A low cost GNSS software receiver design with SEE mitigation approach for microsatellites

GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receivers nowadays provide a well established system for tracking of spacecraft in low-Earth orbit (LEO). In addition, these receivers serve as instruments for geodetic, atmospheric research and many other space missions. The ability to replace some hardware components in a GNSS receiver with software-based signal processing techniques has already produced benefits for prototyping new equipment based on Software Defined Radio(SDR) . This paper presents a new low cost GNSS software receivers for microsatellites. Shrinking space programs and the interest in faster mission implementations have raised the attractiveness of small and micro-satellites which benefit most from reduction in the cost, size, mass and power consumption of avionics equipment. This paper presents a high performance GNSS software receiver equipment specially designed and optimized for the needs and constraints of small platforms for which small volume, low mass and low power consumption are important parameters. This equipment is based on COTS (Commercial Off The Shelf) in order to exploit the performance of the advanced technology developed for terrestrial applications and to reduce significantly the global cost of the equipment. This proposed GNSS software receiver dedicated to low earth orbit (LEO) satellites will withstand the radiation environment therefore the hardware and software architecture has been defined to reduce the single event effects (SEE) and to maximize the service availability.