People look at a model of China's homegrown BeiDou Navigation Satellite System at an exhibition in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province in April. Photo: VCG
Washington (People's Daily)--The US and China released a
joint statement regarding their combined work on civil signal compatibility and
interoperability cooperation between the Global Positioning System (GPS) and
the Bei Dou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) on Monday.
The consensus to make both
systems compatible and interoperable for public users means an improved service
will become a global reality for users of both systems.
Advances in this specific
satellite technology came about after years of discussions between US and China
experts in the field of global navigation satellite systems (GNSS).
In May 2014, the China Satellite
Navigation Office and the Office of Space and Advanced Technology with the US Department of State, together created
the US-China Civil GNSS Cooperation Dialogue, a bilateral
government-to-government initiative designed to promote a working relationship
between the US Global Positioning System (GPS) and the Chinese Bei Dou
Navigation Satellite System (BDS).
Representatives and experts from both
sides have studied and discussed various topicsrelated to civilians service
provision and user applications, among which BDS compatibility and civil
interoperability with GPS is a core focus area.
Both sides conducted extensive in-depth analysis through scientific discussion and open cooperation.
Since the bilateral
satellite team was established both sides negotiated compatible signal
characteristics required to protect and enhance the GPS user experience in the
US and for its China equivalent.
Both sides reached the following GPS/BDS
compatibility and interoperability conclusions. Their collective findings were
consistent with the bilateral frequency compatibility coordination from 2010.
As radio frequencies, GPS and BDS are compatible within the framework of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and GPS L1C and BDS B1C civil signals.
Both satellites utilize different yet
interoperable Multiplexed Binary Offset Carrier (MBOC) waveforms. Users can
expect to receive improved service through dual-option access privileges to the
user-friendly public signals without incurring unnecessary added expenses.
The Sino-US satellite team will remain committed to work together in efforts to provide an advanced level of service for global users.
