Burst Transmission Timing Encoding for High-Resolution Beacon Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current communication systems, such as the Cospas-Sarsat satellite system, face limitations in achieving high resolution for geographical coordinates due to restricted message lengths, resulting in positional errors that can be critical in emergency situations, especially when the error margin is around 125 meters.
Innovation Solution
The method involves modifying the transmission timing of signals to encode additional data, using a common encoding table with unique time periods associated with symbols, allowing the receiver to decode these symbols by measuring time differences, thereby enhancing the resolution of geographical coordinates without altering the existing signal characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the message length in satellite communication systems is restricted to standard protocols, then the system maintains compatibility with existing infrastructure, but the positional resolution is limited to approximately 125 meters
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a new dimension for data encoding by utilizing transmission timing variations. Instead of encoding position information solely within the message content, the system modulates the timing of signal transmissions to carry additional positional data. This temporal dimension allows the system to transmit more information without increasing message length, achieving sub-10-meter resolution while maintaining protocol compatibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the timing parameter of signal transmissions to encode additional position information. By varying the transmission timing according to an encoding table that associates unique time periods with position symbols, the system conveys extra data without modifying the message content or structure. This parameter change enables higher positional resolution while maintaining compatibility with existing satellite communication infrastructure.
2Measurement precision
If additional data is transmitted to improve position resolution, then the positional accuracy increases, but the complexity of the communication system increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the position information into two parts: standard position data transmitted in the message content, and refined position data transmitted through timing variations. This segmentation allows the system to maintain compatibility with existing protocols while adding enhanced precision capabilities. The receiver processes these segmented data streams separately and combines them to achieve high-resolution positioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The transmission timing mechanism serves multiple functions: it maintains synchronization between transmitter and receiver, carries standard timing information for protocol compliance, and simultaneously encodes additional position data. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated channels or mechanisms, thereby limiting the increase in system complexity while achieving improved positional resolution.
3Productivity
If the transmission timing is modified to encode data, then the data throughput increases, but the synchronization requirements become more stringent
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates feedback mechanisms where the receiver measures the actual time difference between expected and received signals, then uses this information to decode the transmitted symbols. The system maintains synchronization by continuously monitoring timing variations and adjusting its expectations accordingly. This feedback loop enables the system to tolerate certain timing variations while still accurately decoding the position information encoded in the timing variations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes preliminary synchronization protocols and encoding tables before data transmission begins. Both transmitter and receiver are pre-configured with the same encoding table that associates unique time periods with position symbols. This preliminary setup ensures that when timing variations occur during transmission, both ends can correctly interpret the encoded data without requiring complex real-time synchronization adjustments.
Data Source
AI summary
A modulation method, applicable for augmentation of present art modulated signals. The method, for communicating data from a transmitter to a receiver, is based on periodical burst transmissions, set at a nominal timing, of signals which are either pure carriers or already modulated by data (e.g. ASK, FSK, PSK). Knowing the transmission timing and assessing the propagation delay, the receiver can estimate the nominal reception timing of these periodical transmissions. Modifying the nominal timing of a transmission, by a specific time period, is used to communicate a symbol between the transmitter and the receiver, according to a predefined encoding table which associates between a symbol and a unique time period. According to one embodiment of the invention, the transmitter is a distress radio beacon, configured to report its position upon activation, in periodical data burst transmissions, to ground stations through satellites. The present method is used to augment this report, complying with the present beacon specifications, yet providing a finer resolution of the reported coordinates. According to one embodiment, the position resolution is improved approximately from 125 to 8 meters.