Subsessions

• Sub-Nanosecond UTC(NIST) Timing to an ATSC 3.0 Station

  Sunday, April 19 | 3 – 3:20 p.m. | N256

  Francisco Girela Lopez

  NIST is the official timekeeping organization in the United States for commercial applications. Connecting UTC(NIST) timescale to an ATSC 3.0 BPS leader station to provide traceable and a fully GNSS-independent time reference is key to build an alternate PNT system in a country-wide deployment.In this paper, we present the proposal to feed BPS leader stations using High Accuracy White Rabbit synchronization through optical networks with UTC(NIST) timing. We also address how GNSS time servers and atomic clocks can be used as backups in case of failure.

• Broadcast Positioning System (BPS) as a Complementary Time Source to GPS for Datacenters.

  Sunday, April 19 | 3:20 – 3:40 p.m. | N256

  Harvey Arnold

  Datacenters and users of IT systems require precision timing for systems and services. The industry agrees that complementary GPS delivery sources are a need for critical infrastructure. Broadcast Positioning System (BPS) is proving to be a useful service for accurate, efficient, alternative time transfer. This presentation will discuss an example of how a BPS implemented ATSC 3.0 television station can be used to transfer precision time to a major datacenter in a large city. We will describe a practical approach for using BPS as a complementary time transfer service that does not rely on GNSS. The system accuracy of the BPS time transfer will be discussed as well as the practical system architecture. This is part of a nationwide effort to build a BPS system as part of the ATSC 3.0 standard.

• The Pulse of Progress: How DevOps and AI-Assisted Analysis Accelerated Broadcast Positioning System Monitoring

  Sunday, April 19 | 3:40 – 4 p.m. | N256

  Alison Martin, Tariq Mondal

  As the National Association of Broadcasters moves into a more operationally focused phase of developing Broadcast Positioning System (BPS) infrastructure, long-term performance monitoring and analysis has emerged as a significant need. This paper describes the design of a system for measuring and visualizing BPS performance using time-series data and stability metrics such as MDEV and TDEV. It also outlines the iterative, AI-assisted development process that enabled the monitoring tools to evolve rapidly in response to stakeholder feedback, resulting in a robust framework for assessing accuracy, diagnosing anomalies, and improving the reliability of broadcast positioning and timing systems.

• Broadcast Positioning System Deployment in a Single Frequency Network

  Sunday, April 19 | 4 – 4:20 p.m. | N256

  Liam Power, Nicholas Hottinger

  The Broadcast Positioning System (BPS) encounters complications when utilized in a Single Frequency Network (SFN) environment, as each node of the SFN must transmit the time and location data. While in a traditional MFN setup, this would not present an issue, the SFN presents a greater challenge, as the nodes all share the same frequency, and so can potentially interfere with each other. Because BPS is designed to be as receivable as possible, it is difficult to isolate these unique transmissions in the same manner as LDM for local content insertion, and so an alternative approach must be utilized. This paper outlines the background of these issues, describes a solution to resolve them, and provides the results of both real world and lab tests for a multi-node SFN with BPS enabled.

• Real-World Coverage Analysis of Potential ATSC 3.0 BPS Implementation and its Effects on PNT Services

  Sunday, April 19 | 4:20 – 4:40 p.m. | N256

  Jim Stenberg, Paul Shulins

  The Broadcast Positioning System (BPS) utilizing ATSC 3.0 infrastructure, has been recently proposed, tested, and implemented as a cost effective highly beneficial terrestrial alternative to GPS for timing services with possible extended use for position and navigation services. This paper presents a real-world analysis of potential BPS coverage in several regions in the US to demonstrate the capabilities of delivering these services with existing TV transmission infrastructure. We examine the robustness of the BPS system, provide coverage maps showing any limitations for a timing service, and review what might be needed for its use for reliable positioning and navigation. Objectives Calculate how the BPS signal will be received in a typical regional area based on actual transmission infrastructure. Determine feasibility and accuracy of BPS when used for positioning and navigation. Identify BPS error sources and quantify their effects. Evaluate three or four markets that have very different characteristics. Methodology Understand required SNR for BPS signal reception. Collect transmitter, population, and terrain data. Model RF coverage and overlap using propagation tools. Evaluate error sources and their effects. Calculate timing service receivability. Simulate positioning accuracy for given infrastructure. Repeat for other regions. Expected Outcomes Understand effects of regional terrain variations and locations of infrastructure on BPS timing service reliability. Understand infrastructure needs for positioning and navigation services. Define necessary receive configurations to increase reliability. Significance Add real-world information to the coverage predictions made to date for BPS and quantify their effects on system reliability. Evaluate BPS use for positioning and navigation services.