Satellite Positioning via Ground-Based Phase Difference Calculation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing satellite positioning techniques using high-performance time synchronization and transmission-reception mechanisms result in increased satellite weight and size due to the need for large and heavy equipment.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that calculate phase differences and base line vectors using carrier waves observed by satellites and ground-based positioning apparatus, eliminating the need for heavy equipment on satellites by performing phase difference and base line vector calculations on either the satellite or a ground-based positioning apparatus.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If high-performance time synchronization mechanism and transmission-reception mechanism are mounted on satellites, then positioning accuracy is improved, but satellite weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the heavy time synchronization mechanism and transmission-reception mechanism from the satellite system and relocates them to ground-based infrastructure. Specifically, atomic clocks and signal transmission equipment are positioned on ground stations rather than satellites, allowing satellites to achieve high positioning accuracy through ground-based time synchronization without carrying heavy equipment onboard.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces ground-based transmitting stations as intermediaries between satellites and the positioning system. These ground stations transmit carrier waves to satellites and provide time synchronization signals, enabling accurate positioning without requiring satellites to have their own high-performance time synchronization mechanisms. The ground-based infrastructure acts as a mediator that provides timing reference signals to multiple satellites.
2Reliability
If heavy equipment is installed on satellites for positioning, then positioning functionality is improved, but orbital lifespan is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
By extracting heavy positioning equipment from satellites and placing it on the ground, the patent reduces satellite weight and size. This weight reduction is particularly beneficial for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites where mass directly impacts orbital decay rate, thereby extending orbital lifespan while maintaining full positioning functionality through ground-based infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a ground-based copy of the time synchronization and signal transmission functionality that originally would have been onboard satellites. Ground stations generate and transmit carrier waves with embedded timing information, allowing satellites to obtain synchronization signals without carrying their own atomic clocks or complex timekeeping mechanisms, thus reducing satellite mass while preserving positioning capability.
Data Source
AI summary
A positioning method of the present disclosure includes: generating first observation data through observation of phases of a plurality of carrier waves transmitted from a plurality of transmitting stations in a first satellite; generating second observation data through observation of the phases of the plurality of the carrier waves in a second satellite; performing phase difference calculation to calculate a phase difference of the plurality of the carrier waves observed in the first satellite and the second satellite using the first observation data and the second observation data; performing base line vector calculation to calculate a base line vector indicating relative positions of the first satellite and the second satellite based on the phase difference calculated by performing the phase difference calculation; and performing the phase difference calculation and the base line vector calculation by either one of the second satellite or a positioning apparatus located on the ground.