Pseudo-linear inertial navigation algorithm

Abstract

A new method is illustrated for processing the output of a set of triad orthogonal rate gyros and accelerometers to reconstruct vehicle navigation parameters (attitude, velocity, and position). The paper introduces two vectors with dimensions 4 × 1 as velocity and position quaternions. The navigation equations for strapdown systems are nonlinear but after using these parameters, the navigation equations are converted into a pseudo-linear system. The new set of navigation equations has an analytical solution and the state transition matrix is used to solve the linear time-varying differential equations through time series. The navigation parameters are updated using the new formulation for strapdown navigation equations. Finally, the quaternions of velocity and position are converted into the original position and velocity vectors. The combination of the coning motion and a translational oscillatory trajectory is used to evaluate the accuracy of the proposed algorithm. The simulations show significant improvement in the accuracy of the inertial navigation system, which is achieved through the mentioned algorithm.