Preliminary field results of a dedicated 5G positioning network for enhanced hybrid positioning

Dedicated fifth-generation (5G) positioning networks are envisaged as a key technology 15 to complement Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) in challenging situations, such as safety-16 critical automotive and aerial applications. These 5G networks are explicitly designed to fulfil the 17 positioning needs in a specific environment, by using dedicated pilot signals and locating the base 18 stations (BSs) in favorable conditions for user reception. To prove this concept, the Hybrid Overlay 19 Positioning with 5G and GNSS (HOP-5G) testbed demonstrates the enhanced positioning capabili-20 ties resulting from the deployment of ground and aerial BSs. This paper presents a preliminary 21 assessment of the first real-time ranging measurements obtained with a flying BS in a dedicated 5G 22 positioning network. Under hovering and optimal conditions, field results obtained over an 80-MHz 23 downlink bandwidth indicate a ranging precision below 1m in the 95% of cases.