Global Navigation Satellite Systems Engineering, Policy, and Design
Iridium Communications Inc. received a research and development contract worth up to $30 million from the United States Army to develop a payload to be hosted on small satellites that supports navigation systems, guidance and control for GPS and GPS-denied precision systems.
By Alan Cameron
For its flagship Gray Eagle UAV, the U.S. Army with lead contractor General Atomics Aeronautical Systems has selected an anti-jam GPS system from Cobham Aerospace Connectivity. The MQ-1C ER Gray Eagle Extended Range (GE-ER) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) platform is a medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aircraft system
By Inside GNSS
The U.S. Space and Missile Systems Center awarded the Military GPS User Equipment (MGUE) Increment (Inc) 2 Miniature Serial Interface (MSI) with Next-Generation Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) to Rockwell Collins, Inc.; L3 Technologies; and Raytheon Technologies.
By Inside GNSS
Leidos showcased its system for airborne navigation in GPS-denied environments at the recent Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2020 conference in Washington, D.C., October 11–13.The system, called Assured Data Engine for Positioning and Timing (ADEPT), compares the high-resolution camera view below a plane to a detailed satellite map.
By Inside GNSS
Collins Aerospace unveiled the second iteration of its Mounted Assured Positioning, Navigation and Timing System (MAPS) for warfighters at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2020 conference
By Inside GNSS
Collins Aerospace received a program-of-record contract to mature and integrate a positioning, navigation and timing system for the U.S. Army’s for the Army’s increasingly sophisticated manned ground vehicles. The Mounted Assured Position Navigation and Timing System (MAPS) will maintain the integrity of positioning and timing during operations in GPS-contested environments.
By Inside GNSS
Forward-deployed U.S. military personnel will soon benefit from warfighter localization sensor units that provide tracking information in GPS-denied environments in a bootstrap mode. The Army Product Manager Sets, Kits Outfits and Tools awarded a $16.5 million contract to Robotic Research of Clarksburg, Maryland for WarLoc units to equip four deployed U.S. Army Brigade Combat Teams in various locations. The first batch of systems has already been shipped, and should enable soldiers on foot to keep track of each other in terrain where GPS systems are less effective.
WarLoc provides localization and positioning data for teams of warfighters or first responders in signal-denied environments such as underground facilities and inside buildings and mega-cities, according to the company. The small sensor mounts on footwear. Multiple systems work together to further enhance accuracy and maintain the localization of teams.
[Heel-mounted warfighter localization sensor units, also known as WarLoc. Photo: Robotic Research.]
The tracking system augments its GPS receiver with an inertial measurement unit. The device connects with a smartphone through Bluetooth. Robotic Research fields two form factors of the WaLoc, one mounted over the top of the boot and another that wraps around the heel. Users view data readouts through an Android-based Tactical Assault Kit. The algorithms are reportedly robust to communications failures and dropouts, and the distributed nature works well in challenging communication environments.
By Inside GNSS
The U.S. Army is reaching out to industry for the advanced inertial measurement unit (IMU) and timing technology it needs to support warfighters when GPS is unavailable or compromised.
By Dee Ann Divis
The Army is leaning toward using a funding channel designed for fast deals with high-tech entrepreneurs to rev up its work on assured positioning, navigation and timing (A-PNT).
By Inside GNSS
The Army is kicking off a wide-ranging, five-year research effort to develop new position, navigation and timing (PNT) technologies for battlefield use.
The goal is to overcome technical barriers in a wide range of areas and military officials are offering to fund multiple, and even multi-phase, cost-plus-fixed-fee (CPFF) efforts to do that. The work may range from studies and analysis to development work that results in the production of a prototype-style deliverable or breadboard and/or a demonstration.
By Dee Ann Divis
