Method and apparatus for accurately determining the position of satellites in geosynchronous orbits
First Claim
1. A method of determining the position of a satellite in a near geosynchronous orbit comprising the steps of:
- receiving a main lobe signal from an antenna on a first GPS satellite;
providing a plurality of known sequential data bits for a GPS signal;
providing GPS time and Doppler information;
acquiring side lobe signals from antennas on second GPS satellites using the known sequential data bits and the GPS time and Doppler information; and
determining the position of the satellite in a near geosynchronous orbit using the main lobe signal and the side lobe signals.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method of determining the position of a satellite in a near geosynchronous orbit includes receiving at least one main lobe signal from an antenna on a first GPS satellite. A GPS signal, including GPS time and Doppler, is received from a pseudolite positioned on the Earth and an approximate position of each of a plurality of second GPS satellites is determined from an onboard almanac. Side lobe signals and accompanying noise are received from antennas on the plurality of second GPS satellites. The GPS signal and known sequential data bits are used for sorting or integrating the side lobe signals from the accompanying noise and the position of the satellite in a near geosynchronous orbit is determined using the one or more main lobe signals and the sorted side lobe signals.
83 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A method of determining the position of a satellite in a near geosynchronous orbit comprising the steps of:
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receiving a main lobe signal from an antenna on a first GPS satellite;
providing a plurality of known sequential data bits for a GPS signal;
providing GPS time and Doppler information;
acquiring side lobe signals from antennas on second GPS satellites using the known sequential data bits and the GPS time and Doppler information; and
determining the position of the satellite in a near geosynchronous orbit using the main lobe signal and the side lobe signals. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method of determining the position of a satellite in a near geosynchronous orbit comprising the steps of:
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receiving at least one main lobe signal from an antenna on a first GPS satellite;
receiving a GPS signal from a pseudolite positioned on the Earth;
providing a plurality of known data bits for a GPS receiver;
determining an approximate position of each of a plurality of second GPS satellites from an onboard almanac;
receiving side lobe signals and accompanying noise from antennas on the plurality of second GPS satellites;
using the known data bits and the GPS signal, sorting the side lobe signals from the accompanying noise;
determining the position of the satellite in a near geosynchronous orbit using the at least one main lobe signal and the side lobe signals; and
the step of sorting the side lobe signals from accompanying noise includes integrating each of the received side lobe signals and accompanying noise over a period of time approximately equal to the known data bits of the GPS signal. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13)
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Specification