Geometric Dilution Of Precision (GDOP) is a factor that describes the effect of geometry on
the relationship between measurement error and position determination error. It is used to
provide an indication of the quality of the solution. Conventional closed-form GDOP
calculation formula applied to all possible combinations of visible satellites is rather time
consuming, especially as the number of satellites grows. Approximations, such as the
maximum volume method, are faster but optimum selection is not guaranteed. In this paper,
a more concise but efficient solution for the calculation of GDOP value in the case of four
Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites is firstly reviewed and then extended to cover the
other forms of dilution of precision (DOP) values, including vertical DOP (VDOP) and
horizontal DOP (HDOP). Secondly, a review and extension of the conventional solution is
performed in the case of three GPS satellites aided by an altimeter. Based on the ideas gained
from these two approaches, a simpler closed-form DOP formula for three GPS satellites
aided by an altimeter is derived. The advantage of the proposed formulation is that it is
simpler and thus reduces the computational load in comparison to the conventional one.