Global

ositioning System

GLOBAL POSTTTONTNG SYSTEM (GPS)

1.0

lntroduction

a burgeoning technology, which provides

unequalled accuracy and flexibility of positioning for navigation, mapping, surveying and GIS
data capture.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is

1.1
.

Why GPS?
Trying to figure out where you are and where you're going is probably one of man's
oldest pastimes.

Figure 1.1: Helping you get from point A to point

r
1.2

Navigation and positioning are crucial to so many activities and yet the process has
always been quite cumbersome,
Over the years all kinds of technologies have tried to simplify the task but every one
has had some disadvantage.
Finally, the U.S. Department of Defense decided that they have a super precise form
of worldwide positioning.
The result is the Global Positioning System, a system that's changed navigation
forever.

What is GPS?

The NAVSTAR (Alavigational Satellite 7'iming And Ranging) Global Positioning System
(GPS) is a satellite-based radio positioning and time-transfer system designed, financed,
deployed, and operated by the U.S. Department of Defense. GPS has also demonstrated a
significant benefit to the civilian community who are applying GPS to a rapidly expanding
number of applications.

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ositioning System

Figure

1.22

A constellation of 24 satellites

What attracts us to GPS is:

.
.
o
o
.
o

The relatively high positioning accuracies, from tens of meters down to the millimeter
level.

The capability of determining velocity and time, to an accuracy commensurate with

position.
The signals are available to users anywhere on the globe: in the air, on the ground,
or at sea.
lt a positioning system with no user charges, that simply requires the use of relatively
low cost hardware.
lt is an all-weather system, available 24 hours a day.
The position information is in three dimensions, that is, vertical as well as horizontal
information is provided.

The number of civilian users is already significantly greater than that of the military users.
However, for the time being the U.S. military still operates several "levers" with which they
control the performance of GPS. Nevertheless, despite the handicap of GPS being a military
system there continues to be tremendous product innovation within the clvilian sector, and it
is ironic that this innovative drive is partly directed to developing technology and procedures
to overcome some of the constraints to GPS performance which have been applied by the
system's military operators.

{.3

GPS System configuration

GPS is a space based radio positioning system that provides 24 hour three dimensional
position, velocity and time information to suitably equipped users anywhere on the surface of
the earth. GPS involve three major components, the satellites, the ground based control of
the satellites and the user. These are often referred to as the Space, Control and User
Segment.

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Glob al P ositioning System

ds

Figure 1.3: GPS System Elements

1.3.1 Space Segment

The Space Segment of the system consists of the GPS satellites comprising the satellites
and the transmitted signals. These space vehicles (SVs) send radio signals from space.

GPS Noninsl Constellation

2* Satcllites in 6 Orbital Plancs
4 $atclliter in eaeh Plane
2{1p00 krn .dltitudss, 55 Degrrc lnclination

Figure 1.5: Navstar GPS Constellation

Name:

NAVSTAR

Manufacturer: Rockwell lnternational

Altitude: 10,900 nautical miles (20,200 km), Weight: 1900 lbs (in orbit)
Size: 17 ft with solar panels extended, Orbital Period: 12 hours
Orbital Plane: 55 degrees to equatorial plane, Planned Lifespan: 7.5 years
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Current constellation: 24 Block ll production satellites

Future satellites: 21 Block lll developed by Martin Marietta.
The nominal GPS Operational Constellation consists of 24 satellites that orbit the earth in 12
hours.

1.3.2 ControlSegment
The Control Segment consists of a system of tracking stations located around the world.
These ground facilities carrying out the task of satellite tracking, orbit computations,
telemetry and supervision necessary for the daily control of the space segment.

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Monitor Station

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Glabal Positioning System iGFSi Master Cantrol and Manitor Station Network

Figure 1.6: GPS Master Control and Monitor Station Network

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Figure 1.7: GPS Control

The Master Control facility is located at Falcon Air Force Base in Colorado. These monitor
stations measure signals from the SVs which are incorporated into orbital models for each
satellites. The models compute precise orbital data (ephemeris) and SV clock corrections for
each satellite. The Master Control station uploads ephemeris and clock data to the SVs. The
SVs then send subsets of the orbital ephemeris data to GPS receivers over radio signals.

1.3.3 User Segment

The GPS User Segment consists of the GPS receivers and the user community. GPS
receivers convert SV signals into position, velocity, and time estimates. Four satellites are
required to compute the four dimensions of X, Y, Z (position) and Time. GPS.receivers are
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ositioning System

used for navigation, positioning, time dissemination, and other research. Navigation in three
dimensions is the primary function of GPS. Navigation receivers are made for aircraft, ships,
ground vehicles, and for hand carrying by individuals.

Figure 1.8: Users, GPS Navigation

Precise positioning is possible using GPS receivers at reference locations providing
corrections and relative positioning data for remote receivers. Surveying, geodetic control,
and plate tectonic studies are examples. Time and frequency dissemination, based on the
precise clocks on board the SVs and controlled by the monitor stations, is another use for
GPS. Astronomical observatories, telecommunications facilities, and laboratory standards
can be set to precise time signals or controlled to accurate frequencies by special purpose
GPS receivers.

1.4

How GPS Works?

Here's how GPS works in five logical steps:

.
.
.
o
.

The basis of GPS is "triangulation" from satellites.

To "triangulate," a GPS receiver measures distance using the travel time of radio
signals.
To measure travel time, GPS needs very accurate timing which it achieves with some
tricks.
Along with distance, you need to know exactly where the satellites are in space. High
orbits and careful monitoring are the secret.
Finally you must correct for any delays the signal experiences as it travels through
the atmosphere.

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ositioning System

Figure 1.9: Satellites are reference points for location on earth.

1.5

GPS Applications

GPS technology has matured into a resource that goes far beyond its original design goals.
These days scientists, sportsmen, farmers, soldiers, pilots, surveyors, hikers, delivery
drivers, sailors, dispatchers, lumberjacks, fire-fighters, and people from many other walks of
life are using GPS in ways that make their work more productive, safer, and sometimes even
easier.
These applications fall into five broad categories.

o
.
o
.
.

Location
Navigation

Tracking
Mapping

Timing

- determining a basic position

- getting from one location to another
- monitoring the movement of people and things
- creating maps of the world
- bringing precise timing to the world

1.5.1 Location - determining a basic position (q,I,h ) or (X,Y,Z)

'Where am l?" The first and most obvious application of GPS is the simple determination of
a "position" or location. GPS is the first positioning system to offer highly precise location
data for any point on the planet, in any weather.
GPS is also being applied in countries to create exact location points for their nationwide
geodetic network, which will be used for surveying projects. Once in place it will support the
first implementation of a nationally created location survey linked to the WGS-84 global grid.
For example, getting to the height of a mountain was tricky, but GPS made it possible.

1.5.2 Navigation - getting from one location to another.

'Where am I going?" GPS helps you determine exactly where you are, but sometimes
important to know how to get somewhere else. GPS was originally designed to provide
navigation information for ships and planes. So it's no surprise that while this technology is
appropriate for navigating on water, in the air and on the land.

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P os

itioning System

(c)

1.5.3 Tracking - monitoring the movement.

lf navigation is the process of getting something from one location to another, then tracking
conjunction with
communication links and computers can provide the backbone for systems tailored to

is the process of monitoring it as it moves along. GPS used in

applications in agriculture, mass transit, urban delivery, public safety, and vessel and vehicle
tracking. So it's no surprise that police, ambulance, and fire departments are adopting
systems like GPS-based AVL (Automatic Vehicle Location). Manage to pinpoint both the
location of the emergency and the location of the nearest response vehicle on a computer
map. With this kind of clear visual picture of the situation, dispatchers can react immediately
and confidently.

Figure 1.11: Tracking

1.5.4 Mapping - creating maps of the world.

Using GPS to survey and map it precisely saves time and money in this most stringent of all
applications. Today, GPS makes it possible for a single surveyor to accomplish in a day
what used to take weeks with an entire team. And they can do their work with a higher level
of accuracy than ever before. Mapping is the art and science of using GPS to locate items,
and then create maps and models of everything in the world. And we do mean everything,
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Global

ositioning System

such as: mountains, rivers, forests, landforms, roads, routes, city streets, endangered
animals, precious minerals, disasters, trash, archeological treasures and all sorts of
resources. GPS is mapping the world.

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Figure 1.12: Mapping

1.5.5 Bringing precise timing to the world.

GPS is also used to disseminate precise time, time intervals, and frequency. Time is a
powerful commodity, and exact time is more powerful still. Knowing that a group of timed
events is perfectly synchronized is often very important. GPS makes the job of
"synchronizing our watches" easy and reliable.
There are three fundamental ways we use time. As a universal marker, time tells us when
things happened or when they will. As a way to synchronize people, events, even other
types of signals, time helps keep the world on schedule. And as a way to tell how long things
last, time provides an accurate, unambiguous sense of duration.
Astronomers, power companies, computer networks, communications systems, banks, and
radio and television stations can benefit from this precise timing. One investment banking
firm uses GPS to guarantee their transactions are recorded simultaneously at all otfices
around the world.

Figure 1.13: Timing

1.6

Methods of observations

The ditferent methods of observations with GPS include absolute positioning, relative
positioning in translocation mode, relative positioning using differential GPS technique, and
kinematic GPS surveying technique.
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ositioning System

1. Absolute Positioning:
The pseudo ranges (the satellite antenna range, contaminated by the receiver block
bias) from minimum four satellites are observed at the given epoch, from which the
four unknown parameters - the 3D position of the antenna (X, Y, Z) and the receiver
clock error can be determined. The accuracy of the position obtained from this
method depends upon the accuracy of the time and position messages received from
the satellites. With the selective availability operational, the absolute positioning in
realtime is limited to about 100 meters, which can be improved to a few2 meters
level by using post-processed satellite orbit information in the post-processing mode.
The accuracy of absolute positioning with GPS is limited mainly due to the high orbit
of the satellite.

2.

Relative Positioning:
ln the translocation mode with tow or more GPS receivers observing the same
satellites simultaneously many common errors, including the major effect of SA
(selective availability) get cancelled out, yielding the relative positions of the two or
more stations with a very high accuracy. The length of the base line between two
stations, and also the absolute position of one of the stations, if accurate position of
the other station is known, can be obtained to cm-level accuracy, using carrier phase
observations. ln differencing mode of observation, using single difference (difference
of carrier phase observations from two receivers to the same satellite), double
difference (between observations from two receivers to two satellites) and triple
difference (difference of double differences over two time epochs), effect of many
errors such as receiver and satellite clock errors etc., can be minimized.
Use of dual frequency observations (both L1 and L2 frequencies) eliminates the
major part of ionosphere effect on the signal, thus improving the accuracy of
positioning. With accurate satellite orbit and use of such refined procedures cm-level
accuracy is possible even in regional and global scale surveys.

3.

Differential GPS:
A modification of the relative positioning method is the differential GPS technique,
where one of the two receivers can receive the messages given by this transmitter.
The transmitting receiver is kept fixed on a point whose location is known to high
degree of accuracy. Based upon this position. The receiver computes observations to
the range/phase observations from GPS observations. Such as system is suited for
applications such as vehicle guidance system, location-fishing boats close to the
seashore, etc. The limited range of the transmitter restricts the use of such system to
few km.

4.

Kinematic GPS:
ln the kinematic GPS technique, one of the receivers is in relative motion with
respect to the other receiver having been mounted either on a vehicle or ship or
aircraft. This technique has a number of important applications, including ship and
aircraft navigation, photogrammetric survey control etc.

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1.7 GPS Reference

Systems and Transformation of Coordinate.

Normally, regional surveys are conducted with respect to a local datum. In Malaysia, the
Modified Everest Ellipsoid is in used and the satellite positioning system provides ground
coordinates of any point in an earth-centered coordinate system. As for NAVSTAR GPS, the
worldwide datum of WGS 84 is being used.

ln order to relate the coordinates determined by GPS to the local geodetic datum, the
coordinate transformations need to be done. The transformations which are often to be
performed in geodetic computations are:

o
.
.
.

The transformation of the ellipsoidal coordinates (<p,l",h) to their respective Cartesian

coordinates (X,Y,Z).
The datum transformation of Cartesian coordinates (X,Y,Z) from one datum to
another.
The transformation of ellipsoidal coordinate into a map
coordinates on a
plane and vice versa.
The transformation of one map coordinates system into another map coordinates
system.

1.7.1 Goordinate Transformation.

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(Malayan Rectified Skew

Orthomorphic)
Coordinates system in
mapping for Peninsular
Malaysia (8, N)
Figure 1.14: Transformation of GPS Coordinate System to local system

1.7.2 Geodetic Latitude, Longitude, Height (q,l

,h)

The most commonly used coordinate system today is the latitude, longitude, and height
system. The Prime Meridian and the Equator are the reference planes used to define latitude
and longitude.

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ositioning System

Ge*detic Height,rf
Point P
Ellipsoid
Surface

?oint P

Geodetic

Longitnde af
Point P

Figure 1.15: (9,1,, h) Coordinate System

The geodetic latitude (<p) of a point is the angle from the equatorial plane to the
vertical direction of a line normal to the reference ellipsoid.
The geodetic longitude (i,) of a point is the angle between a reference plane and a
plane passing through the point, both planes being perpendicular to the equatorial
plane.

The geodetic height (h) at a point is the distance from the reference ellipsoid to the
point in a direction normal to the ellipsoid.

1.7.3

ECEF

X,Y,Z

Earth Centered, Earth Fixed Cartesian coordinates are also used to define threedimensional positions. Earth centered, earth-fixed, X, Y, and Z, Cartesian coordinates (XYZ)
define three-dimensional positions with respect to the center of mass of the reference
ellipsoid.

Figure 1.16: Earth Centered, Earth Fixed X,Y,Z

O

The Z-axis points toward the North Pole.

The X-axis is defined by the intersection of the plane define by the prime meridian
and the equatorial plane.
The Y-axis completes a right handed orthogonal system by a plane 90 degrees east
of the X-axis and its intersection with the equator.
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ositioning System

1.7.4 Coordinate Conversion.

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1.8

Conducting GPS Survey

1.8.1

GPS Survey Equipments

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Selection of the right GPS receiver for a particular project is critical to its success.

1.8.2 Receiverapplications
Land applications include surveying, geodesy, resource

mapping,

navigation, survey

control, boundary determination, deformation monitoring, and transportation. Marine

applications include navigation and positioning of hydrographic surveys. Airborne
applications include navigation and positioning of photogrammetric based mapping.

1.8.3 Accuracy requirements

Afirm definition of the accuracy requirements (e.9., point accuracy to 100m, 50m, 25m, 5m,
1m, cm or mm) helps to further define procedure requirements (static or kinematic), signal
reception requirements (whether use of C/A- or L1lL2 P-codes is appropriate), and type of
measurement required (pseudo-range or carrier beat phase measurements).
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1.8.4

ositioning System

Power requirements.

The receiver power requirements are an important factor in the

determination of
receiver type. Receivers currently run on a variety of power sources from fuC to 12-volt car
batteries or small camcorder batteries. A high end GPS receiver can operate 3 to 4 hr on a
set of batteries, whereas a low end may operate 1 to 2 days on the same set.

1.8.5 Cost.
Cost is a major factor in determining the type of receiver the user can purchase. Receiver
hardware and software costs arc a function of development costs, High end receivers are
upwards of RM 60,000 down to a low end receiver of RM 1,500.

1.8.6 Processing requirements.

Operational procedures required before, during, and after an observation session are very
manufacturer-dependent and should be thought-fully considered before purchase of a
receiver.

1.9

GPS Method of Observation and Precision.

1.9.1 Static mode.

Minimum # of Sv's: 4
Min.Observation Time: t hour
Precision: Single-freq: 20 mm +l-2ppm
Dual-freq: 5 mm +/- 1 ppm
Other Characteristics: Best baseline < 15km for single-freq.

1.9.2

Fast Static.
Minimum # of Sv's: 4
Min.Observation Time:2 - 20 minutes
Precision: 1 cm +/- 1 ppm

1.9.3 Kinematic.
Minimum # of Sv's: 4
Min.Observation Time: 2 epochs or 2 minute recommended
Precision: 2 cm +l- 2 ppm
Other Characteristics: Baseline limits about 15 km.
Rover must be initialized if it loses satellite at
any time..

1.9.4

RTK.

Sv's

Minimum # of
:4
Min.Observation Time: 2 epoch or 2 minute recommended
Precision: 2 cm +l- 2 ppm
Other Characteristics: Baseline limits about 10 km.
Requires a radio link. Rover must be initialized if
it loses satellite lock at any time.
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P os

1.9.5

itioning System

DGPS.
Minimum # of Sv's : 2D fix:3, 3D fix. 4
Min.Observation Time: 2 fixes/sec
Precision: 1m-3mRMS
Other Characteristics: Requires a radio link.
Extended navigation features requires the
Navigational software.

1.9.6 Pointpositioning.

Sv's

. 1D fix:2, 2D fix:3, 3D fix: 4

Minimum # of
Min.Observation Time: Up to 2 fixes/sec
Precision: 10 - 20 m RMS
Other Characteristics: Requires only one Handheld GPS receiver.
Signal use: C/A code

1.10 References

\-

Hofmann-Wellenhof 1998. Global Positioning Sysfem: Theory and Practice, 4th

ed., Springer-Verlag.

JUPEM. 1999. Garis Panduan Pengukuran Menggunakan Alat

Sistem
Penentududukan Sejagat (GPS) Bagi Ukuran Kawalan Dan Ukuran Kadaster.
Pekeliling Ketua Pengarah Ukur Dan Pemetaan, Bil. 6/1999. Kuala Lumpur.
Leick, A. 1995. GPS Safe//de Surueying,2nd edition, John Wiley & Sons, lnc., New
York. 560 pages.

Rizos, C. 1996. Principles and Practice of GPS

School of Geomatic Eng., UNSW. Australia.

Surveying,

Rizos, C. 1999. Introduction fo GPS. University of New South

Monograph

Wales,

17,

Australia.

Sickfe, J.V. 2001. GPS for Land Surveyors, 2nd Edition, Taylor & Francis, New
York.284 pages.
U.S. Army. 1998. Using Differential GPS Positioning For Elevation Determination,
Engin.eering Manual, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, D.C 20314-

U.S. Army. 1996. Navsfars Global Positioning Sysfem Surueying, Department of

the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, D.C 20314-1000.

Wells, D.E., Beck, N., Delikaraoglou, D., Kleusberg, A., Krakiwsky, E. J.,
Lachapelle, G., Langley, R. B., Nakiboglu, M., Schwarz, K. P., Tranquilla, J. M.
and Vanicek, P. 1987. Guide fo GPS Positioning. Fredericton, New Brunswick :
Canadian GPS Associates.

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