Simplified Survey System User Trial

G. S. Graham, P. K. Couch and K.R. Peake

Abstract:	Artillery surveying has a long history; from line of sight, which required little in the way of precise positioning, to 19th Century advanced artillery technology, which resulted in ever increasing ranges and improved accuracy. By the 20th Century artillery performance had improved to the point that survey accuracy was a major contributor to overall system accuracy. Today, missiles routinely are used either in place of, or as a compliment to traditional artillery; examples being the multiple US Army systems comprising the Air Defense Artillery (ADA) and Field Artillery missions. These missiles are of such a range and accuracy to necessitate a precise initial survey. In the case of ADA (e.g. PATRIOT), initial survey accuracy is critical to fire missions for precise receipt and hand off of targeting information to other ADA systems and sensors. The Simplified Survey System (S3), AN/PSN-14, is the newest component of the PATRIOT ADA System, as seen in Fig. 1. With so many of today’s military systems relying on the Global Positioning System (GPS), S3 is a purely inertial device designed to function under intentional, hostile denial of GPS service. The overall system weighs 46 pounds and has no unique vehicle installation requirements. With the exception of the backup battery, the S3 needs no maintenance or periodic calibration therefore recurring costs have been substantially reduced. Fig. 1 Simplified Survey System (S3) The S3 is currently in production with fielding and training scheduled for completion by the fall of 2006. A User Trial was conducted along the Texas / New Mexico border area the week of October 25th 2005 by ADA Soldiers who are qualified as PATRIOT Operators and Maintainers. The S3 was tested over a road course that covered approximately 350 kilometers (218 miles) including an elevation change of approximately 1525 meters (5000 feet). Laboratory testing was conducted by the Navigation and Control Technology group of RDECOM’s Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center (AMRDEC). This paper will discuss the S3 performance from the user trial and significant findings from laboratory testing.
Published in:	Proceedings of IEEE/ION PLANS 2006 April 25 - 27, 2006 Loews Coronado Resort Hotel San Diego, CA
Pages:	814 - 817
Cite this article:	Graham, G. S., Couch, P. K., Peake, K.R., "Simplified Survey System User Trial," Proceedings of IEEE/ION PLANS 2006, San Diego, CA, April 2006, pp. 814-817. https://doi.org/10.1109/PLANS.2006.1650678
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