Signal receiving apparatus of global positioning system and mobile wireless terminal apparatus

• US 6,369,751 B1
• Filed: 10/19/2000
• Issued: 04/09/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Naruse, Tetsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Blum, Theodore M.
• Application Number:
  US09/691,961
• Time in Patent Office: 537 Days
• Field of Search: 342/357.09, 342/357.1, 701/215
• US Class Current: 342/357.42
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/05 providing aiding data
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18554 using the position provided by an existing geolocalisation system
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/2125 Synchronisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/216 Code division or spread-spectrum multiple access [CDMA, SSMA]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system and a mobile wireless terminal apparatus execute the synchronization acquisition to the satellite signal at high speed and reduce the consumption of electric power. According to the present invention, since the spread spectrum signal from the base station of the cellular system, that is synchronized with the satellite signal to be transmitted from the GPS satellite, is received and based on the spread spectrum signal the system time signal as a reference signal used to synchronize with the satellite signal is generated, and receiving the satellite signal, the synchronization acquisition with the PN code in the satellite signal can be executed in a short period of time in synchronism with the system time signal. And thereby the consumption of electric power can be further reduced.

Claims

1. A signal receiving apparatus of a global positioning system comprising:

communication system receiving means for receiving a transmission signal synchronized with a satellite signal to be transmitted from a satellite of the global positioning system, from a base station of the communication system;

timing signal generating means for generating the timing signal as a reference signal used to synchronize with said satellite signal based on the transmission signal of said communication system; and

satellite signal receiving means for receiving said satellite signal and securing synchronization with pseudo noise code in said satellite signal based on said timing signal to be supplied from the timing signal generating means.

2. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system according to claim 1, wherein

said timing signal generating means generates timing information required for demodulating said satellite signal by securing synchronization with the pseudo noise code of transmission signal from the base station of said communication system.

3. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system according to claim 2, wherein

said signal receiving means recognizes the location of said base station based on data to be obtained by demodulating the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system;

and

said satellite signal receiving means assumes communicable satellite from among multiple satellites existing based on said timing information obtained by said timing signal generating means and said location recognized by said signal receiving means, and predicts the type of code series of PN code corresponding to said satellite assumed to be communicable.

4. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system according to claim 1, wherein

said timing signal generating means recognizes the phase of pseudo noise code in said satellite signal synchronized with the transmission signal by obtaining synchronism with the pseudo noise code in the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system.

5. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system according to claim 1, wherein

said satellite signal receiving means demodulates said satellite signal intermittently only at the timing when said timing signal is supplied thereto.

6. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system according to claim 1, wherein

said satellite signal receiving means corrects the time difference between the timing of said received satellite signal and the timing signal by adding the propagation path delay of the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system and the internal processing delay to said timing signal, generated due to the formation of the timing signal.

7. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system according to claim 1, wherein

said timing signal generating means generates said timing signal with a common multiple of the cycle of the least unit time with which breakpoints of the pseudo noise code in said satellite signal and the pseudo noise code of the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system are coincided.

8. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system according to claim 7, wherein

said timing signal generating means generates said timing signal with a common multiple of the cycle of 5 msec.

9. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system as defined in claim 7, wherein

said timing signal generating means generates said timing signal with a common multiple of the cycle of 1.25 msec.

10. The signal receiving apparatus of the global positioning system according to claim 1, wherein

said communication system is a CDMA cellular system using the direct diffusion system.

11. A mobile wireless terminal apparatus comprising:

communication system receiving means for receiving a transmission signal synchronized with a satellite signal to be transmitted from a satellite of the global positioning system from a base station of the communication system;

communication system transmitting means for transmitting signal to the base station of said communication system;

timing signal generating means for generating the timing signal as a reference signal used to synchronize with said satellite signal based on the transmission signal of said communication system; and

satellite signal receiving means for receiving the satellite signal and for securing the synchronism with the pseudo noise code in said satellite signal based on said timing signal to be supplied from said timing signal generating means.

12. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

said timing signal generating means generates a time information required for demodulation of said satellite signal by securing the synchronization with the pseudo noise code in the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system.

13. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 12, wherein

said signal receiving means recognizes the position of said base station based on the data to be obtained by demodulating the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system;

and

said satellite signal receiving means assumes the communicable satellite from among multiple satellites existing based on the time information obtained by said timing signal generating means and the position recognized by said signal receiving means, and predicts the type of code series of PN code corresponding to said satellite assumed to be communicable.

14. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

said timing signal generating means recognizes the phase of the pseudo noise code in said satellite signal synchronized with said transmission signal by securing synchronism with the pseudo noise code in the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system.

15. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

said satellite signal receiving means demodulates said satellite signal intermittently only at the timing when said timing signal is supplied thereto.

16. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

said satellite signal receiving means corrects the time difference between the timing when said satellite signal is received and said timing signal by adding the propagation path delay of the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system and the internal processing delay related to the formation of said timing signal to said timing signal.

17. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

said timing signal generating means generates said timing signal with the common multiple of the cycle of the least unit time with which the breakpoints of the pseudo noise code of the transmission signal from the base station of said communication system and the pseudo noise code in said satellite signal are in agreement.

18. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 17, wherein

said timing signal generating means generates said timing signal with the common multiple of the cycle of 5 msec.

19. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 17, wherein

said timing signal generating means generates said timing signal with the common multiple of the cycle of 1.25 msec.

20. The mobile wireless terminal apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

said communication system is a CDMA cellular system using the direct diffusion system.