EXPERIMENTAL VALIDATION OF PALM - A SYSTEM FOR PRECISE AIRCRAFT LOCATION

A ground based system to precisely locate aircraft in three dimensions based on transponder replies has been designed. Field tests have been conducted to validate the design of the elevation performance. This document reports on the principle of operation, experimental hardware and field test of the Precision Altitude and Landing Monitor (PALM). The key features incorporated in the PALM design include: (a) no new avionics required, i.e., uses standard aircraft transponder; (b) high accuracy position data, i.e., a 1-mrad (0.06 degrees) rms error in elevation and in azimuth; (c) broad airspace coverage, e.g., 40 degrees in elevation, 120 degrees in azimuth (expandable to 360 degrees) and several 10s of miles in range; and (d) low life cycle equipment cost. The high accuracy in the difficult airport multipath environment is a direct result of (a) a newly developed antenna synthesis procedure, (b) the development of adaptive multipath suppression techniques, and (c) the use of digital signal processing. The program, to date, has focused on an experimental evaluation of the elevation performance. The electronics required for the tests have been built into a self-powered van to facilitate experiments at remote airports. The actual flight test data demonstrated experimental errors on the order of 1 mrad; moreover, as predicted by theory, the resulting errors were essentially independent of elevation angle. Potential applications for the PALM position data include parallel approach monitoring, independent altitude monitoring, and/or performance assurance monitoring of landing guidance systems.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/FAA033241062
• Corporate Authors:

  Lincoln Laboratory

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  Lexington, MA  United States  02173

  Department of the Air Force

  Electronic Systems Division
  Hanscom AFB, MA  United States 

  Federal Aviation Administration

  800 Independence Avenue, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20591
• Authors:
  • Evans, J E
  • Karp, D
  • LAFREY, R R
  • McAulay, R J
  • Stiglitz, I G
• Publication Date: 1975-4-29

Media Info

• Pagination: 120 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Air traffic control; Altitude; Landing; Monitoring; Transponders
• Uncontrolled Terms: Monitors
• Subject Areas: Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00091330
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• ISBN: FAA-033-241-062
• Report/Paper Numbers: TN-1975-29 Tech. Note
• Contract Numbers: F19628-73-C-0002, DOT-FA72WAI-242
• Files: NTIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Jul 15 1975 12:00AM