Radio frequency (RF) sensing indicator for a user equipment

Abstract

Techniques are discussed for a user equipment (UE) for radio frequency (RF) sensing an environment with enhanced experience for a user of the UE. The UE comprises at least one memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one memory and the at least one transceiver. The at least one processor is configured to determine that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations and provide a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

Description

RADIO FREQUENCY (RF) SENSING INDICATOR FOR A USER EQUIPMENTCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims the benefit of Indian Patent Application No. 202421099956, filed December 17, 2024, entitled “RADIO FREQUENCY (RF) SENSING INDICATOR FOR A USER EQUIPMENT,” which is assigned to the assignee hereof, and the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] Aspects of the disclosure relate generally to location determination systems, and more particularly to determining the location of a target with at least one user equipment (UE) utilizing radio frequency (RF) sensing.BACKGROUND

[0003] Radio frequency (RF) sensing is a new application for the next generation of wireless systems such as, for example, 5G advanced and / or 6G wireless systems. In general, RF sensing approaches include having one or more transmitting entities transmitting signals towards targets that need to be detected and / or tracked in an environment. The transmitted signals that are reflected and scattered by one or more targets are then received and analyzed by one or more user equipment (UEs) in the environment. By utilizing a plurality of UEs, the RF sensing techniques allow for increased sensing coverage, balanced RF sensing loading, and maximizing the detection probabilities of targets within the environment.

[0004] In general, RF sensing by one or more UEs may be performed either as monostatic RF sensing, bistatic RF sensing, or multistatic RF sensing, where monostatic RF sensing involves a single UE transmitting and receiving a sensing signal; bistatic RF sensing involves a first UE transmitting and a second UE receiving the sensing signal; and multistatic RF sensing involves multiple UEs transmitting and receiving one or more sensing signals.

[0005] Within these RF sensing techniques, a new integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) feature is being introduced in UEs that supports both sensing of4903 / A130WOa region corresponding to one or more UEs and communication with the UEs. Generally, the ISAC defines a sensing architecture that includes a sensing client (SC) and a Location Management Function (LMF), where the SC is configured to request sensing information from applications, vehicles, unmanned autonomous vehicles (UAVs), etc. , and the LMF is configured to provide positioning of the UE having the ISAC. The SC may also request sensing information from a sensing management function (SnMF), which is an entity that initiates a sensing process by communicating with one or more base stations, core network entity, or both. Unfortunately, as these services are introduced, they introduce numerous privacy concerns for users of the UEs regarding the utilization of their UEs to determine the locations of their UEs and other targets. Moreover, once these services are available to users, they may be subscription based such that users may be interested in knowing if these paid subscriptions are active and operating on their UEs.SUMMARY

[0006] Techniques are discussed for a user equipment (UE) comprising at least one memory, at least one transceiver, a display, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one memory and the at least one transceiver. The at least one processor may be configured to: determine that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and provide a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0007] Also discussed is a method for enhancing a user experience performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: determining that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and providing a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0008] Other techniques are also discussed for a UE comprising: means for determining that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and means for providing a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0009] Also discussed is a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions configured to cause at least one processor of a UE to: determine that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations;4903 / A130WOand provide a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0010] Other devices, apparatuses, systems, methods, features, and advantages of the invention will be or will become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional devices, apparatuses, systems, methods, features, and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the invention, and be protected by the accompanying claims.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] FIG. 1 is a simplified diagram of an example wireless communications system.

[0012] FIG. 2 is a system block diagram of components of an example user equipment (UE) shown in FIG. 1.

[0013] FIG. 3 is a system block diagram of components of an example transmission / reception point shown in FIG. 1.

[0014] FIG. 4 is a system block diagram of components of an example server shown in FIG. 1.

[0015] FIG. 5 is a simplified diagram of an example of an implementation of a radio frequency (RF) sensing indicator for a user equipment (UE).

[0016] FIG. 6A is an example of a first indicator on a user interface of the UE.

[0017] FIG. 6B is an example of a second indicator via the user interface of the UE.

[0018] FIG. 6C is an example of a third indicator via the user interface of the UE.

[0019] FIG. 6D is an example of a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE.

[0020] FIG. 7A is a signal diagram of an example implementation of a method for indicating the use of the UE 500 for RF sensing.

[0021] FIG. 7B is a signal diagram of a second example implementation of a method for indicating the use of the UE for RF sensing.

[0022] FIG. 8 is a flowchart of an example of an implementation of a method performed by a UE according to aspects of the disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION4903 / A130WO

[0023] Techniques are discussed for a user equipment (UE) for radio frequency (RF) sensing an environment with enhanced experience for a user of the UE. These techniques include user interface (UI) features that together enhance the user experience and / or privacy of the user with respect to one or more sensing operations performed on the UE (e.g., a mobile device) of the user. These techniques also include aspects and / or features that provide indicator(s) (e.g., via a visual, audible, and / or haptic indicators) regarding the one or more sensing operations performed on the UE (e.g., sensing signals transmission, measurements, etc.). There can be various implementations of the indicators based on the initiator of the one or more sensing operations, user / device configurations, user subscription, user preferences, etc. These techniques also include storing sensing related data (e.g., sensing report, time, duration, etc.) and can be network-configured, user-configured, or default option. The techniques also include device configurable settings for sensing enabling / disabling with the UE.

[0024] In general, these techniques include utilizing a user equipment (UE) for radio frequency (RF) sensing an environment with enhanced experience and privacy for a user of the UE. The UE may comprise at least one memory, at least one transceiver, a display, and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one memory and the at least one transceiver. The at least one processor may be configured to: determine that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and provide a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0025] The description herein may refer to sequences of actions to be performed, for example, by elements of a computing device. Various actions described herein can be performed by specific circuits (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), by program instructions being executed by one or more processors, or by a combination of both. Sequences of actions described herein may be embodied within a non- transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a corresponding set of computer instructions that upon execution would cause an associated processor to perform the functionality described herein. Thus, the various examples described herein may be embodied in a number of different forms, all of which are within the scope of the disclosure, including claimed subject matter.

[0026] As used herein, the terms "user equipment" (UE) and "base station" are not specific to or otherwise limited to any particular Radio Access Technology (RAT),4903 / A130WOunless otherwise noted. In general, a UE may be any wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, router, tablet computer, laptop computer, consumer asset tracking device, Internet of Things (loT) device, etc.) used to communicate over a wireless communications network. A UE may be mobile or may (e.g., at certain times) be stationary, and may communicate with a Radio Access Network (RAN). As used herein, the term "UE" may be referred to interchangeably as an "access terminal" or "AT," a "client device," a "wireless device," a "subscriber device," a "subscriber terminal," a "subscriber station," a "user terminal" or UT, a "mobile terminal," a "mobile station," a "mobile device," or variations thereof. Generally, UEs can communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the core network the UEs can be connected with external networks such as the Internet and with other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms of connecting to the core network and / or the Internet are also possible for the UEs, such as over wired access networks, WiFi® networks (e.g., based on IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.11, etc.) and so on. Two or more UEs may communicate directly in addition to or instead of passing information to each other through a network.

[0027] A base station may operate according to one of several RATs in communication with UEs depending on the network in which it is deployed. Examples of a base station include an Access Point (AP), a Network Node, a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNB), or a general Node B (gNodeB, gNB). In addition, in some systems a base station may provide purely edge node signaling functions while in other systems it may provide additional control and / or network management functions.

[0028] UEs may be embodied by any of a number of types of devices including but not limited to printed circuit (PC) cards, compact flash devices, external or internal modems, wireless or wireline phones, smartphones, tablets, consumer asset tracking devices, asset tags, and so on. A communication link through which UEs can send signals to a RAN is called an uplink channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel, etc.). A communication link through which the RAN can send signals to UEs is called a downlink or forward link channel (e.g., a paging channel, a control channel, a broadcast channel, a forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein the term traffic channel (TCH) can refer to either an uplink / reverse or downlink / forward traffic channel.4903 / A130WO

[0029] As used herein, the term "cell" or "sector" may correspond to one of a plurality of cells of a base station, or to the base station itself, depending on the context. The term "cell" may refer to a logical communication entity used for communication with a base station (for example, over a carrier), and may be associated with an identifier for distinguishing neighboring cells (for example, a physical cell identifier (PCID), a virtual cell identifier (VCID)) operating via the same or a different carrier. In some examples, a carrier may support multiple cells, and different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (for example, machine-type communication (MTC), narrowband Intemet-of-Things (NB-ToT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or others) that may provide access for different types of devices. In some examples, the term "cell" may refer to a portion of a geographic coverage area (for example, a sector) over which the logical entity operates.

[0030] Referring to FIG. 1, an example of a communication system 100 includes a UE 105, a UE 106, a Radio Access Network (RAN), here a Fifth Generation (5G) Next Generation (NG) RAN (NG-RAN) 135, a 5G Core Network (5GC) 140, and a server 150. The UE 105 and / or the UE 106 may be, e.g., an loT device, a location tracker device, a cellular telephone, a vehicle (e.g., a car, a truck, a bus, a boat, etc.), or another device. A 5G network may also be referred to as a New Radio (NR) network; NG-RAN 135 may be referred to as a 5G RAN or as an NR RAN; and 5GC 140 may be referred to as an NG Core network (NGC). Standardization of an NG-RAN and 5GC is ongoing in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Accordingly, the NG-RAN 135 and the 5GC 140 may conform to current or future standards for 5G support from 3 GPP. The NG-RAN 135 may be another type of RAN, e.g., a 3G RAN, a 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) RAN, etc. The UE 106 may be configured and coupled similarly to the UE 105 to send and / or receive signals to / from similar other entities in the system 100, but such signaling is not indicated in FIG. 1 for the sake of simplicity of the figure. Similarly, the discussion focuses on the UE 105 for the sake of simplicity. The communication system 100 may utilize information from a constellation 185 of satellite vehicles (SVs) 190, 191, 192, 193 for a Satellite Positioning System (SPS) (e.g., a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)) like the Global Positioning System (GPS), the Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), Galileo, or Beidou or some other local or regional SPS such as the Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), or the4903 / A130WOWide Area Augmentation System (WAAS). Additional components of the communication system 100 are described below. The communication system 100 may include additional or alternative components.

[0031] As shown in FIG. 1, the NG-RAN 135 includes NR nodeBs (gNBs) 110a, 110b, and a next generation eNodeB (ng-eNB) 114, and the 5GC 140 includes an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 115, a Session Management Function (SMF) 117, a Location Management Function (LMF) 120, and a Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC) 125. The gNBs 110a, 110b and the ng-eNB 114 are communicatively coupled to each other, are each configured to bi-directionally wirelessly communicate with the UE 105, and are each communicatively coupled to, and configured to bi-directionally communicate with, the AMF 115. The gNBs 110a, 110b, and the ng-eNB 114 may be referred to as base stations (BSs). The AMF 115, the SMF 117, the LMF 120, and the GMLC 125 are communicatively coupled to each other, and the GMLC is communicatively coupled to an external client 130. The SMF 117 may serve as an initial contact point of a Service Control Function (SCF) (not shown) to create, control, and delete media sessions. Base stations such as the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114 may be a macro cell (e.g., a high-power cellular base station), or a small cell (e.g., a low-power cellular base station), or an access point (e.g., a short-range base station configured to communicate with short-range technology such as WiFi®, WiFi®-Direct (WiFi®-D), Bluetooth®, Bluetooth®-low energy (BLE), Zigbee®, etc. One or more base stations, e.g., one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 1 14 may be configured to communicate with the UE 105 via multiple carriers. Each of the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114 may provide communication coverage for a respective geographic region, e.g., a cell. Each cell may be partitioned into multiple sectors as a function of the base station antennas.

[0032] FIG. 1 provides a generalized illustration of various components, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate, and each of which may be duplicated or omitted as necessary. Specifically, although one UE 105 is illustrated, many UEs (e.g., hundreds, thousands, millions, etc.) may be utilized in the communication system 100. Similarly, the communication system 100 may include a larger (or smaller) number of SVs (i.e., more or fewer than the four SVs 190-193 shown), gNBs 110a, 110b, ng-eNBs 114, AMFs 115, external clients 130, and / or other components. The illustrated connections that connect the various components in the communication system 1004903 / A130WOinclude data and signaling connections which may include additional (intermediary) components, direct or indirect physical and / or wireless connections, and / or additional networks. Furthermore, components may be rearranged, combined, separated, substituted, and / or omitted, depending on desired functionality.

[0033] While FIG. 1 illustrates a 5G-based network, similar network implementations and configurations may be used for other communication technologies, such as 3G, Long Term Evolution (LTE), etc. Implementations described herein (be they for 5G technology and / or for one or more other communication technologies and / or protocols) may be used to transmit (or broadcast) directional synchronization signals, receive and measure directional signals at UEs (e.g., the UE 105) and / or provide location assistance to the UE 105 (via the GMLC 125 or other location server) and / or compute a location for the UE 105 at a location-capable device such as the UE 105, the gNB 110a, 110b, or the LMF 120 based on measurement quantities received at the UE 105 for such directionally-transmitted signals. The gateway mobile location center (GMLC) 125, the location management function (LMF) 120, the access and mobility management function (AMF) 115, the SMF 117, the ng-eNB (eNodeB) 114 and the gNBs (gNodeBs) 110a, 110b are examples and may be replaced by or include various other location server functionality and / or base station functionality respectively.

[0034] The system 100 is capable of wireless communication in that components of the system 100 can communicate with one another (at least some times using wireless connections) directly or indirectly, e.g., via the gNBs 110a, 110b, the ng-eNB 114, and / or the 5GC 140 (and / or one or more other devices not shown, such as one or more other base transceiver stations). For indirect communications, the communications may be altered during transmission from one entity to another, e.g., to alter header information of data packets, to change format, etc. The UE 105 may include multiple UEs and may be a mobile wireless communication device, but may communicate wirelessly and via wired connections. The UE 105 may be any of a variety of devices, e.g., a smartphone, a tablet computer, a vehicle-based device, etc., but these are examples as the UE 105 is not required to be any of these configurations, and other configurations of UEs may be used. Other UEs may include wearable devices (e.g., smart watches, smart jewelry, smart glasses or headsets, etc.). Still other UEs may be used, whether currently existing or developed in the future. Further, other wireless devices (whether mobile or not) may be implemented within the system 100 and may4903 / A130WOcommunicate with each other and / or with the UE 105, the gNBs 110a, 110b, the ng- eNB 114, the 5GC 140, and / or the external client 130. For example, such other devices may include internet of thing (loT) devices, medical devices, home entertainment and / or automation devices, etc. The 5GC 140 may communicate with the external client 130 (e.g., a computer system), e.g., to allow the external client 130 to request and / or receive location information regarding the UE 105 (e.g., via the GMLC 125).

[0035] The UE 105 or other devices may be configured to communicate in various networks and / or for various purposes and / or using various technologies (e.g., 5G, WiFi® communication, multiple frequencies of Wi-Fi® communication, satellite positioning, one or more types of communications (e.g., GSM (Global System for Mobiles), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution), V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything, e.g., V2P (Vehicle-to-Pedestrian), V2I (Vehicle-to- Infrastructure), V2V (Vehicle-to-Vehicle), etc.), IEEE 802. l ip, etc.). V2X communications may be cellular (Cellular-V2X (C-V2X)) and / or WiFi® (e.g., DSRC (Dedicated Short-Range Connection)). The system 100 may support operation on multiple carriers (waveform signals of different frequencies). Multi-carrier transmitters can transmit modulated signals simultaneously on the multiple carriers. Each modulated signal may be a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) signal, a Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) signal, an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) signal, a Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC- FDMA) signal, etc. Each modulated signal may be sent on a different carrier and may carry pilot, overhead information, data, etc. The UEs 105, 106 may communicate with each other through UE-to-UE sidelink (SL) communications by transmitting over one or more sidelink channels such as a physical sidelink synchronization channel (PSSCH), a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), or a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). Direct wireless-device-to-wireless-device communications without going through a network may be referred to generally as sidelink communications without limiting the communications to a particular protocol.

[0036] The UE 105 may comprise and / or may be referred to as a device, a mobile device, a wireless device, a mobile terminal, a terminal, a mobile station (MS), a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Enabled Terminal (SET), or by some other name. Moreover, the UE 105 may correspond to a cellphone, smartphone, laptop, tablet, PDA, consumer asset tracking device, navigation device, Internet of Things (loT) device,4903 / A130WOhealth monitors, security systems, smart city sensors, smart meters, wearable trackers, or some other portable or moveable device. Typically, though not necessarily, the UE 105 may support wireless communication using one or more Radio Access Technologies (RATs) such as Global System for Mobile communication (GSM), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), LTE, High Rate Packet Data (HRPD), IEEE 802.11 WiFi® (also referred to as Wi-Fi®), Bluetooth® (BT), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax®), 5G new radio (NR) (e.g., using the NG-RAN 135 and the 5GC 140), etc. The UE 105 may support wireless communication using a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) which may connect to other networks (e.g., the Internet) using a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) or packet cable, for example. The use of one or more of these RATs may allow the UE 105 to communicate with the external client 130 (e.g., via elements of the 5GC 140 not shown in FIG. 1, or possibly via the GMLC 125) and / or allow the external client 130 to receive location information regarding the UE 105 (e.g., via the GMLC 125).

[0037] The UE 105 may include a single entity or may include multiple entities such as in a personal area network where a user may employ audio, video and / or data I / O (input / output) devices and / or body sensors and a separate wireline or wireless modem. An estimate of a location of the UE 105 may be referred to as a location, location estimate, location fix, fix, position, position estimate, or position fix, and may be geographic, thus providing location coordinates for the UE 105 (e.g., latitude and longitude) which may or may not include an altitude component (e.g., height above sea level, height above or depth below ground level, floor level, or basement level). Alternatively, a location of the UE 105 may be expressed as a civic location (e.g., as a postal address or the designation of some point or small area in a building such as a particular room or floor). A location of the UE 105 may be expressed as an area or volume (defined either geographically or in civic form) within which the UE 105 is expected to be located with some probability or confidence level (e.g., 67%, 95%, etc.). A location of the UE 105 may be expressed as a relative location comprising, for example, a distance and direction from a known location. The relative location may be expressed as relative coordinates (e.g., X, Y (and Z) coordinates) defined relative to some origin at a known location which may be defined, e.g., geographically, in civic terms, or by reference to a point, area, or volume, e.g., indicated on a map, floor plan, or building plan. In the description contained herein, the use of the term location may4903 / A130WOcomprise any of these variants unless indicated otherwise. When computing the location of a UE, it is common to solve for local x, y, and possibly z coordinates and then, if desired, convert the local coordinates into absolute coordinates (e.g., for latitude, longitude, and altitude above or below mean sea level).

[0038] The UE 105 may be configured to communicate with other entities using one or more of a variety of technologies. The UE 105 may be configured to connect indirectly to one or more communication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D) peer-to-peer (P2P) links. The D2D P2P links may be supported with any appropriate D2D radio access technology (RAT), such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi® Direct (WiFi®-D), Bluetooth®, and so on. One or more of a group of UEs utilizing D2D communications may be within a geographic coverage area of a Transmission / Reception Point (TRP) such as one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or the ng-eNB 1 14. Other UEs in such a group may be outside such geographic coverage areas, or may be otherwise unable to receive transmissions from a base station. Groups of UEs communicating via D2D communications may utilize a one-to-many (1 :M) system in which each UE may transmit to other UEs in the group. A TRP may facilitate scheduling of resources for D2D communications. In other cases, D2D communications may be carried out between UEs without the involvement of a TRP. One or more of a group of UEs utilizing D2D communications may be within a geographic coverage area of a TRP. Other UEs in such a group may be outside such geographic coverage areas, or be otherwise unable to receive transmissions from a base station. Groups of UEs communicating via D2D communications may utilize a one-to- many (1 :M) system in which each UE may transmit to other UEs in the group. A TRP may facilitate scheduling of resources for D2D communications. In other cases, D2D communications may be carried out between UEs without the involvement of a TRP.

[0039] Base stations (BSs) in the NG-RAN 135 shown in FIG. 1 include NR Node Bs, referred to as the gNBs 110a and 110b. Pairs of the gNBs 110a, 110b in the NG- RAN 135 may be connected to one another via one or more other gNBs. Access to the 5G network is provided to the UE 105 via wireless communication between the UE 105 and one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b, which may provide wireless communications access to the 5GC 140 on behalf of the UE 105 using 5G. In FIG. 1, the serving gNB for the UE 105 is assumed to be the gNB 110a, although another gNB (e.g., the gNB4903 / A130WO11 Ob) may act as a serving gNB if the UE 105 moves to another location or may act as a secondaiy gNB to provide additional throughput and bandwidth to the UE 105.

[0040] Base stations (BSs) in the NG-RAN 135 shown in FIG. 1 may include the ng- eNB 114, also referred to as a next generation evolved Node B. The ng-eNB 1 14 may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b in the NG-RAN 135, possibly via one or more other gNBs and / or one or more other ng-eNBs. The ng-eNB 114 may provide LTE wireless access and / or evolved LTE (eLTE) wireless access to the UE 105. One or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114 may be configured to function as positioning-only beacons which may transmit signals to assist with determining the position of the UE 105 but may not receive signals from the UE 105 or from other UEs.

[0041] The gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114 may each comprise one or more TRPs. For example, each sector within a cell of a BS may comprise a TRP, although multiple TRPs may share one or more components (e.g., share a processor but have separate antennas). The system 100 may include macro TRPs exclusively or the system 100 may have TRPs of different types, e.g., macro, pico, and / or femto TRPs, etc. A macro TRP may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., several kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access by terminals with service subscription. A pico TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a pico cell) and may allow unrestricted access by terminals with service subscription. A femto or home TRP may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a femto cell) and may allow restricted access by terminals having association with the femto cell (e.g., terminals for users in a home).

[0042] Each of the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114 may include a radio unit (RU), a distributed unit (DU), and a central unit (CU). For example, the gNB 110b includes an RU 111, a DU 112, and a CU 113. The RU 111, DU 112, and CU 113 divide functionality of the gNB 110b. While the gNB 110b is shown with a single RU, a single DU, and a single CU, a gNB may include one or more RUs, one or more DUs, and / or one or more CUs. An interface between the CU 113 and the DU 112 is referred to as an F 1 interface. The RU 111 is configured to perform digital front end (DFE) functions (e.g., analog-to-digital conversion, filtering, power amplification, transmission / reception) and digital beamforming, and includes a portion of the physical (PHY) layer. The RU 111 may perform the DFE using massive multiple input / multiple4903 / A130WOoutput (MIMO) and may be integrated with one or more antennas of the gNB 110b. The DU 112 hosts the Radio Link Control (RLC), Medium Access Control (MAC), and physical layers of the gNB 110b. One DU can support one or more cells, and each cell is supported by a single DU. The operation of the DU 112 is controlled by the CU 1 13. The CU 113 is configured to perform functions for transferring user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management, etc. although some functions are allocated exclusively to the DU 112. The CU 113 hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) protocols of the gNB 1 1 Ob. The UE 105 may communicate with the CU 113 via RRC, SDAP, and PDCP layers, with the DU 112 via the RLC, MAC, and PHY layers, and with the RU 111 via the PHY layer.

[0043] As noted, while FIG. 1 depicts nodes configured to communicate according to 5G communication protocols, nodes configured to communicate according to other communication protocols, such as, for example, an LTE protocol or IEEE 802.1 lx protocol, may be used. For example, in an Evolved Packet System (EPS) providing LTE wireless access to the UE 105, a RAN may comprise an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) which may comprise base stations comprising evolved Node Bs (eNBs). A core network for EPS may comprise an Evolved Packet Core (EPC). An EPS may comprise an E-UTRAN plus EPC, where the E-UTRAN corresponds to the NG-RAN 135 and the EPC corresponds to the 5GC 140 in FIG. 1.

[0044] The gNBs 110a, 110b and the ng-eNB 114 may communicate with the AMF 115, which, for positioning functionality, communicates with the LMF 120. The AMF 115 may support mobility of the UE 105, including cell change and handover and may participate in supporting a signaling connection to the UE 105 and possibly data and voice bearers for the UE 105. The LMF 120 may communicate directly with the UE 105, e.g., through wireless communications, or directly with the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114. The LMF 120 may support positioning of the UE 105 when the UE 105 accesses the NG-RAN 135 and may support position procedures / methods such as Assisted GNSS (A-GNSS), Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) (e.g., Downlink (DL) OTDOA or Uplink (UL) OTDOA), Round Trip Time (RTT), MultiCell RTT, Real Time Kinematic (RTK), Precise Point Positioning (PPP), Differential GNSS (DGNSS), Enhanced Cell ID (E-CID), angle of arrival (AoA), angle of departure4903 / A130WO(AoD), and / or other position methods. The LMF 120 may process location services requests for the UE 105, e.g., received from the AMF 115 or from the GMLC 125. The LMF 120 may be connected to the AMF 115 and / or to the GMLC 125. The LMF 120 may be referred to by other names such as a Location Manager (LM), Location Function (LF), commercial LMF (CLMF), or value added LMF (VLMF). A node / system that implements the LMF 120 may additionally or alternatively implement other types of location-support modules, such as an Enhanced Serving Mobile Location Center (E-SMLC) or a Secure User Plane Location (SUPL) Location Platform (SLP). At least part of the positioning functionality (including derivation of the location of the UE 105) may be performed at the UE 105 (e.g., using signal measurements obtained by the UE 105 for signals transmitted by wireless nodes such as the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114, and / or assistance data provided to the UE 105, e.g., by the LMF 120). The AMF 115 may serve as a control node that processes signaling between the UE 105 and the 5GC 140, and may provide QoS (Quality of Service) flow and session management. The AMF 115 may support mobility of the UE 105 including cell change and handover and may participate in supporting signaling connection to the UE 105.

[0045] The server 150, e.g., a cloud server, is configured to obtain and provide location estimates of the UE 105 to the external client 130. The server 150 may, for example, be configured to run a microservice / service that obtains the location estimate of the UE 105. The server 150 may, for example, pull the location estimate from (e.g., by sending a location request to) the UE 105, one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b (e.g., via the RU 111, the DU 112, and the CU 113) and / or the ng-eNB 1 14, and / or the LMF 120. As another example, the UE 105, one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b (e.g., via the RU 111, the DU 112, and the CU 113), and / or the LMF 120 may push the location estimate of the UE 105 to the server 150.

[0046] The GMLC 125 may support a location request for the UE 105 received from the external client 130 via the server 150 and may forward such a location request to the AMF 115 for forwarding by the AMF 115 to the LMF 120 or may forward the location request directly to the LMF 120. A location response from the LMF 120 (e.g., containing a location estimate for the UE 105) may be returned to the GMLC 125 either directly or via the AMF 115 and the GMLC 125 may then return the location response (e.g., containing the location estimate) to the external client 130 via the server 150. The4903 / A130WOGMLC 125 is shown connected to both the AMF 115 and LMF 120, though may not be connected to the AMF 115 or the LMF 120 in some implementations.

[0047] As further illustrated in FIG. 1 , the LMF 120 may communicate with the gNBs 1 10a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 1 14 using a New Radio Position Protocol A (which may be referred to as NPPa or NRPPa), which may be defined in 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 38.455. NRPPa may be the same as, similar to, or an extension of the LTE Positioning Protocol A (LPPa) defined in 3GPP TS 36.455, with NRPPa messages being transferred between the gNB 110a (or the gNB 110b) and the LMF 120, and / or between the ng-eNB 1 14 and the LMF 120, via the AMF 1 15. As further illustrated in FIG. 1, the LMF 120 and the UE 105 may communicate using an LTE Positioning Protocol (LPP), which may be defined in 3GPP TS 36.355. The LMF 120 and the UE 105 may also or instead communicate using a New Radio Positioning Protocol (which may be referred to as NPP or NRPP), which may be the same as, similar to, or an extension of LPP. Here, LPP and / or NPP messages may be transferred between the UE 105 and the LMF 120 via the AMF 115 and the serving gNB 110a, 110b or the serving ng-eNB 114 for the UE 105. For example, LPP and / or NPP messages may be transferred between the LMF 120 and the AMF 115 using a 5G Location Services Application Protocol (LCS AP) and may be transferred between the AMF 115 and the UE 105 using a 5G Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocol. The LPP and / or NPP protocol may be used to support positioning of the UE 105 using UE- assisted and / or UE-based position methods such as A-GNSS, RTK, OTDOA and / or E- CID. The NRPPa protocol may be used to support positioning of the UE 105 using network-based position methods such as E-CID (e.g., when used with measurements obtained by the gNB 110a, 110b or the ng-eNB 114) and / or may be used by the LMF 120 to obtain location related information from the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114, such as parameters defining directional SS or PRS transmissions from the gNBs 1 10a, 110b, and / or the ng-eNB 114. The LMF 120 may be co-located or integrated with a gNB or a TRP, or may be disposed remote from the gNB and / or the TRP and configured to communicate directly or indirectly with the gNB and / or the TRP.

[0048] With a UE-assisted position method, the UE 105 may obtain location measurements and send the measurements to a location server (e.g., the LMF 120) for computation of a location estimate for the UE 105. For example, the location measurements may include one or more of a Received Signal Strength Indication4903 / A130WO(RSSI), Round Trip signal propagation Time (RTT), Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD), Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) and / or Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ) for the gNBs 110a, 110b, the ng-eNB 114, and / or a WLAN AP. The location measurements may also or instead include measurements of GNSS pseudorange, code phase, and / or carrier phase for the SVs 190-193.

[0049] With a UE-based position method, the UE 105 may obtain location measurements (e.g., which may be the same as or similar to location measurements for a UE-assisted position method) and may compute a location of the UE 105 (e.g., with the help of assistance data received from a location server such as the LMF 120 or broadcast by the gNBs 110a, 110b, the ng-eNB 114, or other base stations or APs).

[0050] With a network-based position method, one or more base stations (e.g., the gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or the ng-eNB 114) or APs may obtain location measurements (e.g., measurements of RSSI, RTT, RSRP, RSRQ or Time of Arrival (ToA) for signals transmitted by the UE 105) and / or may receive measurements obtained by the UE 105. The one or more base stations or APs may send the measurements to a location server (e.g., the LMF 120) for computation of a location estimate for the UE 105.

[0051] Information provided by the gNBs 1 10a, 110b, and / or the ng-eNB 114 to the LMF 120 using NRPPa may include timing and configuration information for directional SS or PRS transmissions and location coordinates. The LMF 120 may provide some or all of this information to the UE 105 as assistance data in an LPP and / or NPP message via the NG-RAN 135 and the 5GC 140.

[0052] An LPP or NPP message sent from the LMF 120 to the UE 105 may instruct the UE 105 to do any of a variety of things depending on desired functionality. For example, the LPP or NPP message could contain an instruction for the UE 105 to obtain measurements for GNSS (or A-GNSS), WLAN, E-CID, and / or OTDOA (or some other position method). In the case of E-CID, the LPP or NPP message may instruct the UE 105 to obtain one or more measurement quantities (e.g., beam ID, beam width, mean angle, RSRP, RSRQ measurements) of directional signals transmitted within particular cells supported by one or more of the gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or the ng-eNB 114 (or supported by some other type of base station such as an eNB or WiFi® AP). The UE 105 may send the measurement quantities back to the LMF 120 in an LPP or NPP message (e.g., inside a 5G NAS message) via the serving gNB 110a (or the serving ng- eNB 114) and the AMF 115.4903 / A130WO

[0053] As noted, while the communication system 100 is described in relation to 5G technology, the communication system 100 may be implemented to support other communication technologies, such as GSM, WCDMA, LTE, etc., that are used for supporting and interacting with mobile devices such as the UE 105 (e.g., to implement voice, data, positioning, and other functionalities). In some such implementations, the 5GC 140 may be configured to control different air interfaces. For example, the 5GC 140 may be connected to a WLAN using a Non-3GPP InterWorking Function (N3IWF, not shown FIG. 1) in the 5GC 140. For example, the WLAN may support IEEE 802. 11 WiFi® access for the UE 105 and may comprise one or more WiFi® APs. Here, the N3IWF may connect to the WLAN and to other elements in the 5GC 140 such as the AMF 115. In some implementations, both the NG-RAN 135 and the 5GC 140 may be replaced by one or more other RANs and one or more other core networks. For example, in an EPS, the NG-RAN 135 may be replaced by an E-UTRAN containing eNBs and the 5GC 140 may be replaced by an EPC containing a Mobility Management Entity (MME) in place of the AMF 115, an E-SMLC in place of the LMF 120, and a GMLC that may be similar to the GMLC 125. In such an EPS, the E-SMLC may use LPPa in place of NRPPa to send and receive location information to and from the eNBs in the E-UTRAN and may use LPP to support positioning of the UE 105. In these other examples, positioning of the UE 105 using directional PRSs may be supported in an analogous manner to that described herein for a 5G network with the difference that functions and procedures described herein for the gNBs 110a, 110b, the ng-eNB 114, the AMF 1 15, and the LMF 120 may, in some cases, apply instead to other network elements such eNBs, WiFi® APs, an MME, and an E-SMLC.

[0054] As noted, in some examples, positioning functionality may be implemented, at least in part, using the directional SS or PRS beams, sent by base stations (such as the gNBs 110a, 110b, and / or the ng-eNB 114) that are within range of the UE whose position is to be determined (e.g., the UE 105 of FIG. 1). The UE may, in some instances, use the directional SS or PRS beams from a plurality of base stations (such as the gNBs 110a, 110b, the ng-eNB 114, etc.) to compute the position of the UE.

[0055] Referring also to FIG. 2, a UE 200 may be an example of one of the UEs 105, 106 and may comprise a computing platform including a processor 210, memory 211 including software (SW) 212, one or more sensors 213, a transceiver interface 214 for a transceiver 215 (that includes a wireless transceiver 240 and a wired transceiver 250), a4903 / A130WOuser interface 216, a Satellite Positioning System (SPS) receiver 217, a camera 218, and a position device (PD) 219. The processor 210, the memory 211, the sensor(s) 213, the transceiver interface 214, the user interface 216, the SPS receiver 217, the camera 218, and the position device 219 may be communicatively coupled to each other by a bus 220 (which may be configured, e.g., for optical and / or electrical communication). One or more of the shown apparatus (e.g., the camera 218, the position device 219, and / or one or more of the sensor(s) 213, etc.) may be omitted from the UE 200. The processor 210 may include one or more hardware devices, e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The processor 210 may comprise multiple processors including a general-purpose / application processor 230, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) 231, a modem processor 232, a video processor 233, and / or a sensor processor 234. One or more of the processors 230-234 may comprise multiple devices (e.g., multiple processors). For example, the sensor processor 234 may comprise, e.g., processors for RF (radio frequency) sensing (with one or more (cellular) wireless signals transmitted and reflection(s) used to identify, map, and / or track an object), and / or ultrasound, etc. The modem processor 232 may support dual SIM / dual connectivity (or even more SIMs). For example, a SIM (Subscriber Identify Module or Subscriber Identification Module) may be used by an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), and another SIM may be used by an end user of the UE 200 for connectivity. The memory 211 may be a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM), flash memory, disc memory, and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. The memory 21 1 may store the software 212 which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that may be configured to, when executed, cause the processor 210 to perform various functions described herein. Alternatively, the software 212 may not be directly executable by the processor 210 but may be configured to cause the processor 210, e.g., when compiled and executed, to perform the functions. The description herein may refer to the processor 210 performing a function, but this includes other implementations such as where the processor 210 executes software and / or firmware. The description herein may refer to the processor 210 performing a function as shorthand for one or more of the processors 230-234 performing the function. The description herein may refer to the UE 200 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of the UE 200 performing the function. The processor4903 / A130WO210 may include a memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or instead of the memory 211. Functionality of the processor 210 is discussed more fully below.

[0056] The configuration of the UE 200 shown in FIG. 2 is an example and not limiting of the disclosure, including the claims, and other configurations may be used. For example, an example configuration of the UE may include one or more of the processors 230-234 of the processor 210, the memory 211, and the wireless transceiver 240. Other example configurations may include one or more of the processors 230-234 of the processor 210, the memory 211, a wireless transceiver, and one or more of the sensor(s) 213, the user interface 216, the SPS receiver 217, the camera 218, the PD 219, and / or a wired transceiver.

[0057] The UE 200 may comprise the modem processor 232 that may be capable of performing baseband processing of signals received and down-converted by the transceiver 215 and / or the SPS receiver 217. The modem processor 232 may perform baseband processing of signals to be upconverted for transmission by the transceiver 215. Also or alternatively, baseband processing may be performed by the general- purpose / application processor 230 and / or the DSP 231. Other configurations, however, may be used to perform baseband processing.

[0058] The UE 200 may include the sensor(s) 213 that may include, for example, an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) 270, one or more magnetometers 271, and / or one or more environment sensors 272. The IMU 270 may comprise, for example, one or more accelerometers 273 (e.g., collectively responding to acceleration of the UE 200 in three dimensions) and / or one or more gyroscopes 274 (e.g., three-dimensional gyroscope(s)). The sensor(s) 213 may include the one or more magnetometers 271 (e.g., three- dimensional magnetometer(s)) to determine orientation (e.g., relative to magnetic north and / or true north) that may be used for any of a variety of purposes, e.g., to support one or more compass applications. The environment sensor(s) 272 may comprise, for example, one or more temperature sensors, one or more barometric pressure sensors, one or more ambient light sensors, one or more camera imagers, and / or one or more microphones, etc. The sensor(s) 213 may generate analog and / or digital signals indications of which may be stored in the memory 211 and processed by the DSP 231 and / or the general-purpose / application processor 230 in support of one or more applications such as, for example, applications directed to positioning and / or navigation operations. The sensor(s) 213 may comprise one or more of other various types of4903 / A130WOsensors such as one or more optical sensors, one or more weight sensors, and / or one or more radio frequency (RF) sensors, etc.

[0059] The sensor(s) 213 may be used in relative location measurements, relative location determination, motion determination, etc. Information detected by the sensor(s) 213 may be used for motion detection, relative displacement, dead reckoning, sensor-based location detemiination, and / or sensor-assisted location determination. The sensor(s) 213 may be useful to determine whether the UE 200 is fixed (stationary) or mobile and / or whether to report certain useful information to the LMF 120 regarding the mobility of the UE 200. For example, based on the information obtained / measured by the sensor(s) 213, the UE 200 may notify / report to the LMF 120 that the UE 200 has detected movements or that the UE 200 has moved, and may report the relative displacement / distance (e.g., via dead reckoning, or sensor-based location determination, or sensor-assisted location determination enabled by the sensor(s) 213). In another example, for relative positioning information, the sensors / IMU may be used to determine the angle and / or orientation of the other device with respect to the UE 200, etc.

[0060] The 1MU 270 may be configured to provide measurements about a direction of motion and / or a speed of motion of the UE 200, which may be used in relative location determination. For example, the one or more accelerometers 273 and / or the one or more gyroscopes 274 of the IMU 270 may detect, respectively, a linear acceleration and a speed of rotation of the UE 200. The linear acceleration and speed of rotation measurements of the UE 200 may be integrated over time to determine an instantaneous direction of motion as well as a displacement of the UE 200. The instantaneous direction of motion and the displacement may be integrated to track a location of the UE 200. For example, a reference location of the UE 200 may be determined, e.g., using the SPS receiver 217 (and / or by some other means) for a moment in time and measurements from the accelerometer(s) 273 and the gyroscope(s) 274 taken after this moment in time may be used in dead reckoning to determine present location of the UE 200 based on movement (direction and distance) of the UE 200 relative to the reference location.

[0061] The magnetometer(s) 271 may determine magnetic field strengths in different directions which may be used to determine orientation of the UE 200. For example, the orientation may be used to provide a digital compass for the UE 200. The4903 / A130WOmagnetometer(s) may include a two-dimensional magnetometer configured to detect and provide indications of magnetic field strength in two orthogonal dimensions. The magnetometer(s) 271 may include a three-dimensional magnetometer configured to detect and provide indications of magnetic field strength in three orthogonal dimensions. The magnetometer(s) 271 may provide means for sensing a magnetic field and providing indications of the magnetic field, e.g., to the processor 210.

[0062] The transceiver 215 may include a wireless transceiver 240 and a wired transceiver 250 configured to communicate with other devices through wireless connections and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 240 may include a wireless transmitter 242 and a wireless receiver 244 coupled to an antenna 246 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more sidelink channels) wireless signals 248 and transducing signals from the wireless signals 248 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to the wireless signals 248. The wireless transmitter 242 includes appropriate components (e.g., a power amplifier and a digital- to-analog converter). The wireless receiver 244 includes appropriate components (e.g., one or more amplifiers, one or more frequency filters, and an analog-to-digital converter). The wireless transmitter 242 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 244 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 240 may be configured to communicate signals (e.g., with TRPs and / or one or more other devices) according to a variety of radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobiles), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3 GPP LTE- V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.1 Ip), WiFi®, WiFi® Direct (WiFi®-D), Bluetooth®, Zigbee® etc. New Radio may use mm-wave frequencies and / or sub-6GHz frequencies. The wired transceiver 250 may include a wired transmitter 252 and a wired receiver 254 configured for wired communication, e.g., a network interface that may be utilized to communicate with the NG-RAN 135 to send communications to, and receive communications from, the NG-RAN 135. The wired transmitter 252 may4903 / A130WOinclude multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wired receiver 254 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 250 may be configured, e.g., for optical communication and / or electrical communication. The transceiver 215 may be communicatively coupled to the transceiver interface 214, e.g., by optical and / or electrical connection. The transceiver interface 214 may be at least partially integrated with the transceiver 215. The wireless transmitter 242, the wireless receiver 244, and / or the antenna 246 may include multiple transmitters, multiple receivers, and / or multiple antennas, respectively, for sending and / or receiving, respectively, appropriate signals.

[0063] The user interface 216 may comprise one or more of several devices such as, for example, a speaker, microphone, display device, vibration device, keyboard, touch screen, etc. The user interface 216 may include more than one of any of these devices. The user interface 216 may be configured to enable a user to interact with one or more applications hosted by the UE 200. For example, the user interface 216 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 to be processed by DSP 231 and / or the general -purpose / application processor 230 in response to action from a user. Similarly, applications hosted on the UE 200 may store indications of analog and / or digital signals in the memory 211 to present an output signal to a user. The user interface 216 may include an audio input / output (I / O) device comprising, for example, a speaker, a microphone, digital-to-analog circuitry, analog-to-digital circuitry, an amplifier and / or gain control circuitry (including more than one of any of these devices). Other configurations of an audio TO device may be used. Also or alternatively, the user interface 216 may comprise one or more touch sensors responsive to touching and / or pressure, e.g., on a keyboard and / or touch screen of the user interface 216.

[0064] The SPS receiver 217 (e.g., a GPS receiver) may be capable of receiving and acquiring SPS signals 260 via an SPS antenna 262. The SPS antenna 262 is configured to transduce the SPS signals 260 from wireless signals to wired signals, e.g., electrical or optical signals, and may be integrated with the antenna 246. The SPS receiver 217 may be configured to process, in whole or in part, the acquired SPS signals 260 for estimating a location of the UE 200. For example, the SPS receiver 217 may be configured to determine location of the UE 200 by trilateration using the SPS signals4903 / A130WO260. The general-purpose / application processor 230, the memory 211, the DSP 231 and / or one or more specialized processors (not shown) may be utilized to process acquired SPS signals, in whole or in part, and / or to calculate an estimated location of the UE 200, in conjunction with the SPS receiver 217. The memory 211 may store indications (e.g., measurements) of the SPS signals 260 and / or other signals (e.g., signals acquired from the wireless transceiver 240) for use in performing positioning operations. The general-purpose / application processor 230, the DSP 231, and / or one or more specialized processors, and / or the memory 211 may provide or support a location engine for use in processing measurements to estimate a location of the UE 200.

[0065] The UE 200 may include the camera 218 for capturing still or moving imagery. The camera 218 may comprise, for example, an imaging sensor (e.g., a charge coupled device or a CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) imager), a lens, analog-to-digital circuitry, frame buffers, etc. Additional processing, conditioning, encoding, and / or compression of signals representing captured images may be performed by the general-purpose / application processor 230 and / or the DSP 231. Also or alternatively, the video processor 233 may perform conditioning, encoding, compression, and / or manipulation of signals representing captured images. The video processor 233 may decode / decompress stored image data for presentation on a display device (not shown), e.g., of the user interface 216.

[0066] The position device (PD) 219 may be configured to determine a position of the UE 200, motion of the UE 200, and / or relative position of the UE 200, and / or time. For example, the PD 219 may communicate with, and / or include some or all of, the SPS receiver 217. The PD 219 may work in conjunction with the processor 210 and the memory 211 as appropriate to perform at least a portion of one or more positioning methods, although the description herein may refer to the PD 219 being configured to perform, or performing, in accordance with the positioning method(s). The PD 219 may also or alternatively be configured to determine location of the UE 200 using terrestrialbased signals (e.g., at least some of the wireless signals 248) for trilateration, for assistance with obtaining and using the SPS signals 260, or both. The PD 219 may be configured to determine location of the UE 200 based on a cell of a serving base station (e.g., a cell center) and / or another technique such as E-CID. The PD 219 may be configured to use one or more images from the camera 218 and image recognition combined with known locations of landmarks (e.g., natural landmarks such as4903 / A130WOmountains and / or artificial landmarks such as buildings, bridges, streets, etc.) to determine location of the UE 200. The PD 219 may be configured to use one or more other techniques (e.g., relying on the UE’s self-reported location (e.g., part of the UE’s position beacon)) for determining the location of the UE 200, and may use a combination of techniques (e.g., SPS and terrestrial positioning signals) to determine the location of the UE 200. The PD 219 may include one or more of the sensors 213 (e.g., gyroscope(s), accelerometer(s), magnetometer(s), etc.) that may sense orientation and / or motion of the UE 200 and provide indications thereof that the processor 210 (e.g., the general-purpose / application processor 230 and / or the DSP 231) may be configured to use to determine motion (e.g., a velocity vector and / or an acceleration vector) of the UE 200. The PD 219 may be configured to provide indications of uncertainty and / or error in the determined position and / or motion. Functionality of the PD 219 may be provided in a variety of manners and / or configurations, e.g., by the general-purpose / application processor 230, the transceiver 215, the SPS receiver 217, and / or another component of the UE 200, and may be provided by hardware, software, firmware, or various combinations thereof.

[0067] Referring also to FIG. 3, an example of a TRP 300 of the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 1 14 may comprise a computing platform including a processor 310, memory 311 including software (SW) 312, and a transceiver 315. The processor 310, the memory 311, and the transceiver 315 may be communicatively coupled to each other by a bus 320 (which may be configured, e.g., for optical and / or electrical communication). One or more of the shown apparatus (e.g., a wireless transceiver) may be omitted from the TRP 300. The processor 310 may include one or more hardware devices, e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The processor 310 may comprise multiple processors (e.g., including a general-purpose / application processor, a DSP, a modem processor, a video processor, and / or a sensor processor as shown in FIG. 2). The memory 31 1 may be a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM)), flash memory, disc memory, and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. The memory 311 may store the software 312 which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to, when executed, cause the processor 310 to perform various functions described herein. Alternatively, the software 312 may not be directly executable by the processor 310 but may be4903 / A130WOconfigured to cause the processor 310, e.g., when compiled and executed, to perform the functions.

[0068] The description herein may refer to the processor 310 performing a function, but this includes other implementations such as where the processor 310 executes software and / or firmware. The description herein may refer to the processor 310 performing a function as shorthand for one or more of the processors contained in the processor 310 performing the function. The description herein may refer to the TRP 300 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components (e.g., the processor 310 and the memory 31 1 ) of the TRP 300 (and thus of one of the gNBs 110a, 110b and / or the ng-eNB 114) performing the function. The processor 310 may include a memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or instead of the memory 311. Functionality of the processor 310 is discussed more fully below.

[0069] The transceiver 315 may include a wireless transceiver 340 and / or a wired transceiver 350 configured to communicate with other devices through wireless connections and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 340 may include a wireless transmitter 342 and a wireless receiver 344 coupled to one or more antennas 346 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more uplink channels and / or one or more downlink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more downlink channels and / or one or more uplink channels) wireless signals 348 and transducing signals from the wireless signals 348 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to the wireless signals 348. Thus, the wireless transmitter 342 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 344 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 340 may be configured to communicate signals (e.g., with the UE 200, one or more other UEs, and / or one or more other devices) according to a variety of radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobiles), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long Term Evolution), LEE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE- V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.1 1 (including IEEE 802.1 Ip), WiFi®, WiFi® Direct (WiFi®-D), Bluetooth®, Zigbee® etc. The wired transceiver 350 may include a wired transmitter 352 and a wired receiver 354 configured for wired communication, e.g., a network4903 / A130WOinterface that may be utilized to communicate with the NG-RAN 135 to send communications to, and receive communications from, the LMF 120, for example, and / or one or more other network entities. The wired transmitter 352 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wired receiver 354 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wired transceiver 350 may be configured, e.g., for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0070] The configuration of the TRP 300 shown in FIG. 3 is an example and not limiting of the disclosure, including the claims, and other configurations may be used. For example, the description herein discusses that the TRP 300 may be configured to perform or performs several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by the LMF 120 and / or the UE 200 (i.e., the LMF 120 and / or the UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).

[0071] Referring also to FIG. 4, a server 400, of which the LMF 120 may be an example, may comprise a computing platform including a processor 410, memory 411 including software (SW) 412, and a transceiver 415. The processor 410, the memory 411, and the transceiver 415 may be communicatively coupled to each other by a bus 420 (which may be configured, e.g., for optical and / or electrical communication). One or more of the shown apparatus (e.g., a wireless transceiver) may be omitted from the server 400. The processor 410 may include one or more hardware devices, e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The processor 410 may comprise multiple processors (e.g., including a general-purpose / application processor, a DSP, a modem processor, a video processor, and / or a sensor processor as shown in FIG. 2). The memory 411 may be a non-transitory storage medium that may include random access memory (RAM)), flash memory, disc memory, and / or read-only memory (ROM), etc. The memory 411 may store the software 412 which may be processor-readable, processor-executable software code containing instructions that are configured to, when executed, cause the processor 410 to perform various functions described herein. Alternatively, the software 412 may not be directly executable by the processor 410 but may be configured to cause the processor 410, e.g., when compiled and executed, to perform the functions. The description herein may refer to the processor 410 performing a function, but this includes other implementations such as where the processor 410 executes software4903 / A130WOand / or firmware. The description herein may refer to the processor 410 performing a function as shorthand for one or more of the processors contained in the processor 410 performing the function. The description herein may refer to the server 400 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components of the server 400 performing the function. The processor 410 may include a memory with stored instructions in addition to and / or instead of the memory 411. Functionality of the processor 410 is discussed more fully below.

[0072] The transceiver 415 may include a wireless transceiver 440 anzor a wired transceiver 450 configured to communicate with other devices through wireless connections and wired connections, respectively. For example, the wireless transceiver 440 may include a wireless transmitter 442 and a wireless receiver 444 coupled to one or more antennas 446 for transmitting (e.g., on one or more downlink channels) and / or receiving (e.g., on one or more uplink channels) wireless signals 448 and transducing signals from the wireless signals 448 to wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals and from wired (e.g., electrical and / or optical) signals to the wireless signals 448. Thus, the wireless transmitter 442 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wireless receiver 444 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components. The wireless transceiver 440 may be configured to communicate signals (e.g., with the UE 200, one or more other UEs, and / or one or more other devices) according to a variety of radio access technologies (RATs) such as 5 G New Radio (NR), GSM (Global System for Mobiles), UMTS (Universal MobileTelecommunications System), AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), LTE (Long TennEvolution), LTE Direct (LTE-D), 3GPP LTE-V2X (PC5), IEEE 802.11 (including IEEE 802.1 Ip), WiFi®, WiFi® Direct (WiFi®-D), Bluetooth®, Zigbee® etc. The wired transceiver 450 may include a wired transmitter 452 and a wired receiver 454 configured for wired communication, e.g., a network interface that may be utilized to communicate with the NG-RAN 135 to send communications to, and receive communications from, the TRP 300, for example, and / or one or more other network entities. The wired transmitter 452 may include multiple transmitters that may be discrete components or combined / integrated components, and / or the wired receiver 454 may include multiple receivers that may be discrete components or combined / integrated4903 / A130WOcomponents. The wired transceiver 450 may be configured, e.g., for optical communication and / or electrical communication.

[0073] The description herein may refer to the processor 410 performing a function, but this includes other implementations such as where the processor 410 executes software (stored in the memory 411) and / or firmware. The description herein may refer to the server 400 performing a function as shorthand for one or more appropriate components (e.g., the processor 410 and the memory 411) of the server 400 performing the function.

[0074] The configuration of the server 400 shown in FIG. 4 is an example and not limiting of the disclosure, including the claims, and other configurations may be used. For example, the wireless transceiver 440 may be omitted. Also or alternatively, the description herein discusses that the server 400 is configured to perform or performs several functions, but one or more of these functions may be performed by the TRP 300 and / or the UE 200 (i.e., the TRP 300 and / or the UE 200 may be configured to perform one or more of these functions).Positioning Techniques

[0075] For terrestrial positioning of a UE in cellular networks, techniques such as Advanced Forward Link Trilateration (AFLT) and Observed Time Difference Of Arrival (OTDOA) often operate in “UE-assisted” mode in which measurements of reference signals (e.g., PRS, CRS, etc.) transmitted by base stations are taken by the UE and then provided to a location server. The location server calculates the position of the UE based on the measurements and known locations of the base stations. Because these techniques use the location server to calculate the position of the UE, rather than the UE itself, these positioning techniques are not frequently used in applications such as car or cell-phone navigation, which instead typically rely on satellite-based positioning.

[0076] A UE may use a Satellite Positioning System (SPS) (a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)) for high-accuracy positioning using precise point positioning (PPP) or real time kinematic (RTK) technology. These technologies use assistance data such as measurements from ground-based stations. LTE Release 15 allows the data to be encrypted so that the UEs subscribed to the service exclusively can read the information. Such assistance data varies with time. Thus, a UE subscribed to the4903 / A130WOservice may not easily “break encryption” for other UEs by passing on the data to other UEs that have not paid for the subscription. The passing on would need to be repeated every time the assistance data changes.

[0077] In UE-assisted positioning, the UE sends measurements (e.g., TDOA, Angle of Arrival (AoA), etc.) to the positioning server (e.g., LMF / eSMLC). The positioning server has the base station almanac (BSA) that contains multiple ‘entries’ or ‘records’, one record per cell, where each record contains geographical cell location but also may include other data. An identifier of the ‘record’ among the multiple ‘records’ in the BSA may be referenced. The BSA and the measurements from the UE may be used to compute the position of the UE.

[0078] In conventional UE -based positioning, a UE computes its own position, thus avoiding sending measurements to the network (e.g., location server), which in turn improves latency and scalability. The UE uses relevant BSA record information (e.g., locations of gNBs (more broadly base stations)) from the network. The BSA information may be encrypted. But since the BSA information varies much less often than, for example, the PPP or RTK assistance data described earlier, it may be easier to make the BSA information (compared to the PPP or RTK information) available to UEs that did not subscribe and pay for decryption keys. Transmissions of reference signals by the gNBs make BSA information potentially accessible to crowd-sourcing or wardriving, essentially enabling BSA information to be generated based on in-the-field and / or over-the-top observations.

[0079] Positioning techniques may be characterized and / or assessed based on one or more criteria such as position determination accuracy and / or latency. Latency is a time elapsed between an event that triggers determination of position-related data and the availability of that data at a positioning system interface, e.g., an interface of the LMF 120. At initialization of a positioning system, the latency for the availability of position-related data is called time to first fix (TTFF), and is larger than latencies after the TTFF. An inverse of a time elapsed between two consecutive position-related data availabilities is called an update rate, i.e., the rate at which position-related data are generated after the first fix. Latency may depend on processing capability, e.g., of the UE. For example, a UE may report a processing capability of the UE as a duration of DL PRS symbols in units of time (e.g., milliseconds) that the UE can process every T amount of time (e.g., T ms) assuming 272 PRB (Physical Resource Block) allocation.4903 / A130WOOther examples of capabilities that may affect latency are a number of TRPs from which the UE can process PRS, a number of PRS that the UE can process, and a bandwidth of the UE.

[0080] One or more of many different positioning techniques (also called positioning methods) may be used to determine the position of an entity such as one of the UEs 105, 106. For example, known position-determination techniques include RTF, multi-RTT, OTDOA (also called TDOA and including UL-TDOA and DL-TDOA), Enhanced Cell Identification (E-CID), DL-AoD, UL-AoA, etc. RTF uses a time for a signal to travel from one entity to another and back to determine a range between the two entities. Fhe range, plus a known location of a first one of the entities and an angle between the two entities (e.g., an azimuth angle) can be used to determine a location of the second of the entities. In multi-RFF (also called multi-cell REE), multiple ranges from one entity (e.g., a UE) to other entities (e.g., ERPs) and known locations of the other entities may be used to determine the location of the one entity. In FDOA techniques, the difference in travel times between one entity and other entities may be used to determine relative ranges from the other entities and those, combined with known locations of the other entities may be used to determine the location of the one entity. Angles of arrival and / or departure may be used to help determine the location of an entity. For example, an angle of arrival or an angle of departure of a signal combined with a range between devices (determined using signal, e.g., a travel time of the signal, a received power of the signal, etc.) and a known location of one of the devices may be used to determine a location of the other device. Fhe angle of arrival or departure may be an azimuth angle relative to a reference direction such as true north. Fhe angle of arrival or departure may be a zenith angle relative to directly upward from an entity (i.e., relative to radially outward from a center of Earth). E-CID uses the identity of a serving cell, the timing advance (i.e., the difference between receive and transmit times at the UE), estimated timing and power of detected neighbor cell signals, and possibly angle of arrival (e.g., of a signal at the UE from the base station or vice versa) to determine location of the UE. In FDOA, the difference in arrival times at a receiving device of signals from different sources along with known locations of the sources and known offset of transmission times from the sources are used to determine the location of the receiving device.4903 / A130WO

[0081] In a network-centric RTT estimation, the serving base station instructs the UE to scan for / receive RTT measurement signals (e.g., PRS) on serving cells of two or more neighboring base stations (and typically the serving base station, as at least three base stations are needed). The one of more base stations transmit RTT measurement signals on low reuse resources (e.g., resources used by the base station to transmit system information) allocated by the network (e.g., a location server such as the LMF 120). The UE records the arrival time (also referred to as a receive time, a reception time, a time of reception, or a time of arrival (ToA)) of each RTT measurement signal relative to the UE’s current downlink timing (e.g., as derived by the UE from a DL signal received from its serving base station), and transmits a common or individual RTT response message (e.g., SRS (sounding reference signal) for positioning, i.e., UL- PRS) to the one or more base stations (e.g., when instructed by its serving base station) and may include the time difference T_(Rx— >Tx) (i.e., UE TRx-Tx or UERx-Tx) between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response message in a payload of each RTT response message. The RTT response message would include a reference signal from which the base station can deduce the ToA of the RTT response. By comparing the difference T_(Tx^Rx) between the transmission time of the RTT measurement signal from the base station and the ToA of the RTT response at the base station to the UE -reported time difference T_(Rx— >Tx), and subtracting the UERx-Tx, the base station can deduce the propagation time between the base station and the UE, from which the base station can determine the distance between the UE and the base station by assuming the speed of light during this propagation time.

[0082] A UE-centric RTT estimation is similar to the network-based method, except that the UE transmits uplink RTT measurement signal(s) (e.g., when instructed by a serving base station), which are received by multiple base stations in the neighborhood of the UE. Each involved base station responds with a downlink RTT response message, which may include the time difference between the ToA of the RTT measurement signal at the base station and the transmission time of the RTT response message from the base station in the RTT response message payload.

[0083] For both network-centric and UE-centric procedures, the side (network or UE) that performs the RTT calculation typically (though not always) transmits the first message(s) or signal(s) (e.g., RTT measurement signal(s)), while the other side responds4903 / A130WOwith one or more RTT response message(s) or signal(s) that may include the difference between the ToA of the first message(s) or signal(s) and the transmission time of the RTT response message(s) or signal(s).

[0084] A multi-RTT technique may be used to determine positions. For example, a first entity (e.g., a UE) may send out one or more signals (e.g., unicast, multicast, or broadcast from the base station) and multiple second entities (e.g., other TSPs such as base station(s) and / or UE(s)) may receive a signal from the first entity and respond to this received signal. The first entity receives the responses from the multiple second entities. The first entity (or another entity such as an LMF) may use the responses from the second entities to determine ranges to the second entities and may use the multiple ranges and known locations of the second entities to determine the location of the first entity by trilateration.

[0085] In some instances, additional information may be obtained in the form of an angle of arrival (AoA) or angle of departure (AoD) that defines a straight-line direction (e.g., which may be in a horizontal plane or in three dimensions) or possibly a range of directions (e.g., for the UE from the locations of base stations). The intersection of two directions can provide another estimate of the location for the UE.

[0086] For positioning techniques using PRS (Positioning Reference Signal) signals (e.g., TDOA and RTT), PRS signals sent by multiple TRPs are measured and the arrival times of the signals, known transmission times, and known locations of the TRPs used to determine ranges from a UE to the TRPs. For example, an RSTD (Reference Signal Time Difference) may be determined for PRS signals received from multiple TRPs and used in a TDOA technique to determine position (location) of the UE. A positioning reference signal may be referred to as a PRS or a PRS signal. The PRS signals are typically sent using the same power and PRS signals with the same signal characteristics (e.g., same frequency shift) may interfere with each other such that a PRS signal from a more distant TRP may be overwhelmed by a PRS signal from a closer TRP such that the signal from the more distant TRP may not be detected. PRS muting may be used to help reduce interference by muting some PRS signals (reducing the power of the PRS signal, e.g., to zero and thus not transmitting the PRS signal). In this way, a weaker (at the UE) PRS signal may be more easily detected by the UE without a stronger PRS signal interfering with the weaker PRS signal. The term RS,4903 / A130WOand variations thereof (e.g., PRS, SRS, CSI-RS (Channel State Information - Reference Signal)), may refer to one reference signal or more than one reference signal.

[0087] Positioning reference signals (PRS) include downlink PRS (DL PRS, often referred to simply as PRS) and uplink PRS (UL PRS) (which may be called SRS (Sounding Reference Signal) for positioning). A PRS may comprise a PN code (pseudorandom number code) or be generated using a PN code (e.g., by modulating a carrier signal with the PN code) such that a source of the PRS may serve as a pseudosatellite (a pseudolite). The PN code may be unique to the PRS source (at least within a specified area such that identical PRS from different PRS sources do not overlap). PRS may comprise PRS resources and / or PRS resource sets of a frequency layer. A DL PRS positioning frequency layer (or simply a frequency layer) is a collection of DL PRS resource sets, from one or more TRPs, with PRS resource(s) that have common parameters configured by higher-layer parameters DL-PRS-PositioningFrequencyLayer, DL-PRS-ResourceSet, and DL-PRS-Resource. Each frequency layer has a DL PRS subcarrier spacing (SCS) for the DL PRS resource sets and the DL PRS resources in the frequency layer. Each frequency layer has a DL PRS cyclic prefix (CP) for the DL PRS resource sets and the DL PRS resources in the frequency layer. In 5G, a resource block occupies 12 consecutive subcarriers and a specified number of symbols. Common resource blocks are the set of resource blocks that occupy a channel bandwidth. A bandwidth part (BWP) is a set of contiguous common resource blocks and may include all the common resource blocks within a channel bandwidth or a subset of the common resource blocks. Also, a DL PRS Point A parameter defines a frequency of a reference resource block (and the lowest subcarrier of the resource block), with DL PRS resources belonging to the same DL PRS resource set having the same Point A and all DL PRS resource sets belonging to the same frequency layer having the same Point A. A frequency layer also has the same DL PRS bandwidth, the same start PRB (and center frequency), and the same value of comb size (i.e., a frequency of PRS resource elements per symbol such that for comb-N, every Nth resource element is a PRS resource element). A PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource set ID and may be associated with a particular TRP (identified by a cell ID) transmitted by an antenna panel of a base station. A PRS resource ID in a PRS resource set may be associated with an omnidirectional signal, and / or with a single beam (and / or beam ID) transmitted from a single base station (where a base station may transmit one or more beams). Each4903 / A130WOPRS resource of a PRS resource set may be transmitted on a different beam and as such, a PRS resource (or simply resource) can also be referred to as a beam. This does not have any implications on whether the base stations and the beams on which PRS are transmitted are known to the UE.

[0088] A TRP may be configured, e.g., by instructions received from a server and / or by software in the TRP, to send DL PRS per a schedule. According to the schedule, the TRP may send the DL PRS intermittently, e.g., periodically at a consistent interval from an initial transmission. The TRP may be configured to send one or more PRS resource sets. A resource set is a collection of PRS resources across one TRP, with the resources having the same periodicity, a common muting pattern configuration (if any), and the same repetition factor across slots. Each of the PRS resource sets comprises multiple PRS resources, with each PRS resource comprising multiple OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) Resource Elements (REs) that may be in multiple Resource Blocks (RBs) within N (one or more) consecutive symbol(s) within a slot. PRS resources (or reference signal (RS) resources generally) may be referred to as OFDM PRS resources (or OFDM RS resources). An RB is a collection of REs spanning a quantity of one or more consecutive symbols in the time domain and a quantity (12 for a 5G RB) of consecutive sub-carriers in the frequency domain. Each PRS resource is configured with an RE offset, slot offset, a symbol offset within a slot, and a number of consecutive symbols that the PRS resource may occupy within a slot. The RE offset defines the starting RE offset of the first symbol within a DL PRS resource in frequency. The relative RE offsets of the remaining symbols within a DL PRS resource are defined based on the initial offset. The slot offset is the starting slot of the DL PRS resource with respect to a corresponding resource set slot offset. The symbol offset determines the starting symbol of the DL PRS resource within the starting slot. Transmitted REs may repeat across slots, with each transmission being called a repetition such that there may be multiple repetitions in a PRS resource. The DL PRS resources in a DL PRS resource set are associated with the same TRP and each DL PRS resource has a DL PRS resource ID. A DL PRS resource ID in a DL PRS resource set is associated with a single beam transmitted from a single TRP (although a TRP may transmit one or more beams).

[0089] A PRS resource may also be defined by quasi-co-location and start PRB parameters. A quasi-co-location (QCL) parameter may define any quasi-co-location4903 / A130WOinformation of the DL PRS resource with other reference signals. The DL PRS may be configured to be QCL type D with a DL PRS or SS / PBCH (Synchronization Signal / Physical Broadcast Channel) Block from a serving cell or a non-serving cell. The DL PRS may be configured to be QCL type C with an SS / PBCH Block from a serving cell or a non-serving cell. The start PRB parameter defines the starting PRB index of the DL PRS resource with respect to reference Point A. The starting PRB index has a granularity of one PRB and may have a minimum value of 0 and a maximum value of 2176 PRBs.

[0090] A PRS resource set is a collection of PRS resources with the same periodicity, same muting pattern configuration (if any), and the same repetition factor across slots. Every time all repetitions of all PRS resources of the PRS resource set are configured to be transmitted is referred as an “instance”. Therefore, an “instance” of a PRS resource set is a specified number of repetitions for each PRS resource and a specified number of PRS resources within the PRS resource set such that once the specified number of repetitions are transmitted for each of the specified number of PRS resources, the instance is complete. An instance may also be referred to as an “occasion.” A DL PRS configuration including a DL PRS transmission schedule may be provided to a UE to facilitate (or even enable) the UE to measure the DL PRS.

[0091] Multiple frequency layers of PRS may be aggregated to provide an effective bandwidth that is larger than any of the bandwidths of the layers individually. Multiple frequency layers of component carriers (which may be consecutive and / or separate) and meeting criteria such as being quasi co-located (QCLed), and having the same antenna port, may be stitched to provide a larger effective PRS bandwidth (for DL PRS and UL PRS) resulting in increased time of arrival measurement accuracy. Stitching comprises combining PRS measurements over individual bandwidth fragments into a unified piece such that the stitched PRS may be treated as having been taken from a single measurement. Being QCLed, the different frequency layers behave similarly, enabling stitching of the PRS to yield the larger effective bandwidth. The larger effective bandwidth, which may be referred to as the bandwidth of an aggregated PRS or the frequency bandwidth of an aggregated PRS, provides for better time-domain resolution (e.g., of TDOA). An aggregated PRS includes a collection of PRS resources and each PRS resource of an aggregated PRS may be called a PRS component, and each PRS4903 / A130WOcomponent may be transmitted on different component carriers, bands, or frequency layers, or on different portions of the same band.

[0092] RTT positioning is an active positioning technique in that RTT uses positioning signals sent by TRPs to UEs and by UEs (that are participating in RTT positioning) to TRPs. The TRPs may send DL-PRS signals that are received by the UEs and the UEs may send SRS (Sounding Reference Signal) signals that are received by multiple TRPs. A sounding reference signal may be referred to as an SRS or an SRS signal. In 5G multi-RTT, coordinated positioning may be used with the UE sending a single UL-SRS for positioning that is received by multiple TRPs instead of sending a separate UL-SRS for positioning for each TRP. A TRP that participates in multi-RTT will typically search for UEs that are currently camped on that TRP (served UEs, with the TRP being a serving TRP) and also UEs that are camped on neighboring TRPs (neighbor UEs). Neighbor TRPs may be TRPs of a single BTS (Base Transceiver Station) (e.g., gNB), or may be a TRP of one BTS and a TRP of a separate BTS. For RTT positioning, including multi-RTT positioning, the DL-PRS signal and the UL-SRS for positioning signal in a PRS / SRS for positioning signal pair used to determine RTT (and thus used to determine range between the UE and the TRP) may occur close in time to each other such that errors due to UE motion and / or UE clock drift and / or TRP clock drift are within acceptable limits. For example, signals in a PRS / SRS for positioning signal pair may be transmitted from the TRP and the UE, respectively, within about 10 ms of each other. With SRS for positioning being sent by UEs, and with PRS and SRS for positioning being conveyed close in time to each other, it has been found that radio-frequency (RF) signal congestion may result (which may cause excessive noise, etc.) especially if many UEs attempt positioning concurrently and / or that computational congestion may result at the TRPs that are trying to measure many UEs concurrently.

[0093] RTT positioning may be UE -based or UE-assisted. In UE-based RTT, the UE 200 determines the RTT and corresponding range to each of the TRPs 300 and the position of the UE 200 based on the ranges to the TRPs 300 and known locations of the TRPs 300. In UE-assisted RTT, the UE 200 measures positioning signals and provides measurement information to the TRP 300, and the TRP 300 determines the RTT and range. The TRP 300 provides ranges to a location server, e.g., the server 400, and the server determines the location of the UE 200, e.g., based on ranges to different TRPs4903 / A130WO300. The RTT and / or range may be determined by the TRP 300 that received the signal(s) from the UE 200, by this TRP 300 in combination with one or more other devices, e.g., one or more other TRPs 300 and / or the server 400, or by one or more devices other than the TRP 300 that received the signal(s) from the UE 200.

[0094] Various positioning techniques are supported in 5G NR. The NR native positioning methods supported in 5G NR include DL-only positioning methods, UL- only positioning methods, and DL+UL positioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include DL-TDOA and DL-AoD. Uplink-based positioning methods include UL-TDOA and UL-AoA. Combined DL+UL-based positioning methods include RTT with one base station and RTT with multiple base stations (multi- RTT).

[0095] A position estimate (e.g., for a UE) may be referred to by other names, such as a location estimate, location, position, position fix, fix, or the like. A position estimate may be geodetic and comprise coordinates (e.g., latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude) or may be civic and comprise a street address, postal address, or some other verbal description of a location. A position estimate may further be defined relative to some other known location or defined in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude). A position estimate may include an expected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volume within which the location is expected to be included with some specified or default level of confidence). Position information may include one or more positioning signal measurements (e.g., of one or more satellite signals, of PRS, and / or one or more other signals), and / or one or more values (e.g., one or more ranges (possibly including one or more pseudoranges), and / or one or more position estimates, etc.) based on one or more positioning signal measurements.RF Sensing Techniques

[0096] Wireless communication signals (e.g., radio frequency (RF) signals configured to carry orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in accordance with a wireless communications standard, such as LTE, NR, etc.) transmitted between a UE and a base station can be used for environment sensing (also referred to as “RF sensing” or “radar”). Using wireless communication signals for environment sensing can be implemented with radar principles with advanced detection capabilities that4903 / A130WOenable, among other things, touchless / device-free interaction with a device / system. The wireless communication signals may be cellular communication signals, such as LTE or NR signals, WLAN signals, such as Wi-Fi signals, etc. As a particular example, the wireless communication signals may be an OFDM waveform as utilized in LTE and NR. High-frequency communication signals, such as millimeter wave (mmW) RF signals, are especially beneficial to use as sensing signals because the higher frequency provides, at least, more accurate range (distance) detection.

[0097] Possible use cases of RF sensing include health monitoring use cases, such as heartbeat detection, respiration rate monitoring, and the like, gesture recognition use cases, such as human activity recognition, keystroke detection, sign language recognition, and the like, contextual information acquisition use cases, such as location detection / tracking, direction finding, range estimation, and the like, and automotive sensing use cases, such as smart cruise control, collision avoidance, and the like.

[0098] There are different types of sensing, including monostatic sensing (also referred to as “active sensing”) and bistatic sensing (also referred to as “passive sensing”). Monostatic sensing systems may include implementations where the transmitter (Tx) and receiver (Rx) are co-located in the same sensing device (e.g., a UE). The sensing device can measure various properties (e.g., times of arrival (ToAs), angles of arrival (AoAs), phase shift, etc.) of the reflections of the RF sensing signals to detemiine characteristics of the target object (e.g. , size, shape, speed, motion state, etc.). In bistatic sensing schemes, the transmitter (Tx) and receiver (Rx) are not co-located, that is, they are separate devices (e.g., a UE and a base station (or TRP)). In this case, the transmitter device transmits RF sensing signals to the sensing device, but some of the RF sensing signals reflect off a target object. The sensing device (also referred to as the “receiver device”) can measure the times of arrival (ToAs) of the RF sensing signals received directly from the transmitter device and the ToAs of the reflections of the RF sensing signals reflected from the target object.

[0099] More specifically, a transmitter device (e.g., a base station) may transmit a single RF signal or multiple RF signals to a sensing device (e.g., a UE). However, the receiver may receive multiple RF signals corresponding to each transmitted RF signal due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals through multipath channels. Each path may be associated with a cluster of one or more channel taps. Generally, the time at which the receiver detects the first cluster of channel taps is considered the ToA of4903 / A130WOthe RF signal on the line-of-site (LOS) path (i.e., the shortest path between the transmitter and the receiver). Later clusters of channel taps are considered to have reflected off objects between the transmitter and the receiver and therefore to have followed non-LOS (NLOS) paths between the transmitter and the receiver. RF sensing signals may follow the LOS path between the transmitter device and the sensing device, and the RF sensing signals may follow an NLOS path between the transmitter device and the sensing device due to reflecting off the target object. The transmitter device may have transmitted multiple RF sensing signals, some of which followed the LOS path and others of which followed the NLOS path. Alternatively, the transmitter device may have transmitted a single RF sensing signal in a broad enough beam that a portion of the RF sensing signal followed the LOS path (RF sensing signal), and a portion of the RF sensing signal followed the NLOS path (RF sensing signal).

[0100] Based on the ToA of the LOS path, the ToA of the NLOS path, and the speed of light, the sensing device can determine the distance to the target object(s). For example, the sensing device can calculate the distance to the target object as the difference between the ToA of the LOS path and the ToA of the NLOS path multiplied by the speed of light. In addition, if the sensing device is capable of receive beamforming, the sensing device may be able to determine the general direction to a target object as the direction (angle) of the receive beam on which the RF sensing signal following the NLOS path was received. That is, the sensing device may determine the direction to the target object as the angle of arrival (Ao A) of the RF sensing signal, which is the angle of the receive beam used to receive the RF sensing signal. The sensing device may then report this information to the transmitter device, its serving base station, an application server associated with the core network, an external client, a third-party application, or some other sensing entity. Alternatively, the sensing device may report the ToA measurements to the transmitter device, or other sensing entity (e.g., if the sensing device does not have the processing capability to perform the calculations itself), and the transmitter device may determine the distance and, optionally, the direction to the target object.

[0101] Note that if the RF sensing signals are uplink RF signals transmitted by a UE to a base station, the base station would perform object detection based on the uplink RF signals just like the UE does based on the downlink RF signals. Like other forms of4903 / A130WOradar, wireless communication-based sensing signals can be used to estimate the range (distance), velocity (Doppler), and AoA of a target object.

[0102] Turning to FIG. 5, a functional system block diagram is shown of an example of an implementation of a RF sensing indicator for a UE 500 for sensing within an environment 502 with enhanced experience for a user 504 of the UE 500. In this example, the UE 500 may comprise at least one memory 506, at least one transceiver 508, a display 510, and at least one processor 512 communicatively coupled to the at least one memory 506 and the at least one transceiver 508. In this example, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to: determine whether the UE 500 is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and provide an indicator 513 via the user interface 510 based on the UE 500 being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations. In this example, the at least one processor 512 may further be configured to store sensing related data to a storage device 516, wherein the sensing related data is generated based on performance of the sensing operation. In this example, the storage device 516 may optionally be part of, or in signal communication with, the at least one memory 506. Moreover, the at least one transceiver 508 may have one of more antennas 518 that are capable of transmitting sensing signals 520 and receiving sensing signals 522. By utilizing the sensing signals 520 and the sensing signals 522, the UE 500 (or a remote entity in signal communication with the UE 500) is capable of sensing, detecting, and tracking an object 524, if present, within the environment 502. In this example, the UE 500 may be part of a sensing system that includes other devices such as, for example, other UEs 526, one or more base stations 528, and one or more remote entities 529 (that may be optionally within or outside of the environment 502) such as, for example, a sensing management function (SnMF). In another example, the SnMF may be optionally part of, or an application running on, the UE 500, part of one of the UEs 526, part of the one or more base stations 528, or the one or more remote entities 529. In one example, the UE 500 may be activated to perform or deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations via configuration by a sensor service (e.g., a SnMF). In another example, the UE 500 may be enabled or not enabled to perform one or more sensing operations via inputs by the user 504, such as by modifying the settings of the UE 500.

[0103] The circuits, components, modules, and / or devices of, or associated with the UE 500 and other devices are described, or will be described, as being in signal4903 / A130WOcommunication, communicatively coupled, and / or electrically coupled (or simply “coupled”) with each other, where signal communication refers to any type of communication and / or connection between the circuits, components, modules, and / or devices that allows a circuit, component, module, and / or device to pass and / or receive signals and / or information from another circuit, component, module, and / or device. The communication and / or connection may be along any signal path between the circuits, components, modules, and / or devices that allows signals and / or information to pass from one circuit, component, module, and / or device to another and includes wireless or wired signal paths. The signal paths may be physical, such as, for example, conductive wires, electromagnetic wave guides, cables, attached and / or electromagnetic or mechanically coupled terminals, semi-conductive or dielectric materials or devices, or other similar physical connections or couplings. Additionally, signal paths may be non-physical such as free-space (in the case of electromagnetic propagation) or information paths through digital components where communication information may be passed from one circuit, component, module, and / or device to another in varying digital formats without passing through a direct electromagnetic connection.

[0104] In this example, the UE 500 may be part of a system for integrated sensing and communication (IS AC) which supports both sensing of a region (i.e., the environment 502), where the UE 500 is located, and wireless communications with other devices (e.g., base station(s) 528 or other UEs 526 (including via sidelink channels). In general, this type of system may include a sensing architecture that includes a sensing client (SC) that requests sensing information. The SC may be, for example an application on the UE 500 (or other UEs 526), an unmanned autonomous vehicle (UAV), and LMF of a remote server (e.g., the one or more remote entities 529). In this example, a remote entity (or the UE 500) may include a SnMF that receives the request from the SC and then initiates a sensing process by communicating with one or more base stations 528 in the environment 502 of the UE 500. In general, the sensing process may include monostatic sensing, bistatic sensing, and multistatic sensing. In monostatic sensing, a signal device (e.g., the UE 500) may transmit one or more sensing signals (e.g., sensing signals 520) and may receive the one or more sensing signals (e.g., sensing signals 522). In bistatic sensing, one device may transmit the one or more sensing signals while another device receives the one or more sensing signals. In multistatic sensing, multiple devices (e.g., UE 500, one or more base stations 528, and UEs 526) may transmit one or4903 / A130WOmore sensing signals, and multiple devices may receive the one or more sensing signals. In these examples, the device (e.g., UE 500) is capable of both sensing the object 524 while at the same time being able to communicate with each other (either directly or through intermediates).

[0105] Utilizing these techniques, the UEs (including UE 500 and optionally UEs 526) are capable of sensing the surroundings of the individual UEs within the environment 502, which may lead to concerns about privacy of the users of the corresponding UEs. Further, the sensing functions of the UEs (i.e. , UE 500 and UEs 526) may be provided by paid subscriptions that offer a number of services related to sensing the environment 502 around the UE 500. In this example, providing the indicator 513 via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 may allow the user 504 to know if the UE 500 is performing individual sensing, is being used by other devices (i.e., the one or more base stations 528, UEs 526, or one or more remote entities 529) to perform sensing, and whether a sensing capability is configured for use with the UE 500. If a sensing capability is configured for use on the UE 500, the indicator 513 may further be configured to inform the user 504 of whether the function is activated or deactivated on the UE 500.

[0106] As such, in this example, the UE 500 is configured to indicate to the user 504 that the UE 500 is being utilized to detect the presence and / or location of a target (i.e., object 524) within the environment 502 either by itself or with the assistance of the one or more base stations 528 and / or UEs 526. In general, discussed are techniques and user interface (UI) features (i.e., utilizing the indicator 513) to enhance the experience and / or privacy of the user 504 with respect to the sensing operations performed on the UE 500. Discussed herein are example aspects, features, or both for providing indicator(s) 513 regarding sensing operations performed on the UE 500 (e.g., sensing signals transmission, measurements, etc.). In this example, there can be various implementations of the indicators 513. The indicator 513 may include a visual indicator (e.g., icon on a display of the UE 500), an audible indicator (e.g., audible alert from the UE 500), and / or a haptic indicator (e.g., vibration from the UE 500). The type of indicator may be based on the initiator of the sensing operations, user / device configurations, user subscription, user preferences, etc. In this example, the initiator may be optionally the UE 500 itself, one of the UEs 526, one of the base stations 528, and / or one of the remote entities 529. Also discussed is the capability to store sensing4903 / A130WOrelated data (e.g., sensing report, time, duration, etc.) that was acquired by the UE 500 in the storage device 516. This can be, for example, network-configured, user- configured, or a default option. Further discussed is the ability to configure the settings of the UE 500 for sensing enabling / disabling by the user 504.

[0107] Therefore, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to determine whether the UE 500 is not configured or not enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations, and provide the indicator 513 via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 to indicate that the UE 500 is not configured or not enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations. For example, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to disable the UE 500 from performing the one or more sensing operations based on one or more user 504 inputs.

[0108] Alternatively, the at least one processor 512 may be further configured to disable the sensing operation and to not provide or to remove the indicator 513 from the user interface 510. In this example, the at least one processor 512 may be further configured to receive an emergency assistance message with the at least one transceiver 508 and activate the UE 500 to perform the one or more sensing operations based on the emergency assistance message. The emergency assistance message may be produced by an external source, and when received by the UE 500, the UE 500 may begin one or more sensing operations irrespective of whether the UE 500 has been deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations. In this way, in case of an emergency, the UE 500 may assist in performing sensing operations for an external authorized entity (e.g., police, fire fighters, or other government entities). In these examples, if the one or more sensing operations of the UE 500 have been deactivated, or if the UE 500 is not part of a sensing subscription service, the at least one processor 512 may be further be configured to transmit, with the at least one transceiver 508, a message that indicates that the UE 500 is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0109] For example, the indicator 513 may be one or more images provided via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 to allow the user 504 to understand that the UE 500 is subscribed to perform sensing operations, is configured to perform sensing operations, is actively performing the sensing operations, and that the UE 500 is transmitting and / or receiving signals related to performing the sensing operations. The images used for the one or more icons may be changing images that indicate to the user 504 these different situations. As an example, the indicator 513 may include graphical images or symbols4903 / A130WOsuch as, for example, a highlighted “S” symbol to indicate that the UE 500 is configured and enabled to perform sensing operations. A non-highlighted “S” symbol may indicate that the UE 500 is not configured or not enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations. Alternatively, a “S” symbol may indicate that sensing operations are deactivated (e.g., they have been disabled by the user 504). As another example, a “S ” may be utilized to indicate the sensing operation is activated and the UE 500 is transmitting a sensing signal, and a “SJ,” may be utilized indicate that the sensing operation is activated and the UE 500 is receiving and / or measuring a sensing signal.

[0110] Tn an example of operation, the at least one processor 512 may be further configured to transmit, with the at least one transceiver 508, one or more sensing signals 520, where the at least one processor 512 is configured to provide the indicator 513 via the user interface 510 based on the UE 500 transmitting the one or more sensing signals 520. As an example, the indicator 513 may include an image of a symbol such as, for example, Sf. In this example, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to transmit, with the at least one transceiver 508, the one or more sensing signals 520 via a sidelink channel. In this example, the transmission characteristics and frequency of the one or more sensing signals 520 would be different than the transmission characteristics if the one or more sensing signals 520 were transmitted via the normal cellular wireless frequency band.

[0111] In addition, the at least one processor 512 may be further configured to receive, with the at least one transceiver 508, one or more sensing signals 522, where the at least one processor 512 may be configured to provide the indicator 513 based on the UE 500 receiving the one or more sensing signals 522. As an example, the indicator 513 may include an image of a symbol such as, for example, SJ,. In this example, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to receive, with the at least one transceiver 508, the one or more sensing signals 522 via a sidelink channel.

[0112] The at least one processor 512 may be further configured to measure the one or more sensing signals 522 to detect the object 524 within the environment 502, where the at least one processor 512 may be configured to provide the indicator 513 via the user interface 510 based on the UE 500 measuring the one or more sensing signals 522.

[0113] As discussed previously, in these examples, the first indicator may include an image of a first symbol, the second indicator may include an image of a second symbol, and the third indicator may include an image of a third symbol - i.e., a highlighted S4903 / A130WOsymbol for the first symbol, a Sf for the second symbol, and a SJ, for the third symbol. Also as previously discussed, the at least one processor 512 may further be configured to deactivate the UE 500 from performing the one or more sensing operations and to provide the fourth indicator based on the UE being deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations. As an example, the fourth indicator may include an image of the symbol S. The at least one processor 512 may be further configured to receive, with the at least one transceiver 508, an emergency assistance message 530, and activate the one or more sensing operations based on the emergency assistance message 530.

[0114] Tn these examples, the UE 500 may have an option to deactivate the one or more sensing operations. Specifically, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to disable the UE 500 from performing the one or more sensing operations based on one or more user inputs from the user 504. As an example, the user interface 510 may be a touch screen that allows the user 504 to touch the screen (e.g., provide user input) near the location of the indicator 513 on the display to switch between enabling and disabling the one or more sensing operations. As another example, the one or more sensing operations may be activated or deactivated by modifying one or more configuration settings for the UE 500. The one or more configuration settings for the UE 500 may be modified by a sensing service or by user input. In these examples, the indicator 513 may be optionally changed (i.e., from an image of a symbol S to a new image of a symbol S) or removed from the user interface 510. As such, in this example, the UE 500 can display an icon as the indicator 513 in a way that indicates whether the sensing function is activated or deactivated on the UE 500. In these examples, sensing may be performed based on the subscriptions of the UE 500 such that the user 504 may be aware that the subscription is working for the application of interest if the indicator 513 is provided. Additionally, if the one or more sensing operations are happening without the consent of the user 504 and for an application outside his / her interest (e.g., an emergency application initiated by a remote entity), the user 504 will be aware of the one or more sensing operations via the indicator 513.

[0115] As discussed previously, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to receive a message from a remote entity (i.e., one or more remote entities 529) to configure the UE 500 to perform the one or more sensing operations, and the one or more sensing signals 522 may be received from the remote entity. Further, the at least one processor 512 may be further configured to receive, with the at least one transceiver4903 / A130WO508, a registration message and or de-registration message from a SnMF and to configure the UE 500 to perform or not perform, respectively, the one or more sensing operations on the UE 500 in response to the registration or de-registration message. In this example, the remote entity may be a base station (e.g., one or more base stations 528) in signal communication with the UE 500. In this example, the message from the remote entity may be a request from a SC.

[0116] In these examples, the at least one processor 512 may be further configured to receive, with the at least one transceiver 508, a registration message from a SnMF and to enable the UE 500 to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the registration message, and provide the indicator 513 via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 to further indicate that the UE 500 is registered with the SnMF. Moreover, the at least one processor 512 may be further configured to receive, with the at least one transceiver 508, a de-registration message from the SnMF and to configure the UE 500 to not enable the UE 500 to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the de-registration message. The at least one processor 512 may be configured to provide the indicator 513 to indicate that the UE 500 is not registered with the SnMF. Alternatively, the indicator 513 may be removed from the user interface 510 based on the UE 500 not being registered with the SnMF. In these examples, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to receive, with the at least one transceiver 508, the message from the remote entity via a sidelink channel. Moreover, in these examples, the one or more sensing operations may be a subscription -based application and / or function and the indicator 513 may indicate to the user 504 that the UE 500 is performing the sensing operation and operating based on the subscription.

[0117] In this example, the UE 500 may be configured to store the sensing related data such as, for example, a sensing report for predetermined time duration which can be preprogrammed. In this example, the predetermined time may be network configured by a remote entity or user 504 configured or predefined. Examples of information that may be included in the sensing data may include, for example, a sensing time of amount of time spent on sensing operations (either individually or in total); a time stamp of when the sensing operation was performed; a time duration for an individual sensing operation, location of the UE 500, locations of objects (including the object 524, one or more base stations 528, and UEs 526) in the environment 502, and a sensing report (e.g., a sensing report with channel state information (CSI), etc.). In4903 / A130WOthese examples, the user 504 will be aware of any sensing which was done by the UE 500 with / without the knowledge of the user 504. As such, utilizing these techniques, the UE 500 is configured to provide a suitable indicator 513 based on the type of sensing session and the data from that session, such as time and / or duration, may be saved for future review by the user 504.

[0118] Moreover, in these examples, the at least one processor 512 may be configured to store the sensing related data to the storage device 516 by being configured to store the sensing related data to either a local store device or a remote entity having a remote storage device. Tf the storage device 516 is a local store device on the UE 500, the storage device 516 may be either part of or independent from the at least one memory 506.

[0119] FIGS. 6A through 6D, are examples of indicators 513 to indicate RF sensing on a display 600 of the UE 500. In FIG. 6A, the first indicator 602 may include a first image indicating that sensing services are available; and in FIG. 6B, the second indicator 604 may include a second image indicating that sensing services are not available. In FIG. 6C, the third indicator 606 may include a third image indicating that sensing services are available, and that the UE 500 is transmitting one or more sensing signals, while in FIG. 6D, the fourth indicator 608 may include a fourth image indicating that sensing services are available and that the UE 500 is receiving one or more sensing signals. Although visual indicators that include images are shown, other types of indicators may be used, alone or in combination, such as audible indicators and / or haptic indicators.

[0120] In these examples, the indicator 513 may utilize for example an image of the symbol S and variants as the first indicator 602, second indicator 604, third indicator 606, and fourth indicator 608. The second indicator 604 may be an image of a symbol S, the third indicator 606 may be an image of a symbol S , and the fourth indicator 608 may be an image of a symbol Sj. In other examples (not shown), indicators that include images of other symbols may be utilized as the RF sensing indicator 513, such as a letter with a single cross or a letter with a double cross).

[0121] An indicator 513 utilizing an image of a symbol S (and variations) can be provided on the display 600 when sensing is configured / registered by the SnMF, and the image can be removed from the display 600 when the UE 500 is de- configured / deregistered. The images S and SJ, may be displayed when the one or more4903 / A130WOsensing operations are actually being performed. In this example, the third indicator 606 indicates that one or more sensing signals have been transmitted by the UE 500, while the fourth indicator 608 indicates that one or more sensing signals have been received and that measurements are being performed by the UE 500. In this example, for monostatic sensing with the UE 500 (i.e., for an application initiated by the UE 500), UE 500 can display the same image as described with a dark tone (i.e., Sf for transmitting one or more sensing signals and SJ, for receiving one or more sensing signals). In these examples, the letter S is being utilized for illustration purposes and it is noted that other types of graphical indications may be utilized for the images.

[0122] FIG. 7A is a signal diagram of an example implementation of a method for indicating the use of the UE 500 for RF sensing. In this example, the UE 500 is in signal communication with a base station (gNB) 700 and a SnMF 702. The gNB 700 may be a base station from the one or more base stations 528 shown in FIG. 5 and the SnMF 702 may be located at one of the remote entities of the one or more remote entities 529 shown in FIG. 5. In an example, at stage 722, the UE 500 may receive a registration message (e.g., a sensing configured / registered message) from the SnMF 702 to activate one or more sensing operations on the UE 500. The UE 500 may be configured to activate the UE 500 to perform the one or more sensing operations based on the registration message. At stage 724, the first indicator 602 may be provided via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 based on the UE 500 being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations. At stage 726, the UE 500 may be determined to be transmitting one or more sensing signals, and the third indicator 606 may be provided via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 based on the UE 500 transmitting the one or more sensing signals. At stage 728, the gNB 700 may transmit one or more sensing signals. In monostatic sensing, the UE 500 may receive one or more sensing signals transmitted from the UE 500. In bistatic sensing, the UE 500 may receive one or more sensing signals transmitted from the gNB 700. At stage 730, the UE 500 may measure the one or more sensing signals received by the UE 500, and the third indicator 608 may be provided via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 indicating measurement of the one or more sensing signals. At stage 732, the UE 500 may receive a deregistration message (e.g., a sensing deconfigured / deregistered message) from the SnMF 702 to deactivate the one or more sensing operations on the UE 500. The UE 500 may be configured to not perform the one or more sensing operations. At stage 734, the indicator 5134903 / A130WOcurrently being provided via the user interface 510 may be removed from the user interface 510.

[0123] FIG. 7B is a signal diagram of a second example implementation of a method for indicating the use of the UE 500 for RF sensing of an object 524 in the environment 502. In this example, the UE 500 may be registered with the SnMF 702 by subscription. As an example, the UE 500 may be either in an activated or deactivated mode for the one or more sensing operations based on inputs received from the user 504. In stage 704, if the user 504 has disabled sensing, then at stage 705, the UE 500 may transmit a message indicating to the SnMF 702 that the sensing operation is not activated on the UE 500. At stage 706, the SnMF 702 may note that sensing at the UE 500 is deactivated but may still send an emergency assistance message to the UE 500 if assistance is needed as described previously.

[0124] At stage 708, if the UE 500 is activated for sensing, the UE 500 (in a monostatic example) may transmit one or more sensing signals towards the object 524. At stage 710, the UE 500 may provide the third indicator 606 via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 to indicate that the UE 500 is transmitting one or more sensing signals. Alternatively, at stage 712, in a bistatic example, the gNB 700 (or other UE) may transmit one or more sensing signals towards the object 524. At stage 714, the UE 500 may receive one or more sensing signals (e.g., the one or more sensing signals transmitted by the gNB 700 or other UE as reflected off the object 524). At stage 716, the UE 500 may provide the fourth indicator 608 via the user interface 510 of the UE 500 to indicate that the UE 500 is receiving one or more sensing signals.

[0125] Referring to FIG. 8, a method 800 for enhancing user experience performed by a UE includes the stages shown. The method 800 is, however, an example and not limiting. The method 800 may be altered, e.g., by having one or more stages added, removed, rearranged, combined, performed concurrently, and / or having one or more stages split into multiple stages.

[0126] At stage 802, the method 800 includes determining that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for determining that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations.4903 / A130WO

[0127] At stage 804, the method 800 includes providing a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for providing the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0128] Implementations of the method 800 may include one or more of the following features. In an example implementation, the method 800 includes determining that the UE 500 is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operation and providing a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for determining that the UE 500 is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operation and providing a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations.

[0129] For example, the method 800 may include receiving an emergency assistance message, activating the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the emergency assistance message, and providing the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perfomr the one or more sensing operations. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for receiving an emergency assistance message, activating the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the emergency assistance message, and providing the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0130] For another example, the method 800 may include determining that the UE is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations or the UE is not enabled by a user associated with the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for determining that the UE is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations4903 / A130WOor the UE is disabled by a user associated with the UE from performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0131] For another example, the method 800 may include sending a message indicating that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memoiy 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for sending a message indicating that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0132] Tn another example implementation, the method 800 may include determining that the UE is configured to perform the one or more sensing operations and determining that the UE is enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for determining that the UE is configured to perform the one or more sensing operations and determining that the UE is enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0133] In another example implementation, the method 800 may include determining that the UE is transmitting one or more sensing signals and providing a third indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE transmitting the one or more sensing signals. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for determining that the UE is transmitting one or more sensing signals and providing a third indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE transmitting the one or more sensing signals.

[0134] In another example implementation, the method 800 may include determining that the UE is receiving one or more sensing signals and providing a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE receiving the one or more sensing signals. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memoiy 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for determining that the UE is receiving one or more sensing signals and providing a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE receiving the one or more sensing signals.

[0135] For example, the method 800 may include measuring the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect one or more objects in an environment and4903 / A130WOproviding the fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the measuring of the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect the one or more objects in the environment. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for measuring the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect one or more objects in an environment and providing the fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the measuring of the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect the one or more objects in the environment.

[0136] Tn another example implementation, the method 800 may include receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing configuration information, sensing registration information, or both, and where determining that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing configuration information, sensing registration information, or both, and where determining that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0137] In another example implementation, the method 800 may include receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing deconfiguration information, sensing deregistration information, or both, and where determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user interface 510, may comprise means for receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing deconfiguration information, sensing deregistration information, or both, and where determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0138] In another implementation, the method 800 may include storing sensing related data to a storage device, wherein the sensing related data is generated based on performance of the sensing operation. The at least one processor 512 and the at least one memory 506, possibly in combination with the at least one transceiver 508 and the user4903 / A130WOinterface 510, may comprise means for storing sensing related data to a storage device, wherein the sensing related data is generated based on performance of the sensing operation.Implementation examples

[0139] Implementation examples are provided in the following numbered clauses.

[0140] Clause 1. A method for enhancing user experience performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: determining that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and providing a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0141] Clause 2. The method of clause 1 , further comprising: determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operation; and providing a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations.

[0142] Clause 3. The method of clause 2, further comprising: receiving an emergency assistance message; activating the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the emergency assistance message; and providing the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0143] Clause 4. The method of clause 2, wherein determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations comprises: determining that the UE is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations or the UE is not enabled by a user associated with the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0144] Clause 5. The method of clause 2, further comprising: sending a message indicating that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0145] Clause 6. The method of clause 1 , wherein determining that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations comprises: determining that the UE is configured to perform the one or more sensing operations; and determining that the UE is enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations.4903 / A130WO

[0146] Clause 7. The method of clause 1, further comprising: determining that the UE is transmitting one or more sensing signals; and providing a third indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE transmitting the one or more sensing signals.

[0147] Clause 8. The method of clause 1, further comprising: determining that the UE is receiving one or more sensing signals; and providing a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE receiving the one or more sensing signals.

[0148] Clause 9. The method of clause 8, wherein providing the fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE comprises: measuring the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect one or more objects in an environment; and providing the fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the measuring of the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect the one or more objects in the environment.

[0149] Clause 10. The method of clause 1, further comprising: receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing configuration information, sensing registration information, or both; and wherein determining that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0150] Clause 11 . The method of clause 2, further comprising: receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing deconfiguration information, sensing deregistration information, or both; and wherein determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0151] Clause 12. The method of clause 1, further comprising: storing sensing related data to a storage device, wherein the sensing related data is generated based on performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0152] Clause 13. A user equipment (UE), comprising: at least one memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: determine that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and provide a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0153] Clause 14. The UE of clause 13, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more4903 / A130WOsensing operation; and provide a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations.

[0154] Clause 15. The UE of clause 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive an emergency assistance message; activate the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the emergency assistance message; and provide the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0155] Clause 16. The UE of clause 14, wherein, to determine that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations, the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations or the UE is not enabled by a user associated with the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0156] Clause 17. The UE of clause 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: send a message indicating that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0157] Clause 18. The UE of clause 13, wherein, to determine that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations, the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is configured to perform the one or more sensing operations; and determine that the UE is enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0158] Clause 19. The UE of clause 13, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is transmitting one or more sensing signals; and provide a third indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE transmitting the one or more sensing signals.

[0159] Clause 20. The UE of clause 13, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is receiving one or more sensing signals; and provide a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE receiving the one or more sensing signals.

[0160] Clause 21. The UE of clause 20, wherein the at least one processor configured to provide the fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE is further configured to: measure the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect one or more objects in an environment; and provide the fourth indicator via the user interface of the4903 / A130WOUE based on the measuring of the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect the one or more objects in the environment.

[0161] Clause 22. The UE of clause 13, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a message from a network entity comprising sensing configuration information, sensing registration information, or both; and wherein the determination that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0162] Clause 23. The UE of clause 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a message from a network entity comprising sensing deconfiguration infomiation, sensing deregistration information, or both; and wherein the determination that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0163] Clause 24. The UE of clause 13, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: store sensing related data to a storage device, wherein the sensing related data is generated based on performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0164] Clause 25. A user equipment (UE), comprising: means for determining that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and means for providing a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0165] Clause 26. The UE of clause 25, further comprising: means for detemrining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operation; and means for providing a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations.

[0166] Clause 27. The UE of clause 26, further comprising: means for receiving an emergency assistance message; means for activating the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the emergency assistance message; and means for providing the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0167] Clause 28. The UE of clause 26, wherein determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations comprises: means for determining that the UE is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations or the UE is not enabled by a user associated with the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations.4903 / A130WO

[0168] Clause 29. The UE of clause 26, further comprising: means for sending a message indicating that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0169] Clause 30. The UE of clause 25, wherein the means for determining that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations comprises: means for determining that the UE is configured to perform the one or more sensing operations; and means for determining that the UE is enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0170] Clause 31 . The UE of clause 25, further comprising: means for determining that the UE is transmitting one or more sensing signals; and means for providing a third indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE transmitting the one or more sensing signals.

[0171] Clause 32. The UE of clause 25, further comprising: means for determining that the UE is receiving one or more sensing signals; and means for providing a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE receiving the one or more sensing signals.

[0172] Clause 33. The UE of clause 32, wherein the means for providing the fourth indicator comprises: means for measuring the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect one or more objects in an environment; and means for providing the fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the measuring of the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect the one or more objects in the environment.

[0173] Clause 34. The UE of clause 25, further comprising: means for receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing configuration information, sensing registration information, or both; and wherein means for determining that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0174] Clause 35. The UE of clause 25, further comprising: means for receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing deconfiguration information, sensing deregistration information, or both; and wherein means for determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.4903 / A130WO

[0175] Clause 36. The UE of clause 25, further comprising: means for storing sensing related data to a storage device, wherein the sensing related data is generated based on performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0176] Clause 37. A non-transitory, processor-readable storage medium comprising processor-readable instructions to cause at least one processor of a user equipment (UE) to: determine that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and provide a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0177] Clause 38. The medium of clause 37, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operation; and provide a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations.

[0178] Clause 39. The medium of clause 38, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive an emergency assistance message; activate the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the emergency assistance message; and provide the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0179] Clause 40. The medium of clause 38, wherein the at least one processor configured to determine that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is further configured to: determine that the UE is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations or the UE is not enabled by a user associated with the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0180] Clause 41. The medium of clause 38, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: send a message indicating that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0181] Clause 42. The medium of clause 37, wherein the at least one processor configured to determine that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is further configured to: deteimine that the UE is configured to perform the one or more sensing operations; and determine that the UE is enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations.

[0182] Clause 43. The medium of clause 37, wherein the processor-readable instructions further comprise processor-readable instructions to cause the at least one processor to: determine that the UE is transmitting one or more sensing signals; and4903 / A130WOprovide a third indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE transmitting the one or more sensing signals.

[0183] Clause 44. The medium of clause 37, wherein the processor-readable instructions further comprise processor-readable instructions to cause the at least one processor to: determine that the UE is receiving one or more sensing signals; and provide a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE receiving the one or more sensing signals.

[0184] Clause 45. The medium of clause 44, wherein the processor-readable instructions to cause the at least one processor to provide the fourth indicator via the user interface further comprise process-readable instructions to cause the at least one processor to: measure the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect one or more objects in an environment; and provide the fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the measuring of the one or more sensing signals received by the UE to detect the one or more objects in the environment.

[0185] Clause 46. The medium of clause 37, wherein the processor-readable instructions further comprise processor-readable instructions to cause the at least one processor to: receive a message from a network entity comprising sensing configuration information, sensing registration information, or both; and wherein determine that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0186] Clause 47. The medium of clause 37, wherein the processor-readable instructions further comprise processor-readable instructions to cause the at least one processor to: receive a message from a network entity comprising sensing deconfiguration information, sensing deregistration information, or both; and wherein determine that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

[0187] Clause 48. The medium of clause 37, wherein the processor-readable instructions further comprise processor-readable instructions to cause the at least one processor to: store sensing related data to a storage device, wherein the sensing related data is generated based on performing the one or more sensing operations.

[0188] Other examples and implementations are within the scope of the disclosure and appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software and computers, functions described above can be implemented using software executed by a processor,4903 / A130WOhardware, firmware, hardwiring, or a combination of any of these. Features implementing functions may also be physically located at various positions, including being distributed such that portions of functions are implemented at different physical locations.

[0189] As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Thus, reference to a device in the singular (e.g., “a device,” “the device”), including in the claims, includes at least one, i.e. , one or more, of such devices (e.g., “a processor” includes at least one processor (e.g., one processor, two processors, etc.), “the processor” includes at least one processor, “a memory” includes at least one memory, “the memory” includes at least one memory, etc.). The phrases “at least one” and “one or more” are used interchangeably and such that “at least one” referred-to object and “one or more” referred-to objects include implementations that have one referred-to object and implementations that have multiple referred-to objects. For example, “at least one processor” and “one or more processors” each includes implementations that have one processor and implementations that have multiple processors.

[0190] The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” and / or "including,” as used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0191] Also, as used herein, “or” as used in a list of items (possibly prefaced by “at least one of’ or prefaced by “one or more of’) indicates a disjunctive list such that, for example, a list of “at least one of A, B, or C,” or a list of “one or more of A, B, or C” or a list of “A or B or C” means A, or B, or C, or AB (A and B), or AC (A and C), or BC (B and C), or ABC (i.e., A and B and C), or combinations with more than one feature (e.g., AA, AAB, ABBC, etc.). Thus, a recitation that an item, e.g., a processor, is configured to perform a function regarding at least one of A or B, or a recitation that an item is configured to perform a function A or a function B, means that the item may be configured to perform the function regarding A, or may be configured to perform the function regarding B, or may be configured to perform the function regarding A and B. For example, a phrase of “a processor configured to measure at least one of A or B” or “a processor configured to measure A or measure B” means that the processor may be configured to measure A (and may or may not be configured to measure B), or may be4903 / A130WOconfigured to measure B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or may be configured to measure A and measure B (and may be configured to select which, or both, of A and B to measure). Similarly, a recitation of a means for measuring at least one of A or B includes means for measuring A (which may or may not be able to measure B), or means for measuring B (and may or may not be configured to measure A), or means for measuring A and B (which may be able to select which, or both, of A and B to measure). As another example, a recitation that an item, e.g., a processor, is configured to at least one of perform function X or perform function Y means that the item may be configured to perform the function X, or may be configured to perform the function Y, or may be configured to perform the function X and to perform the function Y. For example, a phrase of “a processor configured to at least one of measure X or measure Y” means that the processor may be configured to measure X (and may or may not be configured to measure Y), or may be configured to measure Y (and may or may not be configured to measure X), or may be configured to measure X and to measure Y (and may be configured to select which, or both, of X and Y to measure).

[0192] As used herein, unless otherwise stated, a statement that a function or operation is “based on” an item or condition means that the function or operation is based on the stated item or condition and may be based on one or more items and / or conditions in addition to the stated item or condition.

[0193] Substantial variations may be made in accordance with specific requirements. For example, customized hardware might also be used, and / or particular elements might be implemented in hardware, software (including portable software, such as applets, etc.) executed by a processor, or both. Further, connection to other computing devices such as network input / output devices may be employed. Components, functional or otherwise, shown in the figures and / or discussed herein as being connected or communicating with each other are communicatively coupled unless otherwise noted. That is, they may be directly or indirectly connected to enable communication between them.

[0194] The systems and devices discussed above are examples. Various configurations may omit, substitute, or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For instance, features described with respect to certain configurations may be combined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elements of the configurations may be combined in a similar manner. Also, technology evolves and,4903 / A130WOthus, many of the elements are examples and do not limit the scope of the disclosure or claims.

[0195] A wireless communication system is one in which communications are conveyed wirelessly, i.e., by electromagnetic and / or acoustic waves propagating through atmospheric space rather than through a wire or other physical connection, between wireless communication devices. A wireless communication system (also called a wireless communications system, a wireless communication network, or a wireless communications network) may not have all communications transmitted wirelessly, but is configured to have at least some communications transmitted wirelessly. Further, the tern “wireless communication device,” or similar term, does not require that the functionality of the device is exclusively, or even primarily, for communication, or that communication using the wireless communication device is exclusively, or even primarily, wireless, or that the device be a mobile device, but indicates that the device includes wireless communication capability (one-way or two- way), e.g., includes at least one radio (each radio being part of a transmitter, receiver, or transceiver) for wireless communication.

[0196] Specific details are given in the description herein to provide a thorough understanding of example configurations (including implementations). However, configurations may be practiced without these specific details. For example, well- known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques have been shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoid obscuring the configurations. The description herein provides example configurations, and does not limit the scope, applicability, or configurations of the claims. Rather, the preceding description of the configurations provides a description for implementing described techniques. Various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements.

[0197] The terms “processor-readable medium,” “machine-readable medium,” and “computer-readable medium,” as used herein, refer to any medium that participates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in a specific fashion. Using a computing platform, various processor-readable media might be involved in providing instructions / code to processor(s) for execution and / or might be used to store and / or carry such instructions / code (e.g., as signals). In many implementations, a processor- readable medium is a physical and / or tangible storage medium. Such a medium may take many forms, including but not limited to, non-volatile media and volatile media.4903 / A130WONon-volatile media include, for example, optical and / or magnetic disks. Volatile media include, without limitation, dynamic memory.

[0198] Having described several example configurations, various modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used. For example, the above elements may be components of a larger system, wherein other rules may take precedence over or otherw ise modify the application of the disclosure. Also, a number of operations may be undertaken before, during, or after the above elements are considered. Accordingly, the above description does not bound the scope of the claims.

[0199] Unless otherwise indicated, “about” and / or “approximately” as used herein when referring to a measurable value such as an amount, a temporal duration, and the like, encompasses variations of ±20% or ±10%, ±5%, or ±0.1% from the specified value, as appropriate in the context of the systems, devices, circuits, methods, and other implementations described herein. Unless otherwise indicated, “substantially” as used herein when referring to a measurable value such as an amount, a temporal duration, a physical attribute (such as frequency), and the like, also encompasses variations of ±20% or ±10%, ±5%, or ±0.1% from the specified value, as appropriate in the context of the systems, devices, circuits, methods, and other implementations described herein.

[0200] A statement that a value exceeds (or is more than or above) a first threshold value is equivalent to a statement that the value meets or exceeds a second threshold value that is slightly greater than the first threshold value, e.g., the second threshold value being one value higher than the first threshold value in the resolution of a computing system. A statement that a value is less than (or is within or below) a first threshold value is equivalent to a statement that the value is less than or equal to a second threshold value that is slightly lower than the first threshold value, e.g., the second threshold value being one value lower than the first threshold value in the resolution of a computing system.4903 / A130WO

Claims

CLAIMS:What is claimed is:

1. A method for enhancing user experience performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: determining that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and providing a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operation; and providing a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising: receiving an emergency assistance message; activating the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the emergency assistance message; and providing the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations comprises: determining that the UE is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations or the UE is not enabled by a user associated with the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations comprises: determining that the UE is configured to perform the one or more sensing operations; and4903 / A130WOdetermining that the UE is enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising: determining that the UE is transmitting one or more sensing signals; and providing a third indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE transmitting the one or more sensing signals.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining that the UE is receiving one or more sensing signals; and providing a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE receiving the one or more sensing signals.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing configuration information, sensing registration information, or both; and wherein determining that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

9. The method of claim 2, further comprising: receiving a message from a network entity comprising sensing deconfiguration information, sensing deregistration information, or both; and wherein determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

10. A user equipment (UE), comprising: at least one memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one memory and the at least one transceiver, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: determine that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and4903 / A130WOprovide a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

11. The UE of claim 10, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operation; and provide a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations.

12. The UE of claim 11, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive an emergency assistance message; activate the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations in response to the emergency assistance message; and provide the first indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.

13. The UE of claim 11, wherein, to determine that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations, the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is not configured to perform the one or more sensing operations or the UE is not enabled by a user associated with the UE to perform the one or more sensing operations.

14. The UE of claim 10, wherein, to determine that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations, the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is configured to perform the one or more sensing operations; and determine that the UE is enabled to perform the one or more sensing operations.4903 / A130WO15. The UE of claim 10, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is transmitting one or more sensing signals; and provide a third indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE transmitting the one or more sensing signals.

16. The UE of claim l\0, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: determine that the UE is receiving one or more sensing signals; and provide a fourth indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE receiving the one or more sensing signals.

17. The UE of claim 10, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a message from a network entity comprising sensing configuration information, sensing registration information, or both; and wherein the determination that the UE is activated to perform the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

18. The UE of claim 11 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a message from a network entity comprising sensing deconfiguration information, sensing deregistration information, or both; and wherein the determination that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations is based at least in part on the message received from the network entity.

19. A user equipment (UE), comprising: means for determining that the UE is activated to perform one or more sensing operations; and means for providing a first indicator via a user interface of the UE based on the UE being activated to perform the one or more sensing operations.4903 / A130WO20. The UE of claim 19, further comprising: means for determining that the UE is deactivated from performing the one or more sensing operations; and means for providing a second indicator via the user interface of the UE based on the UE being deactivated from performing one or more sensing operations.4903 / A130WO

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