Low-Cost Real-Time PPP/INS Integration for Automated Land Vehicles

The last decade has witnessed a growing demand for precise positioning in many applications including car navigation. Navigating automated land vehicles requires at least sub-meter level positioning accuracy with the lowest possible cost. The Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Single-Frequency Precise Point Positioning (SF-PPP) is capable of achieving sub-meter level accuracy in benign GNSS conditions using low-cost GNSS receivers. However, SF-PPP alone cannot be employed for land vehicles due to frequent signal degradation and blockage. In this paper, real-time SF-PPP is integrated with a low-cost consumer-grade Inertial Navigation System (INS) to provide a continuous and precise navigation solution. The PPP accuracy and the applied estimation algorithm contributed to reducing the effects of INS errors. The system was evaluated through two road tests which included open-sky, suburban, momentary outages, and complete GNSS outage conditions. The results showed that the developed PPP/INS system maintained horizontal sub-meter Root Mean Square (RMS) accuracy in open-sky and suburban environments. Moreover, the PPP/INS system could provide a continuous real-time positioning solution within the lane the vehicle is moving in. This lane-level accuracy was preserved even when passing under bridges and overpasses on the road. The developed PPP/INS system is expected to benefit low-cost precise land vehicle navigation applications including level 2 of vehicle automation which comprises services such as lane departure warning and lane-keeping assistance.