Study Area: Ground Avionics Engineering

Phase I: Basic ATSEP Course

Stream: Basic Principles of Distance Measuring
Equipment, DME
Instructor: Robert Jere Omusonga

1
 Objectives

1. State the purpose of 5. Describe signals used

DME in DME

2. State the principle of 6. Discuss how overload

DME is controlled

3. Explain the principle of 7. Discuss how echo and

operation of DME multipath errors are
controlled
4. Determine the slant
distance 8. Outline the monitored
parameters of DME
2
 Introduction
Navaids:
 Radio communication systems are used to
provide navigation guidance to flights.
 Navaids include NDB, DME, VOR, ILS and
GNSS.
Previous lessons:
 Introduction to radio navigation
 Principles of NDB
This lesson:
 Introduction to basic principles of DME

3
 Meaning of DME

DME
Distance Measuring Equipment

i.e.
Equipment that measures distance

4
DME

5
 State the Purpose of DME

Main Purpose
To provide distance information between a flying
aircraft and a DME ground station

Minor purposes
- provide time estimate to the DME station
- calculate speed of aircraft

6
 Feedback
[Link] DME is a radio navigation system that
provides information pertaining to distance
from:

A. DME ground station to the airport

B. Flying aircraft to ATC control tower
C. DME ground station to the flying aircraft

7
 State the Principle of DME

DME principle is based on derivation of

distance using time and speed of an
electromagnetic wave

8
 Feedback
The principle of DME is based on:
A. Calculation of distance using time and
speed of the aircraft
B. Calculation of distance using time and
speed of RF waves
C. Calculation of distance using time and
speed of sound waves

9
Simplified DME Airborne Instrument

10
Simplified Block diagram of DME
Ground Equipment

11
 Explain the Principle of DME
Frequency range
Aircraft 962MHz to 1215MHz

DME Interrogator t2
t1
50S
tT  t1  t2  50S
tT  50S
D (3 x108 )
2
DME 12
transponder
 Feedback
[Link] standard system delay as used in
the principle of operation of DME
Channel X is:
A. 36uS
B. 12uS
C. 50uS

13
 Determine Slant Distance

Height above the

Ground

D
V

H
Actual Distance over Ground DME

14
 Determine Slant Distance
Pythagoras theorem:
V

Slant error is most pronounced at high altitude

when close to the DME station

15
 Feedback

[Link] range indicated by DME instrument

in the aircraft is:
A. Horizontal
B. Slant
C. Vertical

Introduction to principles of DME 16

 DME Signals
Airborne Equipment
(Interrogator)

The Interrogation travels

at the speed of light
The Reply travels
Ground Equipment
at the speed of light
(Transponder)
Intern
al
delay
50µs
17
 DME Signals
The Airborne Interrogator:
Transmits omnidirectional
interrogations

Operates at approximately 27
interrogations per second.

It recognizes the replies to its own

interrogations by using unique PRF.

18
 DME Signals
The Transponder:
Receives interrogations. Decodes and validates.
Who’s it from? And then trigger
Don’t know, don’t care. So we a reply.
add some
All we care is, delay
it’s a valid
interrogation.
time…

Interrogation Reply
Time from reception of interrogation to
emission of reply is 50µs (fixed).
19
 DME Signals
X-Channel Interrogation Pulse Pair
Spacing 12µs
X-Channel Reply
Width Pulse Pair is
3.5µs identical to the
Interrogation Pair
90%

Gaussian shaped pulses

50%

10%
Rise Time Fall (Decay) Notice where to measure the
2.5µs Time 2.5µs width: at the half-amplitude point.
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21
 DME Signals
X-Channel Transmitter Delay
Delay 50µs

50%

Interrogation Reply

22
23
 DME Signals
Y-Channel Pulses
Delay 56µs

Interrogation 36µs Reply 30µs

50%

Pulse Width, Rise Time and Fall Time

are identical to X-Channel pulses

24
 Feedback
[Link] pulse spacing time as used in the
principle of operation of DME Channel X is:
A. 36uS
B. 12uS
C. 50uS

25
 Feedback

[Link] periods of 3.5uS, 12uS and 50uS in DME

channel X respectively represent:
A. Pulse width, pulse spacing, system delay
B. System delay, pulse width, pulse spacing
C. Pulse spacing, pulse width, system delay

26
 Underload Control
The DME maintains a minimum duty
cycle of 800 pps in order for the aircraft
AGC to work efficiently.

What if interrogations fall

below 800pps?
27
 Underload Control
If interrogations fall below 800pps then squitter
pulses are randomly generated by
transponder to top-up so as to maintain
minimum replies of 800pps

28
 Underload Control
If there are enough replies to produce 800
or more reply pulse pairs per second (pps),
then no squitter pulses are produced.

29
 Feedback
[Link] random pulses generated by the DME
to fill in and maintain a constant minimum
load are referred to as:

A. Receiver dead time pulses

B. Overload control pulses
C. Squitter pulses

30
 Overload Control
Modern DMEs limit the number of replies to
5400pps to avoid unacceptable level of
coincidental interrogations/replies.

5400 pps allows the DME to reply to about

200 airborne interrogators at a time since
each aircraft radiates at 27pps

i.e. 27 x 200 = 5400

31
 Overload Control
If interrogations are greater than 5400pps then the
transponder sensitivity is reduced by AGC. Range is
reduced to accommodate nearest 200 aircrafts only

The AGC is set to a level that eliminates

the weakest interrogations, allowing only
the strongest to pass through the receiver.
32
 Feedback
[Link] a DME transponder is limited to
maximum replies of 5400pps, calculate
the number of aircrafts whose
interrogation will be processed given that
each aircraft interrogates at 27pps
A. 100
B. 200
C. 800

33
 Feedback

[Link] DME beacon becomes saturated, it

adjusts itself using AGC to give priority to:
A. the nearest aircrafts
B. the urgent aircrafts
C. the largest aircrafts

34
 DME Identification
Each DME identifies itself by transmitting a
Morse Code at 1350Hz in between
interrogations and replies

Spacing 100µs Each group consists of two

pulse pairs.

Period 741µs (Frequency 1350Hz)

35
 Note
Every time the DME transmitter fires, for any
reason (monitor reply, aircraft reply, squitter or
identification), it transmits a pulse pair.
Pulse rise time, fall time, width, and spacing
remain constant.

36
 RF Frequencies
Frequency range The Interrogation is
962MHz to 1215MHz transmitted by the
aircraft on one
frequency

The Reply is
transmitted by
the DME Sometimes the Interrogation
Transponder on frequency is higher,
another sometimes the Reply
frequency frequency is higher. The
difference between the two
frequencies is always 63MHz
37
 Feedback

[Link] appears in the frequency band of:

A. VHF
B. HF
C. UHF

38
 Echo Control
A short distance echo to the
first interrogation pulse arrives
before the second interrogation
pulse arrives.

Building 2 Transponder recognizes

this condition and mutes
its receiver for a specified
period of time (receiver
dead time) for echo to
pass, and replies only to
the real interrogation.
39
 Echo Control
If the first echo overlaps the second pulse,
then only the echo would generate a reply.
If this condition were allowed, then it is
possible that the aircraft would receive
incorrect information.

Building 2

12µs 12µs

40
 Echo Control
Short distance echoes cause the
Airborne Interrogator to receive
unstable readings, jumping between
two values with a difference of about
1 nm (X channel) or 3 nm (Y 20nm? 19nm?

channel).
Corrective action: enable Short
Distance Echo Suppression
Building 2 (SDES) – also called receiver dead
time (RDT)

41
 Echo Control

A long distance echo to the first

interrogation pulse arrives after the
second interrogation pulse arrives.

Both the interrogation and the

echo generate a reply.

The corrective action shall be

discussed in next lesson
42
 Feedback

[Link] errors in DME system are as a result

of:
A. Rough terrain
B. Doppler effect
C. Speed of the aircraft

43
 DME Monitored Parameters
Monitoring is necessary to ensure that DME
signal is correct and free of error

Parameters
1. Pulse spacing = 12uS
2. System delay = 50uS
3. Efficiency (% no. of replied inter) = 70%

44
 DME Monitored Parameters

4. PRF (pulse repetition frequency) = 800

– 5400 pps
5. RF power output = 100W or 1000W
6. Identification = 1350 Hz

45
 Feedback
[Link] of the following are the monitored
parameters of DME

A. Pulse spacing, 30HZ level, system delay

B. Pulse spacing, efficiency, system delay
C. RF power level, phase difference,
identification

46
 Review
1. State the distance
purpose 5. Signals in DME
2. State the 6. Overload control
principle 7. Echo control
3. Explain the 8. Monitored
principle parameters
4. Determine slant
47
 Next lesson
1. Block diagram of
DME interrogator
4. Co-location of DME
2. Block diagram of with ILS or VOR
DME transponder 5. Types of DMEs in
the market
3. Technical 6. Future DMEs
description of
sequence of signal
flow
48
Any Questions

Thank you

49
 Print out
Evaluation
1. With reference to distance measuring equipment
(a) State the purpose of DME in radio navigation (2 marks)
(b) Explain the following parameters as used in DME
(i) Pulse spacing (2 marks)
(ii) Pulse width (2 marks)
(iii) System delay (2marks)
(iv) Efficiency (2 marks)
(c) State the principle of operation of DME (4 marks)
(d) Describe in four steps the sequence of operation of DME system (8 marks)
(e) Discuss how the following problems are solved in DME systems
(i) Echoes and reflections (4 marks)
(ii) Overload arising from too many aircrafts (4 marks)

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