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Session F6: PNT for Uncrewed Systems

PNT Solutions That Enable Uncrewed Collaborative Operations
David Anderson, Michael Armatys, William Kirchner, Douglas Burch, Collins Aerospace
Location: Room 6-8
Date/Time: Tuesday, Jun. 4, 11:30 a.m.

The modern battlespace is becoming increasingly contested with the proliferation of RF threats and low-cost attritable aircraft. Meanwhile, Assured-PNT (A-PNT) that is both high-integrity and high-availability is the backbone of nearly all cooperative operational concepts. Current and emerging operational concepts require precise time transfer and precision relative position for groups of cooperative but disparate uncrewed and crewed platforms (maritime, ground, airborne). To that end, precise time transfer across the networked battlespace and intra platform time distribution can enable direct acquisition of space based encrypted RF PNT signals as well more sophisticated cooperative PNT and relative navigation concepts.
Collins has made significant progress in developing systems that achieve both high-integrity and high-availability (i.e. advantaged nodes) in SWAPC appropriate form factors for mounted surface platforms in addition to PNT equipment that is suitable for SWAPC constrained platforms such as group 2-4 UAS and uncrewed maritime vehicles. These products along with tactical datalinks that can securely transfer time (and range) across the battlefield, provide a foundational capability for many of the emerging operational concepts meant to address an increasingly contested RF environment.
Collins will present the results from both ground and airborne tests that show nanosecond level time transfer over the air using tactical datalinks, and intra platform time distribution between these data links and Collins Navhub-100 and Collins Athena GS111R. Collins Navhub-100 can provide a high-availability high-integrity PNT solution for advantaged nodes, while Collins Athena GS111R is a SWAPC appropriate PNT solution for small UAS (group 2-4). These systems are mature, high TRL offerings that can fuse the following measurements into an optimal estimate of both absolute and relative position: Two Way Time and Range Measurements (TWTR), high availability high integrity military AJAS GPS (including RTK GPS), LEO PNT measurements, precision clocks, air data and vehicle odometry constraints. These PNT systems are also built on a common set of hardware and software that can provide superior performance in SWAPC appropriate solutions for a variety of unmanned systems (surface and air). Collins will also discuss how its sensor fusion algorithms; time transfer technologies and product offerings are being used to solve emerging operational challenges related to PNT.
Collins Navhub-100 is offered under the Army MAPS Gen 2 program of record. The MAPS Gen 2 program of record is currently in an LRIP phase where the team is working towards successful completion of IOTE and a transition to full rate production. The Athena GS111R is a mature UAS PNT solution (TRL8+) for SWAPC constrained uncrewed platforms. The over-the-air time transfer results that will be presented are a combination over the air test results collected at Collins facilities in Cedar Rapids, Iowa as well as during the Army’s PNT Assessment eXperiment (PNTAX) event.

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