Flight test results of loose integration of dual airborne laser scanners (DALS)/INS

Abstract

Aircraft positioning and navigation capability much be robust to ensure continuity of operation. Such navigation information is largely provided by an inertial navigation system (INS), which is a self-contained autonomous system. INS is usually integrated with GPS measurements to improve its accuracy and a GPS/INS package is a common feature of most navigation systems. However, these systems suffer degraded performance in non-GPS environments; such as when GPS is denied due to interference or jamming, or when GPS is unavailable as in Lunar or Martian scenarios. In recent years, the challenge of navigating in non-GPS environments has generated much interest. With this same objective, we investigate the use of dual airborne laser scanners (DALS), integrated with an INS for navigation in non-GPS and unknown terrain environments. In this paper, we present a proof-of-concept demonstration of the DALS/INS autonomous navigation system with flighttest data, collected onboard Ohio Universitypsilas DC-3 aircraft over Athens, OH.