Accuracy of GPS Positioning Measurements in response to Electromagnetic Noise Characteristics

Autonomous vehicles, such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and self-driving cars, have been recently deployed. Many of them use a global positioning system (GPS) to acquire location data, which requires high accuracy. On the other hand, the electromagnetic (EM) environment inside the autonomous vehicle is prone to electromagnetic interference (EMI) between EM noise and GPS signals, and there is a risk that this EMI inside the autonomous vehicle may deteriorate the accuracy of GPS positioning measurements. Previous studies have reported the interference of EM noise from UAVs with global navigation satellite system (GNSS) and with mobile communications. Evaluations and countermeasures for the EMI problems are necessary since the low accuracy of positioning measurements may lead to malfunctions and accidents. This study showed the accuracy of positioning measurements under two EM noise components, which are experimented with the EMI of EM noise to GPS signal with a GPS receiver module. As a result, we found that the characteristics of EMI were dependent on EM noise components, specifically, random noise and harmonic noise.