| Passive coherent location (PCL) is a field of interest in the radar community. PCL requires no transmitter and instead uses opportunistic transmissions to accomplish the objective. PCL is advantageous in low cost system design and applications where transmission is infeasible or unwanted. PCL to date has primarily been developed with regards to high-power, terrestrial transmitters in a bistatic configuration. We explore the development and usage of multistatic PCL, particularly with interest in satellite-borne transmitters related to positioning.;The Global Positioning System (GPS) provides accurate positioning information, nearly, anywhere in the world. The signal is designed for positioning, the transmitters are available regardless of geographic region, and is well-suited for multistatic configuration. This dissertation intends to provide the necessary background and currently available methods pertaining to GPS processing and PCL applications. This dissertation then provides analysis, capabilities and limitations of a PCL system employing the GPS signal.;The methodology is developed and posed in a general PCL framework, and verified as proof of concept using signals with comparable results in the literature. The methodology is then adapted for specific usage of the GPS signal and verified in simulation. An experimental design is then presented and tested with results for GPS PCL. This dissertation presents the capability of GPS PCL for target detection, position estimation and Doppler estimation in an applicable environment.;Additional PCL improvements are presented as ancillary objectives. These improvements are framed in the generic PCL framework and include, a matched filter alternative, direct signal suppression and signal quality metrics for resource optimization. The improvements present aspects of PCL that are often a challenging implementation requirement and compounded by the complexity of GPS PCL.;The GPS PCL system is capable of detection and ranging for position estimation solutions within 25 m and is comparable to that of standard GPS positioning. The GPS PCL system is capable of Doppler estimation and accurately provides velocity and direction within 5 ms--1. |
