Supporting an assisted satellite based positioning

• US 8,878,723 B2
• Filed: 11/09/2011
• Issued: 11/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Syrjarinne, Jari
• Primary Examiner(s): Issing, Gregory C
• Application Number:
  US13/373,304
• Publication Number:
  US 20120062416A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,091 Days
• Field of Search: 342/357.22, 342/357.39, 342/357.66, 342/357.42, 342/357.64, 342/357.73, 342/356.66, 342/357.43, 701/531
• US Class Current: 342/357.64
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/05 providing aiding data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/06 employing an initial estimate of the location of the receiver as aiding data or in generating aiding data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/071 DGPS corrections
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/258 relating to the satellite constellation, e.g. almanac, ephemeris data, lists of satellites in view
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/33 Multimode operation in different systems which transmit time stamped messages, e.g. GPS/GLONASS

Abstract

For supporting a satellite based positioning of a mobile arrangement (30, 40) with assistance data, a communication network converts parameters of a dedicated orbit model describing a movement of a satellite (50, 60), which dedicated orbit model is defined for a particular satellite based positioning system, into parameters of a common orbit model describing a movement of a satellite (50, 60). Alternatively or in addition, the network replaces a reference value that is based on a satellite based positioning system time in available parameters of an orbit model by a reference value that is based on a communication system time. After the parameter conversion and/or the reference value replacement, the parameters are provided as a part of assistance data for the satellite based positioning.

Claims

1. A method comprising

receiving, by a mobile device, assistance data for satellite based positioning, the assistance data including parameters of a common orbit model, wherein the common orbit model is defined in common for at least two different satellite based positioning systems including at least two of Galileo system, Global Positioning System and Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System, wherein said common orbit model provides a same number of parameters and a same word length of parameters for each of the at least two satellite based positioning systems, and wherein the common orbit model with the received parameters describes a movement of a particular satellite of a particular satellite based positioning system;

and

estimating, by the mobile device and for use in a satellite based positioning, a position of the particular satellite of the particular satellite based positioning system based on the received parameters of the common orbit model.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the common orbit model is defined in common for at least three different satellite based positioning systems, the at least three different satellite based positioning systems including in addition at least one of the following:

European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service; and

Wide Area Augmentation System.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the assistance data comprises in addition at least one of the following:

differential Global Positioning System corrections;

Real Time Kinematics corrections;

carrier phase measurements for satellite signals;

European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service corrections;

Wide Area Augmentation System corrections;

short-term differential corrections for the converted parameters;

ionosphere model parameters;

troposphere model parameters; and

short-term integrity warnings.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the received parameters of the common orbit model comprise a reference value that represents a reference time that is based on a communication system time.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the common orbit model comprises at least one parameter having a longer word length than a corresponding parameter of a dedicated orbit model defined for the particular satellite based positioning system, wherein the dedicated orbit model with at least the corresponding parameter describes a movement of the particular satellite of the particular satellite based positioning system.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the received parameters of the common orbit model have a longer validity time than parameters of a dedicated orbit model defined for the particular satellite based positioning system, wherein the dedicated orbit model with the parameters of the dedicated orbit model describes a movement of the particular satellite of the particular satellite based positioning system.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the assistance data comprises in addition data bits of at least one satellite based positioning system enabling a data wipe-off, the method further comprising improving the sensitivity of a satellite signal receiver with the received data bits.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the common orbit model represents a Keplerian orbit.

9. A non-transitory computer readable medium stored with instructions that, when executed by a processor of a mobile device causes the mobile device to perform the following:

receiving assistance data for satellite based positioning, the assistance data including parameters of a common orbit model, wherein the common orbit model is defined in common for at least two different satellite based positioning systems including at least two of Galileo system, Global Positioning System and Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System, wherein said common orbit model provides a same number of parameters and a same word length of parameters for each of the at least two satellite based positioning systems, and wherein the common orbit model with the received parameters describes a movement of a particular satellite of a particular satellite based positioning system; and

estimating, for use in a satellite based positioning, a position of the particular satellite of the particular satellite based positioning system based on the received parameters of the common orbit model.

10. An apparatus comprising a processing unit and implemented software code, the processing unit with the software code being configured to cause a mobile device to perform:

receive assistance data for satellite based positioning, the assistance data including parameters of a common orbit model, wherein the common orbit model is defined in common for at least two different satellite based positioning systems including at least two of Galileo system, Global Positioning System and Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System, wherein said common orbit model provides a same number of parameters and a same word length of parameters for each of the at least two satellite based positioning systems, and wherein the common orbit model with the received parameters describes a movement of a particular satellite of a particular satellite based positioning system; and

estimate, for use in a satellite based positioning, a position of the particular satellite of the particular satellite based positioning system based on the received parameters of the common orbit model.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the common orbit model is defined in common for at least three different satellite based positioning systems, the at least three different satellite based positioning systems including in addition at least one of the following:

European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service; and

Wide Area Augmentation System.

12. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the assistance data comprises in addition at least one of the following:

differential Global Positioning System corrections;

Real Time Kinematics corrections;

carrier phase measurements for satellite signals;

European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service corrections;

Wide Area Augmentation System corrections;

short-term differential corrections for the converted parameters;

ionosphere model parameters;

troposphere model parameters; and

short-term integrity warnings.

13. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the received parameters of the common orbit model comprise a reference value that represents a reference time that is based on a communication system time.

14. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the common orbit model comprises at least one parameter having a longer word length than a corresponding parameter of a dedicated orbit model defined for the particular satellite based positioning system, wherein the dedicated orbit model with at least the corresponding parameter describes a movement of the particular satellite of the particular satellite based positioning system.

15. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the received parameters of the common orbit model have a longer validity time than parameters of a dedicated orbit model defined for the particular satellite based positioning system, wherein the dedicated orbit model with the parameters of the dedicated orbit model describes a movement of the particular satellite of the particular satellite based positioning system.

16. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein parameters of the common orbit model have a validity of at least one day.

17. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the assistance data comprises correction data that has been calculated specifically for the received parameters of the common orbit model, and wherein the processing unit with the software code is configured to cause the apparatus to correct the received parameters of the common orbit model based on the correction data before a respective estimation of a position of a satellite.

18. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the assistance data comprises in addition data bits of at least one satellite based positioning system enabling a data wipe-off, and wherein the processing unit with the software code is configured to cause the apparatus to improve the sensitivity of a satellite signal receiver with the received data bits.

19. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the common orbit model represents a Keplerian orbit.

20. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the apparatus is one of a mobile communication device and a component for a mobile communication device.