Project Overview
Current Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) systems—essential to daily applications in transport, resources, and defence—heavily rely on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). However, GNSS signals can be obstructed and are increasingly vulnerable to interference, jamming, and spoofing.
Combining GNSS with fifth-generation (5G) broadband and Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite signals can offer substantial PNT benefits, leading to a new era of more available, resilient, and secure PNT technologies that are effective in various environments. 5G technology, utilizing wide bandwidth in mmWave frequencies, can provide meter-to-centimetre accurate ranges, particularly in urban canyons and indoor environments where GNSS is less effective. However, 5G signals are vulnerable to multipath and non-line-of-sight effects.
LEO satellites, on the other hand, offer strong signal power and increased bandwidth for tracking in challenging environments, with reduced multipath effects, sub-meter accuracy, and potential resistance to jamming and spoofing.
The integration of these three technologies will help address their individual limitations, enabling continuous and resilient navigation for autonomous vehicles (AVs), reducing accident risks, enhancing mission success and safety in military and transport applications, and allowing robots to navigate complex indoor settings, such as during search and rescue operations.
This project is part of an ongoing Australian Research Council (ARC)-funded Discovery project (DP240101710), titled “Next-generation Navigation by Mega-constellations LEO Satellites”.
Aims
Our goal is to overcome the current limitations of GNSS positioning in challenging environments, such as urban areas or where GNSS faces radio frequency interference, by leveraging 5G and future LEO satellite signals.
Objectives
- Research and develop algorithms for precise positioning by integrating multi-constellation GNSS, 5G, and LEO observations.
- Study the limitations of the proposed hybrid system combining the three technologies.
- Develop strategies to enhance the reliability of the proposed system and mitigate potential PNT problems.
Significance
This project aims to generate new insights to meet the growing demand for resilient positioning in GNSS-challenging environments, which is a critical and timely research priority. Inadequate positioning and navigation pose significant safety risks and financial losses.
Global revenues from PNT technologies amount to more than $420 billion and are rapidly growing. This project tackles GNSS limitations head-on, offering potentially reliable PNT services for essential sectors such as transport, defence, automation, and resources—vital for Australia’s key stakeholders.
Additionally, the project offers significant potential social benefits by enhancing transport safety, enabling effective search and rescue operations, improving emergency responses, facilitating child and elderly tracking, and supporting smart cities, through the combination of 5G telecommunications with reliable positioning. It also supports the government’s priority of “building a secure and resilient nation.”
Ideal Candidate
We are looking for a self-motivated PhD candidate, preferably with a background in telecommunications, and excellent organisation, problem-solving, and project management skills. Some knowledge of GNSS positioning and GNSS signal processing is a plus.
Candidates with strong quantitative and programming skills, including familiarity with MATLAB, C++, or Python, are desired for this project. Applicants must be eligible to enrol in a PhD program at Curtin University.
This project is open to domestic and international applicants.
Enquiries
If this project interests you, contact Professor Ahmed El-Mowafy via the Expression of Interest.