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Global Positioning System

A short introduction for STEM Youth Candidate

Dr. Haroon Javed Qureshi, PhD

27-7-2019
Sextant… the
ancestor of GPS
Invented for
navigation of early
Sailors
Based on study of
early astronomers

• John Campbell 1740

• Abu Mahmud Hamid Khojandi 1000
Sextant… the
ancestor of GPS

Early Generation
Sextant
Sextant…

Modern Sextant
Sextant…

Modern long range

transport aircraft still
have a sextant
dome on top of the
cockpit (despite
modern avionics)
 Sextant

The sextant is a navigational aid that consists of a

small sighting scope, mirrors, a movable arm, and a
mirror 60-degree wooden or metal arc (a sixth of a
circle, from which the instrument’s name is derived).
You can use a sextant to determine the position
(called the “shoot”) in the sky of the sun, moon, or
other celestial body, as well as your longitude.
Although its design looks complicated, with an
understanding of how it works and practice, you can
reliably use it to find your position.
Sextant…

Elements of a
Sextant
Sextant
 Sight the horizon by
looking through the
horizon mirror.
 The horizon mirror is
only partially
silvered, allowing
you to look through it
and through the
sighting scope
beyond it.
 The horizon line forms
the baseline for the
angle of elevation
for the object you’re
determining the
position of.
Sextant
 Move the sextant’s index
arm until a target object
is visible on the horizon.
 A second mirror, the
index mirror, is mounted
on the moving arm.
 Moving the arm rotates
the disk the index mirror is
on until light (from sun)
hitting the index mirror
hits the reflective portion
of the horizon mirror.
Sextant
 Find Polaris, the North
Star the brightest star in
the constellation.
 Ursa Minor, the Little Bear,
is located at the end of
the Bear’s tail.
 These pointer stars will
lead your eye to Polaris.
 Sight from the Great
Square in Pegasus
through the constellation
Cassiopeia
the GPS…

A creation of the cold war military need

Tested by civilian applications
For a military purpose
the GPS…

Remember
A GPS receiver is an accessory, NOT A REPLACEMENT for
a map, compass, altimeter and good, basic navigation
skills and understand how GPS basically works
Elements of
the GPS
System
 Space Segment:
GPS Space Vehicles
(30 Nos Satellites)
 Ground Segment
Control Stations (Min
3 Nos)
 User Segment (tens
of thousands of GPS
receivers)
 BLOCK IIABlock
Navstar Navstar
IIF Satellite
Satellite
Space
Segment

 About 31 satellites
 MEO (Medium Earth
Orbit) Satellites - 20,000
kms
 Several replaced every
year. (Approx 5-6/year)
 Solar Powered.
 Rocket Fuel Propelled
 Lots of Antennas
Space
Segment

 6 orbital planes
 Ensures at least 4 or
more satellites
available at any
location over the
earth.
 There is a large gap
to the north.
Elements of
the GPS
System
 6 orbital planes
 Ensures at least 4 or
more satellites
available at any
location over the
earth.
 There is a large gap
to the north.
Ground Segment

 There are five essential ground control station, placed around the
world (main on the equator).
 Schreiver AFB Colorado
 Cape Canaveral Florida
 Ascension (Atlantic)
 Deigo Garica (Indian Ocean)
 Kwajalein (Pacific)
 And several others as the service becomes more powerful
User Segment the GPS receiver
 Consists of the GPS Receiver equipment's which receives the signals
from the GPS satellites and uses the transmitted information to
calculate the user location.
 In single point positioning coordinates of a receiver at an "unknown"
point are sought with respect to the earth's reference frame by using
the "known" positions of the GPS satellites being tracked.
How Does the GPS Work

 Requirements
 Triangulation from satellite
 Distance measurement through travel time of radio signals
 Very accurate timing required
 To measure distance the location of the satellite should also be known
 Finally delays have to be corrected
Triangulation

 Position is calculated from

distance measurement

 Mathematically we need
four satellites but three are
sufficient by rejecting the
ridiculous answer
Factors affecting accuracy

 Number of visible satellites

 Position dilution of precision
 Satellite elevations
 Multipath
 Distance between space station and rover receivers.
GPS Receivers

Applications
 Portable
 Automobile
 Marine
 Aviation
 Survey
…
 Questions

I am
Dr. Haroon Javed Qureshi
Entrepreneur
Electronic Engineer
Old electronic geek
Old Musician
Old Amateur Radio Operator (HAM)
Old Remote Control Aircraft Hobbyist
 Haroonj.qureshi@gmail.com

Thank you