Comparison analysis on the accuracy of Galileo PPP using different frequency combinations in Europe

Abstract

The Galileo constellations are characterized by transmitting GNSS signals on multi-frequencies, which can benefit the robustness and accuracy of the solutions. However, the dual-frequency E1/E5a combinations are generally used for precise point positioning (PPP). In this paper, the performance of Galileo static and kinematic PPP using different dual-and multi-frequency combinations are assessed using observations from the European region. Overall, the accuracy of daily PPP achieved by the dual-frequency GPS, Galileo, and BDS is better than 5 mm in the horizontal direction and better than 10 mm in the vertical direction. Though the number of observed Galileo satellites is less than GPS, the horizontal accuracy can reach 1.6 mm/2.3 mm/5.7 mm on North/East/Up component, which is improved by 59.0% and 12.3% compared to the GPS in the north and up direction. Then, the accuracy of Galileo static PPP is analyzed using different dual-and multi-frequency combinations. Results indicate that the Galileo E1/E5b PPP can degrade the accuracy due to the inter-frequency clock biases between the E1/E5a and E1/E5b combinations. Best accuracy can be achieved for the triple-and four-frequency PPP, which is 4.8 mm in the up direction. The hourly accuracy for the static PPP can reach 5.6 mm/9.2 mm/12.6 mm in the north/east/up direction using the GPS/Galileo/GLONASS/BDS combinations. Finally, a positioning convergence ratio (PCR) indicator, which represents the accuracy of PPP over a period, is used to analyze the convergence time of kinematic PPP. Results indicated that the multi-frequency Galileo observations contribute minorly to the convergence of kinematic PPP. However, Galileo shows the best convergence performance for the single GNSS positioning, and the GPS/Galileo combined PPP achieved the best performance for the PPP using different GNSS combinations.