WO2024207513A1

WO2024207513A1 - Devices and methods for communication

Info

Publication number: WO2024207513A1
Application number: PCT/CN2023/087104
Authority: WO
Inventors: Minghui XU; Gang Wang
Original assignee: NEC Corp
Current assignee: NEC Corp
Priority date: 2023-04-07
Filing date: 2023-04-07
Publication date: 2024-10-10
Anticipated expiration: 2025-10-07
Also published as: WO2024207513A8

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solution for location measurement reporting of RedCap devices. In the solution, a first device receives, from a second device, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping. The configuration comprises at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices. The first device performs, at least based on the PRS configuration, a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device. The first device transmits, to the second device, a result of the measurement for positioning. In this way, accuracy of positioning of RedCap devices can be improved.

Description

DEVICES AND METHODS FOR COMMUNICATION

FIELDS

Example embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of communication techniques and in particular, to devices and methods for location measurement reporting.

BACKGROUND

In telecommunication industry, various techniques have been applied in positioning of devices in a communication network. Reduced-capability (RedCap) User Equipment (UE) generally refer to those devices that have limited capabilities compared to full-featured UEs. The RedCap UEs may not support all the features of a full-featured UE, such as high-speed data transfer or advanced signal processing.

In terms of positioning, accuracy of the positioning of a RedCap UE may be affected by its limited capabilities. For example, if a RedCap UE does not support advanced signal processing, it may not be able to accurately measure the time difference of arrival (TDOA) of signals from different base stations. Research related to support of positioning for UEs with reduced capabilities are being studied.

SUMMARY

In a first aspect, there is provided a first device comprising: a processor configured to cause the first device to: receive, from a second device, a PRS configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; perform, at least based on the PRS configuration, a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device; and transmit, to the second device, a result of the measurement for positioning.

In a second aspect, there is provided a second device comprising: a processor configured to cause the second device to: transmit, to a first device, a PRS configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; and receive, from the first device, a result of a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for positioning.

In a third aspect, there is provided a communication method performed by a first device. The method comprises: receiving, from a second device, a PRS configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; performing, at least based on the PRS configuration, a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device; and transmitting, to the second device, a result of the measurement for positioning.

In a fourth aspect, there is provided a communication method performed by a second device. The method comprises: transmitting, to a first device, a PRS configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; and receiving, from the first device, a result of a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for positioning.

In a fifth aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon, the instructions, when executed on at least one processor, causing the at least one processor to carry out the method according to the third or fourth aspect.

Other features of the present disclosure will become easily comprehensible through the following description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Through the more detailed description of some example embodiments of the present disclosure in the accompanying drawings, the above and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example communication environment in which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented;

FIG. 2 illustrates an example pattern of frequency hops;

FIG. 3 illustrates a signaling flow of measurement of PRS on frequency hops in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4A illustrates an example diagram of wide band PRS at transmitting (TX) side in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4B illustrates an example diagram of narrow band PRS at receiving (RX) side in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4C illustrates another example diagram of narrow band PRS at RX side in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4D illustrates an example diagram of narrow band PRS at RX side with invalid received PRS in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a first device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a second device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 7 illustrates a simplified block diagram of an apparatus that is suitable for implementing example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals represent the same or similar element.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Principle of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It is to be understood that these embodiments are described only for the purpose of illustration and help those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure, without suggesting any limitation as to the scope of the disclosure. Embodiments described herein can be implemented in various manners other than the ones described below.

In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skills in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

As used herein, the term ‘terminal device’ refers to any device having wireless or wired communication capabilities. Examples of the terminal device include, but not limited to, user equipment (UE) , personal computers, desktops, mobile phones, cellular phones, smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs) , portable computers, tablets, wearable devices, internet of things (IoT) devices, Ultra-reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC) devices, Internet of Everything (IoE) devices, machine type communication (MTC) devices, devices on vehicle for V2X communication where X means pedestrian, vehicle, or infrastructure/network, devices for Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) , Space borne vehicles or Air borne vehicles in Non-terrestrial networks (NTN) including Satellites and High Altitude Platforms (HAPs) encompassing Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) , eXtended Reality (XR) devices including different types of realities such as Augmented Reality (AR) , Mixed Reality (MR) and Virtual Reality (VR) , the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) commonly known as a drone which is an aircraft without any human pilot, devices on high speed train (HST) , or image capture devices such as digital cameras, sensors, gaming devices, music storage and playback appliances, or Internet appliances enabling wireless or wired Internet access and browsing and the like. The ‘terminal device’ can further have ‘multicast/broadcast’ feature, to support public safety and mission critical, V2X applications, transparent IPv4/IPv6 multicast delivery, IPTV, smart TV, radio services, software delivery over wireless, group communications and IoT applications. It may also incorporate one or multiple Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) as known as Multi-SIM. The term “terminal device” can be used interchangeably with a UE, a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile terminal, a user terminal or a wireless device.

The term “network device” refers to a device which is capable of providing or hosting a cell or coverage where terminal devices can communicate. Examples of a network device include, but not limited to, a Node B (NodeB or NB) , an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB) , a next generation NodeB (gNB) , a transmission reception point (TRP) , a remote radio unit (RRU) , a radio head (RH) , a remote radio head (RRH) , an IAB node, a low power node such as a femto node, a pico node, a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) , and the like.

The terminal device or the network device may have Artificial intelligence (AI) or Machine learning capability. It generally includes a model which has been trained from numerous collected data for a specific function, and can be used to predict some information.

The terminal or the network device may work on several frequency ranges, e.g., FR1 (e.g., 450 MHz to 6000 MHz) , FR2 (e.g., 24.25GHz to 52.6GHz) , frequency band larger than 100 GHz as well as Tera Hertz (THz) . It can further work on licensed/unlicensed/shared spectrum. The terminal device may have more than one connection with the network devices under Multi-Radio Dual Connectivity (MR-DC) application scenario. The terminal device or the network device can work on full duplex, flexible duplex and cross division duplex modes.

The embodiments of the present disclosure may be performed in test equipment, e.g., signal generator, signal analyzer, spectrum analyzer, network analyzer, test terminal device, test network device, channel emulator. In some embodiments, the terminal device may be connected with a first network device and a second network device. One of the first network device and the second network device may be a master node and the other one may be a secondary node. The first network device and the second network device may use different radio access technologies (RATs) . In some embodiments, the first network device may be a first RAT device and the second network device may be a second RAT device. In some embodiments, the first RAT device is eNB and the second RAT device is gNB. Information related with different RATs may be transmitted to the terminal device from at least one of the first network device or the second network device. In some embodiments, first information may be transmitted to the terminal device from the first network device and second information may be transmitted to the terminal device from the second network device directly or via the first network device. In some embodiments, information related with configuration for the terminal device configured by the second network device may be transmitted from the second network device via the first network device. Information related with reconfiguration for the terminal device configured by the second network device may be transmitted to the terminal device from the second network device directly or via the first network device.

As used herein, the singular forms ‘a’ , ‘an’ and ‘the’ are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The term ‘includes’ and its variants are to be read as open terms that mean ‘includes, but is not limited to. ’ The term ‘based on’ is to be read as ‘at least in part based on. ’ The term ‘one embodiment’ and ‘an embodiment’ are to be read as ‘at least one embodiment. ’ The term ‘another embodiment’ is to be read as ‘at least one other embodiment. ’ The terms ‘first, ’ ‘second, ’ and the like may refer to different or same objects. Other definitions, explicit and implicit, may be included below.

In some examples, values, procedures, or apparatus are referred to as ‘best, ’ ‘lowest, ’ ‘highest, ’ ‘minimum, ’ ‘maximum, ’ or the like. It will be appreciated that such descriptions are intended to indicate that a selection among many used functional alternatives can be made, and such selections need not be better, smaller, higher, or otherwise preferable to other selections.

As used herein, the term “resource, ” “transmission resource, ” “uplink resource, ” or “downlink resource” may refer to any resource for performing a communication, such as a resource in time domain, a resource in frequency domain, a resource in space domain, a resource in code domain, or any other resource enabling a communication, and the like. In the following, unless explicitly stated, a resource in both frequency domain and time domain will be used as an example of a transmission resource for describing some example embodiments of the present disclosure. It is noted that example embodiments of the present disclosure are equally applicable to other resources in other domains.

As used herein, the term “signal” includes command/data and carrier. As used herein, the term “carrier” is used for energy harvesting and/or backscattering transmission. The carrier may not carry information.

As used herein, the term “measurement” may refer to a measurement for a location of a device. In embodiments of the present disclosure, the term “measurement” may also be referred to as “location measurement” or “positioning measurement” .

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of an example communication environment 100 in which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented. In the communication environment 100, a plurality of communication devices, including a first device 110 and a second device 120, can communicate with each other.

In the example of FIG. 1, the first device 110 may be a terminal device and the second device 120 may be a positioning server of any suitable type that is capable providing a positioning service for the first device 110, or a network device such as a base station between the positioning server and the terminal device for positioning.

In some embodiments, the first device 110 may be a reduced capability (RedCap) device such as a RedCap UE. As used herein, the term “RedCap device” may refer to a device which has reduced capability relative to a non-RedCap device. The reduced capability may relate to a communication bandwidth, reception branches, or the like. In some embodiments, the second device 120 may be a positioning device (also referred to as a positioning server hereafter) which provides positioning service for the first device 110.

In an example location information transfer procedure, the second device 120 may first transmit a request message (for example, a RequestLocationInformation message) to the first device 110. In response to the message, the first device 110 may transmit a response message (for example, ProvideLocationInformation message) to the second device 120 to transfer location information. The transferred location information may match or be a subset of the location information requested in the RequestLocationInformation message, unless the second device 120 explicitly allows additional location information. In some example embodiments, the ProvideLocationInformation message may set the endTransaction information element (IE) to TRUE.

In some circumstances, the first device 110 may transmit an additional ProvideLocationInformation message to the second device 120 to transfer location information. The transferred location information may match or be a subset of the location information requested in the RequestLocationInformation message, unless the second device 120 explicitly allows additional location information. The last ProvideLocationInformation message may include the endTransaction IE set to TRUE.

It is to be understood that the number of devices and their connections shown in FIG. 1 are only for the purpose of illustration without suggesting any limitation. The communication environment 100 may include any suitable number of devices configured to implementing example embodiments of the present disclosure. It is noted that although illustrated as a network device, the second device 120 may be another device than a network device. Although illustrated as a terminal device, the first device 110 may be a device other than a terminal device.

In the following, for the purpose of illustration, some example embodiments are described with the first device 110 operating as a terminal device and the second device 120 serving as a positioning server and operating as a network device. However, in some example embodiments, operations described in connection with a terminal device may be implemented at a network device or other device, and operations described in connection with a network device may be implemented at a terminal device or other device.

In some example embodiments, if the first device 110 is a terminal device and the second device 120 is a network device, a link from the second device 120 to the first device 110 is referred to as a downlink (DL) , while a link from the first device 110 to the second device 120 is referred to as an uplink (UL) . In DL, the second device 120 is a transmitting (TX) device (or a transmitter) and the first device 110 is a receiving (RX) device (or a receiver) . In UL, the first device 110 is a TX device (or a transmitter) and the second device 120 is a RX device (or a receiver) .

The communications in the communication environment 100 may conform to any suitable standards including, but not limited to, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) , Long Term Evolution (LTE) , LTE-Evolution, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) , New Radio (NR) , Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) , Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) , GSM EDGE Radio Access Network (GERAN) , Machine Type Communication (MTC) and the like. The embodiments of the present disclosure may be performed according to any generation communication protocols either currently known or to be developed in the future. Examples of the communication protocols include, but not limited to, the first generation (1G) , the second generation (2G) , 2.5G, 2.75G, the third generation (3G) , the fourth generation (4G) , 4.5G, the fifth generation (5G) communication protocols, 5.5G, 5G-Advanced networks, or the sixth generation (6G) networks.

As discussed above, a device in the communication environment may have reduced capability such as reduced communication bandwidth or reduced reception branches.

In a communication network, some devices may have comparatively reduced capability. For those devices with reduced capability, positioning of those devices may be applied with PRS frequency hopping and/or sounding reference signal (SRS) frequency hopping. More details regarding positioning measurements reporting procedure per frequency hop or per frequency hop groups need to be discussed.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solution for location measurement reporting. In the solution, the second device transmits a PRS configuration to the first device. For example, the PRS configuration may comprise a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS. For a further example, the PRS configuration may comprise information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement. For a still further example, the PRS configuration may comprise the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices. The first device performs a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device at least based on the PRS configuration. The first device then transmits a result of the measurement for positioning to the second device.

By determining a plurality of frequency hops and performing the PRS measurement on the frequency hops in Rx for the first device, transmitted PRS can be shared on wideband between difference devices. Thus, the complexity of PRS configuration for devices such as devices with reduced capability can be reduced. With the hopping scheme, the number of hops for the positioning result determination can be more flexible, and thus leads to a positioning result with higher accuracy.

Principles and implementations of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the figures.

As discussed above, according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure, a device, for example, a RedCap device, determines a plurality of frequency hops and performs the PRS measurement on the plurality of frequency hops, so as to improve the accuracy of the positioning result. FIG. 2 illustrates an example pattern 200 of multiple frequency hops. In FIG. 2 and several following figures, the horizontal axis may be referred to as a time axis, and the vertical axis may be referred to as a frequency axis.

As illustrated, there are a plurality of frequency hops 202, 204, 206, ……, and 208 in a time-frequency domain. As used herein, the term “frequency hop” may also be referred to as a “hop” . These frequency hops are within a total time range 230, and an effective wide bandwidth 220 for RS is achieved via combining all the hops. For each hop, the bandwidth is within a maximum bandwidth of a device such as the first device 110.

Each frequency hop may be located at different time locations and/or different frequency location. For example, a frequency starting point of the frequency hop 208 may be shown as the starting point 224.

A frequency hop may have a plurality of symbols within a time duration such as the time duration 234. A frequency hop may be a sub-band or in a sub-band such as the sub-band 222. In some example embodiments, each frequency hop may have a same length of time duration and a same width of sub-band. In addition, the time gaps between two adjacent frequency hops such as the time gap 232 may be the same.

In embodiments wherein the sub-band width and time gap is same for the plurality of frequency hops, with the frequency starting point of each frequency hop, the plurality of frequency hops may be determined.

In some example embodiments, two adjacent frequency hops of the plurality of frequency hops may have an overlap such as an overlap 240. By introducing the overlap, a phase error between two adjacent frequency hops can be compensated.

Alternatively, in some example embodiments, the plurality of frequency hops may have one or more different parameters, such as, sub-band width, time duration of sub-band, time gap between two adjacent sub-bands, and overlap size between two adjacent sub-bands. In such embodiments, the plurality of frequency hops may be determined based on the starting point in both frequency domain and time domain for each frequency hop, and the length of each frequency hop infrequency domain and time domain.

It is to be understood that the number of frequency hops shown in FIG. 2 are only for the purpose of illustration without suggesting any limitation. There may be any suitable numbers of frequency hops in the time-frequency domain. Scope of the present disclosure is not limited in the regard.

By using the frequency hops, the time gaps between adjacent frequency hops can be determined for the reduced capability of the first device 110. For example, such time gap switching can be a kind of capability of a RedCap device for radio frequency (RF) tuning or retuning.

Example patterns of frequency hops have been described with respect to FIG. 2. With these frequency hops, the first device 110 may perform the PRS measurement.

FIG. 3 illustrates a signaling flow 300 of measurement of PRS on frequency hops in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purposes of discussion, the signaling flow 300 will be discussed with reference to FIG. 1.

As shown, the second device 120 transmits (320) a PRS configuration for frequency hopping to the first device 110. The first device 110 receives (325) the PRS configuration for frequency hopping. By way of example, the PRS configuration is transmitted (320) via higher layer such as radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

In some example embodiments, the PRS configuration comprises a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS. In such cases, the first device 110 may be informed of the repetition factor or the resource repetition number of PRS based on the PRS configuration.

In one example, the repetition factor may be equal to the number of the plurality of frequency hops. A dedicated repetition factor for PRS configuration for the first device 110 such as a RedCap device may be applied. Table 1 illustrates an example PRS configuration including the repetition factor.

It is to be understood that the information element (IE) “NR-DL-PRS-ResourceSet-r16” shown in Table 1 is just an example, rather than suggest any limitations. Although this is an IE related to Release 16 (r16) , it is to be understood that it may be an IE related to another release (for example, Release 18 (r18) , Release 19 (r19) , or the like) as well. Furthermore, the name of such IE may be different from “NR-DL-PRS-ResourceSet-r16” . The examples of IE, field (s) or value (s) shown with respect to Table 1 should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as examples of embodiments of the present disclosure.

Table 1

In Table 1, several candidate repetition factors such as n2, n3, n4, n5, n6, n7, n8, n9, n10 or the like are configured for the PRS measurement. In this way, DL PRS can be configured with the repetition factor. In some embodiment, the first service 110 will receive PRS on all the repetitions.

Alternatively, in another example, the PRS configuration comprises information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement. For example, the information may indicate one repetition value based on a legacy repetition value set (also referred to as a set of repetition values) .

In such embodiments, the repetition factor may be equal to a repetition value in a repetition value set which is the minimum value larger than the number of the plurality of frequency hops. For example, the repetition factor may be equal to the value in the set larger than and nearest to the number of frequency hops for a RedCap device.

In some example embodiments, the repetition value set (also referred to as a set of repetition value) may be preconfigured or predefined for a further device of a different type from the first device 110. For instance, the further device may be a wide-band device or a non-RedCap device, such as an enhanced mobile broadcast (eMBB) device.

In some example embodiments, the configuration (short for PRS configuration) may further comprise a bitmap. For example, the information indicating at least one repetition may comprise a bitmap. Each bit of the bitmap indicates whether a corresponding repetition is to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement determination. The size of the bitmap is variable or fixed. The first device 110 may determine the plurality of frequency hops based on the bitmap for performing the measurement based on the PRS.

For example, in the bitmap, the number of bits having a value of “1” may be equal to the number of hops for the first device 110, such as a RedCap device. The first N bits being set to “1” may be referred to as a default configuration. In such case, according to the default configuration, the first N repetitions may be used for receiving frequency hops of the first device 110.

Table 2 illustrates an example PRS configuration including a repetition value based on the legacy repetition value set and an additional bitmap. In the example of Table 2, the size of the bitmap is variable. For example, the size of the bitmap is determined by the configured repetition value, which may be 2, 4, 6, 8, 16 or 32. It is to be understood that these examples of the size are discussed for illustration rather than limitation. Other suitable size can be appliable for embodiments according to the present disclosure.

It is to be understood that the information element (IE) “NR-DL-PRS-ResourceSet-r16” shown in Table 2 is just an example, rather than suggesting any limitations. Although this is an IE related to Release 16 (r16) , it is to be understood that it may be an IE related to another release (for example, Release 18 (r18) , Release 19 (r19) , or the like) as well. Furthermore, the name of such IE may be different from “NR-DL-PRS-ResourceSet-r16” . The examples of IE, field (s) or value (s) shown with respect to Table 2 should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as examples of embodiments of the present disclosure.

Table 2

By way of example, if the number of frequency hops is 7, the first device 110 may determine that the repetition factor is equal to 8 shown in Table 2 which is larger than and nearest to 7. It is to be understood that the values or numbers shown in any table in the present disclosure is only for the purpose of illustration, without suggesting any limitation.

Table 3 illustrates another example PRS configuration including a repetition value based on the legacy repetition value set and an additional bitmap. In the example of Table 3, the size of the bitmap is fixed. In some embodiment, the size is fixed as the maximum repetition value in the legacy set. For example, the fixed size may be 32, as in the bottom line of Table 3. It is to be understood that this example of the fixed size is just discussed for illustration rather than limitation. Other suitable value can be appliable for embodiments according to the present disclosure.

It is to be understood that the information element (IE) “NR-DL-PRS-ResourceSet-r16” shown in Table 3 is just an example, rather than suggest any limitations. Although this is an IE related to Release 16 (r16) , it is to be understood that it may be an IE related to another release (for example, Release 18 (r18) , Release 19 (r19) , or the like) as well. Furthermore, the name of such IE may be different from “NR-DL-PRS-ResourceSet-r16” . The examples of IE, field (s) or value (s) shown with respect to Table 3 should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as examples of embodiments of the present disclosure.

Table 3

In some example embodiments, the PRS configuration may comprise the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first device 110 and the second device 120. That is, the PRS configuration and a signaling of indicating the number of frequency hops and/or the effective bandwidth may be transmitted in combination.

Alternatively, or in addition, in some example embodiments, the PRS configuration and the signaling of indicating the number of frequency hops and/or the effective bandwidth may be transmitted separately.

In embodiments where the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or the effective bandwidth is included or indicated, the first device 110 may determine which repetitions to be used to combine a wideband received PRS. For example, such determination may depend on the implementation of the first device 110.

Several examples of the PRS configuration have been described. The first device 110 performs (340) a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device 110 at least based on the PRS configuration. The plurality of frequency hops for the first device 110 may be determined by the first device 110 based on the PRS configuration. That is, measurement granularity may be configured by the second device 120. Measurement granularity means the number of hops used for a measurement determination. In some embodiment, only one measurement is determined based on the all the hops. In some other embodiment, each hop is corresponding to one measurement. In some other embodiment, multiple hops are corresponding to one measurement.

In embodiments wherein the PRS configuration comprising the repetition factor or the information indicating at least one repetition factor, the first device 110 may determine the repetition factor. The first device 110 may determine the plurality of frequency hops based on the repletion factor. In embodiments wherein the PRS configuration comprising the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or the effective bandwidth between the first device 110 and the second device 120, the first device 110 may determine a plurality of combinations of hops based on the PRS configuration.

That is, with the PRS configuration, the first device 110 may determine the plurality of frequency hops. FIG. 4A illustrates an example diagram 400 of wide band PRS with multiple repetitions at TX side in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. As illustrated, a plurality of wideband transmission resources 410, 420, 430, 440 and 450 are related to different time slots or symbols. The first device 110 may determine a plurality of frequency hops 415, 425, 435, 445 and 455 based on the PRS configuration.

FIG. 4B illustrates an example diagram 460 of narrow band PRS at the first device 110 in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. The first device 110 may use the plurality of frequency hops 415, 425, 435, 445 and 455 (also referred to as Rx frequency hops) on the first 5 repetitions for receiving PRS. That is, the first device 110 can use an effective bandwidth 470 as shown. In this way, with the DL PRS configuration, the wideband PRS can be shared between the first device 110 and a wideband device or non-RedCap device such as an eMBB device.

Still referring to FIG. 3, as discussed above, the first device 110 may determine the plurality of frequency hops for the first device 110 based on the PRS configuration. For example, the first device 110 performs (340) the measurement of the PRS on the plurality of frequency hops determined by the first device 110.

Alternatively, or in addition, in embodiments wherein the repetition value may be determined based on a legacy repetition value set and an additional bitmap, the first device 110 may perform measurements by using a plurality of hops determined by the indicated bitmap and the repetition value. FIG. 4C illustrates another example diagram 480 of narrow band PRS at the first device 110. In the example of FIG. 4C, a plurality of candidate frequency hops such as frequency hops 481, 482, 483, 484, 485, 486, 487 and 488 are configured based on the legacy repetition value set. The additional bitmap may have eight bits corresponding to the eight candidate frequency hops 481, 482, 483, 484, 485, 486, 487 and 488.

In an example, values of bits of the bitmap are {1, 0, 1, 1, 0, 1, 1, 0} , and this means the frequency hops 481, 483, 484, 486 and 487 are to be used by the first device 110 for the measurement determination because each of the first, third, fourth, sixth and seventh bits has a value of “1” , while the frequency hops 482, 485 and 488 will not be used by the first device 110 for the measurement because the second, fifth and eighth bits each have a value of “0” . As used herein, a frequency hop associated with a bit with value “1” may be referred to as an “enabled hop” , and a frequency hop associated with a bit with value “0” may be referred to as a “disable hop” . It is to be understood that the value of a bit corresponding to an enabled hop or a disabled hop may be any predefined value other than “0” or “1” .

In the example of FIG. 4C, the first device 110 may use the plurality of frequency hops 481, 483, 484, 486 and 487 (also referred to as Rx frequency hops) for receiving PRS. In this way, with the DL PRS configuration including the bitmap, a wideband PRS can be shared between the first device 110 and a wideband device or non-RedCap device such as an eMBB device.

Alternatively, or in addition, in some example embodiments, the first device 110 may perform a plurality of measurements by using the plurality of combinations of hops. The plurality of combinations of hops may be determined based on at least one of the number of the plurality of frequency hops or the effective bandwidth between the first device 110 and the second device 120. The first device 110 may select a target measurement from the plurality of measurements based on corresponding performances. That is, several combinations may be used for measurements determination, where the combinations are chosen according to the indicated number of hops and/or the effective bandwidth, and the first device 110 may choose a measurement with best performance.

In one example, the plurality of combinations of frequency hops are determined based on a channel condition between the first device 110 and the second device 120. In other words, the channel condition may be used to choose hops for measurements determination.

In some situations, received PRS on several sub-band may be invalid. That is, the received effective wideband PRS may be dis-continued. FIG. 4D illustrates an example diagram 490 of narrow band received PRS with invalid received PRS in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. In FIG. 4D, there are a plurality of frequency hops 415, 425, 435, 445 and 455. As depicted, in sub-band 492 and sub-band 494 of the effective bandwidth 470 of the plurality of frequency hops415, 425, 435, 445 and 455, the received PRS is invalid.

Still refers to FIG. 3, in some example embodiments, before receiving the PRS configuration (325) , the first device 110 may transmit (310) , to the second device 120, a measurement determination capability associated with frequency hops. For example, the first device 120 may transmit (310) the measurement determination capability to the second device 120. The measurement determination capability may be transmitted (310) via higher layer signaling such as RRC signaling.

In some example embodiments, the measurement determination capability may comprise a first hop combination capability indicating whether the first device 110 is capable of combining PRSs on the plurality of frequency hops for an effective wideband received PRS. By way of example, the first hop combination capability comprises: a capability of a phase error or a time error estimation and compensation between frequency hops.

As an example, the first hop combination capability may comprise a field of CominationOfHops. If a value of the field of CominationOfHops is 1 or “enabled” or other predefined value, the first hop combination capability indicates that the first device 110 is capable to determine the measurement based on the effective bandwidth. Otherwise, if a value of the field of CominationOfHops is 0 or “disabled” or other predefined value, the first hop combination capability indicates that the measurement can only be determined per hop, or be determined on the effective bandwidth if time error and phase error are ignorable.

Alternatively, or in addition, in some example embodiments, the measurement determination capability may comprise a second hop combination capability indicating whether the first device 110 is capable of performing the measurement based on an effective wideband PRS with at least one invalid PRS. That is, the second hop combination capability may indicate whether the first device 110 is capable of performing the measurement on the whole effective bandwidth which carried dis-continued valid received PRS.

Similar to the first hop combination capability, the second hop combination capability may comprise a field of CominationOfHops. If a value of the field of CominationOfHops is 1 or “enabled” or other predefined value, the second hop combination capability indicates that the measurement is capable to be determined based on the effective bandwidth with dis-continued valid received PRS. Otherwise, if a value of the field of CominationOfHops is 0 or “disabled” or other predefined value, the second hop combination capability indicates that the measurement can only be determined per hop group.

In this way, the second device 120 may be informed of the capability of the first device 110 for determining a final measurement based on the received PRS on a whole effective bandwidth, and a more suitable measurement requirement can be made.

Several embodiments regarding performing the measurement based on the PRS configuration have been described. The first device 110 transmits (345) a result of the measurement for positioning to the second device 120. The second device 120 receives (350) the result of measurement. For example, the first device 110 may transmit the result of measurement in an LTE positioning protocol (LPP) message comprising ProvideLocationInformation message body. For example, the first device 110 may transmit the ProvideLocationInformation message in response to a RequestLocationInformation message received from the second device 120.

Table 4 shows an example of ProvideLocationInformation message in the LPP message. In some example embodiments, the ProvideLocationInformation message shown in Table 4 may be amended to include the result of the measurement for positioning in accordance with the present disclosure.

Table 4

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may perform (340) the measurement or transmit (345) the result of measurement further based on a measurement requirement configuration (also referred to as positioning requirement configuration) . For example, the second device 120 may transmit (330) the measurement requirement configuration to the first device 110. The first device 110 may receive (335) the measurement requirement configuration. The measurement may be performed or reported further based on the measurement requirement configuration.

By way of example, the measurement requirement configuration may be comprised in a location information request IE. The location information request IE may comprise but not limited to: DL-time difference of arrival (TDOA) , multi-round trip time (M-RTT) , angle of departure (AoD) , or the like.

In one example, the measurement requirement configuration may comprise an increased maximum number of measurement results per transmit/receive point (TRP) or TRP pair. By way of example, the measurement result may be associated with at least one of a reported reference signal time difference (RSTD) , a multi-round trip time (M-RTT) , a reference signal received power (RSRP) , or a reference signal received path power (RSRPP) .

The measurement requirement configuration may include measurements based on at least part of the frequency hops. In an example, the measurement requirement configuration may comprise a field for requesting the measurement per hop or per hop group. In a further example, the measurement requirement configuration may comprise a field of the number of hops per measurement. In a still further example, the measurement requirement configuration may comprise a field for requesting a hop location associated with the measurement. That is, some new fields may be used to request the reporting per hop or per hop group and the hop location used for measurements determination.

Table 5 shows an example measurement requirement configuration comprises in a report configuration for NR DL TDOA. It is to be understood that the information element (IE) “NR-DL-TDOA-ReportConfig-r16” shown in Table 5 is just an example, rather than suggest any limitations. Although this is an IE related to Release 16 (r16) , it is to be understood that it may be an IE related to another release (for example, Release 18 (r18) , Release 19 (r19) , or the like) as well. Furthermore, the name of such IE may be different from “NR-DL-TDOA-ReportConfig-r16” . The examples of IE, field (s) or value (s) shown with respect to Table 5 should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as examples of embodiments of the present disclosure.

Table 5

As shown in Table 5, a field of maxDL-PRS-RSTD-MeasurementsPerTRPPair- r18 may indicate an increased maximum number of measurement results per TRP pair. A field of DL-PRS-RSTD-SubMeasPerHops may indicate requesting the measurement per hop or per hop group. A field of numofHopsPerSubMeas may indicate the number of hops per measurement based on hop or hop group. The value of the field of numofHopsPerSubMeas may be enumerated such as {2, 3, 4} . A field of hopLocationforSubMeas may indicates requesting a hop location associated with the measurement. For example, if a value of the field of “hopLocationforSubMeas” is a predefined value such as “requested” , this field may indicate that the hop location associated with the measurement is requested.

In some example embodiments, the field of hopLocationforSubMeas may also be referred to as a field of “SubMeasurementOfLocation” . If a value of the field of “SubMeasurementOfLocation” comprises a predefined value such as “required” , this field may indicate that the hop location associated with the measurement is required. ”

It is to be understood that values in Table 5 is just for the purpose of illustration rather than limitation. Other suitable values can be applicable for embodiments according to the present disclosure.

Table 6 shows an example measurement requirement configuration comprises in a report configuration for NR multi RTT. It is to be understood that the information element (IE) “NR-Multi-RTT-ReportConfig-r16” shown in Table 6 is just an example, rather than suggest any limitations. Although this is an IE related to Release 16 (r16) , it is to be understood that it may be an IE related to another release (for example, Release 18 (r18) , Release 19 (r19) , or the like) as well. Furthermore, the name of such IE may be different from “NR-Multi-RTT-ReportConfig-r16” . The examples of IE, field (s) or value (s) shown with respect to Table 6 should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as examples of embodiments of the present disclosure.

Table 6

Similar to Table 5, as shown in Table 6, a field of maxDL-PRS-RxTxTimeDiffMeasPerTRP-r18 may indicate an increased maximum number of measurement results per TRP. A field of DL-PRS-RSTD-SubMeasPerHops may indicate requesting the measurement per hop or per hop group. A field of DL-PRS-RxTxTimeDiffSubMeasPerHops may indicate the number of hops per measurement based on hop or hop group. The value of the field of numofHopsPerSubMeas may be enumerated such as {2, 3, 4} . A field of hopLocationforSubMeas may indicates requesting a hop location associated with the measurement. For example, if a value of the field of “hopLocationforSubMeas” comprises a predefined value such as “requested” , this field may indicate that the hop location associated with the measurement is requested.

It is to be understood that values in Table 6 is just for the purpose of illustration rather than limitation. Other suitable values can be applicable for embodiments according to the present disclosure.

Table 7 shows an example measurement requirement configuration comprises in a report configuration for NR DL AoD. It is to be understood that the information element (IE) “NR-DL-AoD-ReportConfig-r16” shown in Table 7 is just an example, rather than suggest any limitations. Although this is an IE related to Release 16 (r16) , it is to be understood that it may be an IE related to another release (for example, Release 18 (r18) , Release 19 (r19) , or the like) as well. Furthermore, the name of such IE may be different from “NR-DL-AoD-ReportConfig-r16” . The examples of IE, field (s) or value (s) shown with respect to Table 7 should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as examples of embodiments of the present disclosure.

Table 7

Similar to Table 5 and Table 6, as shown in Table 7, a field of maxDL-PRS-RSRP-MeasurementsPerTRP-r18 or a field of maxDL-PRS-RSRPP-MeasurementsPerTRP-r18 may indicate an increased maximum number of measurement results per TRP. A field of DL-PRS-RSRP-SubMeasPerHops may indicate requesting the measurement per hop or per hop group. A field of numofHopsPerSubMeas may indicate the number of hops per measurement based on hop or hop group. The value of the field of numofHopsPerSubMeas may be enumerated such as {2, 3, 4} . A field of hopLocationforSubMeas may indicates requesting a hop location associated with the measurement. For example, if a value of the field of “hopLocationforSubMeas” comprises a predefined value such as “requested” , this field may indicate that the hop location associated with the measurement is requested.

It is to be understood that values in Table 7 is just for the purpose of illustration rather than limitation. Other suitable values can be applicable for embodiments according to the present disclosure.

Several embodiments of the measurement requirement configuration have been described with respect to Table 5 to Table 7. It is to be understood that these measurement requirement configurations may be used separately, or in combination. Other suitable report configuration IE such as configuration for received time of arrival (RTOA) or angle of arrival (AoA) may also be used to indicate the measurement requirement configuration. Scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

With the measurement requirement configuration, the measurement reporting granularity can be configured.

Based on the measurement requirement configuration, the first device 110 may transmit (345) the result of measurement to the second device 120. In some example embodiments, the result of the measurement may be comprised in measurement information for measurements reporting based on frequency hops. For example, an additional measurement such as the result of the measurement may be included in an IE for measurements reporting based on hops. As used herein, the information or IE comprising the result of measurement may be referred to as “measurement reporting information” , “measurement element” or “measurement information” . The measurement information may comprise measurement based on at least part of the frequency hops.

In one example, the measurement information may further comprise a bitmap. That is, the bitmap may be reported together with the additional measurements for hops and hop groups. The length of the bitmap is equal to the repetition factor. Each bit of the bitmap indicates whether a corresponding hop is used for the measurement. For example, value “1” of a bit of the bitmap means that a related repetition or hop is used for the measurement determination.

In a further example, the measurement information may further comprise a hop location used for performing the measurement. In a still further example, the measurement information may further comprise a quality of a measurement per hop or per hop group. The quality reported with each measurement may be associated with the number of hops used for the measurement determination. If more hops are used for the measurement determination, the quality may be higher. Otherwise, if less hops are used for the measurement determination, the quality may be lower.

Table 8 shows an example measurement report comprising the result of measurement for positioning. In the example of Table 8, the result of measurement is comprised in a measurement element for NR DL TDOA. Such measurement report may be determined based on measurement requirement configuration shown in Table 4 or any other suitable measurement requirement configuration.

It is to be understood that the information element (IE) “NR-DL-TDOA-MeasElement-r16” shown in Table 8 is just an example, rather than suggest any limitations. Although this is an IE related to Release 16 (r16) , it is to be understood that it may be an IE related to another release (for example, Release 18 (r18) , Release 19 (r19) , or the like) as well. Furthermore, the name of such IE may be different from “NR-DL-TDOA-MeasElement-r16” . The examples of IE, field (s) or value (s) shown with respect to Table 8 should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as examples of embodiments of the present disclosure.

Table 8

As shown, the measurement element for NR DL TDOA comprises a filed NR- DL-TDOA-AdditionalMeasurementsExtList-r18 indicating measurement list based on part of hops, and a bitmap of NR-DL-TDOA-AdditionalMeasurementsExtList-r18, indicated by NR-DL-TDOA-AdditionalMeasurementsExtListHopLocation. Each bit of the bitmap indicates whether a corresponding hop is used for the measurement. For the measurement list, at least one measurement is included, and for each measurement, a field of nr-TimingQuality-r16 and a field of nr-RSTD-Result-r16 indicating a quality of a measurement per hop or per hop group are included.

It is to be understood that the example measurement report in Table 8 is only for the purpose of illustration, without suggesting any limitation. Any suitable measurement report or measurement element may be applied to include the result of measurement for positioning.

It is also to be understood that values in Table8 is just for the purpose of illustration rather than limitation. Other suitable values can be applicable for embodiments according to the present disclosure.

It would be appreciated that some example specifications and embodiments are provided above, and the detailed description may be varied.

By performing the measurement of PRS on the plurality of frequency hops based on the PRS configuration and transmitting the result of the measurement, PRS can be shared on wideband between difference devices in Tx. Thus, the complexity of PRS configuration for devices such as devices with reduced capability can be reduced. With the hopping scheme, the number of hops for, the positioning result determination can be more flexible, and thus leads to a higher accuracy positioning result.

FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart of a communication method 500 implemented at a first device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 500 will be described from the perspective of the first device 110 in FIG. 1.

At block 510, the first device 110 receives, from a second device, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping. The configuration comprises at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices.

At block 520, the first device 110 performs, at least based on the PRS configuration, a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device.

At block 530, the first device 110 transmits, to the second device 120, a result of the measurement for positioning.

In some example embodiments, the repetition factor is equal to the number of the plurality of frequency hops.

In some example embodiments, the repetition factor is equal to a repetition value in a repetition value set which is the minimum value larger than the number of the plurality of frequency hops.

In some example embodiments, the repetition value set is preconfigured for a further device of a different type from the first device 110.

In some example embodiments, the configuration further comprises a bitmap. Each bit of the bitmap indicates whether a corresponding repetition is to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, and wherein the size of the bitmap is variable or fixed.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may determine the plurality of frequency hops based on the bitmap for performing the measurement of the PRS.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may determine perform a plurality of measurements by using a plurality of combinations of hops based on at least one of the number of the plurality of frequency hops or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices. The first device 110 may select a target measurement from the plurality of measurements based on corresponding performances.

In some example embodiments, the plurality of combinations of frequency hops are determined based on a channel condition between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may transmit, to the second device 120, a measurement determination capability associated with frequency hops.

In some example embodiments, the measurement determination capability comprises at least one of: a first hop combination capability indicating whether the first device is capable of combining PRSs on the plurality of frequency hops for an effective wideband PRS, or a second hop combination capability indicating whether the first device is capable of performing the measurement based on an effective wideband PRS with at least one invalid PRS.

In some example embodiments, the first hop combination capability comprises: a capability of a phase error or a time error estimation and compensation between frequency hops.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may receive, from the second device 120, a measurement requirement configuration, wherein the measurement is performed or reported further based on the measurement requirement configuration.

In some example embodiments, the measurement requirement configuration comprises at least one of: an increased maximum number of measurement results per transmit/receive point (TRP) or TRP pair, a field for requesting the measurement per hop or per hop group, a field of the number of hops per measurement, or a field for requesting a hop location associated with the measurement.

In some example embodiments, the measurement results are associated with at least one of: a reported reference signal time difference (RSTD) , a multi-round trip time (M-RTT) , a reference signal received power (RSRP) , or a reference signal received path power (RSRPP) .

In some example embodiments, the result of the measurement is comprised in measurement information for measurements reporting based on frequency hops.

In some example embodiments, the measurement information further comprises at least one of: a bitmap, the length of the bitmap being equal to the repetition factor, and each bit of the bitmap indicating whether a corresponding hop is used for the measurement, a hop location used for performing the measurement, or a quality of a measurement per hop or per hop group.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of a communication method 600 implemented at a second device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 600 will be described from the perspective of the second device 120 in FIG. 1.

At block 610, the second device 120 transmits, to a first device 110, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping. The configuration comprises at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices.

At block 620, the second device 120 receives, from the first device 110, a result of a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for positioning.

In some example embodiments, the repetition value set is preconfigured for a further device of a different type from the first device.

In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may receive, from the first device 110, a measurement determination capability associated with frequency hops.

In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may transmit to the first device 110, a measurement requirement configuration.

FIG. 7 is a simplified block diagram of a device 700 that is suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 700 can be considered as a further example implementation of any of the devices as shown in FIG. 1. Accordingly, the device 700 can be implemented at or as at least a part of the first device 110 or the second device 120.

As shown, the device 700 includes a processor 710, a memory 720 coupled to the processor 710, a suitable transceiver 740 coupled to the processor 710, and a communication interface coupled to the transceiver 740. The memory 710 stores at least a part of a program 730. The transceiver 740 may be for bidirectional communications or a unidirectional communication based on requirements. The transceiver 740 may include at least one of a transmitter 742 and a receiver 744. The transmitter 742 and the receiver 744 may be functional modules or physical entities. The transceiver 740 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication, though in practice an Access Node mentioned in this application may have several ones. The communication interface may represent any interface that is necessary for communication with other network elements, such as X2/Xn interface for bidirectional communications between eNBs/gNBs, S1/NG interface for communication between a Mobility Management Entity (MME) /Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) /SGW/UPF and the eNB/gNB, Un interface for communication between the eNB/gNB and a relay node (RN) , or Uu interface for communication between the eNB/gNB and a terminal device.

The program 730 is assumed to include program instructions that, when executed by the associated processor 710, enable the device 700 to operate in accordance with the embodiments of the present disclosure, as discussed herein with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6. The embodiments herein may be implemented by computer software executable by the processor 710 of the device 700, or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. The processor 710 may be configured to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure. Furthermore, a combination of the processor 710 and memory 720 may form processing means 750 adapted to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure.

The memory 720 may be of any type suitable to the local technical network and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory, as non-limiting examples. While only one memory 720 is shown in the device 700, there may be several physically distinct memory modules in the device 700. The processor 710 may be of any type suitable to the local technical network, and may include one or more of general-purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs) and processors based on multicore processor architecture, as non-limiting examples. The device 700 may have multiple processors, such as an application specific integrated circuit chip that is slaved in time to a clock which synchronizes the main processor.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, a first device comprising a circuitry is provided. The circuitry is configured to: receive, from a second device, a PRS configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; perform, at least based on the PRS configuration, a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device; and transmit, to the second device, a result of the measurement for positioning. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the circuitry may be configured to perform any method implemented by the first device as discussed above.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, a second device comprising a circuitry is provided. The circuitry is configured to: transmit, to a first device, a PRS configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; and receive, from the first device, a result of a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for positioning. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the circuitry may be configured to perform any method implemented by the second device as discussed above.

The term “circuitry” used herein may refer to hardware circuits and/or combinations of hardware circuits and software. For example, the circuitry may be a combination of analog and/or digital hardware circuits with software/firmware. As a further example, the circuitry may be any portions of hardware processors with software including digital signal processor (s) , software, and memory (ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a terminal device or a network device, to perform various functions. In a still further example, the circuitry may be hardware circuits and or processors, such as a microprocessor or a portion of a microprocessor, that requires software/firmware for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation. As used herein, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (s) or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor (s) and its (or their) accompanying software and/or firmware.

In summary, embodiments of the present disclosure provide the following aspects.

In an aspect, it is proposed a first device comprising: a processor configured to cause the first device to: receive, from a second device, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; perform, at least based on the PRS configuration, a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device; and transmit, to the second device, a result of the measurement for positioning.

In some embodiments, the repetition factor is equal to the number of the plurality of frequency hops.

In some embodiments, the repetition factor is equal to a repetition value in a repetition value set which is the minimum value larger than the number of the plurality of frequency hops.

In some embodiments, the repetition value set is preconfigured for a further device of a different type from the first device.

In some embodiments, the configuration further comprises a bitmap, each bit of the bitmap indicating whether a corresponding repetition is to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, and wherein the size of the bitmap is variable or fixed.

In some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the first device to: determine the plurality of frequency hops based on the bitmap for performing the measurement of the PRS.

In some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the first communication device to: perform a plurality of measurements by using a plurality of combinations of hops based on at least one of: the number of the plurality of frequency hops, or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; and select a target measurement from the plurality of measurements based on corresponding performances.

In some embodiments, the plurality of combinations of frequency hops are determined based on a channel condition between the first device and the second device.

In some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the first device to: transmit, to the second device, a measurement determination capability associated with frequency hops.

In some embodiments, the measurement determination capability comprises at least one of: a first hop combination capability indicating whether the first device is capable of combining PRSs on the plurality of frequency hops for an effective wideband PRS, or a second hop combination capability indicating whether the first device is capable of performing the measurement based on an effective wideband PRS with at least one invalid PRS.

In some embodiments, the first hop combination capability comprises: a capability of a phase error or a time error estimation and compensation between frequency hops.

In some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the first device to: receive, from the second device, a measurement requirement configuration, wherein the measurement is performed or reported further based on the measurement requirement configuration.

In some embodiments, the measurement requirement configuration comprises at least one of: an increased maximum number of measurement results per transmit/receive point (TRP) or TRP pair, a field for requesting the measurement per hop or per hop group, a field of the number of hops per measurement, or a field for requesting a hop location associated with the measurement.

In some embodiments, the measurement results are associated with at least one of:a reported reference signal time difference (RSTD) , a multi-round trip time (M-RTT) , a reference signal received power (RSRP) , or a reference signal received path power (RSRPP) .

In some embodiments, the result of the measurement is comprised in measurement information for measurements reporting based on frequency hops.

In some embodiments, the measurement information further comprises at least one of: a bitmap, the length of the bitmap being equal to the repetition factor, and each bit of the bitmap indicating whether a corresponding hop is used for the measurement, a hop location used for performing the measurement, or a quality of a measurement per hop or per hop group.

In an aspect, it is proposed a second device comprising: a processor configured to cause the second device to: transmit, to a first device, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of: a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS, information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; and receive, from the first device, a result of a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for positioning.

In some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the second device to: receive, from the first device, a measurement determination capability associated with frequency hops.

In some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the second device to: transmit, to the first device, a measurement requirement configuration.

In an aspect, a first device comprises: at least one processor; and at least one memory coupled to the at least one processor and storing instructions thereon, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, causing the device to perform the method implemented by the first device discussed above.

In an aspect, a second device comprises: at least one processor; and at least one memory coupled to the at least one processor and storing instructions thereon, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, causing the device to perform the method implemented by the second device discussed above.

In an aspect, a computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon, the instructions, when executed on at least one processor, causing the at least one processor to perform the method implemented by the first device discussed above.

In an aspect, a computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon, the instructions, when executed on at least one processor, causing the at least one processor to perform the method implemented by the second device discussed above.

In an aspect, a computer program comprising instructions, the instructions, when executed on at least one processor, causing the at least one processor to perform the method implemented by the first device discussed above.

In an aspect, a computer program comprising instructions, the instructions, when executed on at least one processor, causing the at least one processor to perform the method implemented by the second device discussed above.

Generally, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor or other computing device. While various aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flowcharts, or using some other pictorial representation, it will be appreciated that the blocks, apparatus, systems, techniques or methods described herein may be implemented in, as non-limiting examples, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as those included in program modules, being executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor, to carry out the process or method as described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, or the like that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The functionality of the program modules may be combined or split between program modules as desired in various embodiments. Machine-executable instructions for program modules may be executed within a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

Program code for carrying out methods of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that the program codes, when executed by the processor or controller, cause the functions/operations specified in the flowcharts and/or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may execute entirely on a machine, partly on the machine, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the machine and partly on a remote machine or entirely on the remote machine or server.

The above program code may be embodied on a machine-readable medium, which may be any tangible medium that may contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The machine-readable medium may be a machine readable signal medium or a machine readable storage medium. A machine-readable medium may include but not limited to an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of the machine readable storage medium would include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM) , a read-only memory (ROM) , an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory) , an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) , an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

Further, while operations are depicted in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Likewise, while several specific implementation details are contained in the above discussions, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

A first device comprising:

a processor configured to cause the first device to:

receive, from a second device, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of:

a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS,

information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement,

the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices;

perform, at least based on the PRS configuration, a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device; and

transmit, to the second device, a result of the measurement for positioning.
The device of claim 1, wherein the repetition factor is equal to a repetition value in a repetition value set which is the minimum value larger than the number of the plurality of frequency hops.
The device of claim 2, wherein the information comprises a bitmap, each bit of the bitmap indicating whether a corresponding repetition is to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, and wherein the size of the bitmap is variable or fixed.
The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the first communication device to:

perform a plurality of measurements by using a plurality of combinations of hops based on at least one of the number of the plurality of frequency hops or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; and

select a target measurement from the plurality of measurements based on corresponding performances.
The device of claim 4, wherein the plurality of combinations of frequency hops are determined based on a channel condition between the first device and the second device.
The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the first device to:

transmit, to the second device, a measurement determination capability associated with frequency hops.
The device of claim 6, wherein the measurement determination capability comprises at least one of:

a first hop combination capability indicating whether the first device is capable of combining PRSs on the plurality of frequency hops for an effective wideband PRS, or

a second hop combination capability indicating whether the first device is capable of performing the measurement based on an effective wideband PRS with at least one invalid PRS.
The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the first device to:

receive, from the second device, a measurement requirement configuration, wherein the measurement is performed or reported further based on the measurement requirement configuration, and

wherein the measurement requirement configuration comprises at least one of:

an increased maximum number of measurement results per transmit/receive point (TRP) or TRP pair,

a field for requesting the measurement per hop or per hop group,

a field of the number of hops per measurement, or

a field for requesting a hop location associated with the measurement.
The device of claim 1, wherein the result of the measurement is comprised in measurement information for measurements reporting based on frequency hops, and the measurement information further comprises at least one of:

a bitmap, the length of the bitmap being equal to the repetition factor, and each bit of the bitmap indicating whether a corresponding hop is used for the measurement,

a hop location used for performing the measurement, or

a quality of a measurement per hop or per hop group.
A second device comprising:

a processor configured to cause the second device to:

transmit, to a first device, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of:

a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS,

information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement,

the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; and

receive, from the first device, a result of a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for positioning.
The device of claim 10, wherein the repetition factor is equal to a repetition value in a repetition value set which is the minimum value larger than the number of the plurality of frequency hops.
The device of claim 11, wherein the information comprises a bitmap, each bit of the bitmap indicating whether a corresponding repetition is to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement, and wherein the size of the bitmap is variable or fixed.
The device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the second device to:

receive, from the first device, a measurement determination capability associated with frequency hops.
The device of claim 13, wherein the measurement determination capability comprises at least one of:

a first hop combination capability indicating whether the first device is capable of combining PRSs on the plurality of frequency hops for an effective wideband PRS, or

a second hop combination capability indicating whether the first device is capable of performing the measurement based on an effective wideband PRS with at least one invalid PRS.
The device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the second device to:

transmit, to the first device, a measurement requirement configuration, and

wherein the measurement requirement configuration comprises at least one of:

an increased maximum number of measurement results per transmit/receive point (TRP) or TRP pair,

a field for requesting the measurement per hop or per hop group,

a field of the number of hops per measurement, or

a field for requesting a hop location associated with the measurement.
The device of claim 10, wherein the result of the measurement is comprised in measurement information for measurements reporting based on frequency hops, and the measurement information further comprises at least one of:

a bitmap, the length of the bitmap being equal to the repetition factor, and each bit of the bitmap indicating whether a corresponding hop is used for the measurement,

a hop location used for performing the measurement, or

a quality of a measurement per hop or per hop group.
A communication method implemented at a first device, comprising:

receiving, from a second device, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of:

a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS,

information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement,

the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices;

performing, at least based on the PRS configuration, a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for the first device; and

transmitting, to the second device, a result of the measurement for positioning.
A communication method implemented at a second device, comprising:

transmitting, to a first device, a positioning reference signal (PRS) configuration for frequency hopping, the configuration comprising at least one of:

a repetition factor indicating a resource repetition number of a PRS,

information indicating at least one repetition to be used as a frequency hop for the measurement,

the number of the plurality of frequency hops and/or an effective bandwidth between the first and second devices; and

receiving, from the first device, a result of a measurement of the PRS on a plurality of frequency hops for positioning.
A computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon, the instructions, when executed on at least one processor, causing the at least one processor to perform the method according to any of claims 17-18.