Background:
Reliable navigation during GNSS disruptions is of paramount importance in an era where the use of unmanned aerial vehicles,specifically Loitering Munitions designed for one-way missions, continues to grow. infiniDome’s innovative GNSS protection system has been seamlessly integrated into printed aerospace drones. The Size, Weight, Power and Cost (SWaP-C) of GPSdome was vital for this
kind of need.
The challenge:
Operating drones in conflict areas requires protection of the vehicle’s navigation system.
UAVs and drones deployed on One-Way Missions (OWM) in conflict areas, cannot afford to incorporate expensive solutions. They need to be as low-cost and lightweight as possible to minimize the impact on their payload capacity.
The Solution:
We conducted a joint integration with the customer in advance of rigorous field trials in Poland. The testing involved two drones: one equipped with the GPSdome 1.03 system and the other vulnerable with no GNSS protection., Both used the same GNSS receiver and navigated through the same jamming area.
The Position Loader is easy to deploy before take-off, and easy to pack and store within the belly of the helicopter, requiring the simplest technical procedures.
As part of the development process, we designed a dedicated flight test unit for the technical team.
The Results:
The field test in Poland was critical in demonstrating the effectiveness of GPSdome in real flight conditions.
Launched simultaneously into a GNSS jamming area, the two drones provided a stark contrast in operational capability. The GPSdome-equipped UAV navigated the disruption area without significant performance degradation, however the UAV without GPSdome protection lost all SAT signals and auto-landed immediately at the first indication of jamming. The GPSdome ensures better navigation abilities for loitering Munitions even in the most hostile environments.
