TABLE OF CONTENTS Global navigation satellite systems is the collective term for those navigation systems that provide the user with a three-dimensional positioning solution by passive ranging using radio signals transmitted by orbiting satellites. A number of systems aim to provide global coverage. The most well known is the Navigation by Satellite Ranging and Timing (NAVSTAR) Global Positioning System (GPS), owned and operated by the U.S. government and usually known simply as GPS. The Russian GLONASS is also operational. At the time of writing, the European Galileo system was under development, while proposals to provide global coverage for the Chinese Compass system had been announced. In addition, a number of regional satellite navigation systems enhance and complement GNSS.
Some authors use the term GPS to describe satellite navigation in general, while the term GNSS is sometimes reserved for positioning using signals from more than one satellite navigation system. Here, the term GPS is reserved explicitly for the NAVSTAR system, while the term GNSS is used to describe features common to all of the systems. Similarly, the terms GLONASS, Galileo, and so forth are used to describe features specific to those systems.
This chapter provides an introduction to satellite navigation and a description of the individual systems. Section 6.1 describes the basic principles of GNSS, including the system architectures, positioning method, and signal properties. Section 6.2 describes GPS, including its modernization and the six space-based augmentation systems, while Sections 6.3 and 6.4 describe GLONASS and Galileo, respectively. Section 6.5 provides a brief introduction...
