Measurement of subset of user equipment (UE) when UE is configured with greater PRS bandwidth than UE can process positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth

Abstract

Techniques for wireless communication are disclosed. In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) reports capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE can measure to a network entity, receives positioning assistance data from the network entity, where the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and transmits the capability information to the network entity. And wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure, and measuring the one or more PRS resources only on a subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure.

Description

Background Art 1. Technical Field

[0001] Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communications.

[0002] 2. Description of Related Technologies

[0003] Wireless communication systems have evolved over many generations, including first-generation analog wireless telephone service (1G), second-generation (2G) digital wireless telephone service (including transitional 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third-generation (3G) high-speed data, internet-capable wireless services, and fourth-generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). Currently, many different types of wireless communication systems are in use, including cellular systems and Personal Communications Service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include the cellular analog Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), and the like.

[0004] The fifth-generation (5G) wireless standard, known as New Radio (NR), enables higher data transfer speeds, a greater number of connections, and better coverage, among other improvements. According to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, the 5G standard is designed to provide higher data rates, more accurate positioning (e.g., based on reference signals for positioning (RS-P), such as downlink, uplink, or sidelink Positioning Reference Signals (PRS)), and other technical enhancements compared to previous standards. These enhancements, along with the use of higher frequency bands, advances in PRS procedures and technologies, and high-density deployments of 5G, enable high-precision positioning based on 5G. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The following presents a simplified summary of one or more aspects disclosed herein. Therefore, the following summary should neither be considered an exhaustive overview of all contemplated aspects nor be considered to identify key or critical elements related to all contemplated aspects or to delineate the scope associated with any particular aspect. Therefore, the sole purpose of the following summary is to present certain concepts related to one or more aspects of the mechanisms disclosed herein in a simplified form prior to the detailed description presented below.

[0006] In one aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) includes: reporting capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE can measure to a network entity; receiving positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure; and measuring the one or more PRS resources over only a subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources with 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure.

[0007] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: report capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE can measure to a network entity via the at least one transceiver; receive positioning assistance data from the network entity via the at least one transceiver, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure; and measure the one or more PRS resources over only a subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources with 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure.

[0008] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes: means for reporting capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring to a network entity; means for receiving positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; and means for measuring the one or more PRS resources over only a subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources with 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring.

[0009] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: report capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring to a network entity; receive positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; and measure the one or more PRS resources only over a subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap between the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources and 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring.

[0010] Other objects and advantages associated with the aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the drawings and detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in describing various aspects of the present disclosure and are provided solely for illustration and not limitation of the aspects.

[0012] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system according to aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0013] Figure 2A 、 Figure 2B and Figure 2C Example wireless network structures according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0014] Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a user equipment (UE), a base station, and a network entity, respectively, and configured to support communications as taught herein.

[0015] Figure 4 Examples of various positioning methods supported in New Radio (NR) according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0016] Figure 5 Example Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol (LPP) capability transfer procedures, assistance data transfer procedures, and location information transfer procedures between a target device and a location server according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0017] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating various downlink channels within an example downlink time slot in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating how parameters in a measurement gap configuration specify a pattern of a measurement gap according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of relative bandwidth portions of wideband PRS that may be measured and processed by different UEs according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 10 is a diagram illustrating different options for measuring a subset of a positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth relative to a synchronization signal block (SSB) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0022] Figure 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of measurement of a subset of PRS bandwidth within an active bandwidth part (BWP) of a UE according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of performing PRS measurement and another measurement in the same bandwidth portion during a measurement gap according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 13 Example methods of wireless communications according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] Various aspects of the present disclosure are provided below in the description and related drawings of various examples provided for illustrative purposes. Alternative aspects may be designed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In addition, well-known elements of the present disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted to avoid making the relevant details of the present disclosure difficult to understand.

[0026] The words "exemplary" and / or "example" are used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" and / or "example" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term "aspects of the disclosure" does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage, or mode of operation.

[0027] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any of a variety of different techniques and methods may be used to represent the information and signals described below. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout the following description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the specific application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, and so on.

[0028] In addition, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It will be appreciated that the various actions described herein may be performed by specific circuits (e.g., application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of the two. Additionally, the sequences of actions described herein may be viewed as being fully embodied within any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a corresponding set of computer instructions that, when executed, will cause or command the associated processor of the device to perform the functionality described herein. Accordingly, various aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in a variety of different forms, all of which are contemplated to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Additionally, for each of the various aspects described herein, the corresponding form of any such aspect may be described herein as, for example, "logic configured to perform the described actions."

[0029] As used herein, unless otherwise specified, the terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT). In general, a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network (e.g., a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a consumer asset location device, a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch, glasses, augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), a vehicle (e.g., a car, a motorcycle, a bicycle, etc.), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.). A UE can be mobile or can be stationary (e.g., at certain times) and can communicate with a radio access network (RAN). As used herein, the term "UE" can be interchangeably referred to as an "access terminal" or "AT", "client device", "wireless device", "subscriber device", "subscriber terminal", "subscriber station", "user terminal" or "UT", "mobile device", "mobile terminal", "mobile station" or variations thereof. In general, a UE can communicate with a core network via the RAN, and through the core network, the UE can connect to external networks such as the Internet and to 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 wireless local area network (WLAN) network (e.g., based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 specification, etc.), etc.

[0030] A base station may operate according to one of several RATs to communicate with UEs, depending on the network in which it is deployed, and may alternatively be referred to as an access point (AP), network node, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), new radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as gNB or gNodeB), etc. A base station may primarily support wireless access for UEs, including supporting data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the supported UEs. In some systems, a base station may only provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems, a base station may provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link by which a UE can transmit signals to a base station is called an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel, etc.). The communication link by which a base station can transmit signals to a UE is called a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., a paging channel, a control channel, a broadcast channel, a forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term "traffic channel (TCH)" may refer to either an uplink / reverse traffic channel or a downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0031] The term "base station" may refer to a single physical transmit receive point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, where the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna of the base station corresponding to the cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. Where the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be an antenna array of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where the base station employs beamforming). Where the term "base station" refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transmission medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-co-located physical TRPs may be a serving base station that receives measurement reports from a UE and a neighboring base station whose reference radio frequency (RF) signal the UE is measuring. Because, as used herein, a TRP is a point at which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, references to transmitting from a base station or receiving at a base station should be understood to refer to a specific TRP of a base station.

[0032] In some implementations of supporting UE positioning, a base station may not support wireless access by the UE (e.g., may not support data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the UE), but may instead transmit a reference signal to the UE to be measured by the UE and / or may receive and measure signals transmitted by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when transmitting a signal to the UE) and / or as a position measurement unit (e.g., when receiving and measuring a signal from the UE).

[0033] An "RF signal" comprises an electromagnetic wave of a given frequency that transmits information through the space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may transmit a single "RF signal" or multiple "RF signals" to a receiver. However, due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through multipath channels, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between a transmitter and a receiver may be referred to as a "multipath" RF signal. As used herein, an RF signal may also be referred to as a "wireless signal" or simply as a "signal" where the context clearly indicates that the term "signal" refers to either a wireless signal or an RF signal.

[0034] Figure 1An example wireless communication system 100 according to various aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The wireless communication system 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled "BS") and various UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macrocell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one aspect, the macrocell base stations may include eNBs and / or ng-eNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network), or gNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network), or a combination of the two, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0035] The base stations 102 may collectively form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) via backhaul links 122. The base stations 102 may also interface with one or more location servers 172 (e.g., a location management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)) via the core network 170. The location servers 172 may be part of the core network 170 or external to the core network 170. The location servers 172 may be integrated with the base stations 102. The UE 104 may communicate with the location servers 172 directly or indirectly. For example, the UE 104 may communicate with the location servers 172 via the base station 102 currently serving the UE 104. The UE 104 may also communicate with the location servers 172 via another path, such as via an application server (not shown), via another network, such as via a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) (e.g., AP 150 described below), or the like. For signaling purposes, communication between UE 104 and location server 172 may be represented as an indirect connection (e.g., through core network 170, etc.) or a direct connection (e.g., as shown via direct connection 128), with intermediate nodes (if any) omitted from the signaling diagram for clarity.

[0036] Among other functions, the base stations 102 may perform functions related to one or more of the following: delivering user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through EPC / 5GC) over a backhaul link 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0037] Base stations 102 can communicate wirelessly with UEs 104. Each of base stations 102 can provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. In one aspect, one or more cells can be supported by base station 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., via a frequency resource, which is referred to as a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, frequency band, etc.) and can be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCI), an enhanced cell identifier (ECI), a virtual cell identifier (VCI), a cell global identifier (CGI), etc.) that distinguishes cells operating on the same or different carrier frequencies. In some cases, different cells can be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other protocol types) that can provide access to different types of UEs. Because a cell is supported by a specific base station, the term "cell" can refer to either or both the logical communication entity and the base station supporting the logical communication entity, depending on the context. Furthermore, since the TRP is typically the physical transmission point of a cell, the terms "cell" and "TRP" may be used interchangeably. In some cases, the term "cell" may also refer to a geographic coverage area (e.g., a sector) of a base station, as long as a carrier frequency can be detected and used for communications within a portion of the geographic coverage area 110.

[0038] Although the geographic coverage areas 110 of adjacent macrocell base stations 102 may partially overlap (e.g., in a handover area), some areas of the geographic coverage areas 110 may substantially overlap with the larger geographic coverage area 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' (labeled "SC" for "small cell") may have a geographic coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage areas 110 of one or more macrocell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell base stations and macrocell base stations may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a Home eNB (HeNB), which may provide service to a restricted group called a Closed Subscriber Group (CSG).

[0039] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 may include uplink (also known as reverse link) transmissions from the UE 104 to the base station 102 and / or downlink (DL) (also known as forward link) transmissions from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 may utilize MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may be over one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric for the downlink and uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to the downlink than to the uplink).

[0040] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a wireless local area network (WLAN) station (STA) 152 in an unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz) via a communication link 154. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) or a listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure prior to communicating to determine whether a channel is available.

[0041] The small cell base station 102' can operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in the unlicensed spectrum, the small cell base station 102' can adopt LTE or NR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' adopting LTE / 5G in the unlicensed spectrum can improve the coverage of the access network and / or increase the capacity of the access network. NR in the unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as NR-U. LTE in the unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as LTE-U, License Assisted Access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0042] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a millimeter wave (mmW) base station 180, which can operate at mmW frequencies and / or near-mmW frequencies to communicate with the UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of the RF band in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in this frequency band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near-mmW can extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz and has a wavelength of 100 mm. Super high frequency (SHF) bands extend between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and are also referred to as centimeter waves. Communications using mmW / near-mmW radio frequency bands have high path loss and relatively short distances. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 can utilize beamforming (transmitting and / or receiving) on ​​the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short distance. In addition, it should be understood that in an alternative configuration, one or more base stations 102 may also use mmW or near-mmW and beamforming for transmission. Therefore, it should be understood that the foregoing illustrations are merely examples and should not be construed as limiting the various aspects disclosed herein.

[0043] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in a specific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectionally). With transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing the receiving device with a faster and stronger RF signal (in terms of data rate). To change the directionality of an RF signal when transmitting, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of the one or more transmitters broadcasting the RF signal. For example, the network node can use an array of antennas (referred to as a "phased array" or "antenna array") that form an RF beam that can be "steered" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, the RF current from the transmitter is fed to each antenna in the correct phase relationship so that the radio waves from the separate antennas add together in the desired direction to increase radiation, while canceling out in undesired directions to suppress radiation.

[0044] The transmit beams can be quasi-co-located, meaning that they appear to the receiver (e.g., UE) to have the same parameters, regardless of whether the network node's own transmit antennas are physically co-located. In NR, there are four types of quasi-co-location (QCL) relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters about the second reference RF signal on the second beam can be derived based on information about the source reference RF signal on the source beam. Thus, if the source reference RF signal is QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and average delay of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type D, the receiver may use the source reference RF signal to estimate spatial reception parameters of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0045] In receive beamforming, a receiver uses receive beams to amplify RF signals detected on a given channel. For example, a receiver may increase the gain setting of an antenna array in a particular direction and / or adjust the phase setting of an antenna array in a particular direction to amplify (e.g., increase the gain level of) RF signals received from that direction. Thus, when a receiver is said to be beamforming in a certain direction, this means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gain along other directions, or that the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gain in that direction of all other receive beams available to the receiver. This results in a stronger received signal strength (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR), etc.) for the RF signals received from that direction.

[0046] The transmit beam and receive beam can be spatially correlated. The spatial relationship means that the parameters of the second beam (e.g., transmit beam or receive beam) used for the second reference signal can be derived based on information about the first beam (e.g., receive beam or transmit beam) of the first reference signal. For example, the UE can use a specific receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., synchronization signal block (SSB)) from the base station. The UE can then form a transmit beam for transmitting an uplink reference signal (e.g., sounding reference signal (SRS)) to the base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0047] Note that depending on the entity forming the "downlink" beam, the beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming a downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to the UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE is forming a downlink beam, the downlink beam is a receive beam for receiving downlink reference signals. Similarly, depending on the entity forming the "uplink" beam, the beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, while if the UE is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0048] The electromagnetic spectrum is typically subdivided into various categories, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, two initial operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz–7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz–52.6 GHz). It should be understood that although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, FR1 is often (interchangeably) referred to as the “sub-6 GHz” band in various documents and articles. A similar naming issue sometimes occurs with respect to FR2, which is often (interchangeably) referred to as the “millimeter wave” band in documents and articles, although it is different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz–300 GHz) identified as the “millimeter wave” band by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

[0049] Frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are generally referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified the operating band for these mid-band frequencies as frequency range designation FR3 (7.125 GHz–24.25 GHz). Frequency bands falling within FR3 may inherit FR1 characteristics and / or FR2 characteristics, thus effectively extending the features of FR1 and / or FR2 to mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operation to beyond 52.6 GHz. For example, three higher operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz–71 GHz), FR4 (52.6 GHz–114.25 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz–300 GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands falls within the EHF band.

[0050] In view of the above aspects, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if used herein, the term "sub-6 GHz" or the like can broadly refer to frequencies that may be less than 6 GHz, may be within FR1, or may include mid-band frequencies. In addition, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if used herein, the term "millimeter wave" or the like can broadly refer to frequencies that may include mid-band frequencies, may be within FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1 and / or FR5, or may be within the EHF band.

[0051] In a multi-carrier system such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies is referred to as the "primary carrier" or "anchor carrier" or "primary serving cell" or "PCell", and the remaining carrier frequencies are referred to as "secondary carriers" or "secondary serving cells" or "SCells". In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is a carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) used by the UE 104 / 182 and the cell in which the UE 104 / 182 performs an initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates an RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). A secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2) that can be configured and used to provide additional radio resources once an RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier. In some cases, the secondary carrier can be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier may contain only necessary signaling information and signals. For example, since the primary uplink carrier and the primary downlink carrier are generally UE-specific, those UE-specific signaling information and signals may not be present in the secondary carrier. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 in a cell can have different downlink primary carriers. The same is true for the uplink primary carrier. The network can change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance the load on different carriers. Since a "serving cell" (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to a carrier frequency / component carrier through which a base station communicates, the terms "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier", "carrier frequency", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0052] For example, still referring to Figure 1 In one embodiment, one of the frequencies used by macrocell base station 102 may be an anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and the other frequencies used by macrocell base station 102 and / or mmW base station 180 may be secondary carriers ("SCells"). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception of multiple carriers enables UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rate. For example, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically result in a doubled data rate (i.e., 40 MHz) compared to the data rate achieved with a single 20 MHz carrier.

[0053] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a UE 164 that may communicate with the macrocell base station 102 via a communication link 120 and / or with the mmW base station 180 via a mmW communication link 184. For example, the macrocell base station 102 may support a PCell and one or more SCells for the UE 164, and the mmW base station 180 may support one or more SCells for the UE 164.

[0054] In some cases, UE 164 and UE 182 are capable of sidelink communication. Sidelink-capable UEs (SL-UEs) can communicate with base station 102 via communication link 120 using a Uu interface (i.e., the air interface between the UE and the base station). SL-UEs (e.g., UE 164, UE 182) can also communicate directly with each other via a wireless sidelink 160 using a PC5 interface (i.e., the air interface between sidelink-capable UEs). A wireless sidelink (or simply "sidelink") is an adaptation of a core cellular network (e.g., LTE, NR) standard that allows direct communication between two or more UEs without going through a base station. Sidelink communication can be unicast or multicast and can be used for device-to-device (D2D) media sharing, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication (e.g., cellular V2X (cV2X) communication, enhanced V2X (eV2X) communication, etc.), emergency rescue applications, etc. One or more SL-UEs in a group of SL-UEs utilizing sidelink communication may be located within the geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 102. Other SL-UEs in such a group may be outside the geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 102 or unable to receive transmissions from the base station 102 for other reasons. In some cases, each group of SL-UEs communicating via sidelink communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, where each SL-UE transmits to each other SL-UE in the group. In some cases, the base station 102 facilitates the scheduling of resources for the sidelink communication. In other cases, the sidelink communication is performed between the SL-UEs without involving the base station 102.

[0055] In one aspect, the sidelink 160 may operate on a wireless communication medium of interest, which may be shared with other vehicles and / or infrastructure access points and other wireless communications between other RATs. A "medium" may include one or more time, frequency, and / or spatial communication resources associated with wireless communications between one or more transmitter / receiver pairs (e.g., encompassing one or more channels across one or more carriers). In one aspect, the medium of interest may correspond to at least a portion of an unlicensed frequency band shared between various RATs. While different licensed frequency bands have been reserved for certain communication systems (e.g., by government entities such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States), these systems (particularly those employing small cell access points) have recently expanded operations into unlicensed frequency bands such as the Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (U-NII) band used by wireless local area network (WLAN) technologies (most notably the IEEE 802.11x WLAN technology commonly referred to as "Wi-Fi"). Example systems of this type include different variations of CDMA systems, TDMA systems, FDMA systems, orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) systems, and the like.

[0056] Note that although Figure 1 Only two of these UEs are illustrated as SL-UEs (i.e., UEs 164 and 182), but any of the illustrated UEs may be SL-UEs. Furthermore, while only UE 182 is described as capable of beamforming, any of the illustrated UEs (including UE 164) may be capable of beamforming. Where SL-UEs are capable of beamforming, they may beamform toward each other (i.e., toward other SL-UEs), toward other UEs (e.g., UE 104), toward a base station (e.g., base stations 102, 180, small cell 102′, access point 150), and so forth. Thus, in some cases, UEs 164 and 182 may utilize beamforming via sidelink 160.

[0057] exist Figure 1 In the example of FIG, the UE illustrated (for simplicity, Figure 1Any UE (shown as a single UE 104 in FIG. 1 ) can receive a signal 124 from one or more Earth-orbiting space vehicles (SVs) 112 (e.g., satellites). In one aspect, the SVs 112 can be part of a satellite positioning system that the UEs 104 can use as an independent source of location information. A satellite positioning system typically includes a system of transmitters (e.g., SVs 112) positioned to enable a receiver (e.g., a UE 104) to determine its position on or above the Earth based, at least in part, on positioning signals (e.g., signals 124) received from the transmitters. Such transmitters typically transmit a signal that is a repeating pseudorandom noise (PN) code marked with a set number of chips. While typically located in the SVs 112, the transmitters can sometimes be located on ground-based control stations, base stations 102, and / or other UEs 104. The UEs 104 can include one or more dedicated receivers specifically designed to receive the signal 124 in order to derive geographic location information from the SVs 112.

[0058] In a satellite positioning system, the use of signal 124 may be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) that may be associated with or otherwise enabled for use with one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, SBAS may include augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential corrections, and the like, such as the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), the Multifunctional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), the Global Positioning System (GPS)-Assisted Geo-Augmented Navigation, or the GPS and Geo-Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN), among others. Thus, as used herein, a satellite positioning system may include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellites associated with such one or more satellite positioning systems.

[0059] In one aspect, SV 112 may additionally or alternatively be part of one or more non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In an NTN, SV 112 connects to an earth station (also referred to as a ground station, NTN gateway, or gateway), which in turn connects to elements in the 5G network, such as a modified base station 102 (without a ground antenna) or a network node in a 5GC. This element, in turn, provides access to other elements in the 5G network and ultimately provides access to entities outside the 5G network, such as Internet web servers and other user devices. Thus, instead of or in addition to communication signals from terrestrial base station 102, UE 104 can receive communication signals (e.g., signal 124) from SV 112.

[0060] The wireless communication system 100 may also include one or more UEs, such as UE 190, that are indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) or peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as “side links”). Figure 1 In the example of FIG1 , UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 with one of UEs 104 connected to one of base stations 102 (e.g., UE 190 can indirectly obtain cellular connectivity through the D2D P2P link), and has a D2D P2P link 194 with WLAN STA 152 connected to WLAN AP 150 (UE 190 can indirectly obtain WLAN-based Internet connectivity through the D2D P2P link). In one example, D2D P2P links 192 and 194 can be supported by any well-known D2D RAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), wait.

[0061] Figure 2A An example wireless network architecture 200 is illustrated. For example, 5GC 210 (also known as the Next Generation Core (NGC)) can be functionally considered to include control plane (C-plane) functions 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and user plane (U-plane) functions 212 (e.g., UE gateway functions, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.), which operate in conjunction to form the core network. A user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and a control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect gNBs 222 to 5GC 210, and specifically to user plane functions 212 and control plane functions 214, respectively. In additional configurations, ng-eNBs 224 can also connect to 5GC 210 via NG-C 215 to control plane functions 214 and NG-U 213 to user plane functions 212. Furthermore, ng-eNBs 224 can communicate directly with gNBs 222 via backhaul connections 223. In some configurations, the next generation RAN (NG-RAN) 220 may have one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of ng-eNBs 224 and gNBs 222. Either gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 (or both) may communicate with one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein).

[0062] Another optional aspect may include a location server 230 that can communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The location server 230 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively can each correspond to a single server. The location server 230 can be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204 that can be connected to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not illustrated). In addition, the location server 230 can be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively can be external to the core network (e.g., a third-party server, such as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or a service server).

[0063] Figure 2B Another example wireless network structure 240 is illustrated. 5GC 260 (which may correspond to Figure 2AThe 5GC 210 in the network can be functionally considered to be a control plane function provided by the access and mobility management function (AMF) 264, and a user plane function provided by the user plane function (UPF) 262, which operate in conjunction to form the core network (i.e., the 5GC 260). The functions of the AMF 264 include: registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of session management (SM) messages between one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) and the session management function (SMF) 266, a transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transmission of short message service (SMS) messages between the UE 204 and the short message service function (SMSF) (not shown), and security anchor functionality (SEAF). The AMF 264 also interacts with the authentication server function (AUSF) (not shown) and the UE 204, and receives intermediate keys established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In case of UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM) based authentication, the AMF 264 retrieves security material from the AUSF. The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes Security Context Management (SCM). The SCM receives keys from the SEAF, which the SCM uses to derive access network specific keys. The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes location service management for regulatory services, for transmission of location service messages between the UE 204 and the Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (which acts as the location server 230), for transmission of location service messages between the NG-RAN 220 and the LMF 270, for allocation of Evolved Packet System (EPS) bearer identifiers for interoperation with EPS, and UE 204 mobility event notifications. In addition, the AMF 264 also supports functionality for non-3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0064] The functions of the UPF 262 include: acting as an anchor point for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), acting as an external protocol data unit (PDU) session point for interconnection to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, user plane quality of service (QoS) handling (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in downlink), uplink traffic verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport level packet marking in uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and transmitting and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support the delivery of location service messages between the UE 204 and a location server (such as the SLP 272) on the user plane.

[0065] The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, traffic steering configuration for routing traffic to the correct destination at the UPF 262, partial control of policy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface through which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0066] Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270 that can communicate with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The LMF 270 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively, each can correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 can be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, which can connect to the LMF 270 via the core network, the 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not shown). The SLP 272 may support similar functionality to the LMF 270, but whereas the LMF 270 may communicate with the AMF 264, the NG-RAN 220, and the UE 204 on a control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to carry signaling messages rather than voice or data), the SLP 272 may communicate with the UE 204 and external clients (e.g., third-party servers 274) on a user plane (e.g., using protocols intended to carry voice and / or data, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0067] Yet another optional aspect may include a third-party server 274 that can communicate with the LMF 270, SLP 272, 5GC 260 (e.g., via the AMF 264 and / or UPF 262), NG-RAN 220, and / or UE 204 to obtain location information (e.g., a location estimate) of the UE 204. Thus, in some cases, the third-party server 274 may be referred to as a location service (LCS) client or an external client. The third-party servers 274 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively may each correspond to a single server.

[0068] The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC 260, and specifically the UPF 262 and AMF 264, respectively, to one or more gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220. The interface between the gNB 222 and / or ng-eNB 224 and the AMF 264 is referred to as the "N2" interface, while the interface between the gNB 222 and / or ng-eNB 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the "N3" interface. The gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 of the NG-RAN 220 can communicate directly with each other via a backhaul connection 223, referred to as an "Xn-C" interface. One or more of the gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 can communicate with one or more UEs 204 over a wireless interface, referred to as a "Uu" interface.

[0069] The functionality of a gNB 222 is divided between a gNB Central Unit (gNB-CU) 226, one or more gNB Distributed Units (gNB-DUs) 228, and one or more gNB Radio Units (gNB-RUs) 229. The gNB-CU 226 is a logical node that includes base station functions, including delivery of user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, and more, in addition to those functions specifically assigned to the gNB-DU 228. More specifically, the gNB-CU 226 typically hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) protocols for the gNB 222. The gNB-DU 228 is a logical node that typically hosts the Radio Link Control (RLC) and Medium Access Control (MAC) layers for the gNB 222. Its operation is controlled by the gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 can support one or more cells, and one cell is supported by only one gNB-DU 228. The interface 232 between the gNB-CU 226 and one or more gNB-DUs 228 is referred to as the "F1" interface. The physical (PHY) layer functionality of the gNB 222 is typically hosted by one or more independent gNB-RUs 229, which perform functions such as power amplification and signal transmission / reception. The interface between the gNB-DU 228 and the gNB-RU 229 is referred to as the "Fx" interface. Thus, the UE 204 communicates with the gNB-CU 226 via the RRC, SDAP, and PDCP layers, with the gNB-DU 228 via the RLC and MAC layers, and with the gNB-RU 229 via the PHY layer.

[0070] The deployment of a communication system (such as a 5G NR system) can be arranged with various components or parts in a variety of ways. In a 5G NR system or network, a network node, a network entity, a mobility element of the network, a RAN node, a core network node, a network element or a network equipment (such as a base station or one or more units (or one or more components) that perform base station functionality) can be implemented in an aggregated or decomposed architecture. For example, a base station (such as a node B (NB), an evolved NB (eNB), an NR base station, a 5G NNB, an access point (AP), a transmit receive point (TRP) or a cell, etc.) can be implemented as an aggregated base station (also known as a standalone base station or a single-chip base station) or a decomposed base station.

[0071] A converged base station may be configured to utilize a radio protocol stack that is physically or logically integrated within a single RAN node. A decomposed base station may be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically distributed between two or more units, such as one or more central or centralized units (CUs), one or more distributed units (DUs), or one or more radio units (RUs). In some aspects, a CU may be implemented within a RAN node, and one or more DUs may be co-located with the CU, or alternatively, may be geographically or virtually distributed across one or more other RAN nodes. A DU may be implemented to communicate with one or more RUs. Each of the CUs, DUs, and RUs may also be implemented as a virtual unit, namely a virtual central unit (VCU), a virtual distributed unit (VDU), or a virtual radio unit (VRU).

[0072] Base station type operation or network design can take into account the aggregated nature of base station functionality. For example, a disaggregated base station can be used in an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open radio access network (O-RAN (a network configuration such as that initiated by the O-RAN Alliance)), or a virtualized radio access network (vRAN, also known as a cloud radio access network (C-RAN)). Decomposition can include distributing functionality across two or more units at various physical locations, as well as virtually distributing functionality of at least one unit, which can enable flexibility in network design. Various units of a disaggregated base station or disaggregated RAN architecture can be configured for wired or wireless communication with at least one other unit.

[0073] Figure 2C An example disaggregated base station architecture 250 according to aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. Disaggregated base station architecture 250 may include one or more central units (CUs) 280 (e.g., gNB-CUs 226), which may communicate directly with a core network 267 (e.g., 5GC 210, 5GC 260) via backhaul links, or indirectly with the core network 267 through one or more disaggregated base station units (e.g., a near real-time (near-RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 259 via an E2 link, or a non-real-time (non-RT) RIC 257 associated with a service management and orchestration (SMO) framework 255, or both). CUs 280 may communicate with one or more distributed units (DUs) 285 (e.g., gNB-DUs 228) via corresponding midhaul links (e.g., F1 interfaces). DUs 285 may communicate with one or more radio units (RUs) 287 (e.g., gNB-RUs 229) via corresponding fronthaul links. The RUs 287 can communicate with corresponding UEs 204 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some implementations, a UE 204 can be served by multiple RUs 287 simultaneously.

[0074] Each of the units (i.e., CU 280, DU 285, RU 287, and near-RT RIC 259, non-RT RIC 257, and SMO framework 255) may include or be coupled to one or more interfaces configured to receive or transmit signals, data, or information (collectively, signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units, or an associated processor or controller that provides instructions to the communication interfaces of these units, may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via the transmission medium. For example, these units may include a wired interface configured to receive or transmit signals to one or more of the other units via the wired transmission medium. In addition, the unit may include a wireless interface that may include a receiver, transmitter, or transceiver (such as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver) configured to receive or transmit signals, or both, to one or more of the other units via the wireless transmission medium.

[0075] In some aspects, the CU 280 may host one or more higher layer control functions. Such control functions may include radio resource control (RRC), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), etc. Each control function may be implemented using an interface that is configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by the CU 280. The CU 280 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (i.e., central unit-user plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (i.e., central unit-control plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some specific implementations, the CU 280 may be logically split into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP unit may communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP unit via an interface (such as an E1 interface). As needed, the CU 280 may be implemented to communicate with the DU 285 for network control and signaling.

[0076] The DU 285 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 287. In some aspects, the DU 285 may host one or more of a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and one or more higher physical (PHY) layers (such as modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, etc.), depending at least in part on a functional split, such as that defined by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). In some aspects, the DU 285 may also host one or more lower PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may be implemented using an interface configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 285 or with control functions hosted by the CU 280.

[0077] Lower layer functionality may be implemented by one or more RUs 287. In some deployments, a RU 287 controlled by a DU 285 may correspond to a logical node that hosts RF processing functionality or low PHY layer functionality (such as performing Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), Inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming, Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc.), or both, based at least in part on a functional split (such as a lower layer functional split). In such an architecture, the RU 287 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communications with one or more UEs 204. In some implementations, real-time and non-real-time aspects of control and user plane communications with the RU 287 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 285. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable the implementation of the DU 285 and CU 280 in a cloud-based RAN architecture (such as a vRAN architecture).

[0078] The SMO framework 255 can be configured to support RAN deployment and provisioning of both non-virtualized and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 255 can be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which can be managed via an operations and maintenance interface (such as the O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 255 can be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as Open Cloud (O-Cloud) 269) to perform network element lifecycle management (such as instantiating virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as the O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements may include, but are not limited to, CU 280, DU 285, RU 287, and near-RT RIC 259. In some implementations, the SMO framework 255 can communicate with hardware aspects of the 4G RAN (such as Open eNB (O-eNB) 261) via the O1 interface. Additionally, in some implementations, the SMO framework 255 can communicate directly with one or more RUs 287 via the O1 interface. The SMO framework 255 may also include a non-RT RIC 257 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 255 .

[0079] The non-RT RIC 257 can be configured to include logic functions that enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) workflows including model training and updating, or policy-based guidance of applications / features in the near-RT RIC 259. The non-RT RIC 257 can be coupled to or in communication with the near-RT RIC 259 (e.g., via an A1 interface). The near-RT RIC 259 can be configured to include logic functions that enable near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources through data collection and actions via an interface (e.g., via an E2 interface) that connects one or more CUs 280, one or more DUs 285, or both, and the O-eNB with the near-RT RIC 259.

[0080] In some implementations, the non-RT RIC 257 can receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server to generate an AI / ML model to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 259. Such information can be utilized by the near-RT RIC 259 and can be received from non-network data sources or from network functions at the SMO framework 255 or the non-RT RIC 257. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 257 or the near-RT RIC 259 can be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 257 can monitor long-term trends and patterns in performance and employ AI / ML models to perform corrective actions through the SMO framework 255 (such as via reconfiguration of O1) or by creating RAN management policies (such as A1 policies).

[0081] Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C Several example components (represented by corresponding blocks) are illustrated that may be incorporated into a UE 302 (which may correspond to any of the UEs described herein), a base station 304 (which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein), and a network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any of the network functions described herein, including the location server 230 and the LMF 270, or alternatively may be independent thereof). Figure 2A and Figure 2B The depicted NG-RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260 infrastructure, such as a dedicated network, is implemented to support the operations described herein. It should be understood that these components can be implemented differently in different types of devices (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system on a chip (SoC), etc.). The illustrated components can also be incorporated into other devices in the communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include components similar to those described as providing similar functionality. Moreover, a given device may include one or more of these components. For example, a device may include multiple transceiver components that enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0082] UE 302 and base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively, which provide means (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means for preventing transmission, etc.) for communicating via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown), such as NR networks, LTE networks, GSM networks, etc. WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can each be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNBs, gNBs), etc.) via at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest (e.g., a certain set of time / frequency resources in a particular spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be configured in different ways to transmit and encode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to a specified RAT, and conversely, receive and decode the signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.) according to a specified RAT. Specifically, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for transmitting and encoding the signals 318 and 358, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for receiving and decoding the signals 318 and 358, respectively.

[0083] At least in some cases, the UE 302 and the base station 304 each further include one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide for communicating over the wireless communication medium of interest via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 are components (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, components for measuring, components for tuning, components for preventing transmission, etc.) for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) using a PC5, dedicated short-range communication (DSRC), wireless access for vehicular environments (WAVE), near-field communication (NFC), ultra-wideband (UWB), etc.). The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be configured in different ways to transmit and encode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to a specified RAT, and conversely, receive and decode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 include: one or more transmitters 324 and 364 for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362 for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively. As a specific example, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be WiFi transceivers, transceiver, and / or transceiver, NFC transceiver, UWB transceiver or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceiver.

[0084] At least in some cases, UE 302 and base station 304 also include satellite signal receivers 330 and 370. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and can provide components for receiving and / or measuring satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. If satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellite positioning system receivers, satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 can be Global Positioning System (GPS) signals, Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, BeiDou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. If satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 can be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and / or user data) originating from a 5G network. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may request information and operations from other systems as appropriate and, at least in some cases, perform calculations using measurements obtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithm to determine the positions of UE 302 and base station 304, respectively.

[0085] The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, which provide means (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, etc.) for communicating with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, other network entities 306). For example, the base station 304 may employ one or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other base stations 304 or network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links. For another example, the network entity 306 may employ one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or more base stations 304 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, or to communicate with other network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.

[0086] A transceiver can be configured to communicate over a wired or wireless link. A transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver) includes transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) and receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362). In some implementations, a transceiver can be an integrated device (e.g., implementing transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry in a single device), in some implementations can include separate transmitter circuitry and separate receiver circuitry, or in other implementations can be implemented in other ways. The transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry of a wired transceiver (e.g., in some implementations, network transceivers 380 and 390) can be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. Wireless transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as antenna arrays, which allow a corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmit "beamforming," as described herein. Similarly, wireless receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362) may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as antenna arrays, which allow a corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming, as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter circuitry and the receiver circuitry may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that a corresponding device may only receive or only transmit at a given time, rather than both receive and transmit at the same time. The wireless transceivers (eg, WWAN transceivers 310 and 350, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include a network listening module (NLM) or the like for performing various measurements.

[0087] As used herein, various wireless transceivers (e.g., in some implementations, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, and network transceivers 380 and 390) and wired transceivers (e.g., in some implementations, network transceivers 380 and 390) may be generally referred to as a "transceiver," "at least one transceiver," or "one or more transceivers." Thus, whether a particular transceiver is a wired or wireless transceiver may be inferred based on the type of communication being performed. For example, backhaul communications between network devices or servers typically involve signaling via a wired transceiver, while wireless communications between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) will typically involve signaling via a wireless transceiver.

[0088] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with the operations disclosed herein. UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 each include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394 for providing functionality related to, for example, wireless communication, as well as for providing other processing functionality. Thus, processors 332, 384, and 394 can provide means for processing, such as means for determining, means for computing, means for receiving, means for transmitting, means for indicating, and the like. In one aspect, processors 332, 384, and 394 can include, for example, one or more general-purpose processors, multi-core processors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuits, or various combinations thereof.

[0089] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306, respectively, include memory circuitry implementing memory 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Thus, memories 340, 386, and 396 can provide means for storing, means for retrieving, means for maintaining, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 can include positioning components 342, 388, and 398, respectively. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be hardware circuitry that is part of or coupled to processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, and that, when executed, causes UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. In other aspects, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be external to processors 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be memory modules stored in memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively, which, when executed by the processors 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. Figure 3A Possible locations are illustrated for a location component 342, which can be, for example, part of one or more WWAN transceivers 310, memory 340, one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof, or can be a standalone component. Figure 3B Possible locations are illustrated for a location component 388, which can be, for example, part of one or more WWAN transceivers 350, memory 386, one or more processors 384, or any combination thereof, or can be a standalone component. Figure 3C Possible locations are illustrated for a location component 398, which can be, for example, part of one or more network transceivers 390, memory 396, one or more processors 394, or any combination thereof, or can be a standalone component.

[0090] The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to the one or more processors 332 to provide means for sensing or detecting movement and / or orientation information independent of motion data derived from signals received by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and / or the satellite signal receiver 330. By way of example, the sensors 344 may include an accelerometer (e.g., a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), an altimeter (e.g., a barometric altimeter), and / or any other type of motion detection sensor. Furthermore, the sensors 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, the sensors 344 may use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and an orientation sensor to provide the ability to calculate a position in a two-dimensional (2D) and / or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate system.

[0091] In addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 that provides means for providing indications to the user (e.g., audible and / or visual indications) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., when the user actuates a sensing device such as a keypad, touch screen, microphone, etc.). Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 may also include a user interface.

[0092] Referring in more detail to the one or more processors 384, in a downlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to the processor 384. The one or more processors 384 may implement the functionality of the RRC layer, the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and the Medium Access Control (MAC) layer. One or more processors 384 may provide: RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information (e.g., Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with delivery of upper layer PDUs, error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0093] Transmitter 354 and receiver 352 may implement Layer 1 (L1) functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding / decoding of transport channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to physical channels, modulation / demodulation of physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. Transmitter 354 handles mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), and M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM). The coded and modulated symbols may then be separated into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarriers, multiplexed with reference signals (e.g., pilots) in the time and / or frequency domains, and then combined using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially pre-decoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator can be used to determine the coding and modulation schemes and for spatial processing. The channel estimates can be derived from a reference signal and / or channel state feedback transmitted by the UE 302. Each spatial stream can then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 can modulate an RF carrier with the corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0094] At UE 302, receiver 312 receives the signal via its corresponding antenna 316. Receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides this information to one or more processors 332. Transmitter 314 and receiver 312 implement Layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Receiver 312 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for UE 302. If there are multiple spatial streams destined for UE 302, they can be combined by receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. Receiver 312 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier, as well as the reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point transmitted by base station 304. These soft decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by a channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to one or more processors 332, which implement layer 3 (L3) and layer 2 (L2) functionality.

[0095] In the downlink, one or more processors 332 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. One or more processors 332 are also responsible for error detection.

[0096] Similar to the functionality described in conjunction with downlink transmissions performed by the base station 304, the one or more processors 332 provide: RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with delivery of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0097] Channel estimates derived by a channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback sent by base station 304 may be used by transmitter 314 to select appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by transmitter 314 may be provided to different antennas 316. Transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with the corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0098] Uplink transmissions are processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver functionality at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives the signal through its respective antenna 356. The receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 384.

[0099] In the uplink, one or more processors 384 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from UE 302. The IP packets from one or more processors 384 may be provided to the core network. One or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.

[0100] For convenience, UE 302, base station 304 and / or network entity 306 Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C1 is shown as including various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it should be understood that the illustrated components may have different functionality in different designs. In particular, Figures 3A to 3C The various components in are optional in alternative configurations, and various aspects include configurations that may vary due to design choice, cost, use of the device, or other considerations. For example, in Figure 3A In the case of a cellular network, a specific implementation of the UE 302 may omit the WWAN transceiver 310 (e.g., a wearable device or tablet or PC or laptop may have Wi-Fi and / or Bluetooth capabilities but no cellular capabilities), or may omit the short-range wireless transceiver 320 (e.g., only cellular, etc.), or may omit the satellite signal receiver 330, or may omit the sensor 344, etc. In another example, in Figure 3B In certain embodiments, a particular implementation of the base station 304 may omit the WWAN transceiver 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi "hotspot" access point without cellular capabilities), or may omit the short-range wireless transceiver 360 (e.g., cellular only, etc.), or may omit the satellite signal receiver 370, etc. For the sake of brevity, illustrations of various alternative configurations are not provided herein, but will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0101] Various components of the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to one another via data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392, respectively. In an aspect, the data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 may form or be part of communication interfaces for the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306, respectively. For example, where different logical entities are embodied in the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functionality incorporated into the same base station 304), the data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 may provide for communication between the different logical entities.

[0102] Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C The components of can be implemented in various ways. In some specific implementations, Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3CThe components of the present invention may be implemented in one or more circuits, such as, for example, one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors). Here, each circuit may use and / or be combined with at least one memory component for storing information or executable code used by the circuit to provide the functionality. For example, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 310 to 346 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of the UE 302 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 350 to 388 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of the base station 304 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Moreover, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390 to 398 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of the network entity 306 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, actions, and / or functions are described herein as being performed "by a UE," "by a base station," "by a network entity," etc. However, as will be appreciated, such operations, actions and / or functions may actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of the UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc. (such as processors 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350 and 360, memories 340, 386 and 396, positioning components 342, 388 and 398, etc.).

[0103] In some designs, the network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, the network entity 306 may operate independently of a network operator or cellular network infrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260). For example, the network entity 306 may be a component of a dedicated network that may be configured to communicate with the UE 302 via the base station 304 or independently of the base station 304 (e.g., via a non-cellular communication link such as WiFi).

[0104] Please note that Figure 3A The UE 302 illustrated in FIG3 may represent a “low-level” UE or an “advanced” UE. As further described below, although low-level UEs and advanced UEs may have the same types of components (e.g., both may have a WWAN transceiver 310, a processing system 332, a memory component 340, etc.), these components may have different levels of functionality (e.g., increased or decreased performance, more or less capabilities, etc.), depending on whether the UE 302 corresponds to a low-level UE or an advanced UE.

[0105] NR supports multiple cellular network-based positioning technologies, including downlink-based positioning methods, uplink-based positioning methods, and downlink and uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include: Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, Downlink Time Difference of Arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and Downlink Angle of Departure (DL-AoD) in NR. Figure 4 Examples of various positioning methods according to various aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. In the OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure illustrated in scenario 410, the UE measures the difference between the arrival times (ToA) of reference signals (e.g., positioning reference signals (PRS)) received from paired base stations (referred to as reference signal time difference (RSTD) or arrival time difference (TDOA) measurements) and reports these differences to a positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives identifiers (IDs) of a reference base station (e.g., a serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in assistance data. The UE then measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each non-reference base station. Based on the known positions of the base stations involved and the RSTD measurement results, a positioning entity (e.g., a UE for UE-based positioning or a location server for UE-assisted positioning) can estimate the position of the UE.

[0106] For DL-AoD positioning, as illustrated in scenario 420, the positioning entity uses measurement reports from the UE regarding received signal strength measurements of multiple downlink transmit beams to determine the angle between the UE and the transmitting base station. The positioning entity can then estimate the UE's position based on the determined angle and the known location of the transmitting base station.

[0107] Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA is similar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., sounding reference signals (SRS)) sent by the UE to multiple base stations. Specifically, the UE sends one or more uplink reference signals, which are measured by a reference base station and multiple non-reference base stations. Each base station then reports the time of receipt of the reference signal (referred to as relative time of arrival (RTOA)) to a positioning entity (e.g., a location server) that knows the position and relative timing of the base stations involved. Based on the receive-to-receive (Rx-Rx) time difference between the reported RTOA of the reference base station and the reported RTOA of each non-reference base station, the known positions of the base stations, and their known timing offsets, the positioning entity can use TDOA to estimate the position of the UE.

[0108] For UL-AoA positioning, one or more base stations measure the received signal strength of one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) received from the UE on one or more uplink receive beams. The positioning entity uses the signal strength measurements and the angle of the receive beams to determine the angle between the UE and the base station. Based on the determined angle and the known location of the base station, the positioning entity can then estimate the UE's position.

[0109] Downlink and uplink-based positioning methods include enhanced cell ID (E-CID) positioning and multiple round-trip time (RTT) positioning (also known as "multi-cell RTT" and "multi-RTT"). In the RTT procedure, a first entity (e.g., a base station or UE) sends a first RTT-related signal (e.g., a PRS or SRS) to a second entity (e.g., a UE or base station), and the second entity sends a second RTT-related signal (e.g., an SRS or PRS) back to the first entity. Each entity measures the time difference between the time of arrival (ToA) of the received RTT-related signal and the transmission time of the transmitted RTT-related signal. This time difference is called the received-to-transmit (Rx-Tx) time difference. The Rx-Tx time difference measurement can be made or adjusted to include only the time difference between the nearest time slot boundary of the received signal and the transmitted signal. The two entities can then transmit their Rx-Tx time difference measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 270), which calculates the round-trip propagation time (i.e., RTT) between the two entities based on the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements (e.g., as the sum of the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements). Alternatively, one entity can transmit its Rx-Tx time difference measurement to the other entity, which then calculates the RTT. The distance between the two entities can be determined based on the RTT and a known signal speed (e.g., the speed of light). For multi-RTT positioning, as illustrated in scenario 430, a first entity (e.g., a UE or base station) performs an RTT positioning procedure with multiple second entities (e.g., multiple base stations or UEs) to enable the first entity's position to be determined (e.g., using multilateration) based on the distance to the second entities and the known positions of the second entities. RTT and multi-RTT methods can be combined with other positioning techniques (such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD) to improve position accuracy, as illustrated in scenario 440.

[0110] The E-CID positioning method is based on radio resource management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, timing advance (TA), and the identifiers of detected neighboring base stations, estimated timing, and signal strength. The UE's position is then estimated based on this information and the known locations of the base stations.

[0111] To assist in positioning operations, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the UE. For example, the assistance data may include: an identifier of the base station (or cell / TRP of the base station) from which the reference signal is measured, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., the number of consecutive time slots including PRS, the periodicity of consecutive time slots including PRS, a muting sequence, a frequency hopping sequence, a reference signal identifier, a reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and / or other parameters applicable to a particular positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may originate directly from the base station itself (e.g., in a periodically broadcast overhead message, etc.). In some cases, the UE itself may be able to detect neighboring network nodes without the use of assistance data.

[0112] In the case of OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedures, the assistance data may also include an expected RSTD value and an associated uncertainty or search window around the expected RSTD. In some cases, the expected RSTD value range may be + / - 500 microseconds (μs). In some cases, when any of the resources used for positioning measurements are in FR1, the expected RSTD uncertainty value range may be + / - 32 μs. In other cases, when all resources used for positioning measurements are in FR2, the expected RSTD uncertainty value range may be + / - 8 μs.

[0113] A position estimate may be referred to by other names, such as a position estimate, a position, a position fix, a position fix, a fix, etc. A position estimate may be geodetic and include coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude), or may be municipal and include a street address, a postal address, or some other verbal description of the location. The position estimate may be further defined relative to some other known location or defined in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). A position estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volume within which the location is expected to be included with some specified or default confidence level).

[0114] The Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol (LPP) is used point-to-point between a location server (e.g., LMF 270) and a target device (e.g., UE) to locate the target device using positioning-related measurements obtained by one or more reference sources (physical entities or portions of physical entities that provide signals that can be measured by the target device in order to obtain the location of the target device). An LPP session is used between the location server and the target device to obtain position-related measurements or a position estimate, or to transfer assistance data. Currently, a single LPP session is used to support a single location request, and multiple LPP sessions can be used between the same endpoints to support multiple different location requests. Each LPP session includes one or more LPP transactions (or procedures), where each LPP transaction performs a single operation (capability exchange, assistance data transfer, or location information transfer). Each LPP transaction involves the exchange of one or more LPP messages between the location server and the target device.

[0115] An LPP session typically includes at least a capability transfer or indication procedure, an assistance data transfer or delivery procedure, and a location information transfer or delivery procedure. Figure 5 Illustrated are example LPP capability transfer procedures 510, LPP assistance data transfer procedures 530, and LPP location information transfer procedures 550 between a target device (labeled "target") and a location server (labeled "server") according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0116] The purpose of the LPP Capabilities Transfer procedure 510 is to enable the transfer of capabilities from a target device (e.g., UE 204) to a location server (e.g., LMF 270). In this context, capabilities refer to positioning and protocol capabilities related to LPP and the positioning methods supported by LPP. In the LPP Capabilities Transfer procedure 510, the location server (e.g., LMF 270) indicates the types of capabilities required by the target device (e.g., UE 204) in an LPP Request Capabilities message. The target device responds with an LPP Offer Capabilities message. The capabilities included in the LPP Offer Capabilities message should correspond to any capability types specified in the LPP Request Capabilities message. Specifically, for each positioning method for which a capability request was included in the LPP Request Capabilities message, if the target device supports that positioning method, the target device includes the target device's capabilities for the supported positioning method in an LPP Offer Capabilities Response message. With the LPP Capabilities Indication procedure, the target device provides unsolicited capabilities to the location server in an LPP Offer Capabilities message (i.e., without receiving an LPP Request Capabilities message).

[0117] The purpose of the LPP Assistance Data Delivery Procedure 530 is to enable a target device to request assistance data from a location server to assist in positioning, and to enable the location server to deliver assistance data to the target device without a request. In the LPP Assistance Data Delivery Procedure 530, the target device transmits an LPP Request Assistance Data message to the location server. The location server responds to the target device with an LPP Provide Assistance Data message containing the assistance data. The delivered assistance data should match or be a subset of the assistance data requested in the LPP Request Assistance Data message. The location server may also provide any unsolicited information it deems useful to the target device. The location server may also send one or more additional LPP Provide Assistance Data messages containing further assistance data to the target device. With the LPP Assistance Data Delivery Procedure, the location server provides unsolicited assistance data necessary for positioning. Assistance data may be provided periodically or aperiodically.

[0118] The purpose of the LPP Location Information Delivery procedure 550 is to enable a location server to request location measurement data and / or a position estimate from a target device, and to enable a target device to deliver location measurement data and / or a position estimate to the location server without a request. In the LPP Location Information Delivery procedure 550, the location server transmits an LPP Request Location Information message to the target device requesting location information, indicating the type of location information requested and potentially associated QoS. The target device responds to the location server with an LPP Provide Location Information message to deliver the location information. Unless the location server explicitly allows additional location information, the delivered location information must match or be a subset of the location information requested in the LPP Request Location Information message. More specifically, if the requested information is compatible with the capabilities and configuration of the target device, the target device includes the requested information in the LPP Provide Location Information message. Otherwise, if the target device does not support one or more of the requested positioning methods, the target device continues to process the message as if it contained only information for supported positioning methods and handles the signaling content of the unsupported positioning methods through LPP error detection. If requested by the LPP Request Location Information message, the target device transmits an Additional LPP Provide Location Information message to the location server to deliver additional location information.The LPP Location Information Delivery procedure supports the delivery of positioning estimates based on unsolicited services.

[0119] Various frame structures may be used to support downlink and uplink transmissions between network nodes (eg, base stations and UEs). Figure 6 FIG6 is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure according to aspects of the present disclosure. The frame structure may be a downlink or uplink frame structure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0120] LTE (and in some cases NR) utilizes orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) on the downlink and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. However, unlike LTE, NR also has the option of using OFDM on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also often referred to as tones, bins, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. Generally speaking, modulation symbols are transmitted in the frequency domain using OFDM and in the time domain using SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the subcarrier spacing can be 15 kilohertz (kHz), and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180 kHz). Thus, for a system bandwidth of 1.25 megahertz (MHz), 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, the nominal Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) size may be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048, respectively. The system bandwidth may also be divided into subbands. For example, a subband may cover 1.08 MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks), and there may be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands for a system bandwidth of 1.25 MHz, 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, respectively.

[0121] LTE supports a single parameter set (subcarrier spacing (SCS), symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR may support multiple parameter sets (μ), for example, 15kHz (μ=0), 30kHz (μ=1), 60kHz (μ=2), 120kHz (μ=3), and 240kHz (μ=4) or larger subcarrier spacings may be available. In each subcarrier spacing, there are 14 symbols per slot. For a 15kHz SCS (μ=0), there is one slot per subframe, 10 slots per frame, a slot duration of 1 millisecond (ms), a symbol duration of 66.7 microseconds (μs), and a maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) of 50 with a 4K FFT size. For 30kHz SCS (μ=1), there are two slots per subframe, 20 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.5ms, the symbol duration is 33.3μ8, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 100. For 60kHz SCS (μ=2), there are four slots per subframe, 40 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.25ms, the symbol duration is 16.7μ8, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 200. For 120kHz SCS (μ=3), there are eight slots per subframe, 80 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.125ms, the symbol duration is 8.33μ8, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 400. For 240kHz SCS (μ=4), there are 16 slots per subframe, 160 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.0625ms, the symbol duration is 4.17μ8, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) is 800 with 4K FFT size.

[0122] exist Figure 6 In the example, a 15 kHz parameter set is used. Therefore, in the time domain, a 10 ms frame is divided into 10 equally sized subframes, each 1 ms, and each subframe includes one time slot. Figure 6 , time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), where time increases from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), where frequency increases (or decreases) from bottom to top.

[0123] A resource grid can be used to represent a time slot, each of which includes one or more time-concurrent resource blocks (RBs) (also called physical RBs (PRBs)) in the frequency domain. The resource grid is further divided into multiple resource elements (REs). An RE can correspond to one symbol length in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain. Figure 6In the parameter set for cyclic prefixes, for a normal cyclic prefix, an RB may contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and seven consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 REs. For an extended cyclic prefix, an RB may contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and six consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 REs. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0124] Some REs may carry reference (pilot) signals (RS). These reference signals may include positioning reference signals (PRS), tracking reference signals (TRS), phase tracking reference signals (PTRS), cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS), demodulation reference signals (DMRS), primary synchronization signals (PSS), secondary synchronization signals (SSS), synchronization signal blocks (SSBs), and sounding reference signals (SRS), depending on whether the illustrated frame structure is used for uplink or downlink communication. Figure 6 Example locations of REs carrying reference signals (labeled "R") are illustrated.

[0125] A set of resource elements (REs) used for transmitting PRS is called a "PRS resource." A set of resource elements may span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and "N" (such as one or more) consecutive symbols within a slot in the time domain. In a given OFDM symbol in the time domain, a PRS resource occupies consecutive PRBs in the frequency domain.

[0126] The transmission of PRS resources within a given PRB has a specific comb size (also referred to as "comb density"). The comb size "N" represents the subcarrier spacing (or frequency / tone spacing) within each symbol of the PRS resource configuration. Specifically, for comb size "N", the PRS is transmitted in every Nth subcarrier of one symbol of the PRB. For example, for comb-4, for each symbol of the PRS resource configuration, the REs corresponding to every fourth subcarrier (such as subcarriers 0, 4, and 8) are used to transmit the PRS of the PRS resource. Currently, for DL-PRS, comb sizes of comb-2, comb-4, comb-6, and comb-12 are supported. Figure 6 An example PRS resource configuration for comb-4 (which spans four symbols) is illustrated. That is, the positions of the shaded REs (labeled "R") indicate a comb-4 PRS resource configuration.

[0127] Currently, DL-PRS resources can span 2, 4, 6, or 12 consecutive symbols within a slot using a full frequency domain staggered pattern. DL-PRS resources can be configured in any downlink or flexible (FL) symbol in a slot that is configured by higher layers. There may be a constant energy per resource element (EPRE) for all REs of a given DL-PRS resource. The following are the symbol-by-symbol frequency offsets for comb sizes of 2, 4, 6, and 12 over 2, 4, 6, and 12 symbols. 2-symbol Comb-2: {0,1}; 4-symbol Comb-2: {0,1,0,1}; 6-symbol Comb-2: {0,1,0,1,0,1}; 12-symbol Comb-2: {0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1,0,1}; 4-symbol Comb-4: {0,2,1,3} (as in Figure 6 ); 12-symbol comb-4: {0,2,1,3,0,2,1,3,0,2,1,3}; 6-symbol comb-6: {0,3,1,4,2,5}; 12-symbol comb-6: {0,3,1,4,2,5,0,3,1,4,2,5}; and 12-symbol comb-12: {0,6,3,9,1,7,4,10,2,8,5,11}.

[0128] A "PRS resource set" is a set of PRS resources used to transmit a PRS signal, where each PRS resource has a PRS resource ID. In addition, the PRS resources in a PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP. A PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource set ID and is associated with a specific TRP (identified by the TRP ID). In addition, the PRS resources in a PRS resource set have the same periodicity, common muting pattern configuration, and the same repetition factor (such as "PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor") across time slots. The periodicity is the time from the first repetition of the first PRS resource of the first PRS instance to the same first repetition of the same first PRS resource of the next PRS instance. The periodicity may have a length selected from the following: 2^μ*{4, 5, 8, 10, 16, 20, 32, 40, 64, 80, 160, 320, 640, 1280, 2560, 5120, 10240} time slots, where μ = 0, 1, 2, 3. The repetition factor may have a length selected from {1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 16, 32} slots.

[0129] The PRS resource ID in a PRS resource set is associated with a single beam (or beam ID) transmitted from a single TRP (one TRP can transmit one or more beams). That is, each PRS resource in a PRS resource set can be transmitted on a different beam, and therefore, a "PRS resource" (or simply "resource") can also be referred to as a "beam." Note that this does not imply whether the UE knows the TRP and beam on which the PRS is transmitted.

[0130] A "PRS instance" or "PRS opportunity" is an instance of a periodically repeating time window (such as a group of one or more consecutive time slots) in which a PRS is expected to be transmitted. A PRS opportunity may also be referred to as a "PRS positioning opportunity," "PRS positioning instance," "positioning opportunity," "positioning instance," "positioning repetition," or simply "opportunity," "instance," or "repetition."

[0131] A "positioning frequency layer" (also referred to simply as a "frequency layer") is a collection of one or more PRS resource sets with the same values ​​for certain parameters across one or more TRPs. Specifically, the set of PRS resource sets has the same subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix (CP) type (meaning that all parameter sets supported for the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) are also supported for PRS), the same point A, the same value for the downlink PRS bandwidth, the same starting PRB (and center frequency), and the same comb size. The point A parameter takes the value of the parameter "ARFCN-ValueNR" (where "ARFCN" stands for "Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number") and is an identifier / code that specifies a pair of physical radio channels for transmission and reception. The downlink PRS bandwidth can have a granularity of four PRBs, with a minimum value of 24 PRBs and a maximum value of 272 PRBs. Currently, up to four frequency layers have been defined, and up to two PRS resource sets can be configured per frequency layer per TRP.

[0132] The concept of frequency layers is somewhat similar to that of component carriers and bandwidth parts (BWPs), but differs in that component carriers and BWPs are used by one base station (or a macrocell base station and a small cell base station) to transmit data channels, while frequency layers are used by several (typically three or more) base stations to transmit PRSs. A UE can indicate the number of frequency layers it can support when communicating its positioning capabilities to the network (such as during an LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP) session). For example, a UE can indicate whether it can support one or four positioning frequency layers.

[0133] It should be noted that the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" generally refer to specific reference signals used for positioning in NR and LTE systems. However, as used herein, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may also refer to any type of reference signal that can be used for positioning, such as, but not limited to, PRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, SRS, UL-PRS, etc. as defined in LTE and NR. In addition, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may refer to a downlink positioning reference signal, an uplink positioning reference signal, or a sidelink positioning reference signal, unless otherwise indicated by the context. If further distinction is needed between the types of PRS, the downlink positioning reference signal may be referred to as a "DL-PRS," the uplink positioning reference signal (e.g., the SRS used for positioning, i.e., PTRS) may be referred to as a "UL-PRS," and the sidelink positioning reference signal may be referred to as a "SL-PRS." In addition, for signals that can be sent in the downlink, uplink, and / or sidelink (e.g., DMRS), these signals may be prefixed with "DL," "UL," or "SL" to distinguish the direction. For example, "UL-DMRS" may be different from "DL-DMRS."

[0134] Figure 7 FIGURE 7 is a diagram illustrating various downlink channels within an example downlink time slot. Figure 7 In , time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), where time increases from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), where frequency increases (or decreases) from bottom to top. Figure 7 In the example of , a 15 kHz parameter set is used. Therefore, in the time domain, the illustrated time slot length is one millisecond (ms), divided into 14 symbols.

[0135] In NR, the channel bandwidth or system bandwidth is divided into multiple bandwidth parts (BWPs). A BWP is a set of contiguous RBs selected from a contiguous subset of common RBs for a given parameter set on a given carrier. Typically, a maximum of four BWPs can be specified in the downlink and uplink. That is, a UE can be configured with up to four BWPs on the downlink and up to four BWPs on the uplink. Only one BWP (uplink or downlink) can be active at a given time, which means that the UE can only receive or transmit on one BWP at a time. On the downlink, the bandwidth of each BWP should be equal to or greater than the bandwidth of the SSB, but it may or may not contain the SSB.

[0136] refer to Figure 7, the primary synchronization signal (PSS) is used by the UE to determine the subframe / symbol timing and the physical layer identity. The secondary synchronization signal (SSS) is used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identity group number and the radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identity group number, the UE can determine the PCI. Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the position of the aforementioned DL-RS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH) carrying the master information block (MIB) can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form an SSB (also referred to as SS / PBCH). The MIB provides the number of RBs in the downlink system bandwidth and the system frame number (SFN). The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information that is not sent through the PBCH (such as the system information block (SIB)), and paging messages.

[0137] The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries downlink control information (DCI) in one or more control channel elements (CCEs). Each CCE includes one or more RE group (REG) bundles (which can span multiple symbols in the time domain). Each REG bundle includes one or more REGs, and each REG corresponds to 12 resource elements (one resource block) in the frequency domain and one OFDM symbol in the time domain. The set of physical resources used to carry PDCCH / DCI is called a control resource set (CORESET) in NR. In NR, the PDCCH is confined to a single CORESET and is transmitted with its own DMRS. This enables UE-specific beamforming for the PDCCH.

[0138] exist Figure 7 In the example shown in Figure 2, there is one CORESET per BWP, and the CORESET spans three symbols in the time domain (although it could be just one symbol or two symbols). Unlike LTE control channels that occupy the entire system bandwidth, in NR, PDCCH channels are localized to a specific region (i.e., CORESET) in the frequency domain. Therefore, Figure 7 The frequency components of the PDCCH shown in FIG are illustrated as less than a single BWP in the frequency domain. Note that although the illustrated CORESETs are continuous in the frequency domain, the CORESETs do not need to be contiguous. Furthermore, a CORESET may span less than three symbols in the time domain.

[0139] The DCI within the PDCCH carries information about uplink resource allocations (persistent and non-persistent) and a description of the downlink data sent to the UE (referred to as an uplink grant and a downlink grant, respectively). More specifically, the DCI indicates the resources scheduled for downlink data channels (e.g., PDSCH) and uplink data channels (e.g., physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH)). Multiple (e.g., up to eight) DCIs can be configured in the PDCCH, and these DCIs can have one of a variety of formats. For example, there are different DCI formats for uplink scheduling, downlink scheduling, uplink transmit power control (TPC), etc. The PDCCH can be transmitted by 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs to accommodate different DCI payload sizes or coding rates.

[0140] A measurement gap (MG) is a period of time during which communication between two nodes in a wireless network (typically a UE and a network infrastructure node (e.g., an eNB or gNB)) is temporarily suspended for the purpose of giving at least one of the nodes (typically the UE) an opportunity to perform measurements on signals (e.g., reference signals) from the other neighboring node, for the purpose of establishing a new communication link, or for other purposes (such as positioning). In many wireless communication standards (such as LTE and 5G NR), measurement gaps are configured by the network and follow a periodic repeating pattern called a "measurement gap pattern." In the LTE and 5G NR standards, a measurement gap pattern is specified by a combination of a gap pattern ID, a measurement gap length (MGL), and a measurement gap repetition period (MGRP). 5G NR (up to Release 16) supports either a single per-UE measurement gap configuration or a per-FR measurement gap configuration for radio carriers in each frequency range, one for FR1 and one for FR2, respectively. Depending on UE capabilities, some types of measurements may not require a measurement gap.

[0141] Figure 8 Figure 800 illustrates how parameters in a measurement gap configuration specify a measurement gap pattern (i.e., the pattern in which the measurement gaps repeat) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The measurement gap offset (MG0) is the offset between the start of the gap pattern and the start of a slot or subframe within the measurement gap repetition period (MGRP). There are currently approximately 160 offset values, but not all of these values ​​apply to all periodicities. More specifically, the offset ranges from 0 to 1 less than the MGRP. Thus, for example, if the MGRP is 20 ms, the offset can range from 0 to 19.

[0142] The measurement gap length (MGL) is the length of the measurement gap in milliseconds. In NR Release 15, the measurement gap length may have a value selected from the set {1.5, 3, 3.5, 4, 5.5, 6} (in milliseconds). In NR Release 16, the measurement gap length may have a value selected from the set {10, 18, 20, 34, 40, 50} (in milliseconds). MGRP defines the periodicity (in ms) at which the measurement gap is repeated. Although Figure 8 Although not shown, the measurement gap configuration may also include a measurement gap timing advance (MGTA) parameter. If configured, MGTA indicates the amount of time before the occurrence of the timeslot or subframe in which the measurement gap is configured to begin. Currently, MGTA may be 0.25 ms for FR2 or 0.5 ms for FR1.

[0143] In NR, there is one type of measurement gap, which means that the same type of measurement gap will be used for both radio resource management (RRM) measurements (i.e., measurements required for RRM reporting) and PRS measurements. In NR, the serving cell configures the UE with periodic measurement gaps during which the UE is expected to perform RRM measurements. In contrast, the UE requests measurement gaps for PRS measurements. It is up to the UE implementation to prioritize PRS measurements over RRM measurements, as by default, RRM measurements will have a higher priority and the UE may not be able to perform both simultaneously.

[0144] The UE requires measurement gaps for PRS reception so that it can allocate all of its processing power to perform PRS measurements. In legacy technologies such as LTE, measurement gaps are only required for inter-frequency or inter-RAT measurements. Thus, at the beginning of a measurement gap, the UE tunes to the target frequency, then performs measurements, and then tunes back to the source frequency at the end of the gap. When the UE is not synchronized with the uplink timing for the inter-frequency or inter-RAT cell, no uplink transmissions are permitted within the measurement gap. This applies to both frequency division duplex (FDD) and time division duplex (TDD) structures. As with LTE, in NR, no uplink transmissions are permitted within measurement gaps.

[0145] UEs can be classified into low-level UEs (e.g., wearable devices such as smart watches, glasses, bracelets, rings, etc.) and high-level UEs (e.g., smartphones, tablet computers, laptops, etc.). Low-level UEs are alternatively referred to as reduced capability (RedCap) NR UEs, reduced capability UEs, NR-light UEs, light UEs, NR-ultra-light UEs, or ultra-light UEs. High-level UEs are alternatively referred to as full-capability UEs or simply UEs. Compared to advanced UEs, low-tier UEs typically have lower baseband processing capabilities, fewer antennas (e.g., one receiver antenna as a baseline in FR1 or FR2, optionally with two receiver antennas), lower operating bandwidth capabilities (e.g., 20 MHz for FR1 without supplemental uplink or carrier aggregation, or 50 MHz or 100 MHz for FR2), only half-duplex frequency division duplex (HD-FDD) capabilities, smaller HARQ buffers, reduced physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) monitoring, restricted modulation (e.g., 64QAM for downlink and 16QAM for uplink), relaxed processing timeline requirements, and / or lower uplink transmit power. Different UE classes can be distinguished by UE category and / or UE capabilities. For example, certain types of UEs can be assigned a "low-tier" category (e.g., by an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), an applicable wireless communication standard, etc.), while other types of UEs can be assigned a "high-tier" category. Certain UE classes can also report their type (e.g., "low-tier" or "high-tier") to the network. Additionally, certain resources and / or channels may be dedicated to certain types of UEs.

[0146] As will be appreciated, the accuracy of low-level UE positioning may be limited. For example, low-level UEs may operate on reduced bandwidths, such as 5 MHz to 20 MHz for wearable devices and "relaxed" IoT devices (i.e., IoT devices with relaxed or lower capability parameters (such as lower throughput, relaxed latency requirements, lower energy consumption, etc.)), which results in lower positioning accuracy. As another example, the receive processing capabilities of low-level UEs may be limited due to their lower cost RF / baseband. Therefore, the reliability of measurements and positioning calculations will be reduced. In addition, such low-level UEs may not be able to receive multiple PRSs from multiple TRPs, further reducing positioning accuracy. As yet another example, the transmit power of the low-level UE can be reduced, which means that there will be lower quality uplink measurements for low-level UE positioning.

[0147] Advanced UEs typically have larger form factors and are more expensive than low-tier UEs, and have more features and capabilities than low-tier UEs. For example, for positioning, advanced UEs can operate over the full PRS bandwidth (such as 100 MHz) and measure PRS from more TRPs than low-tier UEs, both of which result in higher positioning accuracy. As another example, the receive processing capabilities of advanced UEs may be higher (e.g., faster) due to their higher-capability RF / baseband. In addition, the transmit power of advanced UEs can be higher than that of low-tier UEs. This increases the reliability of measurements and positioning calculations.

[0148] For positioning, a RedCap UE may have limited PRS processing bandwidth, limited PRS processing capability, limited PRS resource configuration capability, limited simultaneous positioning method capability, and / or a limited number of receive antennas. With respect to PRS processing bandwidth, the UE may signal its capabilities for DL-PRS bandwidth processing to the location server in an LPP Offer Capabilities message (e.g., Figure 5 (e.g., the LPP capability transfer procedure 510 in

[0065] ). Specifically, the UE may report the maximum DL PRS bandwidth in MHz that the UE supports (i.e., that the UE can measure / process). For the FR1 band, the UE may report a PRS bandwidth value from the set of {5, 10, 20, 40, 50, 80, 100} MHz. For the FR2 band, the UE may report a PRS bandwidth value from the set of {50, 100, 200, 400} MHz. In addition, the UE may report its PRS bandwidth capability per band (referred to as a "per-band capability report"). A UE is not expected to support a DL PRS bandwidth that exceeds its reported DL PRS bandwidth capability value.

[0149] The DL-PRS sequence is resource element specific. The reference point of k=0 is the position of point A of the localized frequency layer where the downlink PRS resources are configured, where point A is given by the higher layer parameter "dl-PRS-PointA".

[0150] As shown in LPP capability transfer procedure 510, the location server receives UE capabilities (e.g., in an LPP offer capabilities message, such as in Figure 5 From the network's perspective, a wideband PRS may be sent which may then be processed partially by the RedCap UE and fully by the Advanced UE. Figure 9 Shown in.

[0151] Figure 9 FIG9 is a diagram illustrating an example of relative bandwidth portions of wideband PRS that may be measured and processed by different UEs according to aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 9In the example of FIG, each box represents a portion of the bandwidth. Specifically, the box labeled "Wideband PRS" represents the bandwidth of the PRS transmitted by a transmitter (Tx) such as a TRP or other base station entity, and the boxes labeled "UE1," "UE2," and "UE3" represent the bandwidth of the PRS measured by three different receivers (Rx). As will be understood, these boxes may not be to scale.

[0152] like Figure 9 As shown in the example of FIG, a transmitter transmits a wideband PRS (e.g., a PRS of up to 272 PRBs) that is measured by three receivers labeled "UE1," "UE2," and "UE3." As shown, UE1 (e.g., an advanced UE) can measure and process the PRS across the entire bandwidth. In contrast, UE2 and UE3 (e.g., RedCap UEs) can only measure and process a portion of the bandwidth of the wideband PRS.

[0153] Based on the above, it can be seen that a UE may report a PRS bandwidth as small as 20 MHz and is expected to measure / process only that amount of bandwidth. Furthermore, the same PRS resources (e.g., wideband PRS resources) may be shared (i.e., measured) by both Advanced UEs and RedCap UEs. This observation leads to different possibilities for how a UE may behave when the bandwidth of the PRS indicated in the assistance data (e.g., received in an LPP Provide Assistance Data message, as in LPP Assistance Data Delivery Procedure 530) does not match the UE's reported PRS processing bandwidth (e.g., sent in an LPP Request Assistance Data message, as in LPP Assistance Data Delivery Procedure 530). The first explanation is that if the PRS bandwidth indicated in the assistance data is greater than the UE's reported PRS bandwidth capability, the UE will simply not accept the assistance data. In other words, in this case, the UE will transmit back an error message. The second explanation is that the UE may select a bandwidth portion (or bandwidth subset) for measurement based on some principle / rule. The present disclosure provides techniques for enabling a UE to select a subset of the PRS bandwidth for processing (ie, measurement) when the UE has been configured with a PRS bandwidth larger than the UE is capable of processing.

[0154] As a first option, the UE may determine the frequency location of the SSB and tune its receiver to measure a subset of the PRS bandwidth that includes this SSB. As a first sub-option (referred to as "Option 1A"), the SSB and the measured PRS bandwidth may only overlap (completely or partially). As a second sub-option (referred to as "Option 1B"), the SSB and the measured PRS bandwidth may have the same center frequency. Figure 10 These options are illustrated.

[0155] Figure 10is a diagram 1000 illustrating different options for measuring a subset of a PRS bandwidth relative to an SSB in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 10 In the example of FIG, each box represents a portion of the bandwidth. Specifically, the box labeled "Wideband PRS" represents the bandwidth of the PRS transmitted by a transmitter (Tx) such as a TRP or other base station entity, the box labeled "SSB" represents the bandwidth of the SSB measured by a receiver (Rx) such as a RedCap UE, and the box labeled "Measured PRS" represents the bandwidth of the PRS measured by the receiver. As will be understood, these boxes may not be to scale.

[0156] Figure 10 Three scenarios are illustrated. In each scenario, a wideband PRS (e.g., a PRS of up to 272 PRBs) is transmitted, and the receiver receives / measures the SSB over a portion of the bandwidth that is smaller than the entire bandwidth of the wideband PRS. The SSB may be transmitted by the same transmitter as or a different transmitter than that transmitting the wideband PRS. In addition, the receiver is capable of measuring a PRS bandwidth that is larger than the SSB bandwidth (however, this is merely an example, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto). In the first scenario illustrated as an example of Option 1A, the measured PRS bandwidth completely overlaps with the measured SSB. In the second scenario, also an example of Option 1A, the measured PRS bandwidth only partially overlaps with the measured SSB. In the third scenario, an example of Option 1B, the measured SSB and the measured PRS bandwidth have the same center frequency.

[0157] As a third sub-option (referred to as "Option 1C"), the SSB used as the reference bandwidth for the PRS bandwidth may be the serving cell SSB (i.e., the SSB transmitted by the UE's serving cell). As a fourth sub-option (referred to as "Option 1D"), the SSB may be the SSB of a neighboring cell that transmits a TRP that transmits a wideband PRS. As a fifth sub-option (referred to as "Option 1E"), the SSB may be the SSB of a neighboring cell that transmits a TRP that transmits a wideband PRS and is quasi-co-located with the wideband PRS.

[0158] The second option for enabling a UE to select a subset of the PRS bandwidth for processing when the UE has been configured with a PRS bandwidth larger than the PRS bandwidth it can process is related to whether measurement gaps are configured for the UE. In this option, the UE may be configured with a measurement gap in which to measure wideband PRS, but the UE selects a subset of the PRS bandwidth for processing that does not require retuning. For example, the UE may have an active BWP, and to avoid the need to re-tune its radio receiver, even when measurement gaps are configured, the UE may measure the portion of the wideband PRS bandwidth that overlaps with the UE's active BWP, as long as it measures the maximum bandwidth that the UE can process. This is in Figure 11 Example in.

[0159] Figure 11 1100 is a diagram illustrating an example of measurement of a subset of a PRS bandwidth within an active BWP of a UE in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 11 In the example of FIG, each box represents a portion of the bandwidth. Specifically, the box labeled "Wideband PRS" represents the bandwidth of the PRS transmitted by a transmitter (Tx) such as a TRP or other base station entity, the box labeled "Active BWP" represents the bandwidth of the active BWP of a receiver (Rx) such as a RedCap UE, and the box labeled "Measured PRS" represents the bandwidth of the PRS measured by the receiver. As will be understood, these boxes may not be to scale.

[0160] exist Figure 11 In the example of , the transmitter transmits a wideband PRS (e.g., a PRS of at most 272 PRBs), and the receiver is configured with an active BWP that is smaller than the bandwidth of the wideband PRS. Figure 11 As shown, even if there is a measurement gap configured for the UE, during which the UE can measure PRS, instead of retuning its receiver, the UE can measure a bandwidth subset of the wideband PRS corresponding to the UE's active BWP. In this way, the UE does not need to retune its receiver to measure PRS.

[0161] Note that the UE is expected to measure the entire PRS bandwidth it can handle for its report. If this bandwidth capability is greater than the UE's active BWP, the UE may need measurement gaps to re-tune to the additional BWP to measure the entire PRS bandwidth it can handle.

[0162] The third option for enabling the UE to select a subset of the PRS bandwidth for processing when the UE has been configured with a PRS bandwidth larger than the PRS bandwidth it is capable of processing is related to whether the UE is planning to re-tune to a specific bandwidth to perform other measurements. In this option, if the UE is scheduled / configured to re-tune to another bandwidth to perform other measurements such as SSB-based RRM measurements or CSI-RS-based RRM measurements, and the other bandwidth overlaps with the PRS bandwidth, then the UE may perform PRS measurements in the other bandwidth to avoid re-tuning between different channels. Note that in this option, the UE should be configured with a measurement gap to perform PRS measurements, and both the PRS measurement and the other measurement should be scheduled during the measurement gap. This option is not available in Figure 12 Example in.

[0163] Figure 12 FIG1 is a diagram 1200 illustrating an example of performing a PRS measurement and another measurement in the same bandwidth portion during a measurement gap in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 12In the example of , each box represents a portion of the bandwidth. Specifically, the box labeled "Wideband PRS" represents the bandwidth of the PRS transmitted by a transmitter (Tx) such as a TRP or other base station entity, the box labeled "Active BWP" represents the bandwidth of the active BWP of a receiver (Rx) such as a RedCap UE, the box labeled "Measured PRS" represents the bandwidth of the PRS measured by the receiver, and the box labeled "CSI-RS RRM" represents the bandwidth of the CSI-RS measured by the receiver. As will be understood, these boxes may not be to scale.

[0164] like Figure 12 As shown, the transmitter transmits a wideband PRS (e.g., a PRS of up to 272 PRBs), and the receiver is configured with an active BWP that is smaller than the bandwidth of the wideband PRS. The receiver is also configured / scheduled to perform CSI-RS-based RRM measurements in a portion of the bandwidth that does not correspond to the receiver's active BWP (e.g., there may or may not be overlap). In addition, the UE has been configured with a measurement gap during which to perform PRS measurements. The measurement gap is also long enough in duration for the receiver to perform both CSI-RS-based RRM measurements and PRS measurements during the measurement gap. Therefore, the receiver retunes to the bandwidth of the CSI-RS to perform both CSI-RS-based RRM measurements and PRS measurements during the measurement gap.

[0165] As a fourth option for the UE to select a subset of the PRS bandwidth for processing when it has been configured with a PRS bandwidth larger than the PRS bandwidth it can process, the UE can measure a portion of the bandwidth that avoids expected (or predicted) frequency-dependent interference. For example, in a channel coexistence mechanism or procedure (e.g., CCA, LBT), the UE can determine that a portion of the frequency band is more affected by other technologies operating in the same frequency band (e.g., exceeding a threshold). That is, the other technologies may use one or more portions of the frequency band that the UE can measure. The UE can therefore opportunistically measure one or more portions of the frequency band that do not have this interference (or have limited interference) (depending on the UE's PRS bandwidth capabilities).

[0166] As a fifth option for the UE to select a subset of the PRS bandwidth for processing when the UE has been configured with a PRS bandwidth larger than the PRS bandwidth it can process, the UE may measure a portion of the PRS bandwidth that avoids the edge of the component carrier or the edge of the frequency band. In other words, the UE may measure a portion of the PRS bandwidth that is more than a threshold distance from the edge of the component carrier (i.e., the upper frequency bound or lower frequency bound of the component carrier) or the edge of the frequency band (i.e., the upper frequency bound or lower frequency bound of the frequency band).

[0167] Figure 13An example method 1300 of wireless communication in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. In one aspect, the method 1300 may be performed by a UE (eg, any of the UEs described herein).

[0168] At 1310, the UE reports capability information indicating the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure to a network entity (e.g., a location server, a LMF). In an aspect, operation 1310 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing the operation.

[0169] At 1320, the UE receives positioning assistance data from a network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than a maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure. In an aspect, operation 1320 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing the operation.

[0170] At 1330, the UE measures the one or more PRS resources (i.e., obtains one or more positioning measurement results for the one or more PRS resources) only over a subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlapping with 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein the size of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure. In an aspect, operation 1330 may be performed by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more processors 332, memory 340, and / or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing the operation.

[0171] As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of method 1300 is that it enables a UE to select a subset of the PRS bandwidth for processing when it has been configured with a PRS bandwidth larger than the PRS bandwidth it can process. Based on selecting an appropriate subset of the PRS bandwidth, UE power efficiency is improved (e.g., by avoiding retuning or retuning to a bandwidth used for other measurements).

[0172] In the above detailed description, it can be seen that different features are grouped together in each example. This disclosure should not be understood as an intention that the example clauses have more features than the features explicitly mentioned in each clause. On the contrary, various aspects of the present disclosure may include less than all the features of the disclosed individual example clauses. Therefore, the following clauses should be considered to be incorporated into the description accordingly, where each clause itself can be used as a separate example. Although each dependent clause may refer to a specific combination of a clause with one of the other clauses in a clause, the aspects of the dependent clause are not limited to specific combinations. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include combinations of dependent clause aspects with the subject matter of any other dependent clause or independent clause or combinations of any features with other dependent clauses and independent clauses. The various aspects disclosed herein explicitly include these combinations, unless it is expressly expressed or can be easily inferred that a specific combination is not intended to be used (for example, contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as both an electrical insulator and an electrical conductor). In addition, it is also expected that various aspects of a clause may be included in any other independent clause, even if the clause is not directly dependent on the independent clause.

[0173] Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0174] Clause 1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: reporting capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring to a network entity; receiving positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; and measuring the one or more PRS resources over only a subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap between the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources and 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth that the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring.

[0175] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB.

[0176] Clause 3. A method according to clause 2, wherein: the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources completely overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources partially overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, or the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources shares a center frequency with the bandwidth of the SSB.

[0177] Clause 4. A method according to any one of clauses 2 to 3, wherein: the SSB is a serving cell SSB, the SSB is a first neighboring cell SSB of a transmit reception point (TRP) from which the one or more PRS resources are received, or the SSB is a second neighboring cell SSB of the TRP that is quasi-co-located with the one or more PRS resources.

[0178] Clause 5. The method of any of clauses 1 to 4, wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a measurement gap during which the UE is configured to measure the one or more PRS resources.

[0179] Clause 6. The method of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the active BWP.

[0180] Clause 7. The method of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein the UE is configured to tune to the second bandwidth to perform the one or more RRM measurements during a measurement gap.

[0181] Clause 8. The method of clause 7, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the second bandwidth.

[0182] Clause 9. A method as described in any of clauses 7 to 8, wherein the one or more RRM measurements include: SSB-based RRM measurements or Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS)-based RRM measurements.

[0183] Clause 10. A method according to any one of clauses 1 to 9, the method further comprising: determining a portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources that is affected by frequency-related interference exceeding a threshold, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources does not include the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources.

[0184] Clause 11. The method of clause 10, wherein the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is determined based on a channel coexistence procedure performed by the UE.

[0185] Clause 12. The method of any of clauses 1 to 11, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is more than a threshold distance from an edge of a component carrier or an edge of a frequency band.

[0186] Clause 13. A method according to any one of clauses 1 to 12, wherein: the positioning assistance data is received in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol (LPP) Provide Assistance Data message, and the capability information is reported in an LPP Provide Capability message.

[0187] Clause 14. The method of any one of clauses 1 to 13, wherein the network entity is a location server.

[0188] Clause 15. A method as described in any of clauses 1 to 14, wherein the UE is a reduced capability (RedCap) UE.

[0189] Clause 16. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: report capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring to a network entity via the at least one transceiver; receive positioning assistance data from the network entity via the at least one transceiver, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a maximum PRS bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources. and measuring the one or more PRS resources over only a subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources with 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure.

[0190] Clause 17. The UE of clause 16, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB.

[0191] Clause 18. A UE according to clause 17, wherein: the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources completely overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources partially overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, or the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources shares a center frequency with the bandwidth of the SSB.

[0192] Clause 19. A UE according to any one of clauses 17 to 18, wherein: the SSB is a serving cell SSB, the SSB is a first neighboring cell SSB of a transmit reception point (TRP) from which the one or more PRS resources are received, or the SSB is a second neighboring cell SSB of the TRP that is quasi-co-located with the one or more PRS resources.

[0193] Clause 20. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 16 to 19, wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a measurement gap during which the UE is configured to measure the one or more PRS resources.

[0194] Clause 21. The UE of any of clauses 16 to 20, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the active BWP.

[0195] Clause 22. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 16 to 20, wherein the UE is configured to tune to the second bandwidth to perform the one or more RRM measurements during a measurement gap.

[0196] Clause 23. The UE of clause 22, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the second bandwidth.

[0197] Clause 24. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 22 to 23, wherein the one or more RRM measurements comprise: SSB-based RRM measurements or Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS)-based RRM measurements.

[0198] Clause 25. A UE according to any one of clauses 16 to 24, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determine a portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources that is affected by frequency-related interference exceeding a threshold, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources does not include the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources.

[0199] Clause 26. The UE of clause 25, wherein the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is determined based on a channel coexistence procedure performed by the UE.

[0200] Clause 27. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 16 to 26, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is more than a threshold distance from an edge of a component carrier or an edge of a frequency band.

[0201] Clause 28. A UE according to any of clauses 16 to 27, wherein: the positioning assistance data is received in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol (LPP) Provide Assistance Data message, and the capability information is reported in an LPP Provide Capabilities message.

[0202] Clause 29. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 16 to 28, wherein the network entity is a location server.

[0203] Clause 30. A UE as set out in any of clauses 16 to 29, wherein the UE is a reduced capability (RedCap) UE.

[0204] Clause 31. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: means for reporting capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring to a network entity; means for receiving positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; and means for measuring the one or more PRS resources over only a subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap between the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources and: 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth that the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring.

[0205] Clause 32. The UE of clause 31 , wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB.

[0206] Clause 33. A UE according to clause 32, wherein: the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources completely overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources partially overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, or the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources shares a center frequency with the bandwidth of the SSB.

[0207] Clause 34. A UE according to any one of clauses 32 to 33, wherein: the SSB is a serving cell SSB, the SSB is a first neighboring cell SSB of a transmit reception point (TRP) from which the one or more PRS resources are received, or the SSB is a second neighboring cell SSB of the TRP that is quasi-co-located with the one or more PRS resources.

[0208] Clause 35. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 31 to 34, wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a measurement gap during which the UE is configured to measure the one or more PRS resources.

[0209] Clause 36. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 31 to 35, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the active BWP.

[0210] Clause 37. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 31 to 35, wherein the UE is configured to tune to the second bandwidth to perform the one or more RRM measurements during a measurement gap.

[0211] Clause 38. The UE of clause 37, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the second bandwidth.

[0212] Clause 39. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 37 to 38, wherein the one or more RRM measurements comprise: SSB-based RRM measurements or Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS)-based RRM measurements.

[0213] Clause 40. A UE according to any one of clauses 31 to 39, the UE further comprising: means for determining a portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources that is affected by frequency-dependent interference exceeding a threshold, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources does not include the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources.

[0214] Clause 41. The UE of clause 40, wherein the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is determined based on a channel coexistence procedure performed by the UE.

[0215] Clause 42. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 31 to 41, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is more than a threshold distance from an edge of a component carrier or an edge of a frequency band.

[0216] Clause 43. A UE according to any of clauses 31 to 42, wherein: the positioning assistance data is received in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol (LPP) Provide Assistance Data message, and the capability information is reported in an LPP Provide Capability message.

[0217] Clause 44. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 31 to 43, wherein the network entity is a location server.

[0218] Clause 45. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 31 to 44, wherein the UE is a reduced capability (RedCap) UE.

[0219] Clause 46. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: report capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring to a network entity; receive positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; and measure the one or more PRS resources only over a subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap between the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources and 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth for which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein the size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring.

[0220] Clause 47. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of Clause 46, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB.

[0221] Clause 48. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to clause 47, wherein: the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources completely overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources partially overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, or the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources shares a center frequency with the bandwidth of the SSB.

[0222] Clause 49. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of clauses 47 to 48, wherein: the SSB is a serving cell SSB, the SSB is a first neighboring cell SSB of a transmit reception point (TRP) from which the one or more PRS resources are received, or the SSB is a second neighboring cell SSB of the TRP that is quasi-co-located with the one or more PRS resources.

[0223] Clause 50. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 46 to 49, wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a measurement gap during which the UE is configured to measure the one or more PRS resources.

[0224] Clause 51. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any one of clauses 46 to 50, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the active BWP.

[0225] Clause 52. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 46 to 50, wherein the UE is configured to tune to the second bandwidth to perform the one or more RRM measurements during a measurement gap.

[0226] Clause 53. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of Clause 52, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the second bandwidth.

[0227] Clause 54. A non-transitory computer-readable medium as described in any of clauses 52 to 53, wherein the one or more RRM measurements include: SSB-based RRM measurements or Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS)-based RRM measurements.

[0228] Clause 55. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of clauses 46 to 54, wherein the non-transitory computer-readable medium further comprises computer-executable instructions which, when executed by the UE, cause the UE to: determine a portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources that is affected by frequency-related interference exceeding a threshold, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources does not include the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources.

[0229] Clause 56. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 55, wherein the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is determined based on a channel coexistence procedure performed by the UE.

[0230] Clause 57. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 46 to 56, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is more than a threshold distance from an edge of a component carrier or an edge of a frequency band.

[0231] Clause 58. A non-transitory computer-readable medium according to any one of clauses 46 to 57, wherein: the positioning assistance data is received in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol (LPP) Provide Assistance Data message, and the capability information is reported in an LPP Provide Capabilities message.

[0232] Clause 59. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any one of clauses 46 to 58, wherein the network entity is a location server.

[0233] Clause 60. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any one of clauses 46 to 59, wherein the UE is a reduced capability (RedCap) UE.

[0234] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, light fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0235] In addition, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithmic steps described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination thereof. In order to clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various exemplary components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been generally described above in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints proposed to the entire system. Technicians can implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application, but such specific implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing departure from the scope of this disclosure.

[0236] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors and a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0237] The methods, sequences and / or algorithms described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software module may reside in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. In an alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). In an alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside in the user terminal as discrete components.

[0238] In one or more example aspects, the function can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the function can be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium or sent via a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media, and the communication media include any media that facilitates the transfer of computer programs from one place to another. The storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage devices, magnetic disk storage devices or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of an instruction or data structure and can be accessed by a computer. Moreover, any connection is appropriately referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is sent from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwaves, the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwaves are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc. Disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0239] Although the foregoing disclosure illustrates exemplary aspects of the present disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications may be made herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. Furthermore, the functions, steps, and / or actions of the method claims according to the various aspects of the present disclosure described herein do not need to be performed in any particular order. Furthermore, although elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, plural forms are also contemplated unless explicitly stated to be limited to the singular.

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: Reporting capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE can measure to a network entity; receiving positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; as well as The one or more PRS resources are measured only over a subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on the overlap of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources with 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources completely overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, The subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources partially overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, or The subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources shares a center frequency with the bandwidth of the SSB.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The SSB is a serving cell SSB, The SSB is a first neighboring cell SSB of a transmit reception point (TRP) from which the one or more PRS resources are received, or The SSB is a second neighboring cell SSB of the TRP that is quasi-co-located with the one or more PRS resources.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a measurement gap during which the UE is configured to measure the one or more PRS resources.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the active BWP.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to tune to the second bandwidth to perform the one or more RRM measurements during a measurement gap.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the second bandwidth.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the one or more RRM measurements include: SSB-based RRM measurements or RRM measurements based on the Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS).

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: determining a portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources that is affected by frequency-dependent interference exceeding a threshold, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources does not include the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is determined based on a channel coexistence procedure performed by the UE.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is more than a threshold distance from an edge of a component carrier or an edge of a frequency band.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein: The positioning assistance data is received in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol (LPP) Provide Assistance Data message, and The capability information is reported in the LPP Offer Capabilities message.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the network entity is a location server.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the UE is a reduced capability (RedCap) UE.

16. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: Memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: reporting, via the at least one transceiver, capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE can measure to a network entity; receiving, via the at least one transceiver, positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; as well as measuring the one or more PRS resources only over a subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is based on the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources and 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) The UE selects a second bandwidth overlap to be measured, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidths of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure.

17. The UE of claim 16, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB.

18. The UE according to claim 17, wherein: the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources completely overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, The subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources partially overlaps with the bandwidth of the SSB, or The subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources shares a center frequency with the bandwidth of the SSB.

19. The UE according to claim 17, wherein: The SSB is a serving cell SSB, The SSB is a first neighboring cell SSB of a transmit reception point (TRP) from which the one or more PRS resources are received, or The SSB is a second neighboring cell SSB of the TRP that is quasi-co-located with the one or more PRS resources.

20. The UE of claim 16, wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a measurement gap during which the UE is configured to measure the one or more PRS resources.

21. The UE of claim 16, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the active BWP.

22. The UE of claim 16, wherein the UE is configured to tune to the second bandwidth to perform the one or more RRM measurements during a measurement gap.

23. The UE of claim 22, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources overlaps with the second bandwidth.

24. The UE of claim 22, wherein the one or more RRM measurements comprise: SSB-based RRM measurements or RRM measurements based on the Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS).

25. The UE of claim 16, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determining a portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources that is affected by frequency-dependent interference exceeding a threshold, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources does not include the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources.

26. The UE of claim 25, wherein the portion of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is determined based on a channel coexistence procedure performed by the UE.

27. The UE of claim 16, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is more than a threshold distance from an edge of a component carrier or an edge of a frequency band.

28. The UE of claim 16, wherein: The positioning assistance data is received in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) Positioning Protocol (LPP) Provide Assistance Data message, and The capability information is reported in the LPP Offer Capabilities message.

29. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: means for reporting capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE can measure to a network entity; means for receiving positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; and Means for measuring the one or more PRS resources over only a subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on overlap of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources with 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring.

30. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: Reporting capability information indicating a maximum positioning reference signal (PRS) bandwidth that the UE can measure to a network entity; receiving positioning assistance data from the network entity, wherein the positioning assistance data indicates one or more PRS resources that the UE is configured to measure, and wherein the positioning assistance data further indicates a bandwidth for the one or more PRS resources that is greater than the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE is capable of measuring; and The one or more PRS resources are measured only over a subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources, wherein the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is selected based on the overlap of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources with 1) a bandwidth of a synchronization signal block (SSB), 2) an active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, or 3) a second bandwidth in which the UE is configured to perform one or more radio resource management (RRM) measurements, and wherein a size of the subset of the bandwidth of the one or more PRS resources is the maximum PRS bandwidth that the UE can measure.

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