Systems, methods, and devices associated with relative and fused location information

Abstract

A first network device may receive a reporting request message from a second network device. The reporting request message may indicate a request for a location measurement associated with a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU). The first network device may send a configuration request message to a location management client associated with a reference location. The configuration request message may indicate that the reference location is to be used as a reference point for the location measurement. The first network device may send a measurement request to the WTRU. The measurement request may indicate the reference location. The first network device may receive a measurement response from the WTRU. The measurement response may indicate the location measurement associated with the WTRU. The WTRU may send a reporting message to the second network device. The reporting message may indicate the location measurement associated with the WTRU.

Description

SYSTEMS, METHODS, AND DEVICES ASSOCIATED WITH RELATIVE AND FUSED LOCATION INFORMATIONCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of Provisional U.S. Patent Application No. 63 / 573,652, filed April 3, 2024, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.BACKGROUND

[0002] Mobile communications using wireless communication continue to evolve. A fifth generation may be referred to as 5G. A previous (legacy) generation of mobile communication may be, for example, fourth generation (4G) long term evolution (LTE).SUMMARY

[0003] Systems, methods, and instrumentalities are described herein related to location measurement.

[0004] In examples, a first network device may receive a reporting request message from a second network device. The reporting request message may indicate a request for a location measurement associated with a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU). The first network device may send a configuration request message to a location management client associated with a reference location. The configuration request message may indicate that the reference location is to be used as a reference point for the location measurement. The first network device may send a measurement request to the WTRU. The measurement request may indicate the reference location. The first network device may receive a measurement response from the WTRU. The measurement response may indicate the location measurement associated with the WTRU. The WTRU may send a reporting message to the second network device. The reporting message may indicate the location measurement associated with the WTRU.

[0005] In examples, the reporting request message may indicate a reference point identifier. The measurement request may indicate the reference point identifier, and the reference point identifier may identify the reference location or the location management client. The location measurement received in the measurement request may be in reference to the reference location.

[0006] In examples, the first network device may determine a quality of service (QoS) requirement based on the report request message. The first network device may determine an accuracy level of thelocation measurement. The first network device may modify the location measurement based on the QoS requirement and the determined accuracy level of the location measurement, wherein the location measurement indicated in the reporting message is the modified location measurement. For example, the first network device may determine a relative quality of service (QoS) value associated with the location measurement based on the accuracy level of the location measurement, and the reporting message may indicate the relative QoS value. The first network device may receive, from a third network device (e.g., 5GC), location information associated with the WTRU and determine the accuracy level of the location measurement based on the location information received from the third network device. In some examples, the first network device may receive sensed information associated with the WTRU in the reporting request message and determine a validity time period associated with the location measurement based on the sensed information associated with the WTRU and the accuracy level of the location measurement. The reporting message may indicate the validity time period associated with the location measurement.

[0007] In examples, the reporting request message may indicate a list of one or more WTRUs comprising the WTRU. The first network device may receive a response to the configuration request. The response may indicate an acknowledgment of the location management client to use the reference location as the reference point. The first network device may receive security information associated with the WTRU on the list and send the security information to the WTRU on the list.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] FIG. 1 A is a system diagram illustrating an example communications system in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented;

[0009] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment;

[0010] FIG. 1 C is a system diagram illustrating an example radio access network (RAN) and an example core network (CN) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1 A according to an embodiment;

[0011] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating a further example RAN and a further example CN that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment;

[0012] FIG. 2A illustrates actions associated with determining relative location information.

[0013] FIG. 2B illustrates actions associated with determining relative location information.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0014] FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an example communications system 100 in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communications system 100 may be a multiple access system that provides content, such as voice, data, video, messaging, broadcast, etc., to multiple wireless users. The communications system 100 may enable multiple wireless users to access such content through the sharing of system resources, including wireless bandwidth. For example, the communications systems 100 may employ one or more channel access methods, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), zero-tail unique-word DFT-Spread OFDM (ZT UW DTS-s OFDM), unique word OFDM (UW-OFDM), resource block-filtered OFDM, filter bank multicarrier (FBMC), and the like.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 1A, the communications system 100 may include wireless transmit / receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, a RAN 104 / 113, a ON 106 / 115, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110, and other networks 112, though it will be appreciated that the disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and / or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be any type of device configured to operate and / or communicate in a wireless environment. By way of example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, any of which may be referred to as a “station” and / or a “STA”, may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals and may include a user equipment (WTRU), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a subscription-based unit, a pager, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a laptop, a netbook, a personal computer, a wireless sensor, a hotspot or Mi-Fi device, an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and / or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and / or an automated processing chain contexts), a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, and the like. Any of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and 102d may be interchangeably referred to as a WTRU.

[0016] The communications systems 100 may also include a base station 114a and / or a base station 114b. Each of the base stations 114a, 114b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the CN 106 / 115, the I nternet 110, and / or the other networks 112. By way of example, the base stations 114a, 114b may be a base transceiver station (BTS), a Node-B, an eNode B, a Home Node B, a Home eNode B, a gNB, a NR NodeB, a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, and the like. While the base stations 114a, 114b are each depicted as a single element, it will beappreciated that the base stations 114a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and / or network elements.

[0017] The base station 114a may be part of the RAN 104 / 113, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), relay nodes, etc. The base station 114a and / or the base station 114b may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals on one or more carrier frequencies, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). These frequencies may be in licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum. A cell may provide coverage for a wireless service to a specific geographical area that may be relatively fixed or that may change over time. The cell may further be divided into cell sectors. For example, the cell associated with the base station 114a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, in one embodiment, the base station 114a may include three transceivers, i.e. , one for each sector of the cell. In an embodiment, the base station 114a may employ multiple-input multiple output (MIMO) technology and may utilize multiple transceivers for each sector of the cell. For example, beamforming may be used to transmit and / or receive signals in desired spatial directions.

[0018] The base stations 114a, 114b may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d over an air interface 116, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, centimeter wave, micrometer wave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). The air interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0019] More specifically, as noted above, the communications system 100 may be a multiple access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, and the like. For example, the base station 114a in the RAN 104 / 113 and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may establish the air interface 115 / 116 / 117 using wideband CDMA (WCDMA). WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) and / or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High-Speed Downlink (DL) Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High-Speed UL Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0020] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and / or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) and / or LTE-Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro).

[0021] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as NR Radio Access , which may establish the air interface 116 using New Radio (NR).

[0022] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement multiple radio access technologies. For example, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement LTE radio access and NR radio access together, for instance using dual connectivity (DC) principles. Thus, the air interface utilized by WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be characterized by multiple types of radio access technologies and / or transmissions sent to / from multiple types of base stations (e.g., an eNB and a gNB).

[0023] In other embodiments, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement radio technologies such as IEEE 802.11 (i.e., Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), and the like.

[0024] The base station 114b in FIG. 1 A may be a wireless router, Home Node B, Home eNode B, or access point, for example, and may utilize any suitable RAT for facilitating wireless connectivity in a localized area, such as a place of business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, an industrial facility, an air corridor (e.g., for use by drones), a roadway, and the like. In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In an embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yet another embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR etc.) to establish a picocell or femtocell. As shown in FIG. 1A, the base station 114b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Thus, the base station 114b may not be required to access the Internet 110 via the CN 106 / 115.

[0025] The RAN 104 / 113 may be in communication with the CN 106 / 115, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and / or voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. The data may have varying quality of service (QoS) requirements, such as differing throughput requirements, latency requirements, error tolerance requirements, reliability requirements, data throughput requirements, mobility requirements, and the like. The CN 106 / 115 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, pre-paid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and / or perform high-level security functions, such as user authentication. Although not shown in FIG. 1A, it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 / 113 and / or the CN 106 / 115 may be in direct or indirect communication with other RANs that employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 / 113 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 104 / 113, whichmay be utilizing a NR radio technology, the CN 106 / 115 may also be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employing a GSM, UMTS, CDMA 2000, WiMAX, E-UTRA, or WiFi radio technology.

[0026] The CN 106 / 115 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and / or the other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include circuit- switched telephone networks that provide plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as the transmission control protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP) and / or the internet protocol (IP) in the TCP / IP internet protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wired and / or wireless communications networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 may include another CN connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 / 113 or a different RAT.

[0027] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communications system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities (e.g., the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks over different wireless links). For example, the WTRU 102c shown in FIG. 1A may be configured to communicate with the base station 114a, which may employ a cellular-based radio technology, and with the base station 114b, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

[0028] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example WTRU 102. As shown in FIG. 1 B, the WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit / receive element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, a display / touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and / or other peripherals 138, among others. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0029] The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, and the like. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit / receive element 122. While FIG. 1 B depicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separate components, it will be appreciated that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0030] The transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signals to, or receive signals from, a base station (e.g., the base station 114a) over the air interface 116. For example, in one embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and / or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an emitter / detector configured to transmit and / or receive IR, UV, or visible light signals, for example. In yet another embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive both RF and light signals. It will be appreciated that the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0031] Although the transmit / receive element 122 is depicted in FIG. 1 B as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit / receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 may employ MIMO technology. Thus, in one embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit / receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 116.

[0032] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate the signals that are to be transmitted by the transmit / receive element 122 and to demodulate the signals that are received by the transmit / receive element 122. As noted above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers for enabling the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as NR and IEEE 802.11 , for example.

[0033] The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to, and may receive user input data from, the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit). The processor 118 may also output user data to the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128. 1 n addition, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, any type of suitable memory, such as the non-removable memory 130 and / or the removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In other embodiments, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, memory that is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or a home computer (not shown).

[0034] The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134, and may be configured to distribute and / or control the power to the other components in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitable device for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 may include oneor more dry cell batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), lithium-ion (Li-ion), etc.), solar cells, fuel cells, and the like.

[0035] The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to, or in lieu of, the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may receive location information over the air interface 116 from a base station (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) and / or determine its location based on the timing of the signals being received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may acquire location information by way of any suitable locationdetermination method while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0036] The processor 118 may further be coupled to other peripherals 138, which may include one or more software and / or hardware modules that provide additional features, functionality and / or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include an accelerometer, an e-compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (for photographs and / or video), a universal serial bus (USB) port, a vibration device, a television transceiver, a hands free headset, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM) radio unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internet browser, a Virtual Reality and / or Augmented Reality (VR / AR) device, an activity tracker, and the like. The peripherals 138 may include one or more sensors, the sensors may be one or more of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a hall effect sensor, a magnetometer, an orientation sensor, a proximity sensor, a temperature sensor, a time sensor; a geolocation sensor; an altimeter, a light sensor, a touch sensor, a magnetometer, a barometer, a gesture sensor, a biometric sensor, and / or a humidity sensor.

[0037] The WTRU 102 may include a full duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for both the UL (e.g., for transmission) and downlink (e.g., for reception) may be concurrent and / or simultaneous. The full duplex radio may include an interference management unit to reduce and or substantially eliminate self-interference via either hardware (e.g., a choke) or signal processing via a processor (e.g., a separate processor (not shown) or via processor 118). In an embodiment, the WRTU 102 may include a half-duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for either the UL (e.g., for transmission) or the downlink (e.g., for reception)).

[0038] FIG. 1 C is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ an E-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the CN 106.

[0039] The RAN 104 may include eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNode-Bs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, the eNode-B 160a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and / or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a.

[0040] Each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 C, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may communicate with one another over an X2 interface.

[0041] The CN 106 shown in FIG. 1 C may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, a serving gateway (SGW) 164, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway (or PGW) 166. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 106, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0042] The MME 162 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 162a, 162b, 162c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, bearer activation / deactivation, selecting a particular serving gateway during an initial attach of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like. The MME 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM and / or WCDMA.

[0043] The SGW 164 may be connected to each of the eNode Bs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via the S1 interface. The SGW 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to / from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The SGW 164 may perform other functions, such as anchoring user planes during inter- eNode B handovers, triggering paging when DL data is available for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, managing and storing contexts of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like.

[0044] The SGW 164 may be connected to the PGW 166, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0045] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional land-line communications devices. For example, the CN 106 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108.In addition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0046] Although the WTRU is described in FIGS. 1 A-1 D as a wireless terminal, it is contemplated that in certain representative embodiments that such a terminal may use (e.g., temporarily or permanently) wired communication interfaces with the communication network.

[0047] In representative embodiments, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0048] A WLAN in Infrastructure Basic Service Set (BSS) mode may have an Access Point (AP) for the BSS and one or more stations (STAs) associated with the AP. The AP may have an access or an interface to a Distribution System (DS) or another type of wired / wireless network that carries traffic in to and / or out of the BSS. Traffic to STAs that originates from outside the BSS may arrive through the AP and may be delivered to the STAs. Traffic originating from STAs to destinations outside the BSS may be sent to the AP to be delivered to respective destinations. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be sent through the AP, for example, where the source STA may send traffic to the AP and the AP may deliver the traffic to the destination STA. The traffic between STAs within a BSS may be considered and / or referred to as peer-to- peer traffic. The peer-to-peer traffic may be sent between (e.g., directly between) the source and destination STAs with a direct link setup (DLS). In certain representative embodiments, the DLS may use an 802.11e DLS or an 802.11 z tunneled DLS (TDLS). A WLAN using an Independent BSS (IBSS) mode may not have an AP, and the STAs (e.g., all of the STAs) within or using the IBSS may communicate directly with each other. The IBSS mode of communication may sometimes be referred to herein as an “ad- hoc” mode of communication.

[0049] When using the 802.11 ac infrastructure mode of operation or a similar mode of operations, the AP may transmit a beacon on a fixed channel, such as a primary channel. The primary channel may be a fixed width (e.g., 20 MHz wide bandwidth) or a dynamically set width via signaling. The primary channel may be the operating channel of the BSS and may be used by the STAs to establish a connection with the AP. In certain representative embodiments, Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance (CSMA / CA) may be implemented, for example in in 802.11 systems. For CSMA / CA, the STAs (e.g., every STA), including the AP, may sense the primary channel. If the primary channel is sensed / detected and / or determined to be busy by a particular STA, the particular STA may back off. One STA (e.g., only one station) may transmit at any given time in a given BSS.

[0050] High Throughput (HT) STAs may use a 40 MHz wide channel for communication, for example, via a combination of the primary 20 MHz channel with an adjacent or nonadjacent 20 MHz channel to form a 40 MHz wide channel.

[0051] Very High Throughput (VHT) STAs may support 20MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, and / or 160 MHz wide channels. The 40 MHz, and / or 80 MHz, channels may be formed by combining contiguous 20 MHz channels. A 160 MHz channel may be formed by combining 8 contiguous 20 MHz channels, or by combining two non-contiguous 80 MHz channels, which may be referred to as an 80+80 configuration. For the 80+80 configuration, the data, after channel encoding, may be passed through a segment parser that may divide the data into two streams. Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) processing, and time domain processing, may be done on each stream separately. The streams may be mapped on to the two 80 MHz channels, and the data may be transmitted by a transmitting STA. At the receiver of the receiving STA, the above described operation for the 80+80 configuration may be reversed, and the combined data may be sent to the Medium Access Control (MAC).

[0052] Sub 1 GHz modes of operation are supported by 802.11af and 802.11 ah. The channel operating bandwidths, and carriers, are reduced in 802.11 af and 802.11 ah relative to those used in 802.11 n, and 802.11 ac. 802.11 af supports 5 MHz, 10 MHz and 20 MHz bandwidths in the TV White Space (TVWS) spectrum, and 802.11 ah supports 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, and 16 MHz bandwidths using non- TVWS spectrum. According to a representative embodiment, 802.11 ah may support Meter Type Control / Machine-Type Communications, such as MTC devices in a macro coverage area. MTC devices may have certain capabilities, for example, limited capabilities including support for (e.g., only support for) certain and / or limited bandwidths. The MTC devices may include a battery with a battery life above a threshold (e.g., to maintain a very long battery life).

[0053] WLAN systems, which may support multiple channels, and channel bandwidths, such as 802.11 n, 802.11 ac, 802.11 af, and 802.11 ah, include a channel which may be designated as the primary channel. The primary channel may have a bandwidth equal to the largest common operating bandwidth supported by all STAs in the BSS. The bandwidth of the primary channel may be set and / or limited by a STA, from among all STAs in operating in a BSS, which supports the smallest bandwidth operating mode. In the example of 802.11 ah, the primary channel may be 1 MHz wide for STAs (e.g., MTC type devices) that support (e.g., only support) a 1 MHz mode, even if the AP, and other STAs in the BSS support 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, 16 MHz, and / or other channel bandwidth operating modes. Carrier sensing and / or Network Allocation Vector (NAV) settings may depend on the status of the primary channel. If the primary channel is busy, for example, due to a STA (which supports only a 1 MHz operating mode), transmitting to the AP, the entire available frequency bands may be considered busy even though a majority of the frequency bands remains idle and may be available.

[0054] In the United States, the available frequency bands, which may be used by 802.11 ah, are from 902 MHz to 928 MHz. In Korea, the available frequency bands are from 917.5 MHz to 923.5 MHz. InJapan, the available frequency bands are from 916.5 MHz to 927.5 MHz. The total bandwidth available for 802.11 ah is 6 MHz to 26 MHz depending on the country code.

[0055] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 113 and the CN 115 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 113 may employ an NR radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 113 may also be in communication with the CN 115.

[0056] The RAN 113 may include gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 113 may include any number of gNBs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement MIMO technology. For example, gNBs 180a, 108b may utilize beamforming to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c. Thus, the gNB 180a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and / or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement carrier aggregation technology. For example, the gNB 180a may transmit multiple component carriers to the WTRU 102a (not shown). A subset of these component carriers may be on unlicensed spectrum while the remaining component carriers may be on licensed spectrum. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement Coordinated Multi-Point (CoMP) technology. For example, WTRU 102a may receive coordinated transmissions from gNB 180a and gNB 180b (and / or gNB 180c).

[0057] The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using transmissions associated with a scalable numerology. For example, the OFDM symbol spacing and / or OFDM subcarrier spacing may vary for different transmissions, different cells, and / or different portions of the wireless transmission spectrum. The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using subframe or transmission time intervals (TTIs) of various or scalable lengths (e.g., containing varying number of OFDM symbols and / or lasting varying lengths of absolute time).

[0058] The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be configured to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c in a standalone configuration and / or a non-standalone configuration. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c without also accessing other RANs (e.g., such as eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c). In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may utilize one or more of gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c as a mobility anchor point. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using signals in an unlicensed band. In a non-standalone configuration WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with / connect to gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c while also communicating with / connecting to another RAN such aseNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c. For example, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement DC principles to communicate with one or more gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c and one or more eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c substantially simultaneously. In the non-standalone configuration, eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may serve as a mobility anchor for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may provide additional coverage and / or throughput for servicing WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0059] Each of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, support of network slicing, dual connectivity, interworking between NR and E- UTRA, routing of user plane data towards User Plane Function (UPF) 184a, 184b, routing of control plane information towards Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 182a, 182b and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 D, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may communicate with one another over an Xn interface.

[0060] The CN 115 shown in FIG. 1 D may include at least one AMF 182a, 182b, at least one UPF 184a, 184b, at least one Session Management Function (SMF) 183a, 183b, and possibly a Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 115, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0061] The AMF 182a, 182b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N2 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the AMF 182a, 182b may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, support for network slicing (e.g., handling of different PDU sessions with different requirements), selecting a particular SMF 183a, 183b, management of the registration area, termination of NAS signaling, mobility management, and the like. Network slicing may be used by the AMF 182a, 182b in order to customize CN support for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c based on the types of services being utilized WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. For example, different network slices may be established for different use cases such as services relying on ultra-reliable low latency (URLLC) access, services relying on enhanced massive mobile broadband (eMBB) access, services for machine type communication (MTC) access, and / or the like. The AMF 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 113 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and / or non-3GPP access technologies such as WiFi.

[0062] The SMF 183a, 183b may be connected to an AMF 182a, 182b in the CN 115 via an N11 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may also be connected to a UPF 184a, 184b in the CN 115 via an N4 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may select and control the UPF 184a, 184b and configure the routing of traffic through the UPF 184a, 184b. The SMF 183a, 183b may perform other functions, such as managing and allocating WTRU IP address, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS,providing downlink data notifications, and the like. A PDU session type may be IP-based, non-IP based, Ethernet-based, and the like.

[0063] The UPF 184a, 184b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N3 interface, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet- switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices. The UPF 184, 184b may perform other functions, such as routing and forwarding packets, enforcing user plane policies, supporting multi-homed PDU sessions, handling user plane QoS, buffering downlink packets, providing mobility anchoring, and the like.

[0064] The CN 115 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 115 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 115 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 115 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers. In one embodiment, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be connected to a local Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b through the UPF 184a, 184b via the N3 interface to the UPF 184a, 184b and an N6 interface between the UPF 184a, 184b and the DN 185a, 185b.

[0065] In view of Figures 1 A-1 D, and the corresponding description of Figures 1 A-1 D, one or more, or all, of the functions described herein with regard to one or more of: WTRU 102a-d, Base Station 114a-b, eNode-B 160a-c, MME 162, SGW 164, PGW 166, gNB 180a-c, AMF 182a-b, UPF 184a-b, SMF 183a-b, DN 185a-b, and / or any other device(s) described herein, may be performed by one or more emulation devices (not shown). The emulation devices may be one or more devices configured to emulate one or more, or all, of the functions described herein. For example, the emulation devices may be used to test other devices and / or to simulate network and / or WTRU functions.

[0066] The emulation devices may be designed to implement one or more tests of other devices in a lab environment and / or in an operator network environment. For example, the one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being fully or partially implemented and / or deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network in order to test other devices within the communication network. The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being temporarily implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. The emulation device may be directly coupled to another device for purposes of testing and / or may performing testing using over-the-air wireless communications.

[0067] The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, including all, functions while not being implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. For example,the emulation devices may be utilized in a testing scenario in a testing laboratory and / or a non-deployed (e.g., testing) wired and / or wireless communication network in order to implement testing of one or more components. The one or more emulation devices may be testing equipment. Direct RF coupling and / or wireless communications via RF circuitry (e.g., which may include one or more antennas) may be used by the emulation devices to transmit and / or receive data.

[0068] Systems, methods, and instrumentalities are described herein related to location measurement.

[0069] In examples, a first network device may receive a reporting request message from a second network device. The reporting request message may indicate a request for a location measurement associated with a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU). The first network device may send a configuration request message to a location management client associated with a reference location. The configuration request message may indicate that the reference location is to be used as a reference point for the location measurement. The first network device may send a measurement request to the WTRU. The measurement request may indicate the reference location. The first network device may receive a measurement response from the WTRU. The measurement response may indicate the location measurement associated with the WTRU. The WTRU may send a reporting message to the second network device. The reporting message may indicate the location measurement associated with the WTRU.

[0070] In examples, the reporting request message may indicate a reference point identifier. The measurement request may indicate the reference point identifier, and the reference point identifier may identify the reference location or the location management client. The location measurement received in the measurement request may be in reference to the reference location.

[0071] In examples, the first network device may determine a quality of service (QoS) requirement based on the report request message. The first network device may determine an accuracy level of the location measurement. The first network device may modify the location measurement based on the QoS requirement and the determined accuracy level of the location measurement, wherein the location measurement indicated in the reporting message is the modified location measurement. For example, the first network device may determine a relative quality of service (QoS) value associated with the location measurement based on the accuracy level of the location measurement, and the reporting message may indicate the relative QoS value. The first network device may receive, from a third network device (e.g., 5GC), location information associated with the WTRU and determine the accuracy level of the location measurement based on the location information received from the third network device. In some examples, the first network device may receive sensed information associated with the WTRU in the reporting request message and determine a validity time period associated with the location measurement based on thesensed information associated with the WTRU and the accuracy level of the location measurement. The reporting message may indicate the validity time period associated with the location measurement.

[0072] In examples, the reporting request message may indicate a list of one or more WTRUs comprising the WTRU. The first network device may receive a response to the configuration request. The response may indicate an acknowledgment of the location management client to use the reference location as the reference point. The first network device may receive security information associated with the WTRU on the list and send the security information to the WTRU on the list.

[0073] An example device may include a processor and may be configured to perform one or more of the following actions. For example, a device (e.g., a first network entity) may receive a request message. The request message may indicate a request for one or more relative location measurements, a reference point identifier, a list of one or more wireless transmit / receive units (WTRUs), and / or a relative location quality of service (QoS) requirement. The device may perform a procedure associated with configuration of a reference point WTRU. The reference point WTRU may be associated with the reference point identifier. The device may send a first location request message to an entity associated with a first WTRU identified in the list of WTRUs and receive first location information associated with the first WTRU. The first location information may indicate a distance measurement or a signal strength measurement associated with a location of the first WTRU relative to the reference point WTRU. The first location information associated with the first WTRU may include a first relative QoS indication for the first location information. The device may send a message to a second network entity and receive, from the second network entity, second location information associated with the first WTRU and a second relative QoS indication for the second location information. The device may determine a location (e.g., relative location) associated with the first WTRU and / or a QoS indication associated with the determined location (e.g., determined relative location) associated with the first WTRU. The location (e.g., relative location) associated with the first WTRU may be determined based at least on the first location information and the second location information. The device may send an indication to a third network entity. The indication to the third network entity may indicate at least the determined location (e.g., the determined relative location) and / or QoS indication. The indication to the third network entity may further comprise an indication of a validity time associated with the determined location. The QoS indication may be determined based on the first relative QoS indication and the second relative QoS indication.

[0074] The device may be configured (e.g., further configured) to receive third location information associated with the first WTRU. The third location information associated with the first WTRU may be received from a location management client associated with the reference point WTRU. The determination of the location associated with the first WTRU may be further based on the third location information.

[0075] The device may be a first network entity. The first network entity may be a location management server (LMS) entity. The entity associated with the first WTRU may be a location management client associated with the first WTRU. The second network entity may be a 5G core entity. The third network entity may be a vertical application layer (VAL) server.

[0076] The device may be configured to (e.g., as part of the procedure associated with configuration of the reference point WTRU) to perform one or more of: send a configuration request; receive an indication of acceptance as the reference point identifier; receive a respective security key or credential for each respective WTRU in the list of one or more WTRUs; receive a local network identifier; or receive beacon information.

[0077] When creating or updating a spatial map, an Application Server (AS) may collect data (e.g., may need to collect sensor data) and / or may know (e.g., need to know) the location of a sensor relative to a reference point. Sensed data and / or the relative location where the sensed data originated from may be used to create or update the spatial map.

[0078] Server actions may be triggered by an AS if the AS determines (e.g., needs to determine) the location of WTRU(s) relative to a reference point and establish a communication session with the WTRU(s). In examples, an enabler server (e.g., an LMS) may configure a WTRU to serve as a reference point, obtain information from multiple sources, and use the information to determine relative location information that is more accurate than relative location information that is determined based on information from a single source. If the WTRU(s) are also sensors, the LMS may assist the AS in establishing a communication link with the WTRU so that sensed data may be collected.

[0079] A device (e.g., an entity, for example an entity comprising a location management server (LMS) used as an example herein) may perform or be associated with one or more of the following actions.

[0080] The LMS may receive a request for one or more relative location measurements. The request (e.g., a measurement request) may include a reference point identifier, a list of one or more WTRUs (e.g., WTRUs), and / or a relative location QoS requirement. The reference point identifier may be or may be described as a point in a three-dimensional space or a WTRU Identifier. The reference point identifier may identify a reference location or a location management client (e.g., a location management client associated with the reference location). For example, the reference point identifier may be or may be described as a WTRU Identifier. The WTRU identifier may be a General Public Subscription Identifier (GPSI) or an application identifier.

[0081] The LMS may (e.g., if the reference point identifier is a WTRU Identifier) perform one or more of the following (e.g., a procedure), for example, to configure the reference point WTRU to serve as a reference point WTRU. The LMS may receive an indication (e.g., as a response to the measurementrequest) that the location management client of the reference point WTRU is willing to be the reference point. The LMS may receive security information (e.g., a security key or credential) for a WTRU (e.g., each WTRU) in the list. The LMS may receive a local network identifier and / or an identifier that can be used to contact the reference point WTRU in the local network. The LMS may receive beacon information, e.g., from the Location Management Client.

[0082] The LMS may perform one or more of the following (e.g., a procedure), for example to obtain relative location information, e.g., from a WTRU in the list. The LMS may sends the reference point identifier, e.g., to the WTRU (the WTRU in the list). The LMS may receive relative location information and relative location QoS, e.g., from the WTRU. The LMS may send a security key or credential, e.g., to the WTRU in the list. The security key or credential may have been received by the WTRU from the reference point WTRU. The security key or credential may be used by the WTRU in the list to establish a link with the reference point WTRU. The LMS may send a local network identifier and / or a reference WTRU identifier to the WTRU in the list. The local network identifier and / or a reference WTRU identifier may have been received by the WTRU from the reference point WTRU. The local network identifier and / or a reference WTRU identifier may be used by the WTRU in the list to establish a link with the reference point WTRU. The communication described between the LMS and the WTRU may be between the LMS and a location management client of the WTRU (e.g., a location management client of the WTRU). The LMS may send the beacon information to the WTRU and may receive a distance measurement or a signal strength measurement from the WTRU. The distance measurement or a signal strength measurement may be based on the beacon information.

[0083] The LMS may obtain (e.g., perform a procedure to obtain) location information for the WTRU from the list. The location information may be obtained from the 5GC, e.g., by invoking a network exposure function application programming interface (NEF API).

[0084] The LMS may use the information that was obtained from the WTRU and / or the location information that was obtained from the 5GC to determine relative location information (e.g., modified and / or more accurate relative location information). The LMS may (e.g., also) use relative location information from other WTRUs in the list, e.g., to determine the relative location information, for example, modified and / or the improved location information. The LMS may (e.g., also) determine a Relative QoS value for the relative location information. The Relative QoS value may be based on the accuracy of the measurements that were used to calculate the relative location information. The LMS may (e.g., also) determine a validity time value (e.g., a validity time period) for the relative location information. The validity time value may be based on the accuracy of the measurements that were used to calculate the relative location information and / or other information of the WTRU from the list (e.g. the speed of the WTRU).

[0085] The LMS may send a message (e.g., a reporting message and / or a response to the request for one or more relative location measurements). The message (e.g., response) may include the relative location information, a relative location QoS value, and / or a validity time value.

[0086] Location in 3-Dimensional (3D) space, may include an orientation, e.g., which may be defined as pitch, yaw, and roll. Localization information may be used to create or modify a spatial map. A spatial map may be a collection of information that corresponds to space, e.g., including information gathered from sensors concerning characteristics of the forms in that space, which may include appearance information. Localization information may be used to discover spatial anchors. A spatial anchor may be an association between a location in space (e.g., three dimensions) and service information that may be used to identify and access services, e.g., information to access AR media content. A WTRU hosting a sensor may mean that the ability to sense information (e.g. light, vibration, GPS location, or speed) is embedded in the WTRU or integrated in the WTRU. A WTRU hosting a sensor may mean that the WTRU uses a local connection to interface to a sensor (e.g. the WTRU uses a Bluetooth connection to connect to a vibration sensor).

[0087] If / when the “fused” location feature is enabled, the location management server may use the location information from multiple sources to more accurately determine the location of a WTRU. The location management server may select one or more location sources and location determination methods based on a requested location QoS. The requested location QoS may be provided by a VAL Server that requests the WTRU’s location. Requested location QoS may define the degree of accuracy that is requested for a location measurement and / or how quickly the location measurement is needed.

[0088] When collecting and determining localization information to create or modify a spatial map, a server (e.g. a VAL Server) may collect (e.g., need to collect) sensor information from multiple WTRUs and determine the location of a (e.g., each) WTRU. When building a spatial map, determining the location, or localization information, of a (e.g., each) WTRU relative to the other WTRU’s or relative to a reference point may be needed. In examples, a level of accuracy (e.g., the degree of accuracy) in the location, or localization information, relative to a reference point or reference WTRU may be more important than the degree of accuracy of the location, or localization information, of an individual WTRU. In other words, to localize elements that are in close proximity, the relative position between points may be more important than the exact absolute location of each point taken individually.

[0089] In examples, a (e.g., each) WTRU may host a number of sensors. The WTRU may provide sensed information, location information, and / or localization information to the VAL server so the VAL server can build a spatial representation. The VAL server may use (e.g., need to use) the information collected from different WTRU(s) to determine location information (e.g., more accurate location information) and localization information for a (e.g., each) WTRU. For example, this may be used (e.g.,needed) if a WTRU is not able provide some location information to the VAL server or if the WTRU is not able to provide location information with the desired location QoS (e.g., the desired level of accuracy) to the VAL server.

[0090] A VAL server may determine (e.g., need to determine) localization information for multiple WTRUs to build a spatial map. A Location Management Server (LMS) may be a Fused Location Function and the LMS may provide the server with fused location information, e.g., for a single WTRU. In examples, a procedure for the LMS to determine fused location information may not consider information that the WTRU provided to the VAL server (e.g. sensor information or location information). The information that the WTRU provides to the VAL server could be useful to the LMS in determining the requested location information with the desired QoS. In examples, the VAL server may be limited to requesting a location QoS for the location information of individual WTRUs. For spatial mapping, the VAL server may obtain (e.g., need to obtain) location information with a certain relative accuracy (e.g., relative to a reference WTRU or a reference point). In other words, the accuracy of the distance between two WTRUs (e.g., based on the relative location of the WTRUs) may be useful, and the exact location of two WTRUs (e.g., the absolute location of the WTRUs) may be less useful. The VAL Server may obtain (e.g., need to obtain) relative location, or localization, information from the LMS (e.g., to provide location, or localization, information relative to a reference point or reference WTRU).

[0091] To create or update a spatial map, an AS may collect (e.g., need to collect) sensor data and / or may know (e.g., need to know) the location of the sensor relative to a reference point. The sensed data and the relative location where the sensed data originated from may be used to create or update the spatial map.

[0092] Features associated with enabler server related actions may be triggered, e.g., by an AS, for example when the AS needs to determine the location of WTRU(s) relative to a reference point and establish a communication session with the WTRU(s). An enabler server, such as an LMS, may (e.g., first) configure a WTRU to serve as a reference point, (e.g., second) obtain information from multiple sources, and (e.g., third) use the information to determine relative location information, e.g., that is more accurate than relative location information that is determined based on information from a single source. If the WTRU(s) are (e.g., also) sensors, the LMS may (e.g., also) assist the AS in establishing a communication link with the WTRU so that sensed data can be collected.

[0093] Relative location information may be determined. For example, FIGs. 2A and 2B illustrate an example where an LMS may determine relative location information based on fused information. One or more of the illustrated / described actions (e.g., the illustrated / described actions in combined FIGs. 2A and 2B) may be performed (e.g., a subset of the illustrated / described actions may be performed) to provideassociated described feature(s). Fused information may refer to information that is collected from more than one source and used to determine a relative location value.

[0094] A VAL Server may (e.g., at 0) discovers more than one WTRU. To create or modify a spatial map, the VAL Server may obtain (e.g., need to obtain) the location of a (e.g., each) WTRU relative to a reference point. A reference point identifier may be described as a point in a three-dimensional space or a WTRU Identifier. If the reference point identifier is described as a WTRU Identifier, it may mean that the location of the WTRU is the reference point. The location information that is needed by the VAL server may not necessarily be the location of a (e.g., each) WTRU. Rather, it may be the location of a (e.g., each) WTRU relative to the reference point. The location information that is needed may be relative location information. The VAL Server may interact with some or all of the WTRUs and / or receive localization information of each WTRU and / or sensed information from each WTRU (e.g., from some or all of the WTRUs). The localization information may be a location in 3-Dimensional (3D) space, which may include an orientation, e.g., pitch, yaw, and roll. In examples, localization information may not be relative to any reference point and localization information may vary in accuracy (e.g., in a level of accuracy), and the localization information might not have accuracy that is sufficient for the VAL Server to derive the relative location of a (e.g., each) WTRU. The sensed information may be information from sensors that are connected to the WTRU. For example, the WTRU may be connected to sensors that can be used to determine the WTRU speed, WTRU height, or the amount of visible light. A speed, height, and light measurements may be examples of sensed information. The VAL Server may (e.g., also) determine a relative location QoS requirement for relative location information that the VAL Server may create or modify (e.g., need to create or modify) the spatial map. Relative Location QoS may be an indication of how much a relative location measurement can deviate from the true value. The Relative Location QoS may indicate a horizontal accuracy level and / or vertical accuracy level.

[0095] A second network device (e.g., the VAL Server) may (e.g., at 1) send a request message (e.g., a Relative Location Reporting Trigger Request Message as an example) to a first network device (e.g., the LMS). The request message may be or be described as a reporting request message. The Relative Location Reporting Trigger Request Message may be or may indicate a request to receive one or more Relative Location Measurements (e.g., a relative location measurement may be or may be described as a location measurement in reference to a reference location). The Relative Location Reporting Trigger Request Message may include one or more of the following: a Reference Point Identifier, a list of WTRUs, a QoS requirement (e.g., Relative Location QoS Requirement), localization information for a (e.g., each) WTRU in the list, or sensed information for a (e.g., each) WTRU in the list. The list of WTRUs may be a measurement request list. A (e.g., each) WTRU in the list may be identified by a GPSI or an Application ID(e.g., a respective GPSI or an Application ID). For example, the list may include the identity of a sensor Application that interacts with a Location Management Client that runs on a (e.g., each) WTRU in the list. The localization information for a (e.g., each) WTRU in the list may provide some information about the location of the (e.g., each) WTRU in the list. The localization information may be used by the LMS to help calculate the Relative Location Measurements. The sensed information for a (e.g., each) WTRU in the list may be used by the LMS to help calculate the Relative Location Measurements.

[0096] The LMS may (e.g., at 2) check that the VAL Server is authorized to obtain Relative Location information for a (e.g., each) WTRU in the list. The LMS may check that the VAL Server is authorized to obtain Relative Location information for the reference point. The LMS may determine a GPSI and / or a Location Management Client Identifier (e.g., a respective GPSI and / or Location Management Client Identifier) for a (e.g., each) WTRU in the measurement request list. The LMS may not need to determine the GPSI (e.g., if the information was provided by the VAL server, for example at 1). The LMS may (e.g., if an Application ID was provided, for example at 1) use the Application ID to determine the associated Location Management Client Identifier.

[0097] The LMS may (e.g., at 3) send a configuration request to the WTRU (e.g., if the reference point is a reference point WTRU). The configuration request may be sent in a configuration request message to a location management client as shown at 3 of FIG. 2A. The configuration request may (e.g., may be part of communications) do one or more of the following: check if the reference point WTRU authorizes using the WTRU as a reference point; provide the measurement request list to the reference point WTRU (e.g., the measurement list may be a list of WTRU Identifiers (e.g. GPSIs) or Location Management Client Identifiers, for example respective identifiers); obtain location information for the reference point WTRU; obtain relative location information for WTRU(s) in the measurement list; or request or indicate a beacon value and the expected maximum distance between the reference point WTRU and the WTRUs in the measurement request list. A reference point may be a reference location or may be a WTRU. The LMS may identify (e.g., select) a potential WTRU that may serve as a Reference Point WTRU (e.g., if the provided reference point is not a WTRU). The LMS may determine a Reference Point WTRU based on a list of Reference Point WTRUs that may be pre-provisioned or dynamically maintained. The LMS may use the localization Reference Point WTRU in the list and compare it to the provided Reference Point to identify a closely localized Reference Point WTRU. The Reference Point WTRU may pre-authorize its usage by the LMS as a reference point, for example the Reference Point WTRU may send a message, such as a registration request or a reference point authorization request, to the LMS server to indicate that it can be used as a reference point and may provide its location information.

[0098] The Location Management Client (e.g., associated with a reference location) of the Reference Point WTRU may (e.g., at 4) determine if it authorizes serving as the reference point for the WTRUs (e.g., if not pre-authorized) in the measurement request list. This authorization determination may be based on locally configured policies. The Location Management Client may initiate a procedure to obtain the information (e.g., if the Location Management Client of the Reference Point WTRU can obtain relative location information for any WTRU in the measurement list). For example, the Location Management Client of the Reference Point WTRU may initiate sidelink (e.g. Bluetooth or PC5) communications with a Location Management Client of a WTRU from the measurement list to measure the distance between the Reference Point WTRU and the WTRU from the measurement list. The Location Management Client of the Reference Point WTRU may send a message (e.g., Reference Point Configuration Response as an example) to the LMS. The Reference Point Configuration Response may include one or more of the following: an indication (e.g., an acknowledgment) that the Location Management Client of the Reference Point WTRU is willing to be the reference point; location information for the Reference Point WTRU; a security key or credential (e.g., a respective security key or credential) for a (e.g., each) WTRU in the from the measurement list; relative location information (e.g., respective relative location information) for one or more WTRUs from the measurement list; a QoS estimate (e.g., respective QoS estimate) for the relative location value(s) (e.g., if relative location information is included in the in the response); a Basic Service Set Identifier (BSSID) that the Location Management Client is connected (e.g., can be used to contact the Location Management Client); a contact address of the Location Management Client that can be used to contact the Location Management Client in the local network (e.g. via the BSSID); or a reference beacon value (e.g., that the WTRU will begin to broadcast). The reference point WTRU may begin to broadcast the beacon (e.g., in accordance with the beacon value), for example using a sidelink radio access technology such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or New Radio (NR) PC5. The reference point WTRU may use the expected maximum distance between the reference point WTRU and the WTRUs in the measurement request list (e.g., which may have been received at 3) to determine what power level should be used to transmit the beacon. The beacon value may generally describe the format of the beacon. For example, it may indicate a value that is transmitted, a binary pattern that is transmitted, a power level of the transmission, and / or the frequency band that is used to transmit the signal.

[0099] The LMS may (e.g., at 5) send a Location Information Request, e.g., to a Location Management Client. The Location Information Request (e.g., a measurement request) may indicate that the requested location information is Relative Location information, the Reference Point Identifier, and / or the Relative Location QoS Requirement. This message may (e.g., also) include (e.g., if the Reference Point is a WTRU) the location information for the Reference Point WTRU and / or security information (e.g., the security key or credential) that was received for the Location Management Client (e.g., at 4). The message may (e.g., also)include a contact address for the Location Management Client of the Reference WTRU and / or a local network identifier (e.g. BSSID) that may be used to contact the Location Management Client of the Reference WTRU.

[0100] The Location Management Client may (e.g., at 6) trigger one or more actions (e.g., a procedure) to determine the location of the WTRU that hosts the Location Management Client relative to the Reference Point. For example, the Location Management Client may determine its relative location which may include a vertical distance from a reference location (e.g., the reference point) and / or a horizontal distance from the reference point. The location management client may use a beacon value (e.g., a beacon value that was received at 5) to determine the WTRU’s location relative to the reference point WTRU. For example, the Location Management Client may measure the signal strength of the received beacon signal. The Location Management Client may determine its relative location, e.g., based on locally configurated information. The Location Management Client may determine its relative location, e.g., based on information that is configured from a sensor application. The LMC of the relatively located WTRU may (e.g., if the Reference Point WTRU is identified by a Location Management Client (LMC) Identifier) establish a link with the LMC of the Reference Point WTRU. The LMC of the relatively located WTRU may use the LMC identifier of the Reference Point WTRU and / or local network identifier (e.g., received at 5) to establish a communication link with the LMC of the Reference Point WTRU. The security information (e.g., the security key or credential) may be used to establish this link. The LMC of the relatively located WTRU may use sidelink communication protocols (e.g. Bluetooth or PC5) to determine its location relative to the WTRU that hosts the Location Management Client of the Reference Point WTRU. The LMC of the relatively located WTRU may send the relative location information and / or an indication of the relative location QoS to the LMS. The Location Management Client may send information (e.g., additional information) to the LMS, for example so that the LMS may calculate information about the relative location of the WTRU. For example, the Location Management Client may send the received power level (e.g., signal strength) of the beacon signal, or any other signal, that was received from the reference point WTRU.

[0101] The LMS may (e.g., at 7 and / or 8) invoke services of the 5GC to obtain information (e.g., more information) about the location of a (e.g., each) WTRU from the measurement list and the Reference Point WTRU (e.g., if the reference point is a WTRU location). For example, the LMS may invoke the Nnef_Location service operation (e.g., at 7) and may receive an Nnef_Location_LocationUpdateNotify message (e.g., at 8). The message (e.g., at 8) may include the WTRU Identifier (i.e. GPSI) location estimate and / or the QoS of the location estimate (e.g., the accuracy of the location estimate).

[0102] Features described in relation to 5 and 6 may be performed for some or all WTRUs (e.g., each WTRU) in the measurement list. Features described in relation to 7 and 8 may be performed for some or allWTRUs (e.g., each WTRU) in the measurement list and / or the Reference Point WTRU. In some examples, features described in relation to 7 and 8 may be performed before steps 5 and 6. For example, it may be desirable to receive approximate location information for a WTRU from the NEF before determining whether to trigger features described in relation to 5 and 6.

[0103] The LMS may (e.g., at 9) use the information that was obtained at 1, 4, 6, and / or 8 to determine the relative location of a WTRU (e.g., the respective relative location of each WTRU) in the measurement list. In some examples, relative location information for some of the WTRUs in the measurement list may have been received at 6. However, at 9, the LMS may use the information that was obtained at 1 , 4, or 8 (e.g., from the NEF or other WTRUs or the VAL Server) to determine more accurate relative location information. The LMS may (e.g., also) determine (e.g., at 9) a Relative Location QoS value (e.g., a respective Relative Location QoS value) for a (e.g., each) Relative Location Measurement. The Relative Location QoS value may represent the accuracy of the Relative Location Measurement. The LMS may (e.g., also) determine (e.g., at 9) a time validity value for a (e.g., each) Relative Location Measurement. The time validity value may indicate a period (e.g., how long) the Relative Location Measurement and / or Relative Location QoS value may be assumed to be accurate. For example, if the LMS receives information about the speed of the WTRU and / or speed of the reference point WTRU (e.g., at 1), the LMS may (e.g., based on such information) estimate how much time it will take before the Relative Location Measurement value is likely to change to a degree that it is no longer within the Relative Location QoS.

[0104] The LMS may send (e.g., at 10) a response (e.g., a reporting message), e.g., to the VAL Server. For a (e.g., each) WTRU in the measurement list, the response may include (e.g., respective) Relative Location information, a Relative Location QoS value, and / or a validity time value. The validity time value may be used by the VAL Server to determine how soon it should attempt to collect a different measurement (e.g., a new measurement) and update the spatial map.

[0105] Although features and elements described above are described in particular combinations, each feature or element may be used alone without the other features and elements of the preferred embodiments, or in various combinations with or without other features and elements.

[0106] Although the implementations described herein may consider 3GPP specific protocols, it is understood that the implementations described herein are not restricted to this scenario and may be applicable to other wireless systems. For example, although the solutions described herein consider LTE, LTE-A, New Radio (NR) or 5G specific protocols, it is understood that the solutions described herein are not restricted to this scenario and are applicable to other wireless systems as well.

[0107] The processes described above may be implemented in a computer program, software, and / or firmware incorporated in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer and / or processor.Examples of computer-readable media include, but are not limited to, electronic signals (transmitted over wired and / or wireless connections) and / or computer-readable storage media. Examples of computer- readable storage media include, but are not limited to, a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a register, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as, but not limited to, internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and / or optical media such as compact disc (CD)-ROM disks, and / or digital versatile disks (DVDs). A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a WTRU, terminal, base station, RNC, and / or any host computer.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat Is Claimed Is:1 . A first network device, comprising: a processor configured to: receive a reporting request message from a second network device, wherein the reporting request message indicates a request for a location measurement associated with a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU); send a configuration request message to a location management client associated with a reference location, wherein the configuration request message indicates that the reference location is to be used as a reference point for the location measurement; send a measurement request to the WTRU, wherein the measurement request indicates the reference location; receive a measurement response from the WTRU, wherein the measurement response indicates the location measurement associated with the WTRU; and send a reporting message to the second network device, wherein the reporting message indicates the location measurement associated with the WTRU.

2. The first network device of claim 1, wherein the reporting request message indicates a reference point identifier, wherein the measurement request indicates the reference point identifier, and wherein the reference point identifier identifies the reference location or the location management client.

3. The first network device of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the location measurement received in the measurement request is in reference to the reference location.

4. The first network device of any one of claims 1-3, wherein the processor is further configured to: determine a quality of service (QoS) requirement based on the report request message; determine an accuracy level of the location measurement; and modify the location measurement based on the QoS requirement and the determined accuracy level of the location measurement, wherein the location measurement indicated in the reporting message is the modified location measurement.

5. The first network device of claim 4, wherein the processor is further configured to:determine a relative quality of service (QoS) value associated with the location measurement based on the accuracy level of the location measurement, wherein the reporting message indicates the relative QoS value.

6. The first network device of claim 4, wherein the processor is further configured to: receive, from a third network device, location information associated with the WTRU, wherein the accuracy level of the location measurement is determined based on the location information received from the third network device.

7. The first network device of claim 4, wherein the processor is further configured to: receive sensed information associated with the WTRU in the reporting request message; and determine a validity time period associated with the location measurement based on the sensed information associated with the WTRU and the accuracy level of the location measurement, wherein the reporting message indicates the validity time period associated with the location measurement.

8. The first network device of any one of claims 1-7, wherein the reporting request message indicates a list of one or more WTRUs comprising the WTRU, and wherein the processor is further configured to: receive a response to the configuration request, wherein the response indicates an acknowledgment of the location management client to use the reference location as the reference point; receive security information associated with the WTRU on the list; and send the security information to the WTRU on the list.

9. A method performed by a first network device, comprising: receiving a reporting request message from a second network device, wherein the reporting request message indicates a request for a location measurement associated with a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU); sending a configuration request message to a location management client associated with a reference location, wherein the configuration request message indicates that the reference location is to be used as a reference point for the location measurement; sending a measurement request to the WTRU, wherein the measurement request indicates the reference location; receiving a measurement response from the WTRU, wherein the measurement response indicates the location measurement associated with the WTRU; andsending a reporting message to the second network device, wherein the reporting message indicates the location measurement associated with the WTRU.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the reporting request message indicates a reference point identifier, wherein the measurement request indicates the reference point identifier, and wherein the reference point identifier identifies the reference location or the location management client.11 . The method of claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the location measurement received in the measurement request is in reference to the reference location.

12. The method of any one of claims 9-11 , further comprising: determining a quality of service (QoS) requirement based on the report request message; determining an accuracy level of the location measurement; and modifying the location measurement based on the QoS requirement and the determined accuracy level of the location measurement, wherein the location measurement indicated in the reporting message is the modified location measurement.

13. The method of any one of claims 9-12, further comprising: determining a relative quality of service (QoS) value associated with the location measurement based on the accuracy level of the location measurement, wherein the reporting message indicates the relative QoS value.

14. The of any one of claims 9-13, further comprising: receiving, from a third network device, location information associated with the WTRU, wherein the accuracy level of the location measurement is determined based on the location information received from the third network device.

15. The of any one of claims 9-14, further comprising: receiving sensed information associated with the WTRU in the reporting request message; and determining a validity time period associated with the location measurement based on the sensed information associated with the WTRU and the accuracy level of the location measurement, wherein the reporting message indicates the validity time period associated with the location measurement.

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