ION Technical Content
Planning the Future of GPS
| Abstract: | Within its first two decades GPS has become the premier positioning and timing system worldwide. Although GPS began primarily as a provider of anytime, anywhere posi- tioning and timing service for US military operations, it has evolved into a complex system of systems heavily incorpo- rated into US and international commerce and technology. Because of this complexity however, modernizing GPS poses numerous challenges. What is the effect of adding a new signal? How will chang- ing an existing signal affect current users? What does backwards compatibility mean to the various applications that use GPS? Should GPS satellites offer more than just positioning and timing? How can international users influ- ence GPS services? What augmentations will be required to support precision services in the next 20 to 30 years? The broad range and technical depth of these questions typify the complexity of the system as it is today. To add to this complexity, GPS is affected or controlled by numerous organizations. Whether it is the US Department of Defense and its uniformed services or the numerous civil- ian agencies, there are many which would influence GPS to accommodate their needs. Achieving some form of consen- sus on the many issues affecting GPS is indeed a challenge. The representation on GPS’s governing board, the Inter- agency GPS Executive Board, -- consisting of members rep- resenting the Departments of Defense, Transportation, Commerce, State, Interior, Justice, and Agriculture, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and NASA, -- exemplifies the multifaceted role GPS plays today. In order to accommodate these complex issues, the US Gov- ernment has instituted a number of processes. These include interagency processes to address proposed new operational requirements and interpretation of existing requirements, systems engineering decisions, and architectural decisions for the next generation of GPS satellites and ground control systems. This paper describes current activities underway that support the future of GPS, and identifies several recent initiatives affecting its future. |
| Published in: |
Proceedings of the 58th Annual Meeting of The Institute of Navigation and CIGTF 21st Guidance Test Symposium (2002) June 24 - 26, 2002 Hyatt Regency Hotel Albuquerque, NM |
| Pages: | 538 - 544 |
| Cite this article: | Lavrakas, John W., "Planning the Future of GPS," Proceedings of the 58th Annual Meeting of The Institute of Navigation and CIGTF 21st Guidance Test Symposium (2002), Albuquerque, NM, June 2002, pp. 538-544. |
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