Patent Description:
Examples of such multiple-access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, Cyclic-Prefix orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (CP-OFDM), and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

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A method of wireless communication of a user equipment in a New Radio based communication system is provided in claim <NUM>. A corresponding user equipment is claimed in claim <NUM>. A method of wireless communication of a base station in accordance with the present invention is claimed in claim <NUM>. A corresponding apparatus is claimed in claim <NUM>.

In some communication systems, one or more types of reference signals are defined and employed for positioning purposes. Due to the unique requirements and/or constraints of NR based communication that are different than other systems such as LTE, different signals are needed for positioning in NR. Aspects presented herein provide for signals that can be used for positioning in NR based communication that meet the unique requirements of NR based communication. Aspects presented herein facilitate high accuracy position determination by devices (e.g., low powered devices) operating in the system that may not have inbuilt positioning/navigation circuitry (e.g., global position system) by providing for a new type of positioning reference signal. Aspects presented herein may provide for positioning reference signals (PRS) that improve higher accuracy positioning in new radio-internet of things (NR-IoT), for example.

As presented herein, a user equipment (UE) may transmit an indication of positioning requirement and/or capability information of the UE to a base station. The base station may respond to receipt of the positioning requirement/capability information from the UE by configuring parameters associated with a PRS based on the unique requirement(s)/capability(s) of the UE. After configuring the PRS based on received
<CIT> discloses a positioning method for a user equipment, a data sending method, a device and a user equipment. After receiving a positioning service trigger, the method comprises: acquiring a velocity estimate of a UE to be positioned; selecting configuration information of a PRS according to the velocity estimate, setting a PRS sending period of an evolved base station eNB, and sending the PRS sending period to the eNB; sending the configuration information of the PRS to the UE, enabling the UE to receive the PRS sent by the eNB according to the configuration of the PRS and estimate a measurement of RSTD; and receiving the measurement of RSTD sent by the UE, and calculating a geographic position of the UE according to the measurement of RSTD. The embodiments of the disclosure improve effectively the accuracy of positioning the user equipment. <CIT> discloses a positioning method, a control device, and a mobile communications system. A control device receives a first positioning measurement parameter used for positioning a user equipment (UE). The first positioning measurement parameter is received through one communications system interface or multiple communications system interfaces among N communications system interfaces supported by the control device. The control device positions the UE according to the received first positioning measurement parameter. positioning requirement and/or capability information, the base station transmits the PRS to the UE. The configured parameters may include any combination of a waveform type of the PRS, resources on which the PRS will be transmitted, numerology associated with the PRS, bandwidth associated with the PRS, precoding associated with the PRS, or periodicity associated with the PRS. The UE may receive the PRS having the configured parameters and may use the received PRS for positioning purposes.

In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus, e.g., a UE, may be configured to transmit an indication of at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of the UE. The apparatus may be further configured to receive a PRS (e.g., a NR-PRS) having parameters configured based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information of the UE, wherein the configured parameters include one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, numerology associated with the NR-PRS, bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or periodicity associated with the NR-PRS. In some configurations, the apparatus may be further configured to perform at least one of UE positioning, ranging, or a UE velocity determination using the received NR-PRS.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus (e.g., a base station) may be configured to receive at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of at least one device that needs to perform a positioning operation. The apparatus may be further configured to configure parameters associated with a NR-PRS based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information, wherein configuring the parameters includes configuring one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, numerology associated with the NR-PRS, bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or periodicity associated with the NR-PRS. In some configurations, the apparatus may be further configured to transmit the NR-PRS having the configured parameters.

The wireless communications system (also referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) includes base stations <NUM>, UEs <NUM>, an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) <NUM>, and core network <NUM> (e.g., a <NUM> Core (5GC)).

The base stations <NUM> configured for <NUM> LTE (collectively referred to as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) may interface with the EPC <NUM> through backhaul links <NUM> (e.g., S1 interface). The base stations <NUM> configured for <NUM> NR (collectively referred to as Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)) may interface with core network <NUM> through backhaul links <NUM>. The base stations <NUM> may communicate directly or indirectly (e.g., through the EPC <NUM> or core network <NUM>) with each other over backhaul links <NUM> (e.g., X2 interface).

The base stations <NUM> / UEs <NUM> may use spectrum up to YMHz (e.g., <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, etc. MHz) bandwidth per carrier allocated in a carrier aggregation of up to a total of Yx MHz (x component carriers) used for transmission in each direction.

Referring again to <FIG>, in certain aspects, the base station <NUM> may include a PRS configuration component <NUM> which is configured to receive at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of at least one device (e.g., UE <NUM>) that needs to perform a positioning operation, configure parameters associated with a NR-PRS based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information, and transmit the NR-PRS having the configured parameters. In certain configurations, the UE <NUM> may include a positioning operation component <NUM> which is configured, upon the UE determining that a positioning operation is requested, to transmit an indication of at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of the UE, and receive a NR-PRS having parameters configured based on the positioning requirement or the capability information of the UE. Further related aspects and features are described in more detail in connection with <FIG>. In one configuration, the positioning operation component <NUM> may be configured to perform at least one of UE positioning, ranging, or a UE velocity determination based on the received NR-PRS. In one configuration, the configured parameters may include one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, numerology associated with the NR-PRS, bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or periodicity associated with the NR-PRS.

The subcarrier spacing may be equal to <NUM>µ * <NUM> kKz, where µ is the numerology <NUM> to <NUM>.

In certain aspects, the controller/processor <NUM> of base station <NUM> may include a PRS configuration component <NUM> which is configured to receive at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of at least one device (e.g., UE <NUM>) that needs to perform a positioning operation, configure parameters associated with a NR-PRS based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information, and transmit the NR-PRS having the configured parameters. In other aspects, the controller/processor <NUM> of UE <NUM> may include a positioning operation component <NUM> which is configured, upon the UE determining that a positioning operation is requested, to transmit an indication of at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of the UE, and receive a NR-PRS having parameters configured based on the positioning requirement or the capability information of the UE.

Positioning may be useful in connection with emergency calls and other services, as well as many other additional uses and applications, e.g., in connection with LTE based communication including IoT use cases. For example, positioning may be useful in connection with wearable devices, transportation applications, autonomous vehicles, asset tracking, and environmental sensing and monitoring. Applications involving positions may also be helpful for NR based communication. For example, in NR systems, position information could be helpful to support NR massive machine type communications (mMTC) and NR-IoT devices. For example, high-accuracy positioning may be helpful in autonomous vehicle systems and related applications where the vehicles must know their position with relatively high accuracy as well as the positions of near-by vehicles for collision avoidance. In factory automation scenarios, the positions of various items such as work items under processing on a manufacturing floor, forklifts, or parts to be assembled in an assembly unit may also need to be known.

NR mMTC use cases may be categorized into different classes - low end (e.g. very low power device communications) and medium-to-high end (e.g. low power device communications such as wearable devices). NR IoT may target the medium-to-high end category with different key performance indicators (KPIs) from low power wide area (LPWA), such as higher data rates, higher positioning accuracy, higher mobility, tighter latency, and/or higher connectivity density.

In LTE, a combination of positioning reference signal (PRS)/narrowband PRS (NPRS) and cell specific RS (CRS)/narrowband RS (NRS) may be employed to improve positioning accuracy of low end IoT devices. A PRS may be delivered with a predefined bandwidth and other configuration parameters such as periodicity, duration, subframe offset, and muting pattern. A PRS may be transmitted in one or more pre-defined positioning subframes which may be grouped as consecutive subframes and referred to as positioning occasions. Positioning occasions occur periodically with a certain periodicity. In LTE, various PRS bandwidth configurations are possible. For example, a <NUM> PRS, a <NUM> PRS, a <NUM> PRS, a <NUM> PRS, a <NUM> PRS, and a <NUM> PRS. Various different PRS configurations may have different associated periodicities, for example, <NUM> PRS with a <NUM> periodicity, <NUM> PRS with a <NUM> periodicity, and <NUM> PRS with a <NUM> periodicity as illustrated in the example shown in <FIG>.

<FIG> includes various diagrams illustrating different bandwidth and periodicity configurations of a PRS. Diagram <NUM>' illustrates a first example where a PRS <NUM> of bandwidth <NUM> is shown having an associated periodicity of <NUM>. Diagram <NUM>' of <FIG> illustrates a second example where a PRS <NUM> of bandwidth <NUM> is shown having an associated periodicity of <NUM>. Diagram <NUM>' of <FIG> illustrates a third example where a PRS <NUM> of bandwidth <NUM> is shown having an associated periodicity of <NUM>. <FIG> illustrates examples <NUM>', <NUM>', and <NUM>' in which the PRS may be transmitted using an offset in time from a reference offset. As an example, of an offset in time, a subframe offset may be configured that defines a starting subframe of a PRS transmission relative to a starting point of a system frame cycle. In other examples, an offset in time might not be used.

For non-IoT cases, the PRS may be centered around the carrier frequency. For example, referring to <FIG>, diagram <NUM> illustrates an example of one possible placement of PRS (e.g. PRS <NUM>, <NUM>, or <NUM>) that may be centered around a center carrier frequency <NUM> and occupying various resource elements in a slot of a resource grid. However, for IoT cases, the PRS may be shifted by a pre-configured frequency offset. For example, diagram <NUM> illustrates an example of another possible placement of PRS (e.g. PRS <NUM>, <NUM>, or <NUM>) where the PRS of diagram <NUM> may be shifted from the center frequency <NUM> by a frequency offset <NUM>. The offset may be pre-configured by, e.g., a base station, and provides flexibility for base station positioning and UE monitoring of PRS in multiple bands. With regard to PRS periodicity configuration, for non-IoT cases, all repetitions of PRS may use the same bandwidth, whereas for IoT cases, more repetitions may be used to support coverage extension.

In some cases, a muting pattern may be implemented to reduce interference. For example, to reduce inter-cell interference for PRS reception, some of the PRS subframes can be set as blank. That is, base stations may be configured to apply time-based muting/blanking, which is also referred to as PRS muting. For example, a UE may receive PRS from a plurality of neighboring cells. In order to allow the UE to clearly detect the PRS from different cells, a muting pattern may be configured according to which different base stations (corresponding to neighboring cells) mute their respective PRS, e.g., with different base stations muting their PRS at different times. When a strong PRS signal is muted, the weak PRS signals from the neighbor cells are more easily detected by the UE. The PRS muting configuration of a cell may be defined by a periodic muting sequence.

While a combination of PRS/NPRS and CRS/NRS may be employed in LTE for positioning purposes, NR has different requirements than LTE. Furthermore, NR does not include the reference signal types used for positioning in LTE. For example, NR does not have RS types corresponding to PRS/NPRS/CRS/NRS. Furthermore, the existing reference signals defined for <NUM> LTE may not work well for positioning, e.g., might not provide high accuracy positioning, in NR systems. Due to the unique requirements of NR, different signals are needed for positioning in NR based communication. Accordingly, there is a need for signals which are well suited for positioning and ranging in NR-compliant communication systems. Thus, positioning reference signals that improve higher accuracy positioning in NR-IoT may be especially desirable.

In the following discussion, various aspects and features related to waveform design and signaling support for positioning enhancement in NR-IoT are described. In an aspect, new waveforms for positioning reference signals that are well suited for NR systems and NR-IoT (referred to herein as NR-PRS) are described. The proposed new waveforms for NR-PRS discussed herein may be useful for multiple purposes, for example, enhancing ranging service (e.g., Observed Time Difference Of Arrival (OTDOA)), supporting UE grouping and power multiplexing in NR-non orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) operations, enhancing velocity estimation and assisting mobility management.

In addition, various aspects described herein relate to signaling support for "on-demand" positioning services. For example, in some configuration, a NR-PRS may be transmitted by a base station when one or more UEs (e.g., NR-IoT devices) request to perform positioning and indicate positioning requirements to the base station on demand. Some aspects described herein relate to dynamic configurations of NR-PRS to support different NR-IoT use cases. For example, parameters associated with a PRS such as numerology (e.g., subcarrier spacing, cyclic prefix), repetition, and bandwidth of the PRS, may be dynamically configured based on the requirements/capability of one or more devices that request PRS. Furthermore, in some configurations, beamforming, use of transmit (TX) diversity and multi-cell cooperation for PRS transmission may be considered.

On the UE side, the measurement accuracy (e.g., in position measurement) for target cell and relative velocity may depend on the type of transmitted waveform (e.g., of the reference signal) and the configuration of the associated parameters. Thus, it may be appreciated that in order to enhance positioning accuracy, a proper waveform design with well configured parameters suitable for high accuracy positioning is desirable. An important goal of waveform design may be to achieve a localized ambiguity function in the corresponding delay-Doppler space. This may be achieved by forming a sharp main lobe and suppressed side lobes in a delay-Doppler region of interest. In one aspect, the proposed new waveform design for the NR-PRS considers new sequences and dynamic configuration of a Cyclic-Prefix Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (CP-OFDM) waveform. In one configuration, an NR-PRS may have a CP-OFDM waveform comprising discrete linear frequency modulation sequences with a configurable slope and initial frequency. In another configuration, the NR-PRS may have a CP-OFDM waveform that comprises a multi-carrier phase coded constant amplitude zero autocorrelation (CAZAC) sequence. In another configuration, the NR-PRS may have a CP-OFDM waveform that comprises a concatenation of chirp sequences in time and/or frequency domain. In another configuration, the NR-PRS may have a CP-OFDM waveform that comprises a frequency multiplexed sequence of complementary waveforms, such as Golay sequences. In one example, the NR-PRS waveform may be selected among a plurality of these example waveform types.

Furthermore, in accordance with one aspect, for a given cell, various parameters of the NR-PRS may be dynamically configured based on positioning requirements (e.g., a positioning accuracy) and/or capabilities of NR-IoT devices. For example, in some configurations, parameters such as resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, a numerology associated with the NR-PRS, a bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, a precoding associated with the NR-PRS, a periodicity associated with the NR-PRS, a muting pattern, and a frequency hopping pattern may be adapted for a particular NR-PRS to accommodate different positioning accuracy and capabilities of NR-IoT devices.

Various features related to signaling support for NR-PRS are also described. In accordance with one aspect, the positioning requirements of different NR-IoT use cases may be classified into K different levels, for example P<NUM>, P<NUM>,. Each level may be characterized based on parameters associated with at least one of a ranging accuracy, velocity determination support, and a bandwidth (e.g., a bandwidth supported by a NR-IoT device and/or a bandwidth requested for the NR-PRS). Positioning requirement levels may be quantized, and one or more devices that may have similar positioning requirements and capabilities (e.g., bandwidth support) may be associated with the same positioning requirement level. Thus, the UEs may be grouped for purposes of the NR-PRS. Thus, for example, devices having similar requirements with respect to positioning/ranging accuracy, velocity determination support, and/or supported bandwidth may select the same positioning requirement level to convey their positioning requirements to the base station. The positioning requirement level (or simply the positioning requirement) may be conveyed to the base station (e.g., by each device) via a bitmap. Thus, as many different bitmaps may be defined as the number of different positioning requirement levels. In some configurations, a bitmap of a positioning requirement level Pm (<NUM>≤m≤K) may be carried by PUCCH. In some other configurations, the bitmap may be conveyed as a group index in a scheduling request (SR)/PRACH selection. While some examples of indicating the positioning requirement via a bitmap are provided, it should be appreciated that the positioning requirement and/or capability information may be signaled to the base station in other ways.

On the network side, based on the positioning requirement level Pm of at least one UE, the base station (e.g., gNB) may dynamically configure the parameters (e.g., resources, numerology, waveform, precoding, etc.) of a NR-PRS to be transmitted, and signal the configuration information to UE(s), e.g., via PDCCH and/or PDSCH. In some configurations, while the configuration information for NR-PRS may be transmitted in a PDSCH, a grant for the PDSCH may be transmitted via a group common PDCCH. Thus, the configuration information may be transmitted to multiple UEs in a PDCCH/PDSCH common to the group of UEs having the same positioning requirement level Pm.

In one configuration, for NR-IoT devices with limited bandwidth capability (e.g. ~<NUM>), a dynamic muting pattern may be configured, e.g., in a time domain, to reduce inter-cell interference of NR-PRS reception. In one configuration, for NR-IoT devices in support of wider bandwidths (e.g. ≥<NUM>), a sub-band based PRS hopping pattern can be configured in a frequency domain. The frequency hopping may supplement a muting pattern in the time domain. Such an approach may add frequency diversity for PRS and also facilitates interference reduction.

To facilitate an understanding of the proposed methods and techniques, an example of communication between a base station and one or more UEs, some of which may be NR-IoT type devices, is discussed with reference to <FIG>. Various additional features are also discussed in connection with <FIG> and the flowcharts of <FIG>.

<FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example of communication and signaling exchange between a base station <NUM> (e.g., gNB) and a plurality of UEs including UE <NUM>, UE <NUM>, and UE <NUM> in accordance with one example configuration. The base station <NUM> and the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> may be a part of the system and access network of <FIG>. For example, the base station <NUM> may be the base station <NUM>/<NUM> and the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> may correspond to UEs <NUM> of <FIG>. In some configurations, the base station <NUM> and the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> support and communicate in accordance with the NR standard. In some aspects, at least some of the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> are NR-IoT type devices and support further enhanced machine type communications (FeMTC) and/or massive MTC (mMTC). Various aspects and features related to waveform design and signaling support for positioning enhancement in NR-IoT are discussed with reference to <FIG>.

In various configurations, signaling support for on-demand positioning services is provided. For example, in such configurations, the base station <NUM> may transmit an NR-PRS (e.g. NR-PRS <NUM>, <NUM>, or <NUM>) when one or more of the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> request positioning assistance. For example, the UE may request positioning assistance, e.g., by signaling positioning requirements (e.g. a positioning accuracy, ranging accuracy or velocity determination support required for an application) to the base station <NUM>. In another example, a request for positioning assistance may be signaled separately from positioning requirements. In addition to signaling positioning requirements to the base station <NUM> to trigger PRS transmission, a UE may also indicate capability information of the UE (e.g. the UE's supported operating bandwidth and power limitations) to the base station <NUM>. As illustrated in the example depicted in <FIG>, the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> may each transmit an indication (e.g., illustrated by arrows <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) of its positioning requirements and/or capability information to the base station <NUM>.

In another aspect, the positioning requirements may be indicated by a positioning requirement level. As discussed supra, the positioning requirements of different NR-IoT use cases may be classified into different levels, (e.g., P<NUM>, P<NUM>,. , PK) which may be known to the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM>. Each level may be characterized at least by parameters associated with a ranging accuracy, a velocity determination support, and a bandwidth. For example, each different level may be associated with a set of parameters that indicate a positioning/ranging accuracy for that level, whether velocity determination support is requested, and a bandwidth (e.g., supported by devices that correspond to the given level). Positioning requirement levels may be quantized, and one or more UEs that may have similar positioning requirements may be associated with the same positioning requirement level. However, UEs with different positioning requirements may select different corresponding positioning requirement levels in accordance with their respective positioning needs and capabilities (e.g., select a level matching their respective requirements). Each of the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> may convey its positioning requirement level (or simply the positioning requirement) to the base station <NUM> via a bitmap (e.g., in the signals <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). In some configurations, a bitmap of a positioning requirement level may be carried by PUCCH. In some other configurations, the bitmap may be conveyed as a group index in a scheduling request.

In an example in which the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> have similar positioning requirements that may correspond to one level, e.g., level P<NUM>, the signals (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) from the individual UEs may communicate the same bitmap (e.g., corresponding to a positioning requirement level Pm). In such an example, from the perspective of the base station <NUM>, the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> have similar positioning requirements and may be grouped together. In one aspect, based on the received bitmap indicating the positioning requirement level, the base station <NUM> may configure a NR-PRS (e.g. NR-PRS <NUM>) for transmission to the group the UEs. That is, based on Pm, the base station <NUM> may dynamically configure the parameters (e.g., resources/numerology/waveform/precoding) of a NR-PRS to be transmitted for the group of UEs. In one aspect, for a given cell (e.g., corresponding to base station <NUM>), various parameters of a NR-PRS may be dynamically configured based on the received positioning requirement (e.g., a positioning accuracy) and/or capabilities of NR-IoT devices (e.g., UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) that request NR-PRS transmission for positioning. For example, in some configurations, parameters such as resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, a numerology associated with the NR-PRS, a bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, a precoding associated with the NR-PRS, a periodicity associated with the NR-PRS, a muting pattern, or a frequency hopping pattern may be adapted to accommodate different positioning accuracy requirements and capabilities of NR-IoT devices. The base station may determine multiple groups of UEs, each group having a different positioning requirement. Thus, the base station may configure parameters for an NR-PRS separately for each of the groups of UEs, each NR-PRS being configured based on the positioning requirement of the respective group of UEs.

Next, the base station <NUM> may transmit (e.g., multicast or broadcast) the configuration information (indicated as a broadcast/multicast signal <NUM>) to the UEs, e.g., via PDSCH. For example, the configuration information of the NR-PRS (e.g. the NR-PRS parameters dynamically configured by the base station) may be part of the system information (e.g., in a SIB), carried by the PDSCH. In some configurations, a grant for the PDSCH carrying the configuration information may be transmitted to the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> via a group common PDCCH. In some other configurations, the configuration information of the NR-PRS may be signaled to the UEs via RRC signaling. The configuration may be signaled by the base station <NUM> (via PDSCH and PDCCH) or upper layer of the UE (via RRC signaling). The UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> may receive the configuration information communicated in the signal <NUM> indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS common to the UEs. The received configuration information may be stored by the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>.

Having communicated the configuration information to the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, the base station <NUM> may next transmit (e.g., broadcast or multicast in this example) the NR-PRS <NUM> having the parameters (e.g. bandwidth, periodicity, numerology, etc.) configured based on the positioning requirements and/or or the capability information of the UEs. In one configuration, the waveform of the received NR-PRS <NUM> (e.g. PRS <NUM>, <NUM>, or <NUM> in <FIG>) may comprise a CP-OFDM. In one configuration, the CP-OFDM waveform of the received NR-PRS <NUM> may comprise one of the following sequences: a discrete linear frequency modulation sequence with configurable slope and initial frequency, a multi-carrier phase coded CAZAC sequence, a concatenation of chirp sequences in time/frequency domain, or a frequency multiplexed sequence of complementary waveforms such as Golay sequences. In various configurations, a UE (e.g., UE <NUM>) receiving the NR-PRS may perform (at <NUM>) an operation based on the received NR-PRS. The operation may include at least one of a positioning operation, a ranging operation, or a velocity determination based on the received NR-PRS.

In one scenario where the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> in a region may have different positioning requirements (corresponding to different positioning requirement levels), the UEs may not be grouped together for PRS transmission purposes. In such a case, the base station <NUM> may determine whether it may be feasible to individually transmit different positioning reference signals (e.g. PRS <NUM>, <NUM> and/or <NUM> individually configured for each different UE based on the positioning requirement and/or capability). In some such cases, the base station <NUM> may transmit different NR-PRS to the individual UEs when it may be feasible to do so. For example, when there is only a small number of individual UEs with different positioning requirements that require different positioning reference signals and the base station <NUM> has sufficient unused positioning signal resources (e.g., positioning subframes), the base station may be able to transmit NR-PRS individually to such small number of UEs.

<FIG> is a flowchart <NUM> of an example method of wireless communication in accordance with aspects presented herein. The method may be performed by a base station (e.g., base station <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, the apparatus <NUM>, <NUM>'). Optional aspects of the method are illustrated in dashed lines. The method improves the ability of a base station to facilitate high accuracy position determination by low powered devices in NR-compliant communication systems by allowing the base station to dynamically configure parameters associated with a PRS based on positioning requirements (e.g. a positioning requirement level) and/or capability information received from a UE and to transmit the configured PRS to the UE.

At <NUM>, the base station may receive at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of at least one device (e.g. a UE) that needs to perform a positioning operation. For example, referring to <FIG>, the base station <NUM> may receive the signal <NUM> from the UE <NUM> communicating at least one of a positioning requirement (e.g., in the form of a bitmap of a positioning requirement level) or capability information of the UE <NUM>. In accordance with one aspect, the positioning requirement may indicate at least one of a positioning accuracy, a ranging accuracy, and a velocity determination support requested by the UE <NUM>. In one aspect, the capability information may indicate an operating bandwidth (e.g., <NUM>, <NUM> etc.) supported by the UE <NUM>. In one aspect, the positioning requirement of the at least one device may indicate a positioning requirement level from among a set of positioning requirement levels as discussed above. In some configurations, the at least one device may be one of a plurality of devices (e.g., such as UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, the apparatus <NUM>, <NUM>'). As discussed in more detail supra in connection with <FIG>, in addition to the at least one device (e.g., UE <NUM>) the base station <NUM> may also receive from various other devices (e.g., UEs <NUM>, <NUM>) device positioning requirements and/or capability information for various applications.

At <NUM>, the base station may configure parameters associated with a PRS (e.g., an NR-PRS) based on at least one of the received positioning requirement or the capability information of the UE(s). In some configurations, the base station may group (e.g., logically) multiple devices having the same or similar positioning requirements and/or capabilities in order to configure a NR-PRS (e.g., by configuring various parameters of the NR-PRS that are suitable for the group of devices) for serving such multiple devices. In such a case, the base station may configure the NR-PRS parameters and generate a NR-PRS having the configured parameters to serve as a positioning reference signal for multiple devices. For example, referring to <FIG>, based on the received positioning requirements, the base station <NUM> may configure a NR-PRS for transmission to the group the UEs. That is, based on Pm, the base station <NUM> may dynamically configure the parameters (e.g., resources/numerology/waveform/precoding) of a NR-PRS (e.g. NR-PRS <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or <NUM> as illustrated in <FIG>) to be transmitted for the group of UEs.

In one configuration, the base station may configure the parameters of the NR-PRS by configuring one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, a numerology associated with the NR-PRS, a bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, a precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or a periodicity associated with the NR-PRS. In one aspect, the base station may configure the parameters by selecting one or more of the parameters for the NR-PRS to accommodate the positioning requirement of the at least one device and/or based on the capability information (e.g., supported bandwidth/frequencies, power limitations and such factors) of the at least one device. In various configurations, the base station may configure/select the parameters of the NR-PRS by selecting a CP-OFDM waveform for the NR-PRS as illustrated at block <NUM> which shows operations that may be performed as part of configuring the parameters of the NR-PRS. In some such configurations, the base station may further select the parameters for the NR-PRS by selecting the configurations of and the sequences carried by the CP-OFDM waveform. In some configurations, the NR-PRS may have a CP-OFDM waveform that may carry one of the following sequences: discrete linear frequency modulation sequences with configurable slope and initial frequency, a multi-carrier phase coded CAZAC sequences, a concatenation of chirp sequences in at least one of time or frequency domain, or a frequency multiplexed sequence of complementary waveforms such as Golay sequences.

In some configurations, the at least one device (e.g. UE) comprises a narrow bandwidth (e.g., <NUM>) NR-IoT device. In some such configurations, the base station may configure the parameters associated with the NR-PRS (block <NUM>) by configuring a muting pattern for the NR-PRS to reduce inter-cell interference. In some other configurations, the at least one device comprises a wide bandwidth (e.g., ≥ <NUM>) NR-IoT device. In some such configurations, the base station may configure the parameters associated with the NR-PRS (block <NUM>) by configuring a frequency hopping pattern for the NR-PRS. Thus, in some configurations, for wide band NR-IoT devices that support wider bandwidths, the base station may use a frequency hopping pattern to hop the PRS across different sub-bands.

In one configuration, the at least one device is one of a plurality of NR-IoT devices in a cell served by the base station. In one such configuration, at <NUM>, the base station may transmit configuration information indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS common to the plurality of NR-IoT devices. For example, with reference to <FIG>, the at least one device may be the UE <NUM> from among the plurality of UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>. Assuming the plurality of devices have the same or similar positioning requirements (e.g., corresponding to the same positioning requirement level) and/or capabilities, the same configuration information indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS may be applicable for the plurality of NR-IoT devices (thus the configuration information may be common to the plurality of devices). Thus, in the above example, the base station <NUM> may transmit (e.g., multicast or broadcast) configuration information (e.g., in signal <NUM>) to the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>. In some configurations, the configuration information for NR-PRS may be transmitted in a PDSCH, and a grant for the PDSCH may be transmitted via a group common PDCCH. While the configuration information for the NR-PRS may be transmitted by the base station in some configurations, in some other configurations, the configuration information may be preconfigured/stored within the at least one device.

At <NUM>, the base station may transmit the NR-PRS having the configured parameters. For example, with reference to <FIG>, the base station <NUM> may transmit the NR-PRS <NUM>. The devices (e.g., one or more of the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) that earlier received configuration information regarding the NR-PRS may monitor for and receive the NR-PRS. The NR-PRS may be configured (for example, as PRS <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> in <FIG> or other PRS configurations) based on the position requirements/capability information received by the base station. As discussed supra, the devices may use the received NR-PRS for determining their own position, estimating position of other devices, velocity determination, and other applications.

<FIG> is a flowchart <NUM> of an example method of wireless communication in accordance with aspects presented herein. The method may be performed by a UE (e.g., UE <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, the apparatus <NUM>, <NUM>'). The UE implementing the method of flowchart <NUM> may be a NR-IoT device. Optional aspects of the method are illustrated in dashed lines. The method improves the ability of a UE to obtain on demand support for high accuracy position determination in NR-compliant communication systems by allowing the UE to transmit positioning requirements (e.g. a positioning requirement level) and/or capability information to a base station and to receive a dynamically configured PRS from the base station based on the positioning requirements/capability information.

At <NUM>, the UE may transmit an indication of at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of the UE to a base station, e.g., serving base station (e.g., base station <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, the apparatus <NUM>, <NUM>') of a cell in which the UE is located. For example, referring to <FIG>, the UE may be the UE <NUM>. The UE <NUM> may transmit a signal <NUM> indicating at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of the UE <NUM> to the base station <NUM>. In accordance with one aspect, the positioning requirement may include information indicating at least one of a positioning accuracy, a ranging accuracy, and a velocity determination support requested by the UE <NUM>. In one aspect, the capability information may indicate an operating bandwidth (e.g., <NUM>, <NUM> etc.) supported by the UE <NUM>. In one aspect, the positioning requirement of the at least one device may indicate a positioning requirement level from among a set of different quantized positioning requirement levels. For example, as discussed supra, the positioning requirements of different NR-IoT use cases may be classified into K different levels, for example P<NUM>, P<NUM>,. , PK, and each level may be characterized at least by parameters associated with ranging accuracy, velocity support and bandwidth. A signal (e.g., signal <NUM> from UE <NUM> in <FIG>) communicating the positioning requirement of the UE may indicate one such level. Positioning requirement levels may be quantized, and one or more devices that may have similar positioning requirements and capabilities (e.g., bandwidth support) may be associated with the same positioning requirement level. The positioning requirement level may be conveyed to the base station by the UE via a bitmap. In some configurations, a bitmap of a positioning requirement level may be transmitted via PUCCH. In some other configurations, the bitmap may be conveyed as a group index in a scheduling request (SR).

At <NUM>, the UE may receive, from the base station, configuration information indicating the configured parameters of a PRS (e.g., configured based on at least one the transmitted positioning requirement or capability information). The PRS may be a NR-PRS, e.g., a positioning reference signal designed to facilitate high accuracy positioning in NR systems. In some configurations, the UE may be one of a plurality of NR-IoT devices in a cell served by the base station. For example, with reference to <FIG>, the UE may be the UE <NUM> from among the plurality of NR-IoT devices (e.g., UEs <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). In an aspect, the plurality of devices may have the same or similar positioning requirements (e.g., correspond to the same positioning requirement level). In some such configurations, at <NUM> the UE may receive configuration information indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS (e.g. waveform, numerology, precoding, etc.) common to the plurality of NR-IoT devices. For example, with reference to <FIG>, the UE <NUM> may receive the configuration information signal <NUM> which may be broadcast/multicast by the base station <NUM> to multiple NR-IoT devices having the same or similar positioning requirements. In some configurations, the configuration information for NR-PRS may be received as part of the system information carried in a PDSCH. In some configurations, a grant for the PDSCH may be received by the UE via a group common PDCCH.

At <NUM>, the UE may receive an NR-PRS having parameters configured based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information of the UE. For example, with reference to <FIG>, the UE <NUM> may receive the NR-PRS <NUM> transmitted by the base station, where the NR-PRS <NUM> may have parameters configured based on the positioning requirement and/or the capability information of the UE <NUM>. In accordance with one aspect, the configured parameters of the NR-PRS are selected by the base station to accommodate the positioning requirement of the UE and/or that are well suited for the UE based on the capability information (e.g., supported bandwidth, power limitations etc.) of the UE. In some configurations, the configured parameters of the NR-PRS may include one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, a numerology associated with the NR-PRS, a bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, a precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or a periodicity associated with the NR-PRS. In some configurations, the configured parameters may further include a muting pattern, and a frequency hopping pattern of the NR-PRS. For example, referring to <FIG>, the NR-PRS may be PRS <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, or another PRS depending on the configured parameters.

In some configurations, the received NR-PRS may have a CP-OFDM waveform that may carry one of the following sequences: a discrete linear frequency modulation sequences with configurable slope and initial frequency, a multi-carrier phase coded CAZAC sequences, a concatenation of chirp sequences in at least one of time or frequency domain, or a frequency multiplexed sequence of complementary waveforms such as Golay sequences.

At <NUM>, the UE may perform at least one of UE positioning, ranging, or a UE velocity determination based on the received NR-PRS. For example, with reference to <FIG>, the UE <NUM> may receive the NR-PRS <NUM> and may use the received NR-PRS <NUM> for, e.g., determining UE position, estimating position of other devices, velocity determination, and/or other applications.

<FIG> is a conceptual data flow diagram <NUM> illustrating the data flow between different means/components in an example apparatus <NUM>. The apparatus may be a base station (e.g., such as base station <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). For the purpose of discussion, we may consider that the apparatus <NUM> may correspond to the base station <NUM> shown in <FIG>. The apparatus <NUM> may include a reception component <NUM>, a configuration component <NUM>, a NR-PRS generation component <NUM>, a control component <NUM>, and a transmission component <NUM>.

The reception component <NUM> may be configured to receive and process messages and/or other information from other devices such as UE <NUM>. The signals/information received by the reception component <NUM> may be provided to the configuration component <NUM>, the control component <NUM> and/or other components of the apparatus <NUM> for further processing and use in performing various operations at the apparatus <NUM>. In one configuration, the reception component <NUM> may receive at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of at least one device (e.g., a NR-IoT type device such as UE <NUM>) that needs to perform a positioning operation. As discussed supra, the positioning requirement may indicate at least one of a positioning accuracy, a ranging accuracy, and a velocity determination support for the at least one device. In one aspect, the positioning requirement of the at least one device may indicate a positioning requirement level from among a plurality of different possible positioning requirement levels. In one aspect, the capability information may indicate an operating bandwidth (e.g., <NUM>, <NUM> etc.) supported by the at least one device.

The configuration component <NUM> may configure parameters of a NR-PRS based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information. In some configurations, as part of configuring the parameters, the configuration component <NUM> may configure one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, a numerology associated with the NR-PRS, a bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, a precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or a periodicity associated with the NR-PRS. In various configurations, the configuration component <NUM> may be configured to select the parameters of the NR-PRS based on at least one of the received positioning requirement or the capability information. In one aspect, the configuration component <NUM> may be configured to select a CP-OFDM waveform for the NR-PRS. In some configurations, as part of configuring the parameters, the configuration component <NUM> may be further configured to select the sequences carried by the CP-OFDM waveform. For example, in one configuration, the configuration component <NUM> may be configured to select a CP-OFDM waveform and one of the following sequences to be carried by the waveform: a discrete linear frequency modulation sequences with configurable slope and initial frequency, a multi-carrier phase coded CAZAC sequences, a concatenation of chirp sequences in at least one of time or frequency domain, or a frequency multiplexed sequence of complementary waveforms such as Golay sequences. In some configurations, the configuration component <NUM>, when configuring the parameters associated with the NR-PRS, may further configure a muting pattern for the NR-PRS to reduce inter-cell interference. In some configurations, the configuration component <NUM>, when configuring the parameters associated with the NR-PRS, may further configure a frequency hopping pattern for the NR-PRS. The configuration information indicating the configured parameters may be provided by the configuration component <NUM> to the NR-PRS generation component <NUM> and the transmission component <NUM> in some configurations.

The NR-PRS generation component <NUM> may be configured to generate a NR-PRS having the configured parameters in accordance with aspects described herein, e.g., configured/selected by the configuration component <NUM> as discussed above. The NR-PRS generated by the NR-PRS generation component <NUM> may be provided to the transmission component <NUM> for transmission.

The transmission component <NUM> may be configured to transmit signals to at least one external device, e.g., UE <NUM>, and other UEs. For example, the transmission component <NUM> may be configured to transmit the configuration information indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS. In some configurations, the at least one device is one of a plurality of NR-IoT devices in a cell served by the apparatus <NUM>, and the plurality of NR-IoT devices may have the same or similar positioning requirements. In such configurations, the transmission component <NUM> may transmit the configuration information indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS common to the plurality of NR-IoT devices. In some configurations, the transmission component <NUM> may be configured to transmit the configuration information for NR-PRS in a PDSCH, and be configured to transmit a grant for the PDSCH via a group common PDCCH. In various configurations, the transmission component <NUM> may be further configured to transmit the NR-PRS having the configured parameters. In some configurations, the transmission of the NR-PRS may be a broadcast or multicast to a plurality of devices including the at least one device (e.g., UE <NUM>).

The control component <NUM> may be configured to control the transmission schedule and/or transmission timing of one or more signals transmitted by the transmission component <NUM>. In some configurations, the control component <NUM> may be implemented within the transmission component <NUM>. In some configurations, the control component <NUM> may be configured to control the operation of the apparatus <NUM> in accordance with the methods (e.g., method of flowchart <NUM>) described herein, and accordingly control one or more components of the apparatus <NUM> to operate in accordance with the methods described herein.

<FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an apparatus <NUM>' employing a processing system <NUM>. The processing system <NUM> may be implemented with a bus architecture, represented generally by the bus <NUM>. The bus <NUM> may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges depending on the specific application of the processing system <NUM> and the overall design constraints. The bus <NUM> links together various circuits including one or more processors and/or hardware components, represented by the processor <NUM>, the components <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> and the computer-readable medium/memory <NUM>. The bus <NUM> may also link various other circuits such as timing sources, peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further.

The processing system <NUM> may be coupled to a transceiver <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> is coupled to one or more antennas <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> provides a means for communicating with various other apparatus over a transmission medium. The transceiver <NUM> receives a signal from the one or more antennas <NUM>, extracts information from the received signal, and provides the extracted information to the processing system <NUM>, specifically the reception component <NUM>. In addition, the transceiver <NUM> receives information from the processing system <NUM>, specifically the transmission component <NUM>, and based on the received information, generates a signal to be applied to the one or more antennas <NUM>. The processing system <NUM> includes a processor <NUM> coupled to a computer-readable medium/memory <NUM>. The processor <NUM> is responsible for general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium/memory <NUM>. The software, when executed by the processor <NUM>, causes the processing system <NUM> to perform the various functions described supra for any particular apparatus. The computer-readable medium/memory <NUM> may also be used for storing data that is manipulated by the processor <NUM> when executing software. The processing system <NUM> further includes at least one of the components <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>. The components may be software components running in the processor <NUM>, resident/stored in the computer readable medium/memory <NUM>, one or more hardware components coupled to the processor <NUM>, or some combination thereof. The processing system <NUM> may be a component of the base station <NUM> and may include the memory <NUM> and/or at least one of the TX processor <NUM>, the RX processor <NUM>, and the controller/processor <NUM>.

In one configuration, the apparatus <NUM>/<NUM>' for wireless communication includes means for receiving at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of at least one device that needs to perform a positioning operation. In some configurations, the apparatus further comprises means for configuring parameters associated with a NR-PRS based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information, wherein configuring the parameters includes configuring one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, numerology associated with the NR-PRS, bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or periodicity associated with the NR-PRS. In some configurations, the apparatus further comprises means for transmitting the NR-PRS having the configured parameters.

In some configurations, the means for configuring the parameters is configured to select the parameters for the NR-PRS based on the positioning requirement and capability information of the at least one device. In some configurations, the waveform of the NR-PRS comprises a CP-OFDM waveform, and the means for configuring the parameters is further configured to select the configurations of and the sequences carried by the CP-OFDM waveform. In one configuration, the at least one device comprises a narrow bandwidth NR-IoT device, and the means for configuring the parameters associated with the NR-PRS further configures a muting pattern for the NR-PRS to reduce inter-cell interference. In one configuration, the at least one device comprises a wide bandwidth NR-IoT device, and the means for configuring the parameters associated with the NR-PRS further configures a frequency hopping pattern for the NR-PRS.

In some configurations, the means for transmitting is further configured to transmit configuration information indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS common to a plurality of NR-IoT devices including the at least one device. In one configuration, the configuration information for NR-PRS is transmitted by the means for transmitting in a PDSCH, and a grant for the PDSCH is transmitted via a group common PDCCH.

<FIG> is a conceptual data flow diagram <NUM> illustrating the data flow between different means/components in an exemplary apparatus <NUM>. The apparatus may be a UE (e.g., such as UE <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>). The apparatus includes a reception component <NUM>, a positioning operation control component <NUM>, and a transmission component <NUM>.

The reception component <NUM> may be configured to receive control information (e.g., configuration information of a NR-PRS), data, and/or other information from other devices including, e.g., base station <NUM>. The signals/information may be received by the reception component <NUM> in accordance with the methods discussed supra including the method of flowchart <NUM>. The received signals/information may be provided to one or more components of the apparatus <NUM> for further processing and use in performing various operations in accordance with the methods described herein.

The transmission component <NUM> may be configured to transmit data, control information and/or other signaling to one or more external devices including, e.g., base station <NUM>. For example, in some configurations, the transmission component <NUM> may be configured to transmit an indication of at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of the apparatus <NUM> to the base station <NUM>. As discussed supra in detail in connection with <FIG>, the positioning requirement may indicate at least one of a positioning accuracy, a ranging accuracy, and a velocity determination support requested by the apparatus. The capability information may indicate an operating bandwidth supported by the UE. In some configurations, the positioning requirement may indicate a positioning requirement level from among a set of different positioning requirement levels, wherein each positioning requirement level in the set may indicate parameters associated with at least one of a ranging accuracy, velocity determination support, and a bandwidth. In some configurations, the positioning requirement level is quantized and indicated via a bitmap, and the transmission component <NUM> is configured to transmit the bitmap in a PUCCH or communicate the bitmap as a group index in a scheduling request. Thus, in some configurations, the positioning requirement and/or capability information of the apparatus may be indicated through such a bitmap. In some such configurations, the transmission component <NUM> may transmit the bitmap communicating the positioning requirement level corresponding to the apparatus <NUM>.

In one configuration, the reception component <NUM> may be configured to receive, from the base station <NUM>, configuration information indicating configured parameters for a NR-PRS, the parameters having been configured based on at least one of the transmitted positioning requirement or the capability information of the apparatus <NUM>. In some configurations, the apparatus <NUM> is one of a plurality of NR-IoT devices, e.g., in a cell served by the base station <NUM>, and the plurality of NR-IoT devices may have the same or similar positioning requirements. In one such configuration, the reception component <NUM> may be configured to receive the configuration information indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS common to the plurality of NR-IoT devices. In some configurations, the reception component <NUM> may receive the configuration information for NR-PRS in the system information carried in a PDSCH, and may receive a grant for the PDSCH via a group common PDCCH. The received configuration information may be provided to the positioning operation control component <NUM> for use in controlling various operations of the apparatus <NUM> in accordance with the methods described herein. The received configuration information (e.g., one or more parameters) may also be used by reception component <NUM> to monitor for, receive and decode the NR-PRS from the base station <NUM>.

In various configurations, the reception component <NUM> may be further configured to receive the NR-PRS having the parameters configured based on at least one of the transmitted positioning requirement or the capability information of the apparatus <NUM>. The configured parameters may include one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, a numerology associated with the NR-PRS, a bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, a precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or a periodicity associated with the NR-PRS. In some configurations, the NR-PRS may be received in a broadcast or multicast from the base station <NUM>. In one configuration, the waveform of the received NR-PRS comprises a CP-OFDM waveform. In some such configurations, the CP-OFDM waveform of the received NR-PRS comprises one of the following sequences: a discrete linear frequency modulation sequences with configurable slope and initial frequency, a multi-carrier phase coded CAZAC sequences, a concatenation of chirp sequences in at least one of time or frequency domain, or a frequency multiplexed sequence of complementary waveforms such as Golay sequences. In some configurations, the parameters associated with the NR-PRS may further comprise a muting pattern for the NR-PRS. In some configurations, the parameters associated with the NR-PRS may further comprise a frequency hopping pattern for the NR-PRS.

The positioning operation control component <NUM> may be configured to control positioning determination and related operations in accordance with the methods and techniques described herein. For example, the positioning operation control component <NUM> may be configured to perform at least one of a positioning operation, a ranging operation, or a velocity determination, using the received NR-PRS. The positioning operation control component <NUM> may be further configured to control the transmission/reception of one or more positioning related signals at the apparatus <NUM>. In some configurations, the positioning operation control component <NUM> may be configured to control the operation of the apparatus <NUM> in accordance with the methods (e.g., method of flowchart <NUM>) described herein, and accordingly control one or more components of the apparatus <NUM> to operate in accordance with the methods described herein.

<FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an apparatus <NUM>' employing a processing system <NUM>. The processing system <NUM> may be implemented with a bus architecture, represented generally by the bus <NUM>. The bus <NUM> may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges depending on the specific application of the processing system <NUM> and the overall design constraints. The bus <NUM> links together various circuits including one or more processors and/or hardware components, represented by the processor <NUM>, the components <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and the computer-readable medium/memory <NUM>. The bus <NUM> may also link various other circuits such as timing sources, peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further.

The processing system <NUM> may be coupled to a transceiver <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> is coupled to one or more antennas <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> provides a means for communicating with various other apparatus over a transmission medium. The transceiver <NUM> receives a signal from the one or more antennas <NUM>, extracts information from the received signal, and provides the extracted information to the processing system <NUM>, specifically the reception component <NUM>. In addition, the transceiver <NUM> receives information from the processing system <NUM>, specifically the transmission component <NUM>, and based on the received information, generates a signal to be applied to the one or more antennas <NUM>. The processing system <NUM> includes a processor <NUM> coupled to a computer-readable medium/memory <NUM>. The processor <NUM> is responsible for general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium/memory <NUM>. The software, when executed by the processor <NUM>, causes the processing system <NUM> to perform the various functions described supra for any particular apparatus. The computer-readable medium / memory <NUM> may also be used for storing data that is manipulated by the processor <NUM> when executing software. The processing system <NUM> further includes at least one of the components <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>. The components may be software components running in the processor <NUM>, resident/stored in the computer readable medium/memory <NUM>, one or more hardware components coupled to the processor <NUM>, or some combination thereof. The processing system <NUM> may be a component of the UE <NUM> and may include the memory <NUM> and/or at least one of the TX processor <NUM>, the RX processor <NUM>, and the controller/processor <NUM>.

In one configuration, the apparatus <NUM>/<NUM>' for wireless communication is a UE comprising means for transmitting an indication of at least one of a positioning requirement or capability information of the UE, e.g., to a base station. The apparatus <NUM>/<NUM>' may further comprise means for receiving a NR-PRS having parameters configured based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information of the UE, the configured parameters including one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, numerology associated with the NR-PRS, bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or periodicity associated with the NR-PRS. In some configurations, the positioning requirement may indicate a positioning requirement level from among a set of different positioning requirement levels, wherein each positioning requirement level in the set may indicate parameters associated with at least one of a ranging accuracy, velocity determination support, and a bandwidth. In some configurations, the positioning requirement level is quantized and indicated via a bitmap, where the bitmap is transmitted in a PUCCH or communicated as a group index in a scheduling request. Thus, in some configurations, the positioning requirement and/or capability information of the UE (apparatus <NUM>) may be indicated through such a bitmap. In some such configurations, the means for transmitting may be configured to transmit, e.g., to the base station, the bitmap communicating the positioning requirement level corresponding to the apparatus <NUM>.

In some configurations, the means for receiving may be further configured to receive, from a base station, configuration information indicating configured parameters for the NR-PRS, the parameters having been configured by the base station based on at least one of the transmitted positioning requirement or the capability information of the UE. In some configurations, the UE (apparatus <NUM>) is one of a plurality of NR-IoT devices, e.g., in a cell served by the base station, and the plurality of NR-IoT devices may have same or similar positioning requirements. In one such configuration, the means for receiving may be configured to receive configuration information indicating the configured parameters for the NR-PRS common to the plurality of NR-IoT devices. In some configurations, the configuration information for NR-PRS may be received in the system information carried in a PDSCH, and a grant for the PDSCH may be received via a group common PDCCH.

In one configuration, the apparatus <NUM>/<NUM>' may further comprise means for performing at least one of UE positioning, ranging, or a UE velocity determination using the received NR-PRS.

Accordingly, the present disclosure facilitates high accuracy position determination by low powered devices (e.g. UEs) in NR-compliant communication systems by allowing a base station to dynamically configure parameters associated with a PRS based on position requirements and/or capability information received from a UE and to transmit the configured PRS to the UE or group of UEs. The present disclosure also provides for on demand support for high accuracy position determination in NR-compliant communication systems by allowing UEs to transmit positioning requirements (e.g. a positioning requirement level) and/or capability information to a base station when the UE requires positioning operation support.

It is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes/flowcharts disclosed is an illustration of exemplary approaches. Based upon design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes/flowcharts may be rearranged.

Claim 1:
A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment, UE (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) in a New Radio based communication system comprising:
transmitting (<NUM>) a request for positioning assistance from the UE (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) to a base station (<NUM>), the request comprising an indication of capability information of the UE (<NUM>) and a positioning requirement that indicates a positioning requirement level from amongst a set of different positioning requirement levels, wherein each positioning requirement level in the set of different positioning requirement levels indicates corresponding parameters associated with at least one of a ranging accuracy, velocity determination support, and a bandwidth; and
receiving (<NUM>) from the base station in response to the request a New Radio, positioning reference signal, NR-PRS having parameters dynamically configured based on at least one of the positioning requirement or the capability information of the UE included in the positioning request, wherein the parameters include one or more of a waveform type of the NR-PRS, resources on which the NR-PRS will be transmitted, numerology associated with the NR-PRS, bandwidth associated with the NR-PRS, precoding associated with the NR-PRS, or periodicity associated with the NR-PRS.