Global Positioning System (GPS)

(EQ-538 Geoinformatics)
What is the GPS?

 Orbiting navigational satellites

– Transmit position and time data
 Handheld receivers calculate
– latitude
– longitude
– altitude
– velocity
 Developed by Department of Defense (Billions and billions of dollars have been
invested in creating this technology for military uses).

Components of the System

Space segment
 24 satellite vehicles
 Six orbital planes
– Inclined 55 with respect to equator
o

– Orbits separated by 60
o

 20,200 km elevation above Earth

 Orbital period of 11 hr 55 min
 Five to eight satellites visible from any point on Earth
Block I Satellite Vehicle

GPS
The GPS satellites orbit the earth in 12 hours. There are often more than 24
operational satellites as new ones are launched to replace older satellites.
The satellite orbits repeat almost the same ground track (as the earth turns beneath
them) once each day.
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 The orbit altitude is such that the satellites repeat the same track and configuration over
any point approximately each 24 hours (4 minutes earlier each day).
This constellation provides the user with between five and eight SVs visible from any
point on the earth.

GPS satellites are orbited high enough to avoid the problems associated with land based
systems, yet can provide accurate positioning 24 hours a day, anywhere in the world.
Uncorrected positions determined from GPS satellite signals produce accuracies in the
range of 50 to 100 meters. When using a technique called differential correction, users can
get positions accurate to within 5 meters or less. GPS has found its greatest utility in the
field of Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

With some consideration for error, GPS can provide any point on earth with a unique
address (its precise location). A GIS is basically a descriptive database of the earth (or a
specific part of the earth). GPS tells you that you are at point X,Y,Z while GIS tells you
that X,Y,Z is a monument, or a spot in a region. GPS tells us the "where“ and GIS tells us
the "what". GPS/GIS is reshaping the way we locate, organize, analyze and map our
resources.

IRNSS - Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System

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The three GEO satellites are stationed at 32.5, 83 and 131.5 degrees while the GSO
spacecraft will be in two different orbits inclined 29 degrees with longitude crossings
at 55 and 111.75 degrees. Each of the two GSO orbital planes contains two satellites
spaced 180 degrees in their orbit.
Four Geosynchronous satellites will be orbiting in pairs in two inclined orbits
The heart of the satellite payload is a highly accurate Rubidium atom clock that is
used to generate navigation signals. The payload of the satellite operates in L5-band
at a center frequency of 1176.45 MHz and a bandwidth of 24MHz and in S-Band at
2492.028 MHz with a bandwidth of 16.5MHz.

The Spacecraft will support Standard Positioning Service that is open to all users as
well as Restrictive Service with high accuracy that is only provided to authorized
users. The system will provide an accuracy of 10 to 20 meters.

Some applications of IRNSS are:

 Terrestrial, Aerial and Marine Navigation
 Disaster Management
 Vehicle tracking and fleet management
 Integration with mobile phones
 Precise Timing
 Mapping and Geodetic data capture
 Terrestrial navigation aid for hikers and travellers
 Visual and voice navigation for drivers

How GPS Determines a Location

 Trilateration process.

GPS is based on satellite ranging - calculating the distances between the receiver and
the position of 3 or more satellites (4 or more if elevation is desired) and then applying
some mathematics.

Accurate timing is the key to measuring distance to satellites. Satellites are accurate
because they have four atomic clocks ($100,000 each) on board. Extra satellite range
measurement can remove errors if any.

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 Assuming the positions of the satellites are known, the location of the receiver can be
calculated by determining the distance from each of the satellites to the receiver.
GPS takes these 3 or more known references and measured distances and
"TRIANGULATES" an additional position.

Measuring Distance

Distance = Velocity * Time

– Velocity is that of a radio wave.
– Time is the travel time of the signal.
Measure the travel time
– Receiver generates the same codes as the satellite (Pseudo Random Noise-
PRN codes).
– Measure delay between incoming codes and self generated codes.
– D = Speed of light * measured delay.

Distance = Time Delay * Speed of light

Signal Generated at Satellite

Signal generated at satellite

Received Signal

Receiver generated signal with phase delay

Signal generated by receiver

Triangulation in 2D

 If location of point A is known, and the distance to point A is known, desired

position lies somewhere on a circle. Could be anywhere along the circle.

 Distance to two points are known. Desired position is in one of two locations.
 Distance to three points are known.

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  Position is known!

Triangulation in 3D
 Distance to 3 points are known.
 Intersects at 2 points.

How the Current Locations of GPS Satellites are Determined

Almanac : Today's GPS receivers store this orbit information for all of the GPS satellites
in what is known as an almanac. Think of the almanac as a "bus schedule" advising you of
where each satellite will be at a particular time. Each GPS satellite continually broadcasts
the almanac.
Your GPS receiver will automatically collect this information and store it for future
reference.
The ground station constantly monitors the orbit of the satellites looking for deviations
from predicted values.

Ephemeris : Any deviations (caused by natural atmospheric phenomenon such as gravity),

are known as ephemeris errors. When ephemeris errors are determined to exist for a
satellite, the errors are sent back up to that satellite, which in turn broadcasts the errors as
part of the standard message, supplying this information to the GPS receivers. By using the
information from the almanac in conjunction with the ephemeris error data, the position of
a GPS satellite can be very precisely determined for a given time.

Computing Distance Between GPS Satellites & Receiver

GPS determines distance between a GPS satellite and a GPS receiver by measuring the
amount of time it takes a radio signal (the GPS signal) to travel from the satellite to the
receiver. Radio waves travel at the speed of light, which is about 186,000 miles per
second. So, if the amount of time it takes for the signal to travel from the satellite to the
receiver is known, the distance from the satellite to the receiver (distance = speed x time)
can be determined. If the exact time when the signal was transmitted and the exact time
when it was received are known, the signal's travel time can be determined.

In order to do this, the satellites and the receivers use very accurate clocks which are
synchronized so that they generate the same code at exactly the same time. The code
received from the satellite can be compared with the code generated by the receiver. By
comparing the codes, the time difference between when the satellite generated the code and
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when the receiver generated the code can be determined. This interval is the travel time of
the code. Multiplying this travel time, in seconds, by 186,000 miles per second gives the
distance from the receiver position to the satellite in miles.

Four Satellites to give a 3D position

Therefore, a fourth variable (in addition to x, y and z), time, must be determined in order to
calculate a precise location. Mathematically, to solve for four unknowns (x, y, z, and t),
there must be four equations.

GPS Error Budget

The GPS system has been designed to be as nearly accurate as possible. However, there are
still errors.
Added together, these errors can cause a deviation of +/- 50 -100 meters from the actual
GPS receiver position.
There are several sources for these errors, the most significant of which are discussed
below:
Atmospheric Conditions
The ionosphere and troposphere both refract the GPS signals. This causes the speed of the
GPS signal in the ionosphere and troposphere to be different from the speed of the GPS
signal in space.
Therefore, the distance calculated from "Signal Speed x Time" will be different for the
portion of the GPS signal path that passes through the ionosphere and troposphere and for
the portion that passes through space.

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Ephemeris Errors/Clock Drift/Measurement Noise
GPS signals contain information about ephemeris (orbital position) errors,
and about the rate of clock drift for the broadcasting satellite.
The data concerning ephemeris errors may not exactly model the true satellite
motion or the exact rate of clock drift.
Distortion of the signal by measurement noise can further increase positional
error.
The disparity in ephemeris data can introduce 1-5 meters of positional error,
clock drift disparity can introduce 0-1.5 meters of positional error and
measurement noise can introduce 0-10 meters of positional error.

Selective Availability
Selective Availability (SA) is the intentional alteration of the time and
ephemeris signal by the Department of Defense. SA can introduce 0-70 meters
of positional error. Fortunately, positional errors caused by SA can be
removed by differential correction.
Multipath
A GPS signal bouncing off a reflective surface prior to reaching the GPS
receiver antenna is referred to as multipath. Because it is difficult to
completely correct multipath error, even in high precision GPS units,
multipath error is a serious concern to the GPS user.

Accuracy – sources of errors

– Ionospheric effects ± 5 meters
– Tropospheric effects ± 0.5 meter
– Ephemeris errors ± 2.5 meters
– Satellite clock errors ± 2 meters
– Multipath distortion ± 1 meter
– Numerical errors ± 1 meter

Measuring GPS Accuracy

Major factor in determining positional accuracy is the alignment, or geometry, of the group
of satellites (constellation) from which signals are being received. The geometry of the
constellation is evaluated for several factors, all of which fall into the category of Dilution
Of Precision, or DOP Geometrical DOP. DOP is an indicator of the quality of the
geometry of the satellite constellation. Your computed position can vary depending on
which satellites you use for the measurement. Different satellite geometries can magnify or
lessen the errors in the error budget described above. A greater angle between the satellites
lowers the DOP, and provides a better measurement. A higher DOP indicates poor satellite
geometry, and an inferior measurement cofiguration.

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 Good Satellite Geometry Poor Satellite Geometry

Good for DOP Bad for DOP

Some GPS receivers can analyze the positions of the satellites available, based upon the
almanac, and choose those satellites with the best geometry in order to make the DOP as
low as possible. Another important GPS receiver feature is to be able to ignore or eliminate
GPS readings with DOP values that exceed user-defined limits.

Other GPS receivers may have the ability to use all of the satellites in view, thus
minimizing the DOP as much as possible.

Differential GPS to Increase Accuracy

 A technique called differential correction is necessary to get accuracies within 1 -

5 meters, or even better, with advanced equipment. Differential correction requires
a second GPS receiver, a base station, collecting data at a stationary position on a
precisely known point (typically it is a surveyed benchmark). Because the physical
location of the base station is known, a correction factor can be computed by
comparing the known location with the GPS location determined by using the
satellites.

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GPS Elevation w.r.t. Geoid and Ellipsoid surface
Geographical coordinates and elevation uses ellipsoidal reference

Geoid
The geoid approximates mean sea level. The geoid as the shape assumed by the Earth's
globe that would hypothetically occur if gravity were constant at all points on its surface.

The shape of the ellipsoid was calculated based on the hypothetical equipotential
gravitational surface.

A significant difference exists between this mathematical model and the real object.

However, even the most mathematically sophisticated geoid can only approximate the real
shape of the earth.
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GPS vs Geoid height

In order to get elevation of a point w.r.t. geoid then it will be H = h + N

GPS and Geoid altitudes will be same where two surface intersects.

The accuracy of GPS height measurements depends on several factors but the most
crucial one is the "imperfection" of the earth's shape.
Height can be measured in two ways.
– The GPS uses height (h) above the reference ellipsoid that approximates the
earth's surface.
The traditional, orthometric height (H) is the height above an imaginary surface
called the geoid, which is determined by the earth's gravity and approximated by
MSL.
The signed difference between the two heights—the difference between the
ellipsoid and geoid—is the geoid height (N).
The figure shows the relationships between the different models and explains the
reasons why the two hardly ever match spatially.

Mean Sea Level

MSL is defined as the zero elevation for a local area and the zero surface referenced by
elevation is called a vertical datum. Sea level is not a simple surface and conforms to the
earth's gravitational field. MSL has slight hills and valleys that are similar to the land
surface but much smoother. However, zero elevation as defined by Spain is not the same
zero elevation defined by Canada, which is why locally defined vertical datums differ from
each other.

The MSL surface is in a state of gravitational equilibrium. It can be regarded as extending

under the continents and is a close approximation of the geoid. By definition, the geoid
describes the irregular shape of the earth and is the true zero surface for measuring
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elevations. Because the geoid surface cannot be directly observed, heights above or below
the geoid surface can't be directly measured and are inferred by making gravity
measurements and modeling the surface mathematically. Previously, there was no way to
accurately measure the geoid so it was roughly approximated by MSL. Although for
practical purposes, at the coastline the geoid and MSL surfaces are assumed to be
essentially the same, at some spots the geoid can actually differ from MSL by several
meters.

GPS has transformed how altitude at any spot is measured. GPS uses an ellipsoid
coordinate system for both its horizontal and vertical datums. An ellipsoid—or flattened
sphere—is used to represent the geometric model of the earth.

Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS)

• SBAS employs a ranging function to generate GPS-like signals and enable users to
use the concerned geo-stationary satellite as one more GPS satellite for ranging
purposes.
• Information of the GPS constellation is transmitted to each user in the real-time via
the integrity function of SBAS.
• Differential correction function provides ranging error data to each user.
• SBAS provide en-route through precision approach navigation services for all
aircraft within the covered airspace.

• SBAS are used to enhance the accuracy and precision of an existing GPS system.
• The other acronym is WAAS, or Wide Area Augmentation System. This is the
SBAS system for the United States and most of North America.
• Almost all GPS receivers available today incorporate SBAS features for at least
WAAS, and often other SBAS systems like EGNOS (European Union) and MSAS
(Japan).

• The WASS supplements the space-borne GPS signal with a series of 25 ground
stations that compare the GPS signal to geodetically known points.
• The stations then send corrections over a landline to a master station, which
retransmits a unique corrected GPS signal to each of four orbiting WAAS satellites.
• In turn, the satellites finally broadcast a corrected signal to WAAS-enabled GPS
receivers.
• The WAAS signal provides additional ranging for GPS receivers, it provides GPS
satellite integrity data, and most importantly, it provides wide-area differential
corrections to the civilian GPS signal. Currently the WAAS system consists of 3
satellites in geosynchronous orbit.
• WAAS-enabled receivers differentially correct for much of this error in realtime by
comparing the corrected WAAS signal to the incoming GPS signal and eliminating
much of the atmospheric, ephemeris and clock error, thus increasing the accuracy
of position solutions to around three meters.
• In practice, WAAS accuracy is often under 1.5 meters. This is often more than
sufficient accuracy for most casual GPS applications, but not quite good enough for
mapping and survey applications.

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Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS)-USA

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has developed the Wide Area
Augmentation System (WAAS) to provide GPS corrections and a certified level of
integrity to the aviation industry, to enable aircraft to conduct precision approaches to
airports.

European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS)

The European Space Agency, in cooperation with the European Commission (EC) and
EUROCONTROL (European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation) has
developed the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), an
augmentation system that improves the accuracy of positions derived from GPS signals
and alerts users about the reliability of the GPS signals.

MTSAT Satellite Based Augmentation Navigation System (MSAS)- Japan

MSAS is an SBAS that provides augmentation services to Japan. It uses two Multi-
functional Transport Satellites (MTSAT) and a network of ground stations to augment
GPS signals in Japan.

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GPS-Aided GEO Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN)

• GAGAN is an SBAS that supports flight navigation over Indian airspace.

• The system is based on three geostationary satellites, 15 reference stations installed
throughout India, three uplink stations and two control centers. GAGAN is
compatible with other SBAS systems, such as WAAS, EGNOS and MSAS.

User Segment

 Military.
 Search and rescue.
 Disaster relief.
 Surveying.
 Marine, aeronautical and terrestrial navigation.
 Remote controlled vehicle and robot guidance.
 Satellite positioning and tracking.
 Shipping.
 Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
 Recreation.
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