Method for acquisition of a radio signal component of a plurality of radio signal components, a related radio navigation system, a related radio transmitter and a related radio receiver

A radio transmitter (Txq), for use in a Radio navigation system comprising at least one radio receiver (Rx) and a plurality of radio transmitters (TX1 . . . TXQ), said radio system being configured for acquisition of at least one radio signal component of a plurality of radio signal components (S1 . . . SP), at a radio receiver (Rx) of said radio navigation system, each radio signal component of said plurality of radio signal components (S1 . . . SP) being transmitted by a respective radio transmitter of a plurality of radio transmitters (TX1 . . . TXQ) of said radio navigation system, each radio signal component of said plurality of radio signal components (S1 . . . SP) comprising a data signal carrier, for carrying a data signal component of said radio signal component, said data signal component comprising a spreading code, said spreading code comprising a predetermined number of chips (L), each chip of said spreading code having a duration (Tc), said radio transmitter (Txq) comprising:

• a frequency offset applying means, configured to apply before transmission of each radio signal component, a frequency offset, (Δfcarr,p, 1≤p≤P) relative to a central carrier frequency (fcentral), to said data signal carrier of said radio signal component to obtain a data signal carrier having a data signal carrier frequency (fcar,p=fcentral+Δfcarr,p) with a frequency offset (Δfcarr,p, 1≤p≤P) said frequency offset corresponding to said radio signal component of a plurality of radio signal components;
• and
• a signal modulation means configured to modulate a data signal component comprising a spreading code onto said data signal carrier of said corresponding radio signal component having said frequency offset (Δfcarr,p, 1≤p≤P);
• and
• a transmission means, configured to transmit said at least one radio signal component, each radio signal component comprising a data signal carrier carrying a data signal component modulated onto said data signal carrier of said corresponding radio signal component, CHARACTERIZED IN THAT said predetermined number of chips (L) is such that the criterion calculated as the ratio between the product of a front-end bandwidth (B) of said radio receiver of said radio navigation system with the spreading code length (L) and with the chip duration (Tc), and the overall number (P) of radio signal components of the radio navigation system shall not exceed 25;
• and
• said frequency offset value being smaller than said chip rate of said spreading code;
• and
• said frequency offset value depends on a specified cross-correlation isolation applied to each of the said cross-correlation function values calculated for the interfering Doppler residual values computed as the difference between the tested Doppler hypothesis, also accounting for the oscillator stability (Doscil,Rx) of said receiver of said radio navigation system, and said observed Doppler offset (DTRX1, . . . , DTRXP) for each of the said interfering data signal components of said plurality of radio signal components, extended with the frequency offset corresponding to said interfering radio signal components.

A radio receiver (Rx), for use in a radio navigation system comprising said radio receiver (Rx) and a plurality of radio transmitters (TX1 . . . TXQ), said radio system being configured for acquisition of at least one radio signal component of interest of a plurality of radio signal components (S1 . . . SP) at said radio receiver (Rx), each radio signal component of said plurality of radio signal components (S1 . . . SP) being transmitted by a respective radio transmitter of a plurality of radio transmitters (TX1 . . . TXQ) of said radio navigation system, each radio signal component of said plurality of radio signal components (S1 . . . SP) comprising a data signal carrier, (Dcar,p), for carrying a data signal component of said radio signal component, said data signal component comprising a spreading code, said spreading code comprising a predetermined number of chips (L), each chip of said spreading code having a duration (Tc), said radio receiver (Rx) having an oscillator with stability, (Doscil,Rx), and having a velocity (VTRX1 . . . VTRXQ) relative to each radio transmitter of said plurality of radio transmitters (TX1 . . . TXQ), said radio receiver (Rx) comprising:

• a reception means (21) configured to receive, a plurality of radio signal components, each radio signal component having an observed Doppler offset depending on said velocity of said radio receiver (Rx) relative to said corresponding radio transmitters and on said data signal carrier frequency of said data signal carrier corresponding to said respective radio signal component;
• and
• a processing means, configured to acquire, having a receiver front-end bandwidth (B), said at least one radio signal component of interest comprising said data signal carrier carrying said data signal component, from said at least one radio signal component of said plurality of radio signal components (S1 . . . SP), by comparing a detection threshold with an acquisition detector, said acquisition detector is based on at least one correlation value obtained for a tested code and Doppler hypothesis among a set of code and Doppler hypotheses to be tested, said correlation value being generated by correlating over a coherent integration time (Tint), a received signal(s) comprising said plurality of the received radio signal components with a local replica of said data signal component comprising a spreading code corresponding to said signal component of interest, said correlation value comprising a combination of cross-correlation function values corresponding to the interfering radio signal components and one auto-correlation function value corresponding to the radio signal component of interest,
• wherein said predetermined number of chips (L) is such that the criterion calculated as the ratio between the product of the radio receiver front-end bandwidth (B) of said radio receiver with the spreading code Length (L) and with the chip duration (Tc), and the overall number (P) of radio signal components of the radio navigation system, shall not exceed 25;
• and
• a frequency offset value, of a data signal carrier of said radio signal component, (Δfcarr,p, 1≤p≤P) being relative to a central carrier frequency (fcentral), depends on a specified cross-correlation isolation applied to each of the said cross-correlation function values calculated for the interfering Doppler residual values computed as the difference between the tested Doppler hypothesis, also accounting for said receiver oscillator stability, (Doscil,Rx), and said observed Doppler offset (DTRX1, . . . , DTRXP) for each of the said interfering radio signal components of said plurality of radio signal components, extended with the frequency offset corresponding to said interfering radio signal components.