Innovative approach to local area precise positioning using direct sequence spread spectrum

D.W.A. Taylor, P.N. Johnson

Abstract:	Ranger is a local area radio frequency ranging system implemented in the 2.4 GHz Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) band. Roundtrip time-of-flight measurements are made in a two-stage process: a coarse measurement provides ± 3.4 m accuracy, followed by a fine measurement correction that reduces error to below 20 cm. This innovative approach can be implemented in other parts of the RF spectrum; the 2.4 GHz ISM band was chosen both for regulatory acceptance and availability of commercial components. The Ranger system consists of fixed and mobile radios. Fixed location radios provide the reference from which distances are measured to the mobile radio. A single distance measurement requires approximately 50 ms, therefore with a network of four fixed radios, the position of the mobile can be updated five times per second. Additionally, the digital communications link that is used for distance measurement is also used for concurrent high-bandwidth data communication.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 2003 National Technical Meeting of The Institute of Navigation January 22 - 24, 2003 Disneyland Paradise Pier Hotel Anaheim, CA
Pages:	623 - 629
Cite this article:	Taylor, D.W.A., Johnson, P.N., "Innovative approach to local area precise positioning using direct sequence spread spectrum," Proceedings of the 2003 National Technical Meeting of The Institute of Navigation, Anaheim, CA, January 2003, pp. 623-629.
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