Second Generation Real Time GEO-based SBAS-PPP Combined System for Australia and New Zealand

Abstract

During 2017 and 2018, a second generation satellite-positioning augmentation system has been demonstrated in Australia and New Zealand providing both Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) and real time Precise Point Positioning (PPP) capabilities. The service deployment and operation is coordinated by Geoscience Australia (GA), Australia’s national survey agency, and the Australia and New Zealand Cooperative Research Centre for Spatial Information (CRCSI) in research collaboration with industry partners, including Lockheed Martin, Inmarsat and GMV. The primary objective of the project is to assess the benefits of satellite navigation technologies, including integrity and high precision techniques, for applications in different transport and industrial sectors. One of the main innovative characteristics of the DFMC SBAS Testbed is that it will provide the first transmission of an SBAS L1 signal over the entirety of Australia and New Zealand. Also, this broadcast is the first ever occurrence of a dual-frequency and multi-constellation Dual Frequency Multi-Constellation (DFMC) SBAS L5 signal. The Second generation SBAS exploits the synergies between SBAS and PPP technologies, first demonstrating the feasibility of using the SBAS signals, both in L1 and DMFC L5 configurations, to broadcast PPP corrections; and second, experimenting and assessing the end-user navigation performances using PPP-capable high-end terminals. This paper presents the Australia and New Zealand Testbed Augmentation System technical details including elements such as: - Description of the system architecture; - Description of the combined SBAS+PPP service and L1 and L5 frequencies; - Presentation of the SBAS and PPP technologies to be deployed in Australia and New Zealand including GNSS satellite orbits and clock determination, SBAS augmentation message formation, PPP client solution and SBAS signal broadcasting; and - Analysis of the preliminary results achieved during the development phase in post-processing and real time scenarios. Summarizing, this paper presents an insight in the technical elements of a new generation SBAS-PPP augmentation system as well as an initial assessment of the user performances that can be achieved.