Satellite navigation

• US 6,188,958 B1
• Filed: 01/24/2000
• Issued: 02/13/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 07/19/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Honeywell AG (Honeywell International Inc.), Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Gu, Xiaogang, Leiprecht, Ansgar
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Beaulieu, Yonel
• Application Number:
  US09/463,281
• Time in Patent Office: 386 Days
• Field of Search: 701/200, 701/207, 701/213, 701/214, 701/215, 342/357.01, 342/357.03, 342/357.05, 342/357.06, 340/988, 340/990, 340/995
• US Class Current: 701/215
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/41 Differential correction, e.g. DGPS [differential GPS]

Abstract

A method for satellite navigation and, in particular, a method for DGNSS (Differential Global Navigation Satellite System) is provided. Separate differential corrections are generated in a reference station with at least one fixed-position GNSS receiving antenna, for code and phase measurement. If necessary, a combination of the differential corrections is also produced. The differential corrections are transmitted to an aircraft (with GNSS) which is approaching landing, for example, via a data radio transmission link. This then enables high-precision GNSS navigation, to the extent that landings can even be executed fully automatically.

Claims

1. Satellite navigation method, for a navigating object, the position of which is determined from a received signal of a plurality of satellites (satellite navigation),the method comprising the steps of:

evaluating at a reference station, which comprises a known antenna position, a differential correction data;

calculating a differential correction for individual satellites from a comparison of a measured range value with a geometric range value calculated from the known antenna position, wherein

the differential corrections are calculated at one of the navigating object by transmiting the differential correction data to the navigating object or, at the reference station from transmitted raw measured values within the navigating object;

correcting the measured range value in the navigating object by the differential correction such that,

for the reference station, related range values are evaluated from code-and carrier phase measurements,

the differential corrections of a non-filtered code psuedo range and the differential corrections of an integrated phase Doppler shift are evaluated individually from a comparison of the measured range values with the geometrical range values calculated from the known position,

for the navigating object the non-filtered code psuedo ranges and the integrated Doppler shifts evaluated from the carrier phases are corrected individually with related code-and phase differential corrections, and

after this correction the individual differential corrected measured values of the navigating object are combined to “

carrier-smoothed codes”

.

2. Satellite navigation according to claim 1, characterized in that for the satellite navigation within the navigating object as well as within the reference station the satellite signals of GPS-satellites are evaluated.

3. Satellite navigation according to one of the preceding claims for use in determining the position of an aircraft as navigating object.

4. Satellite navigation according to claim 1 for use as a landing support to an aircraft.

5. Satellite navigation according to claim 2 for use as a landing support to an aircraft.

6. Satellite navigation according to claim 3 for use as a landing support to an aircraft.

7. A method for determining the position of a mobile receiving antenna within a three-dimensional space, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a fixed reference station at a known location;

providing a GPS satellite;

evaluating a non-filtered pseudo range value from a code phase measurement of the reference station;

evaluating a geometrical range value from a trajectory parameter;

comparing the non-filtered pseudo range value between the reference station and the satellite with the geometrical range value;

calculating a code pseudo range differential correction as a result of at least one of the previous evaluating or comparing steps;

evaluating an integrated Doppler shift from a carrier phase measurement;

evaluating a geometrical range variation from the trajectory parameter;

comparing the integrated Doppler shift with the geometrical range variation;

calculating a carrier phase range differential correction;

correcting the non-filtered code pseudo range and the integrated Doppler shift according to the corresponding calculated differential corrections; and

combining the code and carrier phase measurements to “

carrier smoothed codes”

after the correcting step.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the mobile receiving antenna comprises an aircraft receiving antenna.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein all the evaluating steps are performed in parallel.

10. The method of claim 7 further comprising the step of transmitting the differential corrections from the reference station to the mobile receiving antenna.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein the calculating steps are performed in the mobile receiving antenna.