Reporting receive or transmit beam lock information

Abstract

In one aspect, a user equipment (UE) receives a positioning measurement request from a network entity, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more transmit reception points (TRPs) using the same receive (RX) beam and / or transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same transmit (TX) beam; in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, attempts to use the same RX beam to receive the multiple positioning reference signals and / or the same TX beam to transmit the multiple positioning reference signals to perform positioning measurements; and in response to the positioning measurement request, provides a positioning measurement report to the network entity, the positioning measurement report indicating a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or the same TX beam and / or using the same RX beam and / or the same TX beam.

Description

Claiming priority

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This patent application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 of Greek Patent Application No. 20190100346, entitled "REPORT OF RECEIVE OR TRANSMIT BEAM LOCK INFORMATION," filed on August 9, 2019, and U.S. Nonprovisional Patent Application No. 16 / 983,286, entitled "REPORT OF RECEIVE OR TRANSMIT BEAM LOCK INFORMATION," filed on August 3, 2020, both of which are assigned to the assignee of this application and are expressly incorporated by reference in their entireties herein. [Technical field]

[0002]

[0002] Various aspects described herein relate generally to wireless communication systems and, more particularly, to reporting receive (RX) or transmit (TX) beam lock information, for example, for angle-based positioning in wireless communication systems. [Background technology]

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

[0004]

[0004] The fifth generation (5G) wireless standard, called New Radio (NR), will enable higher data rates, a larger number of connections, and better coverage, among other improvements. The 5G standard by the Next Generation Mobile Network Alliance is designed to give data rates of tens of megabits per second to each of tens of thousands of users, and data rates of one gigabit per second (Gps) to a few dozen workers on an office floor. To support large wireless deployments, hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections should be supported. Thus, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly enhanced compared to the current 4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiency should be enhanced and latency should be significantly reduced compared to the current standard. Summary of the Invention

[0005]

[0005] The following presents a simplified summary related to one or more aspects disclosed herein. As such, the following summary is not intended to be an extensive overview related to all contemplated aspects, nor is it intended to identify key or critical elements related to all contemplated aspects or to delineate the scope related to any particular aspect. As such, the following summary has the sole purpose of presenting some concepts related to one or more aspects related to the mechanisms disclosed herein in a simplified form prior to the detailed description presented below.

[0006]

[0006] In one aspect, a method performed by a user equipment (UE) in a multi-beam communication system includes receiving a positioning measurement request from a network entity, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more transmit receiving points (TRPs) using the same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same transmit (TX) beam, or both; in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, attempting to use the same RX beam to receive the multiple positioning reference signals and / or using the same TX beam to transmit the multiple positioning reference signals to perform a positioning measurement; in response to the positioning measurement request, providing a positioning measurement report to the network entity, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both.

[0007]

[0007] In one aspect, a method implemented by a network entity in a multi-beam communication system includes sending a positioning measurement request to a UE, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both; receiving a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both.

[0008]

[0008] In one aspect, the UE includes a memory, at least one transceiver, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: receive a positioning measurement request from a network entity via the at least one transceiver, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both; in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, attempt to use the same RX beam to receive the multiple positioning reference signals and / or use the same TX beam to transmit the multiple positioning reference signals to perform a positioning measurement; cause the at least one transceiver to send a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, and the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both.

[0009]

[0009] In one aspect, the network entity includes a memory, a communication device, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the communication device, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: cause the communication device to send a positioning measurement request to the UE, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both; receive a positioning measurement report from the UE via the communication device in response to the positioning measurement request, and the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both.

[0010]

[0010] In one aspect, the UE includes means for receiving a positioning measurement request from a network entity, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both; means for attempting to use the same RX beam to receive the multiple positioning reference signals and / or using the same TX beam to transmit the multiple positioning reference signals in response to receiving the positioning measurement request to perform a positioning measurement; means for providing a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both.

[0011]

[0011] In one aspect, the network entity includes means for sending a positioning measurement request to the UE, where the positioning measurement request includes a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both; and means for receiving a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request, where the positioning measurement report indicates using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both.

[0012]

[0012] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions includes computer-executable instructions comprising at least one instruction to instruct a UE to receive a positioning measurement request from a network entity, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both; at least one instruction to instruct the UE in response to receiving the positioning measurement request to attempt to use the same RX beam to receive the multiple positioning reference signals and / or use the same TX beam to transmit the multiple positioning reference signals to perform a positioning measurement; and at least one instruction to instruct the UE to provide a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or the same TX beam, or both.

[0013]

[0013] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions includes at least one instruction to instruct a network entity to send a positioning measurement request to the UE, where the positioning measurement request includes a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both; and at least one instruction to instruct the network entity to receive a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request, where the positioning measurement report indicates using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both.

[0014] Other objects and advantages associated with the embodiments disclosed herein will become apparent to those skilled in the art based on the accompanying drawings and detailed description.

[0015]

[0015] The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in the explanation of various aspects of the present disclosure and are given only to illustrate, not to limit, the aspects. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1]

[0016] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless communication system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 2A]

[0017] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless network structure in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 2B] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless network structure in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 3A]

[0018] 1 is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a UE in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 3B]1 is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a base station in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 3C] 1 is a simplified block diagram of several sample aspects of components that may be employed in a network entity in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 4]

[0019] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless communication system according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Diagram 5]

[0020] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless communication system according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 6A]

[0021] 1 is a graph illustrating a radio frequency (RF) channel response at a UE over time, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 6B]

[0022] FIG. 1 illustrates an example separation of clusters in angle-of-departure (AoD), according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 7A]

[0023] FIG. 1 illustrates an example situation in which a UE is configured with multiple receive resources for beamlocking support, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 7B]

[0024] FIG. 1 illustrates an example situation in which a UE is configured with multiple transmission resources for beamlocking support, in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 8A]

[0025] 4 is a flowchart of an example method implemented by a UE to support beam locking, according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 8B] 4 is a flowchart of an example method implemented by a UE to support beam locking, according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 9A]

[0026] 4 is a flowchart of an example method implemented by a network entity to support beam locking, according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 9B] 4 is a flowchart of an example method implemented by a network entity to support beam locking, according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 10]

[0027] FIG. 1 illustrates an example method of wireless communication according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] FIG. 1 illustrates an example method of wireless communication according to an aspect of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017]

[0028] Various aspects described herein relate generally to wireless communication systems, and more particularly, to reporting of receive (RX) or transmit (TX) beam lock information, e.g., for angle-based positioning in wireless communication systems. In an aspect, a network entity (e.g., a base station, a location server, etc.) may request a UE to perform beam lock during normal operation of the UE, i.e., during operation in which the UE would otherwise change the TX beam and / or RX beam during transmission and / or reception of multiple signals (e.g., physical signals) for communicating with the network entity. The UE may first determine whether it can comply with the request, i.e., whether it can perform beam lock. If it can comply with the request, the UE may perform operations to make the request. If it cannot comply with the request, the UE may report back that it cannot comply with the request. Alternatively or in addition, the UE may determine to what extent it can comply with the request and report back information indicating the degree of compliance with the request.

[0018]

[0029] These and other aspects are disclosed in the following description and associated drawings to set forth specific examples relating to exemplary aspects. Alternative aspects will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading this disclosure and may be constructed and implemented without departing from the scope or spirit of the present disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements may not be described in detail or may be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the aspects disclosed herein.

[0019]

[0030] The words "exemplary" and / or "example" are used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" and / or "example" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term "aspects of the disclosure" does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage or mode of operation.

[0020]

[0031] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the information and signals described below may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, the data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the following description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the particular application, desired design, corresponding technology, etc.

[0021]

[0032] Furthermore, many aspects are described in terms of a sequence of actions to be performed, for example, by elements of a computing device. It will be appreciated that the various actions described herein may be performed by specific circuitry (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Furthermore, a sequence of actions described herein may be considered to be embodied as a whole in any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a corresponding set of computer instructions that, when executed, will cause or instruct an associated processor of a device to perform the functions described herein. Thus, various aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in a number of different forms, all of which are contemplated to fall within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Moreover, for each of the aspects described herein, the corresponding form of any such aspect may be described herein, for example, as "logic configured to" perform the described actions.

[0022]

[0033] The terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" as used herein are not intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radio access technology (RAT) unless otherwise stated. Generally, a UE may be any wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, a router, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a tracking device, a wearable (e.g., a smart watch, glasses, an augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), a vehicle (e.g., a car, a motorcycle, a bicycle, etc.), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.) used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network. A UE may be mobile or (e.g., at some times) stationary and may communicate with a radio access network (RAN). The term "UE" as used herein may be referred to interchangeably as an "access terminal" or "AT", "client device", "wireless device", "subscriber device", "subscriber terminal", "subscriber station", "user terminal" or UT, "mobile device", "mobile terminal", "mobile station", or variations thereof. Generally, a UE may communicate with a core network via a RAN, through which the UE may be connected with external networks such as the Internet and other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for connecting to the core network and / or the Internet are possible for a UE, such as via a wired access network, a wireless local area network (WLAN) network (eg, based on IEEE 802.11, etc.), etc.

[0023]

[0034] Depending on the network in which it is deployed, a base station may operate according to one of several RATs in communication with the UE and may alternatively be referred to as an access point (AP), network node, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), next generation eNB (ng-eNB), new radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as gNB or gNode B), etc. A base station may be used primarily to support wireless access by UEs, including supporting data, voice, and / or signaling connections for supported UEs. In some systems, the base station may provide purely edge node signaling functionality, while in other systems it may provide additional control and / or network management functionality. A communication link through which a UE can send signals to a base station is referred to as an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse traffic channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). A communication link through which a base station can send signals to a UE is referred to as a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., paging channel, control channel, broadcast channel, forward traffic channel, etc.). The term Traffic Channel (TCH) as used herein can refer to either an uplink / reverse traffic channel or a downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0024]

[0035] The term "base station" may refer to a single physical transmit reception point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be collocated. For example, if the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna of the base station corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. If the term "base station" refers to multiple collocated physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be an array of antennas of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or in cases where the base station employs beamforming). If the term "base station" refers to multiple non-collocated physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transport medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-collocated physical TRP may be a serving base station that receives a measurement report from a UE and a neighbor base station at which the UE is measuring its reference RF signal (or simply "reference signal"). A TRP is a point from which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, and therefore, as used herein, references to transmission from or reception at a base station should be understood as referring to the particular TRP of the base station.

[0025]

[0036] In some implementations that support positioning of UEs, a base station may not support wireless access by the UE (e.g., may not support data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the UE), but instead may transmit reference signals to the UE to be measured by the UE and / or may receive and measure signals transmitted by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when it transmits signals to the UE) and / or a location measurement unit (e.g., when it receives and measures signals from the UE).

[0026]

[0037] An "RF signal" comprises electromagnetic waves of a given frequency that transport information through space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may transmit a single "RF signal" or multiple "RF signals" to a receiver. However, a receiver may receive multiple "RF signals" corresponding to each transmitted RF signal due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through a multipath channel. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between a transmitter and a receiver may be referred to as a "multipath" RF signal. As used herein, an RF signal may be referred to as a "wireless signal" or simply as a "signal" when it is clear from the context that the term "signal" refers to a wireless signal or an RF signal.

[0027]

[0038] In accordance with various aspects, FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary wireless communication system 100. The wireless communication system 100 (sometimes referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled as "BS") and various UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macrocell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In an aspect, the macrocell base stations may include eNBs and / or ng-eNBs where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network, or gNBs where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network, or a combination of both, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0028]

[0039] The base stations 102 collectively form the RAN and may interface with a core network 170 (e.g., Evolved Packet Core (EPC) or 5G Core (5GC)) through the backhaul links 122 and through the core network 170 to one or more location servers 172 (which may be part of the core network 170 or external to the core network 170). In addition to other functions, the base stations 102 may perform functions related to one or more of forwarding user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection setup and release, load balancing, distribution for non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Services (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracing, RAN Information Management (RIM), paging, positioning, and distribution of alert messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through EPC / 5GC) via backhaul links 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0029]

[0040] The base stations 102 may wirelessly communicate with the UEs 104. Each of the base stations 102 may provide communication coverage to a respective geographic coverage area 110. In an aspect, one or more cells may be supported by the base stations 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A "cell" is a logical communication entity used for communication with a base station (e.g., over some frequency resource, called a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, band, etc.) and may be associated with an identifier (e.g., physical cell identifier (PCI), virtual cell identifier (VCI), cell global identifier (CGI)) to distinguish cells operating over the same or different carrier frequencies. In some cases, different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or others) that may provide access to different types of UEs. Because a cell is supported by a particular base station, the term "cell" may refer to either or both of the logical communication entity and the base station that supports it, depending on the context. Additionally, the terms "cell" and "TRP" may be used interchangeably, since a TRP is typically the physical transmission point of a cell. In some cases, the term "cell" may also refer to the geographic coverage area (e.g., sector) of a base station, so long as the carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within any portion of the geographic coverage area 110.

[0030]

[0041] The geographic coverage areas 110 of neighboring macrocell base stations 102 may overlap partially (e.g., in handover regions), but some of the geographic coverage areas 110 may be significantly overlapped by larger geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' (labeled "SC") may have a geographic coverage area 110' that significantly overlaps with the geographic coverage area 110 of one or more macrocell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell base stations and macrocell base stations may be known as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a Home eNB (HeNB) that may serve restricted groups known as Closed Subscriber Groups (CSGs).

[0031]

[0042] The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 may include uplink transmissions (also referred to as reverse link) from the UE 104 to the base station 102, and / or downlink transmissions (also referred to as forward link) from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 may use MIMO antenna techniques, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may be through one or more carrier frequencies. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to the downlink and uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for the downlink than for the uplink).

[0032]

[0043] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150 in communication with one or more WLAN stations (STAs) 152 (labeled “STA”) via communication links 154 in an unlicensed frequency spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in the unlicensed frequency spectrum, the WLAN STAs 152 and / or the WLAN AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) procedure or a listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure before communicating to determine if a channel is available.

[0033]

[0044] The small cell base station 102' may operate in licensed and / or unlicensed frequency spectrums. When operating in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, the small cell base station 102' may employ LTE or NR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed frequency spectrum used by the WLAN AP 150. A small cell base station 102' employing LTE / 5G in an unlicensed frequency spectrum may boost coverage to and / or increase capacity of an access network. NR in an unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as NR-U. LTE in an unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as LTE-U, Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0034]

[0045] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a millimeter wave (mmW) base station 180 that may operate in mmW and / or near-mmW frequencies in communication with the UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 millimeter and 10 millimeters. Radio waves in this band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near-mmW may extend down to a frequency of 3 GHz with a wavelength of 100 millimeters. The very high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz, also called centimeter wave. Communications using the mmW / near-mmW radio frequency bands have high path loss and relatively short distances. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 may utilize beamforming (transmit and / or receive) over the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short distances. Moreover, it will be appreciated that in alternative configurations, one or more base stations 102 may also transmit using mmW or near mmW and beamforming. Thus, it will be appreciated that the above description is by way of example only and should not be construed as limiting various aspects disclosed herein.

[0035]

[0046] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in a particular direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectionally). In transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that particular direction, thereby giving a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal to the receiving device(s). To change the directionality of the RF signal when transmitting, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of the transmitter or transmitters broadcasting the RF signal. For example, the network node may use an array of antennas (called a "phased array" or "antenna array") that creates beams of RF waves that can be "steered" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. In particular, RF current from the transmitter is fed to the individual antennas with the proper phase relationship so that radio waves from the separate antennas add together to increase radiation in desired directions and cancel to suppress radiation in undesired directions.

[0036]

[0047] Transmit beams may be quasi-collocated, meaning that they appear to have the same parameters to a receiver (e.g., a UE) regardless of whether the network node's transmit antennas themselves are physically collocated. In NR, there are four types of quasi-collocated (QCL) relationships. In particular, a QCL relationship of a given type means that some parameters for a second reference signal on a second beam can be derived from information about a source reference signal on a source beam. Thus, if the source reference signal is QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of the second reference signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference signal is QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the second reference signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference signal is QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the second reference signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference signal is QCL type D, the receiver may use the source reference signal to estimate spatial reception parameters of a second reference signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0037]

[0048] In receive beamforming, a receiver uses receive beams to amplify RF signals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver can increase the gain setting and / or adjust the phase setting of an array of antennas in a particular direction to amplify (e.g., increase its gain level) an RF signal received from that direction. Thus, when a receiver is said to beamform in a direction, it means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gains along other directions, or that the beam gain in that direction is highest compared to the beam gains in that direction of all other receive beams available to the receiver. This results in a stronger received signal strength (e.g., Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP), Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ), Signal-to-Interference-Plus-Noise Ratio (SINR), etc.) of the RF signal received from that direction.

[0038]

[0049] The transmit beam and the receive beam may be spatially related. The spatial relationship means that the parameters for the second beam (e.g., transmit beam or receive beam) for the second reference signal may be derived from information about the first beam (e.g., receive beam or transmit beam) for the first reference signal. For example, the UE may use a particular receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., a synchronization signal block (SSB)) from a base station. The UE may then form a transmit beam for sending an uplink reference signal (e.g., a sounding reference signal (SRS)) to that base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0039]

[0050] Note that a "downlink" beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if the base station forms a downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to the UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE forms a downlink beam, it is a receive beam to receive the downlink reference signal. Similarly, an "uplink" beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if the base station forms an uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, and if the UE forms an uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0040]

[0051] In 5G, the frequency spectrum in which wireless nodes (e.g., base station 102 / 180, UE 104 / 182) operate is divided into multiple frequency ranges: FR1 (450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (24250 to 52600 MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). In a multi-carrier system, such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies is called the "primary carrier" or "anchor carrier" or "primary serving cell" or "PCell," and the remaining carrier frequencies are called the "secondary carrier" or "secondary serving cell" or "SCell." In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by the UE 104 / 182 and the cell in which the UE 104 / 182 either performs an initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates an RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and may be a carrier in licensed frequencies (although this is not always the case). The secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a secondary frequency (e.g., FR2) that may be configured once an RRC connection is established between the UE 104 and the anchor carrier and may be used to provide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carrier may be a carrier in unlicensed frequencies. The secondary carrier may contain only the necessary signaling information and signals, e.g., nothing UE-specific may be present in the secondary carrier, since both the primary uplink carrier and the primary downlink carrier are typically UE-specific. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 in a cell may have different downlink primary carriers. The same is true for the uplink primary carrier. The network is capable of changing the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done, for example, to distribute the load on the different carriers.Since a "serving cell" (whether a PCell or an SCell) corresponds to the carrier frequency / component carrier over which some base station is communicating, terms such as "cell", "serving cell", "component carrier", "carrier frequency", etc. may be used interchangeably.

[0041]

[0052] For example, still referring to FIG. 1, one of the frequencies utilized by the macrocell base station 102 may be an anchor carrier (or “PCell”), and the other frequencies utilized by the macrocell base station 102 and / or the mmW base station 180 may be secondary carriers (“SCells”). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception of multiple carriers allows the UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rates. For example, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically lead to a doubling of the data rate (i.e., 40 MHz) compared to that achieved by a single 20 MHz carrier.

[0042]

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

[0043]

[0054] The wireless communications system 100 may further include a UE 164, which may communicate with the macrocell base station 102 via communications link 120 and / or with the mmW base station 180 via an mmW communications link 184. For example, the macrocell base station 102 may support a PCell and one or more SCells for the UE 164, and the mmW base station 180 may support one or more SCells for the UE 164.

[0044]

[0055] In accordance with various aspects, FIG. 2A illustrates an exemplary wireless network structure 200. For example, a 5GC 210 (also referred to as Next Generation Core (NGC)) may be considered functionally as a control plane function (C-plane) 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and a user plane function (U-plane) 212 (e.g., UE gateway function, access to data network, IP routing, etc.) that operate cooperatively to form a core network. A user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and a control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect a gNB 222 to the 5GC 210, specifically to the user plane function 212 and the control plane function 214, respectively. In an additional configuration, a ng-eNB 224 may also be connected to the 5GC 210 via the NG-C 215 to the control plane function 214 and the NG-U 213 to the user plane function 212. Additionally, the ng-eNB 224 may communicate directly with the gNB 222 via a backhaul connection 223. In some configurations, the new RAN 220 may have only one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of both the ng-eNB 224 and the gNB 222. Either the gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224 may be in communication with the UE 204 (e.g., any of the UEs shown in FIG. 1). Another optional aspect may include a location server 230, which may be in communication with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance to the UE 204. The location servers 230 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules spread across multiple physical servers, etc.), or alternatively, each may correspond to a single server. The location servers 230 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, which may be connected to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or the Internet (not shown). Additionally, the location server 230 may be incorporated into a component of the core network, or alternatively, may be external to the core network.

[0045]

[0056] In accordance with various aspects, FIG. 2B illustrates another exemplary wireless network structure 250. For example, the 5GC 260 may be considered functionally as a control plane function provided by an access and mobility management function (AMF) 264 and a user plane function provided by a user plane function (UPF) 262, which operate cooperatively to form a core network (i.e., the 5GC 260). A user plane interface 263 and a control plane interface 265 connect the ng-eNB 224 to the 5GC 260, specifically to the UPF 262 and the AMF 264, respectively. In an additional configuration, the gNB 222 may also be connected to the 5GC 260 via the control plane interface 265 to the AMF 264 and the user plane interface 263 to the UPF 262. Additionally, the ng-eNB 224 may communicate directly with the gNB 222 via the backhaul connection 223, with or without gNB direct connectivity to the 5GC 260. In some configurations, the new RAN 220 may have only one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of both the ng-eNB 224 and the gNB 222. Either the gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224 may communicate with the UE 204 (e.g., any of the UEs shown in FIG. 1). The base stations of the new RAN 220 communicate with the AMF 264 via an N2 interface and with the UPF 262 via an N3 interface.

[0046]

[0057] The functions of the AMF 264 include registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transport of session management (SM) messages between the UE 204 and a session management function (SMF) 266, a transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transport of short message service (SMS) messages between the UE 204 and a short message service function (SMSF) (not shown), and a security anchor function (SEAF). The AMF 264 also interacts with an authentication server function (AUSF) (not shown) and the UE 204 to receive intermediate keys established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In case of UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM) based authentication, the AMF 264 retrieves security material from the AUSF. The functions of the AMF 264 also include security context management (SCM). The SCM receives keys from the SEAF that it uses to derive access network specific keys. The AMF 264 functions also include location service management for barred services, transport of location service messages between the UE 204 and a Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (acting as the location server 230), transport of location service messages between the new RAN 220 and the LMF 270, Evolved Packet System (EPS) bearer identifier allocation for interworking with EPS, and UE 204 mobility event notification. Additionally, the AMF 264 also supports functions for non-3GPP access networks.

[0047]

[0058] The functions of the UPF 262 include serving as an anchor point for intra / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), serving as an outer protocol data unit (PDU) session point for interconnection to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, Quality of Service (QoS) processing for the user plane (e.g., UL / DL rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in DL), uplink traffic validation (Service Data Flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping), transport level packet marking in uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and sending and forwarding one or more "termination markers" to the source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support the transfer of location service messages over the user plane between the UE 204 and a location server, such as the Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP) 272.

[0048]

[0059] The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, configuration of traffic steering in the UPF 262 to route traffic to the appropriate destination, control of policy enforcement and parts of QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface through which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0049]

[0060] Another optional aspect may include the LMF 270, which may be in communication with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance to the UE 204. The LMF 270 may be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules spread across multiple physical servers, etc.) or, alternatively, each may correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204 that may be connected to the LMF 270 via a core network, the 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not shown). The SLP 272 may support similar functions as the LMF 270, but the LMF 270 may communicate with the AMF 264, the new RAN 220, and the UE 204 via a control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to carry signaling messages and not voice or data), and the SLP 272 may communicate with the UE 204 and external clients (not shown in FIG. 2B) via a user plane (e.g., using protocols intended to carry voice and / or data, such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0050]

[0061] 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate several example components (represented by corresponding blocks) that may be incorporated in a UE 302 (which may correspond to any of the UEs described herein), a base station 304 (which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein), and a network entity 306 (which may correspond to or perform any of the network functions described herein, including a location server 230, an LMF 270, and an SLP 272) to support file transmission operations as taught herein. It will be appreciated that these components may be implemented in different types of devices (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system on a chip (SoC), etc.) in different implementations. The illustrated components may also be incorporated in other devices in a communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include similar components to those described to provide similar functionality. Also, a given device may include one or more of the components. For example, a device may include multiple transceiver components that enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0051]

[0062] The UE 302 and the base station 304 each include a wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceiver 310 and 350, respectively, configured to communicate over one or more wireless communications networks (not shown), such as an NR network, an LTE network, a GSM network, etc. The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes, such as other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., ng-eNBs, gNBs), etc., over at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over a wireless communications medium of interest (e.g., some set of time / frequency resources in a particular frequency spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be variously configured to transmit and encode signals 318 and 358, respectively (e.g., messages, instructions, information, etc.), and conversely, to receive and decode signals 318 and 358, respectively (e.g., messages, instructions, information, pilots, etc.), in accordance with the designated RAT. In particular, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 each include one or more transmitters 314 and 354, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, and each include one or more receivers 312 and 352, respectively, for receiving and decoding the signals 318 and 358.

[0052]

[0063] The UE 302 and base station 304 also, at least in some cases, include wireless local area network (WLAN) transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The WLAN transceivers 320 and 360 may be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, for communicating with other network nodes, such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc., via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Bluetooth, etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest. The WLAN transceivers 320 and 360 may be variously configured to transmit and encode signals 328 and 368, respectively (e.g., messages, instructions, information, etc.), and conversely, to receive and decode signals 328 and 368, respectively (e.g., messages, instructions, information, pilots, etc.), in accordance with the designated RAT. In particular, the WLAN transceivers 320 and 360 each include one or more transmitters 324 and 364, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, and each include one or more receivers 322 and 362, respectively, for receiving and decoding the signals 328 and 368.

[0053]

[0064] A transceiver circuit including at least one transmitter and at least one receiver may in some implementations comprise an integrated device (e.g., integrated as a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit of a single communication device), in some implementations comprise a separate transmitter device and a separate receiver device, or in other implementations may be integrated in other ways. In one aspect, the transmitter may include or be coupled to multiple antennas such as an antenna array (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366) that enable each device to perform transmit "beamforming" as described herein. Similarly, the receiver may include or be coupled to multiple antennas such as an antenna array (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366) that enable each device to perform receive beamforming as described herein. In one aspect, the transmitter and receiver may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366) so that each device can only receive or transmit at a given time, rather than both receive and transmit at the same time. The wireless communications device of the UE 302 and / or the base station 304 (e.g., one or both of the transceivers 310 and 320 and / or one or both of the transceivers 350 and 360) may also include a network listen module (NLM) or the like for performing various measurements.

[0054]

[0065] The UE 302 and base station 304 also, at least in some cases, include satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers 330 and 370, respectively. The SPS receivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, for receiving SPS signals 338 and 378, respectively, such as Global Positioning System (GPS) signals, Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, BeiDou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. The SPS receivers 330 and 370 may comprise any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing the SPS signals 338 and 378, respectively. The SPS receivers 330 and 370 request information and actions from other systems as appropriate, and perform the calculations necessary to determine the position of the UE 302 and base station 304, respectively, using measurements obtained by any suitable SPS algorithms.

[0055]

[0066] The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include at least one network interface 380 and 390, respectively, for communicating with other network entities. For example, the network interfaces 380 and 390 (e.g., one or more network access ports) may be configured to communicate with one or more network entities over a wire-based or wireless backhaul connection. In some aspects, the network interfaces 380 and 390 may be implemented as transceivers configured to support wire-based or wireless signal communication. This communication may involve, for example, sending and receiving messages, parameters, and / or other types of information.

[0056]

[0067] The UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that may be used with the operations disclosed herein. The UE 302 includes a processor circuit that implements a processing system 332, for example, for providing functions related to positioning operations and for providing other processing functions. The base station 304 includes a processing system 384, for example, for providing functions related to positioning operations and for providing other processing functions disclosed herein. The network entity 306 includes a processing system 394, for example, for providing functions related to positioning operations and for providing other processing functions disclosed herein. In an aspect, the processing systems 332, 384, and 394 may include, for example, one or more general purpose processors, multi-core processors, ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices or processing circuits.

[0057]

[0068] The UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 include memory circuits implementing memory components 340, 386, and 396, respectively (e.g., each including a memory device) to maintain information (e.g., information indicative of reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). In some cases, the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 may include positioning components 342, 388, and 398, respectively. The positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuits that are part of or coupled to the processing systems 332, 384, and 394, respectively, that, when executed, cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein. In other aspects, the positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be external to the processing systems 332, 384, and 394, respectively (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be memory modules stored in the memory components 340, 386, and 396, respectively (as shown in Figures 3A-3C) that, when executed by the processing systems 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein.

[0058]

[0069] The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to the processing system 332 to provide movement and / or orientation information that is independent of movement data derived from signals received by the WWAN transceiver 310, the WLAN transceiver 320, and / or the SPS receiver 330. By way of example, the sensor(s) 344 may include an accelerometer (e.g., a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), an altimeter (e.g., a barometric altimeter), and / or any other type of movement detection sensor. Moreover, the sensor(s) 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide movement information. For example, the sensor(s) 344 may use a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and an orientation sensor to provide the ability to calculate a position in a 2D and / or 3D coordinate system.

[0059]

[0070] Additionally, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 for providing instructions (e.g., audible and / or visual instructions) to a user and / or for receiving user input (e.g., upon user actuation of a sensing device such a keypad, touch screen, microphone, etc.). Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 may also include user interfaces.

[0060]

[0071] Referring more particularly to the processing system 384, in the downlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to the processing system 384. The processing system 384 may implement functionality for an RRC layer, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer. The processing system 384 may provide RRC layer functions related to broadcasting of system information (e.g., Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions related to header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functions related to transfer of upper layer packet data units (PDUs), error correction via automatic repeat request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions related to mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0061]

[0072] The transmitter 354 and receiver 352 may implement Layer 1 functions related to various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) coding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 handles mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), multi-level quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be split into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined with each other using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to generate a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol streams are spatially precoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator may be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimates may be derived from a reference signal and / or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 302. Each spatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with the respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0062]

[0073] At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives the signal through its respective antenna(s) 316. The receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the processing system 332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement layer 1 functions related to various signal processing functions. The receiver 312 may perform spatial processing on the information to recover the spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 302, they may be combined by the receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The receiver 312 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal comprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier and the reference signal are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point transmitted by the base station 304. These soft decisions may be based on channel estimates calculated by a channel estimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signaling originally transmitted on the physical channel by the base station 304. The data and control signaling are then provided to a processing system 332 that implements Layer 3 and Layer 2 functions.

[0063]

[0074] In the uplink, the processing system 332 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header recovery, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the core network. The processing system 332 is also responsible for error detection.

[0064]

[0075] Similar to the functionality described with respect to downlink transmissions by the base station 304, the processing system 332 provides RRC layer functionality related to system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality related to header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality related to transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality related to mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto and demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from transport blocks (TBs), scheduling information reporting, error correction via hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0065]

[0076] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 may be used by the transmitter 314 to select an appropriate coding and modulation scheme and to enable spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different antenna(s) 316. The transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with each spatial stream for transmission.

[0066]

[0077] Uplink transmissions are processed at the base station 304 in a manner similar to that described with respect to the receiver function at the UE 302. The receiver 352 receives signals through its respective antenna(s) 356. The receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to a processing system 384.

[0067]

[0078] In the uplink, the processing system 384 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header recovery, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 302. The IP packets from the processing system 384 may be provided to a core network. The processing system 384 is also responsible for error detection.

[0068]

[0079] For convenience, the UE 302, the base station 304, and / or the network entity 306 are illustrated in Figures 3A-3C as including various components that may be configured in accordance with various examples described herein, however, it will be appreciated that the illustrated blocks may have different functionality in different designs.

[0069]

[0080] The various components of the UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 may communicate with each other via data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392, respectively. The components of FIGS. 3A-3C may be implemented in various ways. In some implementations, the components of FIGS. 3A-3C may be implemented in one or more circuits, such as, for example, one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors), where each circuit may use and / or incorporate at least one memory component for storing information or executable code used by the circuit to provide this functionality. For example, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 310-346 may be implemented by the processor and memory component(s) of the UE 302 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 350-388 may be implemented by the processor and memory component(s) of the base station 304 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Also, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390-398 may be implemented by a processor and memory component(s) of the network entity 306 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, acts, and / or functions are described herein as being performed "by a UE," "by a base station," "by a positioning entity," etc. However, it will be appreciated that such operations, acts, and / or functions may actually be performed by a particular component or combination of components, such as the UE, base station, positioning entity, etc., such as the processing systems 332, 384, 394, the transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, the memory components 340, 386, and 396, the positioning components 342, 388, and 398, etc.

[0070]

[0081] FIG. 4 illustrates an example wireless communication system 400 according to an aspect of the disclosure. In the example of FIG. 4, a UE 404, which may correspond to any of the UEs described herein, is attempting to calculate or otherwise estimate its location or assist another entity (e.g., a base station or core network component, another UE, a location server, a third party application, etc.) to calculate or otherwise estimate its location. The UE 404 may wirelessly communicate with multiple base stations 402a-402d (collectively, base stations 402), which may correspond to any combination of base stations described herein, using RF signals and standardized protocols for modulation of the RF signals and exchange of information packets. It should be noted that while FIG. 4 illustrates one UE 404 and four base stations 402, there may be more UEs 404 and more or fewer base stations 402, as can be appreciated.

[0071]

[0082] 4 further illustrates an aspect in which base stations 402a and 402b form a DAS / RRH 420. For example, base station 402a may be a serving base station for UE 404, and base station 402b may be a neighbor base station for UE 404. Thus, base station 402b may be an RRH for base station 402a. Base stations 402a and 402b may communicate with each other via wired or wireless links 422.

[0072]

[0083] The unique challenges of heavy path loss in mmW communication systems require new techniques, such as hybrid beamforming (joint digital and analog beamforming), that do not exist in 3G and / or 4G wireless communication systems. Thus, there is a need to improve positioning methods traditionally used in wireless networks to take into account the unique challenges that can occur with beamformed communications.

[0073]

[0084] In NR, higher location accuracy requirements are expected. In regulatory cases, the following may be considered as minimum performance targets for positioning in NR:

[0074] For 80% of the UEs, horizontal positioning error ≤ 50m; Vertical positioning error ≤ 5m for 80% of the UEs, and End-to-end latency and time to first fix (TTFF) < 30s.

[0075]

[0085] In commercial use cases, the requirements may be even more stringent. As a starting point, the following requirements can be considered as performance targets in NR:

[0076] Horizontal positioning error <3m for 80% of UEs in indoor deployment scenarios; Vertical positioning error <3m for 80% of UEs in indoor deployment scenarios; Horizontal positioning error <10m for 80% of UEs in outdoor deployment scenarios; Vertical positioning error <10m for 80% of UEs in outdoor deployment scenarios, and End-to-end latency <1s.

[0077]

[0086] NR supports several cellular network-based positioning techniques, including downlink-based positioning methods, uplink-based positioning methods, and downlink-and-uplink-based positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods use the observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA) in LTE and the downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA) in NR. downlink time difference of arrival (OTDOA) and downlink angle-of-departure (DL-AoD) in NR. In OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure, the UE measures the difference between the times of arrival (ToA) of reference signals (e.g., positioning reference signal (PRS), tracking reference signal (TRS), cell-specific reference signal (CRS), channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), SSB, etc.) received from pairs of base stations, called reference signal time difference (RSTD) or time difference of arrival (TDOA) measurements, and reports them to the positioning entity. More specifically, the UE receives identifiers of a reference base station (e.g., serving base station) and multiple non-reference base stations in the assistance data. The UE then measures the RSTD between the reference base station and each of the non-reference base stations. Based on the known locations of the involved base stations and the RSTD measurements, the positioning entity can estimate the location of the UE. For DL-AoD positioning, the base station measures the angle and other channel properties (e.g., signal strength) of the downlink transmit beam used to communicate with the UE in order to estimate the UE's location.

[0078]

[0087] Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA is similar to DL-TDOA, but is based on an uplink reference signal (e.g., SRS) transmitted by the UE. For UL-AoA positioning, the base station measures the angle and other channel properties (e.g., gain level) of the uplink receive beam used to communicate with the UE to estimate the UE's location.

[0079]

[0088] Downlink and uplink based positioning methods include Extended Cell ID (E-CID) positioning and Multi-Round Trip Time (RTT) positioning (also called "Multi-Cell RTT"). In the RTT procedure, an initiator (base station or UE) transmits an RTT measurement signal (e.g., PRS or SRS) to a responder (UE or base station), and the responder transmits an RTT response signal (e.g., SRS or PRS) back to the initiator. The RTT response signal includes the difference between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response signal, called a receive-to-transmit (Rx-Tx) measurement. The initiator calculates the difference between the transmission time of the RTT measurement signal and the ToA of the RTT response signal, called a "Tx-Rx" measurement. The propagation time (also called "time of flight") between the initiator and the responder can be calculated from the Tx-Rx and Rx-Tx measurements. Based on the propagation time and the known speed of light, the distance between the initiator and the responder may be determined. For multi-RTT positioning, the UE performs RTT procedures with multiple base stations to allow its location to be triangulated based on the known locations of the base stations. The RTT and multi-RTT methods may be combined with other positioning techniques, such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD, to improve location accuracy.

[0080]

[0089] The E-CID positioning technique is based on Radio Resource Management (RRM) measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell identifier (ID), timing advance (TA), and the identifiers, estimated timing, and signal strength of detected neighbor base stations. The location of the UE is then estimated based on this information and the known locations of the base stations.

[0081]

[0090] To support the various positioning methods described above, the base stations 402 may be configured to broadcast reference signals (e.g., PRS, CRS, CSI-RS, TRS, SSB, etc.) to the UE 404 on one or more downlink transmit beams in their coverage area to enable the UE 404 to measure reference signal timing characteristics (e.g., ToA) to identify the beam that best excites the line-of-sight (LOS), or shortest non-line-of-sight (NLOS), radio path between the UE 404 and the transmitting base station(s) 402. Identifying the LOS / shortest NLOS path is important not only because these beams may then be used for positioning purposes, but also because identifying these beams can directly provide some positioning information based on the beam direction.

[0082]

[0091] It should be noted that the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" may sometimes refer to specific reference signals used for positioning in LTE systems. However, unless otherwise specified, the terms "positioning reference signal" and "PRS" as used herein refer to any type of reference signal that may be used for positioning, such as, but not limited to, PRS, TRS, CSI-RS, etc.

[0083]

[0092] To assist the positioning operation, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the UE 404. For example, the assistance data may include an identifier of the base station 402 (or cell / TRP of the base station 402) from which to measure the reference signal, reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., number of consecutive positioning subframes, periodicity of the positioning subframes, muting sequence, frequency hopping sequence, reference signal identifier (ID), reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and / or other parameters applicable to a particular positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may originate directly from the base station 402 itself (e.g., in a periodically broadcasted overhead message, etc.). In some cases, the UE 404 may be able to detect neighbor network nodes on its own without using the assistance data.

[0084]

[0093] To accurately estimate the location of the UE 404 using a reference signal received from the base station 402, the UE 404 may measure the reference signal received via the LOS path (or the shortest NLOS path if no LOS path is available) between the UE 404 and a network node (e.g., the base station 402, an antenna or antenna array of the base station 402). However, the RF signal not only travels by the LOS / shortest path between the transmitter and the receiver, but also travels via several other paths as the RF signal spreads from the transmitter and reflects off other objects such as hills, buildings, water, etc. on its way to the receiver. Thus, FIG. 4 shows several LOS paths 410a-410c (collectively, LOS paths 410) and several NLOS paths 412a-412d (collectively, NLOS paths 412) between the base station 402 and the UE 404. In particular, Figure 4 shows base station 402a transmitting via LOS path 410a and NLOS path 412a, base station 402b transmitting via LOS path 410b and two NLOS paths 412b, base station 402c transmitting via LOS path 410c and NLOS path 412c, and base station 402d transmitting via two NLOS paths 412d. As shown in Figure 4, each NLOS path 412 reflects off some object 430 (e.g., a building). As will be appreciated, each LOS path 410 and NLOS path 412 transmitted by base station 402 may be transmitted by a different antenna / antenna array of base station 402 (e.g., as in a MIMO system) or may be transmitted by the same antenna / antenna array of base station 402 (thereby illustrating RF signal propagation). It should be noted that the term "LOS path" as used herein refers to the shortest path between a transmitter and a receiver, which may not be an actual LOS path, but rather the shortest NLOS path.

[0085]

[0094] In an aspect, one or more of the base stations 402 may be configured to use beamforming to transmit RF signals. In that case, some of the available beams may focus the transmit RF signals along the LOS path(s) 410 (e.g., the beams producing the highest antenna gain along the LOS path(s)), and other available beams may focus the transmit RF signals along the NLOS path 412. A beam that has high gain along a path and therefore focuses the RF signal along that path may still have some RF signal propagation along other paths, the strength of which of course depends on the beam gain along those other paths.

[0086]

[0095] When the base station 402 uses beamforming to transmit RF signals, the beam of interest for data communication between the base station 402 and the UE 404 is the beam carrying the RF signal that arrives at the UE 404 with the highest signal strength (e.g., as indicated by RSRP, RSRQ, SINR), and the beam of interest for location estimation is the beam carrying the RF signal that excites the LOS path (e.g., LOS path 410). In some frequency bands (e.g., FR1), these are the same beam. However, in other frequency bands, such as mmW, where multiple antenna elements may be used to create a narrow transmit beam, they may not be the same beam. As described below with reference to FIG. 5, in some cases, the signal strength of the RF signal on the LOS path 410 may be weaker (e.g., due to interference) than the signal strength of the RF signal on the NLOS path 412, where the RF signal arrives later due to propagation delay.

[0087]

[0096] The term "location estimate" may refer to an estimate of a location for a UE 404, which may be geographic (e.g., may comprise latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude) or civic (e.g., may comprise a street address, a building designation, or a precise point or area within or near a building or street address, such as a particular entrance to a building, a particular room or suite in a building, or a landmark such as a town square). A location estimate may also be referred to as a "location," "position," "fix," "position fix," "location fix," "location estimate," "fix estimate," or some other term. Means of obtaining a location estimate may be generally referred to as "positioning," "locating," "position fixing," or the like. A particular solution for obtaining a location estimate may be referred to as a "location solution," or the like. A particular method for obtaining a location estimate as part of a location solution may be referred to as a "position method," "positioning method," or the like.

[0088]

[0097] A "network node" as used herein may refer to a base station 402, a cell of a base station 402, a TRP of a base station, a remote radio head, an antenna of a base station 402 (if the location of the antenna of the base station 402 is separate from the location of the base station 402 itself), or any other network entity capable of transmitting a reference signal. Furthermore, a "node" as used herein may refer to either a network node or a UE.

[0089]

[0098] 5 illustrates an example wireless communication system 500 according to an aspect of the disclosure. A UE 504 may wirelessly communicate with a base station 502, which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein, using RF signals and a standardized protocol for modulation of the RF signals and exchange of information packets.

[0090]

[0099] As shown in Figure 5, the base station 502 may utilize beamforming to transmit multiple beams 511-515 of RF signals. Each beam 511-515 may be formed and transmitted by an array of antennas (e.g., TRPs) of the base station 502. Although Figure 5 shows the base station 502 transmitting five beams, it will be appreciated that there may be more or less than five beams, and the beam shapes, such as peak gain, width, and sidelobe gain, may vary among the transmitted beams.

[0091]

[0100] A beam index may be assigned to each of the multiple beams 511-515 in order to distinguish an RF signal associated with one beam from an RF signal associated with another beam. Moreover, an RF signal associated with a particular beam of the multiple beams 511-515 may carry a beam index indicator. The beam index may also be derived from the time of transmission of the RF signal (e.g., frame, slot, and / or OFDM symbol number). The beam index indicator may be, for example, a 3-bit field to uniquely distinguish up to eight beams. If two different RF signals with different beam indexes are received, this would indicate that the RF signals were transmitted using different beams. If two different RF signals share a common beam index, this would indicate that the different RF signals were transmitted using the same beam. Another way to describe two RF signals being transmitted using the same beam is to say that the antenna port(s) used for transmission of the first RF signal are quasi-colocated in space with the antenna port(s) used for transmission of the second RF signal.

[0092]

[0101] In the example of FIG. 5, UE 504 may receive NLOS data stream 523 of RF signals transmitted on beam 513 and LOS data stream 524 of RF signals transmitted on beam 514. Although FIG. 5 illustrates NLOS data stream 523 and LOS data stream 524 as single lines (dashed and solid lines, respectively), it will be appreciated that NLOS data stream 523 and LOS data stream 524 may each comprise multiple rays (i.e., "clusters") by the time they reach UE 504, e.g., due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through a multipath channel. For example, when an electromagnetic wave is reflected off multiple surfaces of an object, a cluster of RF signals may be formed, with the reflections arriving at a receiver (e.g., UE 504) from approximately the same angle, each traveling a few wavelengths (e.g., centimeters) more or less than the others. A "cluster" of received RF signals generally corresponds to a single transmitted RF signal.

[0093]

[0102] In the example of FIG. 5, the NLOS data stream 523 is not initially directed to the UE 504, but as can be appreciated, it may be directed to the UE 504, as is the RF signal on the NLOS path 412 in FIG. 4. However, it may reflect off a reflector 540 (e.g., a building) and reach the UE 504 unimpeded, and thus still be a relatively strong RF signal. In contrast, the LOS data stream 524 is directed to the UE 504, but passes through obstructions 530 (e.g., vegetation, buildings, hills, confusing environments such as clouds or smoke, etc.) that may significantly degrade the RF signal. As can be appreciated, the LOS data stream 524 is weaker than the NLOS data stream 523, but because the LOS data stream 524 follows a shorter path from the base station 502 to the UE 504, it arrives at the UE 504 before the NLOS data stream 523.

[0094]

[0103] As mentioned above, the beam of interest for data communication between a base station (e.g., base station 502) and a UE (e.g., UE 504) is the beam carrying an RF signal that arrives at the UE with the highest signal strength (e.g., highest RSRP, RSRQ, SINR), and the beam of interest for location estimation is the beam carrying an RF signal that excites the LOS path and has the highest gain along the LOS path among all other beams (e.g., beam 514). That is, even if beam 513 (an NLOS beam) weakly excites the LOS path (not focused along the LOS path, but due to the propagation characteristics of the RF signal), the weak signal, if any, of the LOS path of beam 513 may not be as reliably detectable (compared to that from beam 514), thus leading to a larger error in performing positioning measurements.

[0095]

[0104] The beam of interest for data communication and the beam of interest for location estimation may be the same beam in some frequency bands (e.g., in FR1), and may not be the same beam in other frequency bands, such as mmW. Thus, referring to FIG. 5, if UE 504 is engaged in a data communication session with base station 502 (e.g., when base station 502 is the serving base station for UE 504) and is simply not attempting to measure a reference signal transmitted by base station 502, the beam of interest for the data communication session may be beam 513 since beam 513 carries unobstructed NLOS data stream 523. However, the beam of interest for location estimation will be beam 514 since beam 514 carries the strongest LOS data stream 524 despite being obstructed.

[0096]

[0105] FIG. 6A is a graph 600A illustrating an RF channel response at a receiver (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) over time, according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Under the channel shown in FIG. 6A, the receiver receives a first cluster of two RF signals on a channel tap at time T1, a second cluster of five RF signals on a channel tap at time T2, a third cluster of five RF signals on a channel tap at time T3, and a fourth cluster of four RF signals on a channel tap at time T4. In the example of FIG. 6A, since the first cluster of RF signals at time T1 arrives first, it is inferred to be a LOS data stream (i.e., a data stream arriving via LOS or shortest path) and may correspond to LOS data stream 524. The third cluster at time T3 is composed of the strongest RF signals and may correspond to NLOS data stream 523. From the perspective of the transmitter, each cluster of received RF signals may comprise a portion of the RF signal transmitted at a different angle, and thus each cluster may be said to have a different AoD from the transmitter. Note that while FIG. 6A shows clusters of two to five channel taps, it will be appreciated that the clusters may have more or less channel taps than shown.

[0097]

[0106] FIG. 6B is a diagram 600B illustrating this separation of clusters in the AoD, according to an embodiment of the disclosure. The RF signal transmitted in the AoD range 602a may correspond to one cluster (e.g., "Cluster 1") in FIG. 6A, and the RF signal transmitted in the AoD range 602b may correspond to a different cluster (e.g., "Cluster 3") in FIG. 6A. Note that while the AoD ranges of the two clusters shown in FIG. 6B are spatially separated, the AoD ranges of some clusters may also partially overlap, although the clusters are separated in time. For example, this may occur when two separate buildings in the same AoD from the transmitter reflect the RF signal toward the receiver.

[0098]

[0107] As in the example of FIG. 5, a transmitter (e.g., a base station) may utilize beamforming to transmit multiple beams of RF signals such that one of the beams (e.g., beam 514) is directed to the AoD range 602a of the first cluster of RF signals and a different beam (e.g., beam 513) is directed to the AoD range 602b of the third cluster of RF signals. The signal strength of the cluster in the post-beamforming channel response (i.e., the channel response when the transmitted RF signal is beamformed rather than omnidirectional) is scaled by the beam gain along the AoD of the cluster. In that case, the beam of interest for positioning would be the beam directed to the AoD of the first cluster of RF signals since the first cluster of RF signals arrives first, and the beam of interest for data communication may be the beam directed to the AoD of the third cluster of RF signals since the third cluster of RF signals is the strongest.

[0099]

[0108] Generally, when transmitting an RF signal, a transmitter (e.g., a base station) does not know the path the transmitted RF signal will take to a receiver (e.g., a UE), or when the transmitted RF signal will arrive at the receiver. Thus, the transmitter may transmit the RF signal on different antenna ports with equal amounts of energy. Alternatively, the transmitter may beamform the RF signal in different directions over multiple transmit occasions and obtain measurement feedback from the receiver to explicitly or implicitly determine the radio path.

[0100]

[0109] It should be noted that while the techniques disclosed herein have been generally described with respect to transmissions from a base station to a UE, as will be appreciated, they are equally applicable to transmissions from a UE to a base station where the UE is capable of MIMO operation and / or beamforming. Also, while beamforming has been generally described above in the context of involving transmit (TX) beamforming, receive (RX) beamforming may also be used in some aspects with TX beamforming.

[0101]

[0110] To help the UE perform RX beamforming for positioning purposes, an option is for the UE to use a fixed RX beam to receive downlink PRS resources (a set of resource elements used for transmission of the PRS) transmitted with different downlink spatial domain transmit filters, i.e., the UE may use the same RX beam to detect downlink RF signals transmitted from a base station (e.g., gNB) to support timing-based positioning (e.g., DL-TDOA, RTT, multi-cell RTT, E-CID) and / or angle-based positioning (e.g., DL-AoD, DL-AoA).

[0102]

[0111] Also for positioning purposes, for uplink beam management / alignment towards serving and neighboring cells / TRPs, an option is for the UE to use a fixed TX beam for uplink SRS transmission across multiple uplink SRS resources (a set of resource elements used for transmission of SRS) for both FR1 and FR2, i.e., the UE may use the same TX beam for transmitting uplink RF signals to the base station to support timing-based positioning (e.g., UL-TDOA, RTT, multi-cell RTT, E-CID) and / or angle-based positioning (e.g., UL-AoD, UL-AoA).

[0103]

[0112] In a test scenario (i.e., when a UE is being tested), the network may configure the UE to implement a beam locking function where the UE uses the same TX beam (when transmitting) and the same RX beam (when receiving), which can significantly simplify the test methodology required for off-axis stimuli and measurements. However, during normal operation, the UE is expected to form a TX beam and / or RX beam toward the base station, which may result in changing the beam(s). For example, the UE may be moving and thus its orientation relative to the base station may change. Alternatively, or in addition, the spatial properties of the channel between the UE and the base station may vary. The UE may also change the beam, even along the same direction, as a normal part of their automatic gain control (AGC) process. This is at least in part because different AGCs may have different effects on the phase of the received signal.

[0104]

[0113] In some situations, such as when estimating the location of the UE, it may be advantageous for the UE to be in beam-lock mode, whether for transmitting and / or receiving reference signals. However, during normal operation, it may or may not be possible for the UE to be in beam-lock mode. For example, FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B show an example scenario in which the UE is configured with multiple receiving and transmitting resources, respectively, for beam-locking support. In FIG. 7A, the UE is configured with two PRS resources ("PRS1" 710 and "PRS2" 720) and another downlink channel 730. In FIG. 7B, the UE is configured with two SRS resources ("SRS1" 715 and "SRS2" 725) and another uplink channel 735. In the example of FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B, a network entity (e.g., a location server, a serving base station, etc.) may request the UE to:

[0105] Conduct RSRP measurements; Use the same RX or TX beam, Use the same spatial QCL with tight beam locked reception, and / or · Both receive PRS and transmit SRS in beamlock mode.

[0106]

[0114] The problem is that a UE may have difficulty receiving / transmitting using the same RX / TX beam under various scenarios, including the following:

[0107] The two PRS / SRS resources are not contiguous in time (e.g., separated by a certain number of symbols, slots, frames, etc.) and the UE transmits / receives other signals in between the two PRS / SRS resources; Two SRS resources are consecutive in time, but they have different power control or timing advances; Two PRS resources are contiguous in time but quasi-colocated (spatially and / or temporally) with different reference signals, resulting in potentially different AGC settings between them; The PRS / SRS may also be used for other purposes, known as "dual-use" reference signals, which may interfere with normal / legacy operation of the UE; Activation or deactivation of the TX / RX beamlock mode using the MAC Control Element (MAC-CE) or based on the Downlink Control Information (DCI), and · The two PRS / SRS resources are in different bands.

[0108]

[0115] To address these issues, in an aspect, a network entity (e.g., a gNB, a location server, etc.) may send a beam lock request to the UE, and the UE may respond with a report related to the beam lock request. FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B show a flowchart of an example method 800 performed by a user equipment (UE) configured to support beam locking. The method 800 is separated into two flowcharts to illustrate that the processes of the illustrated flowcharts are related, but do not have to be performed simultaneously. In an aspect, the method 800 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, the processing system 332, the memory component 340, and / or the positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as a means for performing the operations of the method 800.

[0109]

[0116] FIG. 8A shows a flowchart in which the UE informs the network of its beam locking capability. In block 820, the UE provides a beam locking capability report to a network entity (e.g., a location server, a base station, etc.). The beam locking capability report may indicate one or more capabilities of the UE to support beam locking. In one aspect, the UE may provide the beam locking capability report on its own initiative (e.g., when the UE first connects to the network after power-on). Alternatively, the UE may provide the beam locking capability report in response to receiving a beam locking capability request from a network entity in block 810. Block 810 is represented by a dashed rectangle to indicate that it is optional. Details regarding the beam locking capability report are further described below.

[0110]

[0117] 8B shows a flowchart for a UE to perform beam lock. In block 830, the UE receives a beam lock request from a network entity. The network entity may be a base station (e.g., a gNB) or a network server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) making the request through the base station. In general, the beam lock request may be viewed as a request for the UE to receive multiple signals from the base station using the same RX beam and / or a request for the UE to transmit multiple signals to the base station using the same TX beam.

[0111]

[0118] The beam locking request may be received during normal operation of the UE. In one aspect, normal operation of the UE may be defined as an operation mode in which the UE is configured to change the TX beam and / or the RX beam during transmission and / or reception of multiple signals when communicating with a network entity. For example, the UE may be moving, and thus the channel condition of the current beam is deteriorating rapidly. In this case, the UE and / or the network entity may determine that a beam change is necessary to maintain the UE's communication with the network. During normal operation, the UE may prioritize connectivity with the network over adhering to the beam locking request. In one aspect, if the UE determines that it can maintain communication with the network while at least partially adhering to the beam locking request, the UE may partially adhere to the beam locking request.

[0112]

[0119] The beam lock request may be in the downlink direction (also referred to as a receive beam lock request), which in this context may be viewed as a request for the UE to use the same RX beam when receiving multiple downlink signals from a base station (e.g., a gNB). Alternatively, or in addition, the beam lock request may be in the uplink direction (also referred to as a transmit beam lock request), which in this context may be viewed as a request for the UE to use the same TX beam when transmitting multiple uplink signals to a base station.

[0113]

[0120] As described further below, the beam lock request may be implicit or explicit. The beam lock request may be received from the base station in the DCI and / or in the MAC-CE.

[0114]

[0121] In block 840, the UE provides a beam lock report to the network entity in response to the beam lock request. The beam lock report may include information related to the UE's success or failure in complying with the beam lock request. For example, it may be a simple positive acknowledgement (ACK) or negative acknowledgement (NACK).

[0115]

[0122] Alternatively or in addition, the beamlock report may include information related to the degree of compliance with the beamlock request, e.g., when the UE partially complies. In one aspect, the beamlock report may be provided together with the other report(s) provided to the network entity. That is, the beamlock report and the other report(s) may be provided separately but simultaneously to the network entity. Alternatively, the beamlock report may be provided together with the other report(s) by incorporating the beamlock report into the other report(s).

[0116]

[0123] For example, consider the following scenario: (1) the multiple signals are multiple downlink signals including at least first and second downlink reference signals (DL RSs), such as first and second PRSs, (2) the beam lock request is a receive beam lock request requesting that at least the first and second DL RSs are received using the same RX beam, and (3) the beam lock request is associated with a measurement request received from a network entity to measure the first and second DL RSs at the UE. In this case, the beam lock report may be provided to the network entity along with the measurement report.

[0117]

[0124] In one aspect, the beam lock request may explicitly request that the UE use the same RX beam to receive the first and second DL RSs. In another aspect, the beam lock request may be implicitly assumed when there is an indication that the measurement request is for positioning purposes. In other words, when the measurement request is made for positioning purposes, the measurement request itself may implicitly act as a beam lock request.

[0118]

[0125] The measurement report may include reports on any one or more of received signal power (e.g., RSRP), time-based measurements (e.g., ToA, RSTD, etc.), and angle-based measurements (e.g., AoA, such as azimuth angle and / or zenith angle) of the first and second downlink signals.

[0119]

[0126] As described above, in block 820, the UE may provide beam locking capability to the network. In one aspect, the beam locking capability report may comprise an RSRP tolerance due to changes in two RX beams between two receiving resources (e.g., between two resources carrying two DL RSs, respectively). The RSRP tolerance may define a cutoff (in dB) at which the two RX beams are considered to be the same or different RX beams. For example, if the RSRP tolerance is set at 3 dB and the measurement report indicates that the RSRP of the first DL RS and the RSRP of the second DL RS differ by less than 3 dB (or more than 3 dB), the UE and / or network entity may determine that the two RX beams are the same (or different). That is, the UE and / or network entity may determine that beam locking may be supported (or may not be supported) for the first and second DL RSs.

[0120]

[0127] Alternatively or in addition, the beam locking capability report may also comprise one or more angle tolerances (e.g., azimuth angle tolerance and / or zenith angle tolerance) due to changes of the two RX beams between the two receiving resources. The one or more angle tolerances may define a cutoff (e.g., in angle) at which the two RX beams are considered to be the same or different RX beams. For example, if the angle tolerance is set at 5° and the measurement report indicates that the AoA of the first DL RS and the AoA of the second DL RS differ by less than 5° (or more than 5°), the UE and / or network entity may determine that the two RX beams are the same (or different). That is, the UE and / or network entity may determine that beam locking is supported (or not supported) for the first and second DL RSs. There may also be a tolerance for time-based measurements.

[0121]

[0128] In one aspect, the beam lock report in block 840 may include a change in the RX beam used to receive the multiple downlink signals. As an example, assume that a first RX beam and a second RX beam are used to receive a first DL RS and a second DL RS, respectively. In this case, the beam lock report may include whether there is a change between the first RX beam and the second RX beam, and if so, how much of a change. For example, the beam lock report may include a change in the RSRP and / or a change in the angle (azimuth and / or zenith). Alternatively or in addition, the beam lock report may include a change in the setting between the first RX beam and the second RX beam when receiving the first and second signals. For example, the beam lock report may include a change in the RX AGC setting between the first RX beam and the second RX beam.

[0122]

[0129] Based on the change, the UE and / or the network entity may determine whether the first RX beam and the second RX beam are the same or different (i.e., determine whether beam locking is supported or not), i.e., the UE and / or the network entity may determine that beam locking is supported (or not) for the first and second DL RS.

[0123]

[0130] In one aspect, the beam lock report may be provided together with another report provided to the network entity when the beam lock request is a transmit beam lock request. For example, consider the following scenario: (1) the multiple signals are multiple uplink signals including at least a first and a second uplink reference signal (UL RS), such as a first and a second SRS, (2) the beam lock request is a transmit beam lock request requesting that at least a first and a second UL RS are transmitted using the same TX beam, and (3) the beam lock request is related to a transmission request received from the network entity to transmit a first and a second UL RS from the UE. In this case, the beam lock report may be provided to the network entity simultaneously with transmitting the first and the second UL RS.

[0124]

[0131] In one aspect, the beam lock request may explicitly request that the UE transmit the first and second UL RS. In another aspect, the beam lock request may be implicitly assumed when there is an indication that the transmission request is for positioning purposes. In other words, when the transmission request is made for positioning purposes, the transmission request itself may implicitly serve as a beam lock request.

[0125]

[0132] As described above, in block 820, the UE may provide a beam locking capability to the network. In one aspect, the beam locking capability report may comprise a TX power tolerance due to the change of two TX beams between two transmission resources (e.g., between two resources carrying two UL RSs, respectively). The TX power tolerance may define a cutoff (in dB) at which the two TX beams are considered to be the same or different TX beams. For example, if the TX power tolerance is set at 3 dB and the TX power of the first UL RS and the TX power of the second UL RS are less than 3 dB (or more than 3 dB), the UE and / or network entity may determine that the two TX beams are the same (or different). That is, the UE and / or network entity may determine that beam locking may be supported (or may not be supported) for the first and second UL RSs.

[0126]

[0133] Alternatively or in addition, the beam locking capability report may also comprise one or more angle tolerances (e.g., azimuth angle tolerance and / or zenith angle tolerance) due to changes of the two TX beams between the two transmission resources. The one or more angle tolerances may define a cutoff (e.g., in angle) at which the two TX beams are considered to be the same or different TX beams. For example, if the angle tolerance is set at 5° and the measurement report indicates that the angle of departure (AoD) of the first UL RS and the AoD of the second UL RS differ by less than 5° (or more than 5°), the UE and / or network entity may determine that the two TX beams are the same (or different). That is, the UE and / or network entity may determine that beam locking is supported (or not supported) for the first and second UL RSs. There may also be a time-based tolerance.

[0127]

[0134] In one aspect, the beam lock report in block 840 may include a change in the TX beam used to transmit the multiple uplink signals. As an example, assume that a first TX beam and a second TX beam are used to transmit a first UL RS and a second UL RS, respectively. In this case, the beam lock report may include whether there is a change between the first TX beam and the second TX beam, and if so, how much of a change. For example, the beam lock report may include a change in TX power and / or a change in angle (azimuth and / or zenith). Based on such a change, the UE and / or the network may determine whether the first TX beam and the second TX beam are the same or different (i.e., determine whether beam lock is supported). That is, the UE and / or the network entity may determine that beam lock is supported (or not supported) for the first and second UL RSs.

[0128]

[0135] The beamlocking capability provided in block 820 may include other beamlocking support capability information for the UE. The beamlocking capability report may include any one or more of band capability, band pair capability, component carrier (CC) capability, CC pair capability, bandwidth portion (BWP) capability, BWP pair capability, maximum beamlocking capability, maximum distance capability, maximum power difference capability, minimum duration capability, among others. Note that a BWP is a contiguous set of PRBs selected from a contiguous subset of common RBs for a given numerology on a given carrier.

[0129]

[0136] The band capability indicates whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in the same band. For example, the band capability may indicate that the UE is capable of supporting beam locking for two PRSs in band "X". When there are multiple combinations of two resources in a band, the band capability may indicate support for one or more of the multiple combinations in the band. When there are multiple bands, the band capability may indicate support for one or more combinations in one or more bands.

[0130]

[0137] The band pair capability indicates whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in a pair of bands. For example, the band pair capability may indicate that the UE is capable of supporting beam locking for a first resource in band "X" and a second resource in band "Y". When there are multiple combinations of two resources in a band pair, the band capability may indicate support for one or more of the multiple combinations in the band pair. When there are three or more bands, the band pair capability may indicate support for one or more combinations in one or more band pairs.

[0131]

[0138] CC capability indicates whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in the same CC. When there are multiple combinations of two resources in a CC, CC capability may indicate support for one or more of the multiple combinations in the CC. When there are multiple CCs, CC capability may indicate support for one or more combinations in one or more CCs.

[0132]

[0139] The CC pair capability indicates whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in a CC pair. When there are multiple combinations of two resources in a CC pair, the band capability may indicate support for one or more of the multiple combinations in the CC pair. When there are three or more CCs, the CC pair capability may indicate support for one or more combinations in one or more CC pairs.

[0133]

[0140] The BWP capability indicates whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in the same BWP. When there are multiple combinations of two resources in a BWP, the BWP capability may indicate support for one or more of the multiple combinations in the BWP. When there are multiple BWPs, the BWP capability may indicate support for one or more combinations in one or more BWPs.

[0134]

[0141] The BWP pair capability indicates whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in a pair of BWPs. When there are multiple combinations of two resources in a BWP pair, the band capability may indicate support for one or more of the multiple combinations in the BWP pair. When there are more than two BWPs, the BWP pair capability may indicate support for one or more combinations in one or more BWP pairs.

[0135]

[0142] Maximum beam lock capability indicates the maximum number of beam lock settings (e.g., beam weights, AGC settings, power levels, etc.) that the UE is capable of supporting. More settings supported means that more memory may be needed to store the settings. Memory requirements may also depend on the exact configuration. For example, if the beam lock is for a contiguous set of symbols, little memory may be needed since beam lock can be kept for those symbols. On the other hand, if it is required to change beams and later return to a "locked" beam, more memory may be needed.

[0136]

[0143] The maximum distance capability indicates the maximum difference in time (e.g., number of slots, subframes, frames, milliseconds, etc.) and / or frequency (number of subcarriers, bandwidth, etc.) between two resources for which the UE is capable of supporting beam locking.

[0137]

[0144] The maximum power difference capability indicates the maximum difference in TX power of two transmission resources that is possible when the UE supports beam locking. As an example, if the maximum power difference is 0, the two SRS resources should be transmitted at the same power level so that the two SRS signals are transmitted using the same TX beam.

[0138]

[0145] The minimum duration capability indicates the minimum duration that a UE needs after receiving a beam lock request to apply a request to transmit an SRS resource on the same TX beam as another SRS resource and / or to apply a request to receive a PRS resource on the same RX beam as another PRS resource. In general, the minimum duration capability may indicate the amount of time (e.g., number of slots, subframes, frames, milliseconds, etc.) that a UE may need after receiving a request (e.g., in a DCI) to honor the beam lock request.

[0139]

[0146] As shown in the above examples, a beam lock request may involve beam locking for two or more PRSs on the downlink or for two or more SRSs on the uplink. For example, a beam lock request may be in a DCI indicating that for PRS resource "X", the UE should use the same RX beam as for PRS resource "Y". Note, however, that the beam lock request does not have to be between signals of the same type. That is, the beam lock request may involve signals of different types. For example, a beam lock request may be in a DCI indicating that for PRS resource "X", the UE should use the same RX beam as for SSB "Y", or that for PRS resource "X", the UE should use the same RX beam as for CSI-RS "Y".

[0140]

[0147] As also shown in the above example, the beam lock request may specify two or more signals of the multiple signals to which beam lock should be applied. Alternatively, the beam lock request may specify a time window (e.g., two slots, four subframes, ten slots, ten milliseconds, one frame, etc.) during which beam lock should be applied to the multiple signals in the time window. In one aspect, beam lock may be applied to all signals in the time window. In other words, the beam lock request may be a request to not change the RX / TX beam for reception / transmission of signals in the time window.

[0141]

[0148] In another aspect, beam locking may apply only to the reference signal within the time window, in other words, the beam locking request may be a request to not change the RX / TX beam for reception / transmission of the reference signal within the time window, but the RX / TX beam may change for all other signals.

[0142]

[0149] In yet another aspect, beam locking may be applied only to certain signals, such as positioning signals, within a time window. For example, beam locking may be applied only to the PRS within a time window when the beam locking request is a request to receive using the same RX beam. In other words, the beam locking request may be a request to not change the RX beam for reception of the PRS within the time window, but the RX beam may be changed for all other signals. As another example, beam locking may be applied only to the SRS within a time window when the beam locking request is a request to transmit using the same TX beam. In other words, the beam locking request may be a request to not change the TX beam for transmission of the SRS within the time window, but the TX beam may be changed for all other signals.

[0143]

[0150] 9A and 9B are flowcharts of an example method 900 performed by a network entity (e.g., a location server, a base station, etc.) configured to support beam locking. Similar to method 800, method 900 is separated into two flowcharts to indicate that the processes of the illustrated flowcharts are related but do not have to occur simultaneously. In an aspect, if the network entity is a base station, method 900 may be performed by WWAN transceiver 350, processing system 384, memory component 386, and / or positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operations of method 900. In an aspect, if the network entity is a network entity (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272), method 900 may be performed by network interface(s) 390, processing system 394, memory component 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered as means for performing the operations of method 900.

[0144]

[0151] 9A is a flow chart in which a network entity is notified of a UE's beam locking capability. In block 920, the network entity receives a beam locking capability report from a UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). The beam locking capability may be received at the initiative of the UE. Alternatively, the beam locking capability report may be received in response to the network entity sending a beam locking capability request in block 910.

[0145]

[0152] 9B is a flow chart in which a network entity is involved with a UE to perform beam locking. In block 930, the network entity sends a beam locking request to the UE. The beam locking request may be sent during normal operation of the UE. The beam locking request may be a receive beam locking request and / or a transmit beam locking request. The beam locking request may be implicit or explicit and may be sent in the DCI and / or in the MAC-CE.

[0146]

[0153] In block 940, the network entity receives a beam lock report from the UE in response to sending the beam lock request.

[0147]

[0154] 10 illustrates an example method 1000 for wireless communication according to an aspect of the disclosure. In one aspect, the method 1000 may be performed by a UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein) in a multi-beam communication system.

[0148]

[0155] At 1010, the UE receives a positioning measurement request (including or corresponding to a beam lock request) from a network entity (e.g., a base station, a location server, etc.). In an aspect, the positioning measurement request may include a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both. In an aspect, the operation 1010 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, the processing system 332, the memory component 340, and / or the positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as a means for performing the operation 1010.

[0149]

[0156] At 1020, in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, the UE attempts to use the same RX beam to receive multiple positioning reference signals and / or use the same TX beam to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to perform positioning measurements. In an aspect, operation 1020 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, the processing system 332, the memory component 340, and / or the positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered a means for performing operation 1020.

[0150]

[0157] At 1030, the UE provides a positioning measurement report (including or corresponding to a beam lock report) to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request. In an aspect, the positioning measurement report may indicate using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam (e.g., may include information related to success or failure of using the same RX beam and / or attempting to use the same TX beam), a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both. Alternatively or additionally, the positioning measurement report may indicate which RX beam (or which RX beams, if the UE was not able to use the same RX beam) was used for the positioning measurement. In an aspect, operation 1030 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 310, the processing system 332, the memory component 340, and / or the positioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered as a means for performing operation 1030.

[0151]

[0158] 11 illustrates an example method 1100 for wireless communication according to an aspect of the present disclosure. In one aspect, the method 1100 may be performed by a network entity (e.g., a location server, a base station, etc.) in a multi-beam communication system.

[0152]

[0159] At 1110, the network entity transmits a positioning measurement request (including or corresponding to a beam lock request) to the UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). In an aspect, the positioning measurement request may include a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more TRPs using the same RX beam, a request to transmit multiple positioning reference signals to one or more TRPs using the same TX beam, or both. In an aspect, if the network entity is a base station, the operation 1110 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 350, the processing system 384, the memory component 386, and / or the positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered as a means for performing this operation. In one aspect, if the network entity is a network entity (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272), operation 1110 may be performed by network interface(s) 390, processing system 394, memory component 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered a means for performing this operation.

[0153]

[0160] At 1120, the network entity receives a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request (including or corresponding to a beam lock report). In an aspect, the positioning measurement report may indicate using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam (e.g., may include information related to success or failure of using the same RX beam and / or attempting to use the same TX beam), a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both. Alternatively or additionally, the positioning measurement report may indicate which RX beam (or which RX beams, if the UE was not able to use the same RX beam) was used for the positioning measurement. In an aspect, if the network entity is a base station, the operation 1120 may be performed by the WWAN transceiver 350, the processing system 384, the memory component 386, and / or the positioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered as a means for performing this operation. In one aspect, if the network entity is a network entity (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272), operation 1120 may be performed by network interface(s) 390, processing system 394, memory component 396, and / or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered a means for performing this operation.

[0154]

[0161] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that information and signals may be represented using any of a wide variety of technologies and techniques. For example, the data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0155]

[0162] Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various exemplary components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0156]

[0163] The various example logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed using a general purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA, or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0157]

[0164] The methods, sequences and / or algorithms described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software modules may reside in a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), a register, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). Alternatively, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal.

[0158]

[0165] In one or more exemplary aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and computer communication media, including any medium that enables transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media may comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of media. As used herein, disk and disc include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc, where disks typically reproduce data magnetically and discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0159]

[0166] Although the above disclosure illustrates exemplary aspects of the present disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications may be made herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. The functions, steps and / or actions of the method claims according to the aspects of the present disclosure described herein need not be performed in any particular order. Furthermore, although elements of the present disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated. The invention as described in the claims of the original application is set forth below. [C1] 1. A method implemented by a user equipment (UE) in a multi-beam communication system, comprising: receiving a positioning measurement request from a network entity, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit receiving points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, attempting to use the same RX beam for receiving the plurality of positioning reference signals and / or the same TX beam for transmitting the plurality of positioning reference signals to perform positioning measurements; providing a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both; A method comprising: [C2] the plurality of positioning reference signals comprises a plurality of downlink positioning reference signals; the positioning measurement report comprises any one or more of a reference signal received power (RSRP), a time of arrival (ToA), a received signal time difference (RSTD), and an angle of arrival (AoA) of the plurality of positioning reference signals; The method according to C1. [C3] The method of C1, wherein the positioning measurement request is received during operation of the UE, the UE being configured to change the TX beam during transmission of the plurality of positioning reference signals and / or change the RX beam during reception of the plurality of positioning reference signals. [C4] The method of C1, wherein the positioning measurement request is received in a downlink control information (DCI) and / or in a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE). [C5] The method of claim 1, wherein the positioning measurement request includes an explicit beam lock request. [C6] The method of claim 1, wherein a beam lock request is implicitly assumed based on the positioning measurement request being for positioning purposes. [C7] the plurality of positioning reference signals are a plurality of downlink positioning reference signals including at least a first downlink positioning reference signal and a second downlink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement request includes a receive beam lock request, the receive beam lock request being a request to receive the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal using the same RX beam; the positioning measurement request is a request for measuring the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal at the UE; a beam lock report is provided to the network entity together with the positioning measurement reports of the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal. The method according to C1. [C8] The method of claim 7, wherein the receive beam lock request explicitly requests that the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal be received using the same RX beam. [C9] a first RX beam and a second RX beam are used to receive the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal, respectively; The positioning measurement report includes: whether there is a change between the first RX beam and the second RX beam; and / or Whether there is a change in setting between the first RX beam and the second RX beam when receiving the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal; The method according to C7, comprising: [C10] The change between the first RX beam and the second RX beam comprises a change in RSRP and / or a change in angle; and / or The change in the settings includes a change in RX automatic gain control (AGC). The method according to C9. [C11] providing a beamlock capability report to said network entity; The beam lock capability report further comprises: an RSRP tolerance due to the change of two RX beams between two receiving resources, where the RSRP tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two RX beams are considered to be the same or different RX beams; and / or An angular tolerance due to the change of two RX beams between two receiving resources, where the angular tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two RX beams are considered to be the same or different RX beams; The method of claim C1, comprising: [C12] The method of C11, wherein the angular tolerance comprises an azimuth angle tolerance or a zenith angle tolerance. [C13] the plurality of positioning reference signals are a plurality of uplink positioning reference signals including at least a first uplink positioning reference signal and a second uplink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement request includes a transmit beam lock request, the transmit beam lock request being a request to transmit the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal using the same TX beam; the positioning measurement request is a request to transmit the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement report includes a beam lock report provided in conjunction with the transmission of the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal. The method according to C1. [C14] The method of claim 13, wherein the transmit beam lock request explicitly requests that the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal be transmitted using the same TX beam. [C15] a first TX beam and a second TX beam are used to transmit the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal, respectively; The positioning measurement report includes: whether there is a change between the first TX beam and the second TX beam; and / or Whether there is a change in the setting between the first TX beam and the second TX beam when transmitting the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal; The method according to C13, comprising: [C16] the change between the first TX beam and the second TX beam comprises a change in angle; and / or The change in the settings includes a change in TX power. The method according to C15. [C17] providing a beamlock capability report to said network entity; The beam lock capability report further comprises: a TX power tolerance due to the change of two TX beams between two transmission resources, where said TX power tolerance defines a cutoff at which said two TX beams are considered to be the same or different TX beams; and / or An angular tolerance due to the change of two TX beams between two transmission resources, where the angular tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two TX beams are considered to be the same or different TX beams; The method of claim C1, comprising: [C18] providing a beam locking capability report to the network entity indicating one or more capabilities of the UE to support beam locking; The beam lock capability report further comprises: a band capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between the two resources when the two resources are in the same band; a band pair capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between two resources when the two resources are in a band pair; a component carrier (CC) capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between the two resources when the two resources are in the same CC; CC pair capability, indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between two resources when the two resources are in a CC pair; a BWP capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in the same BWP; BWP pair capability, indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between two resources when the two resources are in a BWP pair; A maximum beam lock capability, indicating the maximum number of beam lock configurations that the UE is capable of supporting; a maximum distance capability, indicating a maximum time difference and / or a maximum frequency difference between two resources that the UE is capable of supporting beam lock; a maximum power difference capability, indicating the maximum difference in TX power of two transmission resources that is possible when the UE supports beam locking; and a minimum duration capability indicating a minimum duration required for the UE after receiving the positioning measurement request to apply a request to transmit a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource on the same beam as another SRS resource; The method of claim 1, comprising any one or more of: [C19] receiving a beam locking capability request from the network entity; providing a beam locking capability report to the network entity in response to receiving the beam locking capability request; The method of C1, further comprising: [C20] The method of claim 1, wherein the positioning measurement request specifies two or more positioning reference signals of the plurality of positioning reference signals to which beam lock should be applied. [C21] The method of claim 1, wherein the positioning measurement request specifies a time window during which beam lock should be applied to two or more positioning reference signals of the plurality of positioning reference signals within the time window. [C22] The method of C21, wherein the beam lock is applied to all positioning reference signals of the plurality of positioning reference signals within the time window. [C23] The method of C21, wherein the beam lock is applied to only a particular type of signal among the plurality of positioning reference signals within the time window. [C24] The method of claim 23, wherein the beam lock is applied only to positioning reference signals (PRS) within the time window when the positioning measurement request includes a request to receive using the same RX beam, and is applied only to sounding reference signals (SRS) within the time window when the positioning measurement request includes a request to transmit using the same TX beam. [C25] The method of C1, wherein the positioning measurement report is an acknowledgement (ACK) or a negative acknowledgement (NACK) to the positioning measurement request. [C26] 1. A method implemented by a network entity in a multi-beam communication system, comprising: transmitting a positioning measurement request to a user equipment (UE), the positioning measurement request including a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit reception points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; receiving a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both; A method comprising: [C27] the plurality of positioning reference signals comprises a plurality of downlink positioning reference signals; the positioning measurement report comprises any one or more of a reference signal received power (RSRP), a time of arrival (ToA), a received signal time difference (RSTD), and an angle of arrival (AoA) of the plurality of positioning reference signals; The method described in C26. [C28] The method of C26, wherein the positioning measurement request is transmitted during operation of the UE, the UE being configured to change the TX beam during transmission of the plurality of positioning reference signals and / or change the RX beam during reception of the plurality of positioning reference signals. [C29] The method of claim 26, wherein the positioning measurement request is transmitted in a downlink control information (DCI) and / or in a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE). [C30] The method of claim 26, wherein the positioning measurement request includes an explicit beam lock request. [C31] The method of claim 26, wherein a beam lock request is implicitly assumed based on the positioning measurement request being for positioning purposes. [C32] the plurality of positioning reference signals are a plurality of downlink positioning reference signals including at least a first downlink positioning reference signal and a second downlink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement request includes a receive beam lock request, the receive beam lock request being a request to receive the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal using the same RX beam; the positioning measurement request is a request for measuring the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal at the UE; a beam lock report is provided to the network entity together with the positioning measurement reports of the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal. The method described in C26. [C33] The method of claim 32, wherein the receive beam lock request explicitly requests that the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal be received using the same RX beam. [C34] a first RX beam and a second RX beam are used to receive the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal, respectively; The positioning measurement report includes: whether there is a change between the first RX beam and the second RX beam; and / or Whether there is a change in setting between the first RX beam and the second RX beam when receiving the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal; The method according to C32, comprising: [C35] The change between the first RX beam and the second RX beam comprises a change in RSRP and / or a change in angle; and / or The change in the settings includes a change in RX automatic gain control (AGC). The method according to C34. [C36] and receiving a beam locking capability report from the UE, the beam locking capability report comprising: an RSRP tolerance due to the change of two RX beams between two receiving resources, where the RSRP tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two RX beams are considered to be the same or different RX beams; and / or An angular tolerance due to the change of two RX beams between two receiving resources, where the angular tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two RX beams are considered to be the same or different RX beams; The method of C26, comprising: [C37] The method of C36, wherein the angular tolerance comprises an azimuth angle tolerance or a zenith angle tolerance. [C38] the plurality of positioning reference signals are a plurality of uplink positioning reference signals including at least a first uplink positioning reference signal and a second uplink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement request includes a transmit beam lock request, the transmit beam lock request being a request to transmit the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal using the same TX beam; the positioning measurement request is a request to transmit the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement report includes a beam lock report provided in conjunction with the transmission of the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal. The method described in C26. [C39] The method of claim 38, wherein the transmit beam lock request explicitly requests that the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal be transmitted using the same TX beam. [C40] a first TX beam and a second TX beam are used to transmit the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal, respectively; The positioning measurement report includes: whether there is a change between the first TX beam and the second TX beam; and / or Whether there is a change in the setting between the first TX beam and the second TX beam when transmitting the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal; The method according to C38, comprising: [C41] the change between the first TX beam and the second TX beam comprises a change in angle; and / or The change in the settings includes a change in TX power. The method according to C40. [C42] receiving a beam lock capability report from the UE; The beam lock capability report further comprises: a TX power tolerance due to the change of two TX beams between two transmission resources, where said TX power tolerance defines a cutoff at which said two TX beams are considered to be the same or different TX beams; and / or An angular tolerance due to the change of two TX beams between two transmission resources, where the angular tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two TX beams are considered to be the same or different TX beams; The method of C26, comprising: [C43] receiving a beam locking capability report from the UE indicating one or more capabilities of the UE to support beam locking; The beam lock capability report further comprises: a band capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between the two resources when the two resources are in the same band; a band pair capability, indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between two resources when the two resources are in a band pair; a component carrier (CC) capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between the two resources when the two resources are in the same CC; CC pair capability, indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between two resources when the two resources are in a CC pair; a BWP capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in the same BWP; BWP pair capability, indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between two resources when the two resources are in a BWP pair; A maximum beam lock capability, indicating the maximum number of beam lock configurations that the UE is capable of supporting; a maximum distance capability, indicating a maximum time difference and / or a maximum frequency difference between two resources that the UE is capable of supporting beam lock; a maximum power difference capability, indicating the maximum difference in TX power of two transmission resources that is possible when the UE supports beam locking; and a minimum duration capability indicating a minimum duration required for the UE after receiving the positioning measurement request to apply a request to transmit a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource on the same beam as another SRS resource; The method of C26, comprising any one or more of: [C44] sending a beam lock capability request to the UE; receiving a beam locking capability report from the UE in response to transmitting the beam locking capability request; The method of C26, further comprising: [C45] The method of C26, wherein the positioning measurement request specifies two or more positioning reference signals of the plurality of positioning reference signals to which beam lock should be applied. [C46] The method of C26, wherein the positioning measurement request specifies a time window during which beam lock should be applied to two or more positioning reference signals of the plurality of positioning reference signals within the time window. [C47] The method of C46, ​​wherein the beam locking is applied to all positioning reference signals of the plurality of positioning reference signals within the time window. [C48] The method of C46, ​​wherein the beam locking is applied to only signals of a particular type among the plurality of positioning reference signals within the time window. [C49] The method of claim 48, wherein the beam lock is applied only to positioning reference signals (PRS) within the time window when the positioning measurement request includes a request to receive using the same RX beam, and is applied only to sounding reference signals (SRS) within the time window when the positioning measurement request includes a request to transmit using the same TX beam. [C50] The method of C26, wherein the positioning measurement report is an acknowledgement (ACK) or a negative acknowledgement (NACK) to the positioning measurement request. [C51] A user equipment (UE), Memory, At least one transceiver; at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and to the at least one transceiver; wherein the at least one processor: receiving a positioning measurement request from a network entity via the at least one transceiver, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit receiving points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, attempting to use the same RX beam for receiving the plurality of positioning reference signals and / or the same TX beam for transmitting the plurality of positioning reference signals to perform positioning measurements; causing the at least one transceiver to transmit a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both; A user equipment (UE) configured to perform the above. [C52] A network entity, Memory, A communication device; at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and to the communication device; wherein the at least one processor: causing the communications device to transmit a positioning measurement request to a user equipment (UE), the positioning measurement request including a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit reception points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, or a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; receiving, via the communications device, a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both; 4. A network entity configured to: [C53] the network entity comprises a base station; The communication device comprises at least one transceiver. A network entity as described in C52. [C54] the network entity comprises a location server; The communication device comprises at least one network interface. A network entity as described in C52. [C55] A user equipment (UE), means for receiving a positioning measurement request from a network entity, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit receiving points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; means for, in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, attempting to use the same RX beam for receiving the plurality of positioning reference signals and / or the same TX beam for transmitting the plurality of positioning reference signals to perform positioning measurements; means for providing a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both. A user equipment (UE) comprising: [C56] A network entity comprising: means for transmitting a positioning measurement request to a user equipment (UE), the positioning measurement request including a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit reception points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; means for receiving a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both. A network entity comprising: [C57] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions comprising: at least one instruction to instruct a user equipment (UE) to receive a positioning measurement request from a network entity, the positioning measurement request including a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit reception points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; at least one instruction to instruct the UE, in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, to attempt to use the same RX beam for receiving the multiple positioning reference signals and / or the same TX beam for transmitting the multiple positioning reference signals to perform positioning measurements; at least one instruction to instruct the UE to provide a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both; 1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising: [C58] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions, the computer-executable instructions comprising: at least one instruction to instruct a network entity to transmit a positioning measurement request to a user equipment (UE), the positioning measurement request including a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit reception points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; at least one instruction to instruct the network entity to receive a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, a degree of success in using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both; 1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising:

Claims

1. 1. A method implemented by a user equipment (UE) in a multi-beam communication system, comprising: receiving a positioning measurement request from a network entity, wherein the positioning measurement request includes a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit receiving points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, attempting to use a same RX beam for receiving the plurality of positioning reference signals for performing positioning measurements and / or to use a same TX beam for transmitting the plurality of positioning reference signals for performing positioning measurements; providing a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating the use of the same RX beam and / or the use of the same TX beam, partial compliance with the use of the same RX beam and / or the use of the same TX beam, or both; A method comprising:

2. 1. A method implemented by a network entity in a multi-beam communication system, comprising: transmitting a positioning measurement request to a user equipment (UE), wherein the positioning measurement request includes a request to receive multiple positioning reference signals from one or more transmit receiving points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the multiple positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; receiving a positioning measurement report from the UE, the positioning measurement report indicating using a same RX beam to receive the multiple positioning reference signals from the one or more TRPs and / or using a same TX beam to transmit the multiple positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs, compliance with a portion of using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both; A method comprising:

3. the plurality of positioning reference signals comprises a plurality of downlink positioning reference signals; the positioning measurement report comprises any one or more of Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP), Time of Arrival (ToA), Received Signal Time Difference (RSTD), and Angle of Arrival (AoA) of the plurality of positioning reference signals; 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the positioning measurement request is received, or 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the positioning measurement request is transmitted during operation of the UE, the UE being configured to change the TX beam during transmission of the plurality of positioning reference signals and / or change the RX beam during reception of the plurality of positioning reference signals.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the positioning measurement request is received, or The method of claim 2 , wherein the positioning measurement request is transmitted in a Downlink Control Information (DCI) and / or in a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE).

6. the plurality of positioning reference signals are a plurality of downlink positioning reference signals including at least a first downlink positioning reference signal and a second downlink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement request includes a receive beam lock request, the receive beam lock request being a request to receive the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal using the same RX beam; the positioning measurement request is a request to measure the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal at the UE; a beam lock report is provided to the network entity together with the positioning measurement reports of the first downlink positioning reference signal and the second downlink positioning reference signal. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

7. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: providing a beamlocking capability report to the network entity; or and receiving a beam locking capability report from the UE, the beam locking capability report comprising: an RSRP tolerance due to the change of two RX beams between two receiving resources, where the RSRP tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two RX beams are considered to be the same or different RX beams; and / or An angular tolerance due to the change of two RX beams between two receiving resources, where the angular tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two RX beams are considered to be the same or different RX beams; 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the angular tolerance comprises an azimuth angle tolerance or a zenith angle tolerance.

8. the plurality of positioning reference signals are a plurality of uplink positioning reference signals including at least a first uplink positioning reference signal and a second uplink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement request includes a transmit beam lock request, which is a request to transmit the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal using the same TX beam; the positioning measurement request is a request to transmit the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal; the positioning measurement report includes a beam lock report provided in conjunction with the transmission of the first uplink positioning reference signal and the second uplink positioning reference signal. The method according to claim 1 or 2.

9. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: providing a beamlocking capability report to the network entity; or and receiving a beam locking capability report from the UE, the beam locking capability report comprising: a TX power tolerance due to the change of two TX beams between two transmission resources, where said TX power tolerance defines a cutoff at which said two TX beams are considered to be the same or different TX beams; and / or an angular tolerance due to the change of two TX beams between two transmission resources, where the angular tolerance defines a cutoff at which the two TX beams are considered to be the same or different TX beams; The method of claim 2 comprising:

10. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: providing to the network entity a beam locking capability report indicating one or more capabilities of the UE to support beam locking; or and receiving a beam locking capability report from the UE indicating one or more capabilities of the UE to support beam locking, the beam locking capability report comprising: a band capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between the two resources when the two resources are in the same band; a band pair capability, indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between two resources when the two resources are in a band pair; a component carrier (CC) capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between the two resources when the two resources are in the same CC; CC pair capability, indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between the two resources when the two resources are in a CC pair; a BWP capability indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam locking between two resources when the two resources are in the same BWP; BWP Pair Capability, indicating whether the UE is capable of supporting beam lock between two resources when the two resources are in a BWP pair; A maximum beam locking capability, indicating the maximum number of beam locking configurations that the UE can support; a maximum distance capability, indicating the maximum time difference and / or maximum frequency difference between two resources that the UE is capable of supporting beam locking; a maximum power difference capability, indicating the maximum difference in TX power of two transmission resources that is possible when the UE supports beam locking; and a minimum duration capability indicating a minimum duration required after the UE receives the positioning measurement request to apply a request to transmit a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource on the same beam as another SRS resource; The method of claim 2 , comprising any one or more of:

11. The positioning measurement request includes: two or more positioning reference signals of the plurality of positioning reference signals to which beam lock should be applied; a time window during which beam locking should be applied to two or more of the plurality of positioning reference signals within the time window; The method according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising specifying one of:

12. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the positioning measurement report is an acknowledgement (ACK) or a negative acknowledgement (NACK) to the positioning measurement request.

13. A user equipment (UE), means for receiving a positioning measurement request from a network entity, wherein the positioning measurement request includes a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit receiving points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; means for, in response to receiving the positioning measurement request, attempting to use a same RX beam for receiving the plurality of positioning reference signals and / or a same TX beam for transmitting the plurality of positioning reference signals to perform positioning measurements; means for providing a positioning measurement report to the network entity in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating the use of the same RX beam and / or the use of the same TX beam, partial compliance with the use of the same RX beam and / or the use of the same TX beam, or both. A user equipment (UE) comprising:

14. A network entity, means for transmitting a positioning measurement request to a user equipment (UE), wherein the positioning measurement request includes a request to receive a plurality of positioning reference signals from one or more transmit receiving points (TRPs) using a same receive (RX) beam, a request to transmit the plurality of positioning reference signals to the one or more TRPs using a same transmit (TX) beam, or both; means for receiving a positioning measurement report from the UE in response to the positioning measurement request, the positioning measurement report indicating using a same RX beam and / or using a same TX beam, compliance with a portion of using the same RX beam and / or using the same TX beam, or both. A network entity comprising:

15. 13. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing computer executable instructions, the computer executable instructions comprising instructions for performing the method of any one of claims 1 to 12.

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