Human proximity sensor using short-range radar

Abstract

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) determines a mutual coupling signal associated with a transmit antenna and a receive antenna, determines a mutual coupling difference between the mutual coupling signal and a reference signal, determines a beat signal difference between a current beat signal and a previous beat signal, and determines an amount of micro-motion that is present within a near field. The UE determines whether human tissue is present within the near field based on the mutual coupling difference and the amount of micro-motion. Based on determining that the human tissue is present within the near field, the UE determines an amount of radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue. Based on determining that the amount of radio frequency exposure exceeds a maximum permissible exposure, the UE reduces the amount of radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The various aspects of this disclosure generally relate to near-field detection of human tissues. [Previous Technology]

[0002] Wireless communication systems have evolved through several 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, internet-enabled wireless services, 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 systems 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.

[0003] The fifth-generation (5G) wireless standard, known as New Radio (NR), requires higher data transmission speeds, more connections, better coverage, and other improvements. The 5G standard, according to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, is designed to provide tens of millions of bits per second of data to each of tens of thousands of users, and billions of bits per second of data to dozens of employees in an office. To support large-scale sensor deployments, it should support hundreds of thousands of simultaneous connections. Therefore, the spectrum efficiency of 5G mobile communications should be significantly improved compared to the current 4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiency should be improved and latency greatly reduced compared to the current standard. [Summary of the Invention]

[0004] The following is a simplified summary of the invention relating to one or more aspects disclosed herein. Therefore, the following summary should not be considered a broad overview relating to all anticipated aspects, nor should it be thought to identify key or essential elements relating to all anticipated aspects or to define the scope associated with any particular aspect. Thus, the following summary has the sole purpose of presenting, in a simplified form, certain concepts relating to one or more aspects of the apparatus disclosed herein, prior to the detailed embodiments presented below.

[0005] In one aspect, a user equipment performs a method for detecting the proximity of human tissue. The method includes: determining an inter-coupled signal associated with a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna of the user equipment; determining an inter-coupled difference between the inter-coupled signal and a reference inter-coupled signal; determining a beat signal difference between a current beat signal and a previous beat signal; determining a micro-motion quantity present in the near field of the user equipment, at least in part based on the beat signal difference; determining the presence of human tissue in the near field of the user equipment based on the inter-coupled difference and the micro-motion quantity; determining a radio frequency exposure level associated with the human tissue based on the determination that human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment; and reducing the radio frequency exposure level associated with the human tissue based on the determination that the radio frequency exposure level exceeds a maximum permissible exposure.

[0006] In one aspect, a user equipment 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 is configured to: determine an inter-coupling signal associated with a transmit antenna and a receive antenna of the user equipment; determine an inter-coupling difference between the inter-coupling signal and a reference inter-coupling signal; determine a beat signal difference between a current beat signal and a previous beat signal; determine a micro-motion quantity present in the near field of the user equipment, at least in part based on the beat signal difference; determine the presence of human tissue in the near field of the user equipment based on the inter-coupling difference and the micro-motion quantity; determine a radio frequency exposure level associated with the human tissue based on the determination that human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment; and reduce the radio frequency exposure level associated with the human tissue based on the determination that the radio frequency exposure level exceeds a maximum permissible exposure.

[0007] In one aspect, an apparatus includes: means for determining mutual coupling signals associated with a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna of the apparatus; means for determining a mutual coupling difference between the mutual coupling signal and a reference mutual coupling signal; means for determining a beat signal difference between a current beat signal and a previous beat signal; means for determining micro-motion quantities present in the near field of the apparatus based at least in part on the beat signal difference; means for determining the presence of human tissue in the near field of the apparatus based on the mutual coupling difference and the micro-motion quantities; means for determining a radio frequency exposure quantity associated with human tissue based on determining the presence of human tissue in the near field of the apparatus; and means for reducing the radio frequency exposure quantity associated with human tissue based on determining that the radio frequency exposure quantity exceeds a maximum permissible exposure.

[0008] In one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium stores instructions for one or more processors to perform the following operations: determining an inter-coupled signal associated with a transmit antenna and a receive antenna of a user equipment; determining an inter-coupled difference between the inter-coupled signal and a reference inter-coupled signal; determining a beat signal difference between a current beat signal and a previous beat signal; determining, at least in part, a micro-motion quantity present in the near field of the user equipment based on the beat signal difference; determining, based on the inter-coupled difference and the micro-motion quantity, whether human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment; determining, based on the determination that human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment, a radio frequency exposure quantity associated with the human tissue; and reducing the radio frequency exposure quantity associated with the human tissue based on the determination that the radio frequency exposure quantity exceeds the maximum permissible exposure.

[0009] Other objects and advantages associated with the aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the accompanying drawings and detailed description.

Implementation Method

[0019] Aspects of this disclosure are provided in the following description and in the accompanying drawings with reference to various examples provided for illustrative purposes. Alternative aspects may be devised without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Furthermore, well-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.

[0020] The terms "exemplary" and / or "example" are used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" and / or "example" is not necessarily to be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other aspects. Similarly, the term "aspect" in this disclosure does not require that all aspects of this disclosure include the features, advantages, or modes of operation discussed.

[0021] Next-generation 5G cellular systems utilize the millimeter-wave (mmW) portion of the spectrum, which has a large available bandwidth enabling high-speed data rates (e.g., gigabits per second (Gbps)). In many countries, radio transmissions in the millimeter-wave spectrum (e.g., 28 billion Hz, 39 GHz, etc.) are subject to strict regulations regarding exposure to living bodies and human tissue. For example, in the United States, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) stipulates that for frequencies greater than 6 GHz, the maximum permissible exposure (MPE) is 1 milliwatt (mW) per square centimeter (cm²). When a user equipment (UE) uses, for example, high beamforming gain to transmit at high power (Tx), the MPE may be exceeded. In the case of a handheld UE (e.g., a smartphone), the FCC requires the UE to detect when human tissue is within close proximity (e.g., 4 centimeters (cm) or less) of the UE's radiating element. This close proximity area is referred to as the near field. The systems and techniques described herein enable near-field detection of human tissue.

[0022] In one aspect, the systems and techniques described herein can be used to perform near-field detection of human tissue based on detecting disturbances in mutual coupling. In Wi-Fi radar (also known as radio frequency (RF) sensing), packets are transmitted by the UE's transmit (Tx) antenna array and received almost immediately (e.g., simultaneously) by the UE's receive (Rx) antenna array. The Rx antennas receive the transmitted packets in the form of (i) direct transmission and (ii) reflected transmission. Reflected transmission may be the result of the transmitted packets being reflected from an object in the near field, such as human tissue (e.g., a user's hand). Mutual coupling describes the energy absorbed by the Rx antenna when the Tx antenna transmits, for example, direct transmission. Detecting disturbances in mutual coupling is effective when a moving target is detected in the detection area (e.g., the proximity area), such as when a user's hand moves very close to the UE.

[0023] The reference cross-coupled signal can be repeatedly (e.g., substantially continuously) compared with the received coupled signal to determine whether a change has occurred due to an object (e.g., human tissue) in the near field. The received coupled signal includes static and dynamic components indicating the motion of the object in the near field. In some aspects, the measure used to quantify the similarity between these signals is based on the elimination depth of the reciprocal of the mean square error (MSE) (e.g., 1 / MSE). The reference cross-coupled signal can be determined by extracting the static component from the received coupled signal using a low-pass filter.

[0024] When a user holds the UE or places their hand near the UE, human tissue may undergo relatively small movements (e.g., micro-movements), which can lead to minute changes in mutual coupling. A static human hand exhibits similar characteristics to mutual coupling; for example, the reflected signal remains relatively constant across multiple observations. Therefore, monitoring mutual coupling can cause the system to "learn" the presence of a static hand, potentially making the hand's presence part of the reference signal, resulting in a high cancellation depth. When the cancellation depth is relatively high (e.g., greater than or equal to a threshold), the detector can determine that no human tissue is present in the near field, thus failing to detect the presence of a static hand. To enable the detection of a static hand in the near field, the system and techniques are enhanced to detect micro-movements. Typically, even when body parts are stationary, such as when a hand is placed on a table (e.g., near the UE), humans are susceptible to tremors (e.g., nerve-induced tingling). The system and techniques are enhanced to detect micro-movements caused by nerve impulses and to slow down the learning rate of the adaptive filter. For example, after the system and techniques detect micro-movements, the value of the pole filter is changed (e.g., increased) to preserve previously learned mutual couplings and reduce the learning rate associated with the static hand. Therefore, systems and techniques for detecting disturbances in mutual coupling can be enhanced to detect when a user's hand is relatively stationary (e.g., without movement) when it is close to the UE.

[0025] This system and technology can detect micro-motion in the near field of a UE by determining the difference (delta) between the current beat signal and the previous beat signal. In a frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar system, a linear frequency modulated (chirp) signal is transmitted using a Tx antenna. A linear frequency modulated signal is a frequency-modulated signal with a known stable frequency, the instantaneous frequency of which is linearly varied by the modulated signal over a fixed time period (scan time). The transmitted signal hits a target (e.g., a human hand) and is reflected to produce a reflected signal received by the Rx antenna. The frequency difference between the received and transmitted signals increases with increasing delay, where the delay is linearly proportional to the distance (e.g., the distance between the target and the radar). The echo from the target mixes with the transmitted signal and is down-converted to produce the beat signal. If the environment is static (e.g., without any motion, including micro-motion), the difference between the current beat signal and the previous beat signal may be caused by noise. If micro-motion is present in the environment, the difference between the current beat signal and the previous beat signal may be greater than the noise due to the disturbance caused by the micro-motion. For this reason, Rise-over-Noise (RoN) can be used to determine the presence of micro-motion in the near field. In a static environment, RoN is close to 1 (e.g., 0 dB). When micro-motion is present, RoN is greater than 1. The amount of noise present can be obtained by various methods, including, for example, the negative frequency of the beat signal, using the preamble or subsequent sample of the beat signal, etc. The learning rate of the inter-coupled monitoring system can be adjusted based on the amount of micro-motion present. For example, the inter-coupled monitoring system can use a single-pole infinite impulse and response (IIR) filter with poles adjusted based on RoN. Additionally, in some aspects, smoothing filters can be applied to RoN to reduce the influence of noise.

[0026] Those skilled in the art will understand that any of a variety of different technologies and techniques 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 referenced throughout the following specification may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, light fields or particles or any combination thereof, depending in part on the specific application, in part on the required design, and in part on the appropriate technology, etc.

[0027] Furthermore, many aspects are described according to sequences of actions performed, for example, by elements of a computing device. It will be appreciated that the various actions described herein can be performed by specific circuitry (e.g., an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions being executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, the sequences of actions described herein can be considered entirely embodied in any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium in which a corresponding set of computer instructions is stored, which, when executed, will cause or instruct the associated processor of the device to perform the functionality described herein. Therefore, various aspects of this disclosure can be embodied in many different forms, all of which are considered to be within the scope of the claimed subject matter. Furthermore, for each aspect described herein, the corresponding form of any such aspect may be described herein as, for example, "logic" "configured" to perform the described actions.

[0028] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, the terms “User Equipment” (UE) and “Base Station” are not intended to be specific 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, notebook computer, consumer asset positioning 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 (e.g., at certain times) stationary and can communicate with a Radio Access Network (RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” is interchangeably referred to as “Access Terminal” or “AT”, “Client Equipment”, “Wireless Equipment”, “Subscriber Equipment”, “Subscriber Terminal”, “Subscriber Station”, “User Terminal” or “UT”, “Mobile Equipment”, “Mobile Terminal”, “Mobile Station”, or variations thereof. Typically, a UE can communicate with the core network via the RAN, and the UE can connect to external networks such as the Internet and other UEs via the core network. Of course, other mechanisms for connecting the UE to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible, such as via wired access networks, wireless local area networks (WLANs) (e.g., based on the IEEE 802.11 standard), etc.

[0029] The base station may operate according to one of several RATs communicating with the UE, depending on the network in which it is deployed, and may be alternatively referred to as an access point (AP), network node, NodeB, evolved NodeB (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), new radio (NR) NodeB (also known as gNB or gNodeB), etc. The base station may primarily be used to support the UE's radio access, including supporting data, voice, and / or signaling connections for the supported UE. In some systems, the base station may provide purely edge node signaling functions, while in others, it may provide additional control and / or network management functions. The UE may transmit signals to the base station via a communication link, referred to as an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., reverse flow channel, reverse control channel, access channel, etc.). The base station may send signals to the UE via a communication link, referred to as a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g., paging channel, control channel, broadcast channel, forward flow channel, etc.). As used in this article, the term Traffic Channel (TCH) can refer to either the uplink / reverse or downlink / forward traffic channel.

[0030] The term "base station" can refer to a single entity transmit-receive point (TRP) or multiple entity TRPs, which may be co-located or non-co-located. For example, when the term "base station" refers to a single entity TRP, the entity TRP may be the antenna of a base station corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) of the base station. The term "base station" can also refer to multiple co-located entity TRPs, where the entity TRPs may be antenna arrays of a base station (e.g., in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system, or where the base station employs beamforming). The term "base station" can also refer to multiple non-co-located entity TRPs, where the entity TRPs may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network of spatially separated antennas connected to a common source via a transmission medium) or a remote radio headend (RRH) (a remote base station connected to a serving base station). Alternatively, a non-co-located entity 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. Because, as used herein, the TRP is the point at which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, references to transmissions from or receptions from a base station should be understood as referring to the 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., may not support the UE's data, voice, and / or signaling connections), but instead sends reference signals to the UE for measurement by the UE, and / or can receive and measure signals sent by the UE. Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when sending signals to the UE) and / or as 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 space between a transmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may send 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 RF signal transmitted on different paths between the transmitter and receiver may be referred to as a "multipath" RF signal. As used herein, an RF signal may also be referred to as a "wireless signal" or simply a "signal," where, from the context, the term "signal" refers to a wireless signal or an RF signal.

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

[0034] Base station 102 can collectively form a RAN and interface with core network 170 (e.g., evolved packet core (EPC) or 5G core (5GC)) via backhaul link 122, and via core network 170 to one or more location servers 172 (e.g., location management function (LMF) or secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)). The location servers (multiple) 172 can be part of core network 170 or outside of core network 170. Among other functions, base station 102 can also perform functions related to one or more of the following: transmitting 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 delivery of warning messages. Base stations 102 can communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via EPC / 5GC) on a backhaul link 134, which can be wired or wireless.

[0035] Base station 102 can wirelessly communicate with UE 104. Each base station 102 can provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. In one aspect, base station 102 in each geographic coverage area 110 can support one or more cells. A "cell" is a logical communication entity used to communicate with a base station (e.g., via some frequency resources, referred to as carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, frequency band, etc.), and can be associated with an identification code (e.g., Entity Cell Identifier (PCI), Enhanced Cell Identifier (ECI), Virtual Cell Identifier (VCI), Global Cell Identifier (CGI), etc.) 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 particular base station supports a cell, the term "cell" can refer to one or both of the logical communication entity and the base station that supports that logical communication entity, depending on the context. Furthermore, since the TRP is generally the physical transmission point of a cell, the terms "cell" and "TRP" can be used interchangeably. In some cases, the term "cell" can also refer to the geographical coverage area of ​​a base station (e.g., a sector), as long as the carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication within certain parts of the geographical coverage area 110.

[0036] Although the geographic coverage areas 110 of adjacent macro cell base stations 102 may partially overlap (e.g., in handover areas), some geographic coverage areas 110 may substantially overlap with larger geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell base station 102' (labeled as "SC" for "small cell") may have a geographic coverage area 110' that substantially overlaps with the geographic coverage areas 110 of one or more macro cell base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell base stations and macro cell 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 called 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 asymmetrical relative 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 also include a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150, which communicates with a WLAN station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in unlicensed spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in unlicensed spectrum, the WLAN STA 152 and / or WLAN AP 150 may perform an idle channel assessment (CCA) or listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure 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 the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102' employing LTE / 5G in unlicensed spectrum can increase coverage and / or capacity of the access network. NR in unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as NR-U. LTE in unlicensed spectrum can be referred to as LTE-U, Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), or MulteFire.

[0040] The wireless communication system 100 may also include a millimeter-wave (mmW) base station 180, which can communicate with the UE 182 at mmW and / or near-mmW frequencies. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that contains radio frequency (RF). EHF has a range between 30 GHz and 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 to frequencies up to 3 GHz with wavelengths 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 radio bands has high path loss and a 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 should be understood that in alternative configurations, one or more base stations 102 may also use mmW or near-mmW and beamforming for transmission. Therefore, it should be understood that the foregoing description is merely illustrative and should not be construed as limiting the various aspects 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 (omnidirectional). By transmitting beamforming, the network node determines the location of a given target device (e.g., a UE) 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 (multiple) receiving devices. 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 generates an RF beam that can be "steered" to point in different directions without actually moving the antennas. Specifically, RF currents from the transmitters are fed to the respective antennas in the correct phase relationship, such that the radio waves from the respective antennas are added together to increase radiation in the desired direction while canceling out radiation in the undesired direction.

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

[0043] 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 the gain level of that RF signal). 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 interference plus noise ratio (SINR), etc.) of the RF signal received from that direction.

[0044] The transmit and receive beams can be spatially related. Spatial relationship means that parameters of the second beam (e.g., transmit or receive beam) of the second reference signal can be derived from information about the first beam (e.g., receive beam or transmit beam) of the first reference signal. For example, the UE can use a specific receive beam to receive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., synchronization signal block (SSB)) from a base station. The UE can then form a transmit beam for transmitting an uplink reference signal (e.g., sounding reference signal (SRS)) to that base station based on the parameters of the receive beam.

[0045] 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 a UE, then the downlink beam is a transmit beam. However, if a UE is forming a downlink beam, then it is a receive beam used to receive 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, then it is an uplink receive beam, and if a UE is forming an uplink beam, then it is an uplink transmit beam.

[0046] In 5G, the spectrum in which wireless nodes (e.g., base stations 102 / 180, UEs 104 / 182) operate is divided into several frequency ranges: FR1 (from 450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (from 24250 to 52600 MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). The mmW band typically includes the FR2, FR3, and FR4 frequency ranges. Therefore, the terms "mmW" and "FR2" or "FR3" or "FR4" are often used interchangeably.

[0047] In multi-carrier systems (such as 5G), one carrier frequency is called the "primary carrier," "anchor carrier," "primary serving cell," or "PCell," and the remaining carrier frequencies are called "secondary carriers," "secondary serving cells," or "SCell." In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) of the cell in which UE 104 / 182 performs the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carrier carries all common and UE-specific control channels and can be a carrier in a licensed frequency (however, not always). The secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g., FR2) that can be configured once an RRC connection is established between UE 104 and the anchor carrier and can be used to provide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carrier can be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. Secondary carriers may contain only the necessary signaling information and signals. For example, since the primary uplink and downlink carriers are typically UE-specific, the UE-specific information and signals may not be present in 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. For example, this is done to balance the load on different carriers. Because a "serving cell" (whether PCell or SCell) corresponds to the carrier frequency / component carrier on which some base stations are 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 rate achieved by a single 20 MHz carrier, two 20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would 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, any of the UEs shown (displayed as a single UE 104 in Figure 1 for simplicity) can receive signal 124 from one or more Earth orbiting space vehicles (SVs) 112 (e.g., satellites). In one aspect, SV 112 may be part of a satellite positioning system, which UE 104 may use as an independent source of location information. A satellite positioning system generally includes a transmitter system (e.g., SV 112) positioned such that receivers (e.g., UE 104) can determine their location on or above the Earth based at least in part on positioning signals (e.g., signal 124) received from the transmitter. Such transmitters generally transmit signals marked with a set number of repeating pseudo-random noise (PN) codes. While generally located in SV 112, the transmitter may sometimes be located at a ground control station, base station 102, and / or other UEs 104. UE 104 may include one or more dedicated receivers specifically designed to receive signal 124 used to derive geolocation information from SV 112.

[0051] In a satellite positioning system, the use of signal 124 can be enhanced by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) that may be associated with or otherwise enabled by 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 Geosynchronous Navigation Coverage Service (EGNOS), Multifunctional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), GPS-assisted Geo-Augmented Navigation, or GPS and Geo-Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN). Therefore, as used herein, a satellite positioning system may include any combination of one or more global and / or regional navigation satellites associated with such one or more satellite positioning systems.

[0052] In one respect, additionally or alternatively, SV 112 may be part of one or more non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In an NTN, SV 112 is connected to a ground station (also referred to as a ground control station, NTN gateway, or gateway), which in turn is connected to elements in the 5G network, such as a modified base station 102 (without a ground antenna) or a network node in a 5 GC. This element will then provide access to other elements in the 5G network and ultimately provide access to entities outside the 5G network, such as internet network servers and other user equipment. In this way, UE 104 can receive communication signals (e.g., signal 124) from SV 112 instead of from ground base station 102, or receive communication signals other than those from ground base station 102.

[0053] The wireless communication system 100 may also 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) point-to-point (P2P) links (referred to as "side links"). 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., through which UE 190 can indirectly obtain cellular connectivity), and a D2D P2P link 194 connected to a WLAN STA 152 connected to a WLAN AP 150 (through which UE 190 can indirectly obtain WLAN-based network connectivity). In the 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.

[0054] 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 (C-plane) functions 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gateway selection, etc.) and user plane (U-plane) functions 212 (e.g., UE gateway functions, access to the data network, IP routing, etc.), which operate collaboratively 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 user plane function 212 and the control plane function 214, respectively. In an additional configuration, the ng-eNB 224 can also be connected to the 5GC 210 via the NG-C 215 and to the control plane function 214, and to the user plane function 212 via the NG-U 213. Furthermore, the ng-eNB 224 can communicate directly with the gNB 222 via backhaul connection 223. In some configurations, the next-generation RAN (NG-RAN) 220 may have one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of both ng-eNB 224 and gNB 222. The gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 (or both gNB 222 and ng-eNB 224) can communicate with one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any UE described herein).

[0055] Another optional aspect may include a location server 230, which can communicate with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance to the UE 204. The location server 230 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 alternatively, each server may correspond to a single server. The location server 230 may be configured to support one or more location services for the UE 204, which may be connected to the location server 230 via the core network, the 5GC 210, and / or via the Internet (not shown). Furthermore, the location server 230 may be integrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively, it may be located outside the core network (e.g., a third-party server, such as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or a service server).

[0056] Figure 2B illustrates another example wireless network architecture 250. For example, 5GC 260 (which may correspond to 5GC 210 in Figure 2A) can be functionally considered as control plane functions provided by Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 264 and user plane functions provided by User Plane Function (UPF) 262, which cooperate to form the core network (i.e., 5GC 260). The functions of the AMF 264 include registration management, connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception, transmission of session management (SM) messages between one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any UE described herein) and session management function (SMF) 266, transparent proxy service for routing SM messages, access authentication and access approval, transmission of short message service (SMS) messages between UE 204 and short message service function (SMSF) (not shown), and security anchor function (SEAF). The AMF 264 also interacts with the 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 authentication based on the UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) Subscriber Identity Module (USIM), the AMF 264 retrieves security material from the AAUSF. The AMF 264 also includes Security Context Management (SCM). The SCM receives a key from the SEAF, which is used to derive an access network-specific key. The AMF 264 also includes location service management for regulatory services, transmission of location service messages between UE 204 and the Location Management Function (LMF) 270 (which acts as a location server 230), transmission of location service messages between NG-RAN 220 and LMF 270, allocation of EPS bearer identifiers for interaction with the Evolved Packet System (EPS), and notification of UE 204 mobility events. In addition, the AMF 264 also supports non-3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) access network functionality.

[0057] 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 interconnected with a data network (not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, traffic steering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usage reporting, user plane Quality of Service (QoS) processing (e.g., uplink / downlink rate enhancement, reflected QoS marking in downlink), uplink traffic verification (Service Data Stream (SDF) to QoS stream mapping), transport level packet marking in uplink and downlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, and transmitting and forwarding one or more "end markers" to the source RAN node. UPF 262 can also support the transfer of location service messages on the user plane between UE 204 and a location server such as SLP 272.

[0058] 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 steering at UPF 262 to route traffic to appropriate destinations, control of QoS and partial policy enforcement, and downlink information notification. The interface through which SMF 266 communicates with AMF 264 is called the N11 interface.

[0059] Another optional aspect 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 alternatively, each server may correspond to a single server. The LMF 270 may be configured to support one or more location services of the UE 204, which may be connected to the LMF 270 via the core network, the 5GC 260, and / or via the Internet (not shown). The SLP 272 can support similar functions to the LMF 270, but the LMF 270 can communicate with the AMF 264, NG-RAN 220 and UE 204 through the control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to convey signaling messages instead of voice or data), while the SLP 272 can communicate with the UE 204 and external clients (not shown in Figure 2B) through the user plane (e.g., using protocols intended to carry voice and / or data, such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and / or IP).

[0060] The user plane interface 263 and the control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC 260 (specifically the UPF 262 and AMF 264) to one or more gNBs 222 and / or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220, respectively. The interface between the (multiple) gNBs 222 and / or the (multiple) ng-eNBs 224 and the AMF 264 is referred to as the "N2" interface, and the interface between the (multiple) gNBs 222 and / or the (multiple) ng-eNBs 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the "N3" interface. The (multiple) gNBs 222 and / or the (multiple) ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220 can communicate directly with each other via a backhaul connection 223 referred to as the "Xn-C" interface. One or more of gNB 222 and / or ng-eNB 224 can communicate with one or more UE 204s through a wireless interface called the "Uu" interface.

[0061] The functionality of gNB 222 is divided between gNB Central Unit (gNB-CU) 226 and one or more gNB Distributed Units (gNB-DU) 228. The interface 232 between gNB-CU 226 and one or more gNB-DU 228 is referred to as the "F1" interface. gNB-CU 226 is a logical node that includes base station functions such as user data transfer, mobility control, radio access network sharing, location, and session management, in addition to those functions specifically allocated to gNB-DU 228. More specifically, gNB-CU 226 hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) protocols of gNB 222. gNB-DU 228 is a logical node that hosts the Radio Link Control (RLC), Media Access Control (MAC), and Physical (PHY) layers of gNB 222. Its operation is controlled by gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 can support one or more cells, and a cell is supported by only one gNB-DU 228. Therefore, UE 204 communicates with gNB-CU 226 via RRC, SDAP, and PDCP layers, and with gNB-DU 228 via RLC, MAC, and PHY layers.

[0062] Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate several example components (represented by corresponding blocks), base station 304 (which may correspond to any UE described herein), and network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any network functionality described herein, including location server 230 and LMF 270, or alternatively, independent of the NG-RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260 infrastructure described in Figures 2A and 2B, such as a private network) that can be incorporated into support the file transfer operations described herein. It will be understood that these components can be implemented in different types of devices in different implementations (e.g., in an ASIC, in a system-on-a-chip (SoC)). The components shown can also be incorporated into other devices in a communication system. For example, other devices in the system may include components similar to those described to provide similar functionality. Moreover, a given device may contain one or more of the components. For example, a device may include multiple transceiver components that enable the device to operate on multiple carriers and / or communicate via different technologies.

[0063] UE 302 and base station 304 each include one or more wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, providing components (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, components for measurement, components for tuning, components for suppressing transmission, etc.) for communication via one or more wireless communication networks (not shown) (such as NR networks, LTE networks, GSM networks, etc.). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 may be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356, respectively, for communication with other network nodes (such as 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 certain set of time / frequency resources in a specific spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 can be configured differently according to a specified RAT to transmit and encode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.), and conversely, to receive and decode signals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). Specifically, the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 each include one or more transmitters 314 and 354 for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and 358, and one or more receivers 312 and 352 for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively.

[0064] UE 302 and base station 304 also include, at least in some cases, one or more short-range radio transceivers 320 and 360, respectively. The short-range radio 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 measurement, components for tuning, components for suppressing transmission, etc.) for communicating with other network nodes (such as other UEs, access points, base stations, etc.) over a radio 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 according to a specified RAT to transmit and encode signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.), 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, 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.

[0065] UE 302 and base station 304 also include satellite signal receivers 330 and 370, at least in some cases. Satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and 376, respectively, and may each provide components for receiving and / or measuring satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378. When satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellite positioning system receivers, satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may be Global Positioning System (GPS) signals, Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals, BeiDou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. When satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378 may be communication signals originating from a 5G network (e.g., carrying control and / or user data). The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing satellite positioning / communication signals 338 and 378, respectively. Depending on the circumstances, the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may request information and operation from other systems, and in some cases, perform calculations using measurements obtained through any suitable satellite positioning system algorithm to determine the location of the UE 302 and the base station 304.

[0066] Base station 304 and network entity 306 each include one or more network transceivers 380 and 390, providing components (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, etc.) for communicating with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, other network entities 306). For example, base station 304 may use one or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other base stations 304 or network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links. As another example, network entity 306 may use one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or more base stations 304 via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, or to communicate with other network entities 306 via one or more wired or wireless core network interfaces.

[0067] The transceiver can be configured to communicate via a wired or wireless link. The transceiver (whether wired or wireless) includes transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) and receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362). In some embodiments, the transceiver may be an integrated device (e.g., embodying transmitter and receiver circuitry in a single device), in some embodiments it may include separate transmitter and receiver circuitry, or in other embodiments it may be embodied in other ways. The transmitter and receiver circuitry of a wired transceiver (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some embodiments) may be coupled to one or more wired network interface ports. As described herein, wireless transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as antenna arrays, which allow corresponding devices (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform transmit beamforming. Similarly, as described herein, wireless receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352, 362) may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as antenna arrays, which allow corresponding devices (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receive beamforming. On one hand, the transmitter and receiver circuitry may share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that each device can only receive or transmit at a given time, rather than simultaneously receiving and transmitting. Wireless transceivers (e.g., WWAN transceivers 310 and 350, short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include network listening modules (NLMs) for performing various measurements.

[0068] As used herein, various wireless transceivers (e.g., transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, and network transceivers 380 and 390 in some embodiments) and wired transceivers (e.g., network transceivers 380 and 390 in some embodiments) can generally be referred to as "transceiver," "at least one transceiver," or "one or more transceivers." Therefore, whether a particular transceiver is a wired or wireless transceiver can be inferred from the type of communication performed. For example, backhaul communication between network devices or servers will typically involve signaling via a wired transceiver, while wireless communication between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station (e.g., base station 304) will typically involve signaling via a wireless transceiver.

[0069] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 also include other components that can be used in conjunction with operations as disclosed herein. UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 each include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394 for providing functions related to, for example, wireless communication, and for providing other processing functions. Processors 332, 384, and 394 can therefore provide components for processing, such as components for determining, components for calculating, components for receiving, components for transmitting, components for indicating, etc. In one aspect, processors 332, 384, and 394 may include, for example, one or more general-purpose processors, multi-core processors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signal processors (DSPs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), other programmable logic devices or processing circuits, or various combinations thereof.

[0070] UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 respectively include memory circuitry implementing memories 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., each includes a memory device) for maintaining information (e.g., information indicating reserved resources, thresholds, parameters, etc.). Memories 340, 386, and 396 can therefore provide components for storage, retrieval, maintenance, etc. In some cases, UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306 may respectively include proximity sensing modules 342, 388, and 398. These proximity sensing modules 342, 388, and 398 may be hardware circuitry, respectively, as part of or coupled to processors 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 respects, proximity sensing modules 342, 388, and 398 may be external to processors 332, 384, and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated with another processing system, etc.). Alternatively, proximity sensing modules 342, 388, and 398 may be memory modules stored in memories 340, 386, and 396, respectively, which, when executed by processors 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 proximity sensing module 342, which may be part of one or more WWAN transceivers 310, memory 340, one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component. Figure 3B illustrates the possible locations of the proximity sensing module 388, which may be part of one or more WWAN transceivers 350, memory 386, one or more processors 384, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component. Figure 3C illustrates the possible locations of the proximity sensing module 398, which may be part of one or more network transceivers 390, memory 396, one or more processors 394, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component.

[0071] UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to one or more processors 332 to provide motion and / or orientation information for sensing or detecting motion data derived independently from signals received from one or more WWAN transceivers 310, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and / or satellite receivers 330. As an example, the sensors 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, the sensors 344 may include multiple different types of devices and combine their outputs to provide motion information. For example, the sensors 344 may use a combination of multi-axis accelerometers and orientation sensors to provide the ability to calculate positioning in two-dimensional (2D) and / or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate systems.

[0072] Additionally, UE 302 includes a user interface 346 that provides components for providing instructions to a user (e.g., auditory and / or visual instructions) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., user actuation for sensing devices such as keyboards, touchscreens, microphones, etc.). Although not shown, base station 304 and network entity 306 may also include user interfaces.

[0073] Referring more specifically to one or more processors 384, in the downlink, IP packets from network entity 306 may be provided to processor 384. One or more processors 384 may implement functions for the RRC layer, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and Media Access Control (MAC) layer. One or more processing systems 384 may provide RRC layer functions associated with broadcasting system information (e.g., Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), RAT mobility, and measurement configuration 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 transmission, error correction via Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ), concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC service data units, 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 priority ordering.

[0074] 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 transmission channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transmission 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 segmented into parallel streams. Each stream can then be mapped to an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time and / or frequency domains, and then combined using an Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. OFDM symbol streams are spatially pre-coded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator can be used to determine coding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. 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 modulate an RF carrier using the corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0075] At UE 302, receiver 312 receives signals via corresponding antenna 316. Receiver 312 recovers information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides this information to one or more processors 332. Transmitter 314 and receiver 312 implement Layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. Receiver 312 can perform spatial processing on this 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 a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to convert the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain. This frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. By determining the most probable signal constellation point transmitted by base station 304, symbols on each subcarrier, as well as the reference signal, can be recovered and demodulated. 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 one or more processors 332 that implement Layer 3 (L3) and Layer 2 (L2) functions.

[0076] In the uplink, one or more processors 332 provide 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. One or more processors 332 are also responsible for error detection.

[0077] Similar to the functions described in conjunction with the downlink transmission of base station 304, one or more processing systems 332 provide RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions associated with transmission 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 MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request), priority processing and logical channel priority ordering.

[0078] The channel estimate derived by the channel estimator from the reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 can be used by the transmitter 314 to select an appropriate decoding and modulation scheme and facilitate spatial processing. The spatial stream generated by the transmitter 314 can be provided to (multiple) different antennas 316. The transmitter 314 can use the corresponding spatial stream to modulate the RF carrier for transmission.

[0079] 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 one or more processors 384.

[0080] In the uplink, one or more processors 384 provide 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 one or more processors 384 can be provided to the core network. One or more processors 384 are also responsible for error detection.

[0081] For convenience, Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate UE 302, base station 304, and / or network entity 306, including various components that can be configured according to the various examples described herein. However, it will be understood that the illustrated components may have different functions in different designs. In particular, the various components in Figures 3A through 3C are interchangeable in alternative configurations, and various aspects include configurations that may vary due to design choices, cost, device usage, or other considerations. For example, in the case of Figure 3A, a particular implementation of UE 302 may omit (multiple) WWAN transceivers 310 (e.g., wearable devices, tablets, PCs, or laptops may have Wi-Fi and / or Bluetooth capabilities but no cellular capabilities), or (multiple) short-range transceivers 320 (e.g., cellular only), or (satellite receiver 330), or (multiple) sensors 344, etc. In another example, in the case of Figure 3B, a particular implementation of base station 304 may omit (multiple) WWAN transceivers 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi "hotspot" access point without cellular capability), or (multiple) short-range wireless transceivers 360 (e.g., cellular only), or (satellite receiver 370), etc. For the sake of brevity, various alternative configurations are not described herein, but will be readily understood by those skilled in the art.

[0082] 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. In one aspect, data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 can form or be part of the communication interface for UE 302, base station 304, and network entity 306, respectively. For example, when different logical entities are embodied in the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functions are integrated into the same base station 304), data buses 334, 382, ​​and 392 can provide communication between them.

[0083] The components of Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C can be implemented in various ways. In some embodiments, the components of Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C can be implemented in one or more circuits (such as, for example, one or more processors and / or one or more ASICs (which may include one or more processors)). 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 functionality. For example, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 310 to 346 can be implemented by the processor and(multiple) memory components of UE 302 (e.g., by the execution of appropriate code and / or by the appropriate configuration of the processor components). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 350 to 388 can be implemented by the processor and(multiple) memory components of base station 304 (e.g., by the execution of appropriate code and / or by the appropriate configuration of the processor components). Furthermore, some or all of the functions represented by boxes 390 to 398 can be implemented by the processor and (multiple) 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, as will be understood, 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, and 394, transceivers 310, 320, 350, and 360, memory 340, 386, and 396, proximity sensing modules 342, 388, and 398, etc.

[0084] In some designs, network entity 306 may be implemented as a core network component. In other designs, network entity 306 may operate differently from a network operator or cellular network infrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and / or 5GC 210 / 260). For example, network entity 306 may be a component of a private network that can be configured to communicate with UE 302 via base station 304 or independently of base station 304 (e.g., via a non-cellular communication link, such as WiFi).

[0085] Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating various components of an example UE 400 according to various aspects of this disclosure. In one aspect, UE 400 may correspond to any UE described herein. As a specific example, UE 400 may be a V-UE, such as V-UE 160 in Figure 1. For simplicity, the various features and functions shown in the block diagram of Figure 4 are connected together using a common data bus intended to represent that these different features and functions are operatively coupled together. Those skilled in the art will recognize that other connections, mechanisms, features, functions, etc., may be provided and adapted as needed to operatively couple and configure the actual UE. Furthermore, it should be recognized that one or more of the features or functions shown in the example of Figure 4 may be further subdivided, or two or more of the features or functions shown in Figure 4 may be combined.

[0086] UE 400 may include at least one transceiver 404, which is connected to one or more antennas 402 and provides components (e.g., components for transmitting, components for receiving, components for measurement, components for tuning, components for suppressing transmission, etc.) for communicating with other network nodes (such as V-UEs (e.g., V-UE 160), infrastructure access points (e.g., roadside access points), P-UEs (e.g., UE 104), base stations (e.g., base station 102), etc.) via at least one designated RAT (e.g., cV2X or IEEE 802.11p) on one or more communication links (e.g., communication link 120, sidelinks 162, 166, 168, mmW communication link 184). At least one transceiver 404 may be configured differently according to the designated RAT for transmitting and encoding signals (e.g., messages, indications, information, etc.) and conversely for receiving and decoding signals (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, etc.). On one hand, at least one transceiver 404 and (multiple) antennas 402 can form a (wireless) communication interface for the UE 400.

[0087] As used herein, a transceiver may include at least one transmitter and at least one receiver in some embodiments of an integrated device (e.g., transmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry embodied as a single communication device), in some embodiments may include separate transmitter and separate receiver devices, or in other embodiments may be embodied in other ways. As described herein, on one hand, a transmitter may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 402), such as an antenna array, which allows the UE 400 to perform transmit beamforming. Similarly, as described herein, a receiver may include or be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 402), such as an antenna array, which allows the UE 400 to perform receive beamforming. On one hand, the multiple transmitters and multiple receivers share the same multiple antennas (e.g., antennas 402), such that the UE 400 can only receive or transmit at a given time, rather than simultaneously. In some cases, the transceiver may not be able to provide both transmit and receive functionality simultaneously. For example, in some designs, low-function receiver circuitry (e.g., receiver chips or similar circuitry that only provides low-level sniffing) can be used to reduce costs when full communication is not required.

[0088] UE 400 may also include a Satellite Positioning Service (SPS) receiver 406. SPS receiver 406 may be connected to one or more antennas 402 and may provide components for receiving and / or measuring satellite signals. SPS receiver 406 may include any suitable hardware and / or software for receiving and processing SPS signals, such as Global Positioning System (GPS) signals. Where appropriate, SPS receiver 406 requests information and operation from other systems and performs calculations necessary to determine the positioning of UE 400 using measurements obtained through any suitable SPS algorithm.

[0089] One or more sensors 408 may be coupled to at least one processor 410 and may provide components for sensing or detecting information related to the state and / or environment of the UE 400, such as speed, heading (e.g., compass heading), headlight status, fuel consumption, etc. For example, one or more sensors 408 may include speedometers, tachometers, accelerometers (e.g., microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices), gyroscopes, geomagnetic sensors (e.g., compasses), altimeters (e.g., barometric altimeters), etc.

[0090] At least one processor 410 may include one or more central processing units (CPUs), microprocessors, microcontrollers, ASICs, processing cores, digital signal processors (DSPs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), etc., that provide processing functions and other computing and control functions. Therefore, at least one processor 410 may provide components for processing, such as components for determining, components for calculating, components for receiving, components for transmitting, components for indicating, etc. At least one processor 410 may include any form of logic suitable for performing or causing components of UE 400 to perform at least the techniques described herein.

[0091] At least one processor 410 may also be coupled to memory 414, which provides components for storing data (including components for retrieval, components for maintenance, etc.) and software instructions for performing programmed functions within the UE 400. Memory 414 may be on at least one processor 410 (e.g., within the same integrated circuit (IC) package), and / or memory 414 may be external to at least one processor 410 and functionally coupled via a data bus.

[0092] UE 400 may include a user interface 450 providing any suitable interface system, such as a microphone / speaker 452, a keyboard 454, and a display 456 allowing users to interact with UE 400. The microphone / speaker 452 may provide voice communication services with UE 400. The keyboard 454 may include any suitable buttons for user input to UE 400. The display 456 may include any suitable display, such as, for example, a backlit liquid crystal display (LCD), and may also include a touch display for additional user input modes. Therefore, the user interface 450 may be a component for providing instructions to the user (e.g., auditory and / or visual instructions) and / or for receiving user input (e.g., user actuation via sensing devices such as a keyboard, touch screen, microphone, etc.).

[0093] In one aspect, UE 400 may include a side link manager 470 coupled to at least one processor 410. The side link manager 470 may be a hardware, software, or firmware component that, when executed, causes UE 400 to perform the operations described herein. For example, the side link manager 470 may be a software module stored in memory 414 and executable by at least one processor 410. As another example, the side link manager 470 may be hardware circuitry within UE 400 (e.g., an ASIC, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), etc.).

[0094] Figure 5 is a block diagram 500 illustrating aspects of this disclosure for detecting the presence of human tissue in a detection area. The UE 400 may create a detection area 502 at a distance 504 around the UE 400 to detect the presence of human tissue such as a hand 506. For example, in the United States, the distance 504 may be at least 4 cm to comply with FCC regulations. Of course, in other countries, the distance 504 may not be 4 cm to comply with local regulations.

[0095] The UE 400 may periodically (or substantially continuously) transmit packets 508 from the transmit (Tx) antenna (array) 510, which are received by the receiver (Rx) antenna (array) 512. One or more transceivers 404 may be used to transmit and receive packets 508. Packets 508 may be used to create a detection zone 502 using Wi-Fi-based radar technology.

[0096] Comparison module 518 can monitor the inter-coupled signal 516 to detect disturbances (e.g., changes) in the inter-coupled signal 516. For example, when comparison module 518 detects a disturbance in the inter-coupled signal 516, UE 400 can determine that human tissue (such as hand 506) is present in detection area 502. Comparison module 518 can use filter 520 to compare reference signal 522 with inter-coupled signal 516. For example, in some aspects, filter 520 can be implemented as an infinite impulse and response (IIR) filter. Scaling module 524 can be used to scale the output of filter 520 to provide a scaled output 525 for determining cancellation depth 526.

[0097] Exposure adjustment module 528 can determine whether the elimination depth 526 exceeds a threshold 532, indicating that human tissue (such as hand 506) is in detection area 502. Exposure adjustment module 528 can use a maximum permissible exposure (MPE) 530 set by a regulatory agency (such as, for example, the FCC in the United States) to determine whether to modify (e.g., reduce) the power level 536 of transceiver 404. For example, if exposure adjustment module 528 determines that the elimination depth 526 is relatively low (e.g., below threshold 532), exposure adjustment module 528 can determine that no human tissue is present in detection area 502. If exposure adjustment module 528 determines that the elimination depth 526 is greater than or equal to threshold 532, exposure adjustment module 528 can determine that human tissue (such as hand 506) is present in detection area 502 and provide instructions 534 to one or more transceivers 404 to reduce the amount of power used to transmit packets 508, thereby reducing the exposure of human tissue. In this way, disturbances in the intercoupled signal 516 can be monitored to determine whether human tissue, such as a hand 506, is present in the detection area 502 (e.g., near field) around the UE 400.

[0098] Therefore, the UE 400 can repeatedly (e.g., substantially continuously) compare the reference signal 522 with the received intercoupled signal 516 to determine whether a change has occurred due to the presence of human tissue (e.g., hand 506) in the detection area 502 (e.g., near field). The received intercoupled signal 516 includes a static component 537 and a dynamic component 538. The dynamic component 538 indicates the motion of human tissue (e.g., hand 506) in the detection area 502. An elimination depth 526 is used to quantify the similarity between the intercoupled signal 516 and the reference signal 522. In some aspects, the elimination depth 526 is based on the reciprocal of the mean square error (MSE), e.g., 1 / MSE. The reference signal 522 can be determined by extracting the static component 537 from the received intercoupled signal 516 using a low-pass filter 520.

[0099] In some respects, the elimination depth 526 ("CancDepth") can be determined according to the following formula: where: n = sample index y(n) = mutual coupling signal 516 ypostIC = scaled output 525 (e.g., post-interference cancellation (IC)) ϵ(n) = residual after elimination σn = noise P = target type, for example, open space (OS) occurs when human tissue is absent (e.g., not present) and threshold 532 = approximately 50 dB.

[0100] When a user holds or places their hand near the UE 400, human tissue may undergo relatively small movements (e.g., micro-movements), resulting in minute changes in the mutual coupling signal 516. A static human hand (e.g., hand 506) has similar characteristics to mutual coupling; for example, the reflected signal remains relatively constant across multiple observations. Therefore, monitoring the mutual coupling signal 516 may cause the UE 400 to "learn" the presence of the static hand 506, which may cause the presence of the hand 506 to become part of the reference signal 522, resulting in a high value of the elimination depth 526. Consequently, the comparison module 518 incorrectly determines that no human tissue is present in the detection area 502, thus failing to detect the presence of the static hand 506. To enable the detection of the static hand 506 in the detection area 502, as shown in FIG. 6, the system shown in FIG. 5 can be enhanced to detect micro-movements.

[0101] Figure 6 is a block diagram 600 illustrating the detection of micro-motion in a detection area according to various aspects of the present disclosure. Block diagram 600 can detect micro-motion in a detection area 502 (e.g., near field) of UE 400 by determining the difference between the current beat signal 602 and the previous beat signal 603. The previous beat signal 603 is processed using delay 612 so that the current beat signal 602 can be compared with the previous beat signal 603. For example, in a frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar system, a linear frequency modulated signal is transmitted using a Tx antenna 510 to generate the transmitted signal 604. The linear frequency modulated signal is an FM-modulated signal with a known stable frequency whose instantaneous frequency changes linearly over a fixed time period (scan time) by the modulation signal. The transmitted signal 604 hits a target (e.g., hand 506) and is reflected to generate a reflected signal 606 received by the Rx antenna 512. The frequency difference between the feedback signal 606 and the transmitted signal 604 increases with increasing delay, where the delay is linearly proportional to the range (e.g., the distance between the target and the radar). The reflected signal 606 (e.g., echo) from the target (e.g., hand 506) is mixed with the transmitted signal 604 and down-converted to produce a beat signal 602.

[0102] If the detection area 502 is static (e.g., no movement, including no micro-motion), the difference 614 between the beat signal 602 and the previous beat signal 603 may be primarily caused by noise 618. Even if the hand 506 is relatively static, micro-motion is present in the detection area 502 if the hand 506 is present. When micro-motion caused by the hand 506 is present, the difference 614 between the beat signal 602 and the previous beat signal 603 (after scaling using scaling 610) may be higher than the noise 618 due to the disturbance caused by the micro-motion. Therefore, the noise rise (RoN) 616 can be used to determine whether micro-motion is present in the detection area 502 (e.g., near field). RoN 616 can be determined, for example, by dividing the difference 614 by the noise 618. When there is no micromotion in the detection area 502 (e.g., hand 506 is absent), RoN 616 can be approximately 1 (e.g., corresponding to 0 dB). When there is micromotion in the detection area 502, RoN 616 is greater than 1. The amount of present noise 618 can be obtained by various methods, including, for example, the negative frequency of the beat signal 602, using a leading or following sample of the beat signal 602, another technique, or any combination thereof. The learning rate of the UE 400 can be adjusted based on the amount of micromotion present in the detection area 502. For example, the UE 400 can use a filter 520, which is implemented using a single-pole infinite impulse and response (IIR) filter with a pole adjustable based on RoN 616. Additionally, in some aspects, to reduce the effect of noise, a smoothing filter 620 can be applied to RoN 616 to produce a smooth signal 622.

[0103] Therefore, Figure 6 illustrates a system that can be used to (1) detect when human tissue (such as hand 506) enters detection area 502 and (2) detect when human tissue is present in detection area 502 (even if the human tissue is relatively static) by detecting micro-motions generated by human tissue. The system detects when human tissue enters detection area 502 by monitoring perturbations in the mutual coupling signal 516 of Figure 5. The system detects micro-motions generated by human tissue in detection area 502 by monitoring RoN 616.

[0104] In the flowchart of Figure 7, each box represents one or more operations that can be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination thereof. In the context of software, a box represents a computer-executable instruction that, when executed by one or more processors, causes the processor to perform the listed operations. Typically, computer-executable instructions include routines, programs, objects, modules, components, data structures, etc., that perform a particular function or implement a particular type of abstract data. The order in which the boxes are described is not intended to be construed as limiting, and any number of described operations can be combined in any order and / or in parallel to implement the process. For purposes of discussion, process 700 is described with reference to Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, although other models, frameworks, systems, and environments may be used to implement the process, as stated above.

[0105] Figure 7 illustrates an example process 700 according to various aspects of this disclosure, including reducing radio frequency exposure associated with human tissue. Process 700 can be performed by the UE 400 of Figures 4, 6, and 7.

[0106] At 702, the UE can determine the mutual coupling signal associated with the UE's transmit antenna and receive antenna. For example, in FIG. 5, the comparison module 518 can determine the mutual coupling signal 516. In one aspect, 702 can be performed by the processor 410, the memory 414 (e.g., the comparison module 518), and at least one transceiver 404, any one or all of which can be considered as components for performing this operation.

[0107] At 704, the UE can determine the inter-coupling difference between the inter-coupled signal and the reference inter-coupled signal. For example, in FIG. 5, the comparison module 518 can compare the inter-coupled signal 516 with the reference signal 522 to determine an elimination depth 526 indicating the difference between the inter-coupled signal 516 and the reference signal 522. In one aspect, 704 can be performed by the processor 410, the memory 414 (e.g., which stores the comparison module 518), and at least one transceiver 404, any one or all of which can be considered as components other than those used to perform this operation.

[0108] At 706, the UE can determine the presence of human tissue in the near field of the user equipment based on the mutual coupling difference. For example, in FIG. 5, the exposure adjustment module 528 can use the elimination depth 526 (e.g., determined based on the difference between the mutual coupling signal 516 and the reference signal 522) to determine the presence of human tissue (such as a hand 506) in the near field (e.g., detection area 502) of the UE 400. In one aspect, 706 can be performed by the processor 410 and the memory 414 (e.g., which stores the exposure adjustment module 528), either or both of which can be considered as components other than those used to perform this operation.

[0109] At 708, the UE can determine the radio frequency exposure associated with human tissue based on the determination that human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment. For example, in FIG. 5, the exposure adjustment module 528 can determine the power level 536 associated with the transceiver 404 to determine the radio frequency exposure of human tissue (e.g., hand 506) based on the determination of the presence of human tissue in the detection area 502 indicated by the elimination depth 526. In one aspect, 708 can be performed by the processor 410, the memory 414 (e.g., which stores the exposure adjustment module 528), and at least one transceiver 404, any one or all of which can be considered as components other than those used to perform this operation.

[0110] At 710, the UE can reduce the radio frequency exposure associated with human tissue based on determining that the radio frequency exposure exceeds the maximum permissible exposure. For example, in FIG6, the exposure adjustment module 528 can determine whether the power stage 536 exceeds the maximum permissible exposure 530. If the power stage 536 exceeds the maximum permissible exposure 530, the exposure adjustment module 528 can cause the transceiver 404 to reduce the amount of power used to transmit packets 508. In one aspect, 706 can be performed by the processor 410, and memory 414 (e.g., which stores the exposure adjustment module 528), and at least one transceiver 404, any one or all of which can be considered as components other than those used to perform this operation.

[0111] Therefore, the UE can monitor disturbances to the mutual coupling signal to detect the presence of human tissue in the detection area (e.g., near field) around the UE. If the UE detects the presence of human tissue, the UE checks the radio frequency transmission power and determines whether the amount of power used complies with the maximum permissible exposure limits stipulated by applicable local laws. If the amount of power used exceeds the maximum permissible exposure, the UE reduces the amount of power used to below the maximum permissible exposure. Therefore, the technical advantage of process 700 is that it enables the UE 400 to comply with the maximum permissible exposure rules. The second technical advantage is that the UE's tissue user will not be exposed to radiation exceeding the maximum permissible exposure limit, thereby protecting the user's health and well-being.

[0112] Figure 8 shows a graph of the elimination depth according to various aspects of this disclosure. In Figure 8, the realization is on the x-axis and the elimination depth 526 is on the y-axis. During the first time period 802 (e.g., realization from 0 to approximately 400), it is illustrated that when an open space (OS) is present, for example, when no human tissue is present, the elimination depth is 50 dB or greater.

[0113] During the second time period 804 (e.g., from approximately 401 to approximately 1400), the presence of human tissue (e.g., hand 506 in FIG. 5) causes the elimination depth 526 to decrease and remain below the threshold 532 (e.g., less than the threshold 532). Hand 506 may be relatively stationary during the second time period 804.

[0114] During the third time period 806 (e.g., from approximately 1401 to approximately 2400), human tissue is absent (e.g., there is an open space created by the removal of hand 506). During the third time period 806, the elimination depth 526 begins to increase until the elimination depth 526 is greater than the threshold 532.

[0115] Therefore, the system and techniques described herein enable the UE to detect the presence of human tissue (such as a hand) and to continue detecting human tissue even when the human tissue is relatively stationary. The system and techniques can also detect when the human tissue has been removed and is no longer present in the vicinity of the UE.

[0116] As can be seen from the detailed description above, different features are combined together in the examples. This manner of disclosure should not be construed as an intention to have more features than expressly mentioned in each clause. Rather, aspects of this disclosure may include fewer features than those in the individual example clauses disclosed. Therefore, the following clauses should be considered as incorporated into the specification, where each clause may serve as a separate example on its own. Although each dependent clause may refer in its respective clause to a specific combination with one of the other clauses, aspects of that dependent clause are not limited to that specific combination. It should be understood that other example clauses may also include combinations of aspects of a dependent clause with the subject matter of any other dependent or independent clause, or combinations of any feature with other dependent and independent clauses. These combinations are expressly included in the aspects disclosed herein unless expressly stated or readily inferred that a particular combination is not intentional (e.g., contradictory aspects, such as defining elements as insulators and conductors). Furthermore, aspects of a clause may be included in any other independent clause even if the clause does not directly depend on an independent clause. Examples of implementation are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0117] Clause 1: A method performed by a user equipment to detect the proximity of human tissue, the method comprising: determining an inter-coupled signal associated with a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna of the user equipment; determining an inter-coupled difference between the inter-coupled signal and a reference inter-coupled signal; determining a beat signal difference between a current beat signal and a previous beat signal; determining a micro-motion quantity present in the near field of the user equipment, at least in part based on the beat signal difference; determining the presence of human tissue in the near field of the user equipment based on the inter-coupled difference and the micro-motion quantity; determining a radio frequency exposure quantity associated with the human tissue based on the determination that the human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment; and reducing the radio frequency exposure quantity associated with the human tissue based on the determination that the radio frequency exposure quantity exceeds a maximum permissible exposure.

[0118] Item 2: The method according to Item 1, wherein the reference mutual coupling signal is determined when there is no human tissue in the near field of the user equipment.

[0119] Clause 3: The method according to any one of Clauses 1-2, wherein the near-field distance is at least 4 cm from the nearest outer surface of the user equipment.

[0120] Clause 4: The method according to any one of Clauses 1-3, wherein the maximum permissible exposure includes 1 milliwatt per square centimeter.

[0121] Clause 5: The method according to any one of Clauses 1-4 further includes: determining the presence of human tissue in the near field based on determining that the amount of micromotion present in the near field exceeds a threshold.

[0122] Clause 6: The method according to any one of Clauses 1-5 further includes: determining that no human tissue exists in the near field based on determining that the amount of micromotion present in the near field does not exceed a threshold.

[0123] Clause 7: The method according to any one of Clauses 1-6, wherein determining the micromotion quantities present in the near field of the user equipment includes: determining the noise quantity associated with the near field when human tissue is not present; and determining the noise increase based on the beat signal difference and the noise quantity.

[0124] Clause 8: The method described in Clause 7 further includes: determining that no human tissue is present in the near field based on determining that the noise level rises to approximately 1.

[0125] Clause 9: The method according to any one of Clauses 7-8 further includes: determining the presence of human tissue in the near field based on determining that the noise rise is greater than 1.

[0126] Those skilled in the art will understand that information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the foregoing specification can be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, light fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0127] Furthermore, those skilled in the art will understand that the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in conjunction with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability between hardware and software, the various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been generally described above in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the entire system. Those skilled in the art can typically implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application, but such implementation decisions should not be construed as departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[0128] The various illustrative logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or executed using a general-purpose processor, digital signal processor (DSP), application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof, designed to perform the functions described herein. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a digital signal processor (DSP) and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0129] The steps of the methods, sequences, and / or algorithms described in conjunction with the aspects 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 magnetic disks, compressed optical disc (CD) ROMs, optical discs, or any other form of storage media known in the art. Example storage media is coupled to a processor such that the processor can 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.

[0130] In one or more example aspects, the described functionality can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functionality can be stored as one or more instructions or code on or transmitted via a computer-readable medium. A computer-readable medium includes both computer storage media and communication media, wherein the communication media includes any media that facilitates the transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage medium can be any available media that is accessible to a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such a computer-readable medium can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other media that can be used to carry or store desired program code having an instruction or data structure form and is accessible to a computer. Furthermore, any connection is appropriately referred to as computer-readable media. For example, if software is delivered 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 all included in the definition of media. As used herein, disk and disc include CD, laser disc, optical disc, DVD, floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc, where disk typically reproduces data magnetically, and disc reproduces data optically via laser. The above combinations should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0131] Although the foregoing disclosure illustrates aspects 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 by the appended claims. The functions, steps, and / or actions of the method claims according to aspects 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, plural forms are contemplated unless explicitly stated otherwise. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0010] The accompanying drawings are provided to help describe various aspects of this disclosure, and are provided for illustrative purposes only and not for limiting the scope of the aspects.

[0011] Figure 1 illustrates an example wireless communication system according to various aspects of this disclosure.

[0012] Figures 2A and 2B illustrate example wireless network structures according to various aspects of this disclosure.

[0013] Figures 3A, 3B and 3C are simplified block diagrams of several example aspects of components that can be adopted in user equipment (UE), base station and network entity respectively and configured to support communications as taught herein.

[0014] Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating various components of an example user equipment (UE) according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0015] Figure 5 is a block diagram illustrating various aspects of the present disclosure for detecting the presence of human tissue in a detection area.

[0016] Figure 6 is a block diagram illustrating various aspects of the present disclosure for detecting micro-motion in a detection area.

[0017] Figure 7 illustrates a process for reducing radiofrequency exposure associated with human tissue according to various aspects of this disclosure.

[0018] Figure 8 shows a graph of the cancellation depth according to various aspects of this disclosure.

Claims

1. A method performed by a user device to detect the proximity of human tissue, the method comprising: Determine the inter-coupled signals associated with the transmitting and receiving antennas of the user equipment; Determine the intercoupling difference between the intercoupled signal and the reference intercoupled signal; Determine the beat signal difference between the current beat signal and the previous beat signal; The amount of micro-motion present in the near field of the user equipment is determined at least in part based on the beat signal difference; Based on the mutual coupling difference and the micro-motion quantity, it is determined whether human tissue exists in the near field of the user equipment; Based on determining that the human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment, the radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue is determined; And based on determining that the radio frequency exposure exceeds the maximum permissible exposure, reduce the radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue.

2. The method according to request item 1, wherein, The reference inter-coupling signal is determined when there is no human tissue in the near field of the user equipment.

3. The method according to request item 1, wherein, The near-field distance is at least 4 centimeters from the nearest outer surface of the user equipment.

4. The method according to request item 1, wherein, The maximum permissible exposure includes 1 milliwatt per square centimeter.

5. The method according to claim 1 further includes: Based on the determination that the micro-motion quantity present in the near field exceeds a threshold, it is determined that the human tissue exists in the near field.

6. The method according to claim 1 further includes: Based on the determination that the micro-motion quantity present in the near field does not exceed the threshold, it is determined that there is no human tissue in the near field.

7. The method according to request item 1, wherein, Determining the micromotion quantities present in the near field of the user equipment includes: determining the amount of noise associated with the near field when the human tissue is absent; and determining a noise increase based on the beat difference and the amount of noise.

8. The method according to claim 7 further includes: Based on the determination that the noise level rises to approximately 1, it is determined that the human tissue is not present in the near field.

9. The method according to claim 7 further includes: Based on the determination that the noise rises to a value greater than 1, it is determined that the human tissue exists in the near field.

10. A user equipment, 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: determine an inter-coupled signal associated with the transmit antenna and the receive antenna of the user equipment; Determine the intercoupling difference between the intercoupled signal and the reference intercoupled signal; Determine the beat signal difference between the current beat signal and the previous beat signal; The amount of micro-motion present in the near field of the user equipment is determined at least in part based on the beat signal difference; Based on the mutual coupling difference and the micro-motion quantity, it is determined whether human tissue exists in the near field of the user equipment; Based on determining that the human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment, the radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue is determined; And based on determining that the radio frequency exposure exceeds the maximum permissible exposure, reduce the radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue.

11. The user equipment according to claim 10, wherein, The reference inter-coupling signal is determined when there is no human tissue in the near field of the user equipment.

12. The user equipment according to claim 10, wherein, The near-field distance is at least 4 centimeters from the nearest outer surface of the user equipment.

13. The user equipment according to claim 10, wherein, The maximum permissible exposure includes 1 milliwatt per square centimeter.

14. The user equipment according to claim 10, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to: determine the presence of human tissue in the near field based on the determination that the amount of micro-motion present in the near field exceeds a threshold.

15. The user equipment according to claim 10, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the human tissue is not present in the near field based on the determination that the micro-motion quantity present in the near field does not exceed a threshold.

16. The user equipment according to claim 10, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to: determine the amount of noise associated with the near field when the human tissue is absent; and determine a noise increase based on the beat signal difference and the amount of noise.

17. The user equipment according to claim 16, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the human tissue is not present in the near field based on determining that the noise rises to approximately 1.

18. The user equipment according to claim 16, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to: determine the presence of the human tissue in the near field based on determining that the noise rises to a value greater than 1.

19. An apparatus comprising: Components used to determine the mutual coupling signal associated with the transmitting and receiving antennas of the device; A component for determining the inter-coupling difference between the inter-coupled signal and the reference inter-coupled signal; a component for determining the beat signal difference between the current beat signal and the previous beat signal; a component for determining, at least in part, the micro-motion quantities present in the near field of the device based on the beat signal difference; A component for determining the presence of human tissue in the near field of the device based on the mutual coupling difference and the micromotion; a component for determining the radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue based on the determination that the human tissue is present in the near field of the device; And a component for reducing the amount of radiofrequency exposure associated with the human tissue based on determining that the radiofrequency exposure exceeds the maximum permissible exposure.

20. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein, The reference mutual coupling signal is determined when there is no human tissue in the near field of the device.

21. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein, The near-field distance is at least 4 centimeters from the nearest outer surface of the device.

22. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein, The maximum permissible exposure includes 1 milliwatt per square centimeter.

23. The apparatus according to claim 22, further comprising: A component used to determine the presence of human tissue in the near field based on the determination that the amount of micro-motion present in the near field exceeds a threshold.

24. The apparatus according to claim 19, further comprising: A component used to determine that no human tissue exists in the near field based on the determination that the micro-motion quantity present in the near field does not exceed a threshold.

25. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein, Determining the micromotion quantities present in the near field of the device includes: means for determining the amount of noise associated with the near field when the human tissue is absent; and means for determining the noise increase based on the beat signal difference and the amount of noise.

26. The apparatus according to claim 25, further comprising: A component used to determine that the human tissue is not present in the near field based on determining that the noise rises to approximately 1.

27. The apparatus according to claim 25, further comprising: A component used to determine the presence of human tissue in the near field based on determining that the noise rises to a value greater than 1.

28. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions which, when performed by one or more processors, perform the following operations: determining an inter-coupling signal associated with a transmit antenna and a receive antenna of a user equipment; determining an inter-coupling difference between the inter-coupling signal and a reference inter-coupling signal; Determine the beat signal difference between the current beat signal and the previous beat signal; The amount of micro-motion present in the near field of the user equipment is determined at least in part based on the beat signal difference; Based on the mutual coupling difference and the micro-motion quantity, it is determined whether human tissue exists in the near field of the user equipment; Based on determining that the human tissue is present in the near field of the user equipment, the radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue is determined; And based on determining that the radio frequency exposure exceeds the maximum permissible exposure, reduce the radio frequency exposure associated with the human tissue.

29. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 28, wherein, The instructions are also executed by the one or more processors to: determine the presence of human tissue in the near field based on the determination that the amount of micromotion present in the near field exceeds a threshold.

30. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 28, wherein, The instructions are also executed by the one or more processors to: determine the amount of noise associated with the near field when the human tissue is absent; and determine a noise increase based on the beat difference and the amount of noise.

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