Inter-Frequency Positioning Alignment

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current inter-frequency measurement techniques in wireless communication networks often result in misaligned measurement gaps with positioning occasions, leading to inaccurate or incomplete positioning measurements, inefficient use of measurement time, and unreliable assistance data, which can degrade positioning performance and waste network resources.

Innovation Solution

The method involves generating an inter-frequency neighbor list for user equipment, where neighbor cells satisfy alignment conditions and have sufficient measurement time, ensuring overlap between measurement gaps and positioning subframes, allowing for precise inter-frequency reference signal time difference measurements.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If inter-frequency measurements are performed without aligning measurement gaps with positioning subframes, then measurement flexibility is maintained, but measurement accuracy and reliability deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepositioning measurement accuracyVSAvoidmeasurement gap coordination complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The network node pre-configures measurement gaps to overlap with positioning subframes before measurements are performed. This preliminary alignment ensures that when the UE performs inter-frequency measurements, the measurement gaps are already positioned to capture positioning subframes, thereby improving measurement accuracy without requiring complex real-time coordination.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements feedback mechanisms where the network node receives measurement results from the UE and adjusts measurement gap configurations accordingly. This feedback loop allows the system to optimize the alignment between measurement gaps and positioning subframes based on actual measurement performance, improving precision while managing complexity through adaptive refinement.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Productivity

If measurement gaps are frequently configured to capture positioning subframes, then positioning measurement opportunities increase, but network resource efficiency deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepositioning measurement throughputVSAvoidnetwork resource consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of configuring measurement gaps for every possible positioning opportunity, the system applies partial action by selectively configuring gaps only when positioning measurements are actually needed. The network node determines based on UE position requests and positioning service requirements whether to activate measurement gaps, thereby increasing measurement throughput only when necessary and reducing unnecessary network resource consumption.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

3Reliability

If assistance data is provided without verifying measurement time sufficiency, then data delivery speed increases, but positioning reliability deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepositioning data reliabilityVSAvoidassistance data preparation time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The network node performs preliminary verification of measurement time sufficiency before providing assistance data to the UE. By checking in advance whether sufficient overlapping measurement gaps and positioning subframes exist, the system ensures that reliable positioning measurements can be performed, thereby improving positioning data reliability without requiring time-consuming re-verification after data delivery.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentEP2537361B1Inter-frequency positioning measurements
Publication Date: 2016.09.21 LENOVO GRP LTD
  • EP2537361B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2537361B1 patent drawingFigure 2(a)~2(d)
  • EP2537361B1 patent drawingFigure 3(a)~3(c)

AI summary

A networks node generates an inter- frequency neighbor list of neighbor cells intended to be measured including neighbor cells satisfying an alignment condition and a sufficient measurement time. The alignment condition is satisfied when subframes of a first signal having a first frequency transmitted via a reference cell associated with the user equipment are synchronized with, have a known offset relative to or have a random offset smaller than one half of a sub frame relative to corresponding subframes of a second signal having a second frequency transmitted via a neighboring cells. The sufficient measurement time is determined by an overlap of measurement gaps and positioning subframes in the second signal. The user equipment performs the inter-frequency Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD) measurements during measurement gaps.