The Institute of Navigation recognizes Dr. John Raquet with prestigious Johannes Kepler Award at the ION GNSS+ 2024 Conference.
The Institute of Navigation’s (ION) Satellite Division awarded Dr. John Raquet its Johannes Kepler Award on September 20, 2024, during the ION GNSS+ 2024 conference in Baltimore, Maryland, for significant technical contributions to GPS/GNSS integrated navigation systems; sustained leadership in the Department of Defense (DoD) and international community; and for the education of navigation professionals.
Dr. Raquet invented the first network of differential receivers that performed carrier-phase differential GPS over a large region using the data from the entire network, developing the concept of a “virtual reference station” that significantly impacted the precision navigation community. These precise GNSS positioning algorithms have since been commercialized and adopted by several companies throughout the world.
Dr. Raquet is a recognized expert in GNSS signal processing, where he has had patented impacts on ultra-tight GPS/INS integration and multipath characterization. Additionally, he has pioneered several different complementary GPS techniques, including vision-based navigation, navigation using signals of opportunity, magnetic field-based navigation, and barometer map-matching techniques (baronav). His analysis of the long-term statistics of the GPS satellite broadcast ephemeris error using precise orbits continues to impact ongoing research in improving GPS accuracy.
Dr. Raquet spent his career in the development of the next generation embedded GPS/INS systems for military aircraft. He was pivotal in the early adoption of military GPS into U.S. Air Force (USAF) platforms. In the 1990’s he served on the team of technical experts integrating military GPS receivers into USAF aircraft for the first time. He led the development of the first flight truth reference systems for DoD that used carrier-phase differential GPS and his work enabled DoD to test aircraft navigation systems with unprecedented accuracy. He was also instrumental in the development and maintenance of navigation test systems used by the DoD. He developed GPS navigation warfare training systems for the USAF which enabled pilots to experience realistic jamming environments without the cost and limitations of flying in a broadcast jamming field.
Dr. Raquet taught hundreds of students during his 21-year tenure at the Air Force Institute of Technology, with many officers becoming DoD leaders. He has taught GNSS to thousands at countless venues, including the DoD, the ION, and the ION’s Africa Outreach Program. Throughout his career, he has been a dedicated leader who worked to connect the civilian and military navigation communities.
Dr. Raquet is currently a Senior Vice President at Integrated Solutions for Systems, Inc., and is the Director of the IS4S Dayton Site, where he is leading the development of open architecture approaches to developing navigation systems. Previously, he was the founding director of the Autonomy and Navigation Technology (ANT) Center at AFIT, and he was a Fulbright Scholar. He holds a BS in Astronautical Engineering from the USAF Academy, an MS in Aero/Astro Engineering from MIT, and a PhD in Geomatics Engineering from the University of Calgary. Dr. Raquet has served ION as both Satellite Division Chair and ION President, and he is an ION Fellow.
The Kepler Award recognizes and honors an individual for sustained and significant contributions to the development of satellite navigation. It is the highest honor bestowed by the ION’s Satellite Division.
