Beam-Based PRS Processing for Low-Power 5G Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increased power and processing requirements for receiving positioning reference signals (PRS) in 5G NR networks due to the expanded flexibility of PRS transmissions result in significant memory and processing burdens for mobile devices.
Innovation Solution
Divide PRS processing into two separate modes: an acquisition mode, where mobile devices perform a fast scan of all beams using less than the full set of resources, and a tracking mode, where selected beams are tracked using the full set of resources, thereby reducing power and processing requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the mobile device processes all beams using the full set of PRS resources, then positioning accuracy is improved, but power consumption and processing requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments PRS processing into two distinct modes: acquisition mode and tracking mode. In acquisition mode, the device processes a reduced set of PRS resources to quickly identify candidate beams. In tracking mode, the device processes the full set of PRS resources only for the selected candidate beams. This segmentation allows the device to maintain positioning accuracy while significantly reducing overall power consumption and processing requirements.
2Measurement precision
If the mobile device processes all beams using the full set of PRS resources, then positioning accuracy is improved, but device complexity and memory requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the beam processing task into two stages: acquisition stage and tracking stage. During the acquisition stage, the device performs fast scanning with reduced resources to identify candidate beams. During the tracking stage, the device applies full resource processing only to the candidate beams. This segmentation reduces device complexity and memory requirements while maintaining positioning accuracy.
3Use of energy by moving object
If the mobile device uses reduced resources for PRS processing, then power consumption is reduced, but positioning accuracy may deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing fast acquisition processing with reduced resources first to identify candidate beams before committing to full resource processing. This preliminary screening allows the device to focus full resources on only the most promising beams, thereby maintaining positioning accuracy while reducing overall power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses partial action in acquisition mode by processing only a subset of PRS resources to identify candidate beams. Then, full action is applied in tracking mode for the selected candidate beams. This approach of applying partial resources initially and full resources selectively maintains positioning accuracy while reducing overall power consumption.
Data Source
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AI summary
A mobile device supports positioning with positioning reference signals (PRS) on multiple beam by dividing the PRS processing into two separate modes, an acquisition mode and a tracking mode. In acquisition mode, the mobile device performs a fast scan of all of the beams from a base station transmitting PRS using less than the full set of resources for the PRS, i.e., less than the full bandwidth and/or less than the full number of repetitions of the PRS. The mobile device may select the best beams to use for positioning, e.g., based on signal strength metric. In tracking mode, the mobile device tracks the PRS from only the selected beams using the full set of resources for the PRS. The mobile device may return to acquisition mode after a predetermined number of positioning occasions or if the selected beams are no longer valid due to movement or change in conditions.