Flying™ RTK Solution as Effective

Enhancement of Conventional Float RTK

Dmitry Kozlov, Gleb Zyryanov
Magellan, Russia

ION GNSS 2007

Session D1: Algorithms and Methods 1
September 26,2007

1
 Scope (18 slides)

•Summary

•Float and Fixed RTK

•Flying RTK

•Magellan products with Flying RTK

•Convergence performance

•Concluding remarks

•Acknowledgment

2
 Flying RTK algorithm: Summary

We present new RTK algorithm which:

•Can be positioned between standard Float and Fixed

RTK

•Has all the external attributes of Float RTK

•Uses internally some ideas of Fixed RTK

•Insures convergence performance better than Float

RTK

•Integrated into 2 latest Magellan products

OEM DG14 RTK board
3 Handheld ProMark3 Surveyor
 Float and Fixed RTK: difference

Float RTK Fixed RTK

Receiver type Usually L1 only Typically L1&L2

Accuracy level Meter to decimeter Centimeter

Dependence on Not so dramatical Noticeable (working

baseline length distance is usually
less than 50 km)
Initialization time Decimeter after 3-10 Centimeter after
minutes some convergence
time depending on
baseline
Treating DD As float unknown As known integer
ambiguity value value

4
 Float and Fixed RTK: commonality

Float RTK Fixed RTK

Core processing Kalman Filter or Kalman Filter or

engine similar recurrent similar recurrent
estimator estimator
Input data Receiver raw Receiver raw
observations and observations and
external reference external reference
RTK data RTK data
Treating ambiguity Ambiguity is Ambiguity is
processed as float all processed as float
the time initially
Behavior at star up Slow convergence Same convergence
until ambiguity fix

Fixing ambiguity to Not appled Applied, but by

integer quite a separated
search and
validation
5
procedure
 Float and Fixed RTK: tentative diagram

data X,P
KF update
X,P

Float RTK
X,P
KF project

Ambiguity fix
and X,P
modification

YES

Fixed RTK data

KF update
X,P
Integer search Valid?
NO
X,P

X,P
KF project

6
 Flying RTK: backlog

•Actual DD is unknown integer (finite number of

alternatives)

•There is theoretical foundation how to treat it

•Optimal multi-channel algorithm is too complicated

•Let us use Float RTK scheme

•Let us process DD ambiguity as unknown float, but

consider as unknown integer

•Let us use DD ambiguity search results to generate

Flying RTK correction to Float RTK solution
7
 Fixed and Flying RTK: tentative diagram

Ambiguity fix
and X,P
modification

YES

Fixed RTK data

KF update
X,P
Integer search Valid?
NO
X,P

X,P
KF project

Flying RTK
Integer search Smoothing
correction

Flying RTK data X,P X,P

KF update

X,P
KF project

8
 RTK slogans

•Float RTK: always process DD ambiguity as

unknown float variable

•Fixed RTK: first process DD ambiguity as unknown

float variable, then (after fix) as known integer value

•Flying RTK: always process DD ambigity as

unknown float variable, but always consider as
unknown integer

9
 Different RTK: typical convergence tubes

Error in time, example Flying RTK

convergence is as
Flying flat as Float RTK
1 Float convergence

0.8 Fixed (correctly) Flying RTK

converges faster
0.6 Fixed (incorrectly) than Float RTK
error, m

0.4 Flying RTK never

fixes wrong
0.2 ambiguity as it can
be with Fixed RTK
0
Flying RTK steady
time state accuracy can
be as good as cm

10
 Flying RTK implementation: DG14 RTK

•L1 GPS+SBAS RTK OEM board (base and rover)

•Fixed and Flying RTK

•RTCM-2.3 (base and rover)

•RTCM-3.0 and Magellan proprietary (rover)

•20 Hz Raw data

•10 Hz RTK (with extrapolated base) position
•5 Hz synchronized (matched tags) RTK position

•OTF Fixed RTK initialization

•RTK with moving base
•Heading function
11
 Flying RTK implementation: ProMark3 RTK

•L1 GPS+SBAS RTK handheld (base and rover)

•Real time and post-processed Surveying and Mobile
Mapping functions
•Fixed and Flying RTK

•RTCM-3.0 (base and rover)

•RTCM-2.3,3.0 and Magellan proprietary (rover)
•Compatibility with VRS, FKP and MAC Networks

•NTRIP&DIP rover (with external GPRS module)

•External license free radio (base and rover)

•OTF Fixed RTK initialization

•Initialization of known point
•Initialization on kinematics bar
12
 Flying RTK performance: evaluation principles

•Apple to apple comparison

•PC version of RTK
•Static data but kinematics processing
•RTK auto-reset each 10 minutes
•Statistically sufficient estimates
•CEP convergence pattern

•Cases:
DG14 data (base and rover)
Zmax data (base and rover, L1 portion only)
ProMark3 data (against Ntrip Network)

13
 Flying RTK: Convergence with DG RTK data

CEP convergence pattern DG14 base and rover

0.5 Float 24 full days data at

RTK different times and
0.4 locations
Flying
0.3
error, m

RTK Baselines from few

0.2 meters to 10 km
0.1 Open sky to partly
0 shaded sky environment
0 200 400 600 Kinematics processing
tracking tim e,sec

14
 Flying RTK: convergence with Zmax data (L1 only)

CEP after 180 sec

Float RTK Flying RTK Zmax data: base and rover

0.3
L1 CA portion only
0.25
Open sky baselines
error, m

0.2 Baselines from 7 to 52 km

>48 hours for each baseline
0.15
Accuracy after 3 minutes
0.1 Kinematics processing
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
baseline, km

15
 Flying RTK: convergence with ProMark3 data

ProMark3 data (rover)

CEP convergence pattern
Orpheon NTRIP Network,
0.5 Float France
0.4 RTK
Flying 10 km baseline
0.3 RTK
error, m

Open sky
0.2
48 hours
0.1

0
Kinematics processing
0 200 400 600
tracking tim e,sec

16
 Conclusions

Many GNSS users want decimeter accuracy

Standard DGPS can deliver only sub-meter

One of the choices is RTK

L1/L2 RTK with fixed ambiguity can be too expensive

Alternative is much cheaper Float L1 RTK

L1 RTK Float convergence is not always fast

Flying RTK algorithm shows improvement compared to

classic Float RTK ‘in the same box’

Flying L1 RTK is good compromise for these users

17
 Acknowledgments

Magellan System Test group:

for their careful testing and validation efforts with release
DG14 RTK and ProMark3 RTK

Yves Le Pallec, Eugeny Sunitsky (all Magellan), and

Bill Cottrell (Cottrell Navigation Services):
for help with data collection

18
 Final slide

Flying™ RTK Solution as Effective

Enhancement of Conventional Float
RTK

THAHK YOU FOR YOU ATTENTION

QUESTIONS?

19