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.     

GPS code and carrier multipath mitigation using a multiantennasystem

Multipath is a major source of error in high precision Global Positioning System (GPS) static and kinematic differential positioning. Multipath accounts for most of the total error budget in carrier phase measurements in a spacecraft attitude determination system. It is a major concern in reference stations, such as in Local Area Augmentation Systems (LAAS), whereby corrections generated by a reference station, which are based on multipath corrupted measurements, can significantly influence the position accuracy of differential users. Code range, carrier phase, and signal-to-noise (SNR) measurements are all affected by multipath, and the effect is spatially correlated within a small area. In order to estimate and remove code and carrier phase multipath, a system comprising a cluster of five GPS receivers and antennas is used at a reference station location. The spatial correlation of the receiver data, and the known geometry among the antennas, are exploited to estimate multipath for each satellite in each antenna in the system. Generic receiver code and carrier tracking loop discriminator functions are analyzed, and relationships between receiver data, such as code range, carrier phase, and SNR measurements, are formulated and related to various multipath parameters. A Kalman filter is described which uses a combination of the available information from the antennas (receivers) in the multiantenna cluster to estimate various multipath parameters. From the multipath parameters, the code range and carrier phase multipath is estimated and compensated. The technique is first tested on simulated data in a controlled multipath environment. Results are then presented using field data and show a significant reduction in multipath error     

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     

Array antennas for DGPS

Multipath interference limits the speed and accuracy of determining position by “differential” GPS techniques. A geodetic surveyor, for example, requires multipath interference rejection of about 36+20 log₁₀ sin ϵ dB, where ϵ is the elevation angle of the satellite being observed. Signal processing in a GPS receiver cannot satisfy this requirement. A receiving antenna is required that can sufficiently reject signals arriving from below the horizon. Available antennas have inadequate rejection, and brute-force methods of improving them, by enlarging their ground-planes, are impractical. A compact, ground-planeless, dual-band, GPS antenna with improved multipath rejection has been designed and field-tested. This antenna resembles a vertical post rather than a horizontal platter; within its 0.1-m diameter, 0.4-m tall radome is a vertical array of turnstile elements. In field tests, a three-element array antenna rejected multipath better than a 0.5-m diameter ground-plane antenna by an average of 5 dB. A five-element array antenna appears superior to a 0.9-m diameter ground-plane antenna     

Omnidirectional Instantaneous Direction Finding System

A system for providing near-instantaneous determination of the azimuthal angle of arrival of a received signal has been designed and fabricated at L band. Direction is determined by phase measurement of the outputs of a multimode antenna, which has no moving parts. Effects of multipath interference are reduced to a minimum through a combination of signal processing techniques. The position of the transmitting source is presented on a PPI display.     

多径效应对GPS载波相位观测量的影响

推导了ＧＰＳ接收机中多径效应引入的最大载波相位跟踪误差的闭合形式。得到以下结论：当直达信号跟踪误差不超过１码片时,最大载波测相多径误差为１／４周,该值出现在测码伪距多径误差最小的情况下;当直达信号跟踪误差超过或等于１码片时,接收机跟踪多径信号,信号误检发生。     

基于导航卫星反射信号的空间飞行器探测定位方法

导航卫星信号经由空间飞行器后将发生反射与散射,此信号对于飞行器自身的定位通常作为多径信号被消除。利用双基无源雷达的概念,提出利用该信号实现空间飞行器的远程定位方法。该方法充分利用空间飞行器对于导航卫星信号的反射与散射,在地面/空中设置可以接收此反射信号的接收机,从而实现飞行器的探测。接收机利用码延迟锁定环路实现直射信号与反射信号的锁定,并通过求解直射信号与反射信号的相关功率获得其路径差,进而计算出空间飞行器的位置。介绍了利用延迟映射接收机(DMR)探测空间飞行器的系统组成,并给出了远程定位的数学模型、关键技术分析、DMR的设计原理及验证实验,实验结果表明所设计的DMR可以有效地接收到导航卫星反射信号。为空间飞行器的探测提供了一种新型的手段。     

Receiver-channel based adaptive blind equalization approach for GPS dynamic multipath mitigation

Aiming at mitigating multipath effect in dynamic global positioning system (GPS) satellite navigation applications, an approach based on channel blind equalization and real-time recursive least square (RLS) algorithm is proposed, which is an application of the wireless communication channel equalization theory to GPS receiver tracking loops. The blind equalization mechanism builds upon the detection of the correlation distortion due to multipath channels; therefore an increase in the number of correlator channels is required compared with conventional GPS receivers. An adaptive estimator based on the real-time RLS algorithm is designed for dynamic estimation of multipath channel response. Then, the code and carrier phase receiver tracking errors are compensated by removing the estimated multipath components from the correlators’ outputs. To demonstrate the capabilities of the proposed approach, this technique is integrated into a GPS software receiver connected to a navigation satellite signal simulator, thus simulations under controlled dynamic multipath scenarios can be carried out. Simulation results show that in a dynamic and fairly severe multipath environment, the proposed approach achieves simultaneously instantaneous accurate multipath channel estimation and significant multipath tracking errors reduction in both code delay and carrier phase.     

A Hybrid Navigation Concept Using a Spinning Satellite?Borne Interferometer and Self?Contained Equipment

This paper analyzes a hybrid navigation concept that uses signals from a radio interferometer mounted on a spinning geostationary satellite, preliminary position estimates from self-contained equipment, and stored a priori information on the past performance of this equipment. The craft-borne processor, optimum in the maximum a posteriori (MAP) sense, is designed to estimate position coordinates using only the incoming radio signals, although improved estimates result if the other two items are available. An error analysis starts with the derivation of an estimation error covariance matrix, whose elements depend on additive receiver noise and the physical parameters of the system. A minimum 1? estimation error in position is obtained by trading off these parameters. The effects of other major error sources, such as tropospheric phase fluctuations, multipath, and craft altitude uncertainty, are added to the estimation error to give a total 1? position error on the order of 3.7 to 5.6 km.     

Adaptive SNR-based carrier phase multipath mitigation technique

An improved technique that mitigates specular multipath in Global Positioning System (GPS) differential carrier phase measurements is described. It adaptively estimates the spectral parameters (frequency, amplitude, phase offset) of multipath in the associated signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and then constructs a profile of the multipath error in the carrier phase. A multipath correction is subsequently made by subtracting the profile from the actual phase measurement data. The technique is demonstrated on ground based experimental data, as well as flight data from the atmospheric research satellite CRISTA-SPAS. Ground experiments were conducted on static platforms in severe multipath environments. Multipath was deliberately introduced by either strategic placement of reflectors or electronic injection. This allowed for some control over the strength and frequency of the multipath. Averaging the results from 43 ground and 18 flight data sets, the differential carrier phase multipath was reduced by 47%. The complete results for both ground and flight tests are presented and are accompanied by discussions of individual cases     

GNSS多径抑制基带处理算法综述CSCD

随着全球导航卫星系统(GNSS)信号体制的不断更新,接收机应用环境越来越复杂,多径误差抑制技术也在不断发展进步。其中,基于改进基带的多径抑制算法由于成本和效果综合较优,受到了国内外研究人员的重视。论文首先阐述了GNSS多径抑制的基本原理,综述了传统的GNSS参量式和非参量式多径抑制算法的研究现状和实现方式,然后探讨分析了新体制信号中提高抗多径性能的方法,总结了当前GNSS多径抑制基带处理研究中的主要问题,最后展望了其未来的发展趋势。     

Effects of test vehicle patterns on cellular coverage measurements

Mobile test systems intended for cellular phone coverage measurements suffer from uncertainties, which are caused by the unpredictable radiation pattern of the measuring antenna installation. Not only do adjacent structures and very common multiple antennas disturb the characteristics, but also in the case of an ideal position does the vertical lobing introduce errors exceeding 10 dB. The problems are likely to be worse in dense urban areas, where multipath from surrounding buildings is the dominating propagation mode     

Multipath mitigation method based on Gaussian mixture model in RF relative measurement

Radio Frequency (RF) technology represents a high-precision relative navigation solution that has significant potential for application to earth-orbiting satellites. In precision applications, multipath errors dominate the total error because observables, which are used to estimate carrier-phase integer ambiguity, are not always subject to a Gaussian distribution when dual-frequency ambiguity estimation methods are used in the presence of multipath. As it has been shown that ranging observables obey a Gaussian mixture distribution, this study proposes improvements to the accuracy of estimation based on multipath mitigation founded on the Gaussian mixture model. To this end, such a model is created for integer ambiguity resolution in the presence of multipath, using which the theoretical error in dual-frequency ambiguity estimation is derived. Expectation Maximization (EM), which aids dual-frequency ambiguity estimation, is subsequently proposed to reduce the effect of multipath errors. Finally, two experimental scenarios are implemented to test the performance of the proposed method. The results show that EM-aided dual-frequency ambiguity estimation reduces the range error to approximately 20% in comparison with simple dual-frequency ambiguity estimation. Therefore the proposed technique is effective for multipath mitigation in RF relative measurement.     

Polarization Effect on Multipath for Extended Targets

The results of a theoretical investigation of the influence of polarization on multipath are presented. First, the case of a point target is examined and it is confirmed that the multipath effect tends to vanish for rough sea and small grazing angles. Models of a buoy and of a large ship are then introduced and it is shown that, for targets that are extended in height, the multipath effect for vertical and horizontal polarization is substantially the same.     

基于OTHR与纯角度传感器群数据关联的模式辨识与定位精度提升

 天波超视距雷达(OTHR)目标跟踪面临着"三低"(低检测概率、低数据率和低测量精度)和"多径"(多条传播路径)的挑战,因此传播模式的准确辨识与目标定位精度提升是改善跟踪能力的关键。首先利用纯角度传感器群获得目标地理位置的初步估计,然后采用极大似然估计建立了OTHR的传播模式和杂波模式的辨识规则,进而利用最小方差估计准则实现OTHR和纯角度传感器群的量测融合。仿真结果表明,此算法的模式辨识正确率很高,能明显提升方位角的测量精度,但是不能明显提升径向距的精度。     

卫星伪距多路径时空建模研究

目前,多路径误差是制约GPS技术向更高精度发展的主要误差源.为了减小静态观测环境下的多路径误差,基于多路径误差周期重复性的特点,提出了一种自适应噪声分析结合经验模态分解的方法处理原始数据,采用多项式拟合构建了函数模型,并利用该函数模型对相邻天的观测数据进行处理.实验结果表明,利用所提方法对观测数据进行处理,可有效减小多...     

SNR-based multipath error correction for GPS differential phase

Carrier phase multipath is currently the limiting error source for high precision Global Positioning System (GPS) applications such as attitude determination and short baseline surveying. Multipath is the corruption of the direct GPS signal by one or more signals reflected from the local surroundings. Multipath reflections affect both the carrier phase measured by the receiver and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). A technique is described which uses the SNR information to correct multipath errors in differential phase observations. The potential of the technique to reduce multipath to almost the level of receiver noise was demonstrated in simulations. The effectiveness on real data was demonstrated with controlled static experiments. Small errors remained, predominantly from high frequency multipath. The low frequency multipath was virtually eliminated. The remaining high frequency receiver noise can be easily removed by smoothing or Kalman filtering     

TMA from bearings and multipath time delays

A novel approach for target motion analysis (TMA), which uses conventional passive bearing together with multipath time-delay measurements is examined. This so-called "Multipath TMA" offers two tactical advantages over the classical bearings-only TMA: no requirement for any ownship maneuver, and a good performance in terms of estimation error achieved in a shorter time. Both known and unknown multipath cases are addressed. Finally, Monte-Carlo simulations and at-sea trials demonstrate the practical efficiency of such a multipath TMA.     

On Optimizing Array Reception of Multipath

This paper reviews system configuration requirements and analyzes detectability performance characteristics for maximum likelihood array reception of multipath. Performance is analyzed to determine the effects of channel multipath structure (multipath delay and signal power division among the paths), space-time correlation properties of the incident processes, and the array spacing. It is shown by a series of case studies, that for single element coupling, as well as array coupling, an increased multipath delay factor results in decreased system detectability for fixed signal and noise intensity levels. The performance capacity is degraded as the available signal power tends to distribute more uniformly between the paths. These effects are attributed to the loss of effective signal energy concentration, resulting in a lower effective pre-detection signal-to-noise ratio. An investigation of the effects upon system performance, due to array element spacing, shows that performance is enhanced by increasing the spacing relative to the multipath delay factor and the reciprocal signal bandwidth. The former is the result of a more directive detectability (beam) pattern arising from the increased spacing. In effect, with increased spacing, the main lobe of the pattern is narrowed, while the side lobes are optimally suppressed by the required noise related array element link, frequency filters (weights).