Control device, control method, and program

Abstract

To prevent a reduction in positioning accuracy due to a radio environment between a base station and a terminal.SOLUTION: A control device for controlling positioning based on communication between one or more base stations and a terminal performs control so as to: acquire a detection result of a radio signal detected by the terminal and transmitted from one or more base stations; select one of a plurality of positioning methods on the basis of the acquired detection result; and execute a positioning process by using the selected positioning method.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a control device, a control method, and a program for controlling a positioning process based on communication between a base station and a terminal. [Background technology]

[0002] The fifth generation mobile wireless communication system (5G system) is being studied to be introduced into a wireless communication system including public mobile phone base stations (cellular base stations) and mobile terminals connected to them. In the 5G system, a wide variety of wireless communication devices, including not only mobile phones but also automobiles, construction machinery, robots, etc., will be connected to the cellular base station. As wireless communication devices that provide various services are expected to be connected, applications to various services, in addition to emergency call location identification and navigation, are being considered, and the demand for positioning (location measurement) of wireless communication devices is expanding.

[0003] In LTE (Long Term Evolution) and 5G NR (New Radio) of 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) (registered trademark), several positioning methods are proposed by communication using radio waves with cellular base stations. This makes it possible to perform positioning indoors and underground, and is expected to expand the positioning range and improve positioning accuracy. Patent Document 1 discloses a method for improving the deterioration of positioning accuracy using an OTDOA (Observed Time Difference Of Arrival) method that performs position measurement based on the detection results of radio waves transmitted from several cellular base stations. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6495540 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] As described above, multiple positioning methods have been proposed in LTE and 5G NR of 3GPP (registered trademark). Here, depending on the positioning method, the positioning accuracy may be reduced due to the wireless environment between a specific cellular base station and a terminal.

[0006] In view of the above problems, the present invention has an object to prevent a decrease in positioning accuracy due to the wireless environment between a base station and a terminal. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, a control device according to one aspect of the present invention includes: A control device for controlling positioning based on communication between one or more base stations and a terminal, an acquisition means for acquiring a detection result of a wireless signal transmitted from the one or more base stations detected by the terminal; a selection means for selecting one of a plurality of positioning methods based on the detection result acquired by the acquisition means; a control means for controlling execution of a positioning process using the positioning method selected by the selection means; The present invention is characterized by comprising: Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent a decrease in positioning accuracy due to the wireless environment between a base station and a terminal. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a positioning system including a terminal device and a base station device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] Positioning system block diagram [Diagram 3] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing a flow of performing positioning of a terminal device according to the present embodiment. [Figure 4] A process sequence diagram executed between the terminal device and the LMF according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 5]A flowchart showing an example of a process executed by a terminal device according to the present embodiment. [Figure 6] Diagram showing groups of positioning methods [Figure 7] Example of PRS RSRP and SNR thresholds [Figure 8] 1 is a hardware configuration diagram of a terminal device according to the present embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the configurations shown in the following embodiments are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to the illustrated configurations.

[0011] First Embodiment Fig. 1 is a configuration diagram of a positioning system according to this embodiment. The positioning system 1 includes base station devices 10A to 10C (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as base station devices 10 without distinction) and a terminal device 20. The base station device 10 is, for example, a public mobile phone base station, and is also called NG-RAN (Next Generation-Radio Access Network) or AN (Access Network) in a 5G (5th generation) system. The terminal device 20 is a mobile wireless communication device, and is also called UE (User Equipment). As will be described later with reference to Fig. 2, the positioning system 1 includes a network node.

[0012] The base station devices 10A to 10C have coverage areas 11A to 11C, respectively (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as coverage area 11 without distinction). The coverage areas 11A to 11C may be cells of the same frequency or cells of different frequencies. The base station device 10 can establish a connection with a communication device in the coverage area 11. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the terminal device 20 is connected to the base station device 10A. In such a case, the coverage area 11A may also be referred to as a serving cell, and the coverage areas 11B and 11C may be referred to as adjacent cells 11B and 11C. When the UE 20 is located within the range of the serving cell 11A, the positioning system 1 can perform positioning of the UE 20.

[0013] In this embodiment, the positioning system 1 is capable of performing positioning using a plurality of positioning methods. The positioning methods include OTDOA (Observed Time Difference Of Arrival), E-CID (Enhanced Cell ID) positioning, DL-TDOA (Downlink-Time Difference of Arrival), DL-AoD (Downlink-Angle of Departure), Multi-RTT (Roundtrip Time) positioning, UL-TDOA (Uplink-Time Difference of Arrival), and UL-AoA (Uplink-Angle of Arrival). The positioning methods include one that performs positioning through communication between the UE 20 and one base station device 10, and one that requires communication between the UE 20 and a plurality of base station devices 10. When performing positioning of the UE 20 using such a positioning method, the UE 20 needs to be located within the coverage area 11 of the plurality of base station devices 10.

[0014] Conventionally, in a positioning system capable of positioning the UE 20 using a plurality of positioning methods, the positioning method is determined based on the specifications of the base station device 10 of the serving cell, the relationship with the neighboring cells, and the positioning method supported by the UE 20. However, when the positioning method is determined by the positioning system, the radio environment between the UE 20 and the base station device 10 is not taken into consideration. For this reason, when the communication quality between a specific base station device 10 and the UE 20 is low because the UE 20 is located at the cell edge, performing positioning between the base station device 10 and the UE 20 may result in a decrease in positioning accuracy or a long time required for positioning. In the following description, a process of the positioning system 1 that determines the positioning method taking into consideration the communication environment of the UE 20 will be described.

[0015] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the positioning system 1 according to the present embodiment. The UE 20 communicates with the base station device 10 by transmitting and receiving electromagnetic waves. The base station 10 includes an ng-eNB 201A that operates as an LTE base station conforming to the LTE (Long Term Evolution) standard of 3GPP (registered trademark). The base station 10 also includes a gNB 201B that operates as a 5G NR base station conforming to the 5th generation (5G) NR (New Radio) standard of 3GPP (registered trademark). The UE 20 establishes wireless communication in the LTE system via the base station 10, or establishes wireless communication in the 5G NR system. That is, the UE 20 is a terminal device capable of communication conforming to the 3GPP (registered trademark) standard.

[0016] Communication between the UE 20 and the base station apparatus 10 is controlled by an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 202. Processing relating to position measurement is controlled by a Location Management Function (LMF) 203. The LMF 203 controls the base station apparatus 10 and the UE 20 via the AMF 202.

[0017] Note that the functions of the AMF 202 and the LMF 203 may be realized by a plurality of communication devices. Also, the base station device 10 may have at least one of the functions of the AMF 202 and the LMF 203.

[0018] 3 is a sequence diagram when the positioning process is executed by the functional blocks shown in FIG. 2. The positioning process can be started by transmitting a positioning request message from the UE 20 to the AMF 202 via the base station device 10 (processing step S301). Hereinafter, processing step S301 may be simply referred to as S301 (the same applies to other processing steps). In one example, when an application that requests the location information of the UE 20, such as a map application, is instructed to be started, the UE 20 transmits a positioning request. Alternatively, the positioning process can be started by transmitting a positioning request message from a 5GC (5G Core Network) LCS (Location Service) 320, which is a network node that manages the location service of the positioning system 1, to the AMF 202 (S302). Alternatively, the positioning process can be started by the AMF 202 determining to start the positioning process under any condition, such as a predetermined time interval (S303).

[0019] Next, the AMF 202 transmits a positioning command message to the LMF 203 (S304), and the LMF 203 starts processing from S305 onwards. The LMF 203 notifies the base station device 10 to which the UE 20 is connected of the start of positioning processing based on information on the serving cell of the UE 20 and the status of the neighboring cell (S305). Note that if there is a possibility that the base station device 10 of the neighboring cell will also participate in the positioning processing, a notification is transmitted in the same manner. That is, in S305, a notification is transmitted to one or more base station devices 10. In one example, in S305, the LMF 203 may obtain position information of the base station device 10 from the base station device 10. Alternatively, in S305, the LMF 203 may obtain position information of the base station device 10 stored in advance from a storage unit (described later) of the LMF 203. Alternatively, in S305, the positional relationship between one base station device 10 and one or more other base station devices 10 may be identified by transmitting and receiving radio signals using any of the above-mentioned positioning methods.

[0020] Next, the LMF 203 notifies the UE 20 of the positioning process, and identifies the position of the UE 20 based on the transmission and reception of signals between the UE 20 and the base station device 10 (S306). Note that the identified position information in S306 is reported to the LMF 203 from the UE 20 or the base station device 10. Alternatively, in S306, a detection result of a wireless signal between the UE 20 and the base station device 10 may be transmitted to the LMF 203, and the LMF 203 may identify the position of the UE 20 based on the detection result. That is, in S306, as described above, it is sufficient that a signal is transmitted and received according to a known positioning method such as OTDOA or E-CID positioning, and the positioning method may be a network-based positioning method or a terminal-based positioning method. In the network-based positioning method, one or more base station devices 10 detect a reference signal included in an uplink (UL) transmission from the UE 20 in S306, and a network node such as the LMF 203 determines the position of the UE 20 based on the detection result. In the terminal-based positioning method, in S306, one or more base station devices 10 transmit radio signals such as a Positioning Reference Signal (PRS), and the UE 20 detects the radio signals and determines the location of the UE 20 based on the detection result.

[0021] Next, the LMF 203 transmits the identified location information of the UE 20 to the AMF 202 (S307), and also transmits it to the 5G LCS 320 and the UE 20 as necessary (S308, S310). The location information provided to the AMF 202 (S309) is used for notifications of emergency call services, and the location information provided to the 5G LCS is used for services using location information provided by mobile phone service providers.

[0022] Fig. 4 shows details of the process of S306 in Fig. 3. In S401, the LMF 203 transmits a positioning capability information request message to the UE 20, requesting to confirm the capability of the positioning method supported by the UE 20. In one example, the LMF 203 selects a feasible positioning method as a candidate positioning method from the specifications of the base station apparatuses 10 of the serving cell of the UE 20 and the neighboring cell, and transmits information on the selectable positioning method in the positioning capability information request message.

[0023] In response to the request in S401, the UE 20 notifies the LMF 203 of the capability indicating the positioning method that the UE 20 can execute by including the capability in the positioning capability information message. This allows the UE 20 and the LMF 203 to mutually grasp the positioning methods that can be used. The LMF 203 may also inquire about the positioning methods that can be executed from the base station device 10 of the serving cell and the base station device 10 of the neighboring cell to obtain the capability.

[0024] Next, in S403, the UE 20 receives a positioning reference signal (PRS) which is a reference signal used for positioning and transmitted from the base station device 10. The PRS is a downlink signal transmitted from each of the base station devices 10 of the serving cell of the UE 20 and the neighboring cell. The UE 20 determines RSRP (reference signal reception strength) as the signal strength of the PRS and SNR (signal-to-noise ratio) as the signal quality. The UE 20 may periodically execute the process of S403 at a predetermined time interval. In one example, the UE 20 may start detecting the PRS when an instruction is given to start an application that requests the location information of the UE 20, such as a map application.

[0025] Next, in S404, the UE 20 requests positioning assistance information, and in S405, the LMF 203 provides the positioning assistance information in response. The positioning assistance information is information used when the UE 20 performs positioning in S406, and includes, for example, location information of the base station device 10 that provides the serving cell. The positioning assistance information may also include location information of the base station device 10 that provides the neighboring cell. The request message for positioning assistance information transmitted from the UE 20 in S404 includes information indicating the positioning method selected by the UE 20 based on the reception result in S403.

[0026] Next, the UE 20 advances the process to S406 and executes the positioning process by the positioning method notified in S404. Here, the positioning process is performed using the position information of the base station device 10 acquired in S405 based on the positioning method transmitted in S404. In one example, the positioning process also measures at least one of the signal strength (RSRP) and the signal arrival time difference (RSTD) of the PRS, identifies the distance and direction from the base station device 10, and identifies the position of the UE 20 based on the position of the base station device 10.

[0027] After the positioning process is completed, the LMF 203 requests the UE 20 for location information in S407, and the UE 20 transmits the location information to the LMF 203 in S408. This allows the LMF 203 to acquire the location information of the UE 20. When performing positioning using a network-based positioning method, the LMF 203 identifies the location information of the UE 20 or acquires the location information of the UE 20 from a network node different from the UE 20, so the processes of S407 and S408 may be omitted. In one example, after performing the positioning process in S406, the UE 20 may transmit the location information of the UE 20 to the LMF 203 even if it does not receive a request for location information.

[0028] Next, an operation flowchart of the UE 20 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0029] As described with reference to S401, the UE 20 receives a request for positioning capability information from the LMF 203 that has decided to perform positioning of the UE 20 (S501). Then, as described with reference to S402, in response to the request for positioning capability information, the UE 20 transmits positioning capability information to the LMF 203 according to its own execution capability of the positioning method (S502).

[0030] Next, the UE 20 detects the PRS transmitted from the base station device 10 (S503), and selects the positioning method based on the detection result.

[0031] There are two types of positioning methods: a method of transmitting and receiving radio signals between multiple base station devices 10 and the UE 20, and a method of transmitting and receiving radio signals between a single base station device 10 and the UE 20. In other words, there are two types of positioning methods: a method in which multiple base station devices 10 participate, and a method in which a single base station device 10 participates. In this embodiment, the positioning methods are divided into three groups based on the number of base stations used in the positioning method. These functional groups are shown in FIG. 6. Group A is a positioning method that uses three or more base station devices 10, Group B is a positioning method that uses two base station devices 10, and Group C is a positioning method that uses a single base station device 10.

[0032] The positioning method to be used is selected from among the positioning methods supported by the UE 20 and included in the positioning capability information transmitted in S502 of FIG. 5, through the following process.

[0033] In S504, the UE 20 determines whether or not the UE 20 is capable of implementing the positioning method of Group A. If the UE 20 is capable of implementing the positioning method of Group A (Yes in S504), the UE 20 proceeds to S505, and if not (No in S504), the UE 20 proceeds to S507.

[0034] In S505, for a plurality of PRSs transmitted from three or more base station devices 10, it is determined whether or not the RSRP and SNR are higher than an RSRP threshold (first threshold) and an SNR threshold (second threshold). At least one of the first threshold and the second threshold may be a different value depending on the frequency band in which the PRS is transmitted. The UE 20 executes the process of S505 based on the first threshold and the second threshold that are stored in advance or included in the request transmitted in S501. In addition, when a plurality of PRSs transmitted from one base station device 10 is detected in S503, it may be determined whether or not the average value of the RSRPs and the average value of the SNRs of the plurality of PRSs are higher than the first threshold and the second threshold. In addition, when a plurality of PRSs transmitted from one base station device 10 on different frequency channels is detected in S503, the UE 20 may determine whether or not the RSRP and the SNR of the PRS are higher than the first threshold and the second threshold for each frequency channel.

[0035] If it is determined in S505 that the RSRP and SNR of the PRS transmitted from three or more base station devices 10 are higher than the first threshold and the second threshold (Yes in S505), the UE 20 advances the process to S506 and selects a positioning method from Group A. At this time, Group A may include multiple positioning methods, but the method is selected in the following order of priority.

[0036] 1.OTDOA 2. DL-TDOA 3. Multi-RTT 4.UL-TDOA If it is determined in S505 that at least one of the RSRP and the SNR of the PRS transmitted from three or more base station devices 10 is equal to or lower than the first threshold and the second threshold (No in S505), the UE 20 advances the process to S508.

[0037] In S507, the UE 20 determines whether or not the UE 20 is capable of implementing the positioning method of Group B. If the UE 20 is capable of implementing the positioning method of Group B (Yes in S507), the UE 20 proceeds to process S508, and if not (No in S507), the UE 20 proceeds to process S510.

[0038] In S508, it is determined whether or not the RSRP and SNR of the multiple PRSs transmitted from two or more base station devices 10 are higher than an RSRP threshold (first threshold) and an SNR threshold (second threshold). The details of the determination are similar to those of S505, so a description thereof will be omitted. If it is determined in S508 that the RSRP and SNR of the PRSs transmitted from two or more base station devices 10 are higher than the first threshold and the second threshold (Yes in S508), the UE 20 proceeds to the process of S509 and selects a positioning method from Group B. If it is determined in S508 that at least either the RSRP or the SNR of the PRSs transmitted from two or more base station devices 10 is equal to or lower than the first threshold and the second threshold (No in S508), the UE 20 proceeds to the process of S510.

[0039] In S509, the UE 20 selects a positioning method from Group B. In the example of Fig. 6, only DL-AoD is selectable in Group B, so DL-AoD is selected as the positioning method.

[0040] In S510, UE 20 selects a positioning method from Group C. More specifically, UE 20 determines the positioning method depending on whether the serving cell is LTE or 5G NR. For example, if the serving cell is LTE, UE 20 selects E-CID as the positioning method, and if the serving cell is 5G NR, UE 20 selects NR E-CID as the positioning method.

[0041] After selecting the positioning method in S506, S509, and S510, the UE 20 advances the process to S511 and transmits a request for positioning assistance information. Here, the positioning assistance information includes information indicating the selected positioning method. In response to the request for positioning assistance information, the positioning assistance information is provided from the LMF 203 (S512). The UE 20 performs positioning using the positioning method based on the positioning assistance information and the measurement result of the PRS (S513), and the location information is identified (S514).

[0042] If a request for location information has been received from the LMF 203 (Yes in S515), the location information is transmitted to the LMF 203 (S517), and the process proceeds to S516.

[0043] If the UE 20 does not receive a request for location information from the LMF 203 (No in S515), the UE 20 proceeds to processing at S516 and determines whether or not to continue positioning. For example, if the UE 20 is executing an application that requests the location information of the UE 20, the UE 20 may determine to end positioning when an instruction to end the application is received, and may determine to continue positioning when an instruction to end the application is not received. If the positioning is to be continued (Yes in S516), the processing returns to S503 and PRS detection is performed, and if the positioning is to be ended (No in S516), the processing proceeds to S518. In S518, the UE 20 ends PRS detection, and ends the flowchart shown in FIG. 5.

[0044] Next, the thresholds of RSRP and SNR of PRS will be described with reference to FIG. 7. The situation where RSRP is decreased may be when the base station device 10 is far away or when there is an obstruction between the UE 20 and the base station device 10, and communication may be impossible due to a change in the radio environment caused by a slight movement. The situation where SNR is decreased may be when RSRP is low, and communication may be impossible due to the presence of multipath fading, inter-cell interference, and interference waves and jamming waves from other systems including other than mobile phones. Therefore, when the PRS is below the threshold, the communication environment is not good and the positioning accuracy may be reduced, so the base station device 10 that detects a PRS below the threshold selects a positioning method by not using it for positioning processing. Note that, as described above, multiple thresholds may be set according to the frequency channel through which the PRS is transmitted and the frequency channel through which the UE 20 transmits in the positioning processing.

[0045] In this way, the UE 20 according to this embodiment detects radio signals transmitted from one or more base station devices 10, and selects a positioning method to use based on the detection results such as received signal strength and received signal quality. This makes it possible to continue positioning using an appropriate positioning method even if the radio environment changes after positioning is started due to the UE 20 moving, etc. Also, it is possible to prevent positioning using a base station device 10 that is likely to have low positioning accuracy, and thus prevent a decrease in positioning accuracy.

[0046] Next, a hardware configuration of the UE 20 will be described with reference to Fig. 8. The UE 20 includes a control unit 801, a storage unit 802, and a wireless communication unit 803.

[0047] The control unit 801 includes, for example, one or more processors such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit) and one or more memories. The processor of the control unit 801 executes a program stored in the memory to perform the processing described with reference to Fig. 5. The control unit 801 may include an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or the like configured to perform the processing of Fig. 5.

[0048] The storage unit 802 is a storage device that stores programs executed by the processor of the control unit 801 and various data used by the programs. The storage unit 802 stores, for example, a list of positioning methods shown in Fig. 6 and thresholds of RSRP and SNR of PRS shown in Fig. 7. When the positioning method supported by the positioning system 1 is changed, the UE 20 may obtain information on the list of positioning methods from an external device and update the data stored in the storage unit 802.

[0049] The wireless communication unit 803 is connected to the base station apparatus 10 and includes a wireless communication circuit that detects the PRS transmitted from the base station apparatus 10.

[0050] In the present embodiment, the UE 20 is described as selecting the positioning method. However, a network node of a RAN (Radio Access Network) or a core network may select the positioning method. In this case, the UE 20 that detects the PRS in S403 transmits the detection result to the network node, selects the positioning method based on the detection result acquired by the network node, and controls the UE 20 or the base station device 10 to execute the selected positioning method. That is, a control device that acquires the detection result of the PRS by the UE 20, selects one of a plurality of positioning methods based on the acquired detection result of the PRS, and controls to execute the positioning process with the selected positioning method may be provided in any of the UE 20, the base station device 10, or the network node including the LMF 203 and the AMF 202.

[0051] <Other embodiments> The present invention can also be realized by a process in which a program for implementing one or more of the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or device read and execute the program. The present invention can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that implements one or more of the functions.

[0052] The values ​​of the first threshold and the second threshold for determining whether or not to use the base station device 10 for positioning may vary depending on the application used by the UE 20. For example, when the UE 20 is an autonomously movable device such as a drone and uses a movement path control application or when the UE 20 uses a map application, the first threshold and the second threshold may be set relatively high. On the other hand, when the UE 20 is a smartphone and uses an application such as a game that uses location information, the first threshold and the second threshold may be set relatively low. These settings are stored in the UE 20 in advance.

[0053] [Summary of the embodiment] (Item 1) A control device for controlling positioning based on communication between one or more base stations and a terminal, an acquisition means for acquiring a detection result of a wireless signal transmitted from the one or more base stations detected by the terminal; a selection means for selecting one of a plurality of positioning methods based on the detection result acquired by the acquisition means; a control means for controlling execution of a positioning process using the positioning method selected by the selection means; A control device comprising:

[0054] (Item 2) The control device according to item 1, characterized in that the selection means selects a positioning method that uses a predetermined base station when the detection result indicates at least one of that a received signal strength of the wireless signal transmitted from the predetermined base station at the terminal is higher than a first threshold and that a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is higher than a second threshold.

[0055] (Item 3) The control device according to item 2, characterized in that the selection means selects a positioning method that uses the multiple base stations when the detection result indicates at least one of that the received signal strength at the terminal of each of the multiple wireless signals transmitted from multiple base stations among the one or more base stations is higher than the first threshold and that the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is higher than the second threshold.

[0056] (Item 4) 4. The control device according to item 2 or 3, wherein the first threshold value and the second threshold value have different values ​​depending on a frequency band in which the wireless signal is transmitted.

[0057] (Item 5) The control device according to any one of items 1 to 4, characterized in that the multiple positioning methods include at least one of OTDOA (Observed Time Difference Of Arrival), E-CID (Enhanced Cell ID) positioning, DL-TDOA (Downlink-Time Difference of Arrival), DL-AoD (Downlink-Angle of Departure), Multi-RTT (Roundtrip Time) positioning, UL-TDOA (Uplink-Time Difference of Arrival), and UL-AoA (Uplink-Angle of Arrival).

[0058] (Item 6) 6. The control device according to any one of items 1 to 5, further comprising a transmitting unit that transmits information related to the positioning method selected by the selecting unit.

[0059] (Item 7) 7. The control device according to any one of items 1 to 6, further comprising a first receiving means for receiving information on the plurality of positioning methods selectable by the selecting means from an external device.

[0060] (Item 8) The control device is provided in the terminal, The terminal is a user device that performs communication in accordance with the 3GPP (registered trademark) standard, 8. The control device according to item 7, characterized in that the external device is a Location Management Function.

[0061] (Item 9) The control device according to any one of items 1 to 8, characterized in that the detection result includes a received signal strength and a received signal quality at the terminal of a positioning reference signal (PRS) transmitted from the one or more base stations.

[0062] (Item 10) 10. The control device according to item 9, wherein the control means causes the terminal to detect the PRS transmitted from at least one of the one or more base stations in the positioning process.

[0063] (Item 11) 9. The control device according to any one of items 1 to 8, wherein the control means causes at least one of the one or more base stations to detect a radio signal transmitted from the terminal in the positioning process.

[0064] (Item 12) 12. The control device according to any one of items 1 to 11, further comprising a second receiving means for receiving information relating to the positions of base stations participating in the positioning process from an external device.

[0065] (Item 13) The control device according to any one of items 1 to 12, characterized in that the control device is provided in the terminal.

[0066] (Item 14) 14. The control device according to item 13, wherein the acquisition means acquires the detection result by starting detection of the wireless signal when an application requesting location information of the terminal is executed.

[0067] (Item 15) The terminal is a user device that performs communication in accordance with the 3GPP (registered trademark) standard, The control device according to any one of items 1 to 12, characterized in that the control device is provided in a network node of a Radio Access Network or a core network.

[0068] (Item 16) A control method for a control device that controls positioning based on communication between one or more base stations and a terminal, comprising: Obtaining a detection result of a wireless signal transmitted from the one or more base stations detected by the terminal; selecting one of a plurality of positioning methods based on the acquired detection result; Controlling to execute a positioning process using the selected positioning method; A control method comprising:

[0069] (Item 17) A program for causing a computer to function as the control device according to any one of items 1 to 15.

[0070] The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the following claims are appended to apprise the public of the scope of the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 1 Positioning system, 10 Base station device, 20 Terminal device, 202 AMF, 203 LMF

Claims

1. A control device that controls positioning based on communication between one or more cellular base stations and a terminal, an acquisition means for acquiring a detection result of a wireless signal transmitted from the one or more cellular base stations detected by the terminal; a selection means for selecting one of a plurality of positioning methods based on the detection result acquired by the acquisition means; a control means for controlling execution of a positioning process using the positioning method selected by the selection means; Equipped with the selection means, when the detection result is a first detection result, selects a first positioning method based on radio wave conditions between one or more cellular base stations and the terminal, and when the detection result is a second detection result, selects a second positioning method based on radio wave conditions between one or more cellular base stations and the terminal, the second positioning method being different from the first positioning method.

2. The control device described in Claim 1, characterized in that the first detection result is a detection result that satisfies at least one of the conditions that the received signal strength at the terminal of each of the multiple radio signals transmitted from multiple cellular base stations among the one or more cellular base stations is higher than a first threshold and that the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is higher than a second threshold, and the first positioning method is a positioning method based on radio wave conditions between the multiple cellular base stations and the terminal.

3. The control device described in Claim 1, characterized in that the second detection result satisfies at least one second condition that the received signal strength at the terminal of the radio signal transmitted from a specified cellular base station is higher than a first threshold and the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is higher than a second threshold, but the received signal strength at the terminal of a radio signal transmitted from another cellular base station does not satisfy the second condition, and the second positioning method is a positioning method using the specified cellular base station.

4. The control device according to claim 2 , wherein the first threshold value and the second threshold value have different values ​​depending on a frequency band in which the wireless signal is transmitted.

5. The control device according to claim 1, characterized in that the plurality of positioning methods include at least one of OTDOA (Observed Time Difference Of Arrival), E-CID (Enhanced Cell ID) positioning, DL-TDOA (Downlink-Time Difference of Arrival), DL-AoD (Downlink-Angle of Departure), Multi-RTT (Roundtrip Time) positioning, UL-TDOA (Uplink-Time Difference of Arrival), and UL-AoA (Uplink-Angle of Arrival).

6. 2. The control device according to claim 1, further comprising a transmitting means for transmitting information relating to the positioning method selected by said selecting means.

7. 2. The control device according to claim 1, further comprising first receiving means for receiving information relating to the plurality of positioning methods selectable by said selecting means from an external device.

8. The control device is provided in the terminal, the terminal is a user device that performs communication in accordance with the 3GPP (registered trademark) standard, The control device according to claim 7, wherein the external device is a Location Management Function.

9. The control device of claim 1 , wherein the detection result includes a received signal strength and a received signal quality at the terminal of a positioning reference signal (PRS) transmitted from the one or more cellular base stations.

10. 10. The control device according to claim 9, wherein the control means causes the terminal to detect the PRS transmitted from at least one of the one or more cellular base stations in the positioning process.

11. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control means causes at least one of the one or more cellular base stations to detect a radio signal transmitted from the terminal in the positioning process.

12. 2. The control device according to claim 1, further comprising second receiving means for receiving information about the positions of cellular base stations participating in said positioning process from an external device.

13. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control device is provided in the terminal.

14. 14. The control device according to claim 13, wherein the acquisition means acquires the detection result by starting detection of the wireless signal when an instruction to start an application that requests location information of the terminal is given.

15. the terminal is a user device that performs communication in accordance with the 3GPP (registered trademark) standard, The control device according to claim 1 , wherein the control device is provided in a network node of a Radio Access Network or a core network.

16. A control method for a control device that controls positioning based on communication between one or more cellular base stations and a terminal, comprising: Obtaining a detection result of wireless signals transmitted from the one or more cellular base stations detected by the terminal; selecting one of a plurality of positioning methods based on the acquired detection result, wherein if the detection result is a first detection result, selecting a first positioning method based on radio wave conditions between one or more cellular base stations and the terminal, and if the detection result is a second detection result, selecting a second positioning method based on radio wave conditions between one or more cellular base stations and the terminal, the second positioning method being different from the first positioning method; Controlling to execute a positioning process using the selected positioning method; A control method comprising:

17. A program for causing a computer to function as the control device according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

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