Positioning method, apparatus, communication device, communication system, and storage medium

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a positioning method, an apparatus, a device, and a storage medium. The method comprises: determining to perform sidelink (SL) positioning on a first terminal, wherein the first terminal is a target terminal needing to be positioned; and sending a first message, wherein the first message is used for requesting an SL positioning result of the first terminal. According to the method of the present disclosure, the situation where "an LMF performing a 5GC-MO-LR process may be different from an LMF performing related steps comprised in an SL-MT-LR process" is supported, thereby improving the positioning performance of SL positioning.

Description

Positioning method and device, communication equipment, communication system, and storage medium Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a positioning method and apparatus, a communication device, a communication system, and a storage medium. Background Art

[0002] In order to support direct communication between terminals, a sidelink (SL) communication method is introduced. Ranging refers to determining the distance between two or more terminals, or the direction from one terminal to another, through a PC5 interface. A PC5 interface refers to a communication interface between terminals, such as a short-range direct communication interface between vehicles, people, and road infrastructure. Sidelink SL positioning refers to estimating the position of a located terminal based on the sidelink SL. For example, ranging or sidelink SL positioning can be performed on a located terminal (e.g., a target terminal (target user equipment, target UE)) based on information from a terminal (e.g., a positioning terminal (located user equipment, located UE)). The reference terminal can be, for example, an SL reference terminal whose position is known or can be known in ranging or sidelink SL positioning. For another example, the relative position information of a terminal (e.g., a target terminal (target user equipment, target UE)) and another terminal (e.g., an SL reference terminal (sidelink reference user equipment, sidelink reference UE)) can be determined through ranging or sidelink SL positioning.

[0003] Summary of the Invention

[0004] The present disclosure provides a positioning method and apparatus, a communication device, a communication system, and a storage medium.

[0005] According to a first aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a positioning method is provided, which is performed by a first network element. The method includes:

[0006] Determine to perform sidelink (SL) positioning on a first terminal; wherein the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0007] A first message is sent, where the first message is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0008] According to a second aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a positioning method is proposed, which is performed by a third network element. The method includes:

[0009] receiving a first message sent by a first network element, where the first message is used to request a SL positioning result of a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal that needs to be positioned;

[0010] A fourth request is sent to the second network element, where the fourth request is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0011] According to a third aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a positioning method is proposed, which is performed by a second network element. The method includes:

[0012] receiving a fourth request sent by a third network element, or receiving a first message sent by a first network element; wherein the fourth request and the first message are used to request provision of an SL positioning result of a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0013] Determine a fifth network element, where the fifth network element is: a network element determined by the second network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process;

[0014] A fifth request is sent to the fifth network element, where the fifth request is used to request SL positioning of the first terminal.

[0015] According to a fourth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a positioning method is proposed, which is performed by a fourth network element or a fifth network element. The method includes:

[0016] Receiving a first message sent by a first network element, or receiving a fifth request sent by a second network element; wherein the first message or the fifth request is used to request an SL positioning process for a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0017] Performing a SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain a SL positioning result of the first terminal;

[0018] Send the SL positioning result.

[0019] According to a fifth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a first network element is provided, including:

[0020] A processing module, configured to determine to perform sidelink (SL) positioning on a first terminal; wherein the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0021] The transceiver module is used to send a first message, where the first message is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0022] According to a sixth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a third network element is provided, including:

[0023] a transceiver module, configured to receive a first message sent by a first network element, wherein the first message is used to request provision of an SL positioning result of a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0024] The transceiver module is further used to send a fourth request to the second network element, where the fourth request is used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0025] According to a seventh aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a second network element is provided, including:

[0026] a transceiver module, configured to receive a fourth request sent by a third network element, or to receive a first message sent by a first network element; wherein the fourth request and the first message are used to request provision of an SL positioning result of a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0027] a processing module, configured to determine a fifth network element, where the fifth network element is a network element determined by the second network element to send a second message to the first terminal via the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process;

[0028] The transceiver module is further used to send a fifth request to the fifth network element, where the fifth request is used to request SL positioning of the first terminal.

[0029] According to an eighth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a fourth network element or a fifth network element is proposed, including:

[0030] A transceiver module, configured to receive a first message sent by a first network element, or receive a fifth request sent by a second network element; wherein the first message and the fifth request are used to request an SL positioning process for a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0031] a processing module, configured to perform an SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain an SL positioning result of the first terminal;

[0032] The transceiver module is also used to send the SL positioning result.

[0033] According to a ninth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication device is provided, including:

[0034] one or more processors;

[0035] The processor is used to call instructions to enable the communication device to execute any one of the positioning methods described in the first to fourth aspects.

[0036] According to the tenth aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication system is proposed, characterized in that it includes a first network element, a second network element, a third network element, and also a fourth network element or a fifth network element, wherein the first network element is configured to implement the method described in the first aspect, the third network element is configured to implement the method described in the second aspect, the second network element is configured to implement the method described in the third aspect, and the fourth network element or the fifth network element is configured to implement the method described in the fourth aspect.

[0037] According to an eleventh aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, a storage medium is proposed, which stores instructions, and is characterized in that when the instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the positioning method as described in any one of the first to fourth aspects. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0038] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent and readily understood from the following description of the embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0039] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of some communication systems provided by embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0040] FIG2A is a schematic diagram of a flow chart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0041] FIG2B is a schematic diagram of a flow chart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0042] FIG2C is a schematic diagram of a flow chart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0043] FIG3A is a schematic flow chart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0044] FIG3B is a schematic flow chart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0045] FIG3C is a flowchart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0046] FIG3D is a schematic diagram of a flow chart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0047] FIG4A is a schematic flow chart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0048] FIG4B is a schematic flow chart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0049] FIG4C is a flowchart of a positioning method provided in yet another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0050] FIG5A is a schematic structural diagram of a first network element provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0051] FIG5B is a schematic structural diagram of a third network element provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0052] FIG5C is a schematic structural diagram of a second network element provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0053] FIG5D is a schematic structural diagram of a fourth network element or a fifth network element provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0054] FIG6A is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0055] FIG6B is a schematic structural diagram of a chip provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0056] The present disclosure provides positioning methods and apparatuses, communication devices, communication systems, and storage media. In some embodiments, the terms positioning method, information processing method, information sending method, and information receiving method are interchangeable; the terms communication device, information processing device, information sending device, and information receiving device are interchangeable; and the terms information processing system, communication system, information sending system, and information receiving system are interchangeable.

[0057] The embodiments of the present disclosure are not exhaustive and are merely illustrative of some embodiments, and are not intended to be a specific limitation on the scope of protection of the present disclosure. In the absence of contradiction, each step in a certain embodiment can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps can be arbitrarily combined. For example, a solution after removing some steps in a certain embodiment can also be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the order of the steps in a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily exchanged. In addition, the optional implementation methods in a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily combined; in addition, the embodiments can be arbitrarily combined. For example, some or all steps of different embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, and a certain embodiment can be arbitrarily combined with the optional implementation methods of other embodiments.

[0058] In each embodiment of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified or provided for by logic, the terms and / or descriptions between the embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form a new embodiment based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0059] The terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure.

[0060] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, elements expressed in the singular, such as "a", "an", "the", "above", "said", "the", "the", etc., may mean "one and only one", or "one or more", "at least one", etc. For example, when using articles such as "a", "an", "the" in English in translation, the noun following the article may be understood as a singular expression or a plural expression.

[0061] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, “plurality” refers to two or more.

[0062] In some embodiments, the terms "at least one of", "at least one of", "at least one of", "one or more", "a plurality of", "multiple", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0063] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, descriptions such as “at least one of A, B, C…”, “A and / or B and / or C…”, etc. include the situation where any one of A, B, C… exists alone, and also include any combination of any multiple of A, B, C…, and each situation can exist alone; for example, “at least one of A, B, C” includes the situation where A exists alone, B exists alone, C exists alone, the combination of A and B, the combination of A and C, the combination of B and C, and the combination of A, B, and C; for example, A and / or B includes the situation where A exists alone, B exists alone, and the combination of A and B.

[0064] In some embodiments, descriptions such as "in one case A, in another case B," or "in response to one case A, in response to another case B," may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: executing A independently of B (in some embodiments, A); executing B independently of A (in some embodiments, B); selectively executing A and B (in some embodiments, selecting between A and B); and executing both A and B (in some embodiments, A and B). The same applies when there are more branches, such as A, B, and C.

[0065] The prefixes such as "first" and "second" in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only used to distinguish different description objects and do not constitute any restriction on the position, order, priority, quantity or content of the description objects. For the statement of the description object, please refer to the description in the context of the claims or embodiments, and no unnecessary restriction should be constituted due to the use of prefixes. For example, if the description object is a "field", the ordinal number before the "field" in the "first field" and the "second field" does not limit the position or order between the "fields". "First" and "second" do not limit whether the "fields" they modify are in the same message, nor do they limit the order of the "first field" and the "second field". For another example, if the description object is a "level", the ordinal number before the "level" in the "first level" and the "second level" does not limit the priority between the "levels". For another example, the number of description objects is not limited by the ordinal number and can be one or more. Taking "first device" as an example, the number of "devices" can be one or more. In addition, the objects modified by different prefixes can be the same or different. For example, if the description object is "device", then the "first device" and the "second device" can be the same device or different devices, and their types can be the same or different; for another example, if the description object is "information", then the "first information" and the "second information" can be the same information or different information, and their contents can be the same or different.

[0066] In some embodiments, “including A,” “comprising A,” “used to indicate A,” and “carrying A” can be interpreted as directly carrying A or indirectly indicating A.

[0067] In some embodiments, terms such as "in response to...", "in response to determining...", "in the case of...", "at the time of...", "when...", "if...", "if...", etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0068] In some embodiments, terms such as "greater than", "greater than or equal to", "not less than", "more than", "more than or equal to", "not less than", "higher than", "higher than or equal to", "not less than", and "above" can be replaced with each other, and terms such as "less than", "less than or equal to", "not greater than", "less than", "less than or equal to", "not more than", "lower than", "lower than or equal to", "not higher than", and "below" can be replaced with each other.

[0069] In some embodiments, devices, etc. can be interpreted as physical or virtual, and their names are not limited to the names recorded in the embodiments. Terms such as "device", "equipment", "device", "circuit", "network element", "node", "function", "unit", "section", "system", "network", "chip", "chip system", "entity", and "subject" can be used interchangeably.

[0070] In some embodiments, "network" can be interpreted as devices included in the network (eg, access network equipment, core network equipment, etc.).

[0071] In some embodiments, the terms "access network device (AN device)", "radio access network device (RAN device)", "base station (BS)", "radio base station" "fixed station", "node", "access point", "transmission point (TP)", "reception point (RP)", "transmission / reception point (TRP)", "panel", "antenna panel", "antenna array", "cell", "macro cell", "small cell", "femto cell", "pico cell", "sector", "cell group", "carrier", "component carrier", "bandwidth part (BWP)" and the like may be used interchangeably.

[0072] In some embodiments, the terms "terminal", "terminal device", "user equipment (UE)", "user terminal", "mobile station (MS)", "mobile terminal (MT)", subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, etc. can be used interchangeably.

[0073] In some embodiments, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device can be replaced by a terminal. For example, the various embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to a structure in which the communication between the access network device, the core network device, or the network device and the terminal is replaced by communication between multiple terminals (for example, it can also be called device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X), etc.). In this case, it can also be set as a structure in which the terminal has all or part of the functions of the access network device. In addition, language such as "uplink" and "downlink" can also be replaced by language corresponding to communication between terminals (for example, "side"). For example, uplink channels, downlink channels, etc. can be replaced by side channels, and uplinks, downlinks, etc. can be replaced by side links.

[0074] In some embodiments, the terminal may be replaced by an access network device, a core network device, or a network device. In this case, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device may have a structure that has all or part of the functions of the terminal.

[0075] In some embodiments, obtaining data, information, etc. may comply with the laws and regulations of the country where the data is obtained.

[0076] In some embodiments, data, information, etc. may be obtained with the user's consent.

[0077] In addition, each element, each row, or each column in the table of the embodiment of the present disclosure can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the combination of any elements, any rows, and any columns can also be implemented as an independent embodiment.

[0078] The correspondences shown in the tables of the present disclosure can be configured or predefined. The values ​​of the information in each table are merely examples and can be configured to other values, which are not limited by the present disclosure. When configuring the correspondences between information and parameters, it is not necessarily required to configure all the correspondences shown in each table. For example, in the tables of the present disclosure, the correspondences shown in certain rows may not be configured. For another example, appropriate deformation adjustments can be made based on the above tables, such as splitting, merging, etc. The names of the parameters shown in the titles of the above tables may also adopt other names that can be understood by the communication device, and the values ​​or representations of the parameters may also adopt other values ​​or representations that can be understood by the communication device. When implementing the above tables, other data structures may also be used, such as arrays, queues, containers, stacks, linear lists, pointers, linked lists, trees, graphs, structures, classes, heaps, hash tables or hash tables, etc.

[0079] The predefined in the present disclosure may be understood as defined, predefined, stored, pre-stored, pre-negotiated, pre-configured, solidified, or pre-burned.

[0080] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 1, the communication system 100 may include a terminal, a core network device, and an access network device.

[0081] In some embodiments, the terminal includes, for example, a mobile phone, a wearable device, an Internet of Things device, a car with communication function, a smart car, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal device in a smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in a smart city, and at least one of a wireless terminal device in a smart home, but is not limited thereto.

[0082] In some embodiments, the access network device is, for example, a node or device that accesses a terminal to a wireless network. The access network device may include an evolved NodeB (eNB), a next generation evolved NodeB (ng-eNB), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a node B (NB), a home node B (HNB), a home evolved nodeB (HeNB), a wireless backhaul device, a radio network controller (RNC), a base station controller (BSC), a base transceiver station (BTS), a base band unit (BBU), a mobile switching center, a base station in a 6G communication system, an open base station (Open RAN), a cloud base station (Cloud RAN), a base station in other communication systems, and at least one of an access node in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system, but is not limited thereto.

[0083] In some embodiments, the access network device can be composed of a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU), where the CU can also be called a control unit. The CU-DU structure can be used to split the protocol layer of the access network device, with the functions of some protocol layers centrally controlled by the CU, and the functions of the remaining part or all of the protocol layers distributed in the DU, which is centrally controlled by the CU, but is not limited to this.

[0084] In some embodiments, the core network device may be a device including one or more network elements, or may be multiple devices or device groups, each including all or part of one or more network elements. The network element may be virtual or physical. The core network may include, for example, at least one of an Evolved Packet Core (EPC), a 5G Core Network (5GCN), and a Next Generation Core (NGC). Optionally, the core network device may include, for example, the following network elements:

[0085] A first network element, a location management function (LMF), optionally, the first network element may be a serving LMF network element of the terminal;

[0086] A second network element, an access and mobility management function (AMF), which may optionally be a serving AMF network element of the terminal;

[0087] The third network element is the Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC);

[0088] The fourth network element, LMF, wherein the fourth network element may be a network element selected by the first network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element. Optionally, the first terminal is a terminal that needs to be located in the location service (LCS) and is a target terminal (Target UE) in the SL positioning process. The second message may be a sidelink-mobile-terminated-location request (Sindlink-Mobile Terminated Location Request, SL-MT-LR).

[0089] The fifth network element, LMF, wherein the fifth network element may be a network element selected by the second network element to send the second message to the first terminal through the second network element.

[0090] It can be understood that the communication system described in the embodiment of the present disclosure is for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present disclosure, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure. Ordinary technicians in this field can know that with the evolution of the system architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solution proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure is also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0091] The following embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to the communication system 100 shown in Figure 1, or a portion thereof, but are not limited thereto. The entities shown in Figure 1 are illustrative only. The communication system may include all or part of the entities shown in Figure 1, or may include other entities outside of Figure 1. The number and form of the entities may be arbitrary. The connection relationship between the entities is illustrative only. The entities may be connected or disconnected, and the connection may be in any manner, including direct or indirect, wired or wireless.

[0092] The embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), LTE-Beyond (LTE-B), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4th generation mobile communication system (4G), 5th generation mobile communication system (5G), 5G new radio (NR), future radio access (FRA), new radio access technology (RAT), new radio (NR), new radio access (NX), future generation radio access (FX), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM (registered trademark)), CDMA2000, Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-WideBand (UWB), Bluetooth (registered trademark), Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) networks, Device-to-Device (D2D) systems, Machine-to-Machine (M2M) systems, Internet of Things (IoT) systems, Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), systems utilizing other positioning methods, and next-generation systems based on and extending these methods. Furthermore, a combination of multiple systems (e.g., a combination of LTE or LTE-A with 5G) may also be employed.

[0093] Optionally, the following terminals are usually used in the above-mentioned ranging or SL positioning process:

[0094] A target UE is a terminal whose distance, direction and / or position is obtained based on SL measurement in ranging or SL service with the support of one or more SL reference terminals.

[0095] SL Reference UE is a terminal that supports positioning of a target terminal, for example, by using SL to send and / or receive reference signals for positioning, provide positioning-related information, etc.

[0096] A located UE is a SL reference terminal whose location is known or can be determined using positioning based on the Uu interface. The located UE can be used to determine the location of a target terminal using SL positioning.

[0097] SL Positioning Client UE refers to a third-party terminal other than the SL reference terminal, target terminal, positioning terminal, etc. It initiates ranging or SL positioning service requests on behalf of the applications residing on it.

[0098] The SL Positioning Server UE (SL Positioning Server UE) is a terminal that provides method determination, assistance data distribution, and / or position calculation functions for SL positioning and ranging services. It interacts with other UEs via the PC5 interface when necessary to determine ranging / SL positioning methods, distribute assistance data, and calculate the location of the target UE. A target terminal or SL reference terminal that supports these functions can act as an SL Positioning Server Terminal.

[0099] Optionally, the above-mentioned ranging or SL positioning results may include: absolute position, relative position, distance and direction, among which the specific ones include depend on the service requirements. If the target terminal decides to start the Sindlink-Mobile Originated-Location Request (SL-MO-LR) process, the target terminal may include information of one or more SL reference terminals and / or positioning terminals in the service request message. If the Location Services Client (LCS Client) or the Application Function (AF) network element decides to obtain the ranging or SL positioning results of a group of n terminals (n≥2), namely terminal 1, terminal 2, ..., terminal n, the Gateway Mobile Location Centre (GMLC) will specify the target terminal from the n terminals, and specify one or more SL reference terminals and / or positioning terminals, and then the Sindlink-Mobile Terminated Location Request (SL-MT-LR) process may be applied.

[0100] Optionally, the 5G Core-Mobile Originated-Location Request (5GC-MO-LR) process can also be used to trigger a positioning service using SL positioning, wherein the Location Management Function (LMF) receives the 5GC-MO-LR request message from the terminal, and the LMF determines to use the relevant steps in the SL-MT-LR process to complete the positioning service using SL positioning. The LMF that performs the 5GC-MO-LR process may be the same as or different from the LMF that performs the relevant steps included in the SL-MT-LR process.

[0101] However, the current solution does not describe how to trigger the execution of the 5GC-MO-LR procedure to perform sidelink SL positioning, including the relevant steps in the SL-MT-LR procedure. Alternatively, the 5G Core-Mobile Terminated-Location Request (5GC-MT-LR) procedure can also be used to trigger positioning services using SL positioning, in a similar situation.

[0102] Based on this, the present disclosure provides a positioning method to support the execution of relevant steps included in the SL-MT-LR process triggered by the execution of the 5GC-MO-LR process or the 5GC-MT-LR process, thereby improving the positioning performance by triggering the positioning service using SL positioning.

[0103] FIG2A is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG2A , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a positioning method for a communication system 100, the method comprising:

[0104] Step 2101: The first network element determines to perform SL positioning on the first terminal.

[0105] Optionally, the first network element may be a service LMF of the first terminal in a location service (LCS). The first terminal may be a terminal that needs to be located in the location service (LCS) and may be a target UE in the SL positioning process.

[0106] In some embodiments, the first network element may determine that SL positioning of the first terminal is required after receiving a first request sent by the second network element. The first request may be used to request positioning of the first terminal, and the first request may be a determination location request (e.g., Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request). The second network element may be, for example, the serving AMF of the first terminal.

[0107] In some embodiments, the first request may be triggered based on a second request sent by the first terminal or the second terminal; wherein the second terminal may be a terminal other than the first terminal, and the second terminal may be, for example, a reference terminal for positioning relative position, and the second request may be used to request positioning of the first terminal, and the second request may be, for example, MO-LR; in other embodiments, the first request may be triggered based on a third request sent by a third network element; the third network element may be, for example, GMLC, and the third request may be used to request positioning of the first terminal, and the third request may be, for example, a request for providing first terminal location information in the 5GC-MT-LR process (such as: Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Request).

[0108] Step 2102: The first network element determines the fourth network element.

[0109] Optionally, the fourth network element may be: a network element determined by the first network element that sends a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, wherein the second message may be used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process, and the second message may be, for example, a Sidelink-Mobile-Terminated-Location Request (Sindlink-Mobile Terminated Location Request, SL-MT-LR) request (Request).

[0110] Optionally, the fourth network element may be an LMF, wherein the fourth network element is the same as or different from the first network element.

[0111] Step 2103: The first network element sends a first message to the third network element.

[0112] In some embodiments, the first message may be used to request provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal. The first message may be a provide location request, such as Ngmlc_Location_ProvideLocation Request.

[0113] In some embodiments, the third network element may include a serving third network element of the first terminal (e.g., VGMLC) or a home third network element of the first terminal (e.g., HGMLC). Optionally, when the first terminal is in a roaming state, the first network element may send the first message to the serving third network element through the home third network element of the first terminal; when the first terminal is in a non-roaming state, the first network element may send the first message directly to the serving third network element of the first terminal.

[0114] In some embodiments, the first message may or may not indicate the fourth network element, wherein, when the first message indicates the fourth network element, the first message may indicate the fourth network element by indicating the identity (ID) of the fourth network element.

[0115] Step 2104: The third network element sends a fourth request to the second network element.

[0116] Optionally, the fourth request may be used to request provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal. The fourth request may be a request to provide positioning information, such as Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Request.

[0117] Optionally, in some embodiments, a third network element (such as VGMLC) serving the first terminal may send the fourth request to the second network element.

[0118] In some embodiments, the fourth request may or may not indicate the fourth network element.

[0119] Step 2105: The second network element determines the fifth network element.

[0120] Optionally, in some embodiments, the fifth network element may be a network element determined by the second network element to send the second message to the first terminal via the second network element. The fifth network element may be, for example, an LMF. Optionally, the second message may be used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process. The second message may be, for example, an SL-MT-LR Request.

[0121] In some embodiments, when the fourth network element is indicated in the fourth request, the second network element may directly determine the fourth network element as the fifth network element; in other embodiments, when the fourth network element is not indicated in the fourth request, the second network element may autonomously determine the fifth network element; in still other embodiments, when the fourth network element is indicated in the fourth request, the second network element may also autonomously determine the fifth network element. At this time, the fifth network element determined by the second network element is different from or the same as the fourth network element.

[0122] In some embodiments, the fifth network element may be the same as or different from the first network element.

[0123] Step 2106: The second network element sends a fifth request to the fifth network element.

[0124] Optionally, the fifth request may be used to request SL positioning of the first terminal, and the fifth request may be a determination location request (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request).

[0125] Step 2107: The fifth network element performs an SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain an SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0126] Optionally, in some embodiments, the fifth network element may send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process. The second message may be, for example, an SL-MT-LR Request. Afterwards, the fifth network element may receive a third message sent by the first terminal through the second network element. The third message may be, for example, an SL-MT-LR Response. The third message may be used to indicate at least one third terminal discovered by the first terminal. The third terminal may be: a terminal used to assist in determining the location of the first terminal; for example, the third terminal may be a located UE. Furthermore, the fifth network element may perform SL positioning on the first terminal through at least one third terminal to obtain an SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0127] Step 2108: The fifth network element sends the SL positioning result to the second network element.

[0128] Optionally, the SL positioning result may be carried in the Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response sent by the fifth network element to the second network element.

[0129] Step 2109: The second network element sends the SL positioning result to the third network element.

[0130] In some embodiments, the second network element may send the SL positioning result to a third network element serving the first terminal.

[0131] Optionally, the SL positioning result may be carried in a Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Response sent by the second network element to the third network element.

[0132] Step 2110: The third network element sends the SL positioning result to the first network element.

[0133] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the first terminal is in a roaming state, the serving third network element may send the SL positioning result to the first terminal through the first terminal's affiliated third network element; when the first terminal is in a non-roaming state, the serving third network element may send the SL positioning result directly to the first terminal.

[0134] Optionally, the SL positioning result may be carried in the Ngmlc_Location_ProvideLocation Response sent by the third network element to the first network element.

[0135] It can be seen from the above embodiments that the above-mentioned first network element can be understood as the LMF that executes the 5GC-MO-LR process, and the above-mentioned fifth network element can be understood as the LMF that executes the relevant steps included in the SL-MT-LR process to determine the SL positioning result. In the method disclosed in the present invention, the first network element and the fifth network element can be different or the same. It can be seen that the method disclosed in the present invention supports triggering the execution of the relevant steps included in the SL-MT-LR process by executing the 5GC-MO-LR process or the 5GC-MT-LR process, thereby improving the positioning performance by triggering the positioning service using SL positioning.

[0136] The positioning method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 2101 to 2110. For example, step 2101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2103 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 2101+step 2102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0137] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0138] FIG2B is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG2B , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a positioning method for a communication system 100, the method comprising:

[0139] Step 2201: The first network element determines to perform SL positioning on the first terminal.

[0140] Step 2202: The first network element determines the fourth network element.

[0141] For a detailed description of steps 2201 - 2202 , please refer to the above embodiment description.

[0142] Step 2203: The first network element sends a first message to the fourth network element.

[0143] In some embodiments, the first message may be used to request SL positioning of the first terminal. The first message may be a location determination request (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request).

[0144] In some embodiments, the first message may or may not indicate a second network element, and the second network element may be a serving second network element (i.e., serving AMF) of the first terminal. When the first message indicates the second network element, the first message may indicate the second network element by indicating the ID of the second network element.

[0145] In some embodiments, the first message may also include a first indication, which is used to indicate that the first message is not based on a positioning request sent by the first terminal. For example, the first message may not carry a parameter indicating the type of positioning request sent by the first terminal but may carry a positioning type parameter of a mobile termination, thereby indicating that the first message is not based on a positioning request sent by the first terminal.

[0146] Step 2204: The fourth network element performs an SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain an SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0147] Optionally, the fourth network element may first determine a second network element providing services to the first terminal. Specifically, when the first message indicates a second network element, the fourth network element may directly determine the second network element based on the indication in the first message. When the first message does not indicate a second network element, the fourth network element may query a sixth network element for the second network element providing services to the first terminal. Optionally, the sixth network element may be, for example, a Unified Data Management (UDM). In some embodiments, after the fourth network element determines the second network element providing services to the first terminal, the fourth network element may send a second message to the first terminal via the second network element. The second message is used to request the first terminal to perform a SL positioning process. The second message may be, for example, an SL-MT-LR Request. Thereafter, the fourth network element may receive a third message sent by the first terminal via the second network element. The third message may be, for example, an SL-MT-LR Response. The third message may be used to indicate at least one third terminal discovered by the first terminal. The third terminal may be a terminal used to assist in determining the location of the first terminal. For example, the third terminal may be a located UE. Furthermore, the fourth network element may perform SL positioning on the first terminal through at least one third terminal to obtain the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0148] Step 2205: The fourth network element sends the SL positioning result to the first network element.

[0149] Optionally, the SL positioning result may be carried in the Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response sent by the fourth network element to the first network element.

[0150] It can be seen from the above embodiments that the above-mentioned first network element can be understood as an LMF that executes the 5GC-MO-LR process, and the above-mentioned fourth network element can be understood as an LMF that executes the relevant steps included in the SL-MT-LR process to determine the SL positioning result. In the method disclosed herein, the first network element and the fourth network element are different or the same. When the first network element and the fourth network element are the same, the interaction between the first network element and the fourth network element is an internal behavior of the network element. It can be seen that the method disclosed herein supports triggering the execution of the relevant steps included in the SL-MT-LR process by executing the 5GC-MO-LR process or the 5GC-MT-LR process, and improves the positioning performance by triggering the positioning service using SL positioning.

[0151] The positioning method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 2201 to 2205. For example, step 2201 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2202 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2203 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 2201+S2202 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0152] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0153] FIG2C is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG2C , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a positioning method for a communication system 100, the method comprising:

[0154] Step 2301: The first network element determines to perform SL positioning on the first terminal.

[0155] Step 2302: The first network element determines the fourth network element.

[0156] For a detailed description of steps 2301 - 2302 , please refer to the above embodiment description.

[0157] Step 2303: The first network element sends a first message to the second network element.

[0158] In some embodiments, the first message may be used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal. The first message may be a request to provide positioning information, such as Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Request.

[0159] In some embodiments, the first message may or may not indicate the fourth network element, wherein when the first message indicates the fourth network element, the first message may indicate the fourth network element by indicating the ID of the fourth network element.

[0160] In some embodiments, the first message may also include a first indication, which is used to indicate that the first message is not based on a positioning request sent by the first terminal. For example, the first message may not carry a parameter indicating the type of positioning request sent by the first terminal but may carry a positioning type parameter of a mobile termination, thereby indicating that the first message is not based on a positioning request sent by the first terminal.

[0161] Step 2304: The second network element determines the fifth network element.

[0162] Step 2305: The second network element sends a fifth request to the fifth network element.

[0163] Optionally, the fifth request may be used to request SL positioning of the first terminal, and the fifth request may be a determination location request (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request).

[0164] Step 2306: The fifth network element performs an SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain an SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0165] Step 2307: The fifth network element sends the SL positioning result to the second network element.

[0166] Optionally, the SL positioning result may be carried in the Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response sent by the fifth network element to the second network element.

[0167] Step 2308: The second network element sends the SL positioning result to the first network element.

[0168] Optionally, the SL positioning result may be carried in a Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Response sent by the second network element to the first network element.

[0169] For a detailed description of steps 2304-2308, please refer to the above embodiment description.

[0170] It can be seen from the above embodiments that the above-mentioned first network element can be understood as an LMF that executes the 5GC-MO-LR process, and the above-mentioned fifth network element can be understood as an LMF that executes the relevant steps included in the SL-MT-LR process to determine the SL positioning result. In the method disclosed herein, the first network element and the fifth network element can be different or the same. When the first network element is the same as the fifth network element, the interaction between the first network element and the fifth network element through the second network element can be regarded as an internal behavior of the first network element or can also be performed through the second network element. It can be seen that the method disclosed herein supports triggering the execution of the relevant steps included in the SL-MT-LR process by executing the 5GC-MO-LR process or the 5GC-MT-LR process, and improves the positioning performance by triggering the positioning service using SL positioning.

[0171] The positioning method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 2301 to 2308. For example, step 2301 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2302 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 2303 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 2301+step 2302 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0172] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0173] FIG3A is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3A , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a positioning method for a first network element, the method comprising:

[0174] Step 3101: Determine to perform SL positioning on a first terminal; wherein the first terminal is a target terminal that needs to be positioned.

[0175] Step 3102: Send a first message, where the first message is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0176] For a detailed description of steps 3101 - 3102 , please refer to the above embodiment description.

[0177] The positioning method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 3101 to 3102. For example, step 3101 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 3102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 3101+S3102 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0178] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0179] FIG3B is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3B , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a positioning method for a third network element, the method comprising:

[0180] Step 3201: Receive a first message sent by a first network element, where the first message is used to request the provision of an SL positioning result of a first terminal, and the first terminal is a target terminal that needs to be positioned.

[0181] Step 3202: Send a fourth request to the second network element, where the fourth request is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0182] For a detailed description of steps 3201-3202, please refer to the above embodiment description.

[0183] The positioning method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 3201 and 3202. For example, step 3201 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 3202 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 3201+S3202 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0184] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0185] FIG3C is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3C , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a positioning method for a second network element, the method comprising:

[0186] Step 3301: Receive a fourth request sent by a third network element, or receive a first message sent by a first network element; wherein the fourth request and the first message are used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal, and the first terminal is the target terminal that needs to be located.

[0187] Step 3302: Determine the fifth network element, where the fifth network element is: the network element determined by the second network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, and the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process.

[0188] Step 3303: Send a fifth request to the fifth network element, where the fifth request is used to request SL positioning of the first terminal.

[0189] For a detailed description of steps 3301-3303, please refer to the above embodiment description.

[0190] The positioning method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 3301 to 3303. For example, step 3301 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 3302 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 3301+S3302 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0191] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0192] FIG3D is an interactive schematic diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG3D , the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a positioning method for a fourth network element or a fifth network element, the method comprising:

[0193] Step 3401: Receive a first message sent by a first network element, or receive a fifth request sent by a second network element; wherein the first message and the fifth request are used to request an SL positioning process for a first terminal, and the first terminal is a target terminal that needs to be positioned.

[0194] Step 3402: Perform an SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain an SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0195] Step 3403: Send the SL positioning result.

[0196] For a detailed description of steps 3401-3403, please refer to the above embodiment description.

[0197] The positioning method involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of steps 3401 to 3403. For example, step 3401 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, step 3402 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, and step 3401+S3402 may be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0198] In this embodiment or example, unless there is any contradiction, each step can be independent, arbitrarily combined or exchanged in order, the optional methods or optional examples can be arbitrarily combined, and can be arbitrarily combined with any steps of other embodiments or other examples.

[0199] The following is an exemplary introduction to the above method.

[0200] FIG4A is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the embodiment shown in FIG4A , positioning is triggered by a 5GC-MO-LR request from the UE, LMF1 that processes the 5GC-MO-LR process initiates a complete SL-MT-LR process, and selects LMF2 to obtain the location of the target UE using ranging or SL positioning services by executing the SL-MT-LR process. Optionally, the method shown in FIG4A may include the following steps:

[0201] 1-4. The MO-LR request is triggered by UE1, and a location determination request (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request) is sent to the serving LMF (ie, LMF1 in FIG4A ).

[0202] In some embodiments, steps 1-4 may also be the case where SL-MT-LR is triggered via the 5GC-MT-LR process. That is, step 1 may be that the GMLC receives a service request triggered by the AF / network exposure function (NEF) / External Client / Network Function (NF), and step 2 may be that the GMLC sends a location provision request (e.g., Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Request) to the AMF, after which the AMF may send a corresponding request (e.g., a determine location request (e.g., Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request)) to the LMF1.

[0203] 4-0. The LMF1 that processes the MO-LR request decides to trigger the execution of the SL-MT-LR process by different LMFs.

[0204] Optionally, LMF1 may select LMF2 that supports ranging / SL positioning as the serving LMF to trigger the SL-MT-LR process.

[0205] 4-1a.LMF1 sends a provide location request (e.g., Ngmlc_Location_ProvideLocation Request) to VGMLC for SL positioning.

[0206] Alternatively, if LMF1 selects LMF2 in step 4-0, LMF2 is included in the provide positioning request as a serving LMF for triggering the SL-MT-LR procedure.

[0207] 4-1b.LMF1 sends a provide location request (eg, Ngmlc_Location_ProvideLocation Request) for SL positioning to HGMLC, and the provide location request is further sent to VGMLC.

[0208] In some embodiments, if LMF2 is selected in step 4-0, LMF2 is included in the Provide Positioning Request as a serving LMF for the triggered SL-MT-LR procedure.

[0209] In some embodiments, whether LMF1 sends the request to VGMLC through HGMLC or directly to VGMLC may be based on whether the UE is roaming, and / or the roaming service agreement, and / or the configuration of the GMLC address on the LMF.

[0210] In some embodiments, privacy checking and ID mapping also need to be performed during the SL-MT-LR process.

[0211] 4-2 / 4-3.VGMLC sends a provide positioning information request (such as Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Request) to the serving AMF1. The serving AMF1 selects LMF2 to serve UE1 (such as LMF2 that supports ranging / SL positioning) and sends a determine positioning request (such as Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request) to LMF2.

[0212] In some embodiments, if the positioning request provided in step 4-1 includes LMF2 as the service LMF for triggering the SL-MT-LR process, AMF1 can directly use the LMF2 included in the positioning request as the LMF supporting ranging / SL positioning and serving UE1, or AMF1 may not use the LMF2 included in the positioning request as the LMF supporting ranging / SL positioning and serving UE1, but select other LMFs as the LMF supporting ranging / SL positioning and serving UE1.

[0213] In some embodiments, if LMF2 is not included in the positioning request in step 4-1 as the serving LMF for triggering the SL-MT-LR process, AMF1 can autonomously select LMF as the LMF that supports ranging / SL positioning and serves UE1.

[0214] 5. Perform steps 10-16 of section 6.20.3 of TS 23.273 to obtain the location of the target UE using ranging / SL positioning services.

[0215] In some embodiments, LMF2 can send a SL-MT-LR Request to UE1 through AMF1, and UE1 can discover a UE that can be used for SL positioning, and can send a SL-MT-LR Response to LMF2 through AMF1. The SL-MT-LR Response carries the UE that can be used for SL positioning discovered by UE1. Afterwards, LMF2 can perform SL positioning on UE1 through the UE discovered by UE1 to obtain the position of UE1 (i.e., the target UE).

[0216] 4-4 / 4-5.LMF2 sends the SL positioning result (i.e. the location of the target UE) to AMF1, and AMF further responds to VGMLC.

[0217] In some embodiments, LMF2 may send the SL positioning result to AMF1 by sending a determination positioning response (e.g., Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response), and AMF may further respond to VGMLC by sending a provision positioning information response (e.g., Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Response).

[0218] 4-6a.VGMLC sends the SL positioning result to LMF1.

[0219] In some embodiments, the VGMLC may send the SL positioning result to the LMF1 by providing a positioning response (eg, Ngmlc_Location_ProvideLocation Response).

[0220] 4-6b. VGMLC sends the SL positioning result to HGMLC, and the SL positioning result is further sent to LMF1 as the location result of UE1.

[0221] In some embodiments, the VGMLC may send the SL positioning result to the HGMLC by providing a positioning response (eg, Ngmlc_Location_ProvideLocation Response), and the SL positioning result may be further sent to the LMF1 as the location result of the UE1.

[0222] 6.UE1’s location result is sent to AMF1.

[0223] In some embodiments, the location result of UE1 can be carried in a determination location response (such as: Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response) and sent to AMF1.

[0224] 7-12. The location result of UE1 is notified to the LCS client or AF is requested.

[0225] 13.UE1’s location result is sent to UE1 via AMF1.

[0226] In some embodiments, the SL positioning result may be carried in a MO-LR response in a downlink non-access stratum (DL NAS TRANSPORT) message and sent to the UE.

[0227] In some embodiments, for the case where steps 1-4 trigger SL-MT-LR via the 5GC-MT-LR process, steps 6-13 are replaced by AMF1 returning the location result of UE1 to GMLC, and further returning it to the entity that initiated the 5GC-MT-LR process.

[0228] FIG4B is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the embodiment shown in FIG4B , triggered by a 5GC-MO-LR request from a UE, LMF1, which processes the 5GC-MO-LR process, initiates a partial SL-MT-LR process, and LMF1 selects LMF2 to obtain the location of the target UE using ranging / SL positioning services by performing the SL-MT-LR process. Optionally, the method shown in FIG4B may include the following steps:

[0229] 1-4. The MO-LR request is triggered by UE1, and a location determination request (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request) is sent to the serving LMF (ie, LMF1 in FIG4B ).

[0230] In some embodiments, steps 1-4 may also be the case where SL-MT-LR is triggered via the 5GC-MT-LR process. That is, step 1 may be that the GMLC receives a service request triggered by the AF / NEF / External Clinet / NF, and step 2 may be that the GMLC sends a location provision request (e.g., Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Request) to the AMF, after which the AMF may send a corresponding request (e.g., a determine location request (e.g., Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request)) to the LMF1.

[0231] 4-1. The LMF1 that processes the MO-LR request decides to trigger the execution of the SL-MT-LR process by different LMFs.

[0232] 4-2.LMF1 selects LMF2 that supports ranging / SL positioning.

[0233] 4-3. LMF1 calls a determine location request (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request) to request SL positioning of UE1.

[0234] In some embodiments, the Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request includes the serving AMF ID so that LMF2 can send an SL-MT-LR request to the UE via the appropriate serving AMF. If the AMF ID is not included, LMF2 needs to retrieve the serving AMF from the UDM.

[0235] In some embodiments, in addition to the "Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request" service, a new service between LMFs can achieve the same functionality.

[0236] 5. Perform steps 10-16 of section 6.20.3 of TS 23.273 to obtain the location of the target UE using ranging / SL positioning services

[0237] 4-4.LMF2 sends the SL positioning result to LMF1.

[0238] In some embodiments, the SL positioning result may be carried in a determine location response (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response) and sent to LMF1.

[0239] 6. The SL positioning result is sent to AMF1 as the location result of UE1.

[0240] In some embodiments, the location result of UE1 can be carried in a determination location response (such as: Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response) and sent to AMF1.

[0241] 7-12. Notify the LCS client of the location result of UE1 or request AF.

[0242] 13.UE1’s location result is sent to UE via AMF1.

[0243] In some embodiments, the location result of UE1 may be carried in a MO-LR response in a DL NAS TRANSPORT message and sent to the UE.

[0244] In some embodiments, for the case where steps 1-4 trigger SL-MT-LR via the 5GC-MT-LR process, steps 6-13 are replaced by AMF1 returning the location result of UE1 to GMLC, and further returning it to the entity that initiated the 5GC-MT-LR process.

[0245] FIG4C is an interactive diagram of a positioning method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the embodiment shown in FIG4C , triggered by a 5GC-MO-LR request from the UE, a portion of the SL-MT-LR process is initiated by LMF1 that processes the 5GC-MO-LR process, and LMF1 or AMF selects LMF2 to obtain the location of the target UE using ranging / SL positioning services by performing the SL-MT-LR process. Optionally, the method shown in FIG4C may include the following steps:

[0246] 1-4. The MO-LR request is triggered by UE1, and a location determination request (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request) is sent to the serving LMF (ie, LMF1 in FIG4B ).

[0247] In some embodiments, steps 1-4 may also be the case where SL-MT-LR is triggered via the 5GC-MT-LR process. That is, step 1 may be that the GMLC receives a service request triggered by the AF / NEF / External Clinet / NF, and step 2 may be that the GMLC sends a location provision request (e.g., Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Request) to the AMF, after which the AMF may send a corresponding request (e.g., a determine location request (e.g., Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request)) to the LMF1.

[0248] 4-0. The LMF1 that processes the MO-LR request decides to trigger the execution of the SL-MT-LR process by different LMFs.

[0249] 4-1.LMF1 selects LMF2 which supports ranging / sidelink positioning.

[0250] 4-2. LMF1 calls a provide positioning information request (such as Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Request) to request UE1's SL positioning result.

[0251] In some embodiments, if LMF2 is selected in step 4-1, the provide location information request includes LMF2ID so that AMF can send a determine location request (e.g., Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request) to LMF2.

[0252] 4-3.AMF1 selects LMF2 which supports ranging / sidelink positioning.

[0253] In some embodiments, if the LMF2ID is not included in step 4-2, the AMF1 autonomously selects the LMF2 that supports ranging / sidelink positioning. In other embodiments, if the LMF2ID is included in step 4-2, the AMF1 may select the LMF2 indicated by the LMF2ID included in step 4-2 as the LMF2 that supports ranging / sidelink positioning, or the AMF1 may autonomously select the LMF2 that supports ranging / sidelink positioning, wherein the LMF2 autonomously selected by the AMF1 may be the same as or different from the LMF2 included in step 4-2.

[0254] 4-4.AMF1 calls a determine location request (e.g., Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request) to request the SL positioning result of UE1 provided by LMF2.

[0255] 5. Perform steps 10-16 of clause 6.20.3 of TS 23.273 to obtain the location of the target UE using ranging / SL positioning services.

[0256] 4-5.LMF2 sends the SL positioning result to AMF1.

[0257] In some embodiments, LMF2 may send the SL positioning result to AMF1 via a determination location response (eg, Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response).

[0258] 4-6.AMF1 sends the SL positioning result to LMF1.

[0259] In some embodiments, AMF1 may send the SL positioning result to LMF1 by providing a positioning information response (eg, Namf_Location_ProvidePositioningInfo Response).

[0260] 6. The SL positioning result is sent to AMF1 as the location result of UE1.

[0261] In some embodiments, the location result of UE1 can be carried in a determination location response (such as: Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Response) and sent to AMF1.

[0262] 7-12. Notify the LCS client of the location result of UE1 or request AF.

[0263] 13.UE1’s location result is sent to UE via AMF1.

[0264] In some embodiments, the location result of UE1 may be carried in a MO-LR response in a DL NAS TRANSPORT message and sent to the UE.

[0265] In some embodiments, for the case where steps 1-4 trigger SL-MT-LR via the 5GC-MT-LR process, steps 6-13 are replaced by AMF1 returning the location result of UE1 to GMLC, and further returning it to the entity that initiated the 5GC-MT-LR process.

[0266] In some embodiments, in a service-based architecture (SBA), sending a request is accomplished by invoking a corresponding service. For example, sending a determine location request (e.g., Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request) is accomplished by invoking the Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation service, and the corresponding response is returned as the result of the service invocation.

[0267] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned LMF1 and LMF2 may be the same or different. When LMF1 and LMF2 are the same, for the embodiment of Figure 4B above, the interaction between LMF1 and LMF2 may be an internal behavior of the network element; and, for the embodiment of Figure 4C above, the interaction between LM1 and LMF2 through AMF1 may be regarded as an internal behavior of LMF1 or related interaction may also be performed through AMF1.

[0268] The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide an apparatus for implementing any of the above methods. For example, an apparatus is provided, comprising units or modules for implementing each step performed by a terminal in any of the above methods. For another example, another apparatus is provided, comprising units or modules for implementing each step performed by a network device (e.g., an access network device, a core network function node, a core network device, etc.) in any of the above methods.

[0269] It should be understood that the division of the various units or modules in the above device is merely a division of logical functions. In actual implementation, they may be fully or partially integrated into a physical entity, or they may be physically separated. In addition, the units or modules in the device may be implemented in the form of a processor calling software: for example, the device includes a processor, the processor is connected to a memory, and the memory stores instructions. The processor calls the instructions stored in the memory to implement any of the above methods or implement the functions of the various units or modules of the above device, wherein the processor is, for example, a general-purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a microprocessor, and the memory is a memory within the device or a memory outside the device. Alternatively, the units or modules in the device can be implemented in the form of hardware circuits, and the functions of some or all of the units or modules can be realized by designing the hardware circuits. The above-mentioned hardware circuits can be understood as one or more processors; for example, in one implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), which realizes the functions of some or all of the above units or modules by designing the logical relationship of the components in the circuit; for example, in another implementation, the above-mentioned hardware circuit can be realized by a programmable logic device (PLD). Taking a field programmable gate array (FPGA) as an example, it can include a large number of logic gate circuits, and the connection relationship between the logic gate circuits is configured by configuring the configuration file, thereby realizing the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. All units or modules of the above devices can be realized in the form of software called by the processor, or in the form of hardware circuits, or in part by the form of software called by the processor, and the rest by hardware circuits.

[0270] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capabilities. In one implementation, the processor can be a circuit with instruction reading and execution capabilities, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a graphics processing unit (GPU) (which can be understood as a microprocessor), or a digital signal processor (DSP). In another implementation, the processor can implement certain functions through the logical relationship of the hardware circuit. The logical relationship of the above-mentioned hardware circuit is fixed or reconfigurable. For example, the processor is a hardware circuit implemented by an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a programmable logic device (PLD), such as an FPGA. In a reconfigurable hardware circuit, the process of the processor loading a configuration document and implementing the hardware circuit configuration can be understood as the process of the processor loading instructions to implement the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. In addition, it can also be a hardware circuit designed for artificial intelligence, which can be understood as an ASIC, such as a neural network processing unit (NPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), a deep learning processing unit (DPU), etc.

[0271] FIG5A is a schematic diagram of the structure of the first network element proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5A , it includes:

[0272] A processing module, configured to determine to perform sidelink (SL) positioning on a first terminal; wherein the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0273] The transceiver module is used to send a first message, where the first message is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0274] Optionally, the determining to perform SL positioning on the first terminal includes:

[0275] receiving a first request sent by a second network element; wherein the first request is triggered based on a second request sent by the first terminal or a second terminal, where the second terminal is a terminal other than the first terminal in the SL positioning process; or, the first request is triggered based on a third request sent by a third network element; the first request, the second request, and the third request are used to request positioning of the first terminal;

[0276] After receiving the first request, it is determined that SL positioning needs to be performed on the first terminal.

[0277] Optionally, before sending the first message, the first network element is further configured to:

[0278] Determine a fourth network element, where the fourth network element is: a network element determined by the first network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process.

[0279] Optionally, the first message indicates or does not indicate the fourth network element.

[0280] Optionally, sending the first message includes:

[0281] Send the first message to the third network element; wherein the first message is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0282] Optionally, the third network element is a home third network element or a serving third network element of the first terminal;

[0283] The sending the first message to the third network element includes:

[0284] The first terminal is in a roaming state, and the first message is sent to a third network element to which the first terminal belongs;

[0285] The first terminal is in a non-roaming state and sends the first message to a third network element serving the first terminal.

[0286] Optionally, the first network element is further configured to:

[0287] Receive the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the third network element.

[0288] Optionally, the receiving the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the third network element includes:

[0289] The first terminal is in a roaming state and receives the SL positioning result sent by a third network element to which the first terminal belongs;

[0290] The first terminal is in a non-roaming state and receives the SL positioning result sent by the third network element serving the first terminal.

[0291] Optionally, sending the first message includes:

[0292] The first message is sent to the fourth network element, where the first message is used to request SL positioning of the first terminal.

[0293] Optionally, the first message indicates or does not indicate the second network element.

[0294] Optionally, the first network element is further configured to:

[0295] Receive the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the fourth network element.

[0296] Optionally, sending the first message includes:

[0297] The first message is sent to the second network element, where the first message is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0298] Optionally, the first network element is further configured to:

[0299] Receive the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the second network element.

[0300] Optionally, the first message further includes a first indication, where the first indication is used to indicate that the first message is not based on a positioning request sent by the first terminal.

[0301] Optionally, the fourth network element is the same as or different from the first network element.

[0302] FIG5B is a schematic diagram of the structure of the third network element proposed in the embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5B , it includes:

[0303] a transceiver module, configured to receive a first message sent by a first network element, wherein the first message is used to request provision of an SL positioning result of a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0304] The transceiver module is further used to send a fourth request to the second network element, where the fourth request is used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

[0305] Optionally, the first message indicates or does not indicate a fourth network element, and the fourth request indicates or does not indicate the fourth network element;

[0306] The fourth network element is: a network element determined by the first network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, and the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process.

[0307] Optionally, the third network element is further configured to:

[0308] receiving the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the second network element;

[0309] Send the SL positioning result to the first network element.

[0310] Optionally, the first terminal is in a roaming state, and the third network element is a home third network element of the first terminal; or

[0311] The first terminal is in a non-roaming state, and the third network element is a serving third network element of the first terminal.

[0312] FIG5C is a schematic diagram of the structure of the second network element proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5C , it includes:

[0313] a transceiver module, configured to receive a fourth request sent by a third network element, or to receive a first message sent by a first network element; wherein the fourth request and the first message are used to request provision of an SL positioning result of a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0314] a processing module, configured to determine a fifth network element, where the fifth network element is a network element determined by the second network element to send a second message to the first terminal via the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process;

[0315] The transceiver module is further used to send a fifth request to the fifth network element, where the fifth request is used to request SL positioning of the first terminal.

[0316] Optionally, the fourth request or the first message indicates or does not indicate a fourth network element; wherein, the fourth network element is: a network element determined by the first network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, and the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform the SL positioning process.

[0317] Optionally, determining the fifth network element includes at least one of the following:

[0318] The fourth request or the first message indicates the fourth network element, and determines the fourth network element as the fifth network element;

[0319] The fourth request or the first message does not indicate the fourth network element, and autonomously determines the fifth network element;

[0320] The fourth request or the first message indicates the fourth network element, and the fifth network element is determined autonomously. The fifth network element is different from or the same as the fourth network element.

[0321] Optionally, the second network element is further configured to:

[0322] Assisting the fifth network element to complete SL positioning of the first terminal;

[0323] receiving the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the fifth network element;

[0324] Send the SL positioning result to the third network element or the first network element.

[0325] Optionally, the fifth network element is the same as or different from the first network element;

[0326] The fourth network element is the same as or different from the first network element.

[0327] FIG5D is a schematic diagram of the structure of the fourth network element or the fifth network element proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG5D , it includes:

[0328] A transceiver module, configured to receive a first message sent by a first network element, or receive a fifth request sent by a second network element; wherein the first message and the fifth request are used to request an SL positioning process for a first terminal, where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned;

[0329] a processing module, configured to perform an SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain an SL positioning result of the first terminal;

[0330] The transceiver module is also used to send the SL positioning result.

[0331] Optionally, if the first message sent by the first network element is received, the SL positioning process includes:

[0332] determining a second network element providing service for the first terminal;

[0333] Sending a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform the SL positioning process;

[0334] receiving a third message sent by the first terminal through the second network element, where the third message is used to indicate at least one third terminal discovered by the first terminal, where the third terminal is a terminal used to assist in determining a location of the first terminal;

[0335] The first terminal is positioned in SL by at least one of the third terminals.

[0336] Optionally, the determining of the second network element providing a service for the first terminal includes at least one of the following:

[0337] The first message indicates the presence of the second network element, and determining the second network element based on the indication of the first message;

[0338] The first message indicates the presence of the first network element, and the second network element is queried from a sixth network element based on the first network element.

[0339] Optionally, if the fifth request sent by the second network element is received, performing the SL positioning process includes:

[0340] Sending a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform the SL positioning process;

[0341] receiving a third message sent by the first terminal through the second network element, where the third message is used to indicate at least one third terminal discovered by the first terminal, where the third terminal is a terminal used to assist in determining a location of the first terminal;

[0342] The first terminal is positioned in SL by at least one of the third terminals.

[0343] Optionally, the sending the SL positioning result includes:

[0344] If a first message sent by the first network element is received, sending the SL positioning result to the first network element;

[0345] If the fifth request sent by the second network element is received, the SL positioning result is sent to the second network element.

[0346] Figure 6A is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device 6100 proposed in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Communication device 6100 can be a network device (e.g., an access network device, a core network device, etc.), a terminal (e.g., a user equipment, etc.), a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports a network device to implement any of the above methods, or a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports a terminal to implement any of the above methods. Communication device 6100 can be used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments. For details, please refer to the description of the above method embodiments.

[0347] As shown in Figure 6A, the communication device 6100 includes one or more processors 6101. The processor 6101 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, for example, a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit can be used to control the communication device (such as a base station, baseband chip, terminal device, terminal device chip, DU or CU, etc.), execute programs, and process program data. The processor 6101 is used to call instructions to enable the communication device 6100 to perform any of the above methods.

[0348] In some embodiments, the communication device 6100 further includes one or more memories 6102 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memories 6102 may be located outside the communication device 6100.

[0349] In some embodiments, the communication device 6100 further includes one or more transceivers 6103. When the communication device 6100 includes one or more transceivers 6103, the communication steps such as sending and receiving in the above method are performed by the transceiver 6103, and the other steps are performed by the processor 6101.

[0350] In some embodiments, a transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter, which may be separate or integrated. Alternatively, the terms transceiver, transceiver unit, transceiver, and transceiver circuit may be used interchangeably; the terms transmitter, transmitting unit, transmitter, and transmitting circuit may be used interchangeably; and the terms receiver, receiving unit, receiver, and receiving circuit may be used interchangeably.

[0351] Optionally, the communication device 6100 further includes one or more interface circuits 6104, which are connected to the memory 6102. The interface circuits 6104 can be used to receive signals from the memory 6102 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to the memory 6102 or other devices. For example, the interface circuits 6104 can read instructions stored in the memory 6102 and send the instructions to the processor 6101.

[0352] The communication device 6100 described in the above embodiment may be a network device or a terminal, but the scope of the communication device 6100 described in the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 6100 may not be limited by FIG. 6a. The communication device may be an independent device or may be part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be: 1) an independent integrated circuit IC, or a chip, or a chip system or subsystem; (2) a collection of one or more ICs, optionally, the above IC collection may also include a storage component for storing data or programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a modem; (4) a module that can be embedded in other devices; (5) a receiver, a terminal device, an intelligent terminal device, a cellular phone, a wireless device, a handheld device, a mobile unit, an in-vehicle device, a network device, a cloud device, an artificial intelligence device, etc.; (6) others, etc.

[0353] 6B is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip 6200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. If the communication device 6100 can be a chip or a chip system, reference can be made to the schematic diagram of the structure of the chip 6200 shown in FIG6B , but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0354] The chip 6200 includes one or more processors 6201, and the processor 6201 is used to call instructions so that the chip 6200 executes any of the above methods.

[0355] In some embodiments, chip 6200 further includes one or more interface circuits 6202, which are connected to memory 6203. Interface circuit 6202 can be used to receive signals from memory 6203 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to memory 6203 or other devices. For example, interface circuit 6202 can read instructions stored in memory 6203 and send the instructions to processor 6201. Optionally, the terms interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, and transceiver are interchangeable.

[0356] In some embodiments, the chip 6200 further includes one or more memories 6203 for storing instructions. Alternatively, all or part of the memories 6203 may be outside the chip 6200.

[0357] The present disclosure also proposes a storage medium having instructions stored thereon. When the instructions are executed on the communication device 6100, the communication device 6100 executes any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, but is not limited thereto and may also be a storage medium readable by other devices. Optionally, the storage medium may be a non-transitory storage medium, but is not limited thereto and may also be a temporary storage medium.

[0358] The present disclosure also provides a program product, which, when executed by the communication device 6100, enables the communication device 6100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the program product is a computer program product.

[0359] The present disclosure also proposes a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform any one of the above methods.

[0360] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs. When the computer program is loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present disclosure are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer program can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more available media integrated therein. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a high-density digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0361] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professionals and technicians can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this disclosure.

[0362] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0363] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, but the scope of protection of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this disclosure should be included in the scope of protection of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present disclosure should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A positioning method, characterized in that, Performed by a first network element, the method includes: Determine to perform sidelink (SL) positioning on a first terminal; wherein, the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned; Send a first message, where the first message is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The determination to perform SL positioning on the first terminal includes: Receive a first request sent by a second network element; wherein, the first request is triggered based on a second request sent by the first terminal or a second terminal, and the second terminal is a terminal other than the first terminal during the SL positioning process; or, the first request is triggered based on a third request sent by a third network element; the first request, the second request, and the third request are used to request positioning of the first terminal; After receiving the first request, determine that SL positioning needs to be performed on the first terminal.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, Before sending the first message, the method further includes: Determine a fourth network element, where the fourth network element is: a network element determined by the first network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, and the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform the SL positioning process.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein The first message indicates or does not indicate the fourth network element.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The sending of the first message includes: Send the first message to a third network element; wherein, the first message is used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein The third network element is the home third network element or the serving third network element of the first terminal; The sending of the first message to the third network element includes: When the first terminal is in a roaming state, send the first message to the home third network element of the first terminal; When the first terminal is in a non-roaming state, send the first message to the serving third network element of the first terminal.

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the third network element.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein The receiving of the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the third network element includes: When the first terminal is in a roaming state, receive the SL positioning result sent by the home third network element of the first terminal; When the first terminal is in a non-roaming state, receive the SL positioning result sent by the serving third network element of the first terminal.

9. The method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The sending of the first message includes: Send the first message to the fourth network element, and the first message is used to request SL positioning of the first terminal.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The first message indicates or does not indicate the second network element.

11. The method according to claim 9 or 10, wherein The method further includes: Receive the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the fourth network element.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The sending of the first message includes: Send the first message to the second network element, and the first message is used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein The method further includes: Receive the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the second network element.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9-13, characterized in that, The first message further includes a first indication, and the first indication is used to indicate that the first message is not based on a positioning request sent by the first terminal.

15. The method according to any one of claims 3-8 or 12-14, characterized in that The fourth network element is the same as or different from the first network element.

16. A positioning method, characterized in that, Performed by a third network element, the method includes: Receive a first message sent by a first network element, where the first message is used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of a first terminal, and the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned; Send a fourth request to a second network element, where the fourth request is used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein The fourth network element is indicated or not indicated in the first message, and the fourth network element is indicated or not indicated in the fourth request; The fourth network element is: the network element determined by the first network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, and the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process.

18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the second network element; Send the SL positioning result to the first network element.

19. The method according to any one of claims 16 - 18, characterized in that, The first terminal is in a roaming state, and the third network element is the home third network element of the first terminal; or The first terminal is in a non-roaming state, and the third network element is the serving third network element of the first terminal.

20. A positioning method, characterized in that, Executed by a second network element, the method includes: Receive a fourth request sent by a third network element, or receive a first message sent by a first network element; where the fourth request and the first message are used to request the provision of the SL positioning result of a first terminal, and the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned; Determine a fifth network element, where the fifth network element is: the network element determined by the second network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, and the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process; Send a fifth request to the fifth network element, where the fifth request is used to request an SL positioning of the first terminal.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein The fourth network element is indicated or not indicated in the fourth request or the first message; where the fourth network element is: the network element determined by the first network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, and the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform the SL positioning process.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein The determining of the fifth network element includes at least one of the following: The fourth network element is indicated in the fourth request or the first message, and the fourth network element is determined as the fifth network element; The fourth network element is not indicated in the fourth request or the first message, and the fifth network element is determined independently; The fourth network element is indicated in the fourth request or the first message, and the fifth network element is determined independently, and the fifth network element is different from or the same as the fourth network element.

23. The method according to any one of claims 20-22, characterized in that, The method further includes: Assist the fifth network element to complete the SL positioning of the first terminal; Receive the SL positioning result of the first terminal sent by the fifth network element; Send the SL positioning result to the third network element or the first network element.

24. The method according to any one of claims 21-23, characterized in that, The fifth network element is the same as or different from the first network element; The fourth network element is the same as or different from the first network element.

25. A positioning method, characterized in that, Executed by a fourth network element or a fifth network element, the method includes: Receive a first message sent by a first network element, or receive a fifth request sent by a second network element; where the first message and the fifth request are used to request an SL positioning process for a first terminal, and the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned; Perform an SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain the SL positioning result of the first terminal; Send the SL positioning result.

26. The method according to claim 25, characterized in that, If receiving the first message sent by the first network element, the performing the SL positioning process includes: Determine a second network element that provides services for the first terminal; Send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform the SL positioning process; Receive a third message sent by the first terminal through the second network element, where the third message is used to indicate at least one third terminal discovered by the first terminal, and the third terminal is: a terminal used to assist in determining the position of the first terminal; Perform SL positioning on the first terminal through at least one of the third terminals.

27. The method according to claim 26, characterized in that The determining the second network element that provides services for the first terminal includes at least one of the following: The second network element is indicated in the first message, and the second network element is determined based on the indication of the first message; The first network element is indicated in the first message, and the second network element is queried from a sixth network element based on the first network element.

28. The method according to claim 25, wherein If receiving the fifth request sent by the second network element, the performing the SL positioning process includes: Send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, where the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform the SL positioning process; Receive a third message sent by the first terminal through the second network element, where the third message is used to indicate at least one third terminal discovered by the first terminal, and the third terminal is: a terminal used to assist in determining the position of the first terminal; Perform SL positioning on the first terminal through at least one of the third terminals.

29. The method according to any one of claims 25-28, characterized in that, The sending the SL positioning result includes: If receiving the first message sent by the first network element, send the SL positioning result to the first network element; If receiving the fifth request sent by the second network element, send the SL positioning result to the second network element.

30. A first network element, characterized in that, Includes: A processing module, configured to determine to perform sidelink SL positioning on a first terminal; where the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned; A transceiver module, configured to send a first message, where the first message is used to request the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

31. A third network element, characterized in that, Includes: A transceiver module, configured to receive a first message sent by a first network element, where the first message is used to request to provide the SL positioning result of a first terminal, and the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned; The transceiver module is further configured to send a fourth request to a second network element, where the fourth request is used to request to provide the SL positioning result of the first terminal.

32. A second network element, characterized in that, Includes: A transceiver module, configured to receive a fourth request sent by a third network element, or receive a first message sent by a first network element; where the fourth request and the first message are used to request to provide the SL positioning result of a first terminal, and the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned; A processing module, configured to determine a fifth network element, where the fifth network element is: the network element determined by the second network element to send a second message to the first terminal through the second network element, and the second message is used to request the first terminal to perform an SL positioning process; The transceiver module is further configured to send a fifth request to the fifth network element, where the fifth request is used to request to perform SL positioning on the first terminal.

33. A fourth network element or a fifth network element, characterized in that, Comprising: A transceiver module, configured to receive a first message sent by a first network element, or receive a fifth request sent by a second network element; wherein, the first message and the fifth request are used to request to perform an SL positioning process on a first terminal, and the first terminal is a target terminal to be positioned; A processing module, configured to perform an SL positioning process on the first terminal to obtain an SL positioning result of the first terminal; The transceiver module is further configured to send the SL positioning result.

34. A communication device, characterized in that, Comprising: One or more processors; A memory coupled to the processor, where instructions are stored on the memory, and when the instructions are executed by the processor, the communication device is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 29.

35. A communication system, characterized in that, Comprising a first network element, a second network element, and a third network element, and further comprising a fourth network element or a fifth network element, where the first network element is configured to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, the third network element is configured to implement the method according to any one of claims 16 to 19, the second network element is configured to implement the method according to any one of claims 20 to 24, and the fourth network element or the fifth network element is configured to implement the method according to any one of claims 25 to 29.

36. A storage medium, the storage medium stores instructions, characterized in that, When the instructions run on the communication device, the communication device is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 29.

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