OxTS Creates Locata + INS System

The Inertial+ by OxTS improves measurements from a GPS receiver.

OxTS has successfully integrated a Locata receiver with its Inertial+ to create the first Locata+INS device, according to both companies. The device is capable of achieving centimeter-level accuracy where GPS systems fail.

The Inertial+ series, first developed in 2008, was designed for users who had an external GNSS receiver already, but still wanted to gain the benefits of an inertial system. The company has been able to combine OxTS’ Kalman filter and expertise in GNSS/IMU integration with its existing systems, meaning the user doesn’t have to pay for survey-grade integrated receivers.

Over the years, a number of popular GNSS receivers have been integrated with the Inertial+ to keep up to date with the market and make sure customers with the latest models can take advantage of the benefits the Inertial+ brings, OxTS said. Now, the Inertial+ has expanded from GNSS receivers and become the first inertial navigation system to integrate a Locata receiver, combining the many benefits of both systems, the companies said.

Locata is an innovative positioning system designed to complement rather than replace GPS, by addressing the issues and shortfalls of GNSS. As always, the Inertial+ allows Locata users to take advantage of their existing technology while enjoying the extra layer of measurements an aided-inertial navigation system brings.

Locata enables positioning in environments where GPS is either marginal or unavailable. Instead of using signals from satellites, a network of ground-based Locata transmitters (known as a LocataNet) can be set up around any specified local area. The LocataNet transmits GPS-like signals that allow any Locata receiver in the network to accurately calculate its position and time. Unlike GPS, where signals are too weak to penetrate into buildings, Locata’s signals are very powerful — more than one million times more powerful than GPS.

Additionally, with a locally based system (rather than a global satellite system), a user gains the benefit of having total control over both the reliability and quality of positioning solutions within the LocataNet coverage area. Locata systems are being sold today in many markets where GPS is unusable or unreliable, such as inside warehouses, on dockyards, in open-pit mines, for UAVs in urban areas, and for military uses where GPS is being actively denied by an adversary.

By combining the technologies of an inertial navigation system and a local positioning system, users have access to an extremely reliable and robust navigation solution, the companies said. Locata positioning data is fused with the IMU data in the Inertial+ with OxTS’ custom Kalman filter, creating a full 3D navigation solution with precise position, orientation, heading, velocity and acceleration measurements.