WO2023000267A1

WO2023000267A1 - Systems and methods for measurements on positioning reference signals

Info

Publication number: WO2023000267A1
Application number: PCT/CN2021/107913
Authority: WO
Inventors: Guozeng ZHENG; Chuangxin JIANG; Zhaohua Lu; Yu Pan
Original assignee: Zte Corporation
Priority date: 2021-07-22
Filing date: 2021-07-22
Publication date: 2023-01-26

Abstract

A system, device and method for measuring a DL PRS using a measurement gap configuration is disclosed. In some embodiments, a method includes receiving, by a wireless communication device from a wireless communication node, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) and sending, by the wireless communication device, to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration.

Description

SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MEASUREMENTS ON POSITIONING REFERENCE SIGNALS

TECHNICAL FIELD

The disclosure relates generally to wireless communications and, more particularly, to systems and methods for measurements on positioning reference signals.

BACKGROUND

A location server is a physical or logical entity that can collect measurements and other location information from the device and base station, and can utilize the measurements and estimate characteristics such as its position. The location server can process a request from the device and can provide the device with the requested information.

SUMMARY

The example embodiments disclosed herein are directed to solving the issues relating to one or more of the problems presented in the prior art, as well as providing additional features that will become readily apparent by reference to the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompany drawings. In accordance with various embodiments, example systems, methods, devices and computer program products are disclosed herein. It is understood, however, that these embodiments are presented by way of example and are not limiting, and it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art who read the present disclosure that various modifications to the disclosed embodiments can be made while remaining within the scope of this disclosure.

Embodiments of a system, device and method for measuring a DL PRS using a measurement gap configuration are disclosed. In some embodiments, a method includes receiving, by a wireless communication device from a wireless communication node, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) and sending, by the wireless communication device, to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration.

In some embodiments, the DL PRSs are requested by the wireless communication element (e.g., the LMF) to be transmitted by the wireless communication node during an expected time. In some embodiments, the method further includes requesting, by the wireless communication device to the wireless communication element, the transmission of the DL PRSs during an expected time. In some embodiments, the expected time is indicated as a time window configuration including at least one of a periodicity corresponding to repetition period of a time window, a length of the time window, an offset of the time window, or a repetition number of the time window.

In some embodiments, a configuration of the DL PRSs for the wireless communication device to measure is provided by the wireless communication element to the wireless communication node.

In some embodiments, the method further includes determining, by the wireless communication device, that an active Bandwidth Part (BWP) of the wireless communication device is switched from a first BWP to a second BWP, determining that (i) the DL PRSs are completely contained within the first BWP, and (ii) a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is the same as a subcarrier spacing of the first BWP, and determining that the DL PRSs are not completely contained within the second BWP or a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is not the same as a subcarrier spacing of the second BWP. In some embodiments, the method further includes identifying, by the wireless communication device, that the first measurement gap configuration is activated simultaneously with the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP.

In some embodiments, the method further includes determining, by the wireless communication device, that an active Bandwidth Part (BWP) of the wireless communication device is switched from a first BWP to a second BWP, determining that the DL PRSs are not completely contained within the first BWP, or a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is not the same as a subcarrier spacing of the first BWP, and determining that (i) the DL PRSs are completely contained within the second BWP; and (ii) a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is the same as a subcarrier spacing of the second BWP. In some embodiments, the method further includes identifying, by the wireless communication device, that the first measurement gap configuration is deactivated simultaneously with the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP.

In some embodiments, the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP is caused by a timer associated with the first BWP being expired or a Downlink Control Information (DCI) indicative of the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP. In some embodiments, the DCI further includes a field to indicate the first measurement gap configuration is from more than one measurement gap configurations associated with the second BWP.

In some embodiments, the first measurement gap configuration is associated with a plurality of sharing schemes, each of the sharing schemes indicating a first probability for a measurement gap determined by the first measurement gap configuration used to measure candidates concerning measurements on the DL PRSs when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning measurements that exclude intra-frequency measurements. In some embodiments, the first measurement gap configuration is associated with a plurality of sharing schemes, each of the sharing schemes indicating a first probability for a measurement gap determined by the first measurement gap configuration used to measure candidates concerning measurements on the DL PRSs, a second probability for the measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning intra-frequency measurements, and a third probability for the measurement gap used to measure remaining candidates concerning remaining measurements.

In some embodiments, the first probability is a value of one hundred percentage. In some embodiments, the method further includes receiving, by the wireless communication device, DCI or a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) indicating one of the plurality of sharing schemes applied to the first measurement gap configuration.

In some embodiments, a method includes sending, by a wireless communication node, to a wireless communication device, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) , and forwarding, by the wireless communication node, from the wireless communication device, to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration.

In some embodiments, a method includes configuring, by a wireless communication element, to a wireless communication device, one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) to be measured by the wireless communication device according to a first measurement gap configuration from a wireless communication node, and receiving, by the wireless communication element, from the wireless communication device, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration.

The above and other aspects and their implementations are described in greater detail in the drawings, the descriptions, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various example embodiments of the present solution are described in detail below with reference to the following figures or drawings. The drawings are provided for purposes of illustration only and merely depict example embodiments of the present solution to facilitate the reader's understanding of the present solution. Therefore, the drawings should not be considered limiting of the breadth, scope, or applicability of the present solution. It should be noted that for clarity and ease of illustration, these drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example cellular communication network in which techniques and other aspects disclosed herein may be implemented, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates block diagrams of an example base station and a user equipment device, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates a general procedures for the UE to measure a DL PRS and report a location measurement report in the current NR positioning system, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 4 illustrates one example of measurement gap configuration, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 5 illustrates a DL PRS in accordance with a time window configuration, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of one serving cell of a UE is configured with two BWPs, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 7 illustrates another example of one serving cell of a UE is configured with two BWPs, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 8 illustrates a measurement gap can be shared by DL PRS measurement and other kind of measurements, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 9 illustrates a method of measuring a DL PRS using a measurement gap configuration, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 10 illustrates a method of sending a measurement gap configuration, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 11 illustrates a method of configuring a DL PRS according to a measurement gap configuration, in accordance with some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

Various example embodiments of the present solution are described below with reference to the accompanying figures to enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the present solution. As would be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, after reading the present disclosure, various changes or modifications to the examples described herein can be made without departing from the scope of the present solution. Thus, the present solution is not limited to the example embodiments and applications described and illustrated herein. Additionally, the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the methods disclosed herein are merely example approaches. Based upon design preferences, the specific order or hierarchy of steps of the disclosed methods or processes can be re-arranged while remaining within the scope of the present solution. Thus, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the methods and techniques disclosed herein present various steps or acts in a sample order, and the present solution is not limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented unless expressly stated otherwise.

A. Network Environment and Computing Environment

FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless communication network, and/or system, 100 in which techniques disclosed herein may be implemented, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the following discussion, the wireless communication network 100 may be any wireless network, such as a cellular network or a narrowband Internet of things (NB-IoT) network, and is herein referred to as “network 100. ” Such an example network 100 includes a base station 102 (hereinafter “BS 102” ) and a user equipment device 104 (hereinafter “UE 104” ) that can communicate with each other via a communication link 110 (e.g., a wireless communication channel) , and a cluster of

cells

126, 130, 132, 134, 136, 138 and 140 overlaying a geographical area 101. In Figure 1, the BS 102 and UE 104 are contained within a respective geographic boundary of cell 126. Each of the

other cells

130, 132, 134, 136, 138 and 140 may include at least one base station operating at its allocated bandwidth to provide adequate radio coverage to its intended users.

For example, the BS 102 may operate at an allocated channel transmission bandwidth to provide adequate coverage to the UE 104. The BS 102 and the UE 104 may communicate via a downlink radio frame 118, and an uplink radio frame 124 respectively. Each radio frame 118/124 may be further divided into sub-frames 120/127 which may include data symbols 122/128. In the present disclosure, the BS 102 and UE 104 are described herein as non-limiting examples of “communication nodes, ” generally, which can practice the methods disclosed herein. Such communication nodes may be capable of wireless and/or wired communications, in accordance with various embodiments of the present solution.

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of an example wireless communication system 200 for transmitting and receiving wireless communication signals, e.g., OFDM/OFDMA signals, in accordance with some embodiments of the present solution. The system 200 may include components and elements configured to support known or conventional operating features that need not be described in detail herein. In one illustrative embodiment, system 200 can be used to communicate (e.g., transmit and receive) data symbols in a wireless communication environment such as the wireless communication environment 100 of Figure 1, as described above.

System 200 generally includes a base station 202 (hereinafter “BS 202” ) and a user equipment device 204 (hereinafter “UE 204” ) . The BS 202 includes a BS (base station) transceiver module 210, a BS antenna 212, a BS processor module 214, a BS memory module 216, and a network communication module 218, each module being coupled and interconnected with one another as necessary via a data communication bus 220. The UE 204 includes a UE (user equipment) transceiver module 230, a UE antenna 232, a UE memory module 234, and a UE processor module 236, each module being coupled and interconnected with one another as necessary via a data communication bus 240. The BS 202 communicates with the UE 204 via a communication channel 250, which can be any wireless channel or other medium suitable for transmission of data as described herein.

As would be understood by persons of ordinary skill in the art, system 200 may further include any number of modules other than the modules shown in Figure 2. Those skilled in the art will understand that the various illustrative blocks, modules, circuits, and processing logic described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented in hardware, computer-readable software, firmware, or any practical combination thereof. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability and compatibility of hardware, firmware, and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps are described generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware, firmware, or software can depend upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those familiar with the concepts described herein may implement such functionality in a suitable manner for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the present disclosure.

In accordance with some embodiments, the UE transceiver 230 may be referred to herein as an "uplink" transceiver 230 that includes a radio frequency (RF) transmitter and a RF receiver each comprising circuitry that is coupled to the antenna 232. A duplex switch (not shown) may alternatively couple the uplink transmitter or receiver to the uplink antenna in time duplex fashion. Similarly, in accordance with some embodiments, the BS transceiver 210 may be referred to herein as a "downlink" transceiver 210 that includes a RF transmitter and a RF receiver each comprising circuity that is coupled to the antenna 212. A downlink duplex switch may alternatively couple the downlink transmitter or receiver to the downlink antenna 212 in time duplex fashion. The operations of the two transceiver modules 210 and 230 can be coordinated in time such that the uplink receiver circuitry is coupled to the uplink antenna 232 for reception of transmissions over the wireless transmission link 250 at the same time that the downlink transmitter is coupled to the downlink antenna 212. In some embodiments, there is close time synchronization with a minimal guard time between changes in duplex direction.

The UE transceiver 230 and the base station transceiver 210 are configured to communicate via the wireless data communication link 250, and cooperate with a suitably configured RF antenna arrangement 212/232 that can support a particular wireless communication protocol and modulation scheme. In some illustrative embodiments, the UE transceiver 210 and the base station transceiver 210 are configured to support industry standards such as the Long Term Evolution (LTE) and emerging 5G standards, and the like. It is understood, however, that the present disclosure is not necessarily limited in application to a particular standard and associated protocols. Rather, the UE transceiver 230 and the base station transceiver 210 may be configured to support alternate, or additional, wireless data communication protocols, including future standards or variations thereof.

In accordance with various embodiments, the BS 202 may be an evolved node B (eNB) , a serving eNB, a target eNB, a femto station, or a pico station, for example. In some embodiments, the UE 204 may be embodied in various types of user devices such as a mobile phone, a smart phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA) , tablet, laptop computer, wearable computing device, etc. The

processor modules

214 and 236 may be implemented, or realized, with a general purpose processor, a content addressable memory, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array, any suitable programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof, designed to perform the functions described herein. In this manner, a processor may be realized as a microprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, a state machine, or the like. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a digital signal processor core, or any other such configuration.

Furthermore, the steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in firmware, in a software module executed by

processor modules

214 and 236, respectively, or in any practical combination thereof. The

memory modules

216 and 234 may be realized as RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. In this regard,

memory modules

216 and 234 may be coupled to the processor modules 210 and 230, respectively, such that the processors modules 210 and 230 can read information from, and write information to,

memory modules

216 and 234, respectively. The

memory modules

216 and 234 may also be integrated into their respective processor modules 210 and 230. In some embodiments, the

memory modules

216 and 234 may each include a cache memory for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during execution of instructions to be executed by processor modules 210 and 230, respectively.

Memory modules

216 and 234 may also each include non-volatile memory for storing instructions to be executed by the processor modules 210 and 230, respectively.

The network communication module 218 generally represents the hardware, software, firmware, processing logic, and/or other components of the base station 202 that enable bi-directional communication between base station transceiver 210 and other network components and communication nodes configured to communication with the base station 202. For example, network communication module 218 may be configured to support internet or WiMAX traffic. In a typical deployment, without limitation, network communication module 218 provides an 802.3 Ethernet interface such that base station transceiver 210 can communicate with a conventional Ethernet based computer network. In this manner, the network communication module 218 may include a physical interface for connection to the computer network (e.g., Mobile Switching Center (MSC) ) . The terms “configured for, ” “configured to” and conjugations thereof, as used herein with respect to a specified operation or function, refer to a device, component, circuit, structure, machine, signal, etc., that is physically constructed, programmed, formatted and/or arranged to perform the specified operation or function.

B. Measurements on Positioning Reference Signals

In the current new radio (NR) positioning measurement design, the transmission time of a downlink (DL) positioning reference signal (PRS) may be outside (e.g., outside the time/range of) measurement gaps such that a user equipment (a UE, e.g., the UE 104, the UE 204, a mobile device, a wireless communication device, a terminal, etc. ) may not have the chance to measure the corresponding DL PRS. In some embodiments, the measurement gap is time duration during which the UE suspends its communication with a serving cell to measure an intra-frequency/inter-frequency/inter-radio access technology (inter-RAT) /DL PRS measurement. In order to align the transmission time of DL PRS and measurement gaps, it may be desired to limit the transmission time of the DL PRS in the configuration of the DL PRS.

In the current NR positioning measurement design, the UE can measure DL PRS outside the measurement gaps when the DL PRS is (e.g., completely) contained in/within/included in the active bandwidth part (BWP) and shares a same sub-carrier spacing as the active BWP. However, the active BWP may be switched to a new active BWP. Then, the conditions for DL PRS measurement outside/without measurement gaps may not be met. Therefore, the UE may need to be activated/triggered a measurement gap configuration to perform DL PRS measurement after the BWP switching.

In the current NR positioning measurement design, one measurement gap may be shared by different kind of measurements. For the purpose of reducing processing time of DL PRS measurement, what is desired is to enhance the measurement gap sharing scheme to prioritize the DL PRS measurement.

FIG. 3 illustrates the general procedures for the UE to measure DL PRS and report location measurement report in the current NR positioning system, in accordance with some embodiments. Multiple gNBs (e.g., a next generation NodeB (gNB) , a base station (BS) , the BS 102, the BS 202, a wireless communication node, a cell, a cell tower, a radio access device, a transmit receive point (TRP) , etc. ) such as a serving gNB and neighbor gNBs may provide a configured DL PRS to a location management function (LMF) via an NR positioning protocol A (NRPPa) protocol/interface in a transmit receive point (TRP) INFORMATION RESPONSE message. Before providing the configured DL PRS to the LMF, the TRP (or gNB-distributed unit (DU) ) may provide configured DL PRS to a corresponding gNB (or gNB-centralized unit (CU) ) via F1 application protocol (F1AP) protocol in TRP INFORMATION RESPONSE message.

The LMF may provide the DL PRS configuration forwarded by gNBs to the UE via an LTE positioning protocol (LPP) protocol in a ProvideAssistanceData message. The LMF may configure some positioning frequency layer (s) . In some embodiments, a positioning frequency layer is a collection of DL PRS resource sets across one or more TRPs which have a same sub-carrier spacing (SCS) , cyclic prefix (CP) type, center frequency, reference frequency (e.g., point A) , configured bandwidth (BW) , and comb size.

One or multiple TRPs may be associated with each positioning frequency layer, which can be identified by a TRP identifier/identification (ID) information. One or multiple DL PRS resource sets can be associated with one TRP, which may be identified by a DL PRS resource set ID. One or multiple DL PRS resources may be configured within a DL PRS resource set, which can be identified by a DL PRS resource ID.

In some embodiments, the LMF requires the UE to provide location measurement report based on the DL PRS configuration in the ProvideAssistanceData message to derive requested contents. A request message may be via the LPP protocol in a RequestLocationInformation message. In some embodiments, the UE requires measurement gaps for performing the DL PRS measurements while measurement gaps are either not configured or not sufficient, where request signaling is transmitted from the UE to serving gNB via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

The Serving gNB may provide a measurement configuration to the UE via RRC signaling. The measurement gap configuration may include the measurement gap length (MGL) of the measurement gap, measurement gap repetition period (MGRP) of the measurement gap, and the gap offset of the measurement gap pattern indicated by MGL and MGRP.

FIG. 4 illustrates one example of measurement gap configuration, in accordance with some embodiments. The DL PRS (e.g. DL PRS resource or DL PRS resource set) may only be allowed to be measured inside the time duration defined by MGL (e.g., measurement gaps) . The UE can conduct positioning measurements as requested by the RequestLocationInformation message based on the DL PRS configuration in the ProvideAssistanceData message and the configured measurement gaps. The location measurement report can be forwarded to the LMF via the LPP protocol in a ProvideLocationInformation message.

Disclosed herein are embodiments of a system, apparatus, and method in which the LMF/UE can request a preferred DL PRS to be transmitted in an expected time. Disclosed herein are embodiments of a system, apparatus, and method in which a measurement gap configuration is activated/deactivated along with BWP switching. Disclosed herein are embodiments of a system, apparatus, and method for a measurement gap sharing scheme to prioritize DL PRS measurement inside measurement gaps.

In the current NR positioning measurement design, the transmission time of the DL PRS may be outside the measurement gaps such that UE may not have the chance to measure the corresponding DL PRS. In order to align the transmission time of DL PRS and measurement gaps, it may be desired to limit, in the configuration of the DL PRS, the transmission time of the DL PRS. In some embodiments, the LMF can request the TRP/gNB to transmit a (e.g., preferred) DL PRS in an expected time, which may facilitate the UE to receive the DL PRS in (e.g., during) the measurement gap. The UE may request LMF to configure the preferred DL PRS in the expected time because UE is aware of its measurement gap configuration.

FIG. 5 illustrates a DL PRS in accordance with a time window configuration, in accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, the expected time to transmit the preferred DL PRS is indicated by at least one time window configuration. In some embodiments, the UE/LMF expects (e.g., requests that) the DL PRS (is) to be transmitted inside the time windows as indicated by the time window configuration (e.g., the time duration of FIG. 5) .

Each of the time window configurations is defined by (e.g., includes) at least one of a time window periodicity, a time window length, a time window offset, or a repetition number. In some embodiments, the time window periodicity is the repetition period of a time window (or the time between two consecutive time window repetitions) . The time window periodicity can be expressed by a number of symbols/slots/subframes/frames/milliseconds. In some embodiments, the time window length is the time duration (or range) of the time window. The time window length can be expressed by a number of symbols/slots/subframes/frames/milliseconds.

In some embodiments, the time window offset is defined with respect to a reference time. For example, the reference time can be a SFN and slot (e.g., SFN #0 and slot #0) of a TRP. The time window offset can be expressed by a number of symbols/slots/subframes/frames/milliseconds. In some embodiments, the repetition number is the number of repetitions of the time window (or the number of periodicities) . The value of the repetition number can be one of the {1, 2, 3, ..., N, infinite} ( “N” can refer to N repetitions of the time window being indicated by the time window configuration; “infinite” can indicate that there is no limitation on the repetition number of the time window) .

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of one serving cell of a UE is configured with two BWPs, in accordance with some embodiments. As shown in FIG. 6, only one active BWP can be activated at a time. In some embodiments, the DL PRSs are (e.g., completely) contained in a current active BWP (e.g., BWP#1) of the UE. In some embodiments, the subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs and current active BWP are also the same. Therefore, the UE can perform measurements on the DL PRSs without/outside measurement gaps. However, when the UE switches its current active BWP to a new active BWP (e.g., BWP#2) , the DL PRSs may extend (e.g., be partially) outside or may be completely outside the new active BWP, or the subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs and the new active BWP are not the same. Hence, after BWP switching, in some embodiments, the DL PRSs are measured inside measurement gaps.

According to the current 5G NR system, the BWP switching can be based on a timer configured by RRC signaling or downlink control information (DCI) (e.g., DCI indication) .

In some embodiments, if BWP switching is based on the timer configured by RRC signaling, and if the timer associated with the active BWP expires, the UE performs BWP switching to a new active BWP (e.g., a default downlink BWP or an initial downlink BWP) . In some embodiments, if the BWP switching is based on a DCI indication, the UE performs BWP switching to a new active BWP as indicated by the BWP ID included in the DCI.

According to the current positioning system, the serving TRP/gNB is not aware of what is the DL PRS configuration that one UE is expected to be measured because the LPP message from the LMF to the UE is transparent to the serving TRP/gNB. Hence, in some embodiments, the serving TRP/gNB may not be able to accurately determine whether and when the UE needs the measurement gaps to measure DL PRS. In some embodiments, the serving TRP/gNB of a UE is informed of the DL PRS configuration that is expected to be measured by the UE. In some embodiments, indication of the expected DL PRS configuration is forwarded by the LMF to serving TRP/gNB via the NRPPa protocol. The information may be associated with a ID to uniquely identify the UE. In some other embodiments, the serving TRP/gNB of a UE is informed of the positioning frequency layers that are expected to be measured by the UE. In some embodiments, each of the positioning frequency layers includes the configuration of a corresponding positioning frequency layer, which includes at least one of a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) , a cyclic prefix (CP) type, a center frequency (e.g., point A) , a reference frequency (e.g., a start physical resource block) , a configured bandwidth (BW) , and a comb size. In some embodiments, indication of the expected positioning frequency layer (s) is forwarded by the LMF to serving TRP/gNB via the NRPPa protocol.

Disclosed herein is a new measurement gap configuration that can be applied to DL PRS measurement is activated along (or simultaneously) with BWP switching. In some embodiments, at least one measurement gap configuration is configured in RRC signaling. In some embodiments, the measurement gap configurations are not applied until being activated. In some embodiments, each measurement gap configuration at least includes the MGL, the MGRP, and the gap offset of the measurement gap pattern indicated by MGL and MGRP. In some embodiments, the gap offset is defined with respect to SFN #0 slot #0. In some embodiments, the gap offset is defined with respect to a time instance that the BWP switching is completed. In some embodiments, the gap offset is defined with respect to a time instance that the UE receives the DCI indicating the BWP switching.

In some embodiments, at least one of the configured measurement gap configurations may only be used for the DL PRS measurement. Each measurement gap configuration may be associated with at least one serving cell of the UE. Each measurement gap configuration may be associated with at least one BWP of one serving of the UE. In some embodiments, the measurement gap configuration can only be activated/deactivated when the current active BWP is the BWP associated with the measurement gap configuration.

In some embodiments, the UE can perform measurement on DL PRSs without/outside measurement gaps if (a) the UE is configured by signaling from the network (e.g., a gNB) such that no gap is needed for the measurement, where the signaling is configured per serving cell (e.g., if the DL PRSs are completely contained in the serving cell, the UE can perform a measurement on the DL PRSs without measurement gaps) , or the signaling is configured per indicated frequency band (e.g., if the DL PRS is completely contained in the indicated frequency band, the UE can perform measurement on the DL PRSs without measurement gaps) , or (b) the DL PRSs are completely contained in the active BWP of the UE and the subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs and the active BWP are the same.

In some embodiments, a UE may provide the information to a gNB that informs whether some of the DL PRSs can be measured by the UE without measurement gaps (or outside measurement gaps) . The information can be a) information of positioning frequency layer (s) , where each of positioning frequency layer is indicated by at least one of a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) , acyclic prefix (CP) type, a center frequency (e.g., point A) , a reference frequency (e.g., a start physical resource block) , a configured bandwidth (BW) , or a comb size of the corresponding positioning frequency layer; b) an indication of the BWPs (e.g., a BWP ID list of at least one serving cell of the UE) that are able to measure some of the DL PRSs without measurement gaps (or outside measurement gaps) ; or, c) an indication of serving cells of the UE that are able to measure some of the DL PRSs without measurement gaps (or outside measurement gaps) . In some embodiments, the information may be included in LocationMeasurementInfo message in RRC signaling from the UE to the gNB.

In some embodiments, if the BWP switching is based on the timer configured by RRC signaling and if the timer associated with the current active BWP expires, the measurement gap configuration is activated along (or simultaneously) with BWP switching when only one measurement gap configuration is provided by the network. In some embodiments, if the timer associated with the active BWP expires, one measurement gap configuration (e.g., a first appearance in the measurement gap configuration list) in the measurement gap configurations associated with the new active BWP is activated simultaneously with BWP switching when more than one measurement gap configuration is provided by the network.

In some embodiments, if the BWP switching is based on a DCI indication (e.g., if the UE receives a DCI for BWP switching) , the measurement gap configuration is activated simultaneously with BWP switching when only one measurement gap configuration is provided by the network. In some embodiments, if the UE receives a DCI for BWP switching, one measurement gap configuration in the measurement gap configurations provided by the network is activated simultaneously with the BWP switching. The measurement gap configuration expected to be activated may be indicated by a DCI field, which indicates the selection out of measurement gap configurations provided by the network.

In some embodiments, the measurement gap configuration is activated simultaneously with BWP switching only when there is no on-going (activated) measurement gap configuration that can be applied to a DL PRS measurement. In some embodiments, the UE can ignore the signaling to activate a measurement gap configuration if there is at least one on-going (activated) measurement gap configuration that can be applied to a DL PRS measurement.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of one serving cell of a UE is configured with two BWPs, in accordance with some embodiments. As shown in FIG. 7, in some embodiments, only one active BWP can be activated at a time. In some embodiments, the DL PRSs extend outside or be completely outside the current active BWP (e.g., BWP#1) , or the subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs and the current active BWP are not the same. Therefore, DL PRSs may be required to be measured inside measurement gaps. However, in some embodiments, when the UE switches its current active BWP to a new active BWP (e.g., BWP#2) . In some embodiments, the DL PRSs are completely contained in the new active BWP (e.g., BWP#2) of the UE. In some embodiments, the subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs and BWP#1 are the same. Hence, the UE can perform measurements on DL PRSs without measurement gaps or outside measurement gaps in the new active BWP.

The network can provide indication to deactivate a measurement gap configuration along (or simultaneously) with BWP switching when DL PRS can be measured without/outside measurement gaps after BWP switching. In some embodiments, if the BWP switching is based on the timer configured by RRC signaling and if the timer associated with the current active BWP expires, the measurement gap configuration is deactivated simultaneously with the BWP switching. In some embodiments, if the BWP switching is based on a DCI indication and if the UE receives a DCI for BWP switching, the measurement gap configuration is deactivated simultaneously with the BWP switching. In some embodiments, the deactivation signaling is indicated by one field of the DCI.

FIG. 8 illustrates a measurement gap can be shared by DL PRS measurement and other kind of measurements, in accordance with some embodiments. In the current NR system, a measurement gap can be shared by DL PRS measurement and other kind of measurements. Thus, the same measurement gap configuration may perform different kind of measurements in different measurement gaps (e.g., periodicities) . For example, in FIG. 8, the DL PRS measurement and other measurements (e.g., “Other measurement” shown in FIG. 8) are candidates to be measured in the same measurement gap. In some embodiments, the first measurement gap is used for the DL PRS measurement then the second measurement gap can be used for other kind of measurements.

The network can provide a measurement sharing scheme to the UE based on a current design. The measurement sharing scheme can indicate a chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning a specific kind of measurement. The measurement sharing scheme can be configured by the gNB from one of the schemes shown in Table 1 below:

Table 1

In some embodiments, in scheme 1 (equally split) , the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates is equally split among the candidates that are expected to be measured in the measurement gap. In some embodiments, in scheme 2 (25%) , the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning intra-frequency measurements is 25%and the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning remaining measurements (e.g., all remaining measurements excluding intra-frequency measurements such as inter-frequency measurements, inter-RAT measurements, DL PRS measurements, etc. ) is 75%. In some embodiments, in scheme 3 (50%) , the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements is 50%and the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements is 50%. In some embodiments, in scheme 4 (75%) , the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements is 75%and the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements is 25%.

For the purpose of reducing processing latency of the DL PRS measurement inside the measurement gaps, the measurement gap sharing schemes can be enhanced to prioritize DL PRS measurement inside measurement gaps.

Disclosed herein are embodiments of a method in which a chance/probability of a measurement gap used for DL PRS measurement is defined to prioritize the DL PRS measurement.

In some embodiments, a network (e.g., a gNB) can first configure one of the measurement gap sharing schemes applied to a measurement gap configuration as shown in Table 1. Then, in some embodiments, the network can further indicate the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements. For example, the gNB can configure one of measurement gap sharing schemes in intra-frequency measurements applied to the measurement gap configuration as shown in Table 2 below:

Table 2

In some embodiments, in scheme 1, the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement is 25%when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements. In some embodiments, in scheme 2, the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement is 50%when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements. In some embodiments, in scheme 3, the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement is 75%when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements. In some embodiments, in scheme 4, the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement is 100%when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements.

In some embodiments, the network (e.g., a gNB) can first configure one of the measurement gap sharing schemes applied to a measurement gap configuration as shown in Table 1. In addition, the network can further indicate the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements (e.g., remaining measurements excluding intra-frequency measurements, e.g., inter-frequency measurements, inter-RAT measurements, DL PRS measurements, etc. ) . For example, the gNB can configure one of measurement gap sharing schemes in the remaining measurements applied to the measurement gap configuration as shown in Table 3 below:

Table 3

In some embodiments, the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement is 25%when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements. In some embodiments, the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement is 50%when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements. In some embodiments, the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement is 75%when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements. In some embodiments, the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement is 25%when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements.

In some embodiments, the network (e.g., a gNB) can provide/configure/indicate a measurement sharing scheme that indicates the chances/probabilities of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement, candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements and candidates concerning remaining measurements (e.g., remaining measurements excluding intra-frequency measurements and DL PRS measurements, e.g., inter-frequency measurements, inter-RAT measurements, etc. ) , respectively. For example, the network may provide one of the following measurement gap sharing schemes to UE that is applied to a measurement gap configuration as shown in Table 4 below:

Table 4

In some embodiments, value 1 indicates the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement. In some embodiments, value 2 indicates the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements. In some embodiments, value 3 indicates the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements (e.g., remaining measurements excluding intra-frequency measurements and DL PRS measurements, e.g., inter-frequency measurements, inter-RAT measurements, etc. ) .

Another example, network may provide one of the following measurement gap sharing schemes to UE that is applied to a measurement gap configuration as shown in Table 5 below:

Table 5

In some embodiments, value 1 indicates the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the DL PRS measurement. In some embodiments, value 2 indicates the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the intra-frequency measurements. In some embodiments, (1- (value 1) %- (value 2) %) indicates the chance/probability of a measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning the remaining measurements (e.g., remaining measurements excluding intra-frequency measurements and DL PRS measurements, e.g., inter-frequency measurements, inter-RAT measurements, etc. ) .

Different measurement gap configurations can be configured/associated with different measurement gap sharing schemes. The measurement gap sharing scheme is applied to a measurement gap configuration after the UE receives signaling/indication from a RRC, a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) , or a DCI.

In some embodiments, a RRC signaling indicating a measurement sharing scheme be is applied to a measurement gap configuration. In some embodiments, a MAC CE or a DCI can activate/trigger the measurement gap sharing scheme that is applied to a measurement gap configuration. In some embodiments, the RRC signaling, the MAC CE or the DCI includes/indicates: a) one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 1; b) one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 1, one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 2 and one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 3; c) one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 4; d) one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 1 and one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 2; e) one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 1 and one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 3; f) one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 4; or g) one measurement gap sharing scheme in Table 5. In some embodiments, the measurement gap sharing scheme is applied to a measurement gap configuration after the UE receives the activation/trigger signaling from a MAC CE or a DCI. In some embodiments, the measurement gap sharing scheme applied to a measurement gap configuration can be deactivated by a MAC CE or a DCI.

In some embodiments, more than one measurement gap sharing scheme is associated with one measurement gap configuration via RRC signaling (the measurement gap configuration may further be associated with at least one serving cell or BWP of the UE) . A MAC CE, or a DCI can select/activate/trigger one of the measurement gap sharing schemes associated with the measurement gap configuration to be applied to the measurement gap configuration. In some embodiments, the measurement gap sharing scheme is applied to a measurement gap configuration after the UE receives the activation/trigger signaling from a MAC CE or a DCI. In some embodiments, the measurement gap sharing scheme applied to a measurement gap configuration can be deactivated by a MAC CE or a DCI.

In some embodiments, a gNB may receive information from the UE/LMF that is to indicate the prioritization of a DL PRS measurement (or fast processing of a DL PRS) , where the information may include: a) the UE/LMF requests the serving gNB to configure/activate/trigger a measurement gap configuration that can be applied to the DL PRS measurement; b) the UE/LMF requests the serving gNB to configure/activate/trigger a measurement gap configuration that is dedicated for a DL PRS measurement; or c) the UE/LMF requests the serving gNB to configure/activate/trigger a new measurement gap sharing scheme applied to a measurement gap configuration.

FIG. 9 illustrates a method 900 of measuring a DL PRS using a measurement gap configuration, in accordance with some embodiments. Referring to FIGS. 1-8, the method 900 can be performed by a wireless communication device (e.g., a UE) and/or a wireless communication node (e.g., base station, a gNB) , in some embodiments. Additional, fewer, or different operations may be performed in the method 900 depending on the embodiment.

In brief overview, in some embodiments, a wireless communication device receives, from a wireless communication node, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) (operation 910) . In some embodiments, the wireless communication device sends, to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration (operation 920) .

In more detail, at operation 910, in some embodiments, the wireless communication device receives, from a wireless communication node, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more DL PRSs. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device is a UE and the wireless communication node is a gNB (e.g., a BS) . In some embodiments, the wireless communication node forwards the first measurement gap configuration from a location management function (LMF) .

In some embodiments, the DL PRSs are requested by the wireless communication element (e.g., the LMF) to be transmitted by the wireless communication node during an expected time. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device requests, to the wireless communication element, the transmission of the DL PRSs during an expected time. In some embodiments, the expected time is indicated as a time window configuration including at least one of a periodicity corresponding to repetition period of a time window, a length of the time window, an offset of the time window, or a repetition number of the time window.

In some embodiments, a configuration of the DL PRSs for the wireless communication device to measure is provided by the wireless communication element to the wireless communication node. For example, the configuration of the DL PRSs for the wireless communication device to measure is provided by the wireless communication element to the wireless communication node via the NRPPa protocol. In some embodiments, the configuration of the DL PRSs includes the positioning frequency layers that are expected to be measured by the UE. In some embodiments, each of the positioning frequency layers includes the configuration of a corresponding positioning frequency layer, which includes a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) , a cyclic prefix (CP) type, a center frequency (e.g., point A) , a reference frequency (e.g., a start physical resource block) , a configured bandwidth (BW) , and a comb size.

In some embodiments, the wireless communication device determines that an active Bandwidth Part (BWP) of the wireless communication device is switched from a first BWP to a second BWP. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device determines that (i) the DL PRSs are completely contained within the first BWP, and (ii) a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is the same as a subcarrier spacing of the first BWP. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device determines that the DL PRSs are not completely contained within the second BWP or a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is not the same as a subcarrier spacing of the second BWP.

In some embodiments, the wireless communication device determines that an active Bandwidth Part (BWP) of the wireless communication device is switched from a first BWP to a second BWP. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device determines that the DL PRSs are not completely contained within the first BWP, or a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is not the same as a subcarrier spacing of the first BWP. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device determines that (i) the DL PRSs are completely contained within the second BWP; and (ii) a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is the same as a subcarrier spacing of the second BWP.

In some embodiments, the wireless communication device identifies that the first measurement gap configuration is activated simultaneously with the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP. In some embodiments, the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP is caused by a timer associated with the first BWP being expired or a Downlink Control Information (DCI) indicative of the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP. In some embodiments, the DCI further includes a field to indicate the first measurement gap configuration is from more than one measurement gap configurations associated with the second BWP.

In some embodiments, the first measurement gap configuration is associated with a plurality of sharing schemes, each of the sharing schemes indicating a first probability for a measurement gap determined by the first measurement gap configuration used to measure candidates concerning measurements on the DL PRSs when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning intra-frequency measurements.

In some embodiments, the first measurement gap configuration is associated with a plurality of sharing schemes, each of the sharing schemes indicating a first probability for a measurement gap determined by the first measurement gap configuration used to measure candidates concerning measurements on the DL PRSs when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning measurements that exclude intra-frequency measurements.

In some embodiments, the first measurement gap configuration is associated with a plurality of sharing schemes, each of the sharing schemes indicating a first probability for a measurement gap determined by the first measurement gap configuration used to measure candidates concerning measurements on the DL PRSs, a second probability for the measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning intra-frequency measurements, and a third probability for the measurement gap used to measure remaining candidates concerning remaining measurements.

In some embodiments, the first probability is a value of one hundred percentage. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device receives DCI or a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) indicating one of the plurality of sharing schemes applied to the first measurement gap configuration.

At operation 920, in some embodiments, the wireless communication device sends, to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration. In some embodiments, the wireless communication element is the LMF.

FIG. 10 illustrates a method 1000 of sending a measurement gap configuration, in accordance with some embodiments. Referring to FIGS. 1-8, the method 1000 can be performed by a wireless communication device (e.g., a UE) and/or a wireless communication node (e.g., base station, a gNB) , in some embodiments. Additional, fewer, or different operations may be performed in the method 1000 depending on the embodiment.

In brief overview, in some embodiments, a wireless communication node sends, to a wireless communication device, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) (operation 1010) . In some embodiments, the wireless communication node forwards, from the wireless communication device, to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration (operation 1020) .

In more detail, at operation 1010, in some embodiments, the wireless communication node sends, to a wireless communication device, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more DL PRSs. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device is a UE and the wireless communication node is a gNB (e.g., a BS) . In some embodiments, the wireless communication node forwards the first measurement gap configuration from a location management function (LMF) .

At operation 1020, in some embodiments, the wireless communication node forwards, from the wireless communication device, to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration. In some embodiments, the wireless communication element is the LMF.

FIG. 11 illustrates a method 1100 of configuring a DL PRS according to a measurement gap configuration, in accordance with some embodiments. Referring to FIGS. 1-8, the method 1100 can be performed by a wireless communication device (e.g., a UE) , a wireless communication node (e.g., base station, a gNB) , and/or a wireless communication element (e.g., an LMF) , in some embodiments. Additional, fewer, or different operations may be performed in the method 1100 depending on the embodiment.

In brief overview, in some embodiments, a wireless communication element configures, to a wireless communication device, one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) to be measured by the wireless communication device according to a first measurement gap configuration from a wireless communication node (operation 1110) . In some embodiments, the wireless communication element receives, from the wireless communication device, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration (operation 1120) .

In more detail, at operation 1110, in some embodiments, the wireless communication element configures, to a wireless communication device, one or more DL PRSs to be measured by the wireless communication device according to a first measurement gap configuration from a wireless communication node. In some embodiments, the wireless communication element is a location management function (LMF) . In some embodiments, the wireless communication device is a UE and the wireless communication node is a gNB (e.g., a BS) .

At operation 1120, in some embodiments, the wireless communication element receives, from the wireless communication device, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration. In some embodiments, the wireless communication element receives the message via the LPP protocol.

While various embodiments of the present solution have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not by way of limitation. Likewise, the various diagrams may depict an example architectural or configuration, which are provided to enable persons of ordinary skill in the art to understand example features and functions of the present solution. Such persons would understand, however, that the solution is not restricted to the illustrated example architectures or configurations, but can be implemented using a variety of alternative architectures and configurations. Additionally, as would be understood by persons of ordinary skill in the art, one or more features of one embodiment can be combined with one or more features of another embodiment described herein. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present disclosure should not be limited by any of the above-described illustrative embodiments.

It is also understood that any reference to an element herein using a designation such as "first, " "second, " and so forth does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. Rather, these designations can be used herein as a convenient means of distinguishing between two or more elements or instances of an element. Thus, a reference to first and second elements does not mean that only two elements can be employed, or that the first element must precede the second element in some manner.

Additionally, a person having ordinary skill in the art would understand that information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits and symbols, for example, which may be referenced in the above description can be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

A person of ordinary skill in the art would further appreciate that any of the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, processors, means, circuits, methods and functions described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented by electronic hardware (e.g., a digital implementation, an analog implementation, or a combination of the two) , firmware, various forms of program or design code incorporating instructions (which can be referred to herein, for convenience, as "software" or a "software module) , or any combination of these techniques. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware, firmware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware, firmware or software, or a combination of these techniques, depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans can implement the described functionality in various ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions do not cause a departure from the scope of the present disclosure.

Furthermore, a person of ordinary skill in the art would understand that various illustrative logical blocks, modules, devices, components and circuits described herein can be implemented within or performed by an integrated circuit (IC) that can include a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP) , an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) , a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, or any combination thereof. The logical blocks, modules, and circuits can further include antennas and/or transceivers to communicate with various components within the network or within the device. A general purpose processor can be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor can be any conventional processor, controller, or state machine. A processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other suitable configuration to perform the functions described herein.

If implemented in software, the functions can be stored as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Thus, the steps of a method or algorithm disclosed herein can be implemented as software stored on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that can be enabled to transfer a computer program or code from one place to another. A storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer.

In this document, the term "module" as used herein, refers to software, firmware, hardware, and any combination of these elements for performing the associated functions described herein. Additionally, for purpose of discussion, the various modules are described as discrete modules; however, as would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, two or more modules may be combined to form a single module that performs the associated functions according embodiments of the present solution.

Additionally, memory or other storage, as well as communication components, may be employed in embodiments of the present solution. It will be appreciated that, for clarity purposes, the above description has described embodiments of the present solution with reference to different functional units and processors. However, it will be apparent that any suitable distribution of functionality between different functional units, processing logic elements or domains may be used without detracting from the present solution. For example, functionality illustrated to be performed by separate processing logic elements, or controllers, may be performed by the same processing logic element, or controller. Hence, references to specific functional units are only references to a suitable means for providing the described functionality, rather than indicative of a strict logical or physical structure or organization.

Various modifications to the implementations described in this disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other implementations without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the implementations shown herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the novel features and principles disclosed herein, as recited in the claims below.

Claims

A wireless communication method, comprising:

receiving, by a wireless communication device from a wireless communication node, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) ; and

sending, by the wireless communication device to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration.
The method of claim 1, wherein the DL PRSs are requested by the wireless communication element to be transmitted by the wireless communication node during an expected time.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

requesting, by the wireless communication device to the wireless communication element, the transmission of the DL PRSs during an expected time.
The method of claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the expected time is indicated as a time window configuration including at least one of: a periodicity corresponding to repetition period of a time window, a length of the time window, an offset of the time window, or a repetition number of the time window.
The method of claim 1, wherein a configuration of the DL PRSs for the wireless communication device to measure is provided by the wireless communication element to the wireless communication node.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the wireless communication device, that an active Bandwidth Part (BWP) of the wireless communication device is switched from a first BWP to a second BWP;

determining, by the wireless communication device, that (i) the DL PRSs are completely contained within the first BWP; and (ii) a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is the same as a subcarrier spacing of the first BWP; and

determining, by the wireless communication device, that the DL PRSs are not completely contained within the second BWP or a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is not the same as a subcarrier spacing of the second BWP.
The method of claim 6, further comprising:

identifying, by the wireless communication device, that the first measurement gap configuration is activated simultaneously with the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP.
The method of claim 6, wherein the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP is caused by a timer associated with the first BWP being expired or a Downlink Control Information (DCI) indicative of the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP.
The method of claim 8, wherein the DCI further includes a field to indicate the first measurement gap configuration is from more than one measurement gap configurations associated with the second BWP.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the wireless communication device, that an active BWP of the wireless communication device is switched from a first BWP to a second BWP;

determining, by the wireless communication device, that the DL PRSs are not completely contained within the first BWP, or a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is not the same as a subcarrier spacing of the first BWP; and

determining, by the wireless communication device, that (i) the DL PRSs are completely contained within the second BWP; and (ii) a subcarrier spacing of the DL PRSs is the same as a subcarrier spacing of the second BWP.
The method of claim 10, further comprising:

identifying, by the wireless communication device, that the first measurement gap configuration is deactivated simultaneously with the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP.
The method of claim 10, wherein the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP is caused by a timer associated with the first BWP being expired or a DCI indicative of the switching from the first BWP to the second BWP.
The method of claim 1, wherein the first measurement gap configuration is associated with a plurality of sharing schemes, each of the sharing schemes indicating a first probability for a measurement gap determined by the first measurement gap configuration used to measure candidates concerning measurements on the DL PRSs when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning intra-frequency measurements.
The method of claim 1, wherein the first measurement gap configuration is associated with a plurality of sharing schemes, each of the sharing schemes indicating a first probability for a measurement gap determined by the first measurement gap configuration used to measure candidates concerning measurements on the DL PRSs when the measurement gap is used to measure candidates concerning measurements that exclude intra-frequency measurements.
The method of claim 1, wherein the first measurement gap configuration is associated with a plurality of sharing schemes, each of the sharing schemes indicating a first probability for a measurement gap determined by the first measurement gap configuration used to measure candidates concerning measurements on the DL PRSs, a second probability for the measurement gap used to measure candidates concerning intra-frequency measurements, and a third probability for the measurement gap used to measure remaining candidates concerning remaining measurements.
The method of any of claims 13 through 15, wherein the first probability is a value of one hundred percentage.
The method of any of claims 13 through 15, further comprising:

receiving, by the wireless communication device, DCI or a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) indicating one of the plurality of sharing schemes applied to the first measurement gap configuration.
A wireless communication method, comprising:

sending, by a wireless communication node, to a wireless communication device, a first measurement gap configuration for measuring one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) ; and

forwarding, by the wireless communication node, from the wireless communication device, to a wireless communication element, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration.
A wireless communication method, comprising:

configuring, by a wireless communication element, to a wireless communication device, one or more downlink positioning reference signals (DL PRSs) to be measured by the wireless communication device according to a first measurement gap configuration from a wireless communication node; and

receiving, by the wireless communication element, from the wireless communication device, a message including measurements on the DL PRSs conducted based on the first measurement gap configuration.
A computer readable storage medium storing instructions, which when executed by one or more processors can cause the one or more processors to perform the method of any one of claims 1-19.
A device comprising at least one processor configured to implement the method of any one of claims 1-19.