Mixed mode positioning reference signal configuration for sidelink positioning

Abstract

Techniques for wireless communication are disclosed. In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) may participate in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs. The UE may receive first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a serving cell of each of the one or more first sidelink UEs. The UE may receive second sidelink discovery information from the one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a serving cell.

Description

Background Art 1. Technical Field

[0002] Aspects of the present disclosure relate generally to wireless communications.

[0003] 2. Description of related technologies

[0004] Wireless communication systems have evolved over many generations, including first generation analog wireless telephone service (1G), second generation (2G) digital wireless telephone service (including transitional 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third generation (3G) high speed data, wireless service with Internet capabilities, and fourth generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). There are many different types of wireless communication systems in use today, including cellular systems and personal communications service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include the cellular analog Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), and the like.

[0005] The fifth generation (5G) wireless standard, known as New Radio (NR), enables higher data transfer speeds, a greater number of connections, and better coverage, among other improvements. According to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, the 5G standard is designed to provide higher data rates, more accurate positioning (e.g., based on a reference signal for positioning (RS-P), such as a downlink, uplink, or sidelink positioning reference signal (PRS)), and other technical enhancements compared to previous standards.

[0006] In particular, leveraging the increased data rates and reduced latency of 5G, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication technologies are being implemented to support autonomous driving applications, such as wireless communications between vehicles, between vehicles and roadside infrastructure, between vehicles and pedestrians, and so on. Summary of the invention

[0007] The following presents a simplified summary of the invention related to one or more aspects disclosed herein. Therefore, the following summary of the invention should neither be considered as an exhaustive overview related to all conceived aspects, nor should it be considered to identify key or decisive elements related to all conceived aspects or to delineate the scope associated with any particular aspect. Therefore, the sole purpose of the following summary of the invention is to present certain concepts related to one or more aspects related to the mechanisms disclosed herein in a brief form before the detailed embodiments presented below.

[0008] In one aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) includes: participating in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; receiving first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a serving cell for each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; and receiving second sidelink discovery information from the one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a serving cell.

[0009] In one aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a location server includes: receiving first side link information identifying a service cell of a first group of one or more side link UEs from a first side link UE; receiving second side link information identifying a second group of one or more side link UEs that are not associated with the service cell from the first side link UE; transmitting to the first side link UE a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more side link UEs; and transmitting to the first side link UE positioning resource configuration information used in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more side link UEs.

[0010] In one aspect, a location server includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: receive first side link information identifying a service cell of a first group of one or more side link UEs from a first side link UE via the at least one transceiver; receive second side link information identifying a second group of one or more side link UEs not associated with the service cell from the first side link UE via the at least one transceiver; transmit to the first side link UE via the at least one transceiver a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more side link UEs; and transmit to the first side link UE via the at least one transceiver positioning resource configuration information used in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more side link UEs.

[0011] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes: a component for participating in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; a component for receiving first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a serving cell for each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; and a component for receiving second sidelink discovery information from the one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a serving cell.

[0012] In one aspect, a location server includes: a component for receiving first side link information identifying a service cell of a first group of one or more side link UEs from a first side link UE; a component for receiving second side link information identifying a second group of one or more side link UEs not associated with the service cell from the first side link UE; a component for transmitting to the first side link UE a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more side link UEs; and a component for transmitting to the first side link UE positioning resource configuration information used in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more side link UEs.

[0013] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: participate in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; receive first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a serving cell for each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; and receive second sidelink discovery information from the one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a serving cell.

[0014] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a location server, cause the location server to: receive first side link information identifying a service cell of a first group of one or more side link UEs from a first side link UE; receive second side link information identifying a second group of one or more side link UEs that are not associated with the service cell from the first side link UE; transmit to the first side link UE a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for use in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more side link UEs; and transmit to the first side link UE positioning resource configuration information for use in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more side link UEs.

[0015] Other objects and advantages associated with the various aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the drawings and detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in describing various aspects of the present disclosure and are provided solely for illustration and not limitation of the various aspects.

[0017] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0018] Figure 2A and Figure 2B Example wireless network structures according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0019] Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C Several sample components are illustrated that may be incorporated into a user equipment (UE), a base station, and a network entity to support the operations described herein.

[0020] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 5A and Figure 5B Various scenarios of interest for sidelink-only positioning or joint Uu and sidelink positioning according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0022] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating example timing of round trip time (RTT) signals exchanged between a target UE, an assisting UE, and a base station in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating example timing of round trip time (RTT) signals exchanged between a target UE and two assisting UEs in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0024] FIG. 8A illustrates an example call flow for Mode A discovery in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, and FIG. 8B illustrates an example call flow for Mode B discovery in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0025] Fig.9A and Fig. 9B is a diagram of example sidelink slot structures with and without feedback resources in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0026] Fig.10 is a diagram illustrating example resource pools for positioning within a sidelink resource pool in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0027] Fig.11 is a diagram illustrating additional aspects of a side link resource pool and a resource pool for positioning according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0028] Fig.12 Two resource allocation modes for transmission on the sidelink in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0029] Fig.13 An electronic environment that can be used for sidelink UE positioning in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0030] Fig.14 A method of wireless communication performed by a UE according to aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0031] Fig.15 A method of wireless communication performed by a location server according to aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] Various aspects of the present disclosure are provided in the following description and related drawings for various examples provided for illustrative purposes. Alternative aspects may be designed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of the present disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted to avoid making the relevant details of the present disclosure difficult to understand.

[0033] The words "exemplary" and / or "example" are used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" and / or "example" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term "aspects of the disclosure" does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage, or mode of operation.

[0034] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any of a variety of different techniques and methods may be used to represent the information and signals described below. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout the following description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof, which depends in part on the specific application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, and so on.

[0035] In addition, many aspects are described in terms of a sequence of actions to be performed by, for example, an element of a computing device. It will be appreciated that the various actions described herein may be performed by a specific circuit (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of the two. Additionally, the sequence of actions described herein may be considered to be fully embodied in any form of non-transient computer-readable storage medium, in which a corresponding computer instruction set is stored, which, when executed, will cause or command the associated processor of the device to perform the functionality described herein. Therefore, various aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in a variety of different forms, all of which have been contemplated to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. In addition, for each of the various aspects described herein, the corresponding form of any such aspect may be described herein as, for example, "logic configured to perform the described actions".

[0036] As used herein, the terms "user equipment" (UE), "vehicle UE" (V-UE), "pedestrian UE" (P-UE), and "base station" are not intended to be specific to or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT), unless otherwise specified. In general, a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network (e.g., a vehicle onboard computer, a vehicle navigation device, a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, an asset location device, a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch, glasses, an augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), a vehicle (e.g., a car, a motorcycle, a bicycle, etc.), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.). A UE can be mobile or can be stationary (e.g., at certain times) and can communicate with a radio access network (RAN). As used herein, the term "UE" can be interchangeably referred to as a "mobile device," "access terminal" or "AT," "client device," "wireless device," "subscriber device," "subscriber terminal," "subscriber station," "user terminal" or UT, "mobile terminal," "mobile station," or variations thereof.

[0037] A V-UE is a type of UE and may be any vehicle-mounted wireless communication device, such as a navigation system, an alarm system, a head-up display (HUD), an onboard computer, an in-vehicle infotainment system, an automated driving system (ADS), an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS), etc. Alternatively, a V-UE may be a portable wireless communication device (e.g., a cellular phone, a tablet computer, etc.) carried by a driver of a vehicle or an occupant in the vehicle. The term "V-UE" may refer to an in-vehicle wireless communication device or the vehicle itself, depending on the context. A P-UE is a type of UE and may be a portable wireless communication device carried by a pedestrian (i.e., a user who is not driving or riding a vehicle). Generally speaking, a UE may communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the core network, the UE may be connected to an external network such as the Internet and to other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for connecting to a core network and / or the Internet are also possible for a UE, such as through a wired access network, a wireless local area network (WLAN) network (e.g., based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11, etc.), and the like.

[0038] A base station may operate according to one of several RATs to communicate with a UE, depending on the network in which the base station is deployed, and may alternatively be referred to as an access point (AP), a network node, a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), a new radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as a gNB or gNodeB), etc. A base station may primarily be used to support wireless access for UEs, including supporting data, voice, and / or signaling connections for supported UEs. In some systems, a base station may only provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems it may provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link by which a UE may transmit a signal to a base station is referred to as an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel, etc.). The communication link by which a base station may transmit a signal to a UE is referred to as a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., a paging channel, a control channel, a broadcast channel, a forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term traffic channel (TCH) may refer to a UL / reverse or DL / forward traffic channel.

[0039] The term "base station" may refer to a single physical transmit-receive point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, where the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna of the base station corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. Where the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be an antenna array of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where the base station employs beamforming). Where the term "base station" refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP 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). Alternatively, the non-co-located physical TRP may be a serving base station that receives measurement reports from a UE and an adjacent base station whose reference radio frequency (RF) signal the UE is measuring. Because, as used herein, a TRP is a point by which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, references to transmitting from a base station or receiving at a base station should be understood to refer to a specific TRP of a base station.

[0040] In some implementations of supporting UE positioning, a base station may not support wireless access for a UE (e.g., may not support data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the UE), but instead may send reference RF signals to the UE for measurement by the UE, and / or may receive and measure signals sent by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., in the case of sending RF signals to the UE) and / or as a position measurement unit (e.g., in the case of receiving and measuring RF signals from the UE).

[0041] An "RF signal" includes an electromagnetic wave of a given frequency that transmits information through the space between a transmitter and a receiver. 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 multipath channels, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between a transmitter and a receiver may be referred to as a "multipath" RF signal. As used herein, an RF signal may also be referred to as a "wireless signal" or simply a "signal" where it is clear from the context that the term "signal" refers to a wireless signal or an RF signal.

[0042] Figure 1An example wireless communication system 100 according to various aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The wireless communication system 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled as "BS") and various UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macrocell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one aspect, the macrocell base stations 102 may include eNBs and / or ng-eNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network) or gNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network) or a combination of both, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0043] The base stations 102 may collectively form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) through a backhaul link 122, and interface with one or more location servers 172 (e.g., a location management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)) through the core network 170. The location server 172 may be part of the core network 170 or may be external to the core network 170. The location server 172 may be integrated with the base station 102. The UE 104 may communicate with the location server 172 directly or indirectly. For example, the UE 104 may communicate with the location server 172 via the base station 102 currently serving the UE 104. The UE 104 may also communicate with the location server 172 via another path, such as via an application server (not shown), via another network, such as via a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) (e.g., AP 150 described below), etc. For signaling purposes, communications between UE 104 and location server 172 may be represented as an indirect connection (e.g., through core network 170, etc.) or a direct connection (e.g., as shown via direct connection 128), with intermediate nodes (if any) omitted from the signaling diagram for clarity.

[0044] Among other functions, the base station 102 may perform functions related to one or more of the following: delivering user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through EPC / 5GC) over a backhaul link 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0045] Base station 102 may communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each of base stations 102 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. In one aspect, one or more cells may be supported by base station 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., on a frequency resource, which is referred to as a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, frequency band, etc.), and may be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCI), an enhanced cell identifier (ECI), a virtual cell identifier (VCI), a cell global identifier (CGI), etc.) used to distinguish cells operating via the same or different carrier frequencies. In some cases, different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other protocol types) that may provide access to different types of UEs. Because a cell is supported by a specific base station, the term "cell" may refer to one or both of a logical communication entity and a base station supporting it, depending on the context. In some cases, the term “cell” may also refer to a geographic coverage area (eg, a sector) of a base station, so long as a carrier frequency can be detected and used for communications within some portion of the geographic coverage area 110 .

[0046] Although the geographic coverage areas 110 of neighboring macrocell base stations 102 may partially overlap (e.g., in a handover region), some of the geographic coverage areas 110 may substantially overlap with the larger geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' (labeled "SC" for "small cell") may have a geographic coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage areas 110 of one or more macrocell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell base stations and macrocell base stations may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a home eNB (HeNB), which may provide services to a restricted group called a closed subscriber group (CSG).

[0047] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 may include uplink (also referred to as a reverse link) transmissions from the UE 104 to the base station 102 and / or downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmissions from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 may use MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may be over one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric for the downlink and uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to the downlink than to the uplink).

[0048] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a WLAN access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a wireless local area network (WLAN) station (STA) 152 in an unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz) via a communication link 154. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) or listen before talk (LBT) procedure prior to communication to determine whether a channel is available.

[0049] The small cell base station 102' can operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in the unlicensed spectrum, the small cell base station 102' can adopt LTE or NR technology and use the same 5GHz unlicensed spectrum used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' using LTE / 5G in the unlicensed spectrum can improve the coverage of the access network and / or increase the capacity of the access network. NR in the unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as NR-U. LTE in the unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as LTE-U, Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) or MulteFire.

[0050] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a mmW base station 180, which may operate in millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies and / or near mmW frequencies to communicate with UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a part of RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz, with a wavelength between 1 mm and 10 mm. The radio waves in this band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near mmW may extend downward to a frequency of 3 GHz, with a wavelength of 100 mm. The super high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz, and is also referred to as centimeter waves. Communications using mmW / near mmW radio frequency bands have high path loss and relatively short distances. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 may utilize beamforming (transmitting and / or receiving) on ​​the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for extremely high path loss and short distances. In addition, it should be understood that in an alternative configuration, one or more base stations 102 may also use mmW or near mmW and beamforming for transmission. Therefore, it should be understood that the foregoing illustrations are merely examples and should not be construed as limiting the various aspects disclosed herein.

[0051] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in a specific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectionally). With transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal to the receiving device. In order to change the directionality of the RF signal when transmitting, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of the one or more transmitters that broadcast the RF signal. For example, a network node can use an array of antennas (called a "phased array" or "antenna array") that creates RF beams that can be "steered" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, the RF current from the transmitter is fed to each antenna in the correct phase relationship so that the radio waves from the separate antennas are added together to increase the radiation in the desired direction while canceling to suppress the radiation in the undesired direction.

[0052] The transmit beams can be quasi-co-located, which means that they appear to the receiver (e.g., UE) to have the same parameters, regardless of whether the network node's own transmit antenna is physically co-located. In NR, there are four types of quasi-co-location (QCL) relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters about the second reference RF signal on the second beam can be derived based on information about the source reference RF signal on the source beam. Therefore, if the source reference RF signal is QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and average delay of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type D, the receiver may use the source reference RF signal to estimate spatial reception parameters of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0053] In receive beamforming, the receiver uses receive beams to amplify RF signals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver may increase the gain setting of the antenna array in a particular direction and / or adjust the phase setting of the antenna array in a particular direction to amplify the RF signal received from that direction (e.g., increase its gain level). Therefore, when a receiver is said to perform beamforming in a certain direction, it means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gain along other directions, or the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gain in that direction of all other receive beams available to the receiver. This results in a stronger received signal strength (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR), etc.) of the RF signal received from that direction.

[0054] The transmit beam and the receive beam may be spatially correlated. The spatial relationship means that parameters of a second beam (e.g., a transmit beam or a receive beam) for a second reference signal may be derived based on information about a first beam (e.g., a receive beam or a transmit beam) for a first reference signal. For example, a UE may use a specific receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., a synchronization signal block (SSB)) from a base station. The UE may then form a transmit beam for transmitting an uplink reference signal (e.g., a sounding reference signal (SRS)) to the base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0055] Note that depending on the entity forming the "downlink" beam, the beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming a downlink beam to send a reference signal to the UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE is forming a downlink beam, the downlink beam is a receive beam that receives a downlink reference signal. Similarly, depending on the entity forming the "uplink" beam, the beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, while if the UE is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0056] The electromagnetic spectrum is typically subdivided into various categories, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, two initial operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz–7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz–52.6 GHz). It should be understood that, although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, FR1 is often (interchangeably) referred to as the “sub-6 GHz” band in various documents and articles. A similar naming issue sometimes occurs with respect to FR2, which is often (interchangeably) referred to as the “millimeter wave” band in documents and articles, although different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz–300 GHz) identified as the “millimeter wave” band by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

[0057] Frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are generally referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified the operating bands for these mid-band frequencies as frequency range designation FR3 (7.125GHz–24.25GHz). The bands falling within FR3 can inherit FR1 characteristics and / or FR2 characteristics, and thus the features of FR1 and / or FR2 can be effectively extended to mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operations to more than 52.6GHz. For example, three higher operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6GHz–71GHz), FR4 (52.6GHz–114.25GHz), and FR5 (114.25GHz–300GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands falls within the EHF band.

[0058] In view of the above aspects, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if used in this article, the term "below 6 GHz" and the like can be broadly referred to as frequencies that may be less than 6 GHz, may be within FR1, or may include mid-band frequencies. In addition, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if the term "millimeter wave" and the like are used in this article, they can be broadly referred to as frequencies that may include mid-band frequencies, may be within FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1 and / or FR5, or may be within the EHF band.

[0059] In a multi-carrier system (such as 5G), one of the carrier frequencies is referred to as the "primary carrier" or "anchor carrier" or "primary serving cell" or "PCell", and the remaining carrier frequencies are referred to as "secondary carriers" or "secondary serving cells" or "SCells". In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is a carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by the UE 104 / 182 and the cell in which the UE 104 / 182 performs an initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates an RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). A secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2) that can be configured and used to provide additional radio resources once an RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier. In some cases, the secondary carrier can be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier may contain only necessary signaling information and signals, for example, since the primary uplink carrier and the primary downlink carrier are usually UE-specific, those UE-specific signaling information and signals may not be present in the secondary carrier. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 in a cell may have different downlink primary carriers. The same is true for the uplink primary carrier. The network is able to change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance the load on different carriers. Because a "serving cell" (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to a carrier frequency / component carrier on which a base station communicates, the terms "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier", "carrier frequency", etc. are used interchangeably.

[0060] For example, still refer to Figure 1 , one of the frequencies utilized by the macrocell base station 102 may be an anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and the other frequencies used by the macrocell base station 102 and / or the mmW base station 180 may be secondary carriers ("SCells"). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception of multiple carriers enables the UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rate. For example, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically result in a doubling of the data rate (i.e., 40 MHz) compared to the data rate obtained with a single 20 MHz carrier.

[0061] exist Figure 1 In the example of FIG. 1 , the UE illustrated (for simplicity, in Figure 1Any of the UEs 104 (shown as a single UE 104 in FIG. 1 ) may receive a signal 124 from one or more earth orbiting space vehicles (SVs) 112 (e.g., satellites). In one aspect, the SVs 112 may be part of a satellite positioning system that the UEs 104 may use as an independent source of location information. A satellite positioning system typically includes a transmitter system (e.g., SVs 112) positioned to enable a receiver (e.g., UE 104) to determine its position on or above the earth based at least in part on a positioning signal (e.g., signal 124) received from the transmitter. Such transmitters typically transmit signals marked with a repeating pseudo-random noise (PN) code of a set number of chips. Although typically located in the SVs 112, the transmitters may sometimes be located on ground-based control stations, base stations 102, and / or other UEs 104. The UEs 104 may include one or more dedicated receivers that are specifically designed to receive the signal 124 in order to derive geographic location information from the SVs 112.

[0062] In a satellite positioning system, the use of signal 124 may be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) that may be associated with or otherwise enabled for use with one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, SBAS may include augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential corrections, etc., such as Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), Multifunction Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), Global Positioning System (GPS) Assisted Geographic Augmented Navigation, or GPS and Geographic Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN), etc. Thus, as used herein, a satellite positioning system may include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellites associated with such one or more satellite positioning systems.

[0063] In one aspect, SV 112 may additionally or alternatively be part of one or more non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In an NTN, SV 112 is connected to an earth station (also referred to as a ground station, NTN gateway, or gateway), which in turn is connected to an element in a 5G network, such as an improved base station 102 (without a ground antenna) or a network node in a 5GC. This element in turn will provide access to other elements in the 5G network, and ultimately provide access to entities outside the 5G network (such as Internet web servers and other user devices). In this way, instead of or in addition to communication signals from a ground base station 102, a UE 104 can receive communication signals (e.g., signal 124) from a SV 112.

[0064] In particular, leveraging the increased data rates and reduced latency of NR, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication technology is being implemented to support intelligent transportation system (ITS) applications, such as wireless communications between vehicles (vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V)), between vehicles and roadside infrastructure (vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I)), and between vehicles and pedestrians (vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P)). The goal is to enable vehicles to sense the environment around them and communicate that information to other vehicles, infrastructure, and personal mobile devices. Such vehicle communications will enable safety, mobility, and environmental advances that current technology cannot provide. Once fully implemented, the technology is expected to reduce non-fault vehicle collisions by 80%.

[0065] Still reference Figure 1 , the wireless communication system 100 may include a plurality of V-UEs 160 that may communicate with a base station 102 over a communication link 120 using a Uu interface (i.e., an air interface between a UE and a base station). The V-UEs 160 may also communicate directly with each other over a wireless side link 162, with a roadside unit (RSU) 164 (roadside access point) over a wireless side link 166, or with a sidelink-capable UE 104 over a wireless side link 168 using a PC5 interface (i.e., an air interface between sidelink-capable UEs). A wireless side link (or simply "sidelink") is an adaptation of a core cellular network (e.g., LTE, NR) standard that allows direct communication between two or more UEs without communicating through a base station. Sidelink communications may be unicast or multicast and may be used for device-to-device (D2D) media sharing, V2V communications, V2X communications (e.g., cellular V2X (cV2X) communications, enhanced V2X (eV2X) communications, etc.), emergency rescue applications, etc. One or more V-UEs in a group of V-UEs 160 utilizing sidelink communication may be within the geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 102. Other V-UEs 160 in such a group may be outside the geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 102, or otherwise unable to receive transmissions from the base station 102. In some cases, each group of V-UEs 160 communicating via sidelink communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, where each V-UE 160 transmits to each other V-UE 160 in the group. In some cases, the base station 102 facilitates the scheduling of resources for sidelink communication. In other cases, the sidelink communication is performed between the V-UEs 160 without involving the base station 102.

[0066] In one aspect, the sidelinks 162, 166, 168 can operate over a wireless communication medium of interest, which can be shared with other vehicles and / or infrastructure access points and other wireless communications between other RATs. A "medium" may include one or more time, frequency, and / or spatial communication resources (e.g., covering one or more channels across one or more carriers) associated with wireless communications between one or more transmitter / receiver pairs.

[0067] In one aspect, the sidelinks 162, 166, 168 may be cV2X links. The first generation of cV2X has been standardized in LTE, and the next generation is expected to be defined in NR. cV2X is a cellular technology that also enables device-to-device communications. In the United States and Europe, cV2X is expected to operate in the licensed ITS bands below 6 GHz. Other frequency bands may be allocated in other countries. Thus, as a specific example, the medium of interest utilized by the sidelinks 162, 166, 168 may correspond to at least a portion of the licensed ITS bands below 6 GHz. However, the present disclosure is not limited to this frequency band or cellular technology.

[0068] In one aspect, the side links 162, 166, 168 may be dedicated short-range communication (DSRC) links. DSRC is a unidirectional or bidirectional short-range to medium-range wireless communication protocol that uses the Wireless Access in Vehicular Environment (WAVE) protocol (also known as IEEE 802.11p) for V2V, V2I, and V2P communications. IEEE 802.11p is an approved modification to the IEEE 802.11 standard and operates in the licensed ITS band at 5.9 GHz (5.85 GHz-5.925 GHz) in the United States. In Europe, IEEE 802.11p operates in the ITSG5A band (5.875 GHz-5.905 MHz). Other frequency bands may be allocated in other countries. The V2V communications briefly described above occur on a safety channel, which is typically a 10 MHz channel dedicated to safety purposes in the United States. The remainder of the DSRC band (total bandwidth is 75 MHz) is intended for other services of interest to drivers, such as road regulations, toll collection, parking automation, etc. Thus, as a specific example, the medium of interest utilized by the sidelinks 162, 166, 168 may correspond to at least a portion of the licensed ITS band at 5.9 GHz.

[0069] Alternatively, the medium of interest may correspond to at least a portion of an unlicensed frequency band shared among various RATs. Although different licensed frequency bands have been reserved for certain communication systems (e.g., by government entities such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States), these systems (particularly those employing small cell access points) have recently expanded operations into unlicensed frequency bands such as the Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (U-NII) band used by wireless local area network (WLAN) technologies (most notably the IEEE 802.11x WLAN technology commonly referred to as "Wi-Fi"). Example systems of this type include different variations of CDMA systems, TDMA systems, FDMA systems, orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) systems, single carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) systems, and the like.

[0070] Communication between V-UEs 160 is referred to as V2V communication, communication between V-UEs 160 and one or more RSUs 164 is referred to as V2I communication, and communication between V-UEs 160 and one or more UEs 104 (where these UEs 104 are P-UEs) is referred to as V2P communication. V2V communication between V-UEs 160 may include, for example, information about the position, speed, acceleration, heading, and other vehicle data of these V-UEs 160. V2I information received at V-UEs 160 from one or more RSUs 164 may include, for example, road rules, parking automation information, etc. V2P communication between V-UEs 160 and UEs 104 may include information about, for example, the position, speed, acceleration, and heading of the V-UEs 160 and the position, speed (for example, in the case where the UE 104 is carried by a user on a bicycle) and heading of the UEs 104.

[0071] Note that although Figure 1 Only two of the UEs are illustrated as V-UEs (V-UE 160), but any of the illustrated UEs (e.g., UE 104, 152, 182, 190) may be V-UEs. In addition, although only these V-UEs 160 and a single UE 104 have been illustrated as being connected via a side link, Figure 1Any of the illustrated UEs, whether V-UEs, P-UEs, etc., may be capable of sidelink communications. Furthermore, although only UE 182 is described as being capable of beamforming, any of the illustrated UEs (including V-UE 160) may be capable of beamforming. In the event that V-UE 160 is capable of beamforming, they may beamform toward each other (i.e., toward other V-UEs 160), toward RSU 164, toward other UEs (e.g., UE 104, 152, 182, 190), etc. Thus, in some cases, V-UE 160 may utilize beamforming on sidelinks 162, 166, and 168.

[0072] The wireless communication system 100 may also include one or more UEs (such as UE 190) indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links. Figure 1 In the example of FIG. 1 , UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 with one of UEs 104 connected to one of base stations 102 (e.g., UE 190 can indirectly obtain cellular connectivity through the D2D P2P link), and has a D2D P2P link 194 with WLAN STA 152 connected to WLAN AP 150 (UE 190 can indirectly obtain WLAN-based Internet connectivity through the D2D P2P link). In an example, D2D P2P links 192 and 194 can be supported by any well-known D2D RAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Etc. As another example, D2D P2P links 192 and 194 may be side links, as described above with reference to side links 162 , 166 , and 168 .

[0073] Figure 2AAn example wireless network structure 200 is illustrated. For example, the 5GC 210 (also referred to as the Next Generation Core (NGC)) can be functionally viewed as a control plane (C-plane) function 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and a user plane (U-plane) function 212 (e.g., UE gateway function, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.), which operate in conjunction to form a core network. The user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and the control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect the gNB 222 to the 5GC 210, and specifically to the user plane function 212 and the control plane function 214, respectively. In an additional configuration, the ng-eNB 224 can also be connected to the 5GC 210 via the NG-C 215 to the control plane function 214 and the NG-U 213 to the user plane function 212. In addition, the ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with the gNB 222 via the backhaul connection 223. In some configurations, the next generation RAN (NG-RAN) 220 may have one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of ng-eNBs 224 and gNBs 222. Either the gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224 (or both) may communicate with one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein).

[0074] Another optional aspect may include a location server 230 that can communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The location server 230 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively can each correspond to a single server. The location server 230 can be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204 that can be connected to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not illustrated). In addition, the location server 230 can be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively can be external to the core network (e.g., a third-party server, such as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or a service server).

[0075] Figure 2B Another example wireless network structure 250 is illustrated. 5GC 260 (which may correspond to Figure 2AThe 5GC 210 in the 5GC 210 can be functionally viewed as a control plane function provided by an access and mobility management function (AMF) 264, and a user plane function provided by a user plane function (UPF) 262, which operate in conjunction to form a core network (i.e., 5GC 260). The functions of the AMF 264 include: registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of session management (SM) messages between one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any UE described herein) and a session management function (SMF) 266, a transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access granting, transmission of short message service (SMS) messages between the UE 204 and a short message service function (SMSF) (not shown), and security anchor functionality (SEAF). The AMF 264 also interacts with an authentication server function (AUSF) (not shown) and the UE 204, and receives an intermediate key established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In the case of authentication based on the UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM), the AMF 264 retrieves security material from the AUSF. The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes security context management (SCM). The SCM receives keys from the SEAF, which it uses to derive access network specific keys. The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes location service management for regulatory services, for the transmission of location service messages between the UE 204 and the Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (which acts as a location server 230), for the transmission of location service messages between the NG-RAN 220 and the LMF 270, for the allocation of Evolved Packet System (EPS) bearer identifiers for interoperation with EPS, and UE 204 mobility event notifications. In addition, the AMF 264 also supports functionality for non-3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0076] The functions of UPF 262 include: acting as an anchor point for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), acting as an external protocol data unit (PDU) session point for interconnection to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, service steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), service usage reporting, user plane quality of service (QoS) handling (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in downlink), uplink service verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport level packet marking in uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and transmitting and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. UPF 262 can also support the delivery of location service messages between UE 204 and a location server (such as SLP 272) on the user plane.

[0077] The functions of SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, traffic steering configuration for routing traffic to the correct destination at UPF 262, partial control of policy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface through which SMF 266 communicates with AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0078] Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270 that can communicate with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The LMF 270 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively can each correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 can be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, which can be connected to the LMF 270 via the core network, the 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not illustrated). SLP 272 may support similar functionality as LMF 270, but LMF 270 may communicate with AMF 264, NG-RAN 220, and UE 204 on a control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols designed to carry signaling messages rather than voice or data), and SLP 272 may communicate with UE 204 and external clients (e.g., third-party servers 274) on a user plane (e.g., using protocols designed to carry voice and / or data, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0079] Yet another optional aspect may include a third-party server 274 that can communicate with the LMF 270, SLP 272, 5GC 260 (e.g., via AMF 264 and / or UPF 262), NG-RAN 220, and / or UE 204 to obtain location information (e.g., location estimate) of UE 204. Thus, in some cases, the third-party server 274 may be referred to as a location service (LCS) client or an external client. The third-party server 274 may be implemented as a plurality of separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or may alternatively each correspond to a single server.

[0080] The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC 260, and specifically the UPF 262 and the AMF 264, respectively, to one or more gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220. The interface between the gNB 222 and / or ng-eNB 224 and the AMF 264 is referred to as the "N2" interface, and the interface between the gNB 222 and / or ng-eNB 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the "N3" interface. The gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 of the NG-RAN 220 may communicate directly with each other via a backhaul connection 223 referred to as an "Xn-C" interface. One or more of the gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 may communicate with one or more UEs 204 via a wireless interface referred to as a "Uu" interface.

[0081] The functionality of the gNB 222 may be divided between a gNB central unit (gNB-CU) 226, one or more gNB distributed units (gNB-DU) 228, and one or more gNB radio units (gNB-RU) 229. The gNB-CU 226 is a logical node that includes base station functions other than those specifically assigned to the gNB-DU 228, including delivery of user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, and the like. More specifically, the gNB-CU 226 generally hosts the radio resource control (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) protocols of the gNB 222. The gNB-DU 228 is a logical node that generally hosts the radio link control (RLC) and medium access control (MAC) layers of the gNB 222. Its operation is controlled by the gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 may support one or more cells, and one cell is supported by only one gNB-DU 228. The interface 232 between the gNB-CU 226 and one or more gNB-DUs 228 is referred to as the "F1" interface. The physical (PHY) layer functionality of the gNB 222 is typically hosted by one or more independent gNB-RUs 229, which perform functions such as power amplification and signal transmission / reception. The interface between the gNB-DU 228 and the gNB-RU 229 is referred to as the "Fx" interface. Thus, the UE 204 communicates with the gNB-CU 226 via the RRC layer, the SDAP layer, and the PDCP layer, communicates with the gNB-DU 228 via the RLC layer and the MAC layer, and communicates with the gNB-RU 229 via the PHY layer.

[0082] Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C Several example components (represented by corresponding blocks) are illustrated, which may be incorporated into UE 302 (which may correspond to any UE described herein), base station 304 (which may correspond to any base station described herein), and network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any network function described herein, including location server 230 and LMF 270, or alternatively may be independent of Figure 2A and Figure 2BThe depicted NG-RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260 infrastructure, such as a dedicated network, is implemented in order to support operations as described herein. It should be understood that these components may be implemented in different types of devices with different specific implementations (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system on a chip (SoC), etc.). The illustrated components may also be incorporated into other devices in the communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include components similar to those described as providing similar functionality. Moreover, a given device may include one or more of these components. For example, a device may include multiple transceiver components that enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0083] UE 302 and base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively, which provide means (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means for preventing transmitting, etc.) for communicating via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown), such as NR networks, LTE networks, GSM networks, etc. WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may each be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNBs, gNBs), etc.) via at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) on a wireless communication medium of interest (e.g., a set of time / frequency resources in a particular spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be configured in different ways to transmit and decode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to a specified RAT, and conversely, receive and decode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include: one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for transmitting and decoding the signals 318 and 358, respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for receiving and decoding the signals 318 and 358, respectively.

[0084] At least in some cases, the UE 302 and the base station 304 each further include one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide for communicating over the wireless communication medium of interest via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 are components (e.g., components for sending, components for receiving, components for measuring, components for tuning, components for preventing sending, etc.) for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) using a PC5, dedicated short-range communication (DSRC), wireless access for vehicle environments (WAVE), near field communication (NFC), etc.). The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be configured in different ways to send and decode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to a specified RAT, and conversely, receive and decode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 include: one or more transmitters 324 and 364 for sending and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362 for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively. As a specific example, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be WiFi transceivers, Transceiver, and / or transceiver, NFC transceiver or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceiver.

[0085] At least in some cases, the UE 302 and the base station 304 also include satellite signal receivers 330 and 370. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and may provide components for receiving and / or measuring satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. In the case where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellite positioning system receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may be global positioning system (GPS) signals, global navigation satellite system (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, Beidou signals, Indian regional navigation satellite system (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. In the case where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and / or user data) originating from a 5G network. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may request appropriate information and operations from other systems and, at least in some cases, perform calculations using measurements obtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithm to determine the positions of UE 302 and base station 304, respectively.

[0086] The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, which provide means (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, etc.) for communicating with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, other network entities 306). For example, the base station 304 may employ one or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other base stations 304 or network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links. As another example, the network entity 306 may employ one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or more base stations 304 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, or communicate with other network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.

[0087] The transceiver may be configured to communicate over a wired or wireless link. A transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver) includes a transmitter circuit (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) and a receiver circuit (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362). In some implementations, the transceiver may be an integrated device (e.g., implementing the transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit in a single device), in some implementations may include separate transmitter circuits and separate receiver circuits, or in other implementations may be implemented in other ways. The transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit of a wired transceiver (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some implementations) may be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. The wireless transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as antenna arrays, which allow the corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmit "beamforming", as described herein. Similarly, the wireless receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362) may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as antenna arrays, which allow the corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming, as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter circuitry and the receiver circuitry may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366) so that the corresponding device can only receive or only transmit at a given time, rather than both receive and transmit at the same time. The wireless transceivers (eg, WWAN transceivers 310 and 350, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include a network listening module (NLM) or the like for performing various measurements.

[0088] As used herein, various wireless transceivers (e.g., transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360 in some implementations, and network transceivers 380 and 390) and wired transceivers (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some implementations) may be generally characterized as a "transceiver," "at least one transceiver," or "one or more transceivers." Thus, whether a particular transceiver is a wired or wireless transceiver may be inferred based on the type of communication being performed. For example, backhaul communications between network devices or servers typically involve signaling via a wired transceiver, while wireless communications between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) will typically involve signaling via a wireless transceiver.

[0089] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with the operations disclosed herein. UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, for providing functionality related to, for example, wireless communication, and for providing other processing functionality. Thus, processors 332, 384, and 394 may provide means for processing, such as means for determining, means for calculating, means for receiving, means for sending, means for indicating, etc. In one aspect, processors 332, 384, and 394 may include, for example, one or more general purpose processors, multi-core processors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuits, or various combinations thereof.

[0090] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 include memory circuitry implementing memory 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Thus, memory 340, 386, and 396 may provide means for storing, means for retrieving, means for maintaining, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may include positioning components 342, 388, and 398, respectively. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuits that are part of or coupled to processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, which when executed cause UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. In other aspects, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be external to processors 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioning components 342, 388 and 398 can be memory modules stored in the memories 340, 386 and 396, respectively, which, when executed by the processors 332, 384 and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause the UE 302, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. Figure 3A Possible locations for a location component 342 are illustrated, which may be, for example, part of one or more WWAN transceivers 310, memory 340, one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component. Figure 3B Possible locations for a location component 388 are illustrated, which may be, for example, part of one or more WWAN transceivers 350, memory 386, one or more processors 384, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component. Figure 3C Possible locations for a location component 398 are illustrated, which may be, for example, part of one or more network transceivers 390, memory 396, one or more processors 394, or any combination thereof, or may be a stand-alone component.

[0091] UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to one or more processors 332 to provide a means for sensing or detecting movement and / or orientation information that is independent of motion data derived from signals received by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and / or satellite signal receivers 330. As an example, sensor 344 may include an accelerometer (e.g., a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), an altimeter (e.g., a barometric altimeter), and / or any other type of motion detection sensor. In addition, sensor 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, sensor 344 may use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and an orientation sensor to provide the ability to calculate positioning in a two-dimensional (2D) and / or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate system.

[0092] In addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346, which provides means for providing indications to the user (e.g., audible and / or visual indications) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., when the user actuates a sensing device such as a keypad, touch screen, microphone, etc.). Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 may also include a user interface.

[0093] Referring to the one or more processors 384 in more detail, in a downlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to the processor 384. The one or more processors 384 may implement functionality for an RRC layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. One or more processors 384 may provide: RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information (e.g., master information block (MIB), system information block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with delivery of upper layer PDUs, error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0094] The transmitter 354 and the receiver 352 may implement layer 1 (L1) functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding / decoding of transport channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to physical channels, modulation / demodulation of physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 handles the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be separated into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially pre-decoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator may be used to determine coding and modulation schemes and for spatial processing. Channel estimates may be derived from reference signals and / or channel state feedback sent by the UE 302. Each spatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0095] At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives the signal through its corresponding antenna 316. The receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The receiver 312 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If the destination of multiple spatial streams is the UE 302, they can be combined into a single OFDM symbol stream by the receiver 312. The receiver 312 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier and the reference signal are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point sent by the base station 304. These soft decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by a channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally sent by the base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to one or more processors 332, which implement layer 3 (L3) and layer 2 (L2) functionality.

[0096] In the uplink, one or more processors 332 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. One or more processors 332 are also responsible for error detection.

[0097] Similar to the functionality described in conjunction with downlink transmissions performed by the base station 304, the one or more processors 332 provide: RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with delivery of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0098] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback sent by the base station 304 may be used by the transmitter 314 to select appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different antennas 316. The transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0099] The uplink transmissions are processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in connection with the receiver functionality at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives the signal through its respective antenna 356. The receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 384.

[0100] In the uplink, the one or more processors 384 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 302. The IP packets from the one or more processors 384 may be provided to the core network. The one or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.

[0101] For convenience, UE 302, base station 304 and / or network entity 306 may Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C, is shown as including various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it should be understood that the illustrated components may have different functionality in different designs. Specifically, FIG. 3A to FIG. 3C The various components in are optional in alternative configurations, and various aspects include configurations that may vary due to design choice, cost, use of the device, or other considerations. For example, in Figure 3A In the case of a wearable device or a tablet computer or a PC or a laptop computer, a specific implementation of the UE 302 may omit the WWAN transceiver 310 (e.g., a wearable device or a tablet computer or a PC or a laptop computer may have Wi-Fi and / or Bluetooth capabilities but no cellular capabilities), may omit the short-range wireless transceiver 320 (e.g., only cellular, etc.), may omit the satellite signal receiver 330, may omit the sensor 344, etc. In another example, in Figure 3B In the case of a wireless network, a specific implementation of the base station 304 may omit the WWAN transceiver 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi "hotspot" access point without cellular capabilities), or may omit the short-range wireless transceiver 360 (e.g., cellular only, etc.), or may omit the satellite receiver 370, etc. For the sake of brevity, illustrations of various alternative configurations are not provided herein, but will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0102] Various components of the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to one another via data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392, respectively. In an aspect, the data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 may form or be part of communication interfaces for the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306, respectively. For example, where different logical entities are embodied in the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functionality incorporated into the same base station 304), the data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 may provide for communication between the different logical entities.

[0103] Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C The components of can be implemented in various ways. In some specific implementations, Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3CThe components may be implemented in one or more circuits, such as, for example, one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors). Here, each circuit may use and / or be combined with at least one memory component to store information or executable code used by the circuit to provide the functionality. For example, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 310 to 346 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of UE 302 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 350 to 388 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of base station 304 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Moreover, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390 to 398 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of network entity 306 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, actions and / or functions are described herein as being performed by "UE", "by base station", "by network entity", etc. However, it should be understood that such operations, actions and / or functions may actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of UE302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc. (such as processors 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350 and 360, memories 340, 386 and 396, positioning components 342, 388 and 398, etc.).

[0104] In some designs, the network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, the network entity 306 may be operated separately from a network operator or a cellular network infrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260). For example, the network entity 306 may be a component of a dedicated network that may be configured to communicate with the UE 302 via the base station 304 or independently of the base station 304 (e.g., via a non-cellular communication link such as WiFi).

[0105] Various frame structures may be used to support downlink and uplink transmissions between network nodes (eg, base stations and UEs). Figure 4 4 is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure according to aspects of the present disclosure. The frame structure may be a downlink or uplink frame structure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0106] LTE (and in some cases NR) utilizes OFDM on the downlink and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. However, unlike LTE, NR also has the option of using OFDM on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also often referred to as frequency tones, frequency bins, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. Generally speaking, modulation symbols are transmitted in the frequency domain using OFDM and in the time domain using SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the spacing of the subcarriers can be 15 kilohertz (kHz), and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180kHz). Therefore, for a system bandwidth of 1.25 megahertz (MHz), 2.5MHz, 5MHz, 10MHz, or 20MHz, the nominal FFT size can be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048, respectively. The system bandwidth may also be divided into multiple subbands. For example, a subband may cover 1.08 MHz (ie, 6 resource blocks), and there may be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands for system bandwidths of 1.25 MHz, 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, respectively.

[0107] LTE supports a single parameter set (subcarrier spacing (SCS), symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR may support multiple parameter sets (μ), for example, 15kHz (μ=0), 30kHz (μ=1), 60kHz (μ=2), 120kHz (μ=3), and 240kHz (μ=4) or larger subcarrier spacings may be available. In each subcarrier spacing, there are 14 symbols per slot. For 15kHz SCS (μ=0), there is one slot per subframe, 10 slots per frame, the slot duration is 1 millisecond (ms), the symbol duration is 66.7 microseconds (μs), and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 50. For 30kHz SCS (μ=1), there are two slots per subframe, 20 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.5ms, the symbol duration is 33.3μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 100. For 60kHz SCS (μ=2), there are four slots per subframe, 40 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.25ms, the symbol duration is 16.7μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 200. For 120kHz SCS (μ=3), there are eight slots per subframe, 80 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.125ms, the symbol duration is 8.33μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 400. For 240kHz SCS (μ=4), there are 16 slots per subframe, 160 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.0625ms, the symbol duration is 4.17μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) is 800 with 4K FFT size.

[0108] exist Figure 4 In the example of , a parameter set of 15 kHz is used. Therefore, in the time domain, a 10 ms frame is divided into 10 equally sized subframes, each subframe is 1 ms, and each subframe includes one time slot. Figure 4 , time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), where time increases from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), where frequency increases (or decreases) from bottom to top.

[0109] A resource grid may be used to represent a time slot, each of which includes one or more time-concurrent resource blocks (RBs) (also referred to as physical RBs (PRBs)) in the frequency domain. The resource grid is further divided into a plurality of resource elements (REs). An RE may correspond to one symbol length in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain. Figure 4In the parameter set of , for a normal cyclic prefix, an RB may contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and seven consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 REs. For an extended cyclic prefix, an RB may contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and six consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 REs. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0110] Some REs may carry reference (pilot) signals (RS). These reference signals may include positioning reference signals (PRS), tracking reference signals (TRS), phase tracking reference signals (PTRS), cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS), demodulation reference signals (DMRS), primary synchronization signals (PSS), secondary synchronization signals (SSS), synchronization signal blocks (SSB), sounding reference signals (SRS), etc., depending on whether the illustrated frame structure is used for uplink communication or downlink communication. Figure 4 Example locations of REs carrying reference signals (labeled "R") are illustrated.

[0111] A set of resource elements (REs) used for transmission of PRS is called a "PRS resource". A set of resource elements may span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and 'N' (such as 1 or more) consecutive symbols within a slot in the time domain. In a given OFDM symbol in the time domain, a PRS resource occupies consecutive PRBs in the frequency domain.

[0112] The transmission of PRS resources within a given PRB has a specific comb size (also referred to as "comb density"). The comb size 'N' represents the subcarrier spacing (or frequency / tone spacing) within each symbol of the PRS resource configuration. Specifically, for comb size 'N', the PRS is transmitted in every Nth subcarrier of one symbol of the PRB. For example, for comb-4, for each symbol of the PRS resource configuration, the RE corresponding to every fourth subcarrier (such as subcarriers 0, 4, 8) is used to transmit the PRS of the PRS resource. Currently, for DL-PRS, comb sizes of comb-2, comb-4, comb-6, and comb-12 are supported. Figure 4 An example PRS resource configuration for comb-4 (which spans four symbols) is illustrated. That is, the positions of shaded REs (labeled "R") indicate a comb-4 PRS resource configuration.

[0113] Currently, DL-PRS resources can span 2, 4, 6, or 12 consecutive symbols in a slot using a full frequency domain staggered pattern. DL-PRS resources can be configured in any downlink or flexible (FL) symbol configured by higher layers in a slot. There may be a constant energy per resource element (EPRE) for all REs of a given DL-PRS resource. The following are the symbol-by-symbol frequency offsets for comb sizes 2, 4, 6, and 12 on 2, 4, 6, and 12 symbols. 2-symbol Comb-2: {0,1}; 4-symbol Comb-2: {0,1,0,1}; 6-symbol Comb-2: {0,1,0,1,0,1}; 12-symbol Comb-2: {0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1}; 4-symbol Comb-4: {0,2,1,3} (as in Figure 4 ); 12-symbol comb-4: {0,2,1,3,0,2,1,3,0,2,1,3}; 6-symbol comb-6: {0,3,1,4,2,5}; 12-symbol comb-6: {0,3,1,4,2,5,0,3,1,4,2,5}; and 12-symbol comb-12: {0,6,3,9,1,7,4,10,2,8,5,11}.

[0114] A "PRS resource set" is a set of PRS resources used to send a PRS signal, where each PRS resource has a PRS resource ID. In addition, the PRS resources in a PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP. A PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource set ID and is associated with a specific TRP (identified by the TRP ID). In addition, the PRS resources in a PRS resource set have the same periodicity, a common muting pattern configuration, and the same repetition factor (such as "PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor") across time slots. The periodicity is the time from the first repetition of the first PRS resource of the first PRS instance to the same first repetition of the same first PRS resource of the next PRS instance. The periodicity may have a length selected from: 2^μ*{4,5,8,10,16,20,32,40,64,80,160,320,640,1280,2560,5120,10240} time slots, where μ=0,1,2,3. The repetition factor may have a length selected from {1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 16, 32} slots.

[0115] A PRS resource ID in a PRS resource set is associated with a single beam (or beam ID) transmitted from a single TRP (where one TRP may transmit one or more beams). That is, each PRS resource in a PRS resource set may be transmitted on a different beam, and therefore, a "PRS resource" (or simply "resource") may also be referred to as a "beam". Note that this does not have any implication on whether the UE knows the TRP and beam on which the PRS is transmitted.

[0116] A "PRS instance" or "PRS opportunity" is an instance of a periodically repeated time window (such as a group of one or more consecutive time slots) in which a PRS is expected to be sent. A PRS opportunity may also be referred to as a "PRS positioning opportunity", "PRS positioning instance", "positioning opportunity", "positioning instance", "positioning repetition", or simply "opportunity", "instance", or "repetition".

[0117] A "positioning frequency layer" (also referred to simply as a "frequency layer") is a set of one or more PRS resource sets with the same values ​​for certain parameters across one or more TRPs. Specifically, the set of PRS resource sets has the same subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix (CP) type (meaning that all parameter sets supported for the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) are also supported by PRS), the same point A, the same value of the downlink PRS bandwidth, the same starting PRB (and center frequency), and the same comb size. The point A parameter takes the value of the parameter "ARFCN-ValueNR" (where "ARFCN" stands for "absolute radio frequency channel number") and is an identifier / code that specifies a pair of physical radio channels for transmission and reception. The downlink PRS bandwidth can have a granularity of four PRBs, and the minimum value is 24 PRBs and the maximum value is 272 PRBs. Currently, up to four frequency layers have been defined, and up to two PRS resource sets can be configured per TRP per frequency layer.

[0118] The concept of frequency layer is somewhat similar to the concept of component carrier and bandwidth part (BWP), but the difference is that component carrier and BWP are used by one base station (or macro cell base station and small cell base station) to send data channels, while frequency layer is used by several (usually three or more) base stations to send PRS. The UE can indicate the number of frequency layers that the UE can support when the UE transmits its positioning capabilities to the network (such as during an LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP) session). For example, the UE can indicate whether it can support one or four positioning frequency layers.

[0119] It should be noted that the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" generally refer to specific reference signals used for positioning in NR and LTE systems. However, as used herein, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may also refer to any type of reference signal that can be used for positioning, such as but not limited to: PRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, SRS, UL-PRS, etc. as defined in LTE and NR. In addition, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may refer to a downlink positioning reference signal, an uplink positioning reference signal, or a sidelink positioning reference signal, unless otherwise indicated by the context. If further distinction is needed between the types of PRS, the downlink positioning reference signal may be referred to as a "DL-PRS", the uplink positioning reference signal (e.g., an SRS used for positioning, i.e., PTRS) may be referred to as a "UL-PRS", and the sidelink positioning reference signal may be referred to as a "SL-PRS". In addition, for signals (e.g., DMRS) that can be sent in the downlink, uplink, and / or sidelink, these signals may be preceded by "DL," "UL," or "SL" to distinguish the direction. For example, "UL-DMRS" may be different from "DL-DMRS."

[0120] NR supports a variety of cellular network-based positioning technologies, including downlink-based positioning methods, uplink-based positioning methods, and downlink and uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include: observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and downlink angle of departure (DL-AoD) in NR. In the OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure, the UE measures the difference between the arrival time (ToA) of the reference signal (e.g., positioning reference signal (PRS)) received from the paired base stations (referred to as reference signal time difference (RSTD) or arrival time difference (TDOA) measurement), and reports these differences to the positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives the identifiers (IDs) of the reference base station (e.g., serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in the auxiliary data. Then, the UE measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each non-reference base station. Based on the known positions of the base stations involved and the RSTD measurement results, the positioning entity (e.g., a UE for UE-based positioning or a location server for UE-assisted positioning) can estimate the position of the UE.

[0121] For DL-AoD positioning, the positioning entity uses the measurement reports from the UE on the received signal strength measurements of multiple downlink transmit beams to determine the angle between the UE and the transmitting base station. The positioning entity can then estimate the position of the UE based on the determined angle and the known location of the transmitting base station.

[0122] Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA is similar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., sounding reference signals (SRS)) sent by the UE to multiple base stations. Specifically, the UE sends one or more uplink reference signals, which are measured by a reference base station and multiple non-reference base stations. Each base station then reports the reception time of the reference signal (referred to as relative time of arrival (RTOA)) to a positioning entity (e.g., a location server) that knows the location and relative timing of the base stations involved. Based on the receive-to-receive (Rx-Rx) time difference between the reported RTOA of the reference base station and the reported RTOA of each non-reference base station, the known locations of the base stations, and their known timing offsets, the positioning entity can use TDOA to estimate the position of the UE.

[0123] For UL-AoA positioning, one or more base stations measure the received signal strength of one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) received from the UE on one or more uplink receive beams. The positioning entity uses the signal strength measurements and the angles of the receive beams to determine the angle between the UE and the base station. Based on the determined angle and the known location of the base station, the positioning entity can then estimate the location of the UE.

[0124] Downlink and uplink based positioning methods include: Enhanced Cell ID (E-CID) positioning and multiple round trip time (RTT) positioning (also referred to as "multi-cell RTT" and "multi-RTT"). In the RTT procedure, a first entity (e.g., a base station or UE) sends a first RTT-related signal (e.g., a PRS or SRS) to a second entity (e.g., a UE or a base station), and the second entity sends a second RTT-related signal (e.g., an SRS or PRS) back to the first entity. Each entity measures the time difference between the arrival time (ToA) of the received RTT-related signal and the transmission time of the transmitted RTT-related signal. The time difference is called the received-to-transmit (Rx-Tx) time difference. The Rx-Tx time difference measurement can be made or adjusted to include only the time difference between the nearest time slot boundary of the received signal and the transmitted signal. The two entities may then transmit their Rx-Tx time difference measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 270), which calculates the round trip propagation time (i.e., RTT) between the two entities based on the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements (e.g., calculated as the sum of the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements). Alternatively, one entity may transmit its Rx-Tx time difference measurements to the other entity, which then calculates the RTT. The distance between the two entities may be determined based on the RTT and a known signal speed (e.g., the speed of light). For multi-RTT positioning, a first entity (e.g., a UE or a base station) performs an RTT positioning procedure with multiple second entities (e.g., multiple base stations or UEs) so that the location of the first entity can be determined based on the distance to the second entity and the known location of the second entity (e.g., using multi-point positioning). RTT and multi-RTT methods may be combined with other positioning techniques (such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD) to improve location accuracy.

[0125] The E-CID positioning method is based on radio resource management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, timing advance (TA), and the identifiers of the detected neighboring base stations, the estimated timing, and the signal strength. The UE's position is then estimated based on this information and the known locations of the base stations.

[0126] To assist the positioning operation, the location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP272) may provide assistance data to the UE. For example, the assistance data may include: an identifier of the base station (or cell / TRP of the base station) from which the reference signal is measured, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., the number of consecutive time slots including PRS, the periodicity of consecutive time slots including PRS, silent sequence, frequency hopping sequence, reference signal identifier, reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and / or other parameters applicable to a specific positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may originate directly from the base station itself (e.g., in a periodically broadcast overhead message, etc.). In some cases, the UE itself may be able to detect neighboring network nodes without using assistance data.

[0127] In the case of OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedures, the assistance data may also include an expected RSTD value and an associated uncertainty or search window around the expected RSTD. In some cases, the value range of the expected RSTD may be + / -500 microseconds (μs). In some cases, when any of the resources used for positioning measurements are in FR1, the value range of the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be + / -32μs. In other cases, when all resources used for positioning measurements are in FR2, the value range of the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be + / -8μs.

[0128] The position estimate may be referred to by other names, such as a position estimate, a position, a fix, a position fix, a fix, etc. The position estimate may be geodetic and include coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude), or may be municipal and include a street address, a postal address, or some other verbal description of the location. The position estimate may be further defined relative to some other known location or in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). The position estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volume within which the location is expected to be included with some specified or default confidence level).

[0129] NR supports or implements various sidelink positioning techniques. Figure 5AVarious interesting scenarios for sidelink-only or joint Uu and sidelink positioning according to various aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. In scenario 510, at least one peer UE with a known location can improve the Uu-based positioning (e.g., multi-cell RTT, downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA), etc.) of the target UE by providing an additional anchor (e.g., using the sidelink round trip time (RTT) (SL-RTT)). In scenario 520, a low-end (e.g., low-capacity or "RedCap") target UE can obtain assistance from an advanced UE to determine its position using, for example, a sidelink positioning and ranging procedure with the advanced UE. Compared to the low-end UE, the advanced UE may have more capabilities, such as more sensors, faster processors, more memory, more antenna elements, higher transmit power capabilities, access to additional frequency bands, or any combination thereof. In scenario 530, a relay UE (e.g., with a known location) participates in the positioning estimation of the remote UE without performing uplink positioning reference signal (PRS) transmission over the Uu interface. Scenario 540 illustrates the joint positioning of multiple UEs. Specifically, in scenario 540, two UEs with unknown locations may be jointly located under non-line-of-sight (NLOS) conditions by utilizing constraints from nearby UEs.

[0130] Figure 5B Additional scenarios of interest for sidelink-only or joint Uu and sidelink positioning in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. In scenario 550, UEs used for public safety (e.g., used by police, firefighters, etc.) may perform peer-to-peer (P2P) positioning and ranging for public safety and other purposes. For example, in scenario 550, public safety UEs may be out of coverage of the network and use sidelink positioning techniques to determine the position or relative distance and relative positioning between public safety UEs. Similarly, scenario 560 shows multiple UEs that are out of coverage and use sidelink positioning techniques (such as SL-RTT) to determine the position or relative distance and relative positioning.

[0131] A UE may use RTT positioning techniques together with one or more base stations and one or more other UEs or RSUs to determine its location based on positioning signals to / from the other involved base stations and UEs / RSUs and the known locations of the other involved UEs and RSUs. Figure 6 600 is a diagram illustrating example timing of RTT signals between a target UE 604 (labeled “UE2”), a base station 602, and an assisting UE 606 (labeled “UE1”) according to aspects of the present disclosure. This is an example of a sidelink assisted Uu positioning procedure, such as illustrated in scenario 510. UE 604 and UE 606 may correspond to any of the UEs described herein, and in particular, may be V-UEs. Figure 6In FIG. 6 , a target UE 604 is trying to estimate its location, and an assisting UE 606 (eg, a relay UE) has a known location (eg, from GPS).

[0132] exist Figure 6 In the example of , the target UE 604 receives a positioning signal (e.g., DL-PRS) from the base station 602 and responds with its own positioning signal (e.g., SRS). Figure 6 In the example of , the received positioning signal has a certain propagation time between the base station 602 and the target UE 604, which is represented as "T_prop,BS-UE2". The length of time between receiving the positioning signal from the base station 602 and sending the response positioning signal by the target UE 604 is represented as "T_UE2,Rx-Tx". The response positioning signal may include a measurement report, which includes the value of T_UE2,Rx-Tx, and the response positioning signal has a certain propagation time between the target UE 604 and the base station 602, which is represented as "T_prop,UE2-BS" (assuming it is equal to T_prop,BS-UE2).

[0133] exist Figure 6 In the example of FIG. 6 , the assisting UE 606 provides additional RTT measurements to assist the Uu positioning procedure between the base station 602 and the target UE 604. In this scenario, the assisting UE 606 (also referred to as the anchor UE) is within the network coverage (e.g., within the coverage of the base station 602), and the base station 602 or the location server can configure the SL-PRS and corresponding measurement reports to be exchanged between the UEs. Therefore, the target UE 604 sends the SL-PRS to the assisting UE 606, which is received by the assisting UE 606 after a certain propagation time (denoted as “T_prop,UE2-UE1”). After a certain delay at the assisting UE 606 (denoted as “T_UE1,Rx-Tx”), the assisting UE 606 sends a response positioning signal to the target UE 604. The response positioning signal may include a measurement report including the value of T_UE1,Rx-Tx, and has a certain propagation time between the assisting UE 606 and the target UE 604, which is referred to as T_prop,UE1-UE2 (assumed to be equal to T_prop,UE2-UE1).

[0134] Based on the transmission time and reception time of the positioning signal and the values ​​of T_UE2,Rx-Tx and T_UE1,Rx-Tx, the positioning entity (e.g., the target UE 604, the base station 602, the location server, etc.) can calculate the flight time between the target UE 604 and the base station 602 and between the target UE 604 and the auxiliary UE 606 (e.g., Figure 6Based on the flight time and the speed of light, the positioning entity can calculate the distances between the target UE 604 and the base station 602 and between the target UE 604 and the auxiliary UE 606. Based on these distances and the known positions of the base station 602 and the auxiliary UE 606, the positioning entity can estimate the relative position of the target UE 604.

[0135] The UE may also use RTT positioning techniques with multiple other UEs or RSUs to determine its position based on ranging signals to / from the other involved UEs / RSUs and the known positions of the other involved UEs / RSUs. Figure 7 700 is a diagram illustrating example timing of RTT signals between a target UE 704 (labeled “UE2”) and two auxiliary UEs 702 (labeled “UE1”) and UE 706 (labeled “UE3”) according to aspects of the present disclosure. This is an example of a sidelink-based positioning procedure, such as illustrated in scenarios 520, 550, and 560. UEs 702 to 706 may correspond to any of the UEs described herein, and in particular, may be V-UEs. Figure 7 In FIG. 7 , the target UE 704 is trying to estimate its location, and the assisting UEs 702 and 706 have known locations (eg, from GPS).

[0136] exist Figure 7 In the example of , the target UE 704 receives a ranging signal (e.g., SL-PRS) from the assisting UE 702 and responds with its own ranging signal (e.g., SL-PRS). The ranging signal may be sent on a time / frequency resource negotiated between the involved UEs. Figure 7 In the example of , the received ranging signal has a certain propagation time between the assisting UE 702 and the target UE 704, denoted as T_prop,UE1-UE2. The length of time between receiving the ranging signal from the assisting UE 702 and sending the response ranging signal by the target UE 704 is denoted as "T_UE2,Rx-Tx". The response ranging signal may include a measurement report including the value of T_UE2,Rx-Tx, and has a certain propagation time between the target UE 704 and the assisting UE 702, denoted as "T_prop,UE2-UE1" (assuming it is equal to T_prop,UE1-UE2).

[0137] The response ranging signal from the target UE 704 may also be received by the second assisting UE 706 after a certain propagation time (denoted as "T_prop,UE2-UE3"). Alternatively, this may be received by the target UE 704 at approximately the same time as the response ranging signal to the assisting UE 702 (at Figure 7, Rx-Tx) sent by the second assisting UE 706. After a certain delay (denoted as "T_UE3,Rx-Tx") at the second assisting UE 706, the second assisting UE 706 sends a response ranging signal to the target UE 704. The response ranging signal may include a measurement report including the value of T_UE3,Rx-Tx, and has a certain propagation time between the assisting UE 706 and the target UE 704, denoted as "T_prop,UE3-UE2" (assuming it is equal to T_prop,UE2-UE3).

[0138] Based on the transmission time and reception time of the ranging signal and the values ​​of T_UE2,Rx-Tx and T_UE3,Rx-Tx, the positioning entity (e.g., the target UE 704) can calculate the flight time (i.e., the time of flight) between the target UE 704 and the auxiliary UEs 702 and 706. Figure 7 UE1-UE2 and T_prop,UE2-UE3 in the example of ). Based on the flight time and the speed of light, the positioning entity can calculate the distance between the target UE 704 and the auxiliary UEs 702 and 706. Based on these distances, the positioning entity can estimate the relative position of the target UE 704 with respect to the auxiliary UEs 702 and 706. If the auxiliary UEs 702 and 706 have known positions (e.g., GPS coordinates received from the auxiliary UEs 702 and 706), the positioning entity can estimate the absolute position of the target UE 704 based on the distance between the target UE 704 and the auxiliary UEs 702 and 706 and the known positions of the auxiliary UEs 702 and 706. In the case where the auxiliary UEs 702 and 706 provide their positions, they can also provide the uncertainty or accuracy level associated with the position.

[0139] A UE that assists a target UE in a positioning procedure may be referred to as a "positioning peer" or "Pos-Peer" UE. Two types of positioning peer UE discovery procedures have been introduced for sidelink cooperative positioning (e.g., Figure 7 In the present invention, the sidelink-based positioning procedures in the present invention are referred to as Mode A and Mode B. According to various aspects of the present disclosure, FIG. 8A illustrates an example call flow 800 for Mode A discovery, and FIG. 8B illustrates an example call flow 850 for Mode B discovery. The purpose of these discovery procedures is to discover which positioning peer UEs are near the target UE. In Mode A, the positioning peer UE can announce its presence by broadcasting a sidelink positioning peer discovery message with a positioning flag, as shown in FIG. 8A. In Mode B, the target UE that wishes to discover the positioning peer UE can initiate by broadcasting a sidelink positioning peer request message with a field related to positioning, as shown in FIG. 8B.

[0140] As shown in Figures 8A and 8B, both the positioning peer discovery and request messages can be divided into two parts labeled "A" and "B" to achieve a more power efficient method and handshake between the target UE and the potential positioning peer UE. The target UE can rank the potential positioning peer UEs (also called anchor UEs) based on the following criteria: (1) location quality criteria, (2) channel quality criteria, (3) response time criteria, (4) mobility state criteria, or any combination thereof.

[0141] Sidelink communication occurs in a transmit or receive resource pool. In the frequency domain, the minimum resource allocation unit is a subchannel (e.g., a set of consecutive PRBs in the frequency domain). In the time domain, resource allocation is performed in a time slot interval. However, some time slots are not available for sidelinks, and some time slots contain feedback resources. In addition, sidelink resources can be (pre)configured to occupy less than 14 symbols in a time slot.

[0142] The sidelink resources are configured at the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer. The RRC configuration can be pre-configured (e.g., preloaded on the UE) or configured (e.g., from a serving base station).

[0143] The NR sidelink supports hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) retransmission. Fig.9A 900 is a diagram of an example time slot structure without feedback resources according to aspects of the present disclosure. Fig.9A In the example of , time is represented horizontally and frequency is represented vertically. In the time domain, the length of each block is one orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol, and 14 symbols constitute a time slot. In the frequency domain, the height of each block is one subchannel. Currently, the (pre) configured subchannel size can be selected from a set of {10, 15, 20, 25, 50, 75, 100} physical resource blocks (PRBs). Each PRB (or RB for short) consists of 12 subcarriers in the frequency domain. The length of one symbol in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain is called a resource element.

[0144] For a sidelink slot, the first symbol is a repetition of the previous symbol and is used for automatic gain control (AGC) settings. Fig.9A This is illustrated by vertical and horizontal hashing. Fig.9A As shown, for the sidelink, the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) and the physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) are transmitted in the same time slot. Similar to the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the PSCCH carries control information about the sidelink resource allocation and a description of the sidelink data sent to the UE. Similarly, similar to the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), the PSSCH carries the user data of the UE. Fig.9AIn the example of , the PSCCH occupies half of the bandwidth of the subchannel and occupies only three symbols. Finally, the gap symbol appears after the PSSCH.

[0145] Fig. 9B 9 is a diagram of an example time slot structure with feedback resources according to aspects of the present disclosure. Fig. 9B In the example of , time is represented horizontally and frequency is represented vertically. In the time domain, the length of each block is one OFDM symbol, and 14 symbols constitute a time slot. In the frequency domain, the height of each block is one subchannel.

[0146] Fig. 9B The illustrated time slot structure is similar to Fig.9A The time slot structure shown is similar, except that Fig. 9B The illustrated time slot structure includes feedback resources. Specifically, the two symbols at the end of the time slot have been dedicated to the physical side link feedback channel (PSFCH). The first PSFCH symbol is a repetition of the second PSFCH symbol for AGC setting. In addition to the gap symbol after the PSSCH, there is also a gap symbol after two PSFCH symbols. Currently, the resources for PSFCH can be configured with a periodicity selected from a set of {0,1,2,4} time slots.

[0147] Another aspect of sidelink positioning is the configuration of the resource pool (RP-P) (also called the positioning resource pool) used for sidelink positioning. The 12 symbols between the first symbol and the last symbol (gap) of the sidelink time slot (used for AGC) in the time domain and the allocated subchannels in the frequency domain form a resource pool for sidelink transmission and / or reception. The RP-P can be specifically configured within the resource pool for positioning purposes. Each RP-P includes an offset, a periodicity, a number of consecutive symbols within a time slot (e.g., as little as one symbol), and / or a bandwidth within a component carrier (or a bandwidth across multiple component carriers). In addition, each RP-P can be associated with a certain area or with a distance from a reference location.

[0148] A base station (or UE) may assign one or more resource configurations from the RP-P to another UE. Additionally or alternatively, a UE (e.g., a relay or remote UE) may request one or more RP-P configurations, and the UE may include one or more of the following in the request: (1) location information (or zone identifier) ​​of the UE; (2) periodicity; (3) bandwidth; (4) offset; (5) number of symbols; and (6) whether a configuration with "low interference" is required (which may be determined by the assigned quality of service (QoS) or priority).

[0149] The base station or UE may configure / assign rate matching resources or RP-P for rate matching / silencing to the sidelink UE, so that when there is a conflict between the assigned resources and another resource pool containing data (PSSCH) and / or control (PSCCH), the sidelink UE is expected to rate match / silence / puncture the data, DMRS and / or CSI-RS within the conflicting resources. This will achieve orthogonalization between positioning and data transmission to increase the coverage of the PRS signal.

[0150] Fig.10 1000 is a diagram illustrating an example of a resource pool for positioning within a side link resource pool according to aspects of the present disclosure. Fig.10 In the example of , time is represented horizontally and frequency is represented vertically. In the time domain, the length of each block is one orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol, and 14 symbols constitute a time slot. In the frequency domain, the height of each block is one subchannel.

[0151] exist Fig.10 In the example of , the entire time slot (except the first symbol and the last symbol) can be a resource pool for sidelink transmission and / or reception. That is, any symbol except the first symbol and the last symbol can be allocated for transmission and / or reception. However, the RP-P for sidelink transmission / reception is allocated in the last four front slot symbols of the time slot. Therefore, non-side link positioning data (such as user data, CSI-RS, and control information) can only be sent in the first eight post-AGC symbols, but not in the last four front slot symbols to prevent conflicts with the configured RP-P. Non-side link positioning data that could have been sent in the last four front slot symbols can be punctured or silenced, or non-side link data that would normally span more than eight post-AGC symbols can be rate matched to accommodate the eight post-AGC symbols.

[0152] A Sidelink Positioning Reference Signal (SL-PRS) has been defined to support sidelink positioning procedures between UEs. Similar to the downlink PRS (DL-PRS), the SL-PRS resource consists of one or more resource elements (i.e., one OFDM symbol in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain). The SL-PRS resource has been designed to have a comb-based pattern to enable Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) based processing at the receiver. The SL-PRS resource consists of uninterleaved or only partially interleaved resource elements in the frequency domain to provide small time of arrival (TOA) uncertainty for each SL-PRS resource and reduced overhead. The SL-PRS may also be associated with a specific RP-P (e.g., certain SL-PRS may be allocated in certain RP-Ps). The SL-PRS is also defined to have intra-slot repetition ( Fig.10), to allow combining gain (if required). There may also be inter-UE coordination of RP-P to provide dynamic SL-PRS and data multiplexing while minimizing SL-PRS collisions.

[0153] Fig.11 1 is a diagram 1100 illustrating additional aspects of a sidelink resource pool and a resource pool for positioning according to aspects of the present disclosure. Specifically, diagram 1100 illustrates a hierarchical structure of configuration parameters of sidelink communication resources that may be utilized by two or more sidelink UEs. Fig.11 As shown in FIG. 1 , there are two resource pool configurations, a resource pool configuration for communication and a resource pool configuration for positioning (i.e., RP-P configuration). Fig.11 In the specification, “SCS” stands for “Subcarrier Spacing”, “CP” stands for “Cyclic Prefix”, “CBR” stands for “Channel Busy Rate”, “BWP” stands for “Bandwidth Part”, “BW” stands for “Band”, and “MCS” stands for “Modulation and Coding Scheme”.

[0154] Fig.12 Two resource allocation modes for transmission on the NR sidelink according to various aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. In the first mode 1210 (labeled as "mode 1"), the base station 1202 (e.g., any of the base stations described herein) allocates time and / or frequency resources for sidelink communications between the involved V-UEs 1204 and 1206 (e.g., any of the V-UEs described herein or UEs with sidelink capabilities) via DCI 3_0. Each V-UE uses the allocated resources to send ranging signals (e.g., SL-PRS) to other V-UEs.

[0155] In the second mode 1220 (labeled as "Mode 2"), the UEs 1204 and 1206 involved autonomously select sidelink resources for the transmission of ranging signals. The V-UE can use the first mode only when it has cellular coverage, and can use the second mode regardless of whether it has cellular coverage. Note that although Fig.12 Two V-UEs are illustrated, but it should be understood that they need not be V-UEs and may instead be any other type of UE capable of sidelink communication. In addition, there may be more than the two V-UEs 1204 and 1206 illustrated.

[0156] The signaling on the sidelink is the same between the two resource allocation modes. From the perspective of the receiver (e.g., V-UE 1206), there is no difference between the modes. That is, for the receiver, it does not matter whether the resources used for the ranging signal are allocated by the base station 1202 or by the transmitter.

[0157] Mode 1 supports dynamic grant (DG), configured grant (CG) type 1, and CG type 2. In some cases, CG type 1 is activated via RRC signaling from base station 1202. In some cases, the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) used for sidelink transmissions is determined by the V-UEs 1204 and 1206 involved within the limits set by base station 1202. In mode 2, a transmitting V-UE (e.g., V-UE 1204) performs channel sensing by blind decoding all physical sidelink control channels (PSCCHs) to determine the resources reserved for other sidelink transmissions. The transmitting V-UE 1204 reports the available resources to its upper layers, and the upper layers determine the resource usage.

[0158] In Mode 1, the base station 1202 provides a dynamic grant for HARQ feedback or activates a configured sidelink grant. The sidelink feedback may be reported back to the base station by the transmitting UE (eg, V-UE 1204).

[0159] In a sidelink positioning operation, the accuracy of determining the location of a target UE may be increased by using a greater number of sidelink UEs in the positioning operation. However, the availability of such sidelink UEs for positioning may be limited based on whether the sidelink UEs are 1) within the coverage of the same serving cell (e.g., base station, gNB, etc.) as the target UE, 2) within the coverage of a different serving cell, or 3) outside the coverage of any serving cell. Certain aspects of the present disclosure are achieved with the recognition that there are scenarios in which the number of sidelink UEs used for positioning of a target UE may be increased by including UEs in the same serving cell, UEs in different serving cells, and / or UEs outside the coverage of a serving cell in the positioning operation.

[0160] Fig.13 A wireless environment 1300 that can be used for sidelink UE positioning according to aspects of the present disclosure is depicted. In this example, UE2 is a target UE whose positioning is to be determined during a positioning session and is served by a serving cell 1302 associated with base station 1 1306. Another sidelink UE (UE4) is also served by a serving cell 1302 associated with base station 1 1306. Thus, in this example, both sidelink UE2 and sidelink UE4 are shown as having the same serving cell (e.g., serving cell 1302).

[0161] Also like Fig.13As shown, UE1 and UE3 are sidelink UEs both served by a serving cell 1308 associated with another base station (base station 2 1312). Therefore, in this example, both UE1 and UE3 are served by the same serving cell 1308. However, the serving cell 1308 serving sidelink UE1 and sidelink UE3 is different from the serving cell 1302 serving sidelink UE2 and sidelink UE4. Although served by different serving cells, sidelink UE2 is within the sidelink communication range of both sidelink UE1 and sidelink UE3.

[0162] The side link UE2 is also Fig.13 The remaining sidelink UEs (eg, sidelink UE5 and sidelink UE6) are shown within the sidelink communication range. However, in wireless environment 1300, sidelink UE5 and sidelink UE6 are not within the coverage of serving cell 1302, serving cell 1308, or any other serving cell.

[0163] There are many issues that limit the ability of sidelink UE 2 to optimally use all sidelink UEs in wireless environment 1300 for positioning operations. For example, base station 2 1312 can define SL-PRS configurations for use by sidelink UE1 and sidelink UE3 for positioning operations, but cannot define SL-PRS configurations for use by sidelink UE2, sidelink UE4, sidelink UE5, or sidelink UE6. Similarly, base station 1 1306 can define SL-PRS configurations for use by sidelink UE2 and sidelink UE4, but cannot define SL-PRS configurations for use by sidelink UE1, sidelink UE3, sidelink UE5, or sidelink UE6. In addition, the SL-PRS configurations used for any positioning operations performed between sidelink UE2, sidelink UE5, and sidelink UE6 can use mode 2 resource allocation.

[0164] Certain aspects of the present disclosure relate to configuring a hybrid mode environment such as Fig.13The sidelink positioning operation is configured and implemented in a wireless environment 1300), where some sidelink UEs may be configured with SL-PRS resources via mode 1 and some sidelink UEs may be configured with SL-PRS resources via mode 2. According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, a target sidelink UE (e.g., sidelink UE2) may participate in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs (e.g., sidelink UE1, sidelink UE3, and sidelink UE4). The target sidelink UE may also participate in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more second sidelink UEs (e.g., sidelink UE5 and sidelink UE6). During the sidelink discovery operation, the target sidelink UE may receive first sidelink discovery information from one or more first sidelink UEs and second sidelink discovery information from one or more second sidelink UEs. In certain aspects, the first sidelink discovery information may identify a serving cell for each of the one or more first sidelink UEs. Fig.13 In the example shown, sidelink UE1 and sidelink UE3 may each send sidelink discovery information indicating that they are served by serving cell 1308 (e.g., a serving cell associated with base station 2 1312), while sidelink UE4 sends sidelink discovery information indicating that it is served by serving cell 1302 (e.g., a serving cell associated with base station 1 1306). Moreover, during the sidelink discovery operation, the target UE may receive second sidelink discovery information from one or more second sidelink UEs. However, the second sidelink discovery information may indicate that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with the serving cell (e.g., are out of coverage). Regarding Fig.13 In the example shown, sidelink UE5 and sidelink UE6 may each send second sidelink discovery information to sidelink UE2 indicating that they are outside the coverage of any serving cell (e.g., neither sidelink UE has any association with a serving cell). According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the discovery information received from each UE in coverage may include an identification of a neighboring cell associated with the UE.

[0165] Both base station 2 1312 and base station 1 1306 may communicate with a location server 1314 (e.g., LMF). According to aspects of the present disclosure, the target UE may send first side link discovery information and second side link discovery information to the location server 1314. Therefore, the location server 1314 may understand the service cell associated with each side link UE with which the target side link UE has participated in the discovery operation. In this example, the location server 1314 knows that 1) side link UE1 and side link UE3 are served by the service cell 1308 associated with base station 2 1312, 2) side link UE2 and side link UE4 are served by the service cell 1302 associated with base station 1 1306, and 3) side link UE5 and side link UE6 are outside the coverage of any service cell (e.g., not associated with any service cell).

[0166] In certain aspects, the location server may communicate with base stations associated with one or more serving cells associated with each of the first set of one or more sidelink UEs to determine an SL-PRS configuration that may be used by the first set of one or more sidelink UEs in positioning operations. Fig.13 In the example shown, the location server 1314 can communicate with the base station 2 1312 and the base station 1 1306 to determine the SL-PRS configuration that can be used in the positioning operation between the sidelink UE2 and other sidelink UEs in the coverage area (e.g., sidelink UE1, sidelink UE3, and sidelink UE4). To this end, the location server 1314 can obtain information about the resources used by the base station 2 1312 and the base station 1 1306 to select a PRS configuration with a correct time slot offset and / or synchronization, which can be used by all the sidelink UEs in the coverage area for positioning operations. The location server 1314 can determine the PRS configuration because different base stations (e.g., base station 2 1312 and base station 1 1306) can have different time slot offsets and generally do not communicate directly with each other to coordinate their resources.

[0167] The location server 1314 may send a SL-PRS configuration (hereinafter referred to as the "first SL-PRS configuration") to be used by the sidelink UEs within the coverage area to the target sidelink UE (e.g., sidelink UE2) via a base station (e.g., base station 1 1306) associated with the serving cell of the target sidelink UE. Subsequently, the target UE may send the first SL-PRS configuration to the remaining sidelink UEs within the coverage area (e.g., sidelink UE1, sidelink UE3, and sidelink UE4) via the PC5 link. Additionally or in an alternative, the location server 1314 may transmit the first SL-PRS configuration to all sidelink UEs within the coverage area. During one or more subsequent positioning operations performed to determine the position of the target sidelink UE, all sidelink UEs within the coverage area may operate in mode 1 using the first SL-PRS configuration (hereinafter, the positioning operation with the sidelink UEs within the coverage area is referred to as the "first positioning operation").

[0168] In certain aspects, the location server 1314 may also facilitate the assignment of positioning resources for positioning by the target sidelink UE (e.g., sidelink UE2) and the out-of-coverage sidelink UE (e.g., sidelink UE5 and sidelink UE6). According to one aspect, the location server 1314 may provide the target UE (e.g., sidelink UE2) with a sidelink resource pool for positioning configuration and / or an option for SL-PRS configuration via an associated base station (e.g., base station 1 1306). The target UE may use the sidelink resource pool and / or the SL-PRS configuration option to negotiate a SL-PRS configuration (hereinafter referred to as a "second SL-PRS configuration") with other out-of-coverage UEs for positioning operations. Once the second SL-PRS configuration is determined, the target UE may use the second SL-PRS configuration in the positioning operation with the out-of-coverage sidelink UE. On the other hand, the location server 1314 may determine the second SL-PRS configuration to be used and transmit the second SL-PRS configuration to the target UE via the associated base station. Then, the target UE may configure the second SL-PRS configuration to the out-of-coverage side link UE via the PC5 link. During one or more subsequent positioning operations performed to determine the position of the target side link UE, all out-of-coverage side link UEs may operate in Mode 2 using the second SL-PRS configuration (hereinafter, the positioning operation with the out-of-coverage side link UE is referred to as the "second positioning operation").

[0169] In some aspects, the first SL-PRS configuration and the second SL-PRS configuration may have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation. The one or more common configuration parameters may include 1) common SCS parameters, 2) common BWP parameters, 3) common comb configuration parameters, or 4) any combination thereof.

[0170] The activation of the first side link positioning operation and the second side link positioning operation can be performed in various ways. For example, a time division method can be used, wherein the mode 1 configuration is first activated to perform the first side link positioning operation, and the mode 2 configuration is activated to perform the second side link positioning operation after the mode 1 activation is completed. It should be noted that the order of activation can be changed. In addition, the time division method can be based on the timing activation and deactivation of the configuration.

[0171] In another example, a hybrid mode approach may be used, in which the target UE may concurrently operate in both Mode 1 and Mode 2 so that the first sidelink positioning operation and the second sidelink positioning operation may occur substantially simultaneously. Such a hybrid mode approach may be subject to the maximum number of SL-PRSs that the target UE may process in a given timeslot.

[0172] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the location server 1314 may determine a positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating a first positioning operation and a second positioning operation. The location server 1314 may transmit the positioning schedule to the target UE, which uses the positioning schedule to determine the timing of the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation and / or the order in which the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation occur. To this end, the positioning schedule may indicate 1) a time-based schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation, 2) an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation, 3) a mixed mode schedule for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation, or 4) any combination thereof.

[0173] Fig.14 A method 1400 of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) according to various aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. At operation 1402, the UE participates in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs. In an aspect, operation 1402 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operation.

[0174] At operation 1404, the UE receives first sidelink discovery information from one or more first sidelink UEs during a sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a serving cell of each of the one or more first sidelink UEs. In an aspect, operation 1404 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operation.

[0175] At operation 1406, the UE receives second sidelink discovery information from one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with the serving cell. In an aspect, operation 1406 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operation.

[0176] It should be appreciated that a technical advantage of method 1400 is that the method enables a UE to make the network aware of the serving cell association and out-of-coverage status of UEs within the communication range of the UE. This information may be communicated to the network to configure a sidelink PRS configuration that may be used for positioning operations in a hybrid mode positioning environment to UEs within the communication range of the UE, in which the in-coverage UE operates in mode 1 and the out-of-coverage UE operates in mode 2 during the positioning operation to determine the positioning of the UE. Additionally, certain technical advantages may be achieved by including neighbor cell identifiers in the discovery information.

[0177] Fig.15 A method 1500 of wireless communication performed by a location server (e.g., LMF) according to various aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. At operation 1502, the location server receives first sidelink information identifying a first group of one or more sidelink UEs and a serving cell of the first group of one or more sidelink UEs from a first sidelink UE. In an aspect, operation 1502 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operation.

[0178] At operation 1504, the location server receives second sidelink information from the first sidelink UE that identifies a second set of one or more sidelink UEs that are not associated with the serving cell. In an aspect, operation 1504 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered means for performing the operation.

[0179] At operation 1506, the location server transmits to the first sidelink UE a first sidelink positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for use in a first positioning operation with the first set of one or more sidelink UEs. In an aspect, operation 1506 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered means for performing the operation.

[0180] At operation 1508, the location server sends positioning resource configuration information to the first sidelink UE for use in a second positioning operation with the second set of one or more sidelink UEs. In an aspect, operation 1508 may be performed by one or more network transceivers 390, one or more processors 394, memory 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered means for performing the operation.

[0181] It should be appreciated that a technical advantage of method 1500 is that the location server is aware of the serving cell association and out-of-coverage status of UEs within the communication range of the target UE to be located. This information can be used by the location server to configure a sidelink PRS configuration that can be used for positioning operations in a hybrid mode positioning environment to the target UE within the communication range of the target UE, in which the in-coverage UE operates in mode 1 and the out-of-coverage UE operates in mode 2 during the positioning operation to determine the location of the target UE. Additionally, certain technical advantages can be achieved by including neighbor cell identifiers in the discovery information.

[0182] In the above detailed description, it can be seen that different features are grouped together in each example. This disclosure should not be understood as an intention that the example clauses have more features than the features explicitly mentioned in each clause. On the contrary, various aspects of the present disclosure may include less than all the features of the disclosed individual example clauses. Therefore, the following clauses should be considered to be incorporated into the description accordingly, wherein each clause itself can be used as a separate example. Although each dependent clause may refer to a specific combination of one clause with other clauses in a clause, the aspects of the dependent clause are not limited to a specific combination. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include a combination of the subject matter of the dependent clause aspect with any other dependent clause or independent clause or any feature with other dependent clauses and independent clauses. Various aspects disclosed herein explicitly include these combinations, unless it is explicitly expressed or can be easily inferred that a specific combination is not intended (e.g., contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as an insulator and a conductor). In addition, it is also expected that various aspects of the clause may be included in any other independent clause, even if the clause is not directly dependent on the independent clause.

[0183] Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0184] Clause 1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: participating in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; receiving first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a service cell of each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; and receiving second sidelink discovery information from the one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a service cell.

[0185] Clause 2. The method according to Clause 1 further includes: receiving third sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the third sidelink discovery information identifies a neighboring cell associated with the one or more first sidelink UEs.

[0186] Clause 3. The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 2 further comprises: sending the first side link discovery information and the second side link discovery information to a location server.

[0187] Clause 4. The method according to Clause 3 also includes: receiving a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the one or more first side link UEs from the location server; and receiving a second side link PRS configuration used in a second positioning operation with the one or more second side link UEs from the location server.

[0188] Clause 5. The method of clause 4, further comprising: receiving, from the location server, a positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

[0189] Clause 6. A method according to clause 5, wherein the positioning scheduling indicates: a time-based scheduling for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode scheduling for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or any combination thereof.

[0190] Clause 7. The method according to any one of clauses 4 to 6 further includes: sending the first sidelink PRS configuration to the one or more first sidelink UEs; and sending the second sidelink PRS configuration to the one or more second sidelink UEs.

[0191] Clause 8. The method according to Clause 7 also includes: measuring the PRS associated with the one or more first side link UEs based on the first side link PRS configuration; and measuring the PRS associated with the one or more second side link UEs based on the second side link PRS configuration.

[0192] Clause 9. A method according to any one of clauses 4 to 8, wherein: the first sidelink PRS configuration and the second sidelink PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

[0193] Clause 10. The method of clause 9, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: a common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; a common bandwidth part (BWP) parameter; a common comb configuration parameter; or any combination thereof.

[0194] Clause 11. The method according to any one of clauses 3 to 10 further includes: receiving a first side link PRS configuration used in a first positioning operation with the one or more first group side link UEs from the location server; receiving a side link resource pool for the positioning configuration used in a second positioning operation from the location server; and sending a second side link PRS configuration used in the second positioning operation to the one or more second side link UEs, wherein the second side link PRS configuration is based on the side link resource pool used for the positioning configuration.

[0195] Clause 12. A method of wireless communication performed by a location server, comprising: receiving first side link information identifying a service cell of a first group of one or more side link UEs from a first side link UE; receiving second side link information identifying a second group of one or more side link UEs that are not associated with the service cell from the first side link UE; transmitting to the first side link UE a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more side link UEs; and transmitting to the first side link UE positioning resource configuration information used in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more side link UEs.

[0196] Clause 13. The method of clause 12, further comprising: receiving, from the first sidelink UE, third sidelink discovery information identifying neighboring cells associated with the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

[0197] Clause 14. A method as described in any of clauses 12 to 13, wherein the first sidelink information identifies one or more serving cells associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

[0198] Clause 15. The method of any one of clauses 12 to 14, further comprising communicating with the one or more serving cells respectively associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs to determine the first sidelink PRS configuration.

[0199] Clause 16. A method according to any one of clauses 12 to 15, wherein the positioning resource configuration information includes: a second side link PRS configuration used in the second positioning operation; a side link resource pool for the positioning configuration used in the second positioning operation; or a combination thereof.

[0200] Clause 17. The method of clause 16, wherein: the first sidelink PRS configuration and the second sidelink PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

[0201] Clause 18. The method of clause 17, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: a common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; a common bandwidth part (BWP) parameter; a common comb configuration parameter; or any combination thereof.

[0202] Clause 19. The method of any of clauses 12 to 18, further comprising transmitting to the first sidelink UE a positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

[0203] Clause 20. A method according to clause 19, wherein the positioning scheduling indicates: a time-based scheduling for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode scheduling for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or any combination thereof.

[0204] Clause 21. A user equipment (UE), comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: participate in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; receive first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs via the at least one transceiver during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a service cell for each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; and receive second sidelink discovery information from the one or more second sidelink UEs via the at least one transceiver during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a service cell.

[0205] Clause 22. A UE according to clause 21, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive third side link discovery information from the one or more first side link UEs via the at least one transceiver during the side link discovery operation, wherein the third side link discovery information identifies a neighboring cell associated with the one or more first side link UEs.

[0206] Clause 23. A UE as described in any of clauses 21 to 22, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: send the first sidelink discovery information and the second sidelink discovery information to a location server via the at least one transceiver.

[0207] Clause 24. A UE according to clause 23, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the one or more first side link UEs from the location server via the at least one transceiver; and receive a second side link PRS configuration used in a second positioning operation with the one or more second side link UEs from the location server via the at least one transceiver.

[0208] Clause 25. The UE of clause 24, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive, from the location server via the at least one transceiver, a positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

[0209] Clause 26. A UE according to clause 25, wherein the positioning scheduling indicates: a time-based scheduling for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode scheduling for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or any combination thereof.

[0210] Clause 27. A UE according to any one of clauses 24 to 26, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: send the first side link PRS configuration to the one or more first side link UEs via the at least one transceiver; and send the second side link PRS configuration to the one or more second side link UEs via the at least one transceiver.

[0211] Clause 28. A UE according to clause 27, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: measure the PRS associated with the one or more first side link UEs based on the first side link PRS configuration; and measure the PRS associated with the one or more second side link UEs based on the second side link PRS configuration.

[0212] Clause 29. A UE according to any one of clauses 24 to 28, wherein: the first sidelink PRS configuration and the second sidelink PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

[0213] Clause 30. A UE according to clause 29, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: a common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; a common bandwidth part (BWP) parameter; a common comb configuration parameter; or any combination thereof.

[0214] Clause 31. A UE according to any one of clauses 23 to 30, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a first side link PRS configuration used in a first positioning operation with the one or more first group side link UEs from the location server via the at least one transceiver; receive a side link resource pool for the positioning configuration used in a second positioning operation from the location server via the at least one transceiver; and send a second side link PRS configuration used in the second positioning operation to the one or more second side link UEs via the at least one transceiver, wherein the second side link PRS configuration is based on the side link resource pool for the positioning configuration.

[0215] Item 32. A location server comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: receive first side link information identifying a service cell of a first group of one or more side link UEs from a first side link UE via the at least one transceiver; receive second side link information identifying a second group of one or more side link UEs not associated with the service cell from the first side link UE via the at least one transceiver; transmit to the first side link UE via the at least one transceiver a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more side link UEs; and transmit to the first side link UE via the at least one transceiver positioning resource configuration information used in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more side link UEs.

[0216] Clause 33. A location server according to clause 32, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive third sidelink discovery information identifying neighboring cells associated with the first group of one or more sidelink UEs from the first sidelink UE via the at least one transceiver.

[0217] Clause 34. A location server as described in any of clauses 32 to 33, wherein the first sidelink information identifies one or more serving cells associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

[0218] Clause 35. A location server according to any one of clauses 32 to 34, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to communicate via the at least one transceiver with the one or more service cells associated with each side link UE in the first group of one or more side link UEs to determine the first side link PRS configuration.

[0219] Clause 36. A location server according to any one of clauses 32 to 35, wherein the positioning resource configuration information includes: a second side link PRS configuration used in the second positioning operation; a side link resource pool for the positioning configuration used in the second positioning operation; or a combination thereof.

[0220] Clause 37. A location server according to clause 36, wherein: the first sidelink PRS configuration and the second sidelink PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

[0221] Clause 38. A location server according to clause 37, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: a common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; a common bandwidth part (BWP) parameter; a common comb configuration parameter; or any combination thereof.

[0222] Clause 39. A location server according to any one of clauses 32 to 38, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: transmit, via the at least one transceiver, to the first sidelink UE a positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

[0223] Clause 40. A location server according to Clause 39, wherein the positioning schedule indicates: a time-based schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode schedule for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or any combination thereof.

[0224] Clause 41. A user equipment (UE), comprising: a component for participating in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; a component for receiving first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a service cell of each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; and a component for receiving second sidelink discovery information from the one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a service cell.

[0225] Clause 42. The UE according to clause 41 further includes: a component for receiving third side link discovery information from the one or more first side link UEs during the side link discovery operation, wherein the third side link discovery information identifies a neighboring cell associated with the one or more first side link UEs.

[0226] Clause 43. A UE as described in any of clauses 41 to 42, further comprising: means for sending the first sidelink discovery information and the second sidelink discovery information to a location server.

[0227] Clause 44. The UE according to clause 43 further includes: a component for receiving a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration from the location server for use in a first positioning operation with the one or more first side link UEs; and a component for receiving a second side link PRS configuration from the location server for use in a second positioning operation with the one or more second side link UEs.

[0228] Clause 45. The UE of clause 44, further comprising means for receiving, from the location server, a positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

[0229] Clause 46. A UE according to clause 45, wherein the positioning scheduling indicates: a time-based scheduling for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode scheduling for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or any combination thereof.

[0230] Clause 47. The UE according to any one of clauses 44 to 46 further includes: a component for sending the first side link PRS configuration to the one or more first side link UEs; and a component for sending the second side link PRS configuration to the one or more second side link UEs.

[0231] Clause 48. The UE according to Clause 47 further includes: a component for measuring the PRS associated with the one or more first side link UEs based on the first side link PRS configuration; and a component for measuring the PRS associated with the one or more second side link UEs based on the second side link PRS configuration.

[0232] Clause 49. A UE according to any one of clauses 44 to 48, wherein: the first sidelink PRS configuration and the second sidelink PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

[0233] Clause 50. A UE according to clause 49, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: a common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; a common bandwidth part (BWP) parameter; a common comb configuration parameter; or any combination thereof.

[0234] Clause 51. A UE according to any one of clauses 43 to 50, further comprising: a component for receiving from the location server a first side link PRS configuration used in a first positioning operation with the one or more first group side link UEs; a component for receiving from the location server a side link resource pool of the positioning configuration used in a second positioning operation; and a component for sending to the one or more second side link UEs a second side link PRS configuration used in the second positioning operation, wherein the second side link PRS configuration is based on the side link resource pool used for the positioning configuration.

[0235] Clause 52. A location server comprising: a component for receiving first side link information identifying a service cell of a first group of one or more side link UEs from a first side link UE; a component for receiving second side link information identifying a second group of one or more side link UEs that are not associated with the service cell from the first side link UE; a component for transmitting to the first side link UE a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more side link UEs; and a component for transmitting to the first side link UE positioning resource configuration information used in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more side link UEs.

[0236] Clause 53. The location server of clause 52, further comprising: means for receiving, from the first sidelink UE, third sidelink discovery information identifying neighboring cells associated with the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

[0237] Clause 54. A location server as described in any of clauses 52 to 53, wherein the first sidelink information identifies one or more serving cells associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

[0238] Clause 55. The location server according to any one of clauses 52 to 54 further includes: a component for communicating with the one or more serving cells associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs to determine the first sidelink PRS configuration.

[0239] Clause 56. A location server according to any one of clauses 52 to 55, wherein the positioning resource configuration information includes: a second side link PRS configuration used in the second positioning operation; a side link resource pool for the positioning configuration used in the second positioning operation; or a combination thereof.

[0240] Clause 57. A location server according to clause 56, wherein: the first sidelink PRS configuration and the second sidelink PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

[0241] Clause 58. A location server according to clause 57, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: a common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; a common bandwidth part (BWP) parameter; a common comb configuration parameter; or any combination thereof.

[0242] Clause 59. The location server of any of clauses 52 to 58, further comprising means for transmitting to the first sidelink UE a positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

[0243] Clause 60. A location server according to Clause 59, wherein the positioning schedule indicates: a time-based schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode schedule for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or any combination thereof.

[0244] Clause 61. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by a user equipment (UE), causes the UE to: participate in a sidelink discovery operation with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; receive first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a serving cell for each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; and receive second sidelink discovery information from the one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a serving cell.

[0245] Clause 62. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 61 further includes: computer executable instructions, which, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: receive third side link discovery information from the one or more first side link UEs during the side link discovery operation, wherein the third side link discovery information identifies a neighboring cell associated with the one or more first side link UEs.

[0246] Clause 63. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any one of clauses 61 to 62, further comprising: computer-executable instructions which, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: report the first side link discovery information and the second side link discovery information to a location server.

[0247] Clause 64. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 63 further includes: computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: receive from the location server a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the one or more first side link UEs; and receive from the location server a second side link PRS configuration used in a second positioning operation with the one or more second side link UEs.

[0248] Clause 65. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 64, further comprising: computer-executable instructions, which when executed by the UE cause the UE to: receive a positioning schedule from the location server indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

[0249] Clause 66. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to clause 65, wherein the positioning schedule indicates: a time-based schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode schedule for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or any combination thereof.

[0250] Clause 67. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of clauses 64 to 66 further includes: computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: send the first side link PRS configuration to the one or more first side link UEs; and send the second side link PRS configuration to the one or more second side link UEs.

[0251] Clause 68. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 67 further includes: computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: measure the PRS associated with the one or more first side link UEs based on the first side link PRS configuration; and measure the PRS associated with the one or more second side link UEs based on the second side link PRS configuration.

[0252] Clause 69. A non-transitory computer-readable medium as described in any one of clauses 64 to 68, wherein: the first side link PRS configuration and the second side link PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

[0253] Clause 70. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to clause 69, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: a common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; a common bandwidth part (BWP) parameter; a common comb configuration parameter; or any combination thereof.

[0254] Clause 71. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of clauses 63 to 70, further comprising computer-executable instructions which, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: receive from the location server a first side link PRS configuration used in a first positioning operation with the one or more first group side link UEs; receive from the location server a side link resource pool for the positioning configuration used in a second positioning operation; and send to the one or more second side link UEs a second side link PRS configuration used in the second positioning operation, wherein the second side link PRS configuration is based on the side link resource pool for the positioning configuration.

[0255] Item 72. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by a location server, cause the location server to: receive first side link information identifying a service cell of a first group of one or more side link UEs from a first side link UE; receive second side link information identifying a second group of one or more side link UEs that are not associated with the service cell from the first side link UE; transmit to the first side link UE a first side link positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration used in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more side link UEs; and transmit to the first side link UE positioning resource configuration information used in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more side link UEs.

[0256] Clause 73. The non-transitory computer-readable medium according to Clause 72 further includes: computer executable instructions, which, when executed by the location server, cause the location server to: receive third side link discovery information from the first side link UE that identifies a neighboring cell associated with the first group of one or more side link UEs.

[0257] Clause 74. A non-transitory computer-readable medium as described in any of clauses 72 to 73, wherein: the first sidelink information identifies one or more serving cells associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

[0258] Clause 75. The non-transitory computer-readable medium described in any one of clauses 72 to 74 further comprises: computer executable instructions which, when executed by the location server, cause the location server to: communicate with the one or more service cells associated with each side link UE in the first group of one or more side link UEs to determine the first side link PRS configuration.

[0259] Clause 76. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of clauses 72 to 75, wherein the positioning resource configuration information includes: a second side link PRS configuration used in the second positioning operation; a side link resource pool for the positioning configuration used in the second positioning operation; or a combination thereof.

[0260] Clause 77. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to clause 76, wherein: the first side link PRS configuration and the second side link PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

[0261] Clause 78. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to clause 77, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: a common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; a common bandwidth part (BWP) parameter; a common comb configuration parameter; or any combination thereof.

[0262] Clause 79. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any one of clauses 72 to 78 further comprises: computer executable instructions which, when executed by the location server, cause the location server to: transmit to the first side link UE a positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

[0263] Clause 80. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to clause 79, wherein the positioning schedule indicates: a time-based schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode schedule for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or any combination thereof.

[0264] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout the above description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0265] In addition, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithmic steps described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of the two. In order to clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various exemplary components, frames, modules, circuits, and steps have been generally described above in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints proposed for the entire system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application, but such specific implementation decisions should not be interpreted as resulting in a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0266] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors and a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0267] The methods, sequences and / or algorithms described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be directly embodied in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software module may reside in a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), a register, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium is coupled to a processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. In an alternative, the storage medium may be integral with the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). In an alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside in a user terminal as discrete components.

[0268] In one or more example aspects, the function can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the function can be stored on a computer-readable medium or sent by a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or codes. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media, including any medium that facilitates the transfer of computer programs from one place to another. Storage media can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage devices, disk storage devices or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program codes in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer. Moreover, any connection is appropriately referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is sent from a website, a server or other remote source using a coaxial cable, an optical fiber cable, a twisted pair, a digital subscriber line (DSL) or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio and microwaves, then coaxial cable, optical fiber cable, twisted pair, DSL or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio and microwaves are included in the definition of the medium. As used herein, disk and disc include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc, where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0269] Although the foregoing disclosure illustrates exemplary aspects of the present disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications may be made herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. In addition, the functions, steps and / or actions of the method claims according to the various aspects of the present disclosure described herein do not need to be performed in any particular order. In addition, although the elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural form may also be considered unless explicitly stated to be limited to the singular form.

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: engaging in sidelink discovery operations with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; receiving first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a serving cell for each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; as well as Second sidelink discovery information is received from the one or more second sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a serving cell.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Third sidelink discovery information is received from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the third sidelink discovery information identifies a neighboring cell associated with the one or more first sidelink UEs.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: The first side link discovery information and the second side link discovery information are sent to a location server.

4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising: receiving, from the location server, a first sidelink positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for use in a first positioning operation with the one or more first sidelink UEs; as well as A second sidelink PRS configuration is received from the location server for use in a second positioning operation with the one or more second sidelink UEs.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: A positioning schedule is received from the location server indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the positioning scheduling indicates: a time-based schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode schedule for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or Any combination of them.

7. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: sending the first sidelink PRS configuration to the one or more first sidelink UEs; as well as The second sidelink PRS configuration is sent to the one or more second sidelink UEs.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising: measuring a PRS associated with the one or more first sidelink UEs based on the first sidelink PRS configuration; as well as A PRS associated with the one or more second sidelink UEs is measured based on the second sidelink PRS configuration.

9. The method according to claim 4, wherein: The first sidelink PRS configuration and the second sidelink PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: Common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; Common Bandwidth Part (BWP) parameters; Common comb configuration parameters; or Any combination of them.

11. The method according to claim 3, further comprising: receiving, from the location server, a first sidelink PRS configuration for use in a first positioning operation with the one or more first set of sidelink UEs; receiving from the location server a sidelink resource pool for positioning configuration for use in a second positioning operation; and A second sidelink PRS configuration for use in the second positioning operation is sent to the one or more second sidelink UEs, wherein the second sidelink PRS configuration is based on the sidelink resource pool used for positioning configuration.

12. A method of wireless communication performed by a location server, comprising: receiving, from the first sidelink UE, first sidelink information identifying a serving cell of a first group of one or more sidelink UEs; receiving, from the first sidelink UE, second sidelink information identifying a second set of one or more sidelink UEs not associated with a serving cell; transmitting, to the first sidelink UE, a first sidelink positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for use in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more sidelink UEs; as well as Positioning resource configuration information is transmitted to the first sidelink UE for use in a second positioning operation with the second group of one or more sidelink UEs.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising: Third sidelink discovery information is received from the first sidelink UE identifying a neighboring cell associated with the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein: The first sidelink information identifies one or more serving cells respectively associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

15. The method according to claim 12, further comprising: Communicate with the one or more serving cells respectively associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs to determine the first sidelink PRS configuration.

16. The method according to claim 12, wherein the positioning resource configuration information comprises: a second sidelink PRS configuration for use in the second positioning operation; a sidelink resource pool of positioning configurations for use in the second positioning operation; or A combination of them.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein: The first sidelink PRS configuration and the second sidelink PRS configuration have one or more common configuration parameters that enable the first positioning operation to occur concurrently with the second positioning operation.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the one or more common configuration parameters include: Common subcarrier spacing (SCS) parameter; Common Bandwidth Part (BWP) parameters; Common comb configuration parameters; or Any combination of them.

19. The method according to claim 12, further comprising: A positioning schedule indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation is transmitted to the first sidelink UE.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the positioning schedule indicates: a time-based schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode schedule for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or Any combination of them.

21. A user equipment (UE), comprising: Memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: engaging in sidelink discovery operations with one or more first sidelink UEs and one or more second sidelink UEs; receiving, via the at least one transceiver, first sidelink discovery information from the one or more first sidelink UEs during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the first sidelink discovery information identifies a serving cell for each of the one or more first sidelink UEs; as well as Second sidelink discovery information is received from the one or more second sidelink UEs via the at least one transceiver during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the second sidelink discovery information indicates that the one or more second sidelink UEs are not associated with a serving cell.

22. The UE of claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: Third sidelink discovery information is received from the one or more first sidelink UEs via the at least one transceiver during the sidelink discovery operation, wherein the third sidelink discovery information identifies a neighboring cell associated with the one or more first sidelink UEs.

23. The UE of claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: The first sidelink discovery information and the second sidelink discovery information are sent to a location server via the at least one transceiver.

24. The UE of claim 23, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receiving, from the location server via the at least one transceiver, a first sidelink positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for use in a first positioning operation with the one or more first sidelink UEs; and A second sidelink PRS configuration is received from the location server via the at least one transceiver for use in a second positioning operation with the one or more second sidelink UEs.

25. The UE of claim 24, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: A positioning schedule is received from the location server via the at least one transceiver indicating a schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation.

26. The UE according to claim 25, wherein the positioning scheduling comprises: a time-based schedule for activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; an order for sequentially activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; a mixed mode schedule for concurrently activating the first positioning operation and the second positioning operation; or Any combination of them.

27. The UE of claim 24, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: transmitting, via the at least one transceiver, the first sidelink PRS configuration to the one or more first sidelink UEs; and The second sidelink PRS configuration is transmitted to the one or more second sidelink UEs via the at least one transceiver.

28. The UE of claim 27, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: measuring a PRS associated with the one or more first sidelink UEs based on the first sidelink PRS configuration; and A PRS associated with the one or more second sidelink UEs is measured based on the second sidelink PRS configuration.

29. A location server, comprising: Memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: receiving, via the at least one transceiver, from a first sidelink UE, first sidelink information identifying a serving cell of a first group of one or more sidelink UEs; receiving, via the at least one transceiver, from the first sidelink UE, second sidelink information identifying a second set of one or more sidelink UEs not associated with a serving cell; transmitting, via the at least one transceiver, to the first sidelink UE, a first sidelink positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for use in a first positioning operation with the first group of one or more sidelink UEs; as well as Positioning resource configuration information for use in a second positioning operation with the second set of one or more sidelink UEs is transmitted to the first sidelink UE via the at least one transceiver.

30. The location server of claim 29, wherein: The first sidelink information identifies one or more serving cells respectively associated with each sidelink UE in the first group of one or more sidelink UEs.

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