Satellite mobile communication and radio positioning systemplanning aspects

System aspects of mobile communication and position determination by satellite are described. Topics of discussion are the choice of frequency, type of modulation/multiple access and system design, and considering the effects of active and passive intermodulation and multipath interference. Communication performance and position determination analyses are conducted with respect to small-scale domestic mobile communication systems, where the satellite mobile transponder constitutes only a fraction of the otherwise fixed services C-band or Ku-band payload, and where the orbit position of the spare satellite(s) is dictated by considerations other than purely radio positioning. The system tradeoffs and arguments presented lead to a particular modulation/multiple access system, which provides high channel capacity, good ranging accuracy, and high resistance to multipath fading     

Digital beam forming (DBF) antenna system for mobile communications

We demonstrate the feasibility of a digital beam forming (DBF) and beam space CMA (Constant Modulus Algorithm) adaptive array antenna by implementing a digital signal processor (DSP) in ASICs using field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), this DBF can synthesize 16 multi-beams and eliminate interference signals by CMA adaptive processing. The whole function was implemented in 10 DSPs about 127,000 equivalent gates. Simple experimental results have confirmed the basic function of the DBF and BSCMA adaptive array antenna     

Radiometric detection of spread-spectrum signals in noise ofuncertain power

The standard analysis of the radiometric detectability of a spread-spectrum signal assumes a background of stationary, white Gaussian noise whose power spectral density can be measured very accurately. This assumption yields a fairly high probability of interception, even for signals of short duration. By explicitly considering the effect of uncertain knowledge of the noise power density, it is demonstrated that detection of these signals by a wideband radiometer can be considerably more difficult in practice than is indicated by the standard result. Worst-case performance bounds are provided as a function of input signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), time-bandwidth (TW) product and peak-to-peak noise uncertainty. The results are illustrated graphically for a number of situations of interest. It is also shown that asymptotically, as the TW product becomes large, the SNR required for detection becomes a function of noise uncertainty only and is independent of the detection parameters and the observation interval     

Self-calibrating SSR monopulse receiver

An extension of the monopulse technique for estimating the target azimuth in a secondary surveillance radar (SSR) is considered. The idea is to associate in pairs monopulse measurements coming from the amplitude processor (AP) at the dwell time processing level. This allows the automatic compensation of the bias errors due to the misalignments in the receiver channels, thus eliminating the necessity for periodic system calibration. This dual-pulse technique also allows for the practical use of the dot product receiver as a modification of the AP receiver. This, in turn, implies that the variance of each dual-pulse estimate is uniformly maintained at the monopulse maximum-likelihood level over the whole off-boresight angle (OBA) range     

Advanced communications satellite technology

Technology drivers for commercial communications satellites are examined based on the efficient use of spacecraft mass which is to be accomplished by increasing the efficiency of the microwave power amplifiers and antenna feed systems used for communications satellites, such as the INTELSAT series. The history of the INTELSAT series of satellites, the late 1980s market and available technology, and future directions of development are considered. Emphasis is on multibeam solid-state antennas, microwave switch matrices, solid-state power amplifiers, and the use of several filter modes in one physical cavity. By using quasimonolithic solid state techniques in a class B amplification mode they have achieved 40-60% efficiencies, compared with 20% for the conventional travelling wavetube amplifiers. It is concluded that technology directed towards improving the economics of satellite communications will continue to be a major driver of future communications satellite payloads. Through their use and their extension, the authors foresee more than doubling the telephone channels per satellite from the current 80000 to perhaps 200000 by the turn of the century     

Electrodeless ultraviolet communications system

The Laser Communications Laboratory (LCL) of the Wright Laboratory Avionics Directorate is heavily involved in designing optical communications systems covering the full optical spectrum to meet our current and future military communications requirements. This paper summarizes the in-house designed and built solar blind ultraviolet communications system used in the LCL to investigate non-line-of-sight data and voice links. It also summarizes some of the previous DoD work accomplished to exploit free space communications via ultraviolet radiation. In addition, safety factors peculiar to ultraviolet radiation in a closed cockpit environment are addressed. An evaluation of the current electrodeless ultraviolet communications system and a synopsis of planned future projects to improve the system are included in the paper     

Multipath-adaptive GPS/INS receiver

Multipath interference is one of the contributing sources of errors in precise global positioning system (GPS) position determination. This paper identifies key parameters of a multipath signal, focusing on estimating them accurately in order to mitigate multipath effects. Multiple model adaptive estimation (MMAE) techniques are applied to an inertial navigation system (INS)-coupled GPS receiver, based on a federated (distributed) Kalman filter design, to estimate the desired multipath parameters. The system configuration is one in which a GPS receiver and an INS are integrated together at the level of the in-phase and quadrature phase (I and Q) signals, rather than at the level of pseudo-range signals or navigation solutions. The system model of the MMAE is presented and the elemental Kalman filter design is examined. Different parameter search spaces are examined for accurate multipath parameter identification. The resulting GPS/INS receiver designs are validated through computer simulation of a user receiving signals from GPS satellites with multipath signal interference present The designed adaptive receiver provides pseudo-range estimates that are corrected for the effects of multipath interference, resulting in an integrated system that performs well with or without multipath interference present.     

Next generation digital GPS receiver

The architecture and technology features of the next-generation (NGR) digital GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver manufactured by Collin are described. The project's objective was to develop an advanced GPS receiver chipset with high antijam capabilities. The program, initiated in 1985, has provided the technology for miniature receiver products for both unmanned and manned vehicle applications. A two-channel version of the receiver is in full-scale development for tactical missile applications. A five-channel version is being tested and evaluated as a drop-in replacement for RCVR-3A, the US Department of Defense standard high dynamic receiver. The NGR design started with the digital signal processing architecture developed for the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) hand-held GPS receiver. Enhancements were made to improve the antijam and signal acquisition performance. Producible, qualifiable and cost-effective silicon monolithic microwave integrated circuits and semicustom digital technologies were used to develop the core GPS chipset. A system design approach was established to permit reuse of mature and validated GPS software     

STAP for GPS receiver synchronization

A space-time adaptive processing (STAP) algorithm for delay tracking and acquisition of the GPS signature sequence with interference rejection capability is developed. The interference can consist of both broadband and narrowband jammers, and is mitigated in two steps. The narrowband jammers are modelled as vector autoregressive (VAR) processes and rejected by temporal whitening. The spatial ing is implicitly achieved by estimating a sample covariance matrix and feeding its inverse into the extended Kalman filter (EKF). The EKF estimates of the code delay and the fading channel are used for a t-test for acquisition detection. Computer simulations demonstrate robust performance of the algorithm in severe jamming, and also show that the algorithm outperforms the conventional delay-locked loop (DLL).     

手持式GPS接收机的设计

GPS为导航带来了革命性的变化，它在全球范围内为海陆空天用户提供精确的实时位置、速度和时间信息。随着GPS接收模块价格的不断降低，GPS用于个人用户成为可能。GPS接收模块技术含量较高，国内尚元厂家生产。TFAG-30接收模块是台湾公司生产的，利用该模块设计的手持式接收机适合个人旅游探险。     

GNSS receiver for GLONASS signal reception

This paper deals with the latest version of Experimental GNSS receiver built at the Czech Technical University and describes integration of GLONASS signal processing to the receiver. The new FPGA platform Virtex-D Pro by Xilinx is used and enables integration of whole digital signal processing of GNSS receiver into the single chip. The RE unit of the receiver is capable of processing all GLONASS frequency of the Li and L2 bands in two independent RE channels; each channel can process one band. The frequency selection of the appropriate satellite is accomplished in a digital correlator. The development flow of the GLONASS correlator is discussed herein. The complexity of the GLONASS correlator with complexity of GPS correlator is compared. The developed GLONASS correlator was tested in Simuelink tool during development. The next test was carried out using GLONASS simulator and real GLONASS satellite signal.     

Testing the precision lightweight GPS receiver

Innovative field testing techniques are employed at Holloman Air Force Base to help the Global Positioning System (GPS) NAVSTAR Joint Program Office (JPO) test the Precision Lightweight GPS Receiver (PLGR). Characterizing the PLGR's accuracy in dynamic environments is of prime importance but testing also prescribes the evaluation of its ability to receive differential GPS corrections, real time, and its Electronic Counter Counter Measures. To meet these goals, the 46th Test Group provides the C-12 cargo aircraft for flight testing, an instrumented test van for mobile testing, the High Speed Test Track for high velocity testing, a UH-1 helicopter for rotor blade modulation testing, and special PC laptops for ground troop testing. All of these test capabilities utilize Holloman's well instrumented test environments with thousands of surveyed sites validated by the Defense Mapping Agency. This paper emphasizes the testing techniques that are helping to define Test & Evaluation methodologies for the changing world where Global Positioning with NAVSTAR is becoming a reality     

System quality factors for LPI communications

Quality factors are developed for low-probability-intercept (LPI) communication systems in order to provide a quantitative technique that allows the system engineer to evaluate LPI effectiveness in the presence of jammers and intercept receivers. LPI quality factors are derived from the system link equations, which describe the signal power gains and losses as a function of system link parameters. Quality factors for the essential components of the LPI system that provide some advantage to the cooperative transmitter and receiver over the jammer and intercept receiver are described. These include quality factors for the antennas, type of modulation, atmospheric propagation conditions, and interference rejection capability