Method and system for efficient positioning anchor point selection

Abstract

Techniques for wireless positioning are disclosed. In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) may determine a set of intra-technology interior point positioning anchors. The UE may determine that a positioning estimate is required. The UE may determine whether intra-technical interior point positioning anchor detection is required. The UE may perform a positioning operation using the set of intra-technical point positioning anchors without performing intra-technical point positioning anchor detection when it is determined that intra-technical point positioning anchor detection is not required. The UE may, upon determining that intra-technical point positioning anchor detection is required, perform intra-technical point positioning anchor detection to create an updated set of intra-technical point positioning anchors, and perform a positioning operation using the updated set of intra-technical point positioning anchors.

Description

Background Art 1. Technical Field

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

[0002] 2. Description of Related Technologies

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

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

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

[0006] In one aspect, a method for wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE) includes determining an intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set; determining that a positioning estimate is required; determining whether intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required; when it is determined that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is not required, performing a positioning operation using the intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set without performing intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection; and when it is determined that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required, performing intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection to create an updated intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set, and performing a positioning operation using the updated intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set. In-point positioning anchor point detection may also be referred to herein as in-point positioning anchor point selection.

[0007] 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 configured to: determine an intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set; determine that positioning estimation is required; determine whether intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required; when it is determined that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is not required, perform a positioning operation using the intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set without performing intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection; and when it is determined that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required, perform the intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection to create an updated intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set, and perform a positioning operation using the updated intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set.

[0008] Other objects and advantages associated with the various aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the drawings and detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in describing various aspects of the present disclosure and are provided solely for illustration and not limitation of the various aspects.

[0010] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system according to aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0011] Figure 2A 、 Figure 2B and Figure 2C Example wireless network structures according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0012] Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a user equipment (UE), a base station, and a network entity, respectively, and configured to support communications as taught herein.

[0013] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example frame structure according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0014] Figure 5 Examples of various positioning methods supported in New Radio (NR) according to aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0015] Figure 6 A multi-technology positioning engine (MTPE) according to some aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0016] Figure 7 is a flow diagram of example processes performed by a UE associated with methods and systems for efficient computation of a multi-technology positioning engine according to aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] Techniques for efficient positioning anchor point selection are disclosed, and these techniques can be applied to a multi-technology positioning engine (MTPE) or other architectures. In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) may determine an intra-technology positioning anchor point set. The UE may determine that a positioning estimate is required. The UE may determine whether intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is required. If the UE determines that intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is not required, the UE may perform a positioning operation using the intra-technology positioning anchor point set without performing intra-technology positioning anchor point detection. If the UE determines that intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is required, the UE may perform intra-technology positioning anchor point detection to create an updated intra-technology positioning anchor point set, and perform a positioning operation using the updated intra-technology positioning anchor point set.

[0018] Various aspects of the present disclosure are provided below in the description and related drawings of various examples provided for illustrative purposes. Alternative aspects may be designed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of the present disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted to avoid obscuring the relevant details of the present disclosure.

[0019] The words "exemplary" and / or "example" are used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" and / or "example" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term "aspects of the disclosure" does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage, or mode of operation.

[0020] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any of a variety of different techniques and methods may be used to represent the information and signals described below. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout the following description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the specific application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, etc.

[0021] In addition, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It will be appreciated that the various actions described herein may be performed by specific circuits (e.g., application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of the two. Additionally, the sequences of actions described herein may be viewed as being fully embodied within any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a corresponding set of computer instructions that, when executed, will cause or command the associated processor of the device to perform the functionality described herein. Accordingly, various aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in a variety of different forms, all of which are contemplated to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. In addition, for each of the various aspects described herein, the corresponding form of any such aspect may be described herein as, for example, "logic configured to perform the described actions."

[0022] As used herein, unless otherwise specified, the terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT). In general, a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network (e.g., a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a consumer asset location device, a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch, glasses, augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), a vehicle (e.g., a car, a motorcycle, a bicycle, etc.), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.). A UE can be mobile or can be stationary (e.g., at certain times) and can communicate with a radio access network (RAN). As used herein, the term "UE" can be interchangeably referred to as an "access terminal" or "AT," "client device," "wireless device," "subscriber device," "subscriber terminal," "subscriber station," "user terminal" or "UT," "mobile device," "mobile terminal," "mobile station," or variations thereof. In general, a UE can communicate with a core network via the RAN, and through the core network, the UE can connect to external networks such as the Internet and other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for connecting to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible for the UE, such as through a wired access network, a wireless local area network (WLAN) network (e.g., based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 specification, etc.), etc.

[0023] A base station may operate according to one of several RATs to communicate with UEs, depending on the network in which it is deployed, and may alternatively be referred to as an access point (AP), network node, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), new radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as gNB or gNodeB), etc. A base station may primarily support wireless access for UEs, including supporting data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the supported UEs. In some systems, a base station may only provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems, a base station may provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link through which a UE can transmit signals to a base station is called an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel, etc.). The communication link through which a base station can transmit signals to a UE is called a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., a paging channel, a control channel, a broadcast channel, a forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term "traffic channel (TCH)" may refer to either an uplink / reverse traffic channel or a downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0024] The term "base station" may refer to a single physical transmit receive point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, where the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna of the base station corresponding to the cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. Where the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be an antenna array of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where the base station employs beamforming). Where the term "base station" refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transmission medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-co-located physical TRPs may be a serving base station that receives measurement reports from a UE and a neighboring base station whose reference radio frequency (RF) signal the UE is measuring. Because, as used herein, a TRP is a point by which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, references to transmitting from a base station or receiving at a base station should be understood to refer to a specific TRP of a base station.

[0025] In some implementations supporting UE positioning, a base station may not support wireless access by the UE (e.g., may not support data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the UE), but may instead transmit a reference signal to the UE to be measured by the UE and / or may receive and measure signals transmitted by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when transmitting a signal to the UE) and / or as a position measurement unit (e.g., when receiving and measuring a signal from the UE).

[0026] An "RF signal" comprises an electromagnetic wave of a given frequency that transmits information through the space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may transmit a single "RF signal" or multiple "RF signals" to a receiver. However, due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through multipath channels, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between a transmitter and a receiver may be referred to as a "multipath" RF signal. As used herein, an RF signal may also be referred to as a "wireless signal" or simply as a "signal" when the context clearly indicates that the term "signal" refers to either a wireless signal or an RF signal.

[0027] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system 100 according to various aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The wireless communication system 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled "BS") and various UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macrocell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one aspect, the macrocell base stations may include eNBs and / or ng-eNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network), or gNBs (where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network), or a combination of the two, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0028] The base stations 102 may collectively form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) via backhaul links 122. The base stations 102 may also interface with one or more location servers 172 (e.g., a location management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)) via the core network 170. The location servers 172 may be part of the core network 170 or external to the core network 170. The location servers 172 may be integrated with the base stations 102. The UE 104 may communicate with the location servers 172 directly or indirectly. For example, the UE 104 may communicate with the location servers 172 via the base station 102 currently serving the UE 104. The UE 104 may also communicate with the location servers 172 via another path, such as via an application server (not shown), via another network, such as via a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) (e.g., AP 150 described below), etc. For signaling purposes, communication between UE 104 and location server 172 may be represented as an indirect connection (e.g., through core network 170, etc.) or a direct connection (e.g., as shown via direct connection 128), with intermediate nodes (if any) omitted from the signaling diagram for clarity.

[0029] Among other functions, the base stations 102 may perform functions related to one or more of the following: delivering user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through EPC / 5GC) over a backhaul link 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0030] Base stations 102 can communicate wirelessly with UEs 104. Each of base stations 102 can provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. In one aspect, one or more cells can be supported by base stations 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., via a frequency resource, such as a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, or frequency band) and can be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCI), an enhanced cell identifier (ECI), a virtual cell identifier (VCI), a cell global identifier (CGI), etc.) that distinguishes cells operating on the same or different carrier frequencies. In some cases, different cells can be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or other protocol types) that can provide access to different types of UEs. Because a cell is supported by a specific base station, the term "cell" can refer to either or both the logical communication entity and the base station supporting the logical communication entity, depending on the context. Furthermore, since the TRP is typically the physical transmission point of a cell, the terms "cell" and "TRP" may be used interchangeably. In some cases, the term "cell" may also refer to a geographic coverage area (e.g., a sector) of a base station, as long as a carrier frequency can be detected and used for communications within a portion of the geographic coverage area 110.

[0031] Although the geographic coverage areas 110 of adjacent macrocell base stations 102 may partially overlap (e.g., in a handover area), some areas of the geographic coverage areas 110 may substantially overlap with the larger geographic coverage area 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' (labeled "SC" for "small cell") may have a geographic coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage areas 110 of one or more macrocell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell base stations and macrocell base stations may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a Home eNB (HeNB), which may provide service to a restricted group called a Closed Subscriber Group (CSG).

[0032] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 may include uplink (also known as reverse link) transmissions from the UE 104 to the base station 102 and / or downlink (DL) (also known as forward link) transmissions from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 may utilize MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may be over one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric for the downlink and uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to the downlink than to the uplink).

[0033] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a wireless local area network (WLAN) station (STA) 152 in an unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz) via a communication link 154. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) or a listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure prior to communication to determine whether a channel is available.

[0034] The small cell base station 102' can operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in the unlicensed spectrum, the small cell base station 102' can adopt LTE or NR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' using LTE / 5G in the unlicensed spectrum can improve the coverage and / or increase the capacity of the access network. NR in the unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as NR-U. LTE in the unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as LTE-U, Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0035] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a millimeter wave (mmW) base station 180 that can operate at mmW and / or near-mmW frequencies to communicate with UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of the RF spectrum in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz, with wavelengths between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in this frequency band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near-mmW frequencies extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz, with wavelengths of 100 mm. Super high frequency (SHF) frequency bands extend between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and are also referred to as centimeter waves. Communications using mmW / near-mmW radio frequency bands have high path loss and relatively short range. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 may utilize beamforming (transmit and / or receive) on the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range. Furthermore, it should be understood that, in alternative configurations, one or more base stations 102 may also transmit using mmW or near-mmW frequencies and beamforming. Therefore, it should be understood that the foregoing illustrations are merely examples and should not be construed as limiting the various aspects disclosed herein.

[0036] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in a specific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectionally). With transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing the receiving device with a faster and stronger RF signal (in terms of data rate). To change the directionality of an RF signal while transmitting, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of one or more transmitters broadcasting the RF signal. For example, the network node can use an array of antennas (referred to as a "phased array" or "antenna array") that forms an RF beam that can be "steered" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, the RF currents from the transmitters are fed to the individual antennas in the correct phase relationship so that the radio waves from the individual antennas add together in the desired direction to increase radiation, while canceling out in undesired directions to suppress radiation.

[0037] The transmit beams can be quasi-co-located, meaning that they appear to the receiver (e.g., UE) to have the same parameters, regardless of whether the network node's own transmit antennas are physically co-located. In NR, there are four types of quasi-co-location (QCL) relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters about the second reference RF signal on the second beam can be derived based on information about the source reference RF signal on the source beam. Thus, if the source reference RF signal is QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and average delay of the second reference RF signal sent on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type D, the receiver may use the source reference RF signal to estimate spatial reception parameters of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0038] In receive beamforming, a receiver uses receive beams to amplify RF signals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver may increase the gain setting of the antenna array in a particular direction and / or adjust the phase setting of the antenna array in a particular direction to amplify (e.g., increase the gain level of) the RF signal received from that direction. Thus, when a receiver is said to be beamforming in a certain direction, this means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gain along other directions, or that the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gain in that direction of all other receive beams available to the receiver. This results in a stronger received signal strength (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR), etc.) for the RF signal received from that direction.

[0039] The transmit beam and receive beam can be spatially correlated. This spatial relationship means that the parameters of the second beam (e.g., transmit beam or receive beam) used for the second reference signal can be derived based on information about the first beam (e.g., receive beam or transmit beam) of the first reference signal. For example, a UE may use a specific receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., a synchronization signal block (SSB)) from a base station. The UE can then form a transmit beam for transmitting an uplink reference signal (e.g., a sounding reference signal (SRS)) to the base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0040] Note that depending on the entity forming the "downlink" beam, the beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming a downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to the UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE is forming a downlink beam, the downlink beam is a receive beam for receiving downlink reference signals. Similarly, depending on the entity forming the "uplink" beam, the beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam. For example, if the base station is forming an uplink beam, the uplink beam is an uplink receive beam, while if the UE is forming an uplink beam, the uplink beam is an uplink transmit beam.

[0041] The electromagnetic spectrum is typically subdivided into various categories, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5GNR, two initial operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz - 7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz - 52.6 GHz). It should be understood that although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, FR1 is often (interchangeably) referred to as the "sub-6 GHz" band in various documents and articles. A similar naming issue sometimes occurs with respect to FR2, which is often (interchangeably) referred to as the "millimeter wave" band in documents and articles, although it is different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz - 300 GHz) identified as the "millimeter wave" band by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

[0042] Frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are generally referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified the operating band for these mid-band frequencies as frequency range designation FR3 (7.125 GHz–24.25 GHz). The frequency bands falling within FR3 can inherit FR1 characteristics and / or FR2 characteristics, thus effectively extending the features of FR1 and / or FR2 to mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operation to more than 52.6 GHz. For example, three higher operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz–71 GHz), FR4 (52.6 GHz–114.25 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz–300 GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands falls within the EHF band.

[0043] In view of the above aspects, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if used herein, the term "sub-6 GHz" or the like may broadly refer to frequencies that may be less than 6 GHz, may be within FR1, or may include mid-band frequencies. Furthermore, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that if used herein, the term "millimeter wave" or the like may broadly refer to frequencies that may include mid-band frequencies, may be within FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1 and / or FR5, or may be within the EHF band.

[0044] 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 in which the UE 104 / 182 performs an initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates an RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). A secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2) that can be configured and used to provide additional radio resources once an RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier. In some cases, the secondary carrier can be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier may contain only necessary signaling information and signals. For example, since the primary uplink carrier and the primary downlink carrier are generally UE-specific, those UE-specific signaling information and signals may not be present in the secondary carrier. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 in a cell may have different downlink primary carriers. The same is true for the uplink primary carrier. The network can change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance the load on different carriers. Since a "serving cell" (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to the carrier frequency / component carrier through which a base station communicates, the terms "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier" and "carrier frequency" can be used interchangeably.

[0045] For example, still referring to Figure 1One of the frequencies utilized by macrocell base station 102 may be an anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and the other frequencies utilized by macrocell base station 102 and / or mmW base station 180 may be secondary carriers ("SCells"). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception of multiple carriers enables UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission rate and / or data reception rate. For example, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically result in a doubled data rate (i.e., 40 MHz) compared to the data rate achieved with a single 20 MHz carrier.

[0046] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a UE 164 that may communicate with the macrocell base station 102 via a communication link 120 and / or with the mmW base station 180 via a mmW communication link 184. For example, the macrocell base station 102 may support a PCell and one or more SCells for the UE 164, and the mmW base station 180 may support one or more SCells for the UE 164.

[0047] In some cases, UE 164 and UE 182 are capable of sidelink communication. Sidelink-capable UEs (SL-UEs) can communicate with base station 102 via communication link 120 using a Uu interface (i.e., the air interface between the UE and the base station). SL-UEs (e.g., UE 164, UE 182) can also communicate directly with each other via a wireless sidelink 160 using a PC5 interface (i.e., the air interface between sidelink-capable UEs). A wireless sidelink (or simply "sidelink") is an adaptation of a core cellular network (e.g., LTE, NR) standard that allows direct communication between two or more UEs without going through a base station. Sidelink communication can be unicast or multicast and can be used for device-to-device (D2D) media sharing, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication (e.g., cellular V2X (cV2X) communication, enhanced V2X (eV2X) communication, etc.), emergency rescue applications, etc. One or more SL-UEs in a group of SL-UEs utilizing sidelink communication may be located within the geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 102. Other SL-UEs in such a group may be outside the geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 102 or unable to receive transmissions from the base station 102 for other reasons. In some cases, each group of SL-UEs communicating via sidelink communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, where each SL-UE transmits to each other SL-UE in the group. In some cases, the base station 102 facilitates the scheduling of resources for the sidelink communication. In other cases, the sidelink communication is performed between the SL-UEs without involving the base station 102.

[0048] In one aspect, the sidelink 160 can operate over a wireless communication medium of interest, which can be shared with other vehicles and / or infrastructure access points, as well as with other wireless communications between other RATs. A "medium" can include one or more time, frequency, and / or spatial communication resources associated with wireless communications between one or more transmitter / receiver pairs (e.g., encompassing one or more channels across one or more carriers). In one aspect, the medium of interest can correspond to at least a portion of an unlicensed frequency band shared between various RATs. While different licensed frequency bands have been reserved for certain communication systems (e.g., by government entities such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States), these systems (particularly those employing small cell access points) have recently expanded their operations into unlicensed frequency bands, such as the Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (U-NII) band used by wireless local area network (WLAN) technologies (most notably the IEEE 802.11x WLAN technology, commonly referred to as "Wi-Fi"). Example systems of this type include different variations of CDMA systems, TDMA systems, FDMA systems, orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) systems, and the like.

[0049] Note that although Figure 1 Only two of these UEs are illustrated as SL-UEs (i.e., UE 164 and UE 182), but any of the illustrated UEs may be SL-UEs. Furthermore, while only UE 182 is described as capable of beamforming, any of the illustrated UEs (including UE 164) may be capable of beamforming. Where SL-UEs are capable of beamforming, they may beamform toward each other (i.e., toward other SL-UEs), toward other UEs (e.g., UE 104), toward a base station (e.g., base station 102, base station 180, small cell 102′, access point 150), and so forth. Thus, in some cases, UE 164 and UE 182 may utilize beamforming via sidelink 160.

[0050] exist Figure 1 In the example of FIG, the UE illustrated (for simplicity, Figure 1Any UE in the example (shown as a single UE 104 in FIG. 1 ) may receive a signal 124 from one or more Earth-orbiting space vehicles (SVs) 112 (e.g., satellites). In one aspect, the SVs 112 may be part of a satellite positioning system that the UEs 104 may use as an independent source of location information. A satellite positioning system typically includes a system of transmitters (e.g., SVs 112) positioned to enable a receiver (e.g., a UE 104) to determine its location on or above the Earth based, at least in part, on positioning signals (e.g., signals 124) received from the transmitters. Such transmitters typically transmit a signal with a repeating pseudorandom noise (PN) code marked with a set number of chips. While typically located in the SVs 112, the transmitters may sometimes be located on ground-based control stations, base stations 102, and / or other UEs 104. The UEs 104 may include one or more specialized receivers specifically designed to receive the signal 124 in order to derive geographic location information from the SVs 112.

[0051] In a satellite positioning system, the use of signal 124 may be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) that may be associated with or otherwise enabled for use with one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, SBAS may include augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential corrections, and the like, such as the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), the Multifunctional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), and / or Global Positioning System (GPS)-Assisted Geographic Augmented Navigation or GPS and Geographic Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN), among others. Thus, as used herein, a satellite positioning system may include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellites associated with such one or more satellite positioning systems.

[0052] In one aspect, SV 112 may additionally or alternatively be part of one or more non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In an NTN, SV 112 connects to an earth station (also referred to as a ground station, NTN gateway, or gateway), which in turn connects to elements in the 5G network, such as a modified base station 102 (without a ground antenna) or a network node in a 5GC. This element, in turn, provides access to other elements in the 5G network and ultimately provides access to entities external to the 5G network, such as Internet web servers and other user devices. Thus, UE 104 may receive communication signals (e.g., signal 124) from SV 112 instead of or in addition to communication signals from terrestrial base station 102.

[0053] The wireless communication system 100 may also include one or more UEs, such as UE 190, that are indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) or peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as “side links”). Figure 1 In the example of FIG1 , UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 with one of UEs 104 connected to one of base stations 102 (e.g., UE 190 can indirectly obtain cellular connectivity through the D2D P2P link), and has a D2D P2P link 194 with WLAN STA 152 connected to WLAN AP 150 (UE 190 can indirectly obtain WLAN-based Internet connectivity through the D2D P2P link). In one example, D2D P2P links 192 and 194 can be supported by any well-known D2D RAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), wait.

[0054] Figure 2A An example wireless network architecture 200 is illustrated. For example, 5GC 210 (also known as the Next Generation Core (NGC)) can be functionally considered to include control plane (C-plane) functions 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and user plane (U-plane) functions 212 (e.g., UE gateway functions, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.), which operate in conjunction to form the core network. A user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and a control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect gNBs 222 to 5GC 210, and specifically to user plane functions 212 and control plane functions 214, respectively. In additional configurations, ng-eNBs 224 can also connect to 5GC 210 via NG-C 215 to control plane functions 214 and NG-U 213 to user plane functions 212. Furthermore, ng-eNBs 224 can communicate directly with gNBs 222 via backhaul connections 223. In some configurations, the next generation RAN (NG-RAN) 220 may have one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of ng-eNBs 224 and gNBs 222. Either gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 (or both) may communicate with one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein).

[0055] Another optional aspect may include a location server 230 that can communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The location server 230 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively, each can correspond to a single server. The location server 230 can be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204 that can connect to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not shown). In addition, the location server 230 can be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively can be external to the core network (e.g., a third-party server, such as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or a service server).

[0056] Figure 2B Another example wireless network structure 240 is illustrated. 5GC 260 (which may correspond to Figure 2AThe 5GC 210 in the 5GC 210 can be functionally considered to be a control plane function provided by the access and mobility management function (AMF) 264, and a user plane function provided by the user plane function (UPF) 262, which operate in conjunction to form the core network (i.e., the 5GC 260). The functions of the AMF 264 include registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of session management (SM) messages between one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) and the session management function (SMF) 266, a transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transmission of short message service (SMS) messages between the UE 204 and the short message service function (SMSF) (not shown), and security anchor functionality (SEAF). The AMF 264 also interacts with the authentication server function (AUSF) (not shown) and the UE 204, and receives intermediate keys established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In case of authentication based on the UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM), the AMF 264 retrieves security material from the AUSF. The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes Security Context Management (SCM). The SCM receives keys from the SEAF, which the SCM uses to derive access network specific keys. The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes location service management for regulatory services, 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 interoperability with EPS, and notification of UE 204 mobility events. In addition, the AMF 264 also supports functionality for non-3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0057] The functions of the UPF 262 include serving as an anchor point for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), serving as an external protocol data unit (PDU) session point for interconnection to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, user plane quality of service (QoS) handling (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in downlink), uplink traffic verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport level packet marking in uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and transmitting and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support the delivery of location service messages between the UE 204 and a location server (such as SLP 272) on the user plane.

[0058] The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, traffic steering configuration for routing traffic to the correct destination at the UPF 262, partial control of policy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface through which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0059] Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270 that can communicate with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance for the UE 204. The LMF 270 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively, each can correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 can be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, which can connect to the LMF 270 via the core network, the 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not shown). The SLP 272 may support similar functionality as the LMF 270, but whereas the LMF 270 may communicate with the AMF 264, the NG-RAN 220, and the UE 204 on a control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to carry signaling messages rather than voice or data), the SLP 272 may communicate with the UE 204 and external clients (e.g., third-party servers 274) on a user plane (e.g., using protocols intended to carry voice and / or data, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0060] Yet another optional aspect may include a third-party server 274 that can communicate with the LMF 270, SLP 272, 5GC 260 (e.g., via the AMF 264 and / or UPF 262), NG-RAN 220, and / or UE 204 to obtain location information (e.g., a location estimate) of the UE 204. Thus, in some cases, the third-party server 274 may be referred to as a location service (LCS) client or external client. The third-party servers 274 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively may each correspond to a single server.

[0061] The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC 260, and specifically the UPF 262 and AMF 264, respectively, to one or more gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220. The interface between the gNB 222 and / or ng-eNB 224 and the AMF 264 is referred to as the "N2" interface, while the interface between the gNB 222 and / or ng-eNB 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the "N3" interface. The gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 of the NG-RAN 220 can communicate directly with each other via a backhaul connection 223, referred to as an "Xn-C" interface. One or more of the gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 can communicate with one or more UEs 204 via a wireless interface, referred to as a "Uu" interface.

[0062] The functionality of a gNB 222 is divided between a gNB Central Unit (gNB-CU) 226, one or more gNB Distributed Units (gNB-DUs) 228, and one or more gNB Radio Units (gNB-RUs) 229. The gNB-CU 226 is a logical node that includes base station functions, including delivery of user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, and more, in addition to those functions specifically assigned to the gNB-DU 228. More specifically, the gNB-CU 226 typically hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) protocols for the gNB 222. The gNB-DU 228 is a logical node that typically hosts the Radio Link Control (RLC) and Medium Access Control (MAC) layers for the gNB 222. Its operation is controlled by the gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 can support one or more cells, and a cell is supported by only one gNB-DU 228. The interface 232 between the gNB-CU 226 and one or more gNB-DUs 228 is referred to as the "F1" interface. The physical (PHY) layer functionality of the gNB 222 is typically hosted by one or more independent gNB-RUs 229, which perform functions such as power amplification and signal transmission / reception. The interface between the gNB-DU 228 and the gNB-RU 229 is referred to as the "Fx" interface. Thus, the UE 204 communicates with the gNB-CU 226 via the RRC, SDAP, and PDCP layers, with the gNB-DU 228 via the RLC and MAC layers, and with the gNB-RU 229 via the PHY layer.

[0063] The deployment of a communication system (such as a 5G NR system) can be arranged in a variety of ways using various components or parts. In a 5G NR system or network, a network node, a network entity, a mobility element of a network, a RAN node, a core network node, a network element or network equipment (such as a base station or one or more units (or one or more components) that perform base station functionality) can be implemented in a converged or decomposed architecture. For example, a base station (such as a Node B (NB), an evolved NB (eNB), an NR base station, a 5G NB, an access point (AP), a transmit receive point (TRP) or a cell) can be implemented as a converged base station (also known as a standalone base station or a single-chip base station) or a decomposed base station.

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

[0065] Base station type operation or network design can take into account the aggregated nature of base station functionality. For example, a disaggregated base station can be utilized in an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open radio access network (O-RAN (such as a network configuration initiated by the O-RAN Alliance)), or a virtualized radio access network (vRAN, also known as a cloud radio access network (C-RAN)). Disaggregation can include distributing functionality across two or more units at various physical locations, as well as virtually distributing functionality of at least one unit, which can enable flexibility in network design. Various units of a disaggregated base station or disaggregated RAN architecture can be configured for wired or wireless communication with at least one other unit.

[0066] Figure 2C An example disaggregated base station architecture 250 according to aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. Disaggregated base station architecture 250 may include one or more central units (CUs) 280 (e.g., gNB-CUs 226), which may communicate directly with a core network 267 (e.g., 5GC 210, 5GC 260) via backhaul links, or indirectly with the core network 267 through one or more disaggregated base station units (e.g., a near real-time (near-RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 259 via an E2 link, or a non-real-time (non-RT) RIC 257 associated with a service management and orchestration (SMO) framework 255, or both). CUs 280 may communicate with one or more distributed units (DUs) 285 (e.g., gNB-DUs 228) via corresponding midhaul links (e.g., an F1 interface). DUs 285 may communicate with one or more radio units (RUs) 287 (e.g., gNB-RUs 229) via corresponding fronthaul links. The RUs 287 can communicate with corresponding UEs 204 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some implementations, a UE 204 can be served by multiple RUs 287 simultaneously.

[0067] Each of the units (i.e., CU 280, DU 285, RU 287, and near-RT RIC 259, non-RT RIC 257, and SMO framework 255) may include or be coupled to one or more interfaces configured to receive or transmit signals, data, or information (collectively, signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units, or an associated processor or controller that provides instructions to the communication interface of these units, may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via the transmission medium. For example, these units may include a wired interface configured to receive signals or transmit signals to one or more of the other units via a wired transmission medium. Additionally, these units may include a wireless interface that may include a receiver, transmitter, or transceiver (such as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver) configured to receive signals or transmit signals to one or more of the other units via a wireless transmission medium, or both.

[0068] 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), or service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), among others. Each control function may be implemented using an interface that is configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by the CU 280. The CU 280 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (i.e., central unit-user plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (i.e., central unit-control plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some implementations, the CU 280 may be logically split into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP unit may communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP unit via an interface (such as an E1 interface). As needed, the CU 280 may be implemented to communicate with the DU 285 for network control and signaling.

[0069] The DU 285 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 287. In some aspects, the DU 285 may host one or more of a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and one or more higher physical (PHY) layers (such as modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, etc.), depending at least in part on a functional split (such as that defined by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP)). In some aspects, the DU 285 may also host one or more lower PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may be implemented using an interface configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 285 or with control functions hosted by the CU 280.

[0070] Lower layer functionality may be implemented by one or more RUs 287. In some deployments, a RU 287 controlled by a DU 285 may correspond to a logical node that hosts RF processing functionality or low PHY layer functionality (such as performing Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), Inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming, or Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering), or both, based at least in part on a functional split (such as a lower layer functional split). In such an architecture, the RU 287 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communications with one or more UEs 204. In some implementations, both real-time and non-real-time aspects of control plane and user plane communications with the RU 287 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 285. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable the implementation of the DU 285 and CU 280 in a cloud-based RAN architecture (such as a vRAN architecture).

[0071] The SMO framework 255 can be configured to support RAN deployment and provisioning of both non-virtualized and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 255 can be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which can be managed via an operations and maintenance interface (such as the O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 255 can be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as Open Cloud (O-Cloud) 269) to perform network element lifecycle management (such as instantiating virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as the O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements may include, but are not limited to, CU 280, DU 285, RU 287, and near-RT RIC 259. In some implementations, the SMO framework 255 can communicate with hardware aspects of the 4G RAN (such as Open eNB (O-eNB) 261) via the O1 interface. Additionally, in some implementations, the SMO framework 255 can communicate directly with one or more RUs 287 via the O1 interface. The SMO framework 255 may also include a non-RT RIC 257 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 255 .

[0072] The non-RT RIC 257 can be configured to include logic functions that enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) workflows including model training and updating, or policy-based guidance of applications / features in the near-RT RIC 259. The non-RT RIC 257 can be coupled to or in communication with the near-RT RIC 259 (e.g., via an A1 interface). The near-RT RIC 259 can be configured to include logic functions that enable near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources through data collection and actions over an interface (e.g., via an E2 interface) that connects one or more CUs 280, one or more DUs 285, or both, and the O-eNB with the near-RT RIC 259.

[0073] In some implementations, the non-RT RIC 257 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server in order to generate an AI / ML model to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 259. This information may be utilized by the near-RT RIC 259 and may be received from non-network data sources or from network functions at the SMO framework 255 or the non-RT RIC 257. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 257 or the near-RT RIC 259 may be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 257 may monitor long-term trends and patterns in performance and employ AI / ML models to perform corrective actions through the SMO framework 255 (such as via reconfiguration of O1) or via the creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 policies).

[0074] Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C 2. The diagram illustrates a method that may be incorporated into a UE 302 (which may correspond to any UE described herein), a base station 304 (which may correspond to any base station described herein), and a 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 thereof. Figure 2A and Figure 2B Several example components (represented by corresponding blocks) in the NG-RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260 infrastructure (such as a dedicated network) depicted in the present disclosure 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. In addition, 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.

[0075] UE 302 and base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively, which provide means (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, and / or means for preventing transmission, etc.) for communicating via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown), such as NR networks, LTE networks, GSM networks, etc. WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can each be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNBs, gNBs), etc.) via at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest (e.g., a certain set of time / frequency resources in a particular spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be configured in various ways according to the designated RAT to transmit and encode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indicators, information, etc.), and conversely, to receive and decode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indicators, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for transmitting and encoding the signals 318 and 358, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for receiving and decoding the signals 318 and 358, respectively.

[0076] At least in some cases, the UE 302 and the base station 304 each further include one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide for communicating over a wireless communication medium of interest via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 are components for communicating (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, components for measuring, components for tuning, components for preventing transmission, etc.) with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) using a PC5, dedicated short-range communication (DSRC), wireless access for vehicular environments (WAVE), near-field communication (NFC), ultra-wideband (UWB), etc.). The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be configured in various ways according to the specified RAT to transmit and encode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.), 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 include one or more transmitters 324 and 364 for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362 for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively. As a specific example, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be WiFi transceivers, transceiver, and / or transceiver, NFC transceiver, UWB transceiver or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceiver.

[0077] At least in some cases, UE 302 and base station 304 also include a satellite signal receiver 330 and a satellite signal receiver 370. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 can be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and can provide components for receiving and / or measuring satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. If satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellite positioning system receivers, satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 can be Global Positioning System (GPS) signals, Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, BeiDou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. If satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 can be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and / or user data) originating from a 5G network. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may request information and operations from other systems as appropriate and, at least in some cases, perform calculations using measurements obtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithm to determine the positions of UE 302 and base station 304, respectively.

[0078] The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, which provide means (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, etc.) for communicating with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, other network entities 306). For example, the base station 304 may employ one or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other base stations 304 or network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links. As another example, the network entity 306 may employ one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or more base stations 304 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, or to communicate with other network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.

[0079] A transceiver can be configured to communicate over a wired or wireless link. A transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wireless transceiver) includes transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitter 314, transmitter 324, transmitter 354, transmitter 364) and receiver circuitry (e.g., receiver 312, receiver 322, receiver 352, receiver 362). In some implementations, a transceiver can be an integrated device (e.g., implementing transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry in a single device), in some implementations, the transceiver can include separate transmitter circuitry and separate receiver circuitry, or in other implementations, the transceiver can be implemented in other ways. The transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry of a wired transceiver (e.g., in some implementations, network transceivers 380 and 390) can be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. Wireless transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as antenna arrays, which permit a corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmit "beamforming," as described herein. Similarly, wireless receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362) may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as antenna arrays, which permit a corresponding device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming, as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter circuitry and the receiver circuitry may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that a corresponding device may only receive or only transmit at a given time, rather than both receive and transmit at the same time. The wireless transceivers (eg, WWAN transceivers 310 and 350, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include a network listening module (NLM) or the like for performing various measurements.

[0080] As used herein, various wireless transceivers (e.g., in some implementations, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, and network transceivers 380 and 390) and wired transceivers (e.g., in some implementations, network transceivers 380 and 390) may be generally referred to as a "transceiver," "at least one transceiver," or "one or more transceivers." Thus, whether a particular transceiver is a wired or wireless transceiver may be inferred based on the type of communication being performed. For example, backhaul communications between network devices or servers typically involve signaling via a wired transceiver, while wireless communications between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) will typically involve signaling via a wireless transceiver.

[0081] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with the operations disclosed herein. UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 each include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394 for providing functionality related to, for example, wireless communication, as well as for providing other processing functionality. Thus, processors 332, 384, and 394 can provide means for processing, such as means for determining, means for computing, means for receiving, means for transmitting, means for indicating, and the like. In one aspect, processors 332, 384, and 394 can include, for example, one or more general-purpose processors, multi-core processors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuits, or various combinations thereof.

[0082] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306, respectively, include memory circuitry implementing memory 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Thus, memories 340, 386, and 396 may provide means for storing, means for retrieving, means for maintaining, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may include positioning components 342, 388, and 398, respectively. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuitry that is part of or coupled to processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, and that, when executed, causes UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. In other aspects, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be external to processors 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioning components 342, 388, and 398 can be memory modules stored in memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively, which, when executed by the processors 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. Figure 3A Possible locations are illustrated for a location component 342, which can be, for example, part of one or more WWAN transceivers 310, memory 340, one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof, or can be a standalone component. Figure 3B Possible locations are illustrated for a location component 388, which can be, for example, part of one or more WWAN transceivers 350, memory 386, one or more processors 384, or any combination thereof, or can be a standalone component. Figure 3C Possible locations are illustrated for a location component 398, which can be, for example, part of one or more network transceivers 390, memory 396, one or more processors 394, or any combination thereof, or can be a standalone component.

[0083] The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to one or more processors 332 to provide means for sensing or detecting movement and / or orientation information independent of motion data derived from signals received by one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and / or satellite signal receiver 330. By way of example, the sensors 344 may include an accelerometer (e.g., a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), an altimeter (e.g., a barometric altimeter), and / or any other type of motion detection sensor. Furthermore, the sensors 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, the sensors 344 may use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and an orientation sensor to provide the ability to calculate a position in a two-dimensional (2D) and / or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate system.

[0084] In addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 that provides means for providing indications to the user (e.g., audible and / or visual indications) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., when the user actuates a sensing device such as a keypad, touch screen, microphone, etc.). Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 may also include a user interface.

[0085] Referring in more detail to the one or more processors 384, in the downlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to the processor 384. The one or more processors 384 may implement functionality for the RRC layer, the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and the Medium Access Control (MAC) layer. One or more processors 384 may provide: RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information (e.g., Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with delivery of upper layer PDUs, error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0086] Transmitter 354 and receiver 352 may implement Layer 1 (L1) functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) coding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. 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 coded and modulated symbols may then be split into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarriers, multiplexed with reference signals (e.g., pilots) in the time and / or frequency domains, and then combined using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially pre-decoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator may be used to determine the coding and modulation schemes and for spatial processing. The channel estimates may be derived based on a reference signal and / or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 302. Each spatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with the corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0087] At UE 302, receiver 312 receives the signal via its corresponding antenna 316. Receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides this information to one or more processors 332. Transmitter 314 and receiver 312 implement Layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Receiver 312 may perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for UE 302. If there are multiple spatial streams destined for UE 302, they may be combined by receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. Receiver 312 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier, as well as the reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point transmitted by base station 304. These soft decisions may be based on channel estimates calculated by a channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to one or more processors 332, which implement layer 3 (L3) and layer 2 (L2) functionality.

[0088] In the downlink, one or more processors 332 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. One or more processors 332 are also responsible for error detection.

[0089] Similar to the functionality described in conjunction with downlink transmissions performed by the base station 304, the one or more processors 332 provide: RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with delivery of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0090] Channel estimates derived by a channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback sent by base station 304 may be used by transmitter 314 to select appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by transmitter 314 may be provided to different antennas 316. Transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with the corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0091] Uplink transmissions are processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver functionality at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives the signal through its respective antenna 356. The receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 384.

[0092] In the uplink, one or more processors 384 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from UE 302. The IP packets from one or more processors 384 may be provided to the core network. The one or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.

[0093] For convenience, UE 302, base station 304 and / or network entity 306 Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C1 is shown as including various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it should be understood that the illustrated components may have different functionality in different designs. In particular, Figures 3A to 3C 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 Wi-Fi 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 certain embodiments, a particular implementation of the base station 304 may omit the WWAN transceiver 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi "hotspot" access point without cellular capabilities), or may omit the short-range wireless transceiver 360 (e.g., cellular only, etc.), or may omit the satellite signal receiver 370, etc. For the sake of brevity, illustrations of various alternative configurations are not provided herein, but will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0094] Various components of the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to one another via a data bus 334, a data bus 382, and a data bus 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.

[0095] Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3C The components of can be implemented in various ways. In some specific implementations, Figure 3A 、 Figure 3B and Figure 3CThe components of the present invention may be implemented in one or more circuits, such as, for example, one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors). Here, each circuit may use and / or be combined with at least one memory component to store 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 appropriately configuring 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 appropriately configuring the processor components). Furthermore, 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 appropriately configuring the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, actions, and / or functions are described herein as being performed "by a UE," "by a base station," "by a network entity," and the like. However, as will be appreciated, such operations, actions and / or functions may actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of the UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc. (such as processors 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350 and 360, memories 340, 386 and 396, positioning components 342, 388 and 398, etc.).

[0096] In some designs, the network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, the network entity 306 may operate independently of a network operator or cellular network infrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260). For example, the network entity 306 may be a component of a dedicated network that may be configured to communicate with the UE 302 via the base station 304 or independently of the base station 304 (e.g., via a non-cellular communication link such as WiFi).

[0097] Figure 4 FIG400 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., a base station and a UE). Frame structure 400 may be a downlink frame structure or an uplink frame structure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0098] LTE (and in some cases NR) utilizes orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) on the downlink and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. However, unlike LTE, NR also has the option of using OFDM on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also often referred to as tones, bins, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. Generally speaking, modulation symbols are transmitted in the frequency domain using OFDM and in the time domain using SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the subcarrier spacing can be 15 kilohertz (kHz), and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180 kHz). Thus, for a system bandwidth of 1.25 megahertz (MHz), 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, the nominal fast Fourier transform (FFT) size may be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048, respectively. The system bandwidth may also be divided into subbands. For example, a subband may cover 1.08 MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks), and there may be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands for a system bandwidth of 1.25 MHz, 2.5 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or 20 MHz, respectively.

[0099] LTE supports a single parameter set (subcarrier spacing (SCS), symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR may support multiple parameter sets (μ), for example, 15kHz (μ=0), 30kHz (μ=1), 60kHz (μ=2), 120kHz (μ=3), and 240kHz (μ=4) or larger subcarrier spacings may be available. In each subcarrier spacing, there are 14 symbols per slot. For a 15kHz SCS (μ=0), there is one slot per subframe, 10 slots per frame, a slot duration of 1 millisecond (ms), a symbol duration of 66.7 microseconds (μs), and a maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size of 50. For a 30kHz SCS (μ=1), there are two slots per subframe, 20 slots per frame, a slot duration of 0.5ms, a symbol duration of 33.3μs, and a maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size of 100. For 60kHz SCS (μ=2), there are four slots per subframe, 40 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.25ms, the symbol duration is 16.7μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 200. For 120kHz SCS (μ=3), there are eight slots per subframe, 80 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.125ms, the symbol duration is 8.33μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 400. For 240kHz SCS (μ=4), there are 16 slots per subframe, 160 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.0625ms, the symbol duration is 4.17μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 800.

[0100] exist Figure 4 In the example, a 15 kHz parameter set is used. Therefore, in the time domain, a 10 ms frame is divided into 10 equally sized subframes, each 1 ms, and each subframe includes one time slot. Figure 4 , 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.

[0101] A resource grid can be used to represent a time slot, each of which includes one or more time-concurrent resource blocks (RBs) (also called physical RBs (PRBs)) in the frequency domain. The resource grid is further divided into multiple resource elements (REs). An RE can correspond to one symbol length in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain. Figure 4In the parameter set for cyclic prefixes, for a normal cyclic prefix, an RB may contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and seven consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 REs. For an extended cyclic prefix, an RB may contain 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and six consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 REs. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0102] Some REs may carry reference (pilot) signals (RS). These reference signals may include positioning reference signals (PRS), tracking reference signals (TRS), phase tracking reference signals (PTRS), cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS), demodulation reference signals (DMRS), primary synchronization signals (PSS), secondary synchronization signals (SSS), synchronization signal blocks (SSBs), and sounding reference signals (SRS), depending on whether the illustrated frame structure is used for uplink or downlink communication. Figure 4 Example locations of REs carrying reference signals (labeled "R") are illustrated.

[0103] Figure 5 Examples of various positioning methods supported in New Radio (NR) according to various aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. NR supports a variety of cellular network-based positioning technologies, including downlink-based positioning methods, uplink-based positioning methods, and downlink and uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and downlink angle of departure (DL-AoD) in NR. Figure 5 Examples of various positioning methods according to various aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. In the OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning process illustrated in scenario 510, the UE measures the difference between the arrival times (ToA) of reference signals (e.g., positioning reference signals (PRS)) received from paired base stations (referred to as reference signal time difference (RSTD) or arrival time difference (TDOA) measurements) and reports these differences to a positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives identifiers (IDs) of a reference base station (e.g., a serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in assistance data. The UE then measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each non-reference base station. Based on the known positions of the base stations involved and the RSTD measurements, a positioning entity (e.g., a UE for UE-based positioning or a location server for UE-assisted positioning) can estimate the position of the UE.

[0104] For DL-AoD positioning, as illustrated in scenario 520, the positioning entity uses measurement reports from the UE regarding received signal strength measurements of multiple downlink transmit beams to determine the angle between the UE and the transmitting base station. The positioning entity can then estimate the UE's position based on the determined angle and the known location of the transmitting base station.

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

[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 receive beams. The positioning entity uses the signal strength measurements and the angle of the receive beams to determine the angle between the UE and the base station. Based on the determined angle and the known location of the base station, the positioning entity can then estimate the UE's position.

[0107] Downlink and uplink-based positioning methods include enhanced cell ID (E-CID) positioning and multiple round-trip time (RTT) positioning (also known as "multi-cell RTT" and "multi-RTT"). In the RTT process, a first entity (e.g., a base station or UE) sends a first RTT-related signal (e.g., a PRS or SRS) to a second entity (e.g., a UE or base station), and the second entity sends a second RTT-related signal (e.g., an SRS or PRS) back to the first entity. Each entity measures the time difference between the arrival time (ToA) of the received RTT-related signal and the transmission time of the transmitted RTT-related signal. This time difference is called the received-to-transmit (Rx-Tx) time difference. The Rx-Tx time difference measurement can be performed or adjusted to include only the time difference between the nearest time slot boundary of the received signal and the transmitted signal. The two entities can then transmit their Rx-Tx time difference measurements to a location server (e.g., LMF 270), which calculates the round-trip propagation time (i.e., RTT) between the two entities based on the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements (e.g., as the sum of the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements). Alternatively, one entity can transmit its Rx-Tx time difference measurement to the other entity, which then calculates the RTT. The distance between the two entities can be determined based on the RTT and a known signal speed (e.g., the speed of light). For multi-RTT positioning, as illustrated in scenario 530, a first entity (e.g., a UE or base station) performs an RTT positioning procedure with multiple second entities (e.g., multiple base stations or UEs) to determine the first entity's position based on the distance to the second entities and the known positions of the second entities (e.g., using multilateration). 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 540.

[0108] The E-CID positioning method is based on radio resource management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, timing advance (TA), and the identifiers of detected neighboring base stations, estimated timing, and signal strength. The UE's position is then estimated based on this information and the known locations of the base stations.

[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 cell / TRP of the base station) from which the reference signal is measured, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., the number of consecutive time slots including PRS, the periodicity of consecutive time slots including PRS, a muting sequence, a frequency hopping sequence, a reference signal identifier, a reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and / or other parameters applicable to a particular positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may originate directly from the base station itself (e.g., in a periodically broadcast overhead message, etc.). In some cases, the UE itself may be able to detect neighboring network nodes without the use of assistance data.

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

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

[0112] When multiple sets of positioning measurements are available at the device, utilizing a subset of the positioning measurements may provide better performance than utilizing all measurements to arrive at a positioning estimate. For example, if one of the measurements may be very noisy or associated with a non-line-of-sight (NLOS) channel, omitting that measurement from the positioning estimation process may benefit accuracy. In another example, while 5G transmit / receive points (TRPs) tend to have accurate ground truth, WiFi access points (WAPs) may not; using incorrect ground truth from such WAPs for the positioning process negatively impacts the accuracy of the positioning estimate for the target node. Therefore, it is desirable to develop a positioning engine that can fuse measurements across several technologies (cellular, WiFi, UWB, GNSS, etc.) while identifying outliers. However, conventional outlier detection algorithms (such as RANSAC and RAIM) are computationally expensive, especially when there are multiple measurements from several different anchor points.

[0113] Therefore, a multi-technology positioning engine (MTPE) is now described. The MTPE can be viewed as a collection of intra-technology filtering blocks, followed by an inter-technology fusion block that can fuse measurements across multiple technologies. Feedback from the inter-technology fusion block can help identify certain trends in the relative performance of the various technologies.

[0114] Figure 6 MTPE 600 is illustrated according to some aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 6 In the illustrated example, the MTPE 600 includes two intra-technology filter blocks 602, generally labeled "Technology A" and "Technology B," but representing any two technologies that support positioning measurements, e.g., cellular, WiFi, UWB, GNSS, etc. Although Figure 6 Two intra-technique filtering blocks 602 are illustrated, but the same concept can be applied to any number of inter-technique filtering blocks. Figure 6 In the example shown, each intra-technique filtering block 602 performs the steps of sorting and / or pruning anchors based on quality criteria (block 604) and performs intra-technique anchor outlier rejection (block 606). This results in a so-called inlier set of anchors, which can be referred to as inlier anchors or inlier sets. Each member of an inlier set can be referred to as an inlier anchor point, inlier anchor, or simply an inlier.

[0115] like Figure 6 As further shown, the MTPE 600 also includes an inter-technique filtering block 608 that performs outlier rejection across the technology concatenation of inlier anchors and across a sweep of the number of anchors included in the inlier set (block 610) and performs cost function error minimization, such as a weighted linear average of cost components across technologies and measurement types (block 612). In some aspects, cost function error minimization may use the following equation:

[0116]

[0117] in:

[0118] Indicates different types of measurement sets, such as AoA, ToA,

[0119] w A and w B represents the weight, and

[0120] is a weighted cost function.

[0121] Considering UE-based positioning, this paper presents strategies for performing efficient computations and reducing the overall overhead and resulting power consumption (e.g., by minimizing the frequency of those computations), as well as procedures and decision criteria that help the UE decide when to trigger outlier detection computations.

[0122] In some aspects, criteria are defined for triggering intra-technology filtering. Generally speaking, given a large number of anchors and associated measurements, the complexity of typical algorithms (such as RANSAC) can become very high. For example, a UE may periodically request or request a positioning estimate. Performing intra-technology RANSAC at each request may result in higher latency and power consumption.

[0123] Therefore, in some aspects, rather than performing inlier detection each time a positioning estimate is needed, the UE may store and reference earlier instances of inliers (after intra-technology filtering), which for this and subsequent examples may be referred to as the inlier set "A." The UE may then perform inter-technology filtering more frequently based on measurements belonging to set A. Note that the values of these measurements may change over time, but the anchor set and measurement types remain the same. In some aspects, the UE may perform measurements only using anchors included in inlier set A, which reduces latency and power consumption.

[0124] For simplicity, the act of performing intra-technology filtering to generate a new or updated set of inlier anchor points for a particular technology may be referred to herein as "inlier detection." Inlier detection may be performed or triggered based on various criteria. Examples of such criteria may include, but are not limited to, the following.

[0125] Time-based. In some aspects, inlier detection can be performed periodically, in which case inlier detection is triggered periodically. In some aspects, a time duration or period is defined such that inlier detection is performed at regular intervals. In some aspects, different techniques can be associated with different inlier detection periods.

[0126] Availability-based. In some aspects, inlier detection may be triggered when measurements from one or more inlier points in set A are no longer available. This may occur, for example, if the UE moves out of coverage from an inlier anchor in set A. In some aspects, an unavailability threshold may be defined to specify the amount of time these measurements must be unavailable before the inlier detection process is triggered. This may avoid triggering inlier detection simply because an inlier anchor was unavailable for only a short period of time.

[0127] Measurement-based. In some aspects, inlier detection may be triggered when a large deviation from an inlier in set A is observed in the measurement. In some aspects, a deviation threshold may be defined to specify the variance of values that must be observed across a time window before the inlier detection process is triggered. In some aspects, the deviation threshold may apply only to a subset of the measured values. Examples of values to which the deviation threshold may apply include, but are not limited to: SNR, SINR, or channel energy response; line-of-sight (LoS) probability; ToA, AoA, and other intermediate estimates; and sensor-related parameters, such as outputs from accelerometers, gyroscopes, barometers, and the like.

[0128] Mobility-based. A highly mobile UE may experience fast fading, in which case Set A is more likely to change, for example, because the UE may move out of coverage from an anchor in Set A. This mobility information may be provided to the positioning engine from an inertial measurement unit (IMU) or other sensor in the UE.

[0129] Cell-based. When a UE enters or exits a cell, the set of inner point anchors may change. In some aspects, the remote server may determine, based on the UE's coarse positioning, that the UE is about to exit the coverage of a specific inner point anchor, and may proactively notify the UE of this situation. In some aspects, this may trigger an inner point detection process. In some aspects, the UE may alternatively remove a specific anchor from set A instead of performing a full inner point detection process. In some aspects, such as when a remote server suggests a new anchor to be added to set A, or when the UE has considered replacing an inner point anchor, the UE may add a new anchor to set A. In some aspects, the remote server may include an LMF, a dedicated Qualcomm server, a Connected Intelligent Edge (CIE), and the like.

[0130] Ground truth based. Some anchors may have a ground truth accuracy that varies over time. For example, some access points (APs) may have to constantly update their own locations using crowdsourcing or other positioning techniques. In some aspects, a ground truth accuracy threshold may be used by the UE to trigger the creation of a new set of inliers.

[0131] Sensor-based. In some aspects, cameras or other types of sensing devices can be used to form a location estimate. In some aspects, images, videos, or other sensor information captured by such devices may contain visual features (e.g., perception, depth) or non-visual features that can trigger the creation of a new set of inliers. In some aspects, the sensor information can be passed to an inter-technique filtering block. In some aspects, visual features can be extracted from the images / video using image processing techniques or machine learning (ML)-based techniques. For example, when one or more visual features are no longer available, this can trigger the inlier detection process. In some aspects, the features must be unavailable for a specified minimum amount of time before the inlier detection process is triggered. In some aspects, when a sensor data source no longer provides such data, the source can be removed from the list of such sources that may trigger the inlier detection process. In some aspects, the same concept applies to non-visual sensor data. For example, in some aspects, inlier detection can be triggered when one or more sensor-related parameters (such as output from an accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, etc.) are no longer available. In some aspects, an unavailability threshold can be defined to specify the amount of time the sensor data must be unavailable before the inlier detection process is triggered.

[0132] In some aspects, a set of interior points and related information may be provided as assistance data. In some aspects, the assistance data may be provided by a remote server, which may host a positioning engine. In some aspects, the remote server comprises a dedicated server or a CIE. In some aspects, a qualified UE may offload expensive computations to a positioning engine residing on the server. Alternatively, the server may collect and store this interior point information from a UE-based positioning engine.

[0133] For example, the UE may seek to utilize its own positioning engine to perform UE-based positioning. In some aspects, the remote server may provide the UE with a set of inliers. In some aspects, the set of inliers is selected based on previous observations (e.g., based on data previously collected by or provided to the remote server). In some aspects, the assistance data may also include weights for combining measurements within the inlier set. For example, in some aspects, the server may provide RTT / AoA weights for specific anchors within the inlier set. In some aspects, the UE may then utilize this assistance data for intra-technology filtering. In some aspects, the UE may also request such assistance data for specific technologies (e.g., only for WiFi, only for NR, etc.). In some aspects, the UE may then employ its own scheme for inter-technology filtering and final positioning estimate.

[0134] In some aspects, the UE may also first request assistance data and then perform measurements corresponding only to the set of interior point anchors indicated by the assistance data. This reduces latency and power consumption. In some aspects, assistance data may also be exchanged directly between UEs. The server can assist in this scenario by providing a list of authenticated and qualified UEs in the vicinity of the new UE. An example use case is vehicle positioning.

[0135] In some aspects, the UE itself can be used as an on-demand anchor. Example use cases include vehicle positioning, where a vehicle can advertise its location and perform ultra-wideband (UWB) or sidelink (SL) measurements with other nearby vehicles. In some aspects, the anchor UE can broadcast dedicated messages to announce this functionality. In some aspects, these messages can also include additional capability information, such as supported technologies, authentication information (if any), and known ground truth and uncertainty. In some aspects, other nearby target UEs can then consider updating their own inlier anchor point sets to include the new anchor UE. The target UE can apply the criteria listed above (or other criteria) to decide whether to include the new anchor UE in future intra-technology filtering phases, for example, whether to update its existing inlier point set.

[0136] Even in out-of-coverage scenarios, the above steps will apply. However, if the UEs do have network coverage, they may seek assistance from a remote server. In some aspects, the anchor UE may notify the remote server of its intention to act as an anchor. In some aspects, the anchor UE may provide additional capability information to the server. In some aspects, the server may then advertise the availability of the anchor UE to other target UEs in the vicinity of the anchor UE.

[0137] In some aspects, such as for MTPE 600, the intra-technology block may receive feedback from the inter-technology block. In some aspects, feedback from the inter-technology fusion block may trigger an update of the inlier set for a particular intra-technology block. In some aspects, this feedback may take the form of a normalized set of weights, with each intra-technology block associated with a weight. For example, one of the intra-technology blocks may be associated with a lower weight (compared to the other technologies), which in turn suggests that the corresponding technology is less useful than the other technologies. This may trigger an update of the inlier set to improve performance. In some aspects, each intra-technology block may be associated with its own weight threshold for triggering an update of the inlier set.

[0138] Figure 7 is a flow chart of an example process 700 associated with methods and systems for efficient positioning anchor point selection according to aspects of the present disclosure. In some implementations, Figure 7 One or more process blocks of may be performed by a user equipment (UE) (e.g., UE 104). In some implementations, Figure 7One or more process blocks of may be performed by another device or a group of devices separate from or including the UE. Additionally or alternatively, Figure 7 One or more process blocks of process 700 may be performed by one or more components of UE 302, such as processor 332, memory 340, WWAN transceiver 310, short-range wireless transceiver 320, satellite signal receiver 330, sensor 344, user interface 346, and positioning component 342 (which may include MTPE 600), any or all of which may be means for performing the operations of process 700.

[0139] like Figure 7 As shown, process 700 may include determining a set of intra-technology positioning anchor points (block 710). Means for performing the operations of block 710 may include processor 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver 310 of UE 302. For example, UE 302 may determine the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points via positioning operations involving WWAN transceiver (2) 310.

[0140] like Figure 7 As further shown, process 700 may include determining that a location estimate is needed (block 720). Means for performing the operations of block 720 may include processor 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver 310 of UE 302. For example, UE 302 may determine that a location estimate is needed by receiving a request for a location estimate, such as from an external entity via receiver 312 or from an application running on processor 332 and using memory 340.

[0141] like Figure 7 As further shown, process 700 may include determining whether intra-technology location anchor point detection is required (block 730). Means for performing the operations of block 730 may include processor 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver 310 of UE 302. For example, UE 302 may use processor 332 to determine whether intra-technology location anchor point detection is required. As will be described in detail below, UE 302 may determine that intra-technology location anchor point detection is required based on detection of one or more triggering conditions.

[0142] like Figure 7 As further shown, process 700 may include, when it is determined that intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor point detection is not required, performing positioning operations using the set of intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor points without performing intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor point detection (block 740). Means for performing the operations of block 740 may include the processor 332, the memory 340, or the WWAN transceiver 310 of the UE 302. For example, the UE 302 may use the receiver 312 to measure signals received from the set of intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor points.

[0143] like Figure 7 As further shown, process 700 may include, when determining that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is needed, performing intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection to create or update the intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set, and performing positioning operations using the intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set (block 750). Means for performing the operations of block 750 may include the processor 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver 310 of the UE 302. For example, the UE 302 may use the processor 332 and memory 340 to perform intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection.

[0144] In some aspects, determining the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points includes determining the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points by the UE or receiving the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points from a network entity other than the UE.

[0145] In some aspects, determining that the positioning estimate is needed includes receiving a request for a positioning estimate.

[0146] In some aspects, determining that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required includes determining that a time period for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection has expired.

[0147] In some aspects, a period of time for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection for a first technology type is different than a period of time for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection for a second technology type.

[0148] In some aspects, determining that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is needed includes determining that a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points is no longer available or has been unavailable for a first threshold duration of time.

[0149] In some aspects, determining that the first anchor point is no longer available includes determining that the UE is out of coverage of the first anchor point.

[0150] In some aspects, determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed includes detecting that measurements from the set of intra-technology inlier positioning anchor points have a variance that exceeds a variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a second threshold duration of time.

[0151] In some aspects, determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed includes detecting that a subset of the measurements from the set of intra-technology inlier positioning anchor points has a variance that exceeds the variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a third threshold duration of time.

[0152] In some aspects, the subset of the measurements includes at least one of: signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), channel energy response (CER), line-of-sight (LoS) probability, time of arrival (ToA), angle of arrival (AoA), or sensor measurement.

[0153] In some aspects, the sensor measurements include measurements made by an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a barometer, an image sensor, an inertial sensor, or an audio sensor.

[0154] In some aspects, determining that intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is needed includes determining that the UE is leaving or will leave coverage of a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points, the UE is exiting or will exit a cell, or the UE is entering or will enter a new cell.

[0155] In some aspects, determining that the UE is exiting or about to exit a cell or that the UE is entering or about to enter a new cell is based on an estimated positioning of the UE or based on an indication received from a network entity that the UE is about to exit the cell or enter the new cell.

[0156] In some aspects, determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed includes detecting that a ground truth accuracy of a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology inlier positioning anchor points does not meet a ground truth accuracy threshold or has not met the ground truth accuracy threshold for a fourth threshold duration of time.

[0157] In some aspects, determining that intra-tech inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed includes determining that intra-tech inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed based on sensor data or a change in sensor data.

[0158] In some aspects, the sensor data includes measurements made by an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a barometer, an image sensor, an inertial sensor, or an audio sensor.

[0159] Process 700 may include additional implementations, such as any single implementation or any combination of implementations described below and / or in conjunction with one or more other processes described elsewhere herein. Figure 7 Example blocks of process 700 are shown, but in some implementations, process 700 may include Figure 7 7. The blocks depicted in FIG. 700 may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, different blocks, or blocks arranged in a different manner than those depicted in FIG. Additionally or alternatively, two or more of the blocks in process 700 may be performed in parallel.

[0160] Note that the above examples are described with reference to an MTPE (such as MTPE 600), but the same techniques for determining when the inlier positioning anchor detection process is and is not required are applicable to other architectures and implementations, including those in which only one type of technology is present and those in which multiple technology types are present but without an inter-technology filtering component, including those in which inlier positioning anchor selection occurs separately for each technology and those in which inlier positioning anchor selection occurs aggregately across all technologies.

[0161] As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of the methods described herein is that the intra-technical positioning anchor point detection process is not performed every time a positioning estimate is needed, which can significantly reduce the power consumption of the UE, especially for UE-based positioning methods.

[0162] In the above detailed description, it can be seen that different features are grouped together in each example. This disclosure should not be understood as an intention that the example clauses have more features than the features explicitly mentioned in each clause. On the contrary, the various aspects of the present disclosure may include less than all the features of the disclosed individual example clauses. Therefore, the following clauses should be considered to be incorporated into the description accordingly, wherein each clause itself can be used as a separate example. Although each dependent clause may refer to a specific combination of a clause with one of the other clauses in a clause, the aspects of the dependent clause are not limited to a specific combination. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include a combination of the dependent clause aspects with the subject matter of any other dependent clause or independent clause or a combination of any feature with other dependent clauses and independent clauses. The various aspects disclosed herein explicitly include these combinations, unless explicitly expressed or can be easily inferred that a specific combination is not intended to be used (for example, contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as both an electrical insulator and an electrical conductor). In addition, it is also expected that various aspects of a clause may be included in any other independent clause, even if the clause is not directly dependent on the independent clause.

[0163] Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0164] Clause 1. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: determining an intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set; determining that positioning estimation is required; determining whether intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required; when it is determined that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is not required, performing a positioning operation using the intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set without performing intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection; and when it is determined that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required, performing intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection to create an updated intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set, and performing a positioning operation using the updated intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set.

[0165] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein determining the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points comprises determining the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points by the UE or receiving the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points from a network entity other than the UE.

[0166] Clause 3. The method of any of clauses 1 to 2, wherein determining that the positioning estimate is needed comprises receiving a request for a positioning estimate.

[0167] Clause 4. The method of any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein determining that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required comprises determining that a time period for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection has expired.

[0168] Clause 5. The method of clause 4, wherein a period for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection of a first technology type is different from a period for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection of a second technology type.

[0169] Clause 6. The method of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein determining that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required comprises determining that a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points is no longer available or has been unavailable for a first threshold duration of time.

[0170] Clause 7. The method of clause 6, wherein determining that the first anchor point is no longer available comprises determining that the UE is out of coverage of the first anchor point.

[0171] Clause 8. The method of any one of clauses 1 to 7, wherein determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required comprises detecting that measurements from the set of intra-technology inlier positioning anchor points have a variance that exceeds a variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a second threshold duration of time.

[0172] Clause 9. The method of clause 8, wherein determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed comprises detecting that a subset of the measurements from the set of intra-technology inlier positioning anchor points has a variance that exceeds the variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a third threshold duration of time.

[0173] Clause 10. The method of clause 9, wherein the subset of the measurements comprises at least one of: signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), channel energy response (CER), line-of-sight (LoS) probability, time of arrival (ToA), angle of arrival (AoA), or sensor measurements.

[0174] Clause 11. The method of clause 10, wherein the sensor measurements include measurements made by an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a barometer, an image sensor, an inertial sensor, or an audio sensor.

[0175] Clause 12. A method according to any of clauses 1 to 11, wherein determining that intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is required comprises determining that the UE is leaving or is about to leave the coverage of a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points, the UE is exiting or is about to exit a cell, or the UE is entering or is about to enter a new cell.

[0176] Clause 13. A method according to clause 12, wherein determining that the UE is exiting or is about to exit a cell or that the UE is entering or is about to enter a new cell is based on an estimated positioning of the UE, or based on an indication received from a network entity that the UE is about to exit the cell or enter the new cell.

[0177] Clause 14. A method according to any one of clauses 1 to 13, wherein determining that intra-technical inlier positioning anchor point detection is required includes detecting that the ground truth accuracy of a first anchor point in the set of intra-technical inlier positioning anchor points does not meet a ground truth accuracy threshold or has not met the ground truth accuracy threshold for a fourth threshold time duration.

[0178] Clause 15. The method of any one of clauses 1 to 14, wherein determining the need for intra-technical inlier positioning anchor point detection comprises determining the need for intra-technical inlier positioning anchor point detection based on sensor data or a change in sensor data.

[0179] Clause 16. The method of clause 15, wherein the sensor data comprises measurements taken by an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a barometer, an image sensor, an inertial sensor, or an audio sensor.

[0180] Clause 17. The method of any of clauses 1 to 16, wherein performing intra-technology in-line positioning anchor point detection comprises receiving the set of intra-technology in-line positioning anchor points from a network server.

[0181] Clause 18. The method of clause 17, wherein receiving the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points comprises receiving the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points as assistance data.

[0182] Clause 19. The method of any of clauses 1 to 18, wherein determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required comprises receiving an indication that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required from an inter-technology filtering process.

[0183] Clause 20. A method according to clause 19, wherein receiving the indication from the inter-technology filtering process that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required includes receiving an indication that the weight associated with the intra-technology filtering process is below a weight threshold or the weight associated with the intra-technology filtering process has been reduced by a weight reduction threshold.

[0184] Clause 21. The method of any of clauses 1 to 20, further comprising sending a capability message indicating an ability to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor.

[0185] Clause 22. A method according to any of clauses 1 to 21, the method further comprising receiving a capability message from a second UE, the capability message indicating a capability of the second UE to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor; and determining that intra-technology positioning anchor detection is required based on the capability of the second UE to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor.

[0186] Clause 23. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, the at least one processor being communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: determine an intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point set; determine that a positioning estimate is required; determine whether intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required; when it is determined that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is not required, perform a positioning operation using the intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point set without performing intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection; and when it is determined that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required, perform intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection to create an updated intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point set, and perform a positioning operation using the updated intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point set.

[0187] Clause 24. The UE of clause 23, wherein, to determine the set of intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor points, the at least one processor is configured to determine the set of intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor points by the UE or receive the set of intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor points from a network entity other than the UE.

[0188] Clause 25. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 23 to 24, wherein, in order to determine that the positioning estimate is required, the at least one processor is configured to receive a request for a positioning estimate.

[0189] Clause 26. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 23 to 25, wherein, to determine that intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is required, the at least one processor is configured to determine that a period for triggering intra-technology positioning anchor point detection has expired.

[0190] Clause 27. The UE of clause 26, wherein a period for triggering intra-technology positioning anchor point detection for the first technology type is different from a period for triggering intra-technology positioning anchor point detection for the second technology type.

[0191] Clause 28. A UE according to any of clauses 23 to 27, wherein, to determine that intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is required, the at least one processor is configured to determine that a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points is no longer available or has been unavailable for a first threshold duration of time.

[0192] Clause 29. The UE of clause 28, wherein, to determine that the first anchor point is no longer available, the at least one processor is configured to determine that the UE is out of coverage of the first anchor point.

[0193] Clause 30. A UE according to any of clauses 23 to 29, wherein, to determine that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required, the at least one processor is configured to detect that measurements from the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points have a variance that exceeds a variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a second threshold time duration.

[0194] Clause 31. A UE according to clause 30, wherein, to determine that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required, the at least one processor is configured to detect that a subset of the measurements from the intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point set has a variance that exceeds the variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a third threshold time duration.

[0195] Clause 32. A UE according to clause 31, wherein the subset of the measurements includes at least one of the following: signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), channel energy response (CER), line-of-sight (LoS) probability, time of arrival (ToA), angle of arrival (AoA), or sensor measurement.

[0196] Clause 33. The UE of clause 32, wherein the sensor measurements include measurements made by an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a barometer, an image sensor, an inertial sensor, or an audio sensor.

[0197] Clause 34. A UE according to any of clauses 23 to 33, wherein, to determine that intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is required, the at least one processor is configured to determine that the UE is leaving or is about to leave the coverage of a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points, the UE is exiting or is about to exit a cell, or the UE is entering or is about to enter a new cell.

[0198] Clause 35. A UE according to clause 34, wherein the at least one processor is configured to determine that the UE is exiting or is about to exit the cell, or that the UE is entering or is about to enter the new cell based on an estimated positioning of the UE or based on an indication received from a network entity that the UE is about to exit the cell or enter a new cell.

[0199] Clause 36. A UE according to any one of clauses 23 to 35, wherein, in order to determine that intra-technology in-line positioning anchor point detection is required, the at least one processor is configured to detect that the ground truth accuracy of a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology in-line positioning anchor points does not meet a ground truth accuracy threshold or has not met the ground truth accuracy threshold for a fourth threshold time duration.

[0200] Clause 37. A UE as described in any of clauses 23 to 36, wherein, to determine the need for intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection, the at least one processor is configured to determine the need for intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection based on sensor data or a change in sensor data.

[0201] Clause 38. The UE of clause 37, wherein the sensor data comprises measurements made by an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a barometer, an image sensor, an inertial sensor, or an audio sensor.

[0202] Clause 39. A UE as set forth in any of clauses 23 to 38, wherein, to perform intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor point detection, the at least one processor is configured to receive the set of intra-technology intra-point positioning anchor points from a network server.

[0203] Clause 40. The UE of clause 39, wherein, to receive the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points, the at least one processor is configured to receive the set of intra-technology positioning anchor points as assistance data.

[0204] Clause 41. A UE as described in any of clauses 23 to 40, wherein, to determine that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required, the at least one processor is configured to receive an indication that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required from an inter-technology filtering process.

[0205] Clause 42. A UE according to clause 41, wherein, in order to receive the indication that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required from the inter-technology filtering process, the at least one processor is configured to receive an indication that the weight associated with the intra-technology filtering process is below a weight threshold or the weight associated with the intra-technology filtering process has been reduced by a weight reduction threshold.

[0206] Clause 43. The UE of any of clauses 23 to 42, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to send a capability message indicating an ability to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor point.

[0207] Clause 44. A UE according to any of clauses 23 to 43, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive a capability message from a second UE, the capability message indicating the capability of the second UE to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor; and determine that intra-technology positioning anchor detection is required based on the capability of the second UE to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor.

[0208] Clause 45. An apparatus comprising a memory, a transceiver, and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver, the memory, the transceiver, and the processor configured to perform the method of any of clauses 1 to 22.

[0209] Clause 46. An apparatus comprising means for performing the method of any one of clauses 1 to 22.

[0210] Clause 47. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions comprising at least one instruction for causing a computer or a processor to perform the method of any one of clauses 1 to 22.

[0211] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, light fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0212] In addition, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithmic steps described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of the two. In order to clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been generally described above in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the entire system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application, but such specific implementation decisions should not be interpreted as resulting in a departure from the scope of this disclosure.

[0213] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors and a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0214] The methods, sequences, and / or algorithms described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software module may reside in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. In an alternative embodiment, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). In an alternative embodiment, the processor and storage medium may reside in the user terminal as discrete components.

[0215] In one or more example aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium or sent via a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media, which include any media that facilitate the transfer of computer programs from one place to another. Storage media can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM, or other optical disk storage devices, magnetic disk storage devices, or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Moreover, any connection is appropriately referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is sent from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwaves, the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwaves are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc, where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0216] Although the foregoing disclosure illustrates exemplary aspects of the present disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications may be made herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. In addition, the functions, steps, and / or actions of the method claims according to the various aspects of the present disclosure described herein do not need to be performed in any particular order. Furthermore, although elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, plural forms are also contemplated unless explicitly stated to be limited to the singular.

Claims

1. A method for wireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: Determine the set of anchor points for positioning within the technology; Determine the need for a positioning estimate; Determine whether technical inlier positioning anchor point detection is required; When it is determined that the intra-technical inlier positioning anchor point detection is not required, performing a positioning operation using the intra-technical inlier positioning anchor point set without performing the intra-technical inlier positioning anchor point detection; as well as When it is determined that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed, intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is performed to create an updated intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point set, and a positioning operation is performed using the updated intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point set.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the intra-technology positioning anchor point set comprises determining the intra-technology positioning anchor point set by the UE, or receiving the intra-technology positioning anchor point set from a network entity other than the UE. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that the location estimate is needed comprises receiving a request for a location estimate. 4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required comprises determining that a time period for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection has expired. 5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein a period for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection of a first technology type is different from a period for triggering intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection of a second technology type. 6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection is required comprises determining that a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points is no longer available or has been unavailable for a first threshold duration of time.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein determining that the first anchor point is no longer available comprises determining that the UE is out of coverage of the first anchor point.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed comprises detecting that measurements from the set of intra-technology inlier positioning anchor points have a variance that exceeds a variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a second threshold duration of time.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed comprises detecting that a subset of the measurements from the set of intra-technology inlier positioning anchor points has a variance that exceeds the variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a third threshold duration of time.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the subset of the measurements comprises at least one of: signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), channel energy response (CER), line-of-sight (LoS) probability, time of arrival (ToA), angle of arrival (AoA), or sensor measurements.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the sensor measurements include measurements made by an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a barometer, an image sensor, an inertial sensor, or an audio sensor.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that intra-technology positioning anchor point detection is required comprises determining that the UE is leaving or is about to leave coverage of a first anchor point in the intra-technology positioning anchor point set, the UE is exiting or is about to exit a cell, or the UE is entering or is about to enter a new cell.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein determining that the UE is exiting or is about to exit a cell or that the UE is entering or is about to enter a new cell is based on an estimated positioning of the UE, or based on an indication received from a network entity that the UE is about to exit the cell or enter the new cell.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is needed comprises detecting that a ground truth accuracy of a first anchor point in the set of intra-technology inlier positioning anchor points does not satisfy a ground truth accuracy threshold or has not satisfied the ground truth accuracy threshold for a fourth threshold duration of time.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the need for intra-technical inlier positioning anchor point detection comprises determining the need for intra-technical inlier positioning anchor point detection based on sensor data or a change in sensor data.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the sensor data comprises measurements made by an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a barometer, an image sensor, an inertial sensor, or an audio sensor.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein performing intra-technology in-line positioning anchor point detection comprises receiving the set of intra-technology in-line positioning anchor points from a network server.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein receiving the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points comprises receiving the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points as assistance data.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required comprises receiving an indication that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required from an inter-technology filtering process.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein receiving the indication from the inter-technology filtering process that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required comprises receiving an indication that a weight associated with an intra-technology filtering process is below a weight threshold or that the weight associated with the intra-technology filtering process has been reduced by a weight reduction threshold.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending a capability message indicating an ability to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor.

22. The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving a capability message from a second UE, the capability message indicating a capability of the second UE to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor; and determining that intra-technology positioning anchor detection is required based on the capability of the second UE to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor.

23. A user equipment (UE), comprising: Memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: Determine the set of anchor points for positioning within the technology; Determine the need for a positioning estimate; Determine whether technical inlier positioning anchor point detection is required; When it is determined that technical inlier positioning anchor point detection is not required, performing a positioning operation using the technical inlier positioning anchor point set without performing technical inlier positioning anchor point detection; as well as When it is determined that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required, intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is performed to create or update the intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point set, and a positioning operation is performed using the intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point set.

24. The UE according to claim 23, wherein: To determine the intra-technology positioning anchor point set, the at least one processor is configured to determine the intra-technology positioning anchor point set by the UE or receive the intra-technology positioning anchor point set from a network entity other than the UE.

25. The UE according to claim 23, wherein To determine that the position estimate is needed, the at least one processor is configured to: receiving a request for a location estimate; determining that a time period for triggering a technical intra-point positioning anchor point detection has expired; Determining that a first anchor point in the set of in-point positioning anchor points within the technology is no longer available or has been unavailable for a first threshold duration of time; determining that measurements from the set of inlier positioning anchor points within the technology have a variance that exceeds a variance threshold or has exceeded the variance threshold for a second threshold duration of time; Determining that the UE is leaving or is about to leave the coverage of a first anchor point in the intra-technology positioning anchor point set, the UE is exiting or is about to exit a cell, or the UE is entering or is about to enter a new cell; or It is determined that a ground truth accuracy of a first anchor point in the set of inlier positioning anchor points within the technique does not satisfy a ground truth accuracy threshold or has not satisfied the ground truth accuracy threshold for a fourth threshold duration of time.

26. The UE according to claim 23, wherein: To determine the need for intra-tech inlier positioning anchor point detection, the at least one processor is configured to determine the need for intra-tech inlier positioning anchor point detection based on sensor data or a change in sensor data.

27. The UE according to claim 23, wherein: To perform intra-technology in-point positioning anchor point detection, the at least one processor is configured to receive the set of intra-technology in-point positioning anchor points from a network server.

28. The UE according to claim 23, wherein: To determine that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required, the at least one processor is configured to receive an indication from the inter-technology filtering process that intra-technology inlier positioning anchor point detection is required.

29. The UE of claim 23, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to send a capability message indicating an ability to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor point.

30. The UE of claim 23 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive a capability message from a second UE, the capability message indicating a capability of the second UE to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor; and determine that intra-technology positioning anchor detection is required based on the capability of the second UE to perform as an on-demand intra-technology positioning anchor.

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