Ambiguity Dilution of Precision:

Integer carrier phase ambiguity resolution is often a prerequisite for high precision GPS positioning. It applies to a great variety of GPS models, including those which are used in hydrographic applications and marine positioning. Since the quality of kinematic GPS positioning depends critically on whether the correct integer ambiguities are used or not, it is of importance to have easy-to-compute diagnostics available that measure the expected success rate of ambiguity resolution. In this contribution we will introduce and analyse such an ambiguity dilution of precision (ADOP) measure. In contrast to the traditional way in which DOP-measures are introduced, our ADOP is defined such that it is invariant for the class of admissible ambiguity transformations. It does not depend on the arbitrary choice of reference satellite when constructing the double differenced ambiguities. Since the GPS ambiguities are known to be highly correlated, the ADOP is constructed such that it not only captures the precision but also the correlation characteristics of the ambiguities. We will present the ADOPs for a variety of GPS models and show their behaviour by graphical means. These models include singlebaselines as well as kinematic networks such as those used for attitude determination and seismic streamer positioning. It is also shown how the ADOP can be used to bound the success rate of ambiguity resolution.