Relative location anchor groups and local coordinate systems

Abstract

Techniques for wireless communication are disclosed. In one aspect, a relative location anchor group (RLAG) may facilitate a position estimation procedure in an environment where absolute position estimation accuracy is below a threshold. An absolute position estimate derived via a RLAG may optionally be transformed to a true (or more accurate) position estimate via transformation information. In some cases, new anchors may be added to the RLAG after performing a position estimation procedure with the RLAG. In other designs, a local coordinate system (LCS) may be used for position estimation instead of a global coordinate system (GCS), such as WGS84.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communications. [Background technology]

[0002] Wireless communication systems have evolved through various generations, including first generation analog wireless telephone service (1G), second generation (2G) digital wireless telephone service (including intermediate 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third generation (3G) high speed data, Internet-enabled wireless service, and fourth generation (4G) service (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). Currently, there are many different types of wireless communication systems in use, including cellular and personal communication service (PCS) systems. Examples of known cellular systems include 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.

[0003]

[0003] The fifth generation (5G) wireless standard, called New Radio (NR), requires, among other improvements, higher data rates, a larger number of connections, and better coverage. The 5G standard by the Next Generation Mobile Network Alliance is designed to provide data rates of tens of megabits per second to each of tens of thousands of users, and 1 gigabit per second to a few dozen workers on an office floor. To support large sensor deployments, hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections should be supported. Thus, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly enhanced compared to the current 4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiency should be enhanced and latency should be significantly reduced compared to the current standard. Summary of the Invention

[0004]

[0004] The following provides a simplified summary related to one or more aspects disclosed herein. As such, the following summary should not be considered an extensive overview related to all contemplated aspects, nor should the following summary be considered to identify key or critical elements related to all contemplated aspects or to define the scope associated with a particular aspect. As such, the following summary has the sole purpose of presenting, in a simplified form, some concepts related to one or more aspects related to the mechanisms disclosed herein, prior to the detailed description presented below.

[0005]

[0005] In one aspect, a method of operating a position estimation entity includes determining a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to each other, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information, transmitting a resource configuration, receiving measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure, and determining location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data.

[0006]

[0006] In some aspects the location information comprises relative location information.

[0007]

[0007] In some aspects, the relative location information comprises a relative position estimate or relative distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a speed estimate of the UE, or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects having one or more known relative locations with respect to the RLAG, or a combination thereof.

[0008] In some aspects, the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on measurement data.

[0009] In some aspects, the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

[0010] In some aspects, the method includes applying the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0011] In some aspects, the method includes transmitting the derived absolute position estimate to one or more external entities having knowledge of the transformation information.

[0012]

[0012] In some aspects, the transformation information is configured to correct an intentional error in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct an unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation error in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0013]

[0013] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0014] In some aspects, a location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG.

[0015] In some aspects, the method includes receiving an indication of an RLAG identifier for the RLAG from at least one anchor in a set of anchors for the RLAG.

[0016] In some aspects, the method includes transmitting, to the UE, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0017]

[0017] In some aspects, the instructions include a list of RLAGs, each listed RLAG being associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors, or the instructions include a list of anchors, each listed anchor being associated with a respective RLAG identifier, or the instructions include a positioning reference signal (PRS:) configuration to which the RLAG identifiers are mapped.

[0018]

[0018] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, where the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG.

[0019] In some aspects, the location estimation entity may correspond to a UE, an anchor UE, a base station, or a network component remote from the base station.

[0020]

[0020] In one aspect, a method of operating a user equipment (UE) includes receiving a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information, and communicating one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the position estimation procedure.

[0021] In some aspects, an absolute position estimate based on a position estimation procedure using an RLAG is associated with transformation information.

[0022] In some aspects, the method includes receiving, from a position estimation entity, an indication of a derived absolute position estimate based on measurement data based on one or more PRSs.

[0023] In some aspects, the method includes applying the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a true absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0024]

[0024] In some aspects, the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0025]

[0025] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmitting reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0026] In some aspects, the method includes receiving an indication of an RLAG identifier for the RLAG.

[0027]

[0027] In one aspect, a method of operating a wireless device includes performing a location estimation procedure between the wireless device and a plurality of anchors including at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information, and in response to the location estimation procedure, joining the RLAG as a new anchor.

[0028] In some aspects, the method includes determining an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0029] In some aspects, a wireless device joins an RLAG by inheriting an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0030] In some aspects, the method includes transmitting an indication of the RLAG identifier to a position estimation entity.

[0031]

[0031] In one aspect, a method for operating a position estimation entity includes determining a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors associated with a position estimation of a user equipment (UE), and transmitting an LCS frame including an indication of the set of LCS locations.

[0032]

[0032] In some aspects, each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information for transforming the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system.

[0033]

[0033] In some aspects, the transformation information is applied to one or more of the origin of the LCS, or the x-axis position of the LCS location, or the y-axis position of the LCS location, or the z-axis position of the LCS location, or combinations thereof.

[0034] In some aspects, the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian coordinates or polar coordinates.

[0035]

[0035] In one aspect, a position estimation entity includes a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: determine a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, wherein the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for the relative position information than for the absolute position information; transmit the resource configuration via the at least one transceiver; receive measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure, via the at least one transceiver; and determine location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data.

[0036]

[0036] In some aspects the location information comprises relative location information.

[0037]

[0037] In some aspects, the relative location information comprises a relative position estimate or distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a velocity estimate of the UE, or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects having one or more known relative locations relative to the RLAG, or a combination thereof.

[0038] In some aspects, the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on the measurement data.

[0039] In some aspects, the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

[0040]

[0040] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to apply the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0041]

[0041] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to transmit, via the at least one transceiver, the derived absolute position estimate to one or more external entities having knowledge of the transformation information.

[0042]

[0042] In some aspects, the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0043]

[0043] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmitting reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0044] In some aspects, a location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG.

[0045]

[0045] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to receive, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG from at least one anchor in the set of anchors for the RLAG.

[0046]

[0046] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to transmit, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG to the UE.

[0047]

[0047] In some aspects, the instructions include a list of RLAGs, each listed RLAG being associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors, or the instructions include a list of anchors, each listed anchor being associated with a respective RLAG identifier, or the instructions include positioning reference signal (PRS) configurations to which the RLAG identifiers are mapped.

[0048]

[0048] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, where the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG.

[0049] In some aspects, the location estimation entity corresponds to a UE, an anchor UE, a base station, or a network component remote from the base station.

[0050]

[0050] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to receive, via the at least one transceiver, a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors include at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information, and to communicate one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the position estimation procedure via the at least one transceiver.

[0051] In some aspects, an absolute position estimate based on a position estimation procedure using an RLAG is associated with transformation information.

[0052]

[0052] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to receive, via the at least one transceiver, from a position estimation entity, an indication of a derived absolute position estimate based on measurement data based on one or more PRSs.

[0053]

[0053] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to apply the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a true absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0054]

[0054] In some aspects, the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0055]

[0055] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmitting reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0056]

[0056] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to receive, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0057]

[0057] In one aspect, a wireless device includes a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to perform a location estimation procedure between the wireless device and a plurality of anchors including at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information, and to join the RLAG as a new anchor in response to the location estimation procedure.

[0058]

[0058] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to determine an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0059] In some aspects, a wireless device joins an RLAG by inheriting an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0060]

[0060] In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured to transmit, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of the RLAG identifier to the position estimation entity.

[0061]

[0061] In one aspect, a position estimation entity includes a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to determine a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors associated with a position estimate of a user equipment (UE), and to transmit, via the at least one transceiver, an LCS frame including an indication of the set of LCS locations.

[0062]

[0062] In some aspects, each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information for transforming the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system.

[0063]

[0063] In some aspects, the transformation information is applied to one or more of the origin of the LCS, or the x-axis position of the LCS location, or the y-axis position of the LCS location, or the z-axis position of the LCS location, or combinations thereof.

[0064]

[0064] In some aspects, the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian or polar coordinates.

[0065]

[0065] In one aspect, a position estimation entity includes means for determining a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to each other, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for the relative position information than for the absolute position information, means for transmitting a resource configuration based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure, and means for determining location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data.

[0066]

[0066] In some aspects the location information comprises relative location information.

[0067]

[0067] In some aspects, the relative location information comprises a relative position estimate or distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a velocity estimate of the UE, or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects having one or more known relative locations relative to the RLAG, or a combination thereof.

[0068]

[0068] In some aspects, the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on measurement data.

[0069]

[0069] In some aspects, the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

[0070]

[0070] In some aspects, the method includes means for applying transformation information to a derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0071]

[0071] In some aspects, the method includes means for transmitting the derived absolute position estimate to one or more external entities having knowledge of the transformation information.

[0072]

[0072] In some aspects, the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0073]

[0073] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmitting reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0074] In some aspects, a location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG.

[0075]

[0075] In some aspects, the method includes means for receiving an indication of an RLAG identifier for the RLAG from at least one anchor in a set of anchors for the RLAG.

[0076] In some aspects, the method includes means for transmitting, to the UE, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0077]

[0077] In some aspects, the instructions include a list of RLAGs, each listed RLAG being associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors, or the instructions include a list of anchors, each listed anchor being associated with a respective RLAG identifier, or the instructions include positioning reference signal (PRS) configurations to which the RLAG identifiers are mapped.

[0078]

[0078] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, where the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG.

[0079]

[0079] In some aspects, the location estimation entity corresponds to a UE, an anchor UE, a base station, or a network component remote from the base station.

[0080]

[0080] In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for receiving a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information, and means for communicating one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the position estimation procedure.

[0081] In some aspects, an absolute position estimate based on a position estimation procedure using an RLAG is associated with transformation information.

[0082]

[0082] In some aspects, the method includes means for receiving, from a position estimation entity, an indication of a derived absolute position estimate based on measurement data based on one or more PRSs.

[0083]

[0083] In some aspects, the method includes means for applying the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a true absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0084]

[0084] In some aspects, the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0085]

[0085] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmitting reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0086] In some aspects, the method includes means for receiving an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0087]

[0087] In one aspect, a wireless device includes means for performing a location estimation procedure between the wireless device and a plurality of anchors including at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information, and means for joining the RLAG as a new anchor in response to the location estimation procedure.

[0088] In some aspects, the method includes means for determining an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0089] In some aspects, a wireless device joins an RLAG by inheriting an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0090]

[0090] In some aspects, the method includes means for transmitting an indication of the RLAG identifier to a position estimation entity.

[0091]

[0091] In one aspect, a position estimation entity includes means for determining a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors associated with a position estimation of a user equipment (UE), and means for transmitting an LCS frame including an indication of the set of LCS locations.

[0092]

[0092] In some aspects, each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information for transforming the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system.

[0093]

[0093] In some aspects, the transformation information is applied to one or more of the origin of the LCS, or the x-axis position of the LCS location, or the y-axis position of the LCS location, or the z-axis position of the LCS location, or combinations thereof.

[0094]

[0094] In some aspects, the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian or polar coordinates.

[0095]

[0095] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions which, when executed by a position estimation entity, cause the position estimation entity to determine a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a greater accuracy for the relative position information than for the absolute position information; receive measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure; and determine location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data.

[0096]

[0096] In some aspects the location information comprises relative location information.

[0097]

[0097] In some aspects, the relative location information comprises a relative position estimate or distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a velocity estimate of the UE, or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects having one or more known relative locations relative to the RLAG, or a combination thereof.

[0098]

[0098] In some aspects, the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on measurement data.

[0099]

[0099] In some aspects, the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

[0100]

[0100] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the position estimation entity, further cause the position estimation entity to:

[0101]

[0101] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the position estimation entity, further cause the position estimation entity to:

[0102]

[0102] In some aspects, the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0103]

[0103] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0104]

[0104] In some aspects, a location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG.

[0105]

[0105] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the position estimation entity, further cause the position estimation entity to:

[0106]

[0106] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the position estimation entity, further cause the position estimation entity to:

[0107]

[0107] In some aspects, the instructions include a list of RLAGs, each listed RLAG being associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors, or the instructions include a list of anchors, each listed anchor being associated with a respective RLAG identifier, or the instructions include positioning reference signal (PRS) configurations to which the RLAG identifiers are mapped.

[0108]

[0108] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, where the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG.

[0109]

[0109] In some aspects, the location estimation entity corresponds to a UE, an anchor UE, a base station, or a network component remote from the base station.

[0110]

[0110] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions which, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to receive a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, and communicate one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the position estimation procedure, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors in a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors in the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, and where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information.

[0111]

[0111] In some aspects, an absolute position estimate based on a position estimation procedure using RLAG is associated with transformation information.

[0112]

[0112] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the UE, further cause the UE to:

[0113]

[0113] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the UE, further cause the UE to:

[0114]

[0114] In some aspects, the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0115]

[0115] In some aspects, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0116]

[0116] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the UE, further cause the UE to:

[0117]

[0117] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions which, when executed by a wireless device, cause the wireless device to perform a location estimation procedure between the wireless device and a plurality of anchors, including at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), and to join the RLAG as a new anchor in response to the location estimation procedure, wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, and wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information.

[0118]

[0118] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the wireless device, further cause the wireless device to:

[0119] In some aspects, a wireless device joins an RLAG by inheriting an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0120]

[0120] In some aspects, the instructions, when executed by the wireless device, further cause the wireless device to:

[0121]

[0121] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a position estimation entity, cause the position estimation entity to determine a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors associated with a position estimate of a user equipment (UE), and to transmit an LCS frame including an indication of the set of LCS locations.

[0122]

[0122] In some aspects, each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information for transforming the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system.

[0123]

[0123] In some aspects, the transformation information is applied to one or more of the origin of the LCS, or the x-axis position of the LCS location, or the y-axis position of the LCS location, or the z-axis position of the LCS location, or combinations thereof.

[0124]

[0124] In some aspects, the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian or polar coordinates.

[0125]

[0125] Other objects and advantages associated with the embodiments disclosed herein will become apparent to those skilled in the art based on the accompanying drawings and detailed description of the invention.

[0126]

[0126] The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in the explanation of various aspects of the present disclosure and are provided merely to illustrate the aspects, not to limit the aspects. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0127] [Figure 1]

[0127] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless communication system according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 2A]

[0128] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless network structure, according to aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 2B] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless network structure, according to aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 3A]

[0129] 1 is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a user equipment (UE) and configured to support communications as taught herein; [Figure 3B] 1 is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a base station and configured to support communications as taught herein. [Figure 3C] 1 is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a network entity and configured to support communications as taught herein. [Figure 4]

[0130] 1 illustrates an example frame structure in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. [Diagram 5]

[0131] 1 illustrates various downlink channels in an example downlink slot, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 6]

[0132] 1 illustrates various uplink channels in an example uplink slot, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 7]

[0133] 4 is a diagram of an example positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for PRS transmission of a given base station, in accordance with an aspect of the disclosure. [Figure 8]

[0134] FIG. 1 illustrates an example downlink positioning reference signal (DL-PRS) configuration for two transmit receiving points (TRPs) operating in the same positioning frequency layer, in accordance with an aspect of the disclosure. [Figure 9]

[0135] FIG. 1 illustrates examples of various positioning methods supported in New Radio (NR), in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 10]

[0136] FIG. 1 illustrates an example process for wireless communication according to aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 11]

[0137] FIG. 1 illustrates an example process for wireless communication according to aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 12]

[0138] FIG. 1 illustrates an example process for wireless communication according to aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 13]

[0139] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary implementation of processes 10-12 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 14]

[0140] FIG. 1 illustrates an example process for wireless communication according to aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0128]

[0141] Aspects of the present disclosure are provided in the following description and associated drawings directed to various examples provided for illustration purposes. Alternative aspects may be devised without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of the present disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the present disclosure.

[0129]

[0142] 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. Similarly, the term "aspects of the present disclosure" does not require that all aspects of the present disclosure include the described feature, advantage or mode of operation.

[0130]

[0143] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the information and signals described below may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout the following description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the particular application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, etc.

[0131]

[0144] Furthermore, many aspects are described in terms of a sequence of actions to be performed, for example, by elements of a computing device. It will be appreciated that the various actions described herein may be performed by specific circuitry (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Furthermore, the sequence(s) of actions described herein may be considered to be embodied as a whole in any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a corresponding set of computer instructions that, when executed, will cause or instruct an associated processor of a device to perform the functions described herein. Thus, various aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in a number of different forms, all of which are contemplated to fall within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Furthermore, for each of the aspects described herein, the corresponding form of any such aspect may be described herein, for example, as "logic configured to" perform the described actions.

[0132]

[0145] The terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" as used herein are not intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT) unless otherwise stated. In general, a UE may be any wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a consumer asset location device, a wearable (e.g., a smart watch, glasses, an 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.) used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network. A UE may be mobile or (e.g., at some times) stationary and may communicate with a radio access network (RAN). The term "UE" as used herein may be referred to interchangeably as "access terminal" or "AT", "client device", "wireless device", "subscriber device", "subscriber terminal", "subscriber station", "user terminal" or "UT", "mobile device", "mobile terminal", "mobile station", or variations thereof. In general, a UE may communicate with a core network via the RAN, through which the UE may be connected 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 a UE, such as via 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 specifications, etc.).

[0133]

[0146] A base station may operate according to one of several RATs in communication 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 gNode B), etc. A base station may be used primarily to support wireless access by UEs, including supporting data, voice, and / or signaling connections for supported UEs. In some systems, a base station may provide purely edge node signaling functions, while in other systems it may provide additional control and / or network management functions. A communication link through which a UE may send signals to a base station is referred to as an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse traffic channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). A communication link through which a base station may send signals to a UE is referred to as a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., paging channel, control channel, broadcast channel, forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term Traffic Channel (TCH) may refer to either an uplink / reverse traffic channel or a downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0134]

[0147] The term "base station" may refer to a single physical transmit reception point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be collocated. For example, if the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna of the base station corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. If the term "base station" refers to multiple collocated physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be an array of antennas of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or in cases where the base station employs beamforming). If the term "base station" refers to multiple non-collocated 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 transport medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-collocated physical TRP may be a serving base station that receives measurement reports from a UE and a neighbor base station whose reference radio frequency (RF) signal the UE is measuring. A TRP is a point from which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, so that as used herein, references to transmission from or reception at a base station should be understood as referring to the particular TRP of the base station.

[0135]

[0148] In some implementations that support positioning of UEs, 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 instead may transmit reference signals 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 it transmits signals to the UE) and / or a location measurement unit (e.g., when it receives and measures signals from the UE).

[0136]

[0149] An "RF signal" comprises electromagnetic waves of a given frequency that transport information through 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, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through a multipath channel. 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 a "signal" when it is clear from the context that the term "signal" refers to a wireless signal or an RF signal.

[0137]

[0150] 1 illustrates an exemplary wireless communication system 100 according to an aspect of the disclosure. The wireless communication system 100 (sometimes referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled as "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 an 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 both, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0138]

[0151] The base stations 102 collectively form a RAN and may interface with a core network 170 (e.g., Evolved Packet Core (EPC) or 5G Core (5GC)) through backhaul links 122 and through the core network 170 to one or more location servers 172 (e.g., a Location Management Function (LMF) or a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP)). The location server(s) 172 may be part of the core network 170 or may be external to the core network 170. The location server 172 may be integrated with the base station 102. The UE 104 may communicate with the location server 172 directly or indirectly. For example, the UE 104 may communicate with the location server 172 via the base station 102 currently serving the UE 104. The UE 104 may also communicate with the location server 172 through another path, such as through an application server (not shown), through another network, such as through a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) (e.g., AP 150 described below). For signaling purposes, communication between the UE 104 and the location server 172 may be represented as an indirect connection (e.g., through the core network 170, etc.) or a direct connection (e.g., as shown via direct connection 128), with intervening nodes (if any) omitted from the signaling diagrams for clarity.

[0139]

[0152] In addition to other functions, the base stations 102 may perform functions related to one or more of the following: forwarding user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection setup and release, load balancing, distribution for non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracing, RAN Information Management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of alert messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through EPC / 5GC) via backhaul links 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0140]

[0153] The base stations 102 may wirelessly communicate with the UEs 104. Each of the base stations 102 may provide communication coverage to a respective geographic coverage area 110. In an aspect, one or more cells may be supported by the base stations 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity used for communication with a base station (e.g., over some frequency resource, called a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, band, etc.) and may be associated with an identifier (e.g., physical cell identifier (PCI), enhanced cell identifier (ECI), virtual cell identifier (VCI), cell global identifier (CGI), etc.) to distinguish cells operating over the same or different carrier frequencies. In some cases, different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or others) that may provide access to different types of UEs. Because a cell is supported by a particular base station, the term "cell" may refer to either or both of the logical communication entity and the base station that supports it, depending on the context. Additionally, the terms "cell" and "TRP" may be used interchangeably, since a TRP is generally a physical transmission point of a cell. In some cases, the term "cell" may also refer to a geographic coverage area (e.g., a sector) of a base station, so long as the carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within any portion of the geographic coverage area 110.

[0141]

[0154] The geographic coverage areas 110 of neighboring macrocell base stations 102 may overlap partially (e.g., in handover regions), but some of the geographic coverage areas 110 may be significantly overlapped by larger geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' (labeled "SC" for "small cell") may have a geographic coverage area 110' that significantly overlaps with the geographic coverage area 110 of one or more macrocell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell base stations and macrocell base stations may be known as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include Home eNBs (HeNBs) that may serve restricted groups known as Closed Subscriber Groups (CSGs).

[0142]

[0155] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 may include uplink transmissions (also referred to as reverse link) from the UE 104 to the base station 102, and / or downlink (DL) transmissions (also referred to as forward link) from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 may use MIMO antenna techniques, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may be through one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to the downlink and uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for the downlink than for the uplink).

[0143]

[0156] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150 communicating with a WLAN station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in an unlicensed frequency spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in the unlicensed frequency spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) procedure or a listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure before communicating to determine if a channel is available.

[0144]

[0157] The small cell base station 102' may operate in licensed and / or unlicensed frequency spectrums. When operating in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, the small cell base station 102' may employ LTE or NR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed frequency spectrum used by the WLAN AP 150. A small cell base station 102' employing LTE / 5G in an unlicensed frequency spectrum may boost coverage to and / or increase capacity of an access network. NR in an unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as NR-U. LTE in an unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as LTE-U, Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0145]

[0158] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a mmW base station 180 that may operate in millimeter wave (mmW) and / or near-mmW frequencies in communication with the UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 millimeter and 10 millimeters. Radio waves in this band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near-mmW may extend down to a frequency of 3 GHz with a wavelength of 100 millimeters. The very high frequency (SHF) band, also referred to as centimeter wave, extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz. Communications using the 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) over the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range. Moreover, it will be appreciated that in alternative configurations, one or more base stations 102 may also transmit using mmW or near mmW and beamforming. Thus, it will be appreciated that the above description is by way of example only and should not be construed as limiting various aspects disclosed herein.

[0146]

[0159] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in a particular direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectionally). In transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that particular direction, thereby providing a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal to the receiving device(s). To change the directionality of the RF signal when transmitting, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of the one or more transmitters broadcasting the RF signal. For example, the network node may use an array of antennas (called a "phased array" or "antenna array") that creates beams of RF waves that can be "steered" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. In particular, RF current from the transmitter is fed to the individual antennas with the proper phase relationship so that the waves from the separate antennas add together to increase radiation in the desired direction while canceling and suppressing radiation in undesired directions.

[0147]

[0160] A transmit beam may be quasi-colocated, meaning that the transmit beam appears to a receiver (e.g., a UE) to have the same parameters, regardless of whether the network node's transmit antennas themselves are physically colocated. In NR, there are four types of quasi-colocated (QCL) relationships. In particular, a QCL relationship of a given type means that some parameters for a second reference RF signal on a second beam may be derived from information about a source reference RF signal on a 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 transmitted 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 transmitted 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 Doppler spread of the second reference RF signal transmitted 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 receive parameters of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0148]

[0161] In receive beamforming, a receiver uses receive beams to amplify RF signals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver can increase the gain setting and / or adjust the phase setting of an array of antennas in a particular direction to amplify (e.g., increase its gain level) an RF signal received from that direction. Thus, when a receiver is said to beamform in a direction, it means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gains along other directions, or that the beam gain in that direction is highest compared to the beam gains 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.) of the RF signal received from that direction.

[0149]

[0162] The transmit beam and the receive beam may be spatially related. The spatial relationship means that the parameters for the second beam (e.g., transmit beam or receive beam) for the second reference signal may be derived from information about the first beam (e.g., receive beam or transmit beam) for the first reference signal. For example, the UE may use a particular receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., Synchronization Signal Block (SSB)) from a base station. The UE may then form a transmit beam for sending an uplink reference signal (e.g., Sounding Reference Signal (SRS)) to that base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0150]

[0163] Note that a "downlink" beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if the base station forms a downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to the UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE forms a downlink beam, it is a receive beam to receive the downlink reference signal. Similarly, an "uplink" beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if the base station forms an uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, and if the UE forms an uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0151]

[0164] The electromagnetic spectrum is often subdivided into various classes, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, two initial operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz to 7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz). It should be understood that FR1 is often referred to (interchangeably) as the "sub-6 GHz" band in various documents and papers, although portions of FR1 are greater than 6 GHz. A similar naming issue sometimes arises with respect to FR2, which is often referred to (interchangeably) as the "millimeter wave" band in documents and papers, even though FR2 is distinct from the extremely high frequency (EHF) bands (30 GHz to 300 GHz) identified as "millimeter wave" bands by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).

[0152]

[0165] Frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are often referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified these mid-band frequency operating bands as frequency range designation FR3 (7.125 GHz to 24.25 GHz). Frequency bands that fall within FR3 may inherit FR1 and / or FR2 characteristics, thus effectively extending the features of FR1 and / or FR2 to mid-band frequencies. Additionally, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operation beyond 52.6 GHz. For example, three higher operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz to 71 GHz), FR4 (52.6 GHz to 114.25 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz to 300 GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands falls within the EHF band.

[0153]

[0166] With the above aspects in mind, it should be understood that unless otherwise specified, terms such as "sub-6 GHz," as used herein, may broadly refer to frequencies that may be below 6 GHz, may be within FR1, or may include mid-band frequencies. Additionally, it should be understood that unless otherwise specified, terms such as "millimeter wave," as used herein, 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.

[0154]

[0167] 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 the "secondary carrier" or "secondary serving cell" or "SCell". In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is a carrier operating on a primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by the UE 104 / 182 and the cell in which the UE 104 / 182 either 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 may be a carrier in licensed frequencies (although this is not always the case). The secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2) that may be configured once an RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier and may be used to provide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carrier may be a carrier in unlicensed frequencies. The secondary carrier may contain only the necessary signaling information and signals, and the signaling information and signals that are UE-specific may not be present in the secondary carrier, for example, since both the primary uplink carrier and the primary downlink carrier are typically UE-specific. 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 a PCell or an SCell) corresponds to a carrier frequency / component carrier over which some base station is communicating, terms such as "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier", "carrier frequency", etc. may be used interchangeably.

[0155]

[0168] For example, still referring to FIG. 1, one of the frequencies utilized by the macrocell base station 102 may be an anchor carrier (or “PCell”), and the other frequencies utilized by the macrocell base station 102 and / or the mmW base station 180 may be secondary carriers (“SCells”). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception of multiple carriers allows the UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rates. For example, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically lead to a doubling of the data rate (i.e., 40 MHz) compared to that achieved by a single 20 MHz carrier.

[0156]

[0169] The wireless communications system 100 may further include a UE 164, which may communicate with the macrocell base station 102 via communications link 120 and / or with the mmW base station 180 via an mmW communications 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.

[0157]

[0170] In some cases, the UE 164 and the UE 182 may be capable of sidelink communications. A sidelink-enabled UE (SL-UE) may communicate with the base station 102 over the communication link 120 using the Uu interface (i.e., the air interface between the UE and the base station). The SL-UEs (e.g., UE 164, UE 182) may also communicate directly with each other over the wireless sidelink 160 using the PC5 interface (i.e., the air interface between sidelink-enabled UEs). The wireless sidelink (or simply "sidelink") is an adaptation of the core cellular (e.g., LTE, NR) standard that enables direct communication between two or more UEs without the communication having to go through a base station. Sidelink communications may be unicast or multicast and may be used for device-to-device (D2D) media sharing, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, vehicle-to-anything (V2X) communications (e.g., cellular V2X (cV2X) communications, enhanced V2X (eV2X) communications, etc.), emergency rescue applications, etc. One or more of the groups of SL-UEs utilizing sidelink communications may be within the geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 102. Other SL-UEs in such groups may be outside the geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 102 or may not otherwise be able to receive transmissions from the base station 102. In some cases, a group of SL-UEs communicating via sidelink communications may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system in which each SL-UE transmits to every other SL-UE in the group. In some cases, the base station 102 facilitates scheduling of resources for sidelink communications. In other cases, sidelink communications occur between SL-UEs without the involvement of the base station 102.

[0158]

[0171] In one aspect, the sidelink 160 may operate over a wireless communications medium of interest that may be shared with other vehicular and / or infrastructure access points, as well as other wireless communications between other RATs. A "medium" may consist of one or more time, frequency, and / or spatial communications resources (e.g., encompassing one or more channels across one or more carriers) associated with wireless communications between one or more transmitter / receiver pairs. In one aspect, the medium of interest may correspond to at least a portion of an unlicensed frequency band shared among various RATs. Although different licensed frequency bands have been reserved for some communications systems (e.g., by government agencies such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States), these systems, particularly those employing small cell access points, have recently extended operation to unlicensed frequency bands, such as the Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (U-NII) bands used by Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) technologies, most notably the IEEE 802.11x WLAN technology commonly referred to as "Wi-Fi®." Exemplary systems of this type include different variants of CDMA systems, TDMA systems, FDMA systems, Orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) systems, Single Carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) systems, and so forth.

[0159]

[0172] It should be noted that while FIG. 1 shows only two of the UEs (i.e., UE 164 and 182) as SL-UEs, any of the illustrated UEs may be SL-UEs. Additionally, while only UE 182 has been described as capable of beamforming, any of the illustrated UEs, including UE 164, may be capable of beamforming. If 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 base stations (e.g., base stations 102, 180, small cell 102′, access point 150), etc. Thus, in some cases, UEs 164 and 182 may utilize beamforming over sidelink 160.

[0160]

[0173] In the example of FIG. 1, any of the illustrated UEs (shown in FIG. 1 as a single UE 104 for simplicity) may receive signals 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 UE 104 may use as an independent source of location information. A satellite positioning system generally includes a system of transmitters arranged to enable a receiver (e.g., the UE 104) to determine the location of the receiver on or above the Earth based at least in part on a positioning signal (e.g., signal 124) received from a transmitter (e.g., the SV 112). Such a transmitter generally transmits a signal marked with a repetitive pseudorandom noise (PN) code of a set number of chips. Although generally located in the SV 112, the transmitter may sometimes be located on a ground-based control station, a base station 102, and / or other UEs 104. The UE 104 may include one or more dedicated receivers specifically designed to receive the signals 124 to derive geolocation information from the SVs 112.

[0161]

[0174] In a satellite positioning system, the use of the signals 124 may be augmented by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS), which may be associated with or otherwise enabled for use with one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, the SBAS may include augmentation system(s) 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 Multi-functional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), the Global Positioning System (GPS) Aided Geo Augmented Navigation or GPS and Geo Augmented Navigation system (GAGAN), and the like. 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.

[0162]

[0175] In one aspect, the SV 112 may additionally or alternatively be part of one or more non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In an NTN, the SV 112 is connected to an earth station (also called a ground station, NTN gateway, or gateway), which is connected to an element in a 5G network, such as a modified base station 102 (without a terrestrial antenna) or a network node in a 5GC. This element will provide access to other elements in the 5G network, and ultimately to entities outside the 5G network, such as Internet web servers and other user devices. In that way, the UE 104 may receive communication signals (e.g., signal 124) from the SV 112 instead of or in addition to communication signals from the terrestrial base station 102.

[0163]

[0176] The wireless communication system 100 may further include one or more UEs, such as UE 190, that indirectly connect to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as "sidelinks"). In the example of FIG. 1, the UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 with one of the UEs 104 connected to one of the base stations 102 (e.g., through which the UE 190 may indirectly obtain cellular connectivity) and a D2D P2P link 194 with a WLAN STA 152 connected to a WLAN AP 150 (through which the UE 190 may indirectly obtain WLAN-based Internet connectivity). In one example, the D2D P2P links 192 and 194 may be supported with any well-known D2D RAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct® (WiFi-D), Bluetooth®, etc.

[0164]

[0177] 2A illustrates an exemplary wireless network structure 200. For example, a 5GC 210 (also referred to as Next Generation Core (NGC)) may be considered functionally as a control plane (C-plane) function 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and a user plane (U-plane) function 212 (e.g., UE gateway function, access to data network, IP routing, etc.) that operate cooperatively to form a core network. A user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and a control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect a gNB 222 to the 5GC 210, specifically to the user plane function 212 and the control plane function 214, respectively. In an additional configuration, a ng-eNB 224 may also be connected to the 5GC 210 via the NG-C 215 to the control plane function 214 and the NG-U 213 to the user plane function 212. Additionally, the ng-eNB 224 may communicate directly with the gNB 222 via a backhaul connection 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 both an ng-eNB 224 and a gNB 222. Either the gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224 (or both) may communicate with one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein).

[0165]

[0178] Another optional aspect may include a location server 230, which may be in communication with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance to the UE(s) 204. The location servers 230 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules spread across multiple physical servers, etc.) or, alternatively, each may correspond to a single server. The location servers 230 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UEs 204 that may connect to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not shown). Furthermore, the location server 230 may be integrated into a component of the core network or, alternatively, may be external to the core network (e.g., a third-party server, such as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or a service server).

[0166]

[0179] 2B illustrates another exemplary wireless network structure 250. A 5GC 260 (which may correspond to 5GC 210 in FIG. 2A) may be considered functionally as a control plane function provided by an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 264 and a user plane function provided by a User Plane Function (UPF) 262, which operate cooperatively to form a core network (i.e., 5GC 260). The functions of the AMF 264 include registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transport for session management (SM) messages between one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) and a Session Management Function (SMF) 266, a transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transport for short message service (SMS) messages between the UE 204 and a Short Message Service Function (SMSF) (not shown), and a Security Anchor Function (SEAF). The AMF 264 also interacts with an Authentication Server Function (AUSF) (not shown) and the UE 204 to receive intermediate keys established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In case of UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM) based authentication, the AMF 264 retrieves security material from the AUSF. The AMF 264 functions also include Security Context Management (SCM). The SCM receives keys from the SEAF that it uses to derive access network specific keys. The AMF 264 functions also include location service management for barred services, transport for location service messages between the UE 204 and the Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (acting as the location server 230), transport for location service messages between the NG-RAN 220 and the LMF 270, EPS bearer identifier allocation for interworking with the Evolved Packet System (EPS), and UE 204 mobility event notification.In addition, AMF264 also supports functionality for non-3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0167]

[0180] The functions of the UPF 262 include serving as an anchor point for intra / 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, Quality of Service (QoS) handling for the user plane (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in the downlink), uplink traffic validation (Service Data Flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and sending and forwarding one or more "termination markers" to the source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support the transfer of location service messages over the user plane between the UE 204 and a location server, such as the SLP 272.

[0168]

[0181] The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, configuration of traffic steering in the UPF 262 to route traffic to the appropriate destination, control of policy enforcement and parts of QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface through which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0169]

[0182] Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270, which may be in communication with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance to the UE 204. The LMF 270 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules spread across multiple physical servers, etc.) or, alternatively, each may correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204 that may be connected to the LMF 270 via the core network 5GC 260 and / or via the Internet (not shown). The SLP 272 may support similar functions as the LMF 270, except that the LMF 270 may communicate with the AMF 264, the NG-RAN 220, and the UE 204 via a control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to carry signaling messages rather than voice or data), and the SLP 272 may communicate with the UE 204 and external clients (not shown in FIG. 2B) via a user plane (e.g., using protocols intended to carry voice and / or data, such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0170]

[0183] The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC 260, in particular the UPF 262 and the AMF 264, respectively, to one or more gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220. The interface between the gNB(s) 222 and / or ng-eNB(s) 224 and the AMF 264 is referred to as the “N2” interface, and the interface between the gNB(s) 222 and / or ng-eNB(s) 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the “N3” interface. The gNB(s) 222 and / or ng-eNB(s) 224 of the NG-RAN 220 may communicate directly with each other via a backhaul connection 223 referred to as the “Xn-C” interface. One or more of the gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 may communicate with one or more UEs 204 via a wireless interface referred to as the “Uu” interface.

[0171]

[0184] The functions of the gNB 222 are divided between a gNB Central Unit (gNB-CU) 226 and one or more gNB Distributed Units (gNB-DU) 228. The interface 232 between the gNB-CU 226 and one or more gNB-DUs 228 is called the "F1" interface. The gNB-CU 226 is a logical node that includes base station functions such as forwarding user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, etc., except for functions exclusively allocated to the gNB-DU(s) 228. More specifically, the gNB-CU 226 hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) protocols of the gNB 222. The gNB-DU 228 is a logical node that hosts the Radio Link Control (RLC), Medium Access Control (MAC), and Physical (PHY) layers of the gNB 222. Its operation is controlled by the gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 can support one or multiple cells, and one cell is supported by only one gNB-DU 228. Thus, the UE 204 communicates with the gNB-CU 226 via the RRC, SDAP, and PDCP layers, and with the gNB-DU 228 via the RLC, MAC, and PHY layers.

[0172]

[0185] 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate several example components (represented by corresponding blocks) that may be incorporated in a UE 302 (which may correspond to any of the UEs described herein), a base station 304 (which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein), and a network entity 306 (which may correspond to or perform any of the network functions described herein, including a location server 230 and an LMF 270, or alternatively may be unrelated to the NG-RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260 infrastructure illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B, such as a private network) to support file transmission operations taught herein. It will be appreciated that these components may be implemented in different types of devices (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system on a chip (SoC), etc.) in different implementations. The illustrated components may also be incorporated in other devices in a communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include similar components to those described to provide similar functionality. Also, a given device may include one or more of the components. For example, a device may contain multiple transceiver components that enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0173]

[0186] The UE 302 and base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively, and provide means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for adjusting, means for refraining from transmitting, etc.) over one or more wireless communications networks (not shown), such as an NR network, an LTE network, a GSM network, etc. The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may 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., over at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over a wireless communications medium of interest (e.g., some set of time / frequency resources in a particular frequency spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be variously configured for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, respectively (e.g., messages, instructions, information, etc.), and conversely, for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively (e.g., messages, instructions, information, pilots, etc.), in accordance with a designated RAT. In particular, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314 and 354, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, respectively, and include one or more receivers 312 and 352, respectively, for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively.

[0174]

[0187] The UE 302 and base station 304 also each, in at least some cases, include one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, means for measuring, means for adjusting, means for refraining from transmitting, etc.) with other network nodes, such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc., via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Bluetooth, Zigbee, Z-Wave, PC5, dedicated short-range communications (DSRC), wireless access for vehicular environments (WAVE), near field communications (NFC), etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be variously configured for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, respectively (e.g., messages, instructions, information, etc.), and conversely, for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively (e.g., messages, instructions, information, pilots, etc.), in accordance with a specified RAT. In particular, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 include one or more transmitters 324 and 364, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, and include one or more receivers 322 and 362, respectively, for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368. As specific examples, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be WiFi transceivers, Bluetooth transceivers, Zigbee and / or Z-Wave transceivers, NFC transceivers, or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceivers.

[0175]

[0188] The UE 302 and the base station 304 also, at least in some cases, include satellite signal receivers 330 and 370. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and may provide means for receiving and / or measuring satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. If the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellite positioning system receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may 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 the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, the satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may be communication signals (e.g., carrying control and / or user data) originating from a 5G network. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may comprise any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing satellite positioning / communications signals 338 and 378, respectively. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may request information and action from other systems as appropriate, and in at least some cases perform calculations to determine the location of UE 302 and base station 304, respectively, using measurements obtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithms.

[0176]

[0189] The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, providing means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, etc.) 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 over 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 over one or more wired or wireless backhaul links or to communicate with other network entities 306 over one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.

[0177]

[0190] A transceiver may be configured to communicate over a wired or wireless link. A transceiver (whether a wired or wireless transceiver) includes a transmitter circuit (e.g., transmitter 314, 324, 354, 364) and a receiver circuit (e.g., receiver 312, 322, 352, 362). A transceiver may be an integrated device in some implementations (e.g., implemented as a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit in a single device), may include separate transmitter circuit and separate receiver circuit in some implementations, or may be implemented in other manners in other implementations. The transmitter circuit and receiver circuit of a wired transceiver (e.g., in some implementations, network transceivers 380 and 390) may be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. The 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 an antenna array, that enable the respective device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmit "beamforming" as described herein. Similarly, the 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 an antenna array, that enable the respective device (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming as described herein. In an aspect, the transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the respective device can only receive or 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 network listen modules (NLMs) and the like for performing various measurements.

[0178]

[0191] 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 characterized 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 from the type of communication being implemented. For example, backhaul communication between network devices or servers generally involves signaling via wired transceivers, while wireless communication between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) generally involves signaling via wireless transceivers.

[0179]

[0192] The UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that may be used with the operations disclosed herein. The UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 each include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394, for example, to provide functionality related to wireless communications and to provide other processing functions. The processors 332, 384, and 394 may thus provide means for processing, such as means for determining, means for calculating, means for receiving, means for transmitting, means for indicating, etc. In an aspect, the processors 332, 384, and 394 may 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.

[0180]

[0193] The UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 include memory circuitry implementing memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively (e.g., each including a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). The memories 340, 386, and 396 may thus provide a means for storing, a means for retrieving, a means for maintaining, etc. In some cases, the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may include positioning components 342, 388, and 398, respectively. The positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuits that are part of or coupled to the processors 332, 384, and 394, respectively, that, when executed, cause the UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein. In other aspects, the positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be external to the 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 may be memory modules stored in the memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively, that when executed by the processors 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.) cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform functions described herein. FIG. 3A illustrates possible locations of the positioning component 342, which may be, for example, part of one or more WWAN transceivers 310, memory 340, one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof, or may be a stand-alone component. FIG. 3B shows possible locations of a positioning component 388, which may be, for example, part of one or more WWAN transceivers 350, memory 386, one or more processors 384, or any combination thereof, or may be a stand-alone component.FIG. 3C illustrates possible locations of a positioning component 398, which may be, for example, part of one or more network transceivers 390, memory 396, one or more processors 394, or any combination thereof, or may be a stand-alone component.

[0181]

[0194] The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to the one or more processors 332 to provide a means for sensing or detecting movement and / or orientation information that is independent of movement data derived from signals received by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and / or the satellite signal receiver 330. By way of example, the sensor(s) 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 movement detection sensor. Moreover, the sensor(s) 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide movement information. For example, the sensor(s) 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.

[0182]

[0195] Additionally, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 that provides a means for providing instructions (e.g., audible and / or visual instructions) to a user and / or a means for receiving user input (e.g., upon user actuation of 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 user interfaces.

[0183]

[0196] Referring to the one or more processors 384 in more detail, on 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 an RRC layer, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer. The one or more processors 384 may provide RRC layer functions associated with broadcasting 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 functions associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functions associated with transfer of higher layer PDUs, error correction via automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0184]

[0197] The transmitter 354 and receiver 352 may implement Layer 1 (L1) functions 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 onto the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 handles mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), multi-level quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be split into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined with each other using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to generate a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol streams are spatially precoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator may be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimates may be derived from 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 respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0185]

[0198] At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives the signal through its respective antenna(s) 316. The receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. The receiver 312 may perform spatial processing on the information to recover the spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 302, they may be combined by the receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The 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 comprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier and the reference signal are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation points transmitted by the 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 the base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to one or more processors 332 that implement Layer 3 (L3) and Layer 2 (L2) functions.

[0186]

[0199] In the uplink, one or more processors 332 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header recovery, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. The one or more processors 332 are also responsible for error detection.

[0187]

[0200] Similar to the functions described with respect to downlink transmission by the base station 304, the one or more processors 332 provide RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions associated with transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto and demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from transport blocks (TBs), scheduling information reporting, error correction via hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0188]

[0201] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 may be used by the transmitter 314 to select an appropriate coding and modulation scheme and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different antenna(s) 316. The transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with each spatial stream for transmission.

[0189]

[0202] Uplink transmissions are processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described with respect to the receiver function at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives signals through its respective antenna(s) 356. The receiver 352 recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to one or more processors 384.

[0190]

[0203] In the uplink, the one or more processors 384 provide demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header recovery, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 302. The IP packets from the one or more processors 384 may be provided to a core network. The one or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.

[0191]

[0204] For convenience, the UE 302, base station 304, and / or network entity 306 are illustrated in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C as including various components that may be configured according to various examples described herein. However, it will be appreciated that the illustrated components may have different functions in different designs. In particular, the various components in FIGS. 3A-3C are optional in alternative configurations, and various aspects include configurations that may vary due to design choice, cost, device use, or other considerations. For example, in the case of FIG. 3A, a particular implementation of the UE 302 may omit the WWAN transceiver(s) 310 (e.g., a wearable device or tablet computer or PC or laptop may have Wi-Fi and / or Bluetooth capabilities without cellular capabilities), or may omit the short-range wireless transceiver(s) 320 (e.g., cellular only, etc.), or may omit the satellite signal receiver 330, or may omit the sensor(s) 344, etc. 3B, a particular implementation of base station 304 may omit WWAN transceiver(s) 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi “hotspot” access point without cellular capability), or may omit short-range wireless transceiver(s) 360 (e.g., cellular only, etc.), or may omit satellite receiver 370, etc. For brevity, a description of various alternative configurations is not provided herein, but would be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art.

[0192]

[0205] The various components of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to one another via data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392, respectively. In an aspect, the data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 may form or be part of communication interfaces of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306, respectively. For example, when different logical entities are implemented in the same device (e.g., gNB functionality and location server functionality integrated in the same base station 304), the data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 may provide communication therebetween.

[0193]

[0206] The components of Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C may be implemented in a variety of ways. In some implementations, the components of Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C 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), where each circuit may use and / or incorporate at least one memory component for storing information or executable code used by the circuit to provide this functionality. For example, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 310-346 may be implemented by the processor and memory component(s) of the UE 302 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 350-388 may be implemented by the processor and memory component(s) of the base station 304 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Also, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390-398 may be implemented by a processor and memory component(s) of the network entity 306 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, acts, and / or functions are described herein as being performed "by the UE," "by the base station," "by the network entity," etc. However, it will be appreciated that such operations, acts, and / or functions may actually be performed by particular components or combinations of components of the UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc., such as the processors 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, memories 340, 386, and 396, positioning components 342, 388, and 398, etc.

[0194]

[0207] In some designs, the network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, the network entity 306 may be separate from the network operator or operation of the cellular network infrastructure (e.g., the NG RAN 220 and / or the 5GC 210 / 260). For example, the network entity 306 may be a component of a private network that may be configured to communicate with the UE 302 through the base station 304 or independently of the base station 304 (e.g., via a non-cellular communication link such as WiFi).

[0195]

[0208] Various frame structures may be used to support downlink and uplink transmissions between network nodes (e.g., base stations and UEs). Figure 4 is a diagram 400 illustrating example frame structures according to aspects of the disclosure. The frame structure may be a downlink or uplink frame structure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0196]

[0209] LTE, and in some cases NR, utilizes OFDM on the downlink and single-carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. However, unlike LTE, NR has the option to use OFDM on the uplink as well. OFDM and SC-FDM partition the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, also commonly referred to as tones, bins, etc. Each subcarrier may be modulated with data. In general, modulation symbols are sent in the frequency domain with OFDM and in the time domain with SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers may be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) may be dependent on the system bandwidth. For example, the subcarrier spacing may be 15 kilohertz (kHz), and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) may be 12 subcarriers (or 180 kHz). Thus, the nominal FFT size may be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048 for a system bandwidth of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 megahertz (MHz), respectively. The system bandwidth may also be partitioned 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, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 MHz, respectively.

[0197]

[0210] LTE supports a single numerology (subcarrier spacing (SCS), symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR may support multiple numerologies (μ), e.g., subcarrier spacings of 15 kHz (μ=0), 30 kHz (μ=1), 60 kHz (μ=2), 120 kHz (μ=3), and 240 kHz (μ=4) or greater may be available. At each subcarrier spacing, there are 14 symbols per slot. For a 15 kHz SCS (μ=0), there is one slot per subframe, 10 slots per frame, the slot duration is 1 millisecond (ms), the symbol duration is 66.7 microseconds (μs), and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 50. For a 30 kHz SCS (μ=1), there are two slots per subframe, 20 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.5 ms, the symbol duration is 33.3 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 100. For a 60 kHz SCS (μ=2), there are four slots per subframe, 40 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.25 ms, the symbol duration is 16.7 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 200. For a 120 kHz SCS (μ=3), there are eight slots per subframe, 80 slots per frame, the slot duration is 0.125 ms, the symbol duration is 8.33 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) with a 4K FFT size is 400. For 240 kHz SCS (μ=4), there are 16 slots per subframe, 160 slots per frame, slot duration is 0.0625 ms, symbol duration is 4.17 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) is 800 with a 4K FFT size.

[0198]

[0211] In the example of Figure 4, a numerology of 15 kHz is used. Thus, in the time domain, a 10 ms frame is divided into 10 equally sized subframes of 1 ms each, with each subframe containing one time slot. In Figure 4, time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), with time increasing from left to right, and frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), with frequency increasing (or decreasing) from bottom to top.

[0199]

[0212] A resource grid may be used to represent a time slot, with each time slot including one or more (also called physical RB (PRB)) time-parallel resource blocks (RBs) in the frequency domain. The resource grid is further divided into multiple resource elements (REs). An RE may correspond to one symbol length in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain. In the numerology of FIG. 4, in the case of a normal cyclic prefix, an RB may include 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 7 consecutive symbols in the time domain for a total of 84 REs. In the case of an extended cyclic prefix, an RB may include 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 6 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.

[0200]

[0213] Some of the REs may carry reference (pilot) signals (RS). The 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 (SSB), sounding reference signals (SRS), etc., depending on whether the illustrated frame structure is used for uplink or downlink communications. Figure 4 shows example locations of REs carrying reference signals (labeled "R").

[0201]

[0214] FIG. 5 is a diagram 500 illustrating various downlink channels in an exemplary downlink slot. In FIG. 5, time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), with time increasing from left to right, and frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), with frequency increasing (or decreasing) from bottom to top. In the example of FIG. 5, a numerology of 15 kHz is used. Thus, in the time domain, the illustrated slot is 1 millisecond (ms) in length and is divided into 14 symbols.

[0202]

[0215] In NR, the channel bandwidth or system bandwidth is divided into multiple bandwidth parts (BWPs). A BWP is a contiguous set of RBs selected from a contiguous subset of common RBs for a given numerology on a given carrier. In general, up to four BWPs can be specified in the downlink and uplink. That is, a UE can be configured with up to four BWPs on the downlink and up to four BWPs on the uplink. At a given time, only one BWP (uplink or downlink) can be active, which means that a UE can only receive or transmit on one BWP at a time. On the downlink, the bandwidth of each BWP should be equal to or greater than the bandwidth of an SSB, but it may or may not include the SSB.

[0203]

[0216] Referring to FIG. 5, a primary synchronization signal (PSS) is used by the UE to determine subframe / symbol timing and physical layer identity. A secondary synchronization signal (SSS) is used by the UE to determine a physical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identity group number, the UE can determine the PCI. Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the DL-RS mentioned above. A physical broadcast channel (PBCH) carrying a master information block (MIB) can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form an SSB (also called SS / PBCH). The MIB provides the number of RBs in the downlink system bandwidth and the system frame number (SFN). A physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data and broadcast system information not transmitted through the PBCH, such as a system information block (SIB), and paging messages.

[0204]

[0217] The Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) carries downlink control information (DCI) in one or more control channel elements (CCEs), each CCE containing one or more RE group (REG) bundles (which may span multiple symbols in the time domain), each REG bundle containing one or more REGs, each REG corresponding to 12 resource elements (one resource block) in the frequency domain and one OFDM symbol in the time domain. The set of physical resources used to carry the PDCCH / DCI is called a control resource set (CORESET) in NR. In NR, the PDCCH is limited to a single CORESET and transmitted with its own DMRS. This allows UE-specific beamforming for the PDCCH.

[0205]

[0218] In the example of FIG. 5, there is one CORESET per BWP, and the CORESET spans three symbols in the time domain (although it could be only one or two symbols). Unlike the LTE control channel, which occupies the entire system bandwidth, in NR, the PDCCH channel is localized to a unique region (i.e., the CORESET) in the frequency domain. Thus, the frequency components of the PDCCH shown in FIG. 5 are shown as smaller than a single BWP in the frequency domain. Note that although the illustrated CORESET is contiguous in the frequency domain, it does not have to be contiguous. Additionally, the CORESET may span fewer than three symbols in the time domain.

[0206]

[0219] The DCI in the PDCCH carries information about uplink resource allocation (persistent and non-persistent), called uplink grant and downlink grant, respectively, and a description about the downlink data to be transmitted to the UE. More specifically, the DCI indicates the scheduled resources for the downlink data channel (e.g., PDSCH) and the uplink data channel (e.g., Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH)). Multiple (e.g., up to eight) DCIs may be configured in the PDCCH, and these DCIs may have one of multiple formats. For example, there are different DCI formats for uplink scheduling, for downlink scheduling, for uplink transmit power control (TPC), etc. The PDCCH may be transported by one, two, four, eight, or sixteen CCEs to accommodate different DCI payload sizes or coding rates.

[0207]

[0220] FIG. 6 is a diagram 600 illustrating various uplink channels in an exemplary uplink slot. In FIG. 6, time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), where time increases from left to right, and frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), where frequency increases (or decreases) from bottom to top. In the example of FIG. 6, a numerology of 15 kHz is used. Thus, in the time domain, the illustrated slot is 1 millisecond (ms) in length and is divided into 14 symbols.

[0208]

[0221] A random access channel (RACH), also referred to as a physical random access channel (PRACH), may be in one or more slots in a frame based on a PRACH configuration. The PRACH may include six consecutive RB pairs in a slot. The PRACH enables a UE to perform initial system access and achieve uplink synchronization. A physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) may be located on the edge of the uplink system bandwidth. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as scheduling requests, CSI reports, channel quality indicators (CQI), precoding matrix indicators (PMI), rank indicators (RI), and HARQ ACK / NACK feedback. A physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) carries data and may be further used to carry buffer status reports (BSRs), power headroom reports (PHRs), and / or UCIs.

[0209]

[0222] FIG. 7 is a diagram of an example PRS configuration 700 for PRS transmission of a given base station according to an aspect of the disclosure. In FIG. 7, time is represented horizontally and increases from left to right. Each long rectangle represents a slot and each short (shaded) rectangle represents an OFDM symbol. In the example of FIG. 7, a PRS resource set 710 (labeled "PRS resource set 1") includes two PRS resources, a first PRS resource 712 (labeled "PRS resource 1") and a second PRS resource 714 (labeled "PRS resource 2"). The base station transmits a PRS on PRS resources 712 and 714 of the PRS resource set 710.

[0210]

[0223] PRS resource set 710 has an occasion length (N_PRS) of two slots and a periodicity (T_PRS), e.g., 160 slots or 160 milliseconds (ms) (for 15 kHz subcarrier spacing). Thus, both PRS resource 712 and PRS resource 714 are two consecutive slots in length and repeat every T_PRS slots, starting from the slot in which the first symbol of the respective PRS resource occurs. In the example of FIG. 7, PRS resource 712 has a symbol length (N_symb) of two symbols and PRS resource 714 has a symbol length (N_symb) of four symbols. PRS resource 712 and PRS resource 714 may be transmitted on separate beams of the same base station.

[0211]

[0224] Each instance of PRS resource set 710, shown as instances 720a, 720b, and 720c, includes occasions of length "2" (i.e., N_PRS=2) for each PRS resource 712, 714 of the PRS resource set. The PRS resources 712 and 714 are repeated every T_PRS slots up to the muting sequence periodicity T_REP. Thus, a bitmap of length T_REP would be needed to indicate which occasions of instances 720a, 720b, and 720c of the PRS resource set 710 are muted (i.e., not transmitted).

[0212]

[0225] In an aspect, there may be additional constraints on the PRS configuration 700. For example, for all PRS resources (e.g., PRS resources 712, 714) of a PRS resource set (e.g., PRS resource set 710), the base station may configure the following parameters to be the same: (a) occasion length (N_PRS), (b) number of symbols (N_symb), (c) comb type, and / or (d) bandwidth. Additionally, for all PRS resources of all PRS resource sets, the subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix may be configured to be the same for one base station or for all base stations. Whether it is for one base station or for all base stations may depend on the UE's capability to support the first and / or second options.

[0213]

[0226] FIG. 8 is a diagram 800 illustrating example PRS configurations for two TRPs (labeled “TRP1” and “TRP2”) operating in the same positioning frequency layer (labeled “Positioning Frequency Layer 1”) according to an aspect of the disclosure. For a positioning session, a UE may be provided with assistance data indicating the illustrated PRS configuration. In the example of FIG. 8, a first TRP ("TRP1") is associated with (e.g., transmits) two PRS resource sets, labeled “PRS Resource Set 1” and “PRS Resource Set 2,” and a second TRP ("TRP2") is associated with one PRS resource set, labeled “PRS Resource Set 3.” Each PRS resource set comprises at least two PRS resources. In particular, the first PRS resource set ("PRS resource set 1") includes PRS resources labeled "PRS resource 1" and "PRS resource 2," the second PRS resource set ("PRS resource set 2") includes PRS resources labeled "PRS resource 3" and "PRS resource 4," and the third PRS resource set ("PRS resource set 3") includes PRS resources labeled "PRS resource 5" and "PRS resource 6."

[0214]

[0227] NR supports several cellular network-based positioning techniques, including downlink-based positioning methods, uplink-based positioning methods, and downlink-and-uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and downlink angle of departure (DL-AoD) in NR. FIG. 9 illustrates examples of various positioning methods according to aspects of the present disclosure. In an OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure illustrated by scenario 910, a UE measures the difference between the times of arrival (ToA) of reference signals (e.g., positioning reference signals (PRS)) received from a pair of base stations, called reference signal time difference (RSTD) or time difference of arrival (TDOA) measurements, and reports them to a positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives an identifier (ID) of a reference base station (e.g., a serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in the assistance data. The UE then measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each of the non-reference base stations. Based on the known locations of the involved base stations and the RSTD measurements, a positioning entity (eg, the UE in case of UE-based positioning or a location server in case of UE-assisted positioning) can estimate the location of the UE.

[0215]

[0228] For DL-AoD positioning, illustrated by scenario 920, the positioning entity uses beam reports from the UE of received signal strength measurements of multiple downlink transmit beams to determine an angle(s) between the UE and the transmitting base station(s). The positioning entity can then estimate the location of the UE based on the determined angle(s) and the known location(s) of the transmitting base station(s).

[0216]

[0229] 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 an uplink reference signal (e.g., Sounding Reference Signal (SRS)) transmitted by the UE. 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(s) of the receive beam(s) to determine the angle(s) between the UE and the base station(s). Based on the determined angle(s) and the known location(s) of the base station(s), the positioning entity can then estimate the location of the UE.

[0217]

[0230] Downlink and uplink based positioning methods include Extended Cell ID (E-CID) positioning and Multiple Round Trip Time (RTT) positioning (also referred to as "Multi-Cell RTT" and "Multi-RTT"). In an RTT procedure, a first entity (e.g., a base station or a UE) transmits a first RTT-related signal (e.g., a PRS or an SRS) to a second entity (e.g., a UE or a base station), and the second entity transmits a second RTT-related signal (e.g., an SRS or a PRS) back to the first entity. Each entity measures the time difference between the time of arrival (ToA) of the received RTT-related signal and the transmission time of the transmitted RTT-related signal. This time difference is called the receive-transmit (Rx-Tx) time difference. The Rx-Tx time difference measurement may be made or adjusted to include only the time difference between the nearest subframe boundaries for the received and transmitted signals. Both entities may then send 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 from the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements (e.g., as the sum of the two Rx-Tx time difference measurements). Alternatively, one entity may send its Rx-Tx time difference measurements to the other entity, which then calculates the RTT. The distance between the two entities may be determined from the RTT and a known signal speed (e.g., the speed of light). In the case of multi-RTT positioning, illustrated by scenario 930, 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 enable the location of the first entity to be determined based on the distance to the second entity and the known location of the second entity (e.g., using multilateration). The RTT and multi-RTT methods may be combined with other positioning techniques, such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD, to improve location accuracy, as illustrated by scenario 940.

[0218]

[0231] 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, estimated timing, and signal strength of detected neighbor base stations. The location of the UE is then estimated based on this information and the known location of the base station(s).

[0219]

[0232] To assist the positioning operation, 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 to measure the reference signal, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., number of consecutive positioning subframes, periodicity of the positioning subframes, muting sequence, frequency hopping sequence, reference signal identifier, 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 broadcasted overhead message, etc.). In some cases, the UE may be able to detect neighbor network nodes on its own without using the assistance data.

[0220]

[0233] In the case of an OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure, the assistance data may further include an expected RSTD value and an associated uncertainty, or a 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 the positioning measurements are in FR1, the expected RSTD uncertainty value range may be + / - 32 μs. In other cases, when all of the resources used for the positioning measurement(s) are in FR2, the expected RSTD uncertainty value range may be + / - 8 μs.

[0221]

[0234] A location estimate may be called by other names, such as a position estimate, location, position, position fix, fix, etc. A location estimate may be geodetic and comprise coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude) or may be civic and comprise a street address, postal address, or some other verbal description of the location. A location estimate may further be defined relative to some other known location or in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). A location estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volume that the location is expected to cover with some specified or default confidence level).

[0222]

[0235] The 3GPP position estimation framework supports calculating absolute position (Global Coordinate System (GCS) defined in WGS-84). The anchor (e.g., gNB / TRP) location is known to the LMF (for UE-assisted positioning) or is indicated to the UE (for UE-based positioning). The indication to the UE specifies the absolute position (latitude / longitude / altitude). In 3GPP Rel.16, different panels of a TRP may be indicated as separate positions (e.g., the TRP may be assigned an absolute position and the panels may be assigned positions relative to that absolute position).

[0223]

[0236] In many cases, absolute position is not required and a relative position to some landmarks (e.g., relative location to other vehicles, road features, pedestrians in V2X positioning, or relative location to factory walls, ceilings, and other static or dynamic features in IIoT) is sufficient.

[0224]

[0237] In many cases, the absolute global anchor locations may be relatively poorly known, but their relative distances are accurate. For example, in some indoor environments, GNSS may be unavailable, but the mutual distances may be measured using highly accurate distance measuring devices (e.g., laser range finders).

[0225]

[0238] Aspects of the present disclosure are directed to relative location anchor groups (RLAGs) that may be used for relative position estimation. Such aspects may provide various technical advantages, such as providing information that does not rely on absolute location (e.g., speed / velocity, object proximity, etc.), particularly in environments where absolute position estimation accuracy implemented via RLAGs is below a threshold (e.g., below an accuracy requirement). In further aspects, transformation information (e.g., rotation, reflection, coordinate offset(s), translation, etc.) may be used to convert absolute location derived via measurement data associated with the RLAG into a more accurate or "true" absolute position estimate, which may provide technical advantages, such as improved absolute position estimate accuracy, and / or improved security (e.g., the RLAG may intentionally obscure the position estimate for entities that do not have knowledge of the transformation information).

[0226]

[0239] 10 illustrates an example process 1000 of wireless communication according to an aspect of the disclosure. In one aspect, process 1000 may be performed by a position estimation entity. In some designs, the position estimation entity may correspond to the UE 302 (e.g., in the case of UE-based position estimation), or the BS 304 (e.g., an LMF integrated in the RAN), or the network entity 306 (e.g., an LMF integrated in a core network component, a location server, etc.).

[0227]

[0240] 10, at 1010, a location estimation entity (e.g., processor(s) 332 or 384 or 394, positioning component 342 or 388 or 398, etc.) determines a resource configuration (e.g., for SL PRS, DL PRS, UL PRS, etc.) associated with a location estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) (e.g., a target UE for which a location estimate is desired, etc.) and multiple anchors, where the multiple anchors comprise at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, and where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information (e.g., a higher accuracy for relative location estimation than absolute location estimation, etc.). The anchors may be grouped within the RLAG based on various criteria (e.g., a new device that performs location estimation via a RLAG may then be incorporated onto the RLAG, etc.). In some designs, some or all of the anchors in the RLAG may be in a shared environment (e.g., an indoor environment, or an outdoor environment with obstructions that reduce absolute position estimation accuracy, etc.). The means for performing the determination of 1010 may include a processor(s) 332, 384, or 394, a positioning component 342, 388, or 398 of the UE 302 or the BS 304, or the network entity 306.

[0228]

[0241] 10, in 1020, a location estimation entity (e.g., transmitter 314 or 324 or 354 or 364, network transceiver(s) 390, data bus 334 or 382 or 392, etc.) transmits a resource configuration. For example, the resource configuration may be transmitted to the UE and one or more of the anchors, such as (in the case of Uu location estimation) a serving base station of the UE (e.g., a serving gNB may control one or more of the anchors or TRPs in the RLAG and may forward the resource configuration to one or more other neighbor gNBs with the anchor TRP), or (in the case of SL location estimation) to one or more anchor UEs, or a combination thereof. Means for performing the transmission of 1020 may include the transmitter 314 or 324 or 354 or 364, network transceiver(s) 390, data bus 334 or 382 or 392 of the UE 302 or BS 304 or network entity 306.

[0229]

[0242] With reference to FIG. 10 , at 1030, a position estimation entity (e.g., receiver 312 or 322 or 352 or 362, network transceiver(s) 380 or 390, data bus 334 or 382 or 392, etc.) receives measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with a position estimation procedure. In some designs, the measurement data may include measurement(s) associated with a UL PRS, DL PRS and / or SL PRS. In other designs, the measurement data may include measurement(s) of a non-3GPP PRS, such as laser range finder measurement(s). In some designs, the measurement data may be received from the UE, some or all of the anchors in the RLAG, or a combination thereof. In some designs, the measurement data may be timing-based (e.g., RTT, TDOA, etc.), angle-based (e.g., AoD or AoA), or a combination thereof. The means for performing reception in 1030 may include a receiver 312 or 322 or 352 or 362, a network transceiver(s) 380 or 390, a data bus 334 or 382 or 392 of the UE 302 or BS 304 or network entity 306.

[0230]

[0243] 10 , at 1040, a position estimation entity (e.g., processor(s) 332 or 384 or 394, positioning component 342 or 388 or 398, etc.) determines location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data. In some designs, the location information may include information that does not depend on an absolute position estimate for the UE and / or anchors in the RLAG, such as object / collision detection, speed / velocity, etc. In other designs, the location information may include an absolute location estimate via application of transformation information, as described in more detail below. Means for performing the determination of 1040 may include processor(s) 332 or 384 or 394, positioning component 342 or 388 or 398 of the UE 302 or BS 304 or network entity 306.

[0231]

[0244] 11 illustrates an example process 1100 for wireless communication according to an aspect of the disclosure. In one aspect, the process 1100 may be performed by a UE (e.g., a UE for which a position estimate is desired), such as the UE 302.

[0232]

[0245] 11, at 1110, the UE 302 (e.g., receiver 312 or 322, data bus 334, etc.) receives a resource configuration (e.g., for SL PRS, DL PRS, UL PRS, etc.) associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and multiple anchors, where the multiple anchors include at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to each other, and where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information (e.g., a higher accuracy for relative position estimation than absolute position estimation, etc.). The anchors may be grouped within the RLAG based on various criteria (e.g., a new device that performs position estimation via the RLAG may then be installed on the RLAG, etc.). In some designs, some or all of the anchors in the RLAG may be in a shared environment (e.g., an indoor environment, or an outdoor environment with obstructions that reduce absolute position estimation accuracy, etc.). In the case of UE-based position estimation, the receiving of 1110 corresponds to an internal transfer of data between logical components. Means for performing the receiving of 1110 may include a receiver 312 or 322, a data bus 334, etc., of the UE 302.

[0233]

[0246] 11 , at 1120, the UE 302 (e.g., receiver 312 or 322, transmitter 314 or 324, positioning component 342, etc.) communicates one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with a set of anchors according to a resource configuration of a position estimation procedure. In some designs, the PRS(s) communicated at 1120 may include a SL PRS or a UL PRS transmitted by the UE 302, a SL PRS or a DL PRS received at (and measured by) the UE 302, or a combination thereof. The means for performing the communication at 1120 may include the receiver 312 or 322, the transmitter 314 or 324, etc., of the UE 302.

[0234]

[0247] 12 illustrates an example process 1200 for wireless communication according to an aspect of the disclosure. In one aspect, the process 1200 may be performed by a wireless device, such as a UE (e.g., a UE for which a position estimate is desired, or alternatively, a UE with a known location) or a gNB with one or more TRPs.

[0235]

[0248] 12, at 1210, a wireless device (e.g., receiver 312 or 322 or 352 or 362, transmitter 314 or 324 or 354 or 356, positioning component 342 or 388, etc.) performs a position estimation procedure between the wireless device and multiple anchors including at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, and where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information. In some designs, the position estimation procedure may include an SL PRS exchange (e.g., a two-way exchange, for RTT type measurements, as examples, or a one-way exchange to / from the anchor(s), for TDOA type measurements, etc.) or may transmit a UL PRS (e.g., a non-3GPP PRS, such as, for example, or laser range finder signaling) to / from one or more anchors of the RLAG. The means for performing the position estimation procedure of 1210 may include a receiver 312 or 322 or 352 or 362, a transmitter 314 or 324 or 354 or 356, a positioning component 342 or 388, etc., of the UE 302 or the BS 304.

[0236]

[0249] 12 , at 1220, a wireless device (e.g., receiver 312 or 322 or 352 or 362, transmitter 314 or 324 or 354 or 356, positioning component 342 or 388, etc.) joins the RLAG as a new anchor in response to the position estimation procedure. In some designs, the wireless device may cooperate with (or register with) a position estimation entity to facilitate the joinder at 1220. Thus, for subsequent RLAG-based position estimation procedures, the wireless device may (optionally) be included in the RLAG as one of the activated anchors. Means for performing the joining at 1220 may include the receiver 312 or 322 or 352 or 362, the transmitter 314 or 324 or 354 or 356, the positioning component 342 or 388, etc., of the UE 302 or BS 304.

[0237]

[0250] 10-12 , in some designs, locations for anchors in a RLAG are provided using just the current reporting format (e.g., no new messages need to be defined). In some designs, the location information comprises relative location information. For example, the relative location information may include a relative position estimate or distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a velocity estimate of the UE, or collision detection (e.g., object or proximity detection) between the UE and one or more objects with one or more known relative locations to the RLAG, or a combination thereof. In some designs, the location information may include a combination of a lower accuracy absolute location estimate and a higher accuracy relative distance to one or more anchors of one or more RLAGs (e.g., as described above, the relative distance between anchors is known within each RLAG, but not necessarily between anchors of different RLAGs). In other words, in some designs, legacy absolute position estimation may be performed using RLAG-based measurement data, such as velocity estimation (e.g., where only the difference between two successive absolute position estimates is important) or collision detection (e.g., where only the difference between an obstacle (e.g., a wall, a desk, etc.) and the UE is important).

[0238]

[0251] 10-12, in some designs described above, absolute position estimation need not be performed at all. However, if performed, absolute position estimation via RLAG may be associated with transformation information. In some designs, a position estimation entity may derive an absolute position estimate of the UE based on measurement data and then (optionally) apply transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate (e.g., true) absolute position estimate of the UE (e.g., because a “normal” absolute position estimate via RLAG may be highly inaccurate). In other designs, the transformation information may be applied to the anchor location of the RLAG rather than to the UE's position estimate (e.g., applying the transformation information to the input to the derivation rather than to the output of the derivation).

[0239]

[0252] 10-12, in some designs, the derived absolute position estimate may be transmitted to one or more external entities with knowledge of the transformation information. In this case, the transformation information serves as a security key to unlock a true (or at least more accurate) absolute position estimate of the RLAG anchor and / or UE. In some designs, the transformation information may be configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a location estimate security protocol, or the transformation information may be configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof. The transformation information may thereby be known and / or applied at various entities (e.g., a position estimation entity, such as an LMF or target UE or another UE for sidelink position estimation), at an AMF or gNB, at an LCS client (e.g., outside the 3GPP framework), etc. In some designs, the transformation may be used to provide some location information (e.g., proximity detection for collision avoidance, speed, etc.) while obscuring the anchor location. The obscuration may prevent unauthorized nodes from accessing the true anchor location. In one example, the "unauthorized node" itself may be one or more of a UE (target or other helper UE), a gNB, an AMF, an LMF, etc. The level of obfuscation (or intentional anchor location error) may also be configurable and may vary between devices (e.g., depending on the level of access the node is allowed to receive, e.g., 10 meter error, 10 mile error, etc.). In some designs, the transformation information may include metrics such as the magnitude of the applied translation and / or rotation, as well as how those metrics are (fixed, extracted from a distribution, etc.), etc.

[0240]

[0253] 10-12, in some designs, the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmitting reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0241]

[0254] 10-12, in some designs, a location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG (e.g., different RLAGs may be associated with different transformation information, and thus mixing anchors from different RLAGs may result in high error).

[0242]

[0255] 10-12, in some designs, the position estimation entity may receive an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG from at least one anchor in the set of anchors of the RLAG (e.g., to register reporting anchor(s) with the RLAG such that the position estimation entity may select those anchor(s) for a position estimation procedure).

[0243]

[0256] 10-12, in some designs, the location estimation entity may send an indication of the RLAG identifier of the RLAG to the UE. This sending may be done in various manners.

[0244]

[0257] In one example, the instruction may include a list of RLAGs, where each listed RLAG is associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors. For example, a position estimation entity may define a list of RLAGs. Each RLAG includes more information elements (IEs), such as ID, (optional) offset information, (optional) uncertainty (e.g., ellipse / rectangle uncertainty, etc.). In some designs, one specific RLAG ID may be defined (e.g., predefined or network configured) as a default global coordinate system defined in WGS-84. In some designs, each anchor (e.g., UE or TRP) is tagged with one RLAG ID. In case of TRP, the RLAG may be added to an IE, such as TRP-ID, NR-DL-PRS-AssistanceDataPerTRP-r16 (in case of UE assistance), NR-TRP-LocationInfo (in case of UE based), etc. In some designs, an anchor without an explicit RLAG association may imply that the anchor is defined as a default GCS with higher accuracy (e.g., if the anchor is not yet incorporated into the RLAG or if a particular anchor is more accurate for absolute position estimation than for relative position estimation, then this particular anchor may be kept separate from the RLAG).

[0245]

[0258] In the alternative, the instructions may include a list of anchors, with each listed anchor associated with a respective RLAG identifier.

[0246]

[0259] In another alternative, the indication may include a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration to which the RLAG identifier is mapped. For example, each UE may be configured with multiple PRS configurations. Each PRS configuration may be tagged with an RLAG.

[0247]

[0260] In some designs, the RLAG ID may be provided by the RLAG anchor (e.g., via assistance data) to the LMF (e.g., via NRPPa). In some designs, the RLAG ID may be pre-configured (e.g., an indoor factory sensor may be a static member of the RLAG). In some designs, the RLAG ID may be provided to the target UE from a location estimation entity (e.g., LMF, TRP, or UE anchor, etc.) via LPP. In some designs, the RLAG ID may be determined by the anchor or, alternatively, assigned by the location estimation entity (e.g., LMF, etc.). In some designs, for obfuscation purposes, the LMF may apply an operation (e.g., a transformation or translation) to the reported estimate of the genie or absolute location of the set anchors, as described in more detail below with respect to FIG. 13, and then assign the same RLAG ID to these anchors. As used herein, “genie” refers to the true location of a device (i.e., an error below some threshold) as opposed to a location for the device that has an error (e.g., intentional and / or unintentional) above some threshold.

[0248]

[0261] 10-12, in some designs, the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, and the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG. In some designs, the new anchor(s) may determine an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG, and the new anchor(s) join the RLAG by inheriting the RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG (e.g., via reporting the RLAG ID to a position estimation entity, etc.). For example, an indoor UE anchor should inherit the ID from a TRP used for location estimation.

[0249]

[0262] 10-12, in legacy 3GPP designs, NR-TRP-LocationInfo may be used by a location server to provide coordinates of antenna reference points for a set of TRPs. For each TRP, a TRP location may be provided for each associated PRS resource ID per PRS resource set. In some designs, a similar LPP IE may be modified to convey the relative location of the RLAG anchor. For example, the IE ReferencePoint may be a preferred LPP IE that may provide a well-defined location for which other locations may be defined (e.g., may be used to convey a relative RLAG anchor location).

[0250]

[0263] 10-12, in some designs, the RLAG anchors may be either static or dynamic. A single static RLAG is the simplest case and may be assumed by default. In other designs, multiple static RLAGs may be configured. For example, assume that the RLAG anchors are in two buildings and that only all anchors in the same building are accurately positioned relative to each other (e.g., set up one RLAG per building and do not mix RLAG anchors from different buildings). In some designs, indication of relative location across different RLAGs may be enabled. In the above example, the relative locations of the buildings (with respect to each other) or the anchors across the two buildings may be known.

[0251]

[0264] 10-12, in other designs, multiple dynamic RLAGs may be configured. For example, assume that an RLAG anchor with good relative positioning has acquired this via a SL (or Uu+SL) positioning procedure. Thus, all participants in that procedure are marked as belonging to the same RLAG. Some participants may be moving somewhat faster than the positioning procedure can track (e.g., these fast-moving devices may need to be removed from the RLAG and possibly added into another RLAG at a later time). In some designs, the RLAG ID may be implemented as a toggle bit or a circular counter.

[0252]

[0265] 13 illustrates an example implementation 1300 of processes 10-12 according to an aspect of the disclosure. In FIG. 13, outdoor RLAG1 and indoor RLAG2 are shown with four anchors per RLAG. Outdoor RLAG1 is associated with a good absolute position estimate and indoor RLAG2 is associated with a poor absolute position estimate. Thus, for indoor RLAG2, the true anchor absolute location is separated from the derived absolute location by offsets 1302, 1304, 1306 and 1308.

[0253]

[0266] Referring to FIG. 13 , in some designs, for an indoor anchor, assume that the genie location (or true location) in the GCS is X and the assigned location in the GCS is X_hat (e.g., whereby X_hat is an offset from X due to intentional and / or unintentional errors). Then, further assume that the genic location in the GCS near the indoor / outdoor boundary is B and there is an assigned location in the GCS of B_hat (e.g., equivalent to a local coordinate in the same format of WGS84, but with transformation information such as translation and / or rotation). Similar to X_hat, B_hat is an offset from B due to intentional and / or unintentional errors. For positioning, the location estimation entity may use only indoor TRPs in RLAG2 (relative location is consistent within this group). Also, a location fix of a certain UE undergoes the same offset as RLAG1 (e.g., this offset may be either known or unknown to the location estimation entity). Such a location fix is ​​still useful for some applications mentioned above. In some designs, as mentioned above, using anchors from multiple groups may result in large positioning errors, which is undesirable. Thus, even in the UE-assisted case, providing the UE with RLAG information can help the UE to better select measurements for positioning measurement reports (e.g., the UE can avoid selecting anchors from different RLAGs to improve position estimation).

[0254]

[0267] In yet other aspects, a local coordinate system (LCS) may be used instead of an absolute coordinate system such as WGS84. Such aspects may provide various technical advantages, such as simple implementation in environments where absolute position estimation is inaccurate, but the LCS may also be associated with high signaling overhead.

[0255]

[0268] 14 illustrates an example process 1400 for wireless communication according to an aspect of the disclosure. In one aspect, process 1400 may be performed by a position estimation entity. In some designs, the position estimation entity may correspond to the UE 302 (e.g., in the case of UE-based position estimation), or the BS 304 (e.g., an LMF integrated in the RAN), or the network entity 306 (e.g., an LMF integrated in a core network component, a location server, etc.).

[0256]

[0269] 14, at 1410, a position estimation entity (e.g., processor(s) 332 or 384 or 394, positioning component 342 or 388 or 398, etc.) determines a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors for a position estimation of a user equipment (UE). Means for performing the determination of 1410 may include processor(s) 332 or 384 or 394, positioning component 342 or 388 or 398, etc. of the UE 302 or BS 304 or network entity 306.

[0257]

[0270] 14, at 1420, a position estimation entity (e.g., transmitter 314 or 324 or 354 or 364, network transceiver(s) 390, data bus 334 or 382 or 392, etc.) transmits an LCS frame including an indication of a set of LCS locations. In the case of UE-based position estimation, the transmission of 1420 corresponds to an internal transfer of data between logical components. Means for performing the transmission of 1420 may include the transmitter 314 or 324 or 354 or 364, network transceiver(s) 390, data bus 334 or 382 or 392, etc., of the UE 302 or BS 304 or network entity 306.

[0258]

[0271] 14, in some designs, each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information (e.g., coordinate offset(s) etc.) to transform the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system. For example, the transformation information is applied to one or more of an origin of the LCS, or an x-axis position of the LCS location, or a y-axis position of the LCS location, or a z-axis position of the LCS location, or a combination thereof. In some designs, the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian or polar coordinates.

[0259]

[0272] With reference to FIG. 14, in some designs, the LCS frame itself may be specified relative to a global coordinate frame, in which anchor locations are provided in 3GPP Rel. 16. In some designs, this specification may be omitted partially or entirely. An example of a "partial" specification is where only the origin and / or z-axis are specified, but not the x-axis and y-axis. In some designs, this may have insufficient accuracy, but the location in the LCS frame may be highly accurate.

[0260]

[0273] With reference to FIG. 14 , in some designs, the LCS frame may require the definition of new signaling messages that include new location formats. For example, any messages that currently include location data in the current format (e.g., WGS84) would be modified to include location data in the LCS format instead. This may entail changes to many such messages (e.g., including support for 3GPP RAT-based positioning, but also other RAT-based positioning (e.g., Bluetooth / WiFi) for which 3GPP supports message exchange). Thus, setting up an ad-hoc LCS may result in significant impacts on related 3GPP specifications. For the LCS, various location formats may be used (e.g., Cartesian or polar coordinates, etc.). In some designs, existing formats (e.g., as in the case of WGS840) may be at least partially reused (e.g., reusing latitude / longitude with possible rotation of the Earth's position, etc.).

[0261]

[0274] In the above detailed description, it can be seen that different features are grouped together in examples. This mode of disclosure should not be understood as an intention that the exemplary clauses have more features than those explicitly stated in each clause. Rather, various aspects of the present disclosure may include fewer than all features of each exemplary clause disclosed. Thus, the following clauses should be considered to be incorporated herein, and each clause can exist as a separate example by itself. Although each dependent clause may refer to a specific combination with one of the other clauses in the clause, the aspect(s) of that dependent clause are not limited to a specific combination. It will be appreciated that other exemplary clauses may also include combinations of the dependent clause aspect(s) with any other dependent clause or independent clause subject matter, or combinations of any features with other dependent and independent clauses. Various aspects disclosed herein expressly include certain combinations (e.g., inconsistent aspects, such as defining an element as both an insulator and a conductor) unless these combinations are expressly expressed or can be easily inferred to be not intended. Moreover, it is also contemplated that aspects of a clause may be included in any other independent clause, even if that clause is not directly dependent on that independent clause.

[0262]

[0275] Example implementations are described in the following numbered clauses.

[0263]

[0276] Clause 1. A method of operating a position estimation entity, comprising: determining a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information; transmitting a resource configuration; receiving measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure; and determining location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data.

[0264]

[0277] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the location information comprises relative location information.

[0265]

[0278] Clause 3. The method of clause 2, wherein the relative location information comprises a relative position estimate or distance of the UE with respect to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a velocity estimate of the UE, or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects having one or more known relative locations with respect to the RLAG, or a combination thereof.

[0266]

[0279] Clause 4. The method of any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on measurement data.

[0267]

[0280] Clause 5. The method of clause 4, wherein the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

[0268]

[0281] Clause 6. The method of clause 5, further comprising applying transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0269]

[0282] Clause 7. The method of any of clauses 5 to 6, further comprising transmitting the derived absolute position estimate to one or more external entities having knowledge of the transformation information.

[0270]

[0283] Clause 8. The method of any of clauses 5 to 7, wherein the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0271]

[0284] Clause 9. The method of any of clauses 1 to 8, wherein the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0272]

[0285] Clause 10. The method of any of clauses 1 to 9, wherein the location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG.

[0273]

[0286] Clause 11. The method of any of clauses 1 to 10, further comprising receiving an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG from at least one anchor in the set of anchors for the RLAG.

[0274]

[0287] Clause 12. The method of any of clauses 1 to 11, further comprising sending, to the UE, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0275]

[0288] Clause 13. The method of clause 12, wherein the instructions include a list of RLAGs, each listed RLAG being associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors, or the instructions include a list of anchors, each listed anchor being associated with a respective RLAG identifier, or the instructions include a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration to which the RLAG identifiers are mapped.

[0276]

[0289] Clause 14. The method of any of clauses 1 to 13, wherein the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, and the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG.

[0277]

[0290] Clause 15. The method of any of clauses 1 to 14, wherein the location estimation entity corresponds to a UE, an anchor UE, a base station, or a network component remote from the base station.

[0278]

[0291] Clause 16. A method of operating a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information; and communicating one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the position estimation procedure.

[0279]

[0292] Clause 17. The method of clause 16, wherein an absolute position estimate based on a RLAG based position estimation procedure is associated with transformation information.

[0280]

[0293] Clause 18. The method of clause 17, further comprising receiving, from a position estimation entity, an indication of a derived absolute position estimate based on the measurement data based on one or more PRSs.

[0281]

[0294] Clause 19. The method of clause 18, further comprising applying the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a true absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0282]

[0295] Clause 20. The method of any of clauses 17 to 19, wherein the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0283]

[0296] Clause 21. The method of any of clauses 16 to 20, wherein the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0284]

[0297] Clause 22. The method of any of clauses 16 to 21, further comprising receiving an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0285]

[0298] Clause 23. A method of operating a wireless device, comprising: performing a location estimation procedure between the wireless device and a plurality of anchors including at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information; and in response to the location estimation procedure, joining the RLAG as a new anchor.

[0286]

[0299] Clause 24. The method of clause 23, further comprising determining an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0287]

[0300] Clause 25. The method of clause 24, wherein the wireless device joins the RLAG by inheriting an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0288]

[0301] Clause 26. The method of any of clauses 24 to 25, further comprising transmitting an indication of the RLAG identifier to a position estimation entity.

[0289]

[0302] Clause 27. A method of operating a position estimation entity, the method comprising: determining a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors associated with a position estimate of a user equipment (UE); and transmitting an LCS frame including an indication of the set of LCS locations.

[0290]

[0303] Clause 28. The method of clause 27, wherein each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information for transforming the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system.

[0291]

[0304] Clause 29. The method of clause 28, wherein the transformation information is applied to one or more of an origin of the LCS, or an x-axis position of the LCS location, or a y-axis position of the LCS location, or a z-axis position of the LCS location, or a combination thereof.

[0292]

[0305] Clause 30. The method of any of clauses 27 to 29, wherein the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian or polar coordinates.

[0293]

[0306] Clause 31. A position estimation entity comprising a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: determine a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, wherein the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for the relative position information than for the absolute position information; transmit the resource configuration via the at least one transceiver; receive measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure, via the at least one transceiver; and determine location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data.

[0294]

[0307] Clause 32. The position estimation entity of clause 31, wherein the location information comprises relative location information.

[0295]

[0308] Clause 33. The position estimation entity of clause 32, wherein the relative location information comprises a relative position estimate or distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a velocity estimate of the UE, or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects having one or more known relative locations relative to the RLAG, or a combination thereof.

[0296]

[0309] Clause 34. A position estimation entity according to any of clauses 31 to 33, wherein the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on measurement data.

[0297]

[0310] Clause 35. The position estimation entity of clause 34, wherein the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

[0298]

[0311] Clause 36. The position estimation entity of clause 35, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to apply transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0299]

[0312] Clause 37. The position estimation entity of any of clauses 35 to 36, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit, via the at least one transceiver, the derived absolute position estimate to one or more external entities having knowledge of the transformation information.

[0300]

[0313] Clause 38. A location estimation entity as described in any of clauses 35 to 37, wherein the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute location estimate in accordance with a location estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific location estimation errors in the derived absolute location estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0301]

[0314] Clause 39. A location estimation entity as described in any of clauses 31 to 38, wherein the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0302]

[0315] Clause 40. A location estimation entity according to any of clauses 31 to 39, wherein a location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG.

[0303]

[0316] Clause 41. A location estimation entity as described in any of clauses 31 to 40, further configured by the at least one processor to receive, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG from at least one anchor in the set of anchors for the RLAG.

[0304]

[0317] Clause 42. The location estimation entity of any of clauses 31 to 41, further configured by the at least one processor to transmit, via the at least one transceiver, to the UE an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0305]

[0318] Clause 43. A position estimation entity as described in clause 42, wherein the instructions include a list of RLAGs, each listed RLAG being associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors, or the instructions include a list of anchors, each listed anchor being associated with a respective RLAG identifier, or the instructions include a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration to which the RLAG identifiers are mapped.

[0306]

[0319] Clause 44. A position estimation entity according to any of clauses 31 to 43, wherein the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, and wherein the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG.

[0307]

[0320] Clause 45. A location estimation entity according to any of clauses 31 to 44, wherein the location estimation entity corresponds to a UE, an anchor UE, a base station, or a network component remote from the base station.

[0308]

[0321] Clause 46. A user equipment (UE) comprising a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations relative to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information; and communicate, via the at least one transceiver, one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the position estimation procedure.

[0309]

[0322] Clause 47. The UE of clause 46, wherein the absolute position estimate based on the RLAG based position estimation procedure is associated with the transformation information.

[0310]

[0323] Clause 48. The UE of clause 47, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive, via the at least one transceiver, from a position estimation entity an indication of a derived absolute position estimate based on the measurement data based on the one or more PRSs.

[0311]

[0324] Clause 49. The UE of clause 48, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to apply the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a true absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0312]

[0325] Clause 50. The UE of any of clauses 47 to 49, wherein the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0313]

[0326] Clause 51. A UE as described in any of clauses 46 to 50, wherein the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0314]

[0327] Clause 52. The UE of any of clauses 46 to 51, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0315]

[0328] Clause 53. A wireless device comprising a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: perform a location estimation procedure between the wireless device and a plurality of anchors including at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG); and, in response to the location estimation procedure, join as a new anchor to the RLAG, wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, and wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information.

[0316]

[0329] Clause 54. The wireless device of clause 53, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to determine an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0317]

[0330] Clause 55. The wireless device of clause 54, wherein the wireless device joins the RLAG by inheriting an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0318]

[0331] Clause 56. A wireless device as described in any of clauses 54 to 55, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit, via the at least one transceiver, an indication of the RLAG identifier to a position estimation entity.

[0319]

[0332] Clause 57. A position estimation entity comprising a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: determine a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors associated with a position estimate of a user equipment (UE); and transmit, via the at least one transceiver, an LCS frame including an indication of the set of LCS locations.

[0320]

[0333] Clause 58. The position estimation entity of clause 57, wherein each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information for transforming the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system.

[0321]

[0334] Clause 59. The position estimation entity of clause 58, wherein the transformation information is applied to one or more of an origin of the LCS, or an x-axis position of the LCS location, or a y-axis position of the LCS location, or a z-axis position of the LCS location, or a combination thereof.

[0322]

[0335] Clause 60. A position estimation entity according to any of clauses 57 to 59, wherein the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian or polar coordinates.

[0323]

[0336] Clause 61. A position estimation entity comprising: means for determining a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to each other, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for the relative position information than for the absolute position information; means for receiving measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure; and means for determining location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data.

[0324]

[0337] Clause 62. The position estimation entity of clause 61, wherein the location information comprises relative location information.

[0325]

[0338] Clause 63. The position estimation entity of clause 62, wherein the relative location information comprises a relative position estimate or distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a velocity estimate of the UE, or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects having one or more known relative locations with respect to the RLAG, or a combination thereof.

[0326]

[0339] Clause 64. A position estimation entity according to any of clauses 61 to 63, wherein the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on measurement data.

[0327]

[0340] Clause 65. The position estimation entity of clause 64, wherein the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

[0328]

[0341] Clause 66. The location estimation entity of clause 65, further comprising means for applying transformation information to the derived absolute location estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate absolute location estimate of the UE.

[0329]

[0342] Clause 67. A position estimation entity according to any of clauses 65 to 66, further comprising means for transmitting the derived absolute position estimate to one or more external entities having knowledge of the transformation information.

[0330]

[0343] Clause 68. A location estimation entity as described in any of clauses 65 to 67, wherein the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute location estimate in accordance with a location estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific location estimation errors in the derived absolute location estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0331]

[0344] Clause 69. A location estimation entity as described in any of clauses 61 to 68, wherein the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0332]

[0345] Clause 70. A location estimation entity according to any of clauses 61 to 69, wherein a location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG.

[0333]

[0346] Clause 71. A location estimation entity according to any of clauses 61 to 70, further comprising means for receiving an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG from at least one anchor in the set of anchors of the RLAG.

[0334]

[0347] Clause 72. The location estimation entity of any of clauses 61 to 71, further comprising means for transmitting to the UE an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0335]

[0348] Clause 73. The position estimation entity of clause 72, wherein the instructions include a list of RLAGs, each listed RLAG being associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors, or the instructions include a list of anchors, each listed anchor being associated with a respective RLAG identifier, or the instructions include a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration to which the RLAG identifiers are mapped.

[0336]

[0349] Clause 74. A position estimation entity according to any of clauses 61 to 73, wherein the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, and wherein the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG.

[0337]

[0350] Clause 75. A location estimation entity according to any of clauses 61 to 74, wherein the location estimation entity corresponds to a UE, an anchor UE, a base station, or a network component remote from the base station.

[0338]

[0351] Clause 76. A user equipment (UE), comprising: means for receiving a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information; and means for communicating one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the position estimation procedure.

[0339]

[0352] Clause 77. The UE of clause 76, wherein an absolute position estimate based on a position estimation procedure using an RLAG is associated with the transformation information.

[0340]

[0353] Clause 78. The UE of clause 77, further comprising means for receiving, from a position estimation entity, an indication of a derived absolute position estimate based on the measurement data based on one or more PRSs.

[0341]

[0354] Clause 79. The UE of clause 78, further comprising means for applying transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a true absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0342]

[0355] Clause 80. The UE of any of clauses 77 to 79, wherein the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0343]

[0356] Clause 81. A UE as described in any of clauses 76 to 80, wherein the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0344]

[0357] Clause 82. The UE of any of clauses 76 to 81, further comprising means for receiving an indication of an RLAG identifier of an RLAG.

[0345]

[0358] Clause 83. A wireless device comprising: means for performing a location estimation procedure between the wireless device and a plurality of anchors including at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information; and means for joining the RLAG as a new anchor in response to the location estimation procedure.

[0346]

[0359] Clause 84. The wireless device of clause 83, further comprising means for determining an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0347]

[0360] Clause 85. The wireless device of clause 84, wherein the wireless device joins the RLAG by inheriting an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0348]

[0361] Clause 86. The wireless device of any of clauses 84 to 85, further comprising means for transmitting an indication of the RLAG identifier to a location estimation entity.

[0349]

[0362] Clause 87. A position estimation entity, comprising: means for determining a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors associated with a position estimate of a user equipment (UE); and means for transmitting an LCS frame including an indication of the set of LCS locations.

[0350]

[0363] Clause 88. The position estimation entity of clause 87, wherein each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information for transforming the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system.

[0351]

[0364] Clause 89. The position estimation entity of clause 88, wherein the transformation information is applied to one or more of an origin of the LCS, or an x-axis position of the LCS location, or a y-axis position of the LCS location, or a z-axis position of the LCS location, or a combination thereof.

[0352]

[0365] Clause 90. A position estimation entity according to any of clauses 87 to 89, wherein the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian or polar coordinates.

[0353]

[0366] Clause 91. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a position estimation entity, cause the position estimation entity to determine a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for the relative position information than for the absolute position information; receive measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure; and determine location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data.

[0354]

[0367] Clause 92. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 91, wherein the location information comprises relative location information.

[0355]

[0368] Clause 93. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 92, wherein the relative location information comprises a relative position estimate or distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG, or a velocity estimate of the UE, or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects having one or more known relative locations relative to the RLAG, or a combination thereof.

[0356]

[0369] Clause 94. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 91 to 93, wherein the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on the measurement data.

[0357]

[0370] Clause 95. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 94, wherein the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

[0358]

[0371] Clause 96. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 95, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the position estimation entity, further cause the position estimation entity to apply transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0359]

[0372] Clause 97. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 95 to 96, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the position estimation entity, further cause the position estimation entity to transmit the derived absolute position estimate to one or more external entities having knowledge of the transformation information.

[0360]

[0373] Clause 98. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 95 to 97, wherein the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0361]

[0374] Clause 99. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 91 to 98, wherein the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0362]

[0375] Clause 100. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 91-99, wherein a location estimation procedure is associated with anchors from only one RLAG.

[0363]

[0376] Clause 101. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 91 to 100, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the position estimation entity, further cause the position estimation entity to receive an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG from at least one anchor in the set of anchors for the RLAG.

[0364]

[0377] Clause 102. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 91 to 101, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the position estimation entity, further cause the position estimation entity to transmit, to the UE, an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0365]

[0378] Clause 103. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 102, wherein the instructions include a list of RLAGs, each listed RLAG being associated with a respective RLAG identifier and a respective set of anchors, or the instructions include a list of anchors, each listed anchor being associated with a respective RLAG identifier, or the instructions include a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration to which the RLAG identifiers are mapped.

[0366]

[0379] Clause 104. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 91 to 103, wherein the set of anchors comprises at least one anchor, and the at least one anchor is added to the RLAG in response to at least one position estimation procedure of the at least one anchor via the RLAG.

[0367]

[0380] Clause 105. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 91 to 104, wherein the location estimation entity corresponds to a UE, an anchor UE, a base station, or a network component remote from the base station.

[0368]

[0381] Clause 106. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to receive a resource configuration associated with a position estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative position information than for absolute position information.

[0369]

[0382] Clause 107. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 106, wherein the absolute position estimate based on the RLAG based position estimation procedure is associated with transformation information.

[0370]

[0383] Clause 108. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 107, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the UE, further cause the UE to receive, from a position estimation entity, an indication of a derived absolute position estimate based on the measurement data based on one or more PRSs.

[0371]

[0384] Clause 109. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 108, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the UE, further cause the UE to apply transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a true absolute position estimate of the UE.

[0372]

[0385] Clause 110. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 107 to 109, wherein the transformation information is configured to correct intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol, or the transformation information is configured to correct unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate, or a combination thereof.

[0373]

[0386] Clause 111. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 106 to 110, wherein the set of anchors comprises a group of indoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises a group of outdoor anchors, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor UEs, or the set of anchors comprises one or more anchor transmission reception points (TRPs), or a combination thereof.

[0374]

[0387] Clause 112. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 106 to 111, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the UE, further cause the UE to receive an indication of an RLAG identifier of the RLAG.

[0375]

[0388] Clause 113. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a wireless device, cause the wireless device to perform a location estimation procedure between the wireless device and a plurality of anchors, including at least a set of anchors of a relative location anchor group (RLAG), and, in response to the location estimation procedure, join the RLAG as a new anchor, where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to one another, and where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information.

[0376]

[0389] Clause 114. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 113, further comprising instructions that, when executed by a wireless device, further cause the wireless device to determine an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0377]

[0390] Clause 115. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 114, wherein the wireless device joins the RLAG by inheriting an RLAG identifier associated with the RLAG.

[0378]

[0391] Clause 116. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 114 to 115, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the wireless device, further cause the wireless device to transmit an indication of the RLAG identifier to a position estimation entity.

[0379]

[0392] Clause 117. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a position estimation entity, cause the position estimation entity to determine a set of local coordinate system (LCS) locations associated with a set of anchors associated with a position estimate of a user equipment (UE), and to transmit an LCS frame including an indication of the set of LCS locations.

[0380]

[0393] Clause 118. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 117, wherein each LCS location in the set of LCS locations is associated with transformation information for transforming the respective LCS location to an absolute location associated with an absolute coordinate system.

[0381]

[0394] Clause 119. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of clause 118, wherein the transformation information is applied to one or more of an origin of the LCS, or an x-axis position of the LCS location, or a y-axis position of the LCS location, or a z-axis position of the LCS location, or a combination thereof.

[0382]

[0395] Clause 120. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of any of clauses 117 to 119, wherein the set of LCS locations is defined by Cartesian or polar coordinates.

[0383]

[0396] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, the 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, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0384]

[0397] Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various exemplary components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0385]

[0398] The various example logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed using 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, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0386]

[0399] The methods, sequences and / or algorithms described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented directly in hardware, in software modules executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software modules may reside in a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), a register, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). Alternatively, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal.

[0387]

[0400] In one or more exemplary aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or code. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media, including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Storage media may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media may comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of media. As used herein, disk and disc include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc, where disks typically reproduce data magnetically and discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0388]

[0401] Although the above 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. The functions, steps and / or actions of the method claims according to the aspects of the present disclosure described herein need not be performed in any particular order. Furthermore, although elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated.

Claims

1. 1. A method of operating a position estimation entity, comprising: determining a resource configuration associated with a location estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, wherein the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to each other, and wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information; transmitting the resource configuration; receiving measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with said position estimation procedure; determining location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data; and A method comprising:

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the location information comprises relative location information.

3. The relative location information is a relative position estimate or distance of the UE to one or more anchors of the RLAG; or a speed estimate of the UE; or collision detection between the UE and one or more objects with one or more known relative locations to the RLAG; or Combinations of these The method of claim 2 comprising:

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the location information comprises a derived absolute position estimate of the UE based on the measurement data.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the derived absolute position estimate is associated with transformation information.

6. applying the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a more accurate absolute position estimate of the UE. The method of claim 5 further comprising:

7. 1. A method of operating a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving a resource configuration associated with a location estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to each other, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information; communicating one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the location estimation procedure; A method comprising:

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein an absolute position estimate based on the RLAG-based position estimation procedure is associated with transformation information.

9. receiving, from a position estimation entity, an indication of a derived absolute position estimate based on the one or more PRS-based measurement data; The method of claim 8 further comprising:

10. applying the transformation information to the derived absolute position estimate of the UE to obtain a true absolute position estimate of the UE. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

11. the transformation information is configured to correct for intentional errors in the derived absolute position estimate in accordance with a position estimate security protocol; or the transformation information is configured to correct for unintentional RLAG-specific position estimation errors in the derived absolute position estimate; or It is a combination of these, 10. The method of claim 9.

12. Memory, At least one transceiver; at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and to the at least one transceiver; a location estimation entity, the at least one processor comprising: determining a resource configuration associated with a location estimation procedure between a user equipment (UE) and a plurality of anchors, wherein the plurality of anchors comprises at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), wherein the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to each other, and wherein the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information; transmitting, via the at least one transceiver, the resource configuration; receiving, via the at least one transceiver, measurement data based on one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) associated with the position estimation procedure; determining location information associated with the UE based on the measurement data; and A location estimation entity configured to:

13. The location estimation entity of claim 12, further comprising means for performing the methods according to claims 2 to 6.

14. Memory, At least one transceiver; at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and to the at least one transceiver; 11. A user equipment (UE) comprising: receiving, via the at least one transceiver, a resource configuration associated with a location estimation procedure between the UE and a plurality of anchors, where the plurality of anchors includes at least a set of anchors of a Relative Location Anchor Group (RLAG), where the set of anchors of the RLAG are associated with known relative locations with respect to each other, where the RLAG is associated with a higher accuracy for relative location information than for absolute location information; communicating, via the at least one transceiver, one or more positioning reference signals (PRS) with the set of anchors in accordance with the resource configuration of the position estimation procedure; A user equipment (UE) configured to:

15. The UE of claim 14, further comprising means for performing a method according to any one of claims 8 to 11.

Images