously mentioned, UWB-based positioning provides a highly accurate, low-power positioning solution relative to other RF-based positioning technologies for wireless electronic devices. UWB-based positioning can be used in industrial applications, such as by robots and / or other Internet of Things (IoT) devices in a factory environment, indoor positioning of consumer electronics, etc. Although UWB-based positioning can be used in an ad hoc manner as a stand-alone positioning technology between electronic devices capable of UWB positioning (also referred to herein as "UWB devices"), in some embodiments, UWB-based positioning can be used as one of many technologies for locating electronic devices in a positioning system. Figure 1 An example of such a positioning system is provided.

[0030] As will be disclosed in detail below, when performing a UWB session for locating a target device (also referred to as UWB wireless positioning, UWB positioning, UWB positioning session, etc.), a UWB anchor cluster (also referred to herein as a "cluster") covering the target device may be used. The cluster may include one or more UWB devices (e.g., UWB anchor points) with known locations that may exchange UWB RF signals (e.g., downlink time difference of arrival (TDoA) signals) with the target device for locating the target device. When locating the target device, the UWB anchor points may share a common time base (disclosed in detail below).

[0031] When the target device travels across different clusters, inter-cluster / cross-cluster communication can be used for neighboring clusters to exchange information about UWB wireless positioning (e.g., to share a common time base). In existing schemes, neighboring clusters communicate in a time division multiple access (TDMA) manner (e.g., a cluster must wait for all other clusters to complete a round of message transmission before the cluster can send another message again) to reduce / avoid RF interference / collision, which is very inefficient.

[0032] In order to solve this information exchange inefficiency, the solution disclosed herein can allow multiple clusters to simultaneously exchange information (e.g., send messages) based on frequency reuse (e.g., using the same channel) and / or frequency division multiple access (FDMA) (e.g., using different channels) (e.g., allowing overlapping time slots in the control / extended control phase and / or allowing overlap in ranging rounds). Therefore, the information exchange efficiency can be greatly improved and the accuracy of locating a target device moving across clusters can be significantly enhanced. Figure 1 is a simplified illustration of a positioning system 100 according to an embodiment, in which a mobile device 105, a location server 160, and / or other components of the positioning system 100 can use the techniques for UWB wireless positioning provided herein. The techniques described herein can be implemented by one or more components of the positioning system 100. The positioning system 100 may include: a mobile device 105; one or more satellites 110 (also referred to as space vehicles (SVs)) for a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) such as a global positioning system (GPS), GLONASS, Galileo, or BeiDou; a base station 120; an access point (AP) 130; a location server 160; a network 170; and an external client 180. In general, the positioning system 100 can estimate the location of the mobile device 105 based on RF signals received by and / or transmitted from the mobile device 105 and the known locations of other components (e.g., GNSS satellites 110, base stations 120, APs 130) that send and / or receive RF signals. Additional details about specific location estimation techniques are discussed below.

[0033] It should be pointed out that Figure 1 Only a generalized illustration of the various components is provided, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate, and each component may be repeated as needed. Specifically, although only one mobile device 105 is illustrated, it should be understood that many mobile devices (e.g., hundreds, tens of thousands, millions, etc.) may utilize the positioning system 100. Similarly, the positioning system 100 may include more than one mobile device 105. Figure 1A greater or lesser number of base stations 120 and / or APs 130 are illustrated. The illustrated connections connecting the various components in the positioning system 100 include data and signaling connections, which may include additional (intermediate) components, direct or indirect physical and / or wireless connections, and / or additional networks. In addition, components may be rearranged, combined, separated, replaced, and / or omitted depending on the desired functionality. In some embodiments, for example, the external client 180 may be directly connected to the location server 160. Those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize many modifications to the illustrated components.

[0034] Depending on the desired functionality, network 170 may include any of a variety of wireless and / or wired networks. Network 170 may, for example, include any combination of public and / or private networks, local area networks and / or wide area networks, etc. In addition, network 170 may utilize one or more wired and / or wireless communication technologies. In some embodiments, network 170 may include, for example, a cellular or other mobile network, a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless wide area network (WWAN), and / or the Internet. Examples of network 170 include LTE wireless networks, fifth generation (5G) wireless networks (also referred to as NR wireless networks or 5G NR wireless networks), Wi-Fi WLAN, and the Internet. LTE, 5G, and NR are wireless technologies defined or being defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Network 170 may also include more than one network and / or more than one type of network. In a wireless cellular network (e.g., LTE or 5G), mobile device 105 may be referred to as user equipment (UE)

[0035] The base station 120 and the access point (AP) 130 are communicatively coupled to the network 170. In some embodiments, the base station 120 may be owned, maintained and / or operated by a cellular network provider and may employ any of a variety of wireless technologies, as described herein below. Depending on the technology of the network 170, the base station 120 may include a node B, an evolved node B (eNodeB or eNB), a transceiver base station (BTS), a radio base station (RBS), an NRNodeB (gNB), a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), etc. In the case where the network 170 is a 5G network, the base station 120 as a gNB or ng-eNB may be part of a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) that may be connected to a 5G core network (5GC). In view of the open radio access network (O-RAN) and / or virtualized radio access network (V-RAN or vRAN) in 5G or higher networks, the functionality performed by the base station 120 in earlier generation networks (e.g., 3G and 4G) may be separated into different functional components (e.g., radio unit (RU), distributed unit (DU), and central unit (CU)) and layers (e.g., L1 / L2 / L3), which may be executed on different devices at different locations connected, for example, via fronthaul, midhaul, and backhaul connections. As described herein, a "base station" (or ng-eNB, gNB, etc.) may include any or all of these functional components. For example, AP 130 may include a Wi-Fi AP or AP or an AP with cellular capabilities (e.g., 4G LTE and / or 5G NR). Thus, the mobile device 105 can transmit and receive information with network connectivity devices (such as location server 160) by accessing the network 170 via the base station 120 using the first communication link 133. Additionally or alternatively, because the AP 130 can also be communicatively coupled with the network 170, the mobile device 105 can communicate with network connectivity and Internet connectivity devices (including the location server 160) using the second communication link 135 or via one or more other mobile devices 145.

[0036] As used herein, the term "base station" may generally refer to a single physical transmission point or multiple co-located physical transmission points that may be located at a base station 120. A transmit receive point (TRP) (also referred to as a transmit / receive point) corresponds to this type of transmission point, and the term "TRP" may be used interchangeably with the terms "gNB," "ng-eNB," and "base station" herein. In some cases, a base station 120 may include multiple TRPs—for example, where each TRP is associated with a different antenna or a different antenna array of the base station 120. As used herein, the transmit functionality of a TRP may be performed using a transmit point (TP), and / or the receive functionality of a TRP may be performed by a receive point (RP), which may be physically separate or distinct from the TP. That is, a TRP may include both a TP and an RP. A physical transmission point may include an antenna array of a base station 120 (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system and / or where the base station employs beamforming). The term "base station" may additionally refer to multiple non-co-located physical transmission points, which may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transmission medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station).

[0037] As used herein, the term "cell" may generally refer to a logical communication entity for communicating with base station 120, and may be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCID), a virtual cell identifier (VCID)) for distinguishing adjacent cells operating via the same or different carriers. In some examples, a carrier may support multiple cells, and different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other protocols) that may provide access to different types of devices. In some cases, the term "cell" may refer to a portion of a geographic coverage area (e.g., a sector) within which the logical entity operates.

[0038] Satellite 110 may be used to locate mobile device 105 in one or more ways. For example, satellite 110 (also referred to as space vehicle (SV)) may be part of a GNSS such as GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, or BeiDou. Positioning using RF signals from GNSS satellites may include measuring multiple GNSS signals at a GNSS receiver of mobile device 105 to perform code-based and / or carrier-based positioning, which may be highly accurate. Additionally or alternatively, satellite 110 may be used for non-terrestrial network (NTN) based positioning, where satellite 110 may be functionally operated as a TRP (or multiple TPs) of a network (e.g., LTE and / or NR network) and may be communicatively coupled with network 170. Specifically, reference signals (e.g., PRS) sent by satellite 110 for NTN based positioning may be similar to those sent by base station 120 and may be coordinated by location server 160. In some embodiments, satellites 110 used for NTN based positioning may be different from those used for GNSS based positioning.

[0039] The location server 160 may include a server and / or other computing device configured to determine an estimated location of the mobile device 105 and / or provide data (e.g., “assistance data”) to the mobile device 105 to facilitate location measurement and / or location determination by the mobile device 105. According to some embodiments, the location server 160 may include a Home Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (H-SLP), which may support a SUPL User Plane (UP) positioning solution defined by the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA), and may support location services for the mobile device 105 based on subscription information for the mobile device 105 stored in the location server 160. In some embodiments, the location server 160 may include a Discovery SLP (D-SLP) or an Emergency SLP (E-SLP). The location server 160 may also include an Enhanced Serving Mobile Location Center (E-SMLC) that supports positioning of the mobile device 105 using a Control Plane (CP) positioning solution for LTE radio access of the mobile device 105. The location server 160 may also include a location management function (LMF) that supports positioning of the mobile device 105 using a control plane (CP) positioning solution for NR or LTE radio access of the mobile device 105.

[0040] In the CP positioning solution, from the perspective of the network 170, the signaling for controlling and managing the positioning of the mobile device 105 can use existing network interfaces and protocols and be exchanged as signaling between the elements of the network 170 and with the mobile device 105. In the UP positioning solution, from the perspective of the network 170, the signaling for controlling and managing the positioning of the mobile device 105 can be exchanged between the location server 160 and the mobile device 105 as data (e.g., data transmitted using the Internet Protocol (IP) and / or the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)).

[0041] As previously described (and discussed in more detail below), the estimated position of the mobile device 105 can be based on measurements of RF signals transmitted from and / or received by the mobile device 105. Specifically, these measurements can provide information about the relative distances and / or angles of the mobile device 105 and one or more components in the positioning system 100 (e.g., GNSS satellites 110, APs 130, base stations 120). The estimated position of the mobile device 105 can be estimated geometrically (e.g., using multi-angle measurements and / or multilateration) based on the distance and / or angle measurements along with the known positions of the one or more components.

[0042] Although ground components such as AP 130 and base station 120 may be fixed, embodiments are not limited thereto. Mobile components may be used. For example, in some embodiments, the location of mobile device 105 may be estimated based at least in part on measurements of RF signals 140 communicated between mobile device 105 and one or more other mobile devices 145 (the one or more other mobile devices may be mobile or fixed). As illustrated, the other mobile devices may include, for example, mobile phone 145-1, vehicle 145-2, static communication / positioning device 145-3, or other static and / or mobile devices capable of providing wireless signals for locating mobile device 105, or combinations thereof. Wireless signals from mobile device 145 for locating mobile device 105 may include using, for example, (including Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)), IEEE 802.11x (e.g. ), UWB, IEEE 802.15x, or a combination thereof. The mobile device 145 may additionally or alternatively use non-RF wireless signals for positioning of the mobile device 105, such as infrared signals or other optical technologies.

[0043] Mobile devices 145 may include other mobile devices that are communicatively coupled to a cellular or other mobile network (e.g., network 170). When one or more other mobile devices 145 are used in a positioning determination for a particular mobile device 105, the mobile device 105 whose positioning is to be determined may be referred to as a "target mobile device" and each of the other mobile devices 145 used may be referred to as an "anchor mobile device". (In cellular / mobile broadband networks, the terms "anchor UE" and "target UE" may be used.) In order to make a positioning determination for a target mobile device, the corresponding positioning of the one or more anchor mobile devices may be known and / or determined jointly with the target mobile device. Direct communication between one or more other mobile devices 145 and mobile device 105 may include sidelinks and / or similar device-to-device (D2D) communication technologies. Sidelinks defined by 3GPP are a form of D2D communication under cellular-based LTE and NR standards. UWB may be one such technology by which it may use measurements from one or more anchor devices (e.g., mobile devices 145) to facilitate positioning of a target device (e.g., mobile device 105).

[0044] According to some embodiments, such as when the mobile device 105 includes and / or is incorporated into a vehicle, a form of D2D communication used by the mobile device 105 may include vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication. V2X is a communication standard for vehicles to exchange information about the traffic environment with related entities. V2X may include vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication between vehicles with V2X capabilities, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication between vehicles and infrastructure-based equipment (commonly referred to as roadside units (RSUs)), vehicle-to-person (V2P) communication between vehicles and nearby people (pedestrians, cyclists and other road users), etc. In addition, V2X may use any of a variety of wireless RF communication technologies. For example, cellular V2X (CV2X) is a form of V2X that uses cellular-based communications in a direct communication mode defined by 3GPP, such as LTE (4G), NR (5G) and / or other cellular technologies. Figure 1The mobile device 105 illustrated in the figure may correspond to a component or device on a vehicle, RSU, or other V2X entity used to communicate V2X messages. In an embodiment in which V2X is used, the static communication / positioning device 145-3 (which may correspond to an RSU) and / or the vehicle 145-2 may therefore communicate with the mobile device 105 and may be used to determine the location of the mobile device 105 using techniques similar to those used by the base station 120 and / or AP 130 (e.g., using multi-angle and / or multilateration positioning). It may be further noted that according to some embodiments, the mobile device 145 (which may include a V2X device), the base station 120, and / or the AP 130 may be used together (e.g., in a WWAN positioning solution) to determine the location of the mobile device 105.

[0045] The estimated location of the mobile device 105 may be used in a variety of applications, such as to assist a user of the mobile device 105 with direction finding or navigation or to assist another user (e.g., associated with an external client 180) in locating the mobile device 105. "Location" is also referred to herein as "location estimate," "estimated location," "position," "position estimate," "position fix," "estimated position," "position fix," or "fix." The process of determining a location may be referred to as "positioning," "position determination," "position determination," or the like. The location of the mobile device 105 may include an absolute location of the mobile device 105 (e.g., latitude and longitude, and possibly altitude) or a relative location of the mobile device 105 (e.g., a location expressed as a distance north or south, east or west, and possibly above or below some other known fixed location (including, for example, the location of a base station 120 or AP 130) or some other location, such as the location of the mobile device 105 at some known previous time, or the location of a mobile device 145 (e.g., another mobile device) at some known previous time). The location may be specified as a geodetic location including coordinates that may be absolute (e.g., latitude, longitude, and optionally altitude), relative (e.g., relative to some known absolute location), or local (e.g., X, Y, and optionally Z coordinates according to a coordinate system defined relative to a local area, such as a factory, warehouse, university campus, shopping mall, stadium, or convention center). The location may alternatively be a city location, and may then include one or more of a street address (e.g., including a country, state, county, city, road and / or street name or label, and / or road or street number) and / or a label or name of a place, a building, a portion of a building, a floor of a building, and / or a room within a building, etc. The location may also include uncertainty or error indications, such as horizontal distances and possibly vertical distances over which the location is expected to have error, or an indication of an area or volume (e.g., a circle or ellipse) within which the mobile device 105 is expected to be located with a certain confidence level (e.g., 95% confidence).

[0046] The external client 180 may be a web server or remote application that may have some association with the mobile device 105 (e.g., may be accessed by a user of the mobile device 105), or may be a server, application, or computer system that provides location services to some other user or users, which may include obtaining and providing the location of the mobile device 105 (e.g., to enable services such as friend or relative locating or child or pet location). Additionally or alternatively, the external client 180 may obtain the location of the mobile device 105 and provide it to emergency service providers, government agencies, etc.

[0047] Figure 2A is a diagram illustrating a scenario in which UWB technology can be used to locate a target device 205 (eg, a tracker). Here, the target device 205 can be located with Figure 1 The mobile device 105 corresponds to the mobile device 105. Figure 2A As shown, the target device 205 may include a wireless communication device within the coverage of the cluster 210. The cluster 210 may include one or more UWB devices (e.g., UWB anchor point 222) with a known location, which may exchange UWB RF signals (e.g., downlink time difference of arrival (TDoA) signals) with the target device 205 for locating the target device 205. For example, Figure 2A As shown, the UWB anchor point 222 may include an initiator 222-1 (e.g., an initiating anchor point) and responders 222-2, 222-3, and 222-4 (e.g., responding anchor points). The role of each device in the devices (e.g., the initiator 222-1 and the responders 222-2, 222-3, and 222-4) will be disclosed in detail below. In some embodiments, the UWB anchor point 222 may be a downlink UWB anchor point.

[0048] When performing location / position determination of target device 205, target device 205 may transmit and / or receive UWB RF signals from UWB anchor points 222. UWB anchor points 222 may use different measurements of UWB RF signals (e.g., time difference of arrival (TDoA), two-way ranging (TWR), reverse TDoA, and / or phase difference of arrival (PDOA)) to calculate the distance between devices. For example, in a time difference of arrival (TDoA) scheme, target device 205 may transmit a UWB RF signal (e.g., a "beacon" or "blink" signal) to each of anchor points 222, where each of UWB anchor points 222 timestamps the arrival / reception of the UWB RF signal based on a common synchronized time base. The timestamps from each of UWB anchor points 222 may be used to calculate the TDoA of each responder (e.g., responders 222-2, 222-3, and 222-4). For example, the TDoA and TDoA of the responder 222-2 1 (eg, the time difference between the initiator 222-1 and the responder 222-2) may be calculated as:

[0049] TDoA 1 =(d 1 -d 0 ) / c=T 1 -T 0

[0050] where d 0 and d 1 denote the distances between the target device 205 and the initiator 222-1 and the responder 222-2, respectively, c denotes the speed of light, and T 0 and T 1 The timestamps of when the initiator 222-1 and the responder 222-2 receive the UWB RF signal are respectively indicated. The location of the target device 205 may be based on TDOA (e.g., TDoA 1 、TDoA 2 , and TDoA 3 ) to determine.

[0051] For example, Figure 2B is a simplified diagram illustrating how positioning of a target device 205 may be performed based on TDoA according to some embodiments. Here, the time difference between the arrival of a UWB RF signal at two anchor points (e.g., Figure 2A TDoA 1 、TDoA 2 、TDoA 3 ) can be used to calculate Figure 2BUsing multilateration, the location of target device 205 can be determined as the location where all of the hyperbolas intersect (eg, circle 230 ). The result can be a 2D or 3D location of target device 205 .

[0052] Figure 3A is a flow chart illustrating the roles that different devices may assume with respect to a UWB ranging session (or simply, a "UWB session"). Here, each UWB device may be referred to as an enhanced ranging device (ERDEV). ERDEV may refer to different terms at different layers of the network stack (e.g., initiator / responder or controller / controlled party). The terms initiator / responder (as described above and below) will be used at lower layers (e.g., at the UWB physical (PHY) layer and medium access control (MAC) layer), while the terms controller and controlled party (also described below) may be used at higher layers (e.g., the application layer of the ERDEV). Here, any ERDEV may be used with Figure 2A The target device 205 or the UWB anchor point 222 or Figure 1 Corresponding to the mobile device 105.

[0053] As indicated, for a pair of ERDEVs communicating with each other, controller 310 is the ERDEV that transmits a control information message 325 to a receiving ERDEV designated as a controlled party 320. Control information message 325 may include parameters for the ranging phase of a UWB ranging session, such as timing, channel, etc. Although not illustrated, controlled party 320 may transmit an acknowledgment to control information message 325, may negotiate changes to parameters, etc.

[0054] The exchanges between the controller 310 and the controlled party 320 (including the transmission of the control information message 325 and the subsequent related exchanges between the controller 310 and the controlled party 320 regarding the control information) may be conducted out-of-band (OOB) using different wireless communication technologies (e.g., Bluetooth or Wi-Fi) before the ranging phase. In other words, a UWB session may be associated with a control phase and a ranging phase, wherein the control phase (which may occur over the OOB link) includes a preliminary exchange between the controller 310 and the controlled party 320 of parameter values ​​for the ranging phase, and the subsequent ranging phase includes a portion of the UWB session in which the devices exchange messages within the UWB band for ranging measurements. (However, it may be noted that some control information may be exchanged within the UWB band (e.g., a "ranging control phase" occurring in the first time slot of a UWB round). Therefore, after the preliminary OOB exchange between the controller 310 and the controlled party 320, some aspects of the control phase may be considered to occur within the band.)

[0055] Depending on the parameters provided in the control information, a UWB session may then occur. During the ranging phase of a UWB session, one ERDEV may take the role of an initiator 330 and another ERDEV may take the role of a responder 340. Figure 3A As indicated in the control information message 325, the initiator 330 may initiate UWB ranging by transmitting a ranging initiation message 345 to the responder 340, which the responder 340 may reply to with a ranging response message 350, and which may make timing measurements of the messages (by the devices receiving the messages) to perform time difference of arrival (TDoA). Depending on the parameters of the control information message 325, additional exchanges may be made between the initiator 330 and the responder 340 during the ranging phase to allow for additional ranging measurements.

[0056] The roles of the initiator 330 and the responder 340 may be indicated in the control information message 325. Figure 3A As indicated, the controller 310 in the control phase may be the initiator 330 in the ranging phase of the UWB session. Figure 3B As indicated, the controller 310 in the control phase may be the responder 340 in the ranging phase. The determination of which device is the initiator 330 and which device is the responder 340 may depend on the parameters set forth in the control information 325, in which case the controlled party 320 correspondingly becomes the responder 340 or the initiator 330. According to some embodiments, the controller / initiator may perform ranging with multiple controlled parties / responders.

[0057] When performing a UWB session for locating a target device traveling across different clusters, inter-cluster / cross-cluster communications can be used for adjacent clusters to share a common time base (e.g., to synchronize). In some embodiments, clusters can establish a multi-cluster deployment in which all clusters within the deployment share the same synchronization reference. Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example multi-cluster deployment. Figure 4 As shown, clusters 410 , 420 , and 430 form a multi-cluster deployment 400 for performing a UWB session that locates a target device within the coverage of the multi-cluster deployment 400 .

[0058] According to some embodiments, synchronization may be initiated by an anchor point (e.g., initiator 412 of cluster 410) within multi-cluster deployment 400. For example, synchronization may be performed using a synchronization hierarchy using a cost metric, where the cost metric corresponds to proximity to an anchor point that provides a common time base (e.g., a synchronization reference). In some embodiments, the cost metric may be communicated in a ranging initiation message or a ranging response message, such as in conjunction with a Figure 3A and Figure 3B The description in is disclosed together.

[0059] According to some embodiments, synchronization may also be initiated by a super PAN coordinator (e.g., an inter-cluster controller) that coordinates messaging between clusters. An inter-cluster controller is also referred to herein as a super PAN controller, a logical controller, a centralized logical controller, a controller of multiple clusters, etc. For example, Figure 4 As illustrated, the super PAN coordinator 424 may send a time reference to each coordinator in the cluster (e.g., coordinators 414 and 434) to perform synchronization across the cluster. The time reference may be sent in a super frame structure, where the message includes a beacon-only period, a contention-free period (CFP), and a contention access period (CAP). The beacon-only period may include a series of time slots reserved for communication between the coordinators of the cluster. It is contemplated that although Figure 7 and Figure 8 In the description, each ranging round is illustrated as including an extended ranging control phase, but in some embodiments, only one ranging round (e.g., an initial ranging round) may include an extended ranging control phase for all controller anchor points (also referred to as "controllers"). For ease of illustration, those embodiments will not be repeated.

[0060] It should be pointed out that Figure 4 Only a generalized illustration of the various components of the multi-cluster deployment 400 is provided, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate, and each component may be repeated as needed. Specifically, although the initiator 412 and the coordinator 414 are shown as different UWB devices in the cluster 410, it should be understood that both the initiator 412 and the coordinator 414 can be the same UWB device in the cluster 410. Moreover, in the absence of a centralized logical controller (e.g., Super PAN coordinator 424) that coordinates message transmission between clusters, at least one of the initiators (e.g., initiators 412, 422, and 432) can assume this role and can communicate with other initiators / coordinators of different clusters to coordinate message transmission and / or cross-cluster synchronization.

[0061] According to the existing UWB session scheme, after synchronization, clusters (e.g., clusters 410, 420, and 430) in the same multi-cluster deployment will be scheduled to operate on a common channel but with different ranging rounds (to be disclosed in detail below) to avoid interference / conflict. For example, clusters 410, 420, and 430 may communicate (e.g., send messages) in a time division multiple access (TDMA) manner according to an arrangement / scheduling determined by a controller.

[0062] Figure 5is a diagram showing an example of a frame structure and associated terminology for a UWB session. Timing in a UWB session may occur within a time period that is divided into sub-portions according to a hierarchical structure. Similar to a TDMA scheme, timing of ranging may occur during a UWB session definition. The timing includes one or more consecutive ranging blocks 510, which may have a configurable duration (e.g., 200 ms). Each ranging block 510 may be divided into one or more consecutive rounds 520 (e.g., N rounds), the number and length of the one or more consecutive rounds being configurable. As described above, each round may be assigned / arranged to a cluster (e.g., Figure 4 In some embodiments, the arrangement may be identified in the control information using its corresponding round index (eg, round #3).

[0063] The rounds 520 are further divided into different time slots 530, which also have a configurable number and length. For example, the time slots 530 in the round 520 can be scheduled into the ranging control phase (e.g., signal time slots) or the extended ranging control phase, the ranging phase, and the measurement report phase, where the length / number of the time slots 530 in each phase is configurable. For example, the extended ranging control phase may include one or more time slots 530 corresponding to the controller of the cluster to which the round 520 is assigned (e.g., M time slots in the extended control phase correspond to M controllers of the cluster).

[0064] According to the existing scheme as disclosed above, in order to reduce / avoid RF interference / conflict in cross-cluster communication, each ranging round 520 in the ranging block 510 may be assigned to a cluster (e.g., Figure 4 410, 420 or 430 in the cluster) for the UWB devices in the cluster to perform UWB sessions. Therefore, the first cluster must wait for all other clusters to complete a round of UWB message transmission (e.g., complete the ranging round assigned to the cluster) before the first cluster can send messages again, which is very inefficient. In order to solve this information exchange inefficiency, the scheme disclosed herein may allow multiple clusters to simultaneously exchange information (e.g., send messages) based on frequency reuse (e.g., using the same channel) and / or frequency division multiple access (FDMA) (e.g., using different channels) (e.g., allowing overlapping time slots in the control / extended control phase and / or allowing overlap in ranging rounds). Therefore, the information exchange efficiency can be greatly improved and therefore the accuracy of locating target devices moving across clusters can be significantly enhanced.

[0065] Figure 66 is a flow chart illustrating how a controller according to some embodiments may configure an initiator to optimize information exchange in a UWB session. Here, the logic controller 610 may be a centralized logic controller (e.g., a server) or a super PAN coordinator that coordinates message transmission between the multi-cluster deployment 600. In some embodiments, the multi-cluster deployment 600 may be configured with Figure 4 The multi-cluster deployment 600 may include multiple initiators 620. In some embodiments, the initiator 620 may be associated with Figure 2A The initiator 222-1 and / or Figure 4 In some embodiments, in the absence of a centralized logical controller, one of the initiators 620 may assume the role of a centralized logical controller (e.g., perform the functions of the logical controller 610 and become a "global anchor") to coordinate communications between the initiators 620 in the multi-cluster deployment 600.

[0066] In addition to the initiator 620, each cluster may also include one or more responders 630, as described above. The initiator 620 and the responder 630 may communicate with Figure 2A and Figure 2B 3, and the roles played by the initiator 620 and the responder 630 may correspond to the roles played by the initiator 330 and the responder 340 in FIG. 3. In some embodiments, the communication between the logic controller 610 and the initiator 620 may be performed using wireless communication different from UWB (e.g., using Bluetooth, Ethernet, etc.) OOB. As described above, the communication between the logic controller 610 and the initiator 620 may include control information, which includes relevant parameters for performing a UWB session between UWB devices (e.g., the logic controller 610, the initiator 620, and / or the responder 630).

[0067] like Figure 6As shown, starting from arrow 645, the logic controller 610 may send a request to configure one or more initiators 620 to determine a channel scan report (CSR) of the cluster to which the initiator 620 belongs. In some embodiments, the CSR is generated based on the interference profile of the cluster, which indicates interference in the wireless positioning (e.g., UWB session) performed by the cluster, which is caused by the information exchange between the multi-cluster deployment 600 (e.g., cross-cluster communication within the multi-cluster deployment 600). For example, the clusters of the multi-cluster deployment may use a specific channel (e.g., with a predetermined bandwidth and a predetermined center frequency) for communication (e.g., between the initiator and responder of the cluster, across clusters, and / or with the logic controller of the multi-cluster deployment). The channel used by the cluster may be the same, overlapping, and / or close in frequency to the channel used by another cluster of the multi-cluster deployment for performing message transmission in the UWB session. Therefore, channel interference may occur. In some embodiments, interference may be indicated in the CSR of the cluster.

[0068] After receiving the request, the particular initiator 620 may determine the CSR based on one or more RF scans performed during ranging blocks performed within the multi-cluster deployment 600 in the UWB positioning session. Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of generating a CSR based on scanning of a range-finding block according to some embodiments. Figure 6 , at arrow 655, the particular initiator 620 may send a request for a sub-CSR to one or more responders 630 of the cluster to which the particular initiator 620 belongs. The sub-CSR may indicate interference with message transmissions of the one or more responders 630 caused by information exchanges of other clusters of the multi-cluster deployment 600. In some embodiments, each responder of the cluster may receive the request for a sub-CSR, perform an RF scan, and determine its own sub-CSR accordingly.

[0069] At block 660, responder 630 may determine a sub-CWB based on a scan of ranging rounds of ranging blocks assigned to other clusters of multi-cluster deployment 600. For example, Figure 7 As shown, responder 630 may belong to the cluster to which ranging round #2 is assigned. In some embodiments, each of responders 630 may RF scan time slots (e.g., frequencies / channels used by the scanned time slots) in other ranging rounds (e.g., ranging rounds #1 and #3 being sent, in which UWB messages sent by other clusters have been sent) assigned to other clusters of the current UWB session for determining the sub-CSR. For example, responder 630 may RF scan one, multiple, or all time slots in other ranging rounds assigned to other clusters for determining interference.

[0070] In some embodiments, when scanning time slots, responder 630 may perform RF scanning according to a predetermined / specified channel list (e.g., a channel map for scanning, specifying channels to scan) scheduled / determined by logic controller 610. In some embodiments, logic controller 610 may also schedule / allocate specific ranging time slots for initiator 620 to send "beacons" intended to be measured / scanned to determine CSRs. The specific scanning method is not limited and may depend on the desired functionality. In some embodiments, responder 630 may indicate / include the determination of scanning in a sub-CSR.

[0071] Referring back to arrow 665, each of the responders 630 may provide the determined sub-CSR to the initiator 620 of the cluster. For example, the responder 630 may send the sub-CSR to the corresponding initiator in the ranging round assigned to the cluster (e.g., during the ranging phase of the ranging round). At block 670, each of the initiators 620 may determine the CSR of the cluster based on the sub-CSR received from the corresponding responder 630. As described above, the CSR may indicate interference to the cluster for performing the UWB session caused by the information exchange between the multi-cluster deployment 600. In some embodiments, interference may be determined based on one or more CCA modes in the clear channel assessment (CCA) mode according to the IEEE802.15.4 standard. For example, interference may be determined using UWB preamble sensing based on a frame synchronization header (SHR) (e.g., ranging round / time slot) and / or using UWB preamble sensing based on a packet with a multiplexed preamble (e.g., a TDMA type multiplexed preamble).

[0072] In some embodiments, the CSR may indicate any interference determined by the initiator 620 and / or the responder 630. Alternatively, in some other embodiments, the CSR may only indicate interference that is above a predetermined threshold of detected signal strength (e.g., the level of interference meets a certain threshold). In some embodiments, after the interference has been determined, a signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR) value for the corresponding channel and time slot may also be determined. In some embodiments, the SINR value for the corresponding channel and time slot may be included in the CSR to indicate the interference profile of the cluster.

[0073] At arrow 675, the initiator 620 may provide the CSR to the logic controller 610 for scheduling information exchange between the multi-cluster deployment 600. At block 680, the logic controller 610 may schedule information exchange between the multi-cluster deployment 600 based on the CSR (e.g., schedule / allocate ranging rounds and / or ranging slots in the next ranging block).

[0074] Figure 8 and Fig. 96 is a diagram illustrating an example of information exchange between a multi-cluster deployment 600 based on CSR scheduling according to some embodiments. In some embodiments, based on one or more CSRs received from the initiator 620, in the next ranging block, the logic controller 610 may schedule at least a portion of ranging rounds assigned to different clusters to overlap in time. For example, Figure 8 As shown, the logic controller 610 may cause at least a portion of ranging rounds #1 and #2, #2 and #3, #3 and #4, or any combination thereof to overlap in time. For example, based on the CSR indicating the interference profile of each cluster (e.g., indicating interference on a specified channel), the logic controller 610 may schedule communications on different clusters so that at some points in time, different clusters may communicate simultaneously using the same or different channels. For example, the logic controller 610 may schedule ranging rounds based on FDMA, where different clusters may use different channels to send messages simultaneously. For another example, the logic controller 610 may also schedule ranging rounds based on frequency reuse, where two non-adjacent clusters (e.g., Figure 4 Clusters 410 and 430 in FIG. 4 may share the same channel and transmit messages simultaneously when, for example, the determined interference caused by non-adjacent clusters is below a predetermined threshold / level of detected signal strength.

[0075] In some embodiments, based on one or more CSRs received from the initiator 620, the logic controller 610 may also schedule at least a portion of the ranging time slots in the control phase (e.g., the beacon-only phase in the superframe structure) assigned to different clusters to overlap in time in the next ranging block. Fig. 9 As shown, the logic controller 610 may overlap a portion of ranging batches 1 and 2 and / or 8 and 9. For example, based on the CSR indicating the interference profile of the cluster (e.g., on a specified channel), the logic controller 610 may schedule information relays on different clusters so that at some time points, different clusters can use different channels to transmit information simultaneously. For example, the logic controller 610 may schedule ranging rounds based on FDMA, where different clusters can use different channels to send messages. For another example, the logic controller 610 may also schedule ranging slots in the control phase based on frequency reuse, where two non-adjacent clusters (e.g., Figure 4 Clusters 410 and 430 in FIG. 4 may share the same channel and transmit messages simultaneously when, for example, the determined interference caused by non-adjacent clusters is below a predetermined threshold / level of detected signal strength.

[0076] Therefore, information / messages can be exchanged / sent simultaneously between different clusters in a UWB session (e.g., overlapping different ranging rounds and / or ranging slots in time), and thus the communication efficiency of a UWB session performed by a multi-cluster deployment can be significantly improved. This in turn can increase the accuracy of UWB positioning of a target device traveling across clusters.

[0077] Fig. 10A According to the implementation scheme, the initiator of the first cluster (e.g. Figure 6 Flow chart of a method 1000 for cross-cluster coordination in UWB wireless positioning performed by an initiator 620 in FIG. Fig. 10A Functional means illustrated in one or more of the blocks shown in may be performed by hardware and / or software components of the UWB device. Fig.11 and Fig.12 Example components of a UWB device are illustrated in FIG. 4 , and these example components are described in more detail below.

[0078] At block 1002, the functionality includes obtaining, from a plurality of clusters including a first cluster (e.g., Figure 6 A controller (e.g., Figure 6 1002) receives a request for a channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by a first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between multiple clusters. As noted, according to some embodiments, the CSR may be generated based on an interference profile of the first cluster, the interference profile indicating interference in wireless positioning (e.g., a UWB session) performed by the first cluster, the interference being caused by information exchange between multiple cluster deployments (e.g., cross-cluster communication within a multiple cluster deployment). Therefore, the interference may be indicated in the CSR of the first cluster. Components for performing the functionality at box 1002 may include a bus 1105, a processor 1110, a memory 1160, a wireless communication interface 1130 (including an optional UWB transceiver 1135), and / or other components of the mobile UWB device 1100, such as Fig.11 As shown and described below.

[0079] The functionality at block 1004 includes determining the CSR by generating an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more RF scans performed during a ranging block performed by a multi-cluster deployment in a UWB positioning session. As described above, upon receiving the request, the initiator may send a request to one or more of the responders of the first cluster (e.g., Figure 6 The responder 630 in the multi-cluster deployment sends a request for a sub-CSR, which indicates an interference with message sending of one or more of the responders caused by the information exchange between the multi-cluster deployments.

[0080] In some embodiments, each responder of the first cluster may receive the request and may determine its own sub-CSR accordingly. For example, each of the responders may determine the sub-CWB based on a scan of ranging rounds of ranging blocks assigned to other clusters of the multi-cluster deployment, such as in conjunction with Figure 7 After determining, the responder may indicate / include the determination of the scan in a sub-CSR. The responder may then send the sub-CSR back to the initiator to determine the CSR of the first cluster. For example, the responder may send the sub-CSR to the corresponding initiator in a ranging round assigned to the first cluster (e.g., during a ranging phase of the ranging round).

[0081] In some embodiments, the initiator may determine the CSR of the cluster based on the sub-CSR received from the corresponding responder. As described above, the CSR may indicate interference to the cluster used to perform the UWB session caused by the information exchange between the multi-cluster deployment. In some embodiments, the interference may be determined based on one or more CCA modes in the clear channel assessment (CCA) mode according to the IEEE 802.15.4 standard. For example, interference may be determined using UWB preamble sensing based on a frame synchronization header (SHR) (e.g., ranging rounds / time slots) and / or using UWB preamble sensing based on packets with multiplexed preambles (e.g., TDMA type multiplexed preambles). Components for performing the functionality at box 1004 may include a bus 1105, a processor 1110, a memory 1160, a wireless communication interface 1130 (including an optional UWB transceiver 1135), and / or other components of the mobile UWB device 1100, such as Fig.11 As shown and described below.

[0082] The functionality at block 1006 includes providing a signal to a controller (e.g., Figure 6 The logic controller 610 in box 1006 sends a CSR for scheduling information exchange between multiple anchor point clusters. In some embodiments, the CSR may indicate any interference determined by the initiator and / or responder. Alternatively, in some other embodiments, the CSR may only indicate interference that is above a predetermined threshold of detected signal strength (e.g., the level of interference meets a specific threshold). In some embodiments, after the interference has been determined, the signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR) value of the corresponding channel and time slot may also be determined and may be included in the CSR to indicate the interference profile of the cluster. The components for performing the functionality at box 1006 may include a bus 1105, a processor 1110, a memory 1160, a wireless communication interface 1130 (including an optional UWB transceiver 1135), and / or other components of the mobile UWB device 1100, such as Fig.11 As shown and described below.

[0083] In some embodiments, the information exchange between multiple cluster deployments can be scheduled by the logic controller based on the CSR. As noted, according to some embodiments, based on the CSR scheduler by the logic controller (e.g., Figure 6 In the next ranging block, the logic controller may schedule at least a portion of the ranging rounds assigned to different clusters to overlap in time based on one or more CSRs received by the logic controller 610 in the cluster. Figure 8 As shown, the logic controller may overlap at least a portion of ranging rounds #1 and #2, #2 and #3, #3 and #4, or any combination thereof. For example, based on the CSR indicating the interference profile of each cluster (e.g., indicating interference on a specified channel), the logic controller may schedule communications on different clusters so that at some points in time, different clusters may communicate simultaneously using the same or different channels. In some embodiments, the logic controller may schedule ranging rounds based on FDMA, where different clusters may use different channels to send messages simultaneously. In some embodiments, the logic controller may also schedule ranging rounds based on frequency reuse, where two non-adjacent clusters (e.g., Figure 4 Clusters 410 and 430 in FIG. 4 may share the same channel and transmit messages simultaneously when, for example, the determined interference caused by non-adjacent clusters is below a predetermined threshold / level of detected signal strength.

[0084] In some embodiments, based on one or more CSRs received by the logic controller, in the next ranging block, the logic controller may also schedule at least a portion of the ranging slots in the control phase (e.g., the beacon-only phase in the superframe structure) assigned to different clusters to overlap in time. Fig. 9 As shown, the logic controller may overlap a portion of ranging batches 1 and 2 and / or 8 and 9. For example, based on the CSR indicating the interference profile of the cluster (e.g., on a specified channel), the logic controller may schedule information relays on different clusters so that at some points in time, different clusters may use different channels to transmit information simultaneously. In some embodiments, the logic controller may schedule ranging rounds based on FDMA, where different clusters may use different channels to send messages. In some embodiments, the logic controller may also schedule ranging slots in the control phase based on frequency reuse, where two non-adjacent clusters (e.g., Figure 4 Clusters 410 and 430 in FIG. 4 may share the same channel and transmit messages simultaneously when, for example, the determined interference caused by non-adjacent clusters is below a predetermined threshold / level of detected signal strength.

[0085] Fig. 10B is a cluster (e.g. Figure 6 A controller (e.g., Figure 6Flow chart of a method 1010 for cross-cluster coordination in UWB wireless positioning performed by a logic controller 610 in FIG. Fig. 10B Functional means illustrated in one or more of the blocks shown in may be performed by hardware and / or software components of the UWB device. Fig.11 and Fig.12 Example components of a UWB device are illustrated in FIG. 4 , and these example components are described in more detail below.

[0086] At block 1012, functionality includes configuring an initiator (e.g., Figure 6 1200) to determine a channel scan report (CSR), the channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between multiple clusters, and wherein the CSR is determined by generating an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during ranging blocks in the UWB positioning session. As noted, according to some embodiments, the CSR may be generated based on an interference profile for the first cluster, the interference profile indicating interference in wireless positioning (e.g., a UWB session) performed by the first cluster, the interference being caused by information exchange between multiple cluster deployments (e.g., cross-cluster communication within a multiple cluster deployment). Therefore, interference may be indicated in the CSR of the first cluster. Components for performing the functionality at box 1012 may include a bus 1205, a processor 1210, a memory 1260, a wireless communication interface 1230 (including an optional UWB transceiver 1235), and / or other components of the stationary UWB device 1200, such as Fig.12 As shown and described below.

[0087] In some embodiments, upon receiving the request, the initiator may send a request to one or more of the responders in the first cluster (e.g., Figure 6 The responders 630 in the multi-cluster deployment may send a request for a sub-CSR indicating interference with message transmission by one or more of the responders caused by information exchange between the multi-cluster deployments. In some embodiments, each responder of the first cluster may receive the request and may determine its own sub-CSR accordingly. For example, each of the responders may determine a sub-CWB based on a scan of ranging rounds of ranging blocks assigned to other clusters of the multi-cluster deployment, such as in conjunction with Figure 7 After determining, the responder may indicate / include the determination of the scan in a sub-CSR. The responder may then send the sub-CSR back to the initiator to determine the CSR of the first cluster. For example, the responder may send the sub-CSR to the corresponding initiator in a ranging round assigned to the first cluster (e.g., during a ranging phase of the ranging round).

[0088] In some embodiments, the initiator may determine the CSR of the cluster based on the sub-CSR received from the corresponding responder. As described above, the CSR may indicate interference to the cluster used to perform the UWB session caused by the information exchange between the multi-cluster deployment. In some embodiments, the interference may be determined based on one or more CCA modes in the clear channel assessment (CCA) mode according to the IEEE 802.15.4 standard. For example, interference may be determined using UWB preamble sensing based on a frame synchronization header (SHR) (e.g., ranging rounds / time slots) and / or using UWB preamble sensing based on packets with multiplexed preambles (e.g., TDMA type multiplexed preambles). Components for performing the functionality at box 1012 may include a bus 1105, a processor 1110, a memory 1160, a wireless communication interface 1130 (including an optional UWB transceiver 1135), and / or other components of the mobile UWB device 1100, such as Fig.11 As shown and described below.

[0089] The functionality at block 1014 includes receiving a CSR from the initiator. As described above, in some embodiments, the CSR may be determined by generating an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more RF scans performed during a ranging block in a UWB positioning session. Means for performing the functionality at block 1014 may include bus 1205, processor 1210, memory 1260, wireless communication interface 1230 (including optional UWB transceiver 1235), and / or other components of the stationary UWB device 1200, such as Fig.12 As shown and described below.

[0090] In some embodiments, the initiator may send a CSR to the controller for scheduling information exchange between multiple anchor point clusters. In some embodiments, the CSR may indicate any interference determined by the initiator and / or responder. Alternatively, in some other embodiments, the CSR may only indicate interference above a predetermined threshold of detected signal strength (e.g., the level of interference meets a specific threshold). In some embodiments, after the interference has been determined, the signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR) value of the corresponding channel and time slot may also be determined and may be included in the CSR to indicate the interference profile of the cluster.

[0091] The functionality at block 1016 includes scheduling information exchange between multiple cluster deployments based on CSRs. As noted, according to some embodiments, based on a logical controller (e.g., Figure 6 In the next ranging block, the logic controller may schedule at least a portion of the ranging rounds assigned to different clusters to overlap in time based on one or more CSRs received by the logic controller 610 in the cluster. Figure 8As shown, the logic controller may overlap at least a portion of ranging rounds #1 and #2, #2 and #3, #3 and #4, or any combination thereof. For example, based on the CSR indicating the interference profile of each cluster (e.g., indicating interference on a specified channel), the logic controller may schedule communications on different clusters so that at some points in time, different clusters may communicate simultaneously using the same or different channels. In some embodiments, the logic controller may schedule ranging rounds based on FDMA, where different clusters may use different channels to send messages simultaneously. In some embodiments, the logic controller may also schedule ranging rounds based on frequency reuse, where two non-adjacent clusters (e.g., Figure 4 Clusters 410 and 430 in FIG. 4 may share the same channel and transmit messages simultaneously when, for example, the interference determined to be caused by non-adjacent clusters is below a predetermined threshold / level.

[0092] In some embodiments, based on one or more CSRs received by the logic controller, in the next ranging block, the logic controller may also schedule at least a portion of the ranging slots in the control phase (e.g., the beacon-only phase in the superframe structure) assigned to different clusters to overlap in time. Fig. 9 As shown, the logic controller may overlap a portion of ranging batches 1 and 2 and / or 8 and 9. For example, based on the CSR indicating the interference profile of the cluster (e.g., on a specified channel), the logic controller may schedule information relays on different clusters so that at some points in time, different clusters may use different channels to transmit information simultaneously. In some embodiments, the logic controller may schedule ranging rounds based on FDMA, where different clusters may use different channels to send messages. In some embodiments, the logic controller may also schedule ranging slots in the control phase based on frequency reuse, where two non-adjacent clusters (e.g., Figure 4 Clusters 410 and 430 in the UWB device 1200 may share the same channel and transmit messages simultaneously when, for example, the interference caused by non-adjacent clusters is determined to be below a predetermined threshold / level. Means for performing the functionality at block 1016 may include bus 1205, processor 1210, memory 1260, wireless communication interface 1230 (including optional UWB transceiver 1235), and / or other components of UWB device 1200, such as Fig.12 As shown and described below.

[0093] Fig.11 1 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a mobile UWB device 1100 that may be utilized as described herein. The mobile UWB device 1100 may have cellular (e.g., 5G NR) capabilities and may therefore act as a UE in a cellular wireless network and / or perform cellular / UWB positioning as described herein. It should be noted that Fig.11It is intended only to provide a generalized illustration of the various components, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate. For example, a more basic / simple type of UWB device may omit various components that may be included in a more advanced / complex UWB device. Furthermore, as previously noted, the functionality of the UE discussed in the previously described embodiments may be provided by Fig.11 The invention may be executed by one or more of the illustrated hardware and / or software components.

[0094] Mobile UWB device 1100 is shown as including hardware elements that may be electrically coupled via bus 1105 (or may otherwise communicate as appropriate). The hardware elements may include a processor 1110, which may include, but is not limited to, one or more general-purpose processors (e.g., application processors), one or more special-purpose processors (such as digital signal processor (DSP) chips, graphics acceleration processors, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc.), and / or other processing structures or components. Processor 1110 may include one or more processing units, which may be housed in a single integrated circuit (IC) or multiple ICs. Fig.11 As shown, some embodiments may have a separate DSP 1120, depending on the desired functionality. Position determination and / or other determinations based on wireless communication may be provided in the processor 1110 and / or the wireless communication interface 1130 (discussed below). The mobile UWB device 1100 may also include one or more input devices 1170, which may include but are not limited to one or more keyboards, touch screens, touch pads, microphones, buttons, dials, switches, etc.; and one or more output devices 1115, which may include but are not limited to one or more displays (e.g., touch screens), light emitting diodes (LEDs), speakers, etc.

[0095] The mobile UWB device 1100 may also include a wireless communication interface 1130, which may include but is not limited to a modem, a network card, an infrared communication device, a wireless communication device and / or a chipset (such as Devices, IEEE802.11 devices, IEEE 802.15.4 devices, Wi-Fi devices, WiMAX devices, WAN devices and / or various cellular devices, etc.), etc., which can enable the mobile UWB device 1100 to communicate with other devices as described herein. The wireless communication interface 1130 can allow communication (e.g., sending and receiving) of data and signaling with access points, various base stations and / or other access node types and / or other network components, computer systems and / or any other electronic devices coupled thereto in communication. Communication can be performed via one or more wireless communication antennas 1132 that transmit and / or receive wireless signals 1134. According to some embodiments, the wireless communication antenna 1132 may include multiple discrete antennas, antenna arrays, or any combination thereof. Antenna 1132 may be able to use beams (e.g., Tx beams and Rx beams) to send and receive wireless signals. Beamforming can be performed using digital and / or analog beamforming techniques using corresponding digital and / or analog circuits. The wireless communication interface 1130 may include such circuits.

[0096] As shown, the wireless indication interface 1130 may also include a UWB transceiver 1135. The UWB transceiver 1135 may be operated to perform the UWB operations described herein. In addition, the wireless communication interface 1130 may include one or more additional communication technologies that utilize it to perform any OOB functionality described herein. According to some embodiments, the UWB transceiver 1135 may be one of the multiple UWB transceivers of the mobile UWB device 1100. In addition, the UWB transceiver may be used for functionality other than the UWB positioning functionality described herein. Although illustrated as part of the wireless communication interface 1130, in some embodiments, the UWB transceiver 1135 may be separate from the wireless communication interface 1130.

[0097] Depending on the desired functionality, the wireless communication interface 1130 may include separate receivers and transmitters, or any combination of transceivers, transmitters, and / or receivers to communicate with base stations (e.g., ng-eNBs and gNBs) and other terrestrial transceivers (such as wireless devices and access points). The mobile UWB device 1100 may communicate with different data networks, which may include various network types. For example, the WWAN may be a CDMA network, a TDMA network, an FDMA network, an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) network, a Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) network, a WiMAX (IEEE 802.16) network, and the like. A CDMA network may implement one or more RATs, such as WCDMA, etc. Includes IS-95, IS-2000, and / or IS-856 standards. A TDMA network may implement GSM, Digital Advanced Mobile Phone System (D-AMPS), or some other RAT. An OFDMA network may employ LTE, Advanced LTE, 5G NR, and so on. 5G NR, LTE, Advanced LTE, GSM, and WCDMA are described in documents from 3GPP. It is described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project 2" (3GPP2). 3GPP and 3GPP2 documents are publicly available. A WLAN may also be an IEEE 802.11x network, while a wireless personal area network (WPAN) may be a Bluetooth network, IEEE 802.15x, or some other type of network. The techniques described herein may also be used for any combination of WWAN, WLAN, and / or WPAN.

[0098] The mobile UWB device 1100 may also include a sensor 1140. The sensor 1140 may include, but is not limited to, one or more inertial sensors and / or other sensors (e.g., accelerometers, gyroscopes, cameras, magnetometers, altimeters, microphones, proximity sensors, light sensors, barometers, etc.), some of which may be used to obtain location-related measurements and / or other information.

[0099] Embodiments of the mobile UWB device 1100 may also include a GNSS receiver 1180 capable of receiving signals 1184 from one or more GNSS satellites using an antenna 1182 (which may be the same as the antenna 1132). Positioning based on GNSS signal measurements may be used to supplement and / or incorporate the techniques described herein. The GNSS receiver 1180 may extract the positioning of the mobile UWB device 1100 from GNSS satellites of GNSS systems such as GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) over Japan, IRNSS over India, Beidou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) over China, etc. using conventional techniques. In addition, the GNSS receiver 1180 may be used with various storage devices, solid-state storage devices such as random access memory (RAM) and / or read-only memory (ROM), which may be programmable, flash-updatable, etc. Such storage devices may be configured to implement any suitable data storage, including but not limited to various file systems, database structures, etc.

[0100] The memory 1160 of the mobile UWB device 1100 may also include software elements ( Fig.111100), the software elements include operating systems, device drivers, executable libraries and / or other code (such as one or more applications), which may include computer programs provided by various embodiments, and / or may be designed to implement methods provided by other embodiments and / or configure systems provided by other embodiments, as described herein. By way of example only, one or more processes described with respect to the methods discussed above may be implemented as code and / or instructions in memory 1160 that may be executed by mobile UWB device 1100 (and / or processor 1110 or DSP 1120 within mobile UWB device 1100). Then, in some embodiments, such code and / or instructions may be used to configure and / or adapt a general purpose computer (or other device) to perform one or more operations according to the described methods.

[0101] Fig.12 1 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a stationary UWB device 1200 that may be utilized as described herein. The stationary UWB device 1200 may, for example, serve as a UWB anchor point for UWB and / or hybrid cellular / UWB positioning of a mobile UWB device (e.g., mobile UWB device 1100). It should be noted that Fig.12 It is intended only to provide a generalized illustration of the various components, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate. In some embodiments, the stationed UWB device 1200 may correspond to an anchor UWB with a known location that can be used to determine the location of other UWB devices (including mobile UWB devices). According to some embodiments, the stationed UWB device 1200 may be permanently stationed or temporarily stationed.

[0102] The stationary UWB device 1200 is shown as including hardware elements that may be electrically coupled via a bus 1205 (or may communicate in other ways as appropriate). The hardware elements may include a processor 1210, which may include, but is not limited to, one or more general-purpose processors, one or more special-purpose processors (such as DSP chips, graphics acceleration processors, ASICs, etc.), and / or other processing structures or components. Fig.12 As shown, some embodiments may have a separate DSP 1220, depending on the desired functionality. According to some embodiments, location determination and / or other determinations based on wireless communication may be provided in the processor 1210 and / or the wireless communication interface 1230 (discussed below). The stationary UWB device 1200 may also include one or more input devices, which may include but are not limited to a keyboard, a display, a mouse, a microphone, buttons, dials, switches, etc.; and one or more output devices, which may include but are not limited to a display, a light emitting diode (LED), a speaker, etc.

[0103] The stationary UWB device 1200 may also include a wireless communication interface 1230, which may include, but is not limited to, a modem, a network card, an infrared communication device, a wireless communication device, and / or a chipset (such as a microcontroller) that enables the stationary UWB device 1200 to communicate as described herein. Devices, IEEE 802.11 devices, IEEE 802.15.4 devices, Wi-Fi devices, WiMAX devices, cellular communication facilities, etc.). The wireless communication interface 1230 can permit communication (e.g., sending and receiving) of data and signaling to mobile devices, wireless network nodes (e.g., base stations, access points, etc.) and / or other network components, computer systems, and / or any other electronic devices described herein. Communication can be performed via one or more wireless communication antennas 1232 that transmit and / or receive wireless signals 1234.

[0104] As shown, the wireless indication interface 1230 may also include a UWB transceiver 1235. The UWB transceiver 1235 may be operated to perform the UWB operations described herein. In addition, the wireless communication interface 1230 may include one or more additional communication technologies that utilize it to perform any OOB functionality described herein. According to some embodiments, the UWB transceiver 1235 may be one of the multiple UWB transceivers of the mobile UWB device 1200. In addition, the UWB transceiver may be used for functionality other than the UWB positioning functionality described herein. Although illustrated as part of the wireless communication interface 1230, in some embodiments, the UWB transceiver 1235 may be separate from the wireless communication interface 1230.

[0105] The stationary UWB device 1200 may also include a network interface 1280, which may include support for wired communication technologies. The network interface 1280 may include a modem, a network card, a chipset, etc. The network interface 1280 may include one or more input and / or output communication interfaces to permit data to be exchanged with a network, a communication network server, a computer system, and / or any other electronic device described herein. In some embodiments, the stationary UWB device 1200 may be communicatively coupled to one or more servers and / or other stationary UWB devices via the network interface 1280.

[0106] In many embodiments, the resident UWB device 1200 may also include memory 1260. The memory 1260 may include, but is not limited to, local and / or network accessible storage, disk drives, drive arrays, optical storage devices, solid-state storage devices such as RAM and / or ROM, which may be programmable, flash-updatable, etc. Such storage devices may be configured to implement any suitable data storage, including, but not limited to, various file systems, database structures, etc.

[0107] The memory 1260 of the resident UWB device 1200 may also include software elements ( Fig.12 1200), the software elements include operating systems, device drivers, executable libraries and / or other code (such as one or more applications), which may include computer programs provided by various embodiments, and / or may be designed to implement methods provided by other embodiments and / or configure systems provided by other embodiments, as described herein. By way of example only, one or more processes described with respect to the methods discussed above may be implemented as code and / or instructions in memory 1260 that may be executed by a resident UWB device 1200 (and / or a resident processor 1210 or DSP 1220 within the UWB device 1200). Then, in some embodiments, such code and / or instructions may be used to configure and / or adapt a general purpose computer (or other device) to perform one or more operations according to the described methods.

[0108] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that substantial modifications may be made according to specific requirements. For example, customized hardware may also be used, and / or specific elements may be implemented in hardware, software (including portable software, such as applets, etc.), or both. In addition, connections to other computing devices (such as network input / output devices) may be employed.

[0109] With reference to the accompanying drawings, components that may include memory may include non-transitory machine-readable media. As used herein, the terms "machine-readable medium" and "computer-readable medium" refer to any storage medium that participates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in a particular manner. In the embodiments provided above, various machine-readable media may be involved when providing instructions / codes to a processor and / or other devices for execution. Additionally or alternatively, machine-readable media may be used to store and / or carry such instructions / codes. In many specific implementations, computer-readable media are physical and / or tangible storage media. Such media may take many forms, including but not limited to non-volatile media and volatile media. Common forms of computer-readable media include, for example: magnetic and / or optical media, any other physical media with hole patterns, RAM, programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or memory box, or any other medium from which a computer can read instructions and / or codes.

[0110] The methods, systems and devices discussed herein are examples. Various embodiments may omit, replace or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For example, the features described in certain embodiments may be combined in various other embodiments. Different aspects and elements of the embodiments may be combined in a similar manner. The various components of the drawings provided herein may be embodied in hardware and / or software. In addition, technology may evolve, and therefore many elements are examples, which do not limit the scope of the present disclosure to those specific examples.

[0111] It turns out that it is convenient to sometimes refer to such signals as bits, information, values, elements, symbols, characters, variables, terms, numbers, digital symbols, etc., primarily for reasons of common usage. However, it should be understood that all of these or similar terms should be associated with appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels. Unless otherwise specifically stated, as is apparent from the above discussion, it should be understood that throughout this specification, discussions using terms such as "processing", "calculating", "calculating", "determining", "ascertaining", "identifying", "associating", "measuring", "performing", etc. refer to the actions or processes of a specific device such as a special-purpose computer or similar special-purpose electronic computing device. Therefore, in the context of this specification, a special-purpose computer or similar special-purpose electronic computing device is capable of manipulating or transforming signals, typically represented as physical, electronic, electrical, or magnetic quantities in a memory, register, or other information storage device, a transmitting device, or a display device of a special-purpose computer or similar special-purpose electronic computing device.

[0112] As used herein, the terms "and" and "or" may include multiple meanings that are also intended to depend at least in part on the context in which such terms are used. In general, "or", if used in association with a list, such as A, B, or C, is intended to mean A, B, and C (inclusive meanings are used here) as well as A, B, or C (exclusive meanings are used here). In addition, as used herein, the term "one or more" may be used to describe any feature, structure, or characteristic in the singular, or may be used to describe a certain combination of features, structures, or characteristics. However, it should be noted that this is merely an illustrative example, and the subject matter claimed is not limited to this example. In addition, the term "at least one of...", if used in association with a list, such as A, B, or C, may be interpreted to mean any combination of A, B, and / or C, such as A, AB, AA, AAB, AABBCCC, etc.

[0113] Several embodiments have been described, and various modifications, alternative configurations, and equivalents may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the above elements may be components of a larger system, wherein other rules may take precedence over the application of the various embodiments or otherwise modify the application of the various embodiments. In addition, multiple steps may be performed before, during, or after considering the above elements. Accordingly, the above description does not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0114] In view of this description, various embodiments may include different combinations of features. Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0115] Clause 1. A method for cross-cluster coordination in ultra-wideband (UWB) wireless positioning performed by an initiator of a first cluster, the method comprising: receiving a request for a channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster from a controller of multiple clusters including the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the multiple clusters; generating an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during a ranging block in a UWB positioning session; determining the CSR based on the interference profile of the first cluster; and sending the CSR to the controller for scheduling information exchange between the multiple clusters.

[0116] Clause 2. The one or more RF scans are performed by other anchor points in the first cluster, and wherein determinations of the one or more RF scans are sent to the initiator in one or more sub-CSRs.

[0117] Clause 3. The one or more sub-CSRs are sent during a ranging phase of a first ranging round assigned to the ranging block of the first cluster.

[0118] Clause 4. Scheduling The information exchange between the plurality of clusters is performed via frequency division multiple access (FDMA) or frequency reuse.

[0119] Clause 5. The one or more RF scans of the ranging blocks include a second ranging pass of scanning the ranging blocks assigned to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters.

[0120] Clause 6. Scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises scheduling at least a portion of the first ranging round by temporally overlapping with the second ranging round and based on the CSR.

[0121] Clause 7. Scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises scheduling the control phase of the ranging block by temporally overlapping a first ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the first cluster with a second ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the second cluster and based on the CSR.

[0122] Clause 8. The CSR includes reporting interference in the wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, the interference being above a predetermined threshold of detected signal strength.

[0123] Clause 9. A method for cross-cluster coordination in ultra-wideband (UWB) positioning performed by controllers of multiple clusters, the method comprising: configuring an initiator of a first cluster among the multiple clusters to determine a channel scan report (CSR), the channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the multiple clusters, and wherein the CSR is determined by generating an interference profile of the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during a ranging block in a UWB positioning session; receiving the CSR from the initiator; and scheduling information exchange between the multiple clusters based on the CSR.

[0124] Clause 10. The one or more RF scans are performed by other anchor points in the first cluster, and wherein determinations of the one or more RF scans are sent to the initiator in one or more sub-CSRs.

[0125] Clause 11. The one or more sub-CSRs are sent during a ranging phase of a first ranging round assigned to the ranging block of the first cluster.

[0126] Clause 12. Scheduling the information exchange between the plurality of clusters is performed via frequency division multiple access (FDMA) or frequency reuse.

[0127] Clause 13. The one or more RF scans of the ranging blocks include a second ranging pass of scanning the ranging blocks assigned to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters.

[0128] Clause 14. Scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises scheduling at least a portion of the first ranging round by temporally overlapping with the second ranging round and based on the CSR.

[0129] Clause 15. Scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises scheduling the control phase of the ranging block by temporally overlapping a first ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the first cluster with a second ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the second cluster and based on the CSR.

[0130] Clause 16. The CSR includes reporting interference in the wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, the interference being above a predetermined threshold of detected signal strength.

[0131] Clause 17. The CSR includes reporting each interference in the wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, the each interference being determined by the initiator.

[0132] Item 18. A transmitting device in a wireless communication network, the transmitting device comprising: a wireless communication interface; and one or more processing units, the one or more processing units being communicatively coupled to the wireless communication interface and a memory, the one or more processing units being configured to: receive a request for a channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster from a controller of a plurality of clusters including the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the plurality of clusters; generate an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during a ranging block in a UWB positioning session; determine the CSR based on the interference profile for the first cluster; and send the CSR to the controller for scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters.

[0133] Clause 19. The one or more RF scans are performed by other anchor points in the first cluster, and wherein determinations of the one or more RF scans are sent to the initiator in one or more sub-CSRs.

[0134] Clause 20. The one or more sub-CSRs are sent during a ranging phase of a first ranging round assigned to the ranging block of the first cluster.

[0135] Clause 21. Scheduling the information exchange between the plurality of clusters is performed via frequency division multiple access (FDMA) or frequency reuse.

[0136] Clause 22. The one or more RF scans of the ranging blocks include a second ranging pass of scanning the ranging blocks assigned to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters.

[0137] Clause 23. Scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises scheduling at least a portion of the first ranging round by temporally overlapping with the second ranging round and based on the CSR.

[0138] Clause 24. Scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises scheduling the control phase of the ranging block by temporally overlapping a first ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the first cluster with a second ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the second cluster and based on the CSR.

[0139] Clause 25. A server, comprising: a transceiver; a memory; and one or more processing units, the one or more processing units being communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory, the one or more processing units being configured to: configure an initiator of a first cluster among the multiple clusters to determine a channel scan report (CSR), the channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the multiple clusters, and wherein the CSR is determined by generating an interference profile of the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during a ranging block in a UWB positioning session; receive the CSR from the initiator; and schedule information exchange between the multiple clusters based on the CSR.

[0140] Clause 26. The one or more RF scans are performed by other anchor points in the first cluster, and wherein determinations of the one or more RF scans are sent to the initiator in one or more sub-CSRs.

[0141] Clause 27. The one or more sub-CSRs are sent during a ranging phase of a first ranging round assigned to the ranging block of the first cluster.

[0142] Clause 28. Scheduling the information exchange between the plurality of clusters is performed via frequency division multiple access (FDMA) or frequency reuse.

[0143] Clause 29. The one or more RF scans of the ranging blocks include a second ranging pass of scanning the ranging blocks assigned to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters.

[0144] Clause 30. Scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises scheduling at least a portion of the first ranging round by overlapping in time with the second ranging round and based on the CSR.

[0145] Clause 31. Scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises scheduling the control phase of the ranging block by temporally overlapping a first ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the first cluster with a second ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the second cluster and based on the CSR.

Claims

1. A method for cross-cluster coordination in ultra-wideband (UWB) wireless positioning performed by an initiator of a first cluster, the method comprising: receiving, from a controller of a plurality of clusters including the first cluster, a request for a channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the plurality of clusters; generating an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during ranging blocks in a UWB positioning session; determining the CSR based on the interference profile of the first cluster; as well as The CSR is sent to the controller for scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more RF scans are performed by other anchor points in the first cluster, and wherein determinations of the one or more RF scans are sent to the initiator in one or more sub-CSRs. 3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the one or more sub-CSRs are sent during a ranging phase of a first ranging round assigned to the ranging block of the first cluster. The method of claim 3 , wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters is performed via frequency division multiple access (FDMA) or frequency reuse. 5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the one or more RF scans of the ranging blocks include a second ranging pass of scanning the ranging blocks assigned to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises: At least a portion of the first ranging round is scheduled by overlapping in time with the second ranging round and based on the CSR.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises: The control phase of the ranging block is scheduled by temporally overlapping a first ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the first cluster with a second ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the second cluster and based on the CSR.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the CSR comprises reporting interference in the wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, the interference being above a predetermined threshold of detected signal strength.

9. A method for cross-cluster coordination in ultra-wideband (UWB) positioning performed by controllers of multiple clusters, the method comprising: configuring an initiator of a first cluster of the plurality of clusters to determine a channel scan report (CSR), the channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the plurality of clusters, and wherein the CSR is determined by generating an interference profile of the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during ranging blocks in a UWB positioning session; receiving the CSR from the initiator; as well as Information exchange between the plurality of clusters is scheduled based on the CSR.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the one or more RF scans are performed by other anchor points in the first cluster, and wherein determinations of the one or more RF scans are sent to the initiator in one or more sub-CSRs.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more sub-CSRs are sent during a ranging phase of a first ranging round assigned to the ranging block of the first cluster.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters is performed via frequency division multiple access (FDMA) or frequency reuse.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the one or more RF scans of the ranging blocks include a second ranging pass of scanning the ranging blocks assigned to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises: At least a portion of the first ranging round is scheduled by overlapping in time with the second ranging round and based on the CSR.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises: The control phase of the ranging block is scheduled by temporally overlapping a first ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the first cluster with a second ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the second cluster and based on the CSR.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the CSR comprises reporting interference in the wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, the interference being above a predetermined threshold of detected signal strength.

17. The method of claim 9, wherein the CSR comprises reporting each interference in the wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, the each interference being determined by the initiator.

18. A sending device in a wireless communication network, the sending device comprising: Wireless communication interface; and one or more processing units, the one or more processing units being communicatively coupled to the wireless communication interface and the memory, the one or more processing units being configured to: receiving, from a controller of a plurality of clusters including the first cluster, a request for a channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the plurality of clusters; generating an interference profile for the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during ranging blocks in a UWB positioning session; determining the CSR based on the interference profile of the first cluster; as well as The CSR is sent to the controller for scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters.

19. The transmitting device of claim 18, wherein the one or more RF scans are performed by other anchor points in the first cluster, and wherein determinations of the one or more RF scans are sent to the initiator in one or more sub-CSRs.

20. The transmitting device of claim 19, wherein the one or more sub-CSRs are transmitted during a ranging phase of a first ranging round assigned to the ranging block of the first cluster.

21. The transmission device of claim 20, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters is performed via frequency division multiple access (FDMA) or frequency reuse.

22. The transmitting device of claim 21, wherein the one or more RF scans of the ranging blocks include a second ranging round of scanning the ranging blocks assigned to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters.

23. The transmitting device of claim 22, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises: At least a portion of the first ranging round is scheduled by overlapping in time with the second ranging round and based on the CSR.

24. The transmitting device of claim 22, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises: The control phase of the ranging block is scheduled by temporally overlapping a first ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the first cluster with a second ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the second cluster and based on the CSR.

25. A server, comprising: Transceiver; Memory; and one or more processing units, the one or more processing units being communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory, the one or more processing units being configured to: configuring an initiator of a first cluster of the plurality of clusters to determine a channel scan report (CSR), the channel scan report (CSR) indicating interference in wireless positioning performed by the first cluster, wherein the interference is caused by information exchange between the plurality of clusters, and wherein the CSR is determined by generating an interference profile of the first cluster based on one or more radio frequency (RF) scans performed during ranging blocks in a UWB positioning session; receiving the CSR from the initiator; as well as Information exchange between the plurality of clusters is scheduled based on the CSR.

26. The server of claim 25, wherein the one or more RF scans are performed by other anchor points in the first cluster, and wherein determinations of the one or more RF scans are sent to the initiator in one or more sub-CSRs.

27. The server of claim 26, wherein the one or more sub-CSRs are sent during a ranging phase of a first ranging round assigned to the ranging block of the first cluster.

28. The server of claim 27, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters is performed via frequency division multiple access (FDMA) or frequency reuse.

29. The server of claim 28, wherein the one or more RF scans of the ranging blocks include a second ranging pass of scanning the ranging blocks assigned to a second cluster of the plurality of clusters.

30. The server of claim 29, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises: At least a portion of the first ranging round is scheduled by overlapping in time with the second ranging round and based on the CSR.

31. The server of claim 29, wherein scheduling information exchange between the plurality of clusters comprises: The control phase of the ranging block is scheduled by temporally overlapping a first ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the first cluster with a second ranging slot of the control phase assigned to the second cluster and based on the CSR.

Images