Method and arrangements for the transmission of pseudolite trajectories within navigation data of a satellite navigation system

• US 20050083232A1
• Filed: 09/01/2004
• Published: 04/21/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Eads Astrium GmbH
• Original Assignee: Eads Astrium GmbH
• Inventors: Trautenberg, Hans Ludwig
• Granted Patent: US 7,508,341 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 342/386
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/11 wherein the cooperating elements are pseudolites or satellite radio beacon positioning system signal repeaters
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/258 relating to the satellite constellation, e.g. almanac, ephemeris data, lists of satellites in view

Abstract

Method for the transmission of navigation data to user terminals of a satellite navigation system composed of navigation satellites and pseudolites. The method includes transmitting positional information for at least one of the pseudolites, as part of the navigation data, without the use of separate channels or protocols for the transmission of the positional information for the at least one pseudolite. The positional information is transmitted in the form of a model of a pseudolite trajectory in a reference coordinate system which the model accounts for orbit-divergent motions of the at least one pseudolite, and the positional information for the at least on pseudolite forms a part of the navigation data.

Claims

1. A method for the transmission of navigation data to user terminals of a satellite navigation system composed of navigation satellites and pseudolites, comprising:

transmitting positional information for at least one of the pseudolites, without the use of separate channels or protocols for the transmission of the positional information for the at least one pseudolite,

wherein the positional information is transmitted in the form of a model of a pseudolite trajectory in a reference coordinate system which the model accounts for orbit-divergent motions of the at least one pseudolite,

wherein the positional information for the at least on pseudolite forms a part of the navigation data.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the model for the pseudolite trajectory takes into account at least one of changes in the surface structure of the Earth with time and relative motion of the at least one pseudolite relative to the surface of the Earth.

3. The method according to claim 1 further comprising:

transmitting positional information for the navigation satellites in the form of a model of a navigation satellite trajectory in the same reference coordinate system and using the same model for the pseudolite trajectory,

wherein the model comprises a first submodel that describes orbital motions and a second submodel that describes orbit-divergent motions, and the positional information for the navigation satellites forms part of the navigation data.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting positional information for the navigation satellites in the form of a model of a navigation satellite trajectory in the same reference coordinate system and using a different model for the pseudolite trajectory,

wherein identification of the model is included within the navigation data.

5. The method according to claim 1 further comprising:

utilizing a unified data format by the navigation satellites and the pseudolites for transmission of the navigation data.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting the navigation data of the navigation satellites and the pseudolites in at least one of a same frequency and a same frequency band; and

encoding the navigation data for each pseudolite and each navigation satellite with a unique code for code-division multiplex.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the pseudolites uses a common code for code-division multiplex encoding of the navigation data.

15. A user terminal for a satellite navigation system, said satellite navigation system transmitting navigation data from navigation satellites and pseudolites that includes model data of a pseudolite trajectory in a reference coordinate system inserted in accordance with claim 1, the user terminal comprising:

a receiver for receiving the navigation data;

a position model decoding device structured and arranged to extract the model data of a pseudolite trajectory in the reference coordinate system from the navigation data, to account for model data of orbit-divergent motions of at least one pseudolite, and to determine a position of at least one pseudolite according to the model data, without separate devices for receiving and for decoding separate channels or protocols for positional information of pseudolites.

16. The user terminal according to claim 15, wherein the position model decoding device is configured to extract from the navigation data model data of a navigation satellite trajectory in the same reference coordinate system and to determine the position of at least one navigation satellite on a basis of the model data,

wherein the position model decoding device is further configured to identify and extract a common model for the pseudolite trajectory and for the navigation satellite trajectory, which model comprises a first submodel that describes orbital motions and a second submodel for describing orbit-divergent motions.

17. The user terminal according to claim 15, wherein the position model decoding device is also configured to extract model data of a navigation satellite trajectory in the same reference coordinate system from the navigation data and to determine the position of at least one navigation satellite on a basis of the model data, wherein the position model decoding device is configured to identify and extract separate models for the pseudolite trajectory and for the navigation satellite trajectory based on identification of the applicable model within the navigation data.

18. The user terminal according to claim 15, wherein the receiving device and the position model decoding device are structured and arranged to process a unified data format from the navigation satellites and the pseudolites.

19. The user terminal according to claim 15, wherein the receiving device is configured such that the navigation data from the navigation satellites and the pseudolites can be received on the same frequency or in the same frequency band, and the navigation data from each pseudolite and each navigation satellite are decoded with the aid of a separate code for code-division multiplex decoding.

20. A computer program for processing navigation data from navigation satellites and pseudolites, into which model data of a pseudolite trajectory in a reference coordinate system have been inserted in accordance with the method according to claim 1,

wherein the computer program accounts for model data for orbit-divergent motions of at least one pseudolite, and the computer program is configured to work together with a position model decoding device of a user terminal.

21. A computer program product containing a machine-readable program medium, on which a computer program according to claim 20 is stored in the form of electronically readable control signals.

8. A satellite navigation system composed of navigation satellites and pseudolites, the system comprising:

navigation satellite transmitters, associated with the navigation satellites, that transmit navigation data to user terminals;

pseudolite transmitters, associated with the pseudolites, that transmit navigation data to user terminals; and

pseudolite modeling devices that are structured and arranged to prepare model data of a pseudolite trajectory in a reference coordinate system, associated with each of the pseudolites,

wherein the model data accounts for orbit-divergent motions of each of the pseudolites, and said modeling devices are configured to insert the model data into the navigation data.

9. The satellite navigation system according to claim 8, wherein each navigation satellite further comprises:

a navigation satellite modeling device structured and arranged to prepare model data of a navigation satellite trajectory in the same reference coordinate system, wherein the model data is inserted into the navigation data,

wherein the model data of said pseudolite modeling device being the same as the model data of navigation satellite modeling device, and the model data comprises a first submodel that describes orbital motions and a second submodel that describes orbit-divergent motions.

10. The satellite navigation system according to claim 8, wherein each navigation satellite further comprises:

a navigation satellite modeling device structured and arranged to prepare model data of a navigation satellite trajectory in the same reference coordinate system, wherein the model data is inserted into the navigation data,

wherein the model data of said pseudolite modeling device being different from the model data of navigation satellite modeling device, the model data comprises a first submodel that describes orbital motions and a second submodel that describes orbit-divergent motions, and identification of the applicable model is included within the navigation data.

11. The satellite navigation system according to claim 8, wherein the navigation satellite transmitters, pseudolite transmitters, and the modeling devices are configured such that a unified data format for transmission of the navigation data is used by the navigation satellites and the pseudolites.

12. The satellite navigation system according to claim 8, wherein all transmitters that transmit navigation data are configured such that the same frequency or the same frequency band is used by the navigation satellites and the pseudolites for transmission of the navigation data, and a unique code for code-division multiplex encoding of the navigation data is used by each pseudolite and by each navigation satellite.

13. The satellite navigation system according to claim 8, wherein the pseudolite transmitters are configured such that the pseudolites use a common code for code-division multiplex encoding of the navigation data.

14. The satellite navigation system according to claim 8, wherein the pseudolites are installed on one of land vehicles, watercraft, aircraft, spacecraft, or on satellites whose orbits are higher or lower than the orbits of the navigation satellites.

22. A method for the transmission of navigation data to user terminals of a satellite navigation system composed of navigation satellites and pseudolites, comprising:

transmitting positional information for at least one of the pseudolites, in the same channels and with the same protocols as the transmission of the positional information for the at least one pseudolite,

wherein the positional information is transmitted in the form of a model of a pseudolite trajectory in a reference coordinate system which the model accounts for orbit-divergent motions of the at least one pseudolite, and wherein the positional information for the at least on pseudolite forms a part of the navigation data.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the model for the pseudolite trajectory takes into account at least one of changes in the surface structure of the Earth with time and relative motion of the at least one pseudolite relative to the surface of the Earth.

24. A user terminal for a satellite navigation system, said satellite navigation system transmitting navigation data from navigation satellites and pseudolites that includes model data of a pseudolite trajectory in a reference coordinate system, the user terminal comprising:

a receiver for receiving the navigation data;

a position model decoding device structured and arranged to extract the model data of a pseudolite trajectory in the reference coordinate system from the navigation data, to account for model data of orbit-divergent motions of at least one pseudolite, and to determine a position of at least one pseudolite according to the model data,

wherein the receiver uses the same channels and protocols to receive the positional information of the pseudolites.

25. The user terminal according to claim 24, wherein the position model decoding device is configured to extract from the navigation data model data of a navigation satellite trajectory in the same reference coordinate system and to determine the position of at least one navigation satellite on a basis of the model data,

wherein the position model decoding device is further configured to identify and

extract a common model for the pseudolite trajectory and for the navigation satellite trajectory, which model comprises a first submodel that describes orbital motions and a second submodel for describing orbit-divergent motions.