Positioning with discontinuous reception

Abstract

When positioning uses discontinuous reception, and reference signals for positioning are received in a plurality of frequency sub-regions, the frequency sub-regions may be missed. This may reduce the accuracy of positioning. Thus, the apparatus receiving the reference signal, upon determining that one or more frequency sub-regions are missed, may transmit information to at least indicate the missed one or more frequency sub-regions.

Description

Cross - reference to related applications

[0001] This application claims the priority and benefit of Finnish Application No. 20226008, filed on November 8, 2022, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] Various example embodiments relate to wireless communication. Background Art

[0003] Communication systems are in continuous development. 5G, 5G - Advanced, and future wireless networks aim to support a wide variety of services, use cases, and industrial verticals, some of which have accurate positioning performance requirements, even in important use cases where power is saved by means of discontinuous reception. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The independent claims define the scope.

[0005] According to one aspect, there is provided an apparatus, comprising: means for receiving a discontinuous reception configuration from a wireless network, the discontinuous reception configuration defining at least a period of occurrence of a first time period during which the apparatus monitors at least transmissions towards the apparatus in the wireless network; means for receiving a positioning configuration for receiving and at least reporting reference signals for positioning the apparatus, the positioning configuration defining a plurality of frequency bins for the reference signals and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated; means for monitoring at least the reference signals according to the positioning configuration during the occurrence of the first time period; means for receiving the reference signals according to the positioning configuration during one or more first time periods within a reception occurrence; means for obtaining measurement results of the reference signals received during the reception occurrence; means for determining whether any of the plurality of frequency bins is missed during the reception occurrence; means for generating information in response to one or more frequency bins being missed during the reception occurrence, the information reporting the reception occurrence to at least indicate the one or more missed frequency bins; and means for sending the information.

[0006] In an embodiment, the apparatus further comprises means for estimating the value of at least one characteristic for each reference signal transmitting device, the means for estimating being configured to, in response to one or more frequency bins being missed during the reception occurrence, estimate the value of at least one characteristic based on measurement results of the reference signals in the non - missed frequency bins; wherein the means for generating is configured to include one or more of the estimated values into the information, and information identifying the one or more missed frequency bins; and the means for sending is configured to send the information to a location management device.

[0007] In an embodiment, the apparatus further includes components for receiving an instruction from a location management apparatus after sending information, the instruction being used to update one or more estimated values by using measurement results obtained during a previous reception for one or more missed frequency sub-regions; components for generating one or more updated estimated values in response to the instruction, using measurement results for non-missed frequency sub-regions obtained during the reception, and for each missed frequency sub-region, measurement results obtained during a previous reception of the missed frequency sub-region; and components for sending one or more updated estimated values to the location management apparatus.

[0008] In an embodiment, the apparatus further includes components for determining one or more channel characteristics for each reference signal transmitting apparatus during a reception; components for determining whether one or more preset conditions are satisfied by comparing the channel characteristics with corresponding thresholds for each channel characteristic in response to one or more frequency sub-regions being missed during the reception; and components for estimating a value for at least one characteristic for each reference signal transmitting apparatus, the components for estimating being configured to estimate a value for at least one characteristic based on measurement results in response to one or more preset conditions being satisfied, the measurement results including measurement results of reference signals in non-missed frequency sub-regions and, for each missed frequency sub-region, measurement results obtained during a previous reception of the missed frequency sub-region; wherein the components for generating are configured to include one or more estimated values and information identifying one or more missed frequency sub-regions into the information; and the components for sending are configured to send the information to the location management apparatus.

[0009] In an embodiment, the apparatus further includes components for receiving information from the location management, the information indicating permission to use measurement results obtained during a previous reception; wherein one or more conditions include conditions that are satisfied when the permission has been received.

[0010] In an embodiment, the components for generating are configured to generate a request for retransmitting one or more missed frequency sub-regions as information, the request including information about the occurrence period of a first time period and information identifying one or more missed frequency sub-regions; and the components for sending are configured to send the request to the location management apparatus.

[0011] In an embodiment, the apparatus further includes components for determining the number of missed frequency sub-regions during a reception; and components for comparing the number with a preset threshold; wherein the components for generating are configured to generate information in response to the number being greater than the threshold and include an indication of the occurrence period of the first time period into the information; and the components for sending are configured to send the information to the location management apparatus.

[0012] In an embodiment, the apparatus further includes means for determining the periodicity of a reference signal; and means for determining an offset to align the periodicity with the occurrence period of a first time period; wherein the means for generating is configured to use the offset as an indication of the occurrence period of the first time period.

[0013] In an embodiment, the apparatus further includes means for determining the periodicity of a reference signal; means for determining the number of frequency sub-bands missed during the occurrence of a reception; and means for comparing the number with a preset threshold; wherein the means for generating is configured to generate information in response to the number being greater than the threshold and include an indication of the periodicity in the information, the indication indicating that one or more frequency sub-bands are missed; and the means for transmitting is configured to transmit the information to a wireless network.

[0014] In an embodiment, the reference signal is a downlink reference signal for positioning.

[0015] In an embodiment, the reference signal is an uplink reference signal for positioning.

[0016] In an embodiment, the apparatus further includes at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to, together with the at least one processor, provide the means.

[0017] According to one aspect, there is provided a method for an apparatus in a wireless network, the method comprising: receiving, from a wireless network, a discontinuous reception configuration that at least defines an occurrence period of a first time period during which the apparatus at least monitors transmissions towards the apparatus in the wireless network; receiving a positioning configuration that is for receiving and at least reporting a reference signal for positioning the apparatus, the positioning configuration defining a plurality of frequency sub-bands for the reference signal and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated; during the occurrence of the first time period, monitoring the reference signal according to the positioning configuration; during one or more first time periods within the occurrence of a reception, receiving the reference signal according to the positioning configuration; obtaining measurement results of the reference signal received during the occurrence of the reception; determining whether any of the plurality of frequency sub-bands are missed during the occurrence of the reception; generating information in response to one or more frequency sub-bands being missed during the occurrence of the reception, the information reporting the occurrence of the reception to at least indicate the one or more missed frequency sub-bands; and transmitting the information.

[0018] According to one aspect, there is provided a computer-readable medium including instructions which, when executed by a device, cause the device to at least perform the following operations: receive a discontinuous reception configuration from a wireless network, the discontinuous reception configuration defining at least a recurrence period of a first time period during which the device monitors at least transmissions towards the device in the wireless network; receive a positioning configuration for receiving and at least reporting a reference signal for positioning the device, the positioning configuration defining a plurality of frequency sub-bands for the reference signal and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated; during the occurrence of the first time period, monitor the reference signal at least according to the positioning configuration; during one or more first time periods within a reception occurrence, receive the reference signal according to the positioning configuration; obtain measurement results of the reference signal received during the reception occurrence; determine whether any of the plurality of frequency sub-bands during the reception occurrence is missing; generate information in response to one or more frequency sub-bands being missing during the reception occurrence, the information reporting the reception occurrence to at least indicate the one or more missing frequency sub-bands; and transmit the information.

[0019] In an embodiment, the computer-readable medium is a non-transitory computer-readable medium. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] Embodiments are described below by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

[0021] Figure 1 shows an exemplary wireless communication system;

[0022] Figure 2 shows an exemplary radio access network positioning architecture;

[0023] Figure 3 shows timing;

[0024] Figure 4 is a flowchart showing exemplary functionality;

[0025] Figures 5 to 11 shows an example of information exchange; and

[0026] Figures 12 to 14 is a schematic block diagram. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] The following embodiments are presented only as examples. Although the present specification may refer to "one", "a", or "some" (plural) embodiments and / or (plural) examples in several places, this does not necessarily mean that each such reference is to the same (plural) embodiment or (plural) example, or that a particular feature applies only to a single embodiment and / or a single example. Individual features of different embodiments and / or examples may also be combined to provide other embodiments and / or examples. In addition, the words "comprising" and "including" should be understood as not limiting the described embodiments to consisting only of the features already mentioned, and such embodiments may also include features / structures not specifically mentioned. Further, although terms including ordinal numbers such as "first", "second", etc. may be used to describe various elements, the structural elements are not limited by the terms. The terms are only used for the purpose of distinguishing elements from other elements. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, a first positioning configuration may be referred to as a second positioning configuration, and similarly, a second positioning configuration may also be referred to as a first positioning configuration.

[0028] In the following, a radio access architecture, which is an example of an access architecture to which the embodiment can be applied, will be used to describe different exemplary embodiments. The radio access architecture is based on Long Term Evolution-Advanced (LTE-A) or New Radio (NR, 5G, 5G-Advanced), but the embodiments are not limited to this type of architecture. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiments can also be applied to other types of communication networks with suitable components by appropriately adjusting parameters and processes. Some examples of other options for suitable systems are Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Radio Access Network (UTRAN or E-UTRAN), Long Term Evolution (LTE, the same as E-UTRA), Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN or WiFi), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Personal Communication Service (PCS), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), systems using Ultra-Wideband (UWB) technology, sensor networks, Mobile Ad-hoc NETworks (MANET), and Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), or any combination thereof.

[0029] Figure 1 The example depicting a simplified system architecture shows only some elements and functional entities, all of which are logical units and their implementation manners may be different from those shown. Figure 1 The connections shown are logical connections; the actual physical connections may be different. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the system generally also includes other functions and structures in addition to Figure 1 the functions and structures shown.

[0030] However, the embodiments are not limited to the system 100 given as an example, but those skilled in the art can apply the solution to other communication systems having the necessary attributes.

[0031] Figure 1 The example of shows a part of an exemplary radio access network.

[0032] Figure 1 User equipments 101, 101’ are shown, which are configured to wirelessly connect with an access node (such as (e / g)NodeB) providing the cell on one or more communication channels in the cell. The physical link from the user equipment to the (e / g)NodeB is called the uplink or reverse link, while the physical link from the (e / g)NodeB to the user equipment is called the downlink or forward link. It should be understood that the (e / g) Node B or its functionality can be implemented by any entity such as a node, host, server, or access point suitable for such use.

[0033] A communication system generally includes more than one (e / g) Node B. In this case, the (e / g) Node B can also be configured to communicate with each other through wired or wireless links designed for this purpose. These links can be used for signaling purposes. The (e / g) Node B is a computing device configured to control the radio resources of the communication system to which it is coupled. The Node B can also be referred to as a base station, access point, or any other type of interface device, including a relay station capable of operating in a wireless environment. The (e / g) Node B includes or is coupled to a transceiver. From the transceiver of the (e / g) Node B, a connection to an antenna unit is provided, and the antenna unit establishes a two-way radio link to the device. The antenna unit can include multiple antennas or antenna elements. The (e / g) Node B is also connected to the core network 105 (CN or Next Generation Core NGC). Depending on the system, the corresponding party on the CN side can be a Serving Gateway (S-GW, routing and forwarding user data packets), a Packet Data Network Gateway (P-GW) for providing connectivity of the user equipment (UE) to an external packet data network, or a Mobility Management Entity (MME), or a User Plane Function (UPF), or an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), etc.

[0034] A user equipment (also referred to as UE, user equipment, user terminal, terminal device, etc.) shows a type of device to which resources on the air interface are allocated and assigned. Therefore, any feature described herein for a user equipment can be implemented using a corresponding device, such as a relay node. An example of such a relay node is a layer 3 relay (self-backhaul relay) facing the base station.

[0035] A user equipment generally refers to a computing device (e.g., a portable computing device) that includes a wireless mobile communication device operating with or without a subscriber identity module (SIM), including but not limited to the following types of devices: mobile stations (mobile phones), smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), handheld devices, devices using wireless modems (such as alarm or measurement devices), laptop and / or touchscreen computers, tablet computers, gaming consoles, notebook computers, and multimedia devices. It should be understood that the user equipment can also be an almost uplink-only device, an example of which is a camera or video camera that loads images or video clips onto the network. The user equipment can also be a device capable of operating in an Internet of Things (IoT) network, which is a scenario where objects are provided with the ability to transfer data over a network without the need for human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction, such as being used in smart grids and connected vehicles. The user equipment can also utilize the cloud. In some applications, the user equipment can include a user portable device with a radio part (such as a watch, headphones, glasses, other wearable accessories, or wearable devices), and the computing is performed in the cloud. The user equipment (or in some embodiments, a layer 3 relay node) is configured to perform one or more user equipment functions. The user equipment can also be referred to as a subscriber unit, mobile station, remote terminal, access terminal, user terminal, or user equipment (UE), to mention only a few names or devices. Additionally, it should be understood that the number of receiving and / or transmitting antennas in the user equipment can vary according to the implementation and / or type of the user equipment.

[0036] The various technologies described herein can also be applied to cyber-physical systems (CPS) (systems of collaborative computing elements that control physical entities). CPS can enable the implementation and development of a large number of interconnected ICT devices (sensors, actuators, processors, microcontrollers, etc.) embedded in physical objects at different locations. Mobile cyber-physical systems, where the physical systems under discussion have inherent mobility, are a subcategory of cyber-physical systems. Examples of mobile physical systems include mobile robots and electronic devices carried by humans or animals.

[0037] In addition, although the apparatus has been depicted as a single entity, different units, processors, and / or memory units ( Figure 1 not all shown therein) can also be implemented.

[0038] 5G enables the use of multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antennas, far more base stations or nodes than LTE (the so-called small cell concept), including macro stations that operate in cooperation with smaller stations and employ various radio technologies according to service requirements, use cases, and / or available spectrum. 5G mobile communications support a wide range of use cases and related applications, including video streaming, augmented reality, different data sharing methods, and various forms of machine-type applications (such as (massive) machine-type communication (mMTC), including vehicle safety, different sensors, and real-time control). 5G is expected to have multiple radio interfaces, namely below 6 GHz, centimeter wave (cmWave), and millimeter wave (mmWave), and is also integrable with existing traditional radio access technologies (such as LTE). The integration with LTE can be implemented as a system at least in the early stage, where macro coverage is provided by LTE, and 5G radio interface access is given by aggregating to LTE by small cells. In other words, 5G is planned to support both inter-RAT operability (such as LTE-5G) and inter-RI operability (inter-radio interface operability, such as below 6 GHz-cmWave, below 6 GHz-cmWave-mmWave). One of the concepts considered to be used in 5G networks is network slicing, where multiple independent and dedicated virtual sub-networks (network instances) can be created within the same infrastructure to run services with different requirements for latency, reliability, throughput, and mobility.

[0039] The current architecture in LTE networks is fully distributed in the radio and fully centralized in the core network. Low-latency applications and services in 5G require content to be close to the radio, which leads to local breakout and multi-access edge computing (MEC). 5G enables analysis and knowledge generation to occur at the data source. This approach requires leveraging resources that may not be continuously connected to the network, such as laptops, smartphones, tablets, and sensors. MEC provides a distributed computing environment for application and service hosting. It also has the ability to store and process content near cellular subscribers for faster response times. Edge computing encompasses a wide variety of technologies, such as wireless sensor networks, mobile data acquisition, mobile signature analysis, collaborative distributed peer-to-peer self-organizing networking and processing, and can also be classified as local cloud / fog computing and lattice / grid computing, dew computing, mobile edge computing, microclouds, distributed data storage and retrieval, self-healing autonomous networks, remote cloud services, augmented and virtual reality, data caching, Internet of Things (massive connectivity and / or latency-critical), critical communications (autonomous vehicles, traffic safety, real-time analytics, time-critical control, healthcare applications).

[0040] The communication system is also capable of communicating with other networks, such as the public switched telephone network or the Internet 106, or making use of the services provided by them. The communication network is also capable of supporting the use of cloud services. For example, at least a part of the core network operations can be performed as cloud services (which is depicted by the "cloud" 107 in Figure 1 ). The communication system may also include a central control entity, etc., for providing facilities for the networks of different operators to cooperate, for example, in spectrum sharing.

[0041] By leveraging network function virtualization (NVF) and software defined network (SDN), an edge cloud can be introduced into the radio access network (RAN). Using the edge cloud may mean that the access node operations are to be performed, at least partially, in a server, host or node operatively coupled to a remote radio head or base station including a radio part. The node operations may also be distributed among multiple servers, nodes or hosts. The application of the cloud RAN architecture enables the RAN real-time functions to be performed on the RAN side (in the distributed unit DU 102), while the non-real-time functions are performed in a centralized manner (in the central unit CU 104). Another example of distribution (open RAN) also includes the disaggregation of certain functions between the distributed unit and one or more radio units (shown as one entity DU&RU102).

[0042] It should also be understood that the labor distribution between the core network operations and the base station operations may be different from or even non-existent compared to that of LTE. Some other technological advancements that may be utilized are big data and all-IP, which may change the way the network is built and managed. The 5G (or new radio NR) network is designed to support multiple tiers, where the MEC server can be placed between the core and the base station or node B (gNB). It should be understood that MEC can also be applied to the 4G network.

[0043] 5G can also utilize satellite communication to enhance or supplement the coverage of 5G services. For example, by providing backhaul. Possible use cases are to provide service continuity for machine-to-machine (M2M) or Internet of Things (IoT) devices or for passengers on vehicles, or to ensure service availability for critical communications and future railway / sea / air communications. Satellite communication can utilize geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite systems, and can also utilize low earth orbit (LEO) satellite systems, especially mega-constellations (systems in which hundreds (nanosatellites) are deployed). Each satellite 103 in the mega-constellation can cover a network entity of several support satellites that create a ground cell. The ground cell can be created by a ground relay node 102 or by a gNB located on the ground or in a satellite.

[0044] It is obvious to those skilled in the art that the depicted system is only an example of a part of a radio access system, and in practice, the system may include multiple (e / g) Node Bs, user equipment may access multiple radio cells, and the system may also include other devices, such as physical layer relay nodes or other network elements, etc. At least one of the (e / g) Node Bs may be a Home (e / g) Node B. Additionally, in the geographical area of a radio communication system, multiple different types of radio cells and multiple radio cells may be provided. A radio cell may be a macro cell (or umbrella cell), which is typically a large cell with a diameter of up to several tens of kilometers, or a smaller cell such as a micro cell, femto cell, or pico cell. Figure 1 The (e / g) Node Bs can provide any of these types of cells. A cellular radio system can be implemented as a multi-layer network including several types of cells. Generally, in a multi-layer network, one access node provides one or more types of cells, so multiple (e / g) Node Bs are required to provide such a network structure.

[0045] To meet the need for improving the deployment and performance of communication systems, the concept of "plug-and-play" (e / g) Node B has been introduced. Generally, a network capable of using "plug-and-play" (e / g) Node Bs, in addition to Home (e / g) Node Bs (H(e / g) Node Bs), also includes a Home Node B Gateway or HNB-GW ( Figure 1 not shown in the figure). The HNB Gateway (HNB-GW), which is usually installed within the operator's network, can aggregate traffic from a large number of HNBs back to the core network.

[0046] It is expected that the 6G network will adopt a flexible decentralized and / or distributed computing system and architecture, as well as pervasive computing, leveraging local spectrum licensing, spectrum sharing, infrastructure sharing, and intelligent automation management supported by mobile edge computing, artificial intelligence, short packet communication, and blockchain technology. The key features of 6G will include management and control functions for intelligent connections, programmability, integrated sensing and communication, reduction of energy footprint, trusted infrastructure, scalability, and affordability. In addition to these, 6G also targets new use cases that integrate positioning and sensing capabilities into the system definition for coverage, to unify the user experience across the physical and digital worlds.

[0047] In 5G, 5G-Advanced networks and subsequent networks, it is envisioned that the use of mobile intelligent devices will increase, thus posing different latency and accuracy requirements for localizing intelligent devices, for example, in connected robots and autonomous systems. A non-limiting list of examples of such services and / or corresponding mobile intelligent devices includes driverless mobility with fully autonomous connected vehicles, other vehicle-to-everything (V2X) services, or intelligent industries with different industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) devices, such as automated guided vehicles or mobile robots or mobile robot arms. Naturally, for the localization of terminal devices (such as smartphones or smart wearables, including different smart accessories or other user devices), different latency and accuracy requirements can also be posed for localizing them. Further complexities in localization create various capabilities of different intelligent devices. Some of them can be reduced-capability devices that utilize reduced bandwidth and may be used for use cases including energy savings. For example, for intelligent devices including non-rechargeable batteries and / or batteries with longer requirements for recharge cycles, energy savings may be required. For example, industrial wireless sensors may require that the battery should last for several years, while the recharge cycle of wearable devices should exceed multiple days, such as a week. Discontinuous reception provides a means of energy savings.

[0048] For clarity, Figure 2 a highly simplified example of a localization architecture is provided, which discloses operating entities to determine the location of a device that can move, and this device is referred to as a terminal device in the Figure 2 example for the sake of illustration. Generally, this device can be any electronic device, and non-limiting examples include transceivers, devices, relays, any network node, or any terminal.

[0049] Referring to Figure 2 , for localizing a terminal device (TD) 201, system 200 includes a plurality of devices 202a, 202b configured to act as transmit-receive points (TRPs) and a device 205 configured to determine the location of the terminal device. It should be understood that other devices may be involved in the information exchange, for example, information may be transmitted via them, but for clarity, they are not described in more detail herein.

[0050] Terminal device 201 is a device that can move and / or includes movable parts and is configured to communicate with a radio access network. Different examples of terminal device 201 have been described above, without limiting the terminal device (the device that can be localized) to the listed examples. Terminal device 201 can be configured to implement any functionality described below in connection with Figures 4 to 11 , for example, configured to at least use discontinuous reception as described in connection with the appendix Figure 3 .

[0051] Devices 202a, 202b configured to act as transmission and reception points (referred to herein as transmission and reception points) may be a base station or an access node, or an operating entity including one or more antennas in a base station, or an operating entity including one or more remote radio heads, or a remote antenna of a base station, or any other arbitrary set of geographically co-located antennas forming an operating entity, for example, an antenna array having one or more antenna elements, for a cell in a radio access network, or for a part of a cell. That is, a cell may include one or more transmission points, and a cell in a radio access network includes a transmission and reception point.

[0052] The location of the terminal device can be estimated based at least on the measurement results obtained by the terminal device on downlink signal transmission (e.g., downlink reference signal transmission), which is received from one or more transmission-reception points. The downlink reference signal transmission may be a broadband downlink reference signal transmission 210, and the terminal device (e.g., a terminal device with reduced bandwidth and / or discontinuous reception) may receive it in a frequency hopping manner in different frequency sub-bands (also referred to as frequency sub-regions 211) at time 210'. In the illustrated non-limiting example, the downlink reference signal 210 may be received in five different frequency sub-regions. For example, if the broadband downlink reference signal transmission 210 from the TRP is Y MHz and the terminal device has an X MHz bandwidth capability, then when assuming that Y is an integer multiple of X, the number of frequency sub-regions N is as follows: N = Y / X. In the case where Y is not an integer multiple of X, whether the result is rounded up or down to the nearest integer depends on the implementation. The location of the terminal device can also be estimated using or alternatively using the measurement results obtained by one or more transmission-reception points on the uplink reference signal transmission from the terminal device. The uplink reference signal transmission may be performed in a frequency hopping manner, and / or the terminal device may support a wider bandwidth than the transmission-reception point. In this case, the transmission-reception point may receive the uplink reference signal in a frequency hopping manner, i.e., in a frequency sub-region. It is also possible that the transmission-reception point is configured with discontinuous reception, for example, to save energy in the transmission-reception point.

[0053] In 5G and advanced 5G, the downlink reference signal for positioning is called the positioning reference signal, and the uplink reference signal for positioning is called the sounding reference signal. However, any other terms may also be used to represent the reference signal for positioning.

[0054] In 5G, advanced 5G, and beyond, it is envisioned that the location of a terminal device (referred to as the target device) is estimated by a location management device, such as a core network element implementing the Location Management Function (LMF). By obtaining measurements from the terminal device 201, for example, and by providing assistance data (such as positioning configuration) to the terminal device and the transmit-receive points, the LMF manages the positioning of the target device to help determine what to monitor and report or transmit. However, at least a part of the location management function may be distributed to be performed at the radio access network or even in the terminal device. Thus, in this document, the terms Location Management Point (LMP) and Location Management Device are used as synonyms and cover all the possibilities listed above. In other words, the term Location Management Point / Location Management Device covers any device 205 configured to act as a location management point to determine (estimate, calculate) the location of one or more terminal devices, including any node or server or device or entity. The location management device 205 may be configured to send at least a first positioning configuration to the device to be located in the wireless network (i.e., the terminal device), the first positioning configuration being for receiving and reporting downlink reference signals, directly or indirectly defining a plurality of frequency sub-bands for the downlink reference signals and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated by the terminal device for the downlink reference signals, the positioning configuration directly or indirectly defining a plurality of frequency sub-bands for the downlink reference signals and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated, and accordingly sending a second positioning configuration to at least one downlink reference signal sending device (i.e., the transmit-receive point), the positioning configuration being for sending at least the downlink reference signals to at least locate the terminal device, the positioning configuration defining at least a transmission period for the downlink reference signals. The location management point may be configured to send a similar configuration for the uplink reference signals used to at least locate the terminal device. For example, a third positioning configuration defining at least the transmission periodicity for the uplink reference signals may be sent to the terminal device, and a fourth positioning configuration defining for receiving and reporting the uplink reference signals may be sent to one or more transmit-receive points. The fourth positioning configuration may directly or indirectly define a plurality of frequency sub-bands for the uplink reference signals and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated. The location management device 205 may also be configured to receive from the terminal device information reporting the occurrence of reception of the downlink reference signals and process it, for example, as described below in conjunction with Figures 5 to 8 , Figure 10 and Figure 11 . After performing the measurements and determining the values for reporting or for positioning, the details of how the terminal device is ultimately located are not relevant to the embodiments described herein, and thus they do not need to be described in more detail herein.

[0055] Figure 3 Illustrates the timing of the downlink reference signals and discontinuous reception. Similar timings may also apply to the uplink reference signals and discontinuous reception.

[0056] Reference Figure 3 , the discontinuous reception DRX configuration of the device defines at least the occurrence period 301 of the first time period 302, during which the device monitors at least the downlink transmissions in the wireless network. The discontinuous reception here covers any type of discontinuous reception, including adaptive discontinuous reception, connected state discontinuous reception, idle state discontinuous reception, etc. The downlink transmissions may include downlink reference signals transmitted in their transmission periodicity, such as positioning reference signals PRS. From Figure 3 it can be seen that at certain times, the first time period and the reception of the PRS transmission at least overlap, such that the device detects 303 the downlink reference signal and can process it. The occurrence of the reception of the downlink reference signal may include one or more detection occurrences 303, for example, for different frequency sub-regions. The length of the detection occurrence may be set in the first positioning configuration.

[0057] Figure 4 Illustrates an example functionality of a device to be positioned when the device is configured to use discontinuous reception. In the example shown, the downlink reference signal is used as a non-limiting example. Similar functionality may be performed by a device that is configured to use discontinuous reception and receive an uplink reference signal from the device to be positioned.

[0058] Reference Figure 4 , the device receives (block 401) a discontinuous reception configuration from the wireless network, the discontinuous reception configuration defining at least the occurrence period of the first time period, during which the device monitors at least the downlink transmissions in the wireless network, as referred to above Figure 3 described. For example, the wireless network may provide the discontinuous reception configuration to the device via a dedicated RRC (Radio Resource Control) reconfiguration message (e.g., during handover) or in a System Information Block type 2 (SIB2) broadcast during initial attachment. Additionally, the device receives (block 402) a positioning configuration, for example, from a location management device, the positioning configuration being for receiving and reporting at least the downlink reference signal for positioning the device. The positioning configuration defines a plurality of frequencies for the downlink reference signal and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated. The frequency sub-region may be directly defined by the positioning configuration indicating the frequency sub-region, or indirectly defined by the positioning configuration indicating the frequency band for the downlink reference signal, where the device may be configured to determine the frequency sub-region using the bandwidth supported by the device. The characteristic may be, for example, time of arrival, angle of arrival, and / or relative time of arrival.

[0059] At block 403, the apparatus monitors at least downlink reference signals according to a positioning configuration during the occurrence of a first time period. When the reception of the downlink reference signals occurs within the first time period, at block 404 the downlink reference signals are received during the occurrence of the reception, and at block 405 measurements of the downlink reference signals received during the occurrence of the reception are obtained. For example, the apparatus may perform measurements and determine the measurement results. Additionally, the apparatus determines at block 406 whether any of a plurality of frequency sub-bands are missed during the occurrence of the reception. A frequency sub-band may be detected as missed based on the positioning configuration and scheduling information in a discontinuous reception period. A frequency sub-band may also be detected as missed for other reasons. For example, a frequency sub-band may be considered missed based on poor measurement quality (e.g., its received energy or power is low).

[0060] In response to one or more frequency sub-bands being missed during the occurrence of the reception, the apparatus generates at block 407 information that reports the occurrence of the reception to at least indicate the one or more missed frequency sub-bands; and the information is sent at block 408. The information may be sent towards a location management apparatus and / or to a wireless network. The information may directly indicate that one or more frequency sub-bands are missed, or the indication may be, for example, a request indicating that one or more frequency sub-bands are missed that otherwise would not be sent.

[0061] Figures 5 to 11 Simplified examples of information exchange are disclosed according to different non-limiting examples. In the illustrated example, time of arrival TOA is used as a non-limiting example of a characteristic for which values are estimated. The described principles can be directly implemented by those skilled in the art for other channel characteristics used for positioning, such as for angle of arrival and / or relative time of arrival. Additionally, for clarity, the illustrated example relates to downlink frequency sub-bands. Those skilled in the art can directly implement the described principles for uplink frequency sub-bands and use a TPR (e.g., instead of Figures 5 to 11 the apparatus in) to monitor uplink reference signals from the apparatus to be located or from a mobile TPR if the mobile TPR is the apparatus to be located. The apparatus to be located may be configured to at least temporarily store the measurement results, for example, per frequency sub-band per transmit-receive point, for possible later use. For example, the measurement results for a particular frequency sub-band may be stored until new measurement results for the particular frequency sub-band are obtained.

[0062] Refer to Figure 5, the device (i.e., the device that is moving and to be located) has been configured (block 5-0) with a discontinuous reception configuration and a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting at least downlink reference signals for positioning the device, and this configuration is applied (block 5-0), including monitoring the occurrence of reception of downlink reference signals (message 5-1) during a first time period.

[0063] In the example shown, it is assumed that the device detects (block 5-2) that one or more frequency sub-bands are missed during the occurrence of reception, and the device estimates the value of the time of arrival (TOA) of the received frequency sub-bands according to each transmit-receive point. In other words, the device estimates the value for the at least one characteristic based on the measurement results of the downlink reference signals in the non-missed frequency sub-bands. Then, the device generates information reporting the occurrence of reception to include one or more estimated values of the TOA in the example, and at least indicates the one or more missed frequency sub-bands by including the identification information of the one or more missed frequency sub-bands into the information. For example, the identification information can be a combination of the identifier of the transmit-receive point, the identifier of the downlink reference signal resource set, and / or the frequency sub-band identifier.

[0064] The information is then sent (message 5-3) to the LMP, i.e., the location management device.

[0065] In the example shown herein, the LMP then, in response to the information indicating that one or more frequency sub-bands are missed during the occurrence of reception and the information includes one or more estimated values, determines (block 5-4) the priority of the estimated values according to each estimated value, based on the one or more missed frequency sub-bands. For example, using Figure 2 the example in, if the missed frequency sub-bands are #1 or #5, the priority can be higher than the case where the missed frequency sub-bands are #2, #3, or #4, because in the latter case there is phase discontinuity, while when the last (multiple) frequency sub-bands or (multiple) first frequency sub-bands are missed, phase compensation is possible because there is overlap in the non-missed frequency sub-bands. However, in any case, the priority of the estimated values is lower compared to the estimated values when no frequency sub-bands are missed. Therefore, the accuracy of the location can be estimated by considering the lower accuracy caused by the missed frequency sub-bands.

[0066] Refer to Figure 6 , the device (i.e., the device that is moving and to be located) has been configured (block 6-0) with a discontinuous reception configuration and a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting at least downlink reference signals for positioning the device, and this configuration is applied (block 6-0), including monitoring the occurrence of reception of downlink reference signals (message 6-1) during a first time period.

[0067] In the example shown, it is assumed that the device detects (block 6-2) that one or more frequency sub-bands are missing during reception, and the device estimates the value of the time of arrival (TOA) of the received frequency sub-bands according to each transmit-receive point. In other words, the device estimates the value for the at least one characteristic based on the measurement results of the downlink reference signals in the non-missing frequency sub-bands. Then, the device generates information reporting the occurrence of reception to include the estimated one or more values of the TOA, and at least indicates the one or more missing frequency sub-bands by including the identification information of the one or more missing frequency sub-bands into the information. For example, the identification information may be a combination of an identifier of the transmit-receive point, an identifier of a set of downlink reference signal resources, and / or an identifier of a frequency sub-band.

[0068] Subsequently, the information is sent (message 6-3) to the LMP, i.e., the location management device. In the example shown, the LMP subsequently obtains (block 6-4), for example, receives one or more uplink channel characteristics (ch char.) from the wireless network according to each uplink between the device and the TRP (downlink reference signal transmitting device), or uses the previously obtained corresponding information, and determines (block 6-4) whether one or more preset conditions are satisfied, for example, by comparing the uplink channel characteristics with the corresponding threshold th according to each uplink channel characteristic. For example, the channel characteristic may be the channel flatness probability, or the coherence time of the channel, or the reference signal received power.

[0069] In Figure 6 the example shown, it is assumed that one or more threshold conditions are satisfied, and the LMP sends (message 6-5) an instruction to the device to update the estimated value when some frequency sub-bands are missing by using the previous (multiple) reception occurrences. In other words, an instruction is sent to the device to use the measurement results obtained during the previous reception occurrence to report the estimated value for the one or more frequency sub-bands missing during reception.

[0070] Then, the device uses the measurement results of the non-missing frequency sub-bands obtained during reception, according to each missing frequency sub-band, and the measurement results obtained during the previous reception occurrence of the missing frequency sub-band, to generate the updated estimated value. In the example shown, the device updates (block 6-6) the estimated TOA value by using the previous measurement results of the missing frequency sub-bands stored in the device (for example). In other words, the device does not have to perform any monitoring and obtain measurement results, but it can reuse the previous measurement results stored in the memory of the device, for example. Then, the device sends (message 6-7) the updated result to the LMP for further processing.

[0071] Reference Figure 7, the device (i.e., the device that is moving and to be located) has been configured (block 7-0) with a discontinuous reception configuration and a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting at least downlink reference signals for positioning the device, and this configuration is applied (block 7-0), including monitoring the occurrence of the reception of downlink reference signals (message 7-1) during a first time period.

[0072] In the example shown, it is assumed that the device detects (block 7-2) that one or more frequency sub-regions are missed during the occurrence of the reception, and in the example shown, the device is configured to generate a request for retransmitting the one or more missed frequency sub-regions as information that reports the occurrence of the reception to at least indicate that one or more frequency sub-regions are missed. The request contains information about the occurrence period of the first time period and information identifying the one or more missed frequency sub-regions, examples of which are described above. The information about the occurrence period of the first time period may include information about the duration of the first time period and / or the start time of the next first time period. The information, i.e., the request in the example shown, is then sent (message 7-3) to the LMP. For example, message 7-3 may be "Missed Sub-region Retransmission Request (Next First Time Period Duration Information)".

[0073] In the example shown, in response to the retransmission request for the one or more missed frequency sub-regions, the LMP makes a determination (block 7-4) based on the identification information of one or more TRPs (downlink reference signal transmitting devices) whose frequency sub-regions are missed and that these frequency sub-regions are missed, and sends a request (message 7-5) to one or more TRPs to retransmit the one or more missed frequency sub-regions at the transmission time determined based on the information about the occurrence period of the first time period. Then, one or more TRPs retransmit (message 7-6) the downlink reference signals for the missed frequency sub-regions according to the schedule.

[0074] The device monitors the occurrence of the reception of the missed downlink reference signals (message 7-6) during the first time period, detects (block 7-7) the reception of the one or more frequency sub-regions that were missed earlier, and in the example shown, the device estimates (block 7-7) the TOA value using the measurement results for the missed frequency sub-regions obtained during the retransmission and the measurement results for the non-missed frequency sub-regions obtained during the occurrence of the reception according to the positioning configuration. Then, the estimated value is sent (message 7-8) to the LMP.

[0075] In other words, in Figure 7 the example, only the missed frequency sub-regions are retransmitted, thus using fewer transmit and receive resources in the device and using less radio resources.

[0076] Refer to Figure 8, the device (i.e., the device that is moving and to be located) has been configured (block 8-0) with a discontinuous reception configuration and a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting at least downlink reference signals for positioning the device, and this configuration is applied (block 8-0), including monitoring the occurrence of downlink reference signal reception (message 8-1) during a first time period.

[0077] In the example shown, it is assumed that the device detects (block 8-2) that one or more frequency sub-bands are missed during the occurrence of reception, and in the example shown, the device is configured to determine the number of missed frequency sub-bands, and whether this number exceeds a preset threshold. For example, the threshold can be given in the positioning configuration. The threshold can be determined based on knowledge of the minimum bandwidth requirement for positioning accuracy, and the number of frequency sub-bands determined as described above in conjunction with Figure 2 what is described. In the example shown, it is assumed that the number of missed frequency sub-bands exceeds the preset threshold (block 8-2). The device is configured to, in response to the number being greater than the threshold, generate a request for adjusting or offsetting the transmission of the downlink reference signal to align with the first time period in the discontinuous reception cycle as information that reports the occurrence of reception to indicate at least that one or more frequency sub-bands are missed. The request indicates that the frequency sub-bands are missed. The request contains information about the occurrence cycle of the first time period. The device can be configured to determine the periodicity of the downlink reference signal in block 8-2, and an offset for aligning the periodicity with the occurrence cycle of the first time period. The offset can be used as an indication of the occurrence cycle of the first time period. The information, i.e., the request in the example shown, is then sent (message 8-3) to the LMP. Message 8-3 can be, for example, "retransmission request for offsetting the downlink reference signal periodicity".

[0078] In the example shown, in response to the request, the LMP uses the information about the occurrence cycle of the first time period to align (block 8-4) the transmission of the downlink reference signal from one or more TRPs (downlink reference signal transmitting devices), and sends (message 8-5) a new configuration for the downlink reference signal transmission, or at least a timing-related update, to one or more TRPs, so as to offset at least the start time of the transmission periodicity. In other words, the LMP can send a second positioning configuration to at least one downlink reference signal transmitting device for transmitting at least downlink reference signals for positioning at least the device, and the positioning configuration defines multiple frequency sub-bands and transmission periodicity for the downlink reference signal. Subsequently, one or more TRPs send (message 8-6) the downlink reference signal according to the received configuration.

[0079] The device monitors the reception occurrence of the downlink reference signal (message 8-6) during the first time period, and in the illustrated example, for clarity, no frequency subbands are omitted during this time, and the device uses the frequency subband measurement results obtained based on the downlink reference signal (message 8-6) to estimate (block 8-7) the TOA value. Subsequently, the estimated value is sent to the LMP (message 8-8).

[0080] Depending on the implementation, when the number of omitted frequency subbands does not exceed a preset threshold, the device can be configured to estimate the TOA value using the non-omitted frequency subbands, for example as described above with respect to Figure 5 what is described.

[0081] In Figure 8 the example of, the transmission of the downlink reference signal can be adjusted based on the discontinuous reception setting to obtain better accuracy.

[0082] Refer to Figure 9 , the device (i.e., the device that is moving and to be located) has been configured (block 9-0) with a discontinuous reception configuration and a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting at least the downlink reference signal for positioning the device, and this configuration is applied (block 9-0), including monitoring the reception occurrence of the downlink reference signal (message 9-1) during the first time period.

[0083] In the illustrated example, it is assumed that the device detects (block 9-2) that one or more frequency subbands are omitted during the reception occurrence, and in the illustrated example, the device is configured to determine the number of omitted frequency subbands and whether this number exceeds a preset threshold. For example, the threshold can be given in the positioning configuration. The threshold can be determined based on the knowledge of the minimum bandwidth requirement for positioning accuracy and the number of frequency subbands determined as described above in conjunction with Figure 2 what is described. In the illustrated example, it is assumed that the number of omitted frequency subbands exceeds the preset threshold (block 9-2). The device is configured to, in response to the number being greater than the threshold, generate a request to adjust the discontinuous reception period and the first time period to align with the transmission of the downlink reference signal as information that reports the reception occurrence to at least indicate that one or more frequency subbands are omitted. The request indicates that the frequency subbands are omitted. The request can contain information about the omitted frequency subbands. The information, i.e., the request in the illustrated example, is then sent via at least one TRP to the wireless network (message 9-3) to the entity that determines the discontinuous reception period. The entity can be, for example, one of the TRPs or the entity that controls one or more TRPs. Message 9-3 can be, for example, "Periodically adjust discontinuous reception using the downlink reference signal".

[0084] In the example shown, the wireless network reconfigures the discontinuous reception period and / or the first time period in response to a request, e.g., via one or more TRPs, and the discontinuous reception period and / or the first time period are sent (Message 9-4) to the device, e.g., using an earlier discontinuous reception configuration, and the device updates (block 9-5) its discontinuous reception configuration accordingly.

[0085] Next, subsequently when the TRP transmits (Message 9-6) a downlink reference signal, the device monitors the occurrence of the reception of the downlink reference signal (Message 9-6) during the first time period aligned with the transmission, and in the example shown, for clarity, no frequency sub-bands are omitted during this time, and the device estimates (block 9-7) the TOA value using the frequency period measurement results obtained based on the downlink reference signal (Message 9-6). Then the estimated value is sent (Message 9-8) to the LMP.

[0086] Depending on the implementation, when the number of omitted frequency sub-bands does not exceed a preset threshold, the device can be configured to use the non-omitted frequency sub-bands to estimate the TOA value, e.g., as described above with respect to Figure 5 the description.

[0087] In Figure 9 the example, the discontinuous reception setting can be adjusted to be aligned with the transmission of the downlink reference signal to obtain better accuracy.

[0088] Referring to Figure 10 , the device (i.e., the device being moved and to be located) has been configured (block 10-0) with a discontinuous reception configuration and a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting at least the downlink reference signal for positioning the device, and this configuration is applied (block 10-0), including monitoring the occurrence of the reception of the downlink reference signal (Message 10-1) during the first time period.

[0089] In the example shown, it is assumed that the device detects (block 10-block 2) that one or more frequency sub-bands are omitted during the reception occurrence, and thus the device subsequently determines one or more channel characteristics. For example, the channel characteristics can be the channel flatness probability, or the coherence time of the channel, or the reference signal received power.

[0090] Subsequently, in block 10-2, the device determines whether one or more preset conditions are met, for example, by comparing the channel characteristics with corresponding thresholds th according to each channel characteristic. One or more thresholds may be received, for example, in the positioning configuration. In the example shown, it is assumed that one or more preset conditions have been met, so the device estimates the value for time of arrival (TOA) according to each transmit-receive point in block 10-2. More precisely, in the example shown, for the at least one characteristic, the device estimates the value based on the measurement results of the downlink reference signals in the non-omitted frequency subbands and uses the previous measurement results for the omitted frequency subbands, such as stored in the device. In other words, the device re-uses the stored previous measurement results, for example, stored in the memory of the device. Subsequently, the device generates (block 10-2) information reporting the occurrence of reception, including the estimated one or more values for TOA, and includes the identification information of the one or more omitted frequency subbands into this information to at least indicate the one or more omitted frequency subbands. For example, the identification information may be a combination of the identifier of the transmit-receive point, the downlink reference signal resource set identifier, and / or the subband identifier.

[0091] Subsequently, the information is sent (message 10-3) to the LMP, i.e., the location management device, for further processing.

[0092] Reference Figure 11 , the device (i.e., the device being moved and to be located) has been configured (block 11-0) with a discontinuous reception configuration and a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting at least the downlink reference signals for positioning the device, and this configuration is applied (block 11-0), including monitoring the occurrence of reception of the downlink reference signals during a first time period. At a certain time, or later, for example, using the positioning configuration, the LMP sends (message 11-1) an indication indicating that the device has the permission to use the measurement results obtained during the previous reception occurrence in the omitted frequency subbands when estimating the values for one or more characteristics when the channel characteristic conditions are met. In another implementation, no channel characteristic conditions are set.

[0093] The device detects in block 11-2 the permission to use the previously obtained measurement results to estimate the reception of one or more characteristics.

[0094] The device monitors the transmission of the downlink reference signals (11-3) during the first time period.

[0095] In the example shown, it is assumed that the device detects (block 11-4) that one or more frequency subbands are omitted during the reception occurrence, so the device then determines one or more channel characteristics, such as those described above in connection with Figure 10As described. Then, the device determines in block 11-4 whether one or more preset conditions are met, for example, by comparing the channel characteristics with corresponding thresholds th according to each channel characteristic. One or more thresholds may be received, for example, in the positioning configuration. In the example shown, it is assumed that the one or more preset conditions are met, and since the preset condition of receiving permission is also met, the device estimates the value for time of arrival (TOA) according to each transmit-receive point in block 11-4. More precisely, in the example shown, the device estimates the value for at least one of the characteristics based on the measurement results of the downlink reference signals in the non-omitted frequency subbands and using the previous measurement results for the omitted frequency subbands stored in the device, for example. In other words, the device re-uses the stored previous measurement results, for example, stored in the memory of the device. Subsequently, the device generates (block 11-4) information reporting the occurrence of the reception, including the one or more estimated values for TOA, and indicates at least one or more omitted frequency subbands by including the identification information of the one or more omitted frequency subbands in the information. For example, the identification information may be a combination of the identifier of the transmit-receive point, the downlink reference signal resource set identifier, and / or the subband identifier.

[0096] Subsequently, the information is sent (message 11-5) to the LMP, i.e., the location management device, for further processing.

[0097] As described above with the aid of Figures 2 to 11 The various blocks, related functions, and information exchanges (messages / signals) described do not have an absolute chronological order, and some operations may be performed simultaneously or in a different order from the one given. Other functions may also be performed between or within them, and other information may be sent and / or other rules may be applied. Certain blocks, partial blocks, or one or more items of information may also be omitted or replaced by corresponding blocks, partial blocks, or information. In addition, certain blocks in one example may also be used in combination with another example.

[0098] Figure 12 A device configured to monitor downlink reference signals in a frequency subband and determine whether one or more frequency subbands are omitted is shown. Figure 13 A device that can be configured to monitor uplink reference signals in a frequency subband and / or at least send a positioning configuration and / or a discontinuous reception configuration or implement location management functionality is shown. Figure 14 A device that can be configured to monitor reference signals in a frequency subband and / or send a positioning configuration and / or a discontinuous reception configuration or implement location management functionality is shown. In other words, Figure 14 The device of Figure 13Distributed functionality of the apparatuses shown. Apparatuses 1201, 1301 may include one or more communication control circuit systems 1220, 1320 (such as at least one processor) and at least one memory 1230, 1330 including one or more algorithms 1231, 1331 (such as computer program code (software)), wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code (software) are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the apparatuses to perform any of the exemplary functionality of the apparatuses described above. The at least one memory 1230, 1330 may further include at least one database 1232, 1332.

[0099] Reference Figure 12 , according to an embodiment, one or more communication control circuit systems 1220 of apparatus 1201 at least include a reference signal (RS) detection circuit system 1221, which is configured to at least perform determining whether any frequency subbands are missed during reception and possibly other functionality, as discussed in conjunction with Figure 2 , Figure 3 and Figure 4 . To this end, the reference signal detection circuit system 1221 of apparatus 1201 is configured to use one or more separate circuit systems to perform at least some of the functionality of the apparatus (uplink transmission apparatus, such as the apparatus to be located) described above, for example, by means of Figures 2 to 12 .

[0100] Reference Figure 12 , the memory 1230 may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, flash memory, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory.

[0101] Reference Figure 12 , apparatus 1201 may further include different interfaces 1210, such as one or more communication interfaces (TX / RX) including hardware and / or software for implementing communication connectivity according to one or more communication protocols. For example, one or more communication interfaces 1210 may implement a connection to the Internet and / or the core network of a wireless communication network via an access node. One or more communication interfaces 1210 may provide the apparatus with communication capabilities to communicate in a cellular communication system and implement communication with different network nodes or elements. One or more communication interfaces 1210 may include standard well-known components controlled by corresponding control units and one or more antennas, such as amplifiers, filters, frequency converters, (de)modulators, and encoder / decoder circuit systems.

[0102] Reference Figure 13, one or more communication control circuitry 1320 of apparatus 1301 includes at least positioning circuitry 1321 configured to perform at least some of the uplink functionality, including generating a positioning configuration or a discontinuous reception configuration, or determining whether any frequency subbands are missed during reception, as discussed in connection with Figure 2 , Figure 3 and Figure 4 . To this end, the positioning circuitry 1321 of apparatus 1301 is configured to perform at least some of the functionality of the location management apparatus or the transmit-receive point described above, e.g., by the apparatus transmitting downlink and receiving uplink using one or more separate circuitry. Figures 2 to 11 .

[0103] Refer to Figure 13 , the memory 1330 can be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, flash memory, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory.

[0104] Refer to Figure 13 , apparatus 1301 may also include different interfaces 1310, such as one or more communication interfaces (TX / RX) including hardware and / or software for implementing communication connectivity according to one or more communication protocols. One or more communication interfaces 1310 can implement a connection to the Internet and / or the core network of a wireless communication network. One or more communication interfaces 1310 can provide the apparatus with communication capabilities to communicate in a cellular communication system and implement communication with different network nodes or elements or terminal devices or user equipment. One or more communication interfaces 1310 can include standard well-known components controlled by corresponding control units and one or more antennas, such as amplifiers, filters, frequency converters, (de)modulators, and encoder / decoder circuitry.

[0105] In one embodiment, as Figure 14 shown, Figure 13 at least some of the functionality of the apparatus can be shared between two physically separate devices, forming an operating entity. Thus, it can be seen that the apparatus depicts an operating entity including one or more physically separate devices for performing at least some of the described processes. Thus, with this shared architecture, Figure 14The apparatus may include a Remote Control Unit (RCU) 1420, such as a host computer or a server computer, operatively coupled (e.g., via a wireless or wired network) to a Remote Distributed Unit (RDU) 1422 located in a base station. In an embodiment, at least some of the described processes may be performed by the RCU 1420. In an embodiment, the execution of at least some of the described processes may be shared between the RDU 1422 and the RCU 1420.

[0106] Similar to Figure 13 , Figure 14 The apparatus may include one or more Communication Control Circuitries (CNTL) 1320 (such as at least one processor) and at least one Memory (MEM) 1330 including one or more Algorithms (PROG) 1331 (such as computer program code (software)), where at least one memory and the computer program code (software) are configured to, together with at least one processor, cause the apparatus to perform any of the exemplary functions of the apparatus described above, e.g., by a device that transmits downlinks and receives uplinks (e.g., Device A) with the aid of Figures 2 to 11 as described above.

[0107] In an embodiment, the RCU 1420 may generate a virtual network through which the RCU 1420 communicates with the RDU 1422. Generally, virtual networking may involve the process of combining hardware and software network resources and network functions into a single software-based management entity (virtual network). Network virtualization may involve platform virtualization, typically combined with resource virtualization. Network virtualization can be classified as external virtual networking, which combines many networks or parts of networks into a server computer or a host computer (e.g., into the RCU). External network virtualization is for optimized network sharing. Another category is internal virtual networking, which provides network-like functionality to software containers on a single system. Virtual networking can also be used to test terminal devices.

[0108] In one embodiment, the virtual network may provide a flexible distribution of operations between the RDU and the RCU. In fact, any digital signal processing tasks may be performed in the RDU or the RCU, and the boundary for transferring responsibilities between the RDU and the RCU may be selected according to the implementation.

[0109] In yet another embodiment, Figure 12 the apparatus may be implemented in a similar manner to Figure 14 the apparatus.

[0110] The term 'circuitry' as used in this application can refer to one or more or all of the following: (a) only hardware circuit implementations such as those in only analog and / or digital circuits and (b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as, where applicable: (i) combinations of (multiple) analog and / or digital hardware circuits with software / firmware and (ii) any portions of (multiple) hardware processors with software, including (multiple) digital signal processors, software, and (multiple) memories, which work together to enable a device, such as a terminal device or an access node, to perform various functions and (c) (multiple) hardware circuits and / or (multiple) processors, such as (multiple) microprocessors or portions of (multiple) microprocessors, which require software (e.g., firmware) to operate, but may not have the software when it is not required to operate. The definition of 'circuitry' applies to all uses of the term in this application, including any claims. As another example, as used in this application, the term 'circuitry' also encompasses implementations of only hardware circuits or processors (or multiple processors) or portions of hardware circuits or processors and their (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term 'circuitry' also encompasses, for example (and if applicable to a particular claim element), baseband integrated circuits for an access node or a terminal device or other computing or network device.

[0111] In one embodiment, at least some of the processes described in conjunction with Figures 2 to 11 can be performed by a device including corresponding components for performing at least some of the processes described, such as components for each block (each function) or components for each plurality of blocks. All or some of the components can be provided by at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. It should be understood that any device can be implemented by physically distributed devices forming a logical device. Some example components for performing processes can include at least one of the following: a detector, a processor (including dual-core and multi-core processors), a digital signal processor, a controller, a receiver, a transmitter, an encoder, a decoder, a memory, a RAM, a ROM, software, firmware, a display, a user interface, display circuitry, user interface circuitry, user interface software, display software, circuitry, an antenna, antenna circuitry, and circuitry. In an embodiment, at least one processor, memory, and computer program code form a processing component or include one or more portions of computer program code for performing one or more operations in accordance with Figures 2 to 11 any one of the embodiments or operations of an embodiment thereof.

[0112] The described embodiments can also be performed in the form of a computer process defined by a computer program or portions thereof. In conjunction with Figures 2 to 11Embodiments of the described method can be implemented by executing at least a portion of a computer program that includes corresponding instructions. The computer program can be provided as a computer-readable medium including program instructions stored thereon, or as a non-transitory computer-readable medium including program instructions stored thereon. The computer program can be in source code form, object code form, or some intermediate form, and it can be stored in some carrier, which can be any entity or device capable of carrying the program. For example, the computer program can be stored on a computer program distribution medium readable by a computer or a processor. The computer program medium can be, for example but not limited to, a recording medium, a computer memory, a read-only memory, an electrical carrier signal, a telecommunication signal, and a software distribution package. The computer program medium can be a non-transitory medium. As used herein, the term "non-transitory" is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e., tangible, rather than a signal), rather than a limitation on data storage persistence (e.g., RAM versus ROM). The code for the software to execute the illustrated and described embodiments is entirely within the scope of a person of ordinary skill in the art.

[0113] Although the embodiments have been described above with reference to examples according to the drawings, it is obvious that the embodiments are not limited thereto, but can be modified in several ways within the scope of the appended claims. Therefore, all words and expressions should be interpreted broadly, and they are intended to illustrate rather than limit the embodiments. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that, with the progress of technology, the inventive concept can be implemented in various ways. In addition, it is clear to those skilled in the art that the described embodiments can, but do not require to, be combined with other embodiments in various ways.

Claims

1. A device, comprising: means for receiving a discontinuous reception configuration from a wireless network, the discontinuous reception configuration including at least an occurrence period of a first time period during which the device monitors transmissions towards the device in the wireless network; means for receiving a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting reference signals for positioning the device, the positioning configuration including a plurality of frequency sub - bands for the reference signals and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated; means for monitoring at least the reference signals according to the positioning configuration during the occurrence of the first time period; means for receiving the reference signals according to the positioning configuration during one or more first time periods within a reception occurrence; means for obtaining measurement results of the reference signals received during the reception occurrence; means for determining whether any of the plurality of frequency sub - bands is missed during the reception occurrence; means for generating information in response to one or more frequency sub - bands being missed during the reception occurrence, the information reporting the reception occurrence to indicate the one or more missed frequency sub - bands; and means for sending the information.

2. The device according to claim 1, further comprising: means for estimating a value for the at least one characteristic for each reference signal transmitting device, the means for estimating being configured to, in response to the one or more frequency sub - bands being missed during the reception occurrence, estimate the value for the at least one characteristic based on measurement results of reference signals in non - missed frequency sub - bands; wherein the means for generating is configured to include one or more estimated values into the information, and the information identifying the one or more missed frequency sub - bands; and the means for sending is configured to send the information to a location management device.

3. The device according to claim 2, further comprising: means for receiving an instruction from the location management device after sending the information, the instruction being for updating the one or more estimated values by using measurement results obtained during a previous reception occurrence for the one or more missed frequency sub - bands; means for generating one or more updated estimated values in response to the instruction, using measurement results of non - missed frequency sub - bands obtained during the reception occurrence and, for each missed frequency sub - band, measurement results obtained during the previous reception occurrence of the missed frequency sub - band; and means for sending the one or more updated estimated values to the location management device.

4. The device according to claim 1, further comprising: means for determining one or more channel characteristics for each reference signal transmitting device during the reception occurrence; means for determining whether one or more preset conditions are met by comparing the channel characteristics with corresponding thresholds for each channel characteristic in response to the one or more frequency sub - bands being missed during the reception occurrence; A component for estimating a value for the at least one characteristic according to each reference signal transmitting device, the estimating component being configured to estimate a value for the at least one characteristic based on measurement results in response to one or more preset conditions being met, the measurement results including measurement results of reference signals in non-omitted frequency subbands and, for each omitted frequency subband, measurement results obtained during a previous reception of the omitted frequency subband; wherein the generating component is configured to include the one or more estimated values into the information, and the information identifying the one or more omitted frequency subbands; and the transmitting component is configured to transmit the information to a location management device.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising: a component for receiving information from the location management, the information indicating permission to use measurement results obtained during a previous reception; wherein the one or more conditions include conditions that are met when the permission has been received.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the generating component is configured to generate a request for retransmitting the one or more omitted frequency subbands as the information, the request including the information about the occurrence period of the first time period and the information identifying the one or more omitted frequency subbands; and the transmitting component is configured to transmit the request to a location management device.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a component for determining the number of frequency subbands omitted during the reception; a component for comparing the number with a preset threshold; wherein the generating component is configured to generate the information in response to the number being greater than the threshold and include an indication of the occurrence period of the first time period into the information; and the transmitting component is configured to transmit the information to a location management device.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising: a component for determining the periodicity of the reference signal; and a component for determining an offset to align the periodicity with the occurrence period of the first time period; wherein the generating component is configured to use the offset as the indication of the occurrence period of the first time period.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a component for determining the periodicity of the reference signal; a component for determining the number of frequency subbands omitted during the reception; a component for comparing the number with a preset threshold; wherein the generating component is configured to generate the information in response to the number being greater than the threshold and include an indication of the periodicity into the information, the indication indicating that one or more frequency subbands are omitted; and the transmitting component is configured to transmit the information to the wireless network.

10. The apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the reference signal is a downlink reference signal for positioning.

11. The apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the reference signal is an uplink reference signal for positioning.

12. The apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, further comprising at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to, together with the at least one processor, provide the component.

13. An apparatus comprising: at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to: receive a discontinuous reception configuration from a wireless network, the discontinuous reception configuration including at least a recurrence period of a first time period during which the apparatus monitors transmissions towards the apparatus in the wireless network; receive a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting a reference signal for positioning the apparatus, the positioning configuration including a plurality of frequency sub - bands for the reference signal and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated; monitor at least the reference signal according to the positioning configuration during the occurrence of the first time period; receive the reference signal according to the positioning configuration during one or more first time periods within a reception occurrence; obtain measurement results of the reference signal received during the reception occurrence; determine whether any of the plurality of frequency sub - bands is missed during the reception occurrence; generate information in response to one or more frequency sub - bands being missed during the reception occurrence, the information reporting the reception occurrence to indicate the one or more missed frequency sub - bands; and transmit the information.

14. A method for an apparatus in a wireless network, the method comprising: receiving a discontinuous reception configuration from the wireless network, the discontinuous reception configuration including at least a recurrence period of a first time period during which the apparatus monitors transmissions towards the apparatus in the wireless network; receiving a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting a reference signal for positioning the apparatus, the positioning configuration including a plurality of frequency sub - bands for the reference signal and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated; monitoring at least the reference signal according to the positioning configuration during the occurrence of the first time period; receiving the reference signal according to the positioning configuration during one or more first time periods within a reception occurrence; obtaining measurement results of the reference signal received during the reception occurrence; determining whether any of the plurality of frequency sub - bands is missed during the reception occurrence; generating information in response to one or more frequency sub - bands being missed during the reception occurrence, the information reporting the reception occurrence to indicate the one or more missed frequency sub - bands; and transmitting the information.

15. A computer - readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform at least the following operations: Receiving a discontinuous reception configuration from a wireless network, the discontinuous reception configuration including at least an occurrence period of a first time period during which the device monitors transmissions towards the device in the wireless network; Receiving a positioning configuration for receiving and reporting a reference signal for positioning the device, the positioning configuration including a plurality of frequency sub-bands for the reference signal and at least one characteristic whose value is to be estimated; Monitoring at least the reference signal according to the positioning configuration during the occurrence of the first time period; Receiving the reference signal according to the positioning configuration during one or more first time periods within a reception occurrence; Obtaining measurement results of the reference signal received during the reception occurrence; Determining whether any of the plurality of frequency sub-bands is missed during the reception occurrence; Generating information in response to one or more frequency sub-bands being missed during the reception occurrence, the information reporting the reception occurrence to indicate the one or more missed frequency sub-bands; And Transmitting the information.

16. The computer-readable medium according to claim 15, wherein the computer-readable medium is a non-transitory computer-readable medium.

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