AMF, LMF, terminal device, AMF method, LMF method and terminal device method

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a communication method, an apparatus, and a computer-readable medium, in which a terminal device determines that location verification is to be performed for the terminal device and initiates at least one of a first determination of a RAT-dependent location or a second determination of a RAT-independent location, thereby ensuring that location information reported by the terminal device is verified by a network.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to the field of telecommunications, and more particularly to a communication method, apparatus, and computer storage medium for terminal device location verification. [Background technology]

[0002] As is well known, the ability to determine the location of terminal devices is essential for non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) to comply with national regulations and obtain operating licenses. This requires the ability to determine the terminal device's location with sufficient accuracy through reliable means. Unfortunately, from the network's perspective, the location determined by the terminal device through Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) functionality is unreliable. Therefore, it is expected that networks will have the ability to determine the terminal device's location in an independent manner. It has been proposed to research and evaluate solutions that allow networks to verify the location information reported by terminal devices. However, such solutions are still incomplete and require further research. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] Generally, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, apparatus, and computer storage medium for terminal device location verification. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] In a first aspect, a method of communications is provided, the method including: determining, at a terminal device, that location verification is performed for the terminal device; and initiating at least one of a first determination of a radio access technology dependent location or a second determination of a radio access technology independent location.

[0005] In a second aspect, a method of communications is provided, the method including: determining, at a network device, a radio access technology dependent location for a terminal device, determining a radio access technology independent location for the terminal device, and performing location verification for the terminal device based on the radio access technology dependent location and the radio access technology independent location.

[0006] In a third aspect, there is provided a terminal device, the device comprising a processor configured to perform the method according to the first aspect of the present disclosure.

[0007] In a fourth aspect, there is provided a network device, the device comprising a processor configured to perform a method according to the second aspect of the present disclosure.

[0008] In a fifth aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided having stored thereon instructions that, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a method according to the first aspect of the present disclosure.

[0009] In a sixth aspect, there is provided a computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a method according to the second aspect of the present disclosure.

[0010] Other features of the present disclosure will be readily understood from the following description. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description of some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure in the accompanying drawings.

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary communication environment in which some embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.

[0013] [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a communication process for location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0014] [Figure 3A] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0015] [Figure 3B] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0016] [Figure 3C] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0017] [Figure 4A] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0018] [Figure 4B] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0019] [Figure 4C] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0020] [Figure 4D] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0021] [Figure 4E] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0022] [Figure 4F]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0023] [Figure 4G] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary process of location verification, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0024] [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a process for initial verification, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] [Figure 6] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary communication method implemented in a terminal device, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0026] [Figure 7] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary communication method implemented in a network device, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0027] [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0028] In the drawings, the same or similar reference numbers represent the same or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0029] The principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are provided for illustrative purposes only to assist those skilled in the art in understanding and practicing the present disclosure, and do not imply any limitations on the scope of the present disclosure. The embodiments described herein can be implemented in various ways different from those described below.

[0030] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains.

[0031] References in this disclosure to "one embodiment," "embodiment," "exemplary embodiment," etc., indicate that the described embodiment may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but do not necessarily mean that each embodiment includes the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is believed to be within the knowledge of one of ordinary skill in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments, whether or not explicitly described.

[0032] While the terms "first," "second," etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, it should be understood that these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element may be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element may be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of the exemplary embodiments. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

[0033] The terminology used herein is used only for the purpose of describing particular embodiments and is not intended to limit example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "said" include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should be further understood that, as used herein, the terms "comprise," "include," "have," "comprise," "comprises," and / or "have" specify the presence of stated features, elements, and / or components, etc., but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof.

[0034] In some instances, values, procedures, or devices are referred to as "best," "lowest," "highest," "minimum," "maximum," etc. It should be understood that such descriptions are intended to illustrate that choices may be made from among many functional alternatives used, and that such choices are not necessarily better, smaller, higher, or otherwise more preferred than other choices.

[0035] As used herein, the term "communication network" refers to a network conforming to any appropriate communication standard, such as New Radio (NR), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High-Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT), etc. Furthermore, communications between terminal devices and network devices in a communication network may be implemented in accordance with any appropriate generation of communication protocol, including, but not limited to, first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, fifth generation (5G), 5.5G, 5G-Advanced network, or sixth generation (6G) communication protocols, and / or any other protocol now known or developed in the future. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to various communication systems. Given the rapid development of communications, there will naturally be future types of communications technologies and systems in which the present disclosure can be embodied, and the scope of the present disclosure should not be considered to be limited to only the aforementioned systems.

[0036] As used herein, the term "terminal device" refers to any device with wireless or wired communication capabilities. Examples of terminal devices include User Equipment (UE), personal computers, desktops, mobile phones, cellular phones, smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, tablets, wearable devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC) devices, Internet of Everything (IoE) devices, machine type communication (MTC) devices, in-vehicle devices for V2X communications where X means pedestrian, vehicle, or infrastructure / network, devices for Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB), spacecraft or aircraft in a Non-terrestrial network (NTN) including High Altitude Platforms (HAP) including satellites and Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), and Extended Reality (XR) including different types of reality such as Augmented Reality (AR), Mixed Reality (MR), and Virtual Reality (VR). "Terminal Device" includes, but is not limited to, V2X (Vehicle to Everyday Life) devices, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), aircraft without a human pilot, commonly referred to as drones, devices on high-speed trains (HSTs), image capture devices such as digital cameras, sensors, gaming devices, music storage and playback devices, or internet appliances that enable wireless and wired internet access and browsing. "Terminal Device" may also have "multicast / broadcast" capabilities to support public safety and mission-critical V2X applications, transparent IPv4 / IPv6 multicast distribution, IPTV, smart TV, wireless services, over-the-air software distribution, group communication, and IoT applications.It may also incorporate one or more Subscriber Identity Modules (SIMs), known as multi-SIM. The term "terminal device" may be used interchangeably with UE, mobile station, subscriber station, mobile terminal, user terminal, or wireless device.

[0037] The term "network device" may refer to a Core Network (CN) device or an access network device. The term "CN device" refers to any device or entity that provides an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), a User Plane Function (UPF), a Location Management Function (LMF), etc. In other embodiments, the CN device may be any other suitable device or entity that provides any other suitable function.

[0038] The term "access network device" as used herein means a device capable of providing or hosting a cell or coverage area capable of communicating with a terminal device. Examples of network devices include, but are not limited to, a satellite, an Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) platform, a Node B (Node B or NB), an evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), a next generation Node B (gNB), a Transmission Reception Point (TRP), a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), a Radio Head (RH), a Remote Radio Head (RRH), an IAB node, a low-power node such as a femto node or a pico node, and a Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS).

[0039] A terminal device or a network device may have artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning capabilities, which generally include models that can be learned from a large amount of data collected for a specific function and used to predict some information.

[0040] The terminal device or network device may operate on several frequency ranges, such as FR1 (410 MHz to 7125 MHz), FR2 (24.25 GHz to 71 GHz), frequency bands greater than 100 GHz, and Terahertz (THz). It can also operate on licensed, unlicensed, and shared spectrum. The terminal device may have two or more connections with the network device under a Multi-Radio Dual Connectivity (MR-DC) application scenario. The terminal device or network device can operate in full duplex, flexible duplex, and cross-division duplex modes.

[0041] Embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in test equipment, such as, for example, a signal generator, a signal analyzer, a spectrum analyzer, a network analyzer, a test terminal device, a test network device, a channel emulator, and the like.

[0042] Currently, solutions that combine both GNSS information reported by the UE and network-based information for UE location verification involve the following aspects: Services that are subject to national regulations or other operational constraints (e.g., Public Warning Systems (PWS), Lawful Interception (LI), Emergency Services (EMS), billing and fee notifications), The location information reported by the UE (e.g., as determined by its GNSS receiver) may be erroneous due to intentional (e.g., malicious tampering by the user or a third party) or unintentional (e.g., interference) causes; and NTN radio cells are larger than terrestrial network radio cells and may cover borders between two or more countries. Therefore, there is a need to improve the reliability of core network selection in NTN.

[0043] In view of this, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication solution for location verification to solve the above and other potential problems. In this solution, a terminal device determines whether location verification is performed for the terminal device. If location verification is performed, the terminal device initiates at least one of radio access technology (RAT)-dependent location determination or RAT-independent location determination. A network device determines or obtains the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location, and performs location verification for the terminal device based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location. In this way, it can be ensured that location information reported by the terminal device is verified by the network.

[0044] The principles and exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0045] In the following, a satellite is used as an example of an access network device to describe some specific example embodiments of the present disclosure, and it should be noted that the exemplary embodiments described with respect to a satellite are equally applicable to any other suitable type of access network device.

[0046] In the context of this disclosure, the term "RAT-dependent positioning" or "RAT-dependent positioning method" may refer to any of the following: an NR enhanced cell identification (ID) method (NR E-CID) based on NR signals, multiple round trip time positioning (multiple RTT based on NR signals), a downlink angle-of-departure (DL-AoD) based on NR signals, a downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) based on NR signals, an uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) based on NR signals, or an uplink angle-of-arrival (UL-AoA) based on NR signals, including an azimuth angle of arrival (A-AoA) and a zenith angle of arrival (Z-AoA).

[0047] In the context of this disclosure, the term "RAT-dependent location" may refer to a location determined based on a RAT-dependent positioning method. The term "RAT-independent location" may refer to any of the following: GNSS coordinates (e.g., X Most Significant Bits (MSBs) of 24-bit longitude / latitude or GNSS coordinates with ~X km accuracy (coarse or finer)), a V2X-like Zone ID, a Virtual Cell Identifier, or a Cell Global Identity (CGI) of a detected Terrestrial Network (TN) cell. Communication Network Example

[0048] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary communication environment 100 in which exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented. Network environment 100 includes terminal device 110 and access network device 120. Access network device 120 may provide one or more serving cells for serving one or more terminal devices. In the example of FIG. 1, access network device 120 provides (serving) cell 121. For convenience, the following description assumes that terminal device 110 is located within serving cell 121 and is served by access network device 120.

[0049] As shown in FIG. 1 , the network environment 100 may further include a CN 130. The CN 130 may include multiple CN devices. The multiple CN devices may implement any suitable functionality. The multiple CN devices may include an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 131 and an LMF 132, as shown in FIG. 1 . It should be understood that the AMF 131 and the LMF 132 are merely examples, and any other suitable CN devices having similar functionality are possible. For illustrative purposes, the following description will be provided with reference to the AMF 131 and the LMF 132. The AMF 131 may be implemented by any suitable CN device having access and mobility management functionality, and the LMF 132 may be implemented by any suitable location server.

[0050] When the terminal device 110 is within a serving cell 121 generated from an access network device 120 (i.e., a satellite), the serving link refers to the wireless link between the terminal device 110 and the access network device 120. The feeder link refers to the wireless link between the access network device 120 and the gateway 130. Communication in the direction from the terminal device 110 to the access network device 120 and then to the gateway 130 is referred to as uplink communication, and communication in the reverse direction from the access network device 120 to the terminal device 110 is referred to as downlink communication.

[0051] In the example of FIG. 1, the terminal device 110 may be in different states (connected, inactive, and idle) and may operate with power saving mechanisms including, but not limited to, discontinuous reception (DRX), enhanced DRX (eDRX), power saving mode (PSM), relaxed monitoring, etc.

[0052] Communications in the communication environment 100 may conform to any suitable standard, including, but not limited to, Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Evolution, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), and Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). Furthermore, communications may be performed according to any currently known or future-developed generation of communications protocols. Examples of communications protocols include, but are not limited to, first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, fifth generation (5G), 5.5G, 5G-Advanced networks, or sixth generation (6G) communications protocols.

[0053] It should be understood that the number of access network devices, terminal devices, CN devices, CNs, and serving cells and their connections are used for illustrative purposes only and do not imply any limitations. Communication environment 100 may include any appropriate access network devices, terminal devices, CN devices, CNs, and serving cells suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. Although not shown, communication environment 100 may also include one or more additional network devices, such as a ground station, a gateway, etc.

[0054] In some scenarios, terminal device 110 may report location information (e.g., RAT-independent location) of terminal device 110 to the network. The network may verify the location information. In some embodiments, access network device 120 may verify the location information. In some embodiments, a CN device, such as AMF 131, may verify the location information. However, maintaining and initiating the verification is not yet clear.

[0055] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication solution for location verification that overcomes these and other potential problems, as described in more detail below in connection with FIG. Location verification example

[0056] 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a communication process 200 for location verification according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For purposes of explanation, the process 200 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 200 may involve a terminal device 110 and an access network device 120 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 200 is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to imply any limitations with respect to the order.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 2, terminal device 110 may determine 210 whether location verification is performed for terminal device 110.

[0058] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may determine 211 whether the change in the location of terminal device 110 exceeds (e.g., is greater than) a change threshold. If the change in the location of terminal device 110 exceeds the change threshold, terminal device 110 may determine that location verification is to be performed.

[0059] For example, if the distance traveled by terminal device 110 exceeds a distance threshold, terminal device 110 may determine that location verification is performed. In another example, if a change in at least one of longitude, latitude, or altitude of terminal device 110 exceeds a predetermined change, terminal device 110 may determine that location verification is performed. In yet another example, terminal device 110 may determine that location verification is performed if terminal device 110 enters a predetermined area (e.g., a geographic area, tracking area, or cell signaled by access network device 120).

[0060] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may determine that location verification is to be performed if a message indicating location verification is received 212 from access network device 120. In some embodiments where terminal device 110 is in an idle or inactive state, terminal device 110 may receive a paging message from access network device 120 indicating location verification (e.g., a paging message having a paging record including a paging cause indicating location verification).

[0061] In some embodiments, a timer (also referred to herein as a first timer for convenience) may be set for the validity of the location verification. In some embodiments, when a Radio Resource Control (RRC) release message is received from access network device 120 (213), terminal device 110 may start or restart (214) the first timer.

[0062] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive location verification information from access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive location verification failure or success information. In some embodiments, the verified status may be indicated to terminal device 110 each time.

[0063] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive only the location verification failure information. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 is in a connected state, terminal device 110 may receive only the location verification failure information. In some embodiments, upon entering an idle or inactive state, terminal device 110 may receive an indication of the remaining time for which location verification is valid. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive an RRC release message including an indication of the remaining time.

[0064] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may start or restart 214 the first timer when successful location verification information is received 213' from access network device 120. In other words, the first timer may be started or restarted at the time of the last location verification update (i.e., when terminal device 110 was indicated as trustworthy).

[0065] In some embodiments, the value of the first timer may be set in the RRC release message. It should be understood that the value of the first timer may be determined in any other suitable manner.

[0066] In some embodiments, if the first timer expires, terminal device 110 may determine (215) that the location verification is invalid. Terminal device 110 may then determine that location verification is to be performed. In other words, upon expiration of the first timer, terminal device 110 may initiate a further location verification (i.e., a location re-verification procedure). In some embodiments, the value of the first timer may be set to an expiration time set by network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 initiates location verification if a period of time equal to or greater than a predetermined time has elapsed since the previous location verification was performed.

[0067] Continuing with reference to FIG. 2, if location verification is to be performed, terminal device 110 may initiate location verification (220).

[0068] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may initiate a RAT-dependent position determination (also referred to herein as a first determination for convenience). In other words, terminal device 110 may initiate RAT-dependent positioning. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may perform a position measurement for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure and transmit the result of the position measurement to the network.

[0069] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may initiate a RAT-independent location determination (also referred to herein as a second determination for convenience). That is, terminal device 110 may initiate a RAT-independent location transmission. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the RAT-independent location to the network.

[0070] It should be appreciated that in some embodiments, terminal device 110 may initiate both RAT-dependent positioning and RAT-independent position transmission for location verification.

[0071] In some embodiments, RAT-dependent positioning may be triggered by a RAT-independent position transmission. In some embodiments, when terminal device 110 is in a connected state, if a RAT-independent position is reported, terminal device 110 may determine whether position validation is valid. If position validation is invalid, terminal device 110 may determine that position validation is performed. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may initiate RAT-dependent positioning. Thus, RAT-dependent positioning may be triggered by a RAT-independent position transmission or report.

[0072] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may determine to report a RAT-independent location to the network based on radio resource management (RRM) measurements. For example, an exemplary procedure may be described as follows: - if coarseLocationRequest is set to true in the corresponding reportConfig for this measId, - Include coarseLocationInfo if available, - If UE location validation is indicated as invalid, - (Instructed by higher layers) initiate a RAT dependent positioning procedure.

[0073] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive a UE information request message for obtaining a RAT-independent location from the network and may send the RAT-independent location to the network in response to the UE information request message. For example, an exemplary procedure may be described as follows: Upon receiving the UEInformationRequest message, the UE should do the following only after successful security activation: - If coarseLocationRequest is set to true, - Include coarseLocationInfo if available, - If UE location validation is indicated as invalid, - (Instructed by higher layers) initiate a RAT dependent positioning procedure.

[0074] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive a measurement configuration from the network that includes an event for triggering location verification. In some embodiments, the event may include at least one of: a travel distance exceeding a distance threshold; a change in at least one of longitude, latitude, or altitude exceeding a change threshold; the terminal device entering a predetermined area; or the expiration of a first timer. It should be understood that any other suitable event is also possible. In some embodiments, when an event is triggered, the RRC layer of terminal device 110 may initiate RAT-independent location transmission via a measurement report and initiate RAT-dependent positioning. In some embodiments, the RRC layer of terminal device 110 instructs upper layers of terminal device 110 to initiate RAT-dependent positioning.

[0075] In the context of this disclosure, the term "location verification" refers to performing a location verification procedure. The term "further location verification" or "location re-verification procedure" refers to performing a location verification procedure again. The term "location verification procedure" refers to initiating at least one of a first or second determination, i.e., triggering at least one of a RAT-dependent positioning or a RAT-independent position transmission.

[0076] In some embodiments, the network may obtain a RAT-dependent location of the terminal device and use the RAT-dependent location to verify RAT-independent location information of the terminal device reported within a certain period of time. In other words, the network may maintain the validity of the RAT-dependent location. If the RAT-dependent location is invalid or expired, the terminal device's location is deemed unreliable. In this case, RAT-dependent positioning may be initiated. For illustrative purposes, some exemplary embodiments will be described in relation to embodiments 1 to 3. Embodiment 1

[0077] In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 in an idle or inactive state initiates the location verification, and the access network device 120 performs the location verification using the LMF 132. This embodiment is described in connection with Figure 3A.

[0078] 3A is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 300A for location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 300A will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 300A may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, the AMF 131, and the LMF 132 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 300A is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0079] 3A, terminal device 110 may determine that location verification is to be performed as described above (310). Terminal device 110 may then perform location measurement for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure (311). For example, terminal device 110 may perform location measurement based on LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP) assistance data configured during a previous connection.

[0080] Terminal device 110 may transition from an idle or inactive state to a connected state (312). Terminal device 110 may then transmit (313) the results of the location measurement to LMF 132. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may also transmit an indication that the results will be used for location verification. For example, terminal device 110 may provide unsolicited location information to LMF 132 via a ProvideLocationInformation message and indicate that the location information is for location verification. It should be understood that any other suitable method is also possible. LMF 132 may then perform (314) RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent location of terminal device 110.

[0081] Access network device 120 may obtain (315) the RAT-dependent location from LMF 132. In some embodiments, where terminal device 110 sends an indication to LMF 132 that the results will be used for location verification, LMF 132 may forward the RAT-dependent location to access network device 120. In some embodiments, access network device 120 may send a request to LMF 132 to obtain the RAT-dependent location, and LMF 132 may send the RAT-dependent location to access network device 120 in response to the request.

[0082] Based on the RAT-dependent location, access network device 120 may verify (316) the RAT-independent location reported by terminal device 110. In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is less than or equal to a deviation threshold, access network device 120 may determine that the verification is successful and the location of terminal device 110 is reliable. In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is greater than a deviation threshold, access network device 120 may determine that the verification fails and the location of terminal device 110 is not reliable. It should be understood that any other suitable verification method is also possible. Embodiment 2

[0083] In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 in an idle or inactive state initiates the location verification, and the access network device 120 performs the location verification without using an LMF, which will be described in connection with Figure 3B.

[0084] 3B is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 300B for location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 300B will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 300B may involve the terminal device 110 and the access network device 120 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 300B is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0085] 3B, terminal device 110 may determine that location validation is to be performed (320) as described above, and may perform location measurements (321) for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure.

[0086] Terminal device 110 may transmit (322) the results of the location measurement to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the results in a small data transmission while in an idle or inactive state. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may enter a connected state and transmit the results. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication that the results will be used for location verification.

[0087] Access network device 120 may perform (323) RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent location of terminal device 110. Based on the RAT-dependent location, access network device 120 may verify (324) the RAT-independent location reported by terminal device 110.

[0088] Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1, and will not be described here for brevity. Embodiment 3

[0089] In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 in an idle or inactive state initiates the location verification, and the AMF 131 performs the location verification without using the LMF, which will be described in relation to Figure 3C.

[0090] 3C is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 300C for location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 300C will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 300C may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, and the AMF 131 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 300C is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0091] 3C, terminal device 110 may determine that location validation is to be performed (330) as described above, and may perform location measurements for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure (331).

[0092] Terminal device 110 may transmit the results of the location measurement to access network device 120 (332). In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the results in a small data transmission while in an idle or inactive state. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may enter a connected state and transmit the results. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication that the results will be used for location verification.

[0093] The access network device 120 may perform 333 RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine the RAT-dependent location of the terminal device 110 .

[0094] The AMF 131 may exercise location reporting control over the access network device 120 to maintain validation (343). In some embodiments, a Location Reporting Request Type IE may be used to instruct the access network device 120 to perform location validation of the terminal device 110 or to perform location validation when the location validation of the terminal device 110 has expired.

[0095] The access network device 120 may send a location report including the RAT dependent location to the AMF 131 (344), for example, if the location validation of the terminal device 110 has expired.

[0096] Based on the RAT-dependent location, AMF 131 may verify (345) the RAT-independent location reported by terminal device 110. In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is less than or equal to a deviation threshold, AMF 131 may determine that the verification is successful and that the location of terminal device 110 is reliable. In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is greater than or equal to a deviation threshold, AMF 131 may determine that the verification fails and that the location of terminal device 110 is not reliable. It should be understood that any other suitable verification method is also possible.

[0097] Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1, and will not be described here for brevity.

[0098] In some embodiments, the network may obtain both a RAT-dependent location and a RAT-independent location of the terminal device and verify the RAT-dependent location using the RAT-dependent location. If the verification is successful, the terminal device's location is deemed reliable within a certain period of time. In this case, both RAT-dependent positioning and RAT-independent location transmission may be initiated. For illustrative purposes, some exemplary embodiments will be described in relation to embodiments 4 to 10. Embodiment 4

[0099] In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 in an idle or inactive state initiates the location verification, and the access network device 120 performs the location verification using the LMF 132. This embodiment is described in connection with Figure 4A.

[0100] 4A is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 400A for location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 400A will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 400A may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, the AMF 131, and the LMF 132 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 400A is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0101] 4A, terminal device 110 may determine 410 that location verification is to be performed as described above, and may perform 411 location measurements for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure.

[0102] Terminal device 110 may transition from an idle or inactive state to a connected state (412). Terminal device 110 may then transmit (413) the results of the position measurement to LMF 132. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may also transmit an indication that the results will be used for position verification. LMF 132 may perform (414) RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent position of terminal device 110.

[0103] Terminal device 110 may further trigger a RAT-independent location transmission via a non-access stratum (NAS) message after successful NAS security activation (415). In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may report the RAT-independent location to AMF 131 via an uplink (UL) NAS transport message, and AMF 131 may forward the RAT-independent location to access network device 120 via a UE Information Transfer message. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the RAT-independent location directly to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the RAT-independent location in a small data transmission in an idle or inactive state. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may enter a connected state and transmit the RAT-independent location.

[0104] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication indicating an association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location to AMF 131. In other words, terminal device 110 may associate the RAT-independent location with the RAT-dependent positioning procedure. For example, terminal device 110 may indicate a transaction ID of the RAT-dependent positioning procedure in the GNSS position report. Terminal device 110 may transmit any other appropriate information indicating an association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location.

[0105] The access network device 120 may obtain 417 the RAT-dependent location from the LMF 132. Based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location, the access network device 120 may perform 418 location verification. Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1 and will not be described here for brevity. Embodiment 5

[0106] In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 in an idle or inactive state initiates the location verification, and the access network device 120 performs the location verification without using an LMF, which will be described in connection with Figure 4B.

[0107] 4B is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 400B of location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 400B will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 400B may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, and the AMF 131 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 400B is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0108] 4B, terminal device 110 may determine (420) that location validation is to be performed as described above, and may perform (421) location measurements for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure.

[0109] Terminal device 110 may transition from an idle or inactive state to a connected state (422). Terminal device 110 may then transmit (423) the results of the location measurement to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may also transmit an indication that the results will be used for location verification. Access network device 120 may perform (424) RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent location of terminal device 110.

[0110] Terminal device 110 may also trigger a RAT-independent location transmission via a NAS message after successful NAS security activation (425). In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may report the RAT-independent location to AMF 131 via a UL NAS transport message, and AMF 131 may forward the RAT-independent location to access network device 120 via a UE Information Transfer message (416). In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the RAT-independent location directly to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the RAT-independent location in a small data transmission in an idle or inactive state. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may enter a connected state and transmit the RAT-independent location.

[0111] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication indicating an association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location to AMF 131. In other words, terminal device 110 may associate the RAT-independent location with the RAT-dependent positioning procedure. For example, terminal device 110 may indicate a transaction ID in the GNSS position report. Terminal device 110 may transmit any other appropriate information indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location.

[0112] The AMF 131 may forward the RAT-independent location to the access network device 120 via a UE information forwarding message (426). Based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location, the access network device 120 may perform location verification (427). Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1 and will not be described here for brevity. Embodiment 6

[0113] In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 in an idle or inactive state initiates the location verification, and the AMF 131 performs the location verification with the LMF 132. This embodiment will be described in relation to Figure 4C.

[0114] 4C is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 400C of location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 400C will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 400C may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, the AMF 131, and the LMF 132 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 400C is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0115] 4C, terminal device 110 may determine that location validation is to be performed (430) as described above, and may perform location measurements for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure (431).

[0116] Terminal device 110 may transition from an idle or inactive state to a connected state (432). Terminal device 110 may then transmit (433) the results of the position measurement to LMF 132. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may also transmit an indication that the results will be used for position verification. LMF 132 may perform (434) RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent position of terminal device 110.

[0117] Terminal device 110 may further trigger a RAT-independent location transmission via a NAS message after successful NAS security activation (435). In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may report the RAT-independent location to AMF 131 via a UL NAS transport message, and AMF 131 may forward the RAT-independent location to access network device 120 via a UE Information Transfer message (416). In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the RAT-independent location directly to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may transmit the RAT-independent location in a small data transmission in an idle or inactive state. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may enter a connected state and transmit the RAT-independent location.

[0118] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication indicating an association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location to AMF 131. In other words, terminal device 110 may associate the RAT-independent location with the RAT-dependent positioning procedure. For example, terminal device 110 may indicate a transaction ID in the GNSS position report. Terminal device 110 may transmit any other appropriate information indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location.

[0119] The AMF 131 may obtain the RAT-dependent location from the LMF 132 (436). Based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location, the AMF 131 may perform location verification (437). In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is less than or equal to a deviation threshold, the AMF 131 may determine that the verification is successful and that the location of the terminal device 110 is reliable. In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is greater than the deviation threshold, the AMF 131 may determine that the verification fails and that the location of the terminal device 110 is not reliable. It should be understood that any other suitable verification method is also possible.

[0120] Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1 and will not be described here for the sake of brevity. Embodiment 7

[0121] In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 in an idle or inactive state initiates the location verification, and the AMF 131 performs the location verification without using the LMF, which will be described in relation to Figure 4D.

[0122] 4D is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 400D of location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 400D will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 400D may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, and the AMF 131 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 400D is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0123] 4D, terminal device 110 may determine that location validation is to be performed (440) as described above, and may perform location measurements for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure (441).

[0124] Terminal device 110 may transition from an idle or inactive state to a connected state (442). Terminal device 110 may then transmit (443) the results of the location measurement to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may also transmit an indication that the results will be used for location verification. Access network device 120 may perform (444) RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent location of terminal device 110.

[0125] Terminal device 110 may further trigger a RAT-independent location transmission via a NAS message after successful NAS security activation (445). In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may report the RAT-independent location to AMF 131 via a UL NAS transport message.

[0126] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication indicating an association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location to AMF 131. In other words, terminal device 110 may associate the RAT-independent location with the RAT-dependent positioning procedure. For example, terminal device 110 may indicate a transaction ID in the GNSS position report. Terminal device 110 may transmit any other appropriate information indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location.

[0127] The AMF 131 may obtain the RAT-dependent location from the access network device 120 (446). Based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location, the AMF 131 may perform location verification (447). In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is less than or equal to a deviation threshold, the AMF 131 may determine that the verification is successful and that the location of the terminal device 110 is reliable. In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is greater than the deviation threshold, the AMF 131 may determine that the verification fails and that the location of the terminal device 110 is not reliable. It should be understood that any other suitable verification method is also possible.

[0128] Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1 and will not be described here for the sake of brevity. Embodiment 8

[0129] In this embodiment, the terminal device is in a connected state and the access network device 120 initiates the location verification and performs the location verification using the LMF 132. This embodiment is described in connection with Figure 4E.

[0130] 4E is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 400E of location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 400E will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 400E may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, the AMF 131, and the LMF 132 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 400E is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0131] 4E, access network device 120 may send a location verification instruction message to terminal device 110 (450). In some embodiments, access network device 120 may send a location verification request to terminal device 110. In some embodiments, access network device 120 may include an instruction to verify the location of terminal device 110 in a coarseLocationRequest IE of a UE Information Request message. In some embodiments, access network device 120 may include the location verification request in the UE Information Request message.

[0132] Terminal device 110 may forward (451) the RAT-independent location to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may send the RAT-independent location in a UE information response message.

[0133] Terminal device 110 may also trigger RAT-dependent positioning 452. In some embodiments, the RRC layer of terminal device 110 may instruct higher layers to initiate a RAT-dependent positioning procedure.

[0134] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may perform a position measurement for RAT-dependent positioning and send the results of the position measurement to LMF 132. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further send an indication that the results will be used for position verification. LMF 132 may perform (453) a RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent position of terminal device 110.

[0135] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication to LMF 132 indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location. In other words, terminal device 110 may associate the RAT-independent location with the RAT-dependent positioning procedure. For example, terminal device 110 may indicate a transaction ID in the GNSS position report. Terminal device 110 may transmit any other appropriate information indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location.

[0136] The access network device 120 may obtain 454 the RAT-dependent location from the LMF 132. Based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location, the access network device 120 may perform 455 location verification. Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1 and will not be described here for brevity. Embodiment 9

[0137] In this embodiment, the terminal device is in a connected state, the access network device 120 initiates the location verification, and performs the location verification without using an LMF, which will be described in connection with Figure 4F.

[0138] 4F is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 400F of location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 400F will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 400F may involve the terminal device 110 and the access network device 120 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 400F is for illustration purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting with respect to the order.

[0139] 4F, access network device 120 may send a location verification instruction message to terminal device 110 (460). In some embodiments, access network device 120 may send a location verification request to terminal device 110. In some embodiments, access network device 120 may include an instruction to verify the location of terminal device 110 in a coarseLocationRequest IE of a UE Information Request message. In some embodiments, access network device 120 may include the location verification request in the UE Information Request message.

[0140] Terminal device 110 may forward (461) the RAT-independent location to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may send the RAT-independent location in a UE information response message.

[0141] Terminal device 110 may further trigger RAT-dependent positioning (462). In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may perform positioning for the RAT-dependent positioning and send results of the positioning to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further send an indication that the results will be used for position verification. Access network device 120 may perform RAT-dependent positioning (463) based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent position of terminal device 110.

[0142] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication to access network device 120 indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location. In other words, terminal device 110 may associate the RAT-independent location with the RAT-dependent positioning procedure. For example, terminal device 110 may indicate a transaction ID in the GNSS position report. Terminal device 110 may transmit any other appropriate information indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location.

[0143] Based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location, the access network device 120 may perform location verification 464. Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1, and will not be described here for brevity. Embodiment 10

[0144] In this embodiment, the terminal device is in a connected state, the access network device 120 initiates the location verification, and the AMF 131 performs the location verification with the LMF 132. This embodiment will be described in relation to Figure 4G.

[0145] 4G is a schematic diagram illustrating an example process 400G of location verification according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 400G will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 400G may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, the AMF 131, and the LMF 132 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 400G is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0146] 4G, access network device 120 may send a location verification instruction message to terminal device 110 (470). In some embodiments, access network device 120 may send a location verification request to terminal device 110. In some embodiments, access network device 120 may include an instruction to verify the location of terminal device 110 in a coarseLocationRequest IE of a UE Information Request message. In some embodiments, access network device 120 may include the location verification request in the UE Information Request message.

[0147] Terminal device 110 may forward (471) the RAT-independent location to access network device 120. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may send the RAT-independent location in a UE information response message.

[0148] Terminal device 110 may also trigger RAT-dependent positioning 472. In some embodiments, the RRC layer of terminal device 110 may instruct higher layers to initiate a RAT-dependent positioning procedure.

[0149] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may perform a position measurement for RAT-dependent positioning and send the results of the position measurement to LMF 132. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further send an indication that the results will be used for position verification. LMF 132 may perform (473) a RAT-dependent positioning based on the results to determine a RAT-dependent position of terminal device 110.

[0150] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication to LMF 132 indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location. In other words, terminal device 110 may associate the RAT-independent location with the RAT-dependent positioning procedure. For example, terminal device 110 may indicate a transaction ID in the GNSS position report. Terminal device 110 may transmit any other appropriate information indicating the association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent location.

[0151] AMF 131 may exercise location reporting control over access network device 120 to maintain validation (474). In some embodiments, a Location Reporting Request Type IE may be used to instruct access network device 120 to perform location validation of terminal device 110 or to perform location validation when terminal device 110's location validation has expired.

[0152] The access network device 120 may send a location report including the RAT-independent location to the AMF 131 (475), for example, if the location validation of the terminal device 110 has expired. The AMF 131 may obtain the RAT-dependent location from the LMF 132 (476).

[0153] Based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location, AMF 131 may perform location verification (477). In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is less than or equal to a deviation threshold, AMF 131 may determine that the verification is successful and the location of terminal device 110 is reliable. In some embodiments, if the deviation between the RAT-independent location and the RAT-dependent location is greater than a deviation threshold, AMF 131 may determine that the verification fails and the location of terminal device 110 is not reliable. It should be understood that any other suitable verification method is also possible.

[0154] Other details are similar to those described in embodiment 1, and will not be described here for brevity. So far, the location verification procedure has been described.

[0155] 2, in some embodiments, if location verification failure information is received or the location verification is invalid, terminal device 110 may start a second timer 230. In these embodiments, access network device 120 may also start a second timer 230'.

[0156] While the second timer is running, terminal device 110 may initiate a reverification procedure (240). In some embodiments, upon starting the second timer, terminal device 110 may increment a counter value. If the counter value is less than or equal to a predetermined value, terminal device 110 may initiate a reverification procedure. In some embodiments, the predetermined value is a configured maximum number of times to initiate a reverification procedure.

[0157] In some embodiments, if the re-validation procedure is successful, access network device 120 may transmit (250) success information of the re-validation procedure to terminal device 110. Terminal device 110 may stop (260) the second timer.

[0158] In some embodiments, if the second timer expires, the access network device 120 may perform a NAS deregistration procedure (270). In some embodiments, the access network device 120 may send a UE Context Release Request message to the AMF 131 (not shown) with a cause value indicating that the location verification failed (e.g., the UE is not in a public land mobile network (PLMN) coverage area, the UE location verification failed, or the UE location is unreliable). The AMF 131 may initiate the NAS deregistration procedure. Accordingly, the terminal device 110 may perform operations associated with the NAS deregistration procedure. Example of initial verification

[0159] 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a process 500 for initial verification according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 500 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 500 may involve the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, and the AMF 131 as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that the order of steps in the process 500 is for illustrative purposes only, and the present disclosure is not intended to be limiting on the order.

[0160] 5, when terminal device 110 first accesses the network, terminal device 110 may send (510) an initial access request to access network device 120. The initial access request may include the location of terminal device 110 (also referred to herein as the initial location).

[0161] In some embodiments, the initial access request may include geographic region information, such as a geographic region ID or any other suitable information. In some embodiments, the initial location may include a virtual cell or a timing advance (TA). In some embodiments, the initial location may include a GNSS position (e.g., a coarse GNSS position). Thus, the initial location of the terminal device 110 may be indicated to the network.

[0162] The access network device 120 may initiate a registration procedure with the AMF 131 with the initial location marked as unverified (520). In some embodiments, a terminal device 110 that has not performed location verification is marked as untrusted. In some embodiments, the access network device 120 may perform an initial verification (530), i.e., verify the initial location. In some embodiments, the access network device 120 may perform the initial verification (530) within a predetermined period of time. The access network device 120 may transmit (540) success or failure information of the initial verification to the AMF 131. In some embodiments, the access network device 120 may transmit (550) success or failure information of the initial verification to the terminal device 110.

[0163] In some alternative embodiments, the AMF 131 may perform the initial verification (530′). The AMF 131 may transmit (540′) success or failure information of the initial verification to at least one of the access network device 120 or the terminal device 110.

[0164] Up to this point, the verification of the UE location may be performed by the network. It should be understood that the above embodiments described in relation to Figures 2-5 may be implemented separately or in any suitable combination. Example of the method

[0165] Accordingly, embodiments of the present disclosure provide communication methods implemented in a terminal device and a network device, which are described below with reference to Figures 6-7.

[0166] 6 illustrates an exemplary communication method 600 implemented in a terminal device, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, method 600 may be performed in terminal device 110 as shown in FIG. 1. For purposes of explanation, method 600 will be described below with reference to FIG. 1. It should be understood that method 600 may include additional blocks not shown and / or omit some blocks that are shown, and that the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0167] In block 610, terminal device 110 may determine that location verification is to be performed for terminal device 110. In some embodiments, the determination may be based on at least one of: a first timer set for the validity of the location verification expiring; a change in the terminal device's location exceeding a change threshold; or a message indicating location verification being received.

[0168] In some embodiments, if the movement distance exceeds a distance threshold, the terminal device 110 may determine that the position change of the terminal device 110 exceeds a change threshold. In some embodiments, if the change in at least one of longitude, latitude, or altitude exceeds a predetermined change, the terminal device 110 may determine that the position change of the terminal device 110 exceeds a change threshold. In some embodiments, if the terminal device 110 enters a predetermined area, the terminal device 110 may determine that the position change of the terminal device 110 exceeds a change threshold.

[0169] In some embodiments, if location verification success information or an RRC release message is received, terminal device 110 may start or restart a first timer. If the first timer expires, terminal device 110 may determine that location verification is invalid.

[0170] In some embodiments, if a RAT-independent location is reported, terminal device 110 may determine whether location validation is valid. In some embodiments, if location validation is invalid, terminal device 110 may determine that location validation is performed for the terminal device.

[0171] At block 620, terminal device 110 may initiate at least one of a first determination of a RAT-dependent position or a second determination of a RAT-independent position. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may initiate the first determination by performing a position measurement for a RAT-dependent positioning procedure and transmitting results of the position measurement. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication that the results will be used for position verification.

[0172] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may initiate the second determination by transmitting a RAT-independent position for position verification. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may further transmit an indication indicating an association between the RAT-dependent positioning procedure and the RAT-independent position.

[0173] In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive information about the location verification. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive information about the failure or success of the location verification. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive only information about the failure of the location verification. In some embodiments, terminal device 110 may receive an indication of the remaining time for which the location verification is valid.

[0174] In some embodiments, if location verification failure information is received or if location verification is invalid, terminal device 110 may start a second timer. If the second timer is running, terminal device 110 may initiate a re-verification procedure. In some embodiments, upon starting the second timer, terminal device 110 may increment a counter value. If the counter value is less than or equal to a predetermined value, terminal device 110 may initiate a re-verification procedure.

[0175] In some embodiments, when the success information of the revalidation procedure is received, the terminal device 110 may stop the second timer, and when the second timer expires, the terminal device 110 may perform an operation associated with the NAS deregistration procedure.

[0176] Method 600 can ensure that location information reported by a terminal device is verified by the network.

[0177] 7 illustrates an example communication method 700 implemented in a network device, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, method 700 may be performed in access network device 120 or AMF 131, as shown in FIG. 1. For purposes of explanation, method 700 will be described below with reference to FIG. 1. It should be understood that method 700 may include additional blocks not shown and / or omit some blocks that are shown, and that the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0178] In block 710 , a network device (eg, access network device 120 or AMF 131 ) determines a RAT-dependent location for terminal device 110 .

[0179] In block 720 , the network device determines a RAT-independent location for terminal device 110 .

[0180] In block 730, the network device performs location verification for terminal device 110 based on the RAT-dependent location and the RAT-independent location.

[0181] In some embodiments, the network device may send a message instructing location verification.

[0182] In some embodiments, the network device may determine the RAT independent location by receiving the RAT independent location.

[0183] In some embodiments, where the network device is an access network device 120, the network device may determine a RAT-dependent location by receiving results of the location measurement and, based on the results, performing a RAT-dependent positioning procedure to determine a RAT-dependent location. In some embodiments, the network device may further receive an indication that the results will be used for location verification.

[0184] In some embodiments, the network device may receive an indication indicating an association between a RAT-dependent positioning procedure and a RAT-independent location, and in some embodiments, the network device may determine the RAT-dependent location based on the association by sending a request to obtain the RAT-dependent location and receiving the RAT-dependent location.

[0185] In some embodiments, the network device may perform a registration procedure in which the initial location included in the initial access request from terminal device 110 is marked as unverified.

[0186] In some embodiments, the network device may transmit information about the location verification. In some embodiments, the network device may transmit information about a location verification failure or success. In some embodiments, the network device may transmit information about a location verification failure only. In some embodiments, the network device may transmit an indication of the time remaining for which the location verification is valid.

[0187] In some embodiments, if the location verification success information is transmitted, the network device may start or restart a first timer. If the first timer expires, the network device may transmit an indication that a further location verification is to be initiated by terminal device 110.

[0188] In some embodiments, if location verification failure information is sent or location verification is invalid, the network device may start a second timer. If the re-validation procedure is successful, the network device may send re-validation procedure success information. If the second timer expires, the network device may perform a NAS de-registration procedure.

[0189] In some embodiments, the network device may transmit a setting for the maximum number of times to initiate a revalidation procedure.

[0190] In some embodiments, the network device may be an access network device. In some embodiments, the network device may be a core network device.

[0191] Method 700 allows location information reported by a terminal device to be verified by the network. Device and equipment implementation examples

[0192] 8 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 800 suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. The apparatus 800 may be considered as another exemplary implementation of the terminal device 110 or the access network device 120 shown in FIG. 1. Thus, the apparatus 800 may be implemented in, or as at least a part of, the terminal device 110, the access network device 120, or the AMF 131.

[0193] As shown, the apparatus 800 includes a processor 810, a memory 820 coupled to the processor 810, a suitable transmitter (TX) and receiver (RX) 840 coupled to the processor 810, and a communication interface coupled to the TX / RX 840. The memory 810 stores at least a portion of a program 830. The TX / RX 840 is for bidirectional communication. The TX / RX 840 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication, although in practice, the access nodes described herein may have multiple antennas. The communication interface may represent any interface required for communication with other network elements, such as an X2 / Xn interface for bidirectional communication between eNBs / gNBs, an S1 / NG interface for communication between a Mobility Management Entity (MME) / Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) / SGW / UPF and an eNB / gNB, a Un interface for communication between an eNB / gNB and a Relay Node (RN), or a Uu interface for communication between an eNB / gNB and a terminal device.

[0194] The program 830 is assumed to include program instructions that, when executed by an associated processor 810, enable the device 800 to operate in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure, as described herein with reference to FIGS. 2-7. The embodiments herein may be implemented by computer software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware executable by the processor 810 of the device 800. The processor 810 may be configured to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure. The combination of the processor 810 and the memory 820 may also constitute a processing means 850 suitable for implementing various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0195] Memory 820 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, including, by way of non-limiting example, non-transitory computer-readable storage media, semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and removable memory. While only one memory 820 is shown in device 800, there may be several physically distinct memory modules within device 800. Processor 810 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may include, by way of non-limiting example, one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 800 may have multiple processors, for example, application-specific integrated circuit chips time-slaved to a clock that synchronizes the main processor.

[0196] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises circuitry configured to determine that location verification is performed for the terminal device and to initiate at least one of a first determination of a radio access technology dependent location or a second determination of a radio access technology independent location.

[0197] In some embodiments, the network device comprises circuitry configured to determine a radio access technology dependent location for a terminal device, determine a radio access technology independent location for the terminal device, and perform location verification for the terminal device based on the radio access technology dependent location and the radio access technology independent location.

[0198] As used herein, the term "circuitry" may refer to a hardware circuit and / or a combination of a hardware circuit and software. For example, a circuit may be a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuitry with software / firmware. As yet another example, a circuit may be any portion of a hardware processor with software, including a digital signal processor, software, and memory, that cooperate to cause a device, such as a terminal device or a network device, to perform various functions. In yet another example, a circuit may be a hardware circuit and / or a processor, such as a microprocessor or portion thereof, that requires software / firmware for operation, although software may not be present if it is not necessary for operation. As used herein, the term "circuitry" also includes implementations solely of a hardware circuit or processor or portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware.

[0199] In summary, the embodiments of the present disclosure can provide the following solutions:

[0200] In one solution, a communication method includes, in a terminal device, determining that location verification is to be performed for the terminal device, and initiating at least one of a first determination of a radio access technology-dependent location or a second determination of a radio access technology-independent location.

[0201] In some embodiments, the determining is based on at least one of: a timer set for the validity of the location verification expiring; a change in the location of the terminal device exceeding a change threshold; or a message indicating the location verification being received.

[0202] In some embodiments, the method further includes determining that the change in position of the terminal device exceeds the change threshold based on at least one of: a movement distance exceeding a distance threshold; a change in at least one of longitude, latitude, or altitude exceeding a predetermined change; or the terminal device entering a predetermined area.

[0203] In some embodiments, initiating the first determination includes performing a position measurement for a radio access technology dependent positioning procedure and transmitting a result of the position measurement.

[0204] In some embodiments, the method further includes transmitting an indication that the results are used for the location verification.

[0205] In some embodiments, initiating the second determination includes transmitting a radio access technology independent location for the location verification.

[0206] In some embodiments, the method further includes transmitting an indication indicating an association between the radio access technology dependent positioning procedure and the radio access technology independent location.

[0207] In some embodiments, the determining includes determining whether the location verification is valid according to a determination that a radio access technology independent location is reported, and determining that the location verification is performed for the terminal device according to a determination that the location verification is invalid.

[0208] In some embodiments, the method further includes receiving information of the location verification.

[0209] In some embodiments, receiving the location verification information includes at least one of receiving failure or success information of the location verification, receiving only failure information of the location verification, or receiving an indication of the remaining time for which the location verification is valid.

[0210] In some embodiments, the method further includes starting or restarting a first timer in accordance with determining that the location verification success information or a radio resource control release message has been received, and determining that the location verification is invalid in accordance with determining that the first timer has expired.

[0211] In some embodiments, the method further includes starting a second timer in accordance with a determination that the location verification failure information has been received or that the location verification is invalid, and initiating a re-verification procedure in accordance with a determination that the second timer is running.

[0212] In some embodiments, initiating the re-verification procedure includes incrementing a value of a counter and initiating the re-verification procedure pursuant to determining that the value of the counter is less than or equal to a predetermined value.

[0213] In some embodiments, the method further includes stopping the second timer in accordance with a determination that success information of the revalidation procedure has been received, or performing an operation associated with a non-access stratum deregistration procedure in accordance with a determination that the second timer has expired.

[0214] In another solution, a communication method includes, in a network device, determining a radio access technology dependent location for a terminal device, determining a radio access technology independent location for the terminal device, and performing location verification for the terminal device based on the radio access technology dependent location and the radio access technology independent location.

[0215] In some embodiments, the method further includes transmitting a message indicating the location verification.

[0216] In some embodiments, determining the radio access technology independent location includes receiving the radio access technology independent location.

[0217] In some embodiments where the network device is an access network device, determining the radio access technology dependent location includes receiving results of a location measurement and, based on the results, performing a radio access technology dependent positioning procedure to determine the radio access technology dependent location.

[0218] In some embodiments, the method further includes receiving an indication that the results are to be used for the location verification.

[0219] In some embodiments, the method further includes receiving an indication indicating an association between the radio access technology dependent positioning procedure and the radio access technology independent location.

[0220] In some embodiments, determining the radio access technology dependent location includes sending a request to obtain the radio access technology dependent location based on the association, and receiving the radio access technology dependent location.

[0221] In some embodiments, the method further includes performing a registration procedure in which the initial location included in the initial access request from the terminal device is marked as unverified, or transmitting information about the location verification.

[0222] In some embodiments, transmitting the location verification information includes at least one of transmitting the location verification failure or success information, transmitting only the location verification failure information, or transmitting an indication of the remaining time the location verification is valid.

[0223] In some embodiments, the method further includes starting or restarting a first timer in accordance with a determination that the location verification success information has been sent, and sending an indication that another location verification is to be initiated by the terminal device in accordance with a determination that the first timer has expired.

[0224] In some embodiments, the method further includes at least one of starting a second timer in accordance with a determination that the location verification failure information is received or that the location verification is invalid; sending success information of the re-validation procedure in accordance with a determination that the re-validation procedure is successful; and performing a non-access stratum de-registration procedure in accordance with a determination that the second timer has expired.

[0225] In some embodiments, the method further includes transmitting a setting for a maximum number of times to initiate the revalidation procedure.

[0226] In some embodiments, the network device is an access network device or a core network device.

[0227] In another solution, a communication device comprises a processor configured to perform the method according to any one of the preceding claims.

[0228] Overall, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software executable by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. While various aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure have been illustrated and described using block diagrams, flowcharts, or other pictorial representations, it should be understood that the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented in, by way of non-limiting example, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing device, or any combination thereof.

[0229] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as instructions included in program modules, that execute within a device on a target real or virtual processor to perform the processes or methods described above with reference to FIGS. 2-7. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. In various embodiments, the functionality of the program modules may be combined or split between program modules as desired. The machine-executable instructions of the program modules may be executed within local or distributed devices. In a distributed device, program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

[0230] Program code for carrying out the methods of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing device, and when executed by the processor or controller, cause the functions / acts specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may run entirely on the machine, partially on the machine, as a separate software package, partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0231] The above-described program code may be embodied on a machine-readable medium, which may be any tangible medium that can contain or store a program used by or associated with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The machine-readable medium may be a machine-readable signal medium or a machine-readable storage medium. The machine-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing media. More specific examples of machine-readable storage media may include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable-programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the above.

[0232] It should be noted that, although operations have been described in a particular order, it should not be understood that performing such operations in the particular order shown, or in any sequential order, or performing all of the operations described, is required to achieve desirable results. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, while several specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Some features that are described in the context of individual embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitable subcombination.

[0233] Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it should be understood that the present disclosure, as defined in the appended claims, is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. A method of communication comprising: determining, at a terminal device, that location verification is performed for the terminal device; initiating at least one of a first determination of a radio access technology dependent location or a second determination of a radio access technology independent location; A method comprising:

2. The determining step comprises: the expiration of a timer set for the validity of said location verification; The change in the position of the terminal device exceeds a change threshold; or a message indicating location verification has been received; The method of claim 1 , wherein the method is based on at least one of:

3. The change in the position of the terminal device exceeds the change threshold. The distance traveled exceeds the distance threshold; A change in at least one of longitude, latitude, or altitude exceeds a predetermined change; or The terminal device has entered a predetermined area; determining based on at least one of: The method of claim 2 further comprising:

4. Initiating the first determination includes: performing position measurements for a radio access technology dependent positioning procedure; transmitting the results of said location determination; 10. The method of claim 1, comprising:

5. sending an indication that the results will be used in the location verification; The method of claim 4 further comprising:

6. Initiating the second determination includes: transmitting a radio access technology independent location for said location verification. The method of claim 4.

7. transmitting an indication indicating an association between the radio access technology dependent positioning procedure and the radio access technology independent location; The method of claim 6 further comprising:

8. The determining step comprises: determining whether the location verification is valid according to a determination that a radio access technology independent location is to be reported; and determining that the location verification is to be performed for the terminal device in accordance with a determination that the location verification is invalid. The method of claim 1.

9. receiving said location verification information; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

10. receiving the location verification information receiving information indicating whether the location verification has failed or succeeded; receiving only the location verification failure information; or receiving an indication of the remaining time for which the location verification is valid; 10. The method of claim 9, comprising at least one of:

11. starting or restarting a first timer according to determining that the location verification success information or a radio resource control release message has been received; and determining that the location verification is invalid in accordance with determining that the first timer has expired; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

12. starting a second timer in response to the location verification failure information being received or the location verification being invalid; initiating a re-verification procedure pursuant to determining that the second timer is running; and The method of claim 1 further comprising:

13. Initiating the revalidation procedure comprises: incrementing the value of a counter; initiating the revalidation procedure in response to a determination that the value of the counter is less than or equal to a predetermined value; 13. The method of claim 12, comprising:

14. stopping the second timer in response to a determination that success information of the re-validation procedure has been received; or performing operations associated with a non-access stratum deregistration procedure in accordance with determining that the second timer has expired; The method of claim 12 further comprising:

15. A method of communication comprising: determining, at the network device, a radio access technology dependent location for the terminal device; determining a radio access technology independent location for the terminal; performing location verification for the terminal device based on the radio access technology dependent location and the radio access technology independent location; A method comprising:

16. sending a message indicating said location verification; 16. The method of claim 15 further comprising:

17. determining the radio access technology independent location includes: receiving the radio access technology independent location.

16. The method of claim 15.

18. the network device is an access network device, and determining the radio access technology dependent location comprises: receiving a result of the location measurement; and performing a radio access technology dependent positioning procedure based on the results to determine the radio access technology dependent location.

18. The method of claim 17.

19. receiving an indication that the results will be used in the location verification; 20. The method of claim 18 further comprising:

20. Comprising a processor configured to carry out the method according to any one of claims 1 to 14 or any one of claims 15 to 19. Communication equipment.

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