Abstract
In order to improve the interoperability within the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), the International Committee on Global Navigation Satellite Systems published a joint statement in December 2019 that stated that all GNSS providers agree to monitor and broadcast the time offsets between each system timescale and the Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) or the rapid realization of UTC (UTCr). This commitment requires the study of precise prediction models for system time offsets. The prediction model of system time offsets is different from that of the atomic clock because of the control of the system timescale. The offsets between the system time of the Beidou Satellite Navigation System-3 (BDS-3) and the National Time Service Center (NTSC), called [UTC(NTSC)-BDT], have two main periods of 12 h and 24 h, according to the Fast Fourier Transform analysis. The rescaled range (R/S) analysis demonstrates that it has long memory, making it a fractal time series with a memory period of about 10.4 h. While using the fractal interpolation method to predict the [UTC(NTSC)-BDT] series, we found that the prediction error reaches its minimum value if adding disturbance on the estimated endpoint of the forecasted interval. After verifying the correlation between the estimated endpoints with the minimal interpolation error and minimal prediction error and proving the existence and uniqueness of the estimated endpoint with the minimal interpolation error, we established the endpoint-based optimal fractal interpolation prediction method. The experimental results indicate that the average prediction accuracy of the proposed prediction model is improved by 57.90% and 39.26% compared to that of a quadratic model and standard fractal prediction model, respectively. The accuracy analysis results of numerical tests indicate that the proposed prediction model can restrain the divergence of prediction error. Finally, we transform the [UTC(NTSC)-BDT] into [UTCr -BDT] using the [UTCr-UTC(NTSC)] published by the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM) to meet the requirement of GNSS interoperability. The prediction accuracies of daily [UTCr-BDT] using the proposed prediction model are no more than 1.5 ns with uncertainty about 6 ns.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data Availability
The datasets of [UTCr-UTC(NTSC)] analyzed during the current study are available in the BIPM repository, ftp://ftp2.bipm.org/pub/tai/Rapid-UTC/utcrlab/utcr-ntsc. The [UTC(NTSC)-BDT] data that support the findings of this study are available from NTSC CAS, but restrictions apply to the availability of these data, which were used under license for the current study, and so are not publicly available. Data are, however, available from the authors upon reasonable request and with permission of NTCS CAS.
References
Fu WJ, Zhang Q, Huang GW (2015) Analysis of combined real-time predicting model of BDS/GPS system time offset. J Geod Geodyn 35(4):653–657. https://doi.org/10.14075/j.jgg.2015.04.024
Gao WG, Jiao WH, Xiao Y, Wang ML, Yuan HB (2011) An evaluation of the Beidou time system (BDT). J Navig 64(S1):31–39. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0373463311000452
Guang W, Dong S, Wu WJ, Zhang JH, Yuan HB, Zhang SG (2018) Progress of BeiDou time transfer at NTSC. Metrologia 55(2):175–187. https://doi.org/10.1088/1681-7575/aaa673
Han T, Wu HT, Lu XC, Wang X, Bai Y, Hao WN, Yang G (2013) Research on GNSS Interoperable Parameters. In: Proceedings of ION Pacific PNT 2013, Institute of Navigation, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA, April 22–25, 115–122
Han T, Lu XC, Du J, Zhang XZ, Ji YQ (2017) Analysis of GNSS user/industry interoperability viewpoint survey results. Lect Notes Electr Eng 439:605–619. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4594-3_51
Han T, Yang YX, Huang GW, Wu J (2018) Fractal behavior of GNSS time offsets and fractal interpolation forecasting method for multi-GNSS time synchronization. GPS Solut 22(4):97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10291-018-0762-6
Huang GW, Zhang Q, Xu GC (2014) Real-time clock offset prediction with an improved model. GPS Solut 18(1):95–104. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10291-013-0313-0
Hurst HE (1951) Long term storage capacities of reservoirs. Trans Am Soc Civ Eng 116(12):776–808. https://doi.org/10.1234/12345678
ICG Secretariat (2019) Joint statement. In: 14th meeting of the International Committee on Global Navigation Satellite Systems, Bangalore, India, December 9–13. http://www.unoosa.org/documents/pdf/icg/2019/icg14/Joint_statement_ICG-14.pdf
Mazel DS, Hayes MH (1992) Using iterated function systems to model discrete sequences. IEEE Trans Signal Process 40(7):1724–1734. https://doi.org/10.1109/78.143444
Vernotte F, Delporte J, Brunet M, Tournier T (2001) Uncertainties of drift coefficients and extrapolation errors: application to clock error prediction. Metrologia 38(4):325–342. https://doi.org/10.1088/0026-1394/38/4/6
Wu HT (2011) Time foundation in satellite navigation system. Science press, Beijing
Yang YX, Li JL, Xu JY et al (2011) Contribution of the Compass satellite navigation system to global PNT users. Chin Sci Bull 56(26):2813–2819. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-011-4627-4
Yang YX, Lu MQ, Han CH (2016) Some notes on interoperability of GNSS. Acta Geod Cartogr Sin 45(3):253–259. https://doi.org/10.11947/j.AGCS.2016.20150653
Yang YX, Gao WG, Guo SR, Mao Y, Yang YF (2019) Introduction to BeiDou-3 navigation satellite system. Navigation 66(1):1–12. https://doi.org/10.1002/navi.291
Zhang HJ, Li XH, Zhu L, Zhang X (2014a) Research on GNSS system time offset monitoring and prediction. Lect Notes Electr Eng 303(1):427–438. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-54737-9_37
Zhang JH, Yuan HB, Dong SW, Yin LL (2014b) Prediction of GNSS time difference based on combination of Grey model and quadratic polynomial model. J Time Freq 37(4):199–205. https://doi.org/10.13875/j.issn.1674-0637.2014-04-0199-07
Zhu L, Zhang HJ, Li XH, Ren Y, Xu LX (2016) Analyzing prediction methods and precision of GNSS system time offset using end-point and Kalman filter. Lect Notes Electr Eng 390(3):661–671. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0940-2_58
Acknowledgements
This study is supported by Shaanxi Postdoctoral research fund (No. 2017BSHEDZZ22), National Natural Science Fund of China (No. 41774025, 61976176).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Appendix: Specific calculation process of fractal interpolation bias
Appendix: Specific calculation process of fractal interpolation bias
The main purpose of this appendix is to provide the specific computing process of parameter \(\beta_{j}\). This will help us ensure the existence and uniqueness of the estimated endpoint disturbance for minimal interpolation error.
First, we will simplify the parameters defined by equation (16). Since the interpolation series \(\{ t_{i} \}\) (\(i = 0,1, \cdots ,N\)) is always an arithmetic progression, we have:
Then, the sums of \(e_{i}\), \(c_{i}\) and \(f_{i}\) are calculated as follows:
For the parameter \(e_{N + 1}\), we have:
According to equation (31), the expression of \(\beta_{j}\) contains two parts:
Since Part I of \(\beta_{j}\) is already simplified, we will focus on the last part. According to (15):
For the first segment of (46), using (40), (41) and (44), we obtain:
For the second segment of (46), using (42) and (43), we obtain:
where \(\eta = {{\left( {t^{*} - t_{0} } \right)} \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{\left( {t^{*} - t_{0} } \right)} {\left( {t_{N} - t_{0} } \right)}}} \right. \kern-\nulldelimiterspace} {\left( {t_{N} - t_{0} } \right)}}\). Substituting results (46), (47) and (48) into (45), the specific expression of \(\beta_{j}\) is given as:
It is obvious that parameter \(\beta_{j}\) does not contain \(\tilde{x}_{N + 1}\). This completes the calculation of the fractal interpolation bias \(\Delta \Gamma\).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Han, T., Zou, D. Endpoint-based optimal fractal interpolation for predicting BDS-3 system time offsets. GPS Solut 25, 51 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10291-020-01081-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10291-020-01081-z