Development and Simulation of a Pseudolite-Based Flight Reference System

Terry J. Bouska, and John F. Raquet

Abstract:	Current flight reference systems are vulnerable to GPS jamming and also lack the accuracy required to test new systems. Pseudolites can augment flight reference systems by improving accuracy, especially in the presence of GPS jamming. This paper evaluates a pseudolite-based flight reference system which applies and and applies carrier-phase differential GPS techniques. The algorithm developed in this paper utilizes an extended Kalman filter along with carrier-phase ambiguity resolution techniques. A simulation of the pseudolite-based positioning system has been developed to realistically model measurement noise, multipath, pseudolite position errors, and tropospheric delay. A comparative evaluation of the algorithm’s performance for single and widelane frequency measurements is conducted in addition to a sensitivity analysis for each measurement error source, in order to determine design tradeoffs. Results indicate that the algorithm is capable of accurately resolving the pseudolite carrier-phase ambiguities, and providing a highly accurate (centimeter-level) navigation solution. Although a widelane frequency improves the ability to correctly resolve ambiguities, this research suggests that a single frequency should be adequate. This research also shows that relative motion between pseudolite transmitters and receivers is critical for ambiguity resolution.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 2004 National Technical Meeting of The Institute of Navigation January 26 - 28, 2004 The Catamaran Resort Hotel San Diego, CA
Pages:	912 - 922
Cite this article:	Bouska, Terry J., Raquet, John F., "Development and Simulation of a Pseudolite-Based Flight Reference System," Proceedings of the 2004 National Technical Meeting of The Institute of Navigation, San Diego, CA, January 2004, pp. 912-922.
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