LITTON AERO Products and Airbus Industrie are flight- testing a computer program which can detect and automatically compensate for errors, outages or coverage gaps in data from navigation satellites.
The program, called Autonomous Integrity Monitored Extrapolation (AIME), is written into the operating software of Litton's Flagship navigation system. This combines inertial navigation with data from global- positioning-system (GPS) satellites. AIME constantly monitors and analyses available satellite signals and integrates the information with the platform's inertial data. When a GPS signal error or outage is detected, or a gap in coverage opens up, the inertial system maintains navigational accuracy.
Litton says that AIME is immune to terrorist interference with GPS signals, and can withstand localised jamming with no loss of primary-navigation accuracy. Flight trials on an A340, are expected to be completed by the third quarter of 1995 and European Joint Aviation Authority certification as primary means of navigation, is likely by the end of the year, says Litton.
Honeywell Military Avionics and FFV Aerotech of Sweden have been selected to supply the H-764G inertial-navigation system/GPS for the Saab FSR-890 military airborne-surveillance aircraft.
Source: Flight International