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To improve the link efficiency and decrease the payloads in space explorations, a novel simultaneous communication and ranging method based on x-ray communication (XCOM) is proposed in this paper. A delicate signal symbol structure is utilized to achieve simultaneous data transmission and range measurement. With the designed symbol structure, the ranging information is imbedded into the communication signal and transmitted with it simultaneously. The range measurement is realized by the two-way transmission of the range information. To illustrate the proposed method, firstly, the principle of the method is introduced and the signal processing procedure is presented. Then, the performance of the proposed method is analyzed theoretically in various aspects, including the acquisition probability, the bit error rate, the ranging jitter, etc. Besides, numerical experiments are conducted to verify the proposed method and evaluate the system performance. The simulation results show that the proposed method is feasible and that the system performance is influenced by the parameters concerning the signal symbol structure. Compared with the previous methods, the proposed method improves the link efficiency and is beneficial for system miniaturization and integration, which could provide a potential option for future deep space explorations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Range measurement has found multiple applications in deep space missions. With more and further deep space exploration activities happening now and in the future, the requirement for range measurement has risen. In view of the future ranging requirement, a novel x-ray polarized ranging method based on the circular polarization modulation is proposed, termed as x-ray circularly polarized ranging (XCPolR). XCPolR utilizes the circular polarization modulation to process x-ray signals and the ranging information is conveyed by the circular polarization states. As the circular polarization states present good stability in space propagation and x-ray detectors have light weight and low power consumption, XCPolR shows great potential in the long-distance range measurement and provides an option for future deep space ranging. In this paper, we present a detailed illustration of XCPolR. Firstly, the structure of the polarized ranging system is described and the signal models in the ranging process are established mathematically. Then, the main factors that affect the ranging accuracy, including the Doppler effect, the differential demodulation, and the correlation error, are analyzed theoretically. Finally, numerical simulation is carried out to evaluate the performance of XCPolR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]