A New Wave of Innovation in Micro-Technology for Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (μPNT)

Abstract

Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) have been the central elements of stand-alone navigation and flight control systems for a variety of platforms, including aircraft, missiles, and land and marine vehicles. Miniaturization of IMUs has always been desirable because smaller size and lower weight opens up opportunities to carry additional payload or fuel, and perhaps enable new applications. Current inertial systems, however, do not meet the performance, size, weight, and cost requirements associated with many emerging DoD applications, including those needed for personal navigation, unmanned air/underwater vehicles, and autonomous robotic platforms. This presentation will discuss the growing interest within the Microsystems Technology Office (MTO) of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in the development of a miniature, self-sufficient navigation system that might be realized through deep integration of timing, inertial navigation units, and other non-inertial sensors. A new wave of innovation is underway bringing to life revolutionary ideas and technologies in micro-fabrication, packaging, ultra-low-power electronics, innovative algorithms, never-before-explored architectures, and exploitation of new integration paradigms.