Per beam pair timing for positioning

Abstract

Disclosed are techniques for wireless communication. In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) maintains timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair comprising a downlink (DL) beam pair, comprising a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, comprising a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam. The UE measures a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, measures a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, and reports, to a transmitting entity, beam timings for the first beam pair and the second beam pair. The measuring steps, the reporting step, or both, are performed according to the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] Cross-reference to related applications

[0002] This application claims priority to Indian Patent Application No. 202141001994 entitled “PER BEAM PAIR TIMING FOR POSITIONING”, filed on January 15, 2021, and Indian Patent Application No. 202141002125 entitled “PER BEAM PAIR TIMING FOR POSITIONING”, filed on January 16, 2021, both of which have been assigned to the assignee and whose entire contents are expressly incorporated herein by reference.

[0003] In general, the various forms of this disclosure relate to wireless communication. [Previous Technology]

[0004] Wireless communication systems have been developed through many generations, including first-generation analog wireless telephony (1G), second-generation (2G) digital wireless telephony (including transitional 2.5G and 2.75G networks), third-generation (3G) high-speed data, wireless services with internet capabilities, and fourth-generation (4G) services (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). Currently, many different types of wireless communication systems are in use, including cellular and Personal Communication Services (PCS) systems. Known examples of cellular systems include Cellular Analog Advanced Mobile Telephone 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), etc.

[0005] The fifth-generation (5G) wireless standard, known as New Radio (NR), requires higher data transmission speeds, a greater number of connections, better coverage, and other improvements. According to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, the 5G standard is designed to provide tens of megabits per second of data to each of tens of thousands of users, or 1 gigabit per second to dozens of workers on an office floor. To support large-scale sensor deployments, it should support hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections. Therefore, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly enhanced compared to the current 4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiency should be improved, and latency should be greatly reduced compared to the current standard. [Summary of the Invention]

[0006] The following presents a brief summary of the invention relating to one or more of the embodiments disclosed herein. Therefore, the following summary should not be considered a broad overview relating to all covered embodiments, nor should it be considered an identification of key or essential elements relating to all covered embodiments or a description of a category associated with any particular embodiment. Therefore, the sole purpose of the following summary is to present, in a brief form, certain concepts relating to one or more embodiments of the mechanisms disclosed herein prior to the embodiments presented below.

[0007] In one embodiment, a user equipment (UE) includes memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the UE and a transmit beam of a base station or other UE; measure a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measure a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0008] In one embodiment, a UE includes a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the UE and a receive beam of a base station or other UE; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a first reference signal to a receiving entity using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a second reference signal to a receiving entity using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity according to timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the at least one transceiver to transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0009] In one embodiment, a base station (BS) includes a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the base station and a receive beam of the UE; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and cause the at least one transceiver to use a second beam from the plurality of beam pairs. The at least one processor is configured to: transmit a second reference signal to the UE; and wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively; or wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the UE; transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the positioning entity; or use the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to adjust a timing report received from the UE.

[0010] In one embodiment, a BS includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of a base station and a transmit beam of a UE; measure a first reference signal using the first beam pair based on timing information for a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measure a second reference signal using the second beam pair based on timing information for a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0011] In one embodiment, a method of performing wireless communication by a UE includes: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the UE and a transmit beam of a base station or another UE; measuring a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measuring a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and reporting beam timing for the first and second beam pairs to a transmitting entity, wherein measuring the first and second reference signals, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first and second beam pairs.

[0012] In one embodiment, a method of performing wireless communication by a UE includes: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the UE and a receive beam of a base station or another UE; transmitting a first reference signal to a receiving entity using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; transmitting a second reference signal to the receiving entity using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity according to timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause at least one transceiver to transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0013] In one embodiment, a method of performing wireless communication by a BS includes: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of a base station and a receive beam of a UE; transmitting a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and transmitting a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted according to the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively; or transmitting the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the UE, transmitting the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, or using the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to adjust a timing report received from the UE.

[0014] In one embodiment, a method of performing wireless communication by a BS includes: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receiving beam of a base station and a transmitting beam of a UE; measuring a first reference signal using the first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs according to the timing information for a first beam pair; measuring a second reference signal using the second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs according to the timing information for a second beam pair; and reporting beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed according to the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0015] Other objects and advantages associated with the various embodiments disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

Implementation Method

[0024] Various forms of this disclosure are provided in the following description and related drawings, which are provided for illustrative purposes. Alternative forms may be designed without departing from the scope of this disclosure. In addition, known elements of this disclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of this disclosure.

[0025] The terms “exemplary” and / or “example” are used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any variant described herein as “exemplary” and / or “example” is not necessarily to be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other variants. Similarly, the term “variables of this disclosure” does not require that all variants of this disclosure include the features, advantages, or modes of operation discussed.

[0026] Those skilled in the art will understand that any of a variety of different techniques and methods can be used to represent the information and signals described below. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols and chips that may be mentioned throughout the following specification can be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the specific application, in part on the desired design, and in part on the appropriate technology, etc.

[0027] Furthermore, many variations are described according to sequences of operations performed, for example, by elements of a computing device. It will be appreciated that the various operations described herein may be performed by special-purpose circuitry (e.g., application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs)), by program instructions being executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, the sequences of operations described herein can be considered entirely embodied in any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a corresponding set of computer instructions that, upon execution, will cause or instruct the associated processor of the device to perform the functions described herein. Therefore, various variations of this disclosure may be embodied in a variety of different forms, all of which are considered to be within the scope of the claimed technical subject matter. Furthermore, for each variation described herein, the corresponding form of any such variation may be described herein as, for example, "logic" "configured" to perform the described operations.

[0028] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, the terms “User Equipment” (UE) and “Base Station” are not intended to be specific to or otherwise limited to any particular Radio Access Technology (RAT). Generally, a UE can be any wireless communication device used by a user to communicate over a wireless communication network (e.g., mobile phone, router, tablet computer, laptop computer, consumer asset tracking device, wearable device (e.g., smartwatch, glasses, augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.), vehicle (e.g., car, motorcycle, bicycle, etc.), Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.). A UE can be mobile or can (e.g., at certain times) be stationary and can communicate with a Radio Access Network (RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” can be interchangeably referred to as “Access Terminal” or “AT”, “Client Device”, “Wireless Device”, “Subscriber Device”, “Subscriber Terminal”, “Subscriber Station”, “User Terminal” or “UT”, “Mobile Device”, “Mobile Terminal”, “Mobile Station”, or variations thereof. Typically, a UE can communicate with the core network via the RAN, and through the core network, the UE can connect to external networks such as the Internet and to other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms for the UE to connect to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible, such as through wired access networks, wireless local area network (WLAN) networks (e.g., based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard), etc.

[0029] The base station can operate according to one of several RATs communicating with the UE, depending on the network in which the base station is deployed, and the base station can optionally be called an Access Point (AP), Network Node, Node B, Evolved Node B (eNB), Next Generation eNB (ng-eNB), New Radio (NR) Node B (also known as gNB or gNodeB), etc. The base station can be primarily used to support the UE's radio access, including supporting the data, voice, and / or signaling connections of the supported UE. In some systems, the base station may only provide edge node signaling functions, while in other systems, the base station may provide additional control and / or network management functions. The communication link through which the UE can send signals to the base station is called an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse traffic channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). The communication link through which the base station can send signals to the UE is called a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., paging channel, control channel, broadcast channel, forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein, the term Traffic Channel (TCH) can refer to the uplink / reverse or downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0030] The term "base station" can refer to a single physical transmit / receive point (TRP) or multiple physical TRPs that may or may not be co-located. For example, when the term "base station" refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be the antenna of the base station corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. When the term "base station" refers to multiple co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be the antenna array of the base station (e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where the base station employs beamforming). When the term "base station" refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, the physical TRP may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected via a transmission medium to a common source) or a remote radio headend (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Optionally, a non-co-located physical TRP may be the serving base station receiving measurement reports from the UE and a neighboring base station where the UE is measuring its reference radio frequency (RF) signal. As used in this article, the TRP is the point at which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, so references to transmissions from or receptions at a base station should be understood to refer to a specific TRP of the base station.

[0031] In some implementations that support UE positioning, the base station may not support the UE's radio access (e.g., it may not support data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the UE), but may instead transmit reference signals to the UE for measurement by the UE, and / or receive and measure signals transmitted by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when transmitting signals to the UE) and / or a location measurement unit (e.g., when receiving and measuring signals from the UE).

[0032] An “RF signal” includes electromagnetic waves of a given frequency that transmit information through the space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may transmit a single “RF signal” or multiple “RF signals” to a receiver. However, due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through multipath channels, a receiver may receive multiple “RF signals” corresponding to each transmitted RF signal. The same transmitted RF signal on different paths between the transmitter and receiver may be referred to as a “multipath” RF signal.

[0033] Figure 1 illustrates an example wireless communication system 100. The wireless communication system 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 and various UEs 104. Base stations 102 may include macrocell base stations (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cell base stations (low-power cellular base stations). In one embodiment, a macrocell base station may include an eNB and / or ng-eNB where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an LTE network, or a gNB where the wireless communication system 100 corresponds to an NR network, or a combination of both, and a small cell base station may include femtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

[0034] Base stations 102 can collectively form a RAN and interface with a core network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) via a backhaul link 122, and interface with one or more location servers 172 via the core network 170 (the one or more location servers 172 may be part of the core network 170 or may be located outside the core network 170). Among other functions, base stations 102 can perform one or more of the following functions: 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 establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and device tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, location, and warning message delivery. Base stations 102 can communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via EPC / 5GC) on a backhaul link 134, which may be wired or wireless.

[0035] Base station 102 can communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each base station 102 can provide communication coverage for its respective geographic coverage area 110. In one configuration, one or more cells can be supported by base stations 102 in each geographic coverage area 110. A “cell” is a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., on a frequency resource, referred to as a carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, frequency band, etc.) and can be associated with an identifier (e.g., Entity Cell Identifier (PCI), Virtual Cell Identifier (VCI), Cell Global Identifier (CGI)) used to distinguish cells operating via the same or different carrier frequencies. In some cases, different cells can be configured according to different protocol types that can provide access for different types of UEs (e.g., Machine Type Communication (MTC), Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), or others). Because a cell is supported by a dedicated base station, the term “cell” can refer to either or both of the logical communication entity and the base station supporting it, depending on the context. In some cases, the term "cell" can also refer to the geographic coverage area of ​​a base station (e.g., a sector), as long as the carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within some part of the geographic coverage area 110.

[0036] Although the geographic coverage areas 110 of adjacent macrocell base stations 102 may partially overlap (e.g., in handover areas), some of the geographic coverage areas 110 may substantially overlap with larger geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell (SC) base station 102' may have a geographic coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage areas 110 of one or more macrocell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell base stations and macrocell base stations may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a home eNB (HeNB) that can provide service to a restricted group referred to as a Closed Subscriber Group (CSG).

[0037] The communication link 120 between base station 102 and UE 104 may include uplink (also known as reverse link) transmission from UE 104 to base station 102 and / or downlink (DL) (also known as forward link) transmission from base station 102 to UE 104. The communication link 120 may use MIMO antenna technologies, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link 120 may use one or more carrier frequencies. Carrier allocation may be asymmetric with respect to the downlink and uplink (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to the downlink compared to the uplink).

[0038] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150, which communicates with a WLAN station (STA) 152 in unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz) via a communication link 154. When communicating in unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or WLAN AP 150 may perform a free channel assessment (CCA) or listen-before-talk (LBT) process before communication to determine whether the channel is available.

[0039] The small cell base station 102' can operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in unlicensed spectrum, the small cell base station 102' can employ LTE or NR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum as used by the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' employing LTE / 5G in unlicensed spectrum can improve access network coverage and / or increase access network capacity. NR in unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as NR-U. LTE in unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as LTE-U, Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0040] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a millimeter-wave (mmW) base station 180, which can operate at mmW and / or near-mmW frequencies to communicate with the UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that contains radio frequency (RF). EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and wavelengths between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in this band can be referred to as millimeter waves. Near-mmW can extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz and has a wavelength of 100 mm. Ultra-high frequency (SHF) bands extend between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and are also known as centimeter waves. Communication using mmW / near-mmW RF bands has high path loss and relatively short range. The mmW base station 180 and the UE 182 can utilize beamforming (transmit and / or receive) on the mmW communication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range. Furthermore, it will be understood that in optional configurations, one or more base stations 102 may also use mmW or near-mmW and beamforming for transmission. Therefore, it will be understood that the foregoing description is merely illustrative and should not be construed as limiting the various configurations disclosed herein.

[0041] Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing RF signals in a specific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a base station) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in all directions (omnidirectionally). Using transmit beamforming, the network node determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located (relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a stronger downlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing a faster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal to the receiving device. To change the directivity of the RF signal during transmission, the network node can control the phase and relative amplitude of the RF signal at each of one or more transmitters broadcasting the RF signal. For example, the network node can use an antenna array (called a "phased array" or "antenna array") that creates RF beams that can be "manipulated" to be pointed in different directions without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, RF currents from the transmitters are fed to the individual antennas with the correct phase relationship, causing radio waves from the separate antennas to superimpose to increase radiation in the desired direction while canceling out to suppress radiation in the undesired direction.

[0042] Transmit beams can be quasi-co-located, meaning they appear to the receiver (e.g., UE) as having the same parameters, regardless of whether the network node's own transmit antennas are physically co-located. In NR, there are four types of quasi-co-located (QCL) relationships. Specifically, a given type of QCL relationship means that certain parameters of the target reference RF signal on the target beam can be derived from information about the source reference RF signal on the source beam. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type A, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type B, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and Doppler spread of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type C, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift and average delay of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL type D, the receiver can use the source reference RF signal to estimate the spatial reception parameters of the target reference RF signal transmitted on the same channel.

[0043] From the perspective of transceiver hardware, there is a Tx time delay from the moment the digital signal is generated in the baseband to the moment the RF signal is transmitted from the Tx antenna, and an Rx time delay from the moment the RF signal arrives at the Rx antenna to the moment the signal is digitized and timestamped in the baseband. Calibration attempts to compensate for these delays, but calibration may not be perfect, resulting in residual timing errors. A timing error group (TEG) is a group of signals with timing errors within a certain margin. Therefore, when the timing errors of two reference signals are within a certain margin, the two reference signals may be part of the same TEG. For example, two reference signals transmitted by the same TRP are likely to be in the same Tx TEG, while two reference signals transmitted by different TRPs are likely to be in different Tx TEGs. Similarly, two reference signals received by the same TRP are likely to be in the same Rx TEG, while two reference signals received by different TRPs are likely to be in different Rx TEGs.

[0044] In receive beamforming, a receiver uses a receive beam to amplify an RF signal detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver may increase the gain setting and / or adjust the phase setting of the antenna array in a particular direction to amplify the RF signal received from that direction (e.g., increase its gain level). Therefore, when a receiver is said to be beamforming in a certain direction, it means that the beam gain in that direction is high relative to the beam gain along other directions, or that the beam gain in that direction is the highest compared to the beam gain of all other receive beams available to the receiver in that direction. 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.

[0045] The receive beam can be spatially dependent. Spatially dependent means that parameters for the transmit beam for the second reference signal can be derived based on information about the receive beam of the first reference signal. For example, the UE can use a specific receive beam to receive one or more reference downlink reference signals (e.g., Position Reference Signal (PRS), Tracking Reference Signal (TRS), Phase Tracking Reference Signal (PTRS), Cell Dedicated Reference Signal (CRS), Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS), Primary Synchronization Signal (PSS), Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS), Synchronization Block (SSB), etc.) from the base station. Then, the UE can form a transmit beam for transmitting one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., Uplink Position Reference Signal (UL-PRS), Sounding Reference Signal (SRS), Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), PTRS, etc.) to the base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0046] Note that a “downlink” beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a base station is forming a downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to the UE, the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if the UE is forming a downlink beam, it is a receive beam for receiving downlink reference signals. Similarly, an “uplink” beam can be either a transmit beam or a receive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a base station is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, while if the UE is forming an uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0047] In 5G, the spectrum operated by radio nodes (e.g., base stations 102 / 180, UE 104 / 182) is divided into multiple frequency ranges: FR1 (from 450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (from 24250 to 52600 MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). In multi-carrier systems, such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies is referred to as the “primary carrier” or “anchor carrier” or “primary serving cell” or “PCell,” and the remaining carrier frequencies are referred to as “secondary carriers” or “secondary serving cells” or “SCell.” In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) used by UE 104 / 182 and the cell, where UE 104 / 182 performs the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment procedure in that cell. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier on a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). The secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2). Once an RRC connection is established between UE 104 and the anchor carrier, the secondary carrier can be configured and used to provide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carrier can be a carrier on an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier may contain only the necessary signaling information and signals; for example, since both the primary uplink and downlink carriers are typically UE-specific, the UE-specific signaling information and signals may not be present on the secondary carrier. This means that different UEs 104 / 182 within a cell can have different downlink primary carriers. The same applies to the uplink primary carrier. The network can change the primary carrier of any UE 104 / 182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance the load on different carriers. Because a “serving cell” (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to the carrier frequency / component carrier on which a base station is communicating, the terms “cell,” “serving cell,” “component carrier,” and “carrier frequency” are used interchangeably.

[0048] For example, still referring to FIG1, one of the frequencies used by the macro cell base station 102 may be an anchor carrier (or "PCell"), and other frequencies used by the macro cell base station 102 and / or mmW base station 180 may be secondary carriers ("SCell"). Simultaneous transmission and / or reception on multiple carriers enables the UE 104 / 182 to significantly increase its data transmission and / or reception rates. For example, compared to the data rate obtained by a single 20 MHz carrier, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system will theoretically result in a doubling of the data rate (i.e., 40 MHz).

[0049] The wireless communication system 100 may further include a UE 164, which can communicate with the macro cell base station 102 via communication link 120 and / or with the mmW base station 180 via mmW communication link 184. For example, the macro cell base station 102 may support PCells 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.

[0050] In the example of Figure 1, one or more Earth-orbiting Satellite Positioning System (SPS) space vehicles (SV) 112 (e.g., satellites) can serve as an independent source of location information for any of the UEs shown (for simplicity, a single UE 104 is shown in Figure 1). UE 104 may include one or more dedicated SPS receivers specifically designed to receive SPS signal 124 for deriving geographic location information from SV 112. SPS typically includes a system of transmitters (e.g., SV 112) positioned such that the receiver (e.g., UE 104) can determine its location on or above the Earth based at least in part on signals received from the transmitters (e.g., SPS signal 124). Such transmitters typically transmit signals marked with a set number of repeating pseudo-random noise (PN) codes. While typically located in SV 112, transmitters may sometimes be located at ground-based control stations, base stations 102, and / or other UEs 104.

[0051] The use of SPS signal 124 can be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS), which may be associated with or otherwise enabled to be used with one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems. For example, SBAS may include augmentation systems that provide integrity information, differential correction, etc., such as Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), European Geostationary Satellite Coverage Service (EGNOS), Multifunctional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), GPS-assisted geographic augmentation navigation, or GPS and Geographic Augmentation Navigation System (GAGAN). Therefore, as used herein, SPS may include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellite systems and / or augmentation systems, and SPS signal 124 may include SPS, other signals like SPS, and / or other signals associated with such one or more SPS.

[0052] The wireless communication system 100 may further include one or more UEs, such as UE 190, which are indirectly connected to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as “sidelinks”). In the example of FIG1, UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 connected to one of UEs 104 connected to one of base stations 102 (e.g., UE 190 can indirectly obtain cellular connectivity via D2D P2P link 192), and has a D2D P2P link 194 connected to a WLAN STA 152 connected to a WLAN AP 150 (UE 190 can indirectly obtain WLAN-based internet connectivity via D2D P2P link 194). In one example, D2D P2P links 192 and 194 may be supported by any known D2D RAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Bluetooth®, etc.

[0053] Figure 2A illustrates an example wireless network architecture 200. For example, the 5GC 210 (also known as the Next Generation Core (NGC)) can be functionally considered as control plane functions 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and user plane functions 212 (e.g., UE gateway functions, access to the data network, IP routing, etc.), which work together to form the core network. The user plane interface (NG-U) 213 and the control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect the gNB 222 to the 5GC 210, and specifically to the control plane functions 214 and the user plane functions 212. In another configuration, the ng-eNB 224 can 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. Furthermore, the ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with the gNB 222 via the 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 ng-eNBs 224 and gNBs 222. Either gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 can communicate with UE 204 (e.g., any of the UEs shown in Figure 1). Another optional configuration may include a location server 230, which can communicate with 5GC 210 to provide location assistance to UE 204. The location server 230 can be implemented as multiple separate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on a single server, different software modules distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or optionally, each can correspond to a single server. The location server 230 can be configured to support one or more location services for UE 204, which can be connected to the location server 230 via the core network 5GC 210 and / or via the Internet (not shown). In addition, the location server 230 can be integrated into the core network components, or optionally located outside the core network.

[0054] Figure 2B illustrates another example wireless network architecture 250. For example, 5GC 260 can be functionally viewed as a control plane function provided by Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 264 and a user plane function provided by User Plane Function (UPF) 262, which cooperate to form the core network (i.e., 5GC 260). User plane interface 263 and control plane interface 265 connect ng-eNB 224 to 5GC 260, and specifically connect to UPF 262 and AMF 264, respectively. In an additional configuration, gNB 222 can also connect to 5GC 260 via control plane interface 265 to AMF 264 and user plane interface 263 to UPF 262. Furthermore, in the case where the gNB is directly connected to 5GC 260 or not, the ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with the gNB 222 via 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 ng-eNB 224 and gNB 222. The gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 can communicate with UE 204 (e.g., any UE shown in Figure 1). The base station of the new RAN 220 communicates with AMF 264 via the N2 interface and with UPF 262 via the N3 interface.

[0055] The functions of AMF 264 include registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of Session Management (SM) messages between UE 204 and Session Management Function (SMF) 266, transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access authorization, transmission of Short Message Service (SMS) messages between UE 204 and Short Message Service Function (SMSF) (not shown), and Security Anchoring Function (SEAF). AMF 264 also interacts with Authentication Server Function (AUSF) (not shown) and UE 204, and receives an intermediate key established as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In the case of UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM)-based authentication, AMF 264 extracts security material from AUSSF. The functions of AMF 264 also include Security Context Management (SCM). SCM receives a key from SEAF, which it uses to derive a network-specific key for access. The AMF 264 also includes functions for location service management for regulatory services, transmission of location service messages between UE 204 and Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (which acts as location server 230), transmission of location service messages between new RAN 220 and LMF 270, allocation of Evolved Packet System (EPS) bearer identifiers for interaction with EPS, and notification of UE 204 mobility events. Furthermore, AMF 264 also supports functions for non-3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) access networks.

[0056] The functions of UPF 262 include acting as an anchor point for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (where applicable), acting as an external Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session point for interconnection to a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., blocking, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, quality of service (QoS) processing for the user plane (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enforcement, reflected QoS marking in the downlink), uplink traffic verification (Service Data Stream (SDF) to QoS stream mapping), transport-level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and sending and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. UPF 262 may also support the forwarding of location service messages between UE 204 and a location server (e.g., Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP) 272) on the user plane.

[0057] The functions of SMF 266 include session management, UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of user plane functions, configuration of traffic routing at UPF 262 to route traffic to appropriate destinations, control of policy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. The interface through which SMF 266 communicates with AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0058] Another optional configuration may include an LMF 270, which can communicate 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 distributed across multiple physical servers, etc.), or optionally, each may correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, which may be connected to the LMF 270 via the core network 5GC 260 and / or via the Internet (not shown). SLP 272 can support similar functions to LMF 270, but LMF 270 can communicate with AMF 264, new RAN 220 and UE 204 on the control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols designed to deliver signaling messages rather than voice or data), while SLP 272 can communicate with UE 204 and external clients (not shown in Figure 2B) on the user plane (e.g., using protocols designed to carry voice and / or data, such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0059] Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate several example components (represented by corresponding blocks) that can be incorporated into UE 302 (which may correspond to any UE described herein), base station 304 (which may correspond to any base station described herein), and network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any network functions described herein, including location server 230 and LMF 270) to support file transfer operations as taught herein. It will be understood that these components can be implemented in different ways in different types of appliances (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system-on-a-chip (SoC), etc.). The components shown can also be incorporated into other appliances in a communication system. For example, other appliances in the system may include components similar to those described to provide similar functionality. Moreover, a given appliance may contain one or more components. For example, an appliance may include multiple transceiver components that enable the appliance to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0060] UE 302 and base station 304 each include wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively, to provide components (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, components for measuring, components for tuning, components for blocking transmission, etc.) for communication via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown), such as NR networks, LTE networks, GSM networks, etc. WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communication with other network nodes (e.g., other UEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNB, gNB), etc.) via at least one designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) on a wireless communication medium of interest (e.g., a time / frequency resource set in a specific spectrum). WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be configured differently to transmit and encode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to specified RATs, and conversely, to receive and decode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 each include one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively.

[0061] In at least some cases, UE 302 and base station 304 also include one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be connected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and provide components (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, components for measuring, components for tuning, components for blocking transmission, etc.) for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) over a wireless communication medium of interest via at least one designated RAT (e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Z-Wave®, PC5, Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC), Wireless Access for Vehicle Environments (WAVE), Near Field Communication (NFC), etc.). Short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be configured differently to transmit and encode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) according to specified RATs, and conversely, to receive and decode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 each include one or more transmitters 324 and 364 for transmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one or more receivers 322 and 362 for receiving and decoding signals 328 and 368, respectively. As a specific example, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 can be WiFi transceivers, Bluetooth® transceivers, Zigbee® and / or Z-Wave® transceivers, NFC transceivers, or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and / or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) transceivers.

[0062] In some embodiments, a transceiver circuit including at least one transmitter and at least one receiver may include an integrated device (e.g., transmitter and receiver circuitry embodied as a single communication device), in some embodiments may include separate transmitter and receiver devices, or in other embodiments may be embodied in other ways. In one embodiment, the transmitter may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the respective device to perform transmit "beamforming," as described herein. Similarly, the receiver may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, which allows the respective device to perform receive beamforming, as described herein. In one embodiment, the transmitter and receiver may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the respective device can only receive or transmit at a given time, rather than simultaneously receiving and transmitting. The wireless communication devices of UE 302 and / or base station 304 (e.g., one or both of transceivers 310 and 320 and / or 350 and 360) may also include network eavesdropping modules (NLMs) for performing various measurements.

[0063] In at least some cases, UE 302 and base station 304 also include satellite positioning system (SPS) receivers 330 and 370. SPS receivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376 respectively, and may be provided with components for receiving and / or measuring 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. SPS receivers 330 and 370 may include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing SPS signals 338 and 378 respectively. SPS receivers 330 and 370 may request information and operation from other systems as appropriate, and use measurement results obtained by any suitable SPS algorithm to perform necessary calculations to determine the location of UE 302 and base station 304.

[0064] Base station 304 and network entity 306 each include at least one network interface 380 and 390, thereby providing components for communicating with other network entities (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, etc.). For example, network interfaces 380 and 390 (e.g., one or more network access ports) can be configured to communicate with one or more network entities 306 via a wired or wireless backhaul connection. In some embodiments, network interfaces 380 and 390 can be implemented to support transceivers for wired or wireless signal communication. This communication may involve, for example, sending and receiving messages, parameters, and / or other types of information.

[0065] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with the operations disclosed herein. UE 302 includes processor circuitry implementing processing system 332 for providing functions related to, for example, wireless positioning, and for providing other processing functions. Base station 304 includes processing system 384 for providing functions related to, for example, wireless positioning disclosed herein, and for providing other processing functions. Network entity 306 includes processing system 394 for providing functions related to, for example, wireless positioning disclosed herein, and for providing other processing functions. Therefore, processing systems 332, 384, and 394 can provide components for processing, such as components for decision-making, components for calculation, components for receiving, components for transmitting, components for indicating, etc. In one embodiment, processing systems 332, 384, and 394 may include, for example, one or more processors (such as one or more general-purpose processors), multi-core processors, ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuitry, or various combinations thereof.

[0066] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 include memory circuits that respectively implement memory components 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each including a memory element) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Therefore, memory components 340, 386, and 396 can provide components for storage, components for retrieval, components for maintenance, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may respectively include positioning components 342, 388, and 398. Positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuits that are part of processing systems 332, 384, and 394, or hardware circuits coupled to processing systems 332, 384, and 394, which, when executed, enable UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein. In other configurations, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be located external to processing systems 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Optionally, positioning components 342, 388, and 398 may be memory modules stored in memory components 340, 386, and 396, respectively, which, when executed by processing systems 332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processing system, etc.), enable UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 to perform the functions described herein. Figure 3A illustrates possible locations for positioning component 342, which may be part of WWAN transceiver 310, memory component 340, processing system 332, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component. Figure 3B illustrates possible locations for positioning component 388, which may be part of WWAN transceiver 350, memory component 386, processor 384, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component. Figure 3C shows possible locations for the positioning component 398, which may be part of the network interface 390, memory component 396, processing system 394, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component.

[0067] UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to processing system 332 to provide components for sensing or detecting motion and / or orientation information independent of motion data derived from signals received by WWAN transceiver 310, short-range wireless transceiver 320, and / or SPS receiver 330. For example, sensor 344 may include accelerometers (e.g., microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices), gyroscopes, geomagnetic sensors (e.g., compasses), altimeters (e.g., barometric altimeters), and / or any other type of motion detection sensor. Furthermore, sensor 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, sensor 344 may use a combination of multi-axis accelerometers and orientation sensors to provide the ability to calculate position in 2D and / or 3D coordinate systems.

[0068] Additionally, UE 302 includes a user interface 346 that provides components for providing instructions to a user (e.g., audible and / or visual instructions) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., when the user actuates a sensing device (such as a keypad, touchscreen, microphone, etc.)). Although not shown, base station 304 and network entity 306 may also include user interfaces.

[0069] Referring more specifically to processing system 384, in the downlink, IP packets from network entity 306 can be provided to processing system 384. Processing system 384 can implement functions for the RRC layer, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and Media Access Control (MAC) layer. The processing system 384 can provide RRC layer functions associated with 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), RAT mobility, and broadcasting of measurement configurations for UE measurement reports; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functions associated with upper-layer PDU forwarding, error correction via Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC Service Data Units (SDUs), resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, scheduling information reporting, error correction, priority processing, and logical channel prioritization.

[0070] Transmitter 354 and receiver 352 can implement Layer 1 (L1) functions associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, can include error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. Transmitter 354 processes the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The encoded and modulated symbols can then be divided into parallel streams. Each stream can then be mapped to orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarriers, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time and / or frequency domains, and then combined using inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM symbol stream is spatially precoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from the channel estimator can be used to determine coding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimates can be derived from reference signals transmitted by UE 302 and / or channel condition feedback. Each spatial stream can then be provided to one or more different antennas 356. Transmitter 354 can use the corresponding spatial stream to modulate the RF carrier for transmission.

[0071] At UE 302, receiver 312 receives signals via its corresponding antenna 316. Receiver 312 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides this information to processing system 332. Transmitter 314 and receiver 312 implement Layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. Receiver 312 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial stream destined for UE 302. If multiple spatial streams are destined for UE 302, they can be combined by receiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. Receiver 312 then uses Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to convert the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain. The frequency domain signal includes 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 probable signal constellation point transmitted by base station 304. These soft decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by a channel estimator. The soft decision is then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to processing system 332, which implements Layer 3 (L3) and Layer 2 (L2) functions.

[0072] In the uplink, the processing system 332 provides demultiplexing, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing between the transport channel and the logical channel to recover IP packets from the core network. The processing system 332 is also responsible for error detection.

[0073] Similar to the functions described in the downlink transmission of the base station 304, the processing system 332 provides RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) capture, RRC connection and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions associated with the forwarding 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 functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs to transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ), priority processing and logical channel prioritization.

[0074] The channel estimate derived by the channel estimator from the reference signal or feedback transmitted from the base station 304 can be used by the transmitter 314 to select an appropriate coding and modulation scheme, and facilitates spatial processing. The spatial stream generated by the transmitter 314 can be provided to different antennas 316. The transmitter 314 can use the corresponding spatial stream to modulate the RF carrier for transmission.

[0075] Uplink transmissions are processed at base station 304 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver function at UE 302. Receiver 352 receives signals via its corresponding antenna 356. Receiver 352 recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides this information to processing system 384.

[0076] In the uplink, the processing system 384 provides demultiplexing, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing between the transport channel and the logical channel to recover IP packets from the UE 302. IP packets from the processing system 384 can be provided to the core network. The processing system 384 is also responsible for error detection.

[0077] For convenience, UE 302, base station 304 and / or network entity 306 are shown in Figures 3A-C as including various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it will be understood that the blocks shown may have different functions in different designs.

[0078] The various components of UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 can communicate with each other via data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392, respectively. The components of Figures 3A-C can be implemented in various ways. In some implementations, the components of Figures 3A-C can be implemented in one or more circuits, such as one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors). Here, each circuit may use and / or incorporate at least one memory component for storing information or executable code used by the circuit to provide that function. For example, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 310 to 346 can be implemented by the processor and memory components of UE 302 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 350 to 388 can be implemented by the processor and memory components of base station 304 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). Furthermore, some or all of the functions represented by blocks 390 to 398 can be implemented by the processor and memory components of network entity 306 (e.g., by executing appropriate code and / or by appropriate configuration of the processor components). For simplicity, various operations, actions, and / or functions are described herein as being performed "by the UE," "by the base station," "by the network entity," etc. However, it will be understood that such operations, actions, and / or functions can actually be performed by specific components or combinations of components of UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc., such as processing systems 332, 384, 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, memory components 340, 386, and 396, positioning components 342, 388, and 398, etc.

[0079] Figures 4A to 4D are diagrams illustrating example frame structures and channels within frame structures according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 4A is a diagram 400 illustrating an example downlink frame structure according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 4B is a diagram 430 illustrating an example channel within a downlink frame structure according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 4C is a diagram 450 illustrating an example uplink frame structure according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 4D is a diagram 470 illustrating an example channel within an uplink frame structure according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0080] LTE (and in some cases NR) uses OFDM on the downlink and single-carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. However, unlike LTE, NR also has the option to use OFDM on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are often referred to as tones, frequency bands, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. Typically, modulated symbols are transmitted using OFDM in the frequency domain and SC-FDM in the time domain. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the subcarrier spacing can be 15 kHz, and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180 kHz). Therefore, for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 MHz, the nominal FFT size can be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048, respectively. The system bandwidth can also be divided into subbands. For example, a subband can cover 1.08 MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks), and for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 MHz, there can be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands, respectively.

[0081] LTE supports a single digital scheme (subcarrier spacing (SCS), symbol length, etc.). In contrast, NR can support multiple digital schemes (μ), for example, subcarrier spacings of 15 kHz (μ=0), 30 kHz (μ=1), 60 kHz (μ=2), 120 kHz (μ=3), and 240 kHz (μ=4) or greater can be available. Within each subcarrier spacing, there are 14 symbols per time slot. For a 15 kHz SCS (μ=0), there is one time slot per subframe, 10 time slots per frame, a time slot duration of 1 millisecond (ms), a symbol duration of 66.7 microseconds (μs), and a maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) of 4K FFT size of 50. For a 30 kHz SCS (μ=1), each sub-frame has two time slots, with 20 time slots per frame. The time slot duration is 0.5 ms, the symbol duration is 33.3 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) of 4K FFT size is 100. For a 60 kHz SCS (μ=2), each sub-frame has four time slots, with 40 time slots per frame. The time slot duration is 0.25 ms, the symbol duration is 16.7 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) of 4K FFT size is 200. For a 120 kHz SCS (μ=3), each sub-frame has eight time slots, with 80 time slots per frame. The time slot duration is 0.125 ms, the symbol duration is 8.33 μs, and the maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) of 4K FFT size is 400. For a 240 kHz SCS (μ=4), there are 16 time slots per subframe, 160 time slots per frame, a time slot duration of 0.0625 ms, a symbol duration of 4.17 μs, and a maximum nominal system bandwidth (in MHz) of 4K FFT size of 800.

[0082] In the examples of Figures 4A to 4D, a 15 kHz digital scheme is used. Therefore, in the time domain, a 10 ms frame is divided into 10 equal-sized sub-frames, each sub-frame being 1 ms long, and each sub-frame including a time slot. In Figures 4A to 4D, time is represented horizontally (on the X-axis), where time increases from left to right, while frequency is represented vertically (on the Y-axis), where frequency increases (or decreases) from bottom to top.

[0083] The resource grid can be used to represent time slots, each time slot including one or more time-parallel resource blocks (RBs) (also called physical RBs (PRBs)) in the frequency domain. The resource grid is further divided into multiple resource elements (REs). An RE can correspond to a symbol length in the time domain and a subcarrier in the frequency domain. In the digital schemes of Figures 4A to 4D, for a normal cyclic prefix, an RB can contain 12 coherent subcarriers in the frequency domain and 7 coherent symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 REs. For an extended cyclic prefix, an RB can contain 12 coherent subcarriers in the frequency domain and 6 coherent symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 REs. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0084] Some REs carry downlink reference (pilot) signals (DL-RS). DL-RS may include PRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, etc. Figure 4A shows an example location of an RE carrying a PRS (labeled "R").

[0085] The set of resource elements (REs) used for transmitting PRS is called a "PRS resource". The set of resource elements can span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and "N" (e.g., one or more) consecutive symbols in a time slot in the time domain. In a given OFDM symbol in the time domain, a PRS resource occupies a consecutive PRB in the frequency domain.

[0086] The transmission of PRS resources within a given PRB has a specific comb size (also known as "comb density"). The comb size "N" represents the subcarrier spacing (or frequency / tone spacing) within each symbol of the PRS resource configuration. Specifically, for a comb size "N", the PRS is transmitted in every N subcarriers of the PRB symbols. For example, for comb 4, for each symbol of the PRS resource configuration, REs corresponding to every four subcarriers (e.g., subcarriers 0, 4, and 8) are used to transmit the PRS resource. Currently, comb sizes 2, 4, 6, and 12 are supported for DL-PRS. Figure 4A shows an example PRS resource configuration for comb 6 (which spans six symbols). That is, the position of the shaded REs (labeled "R") indicates the comb 6 PRS resource configuration.

[0087] Currently, DL-PRS resources can span 2, 4, 6, or 12 coherent symbols within time slots with a fully frequency-domain interleaved pattern. DL-PRS resources can be configured in flexible (FL) symbols of downlinks or time slots in any higher-level configuration. For all REs of a given DL-PRS resource, a constant energy (EPRE) can exist for each resource element. The following are the inter-symbol frequency offsets for comb sizes 2, 4, 6, and 12 on 2, 4, 6, and 12 symbols. 2-bit comb 2: {0, 1}; 4-bit comb 2: {0, 1, 0, 1}; 6-bit comb 2: {0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1}; 12-bit comb 2: {0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1}; 4-bit comb 4: {0, 2, 1, 3}; 12-bit comb 4: {0, 2, 1, 3, 0, 2, 1, 3, 0, 2, 1, 3}; 6-bit comb 6: {0, 3, 1, 4, 2, 5}; 12-bit comb 6: {0, 3, 1, 4, 2, 5, 0, 3, 1, 4, 2, 5, 0, 3, 1, 4, 2, 5} 5}; and 12-bit comb 12: {0, 6, 3, 9, 1, 7, 4, 10, 2, 8, 5, 11}.

[0088] A “PRS resource set” is a group of PRS resources used for transmitting PRS signals, where each PRS resource has a PRS resource ID. Furthermore, the PRS resources in the PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP. The PRS resource set is identified by the PRS resource set ID and is associated with a specific TRP (identified by the TRP ID). In addition, the PRS resources in the PRS resource set have the same period, a common silence mode configuration, and the same repetition factor across time slots (e.g., “PRS-resource repetition factor”). The period is the time from the first repetition of the first PRS resource in the first PRS instance to the same first repetition of the same first PRS resource in the next PRS instance. The period can have a length selected from 2^µ*{4, 5, 8, 10, 16, 20, 32, 40, 64, 80, 160, 320, 640, 1280, 2560, 5120, 10240} time slots, where µ = 0, 1, 2, 3. The repetition factor can have a length selected from {1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 16, 32} time slots.

[0089] The PRS resource ID in the PRS resource set is associated with a single beam (or beam ID) transmitted from a single TRP (where the TRP can transmit one or more beams). That is, each PRS resource in the PRS resource set can be transmitted on a different beam, and therefore, a "PRS resource" or simply a "resource" can also be referred to as a "beam". Note that this has no effect on whether the UE knows the TRP and the beam on which the PRS is transmitted.

[0090] A “PRS instance” or “PRS timing” is an instance of a periodic recurring time window (e.g., a group of one or more consecutive time slots) in which a PRS is expected to be transmitted. A PRS timing may also be referred to as a “PRS positioning timing”, “PRS positioning instance”, “positioning timing”, “positioning instance”, “positioning repetition”, or simply as “timing”, “instance” or “repetition”.

[0091] A “positioning frequency layer” (also simply “frequency layer”) is a set of one or more PRS resources spanning one or more TRPs, where the one or more TRPs have the same values ​​for certain parameters. Specifically, a set of PRS resources has the same subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix (CP) type (meaning that all digital schemes supported for PDSCH are also supported for PRS), the same point A, the same downlink PRS bandwidth, the same starting PRB (and center frequency), and the same comb size. The point A parameter is the value of the parameter “ARFCN-value NR” ​​(where “ARFCN” stands for “absolute radio channel number”), and is an identifier / code specifying a pair of physical radio channels used for transmission and reception. The downlink PRS bandwidth can have a granularity of 4 PRBs, with a minimum of 24 PRBs and a maximum of 272 PRBs. Currently, up to four frequency layers have been defined, and each TRP of each frequency layer can be configured with up to two PRS resource sets.

[0092] The concept of a frequency layer is somewhat similar to that of a component carrier and bandwidth portion (BWP), but the difference is that a component carrier and BWP are used by a single base station (or a macrocell base station and a small cell base station) to transmit data channels, while a frequency layer is used by several (usually three or more) base stations to transmit PRS. When a UE sends its positioning capabilities to the network, for example during an LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP) session, the UE can indicate the number of frequency layers it can support. For example, the UE can indicate whether it can support one or four positioning frequency layers.

[0093] Figure 4B illustrates examples of various channels within a downlink time slot of a radio communication frame. In NR, the channel bandwidth or system bandwidth is divided into multiple BWPs. A BWP is a set of connected PRBs selected from a connected subset of common RBs for a given digital scheme on a given carrier. Typically, up to four BWPs can be specified for both the downlink and uplink. That is, a UE can configure up to four BWPs on the downlink and up to four BWPs on the uplink. Only one BWP (uplink or downlink) can be active at a given time, meaning the UE can only receive or transmit through one BWP at a time. On the downlink, the bandwidth of each BWP should be equal to or greater than the bandwidth of the SSB, but a BWP may or may not contain an SSB.

[0094] Referring to Figure 4B, the UE uses the Primary Synchronization Signal (PSS) to determine the subframe / symbol timing and entity layer identifier. The UE uses the Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS) to determine the entity layer cell identifier group number and radio frame timing. Based on the entity layer identifier and entity layer cell identifier group number, the UE can determine the PCI. Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the aforementioned DL-RS. The Entity Broadcast Channel (PBCH) carrying the MIB can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form an SSB (also known as SS / PBCH). The MIB provides the number of RBs and the system frame number (SFN) in the downlink system bandwidth. The Entity Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information not transmitted through the PBCH (e.g., System Information Block (SIB)), and paging messages.

[0095] The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries downlink control information (DCI) within one or more control channel elements (CCEs). Each CCE includes one or more RE group (REG) bundles (which can span multiple symbols in the time domain). Each REG bundle includes one or more REGs, and each REG corresponds to 12 resource elements (one resource block) in the frequency domain and one OFDM symbol in the time domain. The physical resource set used to carry the PDCCH / DCI is called the control resource set (CORESET) in NR. In NR, the PDCCH is confined to a single CORESET and transmitted along with its own DMRS. This enables UE-specific beamforming for the PDCCH.

[0096] In the example of Figure 4, each BWP has a CORESET, and this CORESET spans three symbols in the time domain (although it can have only one or two symbols). Unlike the LTE control channel, which occupies the entire system bandwidth, in NR, the PDCCH channel is located in a specific region (i.e., the CORESET) in the frequency domain. Therefore, the frequency components of the PDCCH shown in Figure 4B are shown as being less than a single BWP in the frequency domain. Note that although the CORESETs shown are contiguous in the frequency domain, this is not necessary. Furthermore, a CORESET can span less than three symbols in the time domain.

[0097] The DCI within the PDCCH carries information about uplink resource allocation (persistent and non-persistent) and a description of downlink data transmitted to the UE, referred to as uplink clearance and downlink clearance, respectively. More specifically, the DCI indicates resources scheduled for downlink data channels (e.g., PDSCH) and uplink data channels (e.g., PUSCH). Multiple (e.g., up to 8) DCIs can be configured in the PDCCH, and these DCIs can have one of several formats. For example, there are different DCI formats for uplink scheduling, downlink scheduling, uplink transmit power control (TPC), etc. The PDCCH can be transmitted by 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs to accommodate different DCI payload sizes or coding rates.

[0098] As shown in Figure 4C, some REs (labeled "R") carry DMRS for channel estimation at the receiver (e.g., base station, another UE, etc.). Additionally, the UE can transmit SRS in, for example, the last symbol of a time slot. The SRS can have a comb structure, and the UE can transmit the SRS on one of multiple combs. In the example of Figure 4C, the SRS shown is a comb 2 on a single symbol. The SRS can be used by the base station to obtain Channel State Information (CSI) for each UE. The CSI describes how the RF signal propagates from the UE to the base station and represents the combined effects of scattering, fading, and power attenuation with distance. The system uses the SRS for resource scheduling, link adaptation, massive MIMO, beam management, etc.

[0099] Currently, SRS resources can span 1, 2, 4, 8, or 12 consecutive symbols within a time slot, with comb sizes of comb 2, comb 4, or comb 8. The following are the currently supported inter-symbol frequency offsets for SRS comb modes. 1-bit comb 2: {0}; 2-bit comb 2: {0, 1}; 4-bit comb 2: {0, 1, 0, 1}; 4-bit comb 4: {0, 2, 1, 3}; 8-bit comb 4: {0, 2, 1, 3, 0, 2, 1, 3}; 12-bit comb 4: {0, 2, 1, 3, 0, 2, 1, 3, 0, 2, 1, 3}; 4-bit comb 8: {0, 4, 2, 6}; 8-bit comb 8: {0, 4, 2, 6, 1, 5, 3, 7}; and 12-bit combination 8: {0, 4, 2, 6, 1, 5, 3, 7, 0, 4, 2, 6}.

[0100] A set of resource elements used for transmitting SRS is called an "SRS resource" and can be identified by the parameter "SRS-resourceId". This set of resource elements can span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and N (e.g., one or more) consecutive symbols in a time slot in the time domain. In a given OFDM symbol, an SRS resource occupies a consecutive PRB. An "SRS resource set" is the set of SRS resources used for transmitting SRS signals and is identified by the SRS resource set ID ("SRS-resource set Id").

[0101] Typically, the UE transmits SRS so that the receiving base station (serving base station or neighboring base station) can measure the channel quality between the UE and the base station. However, SRS can also be used as an uplink positioning reference signal for uplink positioning procedures, such as UL-TDOA, multiple RTT, DL-AoA, etc.

[0102] Several enhancements to the previous definition of SRS have been proposed for SRS used for positioning (also known as "UL-PRS"), such as new interleaving patterns within SRS resources (in addition to single symbol / comb 2), new comb types for SRS, new sequences for SRS, a higher number of SRS resource sets per component carrier, and a higher number of SRS resources per component carrier. Furthermore, the parameters "Spatial Relationship Information" and "Path Loss Reference" are configured based on downlink reference signals or SSBs from neighboring TRPs. Additionally, an SRS resource can be transmitted outside the active BWP, and an SRS resource can span multiple component carriers. Furthermore, SRS can be configured in RRC connected state and transmitted only within the active BWP. Furthermore, there can be no frequency hopping, no repetition factor, a single antenna port, and new lengths for SRS (e.g., 8 and 12 symbols). Open-loop power control can also be used instead of closed-loop power control, and comb 8 (i.e., SRS transmitted every 8 subcarriers in the same symbol) can be used. Finally, the UE can transmit from multiple SRS resources targeting UL-AoA using the same transmit beam. All of this is an addition to the current SRS framework, which is configured via higher-level RRC signaling (and can potentially be triggered or activated via MAC control elements (CE) or DCI).

[0103] Figure 4D illustrates examples of various channels within uplink time slots of various frames according to this disclosure. Based on the PRACH configuration, the Random Access Channel (RACH), also known as the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH), can reside in one or more time slots within a frame. A PRACH can include six consecutive RB pairs within a time slot. The PRACH allows the UE to perform initial system access and achieve uplink synchronization. The Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) can be located at the edge of the uplink system bandwidth. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as scheduling requests, CSI reports, channel quality indicators (CQI), precoding matrix indicators (PMI), rank indicators (RI), and HARQ ACK / NACK feedback. The Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) carries data and can also be used to carry buffer status reports (BSR), power headroom reports (PHR), and / or UCI.

[0104] Note that the terms “location reference signal” and “PRS” generally refer to the specific reference signal used for positioning in NR and LTE systems. However, as used herein, the terms “location reference signal” and “PRS” can also refer to any type of reference signal that can be used for positioning, such as, but not limited to, PRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, SRS, UL-PRS, etc., as defined in LTE and NR. Furthermore, unless otherwise indicated by the context, the terms “location reference signal” and “PRS” can refer to downlink or uplink positioning reference signals. If further differentiation of the type of PRS is required, downlink positioning reference signals can be referred to as “DL-PRS”, and uplink positioning reference signals (e.g., SRS, PTRS used for positioning) can be referred to as “UL-PRS”. Additionally, for signals that can be transmitted in both the uplink and downlink (e.g., DMRS, PTRS), “UL” or “DL” can be added before the signal to distinguish the direction. For example, “UL-DMRS” can be distinguished from “DL-DMRS”.

[0105] Figure 5 is a diagram 500 of a base station (BS) 502 (which may correspond to any base station described herein) communicating with a UE 504 (which may correspond to any UE described herein). Referring to Figure 5, the base station 502 may transmit beamforming signals to the UE 504 on one or more transmit beams 502a, 502b, 502c, 502d, 502e, 502f, 502g, 502h, each transmit beam having a beam identifier that the UE 504 can use to identify the corresponding beam. When the base station 502 is using a single antenna array (e.g., a single TRP / cell) to perform beamforming to the UE 504, the base station 502 may perform a “beam scan” by transmitting the first beam 502a, then the beam 502b, and so on, until finally transmitting the beam 502h. Optionally, base station 502 can transmit beams 502a-502h in a certain pattern, such as beam 502a, then beam 502h, then beam 502b, then beam 502g, and so on. When base station 502 is using multiple antenna arrays (e.g., multiple TRPs / cells) to beamform UE 504, each antenna array can perform beam scanning of a subset of beams 502a-502h. Optionally, each beam in beams 502a-502h can correspond to a single antenna or an antenna array.

[0106] Figure 5 further illustrates the paths 512c, 512d, 512e, 512f, and 512g followed by the beamforming signals transmitted on beams 502c, 502d, 502e, 502f, and 502g, respectively. Each path 512c, 512d, 512e, 512f, and 512g may correspond to a single “multipath”, or may include multiple (clustered) “multipaths” due to the propagation characteristics of radio frequency (RF) signals through the environment. Note that although only the paths for beams 502c-502g are shown, this is for simplicity; signals transmitted on each beam 502a-502h will follow a certain path. In the example shown, paths 512c, 512d, 512e, and 512f are straight lines, while path 512g is reflected from an obstacle 520 (e.g., a building, vehicle, terrain feature, etc.).

[0107] UE 504 can receive beamforming signals from base station 502 on one or more receive beams 504a, 504b, 504c, 504d. Note that, for simplicity, the beams shown in Figure 5 represent either transmit or receive beams, depending on which of base station 502 and UE 504 is transmitting and which is receiving. Therefore, UE 504 can also transmit beamforming signals to base station 502 on one or more of beams 504a-504d, and base station 502 can receive beamforming signals from UE 504 on one or more of beams 502a-502h.

[0108] In one configuration, base station 502 and UE 504 may perform beam training to align their transmit and receive beams. For example, depending on environmental conditions and other factors, base station 502 and UE 504 may determine that their optimal transmit and receive beams are 502d and 504b, or 502e and 504c, respectively. The direction of the optimal transmit beam of base station 502 may be the same as or different from the direction of the optimal receive beam, and similarly, the direction of the optimal receive beam of UE 504 may be the same as or different from the direction of the optimal transmit beam. However, note that aligning the transmit and receive beams is not necessary for performing downlink transmit angle (DL-AoD) or uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA) positioning procedures.

[0109] To perform the DL-AoD positioning process, base station 502 can transmit reference signals (e.g., PRS, CRS, TRS, CSI-RS, PSS, SSS, etc.) to UE 504 on one or more beams 502a–502h, and each beam has a different transmission angle. The different transmission angles of the beams will result in different signal strengths (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, etc.) received at UE 504. Specifically, the received signal strength will be lower for the transmit beams 502a–502h that are farther away from the LOS path 510 compared to the transmit beams 502a–502h that are closer to the line-of-sight (LOS) path 510 between base station 502 and UE 504.

[0110] In the example of Figure 5, if base station 502 transmits reference signals to UE 504 on beams 502c, 502d, 502e, 502f, and 502g, then transmit beam 502e is optimally aligned with LOS path 510, while transmit beams 502c, 502d, 502f, and 502g are not aligned with LOS path 510. Therefore, beam 502e is likely to have a higher received signal strength at UE 504 compared to beams 502c, 502d, 502f, and 502g. Note that reference signals transmitted on some beams (e.g., beams 502c and / or 502f) may not reach UE 504, or the energy reaching UE 504 from these beams may be too low to be detected or at least negligible.

[0111] UE 504 may report to base station 502 the measured received signal strength of each transmit beam 502c-502g, and optionally, the associated measurement quality, or alternatively, the identifier of the transmit beam with the highest received signal strength (beam 502e in the example of Figure 5). Alternatively or additionally, if UE 504 also participates in round-trip time (RTT) or time difference of arrival (TDOA) positioning sessions with at least one or more base stations 502, UE 504 may report received transmission (Rx-Tx) or reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurements (and optionally, the associated measurement quality) to the serving base station 502 or other positioning entity. In any case, the positioning entity (e.g., base station 502, positioning server, third-party client, UE 504, etc.) can estimate the angle from base station 502 to UE 504 as the AoD of the transmit beam (here, transmit beam 502e) with the highest received signal strength at UE 504.

[0112] In one scenario of DL-AoD-based positioning, involving only one base station 502, base station 502 and UE 504 can perform a round-trip time (RTT) procedure to determine the distance between base station 502 and UE 504. Therefore, the positioning entity can determine the direction to UE 504 (using DL-AoD positioning) and the distance to UE 504 (using RTT positioning) to estimate the location of UE 504. Note that the AoD with the highest received signal strength is not necessarily along the LOS path 510, as shown in Figure 5. However, for the purpose of DL-AoD-based positioning, it is assumed that this is the case.

[0113] In another form of DL-AoD-based positioning, when multiple base stations 502 are involved, each base station 502 can report the determined AoD to the UE 504 to the positioning entity. The positioning entity receives multiple such AoDs for the UE 504 from the multiple base stations 502 involved (or other geographically separated transmission points). Using this information and knowledge of the geographical locations of the base stations 502, the positioning entity can estimate the location of the UE 504 as the intersection of the received AoDs. For a two-dimensional (2D) positioning solution, there should be at least two involved base stations 502, but as will be understood, the more base stations 502 involved in the positioning process, the more accurate the estimated location of the UE 504 will be.

[0114] To perform the UL-AoA positioning procedure, UE 504 transmits uplink reference signals (e.g., UL-PRS, SRS, DMRS, etc.) to base station 502 on one or more uplink transmit beams 504a-504d. Base station 502 receives the uplink reference signals on one or more uplink receive beams 502a-502h. Base station 502 determines the angle of the optimal receive beam 502a-502h for receiving one or more reference signals from UE 504 as the AoA from itself to UE 504. Specifically, each receive beam 502a-502h will result in different received signal strengths (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, etc.) of one or more reference signals at base station 502. Furthermore, the channel impulse response of one or more reference signals will be smaller for the receive beams 502a-502h that are farther from the actual LOS path than for the receive beams 502a-502h that are closer to the LOS path between base station 502 and UE 504. Similarly, the received signal strength will be lower for the receive beams 502a-502h that are farther from the LOS path than for the receive beams 502a-502h that are closer to the LOS path. Therefore, base station 502 identifies the receive beams 502a-502h that result in the highest received signal strength and optionally the strongest channel impulse response, and estimates the angle from itself to UE 504 as the AoA of that receive beam 502a-502h. Note that, as with positioning using DL-AoD, the AoA of the receive beams 502a–502h that cause the highest received signal strength (and the strongest channel impulse response, if measured) is not necessarily along the LOS path 510. However, for the purpose of positioning based on UL-AoA, we assume this is the case.

[0115] Note that although UE 504 is shown as capable of beamforming, this is not necessary for the DL-AoD and UL-AoA positioning processes. Instead, UE 504 can receive and transmit on an omnidirectional antenna.

[0116] When UE 504 is estimating its location (i.e., the UE is the location entity), it needs to obtain the geographic location of base station 502. UE 504 can obtain its location from, for example, base station 502 itself or a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272). Knowing the distance to base station 502 (based on RTT or timing advance), the angle between base station 502 and UE 504 (based on the UL-AoA of the optimal receive beams 502a-502h), and the known geographic location of base station 502, UE 504 can estimate its location.

[0117] Optionally, when a positioning entity, such as base station 502 or a positioning server, is estimating the location of UE 504, base station 502 reports the AoA of the receiving beam 502a-502h that causes the highest received signal strength (and optionally, the strongest channel impulse response) of the reference signal received from UE 504, or all received signal strengths and channel impulse responses for all receiving beams 502a-502h (which allows the positioning entity to determine the optimal receiving beam 502a-502h). Base station 502 may additionally report the distance to UE 504. The positioning entity can then estimate the location of UE 504 based on the distance from UE 504 to base station 502, the AoA of the identified receiving beams 502a-502h, and the known geographical location of base station 502.

[0118] Figure 6 illustrates an example of DL-TDoA, where the UE reports the reference signal time difference between the TP of interest (TP i) and the reference TP (TP j) as the TDoA time difference. TDoA is a technique in which the UE measures the time of arrival (TOA) of signals obtained from multiple base stations (TPs). The TDoA is formed by subtracting the TOA from some neighboring TPs from the TOA of the reference TP. Geometrically, each time (or range) difference determines a hyperbola, and the time when these hyperbolas intersect is the location of the UE. Three or more planning estimates from geographically dispersed TPs are needed to determine the UE's location. In Figure 6, the UE measures three TOAs, τ1, τ2, and τ3, relative to the UE's internal time base, and selects the measurement from TP1 as the reference base station. Thus, two TDoA curves are formed: t2,1 = τ2 – τ1 and t3,1 = τ3 – τ1.

[0119] In the current NR positioning framework, the timing of each PRS resource is reported relative to the subframe timing. The 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 38.215 defines the Downlink (DL) Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD) as the relative DL time difference between transmission point (TP)j and reference TPi, defined as: T<subframe Rxj – T<subframe Rxi, where T<subframe Rxj is the time at which the UE receives the start of a subframe from TPj, and T<subframe Rxi is the time at which the UE receives the corresponding start of the subframe from TPi that is closest in time to the subframe received from TPj. For frequency range 1 (FR1), the reference point for the DL RSTD should be the UE's antenna connector. For frequency range 2 (FR2), the reference point for the DL RSTD should be the UE's antenna.

[0120] The problem is that the subframe timing does not distinguish whether it comes from one beamp-to-link or another beamp-to-link, but instead assumes that for a TP, there is only one timing, and the UE can deduce that timing from the subframe it observes. The statement in 3GPP TS 38.215 reinforces this idea, namely that multiple DL PRS resources can be used to determine the starting point of a subframe from the TP, which suggests that any FFT timing used by the UE should also apply to all DL PRS resources from that TP.

[0121] This results in the following constraint: for all beam pairs between the base station and the UE, it is assumed that the subframe timing is the same. The same assumption applies to other timing reports, such as uplink relative time of arrival (UL-RToA), UE Rx-Tx timing difference, and gNB Rx-Tx timing difference. That is, it is assumed that all beam pairs from the same TP will have the same FFT timing. One technical challenge resulting from this assumption is that at higher frequencies, it is difficult to maintain the condition that multiple DL PRS resources can be used to determine the subframe timing.

[0122] For example, in frequency range 4 (FR4), the subcarrier spacing (SCS) is 960 kHz, and the cyclic prefix (CP) duration is approximately 75 ns. This means that the maximum difference in the length of the beam path arriving at the UE cannot exceed 75 ns * 3e8 m / s = 22.5 m. Otherwise, within the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) window, the CP of one path will overlap with the data portion of another path, which will negatively impact the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Using the example shown in Figure 6, assuming that the subframe timing for all beam pairs between the TP and the UE is the same, this means that, assuming the common FFT timing for all beams, the lengths of paths τ3 and τ3' (which are different beam pairs, with τ3' being reflected by obstacle 600) can differ by no more than 22.5 meters.

[0123] Conversely, many conventional systems operating in the lower frequency range can tolerate larger maximum differences in beam path length. For example, in FR2, where the SCS is 120 kHz and the CP duration is approximately 600 ns, systems using common FFT can tolerate path length differences of up to approximately 200 meters, which is sufficient for those systems.

[0124] Therefore, although it is currently assumed that the subframe timing is the same for all beam pairs between the BS and UE for existing systems operating in the lower frequency range, this assumption severely limits the operation of systems transmitting in the higher frequency range (e.g., FR4). For example, if the difference between one path and another path exceeds about 22 meters, it will result in small to severe SNR degradation.

[0125] To address the aforementioned technical challenges, this paper proposes a technique for beampair-by-beam timing. By considering beampair-based timing, the constraint that all beampairs must use the same subframe timing (and consequently, the same FFT timing) is relaxed, allowing the system to tolerate much larger beampair path length differences. In one scenario, the UE maintains separate subframe and / or time slot timing for each beampair it monitors. In another scenario, the UE performs timing correction for the timing difference between the selected beampair and the reference beampair link.

[0126] In some configurations, the UE maintains separate subframe and / or time slot timings for each DL beam pair it monitors. The UE can be configured to maintain this timing information, or the UE can maintain this timing information autonomously. In some configurations, even for the same DL PRS resource beam, different timings can be maintained for different Rx beams that can detect that DL PRS resource beam. The same principle can be applied to UL beams; for example, the base station maintains separate timings for each UL beam pair it monitors. In some configurations, the base station reports these beam timings to the LMF, and the LMF performs timing calculations.

[0127] In some configurations, the UE or base station can, for example, indicate whether it has the capability to maintain individual timing for each beam, based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, or each carrier. In some configurations, this capability can be indicated to the base station, location management function (LMF), or other location entity, or both, for example, as part of a capability report performed by the UE when requested.

[0128] In some configurations, the UE performs timing correction for the timing difference between the selected beam and the reference beam pair link. In some configurations, in order to report DL-RSTD or other timing metrics used for positioning, the UE performs correction for the timing difference between the selected beam [pair link?] and the reference beam pair link. The UE maintains separate timing for each beam pair link so that when the UE reports that timing, for example, for the purpose of RSTD, the UE corrects the timing difference between two beam pair links compared before reporting the RSTD to the base station.

[0129] In some configurations, one of the beams is identified as the reference beam to be referenced for correction. In some configurations, the node performing the measurement, referred to herein as the "measurement entity" (e.g., UE or base station), selects a reference beam for maintaining timing and reports the corrected measurement result by correcting the timing difference between the two beam pairs being compared. In some configurations, the LMF or other positioning entity selects a reference beam and indicates it to the measurement entity, for example, based on some prior knowledge that a particular reference beam is a good beam to use, and the measurement entity performs the correction for the indicated reference beam. In some configurations, the LMF or other positioning entity selects a reference beam and indicates it to the measurement entity, but the measurement entity overturns the selection, for example, due to local conditions of the measurement entity, such as obstacles, interference, or other reasons. In some configurations, the measurement entity does not overturn the LMF's selection but instead provides information about different reference beams that may be better reference beams to use, for example, for future configuration optimization. In some cases, the measuring entity can select the beam with the highest SNR as the reference beam; the beam with the highest SNR is also likely to be the beam with the highest line-of-sight (LOS) angle between the TP and the UE. In some cases, the beam with the earliest arrival time can be selected as the reference beam, even if that beam has a lower SNR compared to a reflected beam with a later arrival time.

[0130] For SRS and other UL transmissions, in some configurations, the UE can apply different timings to each UL transmission beam toward the base station, allowing the base station to use a common FFT window for simplicity. In some configurations, the UE can use a common transmit time for each beam, but inform the base station of different timing corrections for each path; for example, the UE reports the timing difference between the selected beam pair and the reference beam pair, enabling the base station or positioning entity to perform appropriate timing corrections. In some configurations, the UE can apply different transmit times to each UL transmit beam and also inform the base station of this fact, so that the base station or positioning entity can perform appropriate corrections to the calculated RSTD or other timing difference-related positioning measurements.

[0131] Note that timing adjustments can be made at the transmitting side, the receiving side, or both, and can be made by the base station, the UE, or both. In some cases, one entity (e.g., the UE or the base station) maintains a common timing while another entity makes the adjustments. In some cases, when the base station makes the timing adjustments, the base station can make a different set of beam-by-beam timing adjustments for each UE it serves. Similarly, when the UE makes the adjustments, the UE can make a different set of beam-by-beam timing adjustments for each TP it measures. Because the transmitting entity may be transmitting signals that are received and processed by more than one measurement entity, in some cases, the measurement entity, rather than the transmitting entity, makes the adjustments. For example, in some cases, the UE maintains different timings for different DL beam pairs, and the base station maintains different timings for different UL beam pairs.

[0132] In some cases, where the transmitting or measuring entity does not support beam-by-beam timing adjustment, conventional, common beam timing methods can be used. Note that while the techniques described herein are advantageous for higher frequency bands with shorter CP, such as FR3 and FR4, the same principle can also be applied to lower frequency bands, such as FR1 and FR2.

[0133] FIG7 is a flowchart of an example process 700 associated with beam-by-beam timing for positioning. In some implementations, one or more process blocks of FIG7 may be performed by a UE (e.g., UE 104 in FIG1). In some implementations, one or more process blocks of FIG7 may be performed by another device or group of devices separate from the UE, or by another device or group of devices including the UE. Additionally or alternatively, one or more process blocks of FIG7 may be performed by one or more components of device 302, such as processing system 332, memory 340, WWAN transceiver 310, transceiver 320, or user interface 346.

[0134] As shown in FIG7, process 700 may optionally include instructing the transmitting entity that the UE is able to maintain information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam pair and a receive beam pair (optional block 705).

[0135] As shown in FIG. 7, process 700 may include maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a UE's receive beam and a base station or another UE's transmit beam (block 710). For example, each beam pair may include a downlink (DL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam, and the SL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam. In some states, the transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair. In some states, the receive beams of the first beam pair and the receive beams of the second beam pair are in different timing error groups.

[0136] As further shown in FIG7, process 700 may include measuring a first reference signal using a first beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs (block 720). For example, as described above, the UE may use a first beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to measure a first DL or SL signal.

[0137] As further shown in FIG7, process 700 may include measuring a second reference signal using a second beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs (block 730). For example, as described above, the UE may use a second beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to measure a second DL or SL signal.

[0138] As further shown in FIG7, process 700 may include reporting beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the transmitting entity (block 740). For example, as described above, the UE may report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the transmitting entity.

[0139] As further shown in Figure 7, the measurement of the first reference signal and the measurement of the second reference signal, the reporting of beam timing, or both can be performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair (block 750). For example, the UE can take the timing information into account when measuring the first reference signal and the second reference signal, the UE can use the timing information to correct the beam timing before reporting, or both.

[0140] As further shown in Figure 7, process 700 may optionally include reporting timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair to the transmitting entity (optional block 760).

[0141] Process 700 may include additional patterns, such as any single pattern or any combination of patterns described below and / or related to one or more other processes described elsewhere herein.

[0142] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam.

[0143] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal include the same PRS beam.

[0144] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal include different PRS beams.

[0145] In some cases, performing the measurement steps based on timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes: for each beam pair, calculating the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each beam pair.

[0146] In some cases, the reporting step, based on timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs, includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information for each of the first and second beam pairs.

[0147] In some states, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0148] Although Figure 7 shows example blocks of process 700, in some versions, process 700 may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, different blocks, or blocks arranged differently compared to those depicted in Figure 7. Additionally or alternatively, two or more blocks of process 700 may be performed in parallel.

[0149] FIG8 is a flowchart of an example process 800 associated with beam-by-beam timing for positioning. In some cases, one or more process blocks of FIG8 may be performed by a UE (e.g., UE 104 in FIG1). In some cases, one or more process blocks of FIG8 may be performed by another device or group of devices separate from or including the UE. Additionally or alternatively, one or more process blocks of FIG8 may be performed by one or more components of device 302, such as processing system 332, memory 340, WWAN transceiver 310, transceiver 320, or user interface 346.

[0150] As shown in FIG8, process 800 may optionally include instructing a receiving entity that the UE is able to maintain information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam pair and a receive beam pair (optional block 805).

[0151] As shown in FIG8, process 800 may include maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including the UE's transmit beam and the base station or another UE's receive beam (block 810). For example, each beam pair may include an uplink (UL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the UL beam pair including the UE's transmit beam and the base station's receive beam, and the SL beam pair including the UE's transmit beam and the UE's receive beam. In some cases, the transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

[0152] As further shown in FIG8, process 800 may include: using a first beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to transmit a first reference signal to a receiving entity (block 820). For example, as described above, the UE may use a first beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to transmit a first UL or SL reference signal to a receiving entity.

[0153] As further shown in FIG8, process 800 may include: using a second beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to transmit a second reference signal to a receiving entity (block 830). For example, as described above, the UE may use a second beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to transmit a second UL or SL reference signal to a receiving entity.

[0154] As further shown in FIG8, the first reference signal and the second reference signal can be transmitted to the receiving entity based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively. In some embodiments, the method further includes transmitting timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity (block 840). For example, the UE can adjust the transmission timing of the first reference signal and the second reference signal destined for the receiving entity based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair. In some embodiments, the method further includes transmitting timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0155] In some cases, process 800 may optionally include: reporting timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair to the receiving entity (optional block 850).

[0156] Process 800 may include additional patterns, such as any single pattern or any combination of patterns described below and / or related to one or more other processes described elsewhere herein.

[0157] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam.

[0158] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal include the same SRS beam.

[0159] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal include different SRS beams.

[0160] In some states, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0161] Although Figure 8 shows example blocks of process 800, in some versions, process 800 may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, different blocks, or blocks arranged differently compared to those depicted in Figure 8. Additionally or alternatively, two or more blocks of process 800 may be performed in parallel.

[0162] FIG9 is a flowchart of an example process 900 associated with beam-by-beam timing for positioning. In some embodiments, one or more process blocks of FIG9 may be performed by a base station (e.g., base station 102 in FIG1). In some embodiments, one or more process blocks of FIG9 may be performed by another device or group of devices separate from or including the base station. Additionally or alternatively, one or more process blocks of FIG9 may be performed by one or more components of device 304, such as processing system 384, memory 386, WWAN transceiver 350, transceiver 360, or network interface 380.

[0163] As shown in FIG9, process 900 may optionally include: receiving from the UE an indication that the UE is able to maintain information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam pair and a receive beam pair (optional block 905).

[0164] As shown in FIG9, process 900 may include: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam (block 910). For example, each beam pair may include a downlink (DL) beam pair, which includes a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam. For example, the BS may maintain timing information for each of a plurality of downlink (DL) beam pairs, each DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam, as described above. In some cases, the transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

[0165] As further shown in FIG9, process 900 may include: using a first beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to transmit a first reference signal (block 920). For example, as described above, the BS may use a first DL beam pair from a plurality of DL beam pairs to transmit the first reference signal to the UE.

[0166] As further shown in FIG9, process 900 may include: using a second beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to transmit a second reference signal (block 930). For example, as described above, the BS may use a second DL beam pair from a plurality of DL beam pairs to transmit a second reference signal to the UE.

[0167] As further shown in Figure 9, the first reference signal and the second reference signal can be transmitted according to the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively (block 940). For example, the BS can adjust the transmission timing of the first reference signal and the second reference signal to the UE according to the timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair, respectively.

[0168] As further shown in FIG9, as a supplement or alternative to block 940, the method may further include: transmitting timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the UE, transmitting timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the positioning entity, or using the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to adjust the timing report received from the UE (block 950).

[0169] As further shown in Figure 9, process 900 may optionally include: receiving measured beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair from the UE (optional block 960).

[0170] Process 900 may include additional patterns, such as any single pattern or any combination of patterns described below and / or related to one or more other processes described elsewhere herein.

[0171] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam.

[0172] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal include the same PRS beam.

[0173] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal include different PRS beams.

[0174] In some states, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of downlink (DL) beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0175] Although Figure 9 shows example blocks of process 900, in some versions, process 900 may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, different blocks, or blocks arranged differently compared to those depicted in Figure 9. Additionally or alternatively, two or more blocks of process 900 may be performed in parallel.

[0176] FIG10 is a flowchart of an example process 1000 associated with beam-by-beam timing for positioning. In some embodiments, one or more process blocks of FIG10 may be performed by a base station (e.g., base station 102 of FIG1). In some embodiments, one or more process blocks of FIG10 may be performed by another device or group of devices separate from the base station, or by another device or group of devices including the base station. Additionally or alternatively, one or more process blocks of FIG9 may be performed by one or more components of device 304, such as processing system 384, memory 386, WWAN transceiver 350, transceiver 360, or network interface 380.

[0177] As shown in FIG10, process 1000 may optionally include: instructing the UE that the base station has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs (optional block 1005).

[0178] As shown in FIG10, process 1000 may include: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a base station receive beam and a UE transmit beam (block 1010). For example, each beam pair may include a UL beam pair, which includes a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam. For example, the BS may maintain timing information for each of a plurality of uplink (UL) beam pairs, each UL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam, as described above.

[0179] As shown in FIG10, process 1000 may include: measuring a first reference signal using the first beam pair based on timing information for the first beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs (block 1020). For example, as described above, the BS may measure the first reference signal using the first UL beam pair based on timing information for the first UL beam pair from a plurality of UL beam pairs.

[0180] As shown in FIG10, process 1000 may include: measuring a second reference signal using a second beam pair based on timing information for a second beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs (block 1030). For example, as described above, BS may measure a second reference signal using a second UL beam pair based on timing information for a second UL beam pair from a plurality of UL beam pairs.

[0181] As shown in FIG10, process 1000 may include: reporting beam timing for a first beam pair and a second beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring a first reference signal and measuring a second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair (block 1040). For example, as described above, the BS may report beam timing for a first UL beam pair and a second UL beam pair to a positioning entity. In some embodiments, measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on timing information for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0182] As shown in FIG10, process 1000 may optionally include: reporting timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair to the positioning entity (optional block 1050).

[0183] As shown in Figure 10, process 1000 may optionally include: calculating reference signal timing based on timing information for the first beam pair and for the second beam pair (optional block 1060).

[0184] Process 1000 may include additional patterns, such as any single pattern or any combination of patterns described below and / or related to one or more other processes described elsewhere herein.

[0185] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam.

[0186] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal include the same SRS beam.

[0187] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal include different SRS beams.

[0188] In some cases, performing the measurement steps based on timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs includes: for each UL beam pair, calculating the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each UL beam pair.

[0189] In some cases, the reporting step is performed based on timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs, including: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information for each of the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0190] In some configurations, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0191] Although Figure 10 shows example blocks of process 1000, in some variations, process 1000 may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, different blocks, or blocks arranged differently compared to those depicted in Figure 10. Additionally or alternatively, two or more blocks of process 1000 may be performed in parallel.

[0192] In the above embodiments, it can be seen that different features are grouped together in the examples. This manner of disclosure should not be construed as an intention to have more features than are expressly mentioned in each clause. Rather, the various forms of this disclosure may include fewer features than all the features of a single disclosed example clause. Therefore, the following clauses should thus be considered incorporated into the specification, wherein each clause may be considered as a separate example. Although each subsidiary clause may refer in the clause to a specific combination of one of the other clauses, the form of that subsidiary clause is not limited to that specific combination. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include combinations of subsidiary clause forms with the technical subject matter of any other subsidiary or independent clause, or combinations of any feature with other subsidiary and independent clauses. The various forms disclosed herein expressly include these combinations unless expressly stated or readily inferred that it is not intended to include a specific combination (e.g., contradictory forms, such as defining an element as both an insulator and a conductor). Furthermore, it is also intended that multiple forms of a clause be included in any other independent clause, even if that clause is not directly subordinate to that independent clause.

[0193] Practice examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0194] Clause 1. A user equipment (UE) comprising: memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the UE and a transmit beam of a base station or other UE; measure a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measure a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0195] Clause 2. The UE as in Clause 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: report timing information for a first beam pair and timing information for a second beam pair to a transmitting entity; or, instruct the transmitting entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0196] Clause 3. For any UE in any of Clauses 1 to 2, wherein the first reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam and the second reference signal includes the same PRS beam or a different PRS beam.

[0197] Clause 4. A UE of any one of Clauses 1 to 3, wherein the transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

[0198] Clause 5. As in Clause 4, wherein the first beam pair of the receiving beam and the second beam pair of the receiving beam are located in different receiving timing error groups.

[0199] Item 6. For any UE of any of Items 1 to 5, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time of arrival (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each beam pair.

[0200] Item 7. For any UE in any of Items 1 to 6, reporting beam timing based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) between the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information of each beam pair.

[0201] Article 8. For any of Articles 1 to 7, the maintenance of timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0202] Clause 9. A user equipment (UE) comprising: memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the UE and a receive beam of a base station or other UE; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a first reference signal to a receiving entity using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a second reference signal to the receiving entity using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity according to timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, or wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the at least one transceiver to transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0203] Clause 10. The UE as in Clause 9, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: report timing information for a first beam pair and timing information for a second beam pair to a receiving entity; or, instruct the receiving entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0204] Item 11. For any UE in any of Items 9 to 10, wherein the first reference signal includes a sounding reference signal (SRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same SRS beam or a different SRS beam.

[0205] Article 12. As in Article 11, wherein the transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

[0206] Item 13. For any of the UEs in Items 9 to 12, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0207] Clause 14. A base station (BS) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the base station and a receive beam of a user equipment (UE); cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs. Sending a second reference signal; wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively; or wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: cause the at least one transceiver to transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the UE; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the positioning entity; or, use the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to adjust the timing report received from the UE.

[0208] Clause 15. The BS of Clause 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive timing information for a first beam pair and timing information for a second beam pair from the UE; or, receive from the UE an indication that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0209] Article 16. BS as in any of Articles 14 to 15, wherein the first reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same PRS beam or a different PRS beam.

[0210] Clause 17. As in Clause 16, wherein the transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

[0211] Article 18. As in any of Articles 14 to 17, the maintenance of timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes: maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0212] Clause 19. A base station (BS) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the base station and a transmit beam of a user equipment (UE); measure a first reference signal using the first beam pair based on timing information for a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measure a second reference signal using a second beam pair based on timing information for a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0213] Clause 20. As in Clause 19, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: calculate reference signal timing based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair; report timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair to the positioning entity; or instruct the UE that the base station has the capability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0214] Clause 21. BS as in any of Clauses 19 to 20, wherein the first reference signal includes a sounding reference signal (SRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same SRS beam or a different SRS beam.

[0215] Clause 22. As in any of Clauses 19 to 21, wherein the transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

[0216] Clause 23. As in Clause 22 of the BS, wherein the receiving beam of the first beam pair and the receiving beam of the second beam pair are located in different receiving timing error groups.

[0217] Clause 24. As in any of Clauses 19 to 23, the measurement of the first reference signal and the measurement of the second reference signal based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair include: calculating the time of arrival (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each beam pair.

[0218] Item 25. As in any of Items 19 to 24, the reporting of beam timing based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information of each beam pair.

[0219] Clause 26. As in any of Clauses 19 to 25, the BS wherein maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0220] Clause 27. A method of performing wireless communication by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the UE and a transmit beam of a base station or another UE; measuring a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measuring a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and reporting beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0221] Article 28. The method of Article 27 further includes at least one of the following: reporting timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair to the transmitting entity; or instructing the transmitting entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0222] Item 29. The method of any one of Items 27 to 28, wherein the first reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam and the second reference signal includes the same PRS beam or a different PRS beam.

[0223] Article 30. The method of any one of Articles 27 to 29, wherein the transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

[0224] Clause 31. The method of Clause 30, wherein the receiving beam of the first beam pair and the receiving beam of the second beam pair are located in different receiving timing error groups.

[0225] Clause 32. The method of any of Clauses 27 to 31, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair comprises: calculating the time of arrival (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each beam pair.

[0226] Item 33. The method of any one of Items 27 to 32, wherein reporting beam timing based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information of each beam pair.

[0227] Clause 34. The method of any of Clauses 27 to 33, wherein maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0228] Clause 35. A method of performing wireless communication by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair comprising: a transmit beam of the UE and a receive beam of a base station or another UE; transmitting a first reference signal to a receiving entity using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and transmitting a second reference signal to a receiving entity using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or wherein the UE transmits timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0229] Clause 36. The method of Clause 35 further includes at least one of the following: reporting timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair to the receiving entity; or instructing the receiving entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0230] Item 37. The method of any one of Items 35 to 36, wherein the first reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam and the second reference signal includes the same SRS beam or a different SRS beam.

[0231] Clause 38. A wireless communication method performed by a base station (BS), the method comprising: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the base station and a receive beam of a user equipment (UE); transmitting a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and transmitting a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted according to the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively; or transmitting the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the UE, transmitting the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, or using the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to adjust a timing report received from the UE.

[0232] Clause 39. The method of Clause 38 further includes at least one of the following: receiving timing information from the UE for a first beam pair and timing information for a second beam pair; or receiving from the UE an indication that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0233] Clause 40. The method of any of Clauses 38 to 39, wherein the first reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam and the second reference signal includes the same PRS beam or a different PRS beam.

[0234] Clause 41. A method of performing wireless communication by a base station (BS), the method comprising: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the base station and a transmit beam of a user equipment (UE); measuring a first reference signal using the first beam pair according to timing information for a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measuring a second reference signal using a second beam pair according to timing information for a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and reporting beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed according to the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0235] Clause 42. The method of Clause 41 further includes at least one of the following: calculating reference signal timing based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair; reporting the timing information for the first beam pair and the timing information for the second beam pair to the positioning entity; or instructing the UE that the base station has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0236] Item 43. The method of any one of Items 41 to 42, wherein the first reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam and the second reference signal includes the same SRS beam or a different SRS beam.

[0237] Clause 44. An apparatus includes: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver, wherein the memory, the transceiver, and the processor are configured to perform the methods as described in any one of Clauses 27 to 43.

[0238] Clause 45. An appliance comprises a component for performing the method as described in any of Clauses 27 to 43.

[0239] Clause 46. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions comprising at least one instruction for causing a computer or processor to perform a method as described in any one of Clauses 27 to 43.

[0240] Other states include, but are not limited to, the following:

[0241] In one embodiment, a method of performing wireless communication by a user equipment (UE) includes: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a downlink (DL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam, the SL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam; measuring a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measuring a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and reporting beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0242] In some cases, the method includes: reporting timing information for a first beam pair and timing information for a second beam pair to a transmitting entity.

[0243] In some embodiments, the method includes: instructing a transmitting entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs.

[0244] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes: a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam.

[0245] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain the same PRS beam.

[0246] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain different PRS beams.

[0247] In some cases, measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes: for each beam pair, calculating the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each beam pair.

[0248] In some cases, reporting beam timing based on timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information for each of the first and second beam pairs.

[0249] In some states, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0250] In one embodiment, a method of performing wireless communication by a user equipment (UE) includes: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including an uplink (UL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the UL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam, the SL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam; transmitting a first reference signal to a receiving entity using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and transmitting a second reference signal to a receiving entity using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity according to timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or wherein the method further includes transmitting timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0251] In some embodiments, the method includes: reporting timing information for a first beam pair and timing information for a second beam pair to a receiving entity.

[0252] In some embodiments, the method includes: instructing a receiving entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs.

[0253] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam.

[0254] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain the same SRS beam.

[0255] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain different SRS beams.

[0256] In some states, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0257] In one embodiment, a wireless communication method performed by a base station includes: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of downlink (DL) beam pairs, each DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam; transmitting a first reference signal to a user equipment (UE) using a first DL beam pair from the plurality of DL beam pairs; and transmitting a second reference signal to the UE using a second DL beam pair from the plurality of DL beam pairs, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the UE based on timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair, respectively, or wherein the method further includes: transmitting timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair to the UE; transmitting timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair to a positioning entity; or adjusting a timing report received from the UE using the timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair.

[0258] In some states, the method includes: receiving beam timing from the UE for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0259] In some embodiments, the method includes: receiving from the UE an indication that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of a plurality of DL beam pairs.

[0260] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam.

[0261] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain the same PRS beam.

[0262] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain different PRS beams.

[0263] In some states, maintaining timing information for each DL beam pair in a plurality of downlink (DL) beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair in each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0264] In one embodiment, a method of performing wireless communication by a base station includes: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of uplink (UL) beam pairs, each UL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam; measuring a first reference signal using the first UL beam pair from the plurality of UL beam pairs according to the timing information for the first UL beam pair; and measuring a second reference signal using the second UL beam pair from the plurality of UL beam pairs according to the timing information for the second UL beam pair; and reporting beam timing for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed according to the timing information for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0265] In some embodiments, the method includes: calculating reference signal timing based on timing information for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0266] In some embodiments, the method includes: reporting timing information for a first UL beam pair and timing information for a second UL beam pair to a positioning entity.

[0267] In some embodiments, the method includes: instructing the UE that the base station has the capability to maintain timing information for each of a plurality of UL beam pairs.

[0268] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam.

[0269] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain the same SRS beam.

[0270] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain different SRS beams.

[0271] In some cases, measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs includes: for each UL beam pair, calculating the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each UL beam pair.

[0272] In some cases, reporting beam timing based on timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and timing information for each of the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0273] In some states, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0274] In one embodiment, a user equipment (UE) includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a downlink (DL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam, the SL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam; measure a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measure a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0275] In some configurations, the at least one processor is further configured to: report timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair to the transmitting entity.

[0276] In some configurations, the at least one processor is further configured to: instruct the transmitting entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0277] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam.

[0278] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain the same PRS beam.

[0279] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain different PRS beams.

[0280] In some cases, measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes: calculating the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each beam pair.

[0281] In some cases, reporting beam timing based on timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and timing information for each of the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0282] In some states, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0283] In one embodiment, a user equipment (UE) includes: memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including an uplink (UL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the UL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam, the SL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam; and cause at least one transceiver to... The transceiver uses a first beam pair from a plurality of beam pairs to transmit a first reference signal to a receiving entity; and causes the at least one transceiver to use a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs to transmit a second reference signal to the receiving entity, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively; or, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the at least one transceiver to transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0284] In some configurations, the at least one processor is further configured to: report timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0285] In some configurations, the at least one processor is further configured to: indicate to the receiving entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

[0286] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam.

[0287] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain the same SRS beam.

[0288] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain different SRS beams.

[0289] In some states, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, based on each combination of frequency bands, based on each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0290] In one embodiment, a base station (BS) includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of downlink (DL) beam pairs, each DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a first reference signal to a user equipment (UE) using a first DL beam pair from the plurality of DL beam pairs; cause the at least one transceiver to use a second DL beam pair from the plurality of DL beam pairs. The at least one processor is configured to transmit a second reference signal to the UE using a beam pair; and wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the UE based on timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair, respectively; or wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: transmit timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair to the UE; transmit timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair to a positioning entity; or adjust timing reports received from the UE using the timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair.

[0291] In some configurations, at least one processor is further configured to receive timing information for a first DL beam pair and timing information for a second DL beam pair from the UE.

[0292] In some configurations, the at least one processor is further configured to: receive from the UE an indication that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of DL beam pairs.

[0293] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam.

[0294] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain the same PRS beam.

[0295] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain different PRS beams.

[0296] In some cases, maintaining timing information for each DL beam pair among a plurality of downlink (DL) beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0297] In one embodiment, a base station (BS) includes: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of uplink (UL) beam pairs, each UL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam; measure a first reference signal using the first UL beam pair from the plurality of UL beam pairs based on the timing information for the first UL beam pair; and measure a second reference signal using the second UL beam pair from the plurality of UL beam pairs based on the timing information for the second UL beam pair; and report beam timing for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0298] In some configurations, at least one processor is further configured to calculate reference signal timing based on timing information for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0299] In some configurations, at least one processor is further configured to: report timing information for the first UL beam pair and timing information for the second UL beam pair to the positioning entity.

[0300] In some configurations, the at least one processor is further configured to: instruct the UE that the base station has the capability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs.

[0301] In some states, each of the first reference signal and the second reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam.

[0302] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain the same SRS beam.

[0303] In some states, the first reference signal and the second reference signal contain different SRS beams.

[0304] In some cases, measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs includes: for each UL beam pair, calculating the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information of each UL beam pair.

[0305] In some cases, reporting beam timing based on timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and timing information for each of the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0306] In some cases, maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of UL beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, each carrier, or a combination thereof.

[0307] In one embodiment, a user equipment (UE) includes: means for maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a downlink (DL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam, the SL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam; means for measuring a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; means for measuring a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and means for reporting beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity; wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0308] In one embodiment, a user equipment (UE) includes: means for maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including an uplink (UL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the UL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam, the SL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam; means for transmitting a first reference signal to a receiving entity using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; means for transmitting a second reference signal to a receiving entity using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or wherein the UE further includes means for transmitting timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0309] In one embodiment, a base station (BS) includes: means for maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of downlink (DL) beam pairs, each DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam; means for transmitting a first reference signal to a user equipment (UE) using a first DL beam pair from the plurality of DL beam pairs; means for transmitting a second reference signal to the UE using a second DL beam pair from the plurality of DL beam pairs; and wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the UE based on timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair, respectively; or wherein the BS further includes: means for transmitting timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair to the UE; means for transmitting timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair to a positioning entity; or means for adjusting a timing report received from the UE using the timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair.

[0310] In one embodiment, a base station (BS) includes: means for maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of uplink (UL) beam pairs, each UL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam; means for measuring a first reference signal using the first UL beam pair from the plurality of UL beam pairs based on timing information for the first UL beam pair; and means for measuring a second reference signal using the second UL beam pair from the plurality of UL beam pairs based on timing information for the second UL beam pair; and means for reporting beam timing for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on timing information for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0311] In one embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing an instruction set comprising one or more instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors of a user equipment (UE), cause the UE to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair comprising a downlink (DL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the DL beam pair comprising a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam, the SL beam pair comprising a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam; measure a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measure a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity; and wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

[0312] In one embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing an instruction set comprising one or more instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors of a UE, cause the UE to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair comprising an uplink (UL) beam pair or a sidelink (SL) beam pair, the UL beam pair comprising a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam, the SL beam pair comprising a UE transmit beam and a UE receive beam; transmit a first reference signal to a receiving entity using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; transmit a second reference signal to a receiving entity using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity based on timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or wherein the instructions further cause the UE to transmit timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

[0313] In one embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing an instruction set containing one or more instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors of a base station (BS), cause the BS to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of downlink (DL) beam pairs, each DL beam pair including a base station transmit beam and a UE receive beam; transmit a first reference signal to a user equipment (UE) using a first DL beam pair from the plurality of DL beam pairs; and use the DL beam pairs from the plurality of DL beam pairs... The second DL beam pair is used to transmit a second reference signal to the UE, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the UE based on timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair, respectively; or wherein the instruction further causes the BS to perform the following operations: transmit timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair to the UE; transmit timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair to the positioning entity; or adjust the timing report received from the UE using the timing information for the first DL beam pair and the second DL beam pair.

[0314] In one embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing an instruction set comprising one or more instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors of a base station (BS), cause the BS to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of uplink (UL) beam pairs, each UL beam pair including a UE transmit beam and a base station receive beam; measure a first reference signal using the first UL beam pair from the plurality of UL beam pairs according to the timing information for the first UL beam pair; measure a second reference signal using the second UL beam pair from the plurality of UL beam pairs according to the timing information for the second UL beam pair; and report beam timing for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal, reporting beam timing, or both are performed according to the timing information for the first UL beam pair and the second UL beam pair.

[0315] Those skilled in the art will understand that a variety of different techniques and methods can be used to represent information and signals. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols and chips mentioned throughout the foregoing description can be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or light particles or any combination thereof.

[0316] Furthermore, those skilled in the art will understand that the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the patterns disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability between hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above in terms of their general functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the system as a whole. Those skilled in the art can implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application, but these pattern decisions should not be construed as causing a departure from the scope of this disclosure.

[0317] The various schematic logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the present invention can be implemented or performed using a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, 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 can be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor can be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0318] The methods, sequences, and / or algorithms described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be directly embodied in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or a combination of both. The software module can reside in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROMs, or any other form of storage media known in the art. Example storage media is coupled to a processor, enabling the processor to read information from and write information to the storage media. Alternatively, the storage media can be integrated into the processor. The processor and storage media can reside in an ASIC. The ASIC can reside in a user terminal (e.g., a UE). Alternatively, the processor and storage media can reside as discrete components in the user terminal.

[0319] In one or more example states, the function may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the function may be stored on or transmitted via a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or code. A computer-readable medium includes both computer storage media and communication media, including any media that facilitates the transfer of computer programs from one location to another. A storage medium may be any available media accessible to a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media may include: RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk memory, disk memory, or other magnetic storage devices, or any other media capable of carrying or storing desired program code accessible to a computer in the form of instructions or data structures. Furthermore, any connection will be appropriately referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if 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, then coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of media. The disks and optical discs used herein include: compact discs (CDs), laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs (DVDs), floppy disks, and Blu-ray discs, wherein disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while optical discs reproduce data optically using lasers. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0320] While the foregoing disclosure illustrates an illustrative form of this disclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modifications may be made herein without departing from the scope of this disclosure as defined in the appended claims. The functions, steps, and / or actions of the method claims according to the form of this disclosure described herein do not need to be performed in any particular order. Furthermore, although elements of this disclosure may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural form is contemplated unless expressly stated to be limited to the singular. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0016] The accompanying drawings are provided to help describe various aspects of this disclosure, and are provided for illustrative purposes only and not to limit the scope of the disclosure:

[0017] Figure 1 illustrates an example wireless communication system according to various aspects of this disclosure.

[0018] Figures 2A and 2B show example wireless network structures of various forms according to this disclosure.

[0019] Figures 3A to 3C are simplified block diagrams of several example configurations of components that can be used in user equipment (UE), base stations and network entities and configured to support communications as taught herein.

[0020] Figures 4A to 4D are illustrations of example frame structures and channels within frame structures according to various forms of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating an example base station communicating with an example UE in various forms according to the present disclosure.

[0022] Figure 6 shows an example of downlink arrival time difference (DL-TDoA).

[0023] Figures 7 to 10 illustrate example methods of various wireless communication methods according to the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the UE and a transmit beam of a base station or another UE; measure a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measure a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity, wherein, The measurement of the first reference signal and the measurement of the second reference signal, and the reporting of the beam timing, or both, are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

2. For example, in request item 1, the UE, where, The at least one processor is further configured to: report the timing information for the first beam pair and the timing information for the second beam pair to the transmitting entity; or indicate to the transmitting entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

3. For example, in request item 1, the UE, where, The first reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same PRS beam or a different PRS beam.

4. For example, in request item 1, the UE, where, The transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

5. As in request item 4 for the UE, where, The first beam pair and its receiving beam and the second beam pair and its receiving beam are located in different receiving timing error groups.

6. For the UE in request item 1, where, Measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time of arrival (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information for each beam pair.

7. For the UE in request item 1, where, Reporting beam timing based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information of each beam pair.

8. For the UE in request item 1, where, Maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, each carrier, or a combination thereof.

9. A user equipment (UE) comprising: memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the UE and a receive beam of a base station or another UE; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a first reference signal to a receiving entity using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a second reference signal to the receiving entity using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs, wherein, The first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or the at least one processor is further configured to transmit the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

10. As in request item 9 for the UE, where, The at least one processor is further configured to: report the timing information for the first beam pair and the timing information for the second beam pair to the receiving entity; or indicate to the receiving entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

11. As in request item 9 for the UE, where, The first reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same SRS beam or a different SRS beam.

12. For the UE in request item 11, where, The transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

13. As in request item 9 for the UE, where, Maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, each carrier, or a combination thereof.

14. A base station (BS) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the base station and a receive beam of a user equipment (UE); cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and wherein, The first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively; or wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: cause the at least one transceiver to transmit the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the UE; cause the at least one transceiver to transmit the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the positioning entity; or use the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to adjust the timing report received from the UE.

15. As per request item 14 of the BS, where, The at least one processor is further configured to: receive timing information for the first beam pair and timing information for the second beam pair from the UE; or receive an indication from the UE that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

16. As per request item 14 of the BS, where, The first reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same PRS beam or a different PRS beam.

17. As per request item 16 of the BS, where, The transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

18. As in Request 14 of the BS, where, Maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, each carrier, or a combination thereof.

19. A base station (BS) comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor being configured to: maintain timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the base station and a transmit beam of a user equipment (UE); measure a first reference signal using the timing information for a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measure a second reference signal using the timing information for a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and report beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein, The measurement of the first reference signal and the measurement of the second reference signal, the reporting of the beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

20. As per BS of request item 19, where, The at least one processor is further configured to: calculate reference signal timing based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair; report the timing information for the first beam pair and the timing information for the second beam pair to the positioning entity; or instruct the UE that the base station has the capability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

21. As per BS of request item 19, where, The first reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same SRS beam or a different SRS beam.

22. As per BS of request item 19, where, The transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

23. As per BS of request item 22, where, The first beam pair and its receiving beam and the second beam pair and its receiving beam are located in different receiving timing error groups.

24. As per BS of request item 19, where, Measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time of arrival (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information for each beam pair.

25. As per BS of request item 19, where, Reporting beam timing based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information of each beam pair.

26. As per BS of request item 19, where, Maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, each carrier, or a combination thereof.

27. A method of performing wireless communication by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the UE and a transmit beam of a base station or another UE; measuring a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measuring a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and reporting beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a transmitting entity, wherein, The measurement of the first reference signal and the measurement of the second reference signal, the reporting of the beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

28. The method of claim 27 further includes at least one of the following: reporting the timing information for the first beam pair and the timing information for the second beam pair to the transmitting entity; or instructing the transmitting entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

29. The method of request item 27, wherein, The first reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same PRS beam or a different PRS beam.

30. The method as described in request item 27, wherein, The transmit beam of the first beam pair is the same as the transmit beam of the second beam pair, and wherein the receive beam of the first beam pair is different from the receive beam of the second beam pair.

31. As in request item 30, wherein, The first beam pair and its receiving beam and the second beam pair and its receiving beam are located in different receiving timing error groups.

32. The method of request item 27, wherein, Measuring the first reference signal and measuring the second reference signal based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time of arrival (ToA) of each reference signal based on the timing information for each beam pair.

33. As in request item 27, wherein, Reporting beam timing based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair includes: calculating the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the first reference signal and the second reference signal based on the arrival time (ToA) of each reference signal and the timing information of each beam pair.

34. As in request item 27, wherein, Maintaining timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs includes maintaining individual timing for each beam pair based on each frequency band, each combination of frequency bands, each carrier, or a combination thereof.

35. A method of performing wireless communication by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the UE and a receive beam of a base station or another UE; The first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs is used to transmit the first reference signal to the receiving entity; And using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs to transmit a second reference signal to the receiving entity, wherein the first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted to the receiving entity based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or wherein the UE transmits the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the receiving entity.

36. The method of claim 35 further includes at least one of the following: reporting the timing information for the first beam pair and the timing information for the second beam pair to the receiving entity; or instructing the receiving entity that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

37. As in request item 35, wherein, The first reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same SRS beam or a different SRS beam.

38. A method for performing wireless communication by a base station (BS), the method comprising: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a transmit beam of the base station and a receive beam of a user equipment (UE); transmitting a first reference signal using a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and transmitting a second reference signal using a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; wherein, The first reference signal and the second reference signal are transmitted based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair, respectively, or the method further includes at least one of the following: transmitting the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to the UE, transmitting the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, or using the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to adjust the timing report received from the UE.

39. The method of claim 38 further includes at least one of the following: receiving from the UE the timing information for the first beam pair and the timing information for the second beam pair; or receiving from the UE an indication that the UE has the ability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

40. As in request item 38, wherein, The first reference signal includes a positioning reference signal (PRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same PRS beam or a different PRS beam.

41. A method for performing wireless communication by a base station (BS), the method comprising: maintaining timing information for each of a plurality of beam pairs, each beam pair including a receive beam of the base station and a transmit beam of a user equipment (UE); measuring a first reference signal using the timing information for a first beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; measuring a second reference signal using the timing information for a second beam pair from the plurality of beam pairs; and reporting beam timing for the first beam pair and the second beam pair to a positioning entity, wherein, The measurement of the first reference signal and the measurement of the second reference signal, the reporting of the beam timing, or both are performed based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair.

42. The method of claim 41 further includes at least one of the following: calculating reference signal timing based on the timing information for the first beam pair and the second beam pair; reporting the timing information for the first beam pair and the timing information for the second beam pair to the positioning entity; or instructing the UE that the base station has the capability to maintain timing information for each of the plurality of beam pairs.

43. As in request item 41, wherein, The first reference signal includes a probe reference signal (SRS) beam, and the second reference signal includes the same SRS beam or a different SRS beam.

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