RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 63/394,214 filed August 1, 2022 entitled “Performing a Wideband Positioning Reference Signal Measurement Based on Multiple Sub-bands,” the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present disclosure relates to wireless communications, and more specifically to performing a wideband positioning reference signal (PRS) measurement based on multiple subbands.

BACKGROUND

[0003] A wireless communications system may include one or multiple network communication devices, such as base stations, which may be otherwise known as an eNodeB (eNB), a nextgeneration NodeB (gNB), or other suitable terminology. Each network communication devices, such as a base station may support wireless communications for one or multiple user communication devices, which may be otherwise known as user equipment (UE), or other suitable terminology. The wireless communications system may support wireless communications with one or multiple user communication devices by utilizing resources of the wireless communication system (e.g., time resources (e.g., symbols, slots, subframes, frames, or the like) or frequency resources (e.g., subcarriers, carriers). Additionally, the wireless communications system may support wireless communications across various radio access technologies including third generation (3G) radio access technology, fourth generation (4G) radio access technology, fifth generation (5G) radio access technology, among other suitable radio access technologies beyond 5G (e.g., sixth generation (6G)).

[0004] UEs receive PRSs from a base station. The UEs collect one or more PRS measurements based on these received PRSs. The PRS measurements are used to determine a position of the UE. The position of the UE may be determined by the UE itself or other devices, such as one or more devices in the wireless communication system implementing a location management function (LMF).

SUMMARY

[0005] The present disclosure relates to methods, apparatuses, and systems that support performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands. A device, such as a reduced capability (RedCap) device, is configured with an indication of multiple PRS sub-bands and a frequency hopping pattern. This frequency hopping pattern may be one or both of intra-slot frequency hopping and inter-slot frequency hopping. The device performs a wideband PRS measurement by combining the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern. This wideband PRS measurement is provided to a location management function that can use the wideband PRS measurement in determining a location of the device. By using the multiple PRS sub-bands to perform the wideband PRS measurement, the device is effectively increasing its bandwidth to be a combination of (e.g., the sum of) the bandwidths of the sub-bands. Positioning accuracy degrades as bandwidth is reduced, so this increase in bandwidth results in more accurate positioning.

[0006] Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include receive, from a network entity, configuration information identifying multiple PRS subbands and a frequency hopping pattern; perform a wideband PRS measurement by combining PRS signals received on the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern; and transmit, to a location management function, the wideband PRS measurement.

[0007] In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the frequency hopping pattern comprises an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern. Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern comprises both an inter-slot frequency hopping pattern and an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration information includes beam information identifying one or more beams and the processor is further configured to perform wideband PRS measurement by coherently combining the multiple PRS sub-bands using a same beam. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration information includes a muting pattern and the processor is further configured to mute, based on the muting pattern, at least one of a PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each PRS hopping occasion, and repetition of the PRS frequency hopping. Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern comprises the multiple PRS sub-bands and the configuration information includes a repetition factor that determines a number of times a PRS signal is transmitted in each of the multiple PRS sub-bands within a hopping period. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions. Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets within a same frequency layer. Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets across different frequency layers.

[0008] Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include transmit, to a UE, configuration information identifying multiple PRS sub-bands and a frequency hopping pattern; and receive, from the UE, a wideband PRS measurement based on combining PRS signals on the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern.

[0009] In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the frequency hopping pattern comprises an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern. Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern comprises both an inter-slot frequency hopping pattern and an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration information includes beam information identifying one or more beams. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration information includes a muting pattern indicating to mute at least one of a PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each PRS hopping occasion, and repetition of the PRS frequency hopping. Additionally or alternatively, the method and apparatus may further include transmit, to the UE after transmitting the configuration information, PRS signals on the multiple PRS sub-bands; and transmit, to a location management function, the wideband PRS measurement. Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern comprises the multiple PRS sub-bands and the configuration information includes a repetition factor that determines a number of times a PRS signal is transmitted in each of the multiple PRS sub-bands within a hopping period. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions. Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets within a same frequency layer. Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets across different frequency layers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a wireless communications system that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0011] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a system of NR beam-based positioning as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0012] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a provide assistance data (NR-DL-TDOA- ProvideAssistanceData) information element (IE) as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands, as described herein.

[0013] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of measurement report (NR-DL-TDOA- SignalMeasurementlnformation) IE as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands, as described herein.

[0014] FIGs. 5A, 5B, and 5C illustrate an example of a downlink (DL) PRS configuration (NR- DL-PRS-Info) IE as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands, as described herein.

[0015] FIG. 6 illustrates an example of intra-slot frequency hopping and coherent combining as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple subbands, as described herein. [0016] FIG. 7 illustrates an example of beam configuration for PRS frequency hopping as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple subbands, as described herein.

[0017] FIGs. 8 and 9 illustrate examples of block diagrams of a device that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0018] FIGs. 10 through 14 illustrate flowcharts of methods that support performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] Some devices in a wireless communication system have reduced capabilities, such as RedCap devices. RedCap devices serve the need of different use cases such as wearables, video surveillance, and so forth. A lower cost of the RedCap devices is attributed to the small form factors of the devices, which include a reduced number of receive (Rx) antennas, radio frequency (RF) chains, half duplex, and so forth, while a power saving for the RedCap devices is achieved using reduced physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) monitoring occasions, bandwidth reduction, multiple-input/multiple-output (MIMO) layers, modulation order, and so forth. However, positioning accuracy degrades with reduced bandwidth devices, leaving RedCap devices with worse positioning accuracy than many full-capability (e.g., non-RedCap) devices.

[0020] Using the techniques discussed herein, a device, such as a RedCap device, is configured by a base station with an indication of multiple PRS sub-bands and a frequency hopping pattern. This frequency hopping pattern may be one or both of intra-slot frequency hopping and inter-slot frequency hopping. The device receives PRS signals in the multiple PRS sub-bands and combines or aggregates the received PRS signals and performs a wideband PRS measurement based on the combined/aggregated PRS signals. This wideband PRS measurement is used as the PRS measurement for the device rather than performing PRS measurements on the individual received PRS signals. This wideband PRS measurement is provided to the base station for determining a location of the device (e.g., by a LMF in a core network of the wireless communication system). [0021] The techniques discussed herein combine or aggregate the PRS signals received in the different PRS sub-bands, resulting in an effective bandwidth for performing the wideband PRS measurement being greater than the bandwidth of any individual sub-band. For example, this gives the device a bandwidth that is approximately a combination of (e.g., a sum of) the bandwidths of the different PRS sub-bands. This greater bandwidth results in greater positioning accuracy so the position of the device can be determined more accurately.

[0022] Aspects of the present disclosure are described in the context of a wireless communications system. Aspects of the present disclosure are further illustrated and described with reference to device diagrams and flowcharts.

[0023] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a wireless communications system 100 that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communications system 100 may include one or more network entities 102, one or more UEs 104, a core network 106, and a packet data network 108. The wireless communications system 100 may support various radio access technologies. In some implementations, the wireless communications system 100 may be a 4G network, such as an LTE network or an LTE- Advanced (LTE-A) network. In some other implementations, the wireless communications system 100 may be a 5G network, such as a new radio (NR) network. In other implementations, the wireless communications system 100 may be a combination of a 4G network and a 5G network, or other suitable radio access technology including Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20. The wireless communications system 100 may support radio access technologies beyond 5G. Additionally, the wireless communications system 100 may support technologies, such as time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), or code division multiple access (CDMA), etc.

[0024] The one or more network entities 102 may be dispersed throughout a geographic region to form the wireless communications system 100. One or more of the network entities 102 described herein may be or include or may be referred to as a network node, a base station, a network element, a radio access network (RAN), a base transceiver station, an access point, a NodeB, an eNodeB (eNB), a next-generation NodeB (gNB), or other suitable terminology. A network entity 102 and a UE 104 may communicate via a communication link 110, which may be a wireless or wired connection. For example, a network entity 102 and a UE 104 may perform wireless communication (e.g., receive signaling, transmit signaling) over a Uu interface.

[0025] A network entity 102 may provide a geographic coverage area 112 for which the network entity 102 may support services (e.g., voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc.) for one or more UEs 104 within the geographic coverage area 112. For example, a network entity 102 and a UE 104 may support wireless communication of signals related to services (e.g., voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc.) according to one or multiple radio access technologies. In some implementations, a network entity 102 may be moveable, for example, a satellite associated with a non-terrestrial network. In some implementations, different geographic coverage areas 112 associated with the same or different radio access technologies may overlap, but the different geographic coverage areas 112 may be associated with different network entities 102. Information and signals described herein may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0026] The one or more UEs 104 may be dispersed throughout a geographic region of the wireless communications system 100. A UE 104 may include or may be referred to as a mobile device, a wireless device, a remote device, a remote unit, a handheld device, a RedCap device, or a subscriber device, or some other suitable terminology. In some implementations, the UE 104 may be referred to as a unit, a station, a terminal, or a client, among other examples. Additionally, or alternatively, the UE 104 may be referred to as an Internet-of-Things (loT) device, an Internet-of- Everything (loE) device, or machine-type communication (MTC) device, among other examples. In some implementations, a UE 104 may be stationary in the wireless communications system 100. In some other implementations, a UE 104 may be mobile in the wireless communications system 100.

[0027] The one or more UEs 104 may be devices in different forms or having different capabilities. Some examples of UEs 104 are illustrated in FIG. 1. A UE 104 may be capable of communicating with various types of devices, such as the network entities 102, other UEs 104, or network equipment (e.g., the core network 106, the packet data network 108, a relay device, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, or another network equipment), as shown in FIG. 1. Additionally, or alternatively, a UE 104 may support communication with other network entities 102 or UEs 104, which may act as relays in the wireless communications system 100.

[0028] A UE 104 may also be able to support wireless communication directly with other UEs 104 over a communication link 114. For example, a UE 104 may support wireless communication directly with another UE 104 over a device-to-device (D2D) communication link. In some implementations, such as vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) deployments, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) deployments, or cellular-V2X deployments, the communication link 114 may be referred to as a sidelink. For example, a UE 104 may support wireless communication directly with another UE 104 over a PC5 interface.

[0029] A network entity 102 may support communications with the core network 106, or with another network entity 102, or both. For example, a network entity 102 may interface with the core network 106 through one or more backhaul links 116 (e.g., via an SI, N2, N2, or another network interface). The network entities 102 may communicate with each other over the backhaul links 116 (e.g., via an X2, Xn, or another network interface). In some implementations, the network entities 102 may communicate with each other directly (e.g., between the network entities 102). In some other implementations, the network entities 102 may communicate with each other or indirectly (e.g., via the core network 106). In some implementations, one or more network entities 102 may include subcomponents, such as an access network entity, which may be an example of an access node controller (ANC). An ANC may communicate with the one or more UEs 104 through one or more other access network transmission entities, which may be referred to as a radio heads, smart radio heads, or transmission-reception points (TRPs).

[0030] In some implementations, a network entity 102 may be configured in a disaggregated architecture, which may be configured to utilize a protocol stack physically or logically distributed among two or more network entities 102, such as an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open RAN (O-RAN) (e.g., a network configuration sponsored by the O-RAN Alliance), or a virtualized RAN (vRAN) (e.g., a cloud RAN (C-RAN)). For example, a network entity 102 may include one or more of a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a radio unit (RU), a RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) (e.g., a Near-Real Time RIC (Near-RT RIC), a Non-Real Time RIC (Non-RT RIC)), a Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) system, or any combination thereof. [0031] An RU may also be referred to as a radio head, a smart radio head, a remote radio head (RRH), a remote radio unit (RRU), or a transmission reception point (TRP). One or more components of the network entities 102 in a disaggregated RAN architecture may be co-located, or one or more components of the network entities 102 may be located in distributed locations (e.g., separate physical locations). In some implementations, one or more network entities 102 of a disaggregated RAN architecture may be implemented as virtual units (e.g., a virtual CU (VCU), a virtual DU (VDU), a virtual RU (VRU)).

[0032] Split of functionality between a CU, a DU, and an RU may be flexible and may support different functionalities depending upon which functions (e.g., network layer functions, protocol layer functions, baseband functions, radio frequency functions, and any combinations thereof) are performed at a CU, a DU, or an RU. For example, a functional split of a protocol stack may be employed between a CU and a DU such that the CU may support one or more layers of the protocol stack and the DU may support one or more different layers of the protocol stack. In some implementations, the CU may host upper protocol layer (e.g., a layer 3 (L3), a layer 2 (L2)) functionality and signaling (e.g., Radio Resource Control (RRC), service data adaption protocol (SDAP), Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP)). The CU may be connected to one or more DUs or RUs, and the one or more DUs or RUs may host lower protocol layers, such as a layer 1 (LI) (e.g., physical (PHY) layer) or an L2 (e.g., radio link control (RLC) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer) functionality and signaling, and may each be at least partially controlled by the CU.

[0033] Additionally, or alternatively, a functional split of the protocol stack may be employed between a DU and an RU such that the DU may support one or more layers of the protocol stack and the RU may support one or more different layers of the protocol stack. The DU may support one or multiple different cells (e.g., via one or more RUs). In some implementations, a functional split between a CU and a DU, or between a DU and an RU may be within a protocol layer (e.g., some functions for a protocol layer may be performed by one of a CU, a DU, or an RU, while other functions of the protocol layer are performed by a different one of the CU, the DU, or the RU).

[0034] A CU may be functionally split further into CU control plane (CU-CP) and CU user plane (CU-UP) functions. A CU may be connected to one or more DUs via a midhaul communication link (e.g., Fl, Fl-c, Fl-u), and a DU may be connected to one or more RUs via a fronthaul communication link (e.g., open fronthaul (FH) interface). In some implementations, a midhaul communication link or a fronthaul communication link may be implemented in accordance with an interface (e.g., a channel) between layers of a protocol stack supported by respective network entities 102 that are in communication via such communication links.

[0035] The core network 106 may support user authentication, access authorization, tracking, connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. The core network 106 may be an evolved packet core (EPC), or a 5G core (5GC), which may include a control plane entity that manages access and mobility (e.g., a mobility management entity (MME), an access and mobility management functions (AMF)) and a user plane entity that routes packets or interconnects to external networks (e.g., a serving gateway (S-GW), a Packet Data Network (PDN) gateway (P- GW), or a user plane function (UPF)). In some implementations, the control plane entity may manage non-access stratum (NAS) functions, such as mobility, authentication, and bearer management (e.g., data bearers, signal bearers, etc.) for the one or more UEs 104 served by the one or more network entities 102 associated with the core network 106.

[0036] The core network 106 may communicate with the packet data network 108 over one or more backhaul links 116 (e.g., via an SI, N2, N2, or another network interface). The packet data network 108 may include an application server 118. In some implementations, one or more UEs 104 may communicate with the application server 118. A UE 104 may establish a session (e.g., a protocol data unit (PDU) session, or the like) with the core network 106 via a network entity 102. The core network 106 may route traffic (e.g., control information, data, and the like) between the UE 104 and the application server 118 using the established session (e.g., the established PDU session). The PDU session may be an example of a logical connection between the UE 104 and the core network 106 (e.g., one or more network functions of the core network 106).

[0037] In the wireless communications system 100, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may use resources of the wireless communication system 100 (e.g., time resources (e.g., symbols, slots, subframes, frames, or the like) or frequency resources (e.g., subcarriers, carriers) to perform various operations (e.g., wireless communications). In some implementations, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support different resource structures. For example, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support different frame structures. In some implementations, such as in 4G, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support a single frame structure. In some other implementations, such as in 5G and among other suitable radio access technologies, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support various frame structures (i.e., multiple frame structures). The network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support various frame structures based on one or more numerologies.

[0038] One or more numerologies may be supported in the wireless communications system 100, and a numerology may include a subcarrier spacing and a cyclic prefix. A first numerology (e.g., /r=0) may be associated with a first subcarrier spacing (e.g., 15 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix. The first numerology (e.g., /r=0) associated with the first subcarrier spacing (e.g., 15 kHz) may utilize one slot per subframe. A second numerology (e.g., /r=l) may be associated with a second subcarrier spacing (e.g., 30 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix. A third numerology (e.g., /r=2) may be associated with a third subcarrier spacing (e.g., 60 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix or an extended cyclic prefix. A fourth numerology (e.g., /r=3) may be associated with a fourth subcarrier spacing (e.g., 120 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix. A fifth numerology (e.g., /r=4) may be associated with a fifth subcarrier spacing (e.g., 240 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix.

[0039] A time interval of a resource (e.g., a communication resource) may be organized according to frames (also referred to as radio frames). Each frame may have a duration, for example, a 10 millisecond (ms) duration. In some implementations, each frame may include multiple subframes. For example, each frame may include 10 subframes, and each subframe may have a duration, for example, a 1 ms duration. In some implementations, each frame may have the same duration. In some implementations, each subframe of a frame may have the same duration.

[0040] Additionally or alternatively, a time interval of a resource (e.g., a communication resource) may be organized according to slots. For example, a subframe may include a number (e.g., quantity) of slots. Each slot may include a number (e.g., quantity) of symbols (e.g., orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols). In some implementations, the number (e.g., quantity) of slots for a subframe may depend on a numerology. For a normal cyclic prefix, a slot may include 14 symbols. For an extended cyclic prefix (e.g., applicable for 60 kHz subcarrier spacing), a slot may include 12 symbols. The relationship between the number of symbols per slot, the number of slots per subframe, and the number of slots per frame for a normal cyclic prefix and an extended cyclic prefix may depend on a numerology. It should be understood that reference to a first numerology (e.g., /r=0) associated with a first subcarrier spacing (e.g., 15 kHz) may be used interchangeably between subframes and slots.

[0041] In the wireless communications system 100, an electromagnetic (EM) spectrum may be split, based on frequency or wavelength, into various classes, frequency bands, frequency channels, etc. By way of example, the wireless communications system 100 may support one or multiple operating frequency bands, such as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz - 7.125 GHz), FR2 (24.25 GHz - 52.6 GHz), FR3 (7.125 GHz - 24.25 GHz), FR4 (52.6 GHz - 114.25 GHz), FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz - 71 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz - 300 GHz). In some implementations, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may perform wireless communications over one or more of the operating frequency bands. In some implementations, FR1 may be used by the network entities 102 and the UEs 104, among other equipment or devices for cellular communications traffic (e.g., control information, data). In some implementations, FR2 may be used by the network entities 102 and the UEs 104, among other equipment or devices for short- range, high data rate capabilities.

[0042] FR1 may be associated with one or multiple numerologies (e.g., at least three numerologies). For example, FR1 may be associated with a first numerology (e.g., /r=0), which includes 15 kHz subcarrier spacing; a second numerology (e.g., /r=l), which includes 30 kHz subcarrier spacing; and a third numerology (e.g., /r=2), which includes 60 kHz subcarrier spacing. FR2 may be associated with one or multiple numerologies (e.g., at least 2 numerologies). For example, FR2 may be associated with a third numerology (e.g., /r=2), which includes 60 kHz subcarrier spacing; and a fourth numerology (e.g., /r=3), which includes 120 kHz subcarrier spacing.

[0043] The network entity 102 transmits configuration information 120 to a UE 104, such as a RedCap device. The configuration information 120 describes how the UE 104 is to perform a wideband PRS measurement based on multiple sub-bands. The configuration information 102 includes any of various different information, such as an indication of the multiple PRS sub-bands, a frequency hopping pattern (e.g., intra-slot and/or inter-slot frequency hopping), beam information, a muting pattern for the UE 104 to mute various PRS signals (e.g., mute at least one of the PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each PRS hopping occasion, and repetition of the PRS frequency hopping), and so forth. A sub-band refers to a portion of the frequency band used by the UE 104. For example, if the UE 104 has 20 MHz of bandwidth, there may be 4 sub-bands within that 20 MHz of bandwidth each having approximately 5 MHz of bandwidth. The frequency hopping pattern is an indication of which sub-bands to use for the PRS signals, including intra-slot and/or inter-slot sub-bands, repetition across slots, and so forth.

[0044] The UE 104 receives PRS signals 122 from the network entity 102 and includes a wideband PRS measurement module 124 that performs a wideband PRS measurement by combining the PRS signals received on the multiple sub-bands based on the configuration information 120. The wideband PRS measurement 126 is transmitted to the network entity 102 to be used to determine a location of the UE 104. The location of the UE 104 may be determined by various entities, such as an LMF in the core network 106. Additionally or alternatively, the location of the UE 104 is determined by other devices or functions in the core network 106, in the network entity 102, in the UE 104, and so forth.

[0045] Positioning improvement for NR RedCap devices is being studied. The RedCap defined in NR Release 17 defines reduced capability NR devices from Release 16 to serve the need of different use cases such as wearables, video surveillance, etc. The lower cost of the RedCap devices is attributed to the small form factors of the devices, which include a reduced number of receive (Rx) antennas, RF chains, half duplex etc., while the power saving for RedCap devices is achieved using reduced PDCCH monitoring occasions, bandwidth reduction, multiple-input/multiple-output (MIMO) layers, modulation order, etc. Table 1 is a summary of the comparative characteristics between Release 16 (e.g., enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB)) and Release 17 (e.g., RedCap) devices.

[0046] Table 1 : Characteristics of Rel-16 eMBB and Rel- 17 RedCap devices

[0047] As shown in Table 1 , the key features to reduce the overall complexity of the UE 104 include the reduction in bandwidth and UE Rx/Tx antennas, relaxed modulation order and halfduplex FDD operation.

[0048] The positioning accuracy degrades with reduced bandwidth due to the RedCap devices bandwidth limitations, one of the improvements is to introduce PRS frequency hopping in different sub-bands and coherently combining the sub-bands to obtain wideband measurement. Coherent combining works by combining signals having same frequency, phase offset/constant phase offset, precoder or a combination thereof, however non-coherent combining means random phase offset, different precoder or a combination thereof, which may weaken the combined signal if not compensated before signal combining.

[0049] The method and configuration used to combine different PRS sub-bands coherently is discussed herein.

[0050] The DL-PRS configuration contains PRS resource, resource set, frequency layer, repetition, beam info, etc. There can be at most 4 frequency layers and each frequency layer has at most 64 transmission-reception points (TRPs). Each TRP per frequency layer can have 2 DL-PRS Resource sets thus resulting in a total of 8 resource sets per TRP and each resource set can have up to 64 resources. Each resource corresponds to a beam. Having 2 different resource sets per frequency layer per TRP allows the network entity 102 to configure one set of wide beams and another set of narrow beams for each frequency layer.

[0051] The PRS footprint on the time frequency grid is configurable with a starting physical resource block (PRB) and a PRS bandwidth. The PRS may start at any PRB in the system bandwidth and can be configured with a bandwidth ranging from 24 to 276 PRBs in steps of 4 PRBs. This amounts to a maximum bandwidth of about 100 MHz for 30 kilohertz (kHz) subcarrier spacing and to about 400 MHz for 120 kHz subcarrier spacing. The flexible bandwidth configuration allows the network to configure the PRS while keeping out of band emissions to an acceptable level. The large bandwidth allows a very significant improvement in time-of-arrival (TOA) accuracy compared to LTE.

[0052] The PRS can be transmitted in beams. A PRS beam is referred to as a PRS resource while the full set of PRS beams transmitted from a TRP on the same frequency is referred to as a PRS resource set as illustrated in Fig. 2 discussed below. The different beams can be time- multiplexed across symbols or slots. To assist UE receive (RX) beamforming, the DL PRS can be configured to be quasi-co-located (QCL) Type D with a DL reference signal from a serving or neighboring cell, signaling that the same RX beam used by the UE 104 to receive said reference signal can be used to receive the configured PRS. The beam structure of the PRS improves coverage especially for millimeter (mm)- wave deployments and also allows for AoD estimation, e.g., the UE 104 may measure DL PRS reference signal time difference (RSTD) per beam and report the measured RSTD including DL PRS Resource id (beam id) to the LMF.

[0053] In order to improve positioning accuracy, more measurements can be collected. Measurements are collected per resource. Hence, repeated transmission of PRS resources helps to collect more measurements. Measurements can be collected per resource. The repetition of resources can be done in two ways, repeat before sweep and sweep before repeat. The amount and type of repetition can be configured with parameters for configuring the gaps between resources (TPRSgap) and the number of resource repetition (TPRSrep) within a period of resource set (TPRSper). The DL PRS resources can be repeated up to 32 times within a resource set period, either in consecutive slots or with a configurable gap between repetitions. The resource set period in FR1 ranges from 4 to 10,240 milli-seconds . [0054] The DL PRS is designed to allow the UE 104 to perform accurate TOA measurements in presence of interfering DL PRSs from nearby TRPs. Each symbol of the DL PRS has a combstructure in frequency, i.e., the PRS utilizes every Nth subcarrier. The comb value N can be configured to be 2, 4, 6 or 12. The length of the PRS within one slot is a multiple of N symbols and the position of the first symbol within a slot is flexible as long as the slot consists of at least N PRS symbols. It allows accumulation of contiguous sub-carriers across a slot which improves correlation properties for TOA estimation. The resource element pattern can be shifted in frequency with a frequency offset of 0 to N-l subcarriers thus allowing N orthogonal DL PRSs utilizing the same symbols. All configurable patterns cover every subcarriers in the configured bandwidth over the pattern duration which give maximum measurement range for the TOA measurement in scenarios with large delay spreads. The DL-PRS is quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) modulated by a standardized 31 -bit Goldcode sequence initialized based on a DL PRS sequence ID taking values from 0 to 4095.

[0055] Besides a comb structure allowing multiplexing of multiple TRPs in a slot, muting of signals can also be used as a way to mitigate interference. Muting can be used either at the repetition level, where each repetition can be individually muted within a periodic occasion, or at the occasion level, where the whole periodic DL PRS occasion(including all repetitions) can be muted.

[0056] The supported positioning techniques in Release 16 are listed in Table 2.

[0057] Table 2: Supported Rel-16 UE positioning methods

[0058] Separate positioning techniques as indicated in Table 2 can be currently configured and performed based on the requirements of the LMF and UE 104 capabilities. The transmission of PRS enable the UE 104 to perform UE positioning-related measurements to enable the computation of a UE’s location estimate and are configured per TRP, where a TRP may transmit one or more beams.

[0059] In one or more implementations, the following RAT-dependent positioning techniques are supported.

[0060] Downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDoA). The DL-TDoA positioning method makes use of the downlink reference signal time difference (DL RSTD) (and optionally DL PRS reference signal received power (RSRP)) of downlink signals received from multiple TPs, at the UE 104. The UE 104 measures the DL RSTD (and optionally DL PRS RSRP) of the received signals using assistance data received from the positioning server, and the resulting measurements are used along with other configuration information to locate the UE in relation to the neighboring TPs. [0061] Downlink angle-of-departure (DL-AoD). The DL AoD positioning method makes use of the measured DL PRS RSRP of downlink signals received from multiple TPs, at the UE. The UE measures the DL PRS RSRP of the received signals using assistance data received from the positioning server, and the resulting measurements are used along with other configuration information to locate the UE in relation to the neighboring TPs.

[0062] Multi-round trip time (multi-RTT). The Multi -RTT positioning method makes use of the UE Rx-Tx measurements and DL PRS RSRP of downlink signals received from multiple TRPs, measured by the UE and the measured gNB Rx-Tx measurements and UL SRS-RSRP at multiple TRPs of uplink signals transmitted from UE.

[0063] The UE 104 measures the UE Rx-Tx measurements (and optionally DL PRS RSRP of the received signals) using assistance data received from the positioning server, and the TRPs measure the gNB Rx-Tx measurements (and optionally UL SRS-RSRP of the received signals) using assistance data received from the positioning server. The measurements are used to determine the RTT at the positioning server which are used to estimate the location of the UE.

[0064] Enhanced cell ID (E-CID)ZNR E-CID. With the E-CID positioning method, the position of a UE is estimated with the knowledge of its serving ng-eNB, gNB and cell and is based on LTE signals. The information about the serving ng-eNB, gNB and cell may be obtained by paging, registration, or other methods. The NR E-CID positioning refers to techniques which use additional UE measurements and/or NR radio resource and other measurements to improve the UE location estimate using NR signals.

[0065] Although NR E-CID positioning may utilize some of the same measurements as the measurement control system in the RRC protocol, the UE 104 generally is not expected to make additional measurements for the sole purpose of positioning; i.e., the positioning procedures do not supply a measurement configuration or measurement control message, and the UE reports the measurements that it has available rather than being required to take additional measurement actions.

[0066] Uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDoA). The UL TDOA positioning method makes use of the UL TDOA (and optionally UL SRS-RSRP) at multiple RPs of uplink signals transmitted from the UE. The RPs measure the UL TDOA (and optionally UL SRS-RSRP) of the received signals using assistance data received from the positioning server, and the resulting measurements are used along with other configuration information to estimate the location of the UE.

[0067] Uplink angle of arrival (UL-AoA). The UL AoA positioning method makes use of the measured azimuth and the zenith of arrival at multiple RPs of uplink signals transmitted from UE. The RPs measure A- AoA and Z-AoA of the received signals using assistance data received from the positioning server, and the resulting measurements are used along with other configuration information to estimate the location of the UE.

[0068] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a system 200 of NR beam-based positioning as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The system 200 illustrates a UE 104 and networks entities 102 (e.g., gNB). The PRS can be transmitted by different base stations (serving and neighboring) using narrow beams over FR1 and FR2 as illustrated in the system 200, which is relatively different when compared to LTE where the PRS was transmitted across the whole cell. The PRS can be locally associated with a PRS Resource ID and Resource Set ID for a base station (TRP). Similarly, UE positioning measurements such as RSTD and PRS RSRP measurements are made between beams as opposed to different cells as was the case in LTE. In addition, there are additional UL positioning methods for the network to exploit in order to compute the target UE’s location. Table 3 and Table 4 below show the reference signal to measurements mapping for each of the supported RAT-dependent positioning techniques at the UE and gNB, respectively. RAT- dependent positioning techniques involve the 3 GPP RAT and core network entities to perform the position estimation of the UE, which are differentiated from RAT-independent positioning techniques which rely on global navigation satellite system (GNSS), inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor, WLAN and Bluetooth technologies for performing target device (UE) positioning.

[0069] Table 3: UE measurements to enable RAT-dependent positioning techniques.

[0070] Table 4: gNB measurements to enable RAT-dependent positioning techniques. [0071] In aspects of this disclosure, a DL PRS Resource ID in a DL PRS Resource set is associated with a single beam transmitted from a single TRP (A TRP may transmit one or more beams) is taken into consideration.

[0072] In aspects of this disclosure, DL PRS occasion is one instance of periodically repeated time windows (consecutive slot(s)) where DL PRS is expected to be transmitted is taken into consideration.

[0073] In aspects of this disclosure, with regards to QCL relations beyond Type-D of a DL PRS resource, support one or more of the following options is taken into consideration. Option 1 : QCL- TypeC from an SSB from a TRP. Option 2: QCL-TypeC from a DL PRS resource from a TRP. Option 3: QCL-TypeA from a DL PRS resource from TRP. Option 4: QCL-TypeC from a CSLRS resource from a TRP, e.g., CSI-RS for CSI, CSI-RS for beam management (BM), CSLRS for tracking reference signal (TRS), CSI-RS for radio link monitoring (RLM), CSI-RS for RRM.

Option 5: QCL-TypeA from a CSI-RS resource from a TRP, e g., CSI-RS for CSI, CSI-RS for BM, CSI-RS for TRS, CSI-RS for RLM, CSI-RS for RRM. Option 6: No QCL relation beyond Type-D is supported. Note that QCL-TypeA: Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, delay spread; QCL-TypeB: Doppler shift, Doppler spread'; QCL-TypeC: Average delay, Doppler shift; and QCL- TypeD: Spatial Rx parameter

[0074] In aspects of this disclosure, for a DL PRS resource, QCL-TypeC from an SSB from a TRP is supported is taken into consideration.

[0075] In aspects of this disclosure, an ID is defined that can be associated with multiple DL PRS Resource Sets associated with a single TRP is taken into consideration. An ID is defined that can be associated with multiple DL PRS Resource Sets associated with a single TRP. This ID can be used along with a DL PRS Resource Set ID and a DL PRS Resources ID to uniquely identify a DL PRS Resource. Name can be defined by RAN2. Each TRP should only be associated with one such ID.

[0076] In aspects of this disclosure, DL PRS Resource IDs are locally defined within DL PRS Resource Set is taken into consideration.

[0077] In aspects of this disclosure, DL PRS Resource Set IDs are locally defined within TRP is taken into consideration. [0078] In aspects of this disclosure, the time duration spanned by one DL PRS Resource set containing repeated DL PRS Resources should not exceed DL-PRS -Periodicity is taken into consideration. Parameter DL-PRS-ResourceRepetitionF actor is configured for a DL PRS Resource Set and controls how many times each DL-PRS Resource is repeated for a single instance of the DL-PRS Resource Set. E.g., values: 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 16, 32.

[0079] In aspects of this disclosure, discussion on mapping of positioning techniques to reference signals and measurements is out of RANI scope and therefore RANI does not intend to define such mapping is taken into consideration. It is RANI understanding that RAN2 will define signaling that can support any RAT dependent positioning technique including hybrid RAT dependent positioning solutions.

[0080] In aspects of this disclosure, related to NR positioning, a “positioning frequency layer” is a collection of DL PRS Resource Sets across one or more TRPs which have the same subcarrier spacing (SCS) and CP type, the same center frequency, the same point- A, all DL PRS Resources of the DL PRS Resource Set have the same bandwidth, all DL PRS Resource Sets belonging to the same Positioning Frequency Layer have the same value of DL PRS Bandwidth and Start PRB is taken into consideration.

[0081] In aspects of this disclosure, duration of DL PRS symbols in units of ms a UE can process every T ms assuming 272 PRB allocation is a UE capability is taken into consideration.

[0082] In one or more implementations, UE measurements have been defined, which are applicable to DL-based positioning techniques. For a conceptual overview of the current implementation in Rel-16, the assistance data configurations (e.g., discussed with reference to FIG.

3 below) and measurement information (e.g., discussed with reference to FIG. 4 below) are provided for each of the supported positioning techniques.

[0083] FIG. 3 illustrates an example 300 of a provide assistance data NR-DL-TDOA- ProvideAssistanceData) information element (IE) as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands, as described herein. The NR-DL- TDOA-ProvideAssistanceData IE is used by the location server to provide assistance data to enable UE-assisted and UE-based NR downlink TDOA. It may also be used to provide NR DL TDOA positioning specific error reason. [0084] FIG. 4 illustrates an example 400 of measurement report NR-DL-TDOA- SignalMeasurementlnformation) IE as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands, as described herein. The NR-DL-TDOA- SignalMeasurementlnformation IE is used by the target device to provide NR-DL TDOA measurements to the location server. The measurements are provided as a list of TRPs, where the first TRP in the list is used as reference TRP in case RSTD measurements are reported. The first TRP in the list may or may not be the reference TRP indicated in the NR-DL-PRS-AssistanceData. Furthermore, the target device selects a reference resource per TRP, and compiles the measurements per TRP based on the selected reference resource.

[0085] FIGs. 5A, 5B, and 5C illustrate an example 500 of DL PRS configuration (NR-DL-PRS- Info) IE as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands, as described herein. The NR-DL-PRS-Info IE defines downlink PRS configuration.

[0086] In the example 500, the conditional presence Rep indicates the field is mandatory present, if dl-PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor is present. Otherwise it is not present. The conditional presence NotSameAsPrev indicates the field is mandatory present for the first element in DL-PRS- ResourcePrioritySubset and optionally present, need OP, for each additional element in DL-PRS- ResourcePrioritySubset. If this field is absent, the nr-DL-PRS-PrioResourceSetID is the same as the previous nr-DL-PRS-PrioResourceSetID in DL-PRS-ResourcePrioritySubset.

[0087] The following is a list of the NR-DL-PRS-Info field descriptions.

[0088] The nr-DL-PRS-ResourceSetID field specifies the DL-PRS Resource Set ID, which is used to identify the DL-PRS Resource Set of the TRP across all the frequency layers.

[0089] The dl-PRS-Periodicity-and-ResourceSetSlotOffset field specifies the periodicity of DL- PRS allocation in slots configured per DL-PRS Resource Set and the slot offset with respect to system frame number (SFN) #0 slot #0 for a TRP where the DL-PRS Resource Set is configured (i.e. slot where the first DL-PRS Resource of DL-PRS Resource Set occurs).

[0090] The dl-PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor field specifies how many times each DL-PRS Resource is repeated for a single instance of the DL-PRS Resource Set. It is applied to all resources of the DL-PRS Resource Set. Enumerated values n2, n4, n6, n8, nI6, n32 correspond to 2, 4, 6, 8, 16, 32 resource repetitions, respectively. If this field is absent, the value for dl-PRS- ResourceRepetitionFactor is 1 (i.e., no resource repetition).

[0091] The dl-PRS-ResourceTimeGap field specifies the offset in units of slots between two repeated instances of a DL-PRS Resource corresponding to the same DL-PRS Resource ID within a single instance of the DL-PRS Resource Set. The time duration spanned by one DL-PRS Resource Set containing repeated DL-PRS Resources should not exceed DL-PRS-Periodicity.

[0092] The dl-PRS-NumSymbols field specifies the number of symbols per DL-PRS Resource within a slot.

[0093] The dl-PRS-MutingOptionl field specifies the DL-PRS muting configuration of the TRP for the Option-1 muting, as specified in 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Technical Specification (TS) 38.214, and comprises the dl-prs-MutingBitRepetitionFactor and nr-optionl- muting sub-fields. The dl-prs-MutingBitRepetitionFactor sub-field indicates the number of consecutive instances of the DL-PRS Resource Set corresponding to a single bit of the nr-optionl- muting bit map. Enumerated values nl, n2, n4, n8 correspond to 1, 2, 4, 8 consecutive instances, respectively. If this sub-field is absent, the value for dl-prs-MutingBitRepetitionFactor is nl. The nr-optionl -muting sub-field defines a bitmap of the time locations where the DL-PRS Resource is transmitted (value ' 1 ') or not (value '0') for a DL-PRS Resource Set, as specified in 3GPP TS 38.214. If this field is absent, Option-1 muting is not in use for the TRP.

[0094] The dl-PRS-MutingOption2 field specifies the DL-PRS muting configuration of the TRP for the Option-2 muting, as specified in 3GPP TS 38.214, and comprises the following nr-option2- muting sub-field. The nr-option2-muting sub-field defines a bitmap of the time locations where the DL-PRS Resource is transmitted (value T') or not (value '0'). Each bit of the bitmap corresponds to a single repetition of the DL-PRS Resource within an instance of a DL-PRS Resource Set, as specified in 3GPP TS 38.214. The size of this bitmap should be the same as the value for dl-PRS- ResourceRepetitionFactor. If this field is absent, Option-2 muting is not in use for the TRP.

[0095] The dl-PRS-ResourcePower field specifies the average energy per resource element (EPRE) of the resources elements that carry the PRS in dBm that is used for PRS transmission. The UE assumes constant EPRE is used for all REs of a given DL-PRS resource. [0096] The dl-PRS-SequencelD field specifies the sequence Id used to initialize Cinit value used in a pseudo random generator for generation of DL-PRS sequence for transmission on a given DL- PRS Resource.

[0097] The dl-PRS-CombSizeN-AndReOffset field specifies the Resource Element (RD) spacing in each symbol of the DL-PRS Resource and the RE offset in the frequency domain for the first symbol in a DL-PRS Resource. All DL-PRS Resource Sets belonging to the same Positioning Lrequency Layer have the same value of comb size. The relative RE offsets of following symbols are defined relative to the RE Offset in the frequency domain of the first symbol in the DL-PRS Resource according to 3 GPP TS 38.211. The comb size configuration should be aligned with the comb size configuration for the frequency layer.

[0098] The dl-PRS-ResourceSlotOffset field specifies the starting slot of the DL-PRS Resource with respect to the corresponding DL-PRS-Resource Set Slot Offset.

[0099] The dl-PRS-ResourceSymbolOffset field specifies the starting symbol of the DL-PRS Resource within a slot determined by dl-PRS-ResourceSlotOffset.

[0100] The dl-PRS-QCL-Info field specifies the QCL indication with other DL reference signals for serving and neighboring cells and comprises the ssb and dl-PRS subfields. The ssb subfield indicates the SSB information for QCL source and comprises the pci, ssb-Index, and rs-Type subfields. The pci sub-field specifies the physical cell ID of the cell with the SSB that is configured as the source reference signal for the DL-PRS. The UE obtains the SSB configuration for the SSB configured as source reference signal for the DL-PRS by indexing to the field nr-SSB-Config with this physical cell identity. The ssb-Index sub-field indicates the index for the SSB configured as the source reference signal for the DL-PRS. The rs-Type sub-field indicates the QCL type. The dl-PRS subfield indicates the PRS information for QCL source reference signal and comprises the qcl-DL- PRS-ResourcelD and qcl-DL-PRS-ResourceSetID sub-fields. The qcl-DL-PRS-ResourcelD subfield specifies DL-PRS Resource ID of the DL-PRS resource used as the source reference signal. The qcl-DL-PRS-ResourceSetID sub-field indicates the DL-PRS Resource Set ID of the DL-PRS Resource Set used as the source reference signal.

[0101] The dl-PRS-ResourcePrioritySubset field provides a subset of DL-PRS Resources, which is associated with nr-DL-PRS-ResourcelD for the purpose of prioritization of DL-AoD reporting. For each nr-DL-PRS-ResourcelD the dl-PRS-ResourcePrioritySubset indicates the associated DL-PRS Resources the target device should prioritize for DL-PRS RSRP and DL-PRS First Path RSRP measurement reporting in IE NR-DL-AoD-SignalMeasurementlnformation.

[0102] The techniques described herein discuss the configuration to create PRS sub-bands within the positioning frequency layer to perform intra-slot or inter-slot PRS frequency hopping, muting pattern and assistance information containing beam id enabling coherently combining PRS sub-bands across PRS hops to enable wideband PRS measurements to assist NR RedCap device positioning.

[0103] The UE 104 is configured with multiple PRS sub-bands to receive PRS frequency hopping and configured to coherently aggregate from PRS sub-bands to perform PRS wideband signal measurements. The UE 104 is configured with a beam occasion, e.g., QCL-D assumption, to receive PRS hopping from multiple sub-bands to perform wideband signal measurement. The PRS sub-bands, muting pattern containing muting of sub-bands/frequency hopping occasion or a combination thereof, and so forth, may be configured as part of the PRS resource, PRS resource set, positioning frequency layer or a combination thereof.

[0104] In one or more implementations, the UE 104 (e.g., a RedCap device) may be configured with multiple PRS resources for intra/inter slot PRS frequency hopping and an assistance information such as beam information helping to coherently combine PRS signals from multiple PRS resources across multiple intra-slot or inter-slot PRS frequency hops. The coherent combining allows the UE 104 to combine multiple PRS resources from different hops configured with the same beam occasion (e.g., QCL-D assumption). The TxD gains allows the UE 104 to combine multiple PRS resources from different hops received using different beam occasions (e.g., QCL-D assumption) by using non-coherent combining methods.

[0105] The PRS resource, the PRS resource set, the positioning frequency layer, or a combination thereof may be configured with at least one of multiple PRS frequency hopping subbands containing a number of sub-bands, a frequency hopping bandwidth, a start resource block (RB) index of each sub-band, a frequency domain resource of each sub-band, a frequency hopping interval, a frequency hopping periodicity, a frequency hopping pattern, a beam occasion (e.g., QCL- D assumption) corresponding to the frequency hopping reception or frequency hopping pattern, a number of overlapping frequencies between sub-bands, a threshold phase offset to be used for coherent combining, a muting pattern containing muting of sub-bands or frequency hopping occasion, and so forth.

[0106] In one or more implementations, frequency hopping sub-bands are configured within a resource set.

[0107] The RedCap UE specified in Release 17 supports limited bandwidth, e.g., 20MHz for FR1 and 100MHz for FR2, may be configured for PRS frequency hopping. In one or more implementations, multiple frequency sub-bands may be configured within each resource set to enable PRS frequency hopping across multiple configured frequency sub-bands. The UE 104 may be configured to receive PRS hops across different PRS frequency sub-bands using the repetition factor so that the UE 104 may receive enough measurement across different PRS hops within configured repetition factor using the same beam. The same frequency hopping pattern may be applied within the repetition depending on the length of the PRS symbol.

[0108] FIG. 6 illustrates an example of intra-slot frequency hopping and coherent combining as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple subbands, as described herein. As illustrated by the graph 600, a bandwidth for a UE 104 (e.g., a RedCap device) is 20 MHz. Within each slot, four sub-bands (e.g., of approximately 5 MHz each) are created or used. The first slot is illustrated with 4 sub-bands (each with a different type of fill pattern) and a second slot is illustrated with 4 sub-bands (each with a different type of fill pattern). The PRS signals are transmitted within these sub-bands. As the PRS signals are transmitted on different frequency resources (e.g., different sub-bands), the PRS signal is considered to be hopping.

[0109] In the example graph 600, if the PRS symbol length is 2, the repetition factor is 7, the PRS sub-bands is 4, then intra-slot PRS frame hopping is performed where the PRS transmission may be hopped across 4 different PRS sub-bands within the slot for each repetition and then frame hopping terminates at the end of the slot. In such case, the hopping pattern may depend on the number of sub-bands, and the repetition factor which maybe provided to UEs using dedicated signaling. [0110] Additionally or alternatively, when PRS symbol length is 2, repetition is 14, PRS subband is 2 then both intra-slot and inter slot PRS hopping may be applied where in one option the frequency hopping pattern may be applied for intra-slot is repeated across slots until the end of the repetition.

[0111] Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern determines a hopping pattern consisting of different PRS sub-bands and the repetition factor determines a number of times DL PRS is transmitted in each of those PRS sub-bands within the hopping period.

[0112] Additionally or alternatively, the UE 104 may be configured to receive ‘N’ repetitions within each sub-band so as to accumulate enough PRS measurements, then moves to the next subband and so on.

[0113] Additionally or alternatively, the UE 104 may be configured with a PRS hopping occasion within which each frequency hopping is performed according to the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap in terms of slots or symbols may define the gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions.

[0114] FIG. 7 illustrates an example of beam configuration for PRS frequency hopping as related to performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple subbands, as described herein. The graph 700 illustrates frequency hopping within the same beam and the graph 702 illustrates frequency hopping within two different beams. As illustrated in graphs 700 and 702, a bandwidth for a UE 104 (e.g., a RedCap device) is 20 MHz. Within each slot, four subbands (e.g., of approximately 5 MHz each) are created or used. In the graph 700 the first slot is illustrated with 4 sub-bands (each with a different type of fill pattern) and a second slot, transmitted on the same beam, is illustrated with 4 sub-bands (each with a different type of fill pattern). In the graph 702 the first slot is illustrated with 4 sub-bands (each with a different type of fill pattern) and a second slot, transmitted on a different beam, is illustrated with 4 sub-bands (each with a different type of fill pattern). The PRS signals are transmitted within these sub-bands. As the PRS signals are transmitted on different frequency resources (e.g., different sub-bands), the PRS signal is considered to be hopping.

[0115] For example, the UE 104 may be provided with a PRS resource containing a PRS hopping pattern and a repetition containing the beam information using any of the options discussed above. In one example, the PRS hopping pattern may be provided with one or more beam occasions containing QCL-D assumptions helping the UE 104 to receive such PRS resource hops using the same beam or different beams then coherently combine (e.g., in the graph 700) the PRS signal from different hops to do a wideband PRS measurement or non-coherently combine (e.g., in the graph 702) the PRS signal.

[0116] Additionally or alternatively, a measurement window may be configured to receive PRS hops from different sub-bands to do a wideband PRS measurement where the frequency hopping pattern starts and ends within this measurement window.

[0117] Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping and beam occasion may be configured together with repeat and sweep where the same frequency hopping pattern with the same beam occasion may be applied and next beam is applied for the next frequency hopping occasion as shown in graph 702.

[0118] Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping may be configured for each PRS resource containing beam and repetition. Frequency hopping repetition factor determines a number of repetitions of the PRS frequency hopping occasions within the PRS frequency hopping period.

[0119] Additionally or alternatively, the frequency hopping pattern may be configured with sweep and repeat where PRS signal from the same PRS sub-band using different beams may be combined non-coherently until the end of a sweeping period or configured beam occasion and after that the PRS resource is hopped to different PRS sub-bands as part of repeating after sweeping and then so on.

[0120] Additionally or alternatively, a time gap between consecutive PRS hopping sub-bands and/or a time gap between consecutive beam occasions may be defined to retune the center frequency to receive PRS otherwise to switch the receive beam to receive PRS from different beams respectively.

[0121] Additionally or alternatively, a muting pattern may be configured to mute the PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each occasion, repetition of the PRS frequency hopping, or a combination thereof. [0122] Additionally or alternatively, the overlapping factor may be the same for multiple PRS sub-bands providing overlapping in a number of PRBs between PRS sub-bands, otherwise overlapping may be configured separately for PRS sub-bands.

[0123] In one or more implementations, frequency hopping sub-bands are configured across resource sets within the same frequency layer. The UE 104 may be configured with multiple PRS sub-bands and then a frequency hopping pattern across PRS resource sets by mapping frequency hopping to multiple resource sets within the same frequency layer. Also, one or more beam occasions may be configured to receive and combine PRS signal from multiple hops coherently and/or non-coherently.

[0124] A time gap may be configured which defines a gap between consecutive PRS hopping sub-bands and/or a time gap between consecutive beam occasions may be defined to retune the center frequency to receive PRS, otherwise to switch the receive beam to receive PRS from different beams respectively.

[0125] For example, multiple PRS sub-bands of bandwidth 40 MHz may be configured within an eMBB positioning frequency layer bandwidth of 100 MHz while each PRS sub-band may be treated as a PRS resource set and frequency hopping maybe configured across resource sets.

[0126] In one or more implementations, frequency hopping sub-bands are configured across resource sets and across different frequency layers. The UE 104 may be configured with multiple PRS sub-bands and then a frequency hopping pattern across PRS resource sets by mapping frequency hopping to multiple resource sets across frequency layers. For example, multiple PRS sub-bands of bandwidth 40 MHz may be configured across multiple positioning frequency layers while each PRS sub-band maybe treated as a PRS resource set and frequency hopping may be configured across resource set. In one or more implementations, the frequency hopping and the PRS sub-band configuration described herein may also be applicable for sidelink positioning where multiple PRS sub-bands may be configured within a resource pool or sidelink bandwidth part (BWP) or sidelink (SL) frequency layer depending on the hierarchical SL PRS resource relationship and the SL PRS frequency hopping may be configured using multiple SL PRS sub-bands from one or more resource pools. The transmitter UE may signal the PRS sub-band combination to be aggregated by the receiver UE from one or more resource pool using the sidelink control information to aid wideband PRS measurement at the receiver UE. In one example, each sub-band may be provided with an index and the bitmap of such index may be signaled in the sidelink control information (SCI) as part of coherent combining. The set of frequency hopping pattern may be configured as part of the resource pool and the index of the hopping pattern may be signaled in the SCI to the receiver UE.

[0127] FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a block diagram 800 of a device 802 that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The device 802 may be an example of a UE 104 as described herein. The device 802 may support wireless communication with one or more network entities 102, UEs 104, or any combination thereof. The device 802 may include components for bidirectional communications including components for transmitting and receiving communications, such as a processor 804, a memory 806, a transceiver 808, and an I/O controller 810. These components may be in electronic communication or otherwise coupled (e.g., operatively, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically) via one or more interfaces (e.g., buses).

[0128] The processor 804, the memory 806, the transceiver 808, or various combinations thereof or various components thereof may be examples of means for performing various aspects of the present disclosure as described herein. For example, the processor 804, the memory 806, the transceiver 808, or various combinations or components thereof may support a method for performing one or more of the operations described herein.

[0129] In some implementations, the processor 804, the memory 806, the transceiver 808, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in hardware (e.g., in communications management circuitry). The hardware may include a processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof configured as or otherwise supporting a means for performing the functions described in the present disclosure. In some implementations, the processor 804 and the memory 806 coupled with the processor 804 may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (e.g., executing, by the processor 804, instructions stored in the memory 806). [0130] For example, the processor 804 may support wireless communication at the device 802 in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. Processor 804 may be configured as or otherwise support to receive, from a network entity, configuration information identifying multiple PRS subbands and a frequency hopping pattern; perform a wideband PRS measurement by combining PRS signals received on the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern; and transmit, to a location management function, the wideband PRS measurement.

[0131] Additionally or alternatively, the processor 804 may be configured to or otherwise support: where the frequency hopping pattern comprises an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern; where the frequency hopping pattern comprises both an inter-slot frequency hopping pattern and an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern; where the configuration information includes beam information identifying one or more beams and processor is further configured to perform wideband PRS measurement by coherently combining the multiple PRS sub-bands using a same beam; where the configuration information includes a muting pattern and the processor is further configured to mute, based on the muting pattern, at least one of a PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each PRS hopping occasion, and repetition of the PRS frequency hopping; where the frequency hopping pattern comprises the multiple PRS sub-bands and the configuration information includes a repetition factor that determines a number of times a PRS signal is transmitted in each of the multiple PRS sub-bands within a hopping period; where the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions; where the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions; where the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets within a same frequency layer; where the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets across different frequency layers.

[0132] For example, the processor 804 may support wireless communication at the device 802 in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. Processor 804 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for receiving, from a network entity, configuration information identifying multiple PRS sub-bands and a frequency hopping pattern; performing a wideband PRS measurement by combining PRS signals received on the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern; and transmitting, to a location management function, the wideband PRS measurement.

[0133] Additionally or alternatively, the processor 804 may be configured to or otherwise support: where the frequency hopping pattern comprises an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern; where the frequency hopping pattern comprises both an inter-slot frequency hopping pattern and an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern; where the configuration information includes beam information identifying one or more beams, and further including performing wideband PRS measurement by coherently combining the multiple PRS sub-bands using a same beam; where the configuration information includes a muting pattern, and further including muting, based on the muting pattern, at least one of a PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each PRS hopping occasion, and repetition of the PRS frequency hopping; where the frequency hopping pattern comprises the multiple PRS sub-bands and the configuration information includes a repetition factor that determines a number of times a PRS signal is transmitted in each of the multiple PRS subbands within a hopping period; where the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions; where the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions; where the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets within a same frequency layer; where the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets across different frequency layers.

[0134] The processor 804 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some implementations, the processor 804 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other implementations, a memory controller may be integrated into the processor 804. The processor 804 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 806) to cause the device 802 to perform various functions of the present disclosure. [0135] The memory 806 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). The memory 806 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code including instructions that, when executed by the processor 804 cause the device 802 to perform various functions described herein. The code may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or another type of memory. In some implementations, the code may not be directly executable by the processor 804 but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein. In some implementations, the memory 806 may include, among other things, a basic I/O system (BIOS) which may control basic hardware or software operation such as the interaction with peripheral components or devices.

[0136] The I/O controller 810 may manage input and output signals for the device 802. The I/O controller 810 may also manage peripherals not integrated into the device M02. In some implementations, the I/O controller 810 may represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral. In some implementations, the I/O controller 810 may utilize an operating system such as iOS®, ANDROID®, MS-DOS®, MS-WINDOWS®, OS/2®, UNIX®, LINUX®, or another known operating system. In some implementations, the I/O controller 810 may be implemented as part of a processor, such as the processor 804. In some implementations, a user may interact with the device 802 via the I/O controller 810 or via hardware components controlled by the I/O controller 810.

[0137] In some implementations, the device 802 may include a single antenna 812. However, in some other implementations, the device 802 may have more than one antenna 812 (i.e., multiple antennas), including multiple antenna panels or antenna arrays, which may be capable of concurrently transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions. The transceiver 808 may communicate bi-directionally, via the one or more antennas 812, wired, or wireless links as described herein. For example, the transceiver 808 may represent a wireless transceiver and may communicate bi-directionally with another wireless transceiver. The transceiver 808 may also include a modem to modulate the packets, to provide the modulated packets to one or more antennas 812 for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the one or more antennas 812.

[0138] FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a block diagram 900 of a device 902 that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The device 902 may be an example of a network entity 102 as described herein. The device 902 may support wireless communication with one or more network entities 102, UEs 104, or any combination thereof. The device 902 may include components for bi-directional communications including components for transmitting and receiving communications, such as a processor 904, a memory 906, a transceiver 908, and an I/O controller 910. These components may be in electronic communication or otherwise coupled (e.g., operatively, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically) via one or more interfaces (e.g., buses).

[0139] The processor 904, the memory 906, the transceiver 908, or various combinations thereof or various components thereof may be examples of means for performing various aspects of the present disclosure as described herein. For example, the processor 904, the memory 906, the transceiver 908, or various combinations or components thereof may support a method for performing one or more of the operations described herein.

[0140] In some implementations, the processor 904, the memory 906, the transceiver 908, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in hardware (e.g., in communications management circuitry). The hardware may include a processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof configured as or otherwise supporting a means for performing the functions described in the present disclosure. In some implementations, the processor 904 and the memory 906 coupled with the processor 904 may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (e.g., executing, by the processor 904, instructions stored in the memory 906).

[0141] For example, the processor 904 may support wireless communication at the device 902 in accordance with examples as disclosed herein, processor 904 may be configured as or otherwise support to transmit, to a UE, configuration information identifying multiple PRS sub-bands and a frequency hopping pattern; and receive, from the UE, a wideband PRS measurement based on combining PRS signals on the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern. [0142] Additionally or alternatively, the processor 904 may be configured to or otherwise support: where the frequency hopping pattern comprises an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern; where the frequency hopping pattern comprises both an inter-slot frequency hopping pattern and an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern; where the configuration information includes beam information identifying one or more beams; where the configuration information includes a muting pattern indicating to mute at least one of a PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each PRS hopping occasion, and repetition of the PRS frequency hopping; where the processor is further configured to: transmit, to the UE after transmitting the configuration information, PRS signals on the multiple PRS sub-bands; and transmit, to a location management function, the wideband PRS measurement; where the frequency hopping pattern comprises the multiple PRS sub-bands and the configuration information includes a repetition factor that determines a number of times a PRS signal is transmitted in each of the multiple PRS sub-bands within a hopping period; where the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions; where the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions; where the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets within a same frequency layer; where the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets across different frequency layers.

[0143] For example, the processor 904 may support wireless communication at the device 902 in accordance with examples as disclosed herein, processor 904 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for transmitting, to a UE, configuration information identifying multiple PRS subbands and a frequency hopping pattern; and receiving, from the UE, a wideband PRS measurement based on combining PRS signals on the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern.

[0144] Additionally or alternatively, the processor 904 may be configured to or otherwise support: where the frequency hopping pattern comprises an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern; where the frequency hopping pattern comprises both an inter-slot frequency hopping pattern and an intra-slot frequency hopping pattern; where the configuration information includes beam information identifying one or more beams; where the configuration information includes a muting pattern indicating to mute at least one of a PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each PRS hopping occasion, and repetition of the PRS frequency hopping; further including: transmitting, to the UE after transmitting the configuration information, PRS signals on the multiple PRS subbands; and transmitting, to a location management function, the wideband PRS measurement; where the frequency hopping pattern comprises the multiple PRS sub-bands and the configuration information includes a repetition factor that determines a number of times a PRS signal is transmitted in each of the multiple PRS sub-bands within a hopping period; where the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions; where the configuration information includes an indication of a PRS hopping occasion within which frequency hopping is performed based on the frequency hopping pattern, and a time gap indicating a gap between consecutive PRS hopping occasions; where the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets within a same frequency layer; where the frequency hopping pattern indicates frequency hopping across multiple PRS resource sets across different frequency layers.

[0145] The processor 904 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some implementations, the processor 904 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other implementations, a memory controller may be integrated into the processor 904. The processor 904 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 906) to cause the device 902 to perform various functions of the present disclosure.

[0146] The memory 906 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). The memory 906 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code including instructions that, when executed by the processor 904 cause the device 902 to perform various functions described herein. The code may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or another type of memory. In some implementations, the code may not be directly executable by the processor 904 but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein. In some implementations, the memory 906 may include, among other things, a basic I/O system (BIOS) which may control basic hardware or software operation such as the interaction with peripheral components or devices.

[0147] The I/O controller 910 may manage input and output signals for the device 902. The I/O controller 910 may also manage peripherals not integrated into the device M02. In some implementations, the I/O controller 910 may represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral. In some implementations, the I/O controller 910 may utilize an operating system such as iOS®, ANDROID®, MS-DOS®, MS-WINDOWS®, OS/2®, UNIX®, LINUX®, or another known operating system. In some implementations, the I/O controller 910 may be implemented as part of a processor, such as the processor 904. In some implementations, a user may interact with the device 902 via the I/O controller 910 or via hardware components controlled by the I/O controller 910.

[0148] In some implementations, the device 902 may include a single antenna 912. However, in some other implementations, the device 902 may have more than one antenna 912 (i.e., multiple antennas), including multiple antenna panels or antenna arrays, which may be capable of concurrently transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions. The transceiver 908 may communicate bi-directionally, via the one or more antennas 912, wired, or wireless links as described herein. For example, the transceiver 908 may represent a wireless transceiver and may communicate bi-directionally with another wireless transceiver. The transceiver 908 may also include a modem to modulate the packets, to provide the modulated packets to one or more antennas 912 for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the one or more antennas 912.

[0149] FIG. 10 illustrates a flowchart of a method 1000 that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of the method 1000 may be implemented by a device or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1000 may be performed by a UE 104 as described with reference to FIGs. 1 through 9. In some implementations, the device may execute a set of instructions to control the function elements of the device to perform the described functions. Additionally, or alternatively, the device may perform aspects of the described functions using special-purpose hardware. [0150] At 1005, the method may include receiving, from a network entity, configuration information identifying multiple PRS sub-bands and a frequency hopping pattern. The operations of 1005 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1005 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0151] At 1010, the method may include performing a wideband PRS measurement by combining PRS signals received on the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern. The operations of 1010 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1010 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0152] At 1015, the method may include transmitting, to a location management function, the wideband PRS measurement. The operations of 1015 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1015 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0153] FIG. 11 illustrates a flowchart of a method 1100 that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of the method 1100 may be implemented by a device or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1100 may be performed by a UE 104 as described with reference to FIGs. 1 through 9. In some implementations, the device may execute a set of instructions to control the function elements of the device to perform the described functions. Additionally, or alternatively, the device may perform aspects of the described functions using special-purpose hardware.

[0154] At 1105, the method may include the configuration information includes beam information identifying one or more beams. The operations of 1105 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1105 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0155] At 1110, the method may include performing wideband PRS measurement by coherently combining the multiple PRS sub-bands using a same beam. The operations of 1110 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1110 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0156] FIG. 12 illustrates a flowchart of a method 1200 that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of the method 1200 may be implemented by a device or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1200 may be performed by a UE 104 as described with reference to FIGs. 1 through 9. In some implementations, the device may execute a set of instructions to control the function elements of the device to perform the described functions. Additionally, or alternatively, the device may perform aspects of the described functions using special-purpose hardware.

[0157] At 1205, the method may include the configuration information includes a muting pattern. The operations of 1205 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1205 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0158] At 1210, the method may include muting, based on the muting pattern, at least one of a PRS hopping occasion, PRS sub-bands within each PRS hopping occasion, and repetition of the PRS frequency hopping. The operations of 1210 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1210 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0159] FIG. 13 illustrates a flowchart of a method 1300 that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of the method 1300 may be implemented by a device or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1300 may be performed by a network entity 102 as described with reference to FIGs. 1 through 9. In some implementations, the device may execute a set of instructions to control the function elements of the device to perform the described functions. Additionally, or alternatively, the device may perform aspects of the described functions using special-purpose hardware.

[0160] At 1305, the method may include transmitting, to a UE, configuration information identifying multiple PRS sub-bands and a frequency hopping pattern. The operations of 1305 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1305 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0161] At 1310, the method may include receiving, from the UE, a wideband PRS measurement based on combining PRS signals on the multiple PRS sub-bands based on the frequency hopping pattern. The operations of 1310 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1310 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0162] FIG. 14 illustrates a flowchart of a method 1400 that supports performing a wideband positioning reference signal measurement based on multiple sub-bands in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of the method 1400 may be implemented by a device or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1400 may be performed by a network entity 102 as described with reference to FIGs. 1 through 9. In some implementations, the device may execute a set of instructions to control the function elements of the device to perform the described functions. Additionally, or alternatively, the device may perform aspects of the described functions using special-purpose hardware.

[0163] At 1405, the method may include transmitting, to the UE after transmitting the configuration information, PRS signals on the multiple PRS sub-bands. The operations of 1405 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1405 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0164] At 1410, the method may include transmitting, to a location management function, the wideband PRS measurement. The operations of 1410 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1410 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0165] It should be noted that the methods described herein describes possible implementations, and that the operations and the steps may be rearranged or otherwise modified and that other implementations are possible. Further, aspects from two or more of the methods may be combined.

[0166] The various illustrative blocks and components described in connection with the disclosure herein may be implemented or performed with a general-purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, a CPU, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0167] The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Other examples and implementations are within the scope of the disclosure and appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, functions described herein may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or combinations of any of these. Features implementing functions may also be physically located at various positions, including being distributed such that portions of functions are implemented at different physical locations.

[0168] Computer-readable media includes both non-transitory computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A non-transitory storage medium may be any available medium that may be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer. By way of example, and not limitation, non-transitory computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, compact disk (CD) ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transitory medium that may be used to carry or store desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures and that may be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor.

[0169] Any connection may be properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of computer-readable medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, include CD, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0170] As used herein, including in the claims, “or” as used in a list of items (e.g., a list of items prefaced by a phrase such as “at least one of’ or “one or more of’ or “one or both of’) indicates an inclusive list such that, for example, a list of at least one of A, B, or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). By way of another example, a list of at least one of A; B; or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). Also, as used herein, the phrase “based on” shall not be construed as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, an example step that is described as “based on condition A” may be based on both a condition A and a condition B without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, as used herein, the phrase “based on” shall be construed in the same manner as the phrase “based at least in part on. Further, as used herein, including in the claims, a “set” may include one or more elements.

[0171] The terms “transmitting,” “receiving,” or “communicating,” when referring to a network entity, may refer to any portion of a network entity (e.g., a base station, a CU, a DU, a RU) of a RAN communicating with another device (e.g., directly or via one or more other network entities).

[0172] The description set forth herein, in connection with the appended drawings, describes example configurations and does not represent all the examples that may be implemented or that are within the scope of the claims. The term “example” used herein means “serving as an example, instance, or illustration,” and not “preferred” or “advantageous over other examples.” The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing an understanding of the described techniques. These techniques, however, may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described example.

[0173] The description herein is provided to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be apparent to a person having ordinary skill in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein but is to be accorded the broadest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.