# US 12,604,156 B2 · Communications device, infrastructure equipment, location server and methods > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,604,156 B2 - Document ID: US12604156B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/018,875 - Filed: 2021-08-05 - Published: 2023-10-26 - Granted: 2026-04-14 - Earliest claimed: 2020-08-07 - Assignees: Sony Group Corporation - Applicants: Sony Group Corporation - Inventors: Martin Warwick Beale; Kazuyuki Shimezawa; Shin Horng Wong; Basuki Priyanto - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12604156B2 ## CPC - H04L 5/0048: {Allocation of pilot signals, i.e. of signals known to the receiver (allocation of control signalling H04L5/0053; use of control signalling H04L5/0091)} - H04W 4/029: Location-based management or tracking services - G01S 5/0205: {Details} - H04W 72/23: in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal - G01S 2205/01: specially adapted for specific applications - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) - G01S: RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES ## Abstract A method of operating a communications device in a wireless communications network comprising determining first positioning signal resources, the first positioning signal resources comprising communication resources allocated for transmission or reception by the communications device of positioning signals associated with a positioning procedure, determining other communication resources allocated for transmission or reception by the communications device of other signals, determining that the communications device cannot use both the first positioning signal resources for the transmission or reception of the positioning signals and the other communication resources for the transmission or reception of the other signals, determining relative priorities of the first positioning signal resources and the other communication resources, and based on the relative priorities, controlling a transmitter or receiver of the communications device to transmit or receive the positioning signals using the first positioning signal resources or to transmit or receive the other signals using the other communication resources. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method of operating a communications device in a wireless communications network, the method comprising: determining first positioning signal resources, the first positioning signal resources comprising communication resources allocated for transmission or reception by the communications device of positioning signals associated with a positioning procedure, determining other communication resources allocated for transmission or reception by the communications device of other signals, determining that the communications device cannot use both the first positioning signal resources for the transmission or reception of the positioning signals and the other communication resources for the transmission or reception of the other signals, determining relative priorities of the first positioning signal resources and the other communication resources, based on the relative priorities, controlling a transmitter or receiver of the communications device to transmit or receive the positioning signals using the first positioning signal resources or to transmit or receive the other signals using the other communication resources, wherein the relative priority of the first positioning signal resources is higher than the relative priority of the other communication resources, and transmitting or receiving the positioning signals using the first positioning signal resources and refraining from transmitting or receiving the other signals using the other communication resources. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the other signals are associated with data. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method according to claim 2, wherein the data is enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) data. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the other signals are reference signals. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, wherein the reference signals are periodic positioning reference signals. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, wherein the reference signals are channel state information reference signals or sounding reference signals not associated with a positioning procedure. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the other signals are associated with control information and the other communication resources comprise resources of a control channel. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the other signals are associated with ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC) data, and the relative priority of the first positioning signal resources is lower than the relative priority of the other communication resources. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the other resources are on a shared channel of a wireless access interface. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the positioning signals are positioning reference signals (PRS) transmitted by an infrastructure equipment of the wireless communications network, and the first positioning signal resources are allocated for the reception by the communications device of the positioning signals. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the positioning signals are sounding reference signals (SRS) and the first positioning signal resources are allocated for the transmission by the communications device of the positioning signals. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the first positioning signal resources comprises receiving a positioning request from a location server in a core network of the wireless communications network, the positioning request comprising an indication of the first positioning signal resources. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the method comprising receiving an indication of a priority associated with the positioning signals or the first positioning signal resources, and wherein the relative priorities of the first positioning signal resources and the other communication resources are determined based on the priority associated with the positioning signals or the first positioning signal resources. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method according to claim 13, wherein the indication of the priority is received from infrastructure equipment. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method according to claim 14, the method comprising receiving downlink control information (DCI), the DCI comprising the indication of the priority. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The method according to claim 15, the method comprising receiving a resource and priority indication, the resource and priority indication indicating a plurality of resources, wherein the DCI comprises an indication of one of the plurality of resources and the determining the first positioning signal resources is based on the indication of the one of the plurality of resources. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the method comprising receiving an indication of a plurality of positioning signal resources including the first positioning signal resources and for each one of the plurality of positioning signal resources other than the first positioning signal resources, determining whether other communication resources are allocated to the communications device such that, in accordance with the configuration or the capability of the communications device, the communications device cannot use both the one of the plurality of positioning signal resources for the transmission or reception of positioning signals and the other communication resources for the transmission or reception of other signals, and if so, based on relative priorities of the one of the plurality of positioning signal resources and the other communication resources, selectively controlling a transmitter or receiver of the communications device to transmit or receive positioning signals using the one of the plurality of positioning signal resources. ### Claim 18 A communications device for operating in a wireless communications network, the communications device comprising: a transmitter configured to transmit signals on a wireless access interface provided by an infrastructure equipment of the wireless communications network, a receiver configured to receive signals on the wireless access interface, and a controller configured to control the transmitter and the receiver so that the wireless communications device is operable: to determine first positioning signal resources, the first positioning signal resources comprising communication resources allocated for transmission or reception by the communications device of positioning signals associated with a positioning procedure, to determine other communication resources allocated for transmission or reception by the communications device of other signals, to determine that the communications device cannot use both the first positioning signal resources for the transmission or reception of the positioning signals and the other communication resources for the transmission or reception of the other signals, to determine relative priorities of the first positioning signal resources and the other communication resources, and based on the relative priorities, to transmit or receive the positioning signals using the first positioning signal resources or to transmit or receive the other signals using the other communication resources, wherein the relative priority of the first positioning signal resources is higher than the relative priority of the other communication resources, and transmit or receive the positioning signals using the first positioning signal resources and refrain from transmitting or receiving the other signals using the other communication resources. ### Claim 19 Infrastructure equipment for use in a wireless communications network, the infrastructure equipment providing a wireless access interface, the infrastructure equipment comprising: a transmitter configured to transmit signals via the wireless access interface, a receiver configured to receive signals, and a controller configured to control the transmitter and the receiver so that the infrastructure equipment is operable to receive a positioning signal transmission/reception request to transmit or receive positioning signals, the positioning signal transmission/reception request comprising an indication of a priority associated with the positioning signals, based on relative priorities, to transmit or receive the positioning signals using the first positioning signal resources or to transmit or receive other signals using other communication resources, wherein the relative priority of the first positioning signal resources is higher than the relative priority of the other communication resources, and transmit or receive the positioning signals using the first positioning signal resources and refrain from transmitting or receiving the other signals using the other communication resources.