Miniaturized Atomic Inertial Navigator (MAIN)

ABSTRACT:The use of GPS has vastly improved the effectiveness of sorties against fixed targets. However, its low-power signals and dependence upon a supporting infrastructure are vulnerabilities that are quickly being exploited by potential adversaries. The recent proliferation of threats against GPS has given an urgent impetus to finding alternatives. The dependence on external signals and supporting infrastructure can be vastly reduced by using inertial sensors. Atom interferometer inertial sensors being developed by AOSense, Inc. promise to sustain GPS precision guided munition accuracy without GPS signals and with greater reliability. Atom interferometer inertial sensors can provide game changing performance improvements in inertial accuracy for tactical inertially-guided weapons without GPS aiding. This technology is the most viable option for manufacture of IMUs of strategic-grade accuracy in a tactical weapon-sized inertial package within a 5-year time frame. We propose to develop an atomic thermal beam gyroscope-accelerometer that will meet the goal of fielding inertially guided weapons without the need for GPS that will be available for field testing in the 3 5 year time frame. The proposed sensor will deliver better than navigation grade performance and will fit within a volume smaller than 50 cubic inches including lasers and drive electronics. BENEFIT:The proposed sensor substantially outperforms state-of-the-art IMUs and will provide new capabilities for precision navigation, guidance and control. While the primary goal of the proposed program is to develop a strategic grade angular rate sensor in a tactical weapon sized package the overall application space is much broader. Additional areas that would benefit from this technology include airborne, submarine and space vehicle navigation. The technology is particularly useful in GPS denied environments. Bias drifts in rotation rate sensors currently used in navigation grade IMUs limit navigation accuracy to kilometer sized errors on hour timescales. The performance of the proposed sensor supports GPS levels of positioning accuracy for missions of durations up to 20 minutes or longer. This would allow for precision delivery of munitions with GPS accuracy in situations where GPS signals are not available.