AN INTRODUCTION - GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM

S. K. Upadhyaya, G. S. Pettygrove, J.W. Oliveira, B. R. Jahn1

Introduction: Central to precision farming and natural resources monitoring is the

ability to locate any position in a field, forest, or rangeland area accurately so that soil,
plant, pest, and yield data specific to that site can be georeferenced. These georeferenced
data can be used for generating attribute and site-specific management maps. In the past,
dead-reckoning (measurement of velocity and heading) and inertial navigation
(measurement of linear and rotational acceleration) have been used for positioning. In
recent years, GPS has become the method of “choice” for positioning purposes. The GPS
technology uses the simple concept of triangulation to determine the position of a point.

Triangulation: Location of any point P in a two dimensional (2-D) plane can be

uniquely determined, if its distances from three known points (A, B and C) are known as
shown in figure 1. Essentially point P is the intersection of three circles whose radii
correspond to the distances of points A, B, and C from point P respectively (i.e, two
circles intersect at two points and three circles intersect at a point). This principle of
positioning, known as triangulation, is used for locating points using GPS technology.
Since we are interested in locating a point in a three dimensional (3-D) space, distances
of the point from four known positions are necessary to uniquely locate the point (i.e. two
spheres intersect in a circle; three spheres intersect at two points; four spheres intersect at
a point). However, to determine the location of a point on the surface of the earth, only
three distance measurements from three known points are sufficient. Although three
spheres intersect at two points, one of the points will be far away from the surface of the
earth and can be discarded. The GPS technology uses radio waves from satellites to
determine distances of any desired location from the satellites to determine position of
that point.

Global Positioning System: The GPS consists of 24 satellites that circle the earth in six,
12- hour orbits2. These satellites, known as NAVSTAR (NAVigation by Satellite Timing
And Ranging), have been launched and maintained by the department of defense (DOD)
to provide all weather ranging 24 hours a day anywhere on the surface of the earth. Each
orbit is at an altitude of 20,200 km (12,500 miles) and contains four satellites. These
satellites are equipped with four atomic clocks each to provide accurate timing. They
transmit two radio frequencies on two separate L-bands (L1 = 1575.42 MHz and
L2=1227.60 MHz). The L1 signal consists of a Course/Acquisition (C/A) and a
Precision (P) code. The L2 signal contains only the P-code. Only the C/A code of the L1
signal, known as the standard positioning service (SPS), is available for civilian use. The
L1 and L2 signals are available for military and other authorized users and provide a

1
Authors are respectively Professor Bio. and Agr. Eng. Dept., Ext. Specialist, Land Air and Water
Resources Dept., Research Assistants, Bio. and Agr. Eng. Dept., University of California, Davis. 95616.
2
There is a separate satellite based navigation system managed by Russian Space Forces called
GLONASS. This system is similar to NAVSTAR in operation. However, very few receivers available in
the US market, if any, use these satellites for ranging.
precise positioning service (PPS). The part of the GPS that consists of satellites is known
as the space segment.

A
P

Figure 1. Locating a point P in a two dimensional plane by measuring its distances from
three points or landmarks (A,B,C) whose locations are known.

The GPS satellites are continuously monitored by four ground-based stations located at
Ascension island, Diego Garcia, Hawaii, and Kwajalein. The master control station
located at Colorado Springs, CO receives the information on the health of the satellites
and their exact locations from monitoring stations and uploads necessary corrections to
the satellites. These ground-based stations form the control segment of the GPS.

The GPS receivers that receive information from the GPS satellites form the user
segment of the GPS. The receiver computes the time required for the radio signal to
reach the receiver from each of the satellites that is “visible.” From these timing signals,
the receiver calculates its distance from each of the “visible” satellite by multiplying the
time by the speed of radio signal (300,000 km/s or 186,300 miles/s). This process is
known as ranging. If the distances of the receiver from at least three satellites are
available, the location of the receiver on the surface of the earth can be calculated.
However, the timing measurements are never completely accurate because the receiver
clock is not as accurate as the atomic clocks in the satellites. The GPS receivers try to
minimize timing errors using information from an additional (fourth) satellite. The
distance of the receiver from each of the “visible” satellite is called “pseudo range” since
this range is not accurate due to clock error. Note that pseudo ranges from at least four
satellites are necessary to obtain accurate estimation of receiver location (figure 2).

GPS Receivers: Although the GPS technology is quite involved, GPS users do not have
to deal with the complexities of this technology. Users interact only with GPS receivers
that are relatively simple to use. GPS receivers vary in both price and accuracy. In
general, as accuracy of the receiver increases, its price also increases. The inexpensive

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GPS receivers (~ $100) may have an accuracy of about 60 ft (20 m). Three to six meter
(10 to 20 ft) accuracy receivers may cost a few hundred dollars ($200-400). Submeter
accuracy GPS receivers may cost several thousand dollars ($3000-6000). Extremely
accurate GPS receivers with centimeter accuracy may cost tens of thousands of dollars
(~$20,000 per unit).

Figure 2. Determination of position using pseudoranges from four satellites.

The accuracies of GPS receivers are related to factors that influence performance such as:

1) satellite clocks,
2) satellite orbits,
3) GPS receiver errors,
4) atmospheric distortions, and
5) multipath problems.

Table 1 lists the magnitude of errors due to various sources.

Table 1. Magnitudes of errors due to various sources.

Source Regular GPS Differential GPS

ft (m) ft (m)

Satellite clock 3-5 (1.0-1.5) 0

Satellite orbit 3-8 (1.0-2.5) 0
Atmosphere 17.6-36.3 (5.5–11) 2.1 (0.6)
Multipath 1.6–2 ((0.5-0.6) 1.6–2 ((0.5-0.6)
GPS receiver noise 1-6.6(0.3-2.) 1-6.6(0.3-2.)

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One way to improve the accuracy of the receiver is to use differential correction to
minimize the effect of atmospheric distortions and eliminate satellite clock and satellite
clock errors. Various techniques are available to obtain differential corrections. The
source of differential correction affects the accuracy of the receiver as well as the cost.

Differential Correction: Figure 3 presents the concept of differential correction. If a

receiver at a reference point (i.e., a base whose position is accurately known) receives the
signal from the GPS satellites, then it can compute the error in estimating its position
using GPS signals. If this correction is beamed to a receiver located at a point (say a field
GPS receiver) whose position needs to be determined, then the field receiver can correct
its measurements using this information. This type of system is known as Differential
Global Positioning System (DGPS). There are three sources of differential correction
available to GPS users in North America. These sources are:

1) U.S. Coast Guard beacon,

2) Satellite based correction, and
3) Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS).

Base
Station
Differential Correction

Figure 3. Differential GPS.

Coast Guard Beacon: The U.S. Coast Guard has installed GPS base stations at selected
seaport cities along the coast, the Great lakes, several inland waterways, and other critical
locations. These base stations transmit the GPS correction signals using AM signals
(285 to 325 kHz) free of charge. The correction signals become weaker and less accurate
as you move away from the base station. The Coast Guard Beacon at Chico (318 kHz) is
available to GPS users in the Sacramento area.

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Satellite-based Correction: This system uses a geo-stationary satellite and several
ground base stations spread over a wide area. For example OMNISTAR system uses ten
base stations spread over the US and one in Mexico to cover the whole North American
continent. These ground base stations receive GPS signals from the satellites and
compute correction data. These correction data are uploaded to the geo-stationary
satellite, which then broadcasts the corrections to GPS receivers. The satellite-based
differential correction systems provide a site-specific correction by properly weighting
the corrections from various ground base stations. This type of service is provided by
private venders such as OMNISTAR and requires a yearly subscription.

Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS): This is a relatively new system that is
quite similar to the satellite based differential correction system. It consists of geo-
stationary WAAS satellites and 25 ground base stations spread all over the US. This
system was implemented by Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to assist with
commercial aviation. Although this system has the potential to be as accurate as the
satellite based differential correction systems, at the present time accuracy of this system
is about two to three times poorer. There has been some difficulty in locking onto this
system, especially in the West Coast. The main advantage of this system is that it is free
where it is available. Many low-cost GPS systems (a few hundred dollars) have been
developed to take advantage of the WAAS differential correction.

Dual Frequency Systems: A recent development in the GPS technology is the use of
dual frequency to obtain almost 10 in (25 cm) accuracy using a relatively inexpensive
(several thousand rather than tens of thousand dollars) receivers. These systems use
satellite-based differential correction. Use of the second frequency form a geostationary
satellite can improve the accuracy of this system from about 75 cm (30 in) (single
frequency system) to 10 in (25 cm).

Second Receiver as Base Station: It is possible to use a second receiver as a base

station. Base station receivers should be higher accuracy devices that are often
expensive. So only very high accuracy systems such as real-time kinematic GPS (RTK
GPS) use a second receiver for a local base station.

Real-time Kinematic GPS (RTK GPS): This is a very high accuracy GPS system that
uses carrier phase measurement to achieve centimeter accuracy. This technique involves
measuring carrier signal phase angle. The distance of the receiver from a satellite is
measured in terms of an unknown number of integer waves, known as “integer
ambiguity”, plus the fractional wavelength given by the phase angle. The system solves
for integer ambiguity to obtain very accurate measurement of location through
optimization. The RTK GPS requires a local base station (located within 5 km) and at
least five satellites to obtain centimeter accuracy (figure 4). Some venders provide RTK
GPS reference signal using a network of base stations. In such instances, the user does
not need to purchase a second receiver for the base station, but can subscribe to the
reference signal for a fee.

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Accuracy: The accuracy requirements for a GPS device depend on the particular
application for its intended use. A 60 ft accuracy, inexpensive GPS receiver may be
adequate for recreation purposes such as boating. On the other hand, highly accurate,
RTK GPS receiver may be required for an autoguidance system. In addition to the
factors described before, the accuracy of the GPS or DGPS also depends on the number
of “visible” satellites and the way they are distributed in the sky. If the satellites are
spread evenly over the sky, the satellite geometry is considered “good.” The quality of
satellite geometry is described in terms of “Geometric Dilution of Precision (GDOP).”
The components of GDOP are HDOP (Horizontal Dilution of Precision, 2-D), VDOP
(Vertical Dilution of Precision, elevation), PDOP (Position Dilution of Precision, 3-D)
and TDOP (Time Dilution of Precision). A PDOP value of one stands for the best
satellite geometry. It is recommended that a planning software that is capable of showing
the GPS almanac be used to determine the times at which enough satellites are not
“visible” to obtain accurate position measurements. The almanac usually displays the
number satellites that are “visible” at any given point in time. Usually there is only a
very short time interval during which enough satellites may not be “visible.” These short
intervals could be used as breaks. It should be noted that the term “accuracy” is actually
a misnomer and the numerical value of accuracy refers to the “error” in the location
measurement. Thus a submeter accuracy system guarantees an error of less than one
meter either 68% (RMS accuracy) or 50% (CEP/SEP) of the time.

M inim u m o f 5 S a tellit es

R o ver
L o ca l B ase
S ta t io n
R elatively sh ort distan ce < 5 km

Figure 4. Principle of operation of RTK GPS

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Circular or Spherical Error Probable: The circular error probable (CEP) refers to the
radius of the circle which contains 50% of the measurements taken at a known location
over a period of time - usually 24 hrs (Figure 4).

The spherical error probable (SEP) is similar to CEP but it is the radius of the sphere in 3-
D that contains 50% of the measurements. These terms, CEP and SEP, are not
commonly used.

Root Mean Square (RMS) Error: The root mean square error is the square root of the
average squared distances corresponding to measured distances from a true location. For
example, if {(Xi, Yi), i=1,2,…..n} are NORTHING and EASTING GPS measurements
of a given location whose true co-ordinates are (Xo, Yo), then the RMS error of the GPS
device is given by:

∑d i
2

RMS Accuracy = i =1
(1)
n
where d i = ( X i − X o ) 2 + (Yi − Yo ) 2
2

O R

Figure 4. Schematic of the Circular Error Probable depicted as radius R of the circle
which contains 50% of all the GPS measurement at a known location O.

The RMS accuracy is equal to one standard deviation (one sigma). This refers to a
distance that contains nearly 68% of all the measured values. Sometimes accuracy may
be expressed as 2D RMS value, which contains nearly 95% of all measured values.
Most manufacturers report RMS accuracy in the specification of the GPS unit. It should
be noted that the RMS accuracy corresponds to static measurements.

However, most GPS devices tend to have better dynamic accuracy than static accuracy.
The dynamic or pass-to-pass accuracy refers to the repeatability of measurements under
dynamic conditions. The more precise a device is, the more repeatable the measurements

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made with that device will be. Figure 5 shows the difference between accuracy and
precision. This figure depicts a GPS device A that is more accurate in locating point “O”,
although it is not as precise as GPS device B. The precision of a GPS device under static
conditions can be determined by an equation similar to equation (1), i.e:

n
∑e 2
i
RMSPr ecision = i=1
n
_ _
where e 2i = (X i − X) 2 + (Yi − Y)2 , (2)
_ n _ n
X = ∑ Xi , and Y = ∑ Yi
i=1 i=1

GPS device A

GPS device B

Figure 5. Accuracy versus precision - although device A is less precise compared to

device B, it is more accurate than the later.

Pass-to-Pass accuracy is particularly important for parallel swathing operation. For

example, one manufacturer claims a static accuracy of their dual frequency receiver to be
about 10 in (25 cm) whereas the dynamic accuracy to be about 4 in (10 cm). This type of
accuracy can be very helpful in guiding a tractor in parallel swathing operations such as
spraying, cultivating etc. However, it is difficult to measure pass-to-pass accuracy of
GPS receivers. We limit our discussion to static accuracy in this article.

Horizontal versus Vertical Accuracy: Accuracy of GPS units in measuring elevation is

1.5 to two times poorer compared to measuring horizontal accuracy. Thus a GPS device
with a horizontal accuracy of 1 m may have an accuracy of 1.5 to 2 m in measuring
elevation.

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Coordinate Systems: The GPS measurements are usually reported in geodetic
coordinates – longitude, latitude, and height. These coordinates are in terms of a
Conventional Terrestrial Reference Coordinate system (CTRES). The characteristics of
this coordinate system are that it uses WGS3-84 reference ellipsoid and NAD4-83
reference system with geocenter as the origin. The height of a measured point is reported
in terms of its perpendicular distance from this reference ellipsoid. Moreover, CTRES is
a right-handed coordinate system with Z axis pointed vertically downward. The XY
plane lies in the equatorial plane and the X axis passes through the zero degree longitude
(prime meridian that passes through Greenwich). The Y axis is perpendicular to the X
axis and is directed to the east. It should be noted that many USGS topo maps produced
before 1988 are in a NAD-27 coordinate system that uses Clarke 1866 ellipsoid as the
reference ellipsoid and Meades ranch, Kansas as origin. Since all GPS data are in the
NAD-835 system, it is important to convert older data to NAD-83 system to avoid large
errors when different layers are overlaid in a Geographic Information System (GIS).

GPS data obtained in the CTRES system are often projected onto a plane (2-D) to create
maps. State Plane and Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) are the two most
common coordinates used for 2-D representation. State plane coordinate system uses
different types of projection for different states (conical, cylindrical, oblique mercator
etc.). For example Lambert Conformal Conic projection is used for California. UTM on
the other hand, uses a transverse mercator projection everywhere in the world. The
whole world is divided into 30 zones each of which is 6° wide along the equator. UTM
measurements are reported in terms of these zones and Northing and Easting values.

Testing GPS Receivers: We conducted a series of static tests to check the accuracy of
several GPS receivers. We selected some inexpensive GPS receivers (Garmin eTrex,
Navman, and Pretec with and without external antenna) that were WAAS enabled. We
also included two sub-meter accuracy systems (Trimble AgGPS 132 and Mid-Tech RX
400P) capable of obtaining differential correction signals from three different sources
(Coast Guard, Satellite-based, and WAAS). Thus this experimental plan included ten
treatments of GPS Units.

The experimental design was a split-split-plot design with month/season of test as the
blocking variable (Jan/Winter, April/Spring, and July/Summer), locations as the main
factor (Davis, Orchard in Davis, Lemoore, and San Luis Obispo), time of day as the sub-
factor (four 2-hr time blocks randomly drawn from the following set: AM: 5-6, 7-8, 9-10,
11-12, PM:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12). The sub-sub factor was the GPS units and
their configurations. This design results in the highest precision for GPS systems and
configurations. To determine accuracy, we need points whose positions are known. We
used RTK GPS to determine the locations of test points in Davis. The RTK GPS did not
provide high accuracy data in the orchard, perhaps due to multipath problems. We

3
World Geodetic Society (WGS)
4
North American Datum (NAD)
5
Strictly speaking NAD-83 uses GRS-80 (Geodetic Reference System) ellipsoid as reference whereas GPS
calculations are carried out using WGS-84 ellipsoid. However, differences between these two ellipsoids are
minimal.

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selected a point outside the orchard directly to the south of the test point. We were able
to locate this point accurately using RTK GPS. At Lemoore and San Luis Obispo, we
used High Precision Geodetic Network (HPGN) points that are surveyed points with
known coordinates.

We were unable to get a complete set of data during the Jan/Winter tests. Therefore we
considered this particular test as a trial run. We added an additional September/Fall test
to makeup for this lost test. The preliminary results of the April/Spring test are included
with this report (Table 2a and b). Table 2a presents accuracy results whereas Table 2b
lists precision of each unit.

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 Table 2a. Preliminary RMS accuracy results of GPS tests conducted in April 2003. All accuracy values listed in this table are in meters6.

Unit DAVIS ORCHARD LEMOORE SLO

5:00 AM 7:00 AM 11:00 AM 7:00 PM 5:00 AM 9:00 AM 1:00 PM 3:00 PM 7:00 AM 11:00 AM 1:00 PM 3:00 PM 5:00 AM 1:00 PM 5:00 PM 9:00 PM
Trimble with Omnistar 1.26 1.15 1.93 2.11 31.29 1.72 3.21 12.50 2.07 4.02 5.05 2.91 6.32 3.01 8.42 5.72
Trimble with Coast Guard 1.25 1.79 1.35 1.20 11.94 10.55 3.15 4.80 6.47 8.15 1.30 2.04 4.41 6.50 10.13 4.04
Trimble with WAAS 2.43 3.47 2.00 2.72 13.06 3.87 6.49 12.75 5.02 2.08 1.81 2.11 3.21 12.18 4.85 6.76
Mid-Tech with Omnistar 0.72 2.19 1.37 1.90 5.58 5.25 4.82 6.16 0.72 2.57 0.98 2.30 3.38 0.76 2.73 2.22
Mid-Tech with Coast Guard 0.77 2.04 2.68 3.90 2.48 4.48 5.47 3.02 3.02 3.48 1.35 1.70 2.15 1.11 3.64 1.58
Mid-Tech with WAAS 2.75 1.31 1.48 2.16 3.66 3.93 4.97 4.45 3.44 1.18 0.94 1.77 2.76 2.83 2.53 1.80
Garmin - Etrex 4.96 2.97 1.81 4.19 6.07 5.45 4.84 8.35 5.45 3.65 2.33 2.67 5.51 2.93 3.91 2.16
NAVMAN 2.32 3.33 4.68 9.07 3.36 326.68? 4.98 5.33 4.03 3.02 2.00 2.73 4.57 4.05 4.20 2.15
Pretec 3.51 3.25 4.71 6.58 11.09 4.86 5.56 9.40 4.25 3.82 3.98 2.80 1.05 2.16 8.23 2.62
Pretec with Ext. Ant. 3.11 2.58 6.51 4.76 7.59 6.34 4.67 6.78 2.53 4.23 1.39 0.87 1.48 3.48 3.97 2.48

Table 2b. Preliminary RMS precision results of GPS tests conducted in April 2003. All precision values listed in this table are in meters3

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All results included in this table are preliminary. These data should not be used to compare the devices at this point in time. We plan to release the finalized data at a later date.

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Morgan,M. and D. Ess. 1997. Positioning systems. Ch 2. In The precision farming guide for
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Lowenberg-DeBoer,J., K. Erickson, K. A. Vogel. 2000. Global positioning systems. Ref A. In

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____________. 2003. About GPS technology. http://www.trimble.com/gps/ . Trimble

Navigation Inc, Sunnyvale, CA.

___________. 2003. http://www.gisdevelopment.net/tutorials/tuman004.htm. GIS Development. A GIS

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