MEMS GPS/INS for Micro Air Vehicle Application

Randall Jaffe, Scott Bonomi and Asad M. Madni

Abstract:	We have developed Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) using sensors based on Micro Electrical Mechanical System (MEMS). Fuji Heavy Industrial Co, Ltd. (FHI) and Tamagawa Seiki Co, Ltd. (TSC) produced this MAV for research. FHI made the control system of MAV and modified the GPS/INS program. TSC make the foundation of the GPS/INS and sensors board, controller board. The size and weight of this MAV are 60cm length, 60cm wingspan, and 250grams weight. Because of the size and weight, equipped sensors also had to be small and lightweight. Only MEMS based sensors could correspond to the request. This MAV has GPS receiver, three MEMS accelerometers, three MEMS gyroscopes, two MEMS pressure sensors, and two MEMS Magneto-Impedance (MI) sensors. Accelerometers and Gyroscopes were used to measure three-axis accelerations and angular rates, pressure sensors were used to measure airspeed and pressure altitude, two MI sensors were used to measure geomagnetism and this is used to calculate heading angle. In this MAV, inertial calculation, servo control and data store were performed at 50Hz frequency. We used Leveling Loop to measure attitudes, velocities, and positions. In this Leveling Loop, GPS data are used as reference velocities. These velocities were used to calculate error velocities of that calculated by Inertial Navigation System (INS). And the error velocities were feed backed to correct bias of the gyroscopes. We also use GPS positions data to correct compensated positions. Errors between GPS positions data and INS positions data were feed backed to correct positions. This MAV flew automatically in about 20m errors from programmed course. FHI think some adjustments will makes these errors small. So these compact, lightweight and low power consumption MEMS INS meet the requirements of MAV.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 17th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS 2004) September 21 - 24, 2004 Long Beach Convention Center Long Beach, CA
Pages:	819 - 824
Cite this article:	Jaffe, Randall, Bonomi, Scott, Madni, Asad M., "MEMS GPS/INS for Micro Air Vehicle Application," Proceedings of the 17th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS 2004), Long Beach, CA, September 2004, pp. 819-824.
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