A consortium formed of UAVaid, Archangel Imaging and Novit AI, announced the successful award of a share of £2.5m of development funding from the National Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme (NATEP) and formal start of PROJECT GENIE, a 12-month programme to develop innovative Aircraft Navigation technology for use in GPS denied or contested environments.
Project GENIE (GNSS Excluded Navigation Intelligent Enhancement) will mature and advance non-GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems – usually thought of as GPS) solutions as part of a long-term objective to enable assured location and navigation in commercial aerospace, helping to unlock the benefits and value of autonomy in civil aviation.
Today, GPS is a fundamental instrument for the aerospace industry, used by pilots of every type of aircraft to provide reliable, accurate location information for navigation purposes. Unfortunately, GPS is easy to spoof (trick) or jam (block). There is extensive evidence of GPS being deliberately or accidently spoofed or jammed, with evidence of some nations routinely spoofing GPS during conflict situations, or when moving VIPs between locations. This is overcome by pilots and air traffic control working together to mitigate risks and impact. This already results in some commercial passenger flights being impacted.
Tomorrow, as we look towards single pilot operation and future autonomous aircraft, there will not be a pilot or air traffic controller available to mitigate these risks. GENIE has been developed to step into this role. It will be able to identify when a GPS signal has been compromised and using a combination of techniques provide a location position as accurate as GPS.
Already recognised as leaders in their respective fields, the support from NATEP will enable the consortium to take a significant step towards navigation in GNSS spoofed or denied environments.
Charles Smith, CCO at Archangel Imaging said, “The need to provide assured, resilient navigation is a critical enabler for autonomy in the aerospace environment. GENIE is a core element of this, and we are very excited to be working with NATEP to help push this technology forward. We see significant commercial exploitation opportunities as a result of this project in the UAV and broader aviation markets and are thrilled to be a part of this round of NATEP funding and support”
James Ronan, technical lead at UAV aid said, Project GENIE represents technology at the very cutting-edge of innovation. By working with our consortium partners to push these boundaries, we reinforce our position at the front of unmanned aviation and support the safe and resilient development of the sector.”
Sarp Ulas, CEO at Novit.AI said “GENIE is a revolutionary steppingstone for accelerating the history towards the inevitable unmanned future in aerospace. We are delighted to be a part of NATEP, working with world-class partners of outstanding vision who are moving the frontiers for the mankind for a safer and more secure tomorrow.”
David Howells, Technology Manager at NATEP said, “We are very pleased to have the GENIE project supported by the NATEP programme. The Archangel Imaging team have a proven track record of innovation and leading a strong industry consortium, we look forward to the successful development and deployment of sector leading technology for navigation in GNSS spoofed or denied environments.”
