Carnegie Robotics, an advanced robotics systems and sensors company, has acquired Swift Navigation’s Duro product line. The acquisition expands Carnegie Robotics’ IP portfolio of smart machinery across industries such as rail, intermodal, agriculture, construction, mining, marine, and more.
Launched in 2017 through a collaboration between Swift Navigation and Carnegie Robotics, the Duro product line features high-precision GNSS receivers and software designed to deliver reliable centimeter-accurate positioning in challenging environments. Since the launch, Carnegie Robotics and Swift Navigation have worked together to respond to users’ needs.
The acquisition also supports Swift Navigation’s shift to a software-only service model with hardware integrations. Duro integrates with Swift’s Skylark Precise Positioning Service, a cloud-based GNSS corrections service designed to provide high-accuracy positioning for various applications.
Swift Navigation’s Samir Kapoor, Ph.D., gives quick hits on its Skylark cloud-based GNSS correction service and Duro Inertial ruggedized RTK GNSS receiver at Intergeo 2018 in Frankfurt, Germany. Duro Intertial combines the receiver with Carnegie Robotics’ SmoothPose sensor fusion algorithm.
Duro Inertial is a ruggedized version of Swift Navigation’s Piksi Multi dual-frequency real-time kinematic (RTK) GNSS receiver combined with CRL’s SmoothPose sensor fusion algorithm, which fuses GNSS and inertial measurements into a combined solution.
The blending of GNSS and inertial measurements provides a dead-reckoning capability that allows Duro Inertial to provide a highly accurate, continuous position solution during brief GNSS outages and to deliver a robust precision navigation solution in harsh GNSS environments.
Duro Inertial is an evolution of Swift and CRL’s first joint product, Duro. Building on the on-board MEMS inertial measurement unit (IMU) that exists in Duro today, Duro Inertial harnesses CRL’s loosely coupled (LC) sensor fusion algorithm, SmoothPose, to blend GNSS and inertial inputs, providing a smoother, more available and more robust position, velocity and time (PVT) solution, the companies said.
Duro Inertial seamlessly blends CRL’s SmoothPose GNSS+INS algorithms with Swift Navigation’s Starling Positioning Engine to deliver a highly-accurate LC positioning solution even in GNSS / RTK denied environments.
The inertial aiding feature can operate with RTK, autonomous GNSS and satellite-based augmentation system (SBAS) position solutions from Starling. Duro Inertial also inherits the full set of features from Duro and Piksi Multi including the light-weight SBP communication protocol, interoperability with legacy protocols such as NMEA output and RTCMv3 input, compatibility with RTK corrections services such as Skylark, Swift’s Cloud Correction Service and many third-party corrections services, and quad-constellation dual-frequency RTK navigation.
The combination of Duro Inertial’s positioning accuracy and its ruggedized enclosure that protects against weather, moisture, vibration, dust and water immersion makes it suitable for construction, mining, logistics, positive train control, robotics and agriculture applications.
“We are excited to introduce our second collaboration with Carnegie Robotics and build on the success of the Duro ruggedized receiver launched last year,” said Timothy Harris, co-founder and CEO of Swift Navigation. “The combination of Carnegie Robotics’ advanced inertial technology and robotics expertise with Swift’s positioning solution will enable an even broader customer segment to benefit from highly-accurate positioning.”
“Duro Inertial is the culmination of our partnership with Swift over the past two years,” added John Bares, CEO of Carnegie Robotics. “Working together we are able to deliver a consistent and highly-accurate positioning solution to benefit a variety of robotics and industrial applications.”
Duro Inertial is scheduled to be available at for purchase in the fourth quarter and is now available for select customer testing.
Built for outdoor operations, Duro combines a rugged enclosure with centimeter-accurate positioning. Leveraging design principles typically used in military hardware, the GNSS sensor is protected against weather, moisture, vibration, dust, water immersion and unexpected circumstances that can occur in outdoor long-term deployments. In addition to its ruggedness, Duro is ready to connect right out of the box. Primary industries for this product include: robotics, precision agriculture, mapping, military, outdoor industrial and maritime.
Photo: Swift NavigationDuro incorporates:
Dual-frequency RTK GNSS
Tough, military-grade hardware
IP67 rating
Weatherproof external enclosure design with M12 standard-sealed connectors
On-board MEMS IMU and magnetometer
Future-proof hardware with in-field software upgrades
Protected IO, including RS232 Serial Ports, 100mbit Ethernet, Event Inputs, PPS, PV, CANBus
Swift Navigation is teaming up with Carnegie Robotics LLC to develop a line of navigation products for autonomous vehicles, outdoor robotics and machine control. The first navigation product will be announced May 8 at the AUVSI XPONENTIAL event in Dallas, Texas.
Swift Navigation is a San Francisco-based startup building centimeter-accurate GPS technology for autonomous vehicles, and Carnegie Robotics LLC (CRL), the industry leader in reliable robotic components and systems.
Swift Navigation solutions use real-time kinematics (RTK) technology, providing location solutions that are 100 times more accurate than traditional GPS. In 2016, Swift shipped the Piksi Multi, a multi-band, multi-constellation high-precision GNSS receiver, suitable for autonomous vehicles.
The Piksi Multi.
The Piksi Multi offers advanced precision GNSS capabilities for the mass market. The robotics market, through this partnership with Carnegie Robotics, stands to benefit from Piksi Multi’s improved localization and control, the companies said.
Carnegie Robotics supplies rugged, reliable robotic systems for real-world work. The team at Carnegie Robotics has decades of experience successfully transitioning state-of-the-art technologies from early design into commercial use in precision agriculture, machine control, autonomous vehicles and industrial and military robots. This process requires both a deep knowledge of robotics and best-in-class engineering, but it cannot succeed without also addressing the business case, the needs of the end-user, reliability, maintenance, safety, certifications and the dozens of other essential factors necessary for a product to succeed in the real world.
“Swift’s technology is perfectly suited for the world of robotics, and we couldn’t do better than working with the renowned industry leaders at Carnegie Robotics,” said Timothy Harris, CEO of Swift Navigation. “From their robotics technology expertise to their inertial intellectual property, Carnegie is an ideal partner for Swift. We are looking forward to developing an exciting line of products and making more joint announcements in the near future.”
“Thanks to its focus on high-accuracy and low-cost, Swift Navigation has established itself as a leader and innovator in the world of high-precision GNSS,” said Steve DiAntonio, CEO of Carnegie Robotics. “Swift is an ideal partner to work with us on rapid development of robots and autonomous systems. We’re designing our joint line of products specifically for outdoor robots and autonomous vehicles with the appropriate physical, electrical and software interfaces to enable rapid deployment of precision GNSS and other mission-critical sensors.”
More information about the partnership and the unveiling of this duo’s first joint product will take place at AUVSI XPONENTIAL. Visit the joint Swift Navigation and Carnegie Robotics booth #506 at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.
Built for outdoor operations, Duro combines a rugged enclosure with centimeter-accurate positioning. Leveraging design principles typically used in military hardware, the GNSS sensor is protected against weather, moisture, vibration, dust, water immersion and unexpected circumstances that can occur in outdoor long-term deployments. In addition to its ruggedness, Duro is ready to connect right out of the box. Primary industries for this product include: robotics, precision agriculture, mapping, military, outdoor industrial and maritime.