KVH Industries has upgraded its TACNAV 3D tactical navigation system with photonic integrated chip (PIC) technology in the P-1775 inertial measurement unit (IMU). KVH has been developing and testing the PIC technology for more than three years and continues to roll the technology into existing product lines. The technology was the subject of two recent Inside Unmanned Systems webinars, Inertial Goes Photonic, Explodes Gyro Technology and Inertial Breakthroughs for the Autonomous Vehicle.
Slide from Inside GNSS/KVH webinar on photonic integrated circuit technology.
KVH’s PIC technology features an integrated planar optical chip that replaces individual fiber-optic components to simplify production while maintaining or improving accuracy and performance. KVH’s IMUs with PIC technology are designed to deliver improved bias stability and 20 times higher accuracy than less expensive MEMS inertial measurement units. They also use modular designs for ease of integration and outstanding repeatability unit-to-unit.
The fiber optic gyro (FOG)-based TACNAV 3D tactical navigation system provides an A-PNT solution with an embedded GNSS and optional chip-scale atomic clock (CSAC). TACNAV 3D’s modular tactical design enables it to function as a standalone inertial navigation solution and as the core of an A-PNT-capable multi-functional battlefield management system.
KVH’s TACNAV solutions deliver critical, reliable performance in demanding environments for vehicles ranging from battle tanks and M-ATVs, to armored vehicles, reconnaissance, and combat support vehicles.
TACNAV systems are currently in use by the U.S. Army and Marine Corps, as well as many allied customers including Australia, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Malaysia, New Zealand, Poland, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, and Turkey.
[Image courtesy KVH]
