Determining orientation of user equipment having cellular network

Abstract

Techniques are provided for determining an orientation of a wireless node using reference signals transmitted by a network station. An example method for determining an orientation of a user equipment includes determining a first location associated with the user equipment; determining a second location associated with the first wireless node; receiving, by the user equipment, a radio frequency signal transmitted from the first wireless node; determining two measurements based at least in part on the first location, the second location, and angle of arrival information associated with the radio frequency signal; determining a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained by the user equipment; and calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two measurements.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims the benefit of U.S. patent application No. 17 / 941,238, filed on September 9, 2022, entitled “DETERMINING AN ORIENTATION OF AUSER EQUIPMENT WITH A CELLULAR NETWORK,” which is assigned to the assignee of this application and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes. Background Art

[0003] Wireless communication systems have evolved over several 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, fourth generation (4G) service (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax), and fifth generation (5G) service (e.g., 5G New Radio (NR)). There are many different types of wireless communication systems in use today, including cellular 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 access (GSM) TDMA variants, and the like.

[0004] It is often desirable to know the location of a user equipment (UE), such as a cellular phone, wherein the terms "location" and "positioning" are synonymous and used interchangeably herein. A location service (LCS) client may desire to know the location of a UE and may communicate with a location center to request the location of the UE. The location center and the UE may exchange messages appropriately to obtain a location estimate for the UE. The location center may return the location estimate to the LCS client, for example, for use in one or more applications.

[0005] Obtaining the location of a mobile device accessing a wireless network can be used for many applications, including, for example, emergency calls, personal navigation, asset tracking, locating friends or family members, etc. Existing positioning methods include methods based on measuring radio signals transmitted from various devices, including satellite vehicles and terrestrial radio sources such as base stations and access points in wireless networks. In addition, the capabilities of the UE may vary, and the positioning method may be based on the capabilities of the device. The orientation of the UE relative to other wireless nodes in the network (e.g., base stations, UEs, and other wireless devices) can be used for beamforming and / or positioning applications. The accuracy of the UE's orientation information can affect the performance of beamforming operations and other local applications that rely on inertial measurements (e.g., accelerometers, gyroscopes, other sensors). Summary of the invention

[0006] An example method for determining the orientation of a user equipment according to the present disclosure includes: determining a first position associated with the user equipment; determining a second position associated with a first wireless node; receiving, by the user equipment, a radio frequency signal transmitted from the first wireless node; determining two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and angle of arrival information associated with the radio frequency signal; determining a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained by the user equipment; and calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two measurements.

[0007] An example method for determining the orientation of a user equipment according to the present disclosure includes: determining a first position associated with the user equipment; determining a second position associated with a first wireless node; determining a third position associated with a second wireless node; determining first angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and received by the user equipment; determining first two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and the first angle of arrival information; determining second angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node and received by the user equipment; determining last two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the third position, and the second angle of arrival information; and calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the first two measurements and the last two measurements.

[0008] The items and / or technologies described herein may provide one or more of the following capabilities and other capabilities not mentioned. A wireless node such as a user equipment (UE) may determine the angle of arrival of a signal sent by one or more neighboring base stations or mobile devices. The wireless node may determine the current location of one or more neighboring base stations and mobile devices. The wireless node may be configured to obtain a gravity vector. The orientation of the wireless node may be calculated based on the angle of arrival information and the location of the neighboring base station or mobile device. An inertial sensor in the wireless node may be calibrated based on the calculated orientation. A trigger condition may be detected to initiate an orientation process. Applications based on the accuracy of orientation may be improved. The effects of signal drift associated with inertial sensors may be reduced. Other capabilities may be provided, and not every specific implementation according to the present disclosure must provide any of the capabilities discussed, let alone all of them. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 is a simplified diagram of an example wireless communication system.

[0010] Figure 2 is a block diagram of components of an example user equipment.

[0011] Figure 3 is a block diagram of the components of an example send / receive point.

[0012] Figure 4 is a block diagram of components of an exemplary server.

[0013] Figure 5 , Fig. 6A and Figure 6B is a diagram illustrating an example technique for determining the location of a mobile device using information obtained from one or more base stations.

[0014] Figure 7 Included are example reference signal received power values ​​for different RF beams transmitted by a base station.

[0015] Fig. 8A is a diagram of an example coordinate system associated with a mobile device.

[0016] Figure 8B is a diagram of an example transformation from a local coordinate system to a global coordinate system.

[0017] Fig. 9 is a diagram of an example process for determining an orientation of a mobile device based on a reference signal transmitted by a single wireless node.

[0018] Fig.10 is a graph of an example observation function for a received reference signal.

[0019] Fig.11is a diagram of an example process for determining an orientation of a mobile device based on reference signals transmitted by multiple wireless nodes.

[0020] Fig.12 is a block flow diagram of an example method for calculating an orientation of user equipment based on signals received from wireless nodes.

[0021] Fig.13 is a block flow diagram of an example method for calculating an orientation of user equipment based on signals received from multiple wireless nodes.

[0022] Fig.14 is a flow chart of an example method for calibrating an inertial measurement unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] Techniques for determining the orientation of a wireless node using reference signals sent by a network station are discussed herein. The network may utilize reference signal measurements obtained by one or more wireless nodes to determine channel characteristics and positioning information for wireless devices in the network. For example, downlink positioning reference signals (PRS) and uplink sounding reference signals (SRS) may be used to calculate range based on the flight time of the signal. Wireless nodes in the network (such as gNBs and UEs) may utilize one or more directional antenna arrays configured to beamform the transmitted and received signals. The wireless node may include phase shifters and cross elements (e.g., Butler matrices) configured to enable transmission using different departure angles (AoD, ZoD) configured using a phased array antenna configuration as well as angle of arrival (AoA) and elevation angle of arrival (ZoA) measurements. For ground-based wireless nodes (such as base stations), the orientation of the directional antenna is known and can be used for positioning measurements. However, the orientation of the mobile device may be unknown or based on measurements obtained from inertial sensors, which tend to be inaccurate due to signal drift and other functional limitations. The technology provided herein provides the technical advantage of utilizing reference signals sent by adjacent wireless nodes to enable a mobile device to determine its orientation within a network. In one example, a mobile device may be configured to calculate its orientation using a reference signal sent from a single station at a known location in combination with a gravity vector. A mobile device may be configured to determine an orientation using reference signals sent from multiple stations. A mobile device with a known orientation may be configured to calculate a calibration factor for an onboard inertial sensor. In one example, a mobile device may be configured to determine its orientation based on one or more triggering events, such as when it is in a static state (e.g., not moving), when an uncertainty value associated with an inertial sensor exceeds a threshold, or as required by other applications (e.g., beamforming, navigation, virtual reality, or other orientation-based processes). These techniques and configurations are examples, and other techniques and configurations may be used.

[0024] This specification may quote a sequence of actions to be performed by, for example, an element of a computing device. Each action described herein can be performed by a dedicated circuit (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions being executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of the two. The sequence of actions described herein may be implemented in a non-transient computer-readable medium having a corresponding set of computer instructions stored thereon, which, when executed, will cause an associated processor to perform the functionality described herein. Thus, the various aspects described herein may be implemented in a number of different forms, all of which fall within the scope of the present disclosure, including the claimed subject matter.

[0025] As used herein, the terms "wireless node", "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not dedicated to or otherwise limited to any specific radio access technology (RAT), unless otherwise specified. Generally speaking, such UE can be any wireless communication device (e.g., mobile phone, router, tablet computer, laptop computer, consumer asset tracking device, Internet of Things (IoT) device, virtual reality head-mounted device, etc.) used by a user to communicate on a wireless communication network. 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 "access terminal" or "AT", "client device", "wireless device", "subscriber device", "subscriber terminal", "subscriber station", "user terminal" or UT, "mobile terminal", "mobile station", "mobile device", or their variants. In general, UE can communicate with the core network via RAN, and through the core network, UE can be connected to external networks such as the Internet and other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for connecting to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible for the UE, such as through a wired access network, a WiFi network (eg, based on IEEE 802.11, etc.), and the like.

[0026] Depending on the network in which the base station is deployed, the base station may operate according to one of several RATs when communicating with the UE. Examples of base stations include access points (APs), network nodes, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs), or generalized Node Bs (gNodeBs, gNBs). In addition, in some systems, the base station may only provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems, the base station may provide additional control functions and / or network management functions.

[0027] The UE may be implemented by any of several types of devices, including but not limited to a printed circuit (PC) card, a compact flash device, an external or internal modem, a wireless or wired phone, a smart phone, a tablet device, a consumer asset tracking device, an asset tag, etc. The communication link through which the UE can transmit signals to the RAN is called an uplink channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel, etc.). The communication link through which the RAN can transmit signals to the UE is called a downlink 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 an uplink / reverse traffic channel or a downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0028] As used herein, depending on the context, the term "cell" or "sector" may correspond to one of the multiple cells of a base station or to the base station itself. The term "cell" may refer to a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., on a carrier), and may be associated with an identifier to distinguish adjacent cells operating via the same or different carriers (e.g., physical cell identifier (PCID), virtual cell identifier (VCID)). In some examples, a carrier may support multiple cells, and different cells may be configured according to different protocol types that may provide access to different types of devices (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other protocol types). In some examples, the term "cell" may refer to a portion of a geographic coverage area (e.g., a sector) on which the logical entity operates.

[0029] refer to Figure 1, an example of a communication system 100 includes UE 105, UE 106, a radio access network (RAN) (here, fifth generation (5G) next generation (NG) RAN (NG-RAN) 135), a 5G core network (5GC) 140, and a server 150. UE 105 and / or UE 106 may be, for example, an IoT device, a location tracker device, a cellular phone, a vehicle (e.g., a car, a truck, a bus, a ship, etc.), or other devices. A 5G network may also be referred to as a new radio (NR) network; NG-RAN 135 may be referred to as a 5G RAN or an NR RAN; and 5GC 140 may be referred to as an NG core network (NGC). Standardization of NG-RAN and 5GC is being conducted in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Accordingly, NG-RAN 135 and 5GC 140 may follow current or future standards for 5G support from 3GPP. NG-RAN 135 may be another type of RAN, for example, a 3G RAN, a 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) RAN, etc. UE 106 may be similarly configured and coupled to UE 105 to transmit and / or receive signals to and / or from similar other entities in system 100, but for simplicity of the drawing, the UE 106 is not shown in FIG. Figure 1 105. Similarly, for simplicity, the discussion focuses on UE 105. The communication system 100 may utilize information from a constellation 185 of satellite vehicles (SVs) 190, 191, 192, 193 of a satellite positioning system (SPS), such as a global navigation satellite system (GNSS), such as a global positioning system (GPS), a global navigation satellite system (GLONASS), Galileo, or BeiDou or some other local or regional SPS, such as the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), or a Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS). Additional components of the communication system 100 are described below. The communication system 100 may include additional or alternative components.

[0030] like Figure 1As shown, the NG-RAN 135 includes NR Node Bs (gNBs) 110a, 110b and a next generation eNodeB (ng-eNB) 114, and the 5GC 140 includes an access and mobility management function (AMF) 115, a session management function (SMF) 117, a location management function (LMF) 120, and a gateway mobile location center (GMLC) 125. The gNBs 110a, 110b, and ng-eNBs 114 are communicatively coupled to each other, each configured to perform bidirectional wireless communication with the UE 105, and each communicatively coupled to the AMF 115 and configured to perform bidirectional communication with the AMF. The gNBs 110a, 110b, and ng-eNBs 114 may be referred to as base stations (BSs). The AMF 115, the SMF 117, the LMF 120, and the GMLC 125 are communicatively coupled to each other, and the GMLC is communicatively coupled to the external client 130. The SMF 117 may serve as an initial contact point for a service control function (SCF) (not shown) to create, control, and delete media sessions. A base station (such as gNB 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114) may be a macro cell (e.g., a high-power cellular base station), or a small cell (e.g., a low-power cellular base station), or an access point (e.g., a short-range base station configured to utilize a short-range technology (such as WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Low Energy (BLE), Zigbee, etc.) for communication). One or more BSs (e.g., one or more of gNB 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114) may be configured to communicate with UE 105 via multiple carriers. Each of gNB 110a, 110b, and ng-eNB 114 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic area (e.g., a cell). Each cell may be divided into multiple sectors according to the base station antenna.

[0031] Figure 1A generalized illustration of the various components is provided, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate, and each component may be repeated or omitted as desired. Specifically, although one UE 105 is illustrated, many UEs (e.g., hundreds, thousands, millions, etc.) may be utilized in the communication system 100. Similarly, the communication system 100 may include a greater (or smaller) number of SVs (i.e., more or less than the four SVs 190-193 shown), gNBs 110a, gNBs 110b, ng-eNBs 114, AMFs 115, external clients 130, and / or other components. The illustrated connections connecting the various components in the communication system 100 include data and signaling connections, which may include additional (intermediate) components, direct or indirect physical and / or wireless connections, and / or additional networks. In addition, the components may be rearranged, combined, separated, replaced, and / or omitted depending on the desired functionality.

[0032] Although Figure 1 A 5G-based network is illustrated, but similar network implementations and configurations may be used for other communication technologies, such as 3G, Long Term Evolution (LTE), etc. The implementations described herein (which are used for 5G technologies and / or for one or more other communication technologies and / or protocols) may be used to send (or broadcast) directional synchronization signals, receive and measure directional signals at a UE (e.g., UE 105), and / or provide location assistance to UE 105 (via GMLC 125 or other location servers), and / or calculate the position of UE 105 at a device with positioning capabilities such as UE 105, gNB 110a, gNB 110b, or LMF 120 based on measurement parameters received at UE 105 for such directional transmitted signals. The gateway mobile location center (GMLC) 125, location management function (LMF) 120, access and mobility management function (AMF) 115, SMF 117, ng-eNB (eNodeB) 114 and gNB (gNodeB) 110a, 110b are examples and may be replaced by or include various other location server functionalities and / or base station functionalities, respectively, in various embodiments.

[0033] The system 100 is capable of wireless communication because the components of the system 100 can communicate with each other (at least sometimes using wireless connections), directly or indirectly, for example, via gNB 110a, 110b, ng-eNB 114 and / or 5GC 140 (and / or one or more other devices not shown, such as one or more other transceiver base stations). For indirect communication, the communication can be modified during transmission from one entity to another, for example, to change header information of a data packet, change the format, etc. The UE 105 may include multiple UEs and may be a mobile wireless communication device, but may communicate wirelessly as well as via a wired connection. The UE 105 may be any of a variety of devices, such as a smart phone, a tablet computer, a vehicle-based device, etc., but these are merely examples, as the UE 105 need not be any of these configurations, and other configurations of the UE may be used. Other UEs may include wearable devices (e.g., smart watches, smart jewelry, smart glasses, or head-mounted devices, etc.). Other UEs may also be used, whether currently existing or developed in the future. In addition, other wireless devices (whether mobile or not) may be implemented within the system 100 and may communicate with each other and / or with the UE 105, the gNBs 110a, 110b, the ng-eNBs 114, the 5GC 140, and / or the external clients 130. For example, such other devices may include Internet of Things (IoT) devices, medical devices, home entertainment and / or automation devices, etc. The 5GC 140 may communicate with the external client 130 (e.g., a computer system), for example, to allow the external client 130 (e.g., via the GMLC 125) to request and / or receive location information about the UE 105.

[0034] UE 105 or other devices may be configured to communicate in various networks and / or for various purposes and / or using various technologies (e.g., 5G, Wi-Fi communication, multi-frequency Wi-Fi communication, satellite positioning, one or more types of communication (e.g., GSM (Global System for Mobile), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution), V2X (Vehicle to Vehicle, e.g., V2P (vehicle to pedestrian), V2I (vehicle to infrastructure), V2V (vehicle to vehicle), etc.), IEEE802.11p, etc.). V2X communication may be cellular The system 100 may support operations on multiple carriers (waveform signals of different frequencies). A multi-carrier transmitter may send modulated signals simultaneously on multiple carriers. Each modulated signal may be a code division multiple access (CDMA) signal, a time division multiple access (TDMA) signal, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) signal, a single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) signal, or the like. Each modulated signal may be transmitted on a different carrier and may carry a pilot, overhead information, data, or the like. UEs 105, 106 may communicate with each other through UE-to-UE sidelink (SL) communication by transmitting on one or more sidelink (SL) channels such as a physical sidelink synchronization channel (PSSCH), a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), or a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH).

[0035] UE 105 may include and / or may be referred to as a device, a mobile device, a wireless device, a mobile terminal, a terminal, a mobile station (MS), a terminal (SET) enabled with secure user plane location (SUPL), or some other name. In addition, UE 105 may correspond to a cellular phone, a smart phone, a laptop computer, a tablet device, a PDA, a consumer asset tracking device, a navigation device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a health monitor, a security system, a smart city sensor, a smart meter, a wearable tracker, or some other portable or mobile device. Typically, although not required, UE 105 may use one or more radio access technologies (RATs) to support wireless communications, such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), LTE, High Rate Packet Data (HRPD), IEEE 802.11 WiFi (also known as Wi-Fi), (BT), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), 5G New Radio (NR) (e.g., using NG-RAN 135 and 5GC 140), etc. UE 105 may use a wireless local area network (WLAN) to support wireless communications, and the wireless local area network may use, for example, a digital subscriber line (DSL) or a packet cable to connect to other networks (e.g., the Internet). Using one or more of these RATs may allow UE 105 (e.g., via elements ( Figure 1 125), or possibly via GMLC 125) to communicate with external client 130 and / or allow external client 130 to receive location information about UE 105 (e.g., via GMLC 125).

[0036] UE 105 may include a single entity or may include multiple entities, such as in a personal area network, where users may employ audio, video, and / or data I / O (input / output) devices, and / or body sensors and separate wired or wireless modems. The estimate of the location of UE 105 may be referred to as location, location estimate, location fix, fix, position, position estimate, or position fix, and may be geographic, thereby providing location coordinates (e.g., latitude and longitude) of UE 105, which may or may not include an altitude component (e.g., height above sea level; height above or depth below ground level, floor level, or basement level). Alternatively, the location of UE 105 may be expressed as a municipal location (e.g., a postal address or a designation of a point or smaller area in a building, such as a specific room or floor). The location of UE 105 may be expressed as an area or volume (geographically or municipally defined) within which UE 105 is expected to be located with a certain probability or confidence level (e.g., 67%, 95%, etc.). The location of the UE 105 may be expressed as a relative location including, for example, a distance and direction relative to a known location. The relative location may be expressed as relative coordinates (e.g., X, Y (and Z) coordinates) defined relative to a certain origin at a known location, which may be defined, for example, geographically, in municipal form, or with reference to a point, area, or volume indicated, for example, on a map, floor plan, or building plan. In the description contained herein, the use of the term "location" may include any of these variations unless otherwise indicated. When calculating the location of the UE, local x, y, and possibly z coordinates are typically solved, and then (if necessary) the local coordinates are converted into absolute coordinates (e.g., with respect to latitude, longitude, and altitude above or below mean sea level).

[0037] UE 105 may be configured to communicate with other entities using one or more of a variety of technologies. UE 105 may be configured to be indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links. D2D P2P links may be supported using any suitable D2D radio access technology (RAT), such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Etc. One or more UEs in a group of UEs utilizing D2D communication may be located within a geographic coverage area of ​​a transmit / receive point (TRP), such as one or more of gNB 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114. Other UEs in the group may be outside such geographic coverage area or may be unable to receive transmissions from a base station for other reasons. A group of UEs communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, in which each UE may transmit to other UEs in the group. The TRP may facilitate the scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In other cases, D2D communication may be performed between UEs without involving a TRP. One or more UEs in a group of UEs utilizing D2D communication may be located within a geographic coverage area of ​​a TRP. Other UEs in the group may be outside such geographic coverage area or may be unable to receive transmissions from a base station for other reasons. A group of UEs communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, in which each UE may transmit to other UEs in the group. The TRP may facilitate the scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In other cases, D2D communication may be performed between UEs without involving TRP.

[0038] Figure 1 The base stations (BSs) in the NG-RAN 135 shown include NR Node Bs (referred to as gNB 110a and gNB 110b). Each pair of gNBs 110a, 110b in the NG-RAN 135 may be connected to each other via one or more other gNBs. Access to the 5G network is provided to the UE 105 via wireless communications between the UE 105 and one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b, which may provide wireless communications access to the 5GC 140 on behalf of the UE 105 using 5G. Figure 1 , it is assumed that the serving gNB for UE 105 is gNB 110a, but another gNB (e.g., gNB 110b) may serve as the serving gNB if UE 105 moves to another location, or may serve as a secondary gNB to provide additional throughput and bandwidth to UE 105.

[0039] Figure 1The base stations (BSs) in the illustrated NG-RAN 135 may include an ng-eNB 114, also referred to as a next generation evolved Node B. The ng-eNB 114 may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b in the NG-RAN 135 via one or more other gNBs and / or one or more other ng-eNBs. The ng-eNB 114 may provide LTE wireless access and / or evolved LTE (eLTE) wireless access to the UE 105. One or more of the gNBs 110a, gNB 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114 may be configured to function as a positioning-only beacon that may transmit signals to assist in determining the location of the UE 105, but may not receive signals from the UE 105 or other UEs.

[0040] The gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or the ng-eNB 114 may each include one or more TRPs. For example, each sector within a cell of the BS may include a TRP, but multiple TRPs may share one or more components (e.g., sharing a processor but having separate antennas). The system 100 may include only a macro TRP, or the system 100 may have different types of TRPs, such as a macro TRP, a pico TRP, and / or a femto TRP, among others. A macro TRP may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., a radius of several kilometers) and may allow unrestricted access to terminals with service subscriptions. A pico TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a pico cell) and may allow unrestricted access to terminals with service subscriptions. A femto TRP or a home TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a femto cell) and may allow restricted access to terminals associated with the femto cell (e.g., terminals of users in a home).

[0041] Each of the gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114 may include a radio unit (RU), a distributed unit (DU), and a central unit (CU). For example, the gNB 110a includes a RU 111, a DU 112, and a CU 113. The RU 111, the DU 112, and the CU 113 divide the functionality of the gNB 110a. Although the gNB 110a is shown as having a single RU, a single DU, and a single CU, the gNB may include one or more RUs, one or more DUs, and / or one or more CUs. The interface between the CU 113 and the DU 112 is referred to as the F1 interface. The RU 111 is configured to perform digital front end (DFE) functions (e.g., analog-to-digital conversion, filtering, power amplification, transmission / reception) and digital beamforming, and includes a portion of the physical (PHY) layer. The RU 111 may perform DFE using massive multiple input / multiple output (MIMO) and may be integrated with one or more antennas of the gNB 110a. DU 112 hosts the radio link control (RLC), medium access control (MAC), and physical layers of gNB 110a. One DU may support one or more cells, and each cell is supported by a single DU. The operation of DU 112 is controlled by CU 113. CU 113 is configured to perform functions for delivering user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, etc., although some functions are only assigned to DU 112. CU 113 hosts the radio resource control (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) protocols of gNB 110a. UE 105 can communicate with CU 113 via RRC, SDAP, and PDCP layers, communicate with DU 112 via RLC, MAC, and PHY layers, and communicate with RU 111 via the PHY layer.

[0042] As pointed out, although Figure 1 Nodes configured to communicate according to a 5G communication protocol are depicted, but nodes configured to communicate according to other communication protocols (such as, for example, an LTE protocol or an IEEE 802.11x protocol) may also be used. For example, in an evolved packet system (EPS) that provides LTE wireless access to UE 105, the RAN may include an evolved universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN), which may include base stations including evolved Node Bs (eNBs). The core network for the EPS may include an evolved packet core (EPC). The EPS may include the E-UTRAN plus the EPC, where the E-UTRAN corresponds to Figure 1 The NG-RAN 135 in the network and the EPC corresponds to the 5GC 140.

[0043] The gNBs 110a, 110b, and ng-eNB 114 may communicate with the AMF 115; for positioning functionality, the AMF communicates with the LMF 120. The AMF 115 may support mobility of the UE 105, including cell changes and handovers, and may participate in supporting signaling connections with the UE 105 and possible data and voice bearers for the UE 105. The LMF 120 may communicate directly with the UE 105, or directly with the gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114, for example, via wireless communications. The LMF 120 may support positioning of the UE 105 when the UE 105 accesses the NG-RAN 135, and may support various positioning procedures / methods, such as Assisted GNSS (A-GNSS), Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) (e.g., downlink (DL) OTDOA or uplink (UL) OTDOA), Round Trip Time (RTT), Multi-cell RTT, Real-Time Kinematics (RTK), Precise Point Positioning (PPP), Differential GNSS (DGNSS), Enhanced Cell ID (E-CID), Angle of Arrival (AoA), Angle of Departure (AoD), and / or other positioning methods. The LMF 120 may process a location service request for the UE 105 received from, for example, the AMF 115 or the GMLC 125. The LMF 120 may be connected to the AMF 115 and / or the GMLC 125. The LMF 120 may be referred to by other names, such as a Location Manager (LM), a Location Function (LF), a Commercial LMF (CLMF), or a Value-Added LMF (VLMF). A node / system implementing LMF 120 may additionally or alternatively implement other types of location support modules, such as an enhanced serving mobile location center (E-SMLC) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP). At least a portion of the positioning functionality (including the derivation of the location of UE 105) may be performed at UE 105 (e.g., using signal measurements obtained by UE 105 for signals sent by wireless nodes (such as gNB 110a, gNB 110b and / or ng-eNB 114), and / or auxiliary data provided to UE 105 by LMF 120, for example). AMF 115 may serve as a control node for processing signaling between UE 105 and 5GC 140, and may provide QoS (quality of service) flow and session management. AMF 115 may support the mobility of UE 105 (including cell changes and handovers), and may participate in supporting signaling connections to UE 105.

[0044] The server 150 (e.g., a cloud server) is configured to obtain a location estimate for the UE 105 and provide it to the external client 130. The server 150 may, for example, be configured to run a microservice / service that obtains a location estimate for the UE 105. The server 150 may, for example, obtain a location estimate from (e.g., by transmitting a location request) the UE 105, one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b (e.g., via the RU 111, DU 112, and CU 113), and / or the ng-eNB 114, and / or the LMF 120. As another example, the UE 105, one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b (e.g., via the RU 111, DU 112, and CU 113), and / or the LMF 120 may push the location estimate of the UE 105 to the server 150.

[0045] The GMLC 125 may support location requests for the UE 105 received from the external client 130 via the server 150, and may forward the location requests to the AMF 115 for forwarding by the AMF 115 to the LMF 120, or may forward the location requests directly to the LMF 120. A location response (e.g., containing a location estimate of the UE 105) from the LMF 120 may be returned to the GMLC 125 directly or via the AMF 115, and the GMLC 125 may then return the location response (e.g., containing the location estimate) to the external client 130 via the server 150. The GMLC 125 is shown as being connected to both the AMF 115 and the LMF 120, but may not be connected to either the AMF 115 or the LMF 120 in some implementations.

[0046] like Figure 1 As further illustrated, LMF 120 may communicate with gNB 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114 using a new radio positioning protocol A (which may be referred to as NPPa or NRPPa), which may be defined in 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 38.455. NRPPa may be the same as, similar to, or an extension of LTE Positioning Protocol A (LPPa) defined in 3GPP TS 36.455, wherein NRPPa messages are communicated between gNB 110a (or gNB 110b) and LMF 120, and / or between ng-eNB 114 and LMF 120 via AMF 115. Figure 1By further example, the LMF 120 and the UE 105 may communicate using the LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP), which may be defined in 3GPP TS 36.355. The LMF 120 and the UE 105 may additionally or alternatively communicate using a new radio positioning protocol (which may be referred to as NPP or NRPP), which may be the same as, similar to, or an extension of the LPP. Here, LPP and / or NPP messages may be transmitted between the UE 105 and the LMF 120 via the AMF 115 and the serving gNB 110a, gNB 110b, or serving ng-eNB 114 of the UE 105. For example, the LPP and / or NPP messages may be transmitted between the LMF 120 and the AMF 115 using the 5G Location Service Application Protocol (LCS AP), and may be transmitted between the AMF 115 and the UE 105 using the 5G Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocol. The LPP and / or NPP protocols may be used to support positioning of the UE 105 using UE-assisted and / or UE-based positioning methods such as A-GNSS, RTK, OTDOA, and / or E-CID. The NRPPa protocol may be used to support positioning of the UE 105 using a network-based positioning method such as E-CID (e.g., in conjunction with measurements obtained by the gNB 110a, gNB 110b, or ng-eNB 114), and / or may be used by the LMF 120 to obtain location-related information from the gNB 110a, gNB 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114, such as parameters defining directional SS transmissions from the gNB 110a, gNB 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114. The LMF 120 may be co-located or integrated with the gNB or TRP, or may be located remotely from the gNB and / or TRP and configured to communicate directly or indirectly with the gNB and / or TRP.

[0047] Using UE-assisted positioning methods, UE 105 may obtain location measurements and transmit these measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 120) for use in calculating a location estimate for UE 105. For example, the location measurements may include one or more of received signal strength indication (RSSI), round trip signal propagation time (RTT), reference signal time difference (RSTD), reference signal received power (RSRP), and / or reference signal received quality (RSRQ) of gNB 110a, gNB 110b, ng-eNB 114, and / or WLAN APs. The location measurements may additionally or alternatively include measurements of GNSS pseudoranges, code phases, and / or carrier phases of SVs 190-193.

[0048] Using the UE-based positioning method, UE 105 can obtain position measurements (e.g., which can be the same or similar to the position measurements of the UE-assisted positioning method), and the position of UE 105 can be calculated (e.g., with the aid of auxiliary data received from a location server (such as LMF120) or broadcast by gNB 110a, gNB 110b, ng-eNB 114 or other base stations or APs).

[0049] With network-based positioning methods, one or more base stations (e.g., gNBs 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114) or APs may obtain location measurements (e.g., measurements of RSSI, RTT, RSRP, RSRQ, or time of arrival (ToA) of signals sent by UE 105) and / or may receive measurements obtained by UE 105. The one or more base stations or APs may transmit the measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 120) for use in computing a location estimate for UE 105.

[0050] The information provided to LMF 120 by gNB 110a, 110b and / or ng-eNB 114 using NRPPa may include timing and configuration information and location coordinates for directional SS transmissions. LMF 120 may provide some or all of this information to UE 105 as assistance data in LPP and / or NPP messages via NG-RAN 135 and 5GC 140.

[0051] The LPP or NPP message transmitted from LMF 120 to UE 105 may instruct UE 105 to do any of a variety of things, depending on the desired functionality. For example, the LPP or NPP message may include instructions for UE 105 to obtain measurements for GNSS (or A-GNSS), WLAN, E-CID, and / or OTDOA (or some other positioning method). In the case of E-CID, the LPP or NPP message may instruct UE 105 to obtain one or more measurement parameters (e.g., beam ID, beam width, average angle, RSRP, RSRQ measurements) of directional signals transmitted within a particular cell supported by one or more of gNB 110a, gNB 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114 (or supported by some other type of base station (such as an eNB or WiFi AP)). The UE 105 may transmit these measurement parameters back to the LMF 120 in an LPP or NPP message (e.g., within a 5G NAS message) via the serving gNB 110a (or serving ng-eNB 114) and the AMF 115.

[0052] As noted, while the communication system 100 is described with respect to 5G technology, the communication system 100 may be implemented to support other communication technologies (such as GSM, WCDMA, LTE, etc.) that are used to support and interact with mobile devices (such as UE 105) (e.g., to implement voice, data, positioning, and other functionality). In some such embodiments, the 5GC 140 may be configured to control different air interfaces. For example, the 5GC 140 may use the non-3GPP interworking function (N3IWF, Figure 1 114) is connected to the WLAN. For example, the WLAN may support IEEE 802.11 WiFi access for the UE 105 and may include one or more WiFi APs. Here, the N3IWF may be connected to the WLAN and other elements in the 5GC 140, such as the AMF 115. In some embodiments, both the NG-RAN 135 and the 5GC 140 may be replaced by one or more other RANs and one or more other core networks. For example, in the EPS, the NG-RAN 135 may be replaced by the E-UTRAN including the eNBs, and the 5GC 140 may be replaced by the EPC including the mobility management entity (MME) replacing the AMF 115, the E-SMLC replacing the LMF 120, and the GMLC which may be similar to the GMLC 125. In such an EPS, the E-SMLC may use LPPa instead of NRPPa to transmit location information to and receive location information from the eNBs in the E-UTRAN, and may use LPP to support the positioning of the UE 105. In these other embodiments, positioning of UE 105 using directional PRS may be supported in a manner similar to that described herein for 5G networks, with the difference that the functions and procedures described herein for gNB 110a, gNB 110b, ng-eNB 114, AMF 115, and LMF 120 may in some cases be applied alternatively to other network elements, such as eNBs, WiFi APs, MMEs, and E-SMLCs.

[0053] As noted, in some embodiments, positioning functionality may be implemented at least in part using directional SS beams transmitted by base stations (such as gNB 110a, gNB 110b, and / or ng-eNB 114) that are located at a UE (e.g., Figure 1 In some instances, the UE may use directional SS beams from multiple base stations (such as gNB 110a, gNB 110b, ng-eNB 114, etc.) to calculate the positioning of the UE.

[0054] Also refer to Figure 2UE 200 is an example of UE 105 and includes a computing platform including one or more processors 210, a memory 211 including software (SW) 212, one or more sensors 213, a transceiver interface 214 for a transceiver 215 (which includes one or more wireless transceivers 240 and wired transceivers 250), a user interface 216, a satellite positioning system (SPS) receiver 217, a camera 218, and a positioning (motion) device 219. The processor 210, the memory 211, the sensor 213, the transceiver interface 214, the user interface 216, the SPS receiver 217, the camera 218, and the positioning (motion) device 219 can be communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 220 (which can be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the devices shown (e.g., the camera 218, the positioning (motion) device 219, and / or one or more of the sensors 213, etc.) can be omitted from UE 200. The processor 210 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The processor 210 may include multiple processors, including a general / application processor 230, a digital signal processor (DSP) 231, a modem processor 232, a video processor 233, and / or a sensor processor 234. One or more of the processors 230-234 may include multiple devices (e.g., multiple processors). For example, the sensor processor 234 may include, for example, a processor for radio frequency (RF) sensing (wherein one or more wireless signals and reflections transmitted are used to identify, map, and / or track objects) and / or ultrasound, etc. The modem processor 232 may support dual SIM / dual connections (or even more SIMs). For example, a SIM (subscriber identity module or subscriber identity module) may be used by an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), and another SIM may be used by a terminal user of the UE 200 to obtain connectivity. The memory 211 is a non-transitory storage medium that may include a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, an optical disk memory, and / or a read-only memory (ROM), etc. Memory 211 stores software 212, which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause processor 210 to perform various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, software 212 may not be directly executable by processor 210, but may be configured to cause processor 210 to perform functions, for example, when compiled and executed. This specification may refer to processor 210 performing functions, but this includes other specific implementations, such as specific implementations in which processor 210 executes software and / or firmware. This specification may refer to processor 210 performing functions as shorthand for one or more of processors 230-234 performing the functions.This description may refer to UE 200 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of UE 200 performing that function. Processor 210 may include a memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 211. The functionality of processor 210 is discussed more fully below.

[0055] Figure 2 The configuration of UE 200 shown is an example and not a limitation of the present disclosure (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, an example configuration of UE includes one or more processors of processors 230-234 of processor 210, memory 211, and wireless transceiver 240. Other exemplary configurations include one or more processors of processors 230-234 of processor 210, memory 211, wireless transceiver 240, and one or more of the following: sensor 213, user interface 216, SPS receiver 217, camera 218, PMD 219, and / or wired transceiver 250.

[0056] The UE 200 may include a modem processor 232 capable of performing baseband processing of signals received and down-converted by the transceiver 215 and / or the SPS receiver 217. The modem processor 232 may perform baseband processing of signals to be up-converted for transmission by the transceiver 215. Additionally or alternatively, the baseband processing may be performed by the general processor 230 and / or the DSP 231. However, other configurations may be used to perform the baseband processing.

[0057] UE 200 may include sensors 213, which may include, for example, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) 270, one or more magnetometers 271, and / or one or more environmental sensors 272. IMU 270 may include one or more inertial sensors, such as one or more accelerometers 273 (e.g., which collectively respond to acceleration of UE 200 in three dimensions) and / or one or more gyroscopes 274. Magnetometers may provide measurements to determine orientation (e.g., relative to magnetic north and / or true north) that may be used for any of a variety of purposes (e.g., to support one or more compass applications). Environmental sensors 272 may include, for example, one or more temperature sensors, one or more barometric pressure sensors, one or more ambient light sensors, one or more camera imagers, and / or one or more microphones, etc. Sensors 213 may generate analog and / or digital signals, indications of which may be stored in memory 211 and processed by DSP 231 and / or general processor 230 to support one or more applications (such as, for example, applications involving positioning and / or navigation operations).

[0058] The sensor 213 may be used for relative position measurement, relative position determination, motion determination, etc. The information detected by the sensor 213 may be used for motion detection, relative displacement, dead reckoning, sensor-based position determination, and / or sensor-assisted position determination. The sensor 213 may be used to determine whether the UE 200 is fixed (stationary) or moving and / or whether to report certain useful information related to the mobility of the UE 200 to the LMF 120. For example, based on the information obtained / measured by the sensor 213, the UE 200 may notify / report to the LMF 120 that the UE 200 has detected movement or that the UE 200 has moved, and report the relative displacement / distance (e.g., via dead reckoning implemented by the sensor 213, or sensor-based position determination, or sensor-assisted position determination). In another example, for relative positioning information, the sensor / IMU may be used to determine the angle and / or orientation of another device relative to the UE 200, etc.

[0059] The IMU 270 may be configured to provide measurements of the direction of motion and / or speed of motion of the UE 200, which may be used for relative position determination. For example, one or more accelerometers 273 and / or one or more gyroscopes 274 of the IMU 270 may detect the linear acceleration and rotational speed of the UE 200, respectively. The linear acceleration measurements and rotational speed measurements of the UE 200 may be integrated over time to determine the instantaneous direction of motion and displacement of the UE 200. The instantaneous direction of motion and displacement may be integrated to track the position of the UE 200. For example, a reference position of the UE 200 at a certain moment may be determined, for example, using the SPS receiver 217 (and / or by some other means), and measurements obtained from the accelerometer 273 and the gyroscope 274 after that moment may be used for dead reckoning to determine the current position of the UE 200 based on the movement (direction and distance) of the UE 200 relative to the reference position.

[0060] The magnetometer 271 can determine the magnetic field strength in different directions, which can be used to determine the orientation of the UE 200. For example, the orientation can be used to provide a digital compass for the UE 200. The magnetometer 271 may include a two-dimensional magnetometer configured to detect magnetic field strength in two orthogonal dimensions and provide an indication of the magnetic field strength. Additionally or alternatively, the magnetometer 271 may include a three-dimensional magnetometer configured to detect magnetic field strength in three orthogonal dimensions and provide an indication of the magnetic field strength. The magnetometer 271 may provide a component for sensing a magnetic field and providing an indication of the magnetic field to the processor 210, for example.

[0061] The transceiver 215 may include a wireless transceiver 240 and a wired transceiver 250 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless connections and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 240 may include a transmitter 242 and a receiver 244 coupled to one or more antennas 246 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) wireless signals 248, and converting signals from the wireless signals 248 to and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals. Thus, the transmitter 242 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the receiver 244 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 240 may be configured to communicate in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), PC5, IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc.) to transmit signals (e.g., with a TRP and / or one or more other devices). The new radio may use millimeter wave frequencies and / or frequencies below 6 GHz. The wired transceiver 250 may include a transmitter 252 and a receiver 254 configured for wired communication (e.g., with the NG-RAN 135) to, for example, transmit communications to and receive communications from the gNB 110a. The transmitter 252 may include a plurality of transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the receiver 254 may include a plurality of receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 250 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication. The transceiver 215 may be communicatively coupled to the transceiver interface 214, for example, via an optical connection and / or an electrical connection. The transceiver interface 214 may be at least partially integrated with the transceiver 215.

[0062] The user interface 216 may include one or more devices such as, for example, a speaker, a microphone, a display device, a vibration device, a keyboard, a touch screen, etc. The user interface 216 may include more than one of these devices. The user interface 216 may be configured to enable a user to interact with one or more applications hosted by the UE 200. For example, the user interface 216 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 to be processed by the DSP 231 and / or the general processor 230 in response to actions from the user. Similarly, the application hosted on the UE 200 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 to present output signals to the user. The user interface 216 may include an audio input / output (I / O) device, which includes, for example, a speaker, a microphone, a digital-to-analog circuit system, an analog-to-digital circuit system, an amplifier and / or a gain control circuit (including more than one of these devices). Other configurations of audio I / O devices may be used. Additionally or alternatively, the user interface 216 may include one or more touch sensors that respond to touch and / or pressure on, for example, a keyboard and / or a touch screen of the user interface 216 .

[0063] The SPS receiver 217 (e.g., a global positioning system (GPS) receiver) may be capable of receiving and acquiring the SPS signal 260 via the SPS antenna 262. The antenna 262 is configured to convert the wireless SPS signal 260 into a wired signal, such as an electrical signal or an optical signal, and may be integrated with the antenna 246. The SPS receiver 217 may be configured to process the acquired SPS signal 260 in whole or in part to estimate the position of the UE 200. For example, the SPS receiver 217 may be configured to determine the position of the UE 200 by performing trilateration using the SPS signal 260. The general processor 230, the memory 211, the DSP 231, and / or one or more dedicated processors (not shown) may be utilized in conjunction with the SPS receiver 217 to process the acquired SPS signal in whole or in part, and / or calculate the estimated position of the UE 200. The memory 211 may store indications (e.g., measurements) of the SPS signal 260 and / or other signals (e.g., signals acquired from the wireless transceiver 240) for performing positioning operations. The general purpose processor 230 , the DSP 231 , and / or one or more dedicated processors, and / or the memory 211 may provide or support a location engine for use in processing measurements to estimate the location of the UE 200 .

[0064] UE 200 may include a camera 218 for capturing still or moving images. Camera 218 may include, for example, an imaging sensor (e.g., a charge coupled device or CMOS imager), a lens, analog-to-digital circuits, a frame buffer, etc. Additional processing, conditioning, encoding, and / or compression of signals representing captured images may be performed by general purpose processor 230 and / or DSP 231. Additionally or alternatively, video processor 233 may perform conditioning, encoding, compression, and / or manipulation of signals representing captured images. Video processor 233 may decode / decompress stored image data for presentation on a display device (not shown) (e.g., of user interface 216).

[0065] A positioning (motion) device (PMD) 219 may be configured to determine the location and possible motion of UE 200. For example, PMD 219 may be in communication with SPS receiver 217, and / or include a portion or all of an SPS receiver. PMD 219 may additionally or alternatively be configured to determine the location of UE 200 using ground-based signals (e.g., at least some of wireless signals 248) for trilateration, aided acquisition, and use of SPS signals 260, or both. PMD 219 may be configured to determine the location of UE 200 using one or more other techniques (e.g., relying on the UE's self-reported location (e.g., a portion of the UE's location beacon)), and may use a combination of techniques (e.g., SPS and ground-based positioning signals) to determine the location of UE 200. The PMD 219 may include one or more sensors 213 (e.g., gyroscopes, accelerometers, magnetometers, etc.) that may sense the orientation and / or motion of the UE 200 and provide an indication of the orientation and / or motion, which the processor 210 (e.g., general processor 230 and / or DSP 231) may be configured to use to determine the motion (e.g., velocity vector and / or acceleration vector) of the UE 200. The PMD 219 may be configured to provide an indication of uncertainty and / or error in the determined positioning and / or motion.

[0066] Also refer to Figure 3, an example of a TRP 300 for a BS (e.g., gNB 110a, gNB 110b, ng-eNB 114) includes: a computing platform including a processor 310, a memory 311 including software (SW) 312, a transceiver 315, and (optionally) an SPS receiver 317. The processor 310, the memory 311, the transceiver 315, and the SPS receiver 317 may be communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 320 (e.g., which may be configured for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the devices shown (e.g., a wireless interface and / or an SPS receiver 317) may be omitted from the TRP 300. The SPS receiver 317 may be configured similarly to the SPS receiver 217 to be able to receive and acquire an SPS signal 360 via an SPS antenna 362. The processor 310 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. Processor 310 may include multiple processors (e.g., including a general / application processor, a DSP, a modem processor, a video processor, and / or a sensor processor, such as Figure 2 ). Memory 311 is a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, optical disk memory, and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. Memory 311 stores software 312, which may be a processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause processor 310 to perform various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, software 312 may not be directly executable by processor 310, but may be configured to cause processor 310 to perform functions, for example, when compiled and executed. This specification may refer to processor 310 performing functions, but this includes other specific implementations, such as specific implementations in which processor 310 executes software and / or firmware. This specification may refer to processor 310 performing functions as a shorthand for one or more processors included in processor 310 performing the function. The description may refer to TRP 300 performing functions as a shorthand for one or more appropriate components of TRP 300 (and thereby one of gNB 110a, gNB 110b, ng-eNB 114) performing the function. Processor 310 may include memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 311. The functionality of processor 310 is discussed more fully below.

[0067] The transceiver 315 may include a wireless transceiver 340 and a wired transceiver 350 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless connections and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 340 may include a transmitter 342 and a receiver 344 coupled to one or more antennas 346 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink or downlink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink or uplink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) wireless signals 348 and converting signals from the wireless signals 348 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to the wireless signals 348. Thus, the transmitter 342 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the receiver 344 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 340 may be configured to communicate with the wireless network in accordance with various radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc.) to transmit signals (e.g., with UE 200, one or more other UEs, and / or one or more other devices). Wired transceiver 350 may include a transmitter 352 and a receiver 354, which are configured for, for example, wired communication with network 140, for example, to send communications to LMF 120 and receive communications from the LMF. Transmitter 352 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or receiver 354 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. Wired transceiver 350 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0068] Figure 3 The configuration of the TRP 300 shown is an example and not a limitation of the present disclosure (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, the description herein discusses that the TRP 300 is configured to perform several functions or that the TRP performs several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by the LMF 120 and / or the UE 200 (i.e., the LMF 120 and / or the UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).

[0069] Also refer to Figure 4, an example of LMF 120 includes a computing platform including a processor 410, a memory 411 including software (SW) 412, and a transceiver 415. The processor 410, the memory 411, and the transceiver 415 may be communicatively coupled to each other via a bus 420 (which may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication). One or more of the devices shown (e.g., a wireless interface) may be omitted from the server 400. The processor 410 may include one or more intelligent hardware devices, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The processor 410 may include a plurality of processors (e.g., including a general / application processor, a DSP, a modem processor, a video processor, and / or a sensor processor, such as Figure 2 ). Memory 411 is a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, optical disk memory and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. Memory 411 stores software 412, which may be a processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to cause processor 410 to perform various functions described herein when executed. Alternatively, software 412 may not be directly executable by processor 410, but may be configured to cause processor 410 to perform functions, for example, when compiled and executed. This specification may refer to processor 410 performing functions, but this includes other specific implementations, such as specific implementations in which processor 410 executes software and / or firmware. This specification may refer to processor 410 performing functions as a shorthand for one or more processors included in processor 410 performing the function. This specification may refer to server 400 (or LMF 120) performing functions as a shorthand for one or more appropriate components of server 400 (e.g., LMF 120) performing the function. Processor 410 may include memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or in lieu of memory 411. The functionality of processor 410 is discussed more fully below.

[0070] The transceiver 415 may include a wireless transceiver 440 and a wired transceiver 450 configured to communicate with other devices via wireless connections and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 440 may include a transmitter 442 and a receiver 444 coupled to one or more antennas 446 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels) wireless signals 448 and converting signals from the wireless signals 448 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to the wireless signals 448. Thus, the transmitter 442 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the receiver 444 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 440 may be configured to communicate with a variety of radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.11p), WiFi, WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Zigbee, etc.) to send signals (e.g., to UE 200, one or more other UEs, and / or one or more other devices). The wired transceiver 450 may include a transmitter 452 and a receiver 454 configured for wired communication, for example, to communicate wired with the NG-RAN 135 to transmit communications to, for example, the TRP 300 and receive communications therefrom. The transmitter 452 may include a plurality of transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the receiver 454 may include a plurality of receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 450 may be configured, for example, for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0071] Figure 4 The configuration of the server 400 shown is an example and not a limitation of the present disclosure (including the claims), and other configurations may be used. For example, the wireless transceiver 440 may be omitted. Additionally or alternatively, the description herein discusses that the server 400 is configured to perform several functions or that the server performs several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by the TRP 300 and / or the UE 200 (i.e., the TRP 300 and / or the UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).

[0072] One or more of many different techniques may be used to determine the location of an entity, such as UE 105. For example, known location determination techniques include RTT, multi-RTT, RSTD (e.g., OTDOA, also known as TDOA and including UL-TDOA and DL-TDOA), enhanced cell identification (E-CID), DL-AoD, UL-AoA, etc. RTT uses the time for a signal to travel from one entity to another and back to determine the range between the two entities. This distance plus the known position of the first of the entities and the angle (e.g., azimuth) between the two entities can be used to determine the position of the second of the entities. In multi-RTT (also known as multi-cell RTT), multiple distances from one entity (e.g., UE) to other entities (e.g., TRP) and the known positions of the other entities can be used to determine the position of the one entity. In RSTD technology, the travel time difference between one entity and the other entities can be used to determine the relative distance to the other entities, and the relative distance combined with the known positions of the other entities can be used to determine the position of the one entity. Angle of arrival and / or angle of departure can be used to help determine the position of the entity. For example, the angle of arrival or departure of a signal in combination with the distance between devices (the distance determined using the signal (e.g., the travel time of the signal, the received power of the signal, etc.)) and the known position of one of the devices can be used to determine the position of the other device. The angle of arrival or departure angle can be an azimuth relative to a reference direction (such as true north). The angle of arrival or departure angle can be a zenith angle relative to directly upward from an entity (i.e., relative to radially outward from the center of the earth). E-CID uses the identity of the serving cell, the timing advance (i.e., the difference between the reception time and the transmission time at the UE), the estimated timing and power of the detected neighbor cell signals, and possible angles of arrival (e.g., the angle of arrival of the signal from the base station at the UE, or vice versa) to determine the position of the UE. In RSTD, the difference in arrival times of signals from different sources at the receiving device together with the known positions of these sources and the known offsets of the transmission times from these sources are used to determine the position of the receiving device.

[0073] Reference Figure 5 , shows an example wireless communication system 500 according to aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 5In the example of , UE 504 (which may correspond to any UE described herein) is attempting to calculate an estimate of its location, or assist another entity (e.g., a base station or core network component, another UE, a location server, a third-party application, etc.) in calculating an estimate of its location. UE 504 may communicate wirelessly with multiple base stations 502-1, 502-2, and 502-3 (which may correspond to any combination of base stations described herein) using RF signals and standardized protocols for modulating RF signals and exchanging information packets. By extracting different types of information from the exchanged RF signals and utilizing the layout of the wireless communication system 500 (e.g., base station locations, antenna orientations, geometry, etc.), UE 504 may determine its location, or assist in determining its location in a predefined reference coordinate system. In one aspect, UE 504 may specify its location using a two-dimensional (2D) coordinate system; however, the aspects disclosed herein are not limited thereto, and may also be applicable to determining location using a three-dimensional (3D) coordinate system when additional dimensions are desired. In addition, although Figure 5 One UE 504 and three base stations 502-1, 502-2, 502-3 are illustrated, but it is understood that there may be more UEs 504 and more or fewer base stations.

[0074] To support positioning estimation, base stations 502-1, 502-2, 502-3 may be configured to broadcast positioning reference signals (e.g., PRS, NRS, TRS, CRS, etc.) to UEs in their coverage areas, so that UE 504 can measure the characteristics of such reference signals. For example, the observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) positioning method is a multi-lateration positioning method, in which UE 504 measures the time difference (referred to as reference signal time difference (RSTD)) between specific reference signals (e.g., PRS, CRS, CSI-RS, etc.) sent by different pairs of network nodes (e.g., pairs of base stations, pairs of antennas of base stations, etc.), and reports these time differences to a location server such as server 400 (e.g., LMF 120), or calculates a position estimate based on these time differences itself.

[0075] Generally, at a reference network node (e.g. Figure 5 502-1 in the example of FIG. 502-2 and one or more neighboring network nodes (eg, Figure 5RSTD is measured between base stations 502-2 and 502-3 in the example of UE 504). For any single positioning use of OTDOA, the reference network node remains the same for all RSTDs measured by UE 504, and will typically correspond to the serving cell of UE 504 or another nearby cell with good signal strength at UE 504. In one aspect, in the case where the measured network node is a cell supported by a base station, the neighboring network node will typically be a cell supported by a different base station than the base station used for the reference cell, and may have good or poor signal strength at UE 504. The position calculation may be based on the measured time difference (e.g., RSTD) and knowledge of the location and relative transmission timing of the network nodes (e.g., whether the network nodes are accurately synchronized or whether each network node transmits with a known time difference relative to other network nodes).

[0076] To assist the positioning operation, for reference network nodes (e.g. Figure 5 502-1 in the example in FIG. 502-2 ) and neighboring network nodes relative to the reference network node (eg, Figure 5 2 and 502-3 in the example of FIG), a location server (e.g., server 400, LMF 120) may provide OTDOA assistance data to UE 504. For example, the assistance data may provide a center channel frequency of each network node, various reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., number of consecutive positioning subframes, periodicity of positioning subframes, silent sequence, frequency hopping sequence, reference signal identifier (ID), reference signal bandwidth), network node global ID, and / or other cell-related parameters applicable to OTDOA. The OTDOA assistance data may indicate the serving cell of UE 504 as a reference network node.

[0077] In some cases, the OTDOA assistance data may also include an "expected RSTD" parameter, along with an uncertainty for the expected RSTD parameter, that provides information to the UE 504 about the RSTD values ​​that the UE 504 is expected to measure at its current location between the reference network node and each neighboring network node. The expected RSTD and associated uncertainty may define a search window for the UE 504 within which the UE 504 is expected to measure RSTD values. The OTDOA assistance information may also include reference signal configuration information parameters that allow the UE 504 to determine when reference signal positioning opportunities occur on signals received from various neighboring network nodes relative to reference signal positioning opportunities for the reference network node, and to determine reference signal sequences sent from various network nodes to measure signal arrival time (ToA) or RSTD.

[0078] In one aspect, although a location server (e.g., server 400, LMF 120) may transmit assistance data to UE 504, alternatively, the assistance data may originate directly from the network node (e.g., base station 502) itself (e.g., in a periodically broadcast overhead message, etc.). Alternatively, UE 504 may detect neighboring network nodes on its own without using assistance data.

[0079] The UE 504 (e.g., based in part on assistance data, if provided) may measure and (optionally) report the RSTD between reference signals received from a pair of network nodes. Using the RSTD measurements, known absolute or relative transmit timing of each network node, and known positioning of transmit antennas for the reference network node and neighboring network nodes, the network (e.g., server 400, LMF 120, base station 502) or UE 504 may estimate the positioning of the UE 504. More specifically, the RSTD of a neighboring network node "k" relative to a reference network node "Ref" may be given as (ToAk - ToARef), where the ToA value may be measured modulo one subframe duration (1 ms) to eliminate the effect of measuring different subframes at different times. Figure 5 In the example of , the time differences measured between the reference cell of base station 502-1 and the cells of neighboring base stations 502-2 and 502-3 are represented as τ2-τ1 and τ3-τ1, where τ1, τ2, and τ3 represent the ToA of the reference signals from the transmit antennas of base stations 502-1, 502-2, and 502-3, respectively. UE 504 can then convert the ToA measurements for different network nodes into RSTD measurements and (optionally) transmit them to server 400 / LMF 120. Using (i) RSTD measurements, (ii) known absolute or relative transmit timing of each network node, (iii) known positioning of physical transmit antennas for reference network nodes and neighboring network nodes, and / or (iv) directional reference signal characteristics (such as the direction of transmission), the positioning of UE 504 can be determined (determined by UE 504 or server 400 / LMF 120).

[0080] Still refer to Figure 5, when UE 504 uses the time difference measured by OTDOA to obtain a position estimate, the necessary additional data (e.g., the location and relative transmission timing of network nodes) may be provided to UE 504 by a location server (e.g., server 400, LMF 120). In some implementations, the position estimate for UE 504 may be obtained (e.g., by UE 504 itself or by server 400 / LMF 120) from the time difference measured by OTDOA and from other measurements made by UE 504 (e.g., measurements of signal timing from global positioning system GPS or other global navigation satellite system (GNSS) satellites). In these implementations (referred to as hybrid positioning), OTDOA measurements may help obtain a position estimate for UE 504, but may not fully determine the position estimate.

[0081] Uplink time difference of arrival (UTDOA) is a positioning method similar to OTDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., sounding reference signal (SRS), uplink positioning reference signal (ULPRS), SRS for positioning signal) sent by a UE (e.g., UE 504). In addition, transmit and / or receive beamforming at base stations 502-1, 502-2, 502-3 and / or UE 504 can achieve wideband bandwidth at the cell edge to improve accuracy. Beam refinement can also take advantage of channel reciprocity procedures in 5G NR.

[0082] In NR, precise timing synchronization is not required across the network. Instead, it is sufficient to have coarse timing synchronization across gNBs (e.g., within the cyclic prefix (CP) duration of an OFDM symbol). Coarse timing synchronization is generally sufficient for round trip time (RTT) based methods and the sidelink assisted methods described herein, and is therefore the de facto positioning method in NR.

[0083] Reference Fig. 6A , shows an exemplary wireless communication system 600 according to various aspects of the present disclosure. Fig. 6AIn the example of , UE 604 (which may correspond to any UE described herein) is attempting to calculate an estimate of its location, or assist another entity (e.g., a base station or core network component, another UE, a location server, a third-party application, etc.) in calculating an estimate of its location. UE 604 may communicate wirelessly with multiple base stations 602-1, 602-2, and 602-3 (which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein) using RF signals and standardized protocols for modulating RF signals and exchanging information packets. By extracting different types of information from the exchanged RF signals and utilizing the layout of the wireless communication system 600 (i.e., base station locations, geometry, etc.), UE 604 may determine its location, or assist in determining its location in a predefined reference coordinate system. In one aspect, UE 604 may use a two-dimensional coordinate system to specify its location; however, the aspects disclosed herein are not limited thereto, and may also be applicable to determining a location using a three-dimensional coordinate system when additional dimensions are desired. Additionally, although Fig. 6A One UE 604 and three base stations 602-1, 602-2, 602-3 are illustrated, but it should be understood that there may be more UEs 604 and more base stations.

[0084] To support positioning estimation, base stations 602-1, 602-2, 602-3 may be configured to broadcast reference RF signals (e.g., PRS, NRS, CRS, TRS, CSI-RS, PSS, SSS, etc.) to UEs 604 in their coverage areas, so that UEs 604 can measure characteristics of such reference RF signals. For example, UE 604 may measure the ToA of specific reference RF signals (e.g., PRS, NRS, CRS, CSI-RS, etc.) transmitted by at least three different base stations, and may report these ToAs (and additional information) back to a serving base station (e.g., base station 602-2) or another positioning entity (e.g., server 400, LMF 120) using an RTT positioning method.

[0085] In one aspect, although described as UE 604 measuring a reference RF signal from base stations 602-1, 602-2, 602-3, UE 604 may measure a reference RF signal from one of a plurality of cells supported by base stations 602-1, 602-2, 602-3. In the case where UE 604 measures a reference RF signal sent by a cell supported by base station 602-2, at least two other reference RF signals measured by UE 604 for performing the RTT procedure will be from cells supported by base stations 602-1, 602-3 different from the first base station 602-2 and may have good or poor signal strength at UE 604.

[0086] In order to determine the location (x, y) of UE 604, the entity determining the location of UE 604 needs to know the locations of base stations 602-1, 602-2, and 602-3, which can be represented in a reference coordinate system as (x k ,y k ), among which Fig. 6A In the example of k=1, 2, 3. In the case where one of the base station 602-2 (e.g., the serving base station) or the UE 604 determines the location of the UE 604, the locations of the base stations 602-1, 602-3 involved may be provided by a location server (e.g., the server 400, the LMF 120) having the network geometry to the serving base station 602-2 or the UE 604. Alternatively, the location server may determine the location of the UE 604 using known network geometry.

[0087] Each of the UE 604 or the corresponding base stations 602-1, 602-2, 602-3 may determine the distance (d k , where k=1, 2, 3). In one aspect, determining the RTT 610-1, 610-2, 610-3 of signals exchanged between the UE 604 and any base station 602-1, 602-2, 602-3 may be performed and converted into a distance (d k ). RTT techniques can measure the time between sending a signaling message (e.g., a reference RF signal) and receiving a response. These methods can utilize calibration to remove any processing and hardware delays. In some environments, it can be assumed that the processing delays of UE 604 and base stations 602-1, 602-2, 602-3 are the same. However, such assumptions may not hold true in practice.

[0088] Once each distance d is determined k UE 604, base stations 602-1, 602-2, 602-3 or location servers (e.g., server 400, LMF 120) can solve the location (x, y) of UE 604 by using various known geometric design techniques (such as, for example, trilateration). Fig. 6A It can be seen that the location of UE 604 is ideally located at the common intersection of three semicircles, each of which has a radius d k and center (x k ,y k ), where k = 1, 2, 3.

[0089] Reference Figure 6B, a diagram 650 of an example positioning estimate based on beamforming is shown. In one example, additional position information in the form of an angle of arrival (AoA) or an angle of departure (AoD) may be obtained, which defines a straight-line direction (e.g., which may be in a horizontal plane or in three dimensions) or a possible range of directions (e.g., of UE 604 from the locations of base stations 602-1, 602-2, 602-3). The intersection of the two directions at or near the point (x, y) may provide another estimate of the location of UE 604. For example, a first beam 652-1 transmitted from a first station 602-1 may define a coverage area within the dimensions of the expected propagation path of the beam. In one example, a combination of the dimensions of the beam and the range measurement may be used to generate a position of UE 604. Other beams may also be used to refine or determine the position of UE 604. For example, a second beam 652-2 transmitted from a third base station 602-3 may be used to determine the orientation of UE 604 relative to the third base station 602-3. The position estimate of the UE 604 can be based on the intersection area between the first beam 652-1 and the second beam 652-2. Other range measurements and beam angles can also be used to determine the location of the UE 604.

[0090] A location estimate (e.g., for a UE 604) may be referred to by other names, such as position estimate, position, fix, location fix, fix, etc. The location estimate may be geodetic and include coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude), or may be municipal and include a street address, postal address, or some other textual description of the location. The location estimate may be further defined relative to some other known location or in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). The location estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volume within which the location is expected to be contained with some specified or default confidence level).

[0091] Reference Figure 7, a diagram 700 of example reference signal received power (RSRP) values ​​for different radio frequency beams transmitted by a base station is shown. The base station 702 may be configured to transmit a reference signal (RS) such as a PRS, NRS, TRS, CRS, etc. using beamforming, and a mobile device (such as a UE 704) may be configured to receive and measure the reference signal. For example, the base station may transmit a first RS 702a at a first angle, a second RS 702b at a second angle, and a third RS 702c at a third angle. The angles of RS 702a-b may be based on 3D coordinates and may include azimuth and elevation. In an example, the UE 704 may be configured to utilize receive beamforming and may receive RS 702a-c via receive beam 704a. The relative RSRP of each of RS 702a-c as received by the UE 704 is illustrated as a graph in the diagram 700. The first RSRP value 706a is associated with the first RS 702a, the second RSRP value 706b is associated with the second RS 702b, and the third RSRP value 706c is associated with the third RS 702c. The UE 704 may use the relatively high first RSRP value 706a to determine the orientation relative to the base station 702. For example, the auxiliary data received from the network may include beam information, which includes the transmission orientation for RS 702a-c, and the UE 704 may be configured to determine the orientation relative to the base station 702 as the reciprocal value of the transmission angle for the first RS 702a (for example, the transmission orientation of the first RS is 090 and the reciprocal value is 270). In one example, the UE 704 may be configured to use the AoA of the first RS 702a to determine the orientation relative to the base station 702. The AoA of the first RS 702a is based on the orientation of the receiving antenna array, which may also be based on the orientation of the UE 704.

[0092] Reference Fig. 8A , shows an example coordinate system 800 that may be used in whole or in part to facilitate or support measurements obtained via inertial sensors of UE 200. For example, inertial sensor measurements may be obtained based at least in part on output signals generated by an associated accelerometer 273 or gyroscope 274. The example coordinate system 800 may include a three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system. Displacements of UE 200, representing, for example, acceleration vibrations, may be detected or measured at least in part by a suitable accelerometer such as a three-dimensional (3D) accelerometer with reference to three linear dimensions or axes X, Y, and Z relative to an origin of the example coordinate system 800. It should be understood that the example coordinate system 800 may or may not be aligned with the body of UE 200. In one specific implementation, a non-Cartesian coordinate system may be used, or the coordinate system may define mutually orthogonal dimensions.

[0093] Sometimes, rotational movement of UE 200 (such as a change in orientation with respect to gravity) can be detected or measured, at least in part, by one or more accelerometers 273 with reference to one or two dimensions. For example, in some instances, rotational movement of UE 200 can be detected or measured with reference to coordinates. To detect or measure, 806, and tau (τ) represents the pitch or rotation about the Y axis, as generally illustrated at 808. Rotational motion of the UE 200 may also be detected or measured by the gyroscope 274, such as, for example, relative to the X, Y, and Z orthogonal axes. Thus, the 3D accelerometer may at least in part detect or measure the level of acceleration vibration and the change in gravity relative to the roll or pitch dimension, for example, thereby providing five observability dimensions (X, Y, Z, φ, τ). Of course, these are merely examples of motions that may be detected or measured, at least in part, with reference to the example coordinate system 800, and the claimed subject matter is not limited to a particular motion or coordinate system.

[0094] In one example, the rotational movement of the UE 200 may be detected or measured at least in part by a suitable gyroscope 274 to provide a sufficient or suitable degree of observability. The gyroscope 274 may detect or measure the rotational movement of the UE 200 with reference to one, two, or three dimensions. Thus, in some instances, the rotation of the gyroscope may be, for example, based at least in part on the coordinates of the gyroscope. To detect or measure, 806, tau (τ) represents the roll or rotation about the X-axis, tau (τ) represents the pitch or rotation about the Y-axis, and psi (ψ) represents the yaw or rotation about the Z-axis, as generally referenced at 810. A gyroscope may generally (but not necessarily) provide measurements in terms of angular acceleration (e.g., angular change per unit square of time), angular velocity (e.g., angular change per unit time), etc. Again, the details herein regarding motion that may be detected or measured, at least in part, by a gyroscope with reference to example coordinate system 800 are merely examples, and claimed subject matter is not limited in this regard.

[0095] Reference Figure 8B, a diagram 850 showing an example transformation from a local coordinate system (LCS) to a global coordinate system (GCS) is shown. In general, a GCS 852 is defined for a system including multiple BSs and UEs. An array antenna for a BS or UE may be defined in an LCS 854. The LCS 854 is used as a reference for defining the vector far field (i.e., pattern and polarization) of each antenna element in the array. The far field may be known in the LCS by a formula. The placement of the array within the GCS 852 is defined by the transformation between the GCS and the LCS. The orientation of the array relative to the GCS is typically defined by a rotation sequence (e.g., as described in Section 7.1.3 of 3GPP TR 38.901, Version 16.1.0 (2019-12)). Since this orientation is generally different from the GCS orientation, it is necessary to map the vector field of the array elements from the LCS to the GCS. The mapping depends on the orientation of the array and is given by the equation in Section 7.1.3. In one example, any mechanical orientation of the array can be achieved by rotating the LCS 854 relative to the GCS 852. Any 3D rotation of the LCS 854 relative to the GCS 852 can be defined by angles α, β, γ. The set of angles α, β, γ can also be referred to as the orientation of the array antenna relative to the GCS. The transformation from the LCS 854 to the GCS 852 can depend on the angles α, β, γ. Angle α can also be referred to as an azimuth angle, β can also be referred to as a downtilt angle, and γ can also be referred to as a tilt angle. The transformation from the LCS 854 to the GCS 852 can be used herein to determine the orientation of the UE and / or calibrate an inertial sensor (e.g., IMU 270) in the UE.

[0096] Reference Fig. 9 , a diagram 900 of an example process for determining an orientation of a mobile device based on a reference signal transmitted by a single wireless node is shown. Diagram 900 includes a base station 902, a UE 904, and a conceptual indication 906 of the earth. The UE 904 is configured to receive a signal 908 transmitted from the base station 902 and can determine a relative AoA of the signal 908. The UE 904 can also determine a gravity vector 910 based on a signal generated from an inertial sensor such as the IMU 270. The current attitude of the UE 904 is indicated by an alignment vector 912. With reference to Fig.10 , further reference Fig. 9, a diagram 1000 of example observation functions for a received reference signal is shown. Signal 908 is received by antenna array 904-1 (located on the frame of UE 904). The observation function is based on a roll, pitch, yaw (RPY) frame associated with antenna array 904-1 and is extended to be based on UE 904. For example, a first observation function 1008 (theta (θ)) may be associated with an elevation angle and may be measured from a roll axis. A second observation function 1010 (phi (φ)) may be associated with an azimuth angle and may be measured from a pitch axis. In one example, the current attitude of UE 904 (based on a fixed orientation of antenna array 904-1) may be expressed as And based on the rotation matrix from the RPY frame (e.g., LCS) associated with the UE 904 to the Northeastern Sky (ENU) frame (e.g., GCS), based on the three rotation angles (α, β, γ) from the RPY to the ENU frame, as Figure 8B The rotation matrix is ​​roughly depicted in in:

[0097]

[0098] In operation, return reference Fig. 9 UE 904 may be configured to obtain the position (x) of base station 902 in an Earth-centered Inertial (ECI) frame. s ,y s ,z s ) ECI For example, the UE 904 may receive assistance data indicating the location of the base station 902, and / or the base station 902 may broadcast or otherwise transmit location and beam configuration information. The UE 904 may also be configured to use terrestrial and / or satellite navigation signals (e.g., RTT, TDOA, GNSS, etc.) to determine the current location (x) in the ECI and / or ENU frames. c ,y c ,z c ). UE 904 may use the current location (x c ,y c ,z c ) converts the location of base station 902 to ENU frame (x s ′,y s ′,z s ′) ENU UE 904 may determine the AoA of signal 908 based on the RPY frame of UE 904, including two observation functions 1008, 1010, including elevation angle (θ) and azimuth angle Generally speaking, the orientation of the antenna array of a UE is known and fixed to the UE body frame.

[0099] UE 904 may determine the vector from UE 904 to base station 902 in the RPY frame as:

[0100]

[0101] The UE 904 may determine two observation functions 1008, 1010 related to the AoA of the signal 908 (3D device attitude information):

[0102]

[0103] The UE 904 may determine the gravity vector 910 via the IMU 270 in the RPY frame. In one example, the IMU 270 may be pre-calibrated as described below. The gravity vector 910 may be expressed as (x g ,y g ,z g ) RPY Therefore, the transformation of the gravity vector can be expressed as:

[0104]

[0105] 0=cosy[xgcosβ-sinβ(zgcosα-ygsinα)]+sinγ(ygcosα+gsinα)(9)

[0106] 0=-sinγ[xgcosβ-sinβ(zgcosα-ygsinα)]+cosy(ygcosα+zgsina)(10)

[0107] -g=xgsinβ+cosβ(zgcosα-ygsinα)(11)

[0108] UE 904 may use equations (5), (6), (9), (10), and (11) to fully solve or 3 unknown rotation angles (α, β, γ). Thus, the UE 904 may be configured to determine its current orientation in the ENU frame based on receiving a signal from a station with a known position and based on the gravity vector obtained from a calibrated IMU.

[0109] Reference Fig.11 , further reference Fig. 9 and Fig.10 , a diagram 1100 is shown of an example process for determining the orientation of a mobile device based on reference signals transmitted from multiple wireless nodes. In operation, a UE 1104 may have an uncalibrated IMU, and Fig. 9 The single-station process described in may not achieve accurate results. Fig.11The multi-station method described in does not depend on the gravity vector and can therefore be used when the IMU is not available and / or uncalibrated. In one example, the multiple wireless nodes may include a base station 1102 and a base station 1103 also at a known location (x t ,y t ,z t ) at a second mobile device 1110 at a location. The second mobile device 1110 may be a neighboring UE configured to communicate with the UE 1104 via one or more sidelink and / or D2D communication protocols. In a V2X specific implementation, the second mobile device 1110 may be an onboard unit (OBU) in a vehicle or a roadside unit (RSU) configured to communicate with the UE 1104. In an example, the UE 1104 may receive a first reference signal 1108 from the base station 1102 and a second reference signal 1112 from the second mobile device 1110. The first reference signal 1108 and the second reference signal 1112 may utilize different radio access technologies (e.g., cellular, WiFi, Uu, PC5, etc.). The UE 1104 is configured to obtain the current location of the base station 1102 and the second mobile device 1110, and determine the AoA information of both the received reference signals 1108 and 1112. The locations of the base station 1102 and the second mobile device 1110 may be included in the assistance data, broadcast, or in response to a request message sent by the UE 1104 .

[0110] In operation, the UE 1104 may be configured to determine the corresponding vectors to the base station 1102 and the second mobile device 1110, as described in equation (4). The UE 1104 may utilize multiple sets of equations (5) and (6) to determine the first two observation functions based on the first vector between the UE 1104 and the base station 1102, and the second two observation functions based on the second vector between the UE 1104 and the second mobile device 1110. Thus, the UE 1104 may utilize three known locations (e.g., of the UE 1104, the base station 1102, and the second mobile device 1110) and the corresponding vectors based on the reference signals 1108, 1112 to determine the orientation of the UE 1104 without obtaining measurements from the IMU. Fig.11 The two-station approach in can also be used in a single case, such that the received reference signal is at an elevation angle of 90 degrees (eg, opposite to the gravity vector).

[0111] In one example, by Fig.11 The orientation of UE 1104 obtained by the multi-station method in RPY can be used to calibrate the IMU and body frame misalignment in UE 1104. UE 1104 can be configured to g ,y g ,z g ) RPYThe UE 1104 may be configured to convert the gravity vector 1114 into an ENU frame. UE 1104 may compare the measured gravity vector to the theoretical gravity vector based on the current orientation to determine whether calibration is required. g ,y g ,z g ) ENU ≠(0,0,-1) ENU , then IMU calibration may be required. In one example, a threshold value (e.g., seconds, minutes, degrees) can be used to trigger IMU calibration.

[0112] The orientation of UE 1104 can be used to calibrate sensor bias. For example, Fig. 9 The single-station example in calibrates IMU gyroscope biases, vehicle steering angle sensors, and other motion and orientation sensors. Fig.11 The two-station example in can be used for IMU calibration (e.g., accelerometer and gyroscope bias values) as well as other motion and orientation detection sensors.

[0113] The orientation detection techniques described herein may be performed based on one or more operational factors and / or trigger conditions. For example, when the UE is in a static blocking state (e.g., not moving), the IMU element may drift and cause sensor errors. The UE may be configured to determine the orientation based on a network reference signal, based on a motion detection signal, and / or periodically (e.g., 10, 30, 60, 100 seconds, etc.). Other factors may cause the IMU signal to drift, and the uncertainty of the sensor output (e.g., the covariance matrix in the Kalman filter) may exceed an established threshold (e.g., 10 degrees). When the uncertainty exceeds the threshold, the orientation process may be performed. Other functional issues associated with the IMU, camera, magnetometer, or other devices within the UE may require orientation information. For example, the orientation of a VR head-mounted device may drift over time and may be updated before a strong sequence of motion. Other applications and application programming interfaces (APIs) may request orientation information and trigger the UE orientation determination process. Beamforming applications may also require updated orientation information.

[0114] Reference Fig.12 , further reference Figures 1 to 11 , a method 1200 for calculating the orientation of a wireless node based on a signal received from another wireless node includes the stages shown. However, the method 1200 is an example and not a limitation. The method 1200 may be modified, for example, by adding, removing, rearranging, combining, performing concurrently, and / or splitting a single stage into multiple stages.

[0115] At stage 1202, the method includes determining a first location associated with a user equipment. The UE 200 including the processor 210, the transceiver 215 and the SPS receiver 217 is a means for determining a first location associated with the UE. In one example, referring to Fig. 9 , the second wireless node is UE 904 and is configured to determine the current location based on ground and / or satellite reference signals. For example, UE 904 may use a signal such as Figure 5 and Fig. 6A 904 to determine the location based on radio signal exchanges with other network stations. In one example, the SPS receiver 217 may provide satellite signal information (e.g., GPS) to determine the location of the UE 904. Other positioning techniques may be used to determine the first location associated with the UE. In one example, a base station may require a new antenna installation, and the location of the new antenna may be known, and the orientation detection techniques described herein may be used to determine / calibrate the new antenna configuration.

[0116] At stage 1204, the method includes determining a second location associated with the first wireless node. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the transceiver 215 is a component for determining the second location associated with the first wireless node. In one example, referring to Fig. 9 , the second location may be the location of the base station 902 and may be determined based on the assistance data provided to the UE 904. For example, the UE 904 may receive the assistance data via network signaling such as an LPP and / or RRC message (e.g., a system information block) including the location of the base station 902. Other signaling techniques may also be used. For example, the base station 902 may periodically broadcast current location information. In one example, the first wireless node may be a mobile device at a known location. In the V2X mode, the vehicle may be configured to broadcast a basic safety message (BSM) including location information. Other techniques may be used to determine the second location associated with the first wireless node.

[0117] At stage 1206, the method includes receiving, by the user equipment, a radio frequency signal transmitted from the first wireless node. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the transceiver 215 is a component for receiving the RF signal transmitted from the second wireless node. In one example, the RF signal may be one or more reference signals (e.g., PRS, NRS, TRS, CRS, etc.) broadcast to wireless nodes in the coverage area. For example, in a 5G NR application, the RF signal may be a beamformed signal transmitted to the second wireless node. Fig. 9 The RF signal may be a signal 908 transmitted by the base station 902. The UE 904 is configured to determine AoA information associated with the received RF signal, such as Fig.10 Depicted in.

[0118] At stage 1208, the method includes determining two measurements based at least in part on the first location, the second location, and the angle of arrival information associated with the radio frequency signal. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the transceiver 215 is a component for determining the two measurements. In one example, referring to Fig. 9 , UE 904 may use the location (x) of base station 902 obtained at stage 1202 s ,y s ,z s ) ECI and its current position (x) in the ECI and / or ENU frame obtained at stage 1204 c ,y c ,z c ) based on the current position (x c ,y c ,z c ) converts the location of base station 902 to ENU frame (x s ′,y s ′,z s ′) ENU UE 904 may determine the AoA of the RF signal received at stage 1206 and determine two measurements based on the observation functions described in equations (4), (5), and (6). For example, the two measurements may include an elevation angle (θ) and an azimuth angle

[0119] At stage 1210, the method includes determining a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained by the user equipment. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the IMU 270 is a component for determining the gravity vector. In one example, one or more accelerometers 273 may be configured to provide an indication of the force of gravity along the x, y, and z axes of the mobile device. The combination of sensor outputs may be used to determine the gravity vector corresponding to the RPY frame of the wireless node. Other IMU sensors in the UE 200 may also be configured to provide gravity vector information.

[0120] At stage 1212, the method includes calculating an orientation of the user equipment device based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two observation functions. UE 200 (including processor 210) is a component for calculating the orientation of the UE. The RPY gravity vector obtained at stage 1210 may be transformed as described in equations (7) to (11). The UE may fully solve equations (5), (6), (9), (10), and (11) Or 3 unknown rotation angles (α, β, γ) to determine its orientation.

[0121] Reference Fig.13 , further reference Figures 1 to 11, a method 1300 for calculating the orientation of a user equipment based on signals received from a plurality of wireless nodes includes the stages shown. However, the method 1300 is an example and not a limitation. The method 1300 may be modified, for example, by adding, removing, rearranging, combining, performing concurrently, and / or splitting a single stage into multiple stages.

[0122] At stage 1302, the method includes determining a first location associated with a user equipment. The UE 200 including the processor 210, the transceiver 215, and the SPS receiver 217 is a means for determining a first location associated with the UE. In one example, referring to Fig.11 , the UE is UE 1104 and is configured to determine the current position based on terrestrial and / or satellite reference signals. For example, UE 1104 may utilize a signal such as Figure 5 and Fig. 6A 104 to determine the location based on radio signal exchanges with other network stations. In one example, the SPS receiver 217 may provide satellite signal information (e.g., GPS) to determine the location of the UE 1104. Other positioning techniques may be used to determine the first location associated with the UE. In one example, the base station may require a new antenna installation. The location of the new antenna may be known, and the orientation detection techniques described herein may be used to determine / calibrate the new antenna configuration.

[0123] At stage 1304, the method includes determining a second location associated with the first wireless node. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the transceiver 215 is a component for determining the second location associated with the first wireless node. In one example, referring to Fig.11 , the second location may be the location of the base station 1102 and may be determined based on the assistance data provided to the UE. For example, the UE may receive the assistance data via network signaling such as an LPP and / or RRC message (e.g., a system information block) including the location of the base station 1102. Other signaling techniques may also be used. For example, the base station 1102 may periodically broadcast current location information. In one example, the second wireless node may be a mobile device at a known location. In V2X mode, the vehicle may be configured to broadcast a basic safety message (BSM) including location information. Other techniques may be used to determine the second location associated with the first wireless node.

[0124] At stage 1306, the method includes determining a third location associated with the second wireless node. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the transceiver 215 is a means for determining the third location associated with the second wireless node. Fig.11, the third location can be the location of the second mobile device 1110 and can be determined based on the assistance or other positioning data provided to the UE 1104. In one example, the UE 1104 can receive the location of the second mobile device 1110 from the network via downlink signaling such as LPP and / or RRC messages. In one example, the second mobile device 1110 can be configured to send location information via a sidelink connection or via other D2D communication links (e.g., WiFi, Bluetooth, etc.). Other signaling techniques can also be used to provide the location of the second mobile device 1110 to wireless nodes in the network. In one example, the second wireless node can be another base station at a known location.

[0125] At stage 1308, the method includes determining first angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal transmitted from a first wireless node and received by a user equipment. UE 200, including processor 210 and transceiver 215, is a component for determining the first AoA information. In one example, the RF signal may be one or more reference signals (e.g., PRS, NRS, TRS, CRS, etc.) broadcast to wireless nodes in a coverage area. For example, in a 5G NR application, the RF signal may be a beamformed signal transmitted to the UE. Referring to Fig.11 The RF signal may be a reference signal 1108 transmitted by the base station 1102. The UE 1104 is configured to determine AoA information associated with the received RF signal, such as Fig.10 Depicted in.

[0126] At stage 1310, the method includes determining first two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and the first angle of arrival information. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the transceiver 215 is a component for determining the first two measurements. In one example, referring to Fig.11 , UE 1104 may utilize the location (x) of base station 1102 obtained at stage 1302 s ,y s ,z s ) ECI and its current position (x) in the ECI and / or ENU frame obtained at stage 1306 c ,y c ,z c ) based on the current position (x c ,y c ,z c ) converts the location of the base station 1102 to the ENU frame (x s ′,y s ′,z s ′) ENUUE 1104 may utilize the first AoA information determined at stage 1308 and determine the first two measurements based on the observation functions described in equations (4), (5), and (6). For example, the first two measurements may be the elevation angle (θ) and the azimuth angle (θ) of the RF signal transmitted from the first wireless node.

[0127] At stage 1312, the method includes determining second angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal transmitted from a second wireless node and received by the user equipment. The UE 200, including a processor 210 and a transceiver 215, is a component for determining the second AoA information. In an example, the RF signal may be received via one or more sidelink channels (e.g., a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), etc.) and / or via other D2D radio access technologies (e.g., WiFi, Bluetooth, etc.). In a V2X environment, the radio frequency signal may be based on a PC5 interface. Reference Fig.11 The RF signal may be a reference signal 1112 transmitted by the second mobile device 1110. The UE 1104 is configured to determine AoA information associated with the received RF signal, such as Fig.10 In one example, the second wireless node may be a base station, and the RF signal sent from the base station may be one or more reference signals (eg, PRS, NRS, TRS, CRS, etc.).

[0128] At stage 1314, the method includes determining the latter two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the third position, and the second angle of arrival information. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the transceiver 215 is a component for determining the latter two measurements. In one example, referring to Fig.11 , UE 1104 may utilize the location (x) of the second mobile device 1110 obtained at stage 1304 t ,y t ,z t ) ECI and its current position (x) in the ECI and / or ENU frame obtained at stage 1306 c ,y c ,z c ) based on the current position (x c ,y c ,z c ) converts the position of the second mobile device 1110 to the ENU frame (x t ′,y t ′,z t ′) ENUUE 1104 may utilize the second AoA information determined at stage 1312 and determine the latter two measurements based on the observation functions described in equations (4), (5), and (6). For example, the latter two measurements may be based on the elevation angle (θ) and azimuth angle (θ) of the RF signal transmitted by the second wireless node.

[0129] At stage 1316, the method includes calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the first two measurements and the second two measurements. UE 200 (including processor 210) is a component for calculating the orientation of the UE. UE 1104 may utilize four measurements (e.g., two (θ) in equation (5) and two (θ) in equation (6) ) to calculate the orientation of the user equipment. Fig.11 The example in includes a base station 1102 and a second mobile device 1110, but the method 1300 is not limited thereto. Other stations with known locations may also be used. Therefore, the orientation of the user equipment may be determined using signals sent by various combinations of base stations and / or mobile devices.

[0130] In one example, method 1300 may be performed by a network resource such as LMF 120 and / or gNB 110a. UE 200 may be configured to provide location information and corresponding AoA information of the first wireless node and the second wireless node to the network resource, and the network resource may be configured to use the techniques described herein to calculate the orientation of UE 200. The network resource may be configured to provide the resulting orientation information to UE 200 via network messaging (e.g., LPP, RRC, etc.).

[0131] Reference Fig.14 , and further reference Figures 1 to 11 , the method 1400 for calibrating an inertial measurement unit includes the stages shown. However, the method 1400 is an example and not a limitation. The method 1400 can be modified, for example, by adding, removing, rearranging, combining, performing concurrently, and / or splitting a single stage into multiple stages.

[0132] At stage 1402, the method includes determining an orientation of a user equipment. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the transceiver 215 is a component for determining the orientation. In one example, the UE 1104 may be configured to Fig.11 and Fig.13 The calculated orientation may be used as a basis for calibrating an onboard IMU or other orientation-based sensor within the UE 1104.

[0133] At stage 1404, the method includes determining a gravity vector based on an inertial measurement unit in the user equipment. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the IMU 270 is a component for determining the gravity vector. The UE 1104 may be configured to g ,y g ,z g ) RPY The gravity vector 1114 is obtained by an onboard IMU (e.g., IMU 270). In one example, one or more accelerometers 273 can be configured to provide an indication of the force of gravity along the x, y, and z axes of the mobile device. The combination of sensor outputs can be used to determine the gravity vector corresponding to the RPY frame of the UE. Other IMU sensors can also be configured to provide gravity vector information to enable the UE 1104 to determine the gravity vector.

[0134] At stage 1406, the method includes calculating an inertial measurement calibration value based at least in part on the orientation of the user equipment and the gravity vector. The UE 200 including the processor 210 and the IMU 270 is a component for calculating the inertial measurement calibration value. The UE 1104 may be configured to convert the gravity vector 1114 into an ENU frame. UE 1104 may compare the measured gravity vector with a theoretical gravity vector based on the current orientation to calculate an inertial measurement calibration value. For example, the inertial measurement calibration value may be the vector (x g ,y g ,z g ) ENU and(0,0,-1) ENU . If the inertial measurement calibration value is greater than a threshold value (e.g., 2, 5, 10 degrees, etc.), the IMU (or other sensor) may be calibrated to reduce the error between the orientation determined at stage 1402 and the gravity vector determined at stage 1404. Other trigger conditions may also be used to initiate method 1400. For example, when the UE is in a static blocking state (e.g., zero velocity) for a period of time (e.g., 2, 10, 100 seconds, etc.), when the uncertainty of the orientation angle estimate exceeds a threshold value (e.g., 2, 5, 10 degrees, etc.), when a functional problem occurs for a posture device (e.g., IMU, camera, magnetometer, etc.), on demand (e.g., triggered by an application), or a combination thereof.

[0135] Other examples and implementations are within the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software and computers, the functions described above may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hard wiring, or any combination thereof. Features that implement the functions may also be physically located at different locations, including being distributed so that various parts of the functions are implemented at different physical locations.

[0136] As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" also include the plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. As used herein, the terms "include", "comprising", and "include" specify the presence of the recited features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0137] As used herein, the term “RS (reference signal)” may refer to one or more reference signals and may be appropriately applied to any form of the term “RS”, for example, PRS, SRS, CSI-RS, etc.

[0138] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, a statement that a function or operation is "based on" an item or condition means that the function or operation is based on the stated item or condition, and may be based on one or more items and / or conditions other than the stated item or condition.

[0139] Likewise, as used herein, “or” used in a list of items followed by “at least one of” or followed by “one or more of” indicates a disjunctive list, so that, for example, a list of “at least one of A, B, or C” or a list of “one or more of A, B, or C” refers to A or B or C or AB (A and B) or AC (A and C) or BC (B and C) or ABC (i.e., A and B and C), or a combination having more than one feature (e.g., AA, AAB, ABBC, etc.). Thus, a statement that an item (e.g., a processor) is configured to perform a function with respect to at least one of A or B means that the item may be configured to perform a function with respect to A, or may be configured to perform a function with respect to B, or may be configured to perform a function with respect to both A and B. For example, the phrase "a processor configured to measure at least one of A or B" means that the processor may be configured to measure A (and may or may not be configured to measure B), or may be configured to measure B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or may be configured to measure A and measure B (and may be configured to select which one or both of A and B to measure). Similarly, a statement about a component for measuring at least one of A or B includes: a component for measuring A (which may or may not be able to measure B), or a component for measuring B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or a component for measuring A and B (which may be able to select which one or both of A and B to measure). As another example, a statement that an item (e.g., a processor) is configured to perform at least one of function X or perform function Y means that the item may be configured to perform function X, or may be configured to perform function Y, or may be configured to perform function X and perform function Y. For example, the phrase "a processor configured to measure at least one of X or Y" means that the processor may be configured to measure X (and may or may not be configured to measure Y), or may be configured to measure Y (and may or may not be configured to measure X), or may be configured to measure X and measure Y (and may be configured to select which or both of X and Y to measure).

[0140] Substantial changes may be made according to specific requirements. For example, customized hardware may also be used, and / or specific elements may be implemented in hardware, in software (including portable software, such as applets, etc.) executed by a processor, or in both. In addition, connections with other computing devices such as network input / output devices may be employed. Unless otherwise indicated, components (functional or otherwise) shown in the figures and / or discussed herein as being connected or communicating with each other are communicatively coupled. That is, these components may be connected directly or indirectly to enable communication between them.

[0141] The systems and devices discussed above are examples. Various configurations may appropriately omit, replace, or add various procedures or components. For example, features described with respect to certain configurations may be combined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elements of a configuration may be combined in a similar manner. In addition, technology is constantly evolving, and therefore many elements are examples and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure or claims.

[0142] A wireless communication system is a system in which communications are transmitted wirelessly, i.e., by electromagnetic waves and / or sound waves propagating through atmospheric space rather than by wires or other physical connections. A wireless communication network may not cause all communications to be sent wirelessly, but may be configured to cause at least some communications to be sent wirelessly. In addition, the term "wireless communication device" or similar terms does not require that the functionality of the device is exclusively or uniformly primarily used for communication, or that the device is a mobile device, but rather indicates that the device includes wireless communication capabilities (unidirectional or bidirectional), for example, including at least one radio component (each radio component is a part of a transmitter, receiver or transceiver) for wireless communication.

[0143] Specific details are given in this specification to provide a thorough understanding of exemplary configurations (including specific implementations). However, configurations can be practiced without these specific details. For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques have been shown without unnecessary details to avoid confusing these configurations. This specification provides exemplary configurations without limiting the scope, applicability, or configuration of the claims. On the contrary, the previous description of the configuration provides a description for implementing the described technology. Various changes can be made to the function and arrangement of the elements.

[0144] As used herein, the terms "processor-readable medium," "machine-readable medium," and "computer-readable medium" refer to any medium that participates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in a particular manner. Using a computing platform, various processor-readable media may be involved in providing instructions / codes to a processor for execution, and / or may be used to store and / or carry such instructions / codes (e.g., as signals). In many specific implementations, processor-readable media are physical and / or tangible storage media. Such media may take many forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media and volatile media. Non-volatile media include, for example, optical disks and / or magnetic disks. Volatile media include, but are not limited to, dynamic memory.

[0145] After describing several example configurations, various modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used. For example, the above elements may be components of a larger system, in which other rules may take precedence over the application of the present disclosure or otherwise modify the application of the present disclosure. In addition, several operations may be taken before, during, or after considering the above elements. Accordingly, the above description does not limit the scope of the claims.

[0146] A statement that a value exceeds (or is greater than or above) a first threshold is equivalent to a statement that the value meets or exceeds a second threshold that is slightly greater than the first threshold, e.g., the second threshold is one value higher than the first threshold at the resolution of the computing system. A statement that a value is less than (or within or below) a first threshold is equivalent to a statement that the value is less than or equal to a second threshold that is slightly less than the first threshold, e.g., the second threshold is one value lower than the first threshold at the resolution of the computing system.

[0147] Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0148] Clause 1. A method for determining the orientation of a user equipment, the method comprising: determining a first position associated with the user equipment; determining a second position associated with a first wireless node; receiving a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node through the user equipment; determining two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and arrival angle information associated with the radio frequency signal; determining a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained through the user equipment; and calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two measurements.

[0149] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the first wireless node is a base station.

[0150] Clause 3. The method of clause 1, wherein the first wireless node is a mobile device.

[0151] Clause 4. The method of clause 1, wherein the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node is a positioning reference signal.

[0152] Clause 5. The method of clause 1, wherein the radio frequency signal is sent from the first wireless node via a sidelink channel.

[0153] Clause 6. The method of Clause 1, wherein determining the first location comprises measuring a plurality of signals associated with a satellite navigation system.

[0154] Clause 7. The method of Clause 1, further comprising detecting a trigger condition, and wherein calculating the orientation of the user equipment is responsive to the trigger condition.

[0155] Clause 8. The method of clause 7, wherein detecting the trigger condition comprises detecting a static blocking state, determining that an uncertainty in an orientation angle exceeds a threshold, receiving a request from an application, or any combination thereof.

[0156] Clause 9. A method for determining the orientation of a user equipment, the method comprising: determining a first position associated with the user equipment; determining a second position associated with a first wireless node; determining a third position associated with a second wireless node; determining first angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and received by the user equipment; determining first two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and the first angle of arrival information; determining second angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node and received by the user equipment; determining last two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the third position, and the second angle of arrival information; and calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the first two measurements and the last two measurements.

[0157] Clause 10. The method of clause 9, wherein at least one of the first wireless node and the second node is a base station.

[0158] Clause 11. The method of clause 9, wherein at least one of the first wireless node and the second node is a mobile device.

[0159] Clause 12. The method of clause 9, wherein at least one of the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and the radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node is a network reference signal.

[0160] Clause 13. The method of clause 9, wherein at least one of the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and the radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node utilizes a side link channel.

[0161] Clause 14. The method of Clause 9, wherein determining the first location comprises measuring a plurality of signals associated with a satellite navigation system.

[0162] Clause 15. The method of Clause 9, further comprising detecting a trigger condition, and wherein calculating the orientation of the user equipment is responsive to detecting the trigger condition.

[0163] Clause 16. The method of clause 15, wherein detecting the trigger condition comprises detecting a static blocking state, determining that an uncertainty in an orientation angle exceeds a threshold, receiving a request from an application, or any combination thereof.

[0164] Clause 17. The method of clause 9, further comprising: obtaining a gravity vector based on an inertial measurement unit in the user equipment; and calculating an inertial measurement calibration value based at least in part on the orientation of the user equipment and the gravity vector.

[0165] Clause 18. The method of Clause 17, further comprising calibrating one or more sensors in the user equipment based on the inertial measurement calibration value.

[0166] Clause 19. The method of clause 18, wherein the one or more sensors include an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a magnetometer, or a combination thereof.

[0167] Clause 20. A device comprising: a memory; an inertial measurement unit; at least one transceiver; at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory, the inertial measurement unit, and the at least one transceiver and configured to: determine a first position associated with the device; determine a second position associated with a first wireless node; receive a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node; determine two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and angle of arrival information associated with the radio frequency signal; determine a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained by the inertial measurement unit; and calculate the orientation of the device based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two measurements.

[0168] Clause 21. The apparatus of clause 20, wherein the first wireless node is a base station.

[0169] Clause 22. The apparatus of Clause 20, wherein the first wireless node is a mobile device.

[0170] Clause 23. The apparatus of clause 20, wherein the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node is a positioning reference signal.

[0171] Clause 24. The apparatus of clause 20, wherein the radio frequency signal is sent from the first wireless node via a sidelink channel.

[0172] Clause 25. The apparatus of Clause 20, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to measure a plurality of signals associated with a satellite navigation system to determine the first location.

[0173] Clause 26. The apparatus of Clause 20, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to detect a trigger condition and calculate the orientation of the apparatus in response to the trigger condition.

[0174] Clause 27. The apparatus of clause 26, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to detect a static blocking state, determine that an uncertainty in an orientation angle exceeds a threshold, receive a request from an application, or any combination thereof to detect the trigger condition.

[0175] Clause 28. A device comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver and configured to: determine a first position associated with the device; determine a second position associated with a first wireless node; determine a third position associated with a second wireless node; determine first angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and received by the device; determine first two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and the first angle of arrival information; determine second angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node and received by the device; determine last two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the third position, and the second angle of arrival information; and calculate the orientation of the device based at least in part on the first two measurements and the last two measurements.

[0176] Clause 29. The apparatus of clause 28, wherein at least one of the first wireless node and the second node is a base station.

[0177] Clause 30. The apparatus of clause 28, wherein at least one of the first wireless node and the second node is a mobile device.

[0178] Clause 31. The apparatus of Clause 28, wherein at least one of the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and the radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node is a network reference signal.

[0179] Clause 32. The apparatus of clause 28, wherein at least one of the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and the radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node utilizes a side link channel.

[0180] Clause 33. The apparatus of Clause 28, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to measure a plurality of signals associated with a satellite navigation system to determine the first location.

[0181] Clause 34. The apparatus of Clause 28, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to detect a trigger condition and calculate the orientation of the apparatus in response to the trigger condition.

[0182] Clause 35. The apparatus of clause 34, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to detect a static blocking state, determine that an uncertainty in an orientation angle exceeds a threshold, receive a request from an application, or any combination thereof to detect the trigger condition.

[0183] Clause 36. An apparatus according to clause 28, wherein the apparatus further comprises an inertial measurement unit, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: obtain a gravity vector based on the inertial measurement unit; and calculate an inertial measurement calibration value based at least in part on the orientation of the apparatus and the gravity vector.

[0184] Clause 37. The apparatus of Clause 36, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to calibrate one or more sensors in the apparatus based on the inertial measurement calibration value.

[0185] Clause 38. The apparatus of clause 37, wherein the one or more sensors include an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a magnetometer, and combinations thereof.

[0186] Clause 39. A device for determining the orientation of a user equipment, the device comprising: a component for determining a first position associated with the user equipment; a component for determining a second position associated with a first wireless node; a component for receiving, through the user equipment, a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node; a component for determining two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and arrival angle information associated with the radio frequency signal; a component for determining a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained through the user equipment; and a component for calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two measurements.

[0187] Clause 40. A device for determining the orientation of a user equipment, the device comprising: a component for determining a first position associated with the user equipment; a component for determining a second position associated with a first wireless node; a component for determining a third position associated with a second wireless node; a component for determining first angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and received by the user equipment; a component for determining first two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and the first angle of arrival information; a component for determining second angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node and received by the user equipment; a component for determining last two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the third position, and the second angle of arrival information; and a component for calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the first two measurements and the last two measurements.

[0188] Clause 41. An apparatus according to clause 40, the apparatus further comprising: a component for obtaining a gravity vector based on an inertial measurement unit in the user equipment; and a component for calculating an inertial measurement calibration value based at least in part on the orientation of the user equipment and the gravity vector.

[0189] Item 42. A non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions configured to cause one or more processors to determine an orientation of a user equipment, the non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising code for: determining a first location associated with the user equipment; determining a second location associated with a first wireless node; receiving, by the user equipment, a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node; determining two measurements based at least in part on the first location, the second location, and angle of arrival information associated with the radio frequency signal; determining a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained by the user equipment; and calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two measurements.

[0190] Item 43. A non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions configured to cause one or more processors to determine an orientation of a user equipment, the non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising code for: determining a first position associated with the user equipment; determining a second position associated with a first wireless node; determining a third position associated with a second wireless node; determining first angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and received by the user equipment; determining first two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and the first angle of arrival information; determining second angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node and received by the user equipment; determining last two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the third position, and the second angle of arrival information; and calculating the orientation of the user equipment based at least in part on the first two measurements and the last two measurements.

[0191] Clause 44. A non-volatile processor-readable storage medium according to clause 43, wherein the non-volatile processor-readable storage medium also includes code for: obtaining a gravity vector based on an inertial measurement unit in the user equipment; and calculating an inertial measurement calibration value based at least in part on the orientation of the user equipment and the gravity vector.

Claims

1. A method for determining an orientation of a user equipment, the method comprising: determining a first location associated with the user equipment; determining a second location associated with the first wireless node; receiving, by the user equipment, a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node; determining two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and angle of arrival information associated with the radio frequency signal; determining a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained by the user equipment; and The orientation of the user equipment is calculated based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two measurements. 2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first wireless node is a base station, and the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node is a positioning reference signal. 3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first wireless node is a mobile device and the radio frequency signal is sent from the first wireless node via a sidelink channel. 4 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising detecting a trigger condition, and wherein calculating the orientation of the user equipment is responsive to the trigger condition.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein detecting the trigger condition comprises detecting a static blocking state, determining that an uncertainty in an orientation angle exceeds a threshold, receiving a request from an application, or any combination thereof.

6. A method for determining an orientation of a user equipment, the method comprising: determining a first location associated with the user equipment; determining a second location associated with the first wireless node; determining a third location associated with a second wireless node; determining first angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal transmitted from the first wireless node and received by the user equipment; determining first two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and the first angle of arrival information; determining second angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal transmitted from the second wireless node and received by the user equipment; determining the latter two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the third position, and the second angle of arrival information; and The orientation of the user equipment is calculated based at least in part on the first two measurements and the second two measurements.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein at least one of the first wireless node and the second wireless node is a base station, and at least one of the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and the radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node is a network reference signal.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein at least one of the first wireless node and the second wireless node is a mobile device, and at least one of the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and the radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node utilizes a side link channel.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein determining the first location comprises measuring a plurality of signals associated with a satellite navigation system.

10. The method of claim 6, further comprising detecting a trigger condition, and wherein calculating the orientation of the user equipment is responsive to detecting the trigger condition.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the detecting the trigger condition comprises detecting a static blocking state, determining that an uncertainty in an orientation angle exceeds a threshold, receiving a request from an application, or any combination thereof.

12. The method according to claim 6, further comprising: obtaining a gravity vector based on an inertial measurement unit in the user equipment; as well as An inertial measurement calibration value is calculated based at least in part on the orientation of the user equipment and the gravity vector.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising calibrating one or more sensors in the user equipment based on the inertial measurement calibration value.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the one or more sensors include an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a magnetometer, or a combination thereof.

15. A device, comprising: Memory; Inertial measurement unit; at least one transceiver; at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the inertial measurement unit, and the at least one transceiver and configured to: determining a first location associated with the device; determining a second location associated with the first wireless node; receiving a radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node; determining two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and angle of arrival information associated with the radio frequency signal; determining a gravity vector based on inertial measurements obtained by the inertial measurement unit; and An orientation of the device is calculated based at least in part on the gravity vector and the two measurements.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node is a positioning reference signal.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the radio frequency signal is sent from the first wireless node via a sidelink channel.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to measure a plurality of signals associated with a satellite navigation system to determine the first location.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to detect a trigger condition and calculate the orientation of the apparatus in response to the trigger condition.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to detect a static blocking state, determine that an uncertainty in an orientation angle exceeds a threshold, receive a request from an application, or any combination thereof to detect the trigger condition.

21. A device, comprising: Memory; at least one transceiver; at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver and configured to: determining a first location associated with the device; determining a second location associated with the first wireless node; determining a third location associated with a second wireless node; determining first angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal transmitted from the first wireless node and received by the apparatus; determining first two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the second position, and the first angle of arrival information; determining second angle of arrival information associated with a radio frequency signal transmitted from the second wireless node and received by the apparatus; determining the latter two measurements based at least in part on the first position, the third position, and the second angle of arrival information; and An orientation of the device is calculated based at least in part on the first two measurements and the second two measurements.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein at least one of the first wireless node and the second node is a base station.

23. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein at least one of the first wireless node and the second node is a mobile device.

24. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein at least one of the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and the radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node is a network reference signal.

25. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein at least one of the radio frequency signal sent from the first wireless node and the radio frequency signal sent from the second wireless node utilizes a side link channel.

26. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to measure a plurality of signals associated with a satellite navigation system to determine the first location.

27. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to detect a trigger condition and calculate the orientation of the apparatus in response to the trigger condition.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to detect a static blocking state, determine that an uncertainty in an orientation angle exceeds a threshold, receive a request from an application, or any combination thereof to detect the trigger condition.

29. The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising an inertial measurement unit, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: obtaining a gravity vector based on the inertial measurement unit; and An inertial measurement calibration value is calculated based at least in part on the orientation of the device and the gravity vector.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to calibrate one or more sensors in the apparatus based on the inertial measurement calibration value.

Images