ColdQuanta received two development contracts from U.S. Government agencies worth $2.55M in total, based on the company’s Quantum Core technology that uses atoms cooled to a temperature of nearly absolute zero, and lasers to manipulate and control the atoms with extreme precision. According to the Boulder, Colorado-based company, cold atom quantum technology can be used for secure global navigation, quantum timekeeping, and communications.
Ten companies active in positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) have formed the Open PNT Industry Alliance. The coalition seeks to fortify economic and national security by supporting government efforts to accelerate the implementation of backup PNT capabilities for critical infrastructure.
The U.S. Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office’s (RCCTO) selected TRX Systems to deliver a prototype tactical electronic warfare (EW) kit for dismounted soldiers. TRX is also one of 11 firms selected by the Department of Transportation to demonstrate GPS backup technologies, with tests to take place in March.
[This story is the third in a series of 11 detailing technology from firms selected by the Department of Transportation (DOT) in August 2019 to demonstrate technologies that could be used to back up the services provided by GPS should GPS signals be jammed, spoofed or unavailable. See also Echo Ridge and Seven Solutions.]
TRX Systems will provide a portable kit that generates alerts when electronic jamming or spoofing is detected and will provide a “rewind” navigation feature to estimate the user’s probable current position after jamming or spoofing has occurred. The company has developed NEON, a GPS-denied location technology, providing 3D mapping and GPS-denied personnel tracking for warfighters, first responders, security and industrial personnel that operate indoors, underground, and in areas without GPS.
Neon Command User Interface. Courtesy TRX Systems
NEON delivers ubiquitous, low-cost, GPS-denied location through the use of advanced sensor fusion, ranging, and patented dynamic mapping algorithms. The algorithms fuse inertial sensor data, Wi-Fi readings and inferred building data to deliverreliable 3D location. Optional use of geo-referenced ultra-wideband or Bluetooth beacons enhances positioning accuracy
Neon User Interface. Courtesy TRX Systems
TRX’s NEON Location Service provides position data that enables tracking and navigation when satellite technology is unavailable or unreliable. NEON detects GPS interference and delivers continuous location during such events; NEON also delivers 3D personnel location indoors, outside, and underground. NEON provides PNT assurance with commercial-grade solutions that integrate with present and future military satellite assurance and location capabilities.
“The EW Kits provide an easy to use and real-time assessment of GPS integrity for the warfighter, integrated with existing military applications and systems,” said Carol Politi, President and CEO of TRX Systems.
In a 2017 case study, TRX Systems’ NEON Personnel Tracker solution provided 3D tracking of law enforcement, EMS Personnel and other first responders during a critical incident training exercise at Grand Central Terminal in New York City, hosted by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The Department of Transportation (DOT) selected 11 firms to demonstrate technologies that could be used to back up the services provided by GPS should GPS signals be jammed, spoofed or unavailable.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) will launch, in a matter of weeks, the contracting process to perform field demonstrations of different GPS-backup technologies.
In a response to an inquiry by House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Peter DeFazio, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) provided an outline of its process to implement a terrestrial timing system to complement and backup GPS signals.
Yesterday (December 23, 2016) President Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2017, a $619-billion bill with a number of provisions affecting satellite navigation.
The legislation (S. 2943) fully authorizes the administration’s requests for all the elements of the GPS program — and signals indirectly that appropriators eventually will provide comparable support — although the NDAA does put additional requirements on those developing the new GPS ground system.
