Gun Tube Absolute Position and Pointing System

Currently, gun tube pointing for large caliber munitions is performed automatically by the testing system or by system operators. No independent verification of their position and pointing correctness prior to firing currently exists. There is a critical need for range safety to independently ensure the orientation of the gun tube is firing within established safety corridors. This independent position and pointing verification of the gun tube must be made in real time and is needed at the firing control center, which may be up to 25 km away. In this research, Lynntech proposes an innovative solution for mapping the absolute position and pointing of Howitzers during training. Lynntech’s system consists of both a local to vehicle and distributed to range solution, operable in both GPS permissive and GPS denied/degraded conditions. The pointing solutions are sent to the firing control command during operations, where the data is integrated into targeting maps in a GUI environment allowing for a fast ‘go/ no go’ assessment of operations. During Phase I Lynntech will undertake a signal propagation study for distributed networking and kinematic modeling of sensor placement on multiple Howitzer platforms. Phase I will demonstrate proof-of-concept of the sensor and communications solutions for the range and the vehicles.