Positioning system and method

• US 9,213,104 B2
• Filed: 05/09/2008
• Issued: 12/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Inventors: Ogawa, Kazuhiro, Takasu, Kenichi, Yamaguchi, Shigeyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender, Ryan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Amsdell, Dana
• Application Number:
  US12/117,925
• Publication Number:
  US 20080281520A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,776 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/43 using carrier phase measurements, e.g. kinematic positioning; using long or short baseline interferometry
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0036 of measured values, i.e. measurement on mobile and position calculation on base station

Abstract

In a positioning system, an arithmetic processor analyzes positioning data acquired by a receiving terminal and determines a positioning target location. Upon reception of positioning data, the arithmetic processor accumulates the positioning data on analysis data stored in a storage section prior to the reception, stores an accumulated data as new analysis data, and transmits an analysis result to the receiving terminal. The receiving terminal transmits positioning data, acquired for a predetermined time, to the arithmetic processor and continues to acquire positioning data. Upon reception of the analysis result, the receiving terminal determines whether the analysis result is good or poor. When the analysis result is poor and the positioning data is stored for the predetermined time from a last transmission of the positioning data, the receiving terminal transmits the positioning data to the arithmetic processor and continues to acquire positioning data. If the analysis result is good, the receiving terminal completes positioning of the positioning target location.

Claims

1. A positioning system comprising:

a receiving terminal for acquiring terminal positioning data from a satellite, the receiving terminal being placed in a fixed manner at a positioning target location determined by a positioning process;

a reference station for acquiring reference positioning data corresponding to the terminal positioning data from a satellite; and

an arithmetic processor for receiving and analyzing the terminal positioning data and the reference positioning data corresponding to the terminal positioning data,

wherein the arithmetic processor includes;

a storage section for storing the terminal positioning data and the reference positioning data as analysis data; and

an analyzing section for analyzing the analysis data,

wherein upon receiving the terminal positioning data and the reference positioning data, the arithmetic processor accumulates the received terminal positioning data and the received reference positioning data on the analysis data previously stored in the storage section, stores the accumulated data as new analysis data, analyzes the new analysis data in the analyzing section and then transmits an analysis result to the receiving terminal, and

wherein the receiving terminal placed in the fixed manner at the positioning target location determined by the positioning process includes;

a storage section for storing the terminal positioning data acquired from the satellite for a predetermined time; and

a good-or-poor determining section that determines whether the analysis result received from the arithmetic processor is good or poor, and

wherein once the terminal positioning data is stored in the storage section for the predetermined time from an acquisition start time, the receiving terminal transmits the terminal positioning data to the arithmetic processor and continues to acquire the terminal positioning data, and upon transmission of the analysis result from the arithmetic processor, the receiving terminal determines whether the transmitted analysis result is good or poor using the good-or-poor determining section, and when the transmitted analysis result is determined as poor and the terminal positioning data is stored in the storage section for the predetermined time from a last transmission of the terminal positioning data, the receiving terminal transmits the terminal positioning data to the arithmetic processor and continues to acquire the terminal positioning data, and when the transmitted analysis result is determined as good, the receiving terminal completes the positioning process of the positioning target location.

2. The positioning system according to claim 1, wherein when receiving no terminal positioning data from the receiving terminal within a certain time period and receiving the terminal positioning data from the receiving terminal thereafter, the arithmetic processor stores the terminal positioning data and the reference positioning data as new analysis data in place of the analysis data previously stored in the storage section, analyzes the new analysis data in the analyzing section, and transmits the analysis result to the receiving terminal.

3. The positioning system according to claim 1, wherein the receiving terminal includes a movement detection section for detecting whether a location of the receiving terminal is moved, and when the movement detection section detects that the location of the receiving terminal is moved, the receiving terminal cancels the positioning process of the positioning target location regardless of a determination result of the good-or-poor determining section.

4. The positioning system according to claim 1, wherein after an elapse of a certain time period from the time when the positioning process of the positioning target location is started, the receiving terminal cancels the positioning process of the positioning target location regardless of a determination result of the good-or-poor determining section.

9. The positioning system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a communication unit for transmitting the terminal positioning data from the receiving terminal to the arithmetic processor, the reference positioning data from the reference station to the arithmetic processor, and the analysis result from the arithmetic processor to the receiving terminal.

5. A positioning method for determining a positioning target location by continuously acquiring terminal positioning data for a predetermined time period at the positioning target location, the positioning method comprising:

acquiring terminal positioning data and reference positioning data corresponding to the terminal positioning data for the predetermined time period from a satellite at the positioning target location;

transmitting the terminal positioning data and the reference positioning data to an arithmetic processor;

upon receiving the terminal positioning data and the reference positioning data by the arithmetic processor, accumulating the received terminal positioning data and the received reference positioning data on previously stored analysis data as new analysis data;

transmitting an analysis result based on analysis of the new analysis data by the arithmetic processor;

determining, at the positioning target location, whether the analysis result is good or poor; and

continuing to acquire terminal positioning data from a satellite and transmitting the terminal positioning data for the predetermined time period to the arithmetic processor until the received analysis result is determined as good.

6. The positioning method according to claim 5, wherein when receiving no terminal positioning data within the predetermined time period and receiving the terminal positioning data thereafter, storing the terminal positioning data as new analysis data in place of the previously stored analysis data, analyzing the new analysis data, and transmitting the analysis result.

8. The positioning method according to claim 5, wherein after an elapse of the predetermined time period from when the positioning method is started, cancelling the positioning method regardless of the received analysis result.

7. A positioning method for determining a positioning target location by continuously acquiring terminal positioning data for a predetermined time period at the positioning target location, the positioning method comprising:

acquiring terminal positioning data and reference positioning data corresponding to the terminal positioning data for the predetermined time period from a satellite at the positioning target location;

transmitting the terminal positioning data and the reference positioning data to an arithmetic processor;

upon receiving the terminal positioning data and the reference positioning data by the arithmetic processor, accumulating the received terminal positioning data and the received reference positioning data on previously stored analysis data as new analysis data;

transmitting an analysis result based on analysis of the new analysis data by the arithmetic processor;

determining whether the analysis result is good or poor; and

continuing to acquire terminal positioning data from a satellite and transmitting the terminal positioning data for the predetermined time period to the arithmetic processor until the received analysis result is determined as good; and

wherein when movement in the positioning target location is detected, canceling the positioning method regardless of a result of the received analysis result.