The first Satellite was placed in orbit on 22nd February 1978, and
there are currently 28 operational satellites orbiting the Earth at a
height of 20,180km.
Garmin
Trimble
Tom Tom
Magellan
Navico
Motorola Inc.
Principle
In order to calculate ones exact location, the signal transit
time is measured between the point of observation and four
different satellites whose positions are known.
To get the distance to each satellite, the GPS transmits a
signal to each satellite.
The signal travels at a known speed.
The system measures the time delay between the signal
transmission and signal reception of the GPS signal.
The signals carry information about the satellites
location.
Determines the position of, and distance to, at least three
satellites, to reduce error.
The receiver computes position using trilateration.
WORKING
Space Segment
User Segment
Control Segment
Ground
Antennas
Master Station Monitor Stations
GPS Communication and Control
COMPONENTS OF SPACE
SEGMENT
24 satellite vehicles
Six orbital planes
Inclined 55o with respect to equator
Orbits separated by 60o
20,200 km elevation above Earth
Orbital period of 11 hr 55 min
Five to eight satellites visible from
any point on Earth
SPACE SEGMENT
GPS satellites fly in circular orbits at an altitude
of 20,200 km and with a period of 12 hours.
Powered by solar cells, the satellites
continuously orient themselves to point their
solar panels toward the sun and their antenna
toward the earth.
Orbital planes are centered on the Earth
Each planes has about 55 tilt relative to Earth's
equator in order to cover the polar regions.
SPACE SEGMENT (Continued)
Each satellite makes two complete orbits each
sidereal day.
Sidereal - Time it takes for the Earth to turn 360
degrees in its rotation
It passes over the same location on Earth once
each day.
Orbits are designed so that at the very least, six
satellites are always within line of sight from
any location on the planet.
Space Segment
The space segment is an earth-orbiting constellation of
24 active and five spare GPS satellites circling the earth in
six orbital planes. Each satellite is oriented at an angle of 55
degrees to the equator. The nominal circular orbit is
20,200-kilometer altitude. Each satellite completes one
earth orbit every twelve hours (two orbits every 24 hours).
Each satellite has a design life of approximately 10
years, weighs about 2,000 pounds, and is about 17 feet
across with its solar panels extended. Older satellites still
functioning are equipped with 2 cesium, and 2 rubidium
atomic clocks. Newer satellites are equipped with rubidium
atomic clocks. All satellites also contain 3 nickel-cadmium
batteries for backup power when a satellite is in earth
eclipse (out of view of the sun).
Each satellite transmits as part of its signal to ground
stations and all users the following information:
-Coded ranging signals (radio transmission time
signals that allow receivers to triangulate their positions).
-Ephemeris position information (a message
transmitted every 30 seconds containing precise
information on the location of the satellite in space).
-Atmospheric data (necessary to help correct signal
interference from the satellites to the receiver).
-Clock correction information defining the precise
time of satellite signal transmission (in GPS Time)/
In order for the distance information to be of any use, the
receiver also has to know where the satellites actually are.
This isn't particularly difficult because the satellites travel in
very high and predictable orbits. The GPS receiver simply
stores an almanac that tells it where every satellite should
be at any given time.
An almanac containing information on the GPS
constellation, which includes location and health of the
satellites. Whenever a GPS receiver is operating outdoors it
automatically downloads an almanac from the satellites.
This almanac is stored in the receivers memory until the
next time it is turned. The stored almanac allows a receiver
to more quickly acquire GPS satellite signal because it
already knows the general location, and other information,
about the satellites in the constellation.
More than 300 miles while turned off (or turned on but
not picking up satellites), the stored almanac may not be
of any use to the receiver when it is finally turned back
on. A new almanac will be need to be downloaded to the
receiver for it to be able to quickly acquire satellite
signals again.
US Space Command
Cape Canaveral
Hawaii
Kwajalein Atoll
Diego Garcia
Ascension Is.
Time
Difference
Satellite PRN
Receiver PRN
if receiver applies different PRN code to SV signal
no correlation
when receiver uses same code as SV and codes begin
to align
some signal power detected
when receiver and SV codes align completely
full signal power detected
The satellite propagates this code and sends it out on the radio
signal. The receiver is also propagating this code
within itself. They both start the code at the same time, but
when the satellite's code reaches the receiver, it is delayed,
since it had to travel the 11,000 miles from outer space.
When the receiver gets the satellite's version of the
code, it can tell that there has been a delay or "lag" in
the code. The size of the lag or how much the
receiver must shift back to match up, indicates the
radio signal's travel time from the satellite to the
receiver.
Time Difference
Remember
A GPS receiver determines the travel time of a
signal from a satellite by comparing the
"pseudo random code" it's generating, with an
identical code in the signal from the satellite.
How a Receiver Determines Its Position
Traveling at the speed of light each satellite PRN signal takes a
brief, but measurable amount of time to reach a GPS receiver. The
difference between when the signal is sent and the time it is
received, multiplied by the speed of light, enables a GPS receiver to
accurately calculate the distance between it and each satellite.
Geometric Principle:
You can find one location if you
know its distance from other,
already-known locations.
A GPS receiver uses the signals transmitted by a satellite to
determine its distance from that satellite.
The receiver is
somewhere on
this sphere.
Since any offset from GPS Time will affect all its measurements, the
receiver uses a few simple algebraic calculations to come up with a
single correction factor that it can add or subtract from all its timing
measurements that will cause all the satellite spheres to intersect at a
single point (x, y, and z).
That time correction synchronizes the receiver's clock
with GPS Time. Now the receiver essentially has
atomic clock accuracy with the time correction factor
needed to achieve precise 3D positioning.
This is the reason that the acquisition of three GPS satellites does not give a
very high precision, and that at least four are needed for a satisfactory
measurement.
Remember
The coordinates are calculated according to the
World Geodetic System WGS84 coordinate system.
The satellites are equipped with atomic clocks.
Receiver uses an internal crystal oscillator-based
clock that is continually updated using the signals
from the satellites.
Receiver identifies each satellite's signal by its
distinct C/A code pattern, then measures the time
delay for each satellite.
The receiver emits an identical C/A sequence using
the same seed number the satellite used.
Remember
By aligning the two sequences, the receiver can
measure the delay and calculate the distance to the
satellite, called the pseudo-range.
Orbital position data from the Navigation Message
is used to calculate the satellite's precise position.
Knowing the position and the distance of a satellite
indicates that the receiver is located somewhere on
the surface of an imaginary sphere centered on that
satellite and whose radius is the distance to it.
When four satellites are measured at the same
time, the point where the four imaginary spheres
meet is recorded as the location of the receiver.
GPS Signals
GPS Signals & Codes
Each GPS satellite transmits a unique
navigational signal centered on two L-
band frequencies of the
electromagnetic spectrum.
At these frequencies the signals are
highly directional and so are easily
reflected or blocked by solid objects.
Clouds are easily penetrated
GPS Signals & Codes
The satellite signal consists of the following
components :
The two L-band carrier waves.
The ranging codes modulated on the carrier
waves.
The so-called "navigation message".
Signal: Electromagnetic Spectrum
GPS:
VISIBL
X-RAY MICRO L1,L2
E
UV IR
GAMM RADIO
A
85
The satellite signals basically consists of :
The two L-band carrier waves.
The ranging codes modulated on the carrier waves.
The Navigation Message.
The carrier waves provide the means by which the ranging
codes and Navigation Message is transmitted to earth (and
hence to the user). The primary function of the ranging
codes is to permit the signal transit time (from satellite to
receiver) to be determined.
The Navigation Message is modulated on both carrier
frequencies and contains the satellite ephemeris, satellite
clock parameters, and other pertinent information such as
general system status messages and an ionospheric delay
model, necessary for real-time navigation to be performed.
GPS SIGNAL
Each satellite continuously broadcasts low-power radio
signals that identify it and provide information about its
location in space, as well as system timing and other data.
The signals are broadcast using two carrier frequencies in
the L band of the ultrahigh frequency.
L1 1574.42 0.19
L2 1227.6 0.24
L1 freq. (1575.42 Mhz) carries the SPS code and the navigation
message.
L2 freq. (1227.60 Mhz) used to measure ionosphere delays by PPS
receivers.
Although each satellite transmits the same frequencies (L1
and L2), each satellite encodes the frequency with a
different C/A code and different P code. The receiver uses
the code to determine how far it is from the satellite.
C/A code is 1023 chip long code or in other words Sequence Length =
1023 bits. Each bit (0/1) in the sequence is called a chip.
Signal Interference
Sometimes the signals bounce
off things before they hit the
receivers.
Line of Sight Transmissions
Line of sight is the ability
to draw a straight line
between two objects
without any other objects
getting in the way. GPS
transmission are line-of-
sight transmissions.
What is Multipath
Multi-path occurs when signals are reflected off of objects
such as trees or buildings. These reflections delay the
signal before it reaches the antenna and throw off the
range calculations. Since accurate timing is necessary for
accurate positioning, this can cause significant error. Multi-
path is the greatest source of error in forestry settings and
the most difficult to combat.
What Affects a GPS Signal
Atmospheric
Error
Multi-Path Error
Human Error
Sources of Signal Interference
Earths Atmosphere
Solid Structures
User error = +- 1 km
Errors in GPS are cumulative, and are compounded by
position dilution of precision (PDOP) (covered later). It is
the users responsibility to insure the accuracy of the data
being collected with the GPS.