L-3 IEC Tru-Trak SIPL-3 Communications announced today (June 14, 2012) that its Interstate Electronics Corporation (L-3 IEC) business has successfully completed multiple test firings of its next-generation Military Code (M-code) GPS receiver technology.
This milestone represents a significant breakthrough in GPS receiver modernization and validates the unit’s survivability and performance in extreme, guided munitions environments, according to an L-3 IEC news release.
L-3 Communications announced today (June 14, 2012) that its Interstate Electronics Corporation (L-3 IEC) business has successfully completed multiple test firings of its next-generation Military Code (M-code) GPS receiver technology.
This milestone represents a significant breakthrough in GPS receiver modernization and validates the unit’s survivability and performance in extreme, guided munitions environments, according to an L-3 IEC news release.
The company’s gun-hardened, M-Code GPS receiver prototype was fired from a 155-millimeter howitzer and tracked the M-Prime signal from several modernized satellites to successful target impacts. This achievement represents the first-ever use of the M-Code GPS technology in a weapon system, L-3 IEC said, and provides critical validation of the hardware and software performance in a projectile
According to the company, this first-ever successful test supports a Congressional mandate to implement M-code technology on all future and existing U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) platforms and addresses DoD’s objectives for technical innovations capable of offsetting future threats.
The M-code receiver is designed to provide a flexible hardware and software configuration for GPS integrators and is capable of tracking legacy and modernized signals. It can be incorporated into a variety of host platforms, including guided munitions, unmanned aerial systems, soldier systems, and ground mobile systems.
“Our backward- and forward-compatible next-generation receiver provides a proven, low cost solution for development programs as well as an upgrade option for current fielded systems,” said Todd Gautier, president of L-3’s Precision Engagement sector. “Our solution supports a seamless technology transition when M-code is fully operational and deployed, and the design meets long-term security and information assurance standards.”
Based in Anaheim, California, L-3 Interstate Electronics Corporation provides GPS receiver and translator-based products currently in use on multiple aircraft, missiles, and precision-guided weapons. L-3 IEC also produces C4ISR (Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance) hardware and software systems for military and government applications and has been a long-term supplier of critical navigation, test instrumentation, and missile tracking systems for the U.S. Navy’s Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) weapon systems, including the Trident submarine.
