User equipment positioning

Abstract

Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communications. In some aspects, a user equipment (UE) may receive configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information. The UE may identify one or more distributed network nodes based at least in part on respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or based at least in part on measurement information. The UE may obtain one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more distributed network nodes, respectively. The UE may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information. Numerous other aspects are described.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This patent application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 18 / 053,913, filed on November 9, 2022, entitled “USER EQUIPMENT POSITIONING” and assigned to the assignee of this application. The disclosure of the prior application is considered a part of this patent application and is incorporated by reference into this patent application. Technical Field

[0003] Aspects of the present disclosure relate generally to wireless communications, and to techniques and apparatuses for user equipment positioning. Background Art

[0004] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide a variety of telecommunication services, such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcasting. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies that can support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power, etc.). Examples of such multiple access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems, and long term evolution (LTE). LTE / LTE-Advanced is a set of enhancements to the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) mobile standard promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).

[0005] A wireless network may include one or more network nodes that support communications for wireless communication devices, such as user equipment (UE) or multiple UEs. A UE may communicate with a network node via downlink communications and uplink communications. A "downlink" (or "DL") refers to a communication link from a network node to a UE, and an "uplink" (or "UL") refers to a communication link from a UE to a network node. Some wireless networks may support device-to-device communications, such as via a local link (e.g., a side link (SL), a wireless local area network (WLAN) link, and / or a wireless personal area network (WPAN) link, etc.).

[0006] The above-mentioned multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different UEs to communicate at a city, country, region and / or global level. New Radio (NR) (which may be referred to as 5G) is a set of enhancements to the LTE mobile standard promulgated by 3GPP. NR is designed to better support mobile broadband Internet access by using orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) (CP-OFDM) with a cyclic prefix (CP) on the downlink, using CP-OFDM and / or single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) (also known as discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM)) on the uplink, and supporting beamforming, multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antenna technology and carrier aggregation to improve spectrum efficiency, reduce costs, improve services, utilize new spectrum, and better integrate with other open standards. As the demand for mobile broadband access continues to increase, further improvements in LTE, NR and other radio access technologies remain useful. Summary of the invention

[0007] Some aspects described herein relate to a method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE). The method may include receiving configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node. The method may include identifying the one or more distributed network nodes based at least in part on a corresponding connection between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or based at least in part on measurement information. The method may include obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes. The method may include sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0008] Some aspects described herein relate to a method of wireless communication performed by a distributed network node. The method may include receiving configuration information for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information from a central network node. The method may include identifying the one or more UEs based at least in part on a corresponding connection between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or based at least in part on measurement information. The method may include obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more UEs, respectively. The method may include sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0009] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication performed by a UE. The apparatus may include a memory and one or more processors, the one or more processors being coupled to the memory. The one or more processors may be configured to receive configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node. The one or more processors may be configured to identify the one or more distributed network nodes based at least in part on a corresponding connection between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part on measurement information. The one or more processors may be configured to obtain one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more distributed network nodes, respectively. The one or more processors may be configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0010] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication performed by a network node. The apparatus may include a memory and one or more processors, the one or more processors being coupled to the memory. The one or more processors may be configured to receive configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node. The one or more processors may be configured to identify the one or more UEs based at least in part on a corresponding connection between one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part on measurement information. The one or more processors may be configured to obtain one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more UEs, respectively. The one or more processors may be configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0011] Some aspects described herein relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing an instruction set for wireless communication by a UE. The instruction set, when executed by one or more processors of the UE, may cause the UE to receive configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node. The instruction set, when executed by one or more processors of the UE, may cause the UE to identify the one or more distributed network nodes based at least in part on the corresponding connection between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part on measurement information. The instruction set, when executed by one or more processors of the UE, may cause the UE to obtain one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more distributed network nodes, respectively. The instruction set, when executed by one or more processors of the UE, may cause the UE to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0012] Some aspects described herein relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing an instruction set for wireless communication by a distributed network node. The instruction set, when executed by one or more processors of the distributed network node, may cause the distributed network node to receive configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node. The instruction set, when executed by one or more processors of the distributed network node, may cause the distributed network node to identify the one or more UEs based at least in part on the corresponding connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part on measurement information. The instruction set, when executed by one or more processors of the distributed network node, may cause the distributed network node to obtain one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more UEs, respectively. The instruction set, when executed by one or more processors of the distributed network node, may cause the distributed network node to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0013] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include a component for receiving configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node. The apparatus may include a component for identifying the one or more distributed network nodes based at least in part on a corresponding connection between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or based at least in part on measurement information. The apparatus may include a component for obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes. The apparatus may include a component for sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0014] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include a component for receiving configuration information for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information from a central network node. The apparatus may include a component for identifying one or more UEs based at least in part on a corresponding connection between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or based at least in part on measurement information. The apparatus may include a component for obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs. The apparatus may include a component for sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0015] Aspects collectively include methods, apparatus, systems, computer program products, non-transitory computer-readable media, user equipment, base stations, network entities, network nodes, wireless communication devices and / or processing systems as fully described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

[0016] The features and technical advantages of examples according to the present disclosure have been outlined quite broadly above so that the following specific embodiments may be better understood. Additional features and advantages will be described below. The disclosed concepts and specific examples may be easily used as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for achieving the same purpose of the present disclosure. Such equivalent constructions do not depart from the scope of the appended claims. The characteristics of the concepts disclosed herein, both in terms of their organization and method of operation, and the associated advantages will be better understood by considering the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Each of the figures in the accompanying drawings is provided for the purpose of illustration and description and not as a definition of limitations to the claims.

[0017] Although various aspects are described in the present disclosure by illustrating some examples, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that such aspects can be implemented in many different arrangements and scenarios. The technology described herein can be implemented using different platform types, devices, systems, shapes, sizes and / or packaging arrangements. For example, some aspects can be implemented via integrated chip implementations or other devices based on non-module components (e.g., end-user devices, vehicles, communication equipment, computing equipment, industrial equipment, retail / shopping equipment, medical equipment and / or artificial intelligence devices). Various aspects can be implemented in chip-level components, modular components, non-modular components, non-chip-level components, device-level components and / or system-level components. The equipment incorporating the various aspects and features described may include additional components and features for implementing and practicing the various aspects claimed and described. For example, the transmission and reception of wireless signals may include one or more components for analog and digital purposes (e.g., hardware components, including antennas, radio frequency (RF) chains, power amplifiers, modulators, buffers, processors, interleavers, adders and / or summers). The various aspects described herein are intended to be practiced in various devices, components, systems, distributed arrangements and / or end-user devices of various sizes, shapes and configurations. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] In order to fully understand the above-mentioned features of the present disclosure, a more specific description of the invention briefly summarized above can be obtained by referring to various aspects (some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings). However, it should be noted that the accompanying drawings only illustrate certain typical aspects of the present disclosure and are therefore not to be considered as limiting the scope thereof, as the specification may admit other equally effective aspects. The same reference numerals in different drawings may identify the same or similar elements.

[0019] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless network according to the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of communication between a network node and a user equipment (UE) in a wireless network according to the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating an example decomposed base station architecture according to the present disclosure.

[0022] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of side link communication according to the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of side link communication and access link communication according to the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of network communication according to the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of UE positioning according to the present disclosure.

[0026] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of UE positioning according to the present disclosure.

[0027] Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example process performed, for example, by a UE according to the present disclosure.

[0028] Fig.10 is a diagram illustrating an example process performed, for example, by a distributed network node according to the present disclosure.

[0029] Fig.11 is a diagram of an example apparatus for wireless communications according to the present disclosure.

[0030] Fig.12 is a diagram of an example apparatus for wireless communications according to the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The various aspects of the present disclosure are described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present disclosure can be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to any specific structure or function presented throughout the present disclosure. On the contrary, these aspects are provided so that the present disclosure will be thorough and complete, and the scope of the present disclosure will be fully conveyed to those skilled in the art. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover any aspect of the present disclosure disclosed herein, whether it is implemented independently or in combination with any other aspect of the present disclosure. For example, any number of aspects set forth herein may be used to implement a device or practice method. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such devices or methods implemented using other structures, functionality, or structures and functionality in addition to or different from the various aspects of the disclosure set forth herein. It should be understood that any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or more elements of the claims.

[0032] Aspects of a telecommunications system will now be presented with reference to various apparatuses and techniques. These apparatuses and techniques will be described in the following detailed description and illustrated in the drawings by various blocks, modules, components, circuits, steps, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as "elements"). These elements can be implemented using hardware, software, or a combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented as hardware or software depends on the particular application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0033] Although terms generally associated with 5G or New Radio (NR) radio access technology (RAT) may be used herein to describe aspects, aspects of the present disclosure can be applied to other RATs, such as 3G RAT, 4G RAT, and / or post-5G RATs (e.g., 6G).

[0034] Figure 1 FIG. is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless network 100 according to the present disclosure. The wireless network 100 can be a 5G (e.g., NR) network and / or a 4G (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE)) network, or can include elements of a 5G (e.g., NR) network and / or elements of a 4G (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE)) network, and other examples. The wireless network 100 can include one or more network nodes 110 (shown as network nodes 110a, network nodes 110b, network nodes 110c, and network nodes 110d), user equipment (UE) 120 or multiple UEs 120 (shown as UEs 120a, UEs 120b, UEs 120c, UEs 120d, and UEs 120e), and / or other entities. The network node 110 is a network node that communicates with the UE 120. As shown, the network node 110 can include one or more network nodes. For example, the network node 110 can be an aggregated network node, which means that the aggregated network node is configured to utilize a radio protocol stack physically or logically integrated within a single radio access network (RAN) node (e.g., within a single device or unit). As another example, the network node 110 can be a disaggregated network node (sometimes referred to as a disaggregated base station), which means that the network node 110 is configured to utilize a protocol stack physically or logically distributed between two or more nodes, such as one or more central units (CUs), one or more distributed units (DUs), or one or more radio units (RUs).

[0035] In some examples, network node 110 is or includes a network node that communicates with UE 120 via a radio access link, such as an RU. In some examples, network node 110 is or includes a network node that communicates with other network nodes 110 via a fronthaul link or a midhaul link, such as a DU. In some examples, network node 110 is or includes a network node that communicates with other network nodes 110 via a midhaul link or communicates with a core network via a backhaul link, such as a CU. In some examples, network node 110 (such as an aggregated network node 110 or a disaggregated network node 110) may include multiple network nodes, such as one or more RUs, one or more CUs, and / or one or more DUs. Network node 110 may include, for example, an NR base station, an LTE base station, a Node B, an eNB (e.g., in 4G), a gNB (e.g., in 5G), an access point, a transmission and reception point (TRP), a DU, an RU, a CU, a mobility element of the network, a core network node, a network element, network equipment, a RAN node, or a combination thereof. In some examples, network nodes 110 may be interconnected with each other or interconnected to one or more other network nodes 110 in wireless network 100 using any suitable transport network via various types of fronthaul, midhaul, and / or backhaul interfaces, such as direct physical connections, air interfaces, or virtual networks.

[0036] In some examples, network node 110 may provide communication coverage for a specific geographical area. In the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), depending on the context in which the term is used, the term "cell" may refer to the coverage area of network node 110 and / or the network node subsystem serving that coverage area. Network node 110 may provide communication coverage for a macrocell, a picocell, a femtocell, and / or another type of cell. A macrocell may cover a relatively large geographical area (e.g., with a radius of several kilometers) and may allow unrestricted access by UE 120 having a service subscription. A picocell may cover a relatively small geographical area and may allow unrestricted access by UE 120 having a service subscription. A femtocell may cover a relatively small geographical area (e.g., a home) and may allow restricted access by UE 120 associated with the femtocell (e.g., UE 120 in a Closed Subscriber Group (CSG)). The network node 110 for a macrocell may be referred to as a macro network node. The network node 110 for a picocell may be referred to as a pico network node. The network node 110 for a femtocell may be referred to as a femto network node or a home network node. In Figure 1In the example shown, network node 110a may be a macro network node for macro cell 102a, network node 110b may be a pico network node for pico cell 102b, and network node 110c may be a femto network node for femto cell 102c. A network node may support one or more (e.g., three) cells. In some examples, a cell may not necessarily be stationary, and the geographical area of a cell may move according to the location of a moving network node 110 (e.g., a mobile network node).

[0037] In some aspects, the term "base station" or "network node" may refer to an aggregated base station, a disaggregated base station, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a relay node, or one or more of their components. For example, in some aspects, the "base station" or "network node" may refer to a CU, a DU, an RU, a near real-time (near RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC), or a non-real-time (non RT) RIC, or a combination thereof. In some aspects, the term "base station" or "network node" may refer to a single device configured to perform one or more functions, such as those described herein in connection with network node 110. In some aspects, the term "base station" or "network node" may refer to multiple devices configured to perform one or more functions. For example, in some distributed systems, each of multiple different devices (which may be located in the same geographical location or different geographical locations) may be configured to perform at least a portion of a function, or to repeat at least a portion of the function, and the term "base station" or "network node" may refer to any one or more of these different devices. In some aspects, the term "base station" or "network node" may refer to one or more virtual base stations or one or more virtual base station functions. For example, in some aspects, two or more base station functions may be instantiated on a single device. In some aspects, the term "base station" or "network node" may refer to one base station function among base station functions, rather than another base station function. In this way, a single device may include more than one base station.

[0038] Wireless network 100 may include one or more relay stations. A relay station is a network node that can receive a transmission of data from an upstream node (e.g., network node 110 or UE 120) and transmit the data to a downstream node (e.g., UE 120 or network node 110). A relay station may be a UE 120 capable of relaying a transmission for other UEs 120. In Figure 1 the example shown, network node 110d (e.g., a relay network node) may communicate with network node 110a (e.g., a macro network node) and UE 120d to facilitate communication between network node 110a and UE 120d. A network node that relays communication may be referred to as a relay station, a relay base station, a relay network node, a relay node, a relay, etc.

[0039] The wireless network 100 may be a heterogeneous network that includes different types of network nodes 110, such as macro network nodes, pico network nodes, femto network nodes, relay network nodes, etc. These different types of network nodes 110 may have different transmission power levels, different coverage areas, and / or different impacts on interference in the wireless network 100. For example, a macro network node may have a high transmission power level (e.g., 5 watts to 40 watts), while pico network nodes, femto network nodes, and relay network nodes may have lower transmission power levels (e.g., 0.1 watt to 2 watts).

[0040] The network controller 130 may be coupled to or communicate with a set of network nodes 110 and may provide coordination and control for these network nodes 110. The network controller 130 may communicate with the network nodes 110 via a backhaul communication link or a midhaul communication link. The network nodes 110 may also communicate directly with each other or indirectly via a wireless backhaul communication link or a wired backhaul communication link. In some aspects, the network controller 130 may be a CU or a core network device, or may include a CU or a core network device.

[0041] UEs 120 may be distributed throughout the wireless network 100, and each UE 120 may be stationary or mobile. The UEs 120 may include, for example, access terminals, terminals, mobile stations, and / or subscriber units. A UE 120 may be a cellular phone (e.g., a smart phone), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a tablet computer, a camera, a gaming device, a netbook, a smartbook, a ultrabook, a medical device, a biometric device, a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch, smart clothing, smart glasses, smart wristbands, smart jewelry (e.g., a smart ring or a smart bracelet)), an entertainment device (e.g., a music device, a video device, and / or a satellite radio), a vehicle component or sensor, a smart meter / sensor, industrial manufacturing equipment, a global positioning system device, UE functionality of a network node, and / or any other suitable device configured to communicate via a wireless or wired medium.

[0042] Some UEs 120 may be considered machine type communication (MTC) or evolved or enhanced machine type communication (eMTC) UEs. The MTC UE and / or eMTC UE may include, for example, robots, drones, remote devices, sensors, meters, monitors, and / or location tags, which may communicate with a network node, another device (e.g., a remote device), or some other entity. Some UEs 120 may be considered Internet of Things (IoT) devices and / or may be implemented as narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) devices. Some UEs 120 may be considered customer premises equipment. The UE 120 may be included inside a housing that houses components of the UE 120, such as processor components and / or memory components. In some examples, the processor components and the memory components may be coupled together. For example, the processor components (e.g., one or more processors) and the memory components (e.g., memory) may be operatively coupled, communicatively coupled, electronically coupled, and / or electrically coupled.

[0043] In general, any number of radio networks 100 may be deployed in a given geographical area. Each radio network 100 may support a specific RAT and may operate on one or more frequencies. The RAT may be referred to as radio technology, air interface, etc. The frequency may be referred to as a carrier, a frequency channel, etc. Each frequency in a given geographical area may support a single RAT to avoid interference between radio networks of different RATs. In some cases, an NR or 5G RAT network may be deployed.

[0044] In some examples, two or more UEs 120 (e.g., shown as UE 120a and UE 120e) may communicate directly using one or more sidelink channels (e.g., communicate with each other without using the network node 110 as an intermediate device). For example, the UE 120 may use peer-to-peer (P2P) communication, device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) protocols (e.g., which may include vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) protocols, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) protocols, or vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) protocols), and / or mesh networks to communicate. In such examples, the UE 120 may perform scheduling operations, resource selection operations, and / or other operations described elsewhere herein as being performed by the network node 110.

[0045] Devices of the wireless network 100 can communicate using the electromagnetic spectrum, which can be subdivided into various categories, frequency bands, channels, etc. according to frequency or wavelength. For example, devices of the wireless network 100 can communicate using one or more operating frequency bands. In 5G NR, two initial operating frequency bands have been identified as Frequency Range Designation FR1 (410 MHz – 7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz – 52.6 GHz). It should be understood that although a part of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, in various documents and articles, FR1 is often (interchangeably) referred to as the "sub-6 GHz" band. Regarding FR2, a similar naming issue sometimes occurs, which is usually (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 by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) as the "millimeter wave" band.

[0046] Frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are generally referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified operating frequency bands for these mid-band frequencies as Frequency Range Designation FR3 (7.125 GHz – 24.25 GHz). Bands falling within FR3 can inherit FR1 characteristics and / or FR2 characteristics, and thus can effectively extend the characteristics of FR1 and / or FR2 to mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operation beyond 52.6 GHz. For example, three higher operating frequency bands have been identified as Frequency Range Designation 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.

[0047] Considering the above examples, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if the term "sub-6 GHz" etc. is used in this article, this term can broadly represent frequencies that can be below 6 GHz, can be within FR1, or can include mid-band frequencies. Additionally, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if the term "millimeter wave" etc. is used in this article, this term can broadly represent frequencies that can include mid-band frequencies, can be within FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1, and / or FR5, or can be within the EHF band. It is conceivable that the frequencies included in these operating frequency bands (e.g., FR1, FR2, FR3, FR4, FR4-a, FR4-1, and / or FR5) may be modified, and the techniques described in this article apply to those modified frequency ranges.

[0048] In some aspects, the UE 120 may include a communication manager 140. As described in more detail elsewhere herein, the communication manager 140 may receive configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information; identify the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information; obtain one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes; and send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information. Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 140 may perform one or more other operations described herein.

[0049] In some aspects, the network node 110 may include a communication manager 150. As described in more detail elsewhere herein, the communication manager 150 may receive configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information; identify the one or more UEs at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information; obtain one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs; and send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information. Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 150 may perform one or more other operations described herein.

[0050] As indicated above, Figure 1 is provided as an example. Other examples may be different from the example Figure 1 described.

[0051] Figure 2 FIG. 200 is a diagram illustrating Example 200 of communication between the network node 110 and the UE 120 in the wireless network 100 according to the present disclosure. The network node 110 may be equipped with a set of antennas 234a to 234t, such as T antennas (T≥1). The UE 120 may be equipped with a set of antennas 252a to 252r, such as R antennas (R≥1). The network node 110 of Example 200 includes one or more radio frequency components, such as antennas 234 and a modem 254. In some examples, the network node 110 may include an interface, a communication component, or another component that facilitates communication with the UE 120 or another network node. Some network nodes 110 may not include radio frequency components that facilitate direct communication with the UE 120, such as one or more CUs or one or more DUs.

[0052] At network node 110, transmit processor 220 may receive data destined for UE 120 (or a set of UEs 120) from data source 212. Transmit processor 220 may select one or more modulation and coding schemes (MCSs) for UE 120 based at least in part on one or more channel quality indicators (CQIs) received from UE 120. Network node 110 may process (e.g., encode and modulate) the data for UE 120 based at least in part on the MCS selected for UE 120 and may provide data symbols for UE 120. Transmit processor 220 may process system information (e.g., for semi-static resource allocation information (SRPI)) and control information (e.g., CQI requests, grants, and / or upper layer signaling) and provide overhead symbols and control symbols. Transmit processor 220 may generate reference symbols for reference signals (e.g., cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or demodulation reference signal (DMRS)) and synchronization signals (e.g., primary synchronization signal (PSS) or secondary synchronization signal (SSS)). Transmit (TX) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) processor 230 may perform spatial processing (e.g., precoding) on the data symbols, control symbols, overhead symbols, and / or reference symbols, if applicable, and may provide a set of output symbol streams (e.g., T output symbol streams) to a corresponding set of modems 232 (e.g., T modems) (shown as modems 232a through 232t). For example, each output symbol stream may be provided to the modulator component (shown as MOD) of modem 232. Each modem 232 may process the corresponding output symbol stream (e.g., for OFDM) using the corresponding modulator component to obtain an output sample stream. Each modem 232 may also process the output sample stream (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and / or up-convert) using the corresponding modulator component to obtain a downlink signal. Modems 232a through 232t may transmit a set of downlink signals (e.g., T downlink signals) via a corresponding set of antennas 234 (e.g., T antennas) (shown as antennas 234a through 234t).

[0053] At the UE 120, a set of antennas 252 (shown as antennas 252a through 252r) may receive downlink signals from the network node 110 and / or other network nodes 110 and may provide a set of received signals (e.g., R received signals) to a set of modems 254 (e.g., R modems) (shown as modems 254a through 254r). For example, each received signal may be provided to a demodulator component (shown as DEMOD) of the modem 254. Each modem 254 may use the corresponding demodulator component to condition (e.g., filter, amplify, down-convert, and / or digitize) the received signal to obtain input samples. Each modem 254 may use the demodulator component to further process the input samples (e.g., for OFDM) to obtain received symbols. The MIMO detector 256 may obtain the received symbols from the modems 254, may perform MIMO detection on the received symbols when applicable, and may provide the detected symbols. The receive processor 258 may process (e.g., demodulate and decode) the detected symbols, may provide the decoded data for the UE 120 to the data sink 260, and may provide the decoded control information and system information to the controller / processor 280. The term "controller / processor" may refer to one or more controllers, one or more processors, or a combination thereof. The channel processor may determine reference signal received power (RSRP) parameters, received signal strength indicator (RSSI) parameters, reference signal received quality (RSRQ) parameters, and / or CQI parameters, etc. In some examples, one or more components of the UE 120 may be included in the housing 284.

[0054] The network controller 130 may include a communication unit 294, a controller / processor 290, and a memory 292. The network controller 130 may include, for example, one or more devices in a core network. The network controller 130 may communicate with the network node 110 via the communication unit 294.

[0055] One or more antennas (e.g., antennas 234a through 234t and / or antennas 252a through 252r) may include one or more antenna panels, one or more antenna groups, one or more sets of antenna elements, and / or one or more antenna arrays, etc., or may be included within one or more antenna panels, one or more antenna groups, one or more sets of antenna elements, and / or one or more antenna arrays, etc. The antenna panel, antenna group, set of antenna elements, and / or antenna array may include one or more antenna elements (within a single housing or multiple housings), a set of coplanar antenna elements, a set of non-coplanar antenna elements, and / or one or more antenna elements coupled to one or more transmit and / or receive components (such as Figure 2 one or more components) of.

[0056] On the uplink, at the UE 120, the transmit processor 264 may receive and process data from the data source 262 and control information from the controller / processor 280 (e.g., for reports including RSRP, RSSI, RSRQ, and / or CQI). The transmit processor 264 may generate reference symbols for one or more reference signals. The symbols from the transmit processor 264 may be pre-decoded by the TX MIMO processor 266, where applicable, further processed by the modem 254 (e.g., for DFT-s-OFDM or CP-OFDM), and sent to the network node 110. In some examples, the modem 254 of the UE 120 may include a modulator and a demodulator. In some examples, the UE 120 includes a transceiver. The transceiver may include any combination of an antenna 252, a modem 254, a MIMO detector 256, a receive processor 258, a transmit processor 264, and / or a TX MIMO processor 266. The transceiver may be used by a processor (eg, controller / processor 280) and memory 282 to perform the functions described herein (eg, reference Figures 7 to 12 ) or any aspect of any of the methods described herein.

[0057] At the network node 110, uplink signals from the UE 120 and / or other UEs may be received by the antenna 234, processed by the modem 232 (e.g., a demodulator component (shown as DEMOD) of the modem 232), detected by the MIMO detector 236 (where applicable), and further processed by the receive processor 238 to obtain decoded data and control information transmitted by the UE 120. The receive processor 238 may provide the decoded data to the data sink 239 and the decoded control information to the controller / processor 240. The network node 110 may include a communication unit 244 and may communicate with the network controller 130 via the communication unit 244. The network node 110 may include a scheduler 246 to schedule one or more UEs 120 for downlink communication and / or uplink communication. In some examples, the modem 232 of the network node 110 may include a modulator and a demodulator. In some examples, the network node 110 includes a transceiver. The transceiver may include any combination of antenna 234, modem 232, MIMO detector 236, receive processor 238, transmit processor 220, and / or TX MIMO processor 230. The transceiver may be used by a processor (e.g., controller / processor 240) and memory 242 to perform the operations described herein (e.g., reference 2 Figures 7 to 12 ) or any aspect of any of the methods described herein.

[0058] The controller / processor 240 of network node 110, the controller / processor 280 of UE 120, and / or Figure 2 any other component in may perform one or more techniques associated with UE positioning, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. For example, the controller / processor 240 of network node 110, the controller / processor 280 of UE 120, and / or Figure 2 any other component of may execute or direct, for example Fig. 9 process 900 of, Fig.10 process 1000 of, and / or the operation of other processes as described herein. Memory 242 and memory 282 may store data and program code for network node 110 and UE 120, respectively. In some examples, memory 242 and / or memory 282 may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing one or more instructions for wireless communication (e.g., code and / or program code). For example, when executed (e.g., directly executed, or after compilation, transformation, and / or interpretation) by one or more processors of network node 110 and / or UE 120, the one or more instructions may cause the one or more processors, UE 120, and / or network node 110 to execute or direct, for example Fig. 9 process 900 of, Fig.10 process 1000 of, and / or the operation of other processes as described herein. In some examples, executing the instructions may include running the instructions, transforming the instructions, compiling the instructions, and / or interpreting the instructions, etc.

[0059] In some aspects, a UE (such as UE 120) includes components for receiving configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information; for identifying the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information; for obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes; and for sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information. The components for the UE to perform the operations described herein may include, for example, one or more of the following: communication manager 140, antenna 252, modem 254, MIMO detector 256, receive processor 258, transmit processor 264, TX MIMO processor 266, controller / processor 280, or memory 282.

[0060] In some aspects, a distributed network node, such as network node 110, includes components for receiving configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information; components for identifying the one or more UEs at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information; components for obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs; and components for sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information. The components for causing the distributed network node to perform the operations described herein may include, for example, one or more of the following: communication manager 150, transmit processor 220, TX MIMO processor 230, modem 232, antenna 234, MIMO detector 236, receive processor 238, controller / processor 240, memory 242, or scheduler 246.

[0061] Although Figure 2 the boxes in are illustrated as different components, the functions described above with respect to these boxes may be implemented in a single hardware, software, or combined component or in various combinations of components. For example, the functions described with respect to transmit processor 264, receive processor 258, and / or TX MIMO processor 266 may be performed by or under the control of controller / processor 280.

[0062] As indicated above, Figure 2 is provided as an example. Other examples may be different from the example described with respect to Figure 2 described.

[0063] The deployment of a communication system, such as a 5G NR system, can be arranged with various components or constituent parts in a variety of ways. In a 5G NR system or network, network nodes, network entities, mobility elements of the network, RAN nodes, core network nodes, network elements, base stations, or network equipment may be implemented in an aggregated or disaggregated architecture. For example, a base station, such as a Node B (NB), evolved NB (eNB), NR BS, 5G NB, access point (AP), TRP, or cell, etc., or one or more units (or one or more components) performing base station functionality may be implemented as an aggregated base station (also referred to as a stand-alone base station or monolithic base station) or a disaggregated base station. A "network entity" or "network node" may refer to a disaggregated base station or one or more units of a disaggregated base station, such as one or more CUs, one or more DUs, one or more RUs, or a combination thereof.

[0064] A converged base station (e.g., a converged network node) may be configured to utilize a radio protocol stack that is physically or logically integrated within a single RAN node (e.g., within a single device or unit). A decomposed base station (e.g., a decomposed network node) may be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically distributed across two or more units (such as one or more CUs, one or more DUs, or one or more RUs). In some examples, a CU may be implemented within a network node, and one or more DUs may be co-located with the CU, or alternatively, may be geographically or virtually spread across one or more other network nodes. A DU may be implemented to communicate with one or more RUs. Each of the CU, DU, and RU may also be implemented as a virtual unit, such as a virtual central unit (VCU), a virtual distributed unit (VDU), or a virtual radio unit (VRU), etc.

[0065] Base station type operations or network designs may consider the aggregation characteristics of base station functionality. For example, a decomposed base station may be utilized in an IAB network, an open radio access network (O-RAN (such as a network configuration initiated by the O-RAN Alliance)), or a virtualized radio access network (vRAN, also known as a cloud radio access network (C-RAN)) to facilitate the scaling of a communication system by separating base station functionality into one or more units that can be deployed separately. A decomposed base station may include functionality implemented across two or more units at various physical locations, as well as functionality implemented virtually for at least one unit, which can achieve flexibility in network design. Each unit of a decomposed base station may be configured for wired or wireless communication with at least one other unit of the decomposed base station.

[0066] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating an example decomposed base station architecture 300 in accordance with the present disclosure. The decomposed base station architecture 300 may include a CU 310 that may communicate directly with a core network 320 via a backhaul link, or indirectly with the core network 320 through one or more decomposed control units (such as a near RT RIC 325 via an E2 link, or a non-RT RIC 315 associated with a service management and orchestration (SMO) framework 305, or both). The CU 310 may communicate with one or more DUs 330 via respective midhaul links, such as through an F1 interface. Each DU among the DUs 330 may communicate with one or more RUs 340 via a respective fronthaul link. Each RU among the RUs 340 may communicate with one or more UEs 120 via a respective radio frequency (RF) access link. In some embodiments, a UE 120 may be served simultaneously by multiple RUs 340.

[0067] Each unit in the unit (including CU 310, DU 330, RU 340) and the near RT RIC 325, non-RT RIC 315, and SMO framework 305 may include one or more interfaces or be coupled to the one or more interfaces, and the one or more interfaces are configured to receive or transmit signals, data, or information (collectively referred to as signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each unit in the unit or the associated processor or controller that provides instructions to one or more communication interfaces of the corresponding unit may be configured to communicate with one or more units in other units via the transmission medium. In some examples, each unit in the unit may include a wired interface and a wireless interface. The wired interface is configured to receive signals or transmit signals to one or more units in other units via a wired transmission medium. The wireless interface may include a receiver, a transmitter, or a transceiver (such as an RF transceiver), and the wireless interface is configured to receive signals or transmit signals to one or more units in other units via a wireless transmission medium or perform both.

[0068] In some aspects, CU 310 may host one or more higher layer control functions. Such control functions may include radio resource control (RRC) functions, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) functions, or service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) functions, etc. Each control function may be implemented using an interface that is configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by CU 310. CU 310 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (e.g., central unit-user plane (CU-UP) functionality), control plane functionality (e.g., central unit-control plane (CU-CP) functionality), or a combination thereof. In some specific implementations, CU 310 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 units may communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP units via an interface (such as an E1 interface). As needed, CU 310 may be implemented to communicate with DU 330 for network control and signaling.

[0069] Each DU 330 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 340. In some aspects, the DU 330 may host one or more of the radio link control (RLC) layer, the MAC layer, and one or more high physical (PHY) layers at least partially according to a functional split such as the functional split defined by 3GPP. In some aspects, one or more high PHY layers may be implemented by one or more modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, and modulation and demodulation, etc. In some aspects, the DU 330 may also host one or more low PHY layers, which may be implemented by one or more modules for fast Fourier transform (FFT), inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming, or physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc. Each layer (which may also be referred to as a module) may be implemented using an interface configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 330 or with control functions hosted by the CU 310.

[0070] Each RU 340 may implement lower layer functionality. In some deployments, the RU 340 controlled by the DU 330 may correspond to a logical node that hosts RF processing functions or low PHY layer functions (such as performing FFT, performing iFFT, digital beamforming, or PRACH extraction and filtering, etc.) based on a functional split (e.g., the functional split defined by 3GPP), such as a lower layer functional split. In such an architecture, each RU 340 may be operated to handle over-the-air (OTA) communication with one or more UEs 120. In some embodiments, the real-time aspects and non-real-time aspects of communicating with the control plane and user plane of the RU 340 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 330. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable each DU 330 and CU 310 to be implemented in a cloud-based RAN architecture such as a vRAN architecture.

[0071] The SMO framework 305 can be configured to support the RAN deployment and orchestration of non-virtualized network elements and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 305 can be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, and these dedicated physical resources can be managed via operation and maintenance interfaces (such as the O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 305 can be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as the Open Cloud (O-Cloud) platform 390) 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 can include, but are not limited to, CU 310, DU 330, RU 340, non-RT RIC 315, and near-RT RIC 325. In some specific implementations, the SMO framework 305 can communicate with the hardware aspect of the 4G RAN (such as the Open eNB (O-eNB) 311) via the O1 interface. Additionally, in some specific implementations, the SMO framework 305 can directly communicate with each RU in one or more RUs 340 via the corresponding O1 interface. The SMO framework 305 can also include a non-RT RIC 315 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 305.

[0072] The non-RT RIC 315 can be configured to include a logical function that can implement non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, an artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) workflow including model training and update, or policy-based guidance for applications / features in the near-RT RIC 325. The non-RT RIC 315 can be coupled to or communicate with the near-RT RIC 325 (such as via the A1 interface). The near-RT RIC 325 can be configured to include a logical function that enables near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources through an interface (such as via the E2 interface) via data collection and actions, and this interface connects one or more CUs 310, one or more DUs 330, or both, and the O-eNB to the near-RT RIC 325.

[0073] In some specific implementations, to generate the AI / ML models to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 325, the non-RT RIC 315 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server. Such information can be utilized by the near-RT RIC 325 and can be received from non-network data sources or from network functions at the SMO framework 305 or the non-RT RIC 315. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 315 or the near-RT RIC 325 may be configured to tune the RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 315 may monitor the long-term trends and patterns of performance and employ an AI / ML model to perform corrective actions via the SMO framework 305 (such as reconfiguration via the O1 interface) or via the creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 interface policies).

[0074] As indicated above, Figure 3 is provided as an example. Other examples may be different from the examples described with respect to Figure 3 those described.

[0075] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating Example 400 of sidelink communication in accordance with the present disclosure.

[0076] As Figure 4 shown, the first UE 405-1 may communicate with the second UE 405-2 (and one or more other UEs 405) via one or more sidelink channels 410. The UEs 405-1 and 405-2 may communicate using one or more sidelink channels 410 for P2P communication, D2D communication, V2X communication (e.g., which may include V2V communication, V2I communication, and / or V2P communication) and / or mesh networks. In some aspects, the UEs 405 (e.g., UE 405-1 and / or UE 405-2) may correspond to one or more other UEs described elsewhere herein, such as UE 120. In some aspects, one or more sidelink channels 410 may use the PC5 interface and / or may operate in a high frequency band (e.g., 5.9 GHz band). Additionally or alternatively, the UEs 405 may use Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) timing to synchronize the timing of transmission time intervals (TTIs) (e.g., frames, sub-frames, time slots, or symbols).

[0077] As Figure 4As further shown, one or more sidelink channels 410 may include a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH) 415, a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH) 420, and / or a Physical Sidelink Feedback Channel (PSFCH) 425. The PSCCH 415 may be used to convey control information, similar to the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) and / or the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) used for cellular communication with the network node 110 via an access link or access channel. The PSSCH 420 may be used to convey data, similar to the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) and / or the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) used for cellular communication with the network node 110 via an access link or access channel. For example, the PSCCH 415 may carry sidelink control information (SCI) 430, which may indicate various control information for sidelink communication, such as one or more resources (e.g., time resources, frequency resources, and / or spatial resources), where a transport block (TB) 435 may be carried on the PSSCH 420. The TB 435 may include data. The PSFCH 425 may be used to convey sidelink feedback 440, such as Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest (HARQ) feedback (e.g., acknowledgement or negative acknowledgement (ACK / NACK) information), Transmit Power Control (TPC), and / or Scheduling Request (SR).

[0078] Although shown on the PSCCH 415, in some aspects, the SCI 430 may include multiple communications in different levels (such as a first-level SCI (SCI-1) and a second-level SCI (SCI-2)). The SCI-1 may be sent on the PSCCH 415. The SCI-2 may be sent on the PSSCH 420. The SCI-1 may include an indication of one or more resources (e.g., time resources, frequency resources, and / or spatial resources) on the PSSCH 420, for example, information for decoding sidelink communication on the PSSCH, a Quality of Service (QoS) priority value, a resource reservation period, a PSSCH Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS) pattern, an SCI format for the SCI-2, a β offset for the SCI-2, the number of PSSCH DMRS ports, and / or a Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS). The SCI-2 may include information associated with data transmission on the PSSCH 420, such as a Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest (HARQ) process ID, a New Data Indicator (NDI), a source identifier, a destination identifier, and / or a Channel State Information (CSI) report trigger.

[0079] In some aspects, one or more sidelink channels 410 may use a resource pool. For example, a scheduling assignment (e.g., included in SCI 430) may be transmitted across time using specific resource blocks (RBs) in a subchannel. In some aspects, data transmission (e.g., on PSSCH 420) associated with the scheduling assignment may occupy adjacent RBs in the same subframe as the scheduling assignment (e.g., using frequency division multiplexing). In some aspects, the scheduling assignment and the associated data transmission are not transmitted on adjacent RBs.

[0080] In some aspects, UE 405 may operate using a sidelink transmission mode (e.g., mode 1), where resource selection and / or scheduling is performed by network node 110 (e.g., a base station, CU, or DU). For example, UE 405 may receive (e.g., directly or via one or more network nodes) a grant for sidelink channel access and / or scheduling from network node 110 (e.g., in downlink control information (DCI) or in a radio resource control (RRC) message, such as a configured grant). In some aspects, UE 405 may operate using a transmission mode (e.g., mode 2), where resource selection and / or scheduling is performed by UE 405 (e.g., instead of network node 110). In some aspects, UE 405 may perform resource selection and / or scheduling by sensing the channel availability for transmission. For example, UE 405 may measure the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) parameter associated with various sidelink channels (e.g., the sidelink RSSI (S-RSSI) parameter), may measure the reference signal received power (RSRP) parameter associated with various sidelink channels (e.g., the PSSCH-RSRP parameter), and / or may measure the reference signal received quality (RSRQ) parameter associated with various sidelink channels (e.g., the PSSCH-RSRQ parameter), and may select a channel for sidelink communication transmission at least in part based on the measurements.

[0081] Additionally or alternatively, UE 405 may use the SCI 430 received in PSCCH 415 to perform resource selection and / or scheduling, which may indicate the occupied resources and / or channel parameters. Additionally or alternatively, UE 405 may perform resource selection and / or scheduling by determining the channel busy rate (CBR) associated with each sidelink channel, which may be used for rate control (e.g., by indicating the maximum number of resource blocks that UE 405 may use for a particular set of subframes).

[0082] In a transmission mode where resource selection and / or scheduling is performed by UE 405, UE 405 may generate a sidelink grant and may transmit the grant in SCI 430. The sidelink grant may indicate, for example, one or more parameters (e.g., transmission parameters) to be used for an upcoming sidelink transmission, such as one or more resource blocks (e.g., for TB 435) to be used for an upcoming sidelink transmission on PSSCH 420, one or more subframes to be used for an upcoming sidelink transmission, and / or a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) to be used for an upcoming sidelink transmission. In some aspects, UE 405 may generate a sidelink grant that indicates one or more parameters for semi-persistent scheduling (SPS), such as the periodicity of sidelink transmissions. Additionally or alternatively, UE 405 may generate a sidelink grant for event-driven scheduling (such as for on-demand sidelink messages).

[0083] As indicated above, Figure 4 is provided as an example. Other examples may be different from the example described with respect to Figure 4 the example described above.

[0084] Figure 5 FIG. 500 is a diagram illustrating an example of sidelink communication and access link communication in accordance with the present disclosure.

[0085] As Figure 5 shown, a transmitter (Tx) / receiver (Rx) UE 505 and an Rx / Tx UE 510 may communicate with each other via a sidelink, as described above in connection with Figure 4 the example described above. As further shown in the figure, in some sidelink modes, network node 110 may communicate with Tx / Rx UE 505 (e.g., directly or via one or more network nodes) via a first access link, such as. Additionally or alternatively, in some sidelink modes, network node 110 may communicate with Rx / Tx UE 510 (e.g., directly or via one or more network nodes) via a first access link, such as. Tx / Rx UE 505 and / or Rx / Tx UE 510 may correspond to one or more UEs described elsewhere herein, such as Figure 1 UE 120. Thus, a direct link between UEs 120 (e.g., via the PC5 interface) may be referred to as a sidelink, and a direct link between network 110 and UE 120 (e.g., via the Uu interface) may be referred to as an access link. Sidelink communication may be transmitted via the sidelink, and access link communication may be transmitted via the access link. The access link communication may be downlink communication (from network node 110 to UE 120) or uplink communication (from UE 120 to network node 110).

[0086] As indicated above, Figure 5is provided as an example. Other examples may differ from the example described with respect to Figure 5 the example described above.

[0087] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating Example 600 of network communication according to the present disclosure. A central network node (CNN) 605 may communicate with one or more distributed network nodes (DNNs) 610 and one or more UEs 120. In some cases, the CNN 605 may be a CU 310 or may include one or more features of the CU 310. Additionally or alternatively, the CNN 605 may be configured to perform one or more core network functions, such as those associated with a location management function (LMF) 615. The LMF 615 may support location determination, downlink location measurement or estimation, uplink location measurement or estimation, and assistance data management, among other things. In some cases, the DNN 610 may be a DU 330 or may include one or more features of the DU 330. In some cases, the DNN 610 may be a roadside unit (RSU). In some cases, the network node 110 may be a base station or may include one or more features of a base station, such as the split base station described herein.

[0088] The CNN 605 may communicate with the network node 110 using a direct connection or an indirect connection. Additionally or alternatively, the CNN 605 may communicate with the DNNs 610 (such as DNN 610-1 and DNN 610-2) using a direct connection or an indirect connection. The network node 110 may communicate with the DNNs 610 (such as DNN 610-1 and DNN 610-2) using a radio link interface (such as the Uu interface). Additionally or alternatively, the network node 110 may communicate directly with the UEs 120 (such as UE 120-2 and UE 120-3) using a radio link interface. The DNN 610 may communicate with the UE 120 using a sidelink interface (such as the PC5 interface). For example, the DNN 610-1 may communicate with the UEs 120-1 and 120-2 using a sidelink interface, and the DNN 610-2 may communicate with the UEs 120-3 and 120-4 using another sidelink interface. In some cases, the network node 110 may communicate indirectly with the UE 120 through the DNN 610. For example, the network node 110 may communicate with the DNN 610-1 using a radio link interface, and the DNN 610-1 may relay the communication to the UE 120-1 through a sidelink interface.

[0089] In some cases, sidelink positioning may be performed when the UE 120 is in an inactive state (such as RRC_INACTIVE) or when the UE 120 is in an idle state (such as RRC_IDLE). When the UE 120 is using network-assisted sidelink positioning, the UE 120 may need to transmit a Radio Spectrum Policy Plan (RSPP) message or an LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP) message to the network. The Small Data Transfer (SDT) feature can be used to enable the UE 120 to transmit data and / or signaling when the UE 120 is in an inactive state without the UE 120 transitioning to a connected state (such as the RRC_CONNECTED state). When the UE 120 is in an idle state, the UE 120 can use the Early Data Transmission (EDT) feature to transmit data and / or signaling.

[0090] In some cases, the UE 120 may need to transition to a connected state to exchange signaling with the CNN 605 (such as the LMF 615). For example, to enable the UE 120-1 and the UE 120-4 (which do not have a direct connection to the network node 110) to perform network-assisted operations, the UE 120-1 and the UE 120-4 may need to transition to the RRC-CONNECTED state to exchange signaling with the LMF 615. However, the network node 110 may not support the SDT and / or EDT features. Additionally or alternatively, the UE 120 may be connected to the network via a Layer 2 (L2) relay, and the Layer 2 (L2) relay may also not support the SDT and / or EDT features. Therefore, the CNN 605 may not be able to determine the reachability information of the UE 120. For example, the LMF 615 associated with the CNN 605 may not be able to determine whether the UE 120 can be reached via a sidelink interface (such as through the DNN 610) or via a radio link interface (such as through the network node 110). In these cases, the CNN 605 may not be able to determine the positioning information associated with the UE 120, which may result in a communication interruption between the CNN 605 and the UE 120.

[0091] This document describes techniques and apparatuses for UE positioning. In some aspects, a UE may receive configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information. The UE may identify the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information. The UE may obtain one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes, and may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information. In some aspects, a distributed network node may receive configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information. The distributed network node may identify the one or more UEs at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information. The distributed network node may obtain one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs, and may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information. Thus, whether the UE is directly connected to a network node (via a radio link interface) or indirectly connected to a network node (via a distributed network node and a sidelink interface), the central network node may be able to determine the positioning information of the UE. This may enable improved communication between the UE and the central network node (such as the LMF function of the central network node). Additional details are described herein.

[0092] As indicated above, Figure 6 is provided as an example. Other examples may be different from the examples described with respect to Figure 6 the examples described.

[0093] Figure 7 FIG. 700 is a diagram illustrating an example of UE positioning according to the present disclosure. UE 120 may communicate with CNN 605 and one or more DNNs 610 (such as DNN 610-1 and DNN 610-2). CNN 605 may include LMF 615 described herein.

[0094] As indicated by reference numeral 710, CNN 605 may send and UE 120 may receive configuration information for reporting positioning information associated with UE 120 or DNN 610. In some aspects, the configuration information may include information for reporting reachability assistance information. Additional details are described below.

[0095] As shown by reference numeral 715, UE 120 may identify one or more DNNs 610. In some aspects, UE 120 may identify the one or more DNNs 610 at least in part based on corresponding connections between the one or more DNNs 610 and UE 120. For example, UE 120 may identify DNN 610-1 at least in part based on an existing connection between DNN610-1 and UE 120, and / or may identify DNN 610-2 at least in part based on an existing connection between DNN 610-2 and UE 120. In some aspects, UE 120 may identify the one or more DNNs at least in part based on measurement information. For example, UE 120 may identify DNN 610-1 at least in part based on a RSRP measurement of DNN 610-1 that meets a RSRP measurement threshold, and / or may identify DNN 610-2 at least in part based on a RSRP measurement of DNN 610-2 that meets a RSRP measurement threshold.

[0096] As shown by reference numeral 720, UE 120 may obtain one or more encryption identifiers associated with the one or more DNNs 610. For example, UE 120 may obtain a first identifier (such as a first encryption identifier) associated with DNN 610-1 and a second identifier (such as a second encryption identifier) associated with DNN 610-2. The first identifier and / or the second identifier may be a Subscriber Concealed Identifier (SUCI), a Globally Unique Temporary Identifier (GUTI), a Generic Public Subscription Identifier (GPSI), or an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), etc.

[0097] In some aspects, the UE 120 may send one or more requests for an identifier associated with the one or more identified DNNs to the one or more identified DNNs. For example, the UE 120 may send and the DNN 610-1 may receive a request for an identifier associated with the DNN 610-1. The DNN 610-1 may encrypt the identifier associated with the DNN 610-1 to generate a first encrypted identifier and may send the first encrypted identifier to the UE 120. Similarly, the UE 120 may send and the DNN 610-2 may receive a request for an identifier associated with the DNN 610-2. The DNN 610-2 may encrypt the identifier associated with the DNN 610-2 to generate a second encrypted identifier and may send the second encrypted identifier to the UE 120. In some aspects, the one or more identifiers may be encrypted at least in part based on a shared session key between the UE 120 and the corresponding DNN 610. For example, the DNN 610-1 may generate the first encrypted identifier at least in part based on a shared session key between the UE 120 and the DNN 610-1, and the DNN 610-2 may generate the second encrypted identifier at least in part based on another shared session key between the UE 120 and the DNN 610-2. In some aspects, the identifier may be encrypted at least in part based on a public key. For example, the DNN 610-1 may generate the first encrypted identifier at least in part based on a network public key, and the DNN 610-2 may generate the second encrypted identifier at least in part based on the network public key (or another network public key).

[0098] As shown by reference numeral 725, the UE 120 may send and the CNN 605 may receive one or more encrypted identifiers. The UE 120 may send the one or more encrypted identifiers according to the configuration information.

[0099] In some aspects, the UE 120 may use non-access stratum (NAS) signaling to send the one or more encrypted identifiers. For example, the RRC connection (via the radio link interface) and the next generation (NG) connection for 3GPP access (via the N2 interface) may be used to report the encrypted identifier. In another example, the Internet Protocol Security (IPsec) tunnel (via the NWu interface) and the NG connection for non-3GPP access (via the N2 interface) may be used to report the encrypted identifier. In some aspects, the UE 120 may use LPP and / or send the one or more identifiers as auxiliary information at least in part based on a request from the LMF 615. An example of an LPP request from the LMF 615 to the UE 120 and a corresponding response from the UE 120 to the LMF 615 is shown below:

[0100] Example LPP request from LMF 615 to UE 120:

[0101]

[0102] Example response from UE 120 to LMF 615:

[0103]

[0104] In some aspects, the configuration information may include information for reporting reachability information (such as the one or more encrypted identifiers). In some aspects, the configuration information may indicate that the UE 120 reports the encrypted identifiers periodically, such as according to an interval. The UE 120 may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the CNN 605 according to the interval and at least in part based on the configuration information. For example, the configuration information may indicate that the UE 120 sends the DNN identifier every 10 ms. In this case, the UE 120 may send one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more corresponding DNNs 610 every 10 ms.

[0105] In some aspects, the configuration information may instruct the UE 120 to report the encrypted identifier at least partially based on the occurrence of an event. In one example, the configuration information may instruct the UE 120 to report the DNN identifier at least partially based on the DNN 610 no longer being connected to the UE 120 or no longer being within the connection area associated with the UE 120. In this case, the UE 120 may detect that the DNN 610 has lost its connection to the UE 120 or has left the connection area associated with the UE 120, and may send the encrypted identifier associated with the DNN 610 to the CNN 605. In another example, the configuration information may instruct the UE 120 to report the DNN identifier at least partially based on the DNN 610 being connected to the UE 120 or entering the connection area associated with the UE 120. In this case, the UE 120 may detect that the DNN 610 has connected to the UE 120 or has entered the connection area associated with the UE 120, and may send the encrypted identifier associated with the DNN 610 to the CNN 605. In another example, the configuration information may instruct the UE 120 to report the DNN identifier at least partially based on a particular DNN (such as DNN 610-2) losing its connection to the UE 120, leaving the connection area associated with the UE 120, connecting to the UE 120, or entering the connection area associated with the UE 120. In this case, the UE 120 may detect that the DNN 610-2 has lost its connection to the UE 120, left the connection area associated with the UE 120, connected to the UE 120, or entered the connection area associated with the UE 120, and may send the encrypted identifier associated with the DNN 610-2 to the CNN 605.

[0106] In some aspects, the CNN 605 may release the radio link connection associated with the UE 120 at least partially based on configuring the UE 120 via the radio link interface. For example, the CNN 605 may send an indication to the network node 110 that subsequent positioning of the UE 120 may be performed via the sidelink interface, and may release the radio link connection between the UE 120 and the network node 110. This may achieve network power savings.

[0107] In some aspects, the CNN 605 may detect that the UE 120 is reachable via one or more DNNs in the DNN 610, such as the DNN 610-1 or the DNN 610-2, at least in part based on reachability information. The CNN 605 may send a positioning request to the UE 120 at least in part based on this detection, via one or more DNNs in the DNN 610 rather than via the network node 110. In some aspects, the CNN 605 may route the positioning request to the UE 120 via the DNN 610 or via the network node 110, at least in part based on positioning accuracy requirements and / or QoS requirements. For example, when the positioning request is routed via the DNN 610, positioning accuracy may be improved, but this may increase network overhead. In some aspects, the CNN 605 may route the positioning request via both the DNN 610 and the network node 110. For example, the CNN 605 may use joint Uu / SL positioning to send a positioning request to the UE 120.

[0108] In some aspects, the encryption identifier may be resolved by the LMF 615 such that the LMF 615 can map the encryption identifier between the radio link interface and the sidelink interface. This may enable the LMF 615 to route the positioning request via the network node 110 (via the radio link interface) or via the DNN 610 (via the sidelink interface). In the case where the UE 120 becomes unreachable using the DNN 610, the LMF 615 may use typical (e.g., default) radio link technology for UE positioning.

[0109] As indicated above, Figure 7 is provided as an example. Other examples may be different from the example Figure 7 described.

[0110] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating Example 800 of UE positioning according to the present disclosure. The DNN 610 may communicate with the CNN 605 and one or more UEs 120, such as the UE 120-1 and the UE 120-2. The CNN 605 may include the LMF 615 described herein.

[0111] As shown by reference numeral 805, the CNN 605 may send and the DNN 610 may receive configuration information for reporting positioning information associated with the UE 120 or the DNN610. In some aspects, the configuration information may include information for reporting reachability assistance information. Additional details are described below.

[0112] As shown by reference numeral 810, the DNN 610 may identify one or more UEs 120. In some aspects, the DNN 610 may identify the one or more UEs 120 at least in part based on the respective connections between the one or more UEs 120 and the DNN 610. For example, the DNN 610 may identify UE 120-1 at least in part based on the existing connection between UE 120-1 and the DNN 610, and / or may identify UE 120-2 at least in part based on the existing connection between UE 120-2 and the DNN 610. In some aspects, the DNN 610 may identify one or more UEs at least in part based on measurement information. For example, the DNN 610 may identify UE 120-1 at least in part based on a RSRP measurement of UE 120-1 that meets a RSRP measurement threshold, and / or may identify UE 120-2 at least in part based on a RSRP measurement of UE 120-2 that meets a RSRP measurement threshold.

[0113] As shown by reference numeral 815, the DNN 610 may obtain one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more UEs 120. For example, the DNN 610 may obtain a first identifier (such as a first encrypted identifier) associated with UE 120-1 and a second identifier (such as a second encrypted identifier) associated with UE 120-2. The first identifier and / or the second identifier may be a SUCI, GUTI, GPSI, or IMSI, etc.

[0114] In some aspects, the DNN 610 may send one or more requests for an identifier associated with the one or more identified UEs to the corresponding UEs. For example, the DNN 610 may send and the UE 120-1 may receive a request for an identifier associated with the UE 120-1. The UE 120-1 may encrypt the identifier associated with the UE 120-1 to generate a first encrypted identifier and may send the first encrypted identifier to the DNN 610. Similarly, the DNN 610 may send and the UE 120-2 may receive a request for an identifier associated with the UE 120-2. The UE 120-2 may encrypt the identifier associated with the UE 120-2 to generate a second encrypted identifier and may send the second encrypted identifier to the DNN 610. In some aspects, the one or more identifiers may be encrypted at least in part based on a shared session key between the DNN 610 and the corresponding UE 120. For example, the UE 120-1 may generate the first encrypted identifier at least in part based on a shared session key between the DNN 610 and the UE 120-1, and the UE 120-2 may generate the second encrypted identifier at least in part based on another shared session key between the DNN 610 and the UE 120-2. In some aspects, the identifier may be encrypted at least in part based on a public key. For example, the UE 120-1 may generate the first encrypted identifier at least in part based on a network public key, and the UE 120-2 may generate the second encrypted identifier at least in part based on the network public key (or another network public key).

[0115] As shown by reference numeral 820, the DNN 610 may send and the CNN 605 may receive one or more encrypted identifiers. The DNN 610 may send the one or more encrypted identifiers according to the configuration information.

[0116] In some aspects, the DNN 610 may use NAS signaling to send the one or more encrypted identifiers. For example, an RRC connection (via the radio link interface) and an NG connection for 3GPP access (via the N2 interface) may be used to report the encrypted identifier. In another example, an IPsec tunnel (via the NWu interface) and an NG connection for non-3GPP access (via the N2 interface) may be used to report the encrypted identifier. In some aspects, the DNN 610 may use LPP and / or send the one or more identifiers as auxiliary information at least in part based on a request from the LMF 615. The DNN 610 and the LMF 615 may exchange LPP request information and LPP response information, as described above in connection with Figure 7 described.

[0117] In some aspects, the configuration information may include information for reporting reachability information (such as the one or more encrypted identifiers). In some aspects, the configuration information may indicate that the DNN 610 reports the encrypted identifiers periodically, such as according to an interval. The DNN 610 may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the CNN 605 according to the interval and at least in part based on the configuration information. For example, the configuration information may indicate that the DNN 610 sends the UE identifier every 10 ms. In this case, the DNN 610 may send the one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more corresponding UEs 120 every 10 ms.

[0118] In some aspects, the configuration information may indicate that the DNN 610 reports the encrypted identifiers at least in part based on the occurrence of an event. In one example, the configuration information may indicate that the DNN 610 reports the UE identifier at least in part based on the UE 120 no longer being connected to the DNN 610 or no longer being within a connection area associated with the DNN 610. In this case, the DNN 610 may detect that the UE 120 has lost its connection to the DNN 610 or has left the connection area associated with the DNN 610, and may send the encrypted identifier associated with the UE 120 to the CNN 605. In another example, the configuration information may indicate that the DNN 610 reports the UE identifier at least in part based on the UE 120 connecting to the DNN 610 or entering a connection area associated with the DNN 610. In this case, the DNN 610 may detect that the UE 120 has connected to the DNN 610 or has entered the connection area associated with the DNN 610, and may send the encrypted identifier associated with the UE 120 to the CNN 605. In another example, the configuration information may indicate that the DNN 610 reports the UE identifier at least in part based on a particular UE (such as UE 120-2) losing its connection to the DNN 610, leaving the connection area associated with the DNN 610, connecting to the DNN 610, or entering the connection area associated with the DNN 610. In this case, the DNN 610 may detect that the UE 120-2 has lost its connection to the DNN 610, left the connection area associated with the DNN 610, connected to the DNN 610, or entered the connection area associated with the DNN 610, and may send the encrypted identifier associated with the UE 120-2 to the CNN 605.

[0119] In some aspects, the CNN 605 may at least partially release the radio link connection associated with the UE 120 based on configuring the UE 120 via the radio link interface. For example, the CNN 605 may send an indication to the network node 110 indicating that subsequent positioning of the UE 120 can be performed via the sidelink interface, and may release the radio link connection between the UE 120 and the network node 110. This can achieve network power savings.

[0120] In some aspects, the CNN 605 may detect that the UE 120 is reachable via the DNN 610 at least partially based on reachability information. The CNN 605 may send a positioning request to the UE 120 at least partially based on this detection, via the DNN 610 rather than via the network node 110. In some aspects, the CNN 605 may route the positioning request to the UE 120 via the DNN 610 or via the network node 110 at least partially based on positioning accuracy requirements and / or QoS requirements. For example, when the positioning request is routed via the DNN 610, positioning accuracy may be improved, but this may increase network overhead. In some aspects, the CNN 605 may route the positioning request via both the DNN 610 and the network node 110. For example, the CNN 605 may use joint Uu / SL positioning to send a positioning request to the UE 120.

[0121] In some aspects, the encryption identifier may be resolved by the LMF 615 such that the LMF 615 can map the encryption identifier between the radio link interface and the sidelink interface. This can enable the LMF 615 to route the positioning request via the network node 110 (via the radio link interface) or via the DNN 610 (via the sidelink interface). In the case where the UE 120 becomes unreachable using the DNN 610, the LMF 615 may use typical (e.g., default) radio link techniques for UE positioning.

[0122] As indicated above, Figure 8 is provided as an example. Other examples may be different from the examples Figure 8 described.

[0123] Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example process 900 performed by a UE, for example, according to the present disclosure. The example process 900 is an example where a UE (e.g., UE 120) performs operations associated with UE positioning.

[0124] As Fig. 9 shown, in some aspects, the process 900 may include receiving configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node (block 910). For example, the UE (e.g., using Fig.11The communication manager 140 and / or the receiving component 1102 depicted in [above] may receive configuration information for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information from a central network node, as described above.

[0125] As Fig. 9 Further shown, in some aspects, process 900 may include identifying the one or more distributed network nodes (block 920) at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information. For example, the UE (e.g., using Fig.11 the communication manager 140 and / or the identification component 1108 depicted in [above]) may identify the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information, as described above.

[0126] As Fig. 9 Further shown, in some aspects, process 900 may include obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more distributed network nodes, respectively (block 930). For example, the UE (e.g., using Fig.11 the communication manager 140 and / or the obtaining component 1110 depicted in [above]) may obtain one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more distributed network nodes, respectively, as described above.

[0127] As Fig. 9 Further shown, in some aspects, process 900 may include sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information (block 940). For example, the UE (e.g., using Fig.11 the communication manager 140 and / or the sending component 1104 depicted in [above]) may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information, as described above.

[0128] Process 900 may include additional aspects, such as any single aspect or any combination of aspects described below and / or in combination with one or more other processes described elsewhere herein.

[0129] In a first aspect, receiving the configuration information includes receiving the configuration information from the central network node via a radio link interface, wherein obtaining the one or more encrypted identifiers includes receiving the one or more encrypted identifiers from the one or more distributed network nodes via a sidelink interface, and wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node via the radio link interface.

[0130] In a second aspect, either alone or in combination with the first aspect, process 900 includes receiving an indication that a radio link connection to the central network node that has been released for sending positioning information, and sending positioning information to the one or more distributed network nodes via a sidelink interface, at least in part based on the indication that the radio link connection has been released.

[0131] In a third aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node, at least in part based on the location management function of the central network node.

[0132] In a fourth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to third aspects, identifying the one or more distributed network nodes, at least in part based on the respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE, includes identifying one or more distributed network nodes having an existing connection to the UE, and identifying the one or more distributed network nodes, at least in part based on the measurement information, includes identifying one or more distributed network nodes having a reference signal received power measurement that meets a reference signal received power measurement threshold.

[0133] In a fifth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fourth aspects, obtaining the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes includes: sending an identification request to the one or more distributed network nodes, at least in part based on the configuration information; and receiving the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes from the one or more distributed network nodes, at least in part based on the identification request.

[0134] In a sixth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fifth aspects, the one or more encrypted identifiers include at least one of a subscriber concealment identifier, a globally unique temporary identifier, a universal public subscription identifier, or an international mobile subscriber identity.

[0135] In a seventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to sixth aspects, each of the one or more encrypted identifiers is encrypted, at least in part, based on a shared session key between the UE and the corresponding distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes, or is encrypted, at least in part, based on a public key associated with the network for communication between the UE and the corresponding distributed network node.

[0136] In an eighth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to seventh aspects, sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node using non-access stratum signaling, or sending the one or more encrypted identifiers as auxiliary information to the central network node according to a positioning protocol.

[0137] In a ninth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eighth aspects, the configuration information instructs the UE to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to an interval, and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the interval.

[0138] In a tenth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to ninth aspects, the configuration information instructs the UE to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least partially based on an event, and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least partially based on the occurrence of the event.

[0139] In an eleventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to tenth aspects, the event is at least one of the following: a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves outside a connection area associated with the UE; a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves inside the connection area associated with the UE; or a selected distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves outside or inside the connection area of the UE.

[0140] In a twelfth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eleventh aspects, procedure 900 includes receiving a positioning request from a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes at least partially based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

[0141] In a thirteenth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to twelfth aspects, procedure 900 includes receiving a positioning request from the central network node and a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes at least partially based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node and at least partially based on an accuracy requirement.

[0142] In a fourteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first to thirteenth aspects, process 900 includes receiving a positioning request from a distributed network node among the central network node and the one or more distributed network nodes, at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

[0143] Although Fig. 9 example boxes of process 900 are shown, in some aspects, process 900 may include additional boxes, fewer boxes, different boxes, or boxes arranged in a different manner compared to those depicted in Fig. 9 . Additionally or alternatively, two or more boxes of process 900 may be executed in parallel.

[0144] Fig.10 is a diagram illustrating an example process 1000, such as may be performed by a distributed network node, in accordance with the present disclosure. Example process 1000 is an example of operations performed by a distributed network node (e.g., distributed network node 610) associated with UE positioning.

[0145] As Fig.10 shown, in some aspects, process 1000 may include receiving configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node (block 1010). For example, the distributed network node (e.g., using the communication manager 150 and / or receiving component 1202 depicted in Fig.12 ) may receive configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information from a central network node, as described above.

[0146] As Fig.10 further shown, in some aspects, process 1000 may include identifying the one or more UEs, at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information (block 1020). For example, the distributed network node (e.g., using the communication manager 150 and / or identification component 1108 depicted in Fig.11 ) may identify the one or more UEs, at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information, as described above.

[0147] As Fig.10 further shown, in some aspects, process 1000 may include obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs (block 1030). For example, the distributed network node (e.g., using the communication manager 150 and / or obtaining component 1110 depicted in Fig.11 ) may obtain one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs, as described above.

[0148] As Fig.10 Fig.10 As further shown, in some aspects, process 1000 may include sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information (block 1040). For example, the distributed network node (e.g., using the communication manager 150 and / or the sending component 1104 depicted in Fig.11 Fig.11 may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information, as described above.

[0149] Process 1000 may include additional aspects, such as any single aspect or any combination of aspects described below and / or in combination with one or more other process descriptions described elsewhere herein.

[0150] In a first aspect, receiving the configuration information includes receiving the configuration information from the central network node via a radio link interface, wherein obtaining the one or more encrypted identifiers includes receiving the one or more encrypted identifiers from the one or more UEs via a sidelink interface, and wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node via the radio link interface.

[0151] In a second aspect, either alone or in combination with the first aspect, sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least partially based on the location management function of the central network node.

[0152] In a third aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, identifying the one or more UEs at least partially based on the respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node includes identifying one or more UEs having an existing connection to the distributed network node, and identifying the one or more UEs at least partially based on the measurement information includes identifying one or more UEs having a reference signal received power measurement that meets a reference signal received power measurement threshold.

[0153] In a fourth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to third aspects, obtaining the one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more UEs respectively includes: sending an identification request to the one or more UEs at least partially based on the configuration information; and receiving the one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more UEs respectively from the one or more UEs at least partially based on the identification request.

[0154] In a fifth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fourth aspects, the one or more encrypted identifiers include at least one of a subscriber concealment identifier, a globally unique temporary identifier, a general public subscription identifier, or an international mobile subscriber identity.

[0155] In a sixth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fifth aspects, each of the one or more encrypted identifiers is encrypted at least in part based on a shared session key between the distributed network node and the corresponding UE among the one or more UEs, or is encrypted at least in part based on a public key associated with the network for communication between the distributed network node and the corresponding UE.

[0156] In a seventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to sixth aspects, sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node using non-access stratum signaling, or sending the one or more encrypted identifiers as auxiliary information to the central network node according to a positioning protocol.

[0157] In an eighth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to seventh aspects, the configuration information instructs the distributed network node to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to an interval, and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the interval.

[0158] In a ninth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eighth aspects, the configuration information instructs the distributed network node to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on an event, and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on the occurrence of the event.

[0159] In a tenth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to ninth aspects, the event is at least one of the following: a UE among the one or more UEs moves outside a connection area associated with the distributed network node; a UE among the one or more UEs moves inside the connection area associated with the distributed network node; or a selected UE among the one or more UEs moves outside or inside the connection area of the distributed network node.

[0160] In an eleventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first to tenth aspects, process 1000 includes sending a positioning request to the UE(s) among the one or more UEs based at least in part on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

[0161] In a twelfth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eleventh aspects, sending the positioning request to the UE includes sending the positioning request to the UE based at least in part on an accuracy requirement.

[0162] Although Fig.10 example boxes of process 1000 are shown, in some aspects, process 1000 may include additional boxes, fewer boxes, different boxes, or boxes arranged in a different manner compared to those depicted in Fig.10 . Additionally or alternatively, two or more of the boxes of process 1000 may be executed in parallel.

[0163] Fig.11 is a diagram of an example apparatus 1100 for wireless communication according to the present disclosure. Apparatus 1100 may be a UE, or a UE may include apparatus 1100. In some aspects, apparatus 1100 includes a receiving component 1102 and a transmitting component 1104 that may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses and / or one or more other components). As shown, apparatus 1100 may use the receiving component 1102 and the transmitting component 1104 to communicate with another apparatus 1106 (such as a UE, a base station, or another wireless communication device). As further shown, apparatus 1100 may include a communication manager 140. The communication manager 140 may include one or more of an identification component 1108 or an acquisition component 1110, etc.

[0164] In some aspects, apparatus 1100 may be configured to perform one or more operations described herein in connection with Figures 7 and 8 . Additionally or alternatively, apparatus 1100 may be configured to perform one or more processes described herein, such as Fig. 9 process 900. In some aspects, Fig.11 the apparatus 1100 and / or one or more components shown may include one or more components of the UE described in connection with Figure 2 . Additionally or alternatively, Fig.11 one or more of the components shown may be implemented within one or more components described in connection with Figure 2 . Additionally or alternatively, one or more components in a set of components may be at least partially implemented as software stored in a memory. For example, a component (or a part of a component) may be implemented as instructions or code stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium and capable of being executed by a controller or a processor to perform the functions or operations of the component.

[0165] The receiving component 1102 may receive communications from the device 1106, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or combinations thereof. The receiving component 1102 may provide the received communications to one or more other components of the device 1100. In some aspects, the receiving component 1102 may perform signal processing on the received communications (such as filtering, amplification, demodulation, analog-to-digital conversion, demultiplexing, deinterleaving, demapping, equalization, interference cancellation, or decoding, etc.), and may provide the processed signals to one or more other components of the device 1100. In some aspects, the receiving component 1102 may include one or more antennas, modems, demodulators, MIMO detectors, receiving processors, controllers / processors, memories, or combinations thereof of the UE described in conjunction with Figure 2 the one or more antennas, modems, demodulators, MIMO detectors, receiving processors, controllers / processors, memories, or combinations thereof of the UE described in conjunction with

[0166] The transmitting component 1104 may send communications to the device 1106, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or combinations thereof. In some aspects, one or more other components of the device 1100 may generate communications and may provide the generated communications to the transmitting component 1104 for transmission to the device 1106. In some aspects, the transmitting component 1104 may perform signal processing on the generated communications (such as filtering, amplification, modulation, digital-to-analog conversion, multiplexing, interleaving, mapping, or encoding, etc.), and may send the processed signals to the device 1106. In some aspects, the transmitting component 1104 may include one or more antennas, modems, modulators, transmitting MIMO processors, transmitting processors, controllers / processors, memories, or combinations thereof of the UE described in conjunction with Figure 2 the one or more antennas, modems, modulators, transmitting MIMO processors, transmitting processors, controllers / processors, memories, or combinations thereof of the UE described in conjunction with. In some aspects, the transmitting component 1104 may be co-located with the receiving component 1102 in a transceiver.

[0167] The receiving component 1102 may receive configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information. The identifying component 1108 may identify the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on the respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information. The obtaining component 1110 and / or the receiving component 1102 may obtain one or more encrypted identifiers associated with the one or more distributed network nodes, respectively. The transmitting component 1104 may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0168] The receiving component 1102 may receive an indication of the radio link connection to the central network node that has been released for sending positioning information. The transmitting component 1104 may send positioning information to the one or more distributed network nodes via a sidelink interface at least in part based on the indication that the radio link connection has been released. The receiving component 1102 may receive a positioning request from a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node. The receiving component 1102 may receive a positioning request from the central network node and a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node and at least in part based on an accuracy requirement. The receiving component 1102 may receive a positioning request from the central network node and a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

[0169] Fig.11 The number and arrangement of the components shown are provided as an example. In fact, there may be additional components, fewer components, different components, or components arranged in a different manner compared to Fig.11 the components shown. Additionally, Fig.11 two or more of the components shown may be implemented within a single component, or Fig.11 a single component shown may be implemented as multiple distributed components. Additionally or alternatively, Fig.11 a set of components (one or more components) shown may perform one or more functions described as being performed by Fig.11 another set of components shown.

[0170] Fig.12 is a diagram of an example apparatus 1200 for wireless communication in accordance with the present disclosure. The apparatus 1200 may be a distributed network node, or a distributed network node may include the apparatus 1200. In some aspects, the apparatus 1200 includes a receiving component 1202 and a transmitting component 1204 that may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses and / or one or more other components). As shown, the apparatus 1200 may communicate with another apparatus 1206 (such as a UE, a base station, or another wireless communication device) using the receiving component 1202 and the transmitting component 1204. As further shown, the apparatus 1200 may include a communication manager 150. The communication manager 150 may include one or more of an identification component 1208 or an acquisition component 1210, etc.

[0171] In some aspects, the apparatus 1200 may be configured to perform herein in connection with Figures 7 and 8One or more of the operations described. Additionally or alternatively, apparatus 1200 may be configured to perform one or more of the processes described herein, such as Fig.10 process 1000. In some aspects, Fig.12 the apparatus 1200 and / or one or more components shown may include one or more components of a distributed network node as described in connection with Figure 2 description. Additionally or alternatively, Fig.12 one or more of the components shown may be implemented within one or more components described in connection with Figure 2 description. Additionally or alternatively, one or more of the components in a set of components may be at least partially implemented as software stored in a memory. For example, a component (or a portion of a component) may be implemented as instructions or code stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium and executable by a controller or processor to perform the functions or operations of the component.

[0172] Receiving component 1202 may receive communications from apparatus 1206, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or combinations thereof. Receiving component 1202 may provide the received communications to one or more other components of apparatus 1200. In some aspects, receiving component 1202 may perform signal processing (such as filtering, amplification, demodulation, analog-to-digital conversion, demultiplexing, deinterleaving, demapping, equalization, interference cancellation, or decoding, etc.) on the received communications, and may provide the processed signals to one or more other components of apparatus 1200. In some aspects, receiving component 1202 may include one or more antennas, modems, demodulators, MIMO detectors, receiving processors, controller / processors, memories, or combinations thereof of a distributed network node as described in connection with Figure 2 description.

[0173] Transmitting component 1204 may transmit communications to apparatus 1206, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or combinations thereof. In some aspects, one or more other components of apparatus 1200 may generate communications and may provide the generated communications to transmitting component 1204 for transmission to apparatus 1206. In some aspects, transmitting component 1204 may perform signal processing (such as filtering, amplification, modulation, digital-to-analog conversion, multiplexing, interleaving, mapping, or encoding, etc.) on the generated communications, and may transmit the processed signals to apparatus 1206. In some aspects, transmitting component 1204 may include one or more antennas, modems, modulators, transmit MIMO processors, transmit processors, controller / processors, memories, or combinations thereof of a distributed network node as described in connection with Figure 2 description. In some aspects, transmitting component 1204 may be co-located with receiving component 1202 in a transceiver.

[0174] The receiving component 1202 may receive configuration information for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information from a central network node. The identifying component 1208 may identify the one or more UEs at least in part based on the respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information. The obtaining component 1210 may obtain one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs. The sending component 1204 may send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0175] The sending component 1204 may send a location request to a UE among the one or more UEs at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

[0176] Fig.12 The number and arrangement of the illustrated components are provided as an example. In fact, there may be additional components, fewer components, different components, or components arranged in a different manner compared to Fig.12 the components shown. Additionally, Fig.12 two or more of the illustrated components may be implemented within a single component, or Fig.12 a single illustrated component may be implemented as multiple distributed components. Additionally or alternatively, Fig.12 a set of the illustrated components (one or more components) may perform one or more functions described as being performed by Fig.12 another set of the illustrated components.

[0177] An overview of some aspects of the present disclosure is provided below:

[0178] Aspect 1: A method for wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), the method including: receiving configuration information for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information from a central network node; identifying the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on the respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information; obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes; and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0179] Aspect 2: The method according to aspect 1, wherein receiving the configuration information includes receiving the configuration information from the central network node via a radio link interface, wherein obtaining the one or more encrypted identifiers includes receiving the one or more encrypted identifiers from the one or more distributed network nodes via a sidelink interface, and wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node via the radio link interface.

[0180] Aspect 3: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 2, the method further comprising receiving an indication of a radio link connection to the central network node that has been released for transmitting positioning information, and transmitting the positioning information to the one or more distributed network nodes via a sidelink interface at least partially based on the indication that the radio link connection has been released.

[0181] Aspect 4: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 3, wherein transmitting the one or more encrypted identifiers comprises transmitting the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least partially based on a location management function of the central network node.

[0182] Aspect 5: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 4, wherein identifying the one or more distributed network nodes at least partially based on the respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE comprises identifying one or more distributed network nodes having an existing connection to the UE, and wherein identifying the one or more distributed network nodes at least partially based on the measurement information comprises identifying one or more distributed network nodes having a reference signal reception power measurement that meets a reference signal reception power measurement threshold.

[0183] Aspect 6: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 5, wherein obtaining the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes comprises: transmitting an identification request to the one or more distributed network nodes at least partially based on the configuration information; and receiving the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes from the one or more distributed network nodes at least partially based on the identification request.

[0184] Aspect 7: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 6, wherein the one or more encrypted identifiers comprise at least one of a subscriber concealment identifier, a globally unique temporary identifier, a general public subscription identifier, or an international mobile subscriber identity.

[0185] Aspect 8: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 7, wherein each encrypted identifier of the one or more encrypted identifiers is encrypted at least partially based on a shared session key between the UE and the corresponding distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes, or is encrypted at least partially based on a public key associated with the network for communication between the UE and the corresponding distributed network node.

[0186] Aspect 9: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 8, wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node using non-access stratum signaling, or sending the one or more encrypted identifiers as auxiliary information to the central network node according to a positioning protocol.

[0187] Aspect 10: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 9, wherein the configuration information instructs the UE to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to an interval, and wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the interval.

[0188] Aspect 11: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 10, wherein the configuration information instructs the UE to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least partially based on an event, and wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least partially based on the occurrence of the event.

[0189] Aspect 12: The method according to aspect 11, wherein the event is at least one of the following: a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves outside a connection area associated with the UE; a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves inside the connection area associated with the UE; or a selected distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves outside or inside the connection area of the UE.

[0190] Aspect 13: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 12, the method further includes receiving a positioning request from a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes at least partially based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

[0191] Aspect 14: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 13, the method further includes receiving a positioning request from the central network node and a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes at least partially based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node and at least partially based on an accuracy requirement.

[0192] Aspect 15: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 14, the method further comprising receiving a positioning request from a distributed network node among the central network node and the one or more distributed network nodes, at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

[0193] Aspect 16: A method of wireless communication performed by a distributed network node, the method comprising: receiving configuration information from a central network node for reporting user equipment (UE) positioning information or distributed network node positioning information; identifying the one or more UEs at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information; obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs; and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

[0194] Aspect 17: The method according to aspect 16, wherein receiving the configuration information comprises receiving the configuration information from the central network node via a radio link interface, wherein obtaining the one or more encrypted identifiers comprises receiving the one or more encrypted identifiers from the one or more UEs via a sidelink interface, and wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers comprises sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node via the radio link interface.

[0195] Aspect 18: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 17, wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers comprises sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on a location management function of the central network node.

[0196] Aspect 19: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 18, wherein identifying the one or more UEs at least in part based on the respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node comprises identifying one or more UEs having an existing connection to the distributed network node, and wherein identifying the one or more UEs at least in part based on the measurement information comprises identifying one or more UEs having a reference signal received power measurement meeting a reference signal received power measurement threshold.

[0197] Aspect 20: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 19, wherein obtaining the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs comprises: sending an identification request to the one or more UEs at least in part based on the configuration information; and receiving the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs from the one or more UEs at least in part based on the identification request.

[0198] Aspect 21: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 20, wherein the one or more encrypted identifiers include at least one of a subscriber concealment identifier, a globally unique temporary identifier, a general public subscription identifier, or an international mobile subscriber identity.

[0199] Aspect 22: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 21, wherein each of the one or more encrypted identifiers is encrypted at least in part based on a shared session key between the distributed network node and the corresponding UE among the one or more UEs, or is encrypted at least in part based on a public key associated with the network for communication between the distributed network node and the corresponding UE.

[0200] Aspect 23: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 22, wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node using non-access stratum signaling, or sending the one or more encrypted identifiers as auxiliary information to the central network node according to a positioning protocol.

[0201] Aspect 24: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 23, wherein the configuration information instructs the distributed network node to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to an interval, and wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the interval.

[0202] Aspect 25: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 24, wherein the configuration information instructs the distributed network node to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on an event, and wherein sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on the occurrence of the event.

[0203] Aspect 26: The method according to aspect 25, wherein the event is at least one of the following: a UE among the one or more UEs moves outside a connection area associated with the distributed network node; a UE among the one or more UEs moves inside the connection area associated with the distributed network node; or a selected UE among the one or more UEs moves outside or inside the connection area of the distributed network node.

[0204] Aspect 27: The method according to any one of aspects 16 to 26, the method further comprising sending a positioning request to the UE in one or more UEs at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

[0205] Aspect 28: The method according to aspect 27, wherein sending the positioning request to the UE includes sending the positioning request to the UE at least in part based on an accuracy requirement.

[0206] Aspect 29: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 15.

[0207] Aspect 30: A device for wireless communication, the device comprising a memory and one or more processors coupled to the memory, the one or more processors configured to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 15.

[0208] Aspect 31: An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising at least one component for performing the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 15.

[0209] Aspect 32: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code including instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 15.

[0210] Aspect 33: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing an instruction set for wireless communication, the instruction set including one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 15.

[0211] Aspect 34: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 16 to 28.

[0212] Aspect 35: A device for wireless communication, the device comprising a memory and one or more processors coupled to the memory, the one or more processors configured to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 16 to 28.

[0213] Aspect 36: An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus including at least one component for performing the method according to one or more of Aspects 16 to 28.

[0214] Aspect 37: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code including instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to one or more of Aspects 16 to 28.

[0215] Aspect 38: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing an instruction set for wireless communication, the instruction set including one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of Aspects 16 to 28.

[0216] The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the aspects to the precise forms disclosed. Modifications and variations may be made in light of the above disclosure, or may be obtained from practice of the aspects.

[0217] As used herein, the term "component" is intended to be broadly construed as hardware and / or a combination of hardware and software. Whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise, "software" shall be broadly construed to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executables, execution threads, procedures, and / or functions, etc. As used herein, a "processor" is implemented by hardware and / or a combination of hardware and software. It will be apparent that the systems and / or methods described herein may be implemented by different forms of hardware and / or combinations of hardware and software. The actual specific control hardware or software code used to implement these systems and / or methods does not limit the aspects. Accordingly, the operation and behavior of the systems and / or methods are not described herein with reference to specific software code, as those skilled in the art will understand that the software and hardware may be designed, at least in part, based on the description herein to implement the systems and / or methods.

[0218] As used herein, depending on the context, "meeting a threshold" may refer to a value being greater than a threshold, greater than or equal to a threshold, less than a threshold, less than or equal to a threshold, equal to a threshold, not equal to a threshold, etc.

[0219] Although specific combinations of features are recited in the claims and / or disclosed in the specification, these combinations are not intended to limit the disclosure of the various aspects. Many of these features may be combined in ways not specifically recited in the claims and / or not disclosed in the specification. The disclosure of each aspect includes each dependent claim in combination with every other claim in the set of claims. As used herein, the phrase referring to a list of items “at least one of” refers to any combination of those items (including a single member). By way of example, “at least one of a, b, or c” is intended to cover a, b, c, a + b, a + c, b + c, and a + b + c, as well as any combination with multiple of the same element (e.g., a + a, a + a + a, a + a + b, a + a + c, a + b + b, a + c + c, b + b, b + b + b, b + b + c, c + c, and c + c + c, or any other ordering of a, b, and c).

[0220] Any element, act, or instruction used herein should not be construed as critical or essential unless expressly stated as such. Further, as used herein, the article “a” is intended to include one or more items and may be used interchangeably with “one or more.” Further, as used herein, the article “the” is intended to include the one or more items referred to in connection with the article “the” and may be used interchangeably with “the one or more.” Further, as used herein, the terms “set” and “group” are intended to include one or more items and may be used interchangeably with “one or more.” If only intending to refer to a single item, the phrase “only one” or similar will be used. Further, as used herein, the terms “has,” “owns,” “possesses,” etc. are intended to be open-ended terms that do not limit the elements they modify (e.g., an element that “has” A may also have B). Further, the phrase “based on” is intended to mean “at least partially based on” unless otherwise expressly stated. Further, as used herein, the term “or” when used in a series is intended to be open-ended and may be used interchangeably with “and / or” unless otherwise expressly stated (e.g., if used in conjunction with “either” or “only one”).

Claims

1. An apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the apparatus comprising: a memory; and one or more processors coupled to the memory and configured to: receive configuration information from a central network node for reporting UE location information or distributed network node location information; identify the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information; obtain one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes; and send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in order to receive the configuration information, the one or more processors are configured to receive the configuration information from the central network node via a radio link interface, wherein in order to obtain the one or more encrypted identifiers, the one or more processors are configured to receive the one or more encrypted identifiers from the one or more distributed network nodes via a sidelink interface, and wherein in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node via the radio link interface.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: receive an indication that a radio link connection to the central network node that has been released for sending location information, and send location information to the one or more distributed network nodes via a sidelink interface at least in part based on the indication that the radio link connection has been released.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on a location management function of the central network node.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in order to identify the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on the respective connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE, the one or more processors are configured to identify one or more distributed network nodes having an existing connection to the UE, and wherein in order to identify the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on the measurement information, the one or more processors are configured to identify one or more distributed network nodes having a reference signal received power measurement that meets a reference signal received power measurement threshold.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in order to obtain the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes, the one or more processors are configured to: send an identification request to the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on the configuration information; and Receiving, at least in part based on the identification request, the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes from the one or more distributed network nodes.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more encrypted identifiers include at least one of a subscriber hidden identifier, a globally unique temporary identifier, a general public subscription identifier, or an international mobile subscriber identity.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the one or more encrypted identifiers is encrypted at least in part based on a shared session key between the UE and the corresponding distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes, or encrypted at least in part based on a public key associated with the network for communication between the UE and the corresponding distributed network node.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node using non-access stratum signaling, or send the one or more encrypted identifiers as auxiliary information to the central network node according to a positioning protocol.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the configuration information instructs the UE to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to an interval, and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node includes sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the interval.

11. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the configuration information instructs the UE to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on an event, and wherein, in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on the occurrence of the event.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the event is at least one of the following: a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves outside a connection area associated with the UE; a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves inside the connection area associated with the UE; or a selected distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes moves outside or inside the connection area of the UE.

13. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to receive a positioning request from a distributed network node among the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

14. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to receive a positioning request from a distributed network node among the central network node and the one or more distributed network nodes, at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node and at least in part based on an accuracy requirement.

15. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to receive a positioning request from a distributed network node among the central network node and the one or more distributed network nodes, at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

16. An apparatus for wireless communication at a distributed network node, the apparatus comprising: a memory; and one or more processors coupled to the memory and configured to: receive configuration information from a central network node for reporting user equipment (UE) positioning information or distributed network node positioning information; identify the one or more UEs at least in part based on respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information; obtain one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs; and send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein, in order to receive the configuration information, the one or more processors are configured to receive the configuration information from the central network node via a radio link interface, wherein, in order to obtain the one or more encrypted identifiers, the one or more processors are configured to receive the one or more encrypted identifiers from the one or more UEs via a sidelink interface, and wherein, in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node via the radio link interface.

18. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein, in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on a location management function of the central network node.

19. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein, in order to identify the one or more UEs at least in part based on the respective connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node, the one or more processors are configured to identify one or more UEs having an existing connection to the distributed network node, and wherein, in order to identify the one or more UEs at least in part based on the measurement information, the one or more processors are configured to identify one or more UEs having a reference signal received power measurement that meets a reference signal received power measurement threshold.

20. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein, in order to obtain the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs, the one or more processors are configured to: Send an identification request to the one or more UEs at least in part based on the configuration information; and Receive from the one or more UEs the one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs at least in part based on the identification request.

21. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the one or more encrypted identifiers include at least one of a subscriber concealment identifier, a globally unique temporary identifier, a general public subscription identifier, or an international mobile subscriber identity.

22. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein each of the one or more encrypted identifiers is encrypted at least in part based on a shared session key between the distributed network node and the corresponding UE among the one or more UEs, or is encrypted at least in part based on a public key associated with the network for communication between the distributed network node and the corresponding UE.

23. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein, in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node using non-access stratum signaling, or to send the one or more encrypted identifiers as auxiliary information to the central network node according to a positioning protocol.

24. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the configuration information instructs the distributed network node to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at intervals, and wherein, in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at the intervals.

25. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the configuration information instructs the distributed network node to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on an event, and wherein, in order to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node, the one or more processors are configured to send the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node at least in part based on the occurrence of the event.

26. The apparatus according to claim 25, wherein the event is at least one of the following: a UE among the one or more UEs moves outside a connection area associated with the distributed network node; a UE among the one or more UEs moves inside the connection area associated with the distributed network node; or a selected UE among the one or more UEs moves outside or inside the connection area of the distributed network node.

27. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to send a positioning request to a UE among the one or more UEs, at least in part based on sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node.

28. The apparatus according to claim 27, wherein, in order to send the positioning request to the UE, the one or more processors are configured to send the positioning request to the UE at least in part based on an accuracy requirement.

29. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: receiving, from a central network node, configuration information for reporting UE positioning information or distributed network node positioning information; identifying the one or more distributed network nodes at least in part based on corresponding connections between the one or more distributed network nodes and the UE or at least in part based on measurement information; obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more distributed network nodes; and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

30. A method of wireless communication performed by a distributed network node, the method comprising: receiving, from a central network node, configuration information for reporting user equipment (UE) positioning information or distributed network node positioning information; identifying the one or more UEs at least in part based on corresponding connections between the one or more UEs and the distributed network node or at least in part based on measurement information; obtaining one or more encrypted identifiers respectively associated with the one or more UEs; and sending the one or more encrypted identifiers to the central network node according to the configuration information.

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