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Session C7: Military PNT Equipment: M-Code Receiver Testing

Virtual Flight Test of a Highly Resilient and Accurate Modernized Receiver with a Digital Beamforming Antenna System
Steve Pratt, Carl Valentino, Lockheed Martin; Bryan Franklin, and Andrea Francu, Trimble Military & Advanced Systems Inc.
Location: Ballroom D
Date/Time: Tuesday, Jun. 3, 5:05 p.m.

Trimble Military and Advanced Systems (TMAS) (Sunnyvale, CA) and Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems (Owego, NY) have integrated their modernized products, resulting in a combined system that provides exceptional availability and accuracy for airborne platforms in the face of complex and sophisticated threats. The integration of Trimble's airborne M-Code receiver and Lockheed Martin's modernized Antenna Electronics Unit (AEU) 16-beam digital antenna electronics enables seamless simultaneous nulling and beamforming. The nulling capability adaptively cancels incoming jamming signals, while the beamsteering capability ensures optimal gain in the direction of each of the eight satellites. Additionally, the beamsteering maintains a stable transfer function in the direction of the satellites, minimizing signal distortion and ensuring precise measurements. This modernized system fully supports and protects the M-Code, P(Y), and C/A signal structures.

The integrated system underwent a virtual flight test at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Antenna Wave Front Simulator – Next Generation (ANG). The test plan included three realistic flight profiles, all of which operated through the heart of a modernized threat environment. The system using a federated AEU, Trimble Force 5M not only maintained a lock on GPS satellites through these challenging threat environments, but also provided highly accurate M-Code and Y-Code pseudorange, delta range, and carrier phase measurements in this highly stressed environment. These systems Both the Lockheed Martin GSTAR-M and Trimble Force 5M are fully developed and qualified for operational use, demonstrating their readiness for deployment in challenging environments.

This presentation covers:
• Trimble Modernized Receiver Family Overview
o Key models: Force 5M, 28M, 27M, 35M
o Certifiable baseline: DO-178B, DO-254
o Core features: common software and firmware
o Unique capabilities: military receivers with civil credentials (SBAS, PPS-LO)
o Customer support: domestic and foreign
o Development status: fully qualified, in production
• LM-RMS AEU Product Overview
o Key features: Digital beamsteering interface, Blue Force Electronic Attack, failsafe FRPA, 16-channels, M/Y capable
o Operational benefits: M-code AJ, failsafe operation, secondary protected outputs
o Development status: completed qualification, low-rate production
• Federated Trimble M-Code Receiver and AEU Integration
o Technical overview: integrated architecture
o Testing summary: virtual flight test description, test scenarios and detailed M-Code, Y-Code psuedorange, delta and carrier phase performance results

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