L3Harris | Emcore is a world premier provider of guidance and control systems to the global market, and is a major supplier of high quality pointing, guidance, control and positioning equipment for satellites, artillery, and launch vehicles, serving the commercial, military and scientific markets.
Located in Budd Lake, New Jersey, L-3 Space & Navigation, formerly Bendix and AlliedSignal Corporations, is a significant force in land navigation and space programs. The division’s products include Fiber Optic Gyroscopes, Ring Laser Gyroscopes, Reaction/Momentum Wheel Assemblies, Control Moment Gyroscopes, Tactical Inertial Measurement Units, Position Navigation Units, Improved Position and Azimuth Determining Systems, Fire Control and Digital Battlefield solutions.
L-3 Space & Navigation provides the pointing and attitude control system for the Hubble Space Telescope, a system with unparalleled performance and reliability, inertial guidance for the Delta launch vehicle, Control Moment Gyroscopes for the Space Station and Gyroscope Assemblies and Reaction/Momentum Wheel Assemblies for the IRIDIUM and IKONOS Block I satellites.
Land navigation products include the Inertial Guidance System for MLRS, Multiple Launch Rocket System, HiMARS, and Tactical IMUs for Precision Strike Navigator (PSN) programs.
SPACE PROGRAMS – PRIMARY GUIDANCE PACKAGE FOR SPACE LAUNCH VEHICLES
L-3 Space & Navigation has provided Boeing with the redundant Inertial Flight Control Assembly (RIFCA Trihex™) since 1994, and will fly on all future Delta II, Delta III, and Delta IV launches.
The RIFCA Trihex™ provides the primary guidance, flight control, and mission sequencing functions for the Delta launch vehicles, guiding the rocket into precise space orbit. It has routinely achieved guidance accuracies at least three times better than mission requirements. L-3’s Trihex™ is a triple-redundant, six Ring Laser Gyroscopes and six accelerometer guidance package that, in the course of over 60 launches, has flown with 100% success and never triggered a single redundancy back up during normal flight operations.
NAVIGATION PROGRAMS – POSITION NAVIGATION UNIT (PNU)
The Position Navigation Unit is a strap-down inertial navigational system, using Ring Laser Gyroscopes and high-grade force rebalance accelerometers to determine the earth reference azimuth heading from true North, and provides navigation functions as well as elevation and roll orientation for fire control solutions.
At the heart of the PNU is the RL-34 Ring Laser Gyro (RLG). This L-3 Space & Navigation gyro is a high accuracy sensor, used in many applications. This RLG provides extremely low random walk and bias stability, both required for accurate direction determination.
PRIMARY NAVIGATION FOR MULTIPLE LAUNCH ROCKET SYSTEM (MLRS) AND HIGH MOBILITY ARTILLERY ROCKET SYSTEM (HIMARS)
L-3 Space & Navigation is a preferred supplier to the MLRS program for over two decades. The L-3 Position Navigation Unit provides the MLRS and the HiMARS with an unprecedented ability to execute true ‘shoot and scoot’ tactics, establishing a new benchmark in agility and mission effectiveness.
IMPROVED POSITION AND AZIMUTH DETERMINING SYSTEM (IPADS)
L-3 Space & Navigation’s Improved Position and Azimuth Determining System (IPADS), recently selected, provides the Army and Marine Corps surveyors with the capability to seamlessly adopt technological improvements that enhance reliability and increase crew survivability by decreasing the time needed to accomplish its missions.
The IPADS is built around the high precision accuracy of the Position Navigation Unit (PNU). Applying core competencies in guidance and navigation, software development, situational awareness and systems integration, L-3 Space & Navigation integrated its PNU with other key components to provide an order of magnitude improvement in reliability and enhanced performance and functionality over the current system.
TACTICAL WEAPONS APPLICATIONS – SILICON FIBER OPTIC ROTATION SENSOR INERTIAL MEASUREMENT UNIT (SIFORS™ IMU) AND CONVENTIONAL FOG-BASED IMUS
The SiFORS™ IMU products incorporate advanced micro-machined opto-electronic systems technology, providing superior inertial performance in a miniature, low-cost, ruggedized unit.
L-3’s family of silicon fiber IMUs also includes an adaptable FOG-based IMU and a modular IMU, and offers a number of discriminating features:
- Three axes of rate and acceleration information
- Solid-state gyros and accelerometers with no moving parts
- Miniature, lightweight, low-power and high reliability (>20,000 hour MTBF)
- High shock survivability and performance (13,000g launch shock)
- Operates off DC voltage bus
- Provides serial digital data output
L-3 Space & Navigation’s Tactical IMU products are ideal for a wide range of applications including missile and munition guidance, antenna stabilization, launch vehicle dynamics, and small satellite stabilization.
