Method and apparatus for software reconfigurable communication transmission/reception and navigation signal reception

1. An apparatus for performing spread spectrum-based communication and navigation, the apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive spread spectrum-based communication signals and satellite navigation signals from a wireless communication channel, the receiver having a plurality of programmable tracking units; and

a processor in communication with the receiver to control the apparatus,

wherein the tracking units are programmable in a navigation mode to act independently to receive and process the satellite navigation signals or in a communication mode to receive and process the spread spectrum-based communication signals, wherein each programmable tracking unit is assigned to receive one of the wirelessly communicated spread spectrum-based communication signals or satellite navigation signals, and wherein the processor is arranged to control the reconfiguration of at least one of the plurality of tracking units from the navigation mode to the communication mode and vice versa,

and wherein at least one of the plurality of programmable tracking units comprises:

a downconverter receiving a controllable carrier frequency signal;

a descrambler receiving the downconverted signal and producing descrambled signals;

a programmable scrambling code generator receivably connected to the descrambler; and

a plurality of despreaders receiving the descrambled signals.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the spread spectrum-based communication signals are W-CDMA signals.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the W-CDMA signals are selected from the group comprising UMTS/FDD, UMTS/TDD, CDMA2000 and SUMTS.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the navigation signals are selected from the group consisting of Galileo signals, GPS signals and GLONASS signals.

5. An apparatus for performing spread spectrum-based communication and navigation, the apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive spread spectrum-based communication signals and satellite navigation signals from a wireless communication channel, the receiver having a plurality of programmable tracking units; and

a processor in communication with the receiver to control the apparatus,

wherein the tracking units are programmable in a navigation mode to act independently to receive and process the satellite navigation signals or in a communication mode to receive and process the spread spectrum-based communication signals, wherein each programmable tracking unit is assigned to receive one of the wirelessly communicated spread spectrum-based communication signals or satellite navigation signals, and wherein the processor is arranged to control the reconfiguration of at least one of the plurality of tracking units from the navigation mode to the communication mode and vice versa,

and wherein at the same time a first set of the plurality of programmable tracking units is programmed in navigation mode and a second set of the plurality of programmable tracking units is programmed in communication mode.

6. A method for performing spread spectrum-based communication and navigation with a single device having a receiver comprising a plurality of programmable tracking units, the method comprising:

operating the device in a communication mode;

reconfiguring the receiver of the device to track navigation signals; acquiring the tracked navigation signals;

synchronizing the tracking units;

obtaining correlation data from a set of correlators;

determining pseudo-ranges based on the correlation data;

determining a position fix based on the pseudo-ranges; and

reconfiguring the device to the communication mode.

7. The method of claim 6 , additionally comprising controlling the acts of the method by a processor.

8. The method of claim 6 , wherein only selected ones of the plurality of tracking units are configured in navigation mode, and the communication mode is operated jointly with the navigation mode.

9. The method of claim 6 , wherein for the acquisition of the navigation signals, a matched filter that is used for acquisition of a communication signal is re-used.

10. The method of claim 6 , wherein the communication mode is realized as:

implementing multi-code transmission via a plurality of spreaders, each spreader producing a multi-code signal; and

demodulating the multi-code signal via a plurality of slaved tracking units.

11. The method of claim 6 wherein the communication mode is performed by:

a plurality of spreaders to implement n-bit to 2 n PN codes symbol-mapping transmission; and

a plurality of slaved tracking units adapted to demodulate the signal from the symbol-mapped transmission.

12. An apparatus for performing spread spectrum-based communication and navigation, the apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive spread spectrum-based communication signals and satellite navigation signals, the receiver having a plurality of programmable tracking units; and

a processor in communication with the receiver to control the apparatus,

wherein the tracking units are programmable in a navigation mode to receive and process the satellite navigation signals or in a communication mode to receive and process the spread spectrum-based communication signals, and wherein at least one of the plurality of programmable tracking units comprises:

a downconverter receiving a controllable carrier frequency signal;

a descrambler receiving the down-onverted signal and producing descrambled signals;

a programmable scrambling code generator receivably connected to the descrambler; and

a plurality of despreaders receiving the descrambled signals.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the at least one of the plurality of programmable tracking units additionally comprises an interpolator receiving the downconverted signal and outputting an interpolated signal to the descrambler.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the interpolator is controlled via a delay locked loop (DLL) connected to a second output of the at least one programmable tracking unit.

15. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the downconverter is controlled via a phase lock loop (PLL) connected to a first output of the at least one programmable tracking unit.

16. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the at least one of the plurality of programmable tracking units additionally comprises a circuit receiving the downconverted signal and providing an early signal, a middle signal and a late signal.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the descrambler comprises an early descrambler for the early signal, a middle descrambler for the middle signal, and a late descrambler for the late signal.

18. An apparatus for performing spread spectrum-based communication and navigation, the apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive spread spectrum-based communication signals and satellite navigation signals, the receiver having a plurality of programmable tracking units; and

a processor in communication with the receiver to control the apparatus,

wherein the tracking units are programmable in a navigation mode to receive and process the satellite navigation signals or in a communication mode to receive and process the spread spectrum-based communication signals, and wherein at the same time a first set of the plurality of programmable tracking units is programmed in navigation mode and a second set of the plurality of programmable tracking units is programmed in communication mode.

19. An apparatus for performing spread spectrum-based communication and navigation, the apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive spread spectrum-based communication signals and satellite navigation signals from a wireless communication channel, the receiver having a plurality of programmable tracking units; and

a processor in communication with the receiver to control the apparatus,

wherein the tracking units are programmable in a navigation mode to act independently to receive and process the satellite navigation signals or in a communication mode to receive and process the spread spectrum-based communication signals, wherein each programmable tracking unit is assigned to receive one of the wirelessly communicated spread spectrum-based communication signals or satellite

navigation signals, and wherein at least one of the plurality of programmable tracking units comprises:

a downconverter receiving a controllable carrier frequency signal;

a descrambler receiving the downconverted signal and producing descrambled signals;

a programmable scrambling code generator receivably connected to the descrambler; and

a plurality of despreaders receiving the descrambled signals.

20. An apparatus for performing spread spectrum-based communication and navigation, the apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive spread spectrum-based communication signals and satellite navigation signals from a wireless communication channel, the receiver having a plurality of programmable tracking units; and

a processor in communication with the receiver to control the apparatus,

wherein the tracking units are programmable in a navigation mode to act independently to receive and process the satellite navigation signals or in a communication mode to receive and process the spread spectrum-based communication signals, wherein each programmable tracking unit is assigned to receive one of the wirelessly communicated spread spectrum-based communication signals or satellite navigation signals, and wherein at the same time a first set of the plurality of programmable tracking units is programmed in navigation mode and a second set of the plurality of programmable tracking units is programmed in communication mode.

21. The apparatus of claim 20 , wherein the processor is arranged to control the reconfiguration of at least one of the plurality of tracking units from the navigation mode to the communication mode and vice versa.

22. The apparatus of claim 20 , wherein at least one of the plurality of programmable tracking units comprises:

a downconverter receiving a controllable carrier frequency signal;

a descrambler receiving the downconverted signal and producing descrambled signals;

a programmable scrambling code generator receivably connected to the descrambler; and

a plurality of despreaders receiving the descrambled signals.

23. The apparatus of claim 20 , wherein the spread spectrum-based communication signals are W-CDMA signals.

24. The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein the W-CDMA signals are selected from the group comprising UMTS/FDD, UMTS/TDD, CDMA2000 and S-UMTS.

25. The apparatus of claim 20 , wherein the navigation signals are selected from the group consisting of Galileo signals, GPS signals and GLONASS signals.