Downlink reference signal (PRS) frequency hopping based on positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW)

Abstract

Techniques for wireless positioning are disclosed. In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) may, when operating within an active bandwidth portion (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW), make a first PRS measurement within a first frequency band located within the active BWP. The UE performs at least one PRS measurement within a frequency band not located within the active BWP without changing the active BWP to another BWP located within the first component carrier.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 1. FIELD OF THE TECHNOLOGY

[0001] Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication and positioning.

[0002] 2. Description of Related Technologies

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

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

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

[0006] In one aspect, a method for wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE) includes: when operating within an active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW): performing a first PRS measurement in a first frequency band located within the active BWP; and performing at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP without changing the active BWP to another BWP located within the first component carrier.

[0007] In one aspect, a method for wireless positioning performed by a network entity includes: determining the ability of a UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within an active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW); and providing configuration information for the UE to perform PRS frequency hopping.

[0008] In one aspect, a UE includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver. The at least one processor is configured to: perform a first PRS measurement in a first frequency band located within the active BWP when operating within the active BWP of a first component carrier and within the PPW; and perform at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP without changing the active BWP to another BWP located within the first component carrier.

[0009] In one aspect, a network entity includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver. The at least one processor is configured to: determine the ability of a UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active BWP of a first component carrier and within the PPW; and provide configuration information for the UE to perform PRS frequency hopping.

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

[0011] The drawings are presented to assist in describing the aspects of the present disclosure, and the drawings are provided for illustration only and not for limiting the aspects.

[0012] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0013] Figure 2A 、 Figure 2B and Figure 2C An example wireless network structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0014] Figure 3A and Figure 3B and Figure 3C are simplified block diagrams of some example aspects of components that can be employed, respectively, in a user equipment (UE), a base station, and a network entity and are configured to support communication as taught herein.

[0015] Figure 4 Illustrates examples of various positioning methods supported in New Radio (NR) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0016] Figure 5 Is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0017] Figure 6 Is a diagram illustrating various downlink channels within an example downlink time slot in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 7 Is a time and frequency diagram showing a simplified example of positioning reference signal (PRS) / sounding reference signal (SRS) frequency hopping in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 8A and Figure 8B Are views of time and frequency diagrams illustrating PRS hopping within a PRS processing window (PPW) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figures 9A to 9D Is a view of a time and frequency diagram illustrating PRS frequency hopping within a PPW in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 10 Is a time and frequency diagram illustrating PRS frequency hopping within a PPW in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0022] Figure 11 Is a flowchart of an example process performed by a UE associated with downlink (DL) PRS frequency hopping based on a PPW in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 12 Is a flowchart of an example process 1200 associated with DL PRS frequency hopping based on a PPW in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] Aspects of the present disclosure are provided in the following description of various examples provided for illustrative purposes and the associated drawings. Alternative aspects may be devised without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of the present disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the present disclosure.

[0025] The terms "exemplary" and / or "example" are used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration". Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" and / or "example" is not necessarily to be construed as superior to or better than other aspects. Similarly, the term "aspects of the present disclosure" does not require that all aspects of the present disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage, or mode of operation.

[0026] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any one of a variety of different technologies and methods may be used to represent the information and signals described below. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout the following description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof, partly depending on the particular application, partly depending on the desired design, partly depending on the corresponding technology, and so on.

[0027] In addition, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It will be recognized that the various actions described herein may be performed by a particular circuit (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, the sequence of actions described herein may be regarded as fully embodied within any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a corresponding set of computer instructions that, when executed, will cause or command a relevant associated processor of the device to perform the functionality described herein. Accordingly, the various aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in many different forms, all of which have been contemplated as being within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Additionally, for each of the aspects described herein, a corresponding form of any such aspect may be described herein as, for example, "logic configured to perform the described action".

[0028] As used herein, unless otherwise specified, the terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT). Generally speaking, a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate via a wireless communication network (e.g., a mobile phone, router, tablet computer, laptop computer, consumer asset tracking device, wearable device (e.g., smart watch, glasses, augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), vehicle (e.g., car, motorcycle, bicycle, etc.), Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.). A UE can be mobile or can be stationary (e.g., at certain times) and can communicate with a radio access network (RAN). As used herein, the term "UE" can be interchangeably referred to as "access terminal" or "AT", "client device", "wireless device", "subscriber device", "subscriber terminal", "subscriber station", "user terminal" or "UT", "mobile device", "mobile terminal", "mobile station" or variants thereof. Generally speaking, a UE can communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the core network, a UE can connect to external networks such as the Internet and to other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for a UE to connect to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible, such as via a wired access network, a wireless local area network (WLAN) network (e.g., based on Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 specifications, etc.).

[0029] A base station can operate according to one of several RATs to communicate with a UE depending on the network in which the base station is deployed, and alternatively can be referred to as an access point (AP), network node, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), New Radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as gNB or gNodeB), etc. A base station can be mainly used to support the wireless access of UEs, including supporting data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the supported UEs. In some systems, a base station can only provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems, it can provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link by which a UE can transmit signals to a base station is called an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse traffic channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). The communication link by which a base station can transmit signals to a UE is called a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., paging channel, control channel, broadcast channel, forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term "traffic channel (TCH)" can refer to an uplink / reverse traffic channel or a downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0030] The term "base station" can refer to a single physical transmit receive point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, in the case where the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP can be the antenna of the base station corresponding to the cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. In the case where the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP can be an antenna array of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple input multiple output (MIMO) system or when beamforming is employed at the base station). In the case where the term "base station" refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP can be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transmission medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-co-located physical TRPs can be the serving base station that receives measurement reports from the UE and an adjacent base station whose reference radio frequency (RF) signal the UE is measuring. Since, as used herein, a TRP is the point by which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, a reference to transmission from or reception at a base station should be understood to refer to a particular TRP of the base station.

[0031] In some specific implementations that support UE positioning, a base station may not support wireless access for the UE (e.g., may not support data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the UE), but instead may send reference signals to be measured by the UE and / or may receive and measure signals sent by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., in the case of sending signals to the UE) and / or may be referred to as a position measurement unit (e.g., in the case of receiving and measuring signals from the UE).

[0032] An "RF signal" includes an electromagnetic wave of a given frequency that transmits information through the space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may send a single "RF signal" or multiple "RF signals" to a receiver. However, due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through a multipath channel, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between the transmitter and the receiver may be referred to as a "multipath" RF signal. As used herein, when it is clear from the context that the term "signal" refers to a wireless signal or an RF signal, an RF signal may also be referred to as a "wireless signal" or simply as a "signal".

[0033] Figure 1An example wireless communication system 100 in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The wireless communication system 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled “BS”) and various UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macro cell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one aspect, the macro cell base stations may include eNBs and / or ng-eNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network), or gNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network), or a combination of both, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0034] The base stations 102 may together form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) via a backhaul link 122, and interface with one or more location servers 172 (e.g., a location management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)) via the core network 170. The location server 172 may be part of the core network 170 or may be external to the core network 170. The location server 172 may be integrated with the base stations 102. The UE 104 may communicate with the location server 172 directly or indirectly. For example, the UE 104 may communicate with the location server 172 via the base station 102 currently serving the UE 104. The UE 104 may also communicate with the location server 172 via another path, such as via an application server (not shown), via another network, such as via a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) (e.g., the AP 150 described below), etc. For signaling purposes, the communication between the UE 104 and the location server 172 may be represented as an indirect connection (e.g., via the core network 170, etc.) or a direct connection (e.g., as shown via a direct connection 128), where intermediate nodes (if any) are omitted from the signaling diagram for clarity.

[0035] Among other functions, the base stations 102 may perform functions related to one or more of the following: transferring user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via the EPC / 5GC) via the backhaul link 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0036] The base station 102 can communicate wirelessly with the UE 104. Each base station in the base station 102 can provide communication coverage for the corresponding geographical coverage area 110. In one aspect, one or more cells can be supported by the base station 102 in each geographical coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity for communicating with a base station (e.g., on a certain frequency resource, which is referred to as a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, frequency band, etc.), and can be associated with an identifier for distinguishing cells operating via the same or different carrier frequencies (e.g., physical cell identifier (PCI), enhanced cell identifier (ECI), virtual cell identifier (VCI), cell global identifier (CGI), etc.). In some cases, different cells can be configured according to different protocol types that can provide access for different types of UEs (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other protocol types). Since a cell is supported by a specific base station, the term "cell" can refer to either or both of the logical communication entity and the base station supporting it depending on the context. In addition, since the TRP is usually the physical transmission point of a cell, the terms "cell" and "TRP" can be used interchangeably. In some cases, the term "cell" can also refer to the geographical coverage area of a base station (e.g., a sector), as long as the carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within a certain part of the geographical coverage area 110.

[0037] Although the geographical coverage areas 110 of adjacent macro cell base stations 102 can partially overlap (e.g., in a handover area), some areas in the geographical coverage area 110 can substantially overlap with a larger geographical coverage area 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' (labeled "SC" for "small cell") can have a geographical coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographical coverage area 110 of one or more macro cell base stations 102. A network including both small cell base stations and macro cell base stations can be referred to as a heterogeneous network. The heterogeneous network can also include a home eNB (HeNB), which can provide services to a restricted group called a closed subscriber group (CSG).

[0038] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 can include an uplink (also referred to as a reverse link) transmission from the UE 104 to the base station 102 and / or a downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmission from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 can use MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 can pass through one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers can be asymmetric for the downlink and the uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers can be allocated to the downlink compared to the uplink).

[0039] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a WLAN access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a wireless local area network (WLAN) station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in an unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) or Listen Before Talk (LBT) procedure before communication to determine whether the channel is available.

[0040] The small cell base station 102' may operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in the unlicensed spectrum, the small cell base station 102' may employ LTE or NR technologies and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum as that used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' adopting LTE / 5G in the unlicensed spectrum may enhance the coverage of the access network and / or increase the capacity of the access network. NR in the unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as NR-U. LTE in the unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as LTE-U, Licensed-Assisted Access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0041] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a millimeter wave (mmW) base station 180 that may operate at mmW frequencies and / or near-mmW frequencies to communicate with the UE 182. Extremely High Frequency (EHF) is a part of RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz, with wavelengths between 1 millimeter and 10 millimeters. The radio waves in this band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near-mmW may extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz, with a wavelength of 100 millimeters. The Super High Frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz, which is also referred to as centimeter waves. Communications using the mmW / near-mmW radio frequency bands have high path loss and relatively short distances. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 may utilize beamforming (transmission and / or reception) on the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range. In addition, it should be understood that in an alternative configuration, one or more of the base stations 102 may also use mmW or near-mmW and beamforming for transmission. Therefore, it should be understood that the foregoing illustrations are merely examples and should not be construed as limiting the various aspects disclosed herein.

[0042] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing RF signals in a specific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal omnidirectionally, i.e., in all directions. With transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thus providing a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal to the receiving device. To change the directivity of the RF signal during transmission, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of one or more transmitters that broadcast the RF signal. For example, the network node can use an array of antennas (referred to as a "phased array" or "antenna array") that creates an RF beam that can be "manipulated" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, the RF currents from the transmitters are fed to the individual antennas with the correct phase relationships such that the radio waves from the individual antennas add together to increase the radiation in the desired direction while canceling to suppress the radiation in the undesired directions.

[0043] Transmit beams can be quasi co-located, which means that they appear to have the same parameters to a receiver (e.g., a UE), regardless of whether the transmit antennas of the network node are physically co-located. In NR, there are four types of quasi co-location (QCL) relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters of a second reference RF signal on a second beam can be derived based on information about a source reference RF signal on a source beam. Thus, if the source reference RF signal is of QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler frequency shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is of QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler frequency shift and Doppler spread of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is of QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler frequency shift and average delay of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is of QCL type D, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the spatial reception parameters of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0044] In receive beamforming, the receiver uses receive beams to amplify the RF signals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver can increase the gain setting of the antenna array in a specific direction and / or adjust the phase setting of the antenna array in a specific direction to amplify the RF signal received from that direction (e.g., increase its gain level). Thus, when the receiver is said to perform beamforming in a certain direction, this means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gains in other directions, or the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gains of all other receive beams available to the receiver in that direction. This results in a stronger received signal strength for the RF signal received from that direction (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), etc.).

[0045] Transmit beams and receive beams can be spatially related. The spatial relationship means that the parameters of a second beam (e.g., transmit beam or receive beam) for a second reference signal can be derived based on the information about a first beam (e.g., receive beam or transmit beam) for a first reference signal. For example, a UE can use a specific receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., a synchronization signal block (SSB)) from a base station. Then, the UE can form a transmit beam for transmitting an uplink reference signal (e.g., a sounding reference signal (SRS)) to that base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0046] Note that depending on the entity forming the "downlink" beam, the beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming a downlink beam to send a reference signal to a UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE is forming a downlink beam, the downlink beam is a receive beam for receiving the downlink reference signal. Similarly, depending on the entity forming the "uplink" beam, the beam can be a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, and if the UE is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0047] The electromagnetic spectrum is typically subdivided into various categories, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, two initial operating bands have been identified as Frequency Range Designation FR1 (410 MHz – 7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz – 52.6 GHz). It should be understood that although a part of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, in various documents and articles, FR1 is typically (interchangeably) referred to as the “sub-6 GHz” band. Regarding FR2, a similar naming issue sometimes occurs, which is typically (interchangeably) referred to as the “millimeter wave” band in documents and articles, although it is different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz to 300 GHz) identified by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) as the “millimeter wave” band.

[0048] The frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are generally referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified the operating bands for these mid-band frequencies as Frequency Range Designation FR3 (7.125 GHz to 24.25 GHz). The bands falling within FR3 may inherit FR1 characteristics and / or FR2 characteristics, and thus can effectively extend the features of FR1 and / or FR2 to the mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operations beyond 52.6 GHz. For example, three higher operating bands have been identified as Frequency Range Designation FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz to 71 GHz), FR4 (52.6 GHz to 114.25 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz to 300 GHz). Each of these higher bands falls within the EHF band.

[0049] Taking the above aspects into account, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if the term “sub-6 GHz” etc. is used in this document, it can generally represent frequencies that can be less than 6 GHz, can be within FR1, or can include mid-band frequencies. In addition, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if the term “millimeter wave” etc. is used in this document, it can generally represent frequencies that can include mid-band frequencies, can be within FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1 and / or FR5, or can be within the EHF band.

[0050] In a multi-carrier system such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies is referred to as the "primary carrier" or "anchor carrier" or "primary serving cell" or "PCell", and the remaining carrier frequencies are referred to as "secondary carriers" or "secondary serving cells" or "SCells". In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is a carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by the UE 104 / 182 and the cell, where the UE 104 / 182 performs the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment procedure in this cell. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). The secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2), which can be configured and used to provide additional radio resources once an RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier. In some cases, the secondary carrier can be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier may only contain necessary signaling information and signals. For example, since the primary uplink carrier and the primary downlink carrier are typically UE-specific, those UE-specific signaling information and signals may not exist in the secondary carrier. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 in a cell can have different downlink primary carriers. The same holds for the primary uplink carrier. The network can change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance the load on different carriers. Since a "serving cell" (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to the carrier frequency / component carrier on which a certain base station communicates, terms such as "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier", "carrier frequency", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0051] For example, still referring to Figure 1 , one of the frequencies utilized by the macro cell base station 102 can be the anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and the other frequencies used by the macro cell base station 102 and / or the mmW base station 180 can be secondary carriers ("SCells"). The simultaneous transmission and / or reception of multiple carriers enables the UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rate. For example, compared to the data rate obtained with a single 20 MHz carrier, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically result in a doubling of the data rate (i.e., 40 MHz).

[0052] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a UE 164, which can communicate with the macro cell base station 102 via a communication link 120 and / or communicate with the mmW base station 180 via an mmW communication link 184. For example, the macro cell base station 102 can support a PCell and one or more SCells for the UE 164, and the mmW base station 180 can support one or more SCells for the UE 164.

[0053] In some cases, UE 164 and UE 182 are capable of performing sidelink communication. A UE with sidelink capabilities (SL-UE) can communicate with base station 102 via communication link 120 using the Uu interface (i.e., the air interface between the UE and the base station). The SL-UEs (e.g., UE 164, UE 182) can also communicate directly with each other via wireless sidelink 160 using the PC5 interface (i.e., the air interface between UEs with sidelink capabilities). The wireless sidelink (or simply referred to as "sidelink") is an adaptation of the core cellular network (e.g., LTE, NR) standard that allows direct communication between two or more UEs without communicating through the base station. Sidelink communication can be unicast or multicast and can be used for device-to-device (D2D) media sharing, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication (e.g., cellular V2X (cV2X) communication, enhanced V2X (eV2X) communication, etc.), emergency rescue applications, etc. One or more SL-UEs in a group of SL-UEs that utilize sidelink communication can be located within the geographical coverage area 110 of base station 102. Other SL-UEs in such a group can be outside the geographical coverage area 110 of base station 102 or cannot receive transmissions from base station 102 for other reasons. In some cases, each group of SL-UEs communicating via sidelink communication can utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system where each SL-UE transmits to every other SL-UE in the group. In some cases, base station 102 facilitates the scheduling of resources for sidelink communication. In other cases, sidelink communication is performed between the SL-UEs without involving base station 102.

[0054] In one aspect, the side link 160 may operate on a wireless communication medium of interest, which may be shared with other wireless communications between other vehicles and / or infrastructure access points and other RATs. The "medium" may include one or more time, frequency, and / or spatial communication resources associated with wireless communication between one or more transmitter / receiver pairs (e.g., covering one or more channels across one or more carriers). In one aspect, the medium of interest may correspond to at least a portion of an unlicensed band shared among various RATs. Although different licensed bands have been reserved for certain communication systems (e.g., by government entities such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States), these systems (especially those employing small cell access points) have recently extended their operations into unlicensed bands such as the Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (U-NII) bands used by wireless local area network (WLAN) technologies (most notably the IEEE 802.11x WLAN technologies commonly referred to as "WiFi"). Example systems of this type include different variants of CDMA systems, TDMA systems, FDMA systems, orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) systems, etc.

[0055] Note that although Figure 1 only two of these UEs are illustrated as SL-UEs (i.e., UE 164 and 182), any one of the illustrated UEs may be an SL-UE. Additionally, although only UE 182 is described as being capable of beamforming, any one of the illustrated UEs (including UE 164) is capable of beamforming. In cases where the SL-UEs are capable of beamforming, they may beamform towards each other (i.e., towards other SL-UEs), towards other UEs (e.g., UE 104), towards base stations (e.g., base station 102, 180, small cell 102', access point 150), etc. Thus, in some cases, UE 164 and UE 182 may utilize beamforming over the side link 160.

[0056] In Figure 1 the example of, the illustrated UEs (for simplicity, in Figure 1Any one of the UEs 104 shown as a single UE in the figure can receive signals 124 from one or more space vehicles (SVs) 112 in Earth orbit (e.g., satellites). In one aspect, the SV 112 can be part of a satellite positioning system that the UE 104 can use as an independent source of position information. A satellite positioning system typically includes a transmitter system (e.g., the SV 112), which is positioned such that a receiver (e.g., the UE 104) can determine its position on or above the Earth at least in part based on positioning signals received from the transmitter (e.g., the signal 124). Such transmitters typically send signals marked with a repeating pseudo-random noise (PN) code with a set number of chips. Although typically located in the SV 112, the transmitter can sometimes be located on a ground-based control station, a base station 102, and / or another UE 104. The UE 104 can include one or more dedicated receivers that are specifically designed to receive the signal 124 in order to derive geographical location information from the SV 112.

[0057] In a satellite positioning system, the use of the signal 124 can be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBASs), which can be associated with or otherwise enable the use of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, an SBAS can include augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential corrections, etc., such as the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), the Multi-functional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), GPS-Enabled Geo Augmented Navigation or GPS and Geo Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN), etc. Thus, as used herein, a satellite positioning system can include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellites associated with such one or more satellite positioning systems.

[0058] In one aspect, the SV 112 can additionally or alternatively be part of one or more non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In an NTN, the SV 112 is connected to an earth station (also referred to as a ground station, NTN gateway, or gateway), which in turn is connected to elements in the 5G network, such as an enhanced base station 102 (without a ground antenna) or a network node in the 5GC. This element in turn provides access to other elements in the 5G network and ultimately provides access to entities external to the 5G network, such as Internet web servers and other user equipment. In this way, instead of or in addition to communication signals from the ground base station 102, the UE 104 can receive communication signals (e.g., the signal 124) from the SV 112.

[0059] The wireless communication system 100 may also include one or more UEs (such as UE 190), which are indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as "sidelinks"). In Figure 1 In the example of, UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 with a UE in UE 104 connected to one of the base stations in base station 102 (e.g., UE 190 can indirectly obtain cellular connectivity through this D2D P2P link), and has a D2D P2P link 194 with WLAN STA 152 connected to WLAN AP150 (UE 190 can indirectly obtain WLAN-based Internet connectivity through this D2D P2P link). In one example, D2D P2P links 192 and 194 can be supported by any well-known D2D RAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), and so on.

[0060] Figure 2A Illustrates an example wireless network structure 200. For example, 5GC 210 (also referred to as Next Generation Core (NGC)) can be functionally regarded as a control plane (C-plane) function 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and a user plane (U-plane) function 212 (e.g., UE gateway function, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.), which cooperate to form a core network. The user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and the control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect gNB 222 to 5GC 210, and specifically connect to the user plane function 212 and the control plane function 214 respectively. In an additional configuration, ng-eNB 224 can also be connected to 5GC 210 via NG-C 215 to the control plane function 214 and NG-U 213 to the user plane function 212. In addition, ng-eNB224 can communicate directly with gNB 222 via a backhaul connection 223. In some configurations, the Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN) 220 can have one or more gNB 222, while other configurations include one or more of both ng-eNB 224 and gNB 222. Any one (or both) of gNB222 or ng-eNB 224 can communicate with one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein).

[0061] Another optional aspect may include a location server 230 that may communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The location server 230 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively may each correspond to a single server. The location server 230 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204 that may be connected to the location server 230 via the core network, 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not illustrated). Additionally, the location server 230 may be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively may be external to the core network (e.g., a third-party server such as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or a service server).

[0062] Figure 2B Another example wireless network structure 240 is illustrated. The 5GC 260 (which may correspond to Figure 2AThe 5GC 210) can be functionally regarded as the control plane function provided by the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 264 and the user plane function provided by the User Plane Function (UPF) 262, which cooperate to form the core network (i.e., 5GC 260). The functions of the AMF 264 include: registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of session management (SM) messages between one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any one of the UEs described herein) and the Session Management Function (SMF) 266, transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transmission of Short Message Service (SMS) messages between the UE 204 and the Short Message Service Function (SMSF) (not shown), and Security Anchor Functionality (SEAF). The AMF 264 also interacts with the Authentication Server Function (AUSF) (not shown) and the UE 204, and receives the intermediate key established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In the case of authentication based on a UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM), the AMF 264 retrieves the security material from the AUSF. The functions of the AMF 264 also include Security Context Management (SCM). The SCM receives the key from the SEAF, which uses this key to derive the access network specific key. The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes location service management for regulatory services, transmission of location service messages between the UE 204 and the Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (which acts as the location server 230), transmission of location service messages between the NG-RAN 220 and the LMF 270, allocation of Evolved Packet System (EPS) bearer identifiers for EPS interoperability, and UE 204 mobility event notification. In addition, the AMF 264 also supports functionality for non-3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0063] The functions of the UPF 262 include: acting as an anchor point for in-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), acting as an external protocol data unit (PDU) session point for the interconnection to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, quality of service (QoS) handling of the user plane (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflected QoS marking in the downlink), uplink traffic verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport-level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and transmitting and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support the transfer of location service messages between the UE 204 and a location server (such as the SLP 272) on the user plane.

[0064] The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of the user plane functions, traffic steering configuration for routing traffic to the correct destination at the UPF 262, partial control of policy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface through which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 is referred to as the N11 interface.

[0065] Another optional aspect may include the LMF 270, which may communicate with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The LMF 270 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively may each correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, which may be connected to the LMF 270 via the core network, the 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not illustrated). The SLP 272 may support functions similar to those of the LMF 270, but the LMF 270 may communicate with the AMF 264, the NG-RAN 220, and the UE 204 on the control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols designed to convey signaling messages rather than voice or data), and the SLP 272 may communicate with the UE 204 and an external client (such as a third-party server 274) on the user plane (e.g., using protocols designed to carry voice and / or data, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0066] Another optional aspect may include a third-party server 274 that may communicate with the LMF 270, the SLP 272, the 5GC 260 (e.g., via the AMF 264 and / or the UPF 262), the NG-RAN 220, and / or the UE 204 to obtain location information (e.g., a location estimate) of the UE 204. Thus, in some cases, the third-party server 274 may be referred to as a location service (LCS) client or an external client. The third-party server 274 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively may each correspond to a single server.

[0067] The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC 260, and specifically the UPF 262 and the AMF 264, to one or more gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220, respectively. The interface between the gNB 222 and / or the ng-eNB 224 and the AMF 264 is referred to as the "N2" interface, while the interface between the gNB 222 and / or the ng-eNB 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the "N3" interface. The gNBs 222 and / or the ng-eNBs 224 of the NG-RAN 220 may communicate directly with each other via a backhaul connection 223 referred to as the "Xn-C" interface. One or more of the gNB 222 and / or the ng-eNB 224 may communicate with one or more UEs 204 via a radio interface referred to as the "Uu" interface.

[0068] The functionality of gNB 222 can be divided between a gNB Central Unit (gNB-CU) 226, one or more gNB Distributed Units (gNB-DU) 228, and one or more gNB Radio Units (gNB-RU) 229. The gNB-CU 226 is a logical node that includes base station functions other than those specifically allocated to the gNB-DU 228, including passing user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, and so on. More specifically, the gNB-CU 226 generally hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) protocols of gNB 222. The gNB-DU 228 is a logical node that generally hosts the Radio Link Control (RLC) and Medium Access Control (MAC) layers of gNB 222. Its operation is controlled by the gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 can support one or more cells, and one cell is supported by only one gNB-DU 228. The interface 232 between the gNB-CU 226 and one or more gNB-DU 228s is referred to as the "F1" interface. The physical (PHY) layer functionality of gNB 222 is typically hosted by one or more independent gNB-RU 229s, which perform functions such as power amplification and signal transmission / reception. The interface between the gNB-DU 228 and the gNB-RU 229 is referred to as the "Fx" interface. Thus, the UE 204 communicates with the gNB-CU 226 via the RRC layer, SDAP layer, and PDCP layer, communicates with the gNB-DU 228 via the RLC layer and MAC layer, and communicates with the gNB-RU 229 via the PHY layer.

[0069] The deployment of a communication system (such as a 5G NR system) can be arranged in various ways with various components or constituent parts. In a 5G NR system or network, network nodes, network entities, mobility elements of the network, RAN nodes, core network nodes, network elements, or network equipment (such as base stations or one or more units (or one or more components) that perform base station functionality) can be implemented in an aggregated or disaggregated architecture. For example, a base station (such as a Node B (NB), evolved NB (eNB), NR base station, 5G NB, access point (AP), transmit receive point (TRP), or cell, etc.) can be implemented as an aggregated base station (also referred to as a stand-alone base station or a monolithic base station) or a disaggregated base station.

[0070] A centralized base station can be configured to utilize a radio protocol stack physically or logically integrated within a single RAN node. A split base station can be configured to utilize a protocol stack physically or logically distributed between two or more units, such as one or more central or centralized units (CUs), one or more distributed units (DUs), or one or more radio units (RUs). In some aspects, a CU can be implemented within a RAN node, and one or more DUs can be co-located with the CU, or alternatively, can be geographically or virtually distributed among one or more other RAN nodes. A DU can be implemented to communicate with one or more RUs. Each of the CU, DU, and RU can also be implemented as a virtual unit, i.e., a virtual central unit (VCU), a virtual distributed unit (VDU), or a virtual radio unit (VRU).

[0071] Base station type operations or network designs can consider the aggregation characteristics of base station functionality. For example, split base stations can be used in integrated access backhaul (IAB) networks, open radio access networks (O-RANs, such as network configurations advocated by the O-RAN Alliance), or virtualized radio access networks (vRANs, also known as cloud radio access networks (C-RANs)). Splitting can include distributing functions across two or more units at various physical locations, as well as virtualizing the functions of at least one unit, which can enable flexibility in network design. The various units of a split base station or a split RAN architecture can be configured for wired or wireless communication with at least one other unit.

[0072] Figure 2C An example split base station architecture 250 in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The split base station architecture 250 can include one or more central units (CUs) 280 (e.g., gNB-CU 226), which can communicate directly with a core network 267 (e.g., 5GC 210, 5GC 260) via a backhaul link, or indirectly with the core network 267 through one or more split base station units, such as a near real-time (near RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 259 via an E2 link or a non-real-time (non RT) RIC 257 associated with a service management and orchestration (SMO) framework 255 or both. The CU 280 can communicate with one or more distributed units (DUs) 285 (e.g., gNB-DU 228) via a respective midhaul link, such as an F1 interface. The DU 285 can communicate with one or more radio units (RUs) 287 (e.g., gNB-RU 229) via a respective fronthaul link. The RU 287 can communicate with a respective UE 204 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some embodiments, the UE 204 can be served simultaneously by multiple RUs 287.

[0073] Each of these units (i.e., CU 280, DU 285, RU 287, and the near RT RIC 259, non-RT RIC 257, and SMO framework 255) may include one or more interfaces or be coupled to one or more interfaces that are configured to receive or transmit signals, data, or information (collectively referred to as signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units or the associated processor or controller that provides instructions to the communication interfaces of these units may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via the transmission medium. For example, the units may include a wired interface that is configured to receive or transmit signals to one or more of the other units via a wired transmission medium. Additionally, the unit may include a wireless interface that may include a receiver, a transmitter, or a transceiver (such as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver) that is configured to receive or transmit signals, or both, to one or more of the other units via a wireless transmission medium.

[0074] In some aspects, the CU 280 may host one or more higher layer control functions. Such control functions may include radio resource control (RRC), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), etc. Each control function may be implemented using an interface that is configured to convey signals to other control functions hosted by the CU 280. The CU 280 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (i.e., Central Unit - User Plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (i.e., Central Unit - Control Plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the CU 280 may be logically split into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP units may communicate bi-directionally with the CU-CP units via an interface (such as an E1 interface). As needed, the CU 280 may be implemented to communicate with the DU 285 for network control and signaling.

[0075] The DU 285 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 287. In some aspects, the DU 285 may host one or more of the radio link control (RLC) layer, the media access control (MAC) layer, and one or more high physical (PHY) layers (such as modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, etc.) at least partially depending on a functional split (such as the functional split defined by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP)). In some aspects, the DU 285 may further host one or more low PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may be implemented using an interface configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 285 or with control functions hosted by the CU 280.

[0076] Lower layer functionality may be implemented by one or more RUs 287. In some deployments, the RUs 287 controlled by the DU 285 may correspond to logical nodes that host RF processing functions or low PHY layer functions (such as performing fast Fourier transform (FFT), inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming, physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc.) or both at least partially based on a functional split (such as a lower layer functional split). In such an architecture, the RUs 287 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communication with one or more UEs 204. In some embodiments, the real-time aspects and non-real-time aspects of the control plane and user plane communication with the RUs 287 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 285. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable the implementation of the DU 285 and the CU 280 in a cloud-based RAN architecture (such as a vRAN architecture).

[0077] The SMO framework 255 can be configured to support the RAN deployment and orchestration of non-virtualized network elements and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 255 can be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which can be managed via an operation and maintenance interface (such as the O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 255 can be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as the Open Cloud (O-Cloud) 269) to perform network element lifecycle management (such as instantiating virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as the O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements can include, but are not limited to, the CU 280, DU 285, RU 287, and near RT RIC 259. In some specific implementations, the SMO framework 255 can communicate with the hardware aspects of the 4G RAN, such as the Open eNB (O-eNB) 261, via the O1 interface. Additionally, in some specific implementations, the SMO framework 255 can communicate directly with one or more RUs 287 via the O1 interface. The SMO framework 255 can also include a non-RT RIC 257 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 255.

[0078] The non-RT RIC 257 can be configured to include logic functions that implement non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) workflows including model training and updates, or policy-based guidance of applications / features in the near RT RIC 259. The non-RT RIC 257 can be coupled to or communicate with the near RT RIC 259 (such as via the A1 interface). The near RT RIC 259 can be configured to include logic functions that enable near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources through an interface (such as via the E2 interface) via data collection and actions, which connects one or more CUs 280, one or more DUs 285, or both, and the O-eNB to the near RT RIC 259.

[0079] In some implementations, in order to generate an AI / ML model to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 259, the non-RT RIC 257 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server. Such information may be utilized by the near-RT RIC 259 and may be received from a non-network data source or from a network function at the SMO framework 255 or the non-RT RIC 257. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 257 or the near-RT RIC 259 may be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 257 may monitor long-term trends and patterns of performance and employ AI / ML models to perform corrective actions through the SMO framework 255 (such as via reconfiguration of O1) or via creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 policies).

[0080] Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C 302 (which may correspond to any UE described herein), base station 304 (which may correspond to any base station described herein), and network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any network function described herein, including location server 230 and LMF 270, or alternatively may be independent of Figure 2A and Figure 2B Several example components (represented by corresponding boxes) in the NG-RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260 infrastructure depicted in the 5GC 210 / 260 (such as a dedicated network) are shown to support operations as described herein. It should be understood that these components can be implemented in different types of devices with different specific implementations (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system on a chip (SoC), etc.). The illustrated components can also be incorporated into other devices in the communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include components similar to those described as providing similar functionality. Moreover, a given device may include one or more of these components. For example, a device may include multiple transceiver components that enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0081] UE 302 and base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350 respectively, and these wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers provide components (e.g., components for transmission, components for reception, components for measurement, components for tuning, components for blocking transmission, etc.) for communication via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown) such as NR networks, LTE networks, GSM networks, etc. WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can each be respectively connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356 for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNB, gNB), etc.) via at least one specified RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) on an interested wireless communication medium (e.g., a set of time / frequency resources in a specific spectrum). WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be configured in different ways to respectively transmit and encode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to the specified RAT, and conversely respectively receive and decode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 respectively include: one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for respectively transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for respectively receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358.

[0082] At least in some cases, UE 302 and base station 304 each also include one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 respectively. Short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be respectively connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, and provide for communication on an interested wireless communication medium via at least one specified RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Z- Components such as PC5, dedicated short-range communication (DSRC), wireless access for vehicle environments (WAVE), near-field communication (NFC), ultra-wideband (UWB), etc., communicate with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) (e.g., components for transmission, components for reception, components for measurement, components for tuning, components for blocking transmission, etc.). The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be configured in different ways to transmit and encode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to the specified RAT, and conversely, to receive and decode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 respectively include: one or more transmitters 324 and 364 for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368 respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362 for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368 respectively. As a specific example, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be WiFi transceivers, transceivers, and / or Z- transceivers, NFC transceivers, UWB transceivers, or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceivers.

[0083] At least in some cases, the UE 302 and the base station 304 also include satellite signal receivers 330 and 370. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can be respectively connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, and can provide components for respectively receiving and / or measuring satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378. In the case where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellite positioning system receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 can be Global Positioning System (GPS) signals, Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, Beidou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. In the case where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 can be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and / or user data) originating from a 5G network. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can include any suitable hardware and / or software for respectively receiving and processing the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can request appropriate information and operations from other systems, and at least in some cases, perform calculations using measurements obtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithms to respectively determine the positions of the UE 302 and the base station 304.

[0084] Base station 304 and network entity 306 each include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, which provide components (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, etc.) for communicating with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, other network entities 306). For example, base station 304 may employ one or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other base stations 304 or network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links. As another example, network entity 306 may employ one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or more base stations 304 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, or to communicate with other network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.

[0085] The transceiver may be configured to communicate via a wired or wireless link. The transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver) includes a transmitter circuit (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) and a receiver circuit (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362). In some specific implementations, the transceiver may be an integrated device (e.g., implementing the transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit in a single device), in some specific implementations may include separate transmitter circuits and separate receiver circuits, or may be implemented in other ways in other specific implementations. The transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit of a wired transceiver (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some specific implementations) may be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. The wireless transmitter circuit (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmission "beamforming" as described herein. Similarly, the wireless receiver circuit (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362) may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit may share the same plurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the corresponding device can only receive or only transmit at a given time, rather than both receive and transmit at the same time. The wireless transceiver (e.g., WWAN transceivers 310 and 350, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include a network listening module (NLM) for performing various measurements, etc.

[0086] As used herein, various wireless transceivers (e.g., transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360 in some embodiments, and network transceivers 380 and 390), and wired transceivers (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some embodiments) can generally be characterized as "transceiver", "at least one transceiver", or "one or more transceivers". Thus, a particular transceiver can be inferred to be a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver based on the type of communication being performed. For example, backhaul communication between network devices or servers typically involves signaling via a wired transceiver, while wireless communication between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) will typically involve signaling via a wireless transceiver.

[0087] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with the operations disclosed herein. UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 each include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394 for providing functionality related to, for example, wireless communication, and for providing other processing functionality. Thus, processors 332, 384, and 394 can provide components for processing, such as components for determining, for calculating, for receiving, for sending, for indicating, etc. In one aspect, processors 332, 384, and 394 can include, for example, one or more general-purpose processors, multi-core processors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuits, or various combinations thereof.

[0088] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 each include a memory circuit that implements memories 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Thus, memories 340, 386, and 396 can provide components for storage, retrieval, maintenance, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 can each include positioning components 342, 388, and 398. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be hardware circuits that are part of or coupled to processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, which, when executed, cause UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. In other aspects, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be external to processors 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be memory modules stored in memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively, which, when executed by processors 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. Figure 3A Illustrates possible locations of positioning component 342, which can be part of, for example, one or more WWAN transceivers 310, memory 340, one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof, or can be an independent component. Figure 3B Illustrates possible locations of positioning component 388, which can be part of, for example, one or more WWAN transceivers 350, memory 386, one or more processors 384, or any combination thereof, or can be an independent component. Figure 3C Illustrates possible locations of positioning component 398, which can be part of, for example, one or more network transceivers 390, memory 396, one or more processors 394, or any combination thereof, or can be an independent component.

[0089] UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to one or more processors 332 to provide components for sensing or detecting movement and / or orientation information unrelated to movement data derived from signals received by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and / or satellite signal receivers 330. By way of example, sensors 344 may include accelerometers (e.g., microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices), gyroscopes, geomagnetic sensors (e.g., compasses), altimeters (e.g., barometric altimeters), and / or any other type of movement detection sensor. Additionally, sensors 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide movement information. For example, sensors 344 may use a combination of multi-axis accelerometers and orientation sensors to provide the ability to calculate positioning in two-dimensional (2D) and / or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate systems.

[0090] Additionally, UE 302 includes a user interface 346 that provides components for providing indications to the user (e.g., audible and / or visual indications) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., when the user actuates a sensing device such as a keypad, touch screen, microphone, etc.). Although not shown, base station 304 and network entity 306 may also include user interfaces.

[0091] Referring in more detail to one or more processors 384, in the downlink, IP packets from network entity 306 may be provided to processor 384. One or more processors 384 may implement functionality for the RRC layer, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, radio link control (RLC) layer, and medium access control (MAC) layer. One or more processors 384 may provide: RRC layer functionality associated with the broadcast of system information (e.g., master information block (MIB), system information block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction via automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with the mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0092] The transmitter 354 and the receiver 352 can implement layer 1 (L1) functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, which includes the physical (PHY) layer, can include: error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 handles the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The encoded and modulated symbols can then be split into parallel streams. Each stream can then be mapped to orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarriers, multiplexed with reference signals (e.g., pilots) in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using the inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to generate a physical channel carrying a stream of time-domain OFDM symbols. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially pre-encoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from the channel estimator can be used to determine the encoding and modulation schemes and for spatial processing. The channel estimates can be derived from reference signals transmitted by the UE 302 and / or channel state feedback. Each spatial stream can then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 modulates an RF carrier with the respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0093] At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives signals via its respective antennas 316. The receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The receiver 312 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 302, they can be combined by the receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The receiver 312 then uses the fast Fourier transform (FFT) to convert the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain. The frequency-domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols and reference signals on each subcarrier are recovered and demodulated by determining the signal constellation points most likely transmitted by the base station 304. These soft decisions can be based on the channel estimates calculated by the channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by the base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to one or more processors 332, which implement layer 3 (L3) and layer 2 (L2) functionality.

[0094] In the downlink, one or more processors 332 provide demultiplexing between transport channels and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. One or more processors 332 are also responsible for error detection.

[0095] Similar to the functionality described in connection with the downlink transmission performed by the base station 304, one or more processors 332 provide: RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and re-ordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with the mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0096] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from reference signals or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 can be used by the transmitter 314 to select appropriate decoding and modulation schemes and facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the transmitter 314 can be provided to different antennas 316. The transmitter 314 can modulate the RF carrier with the corresponding spatial streams for transmission.

[0097] The uplink transmission is processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in connection with the receiver functionality at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives signals via its corresponding antennas 356. The receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 384.

[0098] In the uplink, one or more processors 384 provide demultiplexing between transport channels and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 302. The IP packets from one or more processors 384 can be provided to the core network. One or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.

[0099] For convenience, the UE 302, the base station 304, and / or the network entity 306 are in Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C, is shown as including various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it should be understood that the illustrated components may have different functionality in different designs. Specifically, Figures 3A to 3C Various components in are optional in alternative configurations, and various aspects include configurations that may vary due to design choice, cost, use of the device, or other considerations. For example, in Figure 3A In the case of , a specific implementation of UE 302 may omit WWAN transceiver 310 (e.g., a wearable device or tablet or PC or laptop may have WiFi and / or Bluetooth capabilities but no cellular capabilities), or may omit short-range wireless transceiver 320 (e.g., only cellular, etc.), or may omit satellite signal receiver 330, or may omit sensor 344, etc. In another example, in Figure 3B In the case of a wireless network, a specific implementation of the base station 304 may omit the WWAN transceiver 350 (e.g., a WiFi "hotspot" access point without cellular capabilities), or may omit the short-range wireless transceiver 360 (e.g., cellular only, etc.), or may omit the satellite signal receiver 370, etc. For the sake of brevity, illustrations of various alternative configurations are not provided herein, but will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0100] Various components of the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to one another via data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392, respectively. In an aspect, the data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 may form or be part of communication interfaces for the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306, respectively. For example, where different logical entities are embodied in the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functionality incorporated into the same base station 304), the data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 may provide for communication between the different logical entities.

[0101] Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3C The components of can be implemented in various ways. In some specific implementations, Figure 3A , Figure 3B and Figure 3CThe components may be implemented in one or more circuits, such as, for example, one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors). Here, each circuit may use and / or incorporate at least one memory component for storing information or executable code used by the circuit to provide the functionality. For example, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 310 through 346 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of UE 302 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 350 through 388 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of base station 304 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Moreover, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390 through 398 may be implemented by the processor and memory components of network entity 306 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, actions, and / or functions are described herein as being performed "by the UE", "by the base station", "by the network entity", etc. However, as will be understood, such operations, actions, and / or functions may actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc., such as processors 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, memories 340, 386, and 396, positioning components 342, 388, and 398, etc.

[0102] In some designs, network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, network entity 306 may operate differently from a network operator or a cellular network infrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260). For example, network entity 306 may be a component of a private network that may be configured to communicate with UE 302 via base station 304 or independently of base station 304 (e.g., via a non-cellular communication link such as WiFi).

[0103] Figure 4 Examples of various positioning methods supported in New Radio (NR) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. NR supports a variety of cellular network-based positioning techniques, including downlink-based positioning methods, uplink-based positioning methods, and downlink- and uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include: Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, Downlink Time Difference of Arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and Downlink Angle of Departure (DL-AoD) in NR. Figure 4Examples of various positioning methods in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. In the OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure illustrated in scenario 410, the UE measures the difference in the time of arrival (ToA) of reference signals (e.g., positioning reference signals (PRS)) received from paired base stations (referred to as reference signal time difference (RSTD) or time difference of arrival (TDOA) measurements), and reports these differences to a positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives the identifiers (IDs) of a reference base station (e.g., serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in assistance data. Then, the UE measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each non-reference base station. Based on the known locations of the involved base stations and the RSTD measurements, a positioning entity (e.g., the UE for UE-based positioning or a location server for UE-assisted positioning) can estimate the location of the UE.

[0104] For DL-AoD positioning illustrated in scenario 420, the positioning entity uses a measurement report from the UE on the received signal strength measurements of multiple downlink transmission beams to determine the angle between the UE and the transmitting base station. Then, the positioning entity can estimate the location of the UE based on the determined angle and the known location of the transmitting base station.

[0105] Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA is similar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., sounding reference signals (SRS)) transmitted by the UE to multiple base stations. Specifically, the UE transmits one or more uplink reference signals, which are measured by a reference base station and multiple non-reference base stations. Then, each base station reports the reception time of the reference signal (referred to as relative time of arrival (RTOA)) to a positioning entity (e.g., a location server) that knows the locations and relative timings of the involved base stations. Based on the received-to-received (Rx-Rx) time difference between the reported RTOA of the reference base station and the reported RTOA of each non-reference base station, the known locations of the base stations, and their known timing offsets, the positioning entity can use TDOA to estimate the location of the UE.

[0106] For UL-AoA positioning, one or more base stations measure the received signal strength of one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS) received from the UE on one or more uplink reception beams. The positioning entity uses the signal strength measurements and the angles of the reception beams to determine the angle between the UE and the base station. Based on the determined angle and the known location of the base station, the positioning entity can then estimate the location of the UE.

[0107] Downlink- and uplink-based positioning methods include: Enhanced Cell ID (E-CID) positioning and Multi-Round Trip Time (RTT) positioning (also referred to as "Multi-Cell RTT" and "Multi-RTT"). In the RTT procedure, a first entity (e.g., a base station or a UE) sends a first RTT-related signal (e.g., a PRS or an SRS) to a second entity (e.g., a UE or a base station), and the second entity sends a second RTT-related signal (e.g., an SRS or a PRS) back to the first entity. Each entity measures the time difference between the arrival time (ToA) of the received RTT-related signal and the transmission time of the transmitted RTT-related signal. This time difference is referred to as the Received-to-Transmitted (Rx-Tx) time difference. The Rx-Tx time difference measurement can be made or adjusted to include only the time difference between the received signal and the nearest time slot boundary of the transmitted signal. Then, the two entities can transmit their Rx-Tx time difference measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 270), which calculates the round-trip propagation time (i.e., the RTT) between the two entities based on these two Rx-Tx time difference measurements (e.g., calculated as the sum of the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements). Alternatively, one entity can transmit its Rx-Tx time difference measurement to the other entity, and then the other entity calculates the RTT. The distance between the two entities can be determined based on the RTT and a known signal speed (e.g., the speed of light). For the multi-RTT positioning illustrated in scenario 430, a first entity (e.g., a UE or a base station) performs the RTT positioning procedure with multiple second entities (e.g., multiple base stations or UEs) so that the position of the first entity can be determined (e.g., using multilateration) based on the distances to the second entities and the known positions of the second entities. The RTT and multi-RTT methods can be combined with other positioning techniques (such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD) to improve position accuracy, as illustrated in scenario 440.

[0108] The E-CID positioning method is based on Radio Resource Management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, the timing advance (TA), and the identifiers, the estimated timing, and the signal strength of the detected neighboring base stations. Then, the position of the UE is estimated based on this information and the known positions of the base stations.

[0109] To assist in positioning operations, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the UE. For example, the assistance data may include: an identifier of the base station (or a cell / TRP of the base station) from which the reference signal is measured, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., including the number of consecutive time slots including the PRS, the periodicity of the consecutive time slots including the PRS, the silence sequence, the frequency hopping sequence, the reference signal identifier, the reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and / or other parameters applicable to a specific positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may directly originate from the base station itself (e.g., in periodically broadcast overhead messages, etc.). In some cases, the UE itself may be able to detect neighboring network nodes without using assistance data.

[0110] In the case of the OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedures, the assistance data may further include an expected RSTD value and an associated uncertainty or search window around the expected RSTD. In some cases, the value range of the expected RSTD may be + / - 500 microseconds (μs). In some cases, when any of the resources used for positioning measurements are in FR1, the value range of the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be + / - 32 μs. In other cases, when all of the resources used for positioning measurements are in FR2, the value range of the uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be + / - 8 μs.

[0111] A position estimate may be referred to by other names, such as a positioning estimate, location, position, positioning lock, lock, etc. A position estimate may be geodetic and include coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude), or it may be civic and include a street address, postal address, or some other verbal description of the location. A position estimate may further be defined relative to some other known location or in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). A positioning estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including the area or volume within which the position is expected to be included with a certain specified or default confidence).

[0112] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure according to aspects of the present disclosure. Various frame structures may be used to support downlink and uplink transmissions between network nodes (e.g., base stations and UEs). Figure 5 is a diagram 500 illustrating an example frame structure according to aspects of the present disclosure. The frame structure may be a downlink or uplink frame structure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0113] LTE (and in some cases NR) utilizes Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) on the downlink and Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. However, different from LTE, NR also has the option of using OFDM on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also often referred to as frequency tones, frequency bins, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. Generally speaking, modulation symbols are transmitted using OFDM in the frequency domain and SC-FDM in the time domain. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number (K) of subcarriers can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the subcarrier spacing can be 15 kilohertz (kHz), and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180 kHz). Thus, for system bandwidths of 1.25 megahertz (MHz), 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, the nominal Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) size can be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048, respectively. The system bandwidth can also be divided into multiple subbands. For example, a subband can cover 1.8 MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks), and for system bandwidths of 1.25 MHz, 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, there can be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands, respectively.

[0114] LTE supports a single parameter set (subcarrier spacing (SCS), symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR can support multiple parameter sets (μ), for example, 15 kHz (μ = 0), 30 kHz (μ = 1), 60 kHz (μ = 2), 120 kHz (μ = 3), and 240 kHz (μ = 4) or larger subcarrier spacings may be available. In each subcarrier spacing, there are 14 symbols per time slot. For 15 kHz SCS (μ = 0), there is one time slot per subframe, 10 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 1 millisecond (ms), the symbol duration is 66.7 microseconds (μs), and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 50. For 30 kHz SCS (μ = 1), there are two time slots per subframe, 20 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 0.5 ms, the symbol duration is 33.3 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 100. For 60 kHz SCS (μ = 2), there are four time slots per subframe, 40 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 0.25 ms, the symbol duration is 16.7 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 200. For 120 kHz SCS (μ = 3), there are eight time slots per subframe, 80 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 0.125 ms, the symbol duration is 8.33 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 400. For 240 kHz SCS (μ = 4), there are 16 time slots per subframe, 160 time slots per frame, the time slot duration is 0.0625 ms, the symbol duration is 4.17 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 800.

[0115] In Figure 5 the example of, the parameter set of 15 kHz is used. Thus, in the time domain, a 10 ms frame is divided into 10 equal-sized subframes, each subframe being 1 ms, and each subframe includes one time slot. In Figure 5 it, time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), where time increases from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), where frequency increases (or decreases) from bottom to top.

[0116] A resource grid can be used to represent a time slot, and each time slot includes one or more time-concurrent resource blocks (RBs) (also known as physical RBs (PRBs)) in the frequency domain. The resource grid is further divided into multiple resource elements (REs). An RE can correspond to one symbol length in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain. In Figure 5In the parameter set, for the normal cyclic prefix, an RB can include 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and seven consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 REs. For the extended cyclic prefix, an RB can include 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and six consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 REs. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0117] Some REs can carry reference (pilot) signals (RS). These reference signals can include positioning reference signals (PRS), tracking reference signals (TRS), phase tracking reference signals (PTRS), cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS), demodulation reference signals (DMRS), primary synchronization signals (PSS), secondary synchronization signals (SSS), synchronization signal blocks (SSB), sounding reference signals (SRS), etc., depending on whether the illustrated frame structure is used for uplink communication or downlink communication. Figure 5 Examples of the locations of REs carrying reference signals are illustrated (marked as "R").

[0118] Figure 6 is FIG. 600 illustrating various downlink channels within an example downlink time slot according to aspects of the present disclosure. In Figure 6 it, time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), where time increases from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), where frequency increases (or decreases) from bottom to top. In Figure 6 the example, a parameter set of 15 kHz is used. Thus, in the time domain, the illustrated time slot length is one millisecond (ms), divided into 14 symbols.

[0119] In NR, the channel bandwidth or system bandwidth is divided into multiple bandwidth parts (BWP). A BWP is a contiguous set of RBs selected from a contiguous subset of the common RBs for a given parameter set of a given component carrier. For example, the bandwidth of a component carrier can be 100 MHz, while the bandwidth of a BWP can be 20 MHz. Generally, a maximum of four BWPs can be specified in the downlink and uplink. That is, a UE can be configured to have at most four BWPs on the downlink and at most four BWPs on the uplink. Only one BWP (uplink or downlink) can be active at a given time, which means that a UE can only receive or transmit on one BWP at a time. On the downlink, the bandwidth of each BWP should be equal to or greater than the bandwidth of the SSB, but it can include the SSB or can not include the SSB.

[0120] Refer to Figure 6, the Primary Synchronization Signal (PSS) is used by the UE to determine subframe / symbol timing and the physical layer identity. The Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS) is used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identity group number, the UE can determine the PCI. Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the aforementioned DL-RS. The Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) carrying the Master Information Block (MIB) can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form an SSB (also known as SS / PBCH). The MIB provides the number of RBs in the downlink system bandwidth and the System Frame Number (SFN). The Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information not sent via the PBCH (such as System Information Blocks (SIBs)), and paging messages.

[0121] The Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) carries downlink control information (DCI) within one or more Control Channel Elements (CCEs), each CCE including one or more Resource Element Group (REG) bundles (which can span multiple symbols in the time domain), each REG bundle including one or more REGs, each REG corresponding to 12 resource elements (one resource block) in the frequency domain and one OFDM symbol in the time domain. The physical resource set used to carry the PDCCH / DCI is referred to as a Control Resource Set (CORESET) in NR. In NR, the PDCCH is confined to a single CORESET and is transmitted together with its own DMRS. This enables UE-specific beamforming for the PDCCH.

[0122] In Figure 6 the example, there is one CORESET per BWP, and this CORESET spans three symbols in the time domain (although it can be just one symbol or two symbols). Different from the LTE control channel that occupies the entire system bandwidth, in NR, the PDCCH channel is localized in a specific region in the frequency domain (i.e., the CORESET). Thus, Figure 6 the frequency components of the PDCCH shown in

[0123] The DCI within the PDCCH carries information regarding uplink resource allocation (persistent and non-persistent) and a description of the downlink data to be sent to the UE (referred to as uplink grant and downlink grant, respectively). More specifically, the DCI indicates the resources scheduled for the downlink data channel (e.g., PDSCH) and the uplink data channel (e.g., Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH)). Multiple (e.g., up to eight) DCIs can be configured in the PDCCH, and these DCIs can have one of multiple formats. For example, there are different DCI formats for uplink scheduling, downlink scheduling, uplink transmit power control (TPC), etc. The PDCCH can be transmitted by 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs to accommodate different DCI payload sizes or decoding rates.

[0124] A certain class of UEs with limited capabilities or limited capacity (referred to as "redcap" UEs) may limit the operation of the UE to only one active BWP at a time due to limitations in processing power, limited battery capacity, or limited RF capabilities. In this case, the UE will retune its RF circuitry to a specific BWP frequency range and can limit its transmissions to exactly that BWP frequency range. However, there are advantages to receiving PRS signals and transmitting SRS signals across more than one BWP frequency range, including improved positioning resolution. Thus, there is a benefit to "frequency hopping", i.e., in the case of frequency hopping, the UE transmits and receives on one BWP for a certain amount of time, retunes its RF circuitry to transmit and receive on another BWP frequency range for a certain amount of time, and so on.

[0125] Figure 7 is a time and frequency diagram 700 showing a simplified example of PRS / SRS frequency hopping according to aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 7 Shows a PRS instance with SRS on a first frequency hop 702, and then shows the switching of both the Tx frequency and the Rx frequency to a second frequency hop 704. The first hop 702 and the second hop 704 are separated by a switching gap 706 during which the UE retunes its RF circuitry to change from a first center frequency F C1 to a second center frequency F C2 .

[0126] In the NR standard community, there are already some protocols that require further research on whether to implement PRS / SRS frequency hopping, but there are no specific implementation details. For example, there are protocols for studying potential enhancements to UL SRS for positioning to implement Tx frequency hopping, including but not limited to partial overlap between hops, hopping bandwidth, time gap between frequency hops. There are protocols for studying potential enhancements to DL PRS to implement Tx or Rx frequency hopping, including but not limited to the impact on processing capabilities, hopping bandwidth in the positioning frequency layer, time gap between frequency hops, measurement period, partial overlap between hops. For evaluating TX / RX frequency hopping for positioning redcap UEs, there are the following protocols: the value of the gap between two consecutive hops includes at least from 100 μs to 5 ms, and enterprises should indicate whether they use other smaller values in their evaluations and rationalize the feasibility of the smaller values. For evaluating TX / RX frequency hopping for positioning redcap UEs, there are protocols where the value of the UE speed should include 3 km / h, 30 km / h, 60 km / h.

[0127] Although frequency hopping can improve positioning operations, it does not necessarily improve data transmission and may actually be harmful to redcap UEs because frequency hopping consumes additional power and creates additional latency due to the time it takes for the UE to retune its RF circuit into the new BWP frequency range. However, in cases where location accuracy is desired, even for redcap UEs, the benefits of PRS / SRS frequency hopping may outweigh the drawbacks.

[0128] One method for PRS / SRS frequency hopping is to use the existing DCI and timer-based BWP switching mechanism. In this method, the UE can be configured with up to 4 BWPs, and when the UE switches the active BWP, assuming correct PPW configuration, it is expected to measure different parts of the same PRS instance. However, for the DCI and timer-based BWP switching mechanism, the BWP switching delay requirements specified in 3GPP TS 38.133 are given in Table 2.2.3-1 below, which is 1 millisecond or more.

[0129]

[0130] For RRC-based BWP switching, the BWP switching latency is even greater, i.e., several milliseconds. In addition, RRC-based BWP switching requires the UE to support BWP switching with all the RRC reconfiguration overheads required by this feature, while for PRS frequency hopping, all that is really required is RF retuning. In short, considering the use cases of PRS frequency hopping, the BWP switching latency is large, and reusing BWP switching to implement DL-PRS frequency hopping will achieve DL-PRS sampling of no more than four subbands because the UE can be configured with a maximum of four DL BWPs.

[0131] PRS Processing Window

[0132] The UE not only measures the PRS signal but also requires time and processing resources to process those measurements, such as to calculate the estimated position of the UE or to provide the measurement results to a position server that calculates the estimated position of the UE. For this purpose, a measurement gap (MG) can be defined. The measurement gap is intended to give the UE the opportunity to process the PRS by ensuring that no data transmission will occur during that gap. Thus, the MG is a constraint on the base station. However, in some scenarios, the UE may operate without the benefit of a measurement gap (i.e., in a situation where the MG is not defined or used by the transmitting entity, which may not even be the base station). This is referred to in this document as "MG-free" operation.

[0133] In the MG-free operation scenario, the UE also needs time and processing resources to process other data received within a telecommunication frame, such as physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) data, etc. A certain class of UEs with limited capabilities or limited capacity (referred to as "redcap" UEs) may not have the processing ability to complete the processing of PRS measurements before they start receiving PDSCH data and have to process that PDSCH data. Therefore, the processing of positioning data may be delayed, i.e., the positioning operation may have a high time delay.

[0134] However, there are some cases when providing a positioning estimate can be of a higher priority than processing the PDSCH or other data. In such a case, the redcap UE can ignore or discard PDSCH processing in favor of processing PRS data to provide positioning information. Therefore, a PRS processing window (PPW) has been defined. The PPW is a time window during which a priority decision is made, e.g., to allow measuring and processing high-priority PRS at the expense of other DL signals, which can be processed later or ignored altogether. For example, if the positioning task has a high enough priority relative to the data processing task, the PPW provides the UE with time to process the positioning signal by allowing the UE to ignore data that may be sent by the base station, while the MG provides the UE with time to process the positioning signal by suppressing the base station from sending data during the MG time.

[0135] Figure 8A FIG. 800 is a time and frequency illustration of a PPW exemplifying aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 8A FIG. 800 illustrates a portion of a component carrier 802, which may have a bandwidth of up to 400 MHz in NR. In Figure 8A the example shown, the UE uses only a portion of the total bandwidth of the component carrier 802, i.e., the active BWP 804, which may have a bandwidth of up to 20 MHz. In Figure 8A the example shown, within the active BWP 804, a PPW 806 is defined, within which are PRS occasions 808 and PDSCH occasions 810. The PPW 806 defines a time period during which the UE is allowed to prioritize the measurement and processing of the PRS signal within the PRS occasion 808 over the measurement and processing of the PDSCH signal and / or other non-PRSDL signals and channels within the PDSCH occasion 810.

[0136] In some aspects, MG-free measurements of the PRS signal can be made within a PPW within an active BWP having the same parameter set. For example, if the PRS is considered to have a higher priority than other downlink signals or channels under certain conditions, such as if the Rx timing difference between the PRS from a non-serving cell and the PRS from the serving cell is within a timing threshold, or if the location server transmits a request with specific PPW parameters to the serving gNB, then the PRS can be measured. In some aspects, multiple PPWs can be preconfigured, and a single PPW can be activated, for example, via a DL-MAC-CE.

[0137] Figure 8B FIG. 800 is a time and frequency illustration of PRS frequency hopping within a PPW exemplifying aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 8B FIG. 800 more particularly illustrates an extended view of a time and frequency illustration showing a portion of the component carrier 802, the active BWP 804, the PPW 806, and the PRS occasion 808. Figure 8B FIG. 800 illustrates PRS frequency hopping within a PPW exemplifying aspects of the present disclosure. In Figure 8B the example illustrated, the PRS signal is measured in four "hops" 812A, 812B, 812C, and 812D, which may be referred to individually as a hop 812 or collectively as hops 812 herein. Each hop 812 occupies a different bandwidth, illustrated in Figure 8B as BW1, BW2, BW3, and BW4. Between each hop 812, there is a Figure 8Bare shown as retuning times 814A, 814B, 814C, and 814D, which may be referred to individually as a retuning time 814 or collectively as retuning times 814 herein. During each retuning time 814, the UE retunes the RF center frequency to be in the middle of the upcoming bandwidth (e.g., BW2, BW3, etc.).

[0138] In Figure 8B the example illustrated in, the first frequency hop 812A occupies BW1 within the bandwidth of the active BWP 804, so no retuning is required before PRS measurement within this frequency hop. After measuring the PRS signal within the frequency hop 812A, the first retuning time 814A tunes the RF circuit to BW2 for the hop 812B. After measuring the PRS signal within the frequency hop 812B, the second retuning time 814B tunes the RF circuit to BW3 for the hop 812C. After measuring the PRS signal within the frequency hop 812C, the third retuning time 814C tunes the RF circuit to BW3 for the hop 812C. After measuring the PRS signal within the frequency hop 812C, the fourth retuning time 814D tunes the RF circuit back to the active BWP 804.

[0139] In Figure 8B the example shown in, BW2 is lower than the frequency range of the active BWP 804, while BW3 and BW4 are higher than the frequency range of the active BWP 804, but this example is illustrative and not restrictive. For example, each of BW2, BW3, and BW4 may occupy a frequency higher or lower than the frequency occupied by the active BWP 804. Additionally, although Figure 8B shows an example where BW1, BW2, BW3, and BW4 do not overlap with each other, in some aspects, any one of BW1 to BW4 may overlap with each other. Moreover, although Figure 8B shows four different hops occupying four different frequency ranges BW1 to BW4, alternative embodiments may have any number of hops greater than two and corresponding frequency ranges.

[0140] Figures 9A to 9D is a view illustrating a time and frequency diagram 900 of PRS frequency hopping within a PPW according to aspects of the present disclosure. Figures 9A to 9D illustrates the possible impact that the retuning gap may have on other DL signals or channels in the same component carrier or different component carriers. Figures 9A to 9D Each of them includes at least one component carrier 902, an active bandwidth part BWP1 904, additional bandwidth parts BWP2 906 and BWP 908, and a PPW 910. Figures 9A to 9DEach of them includes a set of frequency hops 912 and retuning times 914.

[0141] In Figure 9A the example shown, all of the frequency hops in frequency hops 912 are within BWP1 904, and the retuning times 914 do not affect the processing of signals in BWP2 906 or BWP3 908. This may be because the UE has an RF circuit that can retune one BWP without affecting the operation of other BWPs.

[0142] In Figure 9B the example shown, all of the frequency hops in frequency hops 912 are within BWP1 904, but the retuning times 914 do in fact affect the processing of signals in BWP2 906 or BWP3 908 during those retuning times 914, for example by not being able to receive or process signals in the other BWPs when the RF circuit retunes in and out of the active BWP 904. This may be because the RF circuit of the UE is shared among all BWPs within a component carrier, and retuning the RF circuit for one BWP affects the operation within other BWPs.

[0143] In Figure 9C the example shown, the frequency hops 912 are within multiple BWPs within the same CC 902, but do not affect the operation of other component carriers such as CC2 916 and CC3 918. This may be because the UE has an RF circuit that can retune one or more BWPs within a component carrier without affecting the operation within other component carriers.

[0144] In Figure 9C the example shown, the frequency hops 912 are within multiple BWPs within the same CC 902, but do in fact affect the operation of other component carriers such as CC2 916 and CC3 918. This may be because the RF circuit of the UE is shared among all component carriers in a component carrier, and retuning the RF circuit within one CC affects the operation within other CCs.

[0145] Figure 10 is an example time and frequency diagram 1000 illustrating PRS frequency hops within a PPW in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 10Illustrates a component carrier CC 1002 with an active BWP 1004 and a PPW 1006. The UE measures the PRS (block 1008), then receives a PDSCH or other non-PRSDL signal or channel (block 1010). The UE retunes to a new frequency range (block 1012), measures the PRS in that frequency range (block 1014), then retunes back to the active BWP frequency (block 1016) so that the UE can receive another non-PRSDL signal or channel (block 1018). The UE then returns to another frequency range (block 1020), measures the PRS in that frequency range (block 1022), then retunes back to the active BWP frequency (block 1024) so that the UE can receive yet another non-PRSDL signal or channel (block 1026). In this way, the UE can support frequency-hopping PRS signals and still be able to receive and process non-PRSDL signals or channels within the active BWP 1004. This behavior can be supported by the UE if the UE has the capacity to process the PRS signal before receiving the next data, or if the PRS signal has a low enough priority such that the processing of the PRS data can be deferred when the UE receives DL data. In some aspects, the UE can select the exact time for retuning between hops; in some aspects, the exact time for retuning can be specified by the gNB or a network entity.

[0146] In some aspects, different types of PPWs are defined, which at least partially reflect some of the different capabilities described above. All PPW types within a PPW type allow high-priority PRS to take precedence over other DL signals and channels, but the PPW types differ in the extent to which the prioritization of PRS in one BWP or CC affects the operation of another BWP or CC. In some aspects, the PPW type can be indicated by the gNB via RRC configuration. In some aspects, a single priority indicator can be provided for a PPW, which applies to all PRS within the PPW. Table 1 lists some PPW types according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0147] Table 1

[0148]

[0149] In some aspects, the UE may indicate support for two priority states: a first state in which the PRS has a higher priority than non-PRSDL channels; and a second state in which the PRS has a lower priority than non-PRSDL channels. In some aspects, the UE may indicate support for three priority states: a first state in which the PRS has a higher priority than non-PRSDL channels; a second state in which the PRS has a lower priority than the PDCCH and URLLC PDSCH (e.g., where the URLLC channel corresponds to a dynamically scheduled PDSCH for which the PUCCH resources for carrying ACK / NAK are marked as high priority) but has a higher priority than other PDSCH and CSI-RS; and a third state in which the PRS has a lower priority than non-PRSDL channels. In some aspects, the UE may indicate support for only one priority state, where the PRS has a higher priority than non-PRSDL channels.

[0150] In some aspects, the UE may indicate support for more than one type of PPW and the corresponding PRS processing capabilities on the frequency band. In some aspects, it is the responsibility of the gNB to decide which processing type to use and provide the appropriate PPW configuration to the UE. In some aspects, the PPW is configured according to the DL BWP.

[0151] Examples of PPW configuration details may include but are not limited to the following: start time slot; periodicity; duration / length; SCS information; priority; PPW type. In some aspects, the maximum number of pre-configured PPWs per DL BWP is four. In some aspects, the maximum number of PPWs that can be activated / deactivated by the DL MAC CE is four. In some aspects, within each single instance of the PPW, a single PFL can be measured. In some aspects, the maximum number of activated PPWs per DL BWP is one, and the maximum number of activated PPWs across all active DL BWPs is four. In some aspects, the maximum number of activated PPWs that overlap in time across all active DL BWPs is one.

[0152] Thus, for DL PRS frequency hopping without the benefit of a measurement gap, a UE operating within a particular active BWP for which a PPW is defined can perform RF retuning within the CC of the active BWP without changing the overhead of the active BWP. In some aspects, the first PRS measurement within the PPW is made without first performing retuning, but retuning is performed between each PRS measurement within the PPW, and a retuning back to the active BWP frequency range is performed after the last PRS measurement within the PPW. In some aspects, the retuning between PRS measurements simply retunes to the frequency range required for the next PRS measurement. This method can be used when data signals or channels between PRS measurements can be ignored. In some aspects, the retuning between PRS measurements includes: a first retuning back to the active BWP frequency range so that non-PRSDL signals and channels can be received, followed by a second retuning to the frequency range required for the next PRS measurement, with a final retuning back to the active BWP frequency range after the last PRS measurement within the PPW. This method can be used when data signals or channels between PRS measurements cannot or should not be ignored but must or should be received and processed.

[0153] Figure 11 is a flow diagram of an example process 1100 associated with PPW-based DL PRS frequency hopping in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. In some implementations, Figure 11 one or more of the process blocks of Figure 11 may be performed by a user equipment (UE) (e.g., UE 104). In some implementations, Figure 11 one or more of the process blocks of

[0154] As Figure 11As shown, process 1100 may include, at block 1110, operating within the active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW), and performing a first PRS measurement within a first frequency band located within the active BWP. The components for performing the operations of block 1110 may include processor 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver 310 of UE 302. For example, UE 302 may operate within the active BWP by tuning the RF circuitry of WWAN transceiver 310 to have a center frequency centered within the frequency range occupied by the active BWP, and may use receiver 312 to perform the first PRS measurement.

[0155] As Figure 11 As further shown, process 1100 may include, at block 1120, performing at least one PRS measurement (block 1120) within a frequency band not located within the active BWP without changing the active BWP to another BWP located within the first component carrier. The components for performing the operations of block 1120 may include processor 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver 310 of UE 302. For example, UE 302 may use receiver 312 to perform one or more PRS measurements within a frequency band not located within the active BWP without changing the active BWP to another BWP located within the first component carrier. By not changing the active BWP to another BWP, but rather temporarily retuning the RF circuitry of WWAN transceiver 310, UE 302 may avoid the overhead and latency associated with changing the active BWP from one available BWP to another, such as the overhead associated with signaling between UE 302 and its serving base station and / or location server.

[0156] In some aspects, performing at least one PRS measurement within a frequency band not located within the active BWP includes: for each PRS measurement of the at least one PRS measurement, retuning the radio frequency (RF) circuitry of the UE to a corresponding frequency band located within the first component carrier but not within the active BWP, and performing a PRS measurement within the corresponding frequency band located within the first component carrier but not within the active BWP; and upon completion of the at least one PRS measurement, retuning the RF circuitry of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP before the expiration of the PPW, wherein each of the corresponding frequency bands is different from one another.

[0157] In some aspects, performing at least one PRS measurement within a frequency band not located within the active BWP further includes: after each PRS measurement of the at least one PRS measurement, retuning the RF circuitry of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP.

[0158] In some aspects, after retuning the UE's RF circuitry to a first frequency band within the active BWP, the UE may measure non-PRS downlink signals or channels.

[0159] In some aspects, during retuning of the UE's RF circuitry, the UE may be able to receive non-PRS downlink signals or channels on another BWP within the first component carrier, on another component carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0160] In some aspects, during retuning of the UE's RF circuitry, the UE may be able to receive non-PRS downlink signals or channels on another component carrier but not on the first component carrier.

[0161] In some aspects, during retuning of the UE's RF circuitry, the UE may be able to receive non-PRS downlink signals or channels on another BWP within the first component carrier but not on the active BWP of the first component carrier.

[0162] In some aspects, performing at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not within the active BWP includes: performing at least one PRS measurement according to configuration information received from a base station or network entity.

[0163] In some aspects, the configuration information includes: information indicating the relative priority of the PRS measurement compared to the measurement of non-PRS downlink signals or channels; the type of PPW; the starting time slot of the PPW; the periodicity of the PPW; the duration of the PPW; subcarrier spacing (SCS) information; the maximum number of preconfigured PPWs per downlink (DL) BWP; the maximum number of active PPWs per component carrier; the maximum number of PPWs that can be activated or deactivated via a DL medium access control (MAC) control element (CE); the maximum number of positioning frequency layers (PFLs) that can be measured within a PPW; the timing of at least one RF circuitry retuning window; or a combination thereof.

[0164] Procedure 1100 may include additional specific implementations, such as any single specific implementation described below and / or in combination with one or more other procedure descriptions described elsewhere herein. Although Figure 11 example boxes of procedure 1100 are shown, in some specific implementations, procedure 1100 may include additional boxes, fewer boxes, different boxes, or boxes arranged in a different manner compared to those depicted in Figure 11 . Additionally or alternatively, two or more boxes of procedure 1100 may be executed in parallel.

[0165] Figure 12is a flowchart of an example process 1200 associated with DL PRS frequency hopping based on PPW according to aspects of the present disclosure. In some specific implementations, Figure 12 one or more process blocks of Figure 12 may be performed by a network entity (e.g., BS 102, location server 172, LMF 270). In some specific implementations, Figure 12 one or more process blocks of

[0166] As Figure 12 shown, process 1200 may include, at block 1210, determining the ability of a UE to support DL PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active BWP of a first component carrier and within a PPW (block 1210). The components for performing the operations of block 1210 may include the processor 394, memory 396, or network transceiver 390 of network entity 306. For example, network entity 306 may determine the UE's ability by communicating with the UE or other network entities that may have the ability information using network transceiver 390.

[0167] As Figure 12 further shown, process 1200 may include, at block 1220, providing configuration information for the UE to perform PRS frequency hopping. The components for performing the operations of block 1220 may include the processor 394, memory 396, or network transceiver 390 of network entity 306. For example, network entity 306 may use network transceiver 390 to provide the UE with configuration information for performing PRS frequency hopping.

[0168] In some aspects, determining the ability of a UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active BWP of a first component carrier and within a PPW includes: transmitting a request for PRS frequency hopping ability to the UE; receiving information indicating the PRS frequency hopping ability from the UE; and determining the ability of the UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active BWP of a first component carrier and within a PPW based on the information indicating the PRS frequency hopping ability.

[0169] In some aspects, providing configuration information includes providing: information indicating the relative priority of PRS measurements compared to measurements of non-PRS downlink signals or channels; PPW type; PPW start time slot; PPW periodicity; PPW duration; SCS information; the maximum number of pre-configured PPWs per DL BWP; the maximum number of active PPWs per component carrier; the maximum number of PPWs that can be activated or deactivated by a DL MAC CE; the maximum number of PFLs that can be measured within a PPW; the timing of at least one RF circuit retuning window; or a combination thereof.

[0170] In some aspects, the network entity includes a base station, a location server, or a combination thereof.

[0171] Procedure 1200 may include additional embodiments, such as any individual embodiment or any combination of embodiments described below and / or in combination with one or more other procedures described elsewhere herein. Although Figure 12 example boxes of procedure 1200 are shown, in some embodiments, procedure 1200 may include additional boxes, fewer boxes, different boxes, or boxes arranged in a different manner compared to those depicted in Figure 12 . Additionally or alternatively, two or more boxes of procedure 1200 may be executed in parallel.

[0172] The techniques disclosed herein for PPW-based PRS processing have several advantages over MG-based PRS processing. These advantages include, but are not limited to, the following: UL signals or channels are not affected or interrupted during a PPW; no RF retuning is required if the UE does not change the active BWP; for some priority types, there is better multiplexing of PRS with other channels and less disruption to DL traffic; PRS is only processed within a PPW, and it is expected that the UE will be able to provide a report at the end of the PPW. Although the above examples relate to PRS, it should be understood that the same techniques may also be applied to SRS.

[0173] In the foregoing detailed description, it can be seen that different features are grouped together in the various examples. This manner of disclosure should not be construed as an intention that the example clauses have more features than those expressly recited in each clause. On the contrary, aspects of the present disclosure may include less than all of the features of the individual example clauses disclosed. Accordingly, the following clauses are hereby considered incorporated into the description, where each clause by itself may be considered a separate example. Although each dependent clause may refer in the clause to a particular combination with one of the other clauses, the aspects of that dependent clause are not limited to the particular combination. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include combinations of aspects of the dependent clause with the subject matter of any other dependent clause or independent clause or any features with other dependent and independent clauses. Aspects disclosed herein expressly include these combinations, unless expressly stated or readily inferred not to be intended to use a particular combination (e.g., contradictory aspects such as defining an element as both an electrical insulator and an electrical conductor). In addition, it is contemplated that aspects of the clauses may be included in any other independent clause, even if the clause does not directly depend on the independent clause.

[0174] Specific example embodiments are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0175] Clause 1. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: when operating within an active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW): making a first PRS measurement in a first frequency band located within the active BWP; and performing at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP without changing the active BWP to another BWP located within the first component carrier.

[0176] Clause 2. The method according to clause 1, wherein performing the at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP comprises: for each PRS measurement of the at least one PRS measurement, retuning a radio frequency (RF) circuit of the UE to a corresponding frequency band located within the first component carrier but not within the active BWP, and making a PRS measurement in the corresponding frequency band located within the first component carrier but not within the active BWP; and when the at least one PRS measurement is completed, retuning the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP before the expiration of the PPW, wherein each of the corresponding frequency bands is different from one another.

[0177] Clause 3. The method according to Clause 2, wherein performing the at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP further includes: after each PRS measurement among the at least one PRS measurement, retuning the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP.

[0178] Clause 4. The method according to Clause 3, the method further includes: after retuning the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP, measuring a non-PRS downlink signal or channel.

[0179] Clause 5. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 4, the method further includes: during the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE, receiving a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another BWP located within the first component carrier, on another component carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0180] Clause 6. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 5, the method further includes: during the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE, receiving a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another component carrier but not on the first component carrier.

[0181] Clause 7. The method according to any one of Clauses 2 to 6, the method further includes: during the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE, receiving a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another BWP located within the first component carrier but not on the active BWP of the first component carrier.

[0182] Clause 8. The method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 7, wherein performing the at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP includes: performing the at least one PRS measurement according to configuration information received from a base station or a network entity.

[0183] Clause 9. The method according to Clause 8, wherein the configuration information includes: information indicating the relative priority of the PRS measurement compared to the measurement of a non-PRS downlink signal or channel; PPW type; PPW start time slot; PPW periodicity; PPW duration; subcarrier spacing (SCS) information; the maximum number of preconfigured PPWs per downlink (DL) BWP; the maximum number of active PPWs per component carrier; the maximum number of PPWs that can be activated or deactivated by a DL medium access control (MAC) control element (CE); the maximum number of positioning frequency layers (PFLs) that can be measured within a PPW; the timing of at least one RF circuit retuning window; or a combination thereof.

[0184] Clause 10. A method for wireless positioning performed by a network entity, the method comprising: determining an ability of a UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating in an active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW); and providing configuration information to the UE for performing PRS frequency hopping.

[0185] Clause 11. The method according to Clause 10, wherein determining the ability of the UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating in the active BWP of the first component carrier and within the PPW comprises: transmitting a request for the PRS frequency hopping ability to the UE; receiving information indicating the PRS frequency hopping ability from the UE; and determining the ability of the UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating in the active BWP of the first component carrier and within the PPW based on the information indicating the PRS frequency hopping ability.

[0186] Clause 12. The method according to any one of Clauses 10 to 11, wherein providing the configuration information comprises providing: information indicating a relative priority of PRS measurement compared to measurement of non-PRS downlink signals or channels; PPW type; PPW start time slot; PPW periodicity; PPW duration; subcarrier spacing (SCS) information; a maximum number of preconfigured PPWs per downlink (DL) BWP; a maximum number of active PPWs per component carrier; a maximum number of PPWs that can be activated or deactivated by a DL medium access control (MAC) control element (CE); a maximum number of positioning frequency layers (PFLs) that can be measured within the PPW; timing of at least one RF circuit retuning window; or a combination thereof.

[0187] Clause 13. The method according to any one of Clauses 10 to 12, wherein the network entity comprises a base station, a location server, or a combination thereof.

[0188] Clause 14. An apparatus, the apparatus comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: execute the method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 13.

[0189] Clause 15. An apparatus, the apparatus comprising: components for executing the method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 13.

[0190] Clause 16. A computer-readable medium, the computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions comprising at least one instruction for causing an apparatus to execute the method according to any one of Clauses 1 to 13.

[0191] Those skilled in the art should understand that information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may have been mentioned throughout the above description can be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0192] In addition, those skilled in the art should understand that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithmic steps described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, the various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in different ways for each particular application, but such specific implementation decisions should not be construed as causing a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0193] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented or executed using a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0194] The methods, sequences, and / or algorithms described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of both. The software module may reside in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium is coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., a UE). In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal.

[0195] In one or more example aspects, the functionality may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functionality may be stored on or transmitted via a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or code. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. As used herein, disk and disc include: compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc where disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically using lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0196] Although the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative aspects of the present disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications can be made herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. Additionally, the functions, steps, and / or acts of the method claims according to aspects of the present disclosure described herein need not be performed in any particular order. Moreover, although elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is also contemplated unless expressly stated to be limited to the singular.

Claims

1. A method for wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: When operating within an active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW): Performing a first PRS measurement within a first frequency band located within the active BWP; And Performing at least one PRS measurement within a frequency band not located within the active BWP without changing the active BWP to another BWP located within the first component carrier.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein performing the at least one PRS measurement within a frequency band not located within the active BWP comprises: For each PRS measurement of the at least one PRS measurement, retuning the radio frequency (RF) circuit of the UE to a corresponding frequency band located within the first component carrier but not within the active BWP, and performing a PRS measurement within the corresponding frequency band located within the first component carrier but not within the active BWP; And When the at least one PRS measurement is completed, retuning the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP before the expiration of the PPW, wherein each of the corresponding frequency bands is different from each other.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein performing the at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP further comprises: After each PRS measurement of the at least one PRS measurement, retuning the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP.

4. The method according to claim 3, the method further comprising: After retuning the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP, measuring a non-PRS downlink signal or channel.

5. The method according to claim 2, the method further comprising: During the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE, receiving a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another BWP located within the first component carrier, on another component carrier, or a combination thereof.

6. The method according to claim 2, wherein the method further comprises: During the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE, receiving a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another component carrier but not on the first component carrier.

7. The method according to claim 2, the method further comprising: During the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE, receiving a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another BWP located within the first component carrier but not on the active BWP of the first component carrier.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein performing the at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP comprises: Performing the at least one PRS measurement according to configuration information received from a base station or a network entity.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the configuration information comprises: Information indicating the relative priority of the PRS measurement compared to the measurement of a non-PRS downlink signal or channel; PPW type; PPW start time slot; PPW periodicity; PPW duration; Subcarrier spacing (SCS) information; The maximum number of pre-configured PPWs per downlink (DL) BWP; The maximum number of active PPWs per component carrier; The maximum number of PPWs that can be activated or deactivated by a DL medium access control (MAC) control element (CE); The maximum number of positioning frequency layers (PFLs) that can be measured within a PPW; The timing of at least one RF circuit retuning window; or Their combination.

10. A method for wireless positioning performed by a network entity, the method comprising: Determining the ability of a UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within an active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW); And Providing the UE with configuration information for performing PRS frequency hopping.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein determining the ability of the UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active BWP of the first component carrier and within the PPW comprises: Transmitting a request for the PRS frequency hopping ability to the UE; Receiving information indicating the PRS frequency hopping ability from the UE; And Determining the ability of the UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active BWP of the first component carrier and within the PPW based on the information indicating the PRS frequency hopping ability.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein providing the configuration information includes providing: Information indicating the relative priority of PRS measurement compared to measurement of non-PRS downlink signals or channels; PPW type; PPW start time slot; PPW periodicity; PPW duration; Subcarrier spacing (SCS) information; The maximum number of pre-configured PPWs per downlink (DL) BWP; The maximum number of active PPWs per component carrier; The maximum number of PPWs that can be activated or deactivated by a DL medium access control (MAC) control element (CE); The maximum number of positioning frequency layers (PFLs) that can be measured within a PPW; The timing of at least one RF circuit retuning window; or Their combination.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein the network entity includes a base station, a location server, or a combination thereof.

14. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: A memory; At least one transceiver; And At least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: When operating within an active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW): Perform a first PRS measurement in a first frequency band located within the active BWP; And Perform at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP without changing the active BWP to another BWP located within the first component carrier.

15. The UE according to claim 14, wherein To perform the at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP, the at least one processor is configured to: For each PRS measurement of the at least one PRS measurement, retune the radio frequency (RF) circuit of the UE to a corresponding frequency band located within the first component carrier but not within the active BWP, and perform a PRS measurement in the corresponding frequency band located within the first component carrier but not within the active BWP; And When completing the at least one PRS measurement, before the expiration of the PPW, retune the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP, where each of the respective frequency bands is different from one another.

16. The UE according to claim 15, wherein, To perform the at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP, the at least one processor is further configured to: retune the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP.

17. The UE according to claim 16, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: measure a non-PRS downlink signal or channel after retuning the RF circuit of the UE to the first frequency band located within the active BWP.

18. The UE according to claim 15, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another BWP located within the first component carrier, on another component carrier, or a combination thereof during the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE.

19. The UE according to claim 15, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another component carrier but not on the first component carrier during the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE.

20. The UE according to claim 15, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a non-PRS downlink signal or channel on another BWP located within the first component carrier but not on the active BWP of the first component carrier during the retuning of the RF circuit of the UE.

21. The UE according to claim 14, wherein, To perform the at least one PRS measurement in a frequency band not located within the active BWP, the at least one processor is configured to: perform the at least one PRS measurement according to configuration information received from a base station or a network entity.

22. The UE according to claim 21, wherein the configuration information includes: information indicating the relative priority of the PRS measurement compared to the measurement of a non-PRS downlink signal or channel; PPW type; PPW start time slot; PPW periodicity; PPW duration; subcarrier spacing (SCS) information; the maximum number of preconfigured PPWs per downlink (DL) BWP; the maximum number of active PPWs per component carrier; the maximum number of PPWs that can be activated or deactivated through a DL medium access control (MAC) control element (CE); the maximum number of positioning frequency layers (PFLs) that can be measured within a PPW; the timing of at least one RF circuit retuning window; or a combination thereof.

23. The UE according to claim 14, the UE comprising: User Equipment.

24. A network entity, the network entity includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: Determine the ability of a UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active bandwidth part (BWP) of a first component carrier and within a positioning reference signal (PRS) processing window (PPW); And Provide the UE with configuration information for performing PRS frequency hopping.

25. The network entity according to claim 24, wherein, To determine the ability of the UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active BWP of a first component carrier and within a PPW, the at least one processor is configured to: Transmit a request for PRS frequency hopping ability to the UE; Receive information indicating the PRS frequency hopping ability from the UE; And Determine the ability of the UE to support PRS frequency hopping when operating within the active BWP of a first component carrier and within a PPW based on the information indicating the PRS frequency hopping ability.

26. The network entity according to claim 24, wherein, To provide the configuration information, the at least one processor is configured to provide: Information indicating the relative priority of PRS measurements compared to measurements of non-PRS downlink signals or channels; PPW type; PPW start time slot; PPW periodicity; PPW duration; Subcarrier spacing (SCS) information; The maximum number of pre-configured PPWs per downlink (DL) BWP; The maximum number of active PPWs per component carrier; The maximum number of PPWs that can be activated or deactivated by a DL medium access control (MAC) control element (CE); The maximum number of positioning frequency layers (PFLs) that can be measured within a PPW; The timing of at least one RF circuit retuning window; or A combination thereof.

27. The network entity according to claim 24, the network entity comprising: A base station, a location server, or a combination thereof.

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