Uncertainty estimation of atmospheric corrections in large-scale reference networks for PPP-RTK

Abstract

Regional Augmented Precise Point Positioning (RA-PPP) is a method used to support PPP-Real Time Kinematic (PPP-RTK) based on state space representation. In case of RA-PPP, uncalibrated phase delays and undifferenced ionospheric and tropospheric corrections generated by the reference station network are interpolated at the rover in real time. This study proposes a set of algorithms for estimating the uncertainties of atmospheric corrections that are compatible for use with the RA-PPP model. There are two different error sources of interpolated atmospheric corrections: one relates to the error propagation law and the other to the systematic bias of the interpolation model. We discuss the spatial changes in systemic errors of the interpolation model and present a new interpolation method and its use in calculating the uncertainties of interpolated atmospheric corrections. In addition, we verify the existence of systematic errors in the interpolation model and discuss the correlation between zenith tropospheric delay and slant ionospheric corrections. The results of PPP ambiguity resolution experiments using GPS/Galileo observations are presented. For a reference station network with an interstation distance of more than 110 km, when the proposed method is used, the rate of successfully fixing ambiguities reaches 67.8% in 5 min, and the fixing rate is higher than 90%. It is considered that our method has enhanced applicability for use with large networks and in complex environments.