INTRODUCTION

• The GPS or “Global Positioning System” is a

system for calculating position from signals
sent by a network of satellites.

• The satellites orbit and the earth is in a

geosynchronous orbit.
• The current system is managed by the U.S Air
Force for the Department of Defense (DOD).
The current system became fully operational
June 26, 1993 when the 24th satellite was
launched. A minimum of four (4) GPS satellite
signals are required to compute positions in
three dimensions and the time offset in the
receiver clock.
• Official name of GPS is Navigational Satellite Timing
And Ranging Global Positioning System (NAVSTAR
GPS)
• Global Positioning Systems (GPS) is a form of Global
Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)
• First developed by the United States Department of
Defense
• Consists of two dozen GPS satellites in medium
Earth orbit (The region of space between 2000km
and 35,786 km) Concept of GPS
 GPS History – From 1957 To Today
• Russia launches Sputnik. The satellite gives MIT scientists the
idea for a positioning system based on radio signals.
1957

• The U.S. Navy builds TRANSIT, the first navigation system to

really rely on satellites.
1959

• A study is completed by the Aerospace Corporation for the U.S.

Military.
1963
 GPS History – From 1957 To Today
• The U.S. Government begins contracts with private companies
1985 to develop GPS receivers.

• The first fully-operational GPS satellite is launched into space

1989 by the U.S. Air Force.

• The last of 27 satellites is launched.

1995
 GPS History – From 1957 To Today
• GPS-enabled cell phones become commercially available for
1999 the first time.

• The U.S. Government revokes a plan from 1990 that purposely

2000 made GPS less accurate as a defensive mechanism.

• Personal GPS products surge, including in-car navigation

2001 systems.
 PURPOSE OF GPS
To determine position locations.
To navigate from one location to
another.
To create digitized maps.
To determine distance.
 STRUCTURE AND SPECIFICATION OF GPS
GPS is comprised of three different parts:

Space Segment: A constellation of at least 24 US government

satellites distributed in six orbital planes inclined 55° from the
equator in a Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) at about 20,200
kilometers (12,550 miles) and circling the Earth every 12
hours.

Control Segment: Stations on Earth monitoring and

maintaining the GPS satellites.

User Segment: Receivers that process the navigation signals

from the GPS satellites and calculate position and time.
 Current and Future Satellite Generations

Block IIA (2nd generation, "Advanced")

Block IIR ("Replenishment")
Block IIR-M ("Modernized")
Block IIF ("Follow-on")
GPS III
GPS IIIF ("Follow-on").
 Current and Future Satellite Generations
BLOCK IIA
Coarse Acquisition (C/A) code on L1 frequency for civil
users
Precise P(Y) code on L1 & L2 frequencies for military users
7.5-year design lifespan
Launched in 1990-1997

BLOCK IIR
C/A code on L1
P(Y) code on L1 & L2
On-board clock monitoring
7.5-year design lifespan
Launched in 1997-2004
Current and Future Satellite Generations
BLOCK IIR-M
All legacy signals
2nd civil signal on L2 (L2C)
New military M code signals for enhanced jam resistance
Flexible power levels for military signals
7.5-year design lifespan
Launched in 2005-2009
BLOCK IIF
All Block IIR-M signals
3rd civil signal on L5 frequency (L5)
Advanced atomic clocks
Improved accuracy, signal strength, and quality
12-year design lifespan
Launched in 2010-2016
 Current and Future Satellite Generations
GPS III / IIIF
All Block IIF signals
4th civil signal on L1 (L1C)
Enhanced signal reliability, accuracy, and integrity
15-year design lifespan
IIIF: laser reflectors; search & rescue payload
First launch in 2018

As of January 9, 2019, there were a total of 31

operational satellites in the GPS constellation, not
including the decommissioned, on-orbit spares.
 Control Segment Modernization
As part of the GPS modernization program, the
Air Force has continuously upgraded the GPS
control segment for many years. The ground
upgrades are necessary to command and
control the newer GPS satellites and to enhance
cybersecurity.
 USER SEGMENT STRUCTURE OF GPS
The user segment (US) is composed of hundreds of
thousands of U.S. and allied military users of the
secure GPS Precise Positioning Service, and tens of
millions of civil, commercial and scientific users of the
Standard Positioning Service.
 Prepared by:

CO, Hendrickson
LLOREN, Marino
SACAY, John Emmanuel
SATURAY, Rodrigo Jr.