System and method for fast acquisition reporting using communication satellite range measurement
US6725158B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 10, 2002 |
| Grant date | Apr 20, 2004 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 10, 2022 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01S19/46
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A geographic tracking system with minimal power and size required at the mobile terminal collects observation data at the mobile terminal, forwards the data to a processor, which calculates the position. The mobile terminal needs only to gather a few milliseconds of observation data, and to relay this observation data to the processor. The range from the satellite (or other airborne transponder) to the terminal is determined using the known positions of an interrogating transmitter and a satellite, and a known terminal delay between the received signal and the transmission of the return signal, and the round trip time. An arc of locations is determined by computing an intersection of a sphere centered at the satellite having a radius given by the calculated range with a model of the Earth's surface. The candidate points are considered and refined using code phase measurements from a set of GPS satellites. The candidate point having the lowest residuals or expected to measured code phases is chosen as the location of the mobile terminal. The measurements can be refined to account for various sources of error including measurement bias, relative motion and timing errors.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.