APPLICATION OF STATISTICAL SMOOTHING TECHNIQUES TO INERTIAL NAVIGATION

All inertial navigation systems are excited by random error inputs such as gyro drift rates, accelerometer errors etc. These errors make the position and velocity errors of the inertial navigator grow unbounded with time if no external measurements are made. Statistical smoothing techniques provide methods of estimating these random inputs from test runs of the system. (Smoothing involves estimating the state of a system at time T using measurements made both before and after time T.) In the present report, a ships inertial navigation system is considered. It is shown that by using smoothing techniques, uncertainties in the knowledge of random error sources, particularly gyro drift rates, can be significantly reduced.

• Corporate Authors:

  Harvard University

  Division of Engineering and Applied Science, 29 Oxford Street
  Cambridge, MA  United States  02138
• Authors:
  • Mehra, R K
• Publication Date: 1968-5

Media Info

• Pagination: 31 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Gyroscopes; Inertial navigation systems; Navigation systems; Navigational aids
• Subject Areas: Marine Transportation; Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00015140
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Defense Documentation Center
• Report/Paper Numbers: TR-560 Tech Rpt
• Contract Numbers: N00014-67-A-0298, NGR-22-007-068
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: May 13 1971 12:00AM