Dilution of Precision (DOP) calculation for mission planning purposes

Abstract

The Joint Munitions Effectiveness Manuals (JMEM) were developed by the Joint Technical Coordinating Group for Munitions Effectiveness (JTCG/ME) to provide a set of data and methodologies that would permit a standardized comparison of weapon effectiveness across all service communities. In recent years, the JMEM are being integrated into a single software program that allows users to determine the effectiveness of weapon systems against a specified target irrespective of the weapon delivery mode. As part of the upgrading effort, this thesis aims to develop a program, written in Visual C++, to automate the calculation of the Dilution of Precision (DOP) associated with the delivery accuracy of GPS guided weapon systems. The DOP values generated by the program were compared with those generated by commercial DOP calculation software for validation. Relationship between the Vertical DOP and Horizontal DOP as well as the effect of using outdated almanac information to calculate DOP values were studied. It was found that the loss of one visible satellite could cause the DOP to increase by as much as 38%.